Izuku felt twitchy as he walked through Jaya's muddy streets, all but clinging to Mei to keep her from sprinting towards the nearest shiny bauble to catch her eye. His nerves are definitely not helped by the leers and chuckles of the pirates lining the streets. Some make a show of polishing knives or loading pistols, but they disappeared like minnows the moment they caught a glimpse of Rayleigh.

Rayleigh looked around the empty street and nodded. "That should be enough. Have fun you two."

"Wait, but-" Izuku called back to Rayleigh, but the pirate turned down an alley and disappeared. Sighing, Izuku turned back towards Mei and said, "We better stick together, since Rayleigh just left us…"

Izuku trailed off. Mei was nowhere to be seen.

"Alone," Izuku finished. Heart galloping in his chest, Izuku sprinted from building to building, poking his head in taverns and homes. He caught a glimpse of pink hair a few times, but every tap on the shoulder revealed either rugged, scarred scowls or a more effeminate face that made him feel a different kind of fear.

Gasping for air, Izuku staggered into the main square. A sea of unfriendly faces swirled around him, and while none tried to accost him, none offered to help him either.

A man ran screaming down the road. He shouted something at those nearest him, and the rest took off in a stampede. Izuku's heart soared. Rayleigh! He'd know what to do!

Izuku ran against the current, pushing through greasy bodies and rough shoves until he broke through to an empty street.

His excitement withered when he saw a man stroll through the street. He had Roger's impressive frame and presence, but he wore a white coat with a Hawaiian floral t-shirt underneath, and he had a bushy, but neatly trimmed beard.

The man took out a rice cracker and munched on it as he strolled down the street. "Mmph, I only asked for directions," he grumbled. "Lousy pirates."

His eyes found Izuku. He stopped, rice cracker halfway to his mouth. "Huh, a kid. Didn't think they had those in Jaya."

"Uh… hi. I'm Izuku."

The man grinned. "The name's Garp. Want a rice cracker?"

Izuku gingerly took a cracker and bit into it. His face twisted in disgust at the stale taste. "Garp? I feel like I've heard that name before."

Garp gave an abashed grin. "Well, they do call me the Hero of the Marines. I've been in a paper or two."

Izuku stared in amazement. This world had heroes too! He had a million questions, but before he could ask any of them, Garp said, "You look lost, kid. Looking for something?"

Izuku hesitated, but with no one else to turn to, he said, "My friend. She got lost, and I need to find her before something bad happens to her."

Garp sighed. "Kid, this is Jaya. If it's been five minutes, she's long gone."

Izuku's heart sank to his toes. The implications of losing Mei struck him like a hammer. No Mei meant no time machine. No time machine meant he was stuck here forever. He'd never see his mom again. Or Kacchan. Or go to U.A., or become a hero like All Might.

"There has to be something!" Izuku shouted, grasping at straws.

Garp's face twisted. "I'd like to help, but I'm already on an important assignment. I need to find the Roger Pirates."

"The Roger Pirates?" Izuku echoed.

"We got word they were headed this way. So, we got a trap waiting for them. But, without knowing where they docked their ship, we can't close the net." Garp rolled his shoulders. "So, of course they sent me in to find Roger, since anyone else would get clobbered by him."

Izuku's thoughts drifted back to the wanted posters. "How bad are they?"

Garp mulled over the question for the moment. "Bad enough that the Marines sent every Admiral on this mission. He's not the worst pirate out there, not by a long shot, but he is the most dangerous. If he gets what he's after, he could bring down the World Government."

Izuku had a few gaps in his knowledge, but bringing down the government felt far too villainous for his tastes. "If I help you find the Roger Pirates, could you help me find Mei and keep us safe?"

"Mei? That girl you're trying to find?" Garp gave him a thoughtful stare and stroked his beard. "How much do you know, kid?"

Izuku hesitated. He remembered the weeks spent on the Oro Jackson, eating, fighting, and training alongside the other pirates. They didn't seem like villains to him, yet, they were. They burned down Whiskey Peaks and took their treasure, they had wanted posters, and they had a Hero of this world hunting them.

