The good, lawful people of the world who watched the broadcast of Marineford said it was a miracle. A miracle that the Great Admiral Akainu managed to strike down the bastard son of the Pirate King and defeat Rouge D. Kira, all while having battled the ungodly Whitebeard himself.

The pirates of the world said otherwise. They whispered that Rouge D. Kira and Monkey D. Luffy were too weak to do anything, and that they deserved to be defeated by Akainu. If only they had been stronger. If only that Kira had been stronger, her abilities could've saved everyone. It was all anyone talked about for months afterwards.

If only she'd been stronger.

And as Kira was carried away from the body of the man she loved, as she felt the last spark of her power drain away from her damaged body, a single coherent thought crossed her broken mind.

It should have been me.

2 YEARS LATER

A beautiful woman sat at the bar, delicately sipping her drink as a band of obnoxious pirates filtered in, depositing themselves at a table next to her. The captain, his discolored straw-hat ratty and unkempt, eyed the way the woman's orange hair caught in the light, the way her brown eyes assessed the room, the confident way in which she sat. Maybe he'd invite her to join them, she would do wonders for his reputation.

Monkey D. Luffy has a gorgeous babe at his side…. I can see the headline now!

Snickering to himself, the captain called out to her, his ego rising with every word:

"Hey, babe, why don't you come drink with us?" The rest of his crew laughed as she turned their way, her gorgeous profile now in full view. The captain couldn't stop the disgusting thoughts from racing through his mind as he eyed her.

"Hmmm…" She started, looking him up and down. Her brown orbs rose to meet his beady black ones, and a look of utter contempt crossed her face as she said, "No, thanks."

"See, I knew you would- wait, what?!" The captain sputtered, the rejection like a punch to the balls as she turned away from them. Fury rose in him, a violent wave of rage washing over every reasonable thought.

How dare she? HOW DARE SHE?!

Forcing a chuckle, he leaned forward in his seat, his hand resting on the pistol by his side.

"I really think you should reconsider, honey. Why don't you stop being a bitch and get over here? It'd be a waste to kill you." He said, obviously lowering his voice an octave to make it more intimidating. The violent glint in his eye was reflected by his crewmates, who were steadily reaching for their own weapons.

"I said no, thanks." The woman, still calm and collected, didn't even look at him this time. She merely sipped her drink, as if the situation wasn't even happening.

That was it.

The captain stood, towering over the table and his crew. Murderous intent oozed from him like tar as everyone in the bar tensed. The silence was suffocating, broken only by the captain, whose words were soft with the promise of violence:

"Do you know who I am? I'm MONKEY D. LUFFY! I have a bounty of 400,000,000 beris on my head! I'm the most dangerous man alive!"

The woman finally turned back to him, bored as ever. She eyed him once again, her face filling with repulsion as she beheld him.

"I don't care. I said no."

"Then die, bitch." The pistol cocked in his hand, aimed right for her pretty head. The rest of the crew drew their weapons in time with him, all pointed at her.

Nami glanced around the bar, which had thankfully cleared out. She inwardly rolled her eyes; she didn't have time for this.

Whatever. I'll just end this quickly. Smirking slightly, she reached for her belt and the three folded sticks strapped to it.

"DIEEEEEEEEEEE!" The captain and his crew charged, bloodlust blinding them to the threat they were facing.

They never got within three feet of her. A massive lightning bolt, seemingly out of nowhere, struck the tavern, the boom rumbling throughout Sabaody.

The crew didn't stand a chance, and as Nami stood over their fried bodies she grinned, stepping on "Luffy's" charred face.

"You're not my Captain, pig. He's 1000 times stronger than you. Anyone with any brains can see that." Satisfied, Nami strode away, holding her Clima Tact over her shoulder.

I can't wait to see him! I'm coming, Luffy.

Monkey D. Luffy was possibly more excited than he'd ever been in his life. He was even more excited than that one time Sanji cooked him an entire Sea King.

Why was he this excited? It was simple.

"HEYYY EVERYONEEEE!" A giant smile split the future-pirate king's face as the Thousand Sunny came into view.

Franky. Robin. Ussop. Brooke. Chopper. Zolo. Sanji.

Nami.

Finally, everyone was together again. Finally, he could see them, his friends, his companions, his family. They had kept him alive, kept him going these past two years. Finally he could thank them. Maybe someday he'd even tell them about Marineford, about Ace, about Kira.

A spear of sadness, so sharp he gasped, panged through his chest. He didn't even know if Kira was alive; the last he'd seen of her was when Marco picked her up and carried her away from Ace's-

No, she's okay. She's alive, just like I am. We're okay.

We're gonna be okay.

And so he smiled, because it was a good day, because Nami and the crew were waiting for him, because he finally could.