The streets of Nanohana were a labyrinth of sandstone walls and colorful awnings, currently vibrating with the frantic energy of a city on edge.
In a narrow alleyway, away from the main thoroughfare, the Straw Hat crew huddled together. They were a motley group, trying and failing to blend in.
Sanji adjusted his collar, holding a stack of shopping bags containing desert-appropriate clothing. Zoro stood with his hand on his swords, looking bored. Nami and Vivi were peering around the corner, while Chopper (in his small Brain Point form) sat on Karoo's back.
And standing amidst them was the newest addition: Merry.
"Loud noises," Merry stated, her voice soft but resonant. "Probability of chaos: 99.9%."
From the main street, a cacophony of shouting erupted.
"GET HIM!"
"DON'T LET HIM ESCAPE!"
"HE'S A MONSTER!"
Usopp adjusted his goggles, trembling slightly. "Who do you think they're chasing? Some poor pirate?"
"Probably some idiot who didn't know the Marines were here," Sanji muttered, lighting a cigarette.
"Yeah," Zoro yawned. "Some loud, gluttonous, trouble-making moron."
The crew froze.
They looked at each other.
The image of a rubber man with a bottomless stomach flashed simultaneously in all their minds.
"LUFFY!" they groaned in unison, their shoulders slumping in defeat.
As if summoned by their collective despair, a cloud of dust exploded around the corner.
Luffy, carrying an armful of stolen apples and running at a speed that blurred his legs, shot into view. He was laughing maniacally.
"Shishishi! You can't catch me, Smokey!"
He glanced sideways and spotted the green hair of his first mate.
Luffy's face lit up.
"OI! ZORO! EVERYONE!"
He waved frantically and immediately changed direction, sprinting directly toward their hiding spot.
"I FOUND YOU GUYS!"
"DON'T COME OVER HERE!" Zoro screamed, veins popping in his forehead. "LOSE THEM FIRST, YOU MORON!"
"IDIOT!" Nami shrieked. "YOU'RE LEADING THEM RIGHT TO US!"
"Run!" Sanji shouted, grabbing the shopping bags. "Everyone, move! Back to the ship!"
The crew scrambled. They burst out of the alleyway just as Luffy caught up to them, bringing with him a localized sandstorm and a battalion of angry Marines.
"Hi guys!" Luffy grinned, matching their sprinting pace effortlessly. "Where's the meat?"
"SHUT UP AND RUN!" Usopp cried.
Behind them, the sky darkened.
"WHITE BLOW!"
A massive fist of compressed smoke shot through the air, aimed squarely at Luffy's back. It was fast—faster than before. Smoker was propelled by his own smoke jets, flying low over the rooftops.
"Straw Hat!" Smoker roared. "It ends here!"
Luffy stopped. He turned, dropping the apples. He knew he couldn't outrun the smoke forever while protecting the crew. He winded up his arm.
But before he could strike, a wall of heat slammed into the street.
"KAGERO!" (Heat Haze!)
A stream of fire intercepted the smoke.
WHOOSH.
Orange flames clashed with white smoke, creating a massive explosion of steam and pressure. The Marines were blown back. The Straw Hats skidded to a halt, shielding their eyes from the intense glare.
Standing atop a pile of crates, bathed in fire, was a young man. He wore no shirt, just black shorts and an orange hat with two blue smiley faces. The tattoo on his back—the purple skull and crossbones—was illuminated by the flames rising from his fingertips.
"You're a lively bunch," the man said, tipping his hat up.
Luffy squinted through the heat waves. His eyes went wide.
"ACE?!"
The crew blinked.
"Ace?" Nami asked.
Ace grinned, hopping down from the crates. He landed softly between the Straw Hats and the Marines.
"Yo, Luffy. You've gotten big. Hope you're doing okay."
Luffy's face split into a massive grin. "I'm doing great! What are you doing here?!"
"Just passing through," Ace said, his left arm turning into a roaring column of fire. He looked back at Smoker, who was reforming from the steam. "Go, Luffy. Take your crew and run. I'll handle Smokey here."
"But—"
"GO!" Ace commanded, his voice carrying the weight of a big brother. "I'll catch up later!"
Luffy nodded. He knew Ace. Ace didn't lose.
"Okay! Let's go, guys!"
The crew didn't need to be told twice. They turned and sprinted toward the rocky cape where the Merry was hidden.
"Who was that?" Chopper asked, clinging to Karoo as the duck ran for its life. "He was on fire!"
