As usual, not beta; we die like men. And feedback is greatly encouraged.


Hey, Makino! Can I have some meat?" Luffy yelled as he waltzed into the bar, his cheerful voice echoing off the walls. Upon not hearing the familiar reply, his eyes darted around the room in search of Makino and realized how uncharacteristically empty Party's was. "That's weird…" he said with a frown as he walked towards the counter.
Luffy's gaze finally settled on Sakazuki, who was seated at the bar. Luffy approached him. "Oi, old man, have you seen Makino?"

As the boy drew closer, Sakazuki's smile widened. "You must be Monkey D. Luffy. Makino had an urgent matter to take care of."

"Really? Where'd she go this early in the morning? And why is the bar empty?" Luffy asked, scratching the back of his head. "And I came down running because she called me..."

"That, I do not know, but if it's a meal you're looking for, I don't mind sharing mine with you," Sakazuki said, gesturing to the assortment of dishes behind him.

Luffy's eyes widened as he saw the spread of food laid out on the table behind Sakazuki. The villagers had been kind enough to bring some of their breakfast leftovers to the bar at Sakazuki's request. He knew the food would make for an excellent pacifier when dealing with Luffy.

As expected, Luffy's mouth watered at the sight. "OOOOOOOOH!" he exclaimed in joy, his arms flailing as he rushed to take a seat next to Sakazuki. He turned to the older man, his eyes pleading. "You sure?"

Sakazuki nodded, chuckling at the boy's eagerness. "Yes, I'm sure. Dig in."

"Thanks, old man!" Luffy exclaimed as he began grabbing food from the table and shoving it into his mouth. He chewed and swallowed quickly, his eyes darting around the room as he searched for more food. After a few moments, he turned to Sakazuki, his mouth still full of food. "This is great! You're the best, old man!"

Sakazuki raised an eyebrow at the boy's manners but couldn't help but smile. "And my name is not old man, it's Sakazuki," he corrected, his hand gesturing to himself.

"Thanks, old man Sakazuki!" Luffy said, his mouth still full of food. He continued to eat, his eyes glinting with pleasure as he savored the flavors of the different dishes. After a few minutes, he paused and looked up at Sakazuki. "Old man, I've never seen your face before. Are you a traveler?"

"In a sense, I guess I am a traveler. I have a bit of business in this village. Garp told me many things about you, so I just had to meet myself. And I have to say, you really are a spitting image of him." Sakazuki mused as he leaned his cheek on his fist, staring in amazement at how brutally the kid was tearing the food. His absent-minded observation turned out to be the wrong thing to say, as immediately Luffy choked on the food in his mouth.

Sakazuki patted the coughing young man on the back a couple of times and offered him a nearby glass of water which Luffy accepted gratefully. "Easy there, kid. You should eat slowly; the food isn't running away."

"Baaaah, I thought I was gonna die," Luffy said as he slammed the now-empty glass on the table. His eyes gazed into the distance, and all color seemed to drain from his face. He turned to look at the admiral with an uneasy expression. "Old man, you know Grandpa?"

"Yeah, your grandpa and I go way back. I met him nearly thirty years ago when I first joined the Marines," Sakazuki said, with a faraway look as he remembered his first impression of the Hero of the Navy.

Back then, Sakazuki was an avid fan of the Hero of the Marines after hearing about his achievements. He was eager to meet the man, thinking that he would meet a kindred spirit who shared his outlook on the world.

Then Garp opened his mouth, and Sakazuki's hopes went down the shitter. "And stop calling me old."

For his part, Luffy remained silent, still sporting an uncomfortable look on his face. "So, you're a Marine too," he finally said.

"I am," Sakazuki replied, puffing out his chest and tipping his Marine hat to Luffy, letting him see the proud seagull stitched on it. "Pretty cool, right?"

"Not really, marines are boring.," Luffy said with an honest face, causing Sakazuki's body to deflate.

"Is that so? And pray do tell me, boy, why is being a Marine officer boring?" Sakazuki inquired, not taking the boy's words to heart.

Luffy spared him a glance and just gave a shrug. "It always seemed like a place filled with lame people to me. Why bother going to the sea if you're not free to do as you like?"

Sakazuki stared at the boy for a while. He leaned in closer and asked with a raised brow. "So you think your grandfather is a lame man because he is a Marine?"

Luffy momentarily stopped eating, seemingly giving the question a bit more thought than Sakazuki expected him to. "Hmm… no. Grandpa is not boring," He said after a while.

Sakazuki nodded. "Okay, what about me? I'm a Marine. Do you think I'm lame?"

Luffy shook his head. "No, you gave me food. You're good, old man."

"…Don't you see the contradiction in your words?" Sakazuki pointed out.

"I don't know what that word means."

