The girl who was persecuted for so long, tortured to ever exist in the cruel world, and labeled by the world government as a devil, had for the first time unraveled her emotions to an enemy
'I shouldn't do this but...' to her it felt so right to cry the sorrow of what has been 'life' and she was now freed from Crocodile by this pirate who showed her terror (At first) and comfort, real comfort that could of only be a dream to her
"Robin, feel better?" The archeologist let the final tear soak his cardigan and released him
"Thank you strawhat"
"Please call me Luffy" the king then talked "So this does read about the ancient weapon Pluto?" Robin began to discuss the matter more and started a short debacle but to Luffy it sparked in him a memory about how destructive he remembered the weapon's fire was.
Flashback:
Rampaging through, the monster had finally taken the trap following Nami throught the tunnels "ODA IN MANGA! That thing is faster than Kizaru!" Buggy shouted in desperation
Nami remained silent while Buggy, Foxy, Law, and Kid where key factors to detain the beast from using long range attacks "Almost done cat- and-mouse maze! over" Kid reported to the ex-marines on the end of the tunnel
"Just keep running!" They reported back "Noro Noro beam!" Foxy yelled and hit the flying berzerker that slowed down yet still it's momentum was flawless "My attacks are worthless! He won't slow down enough!"
"I can't cut him either so just run it" Law told Foxy as the light was a meter away
"Give..me....THAT BI-" Nami fell down backwards to face the monstrous Luffy who could of bitten her head off clean until Franky fired the charging shot of the ancient weapon
"FIRE!" The gun shot him point blank and splattered Luffy's blood on everyone present including Nami who was drenched in his darken blood, he was sent back full mach speed into the tunnel
"AAAARRRRGGGGHHH!!!"
-End of flashback.
"Luffy are you okay?" The king asked the zonked out pirate
The pirate captain shuttered mentally to forget that memory, the singing heat and explosion just blew him away. He forgot about it to answer the king
"Yeah just thinking- Oi Robin!" She turned to him "You have no where to go am I right?" He looked at her, she nodded in a sulen matter
"Then why not join me!" He said cheerily as he has thought the best idea in the whole history of mankind. Robin stared at Luffy confused
This man was the wierdest guy she had ever met. Honestly she had never thought someone like him existed
She had many doubts "Why do you act around me so happy, like if you knew me? I was your enemy moments ago but now you ask me to join you!? What do you see in me?" She asked a little ticked off, confusion in her blue eyes
Luffy did a short pout, that fixed itself into a smile "I see a great person who carries the weight of the world on her shoulders. Alone" Robin listened to him in awe at how good he was at reading her and stood up from the depressive lean she was on the poneglyph
Luffy snickered at her "I like you and would really like to know you more, plus I would feel like a dick if I let you alone" he said still smiling
The former agent gasped and in a faint blush (microscopic) anyone could tell that Robin developed a little spark by seeing the smiling Luffy
'I like you- I like you- I like you' she was left speechless and her heartbeat jumped a beat after that sentenced repeated itself a thousand times in her head. Someone cared for her. She had wanted this for so long. There was someone in this world that cared for her, but why!?
"I- I don't know what to say-...I am a burden. Many people want me dead...not to mention your crew and-"
"Say yes!" Luffy shouted in her face which almost make her slump down to the ground by a mysterious feeling that weaken her legs
She got weaker in her negative resolve "...I could be a great liability. I have bad...omens following me...are..are you-"
"I couldn't care less! Come on and let's catch our dreams while having adventures on the grand line! Are you in it to win it!?" He boasted now excited to hear her answer
Robin felt relief at his words and her shadow of indifference crumbled "Okay, I join you captain-san"
"You're supposed to say Luffy!" She chuckled with a very lovely tone that Luffy recognized as the Robin whom he rescued from CP9 and a dear friend, a nakama that he challenged the world to get back
"Yosh! Hear me out. Now I will let you go and I want you to.." Luffy was a tricky one this time around. He told her a secret plan to secure her stay in the strawhats which even she giggled to hear a very thought out plan even though he has shown the complete opposite. Like that, she headed to the accorded plan
Luffy got back to his room in the brim of the night and once inside he was tackled to the ground where the weaker strawhats hugged him
"Luffy where were you all day? You missed lunch!"
"OH MY ODA! Well it was for a good reason" Luffy yawned and sat to his bunk, Zoro picked on the chat and joined in
"Did you go to that Miss All Sunday woman?"
