Chapter 69: Ace
"Luffy!" Usopp shook his head even more while shouting at him. At this moment, Luffy suddenly pointed at a wall and said.
"Look, there is Chopper. That means they are there."
"Yes, this is the place where we separate." Zoro nodded.
"Chopper! Oi, Chopper!" Luffy shouted swinging his hands and shouting as he ran toward Chopper.
"SShh! You idiot, marines find us." Usopp closed his mouth with his palm and spoke.
"Look, Straw Hat Crew is there." Suddenly, one of the marines shouted from behind as several others also turned their heads at Luffy, Zoro, and Usopp's backs.
"You jinx." Luffy and Zoro suddenly stared at Usopp and spoke at the same time.
"You think this is my fault?" Usopp slapped Luffy's head and shouted. It truly wasn't his fault after all.
"What the hell? Why is that moss head bringing so many marines here?" Sanji looked out of the wall when Chopper notified him about Usopp and others. When he saw marines chasing them, he couldn't help but get angry at Zoro.
In a few seconds, all of them were at fault.
"Those idiots. Let's run!" Nami slapped her forehead and sighed. She signaled everyone to run as Sanji carried the food.
Liam also noticed them and he was shocked when he didn't see Smoker with those marines. He slowed down as Luffy and others caught up to him.
"Hey, why isn't that Smoker chasing you?" Liam asked.
"How did you know?" Luffy looked at him with shock and asked.
Liam rolled his eyes and said "Those marines belong to Smoker. You are the captain of the crew. Obviously, he should be the one chasing you, not these canon fodders."
"Haha! That so. I met my brother on the way and he helped me stop Smokey." Luffy rubbed his head laughing while he explained.
"Your brother?" Liam, Nami, Chopper, and Sanji were surprised as they reacted in a similar way. Liam knew it but he still needed to show a proper surprised face.
"Enough of that! Let's run toward the ship. We need to find the ship as soon as possible." Zoro shouted and gained their attention. They immediately followed his words and ran toward the ship.
"By the way Luffy, who is your brother?" Liam asked curiously while running.
Luffy rubbed his nose and chuckled.
"His name is Ace."
"Ace…. Your brother is Portgas D. Ace?" Liam's eyes widened when he asked.
"Luffy, is he really your brother?" Usopp couldn't help but ask in shock.
"Umm!" Luffy innocently smiled as he nodded his head.
"Come on, what kind of ridiculous family do you have?" Liam slapped his forehead and spoke with an exhausted expression.
But, nobody reacted to that. They were all running toward the ship and they continued to run as fast as they could.
Unlike the original, Liam didn't let Luffy go by himself. He properly took Luffy to the ship and after they reached there, they started moving immediately.
"Luffy, are you sure your brother can fight that guy?" Usopp asked with a worried expression.
"Don't worry! If that man truly is Ace, then he shouldn't have any problem coming out alive. But, I am more surprised that he is your brother." Liam patted his shoulder and calmed him down as he explained.
"Is he really that strong?" Nami suspiciously looked at him and asked.
"He is the second commander of Whitebeard Ship. He has won against the Warlock of Sea and unlike Crocodile, this person is not just the nemesis of every devil fruit user but also is physically strong."
"Do you know what it takes to become part of Whitebeard Crew, especially the core part of his crew? You need to be strong enough to defeat the Vice-Admiral of Marines."
"The only reason why Luffy lost against Smoker was because of his devil fruit. But, Ace has this covered with his Logia powers. Now, do you understand the difference?" Liam explained.
"I never thought someone would know me this well." Suddenly, a figure jumped up and landed on the ship. This person was none other than Ace. He looked at Liam with surprise.
"Ace!" Luffy cried out in surprise as he rushed next to Ace. Brothers held their hands together and laughed.
"We should give you guys some alone time." Liam spoke with an awkward expression and walked away. But, suddenly Luffy's arm extended and wrapped around, pulling him closer.