"Is that so?" Sakazuki gave him an unimpressed look but pressed on a second later. "So Luffy, it came to my attention that you are planning to venture into the sea. Is that correct?"

Luffy's mood changed instantly for the better as his enthusiasm exploded. He turned to look at the older man with a huge grin and star-filled eyes. "That's right! I'm going out next month. I already bought a small raft to sail in!"

"Lovely. And I take it you're not going to join the Marines or become a bounty hunter while you're at it, right?" Sakazuki said with a monotone voice as he twirled a glass of wine in his hand, his eyes focused on the swirling bright red liquid in it. He spotted Luffy shaking his head from the edge of his vision and continued speaking. "So what were you hoping to become?"

"I will become the king of pirates!" Luffy declared with a proud voice, jumping from his seat in excitement. His declaration was as clear as it was honest.

Sakazuki could not sense a hint of deceit or hesitation in his declaration. Luffy stated his goal with a promise laced with conviction, dream, and desire.

It almost made Sakazuki puke a little in his mouth.

Luckily, the boy's loudness made a decent cover for the sound of cracking glass in Akainu's hand. Sakazuki shook his gloved hand, ridding it of the shards stuck in it. With a mental command, he turned his powers on, evaporating the spilled wine on his clothes and bathing the table in dim light. He took a deep breath to calm his boiling temper. He may have been the one in control, but at the end of the day, he was still in Akainu's body.

Some sentiments were bound to remain from the original Sakazuki.

And it seemed that his little trick did not go unnoticed. "Ooooh! Old man, are you a Devil Fruit user too? That's awesome!" Luffy gushed in amazement as he got into Akainu's personal space, clearly not sensing the rage emitting from the Marine admiral.

"Sit." Sakazuki grabbed Luffy by the face, ignoring the uncanny way his fingers sunk into his rubbery flesh, and planted the boy's behind back into his stool. He interlaced his fingers together and leveled Luffy with an unreadable stare. "A pirate... you want to be a pirate."

"No, I don't want to be a pirate; I'm going to become the King of Pirates," Luffy corrected him with a smile.

Sakazuki's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "Now why the hell would you want to be a pirate, boy? What makes them a better prospect than an honest marine?"

The younger boy smiled brightly and spread his arms wide. "A pirate's life is a life of freedom. I will live my life with no regrets. To travel from island to island and see the world, to find the most bizarre treasures of the sea, and to go on the greatest of adventures… That is what pirates are about! That is a man's romance!"

Silence descended on the bar as Luffy finished his explanation. The two of them remained locked in a staring contest for a long moment, Luffy's honest, determined gaze against the admiral's jaded, disappointed scrutiny.

"I see…" Sakazuki broke his gaze from the younger man's. He briefly took off his white hat and ruffled his short, dark hair in contemplation. "That is a shame. I had actually come here to see if it would be possible to tempt you to join the navy, or at the very least dissuade you from piracy, but it seems that it would be futile, right?"

Luffy let out a resolute breath from his nostrils.

"When taking into consideration the blood coursing through your veins, I have no doubt that, in time, you would become quite the fearsome pirate. However…" Sakazuki said slowly, with a clear authority lacing his words. "Doing so would make many dangerous enemies, all of whom would snuff you out without the smallest of hesitation, be they Warlords, Emperors of the sea, or even naval admirals. Are you still willing to go through with it? Are you ready to fight all of them?"

"I'm not scared! I will make the best pirate crew in the world, and with them, I will surpass everyone and find the One Piece!" Luffy, with a big grin on his face, replied without hesitation. "And for your offer: I refuse!"

Despite himself, Sakazuki could not help but feel a small bit of grudging admiration and respect for the boy. Nevertheless, he was still a marine. "That's a damn shame, kid." He sighed as he stood up from his seat, demonstrating the huge height difference between the two of them. "But if that's your desire, I'll play along with you."

Despite his thickheadedness, Luffy still sensed the hostile intentions and sudden change of mood in Sakazuki. "Old ma-" Luffy's words were cut off as Sakazuki's fist violently impacted his face, sending him flying through the bar's wall and onto the street.

"GAH! My head! Why does it hurt!? I'm made of rubber!" Luffy cried out in pain. His wails were interrupted by a deafening explosion that shook his surroundings, with smoke and heat assaulting his senses.

Pushing the pain to the back of his mind, Luffy forced himself to look in front of him. Shock took over him as he helplessly watched Makino's bar burn in a raging tornado of fire and ashes. From the flickering flames, Sakazuki's glowing frame marched forward, magma dripping with every step. "Stand up, son of Dragon," he commanded.

"What are you doing, old man?" Luffy asked as he jumped to his feet, his arms flailing in the air as he tried to think of a way to put out the flames. "Why the hell did you burn Makino's place!?"

