Old Adventures: Meeting Whitebeard
"W-We're gonna meet Whitebeard?" Irin stuttered, glancing at the three men in front of her.
"Yeah! I'm sure he'll like you-yoi!" Marco replied with a smile.
The pink haired girl masked her nervousness with a smile and tried to pretend that meeting the infamous Whitebeard did not scare her at all, when it actually did. Ace silently observed her, he knew her well enough to know that she was nervous. This part of her did not change, she used to be nervous meeting new people too because of her shy nature but she would always overcome her shyness and deal with it bravely.
"Do I need to bring a gift for him?" Irin whispered to Ace, leaning towards the freckled man and shielding her mouth with her palm while she walked beside him.
"Huh? What for?" Ace quirked a brow.
"Y'know, as an offering... Something like that..." she glanced at him with a worried look.
Ace had the word 'confused' written all over his face, "What?"
"Tsk! I mean... It's basic respect to bring someone a gift when paying them a visit! Especially when meeting such an important figure like Whitebeard!" she whispered sharply as her face contorted into a slight glare. Irin was sort of growing agitated, she was nervous and she did not know what to do nor did anyone give her any hints as to how she should act when meeting such an important person.
The freckled man held back a laugh as he looked at his best friend, "Irin... What kind of basic respect is that? You don't have to bring a gift or anything, just bring yourself and that'd be enough."
Irin still remained nervous, "But-"
"Oi! What are you two doing at the back there-yoi?! We're already almost at the ship and you two lovebirds are still all the way at the back-yoi!" Marco yelled at them from ahead. He and Thatch were already nearing the ship while the two were slowly walking at the back.
"We're coming!" Ace replied as he started to jog towards them but was stopped by Irin, "Wait! You still haven't told me what I'm supposed to do!" she whisper-yelled as she held onto his hand.
Ace looked at her hand on his, taking it into his hand and smiling at her, "Just be you," he said as he released her hand, dashing off towards Marco and Thatch.
"How am I supposed to be me when everyone seems to not like me being me?" she mumbled to herself frustratingly before chasing after Ace.
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The ship that laid in front of her was huge and absolutely stunning, majestic even. It had a whale figurehead which Irin found adorable, "Woahh..."
"Beautiful, isn't she?" Thatch grinned, glancing at Irin from the side.
She awed at the magnificent ship that laid before her, "She truly is..."
"Not as beautiful as you though," Thatch said as he took Irin's hand into his and planted a kiss on her soft hands.
Irin turned red and steam started puffing out of her ears, never in her 17 years of living had anyone she knew complimented her that way. Well, of course there were many men along the way who had asked for her hand in marriage but she never thought much of them because she didn't know them so she just thought that they were pulling a prank on her or something. Either way, she disregarded compliments from men she didn't know because she thought they weren't sincere.
"Y-You're t-too k-k-kind, Thatch-san... T-There's no way..."she stuttered as an awkward smile stuck to her face, she had no idea how to react.
Thatch smiled at her and was about to tell her once more that she was beautiful but was interrupted by none other than Portgas D. Ace.
"Oi oi! I said keep your hands off her, Thatch!" he scolded as he stood in front of Irin protectively. The two started arguing again, like how they did back in the bar and Irin remained behind Ace while trying to collect her thoughts.
Her hands were clasped on her cheeks as she tried to cool her bright red face, her world was spinning from what had just happened. 'Mama always said to say thank you whenever anyone gave me anything and that includes compliments right? Right?!' she thought to herself.
She emerged from behind Ace's protective stance and looked at the pompadour man, "T-Thank you, Thatch-san... It means a lot to me..." she thanked as she tried to maintain eye contact with him but failed. Pink dusted Thatch's face, "No problem, just stating what's true!" he smiled genuinely.
"Gah! Irin!" Ace exclaimed as he watched the scene unfold with disgust and an annoyed feeling growing inside of him.
Thatch smirked at Ace, "What can I say, Ace? Guess I just know the way into a woman's heart~" he teased.
"Tsk! Let's just go!" he huffed, pissed off from the situation that was laid out in front of him. The freckled man walked ahead of them and headed onto the ship with irritation radiating off him.
