Hehe, told you it wasn't gonna be long before the 2nd chapter would be out. This is a one-time thing, though, as I already had it written and only needed to adjust and proof-read it.

Warning, I repeat, WARNING, this story contains some pretty gruesome explanations regarding injuries and is very heavy on death, even of some beloved characters. A bit of swearing too, but not more than what can be expected for a normal One piece fanfic :)

Well, here's what I have:

Chapter 2: Investigation continues

"Can you find anything!?" A random agent shouted to his colleagues currently ravaging through the inside of a certain treehouse.

After the surprisingly polite thug had given them directions, it wasn't hard at all to find the place. The tree was the tallest around, and with the poorly built one-room treehouse with a pirate flag fluttering from a pole at the very top, it really stuck out like a sore thumb in the jungle.

Rob Lucci, as well as two other agents, were rudely intruding. Seeing as how this treehouse was so small, not all of the agents could fit inside and would only turn the search into a cramped pain in the ass if they tried. As a result, the majority was just waiting on the ground, and, of course, kept a close eye on the surroundings in case somebody showed up.

"Negative. He's definitely not here, but there are clear signs of somebody living in this place!" A second random soldier shouted back.

It was messy. Despite the lack of furniture, a bunch of barrels and crates were randomly spread about and made it more difficult to get around inside. Plus, a bunch of bags filled with food were just lying around, as if to make it easy to just grab something to eat whenever.

It was nothing but junk, though. Junk, junk, junk, junk, junk, and even more junk that couldn't give them any kind of information. The only thing they got from this was that Monkey D. Luffy was not a person who liked to stay organized and keep his home clean.

The room was small, though, so naturally, it didn't take long before one of the men spotted something that was of far better use to somebody trying to learn about the life of a kid they had never met before.

"Rob Lucci-sama. Look at this."

Without saying a word, the young agent (he was only 25, after all) turned to look at his subordinate's discovery and was not disappointed by what he saw.

Right there, within plain sight on one of the walls, hang a bunch of framed pictures. Lucci stared in silence, recalling all the information he already had about the boy Cp9 was targeting as he took a quick glance, trying to identify the boy. It really wasn't that hard to spot him. Since Luffy was supposed to be the youngest brother, he concluded the tiniest straw hat-wearing child who appeared on every single picture was the one.

On each picture, the boy was either smiling or laughing carelessly and happily. (Too happily honestly…) From the perspective of an outsider, he most certainly looked just like an ordinary child...nobody would ever expect that he was actually the child of a big-time criminal like Dragon. (Luffy certainly didn't look like his father, either, but their names proved they were indeed connected). Aside from Luffy, though, two other kids also appeared on several pictures.

One of them had semi-long black hair and freckles. What seemed strange, however, was the fact that he was always frowning or stubbornly looking away from the camera.

'That boy must be Fire fist… his appearance fits perfectly,' Lucci concluded. Unfortunately, a grumpy child who seemed to be never smiling didn't provide any new information. Were they brothers or simply good friends? Lucci still couldn't decide.

Suddenly, though, his gaze fell upon another blonde-haired boy who also appeared beside Luffy and Ace. While those two could definitely be passed of as related, this one raised a lot of doubt.

He looked nothing like his said 'brothers'. His hair was blonde and curly, his face had another shape with no features matching either Ace's or Luffy's, and his clothing more so resembled a roughed-up noble than a little dirt brat.

For some reason, though, he seemed oddly familiar… Lucci held no memory of ever meeting the boy, but he was sure that there was something... something more about him which Lucci couldn't quite put his finger on.

This blonde brat, however, only showed up on a very small amount of the pictures. He was smiling just like Luffy, though by no means as brightly or as energetically as his little brother. That, or he was blushing along with Ace as they were being embraced by another unfamiliar green-haired woman whose face Lucci also made sure to remember.

Suddenly, though, he just... wasn't there anymore.

There was no doubt then… he must have been the third brother who, fortunately for them, had managed to get himself killed before he even got the chance to do anything.

Out of all of the pictures, though (Lucci quickly counted there to be 11), three of them in particular definitely caught Lucci's interest.

