Author's Note: Hi everyone! I'm so sorry for the wait on this chapter, I've had a lot going on. In other news, we are actually approaching the end of this story! I will reveal more details about my plans for the future in the next few chapters. I do have every intention of continuing the story to detail Luffy's adventures with the Straw Hats, but this 'prologue', if you will, ends at Chapter 40. Anyway, I hope ya'll enjoy the update!
To BlackGryphon101: Aw, thank you so much! I hope you enjoy the new chapter as well :)
To Wishfull-star: I'm so glad you're enjoying my story so far! Luffy deserves all the love and help *hugs him tight*
To Madeline Leicht: Haha right? I forget about their age difference a lot too XD Can you believe there's seven years between them? Everyone loves sweet little Lu. There will be some sparing between them in the future ;)
To yukino76: Yes, all of the protection for our babies.
To PotatosAndCheese: Luffy is finally on the mend! You're very welcome for the update and I hope that you enjoy this chapter as well :)
To Irene Sharda: We shall see Ace's reaction in this chapter, actually. Haha, yeah poor Law got beat up XD Big Mom is definitely a looming threat that will have to be dealt with...thank you so much for the review and I hope you enjoy the update!
To GoddessOfFanfictionn: There will be some fluff in this chapter between our favorite Law and Luffy ;) You're very welcome and I hope you enjoy this update as well!
To AngelFallenDemon: Cute little kitten Lu can melt even the hardest of hearts :)
To S-Lioness: Oh yeah, she's definitely a problem. We will go into some stuff with Big Mom in this chapter actually.
To Oranganeh97: Wouldn't dream of it ;)
To Supremacy123: Sorry for the wait!
WARNINGS:
- Big Mom is creepy
- Dismemberment (?)
- Ace is insecure
- Emotional talks
- Misunderstandings
Thank ya'll so much for your continued support with this story! I love reading the reviews, they motivate me so much :) Also...we're almost up to 1k follows! *cheers* I can't believe it, ya'll are too good to me.
Seated on her throne surrounded by sweets, Big Mom tapped her fingers against the wood of her chair. No matter how many candies her delightful children brought her, she found herself frustrated and unable to relax. Of course, Big Mom knew exactly what was causing her annoyance.
"…six months." The Empress growled to herself while wrapping her fingers around the arm of her chair, tightening her grip until the wood cracked. It'd been six months since her favorite son, Katakuri, and Brulee had left to retrieve 'delicious sweets' from one of the Blues and her patience had long since died.
Never before had she had to wait so long for dessert. Never!
Now, Big Mom was many things, but she wasn't stupid. 'Big News' Morgan brought her articles detailing information on Katakuri's little D. brat fairly regularly, so she was fully aware of his mysterious disappearance from the captivity of the Marines. The incident had her second son written all over it.
She supposed she should be proud, but it pissed her off that Katakuri did such a thing for someone who wasn't even blood related!
"Perospero." Big Mom called, summoning her eldest son. The Minister of Candy rushed forward, doing his best to hide his trembling (as he always did).
"Yes, Mama."
"Have you been able to establish contact with Katakuri yet?"
"N-No, Mama, I'm afraid not." Perospero said with a slight stutter, making Big Mom frown, "The last we heard, they were somewhere in the North Blue."
"With that brat, I assume?" She snarled, causing Perospero to flinch. Big Mom rested her cheek on her hand and sighed. "I'm no fool, Perospero, I can see that Katakuri's 'pet' is much more than just his slave."
"I…wouldn't know. He was only here for such a short time and-"
"Did you think I wouldn't notice all of you visiting him!?" Big Mom snarled, standing to her feet and squishing a cream puff beneath her feet, "Acting like he's related! Like he's blood!" Perospero cowered in her shadow until she sat back down, grinding her teeth together.
"Get Katakuri on the den-den mushi before the day's over or I'll have you take his punishment!"
"Shishishi, come on! Play with me, Torao!"
Katakuri watched in amusement as Luffy attempted to coerce the grumpy doctor into building a snow man with him. Trafalgar refused to move from his spot on the deck, but the little kitten was persistent. He smirked under his scarf at the resigned sigh as Law was dragged out into the cold to 'play' with Luffy.
The two had become surprisingly close over the past six months but Katakuri found he didn't mind as much as he thought he would. Law kept his word and continuously worked to help Luffy recover, which earned him respect in Katakuri's book.