"I know where they're docked. In a cove, on the other side of the island."

Garp clapped a hand on the shoulder. "I can't promise I'll find her in one piece, but I'll look. And the moment I get back to Marine HQ, I can put in a good word for you. Young man like you would make an excellent Marine." Grumbling under his breath, he added, "Unlike my layabout of a son. Won't even get a real job."

"Sounds good, I guess?" Izuku saw no harm in agreeing, since he'd be back home with Mei once they figured out their time machine problems. "But could we find Mei really quick?"

Garp pulled out a transponder snail. Izuku stared at the cephalopod in bafflement as Garp talked into it.

"What do you mean I gotta - calm down, Sengoku, you'll give yourself a heart attack. Jeez, fine, I'll head back." Tucking the snail into a pocket, Garp said, "Sorry kid, gotta run. Enroll with the nearest Marine base."

"But wait, what about-" Garp vanished with a dash of Soru, leaving Izuku in an empty street. "Mei… please be alright…"

"You say something Izuku?"

Izuku whirled around. "Mei! You're alive!"

"Yep! And I have all these wonderful baby-making materials."

Buggy gave them both a look of profound disgust. "I don't even want to ask what you need all those screws for."

"Oh, those are for…"

Buggy put a disembodied hand over Mei's mouth. "Don't. Even. Want. To. Ask."

"I hope you've got everything," Shanks said. "Word's in that the Marines are heading this way."

Izuku froze. "R-really?"

"Yeah. Apparently, Garp's been asking around about us. I'd be down for a good fight, but they're just as likely to torch the whole island."

A shadow fell over the group. Izuku looked back and saw Garp towering over them.

"Hey there, just realized I forgot to ask. How did you know about-"

"Oh shit!" Buggy yelped. "Run for it!"

Buggy sprinted away, with Shanks hot on his heels, but Garp vanished in a flash, only to reappear right in front of them.

"You look familiar," Garp said, lazily picking in his ear while he stared down at them. "Have we met before?"

Swallowing a massive lump in his throat, Buggy stammered out, "N-n-no sir! I was just… uh… running home to grab a piece of paper for your autograph! I'm a huge fan of the Marines and definitely not a pirate, nope! And definitely not a cabin boy on Gold Roger's crew!"

Shanks gave Buggy an unimpressed, flat stare. Buggy sweated buckets and waited for the Vice Admiral to respond.

"Hmm… really? Well, I don't mind signing something for you. Better make it quick, though, I'm on the clock."

Buggy let out a huge sigh of relief. He gave a quick thanks and ran off, but Garp grabbed his shoulder. Frozen mid-step, Buggy trembled and prayed to every deity he knew of while Garp turned him around.

"That nose… I remember that nose. Biggest, reddest nose I've ever seen. Now where have I seen it before?"

Anger warred against paralyzing fear on Buggy's face. "I-it's really not that big. Just a bit swollen, bumped it on the door the other day, silly me."

"Not that big!" Garp laughed. "You could launch that schnoz out of a cannon and use it for a signal flare! And I thought that one kid's butt-chin looked bad, but hey, at least he could cover that up!"

With a roar of indignant rage, Buggy slammed a knife into Garp's neck. The blade snapped at the hilt.

Garp rubbed his neck, exposing a lustrous black patch. "That one tickled a bit. You really are one of Roger's aren't you? Too bad you couldn't outsmart Garp the Hero, eh?"

Shanks stage-whispered to Buggy, "Garp said he's smarter than you."

"I will kill you in your-," Buggy replied through gritted teeth. The rest of his threat was cut off by Garp's blackened fist in his face. His nose flattened under the impact, and when Buggy hit the ground, knocked unconscious, his nose grew even bigger.

"Whoops," Garp said. "Thought that might make his nose smaller. Ah well."

