A/N: I'm still on my road trip but found some time to write and post!

Chapter 8: Breaking News

DRAGON'S OFFSPRING APPREHENDED

In a striking operation this week, the Marine has dealt a terrible blow to the Revolutionary Army by capturing their Prince, the son of their leader Dragon.

The Revolutionary Army, an infamous terrorist organisation, has been trying for years to disturb the world order, by fomenting discord throughout peaceful kingdoms. As reported in previous issues, they recently dethroned the royal family who ruled since many generations over the Kielen Archipelago, in the West Blue. After relentless assaults on the Marine forces, mobilised to valiantly protect the civilian population against the insurrectionists, the Revolutionary Army delivered a decisive attack which overpowered the brave marines, and pushed the distraught Noble families out of their own homes. The Kielen Kingdom was thus abandoned by the World Government, as the Army's clutches on the surviving people was too strong. Recent testimony attested the instalment an anarchic system of regulation. No doubt this country will collapse on itself in a few years.

It was therefore a formidable retribution against the Revolutionary Army that took place earlier this week. Vice-Admiral Momonga skilfully extracted the Revolutionary Prince from the Goa Kingdom, in the East Blue, where he was slyly hiding, surely in preparation for a coup. The cunning young man was escorted to Marine Ford for questioning. Fleet Admiral Sengoku himself has assured our reporter, "Dragon's offspring will no longer be a menace for the population". He is confident this recent arrest is the stepping stone of the Revolutionary Army and Dragon's ineluctable downfall.

The months of investigation leading to this operation...

—

Izou stopped reading, folded the World Economy Newspaper, and sipped on his tea. Around him, some of his siblings were also perusing their copies, brought earlier by a flock of News Coo. The mess hall was almost empty now, people having finished breakfast and gone to start their daily chores.

"Any new bounty?" Haruta, who had apparently slept in this morning and missed the delivery birds, asked in a sleepy voice.

Izou raised an eyebrow at the tired appearance of his fellow Commander

"Did you sleep at all last night?"

"Some... I let Vista, Ace, Thatch, Fossa and Blamenco drag me into a game of poker."

"Who won?" Izou asked, though he already had guessed the outcome.

"Blamenco."

It was a given. His pockets were really convenient for cheating at card games.

"Did he rob you blind?"

"I quit before he could. But I stayed to watch." They snickered. "Ace, though, he didn't see it coming. He owes him three weeks of paperwork."

"Poor dear."

"So, any news?"

"No new heads. Just an article on the Revs, but it's mostly Morgans buttering up the Marine."

"When is he not?" Haruta snorted, taking the paper to examine it. "The Revolutionary Prince what? I've never heard of him."

"I'm half-sure the info is a lie anyway. There's no picture, no name, no details on the arrest... It just looks like some propaganda to save their face after the whole Kielen debacle."

"Hmm, maybe..." They continued to skim through the page. "Or maybe, they're only telling what makes them sound good."

"How so?"

"Maybe they did find and arrested Dragon's son, as retaliation, but it's a respectable civilian, like a doctor, for example. Or maybe it's a kid? Imagine how it would appear if they dragged a five-year-old into questioning."

"It would be revolting!"

"What's revolting?" A drowsy voice chimed in.

Both looked up as Ace sat across from them, two plates of food in hand.

"Your face! You look like you haven't slept in days." Haruta teased.

"Paper work..."

"Yours or Blamenco's?"

"Ha-ha... Very funny." Ace dryly responded. "It's the last time I play cards with him, he's a nightmare!"

"Agreed." Haruta nodded.

"You could have stayed in bed, there's not much to do this morning." Izou said as he took back his newspaper and put it in his kimono.

"Oh, hum, I didn't want to miss Marco's departure."

Izou's sharp eyes zeroed in on Ace. Was he flustered? Was it a blush? It was not the first time he saw Ace react weirdly around Marco... Oh but this was just too precious, he thought. And how entertaining it could be. Izou was resolute to watch Marco and Ace's interactions more closely from now on. He smiled to himself.

