Chapter 8: Reunion

{Sabaody Archipelago: Two Years Later…}

Chaos had been a predominate feature of Sabaody today. It was impressive, to say the least - how much chaos the Straw Hat Pirates caused within six hours. That had been a shock for the Marines for certain, especially when they had discovered that the Captain, Monkey D. Luffy could use Haki and took down a Pacifista as if it was a toy. They had tried to capture him, but that had failed when Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro stepped in with Black Leg Sanji, and to make matters worse, Silvers Rayleigh had stepped between them, drawing a literal line in the sand and daring them to cross it. No one had the guts to tempt the Grim Reaper today.

Thus, with a cheer and gleeful laughs, Zoro, Sanji, and Luffy - who was bogged down with multiple lunches made by the Kuja Pirates - made a wild dash for the Sunny, making it in record time as everyone greeted them, thrilled to be reunited after two years apart. As soon as the Monster Trio's feet touched the grass on their ship's deck any concerns they had faded away as Luffy dropped the bag he was carrying, letting Sanji inspect it while he retained his cloak for the time being, a broad grin on his face as he observed his crew. Franky had gotten major upgrades, looking a touch more robotic than he had prior, but Luffy couldn't help but love it. Brook looked the same, but had enjoyed two years of stardom and had apparently left a grand exit from Sabaody Stadium where he final tour was held.

Chopper had grown some and was rambling on about how much he had learned since they'd split up, Robin had lost her tan and grown out her hair, much like Nami had. The orange haired girl had clamped her arms around him almost instantly, thrilled to see all of them again as Luffy looked to Usopp who had grown up a bit and had also appeared to have done some serious training. Lastly, were Sanji and Zoro. The blond had grown his hair out and styled it opposite of how he once had, and had started to grow some facial hair - something Luffy realized with a bit of an internal laugh that his rubber body wouldn't let him do - while Zoro had grown quite a few inches and now had a scar over his right eye that was closed. Physically, his crew had changed some, but they were still the same as he remembered them and when he finally set down the cloak he wore, he was greeted with a group hug, cheerful and excited for this next adventure. However, as soon as he stood atop the seat at the base of Sunny's central mast, he noticed the eyes on him, or more specifically the X shaped scar that decorated his chest.

Akainu had left him with an ugly, deep burn that scarred, and was unlikely to ever properly heal. The healers on Amazon Lily had looked at it, and though the wound was gone, the scar couldn't be fixed. A part of him was grateful for that, as it would remind him to never let his guard down again. And, it would let him remember that if he ever took someone's life directly - it would be Akainu's. Sighing, he subconsciously crossed his arms over his chest, drawing the red cardigan he wore closed to hide it as he talked to his crew who took in his appearance but said nothing as they finally set sail and plunged into the depths of the ocean with the coating Rayleigh had provided. Luffy had called a thanks to the Kuja Pirates, and left Sanji fuming, but as they sunk further into the cold waters, their attention turned to their Captain who happily was watching the fish swimming by as though it was the most fascinating thing in the world. It had left them time to consider the boy before them now.

Luffy may have not noticed it, but he had grown a few inches over these two years. His muscle definition was far more obvious than it had once been, and though he still seemed to be his same mischievous self - they knew a lot had changed. Chopper frowned as Franky got his attention, and Luffy turned, giving the group a good look at the massive scar on his chest that made them flinch at the mere notion of what could have caused it. Who could have caused it. None of them knew what exactly had happened during the Paramount War, but that scar was a good indicator and the way that when Luffy caught them staring he tried to hide it by crossing his arms. But, if he thought that would keep his crew from prying then he had another thing coming.

First and foremost, Chopper seemed abnormally eager to examine the remains of the injury as he was currently sitting beside Nami with a frown while he muttered something under his breath about wanting to make sure everything was fine. Naturally their Doctor would want to do this, but those thoughts were equally shared by each member of the crew, though perhaps for different reasons. If Nami were to be honest, the sight of it turned her stomach as she recalled the news paper she'd received on Weatheria. Looking at her Captain right then as he happily chatted with their Shipwright, no one would be the wiser that he had suffered such a great loss, but she knew there was no way Luffy was as okay as he was trying to make everyone believe. After all, you didn't just bounce back from something like that in two years.

