"Hey, that's my hat!" Both Luffys cried in unison. In a flurry of arms, they switched hats, before gawking at each other. "Huh? Give that back, you jerk!"

Izuku promptly took the hats and shoved them back into their proper temporal places. "Nope. I don't even want to think about what would happen if you made a time paradox."

"Ooh, what's that?" Past-Luffy asked. "Can you-

"-eat it?" Future-Luffy finished. He scrunched up his face. "Weird. I think I remember that."

"Maybe we should leave."

Izuku went towards the DeLorean, but Mei tugged his arm back. "Relax, if the universe was going to break, it would have happened already."

Usopp blanched. "I really don't like the sound of that. I'll have you know, I am deathly allergic to anything that could possibly break the universe! So, if we could, you know, not do that, that would be great!"

"There are two Luffys on this ship," Nami pointed out. "We're already doomed."

"Yeah, and how did that happen anyways?" Sanji asked, peering closer at Future-Luffy. "Some kind of Devil Fruit?"

"Well…"

"So let me get this straight," Nami said. "Sometime tomorrow, you flew out of the sky, landed on Luffy, went back twenty years in the past, landed on Gold Roger's ship." Nami took a deep breath, letting the emphasis on those last words hang in the air, before continuing, "Sailed with him for almost a year, went up to an island in the clouds, flung yourselves off those clouds, and traveled back twenty years in the future before landing on our ship. Did I get all that?"

Izuku and Mei exchanged glances. "That sounds about right," Izuku said.

Usopp snorted. "And they say I'm a bad liar."

"If you like," Mei said, "We could always travel back in time again. Then there would be three Luffys!"

Usopp blanched. "On second thought, I trust you guys completely!"

"On the topic of having multiple Luffys around," Nami cut in, "How do we go back to having just one of him?"

"Honestly?" Izuku scratched his head. "We shouldn't need to do anything. Just do what you were planning to do, and it should all work out."

"We're dealing with Luffy. Things never 'work out'."

"Then we can always go back in time and try again," Mei chimed in.

As everyone got to know each other on the deck of the Going Merry, Sanji brought out fish filets and sliced fruit, Zoro fell asleep, and Nami drooled over the crates of gold stashed away in the DeLorean. Usopp marveled over Mei's designs for Dial-based support gear, the two Luffys stole food from each other's plates, and Izuku told Sanji about supermarkets and modern kitchen appliances.

"Really? Your chefs are too lazy to peel their potatoes with a proper knife?"

"I'm sure Mei could make you one. Why not try it?"

Over on Mei's end of the table, a pile of Dials sat between her and Usopp. They took turns testing each Dial and spitballing ideas.

"I bet if we combined the flows from the Flame Dial and the Cloud Dial, we could make flames persist in the air!"

"Yeah," Usopp agreed, "But wouldn't a stray breeze blow all that right back in your face?"

"Then we could do the Iron Cloud Dial!"

And amidst it all, the two Luffys got in an eating contest. Entire platters of fried fish heads and other scraps from Sanji's cooking went down their cavernous maws. Past-Luffy let out a warbling belch and groaned, while his older counterpart smirked and kept eating. Once the last plate became nothing more than a lump in his belly, Luffy looked around and asked, "Is that it? That was barely a snack!"

Sanji's foot slammed into his skull. "You glutton! Are you trying to make us run out of food?"

"Run out? But there's fish and Sea Kings everywhere!"

"Sea Kings!" Usopp squawked. "Luffy, we can't take on one of those! They'd swallow the ship in one bite and use the mast for a toothpick!"

"I don't know," Zoro said from his sleeping spot by the mast. He grinned and put a hand on his sword. "Sounds like fun."

"And they do have a meatier flavor than other seafood," Sanji mused. "Would make for some excellent steaks."

"We are not going after Sea Kings!" Nami shouted. "We are going straight to Loguetown, buying only what we need and nothing else, then heading straight to the Grand Line!"

The two Luffys looked at each other. "Ehh, that sounds boring."

Nami punched at both of them. Past-Luffy got a sizable lump on his head, but the future counterpart leaned sideways. He grinned and chuckled to himself before Nami threw and landed a second punch.

As Sanji cleared away the plates and everyone else tended to the Merry, Izuku sat back and observed the crew. He dismissed Nami and Usopp as help around the ship, not real fighters. As for Sanji and Zoro, they felt underwhelming to him, maybe as strong as the cannon fodder Shiki had. Izuku furrowed his brow at that. They were Luffy's crewmates. He told himself he must've been imagining it, considering how far he himself had to go before being strong like Roger or Whitebeard.