On the first, all three brothers were present, as well as a big group of people who Lucci recognized as the bandits living on this island, the Dadan family. They were all gathered outside of a shed, a house that very likely was their hideout. It wasn't like those bandits would be of any real threat to their operation... after all, the leader had a bounty of only 7.800.000 Beli - a bounty very fitting for a criminal in the East blue. What bothered him, though, was the fact that this picture could mean those no-name bandits had been hiding those kids for all those years…

If that was the case, then it was no wonder the government hadn't gotten wind of this any sooner. Since the navy wouldn't even bother with such small fries, no investigation would have ever been made if not for this rumor.

Lucci shifted his attention to the next picture of interest, one that had to have been taken more recently. It showed a small boat sailing off, towards a blindingly bright sun in the distance. Luffy, who was now much older, alongside the bandits and that green-haired woman, were happily waving goodbye. This could really just mean one thing… that that specific picture had been taken on the day - at the very moment - where Ace had begun his journey at sea.

For some strange reason, that picture reminded him of something he had heard a while ago… the pirate king Gold Roger himself had also started out in the East Blue, started with nothing and then risen to his current status within just a few years. It had probably - no, certainly - been a lot similar to that picture... the day of the pirate king's departure, that is.

While the picture itself held no important information, it for some reason reminded Lucci of that very disturbing fact, one that he did not like.

The last of the three pictures, however… was definitely the most troublesome of the three…

Lucci had stared intensely at it for the last minute but only felt more and more worry creep its way into his mind the longer he glared… It made no absolute sense… and yet, with this crucial piece of evidence hanging right before his eyes, how could it possibly not be true…? Lucci silently took the old picture off the wall to get a closer look, for a moment doubting if his eye were deceiving him or something.

While Lucci (at least on the outside) remained calm as he examined it further, the other two agents couldn't hide their shock when they laid eyes on it.

"...What…!?"

"Is that…!?"

"Yeah… there's no doubt," Lucci answered blatantly.

In this picture, Luffy was, of course present. He seemed younger than on any of the other pictures, even if only be a couple of months... To no surprise, he was smiling extraordinarily brightly on this one as well. (Lucci was seriously beginning to think smiling was all he could do).

The people around Luffy, though, was what caused Lucci to nearly start panicking. Although they, too, were younger, their faces were all terribly familiar...

"This indeed appears to be him… the Yonko, Red hair Shanks!"

The two others remained speechless…. this… couldn't be true, right…?

Shanks… a Yonko, one of the freaking Emperors of the sea... and still, that brat seemed to be completely careless in the way he was comfortably sitting on the red-heads shoulders. They looked happy together… like… like friends or something!

"About 7 years ago, the government received news about Red-haired Shanks being spotted on multiple islands here in the East Blue." Lucci suddenly said bluntly.

"EH!?"

"W-wait, sir… you… don't mean to say that…?"

"Yeah... Of course, the government was watching his movements carefully. It's very rare for one of the emperors to even leave the New World these days, so one of them casually coming to the weakest of the four blues, of course, raised a lot of suspicions. In the end, he settled down on a single island where he stayed for an entire year, only to return to the grand line with a missing arm and without his straw hat."

Lucci stared back down at the picture in his hands, feeling the anger begin to dangerously rile itself up inside him.

Damn! This explained everything! For some reason, Red-haired Shanks lost his arm for that boy… he even left his straw hat, the exact same one he before had never been seen without, to that brat... Surely, something much deeper, something Lucci couldn't figure out by these pictures alone, had happened between them. How Shanks had even lost his arm in the first place was as good as anyone's guess, but he had done it for him. For Luffy. For the son of Dragon.

Luffy hadn't even gone out to sea yet, and already he had done something this troublesome.

"Oi! Y-you guys! Big -and bad- news!" Exclaimed one of the two freaked out agents as he hurried back down to the ground to inform his colleagues about this recent shocking discovery.

Lucci stood still, unmoved by the panic that immediately began stirring up as the disturbing news were delivered and the soldiers all began freaking out more than they, as agents working under Cp9, should ever allow themselves too.

A dark shadow was now covering his anger-filled eyes. He was as silent as ever, but anyone would be able to tell his mood had worsened by the new information they had acquired...

"R-Rob Lucci-sama, what should we do now..?"

The distressed agent, however, received no immediate answer from his superior. A tension-filled silence suddenly broke out inside the tiny treehouse.

