Two days passed before Franky brought news that the end was nigh. Their new ship was almost complete. The crew was bouncing off the walls from the wait, but their bounties meant that most of them were under house-arrest. Sasuke, Sakura, and Hinata had become the only ones able to come and go freely, both because of their capability at disguise and because no one else could stop them. Naruto was still gone, presumably deep in his special training, and Zoro had become an exception to their enforced isolation by getting lost on his way to the bathroom and disappearing in the middle of a blank, featureless hallway.

It was the middle of a sunny afternoon when the three ninjas burst into the common room and shouting, "The Marines are here!"

Then the rear wall exploded in a cloud of splintering wood to reveal a mighty grey-haired man with a fierce disposition.

"LUFFY, GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE RIGHT NOW, DO YOU HEAR ME?!" the man roared.

The crew readied themselves for action, but the elder man moved more swiftly than they could react, leaping straight at Luffy and smashing him over the head with one meaty meteor of a fist.

"OOWWWWW!" screamed Luffy, and to everyone's surprise he seemed to mean it.

"What the hell?" asked Nami. "That hurt him?!"

"Grandpa!" shouted Luffy. "What the hell are you doing here?!"

This unexpected outburst caused the defenders of the lodge to freeze in place, suddenly uncertain of everything.

"What?! I'm your beloved Grandpa! Don't you dare greet me like that!"

"Why shouldn't I?! All you've ever done is beat me!"

"Nonsense! Everything I've done was to make you a strong Marine, you little beansprout!"

As the two figures yelled back and forth at each other, including a comprehensive list of the creative abuses Luffy had been subjected to, everyone else in the room stopped and stared, jaws dropping further and further open as this went on. The effect was rather more pronounced among the non-shinobi section of the crew.

"That's Monkey D. Garp, Hero of the Marines!" stated Sanji, wowed into abject confusion.

"No, no that can't be right," said Usopp. "What's he doing here calling Luffy his grandson? I'm in a dream, I must be. Someone please wake me from this nightmare!"

"This is it," muttered Nami, mostly to herself, "This is what going insane feels like. I always wondered…"

"I don't get what the big deal is," said Sasuke, gradually winding down from combat readiness. "Monkey D. Luffy. Monkey D. Garp. It sounds pretty obvious to me."

"Yes, but… the magnitude of the difference in status…" mumbled a wide-eyed Robin. "Vice-Admiral Garp is a legendary figure in his own right… The idea was so ridiculous that even the obvious must be discounted as simple coincidence…"

"He's a Vice-Admiral?" asked Sasuke, mentally reevaluating the new arrival. "That means he's just one rank below Aokiji? Okay, I'll admit, that is unexpected."

"But they even act the same way," said Sakura. "Look."

With one hand, Garp had grabbed Luffy by his shirt and raised him into the air.

"You damn fool!" shouted Garp, specks of spittle soaring straight into Luffy's face. "It's that damn Red-Hair Shanks that got you thinking this way! Now that he's not hanging around you any more you should become a Marine!"

"No! I'm not gonna! You can't make me! He gave me this hat and I'm gonna become the Pirate-"

Abruptly, right in the middle of their shouting match, both Luffy and Garp fell soundly and deeply asleep. Their snoring was audible even over the surprised din, though it couldn't drown out the incredulous shouts from the rest of the crew.

"Wait, Red-Hair Shanks?" asked Sanji, when the shouting had died down. "Don't I know that name from somewhere?"

Franky's jaw had dropped so widely open that it was clear it had become unhinged.

"Y-yes," agreed Robin, a little confused by the next surprise to fall in her lap. "Shanks is one of the Yonko, the Four Emperors that rule over the second half of the Grand Line, the New World. They are one of the anchors that define the balance of power in this world, and many actions the Marines take can be traced back to their doorstep."

"And Luffy knows this guy? Why haven't we heard about this?"

Nami nodded. "Shanks is the one Luffy got that hat from... I just had no idea he was such an important figure…"

Abruptly, Garp woke up with a snort.

"*Snrk* Huh?! Ah! Shit, I fell asleep!" At this he looked over at Luffy, who he was still holding up in the air with one beefy arm. "What?! Don't you fall asleep on me, young man! I'm trying to talk to you here!"

"Excuse me," interjected Sakura, interrupting Garp and forcing him to look her way with an irritated expression completely devoid of recognition. She raised a querying hand. "Hi, sorry, I'm new to this, but are you actually here to capture Luffy? Like, are we supposed to be fighting or something…?"

Garp continued his puzzled stare while holding his sleeping grandson. The gathered pirates and Marines looked on with a nervous tension, waiting for the words that might start a fight. After about three seconds his head rolled backward and he fell asleep once more. Everyone gaped in amazement at this incredible achievement in empty-headedness, and Sakura shook her head.

