Luffy changed direction.
The market's noise thinned as he moved toward the restaurant, sandals crunching against sand-dusted stone. At first, there was a smile—small, instinctive—but it faded almost immediately.
Something was off.
Not violent. Not chaotic.
Tense.
Observation Haki brushed outward, catching restrained breaths, chairs shifted too carefully, the weight of a confrontation being held together by politeness and fear. That alone wouldn't have bothered him.
What bothered him was Ace.
Ace didn't pick fights like this. Not in public. Not where civilians could get hurt.
And yet—
There it was. His presence unmistakable. Warm. Familiar. Like standing too close to a bonfire.
Another presence curled nearby as well. Acrid. Heavy. Irritating.
Luffy exhaled through his nose.
"…Figures."
He pushed the door open.
The restaurant fell silent.
Patrons had clustered to one side of the room, eyes darting, bodies angled away from the center where a Marine officer stood with his coat draped loosely over his shoulders. Smoke curled lazily from a cigar clenched between his teeth.
Smoker.
Luffy stared at him for a moment.
Then his lips twitched.
A childish idea sparked—quick, petty, irresistible.
He buried it under a blank expression and walked forward.
"Hey, Smokey."
Smoker turned.
Luffy didn't wait.
He grabbed Smoker by the collar, lightning snapping briefly around his fingers—not enough to burn, not enough to kill. Just enough to decide.
"Bye, Smokey."
The wall behind the bar detonated.
Wood splintered, stone cracked, and Smoker vanished through it in a roar of debris, tumbling out into the street beyond.
Silence followed.
Every eye in the restaurant locked onto Luffy.
A kid had just thrown a Marine captain through a wall.
Luffy didn't even look back.
He stepped over broken wood and walked to the bar.
A shirtless man sat there, hat tilted low, grinning wide.
"Luffy."
Ace stood, firelight dancing faintly around him—not flaring, just present.
"Yo," Luffy replied.
They slapped palms—hard, casual, practiced—and Luffy took a seat.
"One whiskey," he said.
The bartender looked like he'd forgotten how hands worked.
Ace leaned against the counter. "That's all? No dramatic reunion?"
"You're really clinging to the big brother thing," Luffy muttered.
Ace laughed.
The bartender finally poured. Luffy reached for the glass—
—and Ace took it and drained it.
"Hey!" Luffy snapped. "That was mine!"
"Oh, relax," Ace waved him off. "You drink too much anyway."
Luffy glared, then sighed and signaled for another.
They sat there for a moment. Two forces pretending this was normal.
Then Luffy spoke again.
"…You're alone."
Ace's grin didn't change, but something behind it did.
"Yeah," Ace said. "Been that way for a while."
Luffy didn't say the name.
Didn't need to.
He took a sip.
"…He'd have hated this place," Luffy said quietly.
Ace exhaled through his nose. "Yeah."
Silence stretched—not awkward, just heavy.
Finally, Ace broke it. "You've gotten taller."
"Lightning helps," Luffy replied flatly.
Ace snorted. "Figures."
Luffy stood. "You coming?"
Ace raised a brow. "Already leaving?"
"Smoker's going to be annoying."
Ace laughed. "Fair."
He shoveled the rest of his food into his mouth. Luffy tossed a bag of berries onto the counter.
"That covers it."
He walked out.
"Hey—wait!" Ace shouted, chasing after him.
Outside, chaos brewed. Marines shouting. Civilians scattering.
Ace burst out—
—and Luffy was gone.
"…You've got to be kidding me," Ace groaned.
Three streets away, Luffy stopped and turned.
"…Where did he go?"
He sighed. "Slow."
He took another step.
"LUFFY!"
Nami's voice cut through the street.
The crew came running—faces tight, breath short, Vivi clutching Karoo.
"What's the rush?" Luffy asked calmly.
"We have a problem," Nami said.
"The Marine captain from Loguetown—"
"Is here," Luffy nodded.
"And a Whitebeard Pirate—"
"Also here."
They stared.
"How are you this calm!?" Nami snapped.
"Because—"
"STRAWHAT!"
Smoker charged down the street, smoke boiling from his arm, Marines behind him.
"This ends here!"
Luffy turned, lightning crawling along his skin.
"Really?" he asked. "How'd that work out last time?"
Smoker attacked.
Smoke surged—
—and fire fell from the sky.
"Fire Fist!"
Flame and smoke collided, hissing violently as heat rolled outward. Windows shattered. People screamed.
When the fire cleared, Ace stood between them, flames dancing across his shoulders.
"Took you long enough," Luffy muttered.
"You ran," Ace shot back.
Smoker snarled. "I'm taking you both in!"
Luffy stepped forward.
"No."
Conqueror's Haki detonated outward.
Marines collapsed instantly. Helmets clattered. Bodies hit stone.
Tashigi staggered, knees buckling, fear freezing her lungs.
Luffy looked at her.
"Run," he said coldly. "This isn't your fight."
She collapsed unconscious.
Luffy turned away.
"You good?" he asked Ace.
Ace grinned. "Always."
Lightning and fire parted.
Luffy walked.
Behind him, smoke and flame clawed at the sky.
"…Who was that?" Usopp whispered.
"My brother."
"YOU HAVE A BROTHER!?"
"Yes."
They reached the ship.
Ace landed on the rail moments later.
"Took you long enough."
"Lightning speed," Ace smirked.
Luffy turned to the crew. "Everyone—Portgas D. Ace."
Ace bowed slightly. "Thanks for looking after him."
Whitebeard.
The name detonated.
Luffy shrugged. "Three years. Didn't mention it?"
"NO!"
Luffy looked at Ace, expression sharpening—not playful now.
"So," he said quietly, "why are you really here in Paradise?"
Ace's smile faded.
"…That's a longer story."