Lucci was thinking about everything they'd learned within the small amount of time they had spent here on this island…

Dragon potentially had not only one, but two sons (excluding the one who was dead and of no problem anymore) and one of those said sons could be Fire fist Ace, second division commander on Whitebeard's ship. What was more, Monkey D. Luffy and Red-hair Shanks had met and befriended each other to such an extent the Yonko was willing to seemingly pay any price for him… They'd have to be careful. Extremely careful unless they wanted to invoke the wrath of not only 1 but 2 freakin emperors.

"What do we do now you ask?"

Lucci's voice remained unshaken. There was, though, an underlying tone in his voice… a tone of seriousness even Lucci didn't normally show. His determination to accomplish this mission seemed absolute… he sounded even desperate to make sure this situation would not turn into a bigger incident.

"Call the rest of the agents who're still at the ship. We'll set up an ambush and wait for him here. That boy must be captured no matter what."

"Yessir, but… what if he doesn't return? There's always the chance that he's hiding somewhere and could escape while we're sitting and waiting…"

Right… that was a possibility as well. They'd have to think carefully about their next moves...

"Then let's split into two groups. I'll take the majority of the men already here and head out to keep searching throughout the night. Even if his hiding places are limited on this island, looking for him during the night will be easier with a bigger group. The other one stays here…"

"Oh, and do be sure to take extra measures to ensure that he won't run away as well." He added shortly after.

O-o-O-o-O

"Boss! Boss! I've got bad news!"

Suddenly, the door to the home of the infamous Dadan family burst open, and in ran a small mountain bandit known as Dogra. The man was panting hard, though the panic on his face showed his burning lungs were probably the least of his current worries. The other bandits currently inside got uncomfortable by his unusual behavior. They knew the man had no good news to deliver...

In the corner of the small hut, the leader of the small pathetic group of thieves, Curly Dadan, had been lying for the past 20 minutes and napping. The sudden sound of the door thrusting open, however, was enough to make the snot bubble coming from her nose pop, and her eyes immediately shot open.

"H-huh…!? W-what now?"

Dadan was confused, as it took her a few seconds to realize she was no longer sleeping.

"Boss it's terrible!" Dogra repeated.

"Hey, hey. Now, calm down Dogra, and tell us what happened," Came a reassuring reply from another bandit, Magra.

"What's going on now, Dogra? You're disturbing my afternoon nap," Dadan growled, dissatisfied with suddenly being awoken like that.

Ever since the Dadan family had (against their own will, of course) taken care of three certain brats, the orange-haired woman had had many sleepless nights and had therefore resorted to getting most of her hours by taking naps during the day instead.

Although the kids had long since moved out, it was a habit that had stuck with her. Even if she did get to sleep during nighttime now, she'd always be even grumpier than usual if she didn't take time off to slumber at least a couple of times during the day.

"If it's just another group of annoying thugs looking to steal from us, tell them to scram before I decide to go kill them myself." Dadan snorted.

The woman turned her back to the others in annoyance, fiddling around on the floor as she tried to find a comfortable position to lie in so she could go back to sleep again.

"No! That's not it! There's trouble...! A little while ago, some strange men showed up at the brats' base. They've got the place completely surrounded!"

Suddenly, Dadan didn't feel like dozing off and sleeping anymore…

"What!?" Her eyes widened considerably, and immediately, she shot back up into a sitting position and turned around to stare at Dogra, now fully listening to what he had to say. She clenched her fist in anger and then slammed it into the wooden floor, splintering the floorboards upon impact.

"Who are those guys..?! Thugs? Nobles?! Somebody who's out for revenge against the brats?!"

Dadan would never admit it under any normal circumstances, but she truly and full-heartedly cared for those three as if they were her own. She knew she was a really crappy mother-figure to the three… she knew she hadn't treated them as nicely as she could have, but that didn't mean she wouldn't get mad when somebody dared to threaten them!

And she had always known that something like this could very much happen one day. Those three had simply made too many enemies on this island... it definitely made sense that somebody would think of getting revenge for something one of them had done… (If that was the case, the real problem here would be figured out just what trouble Luffy had caused this time)

"A-actually, those were some guys I've never seen before." Dogra stuttered shortly after.

"Huh?"

All members of the Dadan family blinked from confusion. Outsiders…? But what would they know about the kids, and why and how had they managed to find their home in the first place..?

