This is it, the chapter you all have been waiting for! How will Luffy react to being a father? Well, read and find out!

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Chapter 4:

Decent into the Dark, Revelations

New Marineford

"Yo, Senny, you got a minute?"

Former Fleet Admiral Sengoku caught a sigh before it escaped him, the barest twitch of his lips all the sign of the scowl that wanted to appear on his face. He leaned back from his paperwork-covered desk and looked up to see Garp with his head poked into the room. Despite having all but retired with Sengoku nearly two years prior, both aged legends still spent their days with the Marines, Sengoku working out training regimes and Garp doing whichever dangerous missions he considered fun.

"What is it, Garp?" Sengoku was concerned. Few good things happened when Garp came into his office, both before the former Fleet Admiral's retirement and afterward. Their friendship had been rocky for the year after the Marineford War what with Garp subduing him so he couldn't go after the escaping pirates, but most of those feelings had blown over and faded. Still, Sengoku didn't go out of his way to interact with his old friend, simply because Garp, like the rest of the man's family, brought trouble to those around them without really trying. Preemptively, he popped open a bottle of painkillers and downed a couple, ready for the immediate headache. " Make this quick. I was prepping my drill plans for my newest batch of recruits."

"See, I've got some info I've been keeping for the past few months," Garp began, fully stepping into the room. He was dressed in a casual outfit, a sign that he didn't feel like going out on any sort of mission that day. Even so, he had a twinkle in his eye, the kind he got when talking about his family. His criminal family. "I was sworn to secrecy, but I'm allowed to tell you now."

"Let me get this straight," the former Fleet Admiral muttered, dropping his head into his hands. "You have a secret you've been keeping about your family. And only now do you learn how to keep any secrets after nearly giving away SWORD with your stupid recruitment flyers?"

"That was two years ago and this is different!" Garp insisted. "This was a family matter, not a work matter. I'm a great-grandpa!"

Sengoku paused, taking in a deep breath to settle the sudden, violent concern he felt for the world and prayed to whatever powers would listen that he had misheard. He worked off of that information he hoped was the correct understanding. "Garp, it hurts me to say this, but you are not a great grandpa. You're not even a decent grandpa. Every kid you ever raised became a criminal."

"No, Senny. I mean, that hurts, but I'm a great-grandpa!"

"I-" Sengoku froze as the full implications of the other connotation of putting "great" and "grandpa" together clicked. "Oh dear Goda, no."

Whose was it? Did Firefist end up having a child like Roger did? That would be bad, but it wasn't the worst outcome. He'd rather have to track down another human with the blood of the former Pirate King than the other possible meaning, but it wasn't likely. As his mind turned to the only other option, Garp thrust a photo into his hand. The picture showed a child about a year old in a onesie like a monkey, the hood pulled up so only a piece of black hair could be seen from beneath it. It was a boy, Sengoku guessed, with chocolate eyes and the widest smile a child could make. He was standing, his hands in the air as if cheering, like a little kid declaring "I am here!" after winning a game of hide-and-seek they didn't know was rigged in their favor.

"Isn't he adorable?" Garp gushed. "My granddaughter-in-law contacted me months ago looking for information about the family. His first word was 'meat' when he was only months old, just like the rest of us, you know. That brought a tear to my eye. And he was running around at one year! We Monkeys develop faster than normal, but she was so concerned about it. I had to explain that the smarts in the family skip every other generation-"

"I'm sorry?" Sengoku hissed. "Are you telling me this child" - he shoved a finger into the picture on his desk for emphasis - "will be as smart as Dragon when he gets older?"

"Yeah, or smarter," Garp waved off. "He's gonna be so smart with all those specialists to teach him stuff! Swords from the Pirate Hunter and Tri-Horn, machines from the Cyborg, navigation from his mother, fighting from Luffy, reading from the Devil Child probably, medicine from the Monster Doctor, cooking from Black Leg-"

"Garp, do you realize what unholy monster your family has unleashed on the world?" the former Fleet Admiral questioned, jumping to his feet. "We have two decades before the entire government is locked in an all-out war for its very life with this child in the middle of it all!"

"Yeah right," Garp denied with a dismissive wave. "And don't call him a monster. Little Ace would never do anything like that."

"..." Sengoku froze, every instinct telling him to run and never look back. His eye twitched violently. "... His name... is Ace?"

