Luffy groaned as he flopped around. He was so bored. He glanced down at the handcuff keeping him in the hospital bed. He tugged on it for the millionth time. He hated this place. It smelt like antiseptic and drywall. How did all the government employees manage it?

He flopped back with a huff. He was hungry and bored! His least favorite combination of emotions.

A loud explosion from outside made him sit up anxiously. Was something happening? It sounded like he was missing something fun. Then again anything would be better than his current situation. For a few minutes it was silent, not so much as a shout from outside. He was starting to think it was just an accident. But before he could lose hope a loud alarm began to blare, sounding out across the entire base. It probably went throughout the town as well.

"This is not a drill, defensive position," the robot voice projected, struggling to compete with the blaring alarm.

Luffy's face broke into a wide grin as he leaned forward, as far as the handcuffs would let him. They did it. They really had come back for him! Just like he promised.

He hadn't meant to doubt them. But after being separated for so long he couldn't help but worry that they honestly weren't coming back. Maybe they decided they didn't like him anymore. Or he had changed too much for them to still consider him family. But it was all for nothing. They still wanted him.

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Sabo covered his ears as the explosion sounded. Louder than intended but it would get the message across.

"That should do it," he told Ace dryly.

His brother was grinning from ear to ear watching the explosion like a proud father.

Sabo had been unsurprised to learn that Ace was the pyro-techniques expert of the White Beard group. Ever since he was a kid he was instinctually drawn to flames. What had taken Sabo by surprise was the amount of complicated chemistry equations that went into it and how willingly Ace did them.

"Do we need another one?" He asked innocently.

"Yea!" Zoro said, grinning as he watched the area burn. Surprisingly enough he had been very keen on helping Ace rig up the explosions.

"NO!" Sabo yelled as both Marco and Thatch wrestled to get the trigger away from him. "I think one was plenty." He didn't even want to ask how many Ace had rigged up around the base.

The freckled teen pouted but handed the controller over to his friends. "What do we do now?"

"We regroup and wait for them to make a move." Sabo said, ignoring his pout at the word 'wait.' "They will probably try to protect the town." But little did they know the town was already evacuated. It had been easy enough to gain the peoples support since they got the major gangs to fight with them. Apparently none of the residence were as patriotic as they initially appeared. It was to be expected when they were forced to live in such a matriarchal place.

"What about a surprise kamikaze attack?" Zoro asked unsheathing his sword, "They'll never see it coming."

"Yes!" Ace said raising his fists.

"NO!" Sabo and Marco both cried in unison. "They will most definitely see it coming! Their expecting it. If we want to win we need to be smarter, have the element of surprise."

He was honestly beginning to see why Luffy was so fond of Zoro. He was startlingly similar to Ace in many ways. Which was a nice thought any other time then now, when both were practically begging Sabo to let them go on a suicide mission.

"The goal is for all of us to survive! So no suicide mission!"

He turned around as Koala approached them, still holding her ears in pain from the explosion. "Good job." She said, not sounding entirely convincing. "Boss says you guys stay here and wait for the signal, you're going to attack from the left. Sound good?"

Ace caught Sabo's eye as the blond coughed awkwardly. "Yea, we're not going to do that."

She frowned turning to look at him, "What! Why not?"

"We've got to go… do something," Ace cut in.

Marco and Thatch gave Ace an incredulous expression, "Are you serious?"

"You'll be fine," he promised them as he grabbed his brother's arm.

"Sabo you can't bail out five minutes before the battle starts!" Koala told him, sounding more exasperated then annoyed.

"We'll be right back." He promised her as the two of them began to run towards the military base.

Zoro just laughed, earning him three angry looks.

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A few feet away stood a terrified Ussop, literally shaking in his boots.

"Guys, I think I just caught a cold, I don't think I can fight anymore. But don't worry about me, you guys brave onwards."

Nami frowned as she pulled his cheek, "you'll be fine. And we've done worse than this and lived."

"Besides it's for Luffy," Chopper told him.

"No," Ussop shook his head. "I don't think I'm going to make it. This cold is really bad. Just remember me fondly."

"Be a man," Sanji told him. "Suck it up."

"It's okay, we'll be fine." Brook laughed from besides him. "Unless they shoot me in the eyes of course. Hohoho I don't have eyes." He chortled at his own joke, finding himself startlingly funny as always. But with Luffy gone he was the only one who did.

"Yes you do idiot! You absolutely have eyes." Ussop yelled. He would never understand Brook's desire to be a skeleton.

"That's too bad," The man told him sadly.

Ignoring the crazy one beside him Franky handed Ussop a strange looking box. "Here you go Bro, just set this down in front of you and…."

"NO!" Nami shouted snatching the box quickly away from him. "We are not all going to kill ourselves because another one of your inventions Franky, try it out yourself if you want to!"

"Besides," Sanji cut in, "If any of you get scared you can hold my hand."

"Really?" Ussop asked, holding his hand out to the man.

"No! I mean the girls moron." Sanji yelled kicking him in the head.

"Do you need to hold my hand Robin?"

The dark haired girl laughed in her typical fashion. "I will be fine Sanji. Thank you for the offer."

They all looked up as the distraction group returned, a few members short. Zoro broke away to join them.

"Oh good, looks who's back." Sanji said sarcastically.

"Shut up," Zoro told him raising his swords. "If you're so eager to die early I would be happy to help."

Marco watched them transfixed as he made his way to White Beard. They were an odd group to be sure.

"So…Ace is gone," he told him, "Said he will be back."

The old man only laughed. "What can you do it's Ace?"

Marco frowned crossing his arms over his chest annoyed, "Don't encourage him so much."