"Don't be too surprised yet, 'cause it gets even crazier than that…! Those guys all wore totally black suits and were armed with rifles, so they're most certainly not just some nobodies… plus, every single one of them wore the mark of the world government too!"

Dadan's cigarette fell from her mouth and onto the floor. If her eyes had been wide from surprise before, they were now brimming with an overwhelming amount of fear never before seen in the criminal woman's eyes.

"What did you say…?"

Those few weak words were all that managed to come out of her mouth...

"The world government!?"

"But… b-but what are they doing on Dawn island!?"

"Has all of Ace's and Luffy's small-time crimes somehow caught the attention of the navy!?"

"But why!? Luffy's still just a kid, after all! He's definitely annoying, but surely not to this extent, right!?"

Confusion and panic arose inside the cramped hut. Everybody quickly become more and more riled up, and more and more of them began talking louder and louder until eventually, all their voices mixed together into an ocean of voices trying to outshout each other.

Normally, this would be the point where Dadan would get mad and yell at them to shut the hell up, tell them to calm down, that they were all dimwitted for overreacting like that, and then they'd all head out together and fix things, even if it was a big pain in their asses.

However, the woman remained quiet (way quieter than what seemed healthy for somebody who was screaming 78% of the time) and stared into the cracked floor planks with an utmost worried glint in her eyes. Cold sweat was running down her forehead, though a deep frown could be spotted on her face. For some strange reason, she was - amidst all this panic - remembering a certain something that happened a long time ago...

Flashback:

"So? What's wrong, Garp-san?"

The two adults were currently sitting on the very edge of Dawn island, atop the grassy cliffs that provided them a magnificent view of the ocean. While the sight of the glistening water and the perfect sunny weather was indeed beautiful, Garp and Dadan rarely ever came to this place. When they, however, did go through the trouble of coming all the way out there, it always meant there was something serious the elderly marine vice-admiral wanted to discuss.

Garp sighed. It was not often one would see the cheerful and carefree grandpa frowning like he was right now.

"Oi, Dadan... Tell me, do you know the reason I need Ace and Luffy to become great marines?" He questioned. His voice was low and hoarse... filled with utter regret from the mistakes he'd made...from the mistakes that he very well still could make.

"Huh? How the hell am I supposed to know that?! You seem just like a crazy grandpa who's obsessed with the navy or somethin'"

The old man grinned nervously in response. While that most certainly had some part to play here, there was something more… yet another (all the "YOU DAMN BETTER BECOME A MARINE!" aside) honestly much darker reason for his actions.

"I've already told you about Ace and his dad. If the world ever found out that he's Roger's son, he'd become one of the most notorious criminals out there regardless of his age and of his actions. The entire world would turn against him and try to exterminate the last successor of Roger's bloodline… that's the reason he's hidden away here on Dawn island for now…"

"So? You've already told me this once before. If you have a point to make, then just say it." Dadan was impatient. Even if she had come to somewhat *ahem* 'not-so-much-hate' the brats, she could never forget about that daunting parentage Ace had and of the severe consequences she'd have to face if his secret was ever spoiled. Therefore, Ace's heritage wasn't exactly her favorite subject to discuss.

Garp remained silent though. As a marine vice-admiral, he knew of the corruption of the world government…. he knew, way more than he himself even realized. He knew of the horrible things the nobles got away with doing... the things the navy would often hide from the public simply because it would tarnish their good name. Sure, he knew about it, but for the most part, he chose simply to ignore that corruption. The system he worked for was corrupt without a doubt, but at least it was still better than letting anarchy overthrow the world and let pirates roam freely.

Garp also knew one other thing. Bloodlines mattered a lot in the government's eyes. Blood. Heritage. The pure havoc and chaos your descendants might have caused. Either of those things being tarnished never leads to anything good...

This was the one part of the corruption Garp couldn't simply ignore. Not with grandchildren as troublesome as his own…

"Well, Dadan… you see, Luffy is... just like Ace."

Dadan's jaw dropped to the ground. Well, of course… of course! That did explain how tough the little rat was, but… really… really…!?

'And he decides to tell me now of all times..!?'

"Oi, oi! Don't tell me he and Ace are actual brothers! As if one son of Roger wasn't bad enough, are you telling me there are actually two!?"