"That's Ace!" Luffy shouted, running alongside them. "He's my brother!"
"BROTHER?!" The crew screamed together.
"You have a brother?!" Usopp yelled. "And he's a Logia user?! How are you two related?!"
"He's three years older than me!" Luffy laughed. "And he's way stronger than me! I never beat him once!"
"Even you?" Zoro asked, impressed.
As they ran, the sounds of battle erupted behind them—explosions of fire and smoke shaking the city.
Luffy, however, had a bad habit. He ran while looking backward, watching the explosions.
"Cool..." Luffy mesmerized.
He turned a corner.
The crew turned a different corner.
Luffy kept running straight.
"So, guys, Ace is really cool because..."
Luffy turned his head forward.
There was no one there. Just an empty desert path leading away from the coast.
Luffy skidded to a halt. He blinked.
"Huh? Where did everyone go?"
He looked around. "Did they get lost? Man, Zoro is a bad influence."
---
Back in the city, the heat was intense.
Ace stood in the middle of the street, a wall of fire separating the Marines from the retreat path.
Smoker hovered in the air, his jitte in hand.
"Fire Fist Ace," Smoker growled. "Why is a Whitebeard Commander helping Straw Hat?"
"Because he's my little brother," Ace said simply, spinning a small flame on his finger. "And a big brother has to worry about his clumsy sibling. Isn't that right?"
Smoker scoffed. "I don't care. I'm taking you both in."
"You can try," Ace smiled. "But a fight between fire and smoke... we'll never settle it. And we'll probably burn this whole city down in the process."
Ace looked around. The civilians were terrified. The buildings were scorching.
"Tell you what," Ace said, extinguishing the flames on his arms. "I'm not here to fight the Marines. I'm looking for someone. Let's call it a draw. You let my brother go for today, and I won't turn this port into a crater."
Smoker glared at him. He knew Ace was right. A battle between two Logias of their caliber would destroy Nanohana. His duty was to protect the people, even if it meant letting a pirate slip away.
"Get out of here," Smoker hissed, turning into smoke and flying away. "But tell Straw Hat... I will find him."
Ace tipped his hat. "I'll pass it along."
Ace turned and jogged in the direction Luffy had gone.
It didn't take long to find him. Luffy was standing in the middle of a dune, screaming at a cactus.
"ZOROOOO! WHERE ARE YOU?!"
"Luffy," Ace called out.
Luffy spun around. "ACE!"
He launched himself at his brother. Ace braced himself, but the impact of an 8-foot-tall rubber giant was heavy. Ace skidded back ten feet, laughing.
"Whoa! Easy, big guy! You're heavy!"
"Ace! You're awesome!" Luffy beamed. "Did you beat Smokey?"
"Nah, we stopped. Can't fight forever," Ace dusted himself off. "Where's your crew?"
"I dunno," Luffy scratched his head. "They got lost."
"You got lost," Ace corrected. "Let's go and find them."
The two brothers walked through the outskirts of the city. Ace asked about the crew, about the Grand Line, and Luffy answered with his usual enthusiastic vagueness. Ace couldn't help but stare at Luffy. The scrawny kid he left behind was now a titan of muscle and power.
Whatever happened to you, Luffy... you're ready for the New World.
They reached the rocky cape.
"They should be here," Ace said, looking at the empty cove.
There was just water, rocks, and a few seagulls.
"Merry!" Luffy shouted. "We're here!"
Silence.
"Maybe they left?" Ace suggested.
"No way!" Luffy shook his head. "Ben said to hide the ship here. Merry must be here!"
Luffy walked right up to the water's edge. He stared directly at the spot where the Going Merry was docked.
But the Notice-Me-Not Charm Ben had cast was powerful.
To Luffy and Ace, the ship simply... registered as background noise. Their eyes slid off it. They looked through it.
"I don't see a ship," Ace said, looking straight at the mast. "Just rocks."
"Weird," Luffy frowned. "Maybe it's a mystery ship!"
Suddenly, a voice came from the sky.
"HEY! DOWN THERE!"
Ace and Luffy looked up.
Standing on top of a jagged rock formation, looking down at them was a long-nosed man.
Usopp.
"Usopp!" Luffy waved. "Where's the ship?"
"It's right in front of you, you blind rubber brain!" Usopp yelled. "Hold on!"
Usopp leaped off the cliff and landed gracefully in front of them.
"Grab my hand," Usopp commanded. "The ship is hidden by magic. You need a crew member to guide you in."