"Yep! Monkey D. Ace! Isn't he the absolutely cutest kid you've ever seen? I mean, I thought Luffy was cute as a baby, but-"

Sengoku's hands slammed onto his desk, scattering papers and plans everywhere. "We have 15 years at most before we are all dead!"

"I thought you just said two decades."

"That was before I knew the kid's name! Garp, get to Sabaody and retrieve that child! I'm sure you've seen the reports of the Straw Hats being on the Archipelago, so don't let them get away with what could be the biggest threat to the Word Government in history!"

"The biggest threat?" Garp echoed, clearly confused at his old friend's fear.

"That child has your family's genes," Segoku explained slowly, "the genus of the most wanted man in the world, will be trained by your grandson's pirate crew - the crew many of our Old Guard SWORD spies have heard called the Chosen - will most likely learn the ancient language and the true history if Nico Robin has her way, and is a D. just to add a cherry on the top of this Big-Mom-sized cake!"

"Sorry, Senny, but I can't go get the kid," Garp responded. "I mean, I'm flattered you think my family's so strong, but you aren't Fleet Admiral anymore. Also, those Straw Hats in the reports are fakes. And bad ones at that. I checked them myself on my day off a month ago. They didn't know who I was."

"Do you realize," Sengoku muttered, his eye twitching again, "how many resources have been sent to apprehend those pirates?"

"Obviously none that met my grandson before." Garp pulled out a box of rice crackers, dropping onto a couch. "Besides, did no one ever get any of the reports that Kuma was programmed to protect the Straw Hats' ship after he lost his personality?"

Sengoku blinked.

"...What?"

"Oh yeah, Kuma was a revolutionary."

"What?"

"And he made that deal with Vegapunk."

"What?!"

"Yeah, that was the only reason he was ever a Warlord. He was passing information to Dragon for years."

"WHAT?!"

"Oh, I probably shouldn't've said that. I thought you knew. Haha!"

"Garp, just..." Sengoku's head fell, the man leaning onto his desk. Those painkillers weren't enough, and the tightening in his chest might be a sign of his high blood pressure rearing its ugly head. "Go to Sabaody and track down the real Straw Hats while I go get a new batch of high blood pressure medicine."

"Actually, the Straw Hats should be on their way to Fishman Island by now," Garp responded easily, waving a cracker while sporting new crumbs in his beard. "Luffy's lovely wife gave me a call a bit ago to tell me they're just waiting on him. That's why I'm able to tell you now. Haha! They should've expected him to be late! It happens!"

"Does anyone else know about that child?" the Budda asked, his body shaking.

"I ran into a few grunts and captains on the way here," Garp muttered absently, tilting his head. "I told them. I just couldn't hold it in any more after I got that picture. My great-grandson is just too cute! I mean, look at that smile!"

"Garp," Sengoku breathed, sitting down slowly and lowering his voice. His skin started to turn gold, his Spirit leaking out to permeate the office. "Get. Out."

"But-"

"Go catch them and get that kid! I don't care if I'm not Fleet Admiral anymore, that's A FUCKING ORDER!"

Garp ran from the room like his ass was on fire, a comparison that only worked because Sengoku had seen that situation more than once and knew exactly what it looked like. The old man felt his bones creek under the strain of his tightened muscles, only his raw willpower keeping him from breaking his desk again.

"Oh." Sengoku looked up, his eye twitching as Garp poked his head back in. "Can I have that picture back?"

En Route to Fishman Island

"Wow," Coby muttered as he admired the way the light danced through the waves above them. The Sunny continued to sink deeper below the water, the roots of the Hussle Muscle Mangroves seeming to rise around her. "It's beautiful. The stories I've heard don't even compare to the real thing."

"For once, I agree with you," Amy said with a smile, the rest of the crew in similar states. "This is amazing! Look at all those fish."

"So many colors," Grace muttered, pulling out a sketchpad and pencil to jot down a basic framework of the scene. She didn't have the time to recreate the image now, but she wasn't going to let a picture like that slip by without a reminder for later. "I'll need the Michotello color framework for the roots, the Phibby crosshatch to shade, a touch of Antipanumbra fading sequence..."

"That's a sea king!" Usopp panicked, a massive fish seemingly trying to hide behind a mangrove root. It tried to swim away, only to be caught and eaten by a much larger sea king in a single moment. The blood in the water seemed to call al sorts of other creatures, a flurry of underwater activity ignoring the Thousand Sunny as she continued to sink not 200 meters away.