Marco, who had already gone on the ship much before the others to inform Pop's about a certain Vice Admiral's arrival, stood aboard the ship as he called out to them, "You guys are taking forever! C'mon we can't keep Pops waiting, now can we?"
At the mention of that, Irin immediately started to grow nervous again. She bit her bottom lip as she looked ahead at the massive ship that stood before her. The pinkette trailed slowly behind the two men, Ace was already far ahead while Thatch was just slightly in front of her.
She took her first steps onto the ship and looked around, there were so many men. Irin gulped, fearing that she might end up doing something wrong and making everyone hate her. She tensed up, it was like she had been thrown in a lion's den. There were so many stares, so many eyes looking at her. So many whispers as she walked deeper into the ship and there were also many whistles as she continued walking. Her face didn't show much emotion, just a slight pout from her over worrying which can only be spotted if people looked at her closely.
Ace could tell she was worried, he turned his head slightly, looking at her from his peripheral vision as he continued walking ahead. He knew her well enough to tell what she was feeling despite her amazing ability to mask her emotions.
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An extremely large person sat before Irin's eyes, her mouth slightly agape, 'Is this what the Strongest Man in the world looks like?' she wondered as she silently admired the man in front of her. She heard stories of him and read about him in many news articles and now he's right in front of her!
"Pops! Remember the best friend I was telling you about?" Ace waved at Whitebeard excitedly, he couldn't wait to introduce Irin to his father. Sure, he was worried about her but he trusted her enough to know that she wouldn't do anything stupid. Well, about that...
"Gurarara! I told you to gather supplies, Ace, not bring back a girlfriend" Whitebeard laughed as he noticed the girl behind his freckled son.
He had a slightly strange laugh Irin noted but dismissed it. She quickly tried to compose her whole introduction in her head.
"What?! No! This is my best friend that I told you about, Irin!" Ace introduced, "I'll never get myself into a relationship, you know that!"
"So he really doesn't swing that way huh?" Thatch whispered to Marco.
"I heard that!"
Ace glared at the two men who couldn't stop making fun of him then continued with his introduction for Irin, "Anyways, Pops! This is Irin!" He held his hand out towards the girl, indicating for her to introduce herself.
"Oh er..." Irin immediately stood straight with her hands on her sides like she was singing the national anthem, "Greetings, miGHTY-"
"I'M SORRY GIMME A SECOND WITH HER!" Ace yelled, excusing himself and Irin after he punched her on her head. He pulled her by the hand and dragged her towards his private quarters, leaving the whole crew with wide eyes as they watched the whole incident.
Ace closed his room door softly and then turned around to face her quickly, "What are you doing?! Which part of 'just be yourself' did you not understand?!" he whisper-yelled. Irin avoided his gaze and apologised, "I'm sorry... I just-"
"What's wrong, Irin? What happened when you were away?" Ace asked, worried about his best friend as he tried to meet her eyes.
She forced a smile onto her face and looked at him, "It's nothing! Let's go-"
Ace frowned, "No! We're not going until you tell me what's wrong! Just spit it out!" He held her by her shoulders and looked at her with worry in his eyes.
"Nothing's wrong!" her voice wavered for a second before she forced another one of her smiles on, "Let's just go, Ace... We can't keep Whitebeard-san waiting!" Before she stepped out of the room Ace grabbed ahold of her hand, "Please tell me what's wrong later, okay?" he asked, this time with a gentler tone.
No matter how many times that Irin said that nothing was wrong he knew that she wasn't.
Irin frowned a little then smiled at him, nodding at him and agreeing to spill the beans later.
The two stepped out of the room and headed back to the main deck where everyone else was at, "Sorry about that! Just had to sort out some things with my friend here!" he half-heartedly apologised as he slung his arm around Irin's shoulders, pulling her close.
"Eh? Oh... Yeah... I'm sorry about that, Ace's friends..." she lied as she stuck her lips out towards the side, clearly unable to hide the fact that she was lying. She may be a master at masking her emotions but one thing she could never do was lie about things like this. Ace's face contorted into one that showed much annoyance as he looked at his friend execute her horrible lying skills.