Luffy grabbed Usopp's left hand. Ace, looking skeptical, grabbed the right.
"Walk forward," Usopp said.
They took three steps.
A shimmer passed over their vision. It felt like walking through a soap bubble.
POP.
Suddenly, the empty water wasn't empty.
The Going Merry appeared out of thin air. But it wasn't just the ship.
It was the Giants.
Dorry and Brogy were sitting on the rocks, laughing. The ship looked fortified, sleek, and dangerous.
"Whoa!" Ace's jaw dropped. "That's a hell of a trick. And... are those giants?"
"Shishishi! Cool right?" Luffy pulled Ace toward the gangplank. "Come on! I want you to meet everyone!"
---
They boarded the ship. The deck was bustling.
Sanji was already in the kitchen, the smell of drinks wafting out. Zoro was napping against the mast. Nami was checking the Log Pose. Chopper was examining Merry, who was currently staring at a seagull.
"Guys!" Luffy shouted. "I brought Ace!"
The crew gathered around. They were wary at first—a Whitebeard Commander was a serious deal—but Ace bowed low.
"Hello," Ace said, his polite demeanor shocking them. "Thank you for taking care of my little brother. He's a handful, isn't he?"
"You have no idea," Nami sighed, but she smiled. "Would you like a drink?"
"I'd love one."
Sanji stepped out with a tray. "Iced coffee for the ladies, ale for the men, and a spicy grog for the Fire User."
"You know your stuff, Cook," Ace grinned, taking the glass.
Luffy grabbed Ace's arm. "Ace! Look at this! This is Merry!"
He pointed to the silver-skinned girl.
Ace blinked. "A kid?"
"I am the Klabautermann of the Going Merry," Merry said, curtsying perfectly. "Designation: Android Avatar. Nice to meet you, Brother of Captain."
Ace stared. He looked at the girl. He looked at the ship. He looked at Luffy.
"Your ship... is a person?"
"Ben made her a body!" Luffy explained. "Oh, right! Ben! You have to meet Ben! He's our Quarter master! He's a Wizard!"
"A Wizard," Ace repeated, taking a long drink. "Giants, a talking reindeer, a living ship, and a Wizard. Luffy... you really built a pirate crew."
"The best crew!" Luffy declared.
"Where is this Wizard?" Ace asked, looking around.
"He went to a meeting," Robin said, closing her book as she walked down from the upper deck. "He said he had to meet some friends."
Just then, footsteps echoed on the gangplank.
"Speaking of which," Ben's voice drifted up. "Permission to come aboard?"
Luffy leaned over the rail. "BEN!"
Ben walked up the ramp. He looked calm, dust on his coat, a small smile on his face.
"Hey, Cap. I see you found your brother."
"Yeah! Ace is here!"
"Good," Ben said, stepping onto the deck. "I brought some friends too. We're going to need all the help we can get."
Ben stepped aside.
Two figures walked up behind him.
First, Koala. She looked at the crew, impressed by the Giants.
And then... Sabo.
He walked up the ramp, his boots clicking on the wood. He adjusted his top hat. He held his pipe in one hand.
He looked up.
His eyes scanned the deck.
They landed on the man with the orange hat and the Whitebeard tattoo.
Ace was mid-laugh, holding his drink.
He felt eyes on him.
He turned.
Time stopped.
The sounds of the harbor faded away. The heat of the desert vanished.
Ace's cup slipped from his fingers.
Clatter.
It hit the deck, spilling grog everywhere.
Ace didn't move. He didn't breathe.
He stared at the ghost standing ten feet away. The blond hair. The scar. The top hat.
The brother who died in the explosion ten years ago.
Sabo stood there, his hand trembling slightly as he gripped his pipe. Memories—long forgotten and then violently returned—surged behind his eyes.
He smiled. A tear leaked out from under his goggles.
"Hey, Ace," Sabo's voice cracked, gentle and familiar. "It's been a while."
Luffy looked between them, confused. "Who's that?"
Ace took a shaky step forward. His legs felt like jelly.
"Sa..." Ace whispered, his voice barely audible. "Sabo?"
The world seemed to tilt. The impossible had happened.
Ben leaned against the mast, watching the reunion he had orchestrated, a satisfied smirk on his face.
"Told you it would be a surprise," Ben murmured to Merry.
Ace fell to his knees, his hands covering his mouth, tears streaming down his face as the ghost of his childhood walked forward to embrace him.