39. Hey, brother
A/N: Thanks to those who fav/followed the story, and all the anonymous readers ^^!
Uhm, not much to tell, except that I just don't wanna spoil the chap. You'll have to read to find out what happens (though the title sorta give it away anyways xD). Hope you like it!
-Blue VanLocke: Oh, so I spelt it okay. Good to know ^^! So it's the name of a holiday, huh. Understandable, considering all female partners of the Baroque Works Agents have names relating with a certain holiday.
-Boopadoop: I wonder why I didn't use that insult earlier! That's how I call my father whenever I see him with a cigar xD Not that he listens to me anyways. Thanks so much ^^! I'll keep on with this for as long as I can (maybe until Oda finishes –highly unlikely, but hey, better keep hopes up). Ouch! That was absolutely NOT nice. Bad teacher, bad!
Disclaimer: I own nothing of One Piece and Soul Eater but my OC Koga and other OCs that will appear in the future.
Clad in his desert attire and his brand new sunglasses hiding his unique eyes, Koga slithered his way through the mob in search of his idiotic captain.
After remembering once more that Luffy had run off to fetch food for himself, Nami had resigned in finding him and get into the journey. They set out on their own (except Zoro of course, the navigator and Usopp were going with him) and resolved on reuniting again in the same ruins they had been hiding before, with Vivi waiting for them there. The plan was inconsistent, they knew that, but it was the only thing they could do at the moment.
Thankfully, considering how simple-minded Luffy really was, Koga had a fairly accurate idea of where that idiot would be. And so, he decided to stick to the sides of the streets with restaurants, nonchalantly looking from the door for his captain and then continuing his path at the lack of the rubbery teen's presence.
From time to time, though, and worryingly enough, a patrol of Marines would make their way through the mob. The blond adjusted his sunglasses as he turned his face away and reminded himself of thanking Sanji properly for them. Though he didn't have a Wanted Poster yet, unlike Luffy.
'I have to find him before the Marines do…' The chronicler thought.
As he turned another corner he groaned in exasperation when he saw another row of restaurants waiting for him to be checked out. His hand found his face with a soft slap, 'this is gonna take me forever…'
BOOM CRASH CRASH!
Or maybe not…
So the restaurant at the end of the street huh? Sighing, and thankful that the people were beginning to disperse, the disguised pirate dashed his way to the restaurant and stepped inside.
When he entered he noticed the almost eerie silence inside. The people were packed in groups against the opposite walls of the rather big establishment, away from the bar. The poor barman simply stood there, watching wide-eyed at a figure who was wolfing down giant plates of food, three rows of finished meals at his side. The writer then spotted giant gap in the wall in the wall behind the barman, but it quickly left his mind when he recognized the person devouring the food at the bar.
Surrounded by the silence, Koga sighed as he walked towards Luffy, rising his sunglasses to his head and frowning at the back of the teen's head in exasperation.
"Dammit, Luffy, what did you do this time?"
"Huh?" The captain turned around while munching. "Oh, it's you Koga! Want some? It's delicious!"
… That was what the chronicler thought he said, considering he was eating while speaking anyways.
"Listen, we should leave now. The others are waiting and there are–"
"STRAW HAT!"
From the gap in the wall behind the counter, a rather burly man stepped to stand in front of a non-stop eating Luffy. His hair had a light blue-green tone and he had two cigars in his mouth, making Koga grimace and think of Sanji and his cancer-lung cigars. He wore a large thick white and blue specialist marine jacket open with greenish fur lining the neck, wrists and hem. Many other cigars were strapped to the jacket, and as a weapon he carried a jitte at his back. He also wore brown leather gloves, blue jeans with a brown belt and large military issue brown leather boots.
Koga's intuition began tingling then, and his bicolored eyes hardened, his stance ready for the action if needed be. Though the man glared at him briefly, assessing his presence, his attention soon turned back to the young pirate captain.
"I've been looking for you, Straw Hat. I knew you would come to Alabasta."
Only silence answered him, interrupted only by the munching and swallowing made by Luffy.
Shouldn't you be running for your lives right now shitty host? That guy won't be long just standing there looking at you and your captain stuffing his belly full.
Yeah, probably he was ri– hold on, didn't Cigar Guy ring a bell somehow? Koga's eyes suddenly narrowed at the man, glaring at him, gauging his looks, trying to remember just why he looked how familiar…
"PFFFFFFFFFFFFT!" Suddenly Luffy spluttered all his food onto Cigar Guy's face. "Smokey guy!"
