Proofread by The Patient One.

Chapter 25. Dead or Alive

The hatch above fell closed, plunging the room into the half-darkness, but not before Sanji laid his eyes on Luffy's back, the latter caught off-guard and not moving fast enough to pull his new dry shirt over it.

The lit cigarette hit the floor, throwing glowing specks of cinder in a small circle around it.

"That's…" Sanji spoke breathlessly. "That's a slave brand."

Luffy's guard instantly went up, his expression going flat with practiced blankness. A sudden flare of fear in his dark eyes was forcefully suppressed and replaced by deadly sharpness with an underlying caution. His body shifted ever so slightly, muscles tense and ready, conveying intense mistrust, wariness, and apprehension without even saying a word.

Sanji, for his part, didn't notice yet; his mind was still struggling to fully comprehend what he had just stated aloud.

Luffy's voice, low and as cold as ice, sliced through the suffocating silence: "How do you know?"

It finally jolted the cook out of his dazed stupor. Two pirates stared at each other, anticipation dancing in the air. There was something dangerous and chilling in the rubber teen's stance that whispered to Sanji's instincts. But the boy wasn't preparing to attack him, he realized. Luffy was ready to defend himself.

That epiphany hit Sanji like a punch to his gut.

Luffy was ready to defend himself from him. From his own crewmate, the person he himself invited to join him on his travels, his nakama, and all because he saw the—

Sanji made a few unsteady steps backward and sat down on the couch.

All because he saw the Hoof of the Soaring Dragon burned into his flesh, the symbol that should forever mark someone as 'less than human.'

No wonder his captain was feeling defensive. Who wouldn't? In the eyes of the world's majority, humans like him were technically the property of the World Nobles, regardless of how disgusting that sounded. The instilled fear and the consequences of going against such people often outweighed the person's humanity and conscience.

Luffy expected to be betrayed.

"Zeff," the blond finally croaked out. "The geezer told me about it." He rummaged through his pockets, searching for his cigarettes. "A few years ago he got drunk and told me a story about how he met a woman during his journey through the Grand Line. She was one of…" he trailed off, pushing a cigarette between his lips. "He said that those people dismissed her after disfiguring her face." The damn lighter refused to work. "Eventually, she took her own life."

A heavy silence sank down on them, disturbed only by Sanji's vain attempts to ignite his lighter.

Click. Click. Click.

Luffy said nothing, simply watching, searching, judging, though Sanji was falling back into his own thoughts.

Zeff rarely drank and even more rarely got drunk, but when he did, he always had a loose tongue. The blond was curious at that time, so he asked to tell him more. If those monsters could do such awful things to women, he couldn't even imagine what they did to men or… kids.

Sanji stumbled over the last thought, and words slipped out without his consent: "For how long?"

The boy shifted again, lips twitching down in a small frown. "Four years," he replied reluctantly. "That's what my brother said."

That's what his brother said. Sanji clenched his teeth. It must have been so horrible that Luffy himself lost the feeling of time. He was seventeen now. Four years. Even if he had been freed recently, it meant that he was just a kid during his enslavement.

The cook himself spent several months in a similar situation, and it was enough to leave deep scars for the rest of his life; he could only begin to imagine how deep four years' worth of scars ran.

Click. Click. Click.

So many things suddenly made sense. Luffy's nightmares, his weird eating habits, his terrifying fury against Arlong, the whole hassle in the clinic over his shirt, his extreme dislike to be touched—

Here, Sanji's mind sputtered to an abrupt halt, fingers freezing on the ignition mechanism.

Sexual slavery… Wouldn't his dislike of touch imply that he was used for this particular purpose? It was possible. Luffy was a kid, and there was no doubt that sick psychos who liked that sort of thing existed among those Celestial bastards.

Sanji felt his stomach churn just from thinking about it. He tried to light his cigarette again, hands trembling, but the lighter was still stubbornly not working.

Click. Click. Click.

"Dammit."

"Sanji?"

The cook glanced up. Luffy was staring at him, his head slightly cocked to the side in the way he did when he was confused by something. He seemed more relaxed now, not entirely at ease yet, but at least not like he was cornered without a way out and ready to fight to the death for his freedom.

"Do I need to chain you up and force feed you?"

Click. Click. Cli—whoosh.