When it came to Robin, she was concerned at seeing the remains of the injury and could only imagine what he had experienced on the battlefield. She had heard from the revolutionaries that Marineford was narrowly sunk during the battle thanks to White Beard, and that while the Pirates and endured a great loss - it was a call to close for comfort when the Marines thought about it. Most importantly, the world now knew that her Captain was the child of the most wanted man in the world, Dragon. She had heard randomized reports that ranged from the Warlords being useless as they combated the other Pirates, to the story of how Akainu was the brave soul who eliminated the lineage of Gol D. Roger, the Pirate King.

How there was one less devil in the world. However, when she looked to her young Captain, she couldn't help but wonder how scared the Marines had to be in knowing that they missed one. Monkey D. Luffy had escaped the battlefield with wounds and undoubtedly a severe case of trauma that had left him grief stricken for who knows how long - but he survived. And now, with them back in action, there was no doubt in her mind that Luffy would show them how much of a threat he was. But, Usopp, was a bit of a different story.

The moment Luffy had removed that cloak he'd been wearing, his heart had narrowly stopped. The sight of his Captain's bright smile was a welcomed experience, but why did it make him feel sick when he looked into those familiar dark gray eyes? Why did Luffy's smile seemed just a touch to forced? He wanted to ignore it, but then his gaze landed on the scar present on his chest. It was large, touching just under his collar bones and just over his ribs. The sheer thought of how painful that wound had to have been sent a chill down his spine worse than any of his mind games could have dared to. Luffy acted as though nothing was wrong with the fact that he'd just walked onto the Sunny after two years with a scar like that, but here it was. And now, the guilt was back.

Why did it have to happen?

It made no sense to him for Ace to have died like he did. Even if they were Pirates, the lot of them were still humans - at least, he thought so - and that made the Marines murderers in his mind. Because, those people had taken someone precious from his Captain, his friend. And left him alone. Usopp couldn't shake that feeling as he sat next to Robin, but he could tell by the expressions on everyone's faces that something was bothering them too. Brook, was saddened when he saw how Luffy shied away from close contact after their reunion hug. How he tried to hide the scar he now bore from his experience of the War, and the way that he kept it hidden as he spoke to Franky and eventually some of the others as Sanji decided to start preparing everyone's lunch and left in a manner that Brook knew was because like him, they couldn't bare to see the young man like that.

If he had a heart still it would surely break if he thought about what had occurred after they'd all been separated. The skeletal musician could only ponder the grief and regret Luffy had already possessed from what he surely believed was his failure to protect them from Kuma, and then he added it on top of everything else with the demise of his only brother. Yes, he'd heard the stories of how his Captain had stormed Impel Down and escaped with hundreds of prisoners and then lept onto the battlefield of Marineford as though it was the only choice he had. It made Brook wonder how much pain someone so young could take before they snapped. He wondered if perhaps Luffy had already reached that point and that was the reason why he seemed both thrilled to be back with his crew, and equally just as terrified of them. It made him want to cry, but he knew right now wasn't the time to ask questions, so he ran up and decided to start playing music, using the violin - Luffy's favorite - to do so.

However, while Brook and the others had tried to keep their worries to themselves, they all knew they were just putting off the inevitable. Zoro knew that, he could see it on all of their faces. They had asked about his scar, how he had gotten it and he'd pushed them off, assuring them that he was fine, but when it came to their Captain it didn't take a genius for them to know that keeping their mouths shut would be impossible. Because for as well as Luffy knew them, they also knew him. Even if two years had indeed changed the boy in many ways. He could only sigh in defeat when Sanji shot up, stating that he intended on getting their first meal together in two years prepared, and sent Luffy an angry glance before moving into the kitchen. The damn cook was to temperamental. It was a scar, a mark that meant what their Captain had survived the impossible and they should be proud of him for getting up after such a painful blow, but even Zoro knew it wasn't that simple. He wasn't a fool.