"Hey, I tried. I honestly tried," she said.

"You're right, though," agreed Sasuke, looking up to the assembled Marines. "It's a very important question. How about the peanut gallery over there? What do you think?"

The Marines looked stunned, and it was clear none of them had been told to expect this.

"Flounders?" he asked, taking a shot in the dark. "Got any opinions?"

No opinions were offered beyond a few quiet skittering noises as a mouse disappeared into deeper cover. Sasuke chuckled, then turned to Hinata to whisper into her ear.

"One of these guys is a mouse-man. Do you think you could keep an eye out for a mouse doing anything odd? He knows I'll see him if I look in his direction."

She nodded, activating the Byakugan. After a moment her lip twitched up.

"Aww… he's cute… He's inside the wall to our left. I think he's kind of freaking out."

"Heh… so he didn't know either, huh?"

Eventually, a hand sprouted from Garp's back and Robin broke the impasse by tapping him on the shoulder.

"*xggrsnk* Huh? Wha-?" asked a very confused Garp, snapping his head back around. "Oh! Huh? What'd you say? Am I gonna attack Luffy? Well, though I am terribly disappointed in him, I'm not about to fight him here. That'd be ridiculous! Besides, it's not like I could hold a grudge against my beloved grandson! Not even after he attacked my men and blew up an island. Why, I've been stuck doing rescue operations for the whole last week, and I'M GONNA BEAT THE TAR OUTTA YOU YOU UNGRATEFUL LITTLE SHIT! I'M GONNA TAKE YOUR SKULL AND HURL IT ALL THE WAY TO THE RED LINE, YOU HEAR ME?!"

Screaming, he began shaking Luffy violently until he awoke, and then Luffy resumed screaming as well, pushing and shoving to stay away from Garp's enraged glare. For a moment, both grandfather and grandson were scrabbling at each other's faces.

Then, screaming began from outside the building as well.

"Sir! It's Pirate-Hunter Zoro! He's attacking from behind!" shouted a nameless Marine soldier.

Garp tossed his grandson aside with a contemptuous swing of his arm and then pointed to two flunkies who had been standing at attention during the entire fiasco.

"Hey, they wanna fight. Why don't you two show 'em what you've got."

"Yes, sir," said a sneering blond man with a black visor. Drawing two blades, he dashed outside to meet the pirate-hunter.

Luffy got to his feet, dashing to the front door, only to be interrupted when the other flunky, a young man with pinkish hair, leapt into a blur.

[SORU]

The young man appeared directly below Luffy with superhuman speed, kicking him straight in the jaw. Shocked but unharmed, Luffy began to fight his designated opponent.

As the situation changed from discussion to combat, Sasuke activated the Sharingan and prepared for a fight, only to see Flounders in the corner. The mouse was shaking his tiny head and pointing a furry paw in the direction of the two fights.

It was over in moments, as Luffy and the newly-arrived Zoro brought the two challengers to the ground.

"Bahahaha!" laughed Garp. "Yep! They didn't stand a chance!"

The young man at Luffy's feet chuckled as well, pinned to the ground by the pirate's fist.

"Yes, you really are as strong as I remember, Luffy. Guess I can't quite measure up yet."

Confused by the Marine's friendly attitude, Luffy let him go and the pink-haired boy stood to his feet, dusting himself off. When he was done, he smiled back in Luffy's direction.

Luffy blinked. "Uhhhh… do I know you?"

"It's me, Coby!" said the boy.

"Coby? I know a Coby, but he's much smaller…"

"That's me! I'm the former crybaby, Coby!"

"Wha-? COBY?! But you're so much bigger than you were!"

The pink-haired boy laughed. "Well of course! I've been training! We're not Marine Officers yet, but we worked really hard because of what you did for us!

"Because of what you did to us," interrupted the blond man that had attacked Zoro, an arrogant sneer on his face as he stepped up beside Coby. At this point, Coby snapped a sharp salute and incidentally jabbed his elbow into his comrade's side.

"One thing led to another and now we're being trained by Vice-Admiral Garp! I, uhhh, didn't know he was your grandfather though…" He scratched his head. "Guess I finally get a picture of what you had to grow up with, huh…"

"Coby! Man, it's been a while!" laughed Luffy, completely ignoring the reference to his childhood abuse as he grabbed Coby and Zoro and ushered them further into the building. "Come on and let's have a feast!"

"Wait!" shouted the visored blond man. "Don't you remember who I am? You don't, do you? Pirate-hunter Zoro?! Surely you remember me?!"

"Huh?" asked Zoro. "Who the hell are you?"

The man removed his visor, revealing a set of beady eyes and severely arched eyebrows. "It's me! Helmeppo!"

Zoro's face was blank.