"Do you really think you have time to worry about others?!" Sakazuki grunted as he launched forward, crossing the distance in a blur and planting his knee into Luffy's guts. The force of the blow sent the boy hurtling backward, crashing through yet another house.

Pushing down the rising bile in his throat, Luffy slowly pushed himself to his feet as Sakazuki landed in front of him. "W-why?" he asked weakly.

"You should heed other people's warnings, Monkey D Luffy. I told you that your stupid dream will make you many enemies far above your level, both Emperors and Navy Admirals," Sakazuki said as he knelt next to Luffy, his cold gaze meeting Luffy's confused stare.

Luffy's eyes widened as he pieced together Sakazuki's words. "Th-then...!"

" Admiral Akainu; a pleasure to meet you," Sakazuki nodded as he grabbed Luffy by the hair and lifted him up, his fist cocked backward. Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you. I'm just doing something Garp should have done a long time ago... beat some sense into you!"

Swiftly releasing his grip on Luffy's hair Sakazuki let his Haki coat his extended hand and struck the boy's face. As he watched Luffy's body fly away. With quick use of Soru, he intercepted the boy before he could land.
Not wishing to lose track of the boy, Sakazuki grabbed Luffy's arm before delivering a harsh kick to his ribs, causing him to fly in another direction while his hand remained firmly locked in the Admiral's grip. Sakazuki let out a small whistle. "His power is a lot more disturbing in real life."

Soon enough, Luffy's body reached its limit and came rushing back, only to be received by a devastating headbutt from Akainu, cracking Luffy's nose and driving him to the ground.
"Gah!" Luffy let out a scream that quickly turned into a roar of defiance. Twisting his body from its compromised position, Luffy used his momentum to launch a punch at Akainu's torso. "..Pistol!"

But his attack found no purchase as Sakazuki merely moved to the side, letting Luffy's fist sail into the distance. Sakazuki lifted his foot and stomped on Luffy's face in retaliation, over and over, with a dispassionate look on his face. "Give up, son of Dragon." He ordered as he drove his shoe further down.

"Gmiu..Mhgfgo..." Luffy's muffled response came from underneath him, as his left arm extended in the other direction.
"Hmm, what was that?" Sakazuki sneered, loosening the pressure but keeping the boy trapped in his place. "You don't think you're getting away that easily, do you?"

".mlMU GOMU NO…!" Luffy's voice became clearer as he yelled out another attack.

Sakazuki had to resist the urge to roll his eyes until he noticed that Luffy's right arm was not extending. It was shrinking. The arm he used for his first attack was only just then returning. Immediately, he turned behind him, and his eyes widened a fraction at what he saw. "Clever bastard..."

"...HOUSE!" Luffy's arm snapped back in place, and even with the foot on his face, Luffy's smirk was clear as the entire load he dragged back was released.

An entire two-story house crashed into Sakazuki, knocking him off-balance and giving Luffy a chance to retreat before it collapsed on top of the admiral.

Luffy struggled to get back on his feet, coughing and gasping for air. His body was battered and bruised, his face a mask of pain as he forced his blurry vision to focus on the pile of rubble several meters away from him. He knew that he was no match for Sakazuki's incredible power, but he refused to give up. He was determined to fight until the bitter end, no matter the cost. "That... That should keep him down for a while."

His nose twitched in attention as the smell of burning wood reached him. With wide eyes, Luffy stared hopelessly as a pillar of fire exploded into existence from beneath the rubble, disintegrating both wood and stone. "Is he... dead?" Luffy thought in shock as he watched the lower half of what could only be Sakazuki march confidently forward, the upper part nowhere to be seen.

"Well, you're a crafty bastard; I'll give you that, boy," Sakazuki barked out a laugh as both his body and attire reformed themselves into their original conditions, utterly unscathed. He put his hands in his pockets and gave Luffy a condescending look. "But you're still far too weak."

Suddenly, several new arrivals on the island registered on Sakazuki's senses, causing him to take his eyes off his opponent and turn to his left.

Not wanting to miss the opportunity, Luffy ignored the man's taunting and lunged forward, his arms stretching behind him. "Gomu Gomu no... Bazooka!" The attack caught Sakazuki straight in the chest with enough force behind it to clear the debris behind him and kick up a huge cloud of dust.

A glimpse of hope ran through Luffy's body, who thought that his attack might have actually done some damage. However, his satisfaction was short-lived as the dust settled, revealing a nonplussed Akainu not even paying attention to him, let alone being damaged by the attack.

"They arrived a lot sooner than scheduled. I should probably finish soon," Sakazuki mumbled as he stared into the distance in the direction of the port.

'Damn bastard is mocking me'. Luffy's temper flared as he retracted his arms. He pointed an accusing finger and yelled, "Pay attention, damn it!"