The fire finally flicked to life, and Sanji took a long and much-needed drag, filling his lungs with smoke. He had a nagging feeling that it wasn't just a chain comment that triggered his captain. Force feeding. Why would they force him to eat? Did he try to starve himself to death? Would those people care if he did?

Suddenly, Sanji recalled the celebration on Nami's home island and how Luffy chose only those dishes which had already been tasted by someone else. It baffled him back then, so he noted it down, but decided to ponder on it at a later date. Now, his blue eyes widened at the realization of the significance of that particular observation.

"Did they do something to your food?"

Luffy went rigid. The silence stretched on, and after some time, Sanji started to think that he wouldn't be getting a reply at all this time.

Then Luffy finally spoke. "They used drugs to make me—that made me—" Luffy never finished, instead pulled his straw hat down. Adding that to the dimness of the room, he successfully hid his expression from the prying eyes, but his soft voice betrayed the magnitude of pain and torment buried deep inside his soul. The boy sounded vulnerable and wounded—utterly broken.

Sanji's heart gave a guilty lurch. Drugs. Of course, it was drugs. Very colorful strings of curse words flashed one after another in his head. Simultaneously, he ran through the list of ingredients that he wouldn't be using in his cooking or using very sparingly from now on.

There was also a problem with Luffy's refusal to eat properly while on the ship. He would have to create a special diet for him, full of food and products that were packed with nutrients and vitamins, to increase his energy levels and maintain his alertness and focus throughout the day.

The boy's inability to sleep soundly also had to be taken into consideration. Maybe something to help him relax? But Sanji would have to inform the teen first that it could make him drowsy to avoid any misunderstandings.

The blond ruffled his own hair in sudden frustration. Luffy wasn't even a girl! But he accepted this brat as his captain, and he'd be damned if he let his captain just to fade away due to some scum of the earth and his twisted idea of entertainment. This rubber-brained idiot would never manage to reach his dream without someone going out of their way to properly look after him.

If Sanji still held any misgivings about joining this crew, they were completely erased now.

Luffy flinched when the man abruptly stood up. It was only a slight flinch, almost imperceptible, but the cook noticed. Right, the trust between them was shot to hell at the current moment.

"Listen up, Luffy," Sanji started, stuffing his hands into his pockets to appear less threatening. "When one of my crewmates starves in front of my eyes, it means I'm not doing my job as the cook of this crew. Of course, I can't force you to eat if you don't want to. That said, from tomorrow onwards you'll be on a special diet to deal with your high energy demand. And I don't want to hear anything against it, got it, you shitty captain?"

Luffy stared at him, looking completely surprised and thoroughly baffled. "Okay…?"

Satisfied, Sanji nodded. "Now, I'll have to excuse myself." He turned to leave. "Our lovely Nami-san is waiting for her after-dinner dessert!" Despite his declaration that it was for the only female member of the crew, his mind was preoccupied going through his various recipes, searching for something easy to digest but loaded with proteins. He also needed to check available supplies and decide on the diet for Luffy.

Sanji put his foot on the first step of the ladder leading out when Luffy's question stopped him.

"Are you going to tell the others about… it?"

The blond faced his captain and smirked. "I thought that the past doesn't matter on this ship."

Luffy returned his smile. It was just a ghost of his usual sunny grins, but at least it was a smile, and a genuine one to boot. "That's right," he said as he walked closer, brushing his fingertips along the brim of his straw hat. Then he took it off and put it on his cook's head. "Thanks, Sanji."

The blond was startled; he heard just how much this hat meant for the captain, to the point where no one was allowed to touch it unless the owner himself permitted it. His lips stretched into a bright grin. "I'll try to keep it away from the fire," he joked, proceeding to climb up.

"You better!"

Sanji chuckled at the fuming shout from below. He pushed the hatch open, jumped on the deck, and instantly felt three pairs of eyes zeroed on him. There was no need to tell them that everything got sorted out because they could clearly see the straw hat sitting on his head and immediately understand the importance of it. So, the blond strolled into the galley without a word.

Usopp and Nami heaved a deep sigh of relief in unison, finally able to be at ease. After watching the cook until he disappeared inside, Zoro huffed and closed his eyes, preparing for another nap.

When Luffy climbed back to the deck sometime later, nothing seemed out of place. He welcomed this feeling of normalcy.

Zoro was peacefully lounging near the bow of the ship, his arms behind his head, legs crossed, and his sword resting at his side.