While Luffy ran around the ship, playing with Chopper who was eager to do so after so long, Franky stood with a gloomy expression upon his face for the same reason that the others were also wearing similiar looks of worry that they attempted to veil with smiles and conversation. He wasn't the same. It took the cyborg all of two seconds to see it in those dark eyes. They were haunted, they looked like the eyes of someone who had gone off the edge and had only just managed to crawl their way back to the ledge and ultimately forced themselves to the top of that cliff where they felt they were the safest or possibly the most sane. Love for someone made you do the most wild and insane things ever, after all he knew that from personal experience. He'd made the dumb choice to stand in front of the sea train and was gored for his troubles. Luffy, had challenged Impel Down, he'd fought Marineford and lost everything dear to him. That's what those eyes told him, how his Captain had gone sick with madness and grief but forced himself out of the darkness just with the mere hope that they were still going to be together again soon. He felt a knot form in his throat as he watched the boy roll onto the grass, laughing as Chopper stopped to catch his breath and those keen eyes locked onto the scar now that Luffy was exposing it. If reindeer could go pale, then Franky had just seen it because it seemed like Chopper had gotten the same notion that he had upon getting a decent look at it.

That was a burn. Not a cut.

He felt an urge to scream at the notion, but said nothing as a crash came from the Kitchen, and a few of the others decided to come inside while Chopper continued to play with Luffy who was examining the fish present. Inside their dining area they had a good view of the kitchen, where Sanji had been furiously cooking for the last half-hour and had made more progress than they thought possible. But, all of them could tell as they took their seats that he wasn't upset or worried, no he was angry. At himself, at the Marines, and Black Beard, and at Luffy. The blond slammed a pot down and started adding in ingredients as he swore under his breath, his tone sharp as he chopped up a series of vegetables and threw them into the pot with a glare on his face before tossing the items into the dish washer. Sanji's anger was justified, as they all handled certain things different, but even they could tell that he wanted to shout and throw things while they could still hear the other two outside laughing and chatting.

"Dammit!" he snapped, taking in a deep breath as he gritted his teeth.

"Abusing the cookware isn't going to fix things." the blond shot them a withered look.

"Then what the fuck can?! How can he just act like nothing happened?! Look at that fucking scar on him! Did anyone else realize it was a damn burn?" Sanji snarled this series of words at them like they were knives, and each of them felt that in their souls.

"I did when I was talking with him…." Franky said no more than that, but he noticed the tears welling in Nami's eyes at the statement.

"Nami, are you okay?" Brook asked as the girl wiped her eyes, trying to shake off the pain that was bubbling in her chest.

"When all of us got back together, I was sure that we'd be fine. I thought it would be the same as always. But we would be stronger, and able to face things… just pick up where we left off, but seeing that scar reminded me that in the last two years, Luffy was alone. He didn't have us with him, his brother was killed and he was in the middle of that war… I feel horrible." Zoro sighed.

"He won't want us to be that way about it," he stated as the others nodded slowly.

"We all know that, but it doesn't change the fact that our Captain had to face all of that bullshit alone! We're not just a crew, everyone of us here are a damn family and when someone is hurt we're supposed to be there for them! But we weren't!" Nami's statement had the group flinching.

"But, should we even ask about it? Is that… safe?" Usopp's question had the group tense.

Was it safe? What did that even mean? If they asked Luffy about the scar would they bring up memories that he'd rather not look at? Or, would he be open and honest like always? No, they realized he would try and avoid talking about what happened to him for the last two years the second he started trying to keep them from getting a good look at the scar on his chest. It made them wonder how he had gotten it anyways, as his body didn't exactly allow for scars. He was made of rubber! Luffy didn't just scar from a mere injury. It mean that the wound had been painful, it had been deep, and possibly had almost killed him. Sanji pulled a cigarette out and lit it, letting Franky call the other two in to eat, which they happily did; however, as soon as Luffy was seated, he gave them his same old smile, but this time they all confirmed that it was strained, and during the meal he couldn't hide the scar from them and it let their gazes wander and linger upon it as he talked and ate with them.

It felt good to do this again, the chaotic meals aboard the Sunny had been missed by all of them as they took into account how much time had gone by since they'd sat down at this table, eaten Sanji's cooking, heard their loved ones voices and dealt with the usual crazy moments that came with it. Tonight, Luffy didn't try and steal food off of anyone's plates, he stuck to his own, trying to be a bit more polite about his eating habits as he laughed at some of their stories and was intrigued to learn about the islands they'd seen. He was happy, just seeing their faces after so long made him feel as though all the misery had been worth it.

