Author's Note - Some people may notice there is a theme to the bounties i choose. There is not a plot significance to this, just a personal quirk. Thirteen is my favorite number, so all bounties are multiples of that.
Disclaimer : I do not own One Piece or any of the other fandoms from which names, places, abilities, or references are taken! Imaginary points to anyone who catches said references throughout the story and PM's them to me. Dunno if you'll get anything real, but i give sneak peaks and deleted scenes to my repeated reviewers, so it isn't unthinkable.
Chapter 07 - First Bounties Reach Home
The world was in an uproar. The news had spread faster than anyone could have imagined. The Straw Hat Pirates were back, and they had already taken down one of the Shichibukai with only five members! Not only that, but they had all but declared war on the World Government. As word of the incident spread across the seas, whispers began to reach the government that the Revolutionary Army was on the move once again.
Two of the Shichibukai handed in their resignation within the week, and dozens of pirate crews that had been taking advantage of the easy prey on the Grand Line and the four Blues were lowering their flags and looking for cover. In their place, new ships were launching every day, driven by the desire to witness the storm that had erupted.
Not long afterward, five new wanted posters were scattered across the world. Where they got the names of the crew was a mystery, but the pictures were all clearly taken while they were addressing the world from the execution platform. The lightning, street lamps, and the flames from the distant burning ship lit the five pirates with an unearthly glow through the pounding rain.
Monkey D. Ace was assigned a bounty of 104,000,000 beli. The Reaper's increased from sixty five to seventy eight million. Roger was worth a little over fifty million, and each of the twins held bounties of nearly forty million. The Straw Hat Pirates were worth 312,000,000 beli, dead or alive. Ace grinned as he handed the posters around the crew, letting them see the effects of their efforts.
"They know we're here now. There will be no more taking them by surprise. They've acknowledged us as a real threat to them." Soul set the papers down on the table between them all, spreading them out and arranging them into the full picture they had been divided from. "That was quite a display we put on, Captain."
"Thanks to the storm, none of the marines were able to follow us. We're lucky this ship is so tough, or we would have been torn apart. Seems like the weather was on our side this time." Kuina hadn't lost her good mood since their victory over Flint. More precisely, since her captain had finally kissed her.
"This ship was made to survive the harshest corners of the Grand Line! There was no way one little storm would bring down The Legacy Storm!" Ace touched the wall nearest him fondly. "This is the ship that's going to take us everywhere!"
"I can't believe it was that easy to beat on of the Seven Warlords!" Roger shook his head, glancing again at his poster. He looked a great deal more intimidating than he had ever imagined he could.
"The government had to lower their standards. They accepted weaker pirate crews just to keep the ranks full. Don't worry. With all this chaos, they will be building up a much stronger group again. Our next fight won't go so smoothly." Soul leaned back in his chair as the cook sighed. It wasn't really what he had wanted to hear.
"We'll be stronger by then as well. It will take them a while to be ready to confront us, especially with the revolution starting up again. We'll be well into the Grand Line before they are prepared to try and stop us." Kuina spread out her map. "We'll be at reverse mountain in a few days. After that, we'll see just how handy Soul's G.P.S. can be."
"Yosh! Everyone, let's hang these up with the old crew's in the meeting room!" Ace stood up and gathered the posters, leading the way to the large circular room. Around the walls were several posters that clearly showed the escalating infamy of their predecessors. The first entry held only a single poster for Monkey D. Luffy for thirty million beli. The last entry held the final bounties of the entire crew. Straw Hat Luffy for 845,000,000 beli. By that time, the world no longer cared what his name was. He was Straw Hat, and that was enough.
Roronoa Zoro for 520,000,000 beli. The picture showed him with only Wado Ichimonji in hand, standing victorious before Hawkeye Mihawk in their final duel. Nico Robin for 455,000,000 beli. The picture showed her smiling calmly with a book in her hand. It looked as if she were sun bathing on the deck of a ship. The twins smiled, seeing their parents in their prime.
Black Leg Sanji for 390,000,000 beli. The picture was his first, judging by the previous crude drawings, and he had made it count. It looked like he had planned the picture, as he was smiling handsomely, mid kick, as the flames danced around him.
Cyborg Franky for 325,000,000 beli. The image showed him with spiked blue hair, and a tall, but thin and fit frame, very unlike the picture Robin had of him which showed a terrifyingly bulky man with a short haircut. This had been taken not long before Luffy had surrendered, when the government feared the pirates would remain a threat for years to come. The man's forearms were tattooed with "BF-39".