Usopp had his workbench settled nearby, deciding to do some work while basking on the deck. Now he was busy concocting a new type of projectile with the utmost precaution.

Nami was reclining in a deckchair under the umbrella, a rolled up newspaper at her side that she just bought and planned to read.

Sanji burst out of the galley, carrying a tray with four drinks. Seeing Luffy together with the rest of the crew, he smiled and approached him. "Your hat," he said as he took the straw hat and returned it to its rightful place on the future Pirate King's head. Next, he picked up the only glass with a green liquid and offered it to the younger teen. "And a special drink."

"Eh? But—"

"None of that," the cook reprimanded. "I want to see you finish all of it. It's good for you."

Nami and Usopp blinked at the blond's surprisingly caring attitude towards their captain. Even Zoro peeked at the scene with one eye, curious at the sudden change in handling Luffy. Sanji's behavior still came out as pushy, but something in it felt instinctively different.

"Super special dessert for you, Nami-swan!" Sanji exclaimed, skipping towards the navigator and leaving pouting Luffy behind. He gave her the only red drink. "Made with my infallible love just for you~!"

"Yeah, yeah." Nami took her glass, not in the slightest fazed by the cook's lovey-dovey disposition. "Thank you, Sanji-kun."

"You're welcome," the man chirped happily. Then he turned to the remaining males, all the care and affection melting away from his face into a disinterested expression, and put the tray with two yellow drinks left down. "And these very common drinks are for you two."

"Oi! Why is the service so obviously different?!" Usopp complained.

Zoro leaned forward to take his drink without any comment.

Nami picked up a newspaper with her free hand and shook it open. That's when two sheets of paper fell out from between its pages and floated down to the deck. It caught everyone's attention.

"Ah…"

"Aghh!"

"Aaah!"

"Huh?"

"Oh?"

-Conomi Islands, Cocoyashi Village-

"Nojiko! Nojikoooo!"

Nojiko straightened up from where she had just planted a young mikan tree, wiped sweat from her brow, and turned towards the yelling, scowling. "Why are you yelling, Gen-san?" she asked when a man approached her and stopped with his hands on his knees to catch his breath. "What's got you so worked up?"

"Have you read today's newspaper?"

"Hm? Not yet," Nojiko replied, glancing back at the row of newly planted saplings. "It's a good day for transplanting the trees, so I've been busy from early morning." She looked back and raised an eyebrow at Genzo's obvious distress. "Anything I should know?"

"Yeah!" the man exploded, pushing two flyers into her hands. "Just look at this!"

"Oh? That's impressive," Nojiko noted without a shred of surprise as she saw the first bounty poster of Luffy who was grinning brightly like there was no tomorrow. Then she pulled the second one from behind it and suddenly laughed. "What a cute photo!"

Genzo was appalled by her reaction. "That's not what's important! I'm pretty sure they made a mistake!"

With a wide grin stuck on her face, the woman stared at Nami's bounty poster. Her sister managed to pose in such angle that neither her bandaged shoulder nor a bruise on her face was visible, creating a perfect mix of seductive and mysterious.

"We should call the Navy HQ and demand to take it down!"

Nojiko ignored the old man's rant, scrutinizing both photos. It seemed that they were taken during the party. Sneaky Marines. "I doubt Nami had planned this," she said quietly before sniggering again in amusement. "I'd love to see her reaction."

"This is not something to laugh about!"

"Relax, Gen-san, Nami's a big girl. She can deal with this." Nojiko shoved Luffy's bounty poster to the old man's chest, eliciting an indignant huff. "Besides this guy can and will protect her."

"You seem to put a lot of faith in that boy…" Genzo griped.

Nojiko hummed in assent and smirked. "Just one of those unexplained hunches, you know?"

The man sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Yeah. Yeah, I do."

-an undisclosed island, the Revolutionary Army's main base in the East Blue-

"Hey, what are you looking at?" a brown-haired man asked as he sat down at the communication table next to his friend.

"New bounties, issued just this morning," the other revolutionary replied, pushing two sheets across the table for him to see.

The man whistled in appreciation. "The thief girl is hot, and the boy's amount is nothing to scoff at. Why such a high reward for a harmless looking kid?"

Another man shrugged, indifferent. "Those Marines piss their pants way too easily," he laughed. "Anyway, what did Betty-san say about why those two came to our base?"

