Although Luffy and the others ran fast, Smoker was closing in.
This was natural, because Smoker could turn his body into smoke and fly through the air, making him much faster than Luffy and the others running on the ground.
Just as Smoker was about to catch up, a ball of crimson flame flew in from the side of Luffy and the others.
When that scorching flame collided with the white smoke chasing Luffy and the others, an intense heat immediately radiated through the air, making it feel stiflingly hot.
After the thick white smoke and crimson flame dissipated, a man stood before Smoker. He wore an orange hat, had a Whitebeard skull-and-crossbones emblem on his bare back, and sported black hair. Flames danced and burned across his bare upper body, and small flames flickered at his fingertips as he pointed at Smoker. He said, "Stop right there. I won't let you go any further."
"So he's a Devil Fruit user too."
Zoro had glimpsed that flame-wreathed man before. At the time, he'd wondered why someone from the famously powerful Whitebeard Pirates had come to this city looking for Luffy.
Having been a bounty hunter in the past, Zoro could never mistake the Whitebeard skull emblem on that man's back. For many bounty hunters, that symbol was an untouchable taboo.
"Luffy, you haven't changed at all."
When the man who could freely control flames turned his head to speak to Luffy, Luffy immediately recognized him. The person who had blocked Smoker for them was the one who had grown up with him. He exclaimed joyfully, "Ace! It's Ace! Did you eat a Devil Fruit too?"
"Yeah. I ate the Flame-Flame Fruit."
Seeing more Marines gathering around, Ace quickly said to Luffy, "This isn't a good place to talk. You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up with you later. Leave these Marines to me."
Tom had thought Ace looked somewhat familiar when he first saw him, but before he could think more about it, Luffy shouted loudly, "Everyone run! Leave it to him!"
So after one more glance at Ace, Tom hurriedly ran off with Luffy and the others.
According to Vivi, after purchasing the necessary supplies in Nanohana, they would take a boat up the river into the island's interior, then cross a vast desert to reach an oasis called Yuba.
"Luffy, what's your relationship with that strong-looking Ace? Why is he helping us?"
The more Tom thought about it, the more he felt he had seen Ace somewhere before. He wanted to ask Luffy about their connection.
But strangely, Luffy, who had been beside him, didn't respond. Tom then realized Luffy had disappeared at some point. His jaw dropped in shock.
"Where did Luffy go?"
"Oh no! Luffy's missing!"
"How did this happen? He was just with us."
"How can he even get lost like that? Even Moss-head didn't get lost."
"What did you say, you Curly-brow?!"
"What should we do now?"
"Anyway, let's get back to the ship and get ready to set sail."
Tom, Usopp, Vivi, Sanji, Zoro, Chopper, and Nami quickly reached a decision.
Meanwhile, Smoker stared at the man blocking his path and asked with a dark expression, "I don't understand why you're helping Straw Hat."
"Having a troublesome little brother means an older brother always worries a little extra."
Ace's words surprised Smoker. He had never heard before that Luffy had a brother. Looking at Ace, he said deliberately, "Get out of my way, Portgas D. Ace!"
"I won't move!"
As Ace spoke, flames erupted from his body, even more intense than before. A wall of blazing fire stood in Smoker's path, its fierce red light making it hard for the surrounding Marines to keep their eyes open.
While Smoker and Ace fought in the street, Luffy sat in a small alleyway, looking left and right. He couldn't find Tom or the others anywhere. Arms crossed, head tilted in confusion, he said, "How strange. Why am I all alone? Where did they go?"
After a short while, Ace, having shaken off Smoker and his men, found Luffy still sitting on a barrel in the alleyway. "I can't believe you. I told you to escape, and it was pointless."
Luffy looked up to see Ace leaping down from a rooftop. The two brothers, who hadn't seen each other in a long time, smiled at each other. After exchanging only a few words, they started arm-wrestling on the barrel.
"Luffy, you're still as impulsive as when we were kids."
"So are you. Besides the shock of finding out you ate a Devil Fruit, you haven't changed at all. It's just like when you hid in the field after eating a hundred watermelons and spit the seeds out like a machine gun."
"That was you."
"I remember once you got this huge bump on your head."
"That was you too. I almost died laughing."