"I nearly got you sentenced to death! It was just a few months ago!"

Zoro's face was blank.

"My dad attacked you with an axe! And the axe was also his hand!"

Zoro's face was blank.

"I… was the ugly daddy's boy who was so spoiled that he tried to get you shot to death for insulting him!"

Recognition dawned in Zoro's face and Helmeppo tossed his visor to the floor with a clatter. "OH, COME ON!"

"Bahahaha!" laughed Garp. "Guys, give it up already! I know you're excited to see 'em, but there's no time for a feast. It's about time we got going."

"Ehhh? No way," groaned Luffy.

"Yes, way. And you? You just watch yourself, Luffy. I'm a Vice Admiral, so I can go after you any time I feel like it. My fleets have smaller fleets inside them. Hell, I can make all these guys here do whatever I want." He pointed over his shoulder to the massive hole in the wall. "You want that wall fixed? You're living in a dump here, and I can just order 'em to fix the wall and they have to do it. Should I? I'm gonna do it. Okay, soldiers. I order you to fix this wall."

Angry protests began immediately.

"Sir, you're the one that broke it in the first place!"

"There was a perfectly good door not fifteen feet away, you jerk!"

"You did the same thing when we went to that prison, just punched a hole straight in! Do you have any idea how much trouble that caused?"

"Don't make us clean up after your mess alone! You've gotta help, too!"

"Ehhhhh?!" shouted Garp. "But I don't wanna!"

"Oh no," said Nami, as the Marines continued to bicker in front of them. "Luffy's going to be just like he is now for the rest of his life, isn't he? He'll never ever grow out of it."

Amongst all of the Straw-Hats except for Luffy, despondency was the order of the day.

Soon, rather than having the work done for him, Vice Admiral Garp was hammering away, slowly replacing the boards on his own, aided only by a few relentless busybodies. The atmosphere had rapidly calmed down and the threat of being attacked seemed to be diminishing rapidly. Usopp and Chopper even started peeking their heads back into the room to see what was going on.

"So," began Garp, now much more sedate. "Luffy… I hear you met your father recently, huh?"

"WHAT?!" interrupted Nami. "Luffy, we met your dad?! When?!"

"Dad? I dunno what you're talking about. I have a dad? When did I meet dad?" asked Luffy.

"Haaah?" asked Garp, "You got into that scrap at Loguetown, didn't you? And the papers said Dragon showed up and everything. Monkey D. Dragon, your father. You getting this? Anybody even listening to me? Did you meet him or not?"

"No, I didn't see him or anything."

"You sure?"

"Yep."

Throughout the rest of the room there was another round of stunned silence as everyone in it stood absolutely gobsmacked. Then, as if it were the sound of a pistol starting off a race, Usopp's eyeballs popped out of their sockets to plop onto the floor, and then the screaming resumed.

"AHHHH! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?! I'M DEAD! I'M DEAD!" shouted Usopp, as he scrabbled uselessly for his missing eyeballs with Chopper's help.

"Holy shit," said Franky, eyes wide. "What's up with you, man?"

"Monkey D. Dragon?!" asked Sanji, dumbstruck. "THE Dragon?! As in, leader of the Revolutionary Army?! As in, Most Wanted Man in the World?"

"No, I was wrong," muttered Nami. "This is what it's like to go insane. I thought it was madness earlier, but now it's all so clear…"

"Luffy!" shouted Sasuke. "Is this true?! He's your father?!"

"What? Dad? Is he someone special?" asked Luffy.

"Luffy, we've been isolated from the outside world until this month and even I know who Dragon is!"

Hinata and Sakura raised their hands and nodded with wide eyes to indicate that they too had heard of the man.

Robin was chuckling nervously to herself as she spoke. "Heheheh… Sasuke, I thought you said with a name like 'Monkey D.' the resemblance should be obvious…"

"But I… But he…. I didn't know that was his full name!"

"I don't get it," said Luffy, still blank-faced. "Who's the Revolutionary Army?"

"L-let me see," began Robin. "You understand that in general, pirates do not work openly against the World Government? Even such figures as Crocodile were forced to hide their actions so that the Marines would not take notice. That is because the Government is a force whose size and power defies description. The Revolutionary Army is the only fighting force in existence that openly engages the World Government at the international scale, toppling corrupt governments and leading revolutions. They are active all over the world, and only Dragon's power, discernment, and authority can hold all of it together in the face of an overwhelming enemy."

She paused for just one second, and then added, "Details on Dragon's identity are hugely unknown. He is the Most Wanted Man in the World for a very good reason, and you, Luffy, are his s-... you're his so-... No, I am sorry, I can't process this."

"Oh…" said Garp, as he paused in his hammering. "You know what? Maybe… maybe I shouldn't have said that…"

There was utter silence as everyone stared at the man repairing the wall. The seconds seemed to crystallize in the air. Finally, Garp placed one hand on his head and laughed.