Garp, however, merely laughed at Dadan's shrieking outburst. She stared at him in confusion, really not understanding what the old geezer found so damn funny.

"Guess I shoulda' been a bit more specific, huh...? Ace and Luffy are the same in regards to their fathers, but they don't share the same blood. Luffy is my grandson, after all… unfortunately, that bloodline would also mean his dad is my idiotic son. Dragon…. the revolutionary."

...

...

Blink blink.

...

...

"D-DRAGON...!? You mean to tell that not only is Ace's dad the most notorious and infamous pirate to have sailed the sea, but that other little dumbass squirt's dad is the most wanted man in the world!?"

'Just what the hell is wrong with that crazy family!?' Dadan thought with a silent cry.

"Yeah, trust me, I wish it was a lie too... You must know them by now, right Dadan? Ace and Luffy... they're still only just children, but even so, they need to grow up and grow strong fast..."

Garp raised his head (it was always lowered when he needed to discuss this grim stuff) and stared at the cloudless blue sky.

Ah yes, the sky. The sky was, second to the ocean, of course, a true sign of freedom. Those who were trapped and lived the most miserable of miserable lives could often not see it. That's how you'd know you've reached rock bottom... If you can't see it….see how vast the sky is and how insignificant you and your worries are compared to it.

"Luffy and Ace just need to become strong and respected marines no matter what. Under normal circumstances, I'd have to take full responsibility for Dragon's actions as his biological father… Fortunately, I'm the marine hero, Garp the fist. With a title like that, even the government turns somewhat of a blind eye to my bloodline… that's why… no matter what, Luffy and Ace just need to become marines. So that the world will give them a chance to prove they won't be like their fathers…"

Dadan stood speechless and astounded by Garp's speech. She… she had never even thought of that… that, the marines, in the end, could maybe protect Ace and Luffy from themselves - well from their father's names and history. Just like herself, Garp wasn't really the best at showing how much he really cared about those troublesome brats…

But he truly did. He wanted only for them to live in the best way possible under their unfortunate circumstances… even if it wasn't exactly the life they wanted. Just like flowers don't get to choose where to bloom, children don't get to choose their parents either…

"Hey, Dadan...?"

"Hm?"

"Take good care of them for me for now, would you…?"

Flashback end.

Dadan sighed heavily…

This was the worst thing that could possibly happen right now… Ace was at sea, and fortunately living under Whitebeard's protection, which meant he was out of harm's way. She swore, if Whitebeard ever let anything happen to her brat, she'd become a pirate herself, set out and murder him, Yonko or not!

And now… this had happened…. Luffy was still far too young and weak to stand against the world. If his secret was out already and he was captured here, it would be all over for the 14-year old.

"Dogra? Where is Luffy? Was he captured by those government guys!?"

Dadan got on her feet and stood tall and determined like the protective adoptive mother that she was. Even if Garp hadn't gone and told her everything, she was still gonna help the brat. He, as well as Ace, were her pains in the asses, her damn responsibility. Those guys better not have done anything to hurt her brat, or else they would get to feel the true wrath of the Dadan family!

"No, fortunately, he didn't seem to be home when they showed up. I guess he must be out training somewhere… but they're waiting for him, and Luffy's gonna walk right into their trap once he returns!"

"Tch, and the little dumbass is too stupid to realize something's going on before it's too late… but if they haven't found him yet, that means there's still time!" Dadan turned around yet again to look at her fellow bandits.

Sure, they were a pathetic bunch of cowards and weaklings, but currently, they were a riled up and enraged pathetic bunch of cowards and weaklings not to be underestimated. They all slowly got to their feet, swords, axes, and knives held tightly in their hands. They were ready to fight, outclassed by those whoevers from the government or not!

First things first though…

Luffy… wherever he was, they all intended to find and protect their little goofball.

Again, please just bear with me a little longer, I swear this story is gonna get better in just one or two more chapters! I just personally like a little build-up before jumping straight into the dark/good/sad stuff. (Not that I at all mind stories that just get straight to the point, but I've just decided not to with mine)

Chapter 3 will, hopefully, be out either tomorrow or Friday, all depending on how long it ends up being.

Feel free to review, or just follow or favorite if that's all you're comfortable with doing.

-Cookie