As Luffy and Ace arm-wrestled on the barrel, both their faces turned red from exertion, but neither could beat the other.
The barrel couldn't withstand their strength for long and soon broke apart, ending their match. They high-fived, their strong hands gripping each other tightly as they laughed together, "This brings back memories. Feels like it's been forever."
"Where are your crewmates?"
Ace took a canteen from his bag, took a drink, then tossed it to Luffy.
"I have no idea where they ran off to. Hahahaha!"
Luffy laughed carefreely, then asked Ace, "What are you doing in this country?"
Ace found Luffy's question strange. After talking for a bit, he realized Luffy had never received the message he left on Drum Island.
"I've joined the Whitebeard Pirates now. I was in the area handling some things and thought I'd see you."
Ace showed Luffy the emblem on his back. "See this mark? It's my pride."
Luffy looked at the Whitebeard skull emblem on Ace's back, took a few swigs from the canteen, and said nothing.
"Luffy, how about joining our crew? Your friends can come too, of course."
Ace smiled as he invited Luffy, only to be firmly rejected without hesitation. "No!"
Ace had already known what Luffy's answer would be. He pressed his hat down and laughed. "I knew you'd say that. But I think Whitebeard is the greatest pirate. I want that man to become Pirate King."
Ace was Luffy's brother, and he knew Luffy's dream was to become Pirate King, yet he still said those words to Luffy's face.
Luffy didn't mind. "That's fine. We'll just fight it out then."
"I'm going to become Pirate King!"
Luffy spoke those words that Ace had heard countless times since they were children. Now, meeting Luffy again, he said them once more.
Just as Ace had said, his little brother hadn't changed.
Ace asked Luffy if he knew where his ship was docked, but Luffy thought for a while and genuinely couldn't remember where the Going Merry was.
"What kind of people are your crewmates?"
Knowing Luffy's nature, Ace wasn't surprised he could remember he had a ship at all, let alone its location. He changed the subject.
"There's a hunter who wants to be the world's greatest. He's really reliable and an amazing fisherman. He's super interested in weird creatures. Today he got thrown around by a Sea Cat."
"There's a swordsman who wants to be the world's greatest swordsman. He wears a bellyband and always gets lost."
"Our navigator loves maps, oranges, and gold. Everyone on the ship owes her money."
"There's a cook who makes amazing food, but he acts really weird around women."
"Oh yeah, there's a big liar too. He's a coward when he's boasting, but when he stops lying, he becomes really brave."
"Then there's a reindeer who can change size. He's a monster with seven transformations. When people compliment him, he gets all happy and yells at them."
"Right now there's also a princess who always worries about everyone and a yellow duck on the ship."
"There was a kid who liked to draw, and whenever she painted on me, I'd do weird things, but she seems to have disappeared."
Luffy counted off on his fingers as he introduced his crew to Ace.
"What a diverse bunch. But a small crew like that definitely fits your style."
Ace felt Luffy's crewmates were all unique characters.
Just as Luffy was about to say more, a group of people rushed out from a nearby alley, all carrying guns or swords.
"Fire Fist Ace, we'll be taking your head."
"And Straw Hat Luffy, with his thirty-million Berry bounty, we're not letting you get away either."
"To run into both Fire Fist Ace and Straw Hat Luffy at once... our luck is incredible."
"That's right. Take them out, and we'll get promoted three ranks in the organization."
These people pointing weapons at Ace and Luffy were all Baroque Works agents. But Ace and Luffy ignored them completely, continuing to walk and talk about how they should head to the coast if they wanted to find the ship.
"You bastards! Stop right there!"
"Who do you think you are, looking down on us? Kill them now!"
The Baroque Works Billion-Fold agents couldn't tolerate being treated like they were invisible. Enraged, they charged at the two brothers with savage expressions.
On the Going Merry, Chopper asked Nami, "Is this okay? Luffy's not back yet, and we're already sailing away."
"The Marines will reach the port soon. We need to find a place to hide the ship first."
Nami explained to Chopper, speaking the truth. If they kept the ship docked where it was, Smoker would catch up soon.
"There's a small, inconspicuous river ahead. We can sail in there."
Vivi said to Nami.
"There's nothing we can do about it now. Luffy's always causing trouble. Getting separated like this... he's such a handful."