He slapped his hat onto her face to cover up her face that spoke the truth, Irin yelped as the hat came in contact with her face. She lifted the hat from her face and it rested atop her head, glaring at the freckled man. She, for one, thought she lied very well.
"Just be yourself, Irin..." Ace whispered as he pushed her forward. Her introduction was long overdue, she took a deep breath and put her priorities in line.
"Hello Whitebeard-san, I-I'm Irin, Ace's childhood friend... I just want to thank you and everyone here who has looked out for Ace, he's a lot to handle sometimes but please continue to look after him!" she bowed, just like she did when she first met Marco and Thatch.
Ace mentally screamed while his face remained calm with an unsuspecting smile.
Everyone was silent for a while as they processed every single word that Irin had just said. "Gurarara! You've got a good head on your shoulders, young lady! Whitebeard laughed, "Irin, was it? Why don't you become my daughter!"
Irin stood in shock, that was the last thing she had expected the infamous Whitebeard to say. To be his daughter? She hasn't even uttered the word 'Father' in over a decade!
She smiled gratefully as she looked at Whitebeard, "I would love to but I can't... Because if I become your daughter I wouldn't be able to do the one thing I swore I would do," she said, "But... Thank you for the offer... It reminded me of what having a family was like..."
Whitebeard looked at the girl, trying to figure out what she meant, "And what is it that you swore to do, young lady?" he asked, raising his brow.
"To protect those I love..." she replied, unaware that she let her true self slip through, "I'm not strong enough in strength to protect those I love but I can compensate for that through the influence I've achieved... It's not much but.. It's better than strength and violence," she grinned.
Realising that she had just given a whole speech when nobody asked for it, Irin immediately shot up, "Oh no! I'm sorry for blabbing so much!" she apologised as she bowed, "I'm sorry for rejecting your offer, Whitebeard-san!"
"Gurarara! You're an interesting girl! It's a shame you can't be my daughter, but what is this influence that you speak of?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell ya! Irin-chan right here is a Navy Vice Admiral-yoi!"
And right at that mention, many men from the Whitebeard Pirates tensed up and held onto their weapons. They all glared at the girl with an intent to kill if she made any moves on them. The tension was thick on the Moby Dick as everyone tightened their grips on their weapons.
"Oi oi! Stand down, you idiots! She means no harm-yoi!"
"Stand down! That's my best friend!"
"Stop it, guys! Don't even think about harming Irin-chan!"
Marco, Ace and Thatch scolded their crewmates and their respective subordinates, telling them to stand down.
Irin observed the situation then bowed to the Whitebeard Pirates, "I understand that as a Marine you guys would see me as a danger to your lives but right now I'm here as Irin and I know it's a bit much to ask but I would like to get along with all of you!"
Everyone stared at the Navy Vice Admiral in shock. A Marine bowing to a group of pirates? This was certainly unprecedented...
"See, I told you Pops! She's so interesting-yoi!" Marco exclaimed as he watched the girl in amusement.
"Gurarara! Sons stop it, the girl means no harm!" he ordered, Whitebeard then looked at Irin, "Kid, are you sure you don't want to be my daughter? I can tell you're not weak so why do you insist on declining my offer?"
Irin looked at Whitebeard, she didn't expect that he would ask so much about her, "The problem with our world is that not all pirates are bad but they're all treated as criminals regardless by the World Government. What better way than to fix the problem from the inside? And also, my job allows me to protect good people like Ace through my authority and influence... I would be able to protect pirates who have done nothing wrong through the name of justice, it's a win-win for me," she explained.
"To take down the World Government huh? Aren't you ambitious, Gurarara!" Whitebeard laughed.
"Take down the World Government? That would be nice... But no... I think the day when the World Government falls is the day when everyone realises how broken the system is and how the World Government isn't as righteous as it preaches to be," she smiled slightly as she looked at Whitebeard, "I don't plan to take down the World Government... That is the choice people make when the truth is known... I just need the influence and the ability to show people the truth, that's all... The one who stands at the top decides what 'Justice' is but I don't need to be at the very top, just high enough to make the truth be known."