Shanks drew his sword and put himself between Garp and Izuku. "Get back to the ship," he told him without taking his eyes off the Vice Admiral. "I'll hold him off."

"You think you can stop me?" Garp cracked his knuckles. "I've used tougher pirates for toothpicks."

"Maybe, but could they do this?"

Izuku felt a monstrous pressure swell around him. Mei swayed on her feet, eyelids fluttering, and he rushed to hold her up. As bad as he got it, he could tell by the rippling of the air that Shanks directed his mysterious aura away from them, directly at Garp.

Standing tall under the crushing pressure, Garp rolled his shoulders and said, "Conquerer's Will? And that strong at your age? You're too dangerous to run around. I'll make sure Shiliew keeps a tight leash on you."

Shanks roared and ran forward, coating his swords in Armament Haki. Garp sidestepped the frantic lunge, aimed a punch, and shouted, "Fist of Love!"

Even through defensive Haki and Tekkai, the punch knocked Shanks off his feet. His swords clattered to the ground as he rolled on the ground, retching and dry-heaving.

"You could've been a great Marine," Garp said sadly as he stood over Shanks. "A Vice-Admiral like me, or even Admiral if you wanted to."

"Go fuck yourself, old man" Shanks wheezed.

Garp sighed and reached down. "Sorry about this, but I can't let anyone break the law. Not even children."

Through this terrible tableau, Izuku remained frozen. Emotions warred within him, horror at the casual way Garp beat down the friends he had made over the past few months, awe at the power and might Garp presented, the way he seemed to shine in his white coat, hesitation between supporting the hero and supporting his friends.

A sharp rack rent the air. Rayleigh materialized out of nowhere, sword slashing down at Garp's head, while the Vice-Admiral raised a Haki-coated forearm to block it. Shanks slipped from Garp's stunned fingers, flopping to the ground and raising himself with one arm.

Rayleigh glanced back at Izuku with one eye. "Get back to the ship. Now."

Those firm words tipped the scales in Izuku's heart. He scooped up Buggy and ran. Shanks hobbled behind him, propped up under Mei's shoulder.

"You should've left me," Shanks said shakily. "Why did you stay?"

"I…" Izuku didn't know what to say. That he had asked Garp for help? That he told them where to find the Oro Jackson?

Izuku shook the guilty feelings away. They were pirates. Villains. They had wanted posters and fought the heroes. Yet, the brutality behind Garp's punches haunted him. At the same time, didn't All Might fight like that too? How were they any different? Was he helping villains run away from this world's All Might?

"There they are!" A deep voice snapped Izuku out of his oscillating thoughts. "Fire at will!"

Izuku's eyes widened in horror at the sight of a firing squad aiming at them. Aiming at Mei. Dropping Buggy, Izuku dashed in between her and the guns and hardened his body as much as he could, praying that he could finally make Armament Haki work.

He didn't.

Lances of fire pierced his body, three in the chest, one in the forearm over his eyes, and two more in his right thigh. Trickles of blood ran down the bullet holes, soaking his clothes.

Gritting his teeth, Izuku sprinted forward. The Marines yelped as Izuku sprang onto them in a flash. Izuku moved on numb instinct, sweeping the legs out from under one Marine with a kick, jamming an elbow into another's jaw, punching a third in the gut so hard his boots left the ground, then slamming two more with a roundhouse kick. When the last Marine charged at him with a sword, Izuku stepped into their overly large backswing and headbutted them.

As Izuku caught his breath, he stared down at the groaning Marines and felt panic grip him. Had he really just broken the law? Was he a villain now? But they tried to shoot Mei! Was he supposed to sit there and let it happen?

A hand clapped him on the shoulder. Izuku flinched and looked back. Shanks shakily grinned and said, "Nice save. I'll tell the others it was twenty Marines and a Captain you fought off." With a pained chuckle, he added, "Not like Buggy will ever know."

"Uh… thanks."

"Just a bit further…" Shanks wheezed. "If Garp is here… who knows who else they brought. This could get ugly."