"Well, I'm pretty sure he's almost finished preparing for his trip. If you hurry up eating, you might just be able to spend some time with him before he goes."

"Really? Thanks Izou." Ace said before wolfing down the food in front of him, then jumping from his sit to put the plates away. "See you later!"

Izou chuckled.

"Precious indeed..."

—

The glass shattered as it hit the wall, and Dadan let out a roar of frustration and anger.

"The fuckers! All a bunch of lying shit bags!"

Makino, who hadn't flinched at the display of violence, reached to her shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"At least they kept him anonymous." She tried to reassure the large woman, but she wasn't even convincing herself.

"Like it would change shit! They'll never let him go..."

Makino bit her lower lip. She knew.

"No, they won't..."

Once again she prayed the Sea for Luffy to be safe, for Garp to protect him.

—

"Well, seems like good ol' Sengoku is grumpy about the Kielen victory."

Sabo didn't raise his head from the report he was writing. Koala was reading the WENP next to him.

"Are they still going on about how evil we are and how doomed everyone we approach is?" He snorted. The slanders written, after they helped the people of the Kielen Kingdom get rid of the tyrants oppressing them for years, had been hilarious in a way.

"Pretty much."

"It's been months, you'd think they'd have better things to talk about."

"Well, apparently there was a 'formidable retribution against the Revolutionary Army that took place earlier this week'."

Sabo raised his head abruptly.

"What! I didn't hear anything of the sort. Did you?"

"Calm down, it's obviously a lie. They're saying they arrested a high-ranking member in the East Blue, but no one has been reported missing. And they call him the Revolutionary Prince, it's ridiculous."

Sabo scouted closer to read the page.

"The son of Dragon? What? And in the Goa Kingdom..."

"Isn't it where you're from?"

He nodded silently, pondering.

"Any chance Drangon-san already read it?"

"I don't know... I don't think so, it only just arrived and he hasn't come out of his office yet. Do you believe it could be true?"

"No idea, but if it is, then he needs to know right away."

They rose as one, the newspaper in hand, and went towards their leader's office.

Sabo's mind was racing. The article did look like blatant propaganda. However he couldn't shake the idea that something was off. Maybe it was the mention of the Goa Kingdom. It had stirred a feeling of unease inside him, and he couldn't help but think that it had to do with the notion of a hidden son on Dawn Island.

He scratched his head nervously, messing his curly hair under his hat. He mildly registered the start of a migraine.

Reaching their destination, they knocked and entered. Dragon was alone, hunched over a map and documents that Sabo couldn't identify at a distance, but guessed to be the information on Dressrosa. They waited for him to acknowledge them, not wanting to disturb his concentration. After taking some note, he put down his quill and faced them, nodding to show they had his attention.

"Sorry to bother you Dragon-san, but did you read the WENP today." Sabo asked.

"Not yet, why?"

"They're talking about you. We thought it might be a lie, but just in case..." Koala told him, as she crossed the room to hand him the newspaper.

Dragon unfolded it, and Sabo knew instantly he had been right. The man's expression was closed off as he read, but his shoulder held a tension, his knuckles were white, almost ripping the paper. Next to him, Sabo heard his partner take a sharp intake of air, and his hair stood on end as the room seemed to buzz with power. They didn't say a thing.

After a moment of painful silence, Dragon reached for the large den den mushi next to a white one on his desk, and dialled a number. Sabo unconsciously hold his breath as they all waited for the person on the receiving end to pick up.

The snail took a grumpy expression as the connection was made, and the rough voice that came out sent an unexpected shiver down Sabo's spine.

"Who is it!"

"Old man."

The voice sighed, before answering more subduedly.

"Brat." Another sigh. "I'm sorry."

"What is the situation?" Dragon's tone had a hollow, mournful quality that Sabo had never heard from him.

"Precarious. I'm allowed to keep him with me, but he can't leave Marine Ford's grounds. He's free to move around, but they... they collared him with a tracking device. I..." The man's voice died in his throat.