"Yeah, so… how about you... forget all that? Okay? Bahahaha!"

The tumultuous screaming, especially among the Marine contingent, was heard all over the island.

"Hey, it could be worse, right? I could have said something about- OOF!"

Whatever Garp had been about to say was cut short as Commodore Flounders leapt from the shadows in a flying full-body tackle that pushed the Vice-Admiral out of the house.

"ALRIGHT!" shouted Franky, regaining control and ushering the Marines in the direction of the hole-in-the-wall. "All of you are gonna get out of here right now before you literally give someone a heart attack. I'LL fix the wall, okay?! You're doing it wrong anyway. Go! Go! Skedaddle!"

Desperate to get their commanding officer out of Luffy's presence before he spilled more state secrets, the Marines quickly escorted Garp away from the scene.

Shaking his head, Franky did his honest best to forget everything he had just heard and began his effort to fix the wall.

Meanwhile, the Marines hustled away from the compound. As they passed the Mayor's office, they met another man walking the other way.

"Hey, old man," said Ace.

"Hallo," said Garp, blithely greeting Ace with a fixed expression as they passed each other.

The other Marines paused and looked back at the person who had just walked straight through their formation.

"Ah, Sir…" started Flounders, still gripping his commanding officer. "Wasn't that 'Fire-Fist' Ace?"

"Hmm?" asked Garp.

"The man who just walked by. 'Fire-Fist' Ace? Wasn't that him?"

"Oh, you mean my other grandson? No, that wasn't him."

Once again, everyone's eyes leapt out of their sockets, each of the Marines choosing a different response to the madness.

"He's your grandson, too?!" yelled Flounders. "So he and Straw-Hat are brothers?!"

"We're just letting 'Fire-Fist' Ace walk on by as if nothing's happening?!" yelled Coby.

"You just told us to forget all this crap and now you do it again?!" yelled Helmeppo. "AHHH! My brain can't take any more of this!"

"Hey, come on," pleaded Garp. "I just said it wasn't him!"

"Bullshit!" yelled Helmeppo, "You expect us to believe that nonsense?!"

"No, look, I'm ordering you! That wasn't him!"

"Sir, that's not a real order and you know it!" insisted Flounders. "We should be going back there and taking him down."

"But I don't wanna!"

Despite this bickering, the Marines were wisely unwilling to engage this pirate gathering without Garp's aid, and Garp was stubbornly refusing to even acknowledge reality. Eventually, finally, they made it away from the compound and hurried back to their ship where, hopefully, everything would make a bit more sense.

Completely ignoring the controversy outside, Ace escorted himself into the building as the universe conspired to continue this madness.

"Ace!" shouted Luffy, bounding forward.

"Oh, no, will it never stop?" muttered Sanji.

"Hello everyone," said Ace, waving to them. "It's good to see you all again."

"Guys…" said Franky, "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that's 'Fire-Fist' Ace who just walked in through the actual door just now."

"Yeah, it's alright," said Nami. "That's Luffy's brother."

"That's Luffy's brother?!" yelled Sasuke, Franky, and Robin.

"Oh, god," said Nami. "We're going to be doing this for a while aren't we?"

Luffy rushed to the foreground like an excited dog. "Ace! Did you see our bounties? I blew up an island! When are you gonna do that, huh?"

Ace laughed, pushing the over-excited Luffy away with one hand. "Whoa there, little brother. Calm down. Very impressive, but I'd leave the really big stuff to Whitebeard if something like that needed doing."

"Ehh? I bet you're just jealous cause I'm better than you."

"I'm half tempted to show you I can still kick your ass, but it looks like grandpa already gave you a beatdown for me," said Ace, and then he grinned. "Still, it's good to see you, little bro."

As the two brothers went back and forth, Sasuke stared at them with an odd expression. Ever since family had shown up, Luffy had been acting more like a kid than normal. People fall into old habits and old ways of interacting when surrounded with parents and siblings.

Would he and Itachi have been like that? It was possible, if he had lived. Watching the two of them was actually a little difficult, now that he thought about it. Naruto had basically become his replacement brother in all but name, but Sasuke doubted that he could ever have acted the same way with Itachi.

All of a sudden he became aware the conversation had shifted topics.

"Hey, I'm sorry to redirect what we're talking about," said Ace, "But there's something I need to ask you. Would you guys mind answering a few questions for me?"

"Sure!" agreed Luffy.

"No, not you, dummy. I know you aren't gonna know a damn thing about this. My question is for the rest of you, and especially you, Sasuke."

Sasuke blinked in surprise at being addressed by a stranger. "Me? Alright, why me?"

