The Navy was quick to act after Doflamingo's defeat. They snatched up all the executives of the family, and bound them all up in Sea Stone chains and cuffs before escorting them from Dressrosa. But that wasn't all they did. Admrial Fujitora actually prostrated himself before King Riku and the people and issued a formal apology which was broad-cast by the Marines themselves. No matter what happens now it isn't going to go over well at Navy Headquarters. So, they quickly stole away from the crowd and the Navy, hiding out to recover in Kyros' home.

But with Luffy, Robin, Franky, Usopp, Zoro, Run, Law, Kin'emon, Kanjuro and Bellamy crammed into the man's home, it's quite a tight fit. Kyros was even kind enough to lend most of some a change of clothes with Run content to borrow a plain grey button up shirt from the man. "So, you live on top of the hill?" Run asks, leaning against the edge of Luffy's bed.

"It was conveniet for me and Scarlet," Kyros tells him, hopping in their direction with his arms full of blankets. "I'm sorry but my place isn't as nice as the palace. Here. There's one for each of you." After that he hops away and lies down on the floor. "Sorry, but I'm going to turn in first. If you're hungry, help yourselves to anything in the house. I believe I only have dried meat, though."

"Thank you, Kyros."

"When Luffy wakes up, it's gonna be gone in a second," laughs Usopp, watching their Captain turn in his sleep and begin snoring directly into Run's ear. Unfortunately, his words fall on deaf ears as Kyros has already fallen fast asleep. "You fell asleep too quick!" Law is the next to go, and finally Usopp follows.

"Guess they're not gonna wake up for a while," sighs Franky.

"We should let them have a good rest," Robin tells him. Zoro, meanwhile, has been rumaging through all of Kyros' cabinates but so far he hasn't turned up a single drop of alcohol stashed away in any of them...much to his displeasure. Footsteps outside the door instantly put Run and Zoro on edge who turn towards it quickly. But when the door opens Run relaxes with a heavy sigh.

"Still haven't learned to knock, Sabo," complains Run, slowly standing.

"Here," Sabo says by way of greeting, tossing a bottle in Zoro's direction. He quickly snatches it from the air and looks at the label before smirking. "I thought I'd swing by to return this." Sabo steps into Kyros' home, and holds Run's saber out. "You dropped it in town, Run." He takes his saber from Sabo and roughly shoves it back into it's sheath.

"You know this guy?" Zoro asks.

"He's my and Luffy's brother," Run tells him. Sabo closes the door behind him and walks across the room to take a seat on the edge of the bed. "Oi, Luf-"

"It's alright," Sabo tells him quickly. "You don't have to wake him up. I just came to see your faces before I leave."

"Already leaving?"

"Yeah, some troublesome people are headed back here."

"Who?"

"CP-0. They played a part in Doflamingo's deception. They're targeting us. Dressrosa is going to get crowded in a day or so. You guys should leave as soon as you can." Sabo turns to look at the red head. "Doflamingo blew the lid on your secret, Run, and it's already spreading like wild-fire among the Navy. You should be ready for whatever may come."

"Yeah, yeah. Like I said, it couldn't stay a secret forever."

"I didn't know you two had another brother," Zoro says. "First I'm hearing of it, actually."

"That's not a surprise," Sabo says. "I was presumed dead for quite a while. I'm sure it was quite a shock for them to see me again." He sighs softly. "I was always with Luffy, Ace and Run when we were kids. We ran around like wild-men, and always had a tough time because of that old man, Garp. We always dreamed of becoming pirates...and we exchanged cups of sake to become brothers." Sabo goes on to explain exactly what happened to them all. How he was presumed dead, how he joined the Revolutionary Army...how he regained his memory after the death of Ace.

"Hold on," Zoro finally says, stopping the story.

"Don't intrupt such a sad story!" complains Kin'emon. Zoro lunges at the man quickly and grasps him by the front of his kimono.

"You finished the bottle, you damn glutton! You ate all the meat, too!"

"I can't listen to such a sad story without drinking!"