"Logically, I knew they were trees," Robin commented, similarly in awe of the mangroves' roots despite the aquatic bloodbath, "but it isn't so apparent from above. It is a miracle that Sabaody is so well placed over Fishman Island, but we wouldn't know any different if it was not. The world is truly marvelous."

"I agree," Franky nodded. "The world sure is super!"

"Sanji, I'm hungry!" Luffy yelled, prompting a groan from the incapacitated chef.

"Sanji's in no condition to cook right now," Chopper stated, shifting into his Heavy Point and lifting the blond. "I'm taking him into the med bay so he can recover from his blood loss. Someone else will have to cook."

"I'll do it," Amy offered. "Sanji isn't the only one who knows their way around a kitchen here."

"Why don't we all move into the dining room?" Merry suggested. "We can only look at fish for so long. I'm sure Sunny will warn us if any dangers come out of nowhere. Right, Sunny?"

The ship shook beneath them, a faint "yes" rumbling through her hold.

"This is so cool!" Luffy grinned. "I mean, it was cool when you were a live ship, Merry, but we didn't get to see you like this much. How long until Sunny's full?"

"You mean complete?" The klabautermann tilted her head, thinking. "Our separation probably stunted her growth, but her openness might counter that. I'd say maybe a month or two before she can manifest."

"Alright! We can trust Sunny to be our lookout, so let's talk in the dining room and eat!"

"You'll have to wait," Amy warned as the group sans Sanji and Chopper made their way indoors. "I'm sure we have plenty to talk about before we eat, though."

"What's everyone been up to?" Coby asked, turning attention on him where he sat at the table. Grace claimed the seat on his right, displacing Usopp. "I spent the last two years on Sabaody with Shakky and Rayleigh."

"Yohoho!" Brook laughed. "As you know, I became a sensation, yeah!" The skeleton whipped out his new guitar and strummed a powerful chord. Luffy's eyes sparkled.

"I went to Water 7," Merry explained, gesturing to Kaku.

"When did you get here?!" Luffy gasped, only now recognizing his presence in the group.

"I've been here this whole time, Straw Ha- I mean, Captain," Kaku responded, amending the title. It was only appropriate for a captain to be called such on his own ship. "We helped Merry master the Six Powers and learn more woodworkin' than in a woodchuck's lifetime at Galley-La, but I was forced to turn tail when some Marine klabautermann turned me in. I hope you don't mind me stayin' for a bit, Captain Luffy?"

"Nah, I'm cool with it," Luffy grinned, sitting down at the head of the table and dropping his bag beside him. "You're friends with Merry and Coby, so that makes you our friend, too."

"Thanks, Captain."

"Anyway!" Merry jumped back in. "As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I became a shipwright and secretary of Galley-La and Kaku taught me all six of the Six Powers."

"I'll go next, mecha," Franky offered.

"Mecha?!" Luffy and Usopp gasped. Chopper appeared in the doorway instantly.

"Did someone say mecha?!"

"Franky said mecha!"

"I'm super messing with you guys," Franky waved off as Chopper tried to saddle up on his shoulder. "I spent the last couple years on Vegapunk's home island in an old lab of his. Even some of his earliest tech is still too super for me, but as you can see, I've really upgraded myself."

"I have been sworn to secrecy," Robin said. "Suffice to say, we will meet my benefactors some time soon. They hold a special interest in this crew."

"Oh, me next!" Chopper raised his hand, Franky moving the reindeer from his shoulder. "I went to Birdie Kingdom and settled a war between birds and humans! They let me into their library in return and there were so many books on drugs!"

"I guess I'll talk," Amy called from the kitchen where she was stirring a pot of soup. "I got sent to the New World and had to make a deal to keep my soul from being ripped out. I made some friends and learned a lot of cooking techniques, though. And I'm a Hell of a lot stronger."

"I ended up in the North Blue," Grace offered. "Mr. 6 and Ms. Mothersday were still camped there with a new syndicate called Da Vinci. I made a deal with them and became an art thief called the Magpie of Color."

"That was you?" Coby gaped, turning to face her. "The Red Embers wanted to try to recruit you to help them steal art from Celestial Dragons, but they could never find you!"

"The who?"

"The Red Embers are one of the gangs back on Sabaody," Robin answered.

"You joined a gang?" Grace questioned. Coby blushed, averting his eyes.

"If my contacts were right," Robin added, "it seems two of their female members had met Coby before our separation."

"Oh," Grace blinked slowly. "The ones that felt you up."