"Come on! I haven't introduced you guys to my brother." Luffy pointed at Liam and said.
"His name is Liam. He is a resourceful guy."
Then, he started pointing at others.
"His name is Zoro. He is a swordsman and loves to sleep."
"His name is Usopp. He is a liar."
"Hey!" Usopp slapped Luffy's head when Luffy introduced him as a liar. He then showed his slinger and said.
"I am a sniper."
"My name is Nami. I am the navigator." Nami stopped Luffy from speaking and introduced herself.
"My name is Sanji and I am a cook. I am sure you have a lot to catch up with Luffy. I will make some tea." Sanji also followed her idea and introduced himself.
"My name is Chopper and I am the doctor of this ship." Chopper jumped as he raised his hands and introduced himself.
"My name is Vivi and this is Caroo." Vivi smiled as she introduced herself and her duck.
"Nice to meet you all. My name is Ace." Ace bowed down as he introduced himself. When he saw Sanji turning around, he stopped him.
"You don't have to. Thanks for asking though." Ace said as he lit up the cigarette in Sanji's mouth.
Hearing his polite tone, everyone tilted their heads in confusion as they looked at Luffy.
"Luffy, is he really your brother?"
"Hahaha! I got that a lot when we were together." Ace laughed and so did Luffy.
"I never thought Luffy's brother to be this good and polite. I thought he would be just like Luffy." Nami looked at Ace with surprise and said.
"Me too! But looking at him, it's hard to believe that they are brothers." Liam also commented.
Bang!
But, as they were commenting, a loud explosion occurred next to their ship.
"It's those guys. Let's lose them fast." Nami shouted as she ran toward the cabin.
"There is no need. Let me take care of these." Ace said as he jumped down from the ship. He landed on his ship and his tiny ship started moving.
"Woah! Is he really going for the battle in that tiny boat?" Usopp rushed toward the corner and shouted.
"Of course! Just look."
Liam said as he stared at Ace as well. He knew Ace was really powerful. If it wasn't for the doughnut incident, he wouldn't be a controversial topic when Liam was still in his world.
For him, Ace was the unsuccessful Pirate King. Ace lived the pirate life that Luffy wanted to live. He was free, doing whatever he wanted, and even going under Whitebeard's protection was his choice.
He was even a joy boy in the eyes of others, at least for those who didn't know the truth about Luffy.
But, because Ace died he was unsuccessful. But, his death was necessary for Luffy to become successful. That's why Liam never complained about Ace's decision to go after Blackbeard.
If he hadn't done that, Blackbeard would've chased after Luffy and killed him. The only reason why he kept Ace alive was that he wanted the war between Whitebeard pirates and Marines to steal Whitebeard's fruit and expand his crew.
For Luffy didn't have that use. So, his only goal before meeting Ace was to kill Luffy. That's why Liam always believed that Ace was the reason why Luffy was going to become the Pirate King.
As he watched the battle, he clenched his fist. While it is true that Ace's death was necessary, it wasn't absolute. He could still change it especially now that he has the chance to make Luffy pirate king.
He knew all the events of the future. He knew he shouldn't change much but his existence itself changes everything so he wasn't worried about the change anymore.
As they kept watching, Ace ends it with one Fire Fist that pierces through the boats and burns them over water.
"He is truly strong. Do you have a way to defeat him?" Zoro turned his head and asked.
"Nope! Without Haki, it would be impossible to defeat him. Even if you learn Haki, it would take the likes of Admirals or unusual devil fruit to defeat him." Liam shook his head and answered.
"But, I will defeat him and become the pirate king." Luffy clenched his fist and said with a smile.
"Of course, you will. Now, let's move. We need to go to crocodile's base. Don't forget! We still have a warlord to defeat." Liam turned around as he spoke.
Suddenly, the atmosphere got heavy and at this moment, Vivi asked.
"Luffy….. will your brother agree to help us defeat Crocodile if I ask him?"
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