While he made his observations, he noticed Zoro watching him out of the corner of his eye. Though the swordsman pretended to be asleep under the tangerine trees, the moment their stares met, Zoro's face tensed, and one hand went to the hilt at his side. A second hand fumbled at the two empty scabbards at his side, and Zoro scowled as his fingers grazed empty air.

Sanji, on the other hand, ignored Izuku entirely in favor of lavishing attention on Mei. Izuku felt his hackles rise and thought about intervening, but Mei seemed entirely unbothered as she jammed two Dials together and clicked both their buttons. The resulting explosion knocked Sanji backwards, and he landed in a graceful backflip, though the blast destroyed his cigarette.

Usopp's own tumble looked far less graceful, smacking nose-first into the deck and rolling until he hit the railing. He stayed a lot farther away from Mei's work after that and flinched at every little sound her inventions made.

Seeing him made Izuku feel nostalgic for when he first started hanging out with Mei.

Nami fussed over every gust of wind and made frequent corrections at the helm. To Izuku's eyes, she seemed a bit green, but he could tell she had a knack for handling the smaller ship.

As for Luffy…

"Let's fight!"

Luffy's older counterpart looked down at his younger self. "Eh? Alright."

Zoro's eyes snapped open. He leaned forward and watched both captains take stances on either end of the deck. Sanji scoffed and leaned against the mast, while Usopp ran for cover inside a barrel.

"Are you two serious?" Nami said. "You're both made of rubber! How are either of you going to win a fight?"

"Pipe down and watch," Zoro shot back. "They said they fought with Gold Roger, didn't they?"

Nami suddenly looked nervous. "You hit my trees, and you'll be paying for them."

The younger Luffy gulped and sweated a bit. Future-Luffy simply gave Nami a wave and leveled a firm gaze at his opponent.

Younger Luffy stretched his arms in pinwheel motions, flexing his shoulders at impossible angles. "Alright! Gum-Gum Pistol!"

Older Luffy tilted his head aside, letting the fist pass. Once his fist snapped back, Younger Luffy tsked and said, "Alright, try dodging this! Gum-Gum Gatling!"

His fists sprang out unnaturally fast, rubber-banding across the deck in sloppy motions. Future-Luffy swayed around the onslaught, bending sideways and backwards until his hat brushed the deck.

With a furious cry, Past-Luffy sped up his punches. As the flurry of punches grew into a physical wall, Future-Luffy zipped side to side with flashes of Soru.

"He's moving like Captain Kuro!" Usopp shouted. "Is he using his rubber powers?"

Izuku Soru'd over to Usopp's barrel. The timid pirate meeped at the sudden presence at his side. "Nah, that's a simple trick all of Roger's crew could do."

"And he taught you guys that?"

"Rayleigh did."

Usopp's eyes bugged out. "You mean Dark King Rayleigh? That guy!"

"Yeah. Why, is that a big deal?"

"His bounty's huge! And they still haven't caught him!"

"Huh. Good for him."

Past-Luffy panted as his punches slowed down. "Blegh… how are you doing that?"

"Eh?" Future-Luffy stuck a finger in his ear. "You're just really slow."

"That's it!" Past-Luffy stretched both arms far behind his back. "Gum-Gum… Bazooka!"

As both arms shot forward, Future-Luffy took the attack head-on. The impact on his chest made a deafening clap that had Luffy's crew flinching. Luffy himself stood tall, unmoved, He had one arm cocked back, fist blackened with Haki.

"Jet Pistol."

A black blur shot across the deck. The impact hit with a solid, meaty thwack, and Past-Luffy slammed into the railing. As he slumped to the deck, his right eye turned purple and swelled shut.

Luffy looked down at his fist. "Why do I remember this? That guy with my hat, he dodged all my punches. And now I dodged all of that guy's punches. Weird."

Zoro drew his sword and leapt down, putting himself in front of his captain. Future-Luffy grinned and asked, "Hey Zoro, you want to fight too?"

"What was that?" he asked, voice flat.

"This?" Luffy furrowed his brow, and a slight Haki tinge coated his fingertips. "Still working on it. Pretty neat, right?"

Izuku stepped between them. "It's Armament Haki. You could even use it on your swords, if you learned how."

Zoro stiffened at his words. As they both eyed each other, Sanji came over and inspected the younger Luffy's shiner. "Did that Haki stuff mess with his Devil Fruit?"

"Yep. Haki's one of the few things that can counter any Devil Fruit. Very useful out in the Grand Line."

"I think I saw Zeff do that once." Sanji frowned at his own leg and tried kicking it. "Can anyone can learn it?"