"Oh dear…there he goes." Brulee whispered with a fond huff as Luffy chunked a snowball right into Law's face. The small cat-boy laughed when Trafalgar cursed under his breath and prepared his counter-attack. All too soon, more Heart Pirates had joined the scuffle and a full blown war had broken out on the snowy bank. "It's nice to see him so happy."
"Yeah." Katakuri agreed, reflecting back on how far he'd come in just six months. After many surgeries and repairs, Luffy was almost fully healed. All that was left was his hands…the most difficult procedure of all. "Though I worry this recovery time has weakened his body some…"
Though he wanted to train Luffy more than anything, the boy was almost constantly recovering from procedures, which meant bedrest. Trafalgar did his best to facilitate appropriate rehabilitation for the kid but there was a difference between maintaining and gaining strength.
"You'll have plenty of time to make up for the last few months once we return home." Brulee reminded him while sending him a stern glance, "This is important, brother. Training can wait."
"I know." Katakuri replied, a soft smile appearing on his face when Luffy launched himself onto Law's head and maneuvered a handful of snow down the older pirate's shirt. Trafalgar's squeak was less than manly, but understandable. "I just want to make sure he's ready…he'll be seventeen before we know it."
Children grew up so fast…and Katakuri wasn't sure he was ready to let his little kitten go.
He glanced down to his pocket when his den-den mushi began to ring, prompting him to frown. Katakuri and Brulee had given specific instructions to their siblings to not contact them unless it was absolutely necessary. Sending his sister a concerned look, he answered the call.
"This is Katakuri."
"Hello, son. It's been a while."
He swallowed instinctively at Mama's cold voice. There wasn't much in the world that scared him…but his Mother had long since earned his wariness. Beside him, Brulee went pale and sat down next to him so she could listen in to the call.
"I apologize for the wait, Mama. There have been some unexpected delays in our return-"
"Oh save it. I know what you've been up to." Big Mom snapped, causing Katakuri's stomach to drop, "I'm afraid Perospero spilled the beans. To think, you'd prioritize a brat you introduced to me as your slave before my delicious sweets."
"…how much do you know?" He probed, knowing in his heart that it wouldn't do him any good to continue to try and fool the old pirate.
"Something about 'healing' the brat, but I didn't really listen to his explanation…I wanted to hear it from you. So go on, tell your Mama what was more important than me."
Recognizing he was on thin ice, Katakuri explained everything…how he felt about Luffy, his injuries, and their plan to return to Totto Land as soon as his treatment was done. He didn't, however, reveal their location or Trafalgar Law's involvement.
"Hmph, so you really do think of the D. brat as your son." Mama muttered, the den-den mushi's eyes scrunching up ever so slightly, "You know how I feel about adoption, Katakuri. Is that why you told me he was just a pet? Trying to fool the woman who raised you?"
"I didn't want him to have to give up part of his soul." Katakuri admitted, knowing it wouldn't do him any good to lie at this point, "…and I wasn't sure how I felt at the time."
"About starting a family without my permission?"
"About having a son." He continued, tightening his fist in determination, "Mama, whether you like it or not…Luffy is my son. I won't get rid of him no matter what you say." Brulee swallowed hard at the statement but said nothing. The snail seemed pensive, which only added to Katakuri's anxiety.
"I see. Time away from home has made you rebellious, Katakuri…and I don't like it."
"I can live with that." Katakuri shot back before standing to his feet, "Listen, Mama, I know you're angry but I will keep my word and return with delicious sweets. However, I will only do so once Luffy is healed and ready to move. You may not like it now but having a D in the Charlotte Family may be more beneficial than you think."
"Perhaps, but it could also be dangerous. I've known a few in my time and they made the world burn." Mama replied, a nasty smirk appearing on the snail's face, "I'll be waiting for you then, my son…don't think this conversation is over. You may regret bringing your 'pet' back with you."
"We'll see." Katakuri answered firmly before hanging up, allowing Brulee to breathe again.
"She was pissed, brother…" His sister whispered, trembling slightly, "You don't think she'll kill us, do you? O-Or hurt Luffy?"
"I won't let that happen," Katakuri said, reaching out to place a soothing hand on Brulee's shoulder, "but first, we need to focus on supporting Luffy. If we keep going at this pace, we should be ready to leave in about two months. Before that, we need to come up with a plan for collecting the candy we promised her."
With that, the siblings went silent and returned their attention to the small boy playing around in the snow. He looked so happy even without his legs that were currently stuck to a half-finished snowman. Katakuri knew in his heart that things would get immensely more complicated the closer they got to Totto Land, but that was an issue for another time.