However, Luffy knew that they were staring despite attempting not to show it. Their eyes lingered on the scar Akainu had left on him, and in due time he would have to be honest about it. Chopper had already said he wanted to give everyone a physical before they arrived at Fishman Island, just in case something bad happened while they were there - which was likely given their track record - and while Luffy had been unsure of this, he had relented upon seeing those large brown eyes turn to him. Because no one was going to deny the doctor of the crew what he needed in order to do his job. Luffy sighed, listening to Usopp's tale of how he had ended up on an island full of foods that grew naturally and how he had received training from a talking and human sized beetle-man. If they all hadn't seen stranger things, they wouldn't have believed him, but this time they felt that Usopp wasn't lying.

"That's pretty cool!" Luffy said, laughing as Robin smiled.

"So, where were you these two years, Captain?" she inquired this of him, and the boy became a touch quiet for a moment, a nervous grin coming to his features.

"Oh, well um… I trained on Rusukaina in the calm belt with Rayleigh for about a year and six months… then I did the rest alone until it was time to come back here. Hancock gave me a ride back to Sabaody, and well then I met up with you guys after taking out a Pacifista and outrunning the Marines with Zoro and Sanji." the group raised an eyebrow.

"Wait, Rayleigh trained you for almost two years? On what?" asked Franky in curiosity as his Captain grinned and held up his arm, it instantly turned dark and metallic.

"Haki, it took a while to get Armament and Observation down, but Conqueror's was pretty easy." Usopp leaned in, inspecting the blackened skin of his Captain's arm before he flicked it. Instantly, he regretted the action because pain registered and he yelped as Luffy laughed.

"It's hard as a rock!" the black-haired boy nodded.

"It's armor! Of course it is!" Sanji drew a puff off his cigarette.

"So, you learned Haki too, and even more you have Conqueror's Haki. Why am I not surprised?" he stated, flicking an ash off into a tray.

"Well, I had to do something. After what happened at Sabaody with Kuma, I knew I would need to get stronger, but I underestimated how outmatched I was twice before Rayleigh came and offered to train me while I was recovering on Amazon Lily." the blond cook froze.

"Damn, sounds like you had it rough too. Mihawk kicked my ass left and right every day so I could learn Haki and improve," Zoro mentioned.

"Luffy? You said you were on Amazon Lily? As in the isle of Maidens for two years?!" the black-haired boy gave him a confused look.

"Not exactly, I was on Rusukaina. It was their sister island and it was full of huge monsters! Kinda like the ones back home." confused, the group watched Sanji visibly wilt.

"I was in hell for two years and you were being taken care of by all those beautiful women? How the hell is that fair?" Nami gave the cook a knowing look.

"Because the fates knew you needed to train in order to actually get back here and if you were on Amazon Lily you wouldn't have done so," she pointed out as Sanji gave a miserable whine.

"You're probably right Nami-Swan…" Luffy laughed.

"Besides, they don't like men usually. I was kind of an exception because I helped out Hancock and her sisters with something important. But, I won't say anymore about that, it's personal," he said as Franky chuckled.

"Keeping secrets Captain?" the nineteen year old gave him a cheeky smile.

"Only the ones that aren't mine to tell." the statement made them wonder if perhaps he'd be more willing to talk more about what happened.

"Luffy, um… about the scar you've got." the air had been sucked out of the room as soon as the words left Nami's mouth. Her Captain visibly tensed, looking pale at the notion of having to explain that, but he knew it was coming.

"What about it?" his voice had the tiniest of tremors in it as they watched him and suddenly those shining charcoal gray eyes were hard and dull, lacking their normal luster and warmth.

"Um… well…" Nami froze up as she looked at the person before her. How did Luffy look so cold right then? Like he had lost all of his vitality and become almost colorless. Thankfully, Chopper spared her. The tiny doctor walked over and hoisted himself up in front of Luffy, his hoof moving to touch the wound.

it was smooth, but the scar tissue was thick and deep. Just by touching it he could tell that the wound had gone down to the bone almost and had taken months of recovery to fully heal to the point it was at now. Luffy remained quiet as he let the reindeer examine the old injury. It was a strange feeling that made his stomach knot up and the urge to push back came, but he endured it. People rarely touched his scar, and the sensation was less than pleasant as it made his throat constrict. It wasn't painful, but it still felt uncomfortable and even unnatural. Eventually, Chopper stopped and a miserable expression came to his small, fuzzy features.