"She doesn't know either."

"Huh? Seriously?"

The brown-haired man nodded. "It's strange, right?" he mumbled, deep in his thoughts. "Why would the Boss and—eek!" he gasped in surprise when an arm suddenly came into his sight, reaching for the table over his shoulder.

Both men looked at the owner of that arm, and their eyes almost jumped out of their sockets upon seeing who it was. "D-D-Dragon-san?!" both revolutionaries exclaimed in alarm.

Dragon picked the boy's bounty poster they were looking at a minute prior and a feral grin stretched across his face. "I'll take this," he said, already spinning on his heel to leave.

"S-Sure…" one of the men stammered out as they watched him exit the room. He shared a baffled glance with his friend who whispered to him, "Why is Boss interested in that kid?"

"No idea."

Meanwhile, Dragon kept his steady stride along the corridor while staring at the wanted poster. The longer he gazed at that happily carefree smile in the photo, the more his own grin seemed to get wider. "So, you've finally started your journey, Luffy. I'll make sure to see you off," he uttered to himself, then pulled his eyes from the paper and cast his gaze around. "Now, where did that brat ran off to?"

-on the Going Merry-

The pirates kept gawking at the two wanted posters. Then…

"AAAAAHHH!" Luffy, Nami, and Usopp screamed together. One scream of excitement and two screams of terror.

"Wanted dead or alive 'Straw Hat' Monkey D. Luffy for 37 million beli," Zoro read loudly before smirking. "Not bad, Captain."

Sanji did the same with the second poster. "Wanted dead or alive 'Cat Burglar' Nami for 1 million beli! Aaah, wonderful as ever, Nami-san~!"

"Finally!" Luffy whooped in delight, fist pumping the air. "Take that, Ace! It's higher than your first one! Hahahaha!"

The navigator, on the other hand, felt no joy whatsoever. She picked her bounty poster with trembling hands. "Why… Why did they put a bounty on my head too?!" she cried out in disbelief. "Is it because I threatened that ugly rat? But he deserved that! Argh, I'm finished! This is so unfair!"

"Don't worry, Nami-san! This knight of love will protect you with his life!"

The girl didn't seem to hear the self-proclaimed knight. Still looking at the paper, she mumbled, "At least the photo turned out pretty nice…"

"To think that there is something so beautiful in this world!"

"The only thing unfair here is that the Great Me didn't get a bounty this time! But soon the world will know the true might of the Great Capt—ah, I mean… the Great King of the Snipers Usopp! Mwahahah!" the long-nosed teen puffed his chest and cackled like a madman.

Nami scoffed, flicking the strand of hair out of her face, obviously annoyed now. "Well, it is unfair! I hate this! But..." She glared at the poster. "If they have to put a price on my head they can at least do better!" Her tone changed to one of anger as she shook the sheet in front of Usopp's nose. "Just look at that pitiable reward! Am I worth only one measly million?!"

"You're worth ten million! No, a hundred million! No, no, a billion!" Sanji proclaimed.

"You're such a tool…" Zoro snorted.

The sniper was speechless. "At least you got a bounty! Be happy about that!"

"How can I be happy?! You don't understand the gravity of the situation," Nami declared. "This means our lives will be in constant danger! We can't afford to wait around in the East Blue any longer."

"That's right," Luffy agreed with a huge grin. "We're going straight to the Grand Line!"

"Aye, aye!" Sanji and Usopp cheered. They hooked arms over each other's shoulder and proceeded to do a little jig, chanting 'Grand Line!' all the while.

Nami let out a long-suffering sigh.

Zoro seemed to think about something before a smudge at the horizon drew his attention. "Oi! I see an island up ahead."

Luffy instantly perked up at that, pulling himself up on Merry's figurehead.

"That island is the proof that we're close to the Grand Line," Nami started. "The famous town there, Loguetown, is the birthplace of the Pirate King Roger, as well as his execution spot. That's why it's called the town of the beginning and the end."

"The place where the Pirate King died…" the straw-hatted boy muttered, his eyes locked on the island in the distance.

The navigator smirked. "Shall we go?"

"Yeah. I want to see it." After a moment, Luffy glanced down at his bounty poster which he picked up earlier, focusing on one particular word. The word 'Dead' in the "dead or alive."

