Another purpose

Message from the prodigy

Portgas D. Ace. One of their more recent "recruits" had a penchant for getting himself in trouble, although most of it stemmed from the fact that he was actively trying to kill Whitebeard. This would be his 68th attempt now? When he had first arrived on the ship, the hate and malice that smoldered behind his eyes tugged at his heart. It reminded him of the look he had gotten from Sasuke. It was not a good look on Sasuke's face and neither was it on Ace's. He would rather see a smile on his face and happiness in his eyes. He had gone out of his way to talk to him or bring him food or even smile at him when he passed him on deck. The others had noticed and left him to his devices to bring the wayward pirate around. He had even been given the unofficial duty of fishing Ace out of the sea.

He hopped off the side of the ship, diving into the water after Ace. He grabbed him before he sunk too far and quickly kicked to the surface, clambering onto the water's surface with Ace slung over his shoulders. Some of the crew watched over the side of the boat in mild interest as he walked back.

The shinobi was used to walking around on surfaces that made the crew at awe like walking on trees sideways, being upside down on a bridge, etc. The most interesting one is that he could walk on water with his chakra. Thatch was mostly amazing that the tricks Itachi had pull off of his hands.

"Wow! I didn't know you could that!" Exclaimed the 4th commander. "How could you do that? Was it some special ninja training or something?" Many other members of the crew shared similar sentiments and amazement at the ability clamoring to know just how he did it, even Whitebeard looked curious.

So, Itachi waved his hands to quiet everyone down and waited until all attention was on him, many leaning in eager to hear about this amazing ability.

With a small smile on his face, he said,

"It's a secret."

Quite a few people left an impression of their faces on the deck.

After that conversation, Itachi was walking up the side of the hull, Ace still slung over his shoulder, he asked, "When are you going to stop this? I do believe the very first failure should've proved more than enough that you can't put a scratch on Whitebeard."

"Shut up," Ace growled at him, "You know nothing of how I feel or what I want."

Reaching the deck of the ship, Itachi gently placed Ace down and sat down next to him. "Then what do you want? How do you feel?"

Ace deadpanned stare at Itachi as if he was interested on what's his mindset is on right now. "Why do you care? Isn't your job to just worry about your own crew?"

"But aren't you part of this crew?" Replied Itachi.

"No........Yes......I don't freaking know anymore! The old man just letting me join without any punishment after we fought. Like why? Wasn't he supposed to the Great Whitebeard that don't give mercy to his enemies? Why is he letting me join this crew?!"

"...Maybe he see you as a son like the rest of us."

Ace twitched at the fact that Itachi would say that. "BUT I DON'T DESERVE TO HAVE A FATHER!!"  Yelled Ace. Itachi's expression didn't change or get upset at that statement. "So what is your true father like?"asked Itachi.  "I've never met him but I heard stories about him. I...was born to a rather bastard of an...individual. He gave me this face. He gave me the dirty blood that runs through my veins. I blame him for the death of my mother. He's the reason she's dead. He's the reason for the ruin in my life. He took so much from me and he just fucked off and died without any care or any responsibility. And I absolutely despise him for it."

Ace's hand gripped his shorts, anger evident upon his face as well as the flames that flickered around his shoulders.

"Oh, so you're Gol D Roger's son. Is that correct?"

Ace's head whipped towards Itachi, surprise, hurt, and anger in his eyes.

"So what? What if I have that bastard's blood in me," he ground out, "You disgusted? That the blood of your precious captain's greatest rival flows through me?"

"Not really. As long you're just being who you are, what you want, it doesn't matter on what your father did."

Ace blinked in surprise at the statement, expecting something more aggressive.

Itachi continued, "I do not believe that the sins of one's father should be heaped upon those he brought into the world. A son is not responsible for the sins of his father. An old comrade of mine once said, 'Those who don't follow orders are trash. But those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash.' I can see that you truly care for your old crew and they love and respect you just as much. That is more than enough to lift you from this shadow that you have imposed on yourself. You are capable of so much more than you are making yourself out to be. Lashing out now is useless. If you really looked, you'd see that this crew is something else. Held together by bonds stronger than gold or promises. They're held together by love and it's all because of Whitebeard. Whitebeard's greatest treasure is his crew. His family. A lot of the crew calls him "Pops" because that is the role he fills in their lives. He is like a father, and they're all his sons and daughters. Give him a chance. I'm sure you won't regret it."

Stepping away from Ace's slumped form, Itachi waved, "Your secret is safe with me."

Ace seemed to have taken Itachi's words to heart. The attacks lessened overtime before stopping completely. He would come to the mess hall to eat instead of sulking. He smiled more and laughed and overall seemed to be adapting well to the crew. He was polite and more willing to talk with the crew members, even with some of the commanders.

Itachi smiled. He could see that Ace would be a great addition to the crew. More than likely, he would replace Doma as the 2nd division commander. He definitely had the power to do so.