"Yep, I rescued king Cobra and found out about a poneglyph" all of them didn't know what he was talking about, making Luffy feel irritated
"Oh yeah! I'll explain later in the morning." They all stared in annoyance to have to wait on a possibly valuable piece of info
"Oh and she escaped-"
All of them twisted their necks "SHE WWAHT!!" Luffy laughed seeing their reactions. His crew was a funny bunch when told surprises
"If she's out there she could be planning revenge or-" Usopp became paranoic now watching both his sides in succesion "KILL US IN OUR SLEEP!" Chopper panicked with eyes almost sticking out of their sockets
"~I would love to die by a beautiful woman's hands!~" Sanji murmured in a dumb tone
"To finally stop the suffering of thou swirly face♡" Zoro mocked and was almost hit by a pillow
"Don't start Sanji!" Nami warned but they were all interrupted By Luffy "Shishishi don't worry about her guys, I scared her with my Gear Fourth so don't expect her to come near us"
"You scared her to what point?" Zoro asked in a serious tone
"Well I almost made her a red oasis on the desert or something among those lines..." he laughed picturing the scene and Sanji wanted to rip his spine out "YOU BASTARD! A LADY SHOULD BE-" Nami threw him a pillow to his face
"Shut up I need to sleep!"
"~Okay Nami-Swan!~" he made out. they all wanted to sleep really bad as today was an exhausting day from saving the country and blah blah bla blah yet Luffy still needed their attention to do something else
"Not just yet, I need to talk to someone I know you all heard of... a very important person and I want all of you to hear the call" the strawhats sighed or had no idea what he was talking about, seeing their captain go to a closet to pick out a snail phone, they got interested including the cook
They started to form a circle around the phone with Zoro on Luffy's right side and Nami in his left laying still on her bed
"Remember to stay quiet even if it gets-" Luffy dialed a number on the snail and began to beep "-Dangerous"
They heard the beeping then a voice picked up "Whitebeard's Mody Dick, who's this yoi?" The strawhats were amazed to hear that name right off the bad
'Whitebeard' that name alone made Usopp and Nami turn white while Chopper's eyes sparkled in stars
"This is Monkey D. Luffy and I want to speak to Whitebeard, First division commander Marco the phoenix" Sanji and Zoro grinned to meet via the snail a legend of the Whitebeard pirates
"So you're Ace's little brother huh?" Luffy smiled "Yeah!"
"He gave you this number as well I guess... going back to the matter at hand he's sleeping in but I'll wake him up" at this Nami gripped Luffy's right arm in a panicked state
"Are you crazy! He's asleep! YOU CAN'T-" she was cut off when Marco began screaming
"OI POPS! SOMEONE WANTS TO SPEAK TO YOU" the strawhats sweat dropped
"*Yawn* If it's that red-haired again, I'll beat that brat PERSONALLY all over the New World!" Luffy chuckled, Zoro flexed now that he heard the voice of Whitebeard or A.K.A. the strongest man in the world, Sanji bit his bottom lip, Nami and Usopp grew purple in their faces hearing the voice of a powerful pirate leagues beyond them
'Were so dead!' They repeated in a shared thought, and Chopper could not stop glorifying his captain's bravery
"No, it's Ace's brother"
"HEY OLD MAN!" Nami punched Luffy into the concrete floor while Usopp knew Whitebeard heard that
"Give it Marco"
Luffy recomposed himself and heard the Yonko
"Mugiwara no Luffy am I right brat? Why are you calling so late or do you wanna be one of my sons?" Sanji dropped his cigarette and Zoro grinned at such random offer. Its like he was part of the family already yeez..
'Luffy would never accept even if hell dragged him' he thought, Usopp was making signs to tell Luffy to accept and Nami did the same while Chopper stared in a silent manner
"No sorry, the pirate king can't have a captain!"
The weak trio almost fainted from fear of what could happened at that response
"Gurararara! A cheeky brat heh? Well then speak your business" Whitebeard announced in his booming voice and revived the shocked weak duo
"My brother Ace is on the hunt on a so-called Blackbeard, he killed one of your commanders and he sees it his responsibility to find that bastard. I tried to stop him and even I fought him... I just can't..He would still go after him even as I told him how powerful the guy is" The strawhats remained quiet as the strongest man spoke
"Brat, Ace wants to take that scum out and there's nothing I can do to stop him, have faith in h-" the pirate began to ramble and soon followed with a speech Luffy found ludicrous
He had it with the tips "Did my brother tell you how my older brother died! I SAW A ODADAMNED DREAM BEFORE THAT HAPPENED.. I don't want to see Ace's death in the news. Don't kill one of your commanders" he rapidly said cutting off Whitebeard. The strawhats cringed in Luffy's loud scream to Whitebeard who took it in disrespect to his second Commander's ability
This clearly pissed him off and a slam could be heard "Enough! You have no power over him like I can't stop him, he's a stubborn son and takes responsibility over his division" Luffy held the responder quite hard and his nakama backed away a step except for Zoro.