"They were helpful," Coby muttered. His eyes landed on Gin, the logical next step in this game of explanations, which also made him the perfect escape from this conversation. "What about you, Gin?"

"I wen' ta Skyland Berka, home a' tha monks o' Temple Olympus. They helped me train my Fruit an' in Haki."

His grin twitched violently.

"Are you...?" Franky trailed off. Chopper, however, needed to know.

"What's the deal with Rum?"

"He's become a second voice in my head," Gin answered uncomfortably. "I gotta wear Sea Prism Stone when I sleep or he gets loose. Otherwise, he's just a nuisance. Can we keep goin'?"

"Since Sanji isn't here, I guess I'm next," Usopp piped up. "I was trapped on a carnivorous island of edible plants, called the Boin Isles, with a guy named Heracles'n. It was wild."

"I don't know if I believe that story," Nami teased with a smirk and narrowed eyes, Usopp looking scandalized. "Billy here had a note to us from Vivi saying he spent a couple years in Alabasta with the Super Sonic Duck Squadron and that she's doing alright."

"Wah!" Billy affirmed, saluting.

"We should give her a call now that we're back together. I went to Weatheria, a cloud city dedicated to the study of weather."

"That's perfect for you!" Luffy smiled, taking one of her hands in his. "I missed you. I mean, I missed everyone, but I missed you for more reasons."

"Can you two do that later?" Zoro growled, breaking up their moment. "None of us what to watch you make kissy faces at each other all the way to the island."

"I'll make kissy faces at my husband if I want to," Nami shot back. "It's none of your business."

"Can we move on?" Merry asked. "I don't want us to have a fight in Sunny's insides. She can't manifest yet, but she can still feel pain."

"That is excellent information to acquire," Robin nodded. "So, Zoro, where have you been? None of my contacts could locate you."

"I got sent to Mihawk's home island," the swordsman answered. "It had these big monkey things that could use human weapons. They were damn good, too. Gave me a good fight every day."

"Is that what happened to you eye?" Grace questioned.

"I didn't say that."

The conversation stalled as the crew tried to understand the first mate's offhanded dismissal, neither confirming nor deigning the proposed theory.

"Right," Nami clapped, breaking the silence. She stood, Billy snapping to attention at her side like a soldier guarding their monarch. "That's everyone except Sanji, which means I can now do that."

"That?" Luffy and Gin asked as the navigator stepped out of the room.

"What's she taking about?" the captain questioned, watching his wife step out of the room. Though he didn't want to have her out of his sights after their separation, he was calmed by the knowledge that she was on the same ship and would be right back. That and, though he wouldn't admit it for fear of being teased, he wasn't opposed to the image of her hips swinging in those jeans as she walked away.

He smacked himself

Usopp, Chopper, and Kaku jumped at the suddenness of the action whilst the older members of the crew gave Luffy a side-eye that suggested they had an inkling of where his mind had been going. He ignored them, his urge to keep Nami safe causing him to activate his Observation. Luffy stopped after a moment, however, the partial soul of the Sunny appearing to his senses all around them. Each of his friends glowed with a different color, or that was the best way to describe the feeling of their spirits in his mind, but the rest of the ship was like one large lightbulb. Because Sunny's spirit was all around them, he couldn't get more than a placement of the others, including Nami and Billy as they made their way up the stairs.

"Oh!" Luffy blinked, cutting off his Observation once he knew where Nami was. " There's another difference. Who has learned Haki? I've got all three."

Brook, Franky, Kaku, Robin, Chopper, Grace, and Usopp shook their heads.

"I have Observation," Zoro offered. "I'm trying to get Armament, but I'm not there yet."

"I unlocked Observation during the war," Coby explained. "I haven't been able to get Armament yet, even with Rayleigh's help, but my Observation is top-notch."

"I've got Armament down easy," Gin smirked. "Fer right now, though, I can't do Observation, iffin I ever can."

"I've almost got Armament down and I've been trying to get Observation," Amy replied, turning the Dial stove off and ladling the soup she was making it into 16 bowls. "It works, but it gets shifty when I try to move it to objects like my umbrella."

"Theoretically I should have it," Merry said as Amy dished out the meal, "I've got that Mantra feeling for you all which is like what I've heard of Observation while we were waiting for Captain Luffy to get here, but I didn't have anyone that could teach me back on Water 7."

"Ya know Sanji ain't eatin' with us," Gin pointed out as Amy sat down. "Why're there 16 bowls?"

