The 16 Division Commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates and Whitebeard himself sat solemnly in the sound-proof meeting room aboard the Moby Dick. Today had been a weird day for them. Earlier that day, one by one, their doppelgangers had arrived out of nowhere, spoken only 3 words, and then promptly disappeared.

Whitebeard looked at his sons, all still thinking of their doppelgangers' words. He did not blame them. He himself was busy recalling the moment a second Whitebeard had appeared on the deck.

"Who are you?" Whitebeard narrowed his eyes at the imposter who had suddenly appeared on deck. His doppelganger looked just like him, but he was covered in wounds, including two holes in his torso, the sight of which had many on the deck staring with their eyes wide in shock. F!Whitebeard merely remained silent.

"O…yaji…" Marco looked nervously to him but his voice caught the attention of the doppelganger as well, who turned to him with a sad look before shaking his head. He scanned the crowd, his gaze falling on a certain fire user.

The crew watched, wary even in their confusion, as he walked silently to where Ace and Thatch stood beside each other, and placed a hand on their heads. Thatch and Ace didn't react at all. They had both looked up only to see the grief-stricken look on F!Whitebeard's face, and had simply frozen up in shock. F!Whitebeard looked like a parent who had lost their child, and it unnerved them. Ace subconsciously wondered just what could've caused that expression, and if it had anything to do with his current bloodied state.

F!Whitebeard walked up to Marco next. His face screamed guilty as he bent down to pull Marco into a hug. Marco couldn't bring himself to fight back as his mind blanked out at his actions. Releasing Marco from the embrace, he patted his shoulders, as if to say 'You've done well'. But Marco had no idea what he was being praised for, and he didn't have any time to ask before F!Whitebeard was already walking away.

He walked up to Whitebeard and snatched the sake bottle out of his hand before tossing it overboard. The crew's jaws dropped in shock, shuddering when they noticed the way anger flashed in Whitebeard's eyes.

"I don't know who you are, or what you were trying to do with my sons, but don't think you can just do whatever you want!" He grumbled as his power made the Moby Dick tremble. He scanned the target with his Haki, trying to find any difference between his presence and his own, but found none. Whoever this imposter was, he must be extremely skilled for him to have been able to match not just his appearance but even his Haki presence.

F!Whitebeard shook his head at him solemnly. He opened his mouth to speak, "Watch your health." And then disappeared, taking with him the blood that he had brought on board. For a moment, it felt as if they had been hallucinating the whole thing. But Ace, Thatch and Marco just couldn't get the expression they had seen on F!Whitebeard's face out of their mind. It had been so intense, so vivid that they were sure they couldn't possibly have dreamt that up.

Meanwhile, Whitebeard had been ready to explode in anger. Who did this imposter think he was, taking his form and doing whatever he liked to his sons, on his ship? And why the hell did he have to listen to the words of some imposter? But the instant F!Whitebeard had vanished, it revealed the sight of all of his sons behind him, staring worriedly at him.

"Watch your health."

The words hit him like a punch to the gut right then, as he recalled the wounded state of his doppelganger and found himself wondering what would happen to his sons after his death. It was clear from the wounds his doppelganger sported that there was a battle and that he had died as a result of it. If that doppelganger really was him, perhaps from the future (it was always a possibility, strange things happen in the Grand Line), then did he come back just to deliver that warning to him? What happened in his time, to have caused such grief and guilt in him when he faced Ace, Thatch and Marco? Why only those 3? Did something happen to those 3 in the future? He felt his heart drop into his stomach at the thought.

He found his gaze falling onto Marco standing by his side, who was too distracted by his own thoughts as he stared at the spot F!Whitebeard had been standing not long ago, to notice. After his death, he was sure Marco would step up to take his place as captain and take care of the family. But would he be able to do it? The thought came suddenly when he remembered the actions of his doppelganger towards Marco.

He hadn't regarded Marco in grief like he did to Ace and Thatch, but he had been guilty. And those actions he did, hugging Marco and giving him a pat on his back. He had done the same before, several times in fact. Memories flashed in his mind, of having placed a burden on Marco's shoulders and finding out later that the Phoenix had been unable to shoulder it and was beating himself up over it.

It filled him with dread to even consider the possibility that he had died and left his crew to fend for themselves, but the thought of Marco doing his best to pick up the pieces left behind in the aftermath of his death, only for something to happen for him to consider himself a failure who had failed to meet his Oyaji's expectations and no Oyaji to reassure him made him feel even worse.

"Watch your health."

Whitebeard swallowed hardly. It seems that he would have to heed his future self's advice after all. In the very least, he had to ensure that his family would be prepared for the aftermath of his death, which, he silently promised himself and his family, wouldn't be coming anytime soon.

This idea just popped into my head and I wrote it on a whim, so now I'm just going with the flow. Oh gosh, I hope I can live up to your expectations for the following chapters. Anyway, enjoy the story, and Reviews are always welcomed!