"We don't need alcohol," sighs Robin. "But we'll be in trouble without food when Luffy wakes up." Kanjuro offers to go get some groceries when Kyros' wakes up, and Zoro quickly tells him to get some booze when they go as well.

"Your friends are pretty funny, Run," Sabo says.

"Well, they're not boring," Run agrees. Sabo continues his story, telling them about going to Corrida to meet with the two of them, and even how he and Run competed for the Flare-Flare Fruit. When he's finished he stands and digs into his pocket to produce a Vivre Card that belongs to Luffy. He tears a piece off and hands it to Run for safe keeping before finally heading for the door.

"Alright...Luffy and Run might be a bit hard to handle but please take care of them." Sabo finally leaves, and Run sighs softly.

"He came all this way to see us, and Luffy's still fast asleep." The red head bends down and picks up Luffy's straw hat from the floor. Tears stream down Franky's face as he goes on and on about how good of a brother Sabo is to the two of them.

"I agree," adds Kyros, surprising them all. The man sits up slowly and turns to face them.

"You were listening?"

"Yes, from about halfway through."

"Should we wake him?" Zoro asks.

"No, let him sleep as much as he likes. I brough him here just for that reason. Zoroland, maybe there is alcohol in the celler under the kitchen floor." That's all Zoro needs to hear as the man goes running off through the house. "No matter how much I thank Luffyland, it could never be enough. There's no way of knowing how much he encouraged the people of Dressrosa. This country will change. Thanks to all of you, of course. The pain from the wounds that you're all suffering from...is the result of the injuries that you sustained on behalf of us, the citizens of Dressrosa. We half to repay you somehow..."


Three days of relative peace have passed while they recover. The people of Dressrosa are repairing the town, and waiting for King Riku to return to the throne. But a rumor is spreading through the people about Rebecca and her parents. According to the rumor, Rebecca's mother isn't actually dead. In fact, she just ran off with a prince from some foreign country. It's a complete lie but they can't figure out how it got started, either. While they're relaxing inside, Kin'emon and Kanjuro finally return from their shopping, their arms and bags filled with food which they place on the table. The smell of it instantly attracts Luffy, who very suddenly snaps out of his sleep to take a place at the table. He alternates between anger, sleep and sadness all while rapidly shoveling down as much food as he can.

"Anger, saddness, eating or sleeping!" screams Zoro. "Will you just pick one already?!"

"What do you wanna do about that rumor, Kyros?" Run asks, setting his coffee mug down on the table. "If you don't get ahead of it, people are going to take it as true."

"Good," Kyros says, giving them all pause. "I was the one who started that rumor, after all. The only people who know about Rebecca's birth are some people in the royal family and some people in the Donquixote Family who did the research. I started that rumor before they found out I'm her father."

"Why?" Robin asks him.

"I have a criminal record. I'm ill-bred as well. I wasn't supposed to marry a member of the royal family in the first place. So this is how is should be."

"No, it shouldn't!" Luffy counters. "Does Rebecca know that?!"

"I wrote her a letter. I wrote everything about my life truthfully. I made her suffer for a long time. I want her to cut her connect to a person like me and live happily in the light hereafter. That is the only way I can make it up to her as a father. I'm thinking about leaving this country when you guys do. She's still a child, and I don't want to ruin her chance to be happy by being caught up in the moment! I convinced King Riku, too!" The transponder snail begins to ring loudly and Kyros picks it up. "Hello?"

"Commander!" calls Leo in way of greeting. "Oh, I mean Kyros! This is Leo!" The door to Kyros' home is suddenly thrown wide open, and Bartolomeo storms in.

"Run!" shouts Bartolomeo. "Ohh! Luffy! You're up! Good morning!" He stares at them all for a few moments before turning away, a hand held in front of his eyes. "Aaah! When six members of the Straw Hats are gathered together, they're too bright to even look at! It's like a laser beam of greatness! If I see all the stars of the Straw Hats someday, I'll get dissolved!"

"Just say what you're here for already!" Zoro barks at the man.