"I'm still trying." Izuku gave a self-deprecating smile. "But I imagine anyone could."

"Bwuh…" The injured Luffy's good eye fluttered open. "What happened?"

"You lost." Zoro said flatly.

"Mmm… was it Ace? He always beats me. I'll get him one day."

Izuku pried his eyelids apart and checked his eye. "Concussion. Better get him into bed."

"You're a doctor?" Nami asked.

Izuku wobbled a hand. "Crocus taught me a bit, mostly while treating me."

"With how these idiots wind up, we'll take whatever we can get." Nami gave him a sidelong look as he and Zoro hoisted Luffy off the deck. "So, what are you planning to do?"

"Do?" Izuku tilted his head. "I guess we didn't think that far ahead."

Mei cut in, saying, "The truck should be waiting for us at Water Seven."

"Truck? What's that?"

"Oh right, the blueprints. Roger said somebody could build us what we need to get back home," Izuku explained.

"And where is your home, exactly?" Usopp asked.

Izuku sighed. "I never explained that bit, did I?"

"To be fair," Mei said, "I didn't think of it either. We're from another universe. Or something."

By the time the two of them were done explaining parallel universes and Earth's geography and culture, Sanji had plates of roasted fish circulating around the table. They spent the rest of the evening swapping stories until the sun dipped below the horizon.

With the anchor cast overboard and the sails hoisted, everyone went off to bed. Izuku got a fresh hammock strung up one end of the room. Past-Luffy was still out cold in a hammock on the far side of the room. Zoro gave up his hammock to Future-Luffy and instead sat against the wall next to his unconscious captain.

Compared to the cacophonous din from the Oro Jackson's sleeping bunks, Usopp's thin, reedy snores and Luffy's synchronous log-sawing felt eerily quiet. Izuku had trouble falling asleep, between the quiet and his own thoughts racing over time travel paradoxes. He hadn't noticed any bruises on Luffy's face - had they changed too much already? Would the younger Luffy still be out cold tomorrow? Would that cause a time paradox and break the universe?

It didn't help that Izuku was feeling all staticky inside. The subtle undercurrent flowing through his body hadn't been noticeable with the stimulus of a foreign ship and new people distracting him, but with nothing but his mind and body to occupy him, Izuku noticed the electric thrum waiting below his skin. Remembering the Sea Prism cuffs, Izuku found them in the DeLorean and wore them to bed. The draining effect put him to sleep almost immediately.

The morning proved Izuku's doubts false. Past-Luffy woke without a bruise in sight and made up for the lost meal with gusto, demolishing stacks of pancakes and piles of sausage links while his crewmates hurriedly secured their own breakfasts.

With the cuffs removed, Izuku was feeling almost overcharged. He had to strain to keep stray sparks from leaping out. One time he reached for a fork, a bolt flickered out, raced up the tines, and scorched the sausage link he was trying to eat.

Izuku stared glumly at the blackened char on the end of his fork. Sanji glared at him and kicked at his head. "Are you wasting food on my ship, you-"

Sanji cut off when his foot passed clean through Izuku's head, scattering it in a cloud of sparks. Izuku blinked as his face rearranged himself.

"That felt weird."

"A Devil Fruit!" Usopp shouted. "You have one too?"

"Just got it yesterday," Izuku said. "Or, well, twenty years ago."

Before Sanji could try kicking him again, Nami whispered in his ear. Sanji all but fell over himself to rush into the kitchen and make a fresh glass of juice.

"So, Izuku," Nami said. "We got a bit sidetracked yesterday, but I wanted to know what your plans were."

"Huh? I thought we were going to stay with you guys."

Nami and Usopp beamed, while Zoro glowered. "Great!" Nami said. "You and Mei are both welcome… for a modest fee, of course."

"Shouldn't the captain decide that?" Zoro cut in.

Before either of them could say anything else, both Luffys said, "They can join!"

Zoro grimaced, then nodded. "Captain's orders."

"But… but gold!" Nami protested, reaching towards the crates of Skypiean loot in the back of the DeLorean.

"Nami, you're being an Arlong right now."

Nami gaped at the older Luffy. Usopp sniggered and said, "Ouch, low blow."

"I am not!" Nami shouted. "I just think we should be fairly compensated for ferrying these passengers through the Grand Line."

"Passengers?" Luffy asked. "They're friends."

"Crewmates?"

Izuku was about to say no, when Luffy smiled and said, "Yep!"