Monster Doctor Chopper for 260,000,000 beli. The picture was of a creature bigger than a house, with claws longer than a man was tall. Not the cuddly raccoon like animal that appeared in previous posters.
Soul King Brook for 195,000,000 beli. In the picture, they saw a skeleton dressed in a stylish black suit, and a large ball of curly black hair. He was holding a half-drawn cane sword. He was a well known musician who had retired not long ago.
Sniper King Usopp for 130,000,000 beli. The man in the picture had a daring grin on his face and a strange slingshot staff in his hand. He was standing in front of a pile of unconscious marines. The rest of the crew had sent the Thousand Sunny with that man after the execution. It was a medical ship now.
Storm Witch Nami for 65,000,000 beli. Ace smiled at the photo of his mother leaning calmly against a man not shown in the picture. It didn't matter. He could see the edge of the Straw Hat that identified his father.
2,730,000,000 beli for the entire Straw Hat crew. The highest bounty for any group in history, even beating the Roger Pirates. More than eight times what they were worth now. They had a long way to go before they could match that. They posted the five posters in the next section of the room and stood back to admire their addition.
"We're really on our way now." Roger leaned against the table and looked at his own poster again. "I wonder if everyone back home has gotten the news yet."
"I hope so. Oh! We forgot to pick up the letter!" Olivia shouts, vanishing only a moment before her sister. The other three shrug and go about their day as usual.
"Nami, have you seen the news yet?" Dragon grinned proudly as he walked through the door, looking to the kitchen where the orange haired woman was sitting, holding the day's paper. She nodded and smiled back.
"His father would be very proud! His first bounty is higher than Luffy's second was!" Nami lays the paper out between them as Dragon takes a seat across from her. "Do you know anything about his other two crew mates?"
"I do. The one called The Reaper has been wanted for ten years. He has brought down hundreds of pirates and marines, and his bounty would be ten times what it is if he ever left anyone alive to tell what they had seen. The other one is from Foosha Village. We've been keeping a close eye on him since he was born. There was nearly a war fought over him, but no one who wasn't involved knows that was the reason." Dragon looked at the pictures.
"A war?" Nami stared at the man. He certainly looked like trouble, but the picture made all of them look otherworldly and terrifying.
"Yes. It was shortly before your crew reached Raftel. The Marines sent five disguised battleships to the island to kidnap or kill the boy as a sort of diversion to keep his father out of the New World while they launched their attack on you. It worked, sort of, but instead of beating them to death side by side with your captain, he beat them here in East Blue, protecting his son." Dragon explained.
"Who was his father?" Nami could guess, just from his hair and the concern the government had for his interference. She had always wondered why the man hadn't been there during that battle. Not that they ended up needing the help, but she had assumed he would join them.
"Red Haired Shanks. The Yonko. The government knew that after your crew beat his that he had formed an alliance with Luffy, and they knew they could never fight against an alliance that strong. Strategically, they did very well drawing Law and Shanks off to distant ends of the world, and putting together and alliance of their own, but it didn't make any difference in the end." Dragon grinned. "My men were waiting nearby, just in case things went wrong. There was nothing the marines could do to draw me away."
"You were there?!" Nami gaped at him. "Where?"
"Underwater. We had fifty ships of revolutionaries armed to the teeth just under the surface behind the marines and pirates. You didn't think I would miss seeing my son become the Pirate King, did you?" Dragon laughed. "If the enemy's alliance had proven too much for you all, we would have sunk their entire fleet in a matter of seconds."
"That is... Scary. How much fire power did you have aimed at them?" Nami was almost afraid to ask.
"Enough to sink Raftel if we had to." Dragon sighed and stood up. "I'm going to go talk with Robin. I'm sure she's seen the news as well."
"Yeah..." Nami was still shocked. Did the Revolutionary Army have one of the Ancient Weapons? On second thought, she didn't want to know.
"Are you watching over them, Zoro? Our girls are already making the government nervous!" Robin smiled warmly. The bounties were higher than she had expected. All of them were higher than Luffy's first bounty. They weren't being given the same dismissal as their predecessor. East Blue had given the world two Pirate Kings and the Revolutionary Dragon. They couldn't write it off as weak any longer.
"Robin! How do you like the news?" Dragon asked as he stepped through her doorway. She laughed at the grin on his face. He may act like he is always calm and in control, but at heart, he really was Luffy's father, and there was only so much excitement a D could hide before it found its way out.
"It is encouraging. Their crew is strong. Strong enough for the government to risk acknowledging it." Robin looked over the pictures once more before folding the paper and setting it aside.