"Because I need to ask a question of a ninja, and according to this, you're the Copy Ninja," he said, producing a copy of the bounty poster.

As Sasuke bit back a wince of annoyance, Luffy said, "Hey, he's not the only ninja we've got! We've got four! How many ninjas do you have, huh?"

As Ace guessed correctly and tossed an appraising glance toward Sakura and Hinata, Sakura glared at Luffy for his presumption. Sasuke decided to answer before there could be an argument.

"Alright, so I'm a ninja. What's the question?"

Ace nodded. "What do you know about the Akatsuki Pirates?"

"...Akatsuki? We know a fair bit about them. I came out here chasing them, and since then we've crossed paths with them several times."

"They're not actually pirates, though," interjected Sakura.

"I'm gonna beat the crap outta those jerks for what they did to the Merry!" growled Luffy. "They're why we're here in the first place."

"Oh, really?" said Ace. "That's more than I expected, actually. I was just thinking you might know some names or something. They took out your ship, huh?"

"Yes," said Sasuke. "One of them attacked us and died in the attempt, but he did quite a bit of damage before that. I believe there are five or six of them left, and I'm at least passingly familiar with all of them."

"We've been running into them from time-to-time for the last month," added Sanji. "Almost feels like they've been stalking us. Why do you need to know?"

Ace nodded. "Back in Alabasta, I told you I was looking for someone. A man named Marshall D. Teach, who used to be part of old man Whitebeard's crew. So I hunt him down to this area, and all of a sudden I start hearing Teach's gang got taken to pieces by some people called Akatsuki. There's even some rumors that the guy I'm looking for was taken down by their leader."

"Argh!" exclaimed Luffy, actually pronouncing the word in his anger, "First they blast the Merry to pieces and then they kill my brother's friends! I'm gonna pulverize 'em!"

"No, Luffy, we're not friends. I've been hunting the guy down to kill him."

"Damn them! Killing my brother's friends and then killing the people he's trying to kill!" continued Luffy.

"No, dumbass, listen to me when I'm talking here. Ah geez. Alright, look, the thing is, I need to know if the deed is done or not. I can't go back home without knowing for sure if Teach paid for what he did, so I have to ask these Akatsuki fellows if the guy's actually dead."

"I wouldn't advise that," said Zoro. "They're a strictly no-conversation sort of group. If you run into them you should be fighting to kill immediately."

Ace grinned. "Alright, I'll be careful, don't you worry. There are ways of getting that info without a fight. But, here's what I want to ask Sasuke about. Are you gonna be able and willing to point me in their direction if you run into them? It'd be a huge favor, so I don't want to impose."

Sasuke furrowed his brow for a moment before sticking a thumb in Hinata's direction. "Ask her. As long as Hinata's around we should be able to get some warning before they get too close."

Hinata looked a bit startled at that, and Ace turned in her direction. "Oh, yeah?"

"I… when I want to I can see in a number of miles in every direction. They should be pretty easy to spot, even if we get to another city."

"Would you mind giving this place a once-over in a bit? I heard that they may have left the island already, but I can't be sure.

"Um, yes, I'll do what I can at least."

"Ehhhh?" said Luffy. "Sasuke, I thought you were the Lookout."

"W-What?" asked Sasuke. "Well, I am, but-"

"Sounds like she's better at it than you."

Sasuke looked like someone had slapped him with a fish. Betrayal and disbelief warred for supremacy in his speechless gaze.

"Umm!" began Hinata. "I mean, I'll do what I can but… but, my eyes get really tired! I mean, and then there's this blind spot… I don't think I was supposed to mention that though…"

"Oh, really? That sucks!" said Luffy, and then he slapped Sasuke on the back. "Okay, looks like you gotta find 'em after all!"

"I… of… of course," spoke Sasuke, distinctly off-balance.

Grinning, Ace thanked them both honestly, and then turned to Luffy. "How about you? Will you be okay if I pop in and out from time to time

"Why don't you just hang around with us, huh?" asked Luffy. "We'll have a new ship and everything."

Ace gave him a Look.

"Nah, you'd just cramp my style. Just cause I'm gonna be in the area doesn't mean I wanna babysit you the whole time. Come on, that's what those guys are for."

"Ehhh? You suck!"

"Alright, good enough for me." Turning to the rest of the still-stunned crew, he bowed deeply. "It was wonderful to meet you all, some of you for the second time. Please continue to watch out for Luffy. And Hinata, Sasuke? I'd appreciate it greatly if would you keep an eye out for Akatsuki. I'd owe you a huge favor."

There were vague murmurs of reflexive acknowledgment and humble denial from the crew, which seemed good enough for him, so Ace straightened up, waved, and disappeared back out into the city as quickly as he'd come.

"Huh," asked Sakura, when he was gone. "Weird that he'd run off like that. Do he and Luffy not get along with each other?"