Right now, he just wanted to watch his precious boy play while stealthily taking pictures he could have Brulee frame at a later date.
Ace sighed contently after finishing his meal, falling back onto the soft grass of the tiny island his crew had decided to stop on. His chef was amazing and would probably give even Thatch a run for his money…not that he was particularly picky with his food.
A lot had happened since his departure. The Spade Pirates were now a well-known group and Ace had earned the title 'Super Rookie' because of his very quick rise to fame. Strangely enough, the World Government actually offered to make him a Warlord, which he promptly refused. Ace had no intention of working for the people who allowed slavery and even sanctioned it in many cases.
Currently, Ace and his crew were making their way through Paradise (doing their best to avoid all of Whitebeard's territories). Despite his explanation of his 'connection' to the Emperor's crew, the other Spade Pirates didn't seem to think confronting them right away was a good idea. Ace was pretty happy with how strong he'd gotten since leaving Whitebeard's ship…he'd at least put up a good fight.
"Did you take your meds?" Deuce questioned, eyeing him from across the fire.
"Yep." Ace answered, sending him a thumbs up, "I'm all drugged up, Doctor."
"You know it's for your own good." His first mate chided, "You forgot to take them one time and fell overboard." Ace grimaced at the memory, praying desperately that Marco never found out about that.
"Thanks again for fishing me out!"
Deuce chuckled, prompting a few minutes of comfortable silence between them. The rest of the crew was scattered about the beach either drinking or sleeping already. It had been a peaceful day, but they would set out again in the morning. Pirates didn't like to stay on land for too long, after all.
"C-Captain!" One of his men screeched, causing Ace to immediately sit up.
"What is it?"
"T-There's…he's…"
Ace frowned and followed where the man was pointing. A large form moved through the woods, causing the trees to creak as it moved past them. Sensing a potential threat, Ace stepped in front of his men and called fire to his right hand. Whoever, or whatever, it was, it'd be in for a fight.
"Permission to approach, Ace-san?"
Ace relaxed slightly in surprise at the familiar voice. Could it be? His question was answered when a certain shark fishman emerged from the woods, a fond smile on his face. He immediately expunged his fire and trotted forward, causing his crew to cry out for him to 'be careful'.
"Jimbei, you're here! It's been a while!"
"Yes, it has. May I…join you?"
"Of course!"
His crew watched in utter confusion as Ace led Jimbei, Knight of the Sea, to their campfire. For his part, Ace was just happy to see the fishman after so many months.
"Y-You know each other?" Saber managed, eyes wide.
"Yeah, we met on Fishman Island while I was on Whitebeard's ship." He explained while taking a seat next to the massive Warlord, "Don't worry, he's cool."
"Are there any other powerful and potentially dangerous people we should know about before they show up?" Deuce put in, crossing his arms and gazing at him like a disappointed parent, "Like, oh…I don't know, other Emperors, or something?" Jimbei blinked at the sarcastic question and leaned over to Ace.
"…you haven't told them?"
Deuce went blank at the whispered answer.
"Ace, I was joking. Please tell me there isn't anyone else."
"Uh, I mean, if you count Shanks, Dogtooth…" Ace's crew went pale as he started counting with his fingers, "…hmmm, the Revolutionaries, Garp-"
"Garp!?"
"Wait, Shanks as in the Emperor!? You know two of them?"
"Joining your crew should come with a waiver…" Deuce said with a huff before burying his face in his hand. Ace just laughed and passed a bottle of rum to Jimbei.
"It's really no big deal, Deuce. Like I said about the Whitebeards, they're more annoying than anything. As long as we avoid them like we have been doing, there's nothing to worry about."
"Have you spoken with them recently?" Jimbei put in while pouring himself a drink.
"No, I'm not in contact with them." Ace explained, "I'm my own Captain now so technically, we're enemies."
"Well then, you'll be pleased to hear that Luffy's recovery is going well." Ace froze, a piece of meat halfway to his mouth. "Dogtooth updates everyone regularly and-"
"Wait, wait…recovery? Did he get hurt?" Ace questioned loudly, prompting the whole camp to go silent and Jimbei to pale.
"H-He…didn't tell you. I thought for sure he would before he left…" Ace stood to his feet, brow furrowed and fists clenched.
"Jimbei, what the hell happened to my baby brother."
Ace felt his body go numb when Jimbei acquiesced and asked that he sit down. It was like the environment around him disappeared and all he could hear was the terrible words coming out of the Warlord's mouth.