"They're watching me, I can't tell you more."

"I understand."

Both men fell silent.

"I'll keep him safe."

"I know." Dragon hung up.

Time seemed to distend as the room fell quiet. Sabo's head was throbbing but he ignored it.

After a while, Dragon sat down, opened a drawer and took out a picture. He contemplated it, then closed his eyes tiredly.

"My child was born fifteen years ago." His voice was strained, as if every word were painful to get out. "With me being already a wanted man, their birth was kept a secret, even from the Army. When they were five, I gave them to my father who hid them on Dawn Island. I only saw them once ever since. They don't know I exist..."

As he opened his eyes, Sabo noticed a single tear escape. Dragon shuddered a sigh, and he held the picture out for them to see. Koala took it delicately. It had been taken in a jungle or an old forest. Two boys in their teens were looking at a dead alligator with prideful airs on their faces. The older one was tugging on its tail, as if about to hoist it on his shoulder. The younger was smiling ear to ear, eyes closed in joy, a too big worn out straw hat perched on his head. Both were wearing torn and dirty clothes, their skin marred with scratches and bandages. Both unaware of the person immortalising this instant.

Sabo's breath caught in his throat.

"It's the only picture I have. They're called Luffy, the small one with the straw hat. From what I gathered, they identify as a boy, but I couldn't confirm the information. The older boy is their adopted brother, another of my father's charges. They- ... Sabo?"

Sabo startled. Tearing his eyes from the two teenagers frozen in time, he noticed the wetness of his cheeks. He touched it gingerly, surprised by the sudden flow.

"I-I'm terribly sorry, I don't know what came over me, I-" He choked, a sting of pain stabbing through his skull. Dragon and Koala looked both alarmed at the unusual display of affect. "I think- I feel like I... I know these boys... But I don't remember..." He muffled a sob with his hand, unable to utter a single word any more.

Koala drew a chair behind him, and he let her guide him down. He sucked on air laboriously and hold it, trying to rein in his emotions. He didn't know the boys, had no recollection of what had happened before the explosion of his boat, about seven years ago, and yet. Looking at the picture, he felt an immense sense of longing, he felt deep affection and sorrow, he felt home. After being rescued, he had consulted many photos of the Goa Kingdom, of the streets of High Town, even Low Town, in the hope of steering some image from his past. The only thing that ever came out of it was a vague sense of disgust. What he was experiencing at the moment was overwhelming in comparison.

He took in a deep breath.

"I know them. I don't remember them, but I know we are connected." His voice hadn't wavered this time. He locked eyes we Dragon, whose expression was unreadable. "I need to find them, even if it means infiltrating Marine Ford."

Dragon's obsidian eyes burned into his blue ones, and the stoic man smiled.

"Well, then, it seems we have a rescue mission to plan."

—

"Now, in regard of the Revolutionary Army's situation, the plan is well on its way. The article came out as instructed, and Garp informed me Dragon contacted him. The medical visit went smoothly, and the child has been injected with a tracking device without his notice, as well as being collared with an obvious one."

Sengoku felt a pang of guilt as he reported to the Gorosei. He hadn't told the truth to his friend, as it was crucial that the Revs stay in the dark. The kid wasn't meant to be a hostage, he was a bait. That's why they let Garp keep him. They wanted him rescued. They wanted him, and the device inside him, brought to the Army's headquarters. Few people knew of the true plan. As a matter of fact, he was talking to most of them right now.

"Well done. We just have to wait and the Revolutionary Army will lead us straight to its base." Said the voice of Saint Jaygarcia through the den den mushi. "However, something came to our attention while reading Vice-Admiral Momonga's report. Apparently, the child has a devil fruit, but he didn't state which one."

"Indeed, I saw it with my own eyes when the boy came to my office upon his arrival. I haven't found out its name yet, but it allowed him to stretch and bend."