Buggy groaned, and his eyelids fluttered open. "Urgh… who shot me with a cannonball?"

"Welcome back to the living, sleeping beauty." Shanks coughed and clutched his stomach. "I didn't get knocked out."

"Screw you." Buggy's face went pale as he stood up. "So, I wasn't dreaming about Garp?"

"Nope."

"We're running for it?"

"Yep."

"Great! I love it when we do something sensible for a change."

"Not arguing with you this time. One punch is more than enough for me."

While Shanks and Buggy had their conversation, Izuku drifted over to Mei. "Are you alright?"

She looked pale and shaken, and her eyes drifted to the bleeding holes in Izuku's shirt. She quickly nodded and clutched her hands to her arms so they would stop shaking.

Not knowing how else to help, he brought her in for a quick hug, ignoring the way it squeezed the holes in his chest. "Everything will be fine. We'll make it out of this somehow. I promise. I'll keep you safe."

Mei didn't say anything as he stepped back. Izuku stomped ahead, thoughts whirling as he kept an eye out for more Marines. His internal debate raged on, but the conflicted emotions felt muted as the multiple gunshot wounds throbbed with each step. A bullet worked itself out from his thigh and clattered against the ground. Even so, a part of him felt more alive than ever. Six men shot at him, and he beat them all. He saved Mei. Was there really anything wrong with that?

Izuku broke off his thoughts when Shanks held out an arm in front of the group. "Hold up. Marines beat us here."

Creeping through the leafy brush, they came upon a battlefield. White-clad Marines charged at the sides of Oro Jackson's hull, hurling grappling ropes and firing rifles, while a motley band of pirates defended the deck. Bodies from both sides littered the area, and the cove stank of discharged gunpowder.

"Looks like we'll have to fight our way through." Shanks turned towards Mei and frowned. "Maybe you should hide somewhere until things calm down."

"I'm staying with her," Izuku cut in. He couldn't let her out of his sight. Not again.

Shanks hesitated. "I don't think we can make it without you. Guess the four of us will have to hide together."

Leaves rustled and branches snapped as more boots came up from behind them. Shanks swore under his breath and drew his swords. "No choice. Let's move."

"Wait! Couldn't we still hide?" Izuku asked.

Buggy snorted. "You crazy? They find us, we'll be surrounded. Maybe you can take a few bullets, but the rest of us sure as hell can't."

Izuku had frantic thoughts about breaking off and telling the Marines he wasn't a pirate. But then again, the last group he found opened fire without asking questions. Could he really trust them, when they had already tried to kill Mei once?

"How are we doing this?" Izuku asked.

Shanks looked Buggy over. "You up for a pinwheel?"

Buggy flinched. "You're making me the main act? Can't you just Haki our way through this one?"

"Overdid it against Garp. I'm spent."

"Grr… fine, but you owe me. Midoriya, you better mop up what I don't catch."

Izuku scratched his head and asked, "What exactly is the plan?"

"Kick ass and don't die. Now move!"

Buggy split his arms into four pieces, each with a couple fingers and a knife. Sprinting into the crowd of Marines, he bellowed, "Flashy Crimson Pinwheels!"

In close quarters, the spinning knives cleaved through the Marines' formations. Common grunts fell like stalks of wheat, while the lieutenants and captains among them dodged or blocked the slashes.

Izuku winced as he stepped over fallen bodies. With Mei running behind him, Izuku buried any reservations he had about the bloodshed and focused on the men still standing. His fist shattered the teeth of a man shakily raising a pistol, then he drove his elbow into the side of a man aiming at Buggy's back. A sword spun through the air, tethered to a man's wrist by a long, thin chain. Izuku kicked it aside and hopped back, taking in his new opponent.

The Marine sauntered up, twirling the chain and letting the sword spin around him. "Cheap tricks won't work on me, boy. You're out of your-"

A bullet caught him in the side of the head. Izuku looked back at the ship and saw a sniper encouragingly wave him forward. Looking back at the fallen Captain, Izuku swallowed nervously and kept running.

