The Return Of Joyboy!

Chapter 24

Slowly every one was getting up and was given a glass of hangover medicine making them feel better. But Sabo was worried about Luffy. The power which he had used doesn't seem good. It clearly was taking a toll on his body, even with the half-transformation. The raging seas were the best sign of it.

His work here was over, so, he could join them. Sabo walked past the Whitebeard pirates who also seem to waking up and tending to their injured. Whitebeard seemed to look at him but Sabo didn't mind. He just needs to go for Ace and Luffy. Whitebeard won't break the truce, if he is even a little ounce of what he is been portrayed as.

Once on the shore, he saw Ace sitting on the shore, with his legs close to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. He placed a hand on his shoulder, making Ace look at him.

"How is he?" Sabo asked, looking at the sea where but there were no signs of Luffy. He wanted to take a dip in the ocean to check on the boy, but he couldn't leave Ace right now. Moreover, from the face of Ace, he is blaming himself.

They are to be blamed. They had known that pouncing on Whitebeard, even if they hadn't seen any chance to get a hit on him, was a bad idea. But they couldn't help it.

"Not came out still," Ace said in a low voice. Ace was fearing that the sea won't return her son to them anymore. All 'cause they had injured him. What if the sea really doesn't give them Luffy back? Ace would never forgive himself. Luffy is the little sunshine in his life! He can't lose him. He doesn't know what he will do, but sure, he will crumble if something happened to Luffy or even Sabo.

"He will come soon," Sabo said sitting beside him. After some more silence, Sabo spoke again. "What was that transformation?"

They had seen Luffy's eyes shifting to fiery golden and red sometimes during some of their missions, but they would always take that as a fluke of sunshine shining on his eyes. But today's transformation was no doubt real!

The fact that the name Luffy had told them about his devil fruit was nowhere in any devil fruit books was more of a mystery. But they knew it was a mythical zoan and other than that they didn't know a thing.

"Don't know," Ace mumbled looking at the shore. The water started gurgling, making Ace and Sabo go stiff and pay attention to it. After an agonizing moment, a black mop of hair poked from the water, followed by the pair of brown doe eyes, making the brothers smile widely.

"Luffy!" The brothers said together, grinning in happiness. The said boy soon came out completely from the water.

"Ace! Sabo!" He threw themself on the boys and was hugged by his brothers. Ace and Sabo looked gratefully at the sea and did a full ninety-degree bow.

"Thank you!" They said together, before ruffling Luffy's hair, making the boy giggle.

"Don't scare us that way," Ace said looking at Luffy, who blinked in confusion.

"Huh?" The boy was confused. "What do you mean Ace?"

Ace scowled a little. "The way you fell limp, don't do that again. It scared us." The boy was blinking in confusion again but just shrugged it off. The last he remembered was of fighting with the Birdie and then everything was blank. He doesn't remember what happened, and when he asked his mother, she said that later he will understand, not now. He just accepted that.

"Okay!" Luffy gave his wide D grin at his brothers, who chuckled at him.

"Here," Sabo handed Luffy his cloak and a spare mask. Luffy pouted a little but wore it and kept the mask in his pocket.

"Let's party!!!" The boy said running off in the direction of the beach where everyone was.

"Cyra!!!" Ace shouted while Sabo chuckled at the childish behavior, which his brother was back to.