The fact that that one word was printed on it meant that those people hadn't taken notice yet. Maybe they never would. But the possibility of that happening couldn't be overlooked. That person might be gone now, but his brother was still around. If he would take notice…

Luffy shot a quick glance over his shoulder at his oblivious nakama and the paper crumpled in his tightened grip. It was selfish of him to put them all in danger like that, but he had no real choice. He could only hope that they would understand and forgive him.

He had to be ready. And he needed to prepare his crew too. Make them stronger so they could protect themselves in case he'd failed to do so.

Zeff said that everyone could use the mystery power—Haki, as he called it—and it was a great boost to strength. The teen didn't quite recall how he learned it, it just happened over time, and wondered how one should go about teaching it.

Going Merry drew closer and closer to the new island.

Well, eventually he'd figure it out, Luffy concluded in the end.

-somewhere at the very beginning of the Grand Line on the Polar Tang-

"Aw, man," Shachi groaned, pushing the appropriate amount of beli into the News Coo's bag. "When are you gonna stop raising your prices?"

"Caww…" the bird squeaked in apology.

The pirate sighed dejectedly, shooing the seagull away. Then he noticed something sticking out from between the newspaper's pages. "Hm? What's this?" he wondered, tugging it out. Upon seeing the bounty poster of a familiar boy, his eyes widened. "Captain!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, rushing across the Polar Tang's deck to the spot where the captain of the Heart Pirates was sunbathing, leaning against the sleeping Bepo. "Captain!"

"What's the ruckus?"

"What's up, Shachi?"

One after another, pirates popped onto the deck, lured by their crewmate's screams.

Law cracked open one eye to look at his nakama, and his curiosity piqued at the undeniable excitement etched into his features. "What is it?"

"Look at this, Captain!" Shachi passed him the newly dubbed Straw Hat's wanted poster.

Law's lips curved into a smirk, sharp and fierce and with a touch of glee. "Looks like Luffy is finally setting out," he remarked. "How're our repairs going?"

One of the technicians flashed a thumbs-up. "Few hours and we're good to go!"

"Good," Law said, satisfied. "Once it's done, we'll go to resupply and then set sailing too."

There was a pregnant silence before everyone exploded into thrilled cheers, "FINALLY!"

Their celebration was short-lived because the next moment Bepo, who didn't even twitch during all the commotion, suddenly out-voiced them all with a loud, "I'm not fluffy!"

Every single pirate except the captain stilled before screaming back at him, "OF COURSE, YOU ARE!"

"I'm sorry…"

"DON'T APOLOGIZE IN YOUR SLEEP!"

Law kept smiling at the antics of his crew. Inevitably, his eyes returned to the younger D's photo, fondness smoothing out his smirk into something much gentler. 'It'll be interesting to meet you again, Luffy."

-somewhere in the New World on the Moby Dick-

"Pops! Look, look, look!" Ace brandished the bounty poster and pointed his finger at the photo, all smiles and sunshine. "This kid is my little brother!"

"Oh?" Whitebeard leaned forward and squinted at the paper in his son's hands. "Gurarara! Looks like a very cheeky brat."

"You have no idea, Pops!"

"What's going on here? Something interesting happened?" a new voice chimed in. The pirates turned to its direction and saw Thatch strolling towards them. As soon as he came closer, a sheet of paper was literally shoved to his face. "What the—?"

"Check this out, Thatch!" Ace exclaimed, excitement pouring out of him in waves. "This is my baby brother!"

Whitebeard let out a hearty laugh, while Marco simply rolled his eyes. As the person who showed their fire user the newly issued wanted posters, he was the first one to suffer through his endless fanboying.

Thatch was unamused. "Ace, I can't see. You're pretty much pressing this thing into my face."

"Er, sorry," the younger pirate apologized sheepishly, bringing the poster to the more appropriate distance. "See? See? My li'l brother!"

The pompadour man took a look. "'Straw Hat' Monkey D. Luffy… Such a high reward, huh?" he said, sounding genuinely impressed. "Not bad for a rookie!"

Ace beamed like the sun. "I know, right? I was so surprised too! That's almost double my first bounty! Hehe, he'd never let me live it down!"

"37 million for such a harmless looking pipsqueak?" Marco asked doubtfully. "Is he really worth that much?"