"Oh, that's right! There's a lot of commotion at the Navy Camp! They're gonna be here any minute! 'Great Advisor' Vice Admiral Tsuru and the former Fleet Admiral Sengoku have arrived!"

"What are such heavy weights doing here?!" screams Usopp. "Go away!" The whole crew stands from the table quickly. They were wondering when the Navy would finally make their move and now it seems that the time has come.

"Leo," speaks Kyros. "What did you call for?"

"The Navy!" Leo shouts. "They Navy is going into action!"

"We've been prepared to escape at the drop of a hat," Kin'emon says. "We were just waiting for Luffy to wake up. But...we have a big problem. We don't have a ship."

"Cresthead, they're also heading for the palace! The warriors there are in danger!"

"Oh, thanks for your concern," laughs Bartolomeo. "We've been keeping an eye on the Navy the whole time, too! Everything will be alright! Luffy and everybody! I'll lead the way! We're going straight for the port in the east!"

"But there are lots of Navy soldiers in town, right?!" Usopp screams. "What should we do about them?!"

"Don't worry! Our allies have already been standing by at strategic points for a while now! They were just waiting for Luffy to wake up to help you all make your escape from the country! We'll clear the way for you! We even have a ship waiting at the east port! We all fought together as a team! We can't let them capture our 'king' now!"

"Bellamy, can you get up?" Luffy asks.

"Yeah," confirms Bellamy. "I can even run."

"It's time for us to go!" Bartolomeo says. Tossing thanks to Kyros' over their shoulders, they all storm out of the man's home and find themselves set up by the Navy almost instantly. They sprint away from Kyros' home under the Marine's gunfire. "I'll take care of it! Barrier! You'll be in deep trouble if you bump into Fujitora! Whatever you do, don't get separated!" They get some distance between themselves and the Marines before Luffy slows to a stop, and turns to face the palace in the distance.

"I've got something to do!" Luffy calls. "You guys go on ahead!"

"We're on a time crunch here!" Run shouts back. "Take care of it quick! We'll be at the east port!" They press forward, making their way down to the town with the use of Bartolomeo's Devil Fruit. The streets of the town are absolutely swarming with Marines...but they find their path unobstructed with help from the fighting from Corrida who clear the way for them to the east port. Even so, it takes a bit of time to reach the east port and after a few long minutes of waiting Luffy still hasn't arrived even while the gladiators from the colosseum join them one after another. Not just that but they've also Trafalgar Law sometime during their sprint to the port.

Hearing something fast approaching from the distance, all eyes turn towards the noise to find the worst possible person approaching, Admiral Fujitora. The man rides on a small piece of rubble, sitting cross-legged on top of it while it flies in their direction. "Wh-Wh-What should we do?!" screams Usopp.

"That seems pretty obvious." Run grasps the hilt of his saber. "Sundering Tide!" The red head launches the attack at the man, who dodges it with ease, leaving the piece of rubble to be cut in two. The red head smirks slightly as Admiral Fujitora begins to walk in their direction.

"Run!" shouts Bartolomeo. "You and your friends should stand back! Leave this...up to us!" Bartolomeo raises his hands quickly. "Barrier!" A giant barrier forms between them and the Admiral, which gives the man pause for a moment.

"A barrier?" asks Fujitora. "It seems like this will be quite tough." The Admiral raises his sword, and the whole island starts shaking violently. They watch as the rubble across the island begins to raise slowly into the air, forming a massive ball of rubble.

"Oi! Don't stand there!" screams Law, finally reappearing. "Wherever you are, we're all at risk! Go to the port and set sail!" While Cavendish is upset with the man, the majority of those present sprint towards the port without a second thought.

"I don't mind running to the ship," begins Zoro. "But I don't think he'll let us go that easily." In the distance, they finally spot Luffy sprinting as fast as he can in their direction. But rather than avoid Fujitora, he instead sprints head long at the man and launches a punch at him.

"Don't fight him!" bellows Bartolomeo. "He's a Navy Admiral!"

