"So," Shanks said, settling back with obvious interest, "what actually brings you all the way out here to find me? It's not exactly easy to track down my crew, and you've clearly put some effort into it."
The familiar names and places had worked their magic, transforming the atmosphere from hostile suspicion to genuine curiosity. Shanks' entire demeanor had changed, and the other Red Hair Pirates were following their captain's lead.
"Well," Ace began, his nervousness finally starting to fade as he held the bottle of East Blue sake, "it's because I have a younger brother. His name is Monkey D. Luffy."
He paused, meeting Shanks' eyes directly. "And you saved his life. I wanted to meet the man who protected my little brother and thank you properly."
The effect was immediate and dramatic. The Red Hair Pirates erupted in excited chatter, all traces of their earlier wariness vanishing as they processed this revelation.
"Luffy has a brother?" Lucky Roux called out, pausing in his meal preparation. "He never mentioned having any siblings!"
"That little rubber ball kept that secret?" Yasopp laughed. "Though I guess it makes sense—he was always talking about becoming a great pirate. Maybe he didn't want to admit he had competition!"
Shanks accepted the bottle from Ace, studying the label with obvious recognition and fondness. "Luffy, huh? So he really does have a brother. How is the little guy doing? Still planning to become the Pirate King?"
"More determined than ever," Ace replied with a genuine smile. "We're not blood brothers, actually—we're sworn brothers. Made our oath when we were kids. Luffy, me, and another brother named Sabo."
"Sworn brothers?" Shanks raised an eyebrow. "That's a serious bond. Tell me more about this."
As Ace began explaining their childhood friendship and the ceremony that had bound them together, Jerry took the opportunity to step outside and signal to the rest of the Spade Pirates. The tension had clearly passed, and this was turning into exactly the kind of meeting Ace had hoped for.
Within minutes, the cave was filled with the sounds of two crews getting acquainted. The initial awkwardness was inevitable—after all, the Spade Pirates were meeting one of the Four Emperors and his legendary crew—but alcohol and shared stories had a way of breaking down barriers.
Soon, pirates from both crews were laughing together, sharing tall tales of their adventures, and engaging in the kind of friendly competitions that always seemed to spring up when pirates gathered. Someone had broken out a deck of cards, another group was arm-wrestling, and Jerry noticed at least three separate drinking contests already underway.
"This reminds me of the old days," one of the Red Hair Pirates was saying to Skull. "Back when we were still climbing the ladder ourselves. You newcomers have that same fire in your eyes."
"Speaking from experience," Skull replied with a grin, "that fire only gets hotter the higher you climb."
Meanwhile, Shanks had opened Ace's gift and was savoring the familiar taste with obvious nostalgia.
"Makino's Wine," he said softly, though his expression quickly shifted to confusion as he tasted it more carefully. "Wait, this isn't quite right..."
Ace scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed smile. "Oh, about that... this isn't actually from Makino's bar. I bought it in Loguetown when we were passing through. It's from the same region, but I ran into some... financial difficulties... during my early pirating days."
"You mean you were broke!" Shanks burst out laughing, slapping Ace on the back hard enough to nearly knock him over. "Kid, you should have just said so! We've all been there."
The two captains quickly fell into an animated conversation about their shared connection to Windmill Village. Shanks regaled Ace with stories of his year-long stay there, while Ace shared memories of growing up in the nearby mountains with the Dadan Family bandits.
"Is your captain always like this?" Ben Beckman asked, settling down next to Jerry with a fresh cigarette between his lips.
Jerry glanced over at where Ace was gesticulating wildly as he told some story about Luffy getting his head stuck in a barrel, while Shanks howled with laughter.
"Pretty much," Jerry replied with a resigned sigh. "That's why us vice-captains work so hard. Someone has to keep them from accidentally starting wars."
Beckman studied Jerry with the calculating gaze. "You don't seem particularly worried about anything, though."
"Guilty as charged," Jerry admitted with a shameless grin. "My management style is more... hands-off. I figure if the ship isn't sinking and nobody's actively trying to kill us, things are probably fine."
"That's either very wise or completely irresponsible."
"Probably both," Jerry laughed. "But hey, it's worked so far."
Their conversation was interrupted by Ace's voice rising above the general din of the party.