There was silence on the other end, and Sengoku wondered if they were having a private conversation. He truly hopped they weren't envisaging putting seastone on the kid again, otherwise Garp would tear him to shred this time. It had already been a close call when the old monkey had discovered the collar secured around the neck of his grandson, he wasn't in a hurry to repeat the experience.

"Inform us immediately once you know which one it is."

"Of course Saint Jaygarcia."

The call ended and the snail closed its eyes. Sengoku breathed easier. He didn't have the time to fight with Garp, he had a negotiation to prepare as Whitebeard's emissary would soon arrive.

—

Saint Jaygarcia let go of the receiver and looked at his fellow Gorosei members.

"It could be a different fruit..."

"But the fruit last appeared in the East Blue before being stolen by Red-hair Shanks, it hasn't been spotted since. We assumed he had hidden it, what if he had given it to this child?"

"Whatever the reason, if it is this fruit, then it changes everything."

"Nonsense! Our priority is to defeat the Revolutionary Army before it gathers momentum."

"We can't let them get their hand on the fruit, if the boy reaches his potential and awakens it, it would be disastrous."

"Anyway, if it is this fruit, it means after eight hundred years it's finally in our possession."

"I agree, it is too precious to waste away on a ploy."

"The boy could disappear. We could lock him away, or train him to become a faithful agent."

"We could, but let's not get ahead of ourselves. We need to confirm the child's devil fruit first, and ultimately it will be Imu-sama's decision."

"You're right, let's wait, we still have some time before Dragon make a move."

—

"Oi, Boss!"

Shanks opened his eyes on a way too loud Yasopp. He closed them again. They had partied a bit too hard yesterday, as the Island they were docked at had one of the most marvellous brandies of the New World.

"It's too early, come back later."

His sharpshooter whacked him on the head with something that sounded like a newspaper.

"It's almost noon, Boss! Wake up, you said you wanted to set sail in the morning! Well the morning is gone, so wake up!"

The red hair grumbled.

"Why didn't you awake me earlier?"

"We did. Many times." Benn answered while thrusting a cup of coffee in his hands.

They left him shake the sleep away by himself, as he reached for the abandoned newspaper. There didn't seem to be any relevant information in it. Some article on the banana crisis, a young woman who had stopped an infamous Paradise pirate by breaking a chair on his head in a bar fight,... Then a word caught his eyes.

"Say, Benn, isn't the Goa Kingdom on Dawn Island?"

"Sure. You're reading that slimy piece on the Revs?"

"There's not much in it." He commented frustratingly.

"He's still too young to have set sail." Benn noted, having an idea as to why his captain was moody.

"I knoooooow. He is what, fourteen, fifteen now? He'll probably wait until he's nineteen or so before starting his adventure..."

He thought of Anchor and wondered what he was doing. It had been a nice surprise to meet his big brother half a year ago. He was glad to learn that Luffy was still determined to accomplish his dream, and fulfil their promise. Not that he had any doubt he would. He had faith in the little ball of sunshine.

He smiled.

"I'm waiting for you Luffy."

A/N: I know, I know, Shanks' part was mostly self-indulgent. Nothing really happened.

Ace is still clueless about what Luffy is going through, sorry about that, it just isn't his time yet.

I had a blast writing the article, I laughed so hard while trying to find the most outrageous lies, I hope you enjoyed it too.

As I said at the beginning, I'm still on the road. I'm actually posting a comic strip on Instagram about my adventures. It's called "road trip en stop et strip". It's in French but if you drop by to read it then thank you. (It's my professional Instagram, so there's a lot of paintings and illustrations too. I'm glad to share it with you but I'm reluctant to put my name in clear, so if you want to find it you'll have to look for it, sorry).

I just set out a One Piece account on Instagram where I'll be posting fanarts, it's called merry_gallehl

Unanium: It's going to be hard to keep the red dog away unfortunately…

MeganRouth: Thank you so much! And I totally agree with you about the live action!

Thank you so much for your support and patience, I love your comments, it really brightens my days!

Until next time you lovely folks!