"Why should I run away?" Luffy asks. "Until two years ago, I would have done that but not anymore! Yonko or Admiral, I have to be them all or else I'll never become King of the Pirates!" Luffy charges into the battle with Fujitora, making sure to call out every one of his attacks. It seems Luffy doesn't want an unfair advantage of the man simply because he's blind...and it seems to anger the Admiral to be looked down on. At least until Luffy tells him he's only doing it because he kind of likes him.

A pirate and an Admiral as friends...if anyone else had suggested it, Run would have said it was impossible. But in Luffy's case...he may just end up befriending Fujitora before all is said and done. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem that his words are going to affect Fujitora who sends their Captain flying with one of his attacks. Before he's blow away, however, he's snatched from the air by the giant Hajrudin who immediately starts moving for the ship in port.

"Alright, Luffy, it's my turn now!" calls Zoro.

"My ass," retorts Run. "I'm going next, Zoro."

"Huh?! I already called it, Red!"

"You got to fight Pica! I only got to fight Doflamingo's weird underling, Trebol! It's only fair!"

"I don't care!" Usopp smacks them both in the back of the head quickly.

"Quit arguing!" screams Usopp. "We've got to go!" After a few moments of growling at one another like a pair of dogs, they huff in irritation and turn to flee with everyone else. The east port is absolutely packed with ships, that stretch out into the sea along-side a floating wooden bridge. It's like they've hidden a small fleet here in the port! Unfortunately for them it seems that Fujitora isn't willing to give up his pursuit of them, and the rubble that's been gathered over Dressrosa begins to hover in their direction, rapidly over-taking their position, and then spreading out to blanket the sky.

"Usopp, can we fight the Admiral now?!"

"I don't wanna be killed by garbage!" But, even though it spreads out, it doesn't rain down on their heads. Hearing what sounds like a stampede behind them, they look by the find thousands of people sprinting towards the port and slowly gathering at the rocks. As more and more gather they all begin to wave them off rather than give chase. It's one of the few times that they actually haven't been chased out of a place by the people living there...and it's a strange feeling. When they finally reach the end of the bridge they're treated to the sight of a gigantic and beautiful ship, the Yontamaria which they quickly board.

"Straw Hat, I have four giant mercenary friends," Hajrudin tells them. "I wanna pull together all the Giant tribes with them eventually, and we'll revive the Giant Pirates that once terrorized the world!"

"The Giant Pirates!" gushes Usopp. "Those were the glory days of Master Dorry and Brogy!"

"Oh, yeah!" chirps Luffy. "They'll be tough to fight! I guess we'll see you around someday somewhere!"

"Our Yontamaria Fleet numbers fifty-six ships!" Orlumbus tells them. "I'm sure we can really help you out!"

"Luffyland!" calls Leo, appearing on the bridge. "We got permission from Chief Tonta! Let us join, too!"

"We won't lose in a fair fight!" Ideo and Blue Gilly announce. "We can't say we're champions without fighting pirates, too!" Jeet and Abdulla are quick to throw their hats in with the two men, as well. The whole situation is beginning to dawn quickly on the red head. They men intend to throw themselves in with the Straw Hat Pirates!

"This fool is gonna let me on board," Suleiman says, earning a tongue lashing from Cavendish in response.

"What are you guys talking about?" Luffy asks, crossing his arms. "Just do whatever you want!" To their surprise, the men gathered quickly lay out their plans. First are the Beautiful Pirates with seventy-five members. The representative of which is 'White Horse' Cavendish. Second is the Barto Club with fifty-six members and Bartolomeo as the representative. Third is the Happosui Army with about one-thousand members. The representative of which is Sai. Forth is the XXX Fighting Alliance with four members with Ideo as representative. Fifth is the Tontatta's Tonta Corps with two-hundred members and Leo as the representative. Sixth is the future Giant Pirates with five members, and Hajrudin as the representative. Finally is the Yontamaria Fleet with forth-three hundred members, and Orlumbus as the representative. When they've finished, Bartolomeo steps forward and drops to a knee.

"A big troop of fifty-six hundred people!" announces Bartolomeo. "Luffy, will you exchange cups of sake as father and sons...with us seven representatives?!"