Sasuke looked thoughtful as he shook his head. "I don't think that's it. I think that as the elder brother he's reluctant to get in Luffy's way. For that matter he's not about to take orders from Luffy, so sticking around would just erode the Captain's authority."

"...But, no one seems to listen to Luffy's orders anyway," added Sakura.

Sasuke sighed. "You should see them when it really matters."

-The Next Day-

The last day on Water-7 dawned and it was a welcome one for both the crew and the Mayor's staff. The Straw-Hats, mostly Luffy, had grown more and more rambunctious as the days had dragged on, and it was finally time to move on to whatever adventure awaited them next. Supplies had been procured and loaded onto the new ship, and she was ready to set sail.

She was called the Thousand Sunny, and she was a gaudy masterpiece of mechanical design.

Or, so they'd been told. Franky and Iceburg had been tight-lipped when it had come to explaining the new ship's capabilities, and Sasuke had assumed the man had wanted to show them off himself in the manner of recalcitrant craftsmen everywhere.

The others had already dashed off down to Scrap Island to see their new home, but the three shinobi had stayed behind, waiting patiently for their final member. There had been no discussion about them sailing with the Straw-Hats. Sakura and Hinata had expected there to be a contract, or a talk, or even just some acknowledgment that they were coming along for the ride, but instead it seemed as though it had been self-evident from the very first night.

Eventually, Naruto reappeared in a puff of smoke, exactly where he had disappeared three days earlier, looking significantly worse for wear.

"Holy crap, do I feel weird," he said.

"At least you're still alive," said Sasuke.

"I could say the same to you, man. The way things have been going I half-expected there wouldn't be an island here when I came back."

"It hasn't been that bad."

Sakura gave Sasuke an incredulous glare. She'd heard all the stories and it really had been that bad. They'd destroyed a quarter of the islands they'd landed on since leaving the Kingdoms, and that was only if you didn't count ones reduced to frozen and burnt wastelands.

Sasuke just avoided looking her way, saying, "You'll have tell me what you were doing in your training, since I'm apparently supposed to help you with it."

"Well, that's just it, see, cause I was doing some thinking-"

"Never a good move," said Sakura.

"Hey, shove it. Anyway, all I need is someone who can see chakra, right? So, like, Hinata can help me with it instead!" He turned to her and extended his hand. "That okay with you?"

"Yes! Of course!" She took his hand, and they began walking together, already chatting about what he'd done on the trip.

Sasuke watched them leave, once again feeling distinctly off-balance until Sakura put one hand on his shoulder.

"Feeling kind of useless, huh?"

He nodded. "...It's not something I'm used to feeling."

"It'll be fine."

So they pushed through the city, Sakura and Sasuke chatting as the other two lived in their own little world. The two lovebirds made each conversation a dangerous black hole that threatened to suck the topic back to horrendously sweet areas. It was enough to make Sakura toy with the idea of casual violence. However, she decided to look on the bright side of life.

"Well," said Sakura, "At least we managed to get through our days here without anything horrible happening."

Naruto and Sasuke immediately froze and began whipping their heads about, scanning the area for danger. Naruto dropped Hinata's hand, and Sasuke's Sharingan swirled into place as he evaluated the crowd around them. Sakura and Hinata turned to watch this unusual display, though while Hinata swiftly followed Naruto's lead and immediately moved to combat readiness, Sakura just looked on in exasperation.

"Okay," said Sakura, "What's wrong this time?"

"What's wrong is that you just said the worst possible thing you could have said," growled Naruto.

Sasuke nodded. "Hinata, we need a scan of everything going on in the area, especially over where the ship is being loaded."

Hinata nodded nervously, but Sakura's face just dropped.

"Seriously? They've got you believing in jinxes now? Is that a thing out here? Can I scare people off with bad luck charms?"

"Dammit, Sakura, you don't get to joke about this," yelled Naruto. "If you knew about half of the stuff we had to deal with just seconds after saying or even thinking something like that you'd be quaking in your boots right now!"

"I hate to say it," agreed Sasuke, "But he's right. The rules are different out here."

"But… we've already got a pretty good idea Akatsuki isn't on the island. The Marines in the area have already decided to leave us be for now. Anyone else targeting us wouldn't have waited until we had a ship to run off in. What, are you expecting a meteor, or a bolt of lightning, or a giant tidal wave, or-"

"Sakura, please! Shut the hell up!" pleaded Sasuke. "You're just making it worse!"

Sighing, Sakura shook her head in disbelief. A moment later, Hinata's eyes went wide and she shut down the Byakugan with a gasp. "Oh, no. I… I can't…"

"Shit, where's it coming from?!" asked Naruto.