"You'll see," the blonde smirked. She shared a knowing look with most of the rest of the table, only Luffy and Gin confused. Luffy blinked as his senses flared, the taste of citrus ghosting over his tongue the way it does when he could feel Nami, but something was different. She and Billy were walking down the stairs with something new in her arms. That wasn't exactly a surprise since she said she wanted to show them something, but he couldn't quite get a read on it though the interference of Sunny and Nami's spirits themselves. Soon enough, Nami reached the doorway, Luffy practically vibrating in his seat with anticipation.

"Nami, what is it?" Luffy asked as he and his wife made eye contact. "Is it a new weapon? Oh, is it a new cool attack?"

"It's something a lot bigger and more important that that, Luffy," his wife explained as she shifted, now giving the crew, sans Sanji, the image she had denied. Ace was curled into her chest in an outfit reminiscent of the one Luffy had been wearing when she and him met all those years ago - a red cardigan and jean shorts - one thumb in his mouth. He blinked as he seemed to mentally count until he reached the end of the table.

"Da-?" He stopped, as if expecting his mother to stop him again. He looked up at her, but she only shifted her hold.

"Go on, sweetie," Nami whispered to him. Ace's eyes lit up as he tried to move, ultimately making Nami set him on the floor.

"Daddy!"

Luffy's thoughts ground to a halt and time seemed to slow, his entire focus on the child running toward him. His aura in Luffy's Observation, now that he was away from Nami, was undefined and essentially blank. Following Luffy's color comparison, his aura was some combination the orange of Nami's hair and the red of Luffy's Haki aura. Almost a tangerine shade of orange.

Outwardly, the boy was obviously a mix of himself and Nami, with Nami's button nose and brown eyes, but the face and the scruffy black hair were clearly Monkey D. genes. The child's smile, though...

'Is that what my smile looks like?' Luffy wondered as he felt his lips stretch into the widest smile he'd ever had, his food forgotten.

"Daddy!" the little boy said again, almost to Luffy's knee now. The captain moved, scooping the boy into his arms and holding him close. The child wrapped his little arms around Luffy's neck as well as he could. "Fin'ly get ta meet Daddy! Mommy has said so much 'bout you!"

"Luffy," Nami muttered, the whisper like a gunshot in the silence as she walked over to him, placing one hand on his shoulder. "This is our son, Ace. He's almost one-and-a-half."

"Ace," Luffy whispered, the boy in his arms reacting to his name.

"Yeah, Daddy! I'm Ace! My daddy's gonna be King of the Pirates! Giihihi!"

Luffy couldn't help the little sniffle that pulled itself from him, tears coming to his eyes. As watery as it was, Luffy's smile never moved.

"Daddy? You ok?" little Ace asked, worried. His small hand came up to wipe the tears away from his father's face.

"I..." Luffy choked around the lump in his throat, something that had never happened before. "I... I'm wonderful, A-Ace." Luffy pulled him closer, burying his nose in Ace's hair as all the pain of his loss two years ago merged with a swelling familial love he'd never thought about. He cried, softly laughing. "Sh... Shishishi."

"Mommy, Daddy's crying!" Ace pointed out, unnecessarily. "Is something wrong?"

Luffy reached over before Nami could answer, pulling her into the embrace as well and kissing her for all he was worth. Nami sighed and pulled away after a moment, the three of them becoming the perfect image of Family. Luffy still couldn't speak through the lump, so Nami took it upon herself to explain.

"Your Daddy's brother... left for a long time before you were born," she explained. "His name was Ace, and you're named after him."

"Thank you, Nami," Luffy whispered, hugging her and Ace tightly. "I love you, and I love you, Ace."

"Love you too, Daddy!" Ace smiled with all the tact of a vocal one-and-a-half year old. "Giihihihi!"

"Ne, Ace, I've got something for you," Luffy said, reaching around with his rubber arm. Ace didn't react, knowing about his Daddy's powers from Mommy's stories, though seeing it for real was a weird sight. Finally finding what he was looking for, Luffy pulled up an orange cowboy hat. "This belonged to... to the one you're named after. I want you to have it."

"Ok!" Working together, Nami and Luffy set the hat on Ace's head. It was, understandably, too big for his little head, so it flopped over his eyes. Ace's hands came up to grab the brim on either side, pushing it up enough so he could see. "I love it!"

Ace yawned suddenly, rocking in place before falling against Luffy's chest where he began to snore. Luffy tucked him close, determined to never let him go.