"They didn't really give them a choice. My successor leading the revolution reported the entire story to me this morning. They have done a lot more than make a splash. They have the government in a panic. They are trying to do damage control, but it is too late. The world already knows that the Straw Hat Pirates are back, and as strong as before, and the revolution has returned full force. After the defeat of Flint, two more Shichibukai resigned their positions out of fear." Dragon sat in his usual spot, looking over some of the notes his friend had left on the table.
"Really? Was the revolution just waiting for them?" Robin looked to the older man.
"In a way. They were waiting on someone to start some unrest. Something to indicate a little unbalance in the world. Ace and his crew certainly gave them that. They will begin shaking things up now, and that will also give Ace time to build up his crew and gain experience while the government and the marines have their hands full." Dragon laughed quietly. It was like he had planned the entire thing.
"I'm eager to see what they do next. Will your men be reporting on them beyond this point, or will they be too busy?" Robin took one of her books from a nearby shelf and flipped to a marked page, handing it to Dragon, who glance over the page and smiled.
"They'll keep track of them, and report anything major, at least anything the government tries to cover up. I had your letter delivered, by the way. I don't know if they received it yet, but it was definitely there when they arrived." Dragon finished the marked passage and closed the book, returning it.
"I'm sure they won't be able to get away with written communication for much longer. It will be nice seeing the posters and getting reports that they are still alive and causing trouble." Robin smiled, wondering what she would hear about them next.
"Makino! You've gotta see this!" A man called to the woman at the bar. She looked up and smiled at him. He waved a stack of wanted posters in the air. She walked over quickly and found the one she wanted to see most.
"He's still with them then." She smiled to herself at the proof he was still alive.
"That he is." The voice from the door startled her. She looked up and let her mouth fall open. There in the door way stood the man she had longed to see for over a decade. He had a few more scars than the last time, and his age was just beginning to show in his face and eyes and the way he walked. Despite this, he was still every bit the powerful and dangerous pirate he had always been.
"Shanks!" Makino raced to him and wrapped her arms around his shoulder, holding him tightly in case he were only a dream that could slip away at any moment. His strong arms pulled her tight against him and his legendary red hair ticked her ear as he kissed her shoulder.
"I missed you, Makino." Shanks sounded tired, then. He walked to the bar and took the seat that he had claimed for the past thirty years. "Our son has chosen to follow a dangerous man. I was a little surprised you let him go."
"He's your son. You think I could have stopped him?" Makino laughed at the pirate. "Besides, he has always dreamed of going out to sea and traveling the world and going on adventures. It's in his blood, after all."
"True, I suppose. He's going to go far. I can see that much already." Shanks took a long drink from the bottle Makino handed him, then looked around at the dozen stunned faces, some with food halfway to their mouths. "You know, it's a bit rude to stare." The infamous pirate laughed as the patrons all busied themselves with eating, drinking, and whispering.
"Don't mind them. They weren't expecting you to show up out of nowhere any more than I was." Makino gave him an expectant look.
"I'm sorry. Circumstances changed very recently, and I was able to get away for a while. With the recent uproar, and a new alliance, I had the opportunity to slip away unnoticed. I can't stay as long as I would like, but I was hoping I might be able to stay the night at least. Although, it looks like the inn has closed down..." The Yonko pretended to be thinking over where to stay. Makino smacked him playfully over the head with their son's rolled up poster.
"I'm glad you came back. There wasn't much news from the New World lately. I was afraid you'd finally died falling down the stairs drunk or something. I've been missing you a lot since Roger left..." Makino sighed and set the poster down on the counter.
"It will take more than a little fall down some stairs to kill me, Makino. You don't need to worry. First, the death of a Yonko would make world news, and second, Benn has already promised to deliver the news personally if he has to." Shanks finished his drink and stood up, stretching.
"Go ahead upstairs. I'll be up as soon as I finish the dishes." The woman smiled at the man she had feared she would never see again. She didn't have much time with him, but she would enjoy it while she could.
"Well, your ship has got them to Loguetown, at least." Iceburg laughed and dodged a halfhearted swing from his business partner.
"Shut it! That ship is my masterpiece! Everything I put into the Thousand Sunny, and everything I learned while sailing on it!" Franky grinned as he glanced at the blueprints hanging on the wall. Three in a row. The Oro Jackson, the Thousand Sunny, and the Legacy Storm. Iceburg patted his shoulder.