Wordlessly, the blue-haired girl pointed off down a side-street, and the others readied themselves. Sakura had just a moment to worry, and then the trouble arrived. Chopper dashed out of the side-street in four-legged mode, a pair of black swimming shorts gripped in his teeth as his hooves thundered across the stones. A moment later, Franky burst into view, cornering so hard that he clipped chunks out of the wall. He was also completely naked from the waist down, revealing his modified anatomy for the world to see.

"Dammit, you punks!" shouted the enraged Franky. "Gimme back my damn pants!"

Each ninja except Hinata couldn't avert their eyes in time.

"Ah! Shit!" cursed Sasuke, screwing his eyes shut and looking desperately away. "My eyes! I saw it with the Sharingan!"

"Oh, god," groaned Sakura. "I'm so sorry I didn't listen to you."

"Holy crap," said Naruto. "That's what he meant by hydraulics?"

Just as it looked like the rampaging battle-cyborg was going to catch up to Chopper, the reindeer whipped his head and tossed the skimpy article of clothing in their direction. Naruto grabbed them reflexively, then immediately realized his mistake. Then the cyborg turned his baleful glare in his direction.

"Naruto!" screamed Chopper. "Get those to the ship! Make sure he follows you! They're counting on us!"

"Ergh," grunted Naruto, as he held the pants at arm's length. "If you say so, little dude."

Then he rushed off, summoning a couple clones to act as wingmen on his dash to the ship. Roaring, Franky followed after him in hot pursuit.

There was a moment of silence, and then Sakura turned to the rest of them. Hinata looked a little disturbed, and Sasuke was futilely rubbing at his eyes.

"So," said Sakura, "What do you all think about turning around and getting some lunch?"

"No, we have to see what's going on," groaned Sasuke. "It only gets worse if you try and ignore it. It's a curse."

With no small amount of trepidation, they left, following the sound of screams in the distance until they reached the ship.

The Thousand Sunny was tremendous when compared to their old ship, but what stood out the most was how bright and colorful it was. Decorated as brightly as the sun, on its prow was mounted a bright yellow lion… or sunflower, or something. It was difficult to tell.

Franky stood proudly before it with everything laid bare, both hands at his side as he stared up at the crew of the Sunny. The Franky Family, as well as numerous bystanders, were all present to witness the spectacle, though many seemed to wish that they weren't. People of all ages were screaming and pointing in horror.

"Come on," said Sasuke, steadfastly avoiding looking in that direction. "Let's just get to the ship..."

The girls nodded and followed along, equally eager to avoid whatever was happening here. Many of the Straw-Hats were visible atop the ship's deck, and it seemed as though there was some sort of stand-off happening.

"Franky!" shouted Luffy, boldly waving the pair of underwear in his direction. "If you want your pants back, you gotta join our crew!"

"...Wait, wasn't he already a member of the Straw-Hats?" asked Hinata as they approached.

"It sure looked that way to me," agreed Sakura.

Sasuke shook his head. "We only meet him last week, honestly, but I thought he was planning to come along. I guess he changed his mind?"

"Listen, you twerps," called Franky, "I'm gonna give you one last chance to change your mind, and then I'm gonna start rampaging for real. Capiche?"

"Not gonna do it!" shouted Luffy. "You gotta join the crew first before you rampage! That's the rules!"

"Why the hell should I join the crew of a bunch of pirates? In case you haven't noticed, I've got things to do and people to care for here already. I neither need nor want to go out to sea with a bunch of crazy kids like you little dirtballs!"

The three ninjas leapt on-board, not bothering with the ladders or gang plank. They arrived to some conspiratorial muttering among the crew, joining Naruto, who was looking askance at Nami, Luffy and Robin.

"What's happening?" asked Sasuke, looking to his best friend to illuminate matters.

Naruto frowned. "Apparently they had to trick Franky here or something. They're saying he actually wants to join us but he's got some obligations holding him back, so they gotta use force."

"Use force?" asked Hinata, looking worried.

Then, smiling, Robin stepped up. Raising both hands in front of her, two copies of her arms sprouted from Franky's bare thighs. Franky had just a moment to stare in horror down at his crotchal region, and then Robin clasped her hands together.

[GRAB]

Everyone present tried their best not to think too hard about what happened next, the males in particular wincing as they screamed in sympathetic horror. Robin kept up the pressure as Franky roared and danced in place, at the mercy of an opponent that was truly beyond his capabilities.

As the four ninjas were busy processing the horrific sight, Robin glanced in their direction and winked, a bright smile on her lips.

Sakura's jaw dropped in astonishment before she caught herself. What was that wink supposed to mean, and to whom was it addressed?

"What the hell was that about?" she asked.

When no one answered, she averted her eyes and looked around her. To her surprise, Naruto was staring in horror at Sasuke, of all people. Sasuke, meanwhile, looked deeply, terribly confused.