"You're a hundred years too early to tell me what to do punk!"
That comment pissed Luffy off even more. To hell his 100 years "What happens if Ace gets captured or even worse KILLED!? HUH!? If either of the two happens I swear I'll beat YOUR ASS ALL OVER WHEN I FIND YOU!" Luffy yelled in determination and Chopper almost fainted in amazement while Usopp cringed and Nami almost had a heart attack
Whitebeard hated his guts but held respect to such cockyness "You snot nose brat! You have a deal!"
Zoro grinned at Luffy's future fight and Sanji was now tensing up a little "Now don't call back and just like that red-haired you come and face me brat!"
Luffy yelled an okay, hanged up and grew desperate now that he had fears to redo his nightmare and worst of all was Ace still could be captured and killed, his nakama noticed his solemn despair
"Are you okay?" Nami asked
'If I fail Ace again...If he dies...'
The navigator felt the negative mood Luffy had and just felt that she needed to comfort him
Zoro and Sanji whoever felt a very different emotion out of him
Luffy was gurggling a bile from his throat. He felt his chest on fire and slowly he tugged on his chest
It felt like... Fire
"Luffy, are you-" the navigator repeated seeing him rub his chest
She placed a hand on his shoulder and immediately janked it off in a short scream, backing away from his captain "Kyaaa! He's boiling!" She screetched, shocked that her hand was burned a little red from a mere touch, her fingers red of the exposure
The strawhats then looked back at their captain and noticed that he was steaming
In a turn of the worst the captain knelt down and began to wimper in a silent pain. It was fire
"Oi Luffy you alright!?!? LUFFY-" Nami walked to him until Luffy shouted in pain
"UGGHH..AAAAAAHHH!" Nami jumped away as he was consumed by fire, fire that emanated from his chest that Usopp and Zoro went to grab water while Chopper went heavy point and Sanji tried to turn down the fire by grabbing a carpet to put out the flames
"ODA! How did he burst into flames!"
"DON'T BREATHE IN LUFFY!!" Chopper repeated and before Zoro and Usopp would splash him down with a water bucket, he moved Sanji out of the way to tear his cardigan
"MOVE!" Luffy shouted and threw his shirt away, the fires slowly fading
Chopper reverted into his brain point then Nami went to grab him in her arms still shocked to see her captain envolved in spontaneous flames, Zoro said something but was interrupted by a barging Vivi
"What happened!?" She asked in doubt of what was happening here.
"Respect the royal palace peace you-" Igaram was silenced by the princess who notice the smell of burnt cloth and Luffy panting on the floor without his cardigan or strawhat
"Luffy-san! What's wr--
Oh my....god"
Vivi and Nami held their mouths closed with trembling hands seeing the pirate turn around to reveal a horrendous scar, an echo of the past that came back for revenge visible as light of day
"What the heLL IS THAT!?" Usopp freaked out and Chopper was horrified
"Doctor! Doctor! Oh yeah that's me" he ran to him to examine the burn only to be stopped by Luffy with a palm that pushed him tenderly to a halt
"NO! stay back just in case... this is just a scar-" Luffy said in slight disgust touching it to feel it still heat sharp
"JUST A SCAR! IT ALMOST ENGULFS YOUR WHOLE CHEST!!!" Nami yelled at him mad at how stupid he was being But Luffy ignored her still examining the ressurected mark of Akainu 'Nonono this shit can't be here! Dammit!' He traced it and feared he would burst again into flames
"Luffy, that thing looks serious and your skin just fired itself, let Cho-" Zoro said but Luffy stopped him with a glare
"Leave me be... Nami keep my hat and for the rest just ignore this until tomorrow" Luffy ordered. He needed time to think
"Oi shitty bastard! This is serious and could be life threatning, you are going to-"
"I said SHUT UP! THIS IS NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT DAMMIT!" everyone remained silent to abstain from being reprimanded. It was a bad idea to call Whitebeard completely
The strawhats were left there standing, afraid of even saying a word
"I'm going outside, tomorrow we talk about this" he left them speechless to what to do or how they could help him but Luffy was in no mood to talk, enraged to see the horrible burn of Akainu's magma scar.
A mark of a curse that seemed to be alive