Whitebeard leaned forward to look at the girl, squinting at her. He then burst out laughing, "Gurarara! What truth do you know, young lady? The existence of the One Piece?" he laughed.
"I don't have to know about the existence of the One Piece to know that the World Government is hiding something... I work under them... I've seen the deeds they have committed... I've studied about the incidents they tried to cover up..." she smiled sadly, "I don't know the mysteries of the world, just like how I don't know what the 'D' in my name stands for, but one thing I know for sure is that the World Government is afraid of someone discovering the bones they've hid under their beds..."
Ace looked at his captain and his best friend, switching his view back and forth, "Bones? The World Government has a bed and they keep bones there?"
"It's a metaphor, Ace..." Irin sweatdropped as she whispered to him.
"Young lady, you have a 'D' in your name?" Whitebeard asked, cocking a brow.
Irin nodded, "Yes, my name is Ryuu D. Irin..."
"Hm? Ryuu D.?" Whitebeard then burst into laughter, "Gurarara! So you're that brat's daughter! Gurararara! Gurararara!"
Irin stared at Whitebeard with an extremely awkward smile, her mouth was agape as her brow twitched, "That brat...?"
"Your old man's name is Ijun, right? Ryuu D. Ijun, right?" Whitebeard asked as he downed a bowl of sake.
This had shocked Irin completely, she had not heard that name in a long time... Ryuu D. Ijun... That was the name of her father whom she has not seen in 12 years... She was completely and utterly speechless, she just stared at Whitebeard with wide eyes.
Drinking another bowl of sake, Whitebeard laughed, "Judging by your expression, you must be his daughter... That brat was one hell of a bounty hunter but I heard he's leading the Revolutionary Army with Dragon these days..."
"H-He's the same Ijun as the Ijun from the Revolutionary Army?" she asked, shocked at the information she was given.
Ace then stifled a laugh, "Pfft! You didn't know?? Pops told us about the dude when we saw him on News Coo and you couldn't even put two and two together?" he teased, making fun of the girl's stupidity.
Irin glared at Ace and smacked his head, "Shut up,"
The freckled man cleared his throat then immediately stopped laughing, Irin raised a brow, 'No snarky comebacks?'
"Gurarara! What an interesting girl! I like ya! It really is such a shame that you can't join us but will you still be my daughter? You're a good one and it'd be nice to have a daughter after having so many sons!" Whitebeard offered. It was an offer he rarely gave out but he saw potential in the girl.
Everyone was shocked by Whitebeard's offer to the Navy Vice Admiral.
"Eh?! Pops we get to keep her?" Thatch asked excitedly.
"Keep her?! She's not a pet!" Ace scolded, but was secretly extremely excited.
"Oi oi! Calm down-yoi!" Marco held the two back, "We still have to hear what Irin-chan has to say about this-yoi..."
Now all eyes were on the pink haired girl, she gulped feeling all the stares. In truth, she would love to quit her job to become a pirate... She liked adventures after all but she had a duty and that was to protect her loved ones... When Whitebeard offered her to be his daughter she was beyond happy. She was finally accepted and, not only that, she was invited with open arms into a family.
She couldn't accept the first offer that he made but the second offer he made almost made her tear up. "I-I'd love to be your daughter... P-Pops!" she stuttered as she accepted his offer, following her heart for once.
There was a brief silence until Whitebeard laughed proudly, "Gurarara! Welcome to the family, daughter!"
At that moment Irin could almost cry from the pain of cheeks from smiling too much. Pink dusted her cheeks as she smiled the brightest she had smiled in a while.
"Alright! To celebrate our new family member, Irin-chan! We're having a banquet-yoi!" Marco announced.
It was slightly into the evening and the night had barely begun...
A/N: hello?!?! WE'RE AT 670 ALREADY?! THAT'S HONESTLY SO AMAZING! THANK YOU SO MUCH!! it's good to know all the reads aren't just me rereading my story for any grammatical errors HAHAHAHAH
anyways, feel free to leave comments/ suggestions/ feedbacks and do vote on my story, it means a lot to me!
once again, thank you for reading and i hope you liked this week's chapter! <3