"Tom would be proud, Franky. Now stop daydreaming about that boat and help me finish the one we're supposed to have done this evening!" Iceburg looked pointedly out the door at the partially constructed ship. Franky sighed and stood up, setting down Ace's wanted poster. Tom's Workers was always busy. But the shipwrights wouldn't have it any other way.
"Olivia's the doctor, isn't she?" Kureha asked. It was a wonder the ancient woman was still alive, but she was in the business of keeping people alive, so it was good advertising. Chopper nodded cheerfully.
"She's the one! One of Robin and Zoro's daughters." The reindeer-man looked through the other posters, stopping when he reached the captain. "Nami was right, he looks just like Luffy."
"Looks like he's just as much trouble, too, judging by that bounty. They're gonna need those supplies you sent." The elderly doctor laughed and tipped back her drink, downing half the large bottle in one go.
"Maybe, maybe not. They might be good enough that they don't get hurt." Chopper grinned proudly. He had been pretty well useless as a doctor for the last few months of their journey. Luffy had become so strong that he could have marched through the gates of hell and dragged back Cerberus by it's tail unharmed.
"We'll see. I'm betting 2,000 beli that one of them has a visible scar on their next bounty poster." The woman held out the money and waved it in front of the younger doctor. He rolled his eyes and pulled out the same amount.
"I'll take that bet. Their next set of posters will be scar-free. And it doesn't matter if it is because they didn't get hurt, or because their doctor is as good as I was." Chopper shook his mentor's hand. "I've got to go. I'm expected by the Alabastra Kingdom soon. Take care of yourself."
"You too, Chopper. See you in the summer." Kureha waved to her friend and student as he left the castle. She enjoyed his annual visits more than anything, even if she never admitted it.
"Usopp!" Kaya jumped in surprise as the tall man swung in through her window. She never got used to some of his eccentric behavior, but she never complained. He had come back to her in one piece, more handsome than ever, and with stories ten times more unbelievable than his old ones, and many of them true. He had become a brave man of the seas, like he had always dreamed, and then he came back to her.
"Sorry Kaya, I didn't mean to startle you. I was just excited. Luffy's son has a bounty and a crew! They're already at Loguetown!" The sniper sat down on her bed, holding the wanted poster showing Ace. In the picture she could clearly see the pirate carrying a poll that held the flag she had watched this man paint himself.
"They're going to take your flag all across the sea again!" Kaya smiled sweetly at him and joined him on the bed. "I wonder if they will change it any, to make it more personal to them." The doctor leaned her head on Usopp's shoulder.
"That's a great idea!" Usopp leaped up, and was out the window and down the tree in an instant. She shook her head and laughed. He was pretty energetic for his age. She had almost been able to imagine being able to keep up with him if he returned to find her fully recovered, but that hadn't lasted long.
"I wonder what that man is going to do..." Kaya lay back on the bed and smiled at the ceiling. Whatever it would be, he would do it with enthusiasm and pride, and she would be waiting to hear the story when he was done.
"Captain, we're almost there! We need to make sure everything is locked down!" Kuina called from the upper deck. Ace nodded to her and began calling out to the crew.
"Olivia, raise the sail then lock down the medical wing! Roger, take care of the anchor and the kitchen! Soul, sweep the rest of the rooms and the workshop, make sure nothing is loose! Kuina, double check the navigation room!" Ace brought five ropes to the deck and began to tie one end of each to the mast firmly. "When you're done, come and tie yourselves down! I don't want any of you getting thrown off!"
The crew moved quickly, going through their tasks as if they had practiced them a hundred times. They each knew their responsibilities. When all five where tied firmly to the ship, Kuina looked to the captain.
"This is it. We're about to enter the Grand Line!" The navigator stared up the enormous wall of water that seemed to rush straight up to the sky. Reverse mountain loomed before them, and they felt the current beginning to tug them faster.
"Yosh! Hold on!" Ace extended a hand to her, smiling confidently. She took it without question and was glad for the support when the deck began to slant beneath her feet.
"The current is incredible!" Roger looked around as they rushed up the mountain like a piece of bark on a mighty river. He caught Olivia gently as she lost her footing. She grinned up at him, and he kept his arms around her as the ship accelerated.
They reached the top and were launched several feet into the air. Soul had two dials in his hand. He hit one, and the ship began to turn in mid air, being driven by breath dials. When they were aimed for the single downward current, Soul looked around his nakama and laughed.
"Ready?" The shipwright held his hand over the second dial.
"Ready!" Olivia shouted from Roger's arms, smiling excitedly. Roger nodded his agreement.
"Same here!" Kuina gave the shipwright a smile and squeezed her captain's hand.