As soon as Tom said this, Nami and Vivi stared at him with exasperation, both thinking: You were the one separated the longest.
"Worrying won't help. Let's wait for the heat to die down before looking for Luffy."
Sanji remained calm.
"Seriously. Every time, it's because of him that we end up in these situations."
Usopp also complained about Luffy.
"Our captain really is unreliable."
Zoro, standing at the bow, still hadn't seen any sign of Luffy on shore. For once, he joined the complaints.
After waiting a while with no sign of Luffy, Tom asked Nami about Miss Goldenweek.
"She left us a note and slipped away quietly. She said she was going to find Mr. 3."
Nami handed Tom a small note as she spoke.
It turned out that when Mr. 3 had disembarked from the Going Merry, he'd spotted Mr. 3's candle-powered ship docked not far away. She had slipped Nami a note and snuck away.
Tom opened the note. There seemed to be writing on it, but the characters were like chicken scratch—impossible to decipher. He stared at it for a while but couldn't make out what Miss Goldenweek had written.
This little girl can draw so well, but her handwriting is atrocious.
As Tom thought this, Nami asked, "Can't read it?"
"You can?"
Tom retorted, thinking that if Nami could read this, she must be from another planet.
"Idiot. You're holding it upside down."
Nami reached over and flipped the paper around. On the back, Tom saw a cute paintbrush wearing a little red hat, with an arrow pointing to three broken candles. Below the paintbrush, above a stick figure holding a fishing rod, was another arrow pointing back to the paintbrush—and that arrow had pierced through a red heart.
Tom quickly understood. The paintbrush with the little red hat and cute smile was Miss Goldenweek. The three candles the arrow pointed to represented Mr. 3.
As for why the candles were broken, she was clearly expressing her worry for Mr. 3.
The stick figure holding the fishing rod was obviously Tom. But he couldn't figure out why the arrow pointing from that figure to the paintbrush had a heart pierced through it.
"Tell me... is this Cupid's arrow?"
Tom pulled Nami aside and whispered, pointing at the heart-pierced arrow in the drawing.
"Cupid's arrow?"
Nami blinked her bright, intelligent eyes, curious.
"You know, like with you and me. Swoosh, we both get shot, and then... you know..."
Tom's words confused Nami. Her lovely eyebrows twitched. "What are you talking about?"
"Are you saying if we get shot by an arrow, we die together?"
As soon as Nami said this, Tom's jaw nearly dropped, but before he could respond, she continued, "If we really face some big crisis in Alabasta... I'd want us to face it together."
After saying this, a faint blush crossed Nami's pretty face, quickly returning to normal.
Dressed in a dancer's outfit, Nami looked more vibrant and alluring than usual. The subtle shyness that had just appeared, though fleeting, was the kind of gentle, touching moment that left a deep impression.
Hearing her words and seeing that brief moment of shy charm, Tom's heart slowly calmed. For now, he set aside other thoughts and smiled at her. "You're really clever. You figured that out."
"Of course."
Nami playfully winked at Tom, two faint dimples appearing on her fair face.
What Nami had said earlier wasn't wrong either. If one day they really did end up together, wouldn't that be their final destination, just as Nami had put it—though she'd been rather blunt.
"Are you worried about that little girl?"
The ship sailed slowly forward. Tom and Nami stood at the railing, watching the vast yellow desert on shore, feeling an unexpected peace.
"A little. But this was her decision."
Tom had spent some time with Miss Goldenweek and knew the little girl was reasonable.
"I miss her too."
Tom found Nami's words strange. "Why do you feel that way?"
"If I'd known she was leaving, I wouldn't have given her pocket money for art supplies."
Nami flashed a bright, sunny smile. Her words left Tom speechless.
"Nami-san, Vivi-san, it's so hot out. I made you special drinks that will make your skin even smoother."
Sanji ran out of the kitchen, carrying two glasses of chilled drinks.
Just as Tom and the others headed to the kitchen to get some of Sanji's freshly made drinks, Zoro spotted Luffy on shore, waving at them. Behind him and Ace, a number of armed men were in pursuit.
Zoro had barely alerted Tom and the others when Luffy stretched his arm from the shore, grabbed the ship's railing, and came flying toward them at incredible speed, crashing straight into Sanji, who was asking Nami and Vivi if they wanted more refreshments. Chopper, beside Sanji, got caught in the chaos too.