"Hey!" Ace instantly rounded on him. "Luffy's very strong! Actually, we were equal in strength when I left and he's three years younger than me!" he stated with so much pride and conviction that even Whitebeard raised his eyebrow. Everyone knew just how monstrous their young Commander was, even without his Devil Fruit.

"And considering that he spent four y—" Ace abruptly stopped talking. His face momentarily darkened, something unsightly flashing through his eyes. "Anyways," he continued, "Luffy's the man who'll become the Pirate King—no offense, Pops—so sooner or later you'll know just how strong he is."

A fond grin spread across the giant man's face. "None taken, son."

Thatch and Marco shared a knowing look. The phoenix then glanced at their captain, catching his gaze, and the latter furrowed his brow.

Thatch hooked his arm around Ace's shoulder before the kid took notice of the silent exchange and grinned at him. "If your baby brother wants to become the Pirate King, he'll have to challenge Pops one day, right?"

"Uhh…" The freckled raven scratched his head. "I guess?"

"So, which one are you gonna cheer on at that moment?"

Ace opened his mouth, closed it, opened again, closed… "Both?" he tried, eliciting a deadpan stare from his two fellow commanders and rumbling laughter from Whitebeard. "I don't know!" he blurted out, throwing his arms into the air, becoming more flustered with every second. Ultimately, his temper exploded. "Argh! I really don't know! How am I supposed to choose?! They're both equally important to me!"

"Uh, Ace?" Marco called. There was a distinct tone of amusement underlying his voice. "Your brother's poster just went up in flames, yoi."

"What—aaaaaaahhhhh!" Ace screamed in horror when he glanced at his hand and saw only the black, charred paper. It quickly crumbled with every sweep of a sea breeze and soon the remaining ashes slipped through his fingers. "Nooooooooooo! What have I done?! Luffy, I'm so sorry! Your brother is a hopeless idiot!"

Thatch teased him goodheartedly, "You got that right."

Ace lifted his head to look at him, his big eyes glistening with unshed tears and lower lip tucked between his teeth. An overwhelmingly pitiful sight to behold.

Thatch froze. He would not succumb to such a lethal pair of Puppy Eyes. Definitely not. Nuh-uh. Not happening. Urgh, he had to resist this… He had to resist… had to… to…

…Aw, shit. He could feel his willpower fold like wet tissue.

"Here, I have a spare one," the older commander muttered, pulling out an intact bounty poster from inside his clothes. He had already planned to use it for some teasing after witnessing Ace so hyped up about it. Or blackmailing; that also would have worked. Curse his soft and unbelievably awesome heart. Super Thatch to the rescue! "My subscription of 'The rare cuisine of the world' this morning came with it. Dunno why."

Ace gasped, clasping the paper like it was his saving grace. A moment later, he tackled his friend into an octopus-like hug. "You're the best, Thatch! From now on, you're my best buddy!"

"Oi! Stop slobbering all over my clothes!" the swordsman fumed, struggling to push the younger man away. "And what do you mean 'from now on'?! I thought I already was your best buddy! You damn matchstick!"

Ace ignored him, detecting a new target at the corner of his eye. "Vista!" he cried out in excitement as he untangled himself from the irritated Thatch and pounced on the other commander. "Vista, look! This is my little brother! Cool, right?!"

-later that night-

Ace sat down, slipping his legs between the railing pillars, sticking them outside Moby Dick. With a sigh, he rested his cheek against the pillar, unrolled Luffy's bounty poster and stared at it for a while.

Luffy seemed so happy. His grin stretched as wide as possible, his eyes bright and lively, hand lifted into what appeared to be a wave, with celebrating people in the background.

Ace speculated what kind of party it could be and slowly his mind veered towards worrying about what kind of people his little brother recruited into his crew. Were they strong? Trustworthy? Loyal? What would they do if… no, once they learned about their captain's past?

The raven clicked his tongue. This was driving him crazy! Maybe he should ask Pops for a leave and travel to the Paradise to personally welcome Luffy? He smirked. That sounded like a plan.

"Ho, I know that smile. Only trouble follows it."

Thatch was standing right behind Ace, grinning down at his seated form, a Devil Fruit he had come into possession of yesterday in one of his hands.

"Huh? You're still carrying that thing around?"

The older man hummed, tossing the fruit up and down. "Marco mentioned that Izo might have an encyclopedia of Devil Fruits, so I'm bringing it to him to ask if he can help me identify it."