'Crap, Smoker! How didn't I realized earlier?!'
"Luffy, we have to go now." Faster than the eye could see, Koga's hand snatched Luffy's shirt, ready to run in the opposite direction.
"Hold on, Koga!" Luffy used his rubbery powers to gobble up the rest of the food –that was still an awful lot– before barely thanking the bartender for the meal.
Maybe realizing that they were going to run away, Smoker's eyes widened and his hand flew up to the jitte's hilt, roaring "Stop right there you pi–!"
"Time to go! Flash Step!"
Koga only used the technique to get out of the restaurant, afraid he would suffer payback the longer he used it. Thankfully, the momentum served them to avoid an incoming female blue-haired, glasses-wearing marine that tried to slash them. Luffy got them both out of the way of the woman by stretching up to the buildings' rooftops to their left, the only one able to follow them was Smoker, hot in their tails with his Devil Fruit powers.
"So these are the powers you told me about!" Koga shouted, watching from over his shoulder at the marine captain being propelled forwards like a rocket, the lower part of his body transformed in a white cloud.
"Yeah! When I tried to fight him, Smokey just dissolved in white clouds, I couldn't hit his body!"
"Dammit, must be a Logia-type Fruit then! We can't fight him like this! We have to–!"
"YOU WON'T GET AWAY STRAW HAT! WHITE BLOW!"
Intuition tingling just in time! Cursing loudly, Koga yanked from Luffy's arm and threw them both from the rooftop into the street, their fall cushioned by some flour-filled sacks. The people screamed and threw themselves out of the way of the running pirates and the marines following after them; some managed to try to step in front, but were quickly dispatched with well-placed punches from both.
The chronicler tried to guide their escape through recognizable streets, desperately looking around for the rest of the crew. Not to make them engage in combat, but to ensure they didn't; though he highly doubted Zoro would back up on a fight.
Speaking of which…
"There they are!" Luffy yelled, spotting the dumbstruck crew watching at them jaw-slacked. "OI GUYS!"
"DON'T BRING THEM HERE YOU MORONS!" Nami shrieked with panic in her face and voice, easily seen even from afar.
"RUN FOR IT!"
Just then…
BLOCK!
KLANK!
Instinctively, Koga obeyed, turning on his heels while unsheathing his rusty katana in a fluid motion. A familiar broadsword, engulfed in dark flames, forcefully clanked against his weapon instead of finding its target on his unprotected back. The force of his enemy almost brought him to his knees, but he gritted his teeth and pushed back with the help of his Devil Fruit powers for good measure. Then, he used Flash Step to step away from his rival, using the momentum to verify his identity.
Though, he already knew.
That was why he didn't feel any surprise when his mismatched eyes clashed against icy blue ones. He felt sad, incredibly sad, but still he was prepared to see him.
Or at least he thought –hoped– he was.
"Koga!" Luffy exclaimed suddenly, having noticed the sudden threat.
"Lieutenant Sarugaki!" Some Marines called out.
None of the brothers answered, too busy in assessing each other. Then, Yuuto lifted his broadsword with a grim expression on his face, dark flames coating the sharp edge of his weapon.
Koga also raised his katana, his face mirroring that of his brother's, but inside his heart and mind fought a relentless fight. It hurt seeing his brother again, and it hurt even more to still see that hateful look in his eyes. It made his heart bleed horrible, the multiple scars coating it opening oh-so-excruciatingly-slowly. His hand holding Sankaoken trembled, his eyes showing the conflict in his mind.
That doubt didn't show on Yuuto's swift swing, though, as he suddenly stepped forwards and attacked him without any word. The chronicler blocked the slash directed to his torso, his knees buckling slightly at the strength of the attack but otherwise holding on. The flames roared dangerously close to his face and torso, the heat licking his skin but not quite reaching him– fortunately. Yuuto's face turned into a sneer as he lifted again his giant sword to plunge it against his own katana, and again and again, suddenly relentless. Koga blocked them all with gritted teeth, but not counterattacking even once, too distressed and doubting still in attacking his younger brother.
"Koga, what are you doing?!" He heard Sanji shout angrily from behind him.
The writer ignored him with gritted teeth, barely avoiding getting impaled by the enflamed weapon with a mighty push to the side of his katana. That left Yuuto wide open to a counterattack, but the blond young man ignored that opportunity with gritted teeth and conflicted eyes, and the dark-haired Marine took quick advantage of the opportunity to charge up his broadsword with dark flames and sliced up and wide. Cursing and knowing he couldn't block that attack, the chronicler jumped backwards, putting some distance between them once more and raising his still sealed katana with one hand.