"Yosh! Let's go!" Ace called out, fist in the air.
"Alright then, if you're sure, then check out the ship's new Coup De Burst!" Soul grinned and pressed the button. All five pirates were swung to the ends of their ropes as the ship took off beneath them. It dragged them along and blasted down the waterfall so fast that the current seemed to be against them. The pirates all stared in astonishment at the approaching ocean.
They hit the water with a splash and rocked violently as they slowed down from their descent. After several minutes, they rose to their feet, shaking. Soul looked a bit surprised by the power of his improvement.
"Soul, let's save that for emergencies, okay?" Roger looked at the shipwright, who nodded dumbly.
"Wow... That was great!" Olivia sat up and shook her head. "Can we do that again?" Her sister gave her an annoyed shake of the head while Roger helped her to her feet.
"Guy's, we're in the Grand Line!" Ace leaped into the air and then ran to the front of the ship, jumping up to the dragon's head. He looked around excitedly then pointed at one of the capes of the mountain at their back. "Land there!" The others looked and saw a small cottage standing on a green landscape set among the rocky surroundings.
"What is that doing there?" Kuina looked at her map but it only had a picture of a whale.
"There's only one way to find out, especially for pirates! We've gotta check it out for ourselves!" Soul smiled and let his Striker drop to the waves before leaping into it's open spot and taking off for the shore. The navigator sighed and went to set the ship on course to follow him.
Soon the other four reached the shore. The sight that greeted them was one of the strangest they had seen, but far from the strangest they were yet to see. Soul was sitting in a stylish chair and talking to a skeleton.
"Yohohoho! Greetings! It is a pleasure to meet you all! I am Brook, and this is my home. Welcome!" The skeleton stood and bowed low to them before straightening and offering them seats and tea. They all accepted and introduced themselves to the famous musician and Straw Hat pirate.
Brook explained to them how he had come to live there with his old friend Laboon the whale after he had grown tired of the life of a celebrity. They listened to the skeleton recount several of his stories from his time with the Pirate King, as well as play a number of songs for them. It was nearly sun set when a large bird flew down and landed before the reanimated pirate.
"Oh! Mail!" Brook opened paid the bird and took the package, reading the letter. "It seems to all arrived just in time! This package is for you!"
"For us? Who would know to send you a package for us? We didn't even know we would meet you here..." Ace accepted the package and carefully opened it.
"Any of my old crew mates. I told them all where I was going after my retirement. If they knew you were coming here, then they knew you would pass by my home!" Brook explained. Ace nodded and then smiled as he spread out the package.
"It's a new flag!" The young captain held the large black cloth out. In the center, the same skull with it's signature straw hat sat as it always had, but behind it, instead of bones, there were a straight bladed katana and a long scythe crossed in the back ground. The crew all gave their approval.
"I imagine this must be from Usopp then! He was the only artistic member of the crew besides myself, and I'm right here! Yohohoho!" Brook laughed. It had been some time since he had visitors, and he was enjoying himself.
"It's perfect! Now it is really our flag!" Ace carefully handed the flag to Kuina. "Switch it with the old one, and let's hang the old one in the meeting room with the posters."
"I'll take care of it, Captain." Kuina vanished, leaving the others alone.
"That is quite a handy ability. I'll be interested to see what all she can do with it by the end of your journey! Luffy stretched his ability far beyond what people ever imagined before! Yohohoho!" Brook laughed at his joke and the other smiled. He was a very friendly man, after Kuina had nearly beaten his head off for asking to see her panties.
"We think it might be a new type of ability. We're going to try to discover where Devil's Fruit abilities come from." Ace explained part of their adventure to the skeleton.
"I see. I wish you the best of luck! If you are interested, our doctor, Chopper, passed through her a week ago, heading for Alabastra. It will only take two days for your Log Pose to set, if you would like to stay as my guests." The old pirate offered.
"We have an alternative to a Log Pose, thanks to Soul, but we wouldn't mind staying one extra day, as long as you have more stories! And we will be sure to go to Alabastra next. Olivia has always wanted to meet Chopper." Ace smiled at the excited look on his doctor's face.
"I have over a century's worth of stories, and I promise I will not run out in a single night!" Brook said. As Kuina appeared, the group followed the skeleton into his home. The next day, they would be setting out on the Grand Line with their own flag and their own dreams. They had their own ship, and their own crew. The Straw Hat Pirates had been reborn.
I'm sorry to anyone who wanted more of Brook, but so far he has been my least favorite Straw Hat. I'll include him where necessary and appropriate, but i will avoiding writing him all i can.
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