Luffy was in pain.
The torture left permanent damage.
He hid it from everyone.
"W-Why didn't he tell me?" Ace stuttered, shocked at the revelation. Jimbei closed his eyes and sighed sorrowfully.
"When he revealed it to me, he said that the only reason he told me was because he 'needed to'. I believe the pain became too much for him to bare alone. Since then, I have spoken to Marco about it and…Ace-san, Luffy wanted nothing more than for you to be the focus…to receive love and healing."
Ace is more important.
"That l-little…" He managed, barely holding in his tears of frustration. Luffy deserved love and support more than him, and yet he'd hidden his own pain so everyone could focus on Ace. It stirred up a guilt inside him that was unfamiliar. "Jimbei, I'm a terrible big brother."
"Hey, don't give me that." Deuce suddenly put in, standing up to move closer to Ace, "Listen, we may not know much of what's going on, but you talk about your little brother non-stop, to the point that it's annoying.'
He snorted at that.
"You love that kid, Ace, and…call me selfish, but if what your brother did allowed you to be here today-"
"Don't say it!" He interrupted, sending a warning glare to his first-mate, "Just…don't."
"Ace-san." Jimbei said calmly, placing a webbed hand on his shoulder, "We can't change what happened. What matters is that Luffy is getting the treatment he needs. Katakuri was able to find a doctor with the qualifications to repair his nerves…he'll be fine."
'That doesn't make me feel any less guilty.' Ace thought, gritting his teeth. He's Luffy's big brother, his protector! He should've noticed something was wrong!
Suddenly, all those times Luffy scratched at his arms or tried to hide winces of pain made sense. Sabo had suspected something was up after Marco snuck something to Lu…but they hadn't done anything about it. Ace lifted his head, lips curling into a snarl.
"The Whitebeards knew…and they didn't tell me."
"Luffy asked that we keep it a secret." Jimbei explained, "The only reason the Commanders know is because Marco treated your brother that night and prescribed him pain medication. Marco knew Luffy would refuse any additional treatment until after you'd left on your journey, so he told Katakuri of the situation so he could handle it."
Clicking his tongue in frustration, Ace brought the brim of his hat lower so it covered his eyes.
"Sorry, guys…but I need a minute alone."
Thankfully, Deuce followed his instructions and Jimbei respectfully went with them, leaving Ace alone with his thoughts.
Jimbei sat on the beach drinking the rum Ace gave him, gazing across the sea. He could feel with his Haki that the Spade Captain was angry and hurt, understandably so.
'I shouldn't have told him…' He mused with a regretful sigh, 'Forgive me, Luffy.'
"You seem to know a lot about Ace and his family." A masked man said as he approached Jimbei. From his research, he knew this one Ace's first mate, 'Masked Deuce'. "Would you mind sharing some of that information with me?"
"I have already shared too much." Jimbei replied, lowering the bottle to his lap, "If Ace hasn't told you his past, it is not my place to say." Deuce exhaled slowly and sat down next to him.
"…he was a slave, right?"
Jimbei didn't respond.
"I've known Ace the longest out of all of us and, though he never expressly told me…I'm a doctor. I know the signs."
The Warlord simply kept watching the sea, not wanting to cause any more problems than he already had. Luffy had trusted him with his secret and he'd divulged it without considering the consequences.
"His little brother…was he a slave to?"
Jimbei deflated slightly at the question, picturing the happy yet hurting little boy who'd trusted him with his life only hours after they first met. He wondered if Luffy had regained some of his joy after undergoing treatment for many months now.
"I'll take your silence as a 'yes'."
"You are quite persistent aren't you?" Jimbei asked, eyeing the masked human warily. Deuce simply shrugged.
"It's part of my job as first mate and ship doctor to make sure Ace is given everything he needs to be healthy, physically and mentally. I just don't want to do a crappy job."
About thirty minutes later, Ace emerged from the camp and joined the rest of his crew (plus Jimbei) on the beach. They all watched him carefully, trying to read his mood. Jimbei noted that his eyes were slightly red and swollen, indicating he'd been crying.
"Sorry about that guys…I'm okay now."
"You don't have to apologize." A man with a turban put in, "Er, anyway…we're sorry to hear about your little brother, mate. But it sounds like he's in good hands."
"Yeah, he is." Ace whispered while plopping himself down next to Jimbei, "Hey, you wouldn't happen to have Dogtooth's contact information, would you?"
"Unfortunately, no. All of my knowledge comes from Whitebeard."
Ace's silver eyes glinted.