"Are you planning to eat it yourself?"

"And become a hammer like you? Nah, not interested."

The raven scowled and slapped his friend's leg. That earned him an overly dramatic moan of pain. Ace suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, instead turning to stare at Luffy's photo again.

After a moment of being so blatantly ignored, Thatch squatted down next to him. "He's the one, right?" he inquired carefully, wincing when Ace stiffened but pushing forward nonetheless. "The one who was taken."

The silence stretched for almost a minute before the young commander finally gave in, "Yeah." His fist around the paper tightened. "Four years, Thatch. My brother spent four years in that place, tortured and alone. Sometimes—" He gritted his teeth. "After I found him back on our home island, the first thing he said to me was an endless plea to be allowed to stay and not to send him back there. Like I'd ever do that! And sometimes I can still hear it over and over again."

Thatch squeezed his shoulder in his support and comfort. "But you helped him through all that," he noted softly. "He looks like a very happy kid."

Ace's lips curved upwards as he gazed fondly at the photo. "I've told you that he's strong!" he boasted.

"You sure did. Although, after the first hundred times I stopped listening," the man chirped as he stood up. "I'd better get going before Izo goes to bed."

Ace snorted. "No one wants to wake Izo from his beauty sleep."

"Yeah, no kidding." Thatch shuddered. "You should go to sleep too. It's way past your bedtime, kiddo."

"Aye, aye~! Wouldn't want an old man like you to have a heart attack and die on us while worrying about me, now, would I?" the raven quipped back without skipping a beat. He then spluttered and frantically flailed his arms when his cowboy hat was suddenly pushed down over his face, followed by a mirthful laugh.

"See ya in the morning, matchstick! Don't burn your brother's poster this time!"

"Can I burn your silly hair instead?!" Ace shouted after his best buddy, only to grin when the latter flipped him the bird over his shoulder.

He continued to stare at Luffy's smile for a few minutes, but it really was time to take some rest…

Ace's head shot up when a suspicious noise somewhere nearby caught his attention. He pricked his ears and listened for a bit, then jumped to his feet and quickly walked towards the source. "Thatch?" he called out as he rounded the corner. The moment his eyes fell on the scene in front of him, they widened and his mind screeched to a complete stop.

Teach was there with a knife buried into Thatch's back, all the way till its hilt. When he turned his head and saw the young commander, he swore loudly and spun around, pushing the body of his victim on top of the witness, pulling his knife as he did so.

Ace caught his injured friend and stumbled from the weight. It helped to snap him out of his daze. "Teach!" he hissed, his tone cold and deadly, but the air temperature seemed to spike at the same time. "The fuck are you doing?!"

"Zehahahaha!" the older pirate cackled maliciously, eyes gleaming with sinister light as he picked up the Devil Fruit with bloody hands. "This is worth so much, you have no idea! No one realized just how invaluable this fruit is!"

"You sick bastard! I'm gonna burn you to a crisp!"

Teach noticed the surrounding temperature gradually rising and gave Ace a crooked, mocking grin. "Well, you can either chase me or try to save our beloved fourth commander's life," he said, turning around and casually waving his goodbye. "Your choice, Commander! Zehahahaha!"

"Treacherous piece of shit…" Ace ground out through his aggressively bared teeth. In the span of a heartbeat, flames ignited along his raised hand, converging onto his palm. It expanded and took the shape of a spear that he immediately threw at Teach, the latter not yet far enough to be entirely hidden by the darkness of the night.

The traitor was caught off-guard, not expecting such a retaliatory move. The fire spear impaled his shoulder, putting him on fire, and he shrieked. Struggling to extinguish it, he accidentally bumped against the railing, flipped over it and splashed into the sea.

Ace looked back at the lifeless Thatch in his arms and his heart stilled before restarting and speeding up to a frightening pace. "Nonononono… Thatch, buddy, you can't die…" he muttered under his breath in panic, laying the man down on his stomach so that he could press on the heavily bleeding wound.

"I need help!" he hollered at the top of his lungs as he heard a rushing sound of approaching footfalls. "Medics! Call the medics!" Ace pressed harder on the wound, pleas flowing non-stop from his mouth, "Hold on, Thatch, help is coming. Just hold on…"

Next Chapter: The Town of the Beginning and the End