Back on the ship, Luffy had just apologized to Sanji and Chopper for crashing into them when Sanji grabbed him by the collar, annoyed. "You never learn. Someone needs to teach you a lesson."
"Here we go."
Zoro sighed, covering his forehead with one hand. He'd expected this the moment he saw Luffy fly toward the ship like a rocket.
"That's right. Look at all the trouble you cause. Try acting like a captain for once."
Nami scolded Luffy seriously. Luffy obediently apologized. "Sorry."
Then Luffy remembered Ace hadn't boarded yet, but he wasn't worried. Ace was strong.
Luffy also told Tom and the others that Ace was his brother. Hearing this, everyone on the ship was stunned. They'd been sailing with Luffy for so long and had never heard him mention having a brother.
"Back before he ate the Flame-Flame Fruit, I never once beat him in a fight. Ace is really strong, so don't worry about him."
Luffy said to Tom and the others. "Ace is three years older than me, so he left home three years earlier."
"Wait. You never won against Ace when he was an ordinary person?"
Nami was shocked. Luffy had eaten a Devil Fruit as a child and become a rubber man. Logically, fighting an ordinary person his age, he should have won. Yet he'd never beaten Ace.
"A monster's brother is an even bigger monster."
Usopp stared at Luffy and spoke his thoughts plainly.
"That's right. I always lost to him."
Luffy leaned back against the ship's railing, speaking confidently. "But now... I could beat him."
After saying this, Luffy laughed proudly. Zoro was quick to cut him down. "That's not based on anything."
No sooner had Zoro spoken than someone leaped up from the sea behind Luffy, landing on the railing. "Who did you say you could beat?"
It was Ace. As his feet touched the railing, Luffy, leaning against it, was knocked to the deck.
"Ace! These are the crewmates I told you about!"
Seeing Ace, Luffy happily pointed at Tom and the others.
"Thank you all for looking after my little brother."
Still perched on the railing, Ace immediately bowed politely to Tom and the others.
Luffy's brother turned out to be such a well-mannered person. Caught off guard, they quickly returned the bow. "Not at all."
"He's a handful, isn't he? I'm sure he causes you trouble."
Ace, still on the railing, bowed again. "Please continue to look after him."
Tom and the others bowed once more. "It's only natural."
Sanji offered to have Ace come inside the cabin for some tea, letting the two brothers catch up properly after so long apart. But Ace declined, casually reaching out to light Sanji's cigarette from a distance.
Tom looked over the railing and spotted Ace's small yellow boat. He immediately remembered—this was the same boat that had knocked him flying earlier. "I get it now! You're the one who hit me while sailing without looking!"
"I did feel like I hit something back then. I didn't think it was Luffy's crewmate. Sorry for the trouble."
Hearing Tom's words, Ace recalled knocking someone flying while sailing and immediately bowed deeply in apology.
Tom had been about to say something, but with Ace being so sincere and polite, he felt awkward pressing the matter. Rubbing his head, he laughed, "Actually, it's nothing. You hitting me actually helped me out."
Nami and Vivi watched Tom, who moments ago had looked ready to fight, now thanking the man who knocked him flying. They exchanged puzzled glances, both thinking the same thing: This guy really is an idiot.
"But I'm surprised. I thought Luffy's brother would be more of a handful."
"Liar. Someone this sensible couldn't possibly be Luffy's brother."
"True. He's actually a good brother who cares about his sibling."
"Brotherly bonds are touching."
"Hard to believe. There's always something new on the Grand Line."
"I thought so too. I figured after hitting me, he'd be like Luffy—'How unlucky am I to get hit by you?' or 'You flew so far! I looked up and couldn't see where you landed.' Good thing he's not like that, or I'd have to hit him."
After getting to know Ace better, Usopp, Nami, Zoro, Chopper, Sanji, and Tom all reached the same conclusion: Ace was much easier to deal with than Luffy. At least Ace had manners.
Vivi, hearing them say such blunt things right in front of Luffy, looked embarrassed. "Aren't you being a bit too harsh...?"
"So? They're all interesting, aren't they? Hahahaha!"
Luffy didn't mind their comments at all, laughing as he spoke to Ace.
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T/N :
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