"Great. Let me use your snail."
Secluded in his room, Marco was greatly enjoying the peace of the day. Though he loved his brothers and sisters, sometimes it was nice to get away so he could finish his paperwork and organize his collection of medical dictionaries. He adjusted his glasses when his personal den-den mushi rang.
With a huff, he pushed his glasses up onto his head and answered the call.
"Marco here, yoi."
"It's Jimbei…"
"Oh, Jimbei. You don't usually contact me so soon after our last discussion, yoi." Marco said before placing the snail down in front of him, "Is there something you need?"
"Well-" The Warlord cut off and a new voice could be heard telling Jimbei to 'hand over the snail'. Marco raised an eyebrow, curious as to what was going on. "Marco, it's Ace."
"Ace, yoi? This is a surprise." Marco stated, "Why are you with Jimbei?"
"We were drinking together but then he told me about Lu…" The Commander's eyes softened in understanding while Ace trailed off, "I won't deny that I'm pretty mad at you for not telling me, but I know you were just respecting Luffy's wishes."
"I'm sorry you had to find out after the fact, yoi."
"Thanks, but I think I'll feel better once I talk to him. Do you have Dogtooth's information?"
A few minutes after giving the young Captain the number, Ace hung up, returning Marco to the previously peaceful ambience of his room. It had no doubt been hard for him to hear that Luffy had taken such a burden upon himself for Ace's sake…especially with his severe lack of self-esteem. Hopefully speaking to the boy would help alleviate some of his insecurities and re-assure him that Luffy was doing all right.
'I'd better update Pops.' He thought, standing up from his desk and leaving his glasses on top of his many unfinished reports.
"Shishishi, hey that's no fair!" Luffy exclaimed while laughing as Torao cut off yet another limb, "I need that!"
"This is what you get for that stunt with the snow, Luffy-ya." Torao retorted with a smirk, holding his severed arm just out of reach, "I think this round is mine." The kid huffed and plopped back onto the snow as well as he could with just one arm, his ears twitching happily.
"Okay~" He whined, "You win…"
While the rest of the Heart Pirates either gloated or bemoaned their team's standing after the snowball fight, Luffy glanced over to Torao's submarine where Papa and Auntie Branch were. He noticed they were on the den-den mushi a lot today for some reason. Papa Kata didn't seem quite as upset as on the last call but did keep looking over at him.
Eventually, Kata passed the snail off to his Aunt and made his way over to them.
"Luffy, your brother's on the line," He immediately sat up, ears perked in excitement, "so put yourself together and come inside. Brulee can make you some hot chocolate."
Luffy nodded and started to stand only to remember that he had no legs at the moment. He promptly face-planted into the snow, drawing a chuckle from Kata.
"…hey, you could've caught me." Luffy muttered with a pout.
"I know, but it was funny."
Luffy giggled, enjoying his Papa Kata's attempt at humor. With that, his Papa scooped him up and motioned for Torao to pass over his limbs, which he did reluctantly. Once he had his legs back, Luffy squirmed out of Kata's grasp and rushed back to the submarine, ignoring their calls for him to wait until his left arm was back on.
He was just so excited to hear from Sabo!
Auntie Branch yelped when Luffy jumped up and snatched the snail from her before climbing around to the front of the submarine. He loved being able to sit and let his legs dangle just above the ocean. It was his favorite spot on any ship.
"Hi, Sabo!" Luffy chirped, cradling the snail gently in his lap, "You're calling early this week."
"Actually, Lu…it's Ace."
"Oh, sorry! Hi Ace!" He quickly correctly, somewhat surprised to hear from his other brother. Sabo contacted him regularly but Ace was on his own adventure now so he hadn't expected him to call. "It's been so long! How've you been? OH, I saw you in the newspaper and your bounty is getting so high and-"
"I'm doing fine, Lu." Ace interrupted, prompting Luffy to go silent. There was something off about the way his brother was talking… "Actually, I'm calling to check on you. I ran into Jimbei today and he told me what's been going on." Luffy stiffened, his ears drooping.
"…oh. Y-You know?"
"Yeah." Ace sighed, causing the snail to move with him, "Luffy…w-why didn't you tell me? Why did I have to find out you've been in pain this whole time from Jimbei of all people?"
"I…I didn't want you to know." Luffy whispered while drawing his fluffy tail into his lap to caress the snail, "I thought that if you knew what was going on…you would focus too much on me and not on you. I-I thought you wouldn't leave and I didn't want to be the reason you gave up your dream!"