Yuuto's muscles tensed, ready to launch himself at Koga again–
FWOOOOOOOOSH!
… When suddenly a large wall of intense fire appeared out of thin air between the pirates and the Marines. At the same time, someone gripped the back of Koga's ropes and threw him away from the fire, landing on his butt beside a gaping Luffy.
Cursing loudly and getting on his feet, Koga saw the figure that saved him; a tall, muscled young man in his early-twenties, dressed only in black-knee shorts with an orange belt, black boots and a dagger in a green sheath hung at his left hip. He wore a red beaded necklace and an orange hat too. From behind Koga could only see his black hair and how pale he was, but then he noticed the tattoo drawn on his back, and his eyes widened.
Whitebeard's Jolly Roger.
"Just give it up," the unknown man said. "You may have the power of smoke, but mine is fire; a fight between us would be pointless."
Beside Koga, Luffy suddenly beamed in happiness. "Is that you, Ace?"
The man turned slightly towards Luffy's voice, also smiling. "You haven't changed a bit, Luffy."
"It is you! You ate a Devil Fruit or something?!"
"Yeah, the Mera Mera Fruit." Ace then turned towards the Marines. "Now's probably not the time for chatting though; you guys get out of here, I'll catch up later!"
The Straw Hat captain nodded. "Right, let's go guys!"
Deciding to save the questions for later, Koga spared a glance at the wall of flames and the person who made it appear, before sheathing his katana and following after the others.
"Luffy, who's that guy back there?" Sanji asked, launching a large sack at Koga, who hurriedly hefted it over his shoulder.
"Do you know him?" Vivi also inquired.
Luffy laughed. "Yeah! He's my big brother!"
As the others yelled in surprise, Koga's eyes simply widened before returning to their original size, his mind checking what he knew about the Flame Man. Portgas D Ace, dubbed Fire Fist, and Second Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. Quite a big fish, with a well-earned reputation judging the power he just displayed to save their necks a moment ago. Last he knew, however, was that Ace was captain of the Spades Pirates or something like that. What the hell happened that made Ace one of Whitebeard's subordinates?
It was only a few minutes later before they reached the Merry, everyone dashing around at their navigator's frantic orders. Supplies were saved in the storage room, the anchor raised, and the caravel set for their imminent departure.
At some point of the preparation though, all of them felt something… lacking.
"Uh guys… You feel like something is missing here?" Usopp dumbly asked.
"More like someone." Sanji groaned, facepalming in exasperation.
"That… idiot! How many times are we going to lose him?!" Nami turned to Vivi in a frenzy. "Is there any place where we can dock and wait for Luffy?"
"There's a cove a small distance north that will cover us." She responded, receiving a nod.
"Everyone! We have to move quickly before the Marines swarm the harbor! We'll dock again when things settle down so we can find Luffy!"
Koga helped the others in maneuvering the Merry out of port, while his mind mercilessly replayed the scene of Yuuto and himself fighting. He had expected finding his brother once more, just not so soon after entering the Grand Line. They were enemies after all, with him being a pirate and Yuuto joining the Marine ranks.
Seeking privacy after setting course, he went to the stern. Closing his eyes, his fingers pinched the bridge of his nose as he breathed in, letting the air out slowly and with it, all the guilt and shame he had bottled up while his fight against Yuuto. His hands trembled when he looked down at them; he had pointed his sword against his own brother. His family! His throat closed in shame. For a moment, all he saw was red in his palms and even smelt the coppery liquid covering them, an unmoving body flashing in his mind like a stab wound right to the heart.
'If only that didn't happen…'
BAM BAM!
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, I'm back!"
The sudden noise brought Koga abruptly back to the present, thankfully. But still, the chronicler had to breathe deeply once more to calm his trembling hands before straightening his back and walking to the main deck, where the others were.
Seemed Luffy was back, and judging how Sanji was shaking him like a maraca, he had collided with the cook in his hastiness in coming back. His lips twitched in amusement, not drawing a smirk though; his mind was still too wrapped in what happened, too shocked to display any other emotion.
"… Throw you overboard!" The chef was yelling.
Luffy laughed and apologized in his 'I-say-I'm-sorry-but-I'm-really-not' attitude of his, before realizing something and looking around. "Where'd Ace go?"
"Your brother was with you?" Nami asked blinking as the captain freed himself from the cook's grasp and went to the railing, looking at the shore.