He couldn't be sure, but he knew deep in his soul, that this was what his brother had mentioned with his dying breath.

"Oi! Lovebirds!" Amy called, popping the bubble the small family had created around them. "You better eat before the soup gets cold!"

"I can't believe Luffy forgot about food," Usopp commented, taking another bite before choking on laughter. Gin looked like someone had smacked him with a bag of puppies, unsure if he should be excited or horrified. "What's up, Gin?"

"...Another one," the monk muttered. "There's another one... I know I should be happy, I am happy fer the Don and Donna, but d'ya realize how much more dang'rous our trip's gonna be with a kid? We should-"

"Bring him along," Nami finished, cutting Gin off. "Yeah, I totally agree."

"Donna, I respect the Hell outta ya, but bringin' a kid on our journey ain't smart. Tha foes we'll fight in tha New World 're stronger than anythin' we've fought before an' Young Master Ace can't protect 'imself."

"Young Master, huh?" Grace mused. "That sounds pretty cool. Maybe that should go on his wanted poster."

"Don't even joke about that!" Chopper cried, tears in his eyes from worry. "Ace shouldn't have a wanted poster! He's too young!"

"I gained mine at eight," Robin commented, leaning her head into one hand with a wry smile. "I thought that was a record, but Ace just might break it."

"Robin!"

"Why are you arguing over this?" Merry questioned. "It's too late to turn around now."

"But Gin might have a point," Zoro offered, poking the air with his spoon as if that visual helped his argument. "Bringing Ace along isn't our call, but being raised on a pirate ship can't be good for a kid."

"Says one of the many who didn't have parents," Amy heckled.

"Yeah?" the green-haired swordsman shrugged "And?"

"Are you suggesting we just leave Ace somewhere, Zoro-sensei?" Coby demanded. "Where? With whom?"

"I don't know," Zoro replied, uneasy at the unexpected resistance from his student. "Maybe Cocoyashi?"

"Yeah, like Johnny, Yosaku, or Genzo could do anything," Nami put in, rolling her eyes. "Just 'cause we claimed my village as our turf isn't going to stop the Marines if they come knocking. The safest place for Ace is here with us."

"Is it?" Luffy's voice was small, partially because of the sleeping child on his chest and partially because he was disagreeing with his wife. "We've always won in the end, but it's gotten bad sometimes, like when Shiki took you. I'm strong. All of us are strong, but can we protect Ace and still fight at full power?"

"I vote to keep Ace here," Robin offered, waving a hand. "I've already begun teaching him how to read Poneglyphs. He's an excellent student and can already identify most of the alphabet and about 15 individual words."

"Should we switch to a different topic?" Franky tried, attempting to diffuse the situation. "You know, Sunny was guarded by the super War-"

"This is way more important!" Grace denied, throwing a ball of white paint at the cyborg. It splattered on his mechanical arm, ineffective.

"Not cool, Grace," the metal man muttered. "Now I have to super paint this again."

"Then don't be super stupid! Pick a side or stay quiet. Besides, it'll just wash off, you big metal baby."

"Geeze, sis," Amy frowned. "When did you get so uppity?"

"Sorry," Grace shrugged. "Banter became a pastime on the job."

"Yohoho, all this arguing is ridiculous," Brook put in, the soft melody he was strumming to calm the group raising in volume somewhat. "Without a decent place to hide Ace, there is no place in the world for him except here with us."

"What about Alabasta?" Zoro offered, an almost visible lightbulb turning on over his head. As if in response, the actual lightbulb over him fizzled out and died. The cyclops did not let that deter him. "I'm sure Vivi would be happy to help care for Ace and the whole palace guard would be there to protect him. It's only a day's trip from Sabaody."

"Wah?!" Billy squawked in confusion. He pulled out a piece of chalk and a blackboard, scribbling a message.

Alabasta is not that close!

"Billy's right," Nami agreed, reading the note. "Alabasta's a full month away from Sabaody by ship and ten days by flight with the best weather possible and an eternal pose. There's no way we could get there fast."

"I was there in Yuba the day before meeting Coby again."

"That's impossible, even for your sense of direction."

"I know I'm right."

"You're a walking paradox in a meat suit is what you are!" Nami raged. "I'll not have my son-"

"Everyone cool off or you're gonna wake Ace," Luffy hissed, the smallest wave of Conqueror's pulsing from him to make sure he had his crew's attention. Ace, still sleeping in his father's arms, snuggled deeper into Luffy's broad chest. "This isn't a decision to make now since we're already on our way to Fishman Island. We'll call this a... a trial run, to see if having Ace with us isn't as dangerous as we think. I'm sure everything will be fine. What could go wrong?"