"This should have killed you. It's to deep and it's a burn too…" he said as Luffy reached up to place a hand on the doctor's head.

"Don't worry so much. I had a really good doctor who helped me, and Rayleigh helped me recover the rest of the way, so I'm fine now." Chopper shook his head, both hooves now on the scar.

"No! Your not! Luffy, you should have died from this just because of the pain! How did it even happen?" the nineteen year old frowned slightly.

"Does it matter anymore? It's over with," he said the reindeer glared.

"NO IT'S NOT! IT'S ONLY BEEN TWO YEARS! A WOUND LIKE THIS DOESN'T FULLY HEAL THAT QUICK EVEN WHEN IT'S YOU! WHAT HAPPENED?!" the shout surprised them all as Chopper's eyes started to tear up, a sniff coming from him as the others watched the Captain sigh as he put his arms around the tiny doctor, trying to soothe him as he cried.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to make you upset…" the reindeer doctor returned the embrace of his friend as the others watched the scene with concern as Luffy kept hold of Chopper who was still in tears.

"Lu, I think you need to tell us. You don't have to go into a huge detail about it, just tell us what you feel comfortable with," Zoro said this calmly, his ability to coax things from the boy remaining even after these two years had gone.

" I don't…" Chopper shook his head.

"Please tell us. It scares me… and I should know how to take care of you! You're my Captain and my friend, but first and foremost I'm your doctor!" he begged and finally Luffy relented.

"I don't actually know when it happened… after… after Ace died… I don't remember anything… but, Jinbei told me that Akainu attacked both of us and punched through him to get at me. I guess this is the best he could do with someone in the way again…" the information sent a rush of ice into the veins.

Akainu was the person who had killed Ace according to the papers. But to think that he had tried to do the same to their Captain terrified them. Even more than that, the notion that Luffy had said someone had gotten between Akainu and him twice had implications that made all of them sick to their stomachs. Chopper stared up at his Captain who still looked to pale for his own good and whose eyes were unnaturally dulled. Sanji huffed, snuffing out his cigarette before looking at his Captain and the old wound.

"That son of a bitch is gonna die," he said as Luffy glanced up to him.

"Akainu has the Magma Magma Devil Fruit. If you go after him… you're…" and the words made bile rise in their throats.

Because their Captain was burned by lava, his brother had been killed by it. And the notion of what kind of pain and sheer damage that had to of caused made their bodies seize up as they looked at the nineteen year old who had Chopper still in his lap, the tiny reindeer looking horrified as he thought of the amount of treatment that would have been required to heal his Captain. It would have been weeks of infection, and bleeding, and overdosing on drugs because Luffy had a sensitivity to them, and the attention to constant application of salves, medicine, and the pain that even trying to move would have caused. There was no logical way that he had been awake for it, his body wouldn't have been able to do it, so any logical person would have put him to sleep in order to give his body time to heal. Chopper could only imagine the physical and mental duress that had occurred these last two years and that made the Doctor all the more scared by the sight of that scar as he burst into tears, throwing his arms around his neck as the others joined in and Luffy stared at them as he was engulfed in warm embraces and familiar scents that eased some of his anxiety.

"If we ever come across that asshole, we're taking him out," Franky stated, reaffirming Sanji's declaration.

"No! You -" he was stopped from speaking as their embraces tightened and Nami shook her head.

"Moron, don't you get it? It's just like what you said to us after what happened with the Baron - you're our treasure."

Nothing more needed to be said at that point, because Luffy understood what they were telling him. No matter what, they would ensure that when the time came to face the ones responsible for taking someone precious to him away, they'd do it together. That notion brought peace of mind to him, and Luffy decided that if the day ever came, having them there to fight alongside him would be exactly what he wanted. After all, this was his greatest treasure.

{.…..}

Author's Note: So, this is a bit of a hard chapter to write. I had always wondered if the Straw Hats worried about the scar, and I supposed they did, but naturally if they asked Luffy would only be able to tell them what Jinbei or others had said as he wasn't conscious anymore. Ergo, we have this chapter. Eventually I want to explore trauma and recovery a bit more in later chapters, but we'll see how it goes. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.