"Father and sons?!"

"That's right! You'll be the boss and we'll be your followers! Will you take us under the umbrella of the Straw Hats?!" Without waiting for his reply, Bartolomeo quickly goes about setting out cups and filling them all with sake before turning to face Luffy once more. "Alright! We'll exchange our vows now to inaugurate Luffy as our boss and us seven as his followers..." His words trail off as Luffy stares at the large cup set in front of him. "Please take the cup, Luffy."

"I'm not gonna drink this. I don't like this sake much."

"It's not about the taste, it's about the vow! From now on you'll be targeted by big names because of the incident on this island! When that happens it doesn't matter how strong you are it's going to be a tough battle! But since you saved us we can help you out at those times!"

"But if I drink this I'll become the grand captain of this grand fleet, won't I?"

"That's correct. If you have fifty-six hundred subordinates in total, you'll finally be one of the greatest pirates! You're gonna become King of the Pirates! If you wanna conquer the world, this won't be enough!"

"That's not gonna work," Run tells them, laughing lightly. He steps forward and points at the sake. "If you're not gonna drink this, Luffy, do you mind if I...?"

"I don't want a grand fleet," Luffy huffs. "I need my space!" Luffy sniffs the air and then grins. "That aside, aren't they preparing a banquet in the back!" This starts an argument between those gathered in front of them and Luffy finally sighs heavily. "Listen! I just wanna become King of the Pirates! I don't want to be someone so important!" Run picks the cup up and takes a sip from it.

"Oi, oi, this isn't half bad," mutters Run. "Not as good as the stuff from Rice Village but still not bad. Zoro, have some of this." He holds the cup out in offer to Zoro who takes it and takes a long drink.

"That is pretty good," Zoro agrees. "Let's put this in some beer mugs. We shouldn't let it go to waste."

"Oi, I wanna give it a try," calls Franky. "Give me some!"

"I'd like a bit, too," adds Robin, surprising Run.

"Luffy, what did you mean by that?" Bartolomeo eventually asks.

"Look," begins Luffy. "When we think we're in trouble, we'll shout for you so come save us! I don't have to be the boss or a great pirate, do I? When you guys are in trouble, call us! We'll come help you no matter what! I'll never forget that we fought against Mingo together!" He's barely finished his speech before cannon fire fills the air, and the men on deck begin to scramble. A fleet of ships has assembled behind them and it seems they're here solely for Luffy's head. The fleet of ships gathered returns fire but they're still moored, and it won't be hard to sink them if they can't set sail. However, just as quickly as the cannon fire starts, it begins to stop as the rubble over head begins to rain down solely on the approaching ships.

"Freedom...freedom!" cries Bartolomeo. "That's what it means to be King of the Pirates! I respect you even more now, Luffy!"

"So do I!" laughs Hajrudin. "Oi! Bartolomeo, make the oath!" The men all reason that if freedom is what Luffy wants, then they're free to do as they please, too. They all take a seat across from Luffy, and raise their cups up to him.

"Luffy, allow me to make a brief oath! We now become 'Straw Hat' Luffy's followers, and we shall be his shield or pike in all weather! To repay him for what he did this time, we seven will drink out of these Sons' Cups out of our own volition, devoting our lives and souls!" They quickly wheel out the banquet onto the deck while Luffy screams at them he didn't drink the sake that they poured for him. Fortunately, he doesn't stay irritated long as the smell of the food quickly draws him to it, and they set sail.

The banquet goes on for several hours with everyone drinking and eating to their content. But all good things much come to an end, and eventually they have to part ways with everyone else after parting out a piece of Luffy's Vivre Card to the representatives. Bartolomeo is going to be giving them a ride to Zou on his ship...which is quite a sight. Every part of it seems to have been crafted as an homage to the Straw Hat Pirates. They find out quickly that not just Bartolomeo idolizes Luffy but his crew as well.

They gather on the deck of the ship, sitting on the sofa's located there to rest while Bartolomeo quickly orders his crew to make for Zou. Zoro, who has been thumbing through a newspaper the whole time, calls attention to the paper and the fact that their bounties have increased again.