A few punches later, the mass of Marines assaulting the ship thinned out, exposing an empty stretch of rock leading to the ship's deck. Buggy brought all of himself back together and whooped for joy as he ran to the Oro Jackson.

His shouts of joy were cut short when Garp landed in front of him.

"Guess I didn't punch you hard enough," Garp growled. "Maybe this'll fix your nose."

Buggy went flying. Blood gushed out of his squashed nose, and a few teeth bounced off the stony ground. Garp turned over to Izuku and saw Shanks leaning against him. "What are you doing here, boy? Didn't your friend get taken by pirates?"

"She's right there," Izuku said numbly, pointing at Mei.

Garp stared at Mei. Mei stared back at Garp.

"Huh. Well, good for you. Hand him over and we'll find a white coat in your size. Might even find a spot for your friend too."

Shanks shot him a confused look. Izuku looked back at Mei and asked, "Are the Marines good?"

"Of course we are!" Garp gave him a grin. "We serve the law and protect the people."

"Then why did the Marines try to shoot Mei?"

Garp's smile froze. His eyes roamed over the bullet holes in Izuku.

"It was probably just a misunderstanding, we can talk it out at Marine HQ, while we get your paperwork-"

"Probably?" Izuku asked. "Does that mean there's a chance it wasn't a misunderstanding? That they meant to shoot her?"

Garp heaved a long sigh. "Kid, sometimes, sacrifices need to be made in the name of the law. It's not easy, keeping the peace out on the open seas."

"So, the law says it's okay to shoot someone who did nothing wrong?"

Garp's silence was answer enough. Izuku balled his fists and strode forward. "I'm going to be a hero one day. The best."

Garp's face brightened. "Great, kid! We'll get you signed up right-"

"Heroes save people. They save whoever they can, no matter what. Can you really say that about yourself?"

With a tired expression on his face, Garp said, "It's not that simple, kid."

"It is. You're not a hero."

"Don't do this, kid. Don't throw your life away for a dream."

"For the first time in my life, I feel like I can actually do it. I'm not giving up!"

As Izuku stepped forward, the sight of guns aimed at Mei sprang to mind. Garp brutally beating down Shanks. Buggy, lying broken and insensate on the ground. Everything felt confused, wrong, and he had felt himself half-drowning in quicksand. But now, striding forward to protect his friends, Izuku felt himself rising out of the muck. Conscience clear, mind made up, Izuku smiled and squared his shoulders. He felt fire scour away any trace of his hesitation, and the heat of it warmed his soul.

With a single step, Izuku flashed across the distance between them. He slammed his fist square into Garp's jaw. A loud, meaty clap echoed across the clearing. The fighting stopped on both sides, every eye transfixed upon the suspended moment that Izuku's fist made contact.

The Vice-Admiral didn't budge an inch. He looked down at the fist digging into his cheek and said, "You talk a big game, but you throw a weak punch. Put your back into it, like this!"

Izuku hurriedly bent sideways. Garp's punch barely grazed his cheek, yet the force of it sent him flying like a ragdoll. Spitting out blood, Izuku shakily rose to his feet. His fists wobbled as he raised them, and his eyesight grew blurry.

Garp stretched his neck until it audibly popped. "Fast little twig. I won't miss a second time."

As Garp aimed another punch, he froze. He hastily backed away, and Roger's sword impaled the ground where he had stood. Izuku fell backwards to the ground and stared up at the pirate captain.

"Roger." Garp's voice sounded tired. "Will you give it a rest already?"

"Maybe when I'm dead. And before that happens, I'll see what lies at the end of the Grand Line."

"Can't let you do that."

Roger's voice took on a manic edge as a purple glow enveloped his swords. "Make me."

Garp's own fists gained a violet aura. "For the sake of the world, I will."

As the two titans prepared to clash, a rubber projectile slammed into Garp. Wrapping his arms around Garp, Luffy shouted, "Gramps! Did the mystery box get you too? And you look different, did you get a haircut?"