Ace was silent for a moment, making Luffy's heart rate increase in anticipation.
"Luffy, nothing is more important to me than you and Sabo. If it meant getting you the treatment you need, I would have gladly postponed my departure."
"But-"
"No, let me finish." Ace interrupted, using that voice he only used when he made sure Luffy was listening, "I don't want you to ever think that you can't come to me, no matter the problem! And Luffy…your problems are not less important than mine, okay?"
"O-Okay…" Luffy managed, hiccupping softly, "I-I'm sorry, Ace. I didn't m-mean to-"
"Don't even think about apologizing, Lu. I'm not mad, I just wanted to let you know that you're my world and I love you, so much."
Luffy sniffled and wiped his eyes, his tail swaying a bit in happiness. He felt bad for keeping his condition (as Torao called it) a secret from his brothers, but now they both knew and it was like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
"Hey, are you all right?" Papa Kata whispered, peering around the frame of submarine with concern. Luffy nodded. The pirate glanced at the snail but seemed content with his answer. "Okay, well I have your arm here if you want it."
"Thanks!" Luffy said, smiling as he accepted the limb.
"Is that Dogtooth?"
"Yeah…I was just making sure Luffy was okay."
"That's nice, very nice…so uh, what do you mean you have Lu's arm?"
"I mean just that, Portgas. Our doctor cut it off so I needed to give it back to Luffy." Katakuri stated blunting causing the snail's jaw to drop. Luffy giggled at Ace's face.
"Shishishi, yeah Torao likes to cut off my arms and legs when he says I get too annoying."
"WHAT!?"
Katakuri smiled under his scarf at Portgas' reaction and Luffy's sweet smile. He hated to see him cry but it was important for him to have that talk with Ace. The commander imagined that it had hurt the surprisingly fragile self-esteem of the notorious 'Fire Fist' to hear that everything Luffy did (and withheld) was for him.
Still, he'd reacted in a more mature manner than he'd expected.
"Get that damn 'doctor' on the snail, right now!"
"You want to talk to Torao?"
"I want to talk to the monster who gets a kick out of cutting your limbs off, Lu! Dogtooth, why aren't you stopping this!?"
"Well-"
A knowing sigh caused him to trail off.
"This must be Portgas-ya." Trafalgar mumbled, looking terribly annoyed, "Do you enjoy putting me in these situations, Kata-ya?"
"Truthfully? Yes." Katakuri admitted, making Law roll his eyes.
"Just give me the damn snail."
Katakuri chuckled quietly to himself as Trafalgar muscled his way onto the railing so he was sitting next to Luffy. He enjoyed these times of relative peace…but he knew it wouldn't last. His son's treatment was nearing its end and soon, they'd have to leave.
To face Mama's wrath.
Secretly, he hoped Luffy would win her over with his cuteness (like he did everyone else), but that was pretty unlikely.
'Well, I can dream.' Katakuri thought while listening to Ace yell at Trafalgar for 'hurting' and 'attempting to murder' his angelic, baby brother. The ever stoic Surgeon of Death hadn't lasted long…so maybe there was a chance.
By the time Ace hung up, he felt fairly satisfied that Luffy was in good hands…though it'd taken some convincing. Trafalgar Law, Lu's doctor (AKA the Surgeon of Death, because that was completely normal and non-threatening) sounded like a complete maniac…but he did appear to be knowledgeable and Luffy liked him for whatever reason. As much as he hated to admit it, the doctor's devil fruit was suited for the medical field and he'd already helped Luffy a lot.
Didn't mean he liked the fact that Trafalgar enjoyed dismembering his brother, but Dogtooth seemed to have it all under control.
"Do you feel better now?" Jimbei asked, prompting Ace to exhale sharply.
"Yeah, I guess so. I'm just glad Lu is doing okay." He opened and closed his fist, feeling antsy after going through so many emotions in such a short time frame. Ace glanced over at Jimbei and smirked, fire appearing on his shoulders. "Hey…I need to work off some steam. What would you say to a spar?"
"Fire First Ace and Knight of the Sea Jimbei CLASH!"
"That's quite the headliner." Izo said with amusement, eyeing the newspaper in Whitebeard's hand, "It says they've been fighting for a few days now and don't look to be stopping anytime soon."
Whitebeard grinned at his children who all stared up at him with anticipation.
"Gurarara…that island is practically in our territory. It would be wrong to just sit by and let them destroy the place." Next to him, Thatch cheered.
"Hell yeah! Let's go get Ace!"