"Yeah… Oh well…" He quickly turned around. "Ace is strong."
"Is he really strong?" Chopper asked timidly.
"Yeah! Even before he ate that Devil Fruit, when we were kids even I couldn't beat him once when we fought!"
"The brother of a monster is also a monster…" Usopp murmured, a shiver running down his spine in terror at imagining the two siblings fighting each other and destroying everything around them.
"But if I fought him now, I'd kick his butt!" The captain proclaimed triumphal before storming into a loud laughter.
"Just who's butt…?" A familiar voice proclaimed just as a familiar shadow was cast over him from behind, leaping upon the railing and throwing the straw hat wearing kid forward to avoid being stomped on, "… could you kick, Luffy?"
"Oh hey, Ace!" The kid grinned widely. "These are the nakama I told you about before!"
"Hmmm? Oh, hello everyone." He bowed his head and smiled a… rather Luffy-esque grin. "Nice to meet you all. Thanks for taking care of my kid brother. He was no manners at all, and can burn your fingers on occasion…"
"Yes he has." Everyone but Koga said in harmony and returning the bow.
"I suppose you have something to tell us, so come on in to our cabin, I'll set up some tea." Sanji offered, lifting an unlit cigarette and his other hand searching for a lighter in his pockets.
"Ah, don't worry about it, but thanks for the offer." Ace bowed again and then lifted a finger; a small flame then lit the cook's cigar, surprising him.
As everyone was ogling the older brother, Koga suddenly felt the tingle of his intuition warning him of an incoming danger. His face hardened as he made his way to the bow and saw a fleet of Baroque Works ships heading straight for the Merry. For a fleeting moment he wished he had some sort of long-ranged weapon to hit them with and deal with the problem on the spot without alarming anyone–
"Baroque Works! Those are Billions ships!"
Uh, never mind now. They noticed already.
"Those guys again?" Luffy asked as everyone approached Koga and surrounded him.
"I'll take care of these guys, Luffy." Ace offered.
The captain nodded, and Ace hopped off the railing into a little boat propelled by his own fire lit on his feet. Everyone watched –the majority jaw-slacked– as Ace single-handedly destroyed all the ships engulfing them in a pillar of flames that reduced them to ashes–
A burning building, childish screams and shrieks piercing the eerie silent island.
Koga blinked and brought a hand to his forehead, the sudden image that appeared on his mind lingering for a moment before vanishing as if it never occurred in the first place.
As the danger passed, the Straw Hat pirates picked Ace back aboard and their course resumed. Everyone scattered over the main deck, merrily goofing off (like Luffy, Usopp and Chopper, who were jokingly toasting on Ace's joining) or simply napping near them (of course, Zoro was the best example of that). The others, as in Sanji, Vivi, Nami and Carue simply stood on the upper deck, watching them fondly, occasionally laughing at some sibling quarrel.
And Koga…
Well, he had decided to watch everyone from near Zoro's snoring figure, back resting against the railing as he sat cross-legged, his elbows resting on his knees, watching the two brothers with an unknown intensity shining in his bicolored eyes. Everyone had instantly noticed his rather distant attitude but, though worried, no one tried to approach him and bug him with questions. For now.
Though his eyes were fixed on Luffy and Ace, Koga's mind was in reality very far away, in his memories, when he played with Karen and Yuuto, before the other kids of the orphanage –the friendly ones, of course– decided to join in with Koga's permission. They usually played when the boys were allowed a break between classes, which weren't often, and sometimes they would escape late in the night to play with the crickets and fireflies, telling stories around a warm fire –when it wasn't raining of course– or simply stargazing, a hobby Koga still retained from those fond memories.
A soft smile tug at the corners of his mouth, lowering his eyes to the wooden floor. He had almost forgotten how good his life had been in truth, even with the occasional beatings from both the teachers and the students that loathed him. He even considered himself fortunate; unlike him, all the other kids in the orphanage were really orphans, without anyone that really cared for them outside that God-forsaken building. He hadn't been alone, not completely at least.
"Koga?"
The chronicler snapped back from his memories at the sudden voice, blinking rapidly at seeing Chopper near him, innocently watching him with wide eyes. Behind him, the others were also watching him –some subtle, others not so much.
"What are you thinking about?" The reindeer asked in curiosity.
Out of instinct, Koga tried to raise his scarf to his nose to hide the fond smile, only to remember that it was still tied around his head; his hand lowered back to his lap. "Nothing. Just… happier moments, I suppose. With my… family."