Sakazuki blinked as his eyes returned to his opponent. He waved his hand in dismissal. "Sorry, sorry, my mind tends to wander off when I'm bored. What were you saying?"

"Don't look away in the middle of the fight!" Luffy yelled back angrily.

"A fight? Where? Oh! You mean this shit we're doing?" Sakazuki laughed while gesturing between the two of them. "Nah, this ain't a fight."

"Then what the hell is it?!"

Sakazuki raised his arm. "This is nothing more than a one-sided ass-whooping. Rankyaku!"

The admiral's arm blurred out of existence, and it was only the battle instinct and experience that Luffy amassed throughout his harsh childhood that saved him from getting bisected. Narrowly avoiding the massive air slash that tore through both ground and any unlucky house in its path, Luffy pushed against the ground with his arm as he twisted his body and launched his counter-attack. "Gomu Gomu no… Whip!"

His leg passed harmlessly over Sakazuki's head as he ducked and rushed the younger boy. The marine uncurled his index finger and thrust it, piercing Luffy's shoulder. "Shigan!"

"Aaagh!" Luffy screamed in pain as blood gushed out of the newly created hole in his shoulder before gritting his teeth and going for another attack. "…Pistol!"

"Tekkai," Sakazuki said with a bored look as he tanked the punch with ease. He put his hand mere inches away from Luffy's chest. "Tobu Shigan!" Sakazuki flicked his middle finger, drawing blood once more and sending the boy flying.

Luffy crashed into a nearby building, the impact causing debris to rain down on him. He groaned in pain as he struggled to get up, feeling the weight of his injuries. "Damn it...I can't lose here..." he muttered under his breath.

Sakazuki approached him slowly, his eyes cold and unfeeling. "You're still not giving up, huh? I suppose that's admirable, in its way."

Luffy glared at Sakazuki, his fists clenched. "I won't give up...not until I become the Pirate King! No matter how many times I have to get back up, I'll keep fighting!"

"Bold words, for someone who can't even stand on his own two feet," Sakazuki replied with a roll of his eyes.

"What did you say, you bastard!?" Luffy exclaimed.

Sakazuki let out a long taunting sigh. "Just look at your sorry ass, kid. You know you can't beat me, and it's not like I enjoy beating dumbasses like you. So, just give up on your stupid dream, and go on with your life."

Luffy gritted his teeth and struggled to stand up. "The only dumbass here is you. No matter how many times you kick me down, I'm not giving up on my dream. I will go out into the sea and gather the best crew in the world. I will surpass you; I will surpass Grandpa; and I will surpass Shanks and become the Pirate King!" Slowly and with effort, Luffy fixed his body into something resembling a fighting stance. "Come!"

Sakazuki did not respond for a long moment, merely fixing the boy in front of him with an unreadable gaze. Letting out a resigned sigh, he fixed his hat.

"So be it."


"Aaaaaaah, what a waste of time. This whole thing was definitely a resounding loss for me." Sakazuki whined in exasperation as he stood on top of a pile of rubble, watching as what was left of the small village of Foosha was consumed by a torrent of flames and magma. He remained unscathed. The only injuries he sustained were on his pride and patience.
The same could not be said about his opponent.

"You sure are one stubborn bastard. I mean, I already knew you were, but I didn't think you were that stupid," Sakazuki mused as he watched Luffy's heavily bruised body lying unconscious beneath his feet.

Akainu had to give him an "A" for effort. The young boy had fought with all his might, but as expected, he was no match for the power of an Admiral, even one severely holding back.

"You're a decent kid. I always liked you," Sakazuki complimented the motionless Luffy. "You would definitely go on to do many good deeds. That is the only reason you're still alive," despite the threat he could become later on, despite the cursed blood in his veins, and despite how much every fiber of Akainu's body wished to burn the boy to ashes.

Sakazuki picked up Luffy's body, taking care not to aggravate his wounds, and reached into his jacket for Seastone's handcuffs. The migraine that came with contact was a small price to pay for the security of knowing that once the hyperactive and stubborn boy couldn't use his devil fruit powers against the crew members.

"I'll give you one last chance," Sakazuki said as he fastened the cuffs around Luffy's wrists. "The hard way hasn't worked, so it's obviously time to try a much softer approach." He lifted the boy over his shoulder and began to make his way towards the ship that was docked at the port. "Lucky for you and me, I know just the guy."

As he walked, Sakazuki couldn't help but think about the man in question. Though Sakazuki always thought of him as a soft-hearted fool, he could not deny that the vice-admiral was known to turn even the most rebellious men into loyal subordinates.

If it worked, that's good. If it didn't... Well, It's about time his former pupil paid Sakazuki back for all the time he wasted training his ass.


I fucking hate writing fight scenes.

And before you ask, the "pupil" is an actual character from One Piece, not an OC.