China shattered after Luffy's final sentence, 14 pairs of surprised eyes spinning to Coby where his bangs shadowed his face. His spoon was sunk into the table, the last few bites of his soup soaking into the tablecloth through the shattered remains of his bowl.

"What did you just say, Captain Luffy?" Coby asked, his voice quiet.

"Fishman Island is a trail run?"

"After that."

"Everything will be fine?"

"After that."

"What could go wrong?"

"That's what I thought you said." Coby breathed a deep sigh, his head falling into his hands. The spoon stayed standing, stabbed into the oak table. "Captain Luffy, there are a few phrases my time with you all and the Red Embers have taught me to never say. That line, asking what could go wrong, is the very top of the list. Now it's only a matter of time before our visit to Fishman Island goes FUBAR."

"Uh, what's FUBAR?" Chopper asked.

"It's operational slang," Grace offered. "It means-"

"Fucked up beyond all repair," Robin interrupted. "Or recovery. It was one of my benefactor's least-favorite phrases to hear."

"Language!" Usopp cried, reaching to cover Merry's ears.

"Stop it!" the klabautermann grunted, batting her surrogate uncle away. "I'm not a little girl anymore, Uncle Usopp. And it's not like I didn't already know every curse you all know. It's Ace we need to not curse around."

"Oh dear, how silly of me," Robin muttered, covering her mouth with one hand. A new mouth bloomed on the back of said hand. "I should have thought of that. Luckily the language of the Poneglyphs doesn't have any curse words for me to teach him."

"It doesn't?" Kaku blinked.

"If it does, I didn't learn them, so they don't exist anymore. Perhaps I should create some."

"What would be the point of that?" Franky questioned. "You can't exactly super curse someone out in the ancient language and have them understand you."

"Not yet," Robin countered.

"I'm more worried about Ace picking up some of your catchphrases like 'super' or 'skull joke'," Nami sighed. "Or trying to jump from high places like Luffy can."

"He'll be strong enough eventually," Luffy insisted. "By four or five, probably. That's when Gramps started throwing me into canyons."

Silence fell over the table like a wet blanket, nearly every crewmember staring at Luffy. Kaku's mouth hung open.

"I... I..." Kaku sputtered. "Vice-Admiral Garp did what?!"

"Luffy," Chopper began, "you're going to be a great father, but you are not in charge of Ace's training. And not you either, Zoro!"

Zoro, who had opened his mouth, closed it. "Coby turned out fine!" he insisted after a moment.

"What do you think, Grace?" Merry teased, nudging the redhead in the ribs. "I'm sure you're enjoying that open shirt of his. Baaahahaha!"

Grace responded by shoving the fairy onto the floor, Merry laughing the whole time. Both the artist and the Zoan could not totally hide their blushing faces, though Grace had a little more success with her longer hair.

"Even if he didn't look it, Coby was 16 when he started," Nami pointed out. "I agree with Chopper."

The Sunny shook beneath them, a growl rumbling through her hull. Outside, one long, loud "MOOOO!" echoed through the water.

"Sounds like we've got company!" Franky yelled, the whole crew jumping to their feet and running out onto the deck. Those wearing less clothing shivered, the outside being far colder than it had been when they went in.

"Where are they, Sunny?" Merry asked, quickly spinning around as she received a mental answer from her fellow ship. "They're behind us and gaining!"

"Sunny, punch it!" Franky ordered, running to the wheel. "Super evasive maneuvers!"

"Luffy, take Ace up to his room!" Nami ordered, running up next to Franky so she could make any necessary changes to their course. "It's the one next to ours!"

"Sure thing, Nami!" Luffy stretched, as he was wont to do, landing on the third floor and disappearing into the nursery with his son still tucked against his chest.

"I'm up!" Sanji yelled as he stumbled out of the med bay. "I felt the ship rock. What's going-?" He caught sight of Robin and Amy, both of them turning to give him an unfortunately-amazing angle to see down on their low-cut tops. The chef painted the railing red with another nosebleed and passed out.

"Not again!" Chopper cried, running to get more bloodbags. "Don't die, Sanji!"

Merry raced to the stern, jumping and swinging through the rigging with supernatural grace and Moonwalk as the Sunny pulled hard to starboard. A cannonball raced past, slamming into one of the many roots with an explosion of splintered bark and displaced sediment.