Okay, girls?" asked Naruto. "We need to know what that meant, and we need to know it right now."

"Wha-?! No! No, don't ask me!" said Sakura.

"Don't you hold out on us! I know all you girls know this stuff! We can't afford for you to keep secrets here!"

"What?! Well, maybe it's different out here, because I sure as hell don't know what it means when some lady has a cyborg's balls in a vice grip and gives you a saucy wink! You didn't do anything bad to her, did you?"

"No! God, I hope not!"

"I think she was looking at Sasuke…" said a wide-eyed Hinata.

Sakura turned to face the open-mouthed Uchiha.

"Okay," she said. "What the hell's going on here?"

"Why should we relent, Franky?" asked Robin, interrupting their confusion as she called down to the bawling man below. "Surely you know that you'll have to be quite convincing if you want to make a pirate give up on something they want?"

"Whaddayou want then, you horrible woman?!" bawled Franky.

"You gotta join the crew!" called Luffy.

"Anything but that-! AAARGH! No! I'm staying on this island! Look, I'm thankful for everything you did for me. I even wish I could- Ah! Ah! AH! ... go with you, but I have way too much stuff to do here, alright?! I've got people who're counting on me!"

Franky paused to engage in more pained grunting and crying as everyone watched in discomfort.

"That's why I built my dream ship and gave her to you! It's the last ship I'm ever gonna make, and I know you'll love her and take care of her! I'm not a shipwright any more!"

As Franky continued yelling and crying naked up to the ship, he was approached by the only person courageous enough to get near him. Iceburg, Mayor of the city, stepped up to speak.

"Franky. There's one thing I know for sure. This isn't your dream ship. Not yet. It won't be complete unless you're on it to bring out its full potential. It won't be the best until it's accomplished its mission! I've known that was your dream ever since we were children, living and working under Tom's wing, so why deny that truth now, of all times?"

"Dammit! I'm not the same guy I was before! I have different dreams now! Ask any of the guys and they'll tell you the same thing! The Franky Family was lost before I arrived, and I dunno if they can survive without me, much less be happy!"

"Franky, I know you. Atonement is no way to live a life. Regret and blame have turned you into a man that can't live for his own happiness, and so you work yourself to tears for everyone else who was lost. I've seen it, even if nobody else has. You brought this town together, keeping it safe from anyone else who wanted to take advantage of it, and giving a home to all those who didn't fit in anywhere else."

"Yeah, boss!" screamed someone from the Franky Family off in the distance. "He's right! You're super awesome!"

The cyborg collapsed to his knees, wincing and leaking tears.

"Franky," continued Iceburg, "I forgive you. Kokoro forgives you. Even Tom forgave you. But all that doesn't mean a damn thing… unless you can forgive yourself."

He stepped closer and put a hand on the cyborg's shoulder. "Stop living other people's dreams. It's time to let all that go and live your own life."

As Franky continued to cry into the ground, his gang gathered around. One particularly nasty-looking ruffian saying, "Boss! We brought you your luggage for the trip!"

With a sudden burst of rage, Franky got to his feet.

"You're all a bunch of no-brain idiots! Leave the thinking to me, alright?! That's what you- *sob* That's what you always do anyway! Don't try and scheme to change my life, alright?"

"But Boss! Aren't we allowed to think about your happiness just this once?" yelled the ruffian. "We'll be fine! We'll succeed you as the kingpins of the criminal underworld! I know we can! All we want is for you to be happy!"

At this, Franky collapsed again, bawling on the ground and crying with pain.

"DAMMIT! I LOVE YOU GUYS! OW! OWWW!"

"Robin, let up on him," said Usopp. "He's trying to have a moment here!"

"Hmm?" said Robin, looking over her shoulder. "Oh, I haven't been doing that for a while now."

"You haven't? But why is he-"

"He's quite the shrewd fellow... He's using the pain as an excuse to disguise his tears."

So it was that Franky dried his tears and raised one hand in the air.

"Alright! I'll join you guys! I, Franky, will become your shipwright!"

The crew of the new Thousand Sunny cheered to meet their newest member, and Luffy tossed the man his missing pants. For everyone except the ninjas, this encounter seemed to make perfect sense, but for them there was a moment of silence before Naruto asked the obvious question.

"Okay, so, does anyone else get the feeling we missed something kind of important back there? I didn't know who half of those people even were. What the hell was all that about?"

Shaking heads and confused mutterings were his only answer.

A/N: Argh. Stuff that's close to canon is difficult for me.

I should mention... just because I skip, kill, or replace a character doesn't mean I don't like them. Hell, Sasori was my favorite member of Akatsuki, and I dropped an Admiral on him. Why do I mention this? Oh, no reason.