ASL and the Whitebeard Pirates|| A One Piece Fanfiction

Dawn Island

Shanks gripped the hilt of his sword as his pupils shook with shock. "Luffy?"

Luffy teared up as he smiled broadly, jumping off Whitebeard's chair with ease and running up to the pirate, before skidding to a stop, his sandals making a tapping noise against the wooden planks as he jumped from foot to foot impatiently.

"Hi Shanks! I can't give you your straw hat back, I still haven't become a great pirate yet!" said Luffy with a frown as he clenched the rim of the hat, the straw slightly scratching the young boy's fingers.

"Luffy..." whispered Shanks as he felt tears run down his cheeks. "Heh, of course you're not a great pirate yet!"

Luffy wiped his eyes vigorously before jumping into Shank's arms, the man clenching onto the young boy's vest. "Oh god, I thought you were..."

Luffy pushed Shanks away with a bright smile. "I was what?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it. I see you had quite the adventure, didn't you?"

"Yeah! I met these really cool pirates, giant banana moustache old man, pineapple head, bread head, and that guy who looks like a girl!"

Each one of the mentioned pirates clenched their hearts, their pride shattered to pieces.

Shanks chuckled lowly, patting Luffy's head before letting the boy down onto the ground. "Whitebeard."

"Hah, is this how you kids greet each other nowadays, hah, red-haired brat," said Whitebeard in response to Shanks's acknowledgment. Shanks nodded in the direction of Garp, the marine digging his nails into his palms at finally seeing who had corrupted his grandson and forced him to follow these futile dreams of becoming a pirate instead of a marine. Ace breathed out before taking a few steps toward Shanks.

The pirate looked on with interest as his crew stepped off their ship, the sails were lowered and a rope tied to the dock. Ace stopped right in front of the man, gazing up at him. Suddenly, Ace bowed low, his gaze fixated towards the ground.

"Thank you for taking care of my little brother," Ace said. Shanks whistled, surprised, yet happily so. Sabo rushed to Ace's side and also bowed. "Thank you!"

"Raise your heads," Shanks said with a smile, placing a hand on both of their heads. "I want you to take care of him from now on."

Ace and Sabo glanced at the great pirate standing before them, eyes filled with awe. "Yes sir!"

Luffy giggled as he clutched Marco's ankle. "You have good brothers - yoi."

"They're the absolute best!" agreed Luffy, brushing his fingers against his straw hat.

Shanks ruffled the boys' heads, grinning widely. "Oi, Marco, join my crew!" the pirate said as he pointed a finger at the commander. Marco grit his teeth, biting back a snarl. "Never - yoi."

"Eh, worth a shot," said Shanks with a shrug. Benn Beckman exhaled, releasing a cloud of smoke as he stepped onto dry land. The rest of the crew quickly followed as Shanks neared Whitebeard.

"Looks like you've got a story to tell, brat," Whitebeard said as he leaned back in his chair. More like throne. A gloomy aura seemed to surround the crew, Shanks sat down on the ground, accepting an offered cup of sake. "Tell this story with me, won't you?" asked Shanks as he glanced towards the brothers. Ace sighed as he sat beside Shanks, firmly driving his pipe into the dirt. Sabo laid down his hat in front of him as Luffy squeezed himself between the two.

"Come to think of it, how did they end up in that barrel anyway? What were they doing?" muttered Thatch to Izo. The 16th division commander merely gripped his gun, attention pinned on the emperor and brothers. "We'll see."