"So you wanna play with cannons, huh?" Merry muttered with a smirk as she reached her destination. Another two cannonballs flew (or... swam?) toward them, but Merry wasn't concerned in the slightest. With barely a thought, the projectiles slowed, following the Sunny under Merry's control. Another two joined the first pair as the klabautermann studied their opponents, said opponents wising up to not give her anymore ammo by firing at them.

The ship was a little bigger than the Thousand Sunny - Merry suspected it was a trireme - with a wide moose figurehead and a white-and-brown color scheme. Pulling the ship was a green-on-white cow sea king, a clear lump on its head. The ship wasn't close to forming a klabautermann, but there was enough soul to give Merry a name, or part of one.

"The... Bull Wrinkle or the Bullwinkle? I'll go with the second one." Still something about the ship felt familiar. Maybe she had seen it before? Had this crew passed through Water 7 when she was still there? "Ah well, I'm probably just imagining things. We don't want these! You can have them back! Cannonball Barrage!"

Shoving her hands forward, Merry willed the iron balls to move, rocketing back from whence they had come. The first three were evaded, but the fourth struck the cow in the face, which only seemed to make it more angry. The cow sped up, towing the Bullwinkle behind it.

"That's one tough fish," Merry muttered, turning to shout behind her. "They're gaining and I'm out of ammo!"

"Hold on, Sunny!" Amy muttered, getting on her knees and pressing her palms into the deck. The Sunny shivered as the bubble around the ship expanded, the mass of the Sunny being transmuted into air kilogram by kilogram. With less solid weight, Sunny's speed increased.

Chopper felt the change and furrowed his brows, pretty sure the laws of physics were being told to push off in a way they shouldn't have, even by Devil Fruit standards. Wouldn't the Sunny still be carrying just as much weight even if some of the mass was converted into atmospheric pressure? Sanji giggled with another nosebleed as he started muttering about busty bakers, forcing Chopper to refocus on keeping him alive.

"Coby!" Grace called, reaching her arm toward the Zoan. "Throw me toward Merry! I've got something that can slow them down."

"If you say so!" Grabbing her arm, Coby used his newly-gained strength to spin the two of them with a surprising amount of muscle memory, building momentum before letting her go. "Colorful Meteor!"

Wind whistled through Grace's multicolored hair as she essentially flew toward the stern. She flicked her wrists, balls of magnesium and gunpowder shifting from her sleeves. She snapped, forcing oxygen and carbon together into a spark next to the balls. The explosions controlled her momentum until she hit the deck in a practiced roll, coming to a standing stop beside the klabautermann.

"What do you think, Merry?" the chemical-controlling girl asked, as if she had not just pulled off such a dangerous stunt.

"They're gonna catch us if we don't do something," the fairy answered, equally nonchalant. "We have to react to obstacles before they do and they've got that cow. Even if it gets tired, it's faster in the water than we are. I guess we could take them on foot if they board us, but they could damage Sunny. You got anything for this?"

"I've had access to a chem lab and my Fruit for two years. I'm prepared for almost anything." Grace reached into her bag, pulling out a ball that almost looked like a purple sponge or a type of round coral. "This is a substance that expands when it hits water, but to a crazy degree thanks to my tampering. This should delay them long enough for us to get away."

"Hit it!"

Following Merry's order, Grace lobbed the sponge toward the water, but it didn't have the speed needed to get past the coating, bouncing back.

"Allow me," Kaku offered, landing beside them and elongating his neck. "Man-Beast Form: Giraffe Batter!"

The ex-agent tossed the sponge into the air before swinging his head and neck like a baseball bat, hitting the sponge with the force needed to push past the bubble.

Almost instantly, the sponge started to grow, expanding until it was twice as tall as the Sunny yet hollow with a sort of mesh structure. Through it, the trio watched the cow and perusing ship try to turn and fail to stop, slamming into the unexpected obstacle.

"Bye-bye, bitches! Baaahahaha!" Merry laughed, waving. "I'm surprised you had something like that in your bag, Grace."

"You'd be shocked how often I've needed one. And Kaku, I could have done that myself."

"I need to be useful somehow," Kaku shrugged.

"Downward Current!" Nami warned from the bow only seconds before the ship tipped, the Sunny descending down an underwater waterfall current and closer to Fishman Island.

End of Chapter 4

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-SwordOfTheGods