Izuku thought about correcting him. They still planned to return home, but then again, it might take another year. With Roger's crew, there was always a barrier between them and the stronger members. He hadn't had the strength to call himself a Roger Pirate. But a Straw Hat? Izuku traded glances with the other crewmates. Zoro watched him warily, and Sanji gave him a disinterested glance before staring hungrily at Mei, but Usopp beamed at him, while Nami huffed and nodded acceptingly.

"I wouldn't mind," Izuku said. "If you really need it, I could be the ship's doctor."

"And I the mechanic!" Mei chimed in.

"What? No!" Usopp crossed his arms. "I'm the mechanic around here!"

"I've made better slingshots out of chewing gum and popsicle sticks."

"You take that back! My slingshot has taken down ten-thousand pirates with a single shot!"

"Only ten thousand? Those are rookie numbers."

As Usopp sputtered and thought up a response, Future-Luffy put a hand on his shoulder. "You're the ship's sniper, right?"

"Yep! Captain Usopp, scourge of the seas!"

"Great! Then Mei gets to be the mechanic."

As Mei cheered and Usopp groaned, Sanji leapt up the mast and peered out at the horizon.

"Land ho. Guess that's Loguetown."

Nami ran to the helm and steered them towards their destination. When Izuku joined her next to the helm, she said, "You mentioned it will be stormy out, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"The wind's too calm, and there's not a cloud in the sky. It won't rain for a few days at least."

Izuku looked up. The sky was a perfect mirror of the sea, with the sun beating down on them. The wind barely caught in their sails as they drifted closer to Loguetown.

"That's odd. I don't think we messed with the timing."

"Someone might think you were lying about the time travel."

Nami didn't look at him as she made that accusation. Izuku tensed up. "Do you?"

After a long pause, Nami said, "We don't have anything valuable on our ship, and none of us have bounties yet. I don't know why you'd go through the trouble."

"That doesn't sound like a no."

"I suppose I believe you. For now." Nami let go of the wheel and faced him. "I'm not much in a fight, but I owe Luffy for taking down Arlong. If you're trying to pull something, I'll make you regret it."

Before he could say anything, Nami walked off. She started whispering to Zoro, but Izuku decided against trying to continue the conversation. Instead, he went over to Mei and watched while she made loops with a Cloud Dial.

"What will we do if the truck isn't ready when we get there?" Izuku asked.

"We have a time machine. Just hop into the future until it's done."

"Huh." Izuku rocked on his heels, thinking through the logic of it. Mei looked him over and said, "You're worrying."

"Of course I am. We're dealing with a time paradox."

"And the only thing we need to do is sit and wait for the first Luffy to time travel."

"Yes, but what if us being here changed the sequence of events? What if it's the second Luffy that goes back? How would time even handle that? Would he age infinitely before winking out of existence? Would time branch out into parallel universes? Would that mean the truck wouldn't be able to reach our own world?"

"Then I'll invent a better truck. Just lift something. You get like this when you have too much energy."

Izuku saw a set of giant dumbells. He started lifting them, taking care to not make them light up like tesla coils. Zoro came over, grabbed an even heavier set of weights, and noisily lifted them next to Izuku.

Grinning at the swordsman, Izuku found a barbell. Holding it in one hand felt awkward, and he could barely curl his arm, but it felt worth it to watch Zoro's eyes widen.

Before Zoro could get a heavier weight, Nami called from the helm, "If you boys are done comparing sizes, we're about to dock.

Izuku gently set the weight down. "Are these yours?" he asked Zoro.

Zoro grunted. Izuku said, "Sorry for using them without permission. Usually I haul cannonballs around, but you guys don't have enough of those."

"Don't break them."

As Zoro walked away, Izuku said, "Thanks! I won't." and went back to lifting. Nami stalked over and asked, "What are you doing?"

"Lifting weights?"

"If you think I'm leaving you alone on my ship, you're mistaken."

Izuku paused. "The rest of you are going out, right?"

"Exactly, that's why I'm not letting you stay here."

"But if we're out with you guys, there's a chance we could screw things up with the time."

"Too bad. Find somewhere with food and make sure your Luffy doesn't wander off."

Izuku wondered how much of that gold in the DeLorean it would take to keep Luffy fed enough to not wander off. Hopefully they could find cheap food.

Ast they wandered past stalls hawking wares and street food, Mei asked, "Weren't we supposed to make sure Luffy didn't wander off?"

"Yeah, that's why we-" Izuku turned around. "Mei, how long has he been gone?"

"He was just there a minute ago."