"Your family?" Usopp piped up, confused. "I thought you said you were an orphan…"
"I lived in an orphanage, but I had family outside. Not by blood, but… Well, you know."
He fidgeted a bit; all his stance revealed how uncomfortable he was about talking of his own past.
"Who are they?" Chopper asked him with a sweet voice, a grand smile on his face. "Can you tell us about them?"
'Crap, damn those eyes of his…' The writer silently cursed, looking at the reindeer's gigantic eyes before sighing and turning his head to the sky.
"There's my granddad. He's… old, that's the word that best describes him. Likes to talk about magic and legends, a lot. He taught me everything I know about writing, and even encouraged me to begin writing my own tales. Told me he used to be a pirate but honestly, I don't believe him." He softly snorted, but fondly. "He loves alcohol and flowers; he had a pretty garden too. I wonder if he still has it after all this time."
That last sentence came out as a whisper to himself. The others were quietly listening; not used to him talking so much about himself, they didn't dare interrupting him when he willingly delivered some information. Even after being coerced by Chopper's big eyes.
His eyes then grew significantly darker as he thought about the other members of his family. Should he talk, or keep quiet about them? He could talk about Yuuto, or at least relatively, but Karen? It hurt simply think about her…
"… I also have a younger brother. He and I uh… Well, we're not in the best terms for now. Haven't been in the last few years. After I… left the island, I couldn't even say goodbye to him, or to the old man." He let out another sigh, somewhat self-scorning and angry. "Should've told him something at least. Now he can't even see me without that… that killing intent."
Koga bit his lips, not looking anywhere but his lap. At his side, he saw Zoro move and look at him with an unexpectedly serious gaze, and his throat constricted painfully.
'He's realized.' He thought.
"… So, that's why you didn't fight against him. Neither here, nor in Loguetown."
"Sarugaki… Of course." Sanji then spoke up.
"Hold on, I don't get it…" Usopp interrupted, looking at the three of them.
"It's easy, Usopp…" A bitter smile drew on Koga's scarred face, his eyes haunted by memories and remorse and guilt. "My little brother… His name is Yuuto Sarugaki, and he's a Marine. Lieutenant, from what I heard."
Silence. Then…
"HUH?!"
"You– you mean that guy with the flaming sword?! He's your little brother?!"
"Man, talking about sworn enemies in the family…" Ace let out a soft whistle.
"What's his deal then? Why's he trying to kill you?" Sanji glared at him with his only visible eye.
"It's… a long story." 'And too painful to even remember.' He completed in his mind, but didn't dare say it. "Suffice to say that now he absolutely hates my guts."
And he also was beginning to feel horribly sick for raising his weapon against his own brother, even if it was to defend himself with.
After an uncomfortable silence, and deciding to give an end to unwanted confessions, the chronicler stood up and went to the men's quarters.
"Where are you going?" Nami asked in confusion.
"I have to upload the logbook. Who knows when I'll be able to do it before getting into trouble, again."
In fact, he was so caught up in the logbook that he didn't come out until they arrived shortly after their next destination, Erumalu. As he came out, he noticed the others had already set off the ship and were watching Vivi putting a message inside Carue's cloak, revealing the secrets the princess and Igaram discovered while working undercover in Baroque Works to her father Cobra.
"Can you do this for me, Carue?" The giant duck gave a hearty quack and a salute and Vivi smiled, although hesitantly. "Be sure to conserve your water, okay?"
"Good luck! You can do it, duck!" Luffy cheered with a big smile on his face.
After a few more words of farewell, the valiant duck finally departed and, when it got out of their sights, the pirate crew, Vivi and Ace went aboard again towards Erumalu.
xXxFEW MINUTES LATERxXx
There weren't any problems as they docked at Erumalu, except Sanji's disconformity at Vivi and Nami's new attires –which consisted in full-wearing robes that covered them from head to toe, as the others (except Ace, who seemed unaffected by heat). Vivi explained to him that otherwise they would have grave sunburns, but she doubted those words entered the cook's thick skull as he wailed rolling on the deck.
Just after dropping the anchor, strange seal-turtle creatures suddenly leaped from underwater into the shore, blocking their path.
Vivi inhaled in surprise. "Kung-Fu Dugongs!"
Koga cocked his head to the side in puzzlement. He had read and heard about Kung-Fu Dugongs, but hadn't actually encountered one before. They looked kinda… cute.