"Oh, you didn't know?" asks Bartolomeo. "Here!" His men quickly roll out a red carpet leading into the ship. "I have all of your wanted posters inside! Please, come take a look! Oh, Trafalgar, I threw yours away. But yours has gone up to five-hundred million." They all head inside, and are surprised to find their bounty posters framed carefully on a wall, along with their autographs. They all turn their attention to their bounty posters eagerly, surprised to find that more has changed than just their actual bounties.

'Straw Hat' Monkey D. Luffy - 500,000,000

'Red' Run - 800,000,000

'Pirate Hunter' Roronoa Zoro - 320,000,000

'Demon Child' Nico Robin - 130,000,000

'Cyborg' Franky - 94,000,000

'God' Usopp - 200,000,000

'Black Foot' Sanji - 177,000,000

'Cat Burglar' Nami - 66,000,000

'Cotten Candy Lover' Chopper - 100

'Soul King' Brook - 83,000,000

"Yours went up so much, Run!" laughs Luffy. "Hmm? Look, look!" Run grinds his teeth, and the whole ship starts to groan softly as if a massive weight as fallen upon it. "Whoa, whoa! Calm down, Run! What's wrong?!" The pressure of his Haoshoku vanishes so suddenly that they could almost believe it never happened, and Run strides out of the room quickly. "Jeez, I thought he was gonna sink the ship! What's he so mad about?"

"I'll go talk to him," Robin says, following after Run. Outside, Robin steps over several of Bartolomeo's unconscious crew mates as she follows Run to the bow of the ship. He stands with his back to her, arms crossed and staring out across the horizon. She approaches him calmly, coming to a stop at his side. "Run-"

"Eight-hundred million," Run says, interrupting her. "Eight-hundred million!"

"Run-"

"I knew that eventually the news would break. I mean, I'm not stupid. You can't keep something like that hidden forever. Anyone who's seen the old man up close could put two and two together. Same nose, same eyes..." He motions to his short hair. "...same red hair. But I had hoped that I would make a name all my own before a connection was finally drawn. Then, Doflamingo shot his mouth off, and they increase my bounty...not because of what I did or what kind of threat I might pose but because of who I am."

"Or...they increased it because they're anticipating the threat you pose. The 'son of Red Hair' following in his fathers footsteps...isn't that troubling news for the World Government? You know that Shanks is a pacifist. He doesn't start any fights, and he doesn't cause trouble if he doesn't have to. The World Government knows that, too. But his son? They don't know who you are. They don't know your personality. All they know is that you're sailing with 'Straw Hat' Luffy, a man who's caused them nothing but trouble. So, couldn't it be said that they increased it not because he's your father but because they want to get ahead of it before you become a bigger problem?"

"I don't believe that."

"Then, what do you believe?" With no response forth-coming, Robin suddenly steps in front of him, her hands coming up and gently cupping his face. "Hey. Do you think that just because the world knows that Shanks is your father, that now you'll never have any accomplishments of your own? That it'll somehow always be because your HIS son? And even if that's the case, who cares? Does it matter what everyone else thinks as long as YOU know the truth...as long as WE know the truth?" Run casts his eyes down at his feet. "Shanks didn't fight Aokiji to keep the crew safe...Shanks didn't storm Enies Lobby to rescue me...Shanks didn't take away all of Luffy's pain and suffering on Thriller Bark."

"How did you-"

"I was listening in when Zoro and Sanji were talking about it. Did you really think you could keep a secret from me?" The red head chuckles a bit and bends his neck to kiss her.

"No. You're too smart for me, Nico Robin."

"Is that so? Then, you can believe me when I tell you that it doesn't matter." Again he bends to kiss her and she giggles. "Good. Now, let's go back. I'm sure the others are worried about you." She pulls her hands back and starts back towards the rest of the crew. "Oh! Before I forget...don't do anything that stupid ever again, or I'll kill you myself. Alright?"

"Uhh...yes, ma'am..."