Garp peeled Luffy off of him. "Did you just call me Gramps? Do I look that old to you?"

"You are old! And my grandpa, which means you're really old!"

"Shut up! I'm not old, and I better not be a grandpa or I'll have to spank my worthless son!"

Roger's eyes darted from Luffy to Garp. Then he bellowed with laughter. Garp gave Roger an annoyed frown as the laughter boomed for a full minute.

"You think it's funny, Roger?"

Wheezing and leaning on a sword, Roger said, "Of all the people… and he's a pirate too! Your grandson is a pirate!"

"Eh? Of course not! No grandson of mine would ever turn pirate! They'll all be proud Marines, just like their father!"

Audibly holding back laughter, Roger asked, "Hey Luffy, is your dad a pirate too?"

"Him? Nah, he's not. He's a… whazit now… revo… relotutuionarily?" Beaming proudly, Luffy added, "He has the highest bounty in the world!"

Roger processed this for a second. Then he howled with laughter, so boisterous that it made birds halfway across the island take flight.

"What's so funny, Roger?" Garp demanded.

"It'll make sense in about twenty years," Roger said between laughs. "Oh, if only I could see the look on your face then."

Roger's laughter stopped. He straightened and stared out at sea. "Agh! I can't believe I missed the chance for a good fight! Oh well. Lads! Raise the sails! Hoist the anchor! Full speed off this blasted rock!"

Garp flinched, but before he could do anything, Roger had scooped up Izuku and the others and leapt clear across the cove. Dumping everyone on the deck, Roger swung his sword in front of the ship's bow. The water parted, and the ocean behind the ship rushed forward to fill the void, pushing the Oro Jackson with it.

Within minutes of hitting the open water, sails loomed all around the horizon. Marine frigates closed in from all sides, and the Oro Jackson sailed to a halt. Thunderous booms echoed from the frigates, and cannonballs fell like rain over the pirate ship. The pirates punched, shot, and sliced cannonballs out of the thin air, calling out, "Watch it, that was my favorite mug!" and "Tom'll have our hides if they put so much as a scratch on her!" Izuku, for his own part, kicked aside a cannonball that nearly took his head off.

From behind them, a cannonball blasted forward, announcing its arrival with an ear-splitting sonic boom. Roger sliced it in half, and the two pieces churned up fountains of water on either side of the ship.

"Roger!" Garp's voice boomed out over the cannonfire and ocean waves. "You're surrounded! Stand down or I'll sink the ship!"

"Sink my ship?" Roger asked. "How are you going to do that when I'm all the way up in the clouds?"

As Roger's amused question rang out over the ocean, frothing bubbles appeared underneath the Oro Jackson.

A/N: Izuku meets a hero, Luffy meets his grandpa, and Roger finally meets a worthy opponent. All three of these end up horribly wrong.

Made a new frosting recipe for my mom's birthday cake. I can make the best damn cake ever, but the frosting's my Achilles' heel. After seven years of trying and failing to perfect my grandma's buttercream recipe, I've forsaken it for a recipe I found on the internet. That one... also didn't turn out quite right. It's an Italian Meringue buttercream, which involves whipping up egg whites, then slowly streaming in boiling hot simple syrup (3/4 cup water and 2 cups sugar dissolved together) along the side of the stand mixer. That's the easy part. The hard part is waiting long enough for the egg whites to go down to room temperature before adding in soft butter. I wasn't patient enough and ended up with cream soup instead of a proper frosting. Luckily, it firmed up enough after ninety minutes in the fridge to slap onto my cake. And I've long learned that, when it comes to frosting, what matters most is the taste.

And it was delicious.

As sad as it makes me that I haven't perfected the original buttercream, I have hope that I'll manage this one. It's a bit easier in some ways and doesn't require as much of my time, which is a plus.

That's it out of me. Reviews are always appreciated, and see you all in two weeks!