"'If you want to come ashore you have to beat me! And if you're too afraid, go dock on the other shore you wimps!', is what he says." Chopper translated what the Kung-Fu Dugong that looked like the leader… only because he was slightly bigger than the rest.
"I can't stand down after being called a wimp…" Usopp stated boldly, lifting himself onto the railing before leaping to the shore.
"Wait, Usopp-san!" Vivi cried out.
BAMBAMBAM!
The result? A complete beating from the Kung-Fu Dugong left Usopp laying in a bloody pulp as the seal-turtle hybrid stood triumphant.
"Kung-Fu Dugongs are incredibly strong!" The princess yelled, finishing the warning she had meant to send Usopp before he threw himself into 'combat'.
BAMBAMBAM!
"YEAH, I WON!" Luffy then proclaimed from a ways upon the shore, a Dugong with a massive lump on its head sitting in front of him.
"Winning is even worse! Once you defeat a Dugong, it'll pledge to become your disciple!"
BAMBAMBAM!
"I WIN AGAIN!" This time dozens of Dugongs laid on the ground around him.
"He has an army of Dugongs now…" The princess wailed in despair, and Koga patted her back.
"Give it a rest, you know how he is."
"Okay, ready to head to Yuba!"
"WE CAN'T TAKE THEM WITH US IDIOT!" Everyone but Ace and Koga yelled, the two older boys deciding to stand aside with small grins on their faces.
It was difficult to convince the Dugongs to not follow them, but in the end Chopper managed to do it… in exchange of half their provisions, much to everyone's chagrin. Seriously, they had just bought the food not even a day ago, and now they had to ration it?
But at least they could continue their journey, without the Dugongs following them.
During the small walk towards Yuba, Koga strode behind everyone else, hands on his pants pockets as he silently cursed the heat. He hadn't entered the desert yet, but wasn't actually looking forward to it.
"Hey."
The writer raised his head in curiosity to see Ace walking beside him, a friendly smile on his face.
"Don't wanna bug you buddy. If you wanna be alone, I'll let you. I just…" He lost his smile as he looked at Luffy's back. "I understand you, you know. I wouldn't be able to do anything that would harm my brother either."
Surprised by that confession, the chronicler blinked. It looked as if the other man could actually sympathize with him, and that brought a small smile to his scarred face.
"… I know. The case is, I haven't been a good older brother to Yuuto," he flinched at the name, "and I think now I can't reach him as such. I fear that I will have to approach him as an enemy to actually stop him."
"I think you're doing good as you're doing now."
"Huh?" Koga looked back at Ace, his bicolored eyes slightly wider.
"Whatever his feelings may be, he's still your younger brother. The moment you identify yourself as his enemy might destroy your relationship as siblings, or even both your lives. But, if you don't fight back, it is you who may lose your life."
"So, what do I do?"
Ace stopped walking for a moment, with the chronicler instinctively imitating him. Smiling, the paler man put a hand on the blond's shoulder.
"Keep being his brother. When he fights against you, try to reach him as a brother would do, but don't let him kill you. You won't do well to him if you're dead you know."
Koga snorted good-naturedly. "Easier said than done…"
"Nah, you'll manage, I'm sure of it!" Ace laughed, shaking his shoulder a bit before releasing him. "Ah, the hardships of being an older brother, huh?"
"You don't know the half of it." Both of them shared a genuine smile.
"HEY YOU TWO!" Usopp yelled to the pair. "If you don't hurry we'll leave you behind!"
"Coming!" The fire-man answered loudly, shaking a hand, before muttering almost to himself. "Is Yuba growing legs and running when we aren't looking though? What's the hurry?"
"Well you know…" Koga began walking ahead of him. "We have to stop a rebellion and the death of millions of people. Oh, and defeat a Shichibukai."
"You have it easy, huh?"
And he smirked over his shoulder at Ace. "Oh, it's just the hardships of being an older brother."
A/N: And that's it!
Wow, I'm quite satisfied with this chapter, I liked it a lot. We have now formally introduced Ace in the fic (cue Ace fangirls xD), and also we reencountered Yuuto! God, Koga and Yuuto has such a difficult relationship… I particularly have a brother, but we get along very well (surprisingly enough) so it's quite difficult for me to depict a hateful younger brother towards his elder. Hopefully I managed, I dunno.
Well, I'll see you guys next week! Probably I'll begin posting the chaps on Saturdays, seeing that Tuesdays had begun to be quite a task for me to find time to upload a new chap.
So, I love you all, please leave some nice/criticizing comments! No flames though, I hate them xD See ya!