Just a minute ago was apparently long enough for Luffy to vanish entirely in the thick crowd milling about the streets. As Izuku and Mei ran through the more crowded areas, hunting for straw hats and Straw Hats alike, Izuku felt a jittery sensation crawling under his skin. Sparks skittered between his fingertips, and Izuku clenched his fists to make them stop. The air around him felt staticky and clingy, and every breath felt charged with the promise of a storm.

As distracted as they were, they literally ran through the white coat of a Marine Lieutenant. Izuku got a lungful of cigar smoke that brought him to his knees.

Smoker took a long drag of his cigar. "Watch yourselves. Any other Marine would be within their rights to write you up for roughing them up."

"Sorry sir," Izuku coughed out. "It was an accident."

Izuku tensed as he examined the Marine. They had both passed right through him, making him a Logia of some kind. Unless he could do something with his own Devil Fruit, Izuku couldn't touch him.

Smoker stared closely at him and frowned. "Tashigi. Check the bounties."

Izuku nearly bolted then and there. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw more Marines encircling them. The Marine's partner, Tashigi, nearly dropped her glasses and her sword. "Uh, yes sir!" She leafed through the bounties, spilling half of them into the ground. By the time she had collected and sorted through them all, Smoker spat out a burnt-out cigar and lit another one.

"No active bounties listed for either of these individuals, sir."

"I see." Smoker gave them a long, solid glare until he saw them squirm. "Stay out of trouble. I ever see a bounty on you, I'll make sure you see justice."

"Uh, yes sir!"

Izuku didn't dare question his good fortune. He took Mei and ran off into the nearest alley.

"That was too close. It's a good thing she dropped them all, must've missed mine."

"Or your bounty's too old. It has been twenty years."

"Really? Feels like it was just yesterday."

Mei snorted. "Time travel jokes are the best. Anyways, is it me, or did it get dark out suddenly?"

Izuku looked up. The sky roiled with ominous thunderclouds. Each cloud felt like a beacon to Izuku's new senses, brimming with energy that reached out for him.

"Nami said there wouldn't be a storm. How did this happen?"

"Probably you."

Izuku froze. "What do you mean?"

"You have lightning powers, right? I can feel the static discharge you're giving off. That, and the clouds are circling around right above you."

Izuku stepped sideways. The storm-clouds followed him.

"So, if I was never here, it would be sunny out?"

"Probably."

"Which means the weather is a paradox."

"Stop freaking about paradoxes and start freaking out about finding Luffy before he makes a bigger paradox."

"Right. Got it. If I was Luffy, what place would I go to first?"

"Food."

"Already checked that. What's the second place?"

"The worst possible place he could be."

"Which would be…"

"Where he's supposed to go back in time," they said in unison.

Izuku only had a rough aerial map of Loguetown, but he could hardly forget the wooden platform at the exact center of the island. A quick trip through a few alleys brought them to the clearing with Roger's execution block.

Two Luffy's hopped over the gate closing off the execution block. Izuku Soru'd forward and yanked back the Future-Luffy.

"Nope. You're staying right here."

"Aww!" Luffy crossed his arms and pouted. "But he gets to go up there!"

They watched as another pirate, who looked vaguely familiar to Izuku, held a sword over Past-Luffy's neck. Izuku reached out with his senses and felt the DeLorean plummet through the thunderclouds. Paranoia made him check its descent. It felt like it would land in the right spot, but…

"The battery's empty," Izuku said, horrified.

"But we only traveled once," Mei pointed out. "The battery's got room for two trips, remember?"

"Did you remember to charge it up all the way?"

Mei went completely silent. She squinted and saw the car breach the clouds. "Well, if you're going to charge the battery, you better do it quick."

"From here? I'd never reach it in time!"

"But the cloud could, couldn't it?"

Izuku gulped. He reached out for the clouds and tried to imagine the electricity flowing into the DeLorean. As power surged in the distant clouds, Izuku felt stretched thin, like taffy pulled over and over until it snapped at the slightest touch. His mind grew foggy, but he gritted his teeth and powered through. A spark leapt down, like a spear, surging through the DeLorean's metal frame and into the battery. In one blinding flash, the DeLorean disappeared right as it crashed into the execution platform.

As Izuku's vision went dark, he heard Luffy say, "Oh, I get it now!"

"Really?" Mei asked.

"Yep. Mystery box."

A/N: and now we have come full circle. Been sick with a cold this week, so writing's been pretty slow. Managed to get this done at least.

I'm aiming to have another chapter in two weeks. Here's to hoping I stay healthy.

Oh, and we just passed 300 followers. Cool.

Bakugo: this is madness!

Izuku, crackling with electricity: this... is... Devil Fruit Power!