"I have no interest in One Piece!" he declared loudly, his fist clenched with determination. "My goal is to defeat the Four Emperors!"
The cave fell silent so quickly it was almost comical. Every conversation stopped mid-sentence, every drink was suspended halfway to lips, and even the crackling of the fire seemed to quiet down.
For a moment, Jerry thought they might have to fight their way out after all.
Then Shanks burst into uproarious laughter.
"Wahahaha!! You've got some serious guts, kid!" the Emperor wheezed, wiping tears from his eyes. "I haven't heard anyone make a declaration like that in years!"
"Uh, wait," Ace said quickly, raising his hands in a peaceful gesture. "I'm not talking about you! We've shared drinks now—that makes us friends, not enemies."
"True enough," Beckman observed dryly, exhaling a stream of smoke. "For a minute there, I thought we were about to have a very short party."
Jerry just shrugged at Beckman's questioning look. "I told you—never take him too seriously when he gets like this. He means well, but his mouth sometimes moves faster than his brain."
The tension dissolved as quickly as it had appeared, and the party resumed its jovial atmosphere.
"So if not me," Shanks said, leaning forward with interest, "which of my fellow Emperors has caught your attention?"
"Whitebeard!" Ace announced without hesitation.
This time, the stunned silence came from the Red Hair Pirates. Several crew members nearly choked on their drinks, and more than one expression of disbelief was visible around the cave.
"Whitebeard?" Lucky Roux repeated slowly. "As in Edward Newgate, the World's Strongest Man? That Whitebeard?"
"That's the one," Ace confirmed, his expression growing serious. "When people talk about the Pirate King Gol 'D' Roger, the first name that comes up as his rival is always Whitebeard. He's the one that everyone considers the closest thing to Roger's equal."
Ace's voice gained intensity as he continued. "Plus, when we reached Fishman Island on our way to the New World, the first thing we saw was Whitebeard's flag flying over the port. It was like he was challenging every new pirate who entered his domain."
"So what did you do?" Shanks asked, though Jerry suspected he already knew the answer.
"We placed our flag above his," Ace said with a fierce grin. "Right there for everyone to see. A declaration that the Spade Pirates are going to surpass the Whitebeard Pirates!"
Shanks studied the young captain for a long moment, his expression thoughtful. "I see. Well, I can't really comment on that kind of decision."
Jerry understood the diplomatic response. As one of the Four Emperors, Shanks had to be careful about seeming to endorse or discourage challenges between his fellow Emperors. The balance of power in the New World was delicate, and even casual comments could be misinterpreted as taking sides.
"The Four Emperors generally try to avoid interfering with each other's business," Beckman explained quietly to Jerry. "It's not an official agreement, but we all understand that picking favorites could lead to larger conflicts."
"Makes sense," Jerry nodded. "Nobody wants to accidentally trigger a war between Emperor crews."
The conversation continued, flowing from topic to topic as the alcohol loosened tongues and strengthened bonds between the two crews. Jerry found himself genuinely impressed by the Red Hair Pirates' camaraderie—they functioned less like a traditional pirate hierarchy and more like a close-knit family.
Eventually, Ace's curiosity got the better of him. "Shanks, I have to ask about something. The three scars over your left eye—who could have possibly given those to someone like you?"
Shanks paused mid-bite of Lucky Roux's expertly prepared meat, his hand unconsciously moving to touch the old wounds.
"These?" he said after a moment's consideration. "They're from the Whitebeard Pirates, actually. Happened quite a while ago."
"Whitebeard did that?" Ace asked, his eyes widening.
"No, not Whitebeard himself," Shanks clarified quickly. "Just one of his crew members."
The revelation sent a ripple of shock through the Spade Pirates. If a regular crew member of the Whitebeard Pirates could scar a future Emperor, what did that say about the level of power they were planning to challenge?
"Was it one of his division commanders?" Ace pressed.
"No," Shanks replied simply. "But don't let that scare you off. That particular individual was... a special case. Not representative of the crew as a whole."
Skull's voice rose above the concerned murmuring of the other Spade Pirates. "Are you seriously telling us that some random crew member scarred a Four Emperor? How terrifying are these people?"
"Like I said," Shanks repeated with a slight smile, "special case. I'm not trying to discourage you, just... be prepared for anything when you meet them."
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