[At this moment, Luffy cried like a child, tears streaming down instantly!]
[From setting sail until now, apart from Ace's demise, he had never experienced such profound sorrow...]
[He leaped onto Sabo's neck, clutching him tightly while shedding tears!]
[Luffy's cries echoed through the entire arena tunnel...]
[In this moment, he vocalized more than a decade's worth of suppressed thoughts, unwillingness, and grievances...]
[He initially believed Sabo was gone, Ace was gone, and only he remained, but now witnessing Sabo's reappearance...]
[Luffy finally grasped that he wasn't alone; he had an older brother...]
[Sabo, on the other hand, smiled, enduring Luffy's tight hold despite the tears and mucus covering him...]
[Because...]
[As an older brother, he, too, longed for his younger brother...]
As the scene unfolds...
The entire world was shocked once again!
Observing the image of Luffy crying like a child left countless spectators in awe...
From the tenth pinnacle battle to the ninth, eighth, and seventh...
Regardless of the enemy faced or the threats encountered, no matter the pain!
Luffy never shed a tear...
Furthermore, to cry with such intense sorrow now!
Could it be... is this person named Sabo crucial to him!?
Countless viewers were both stunned and puzzled simultaneously.
The image showed only Luffy, seeing Sabo in tears, with no dialogue between them.
Hence, the audience remained oblivious to the connection between Sabo and Luffy... Though some were aware of Sabo's true identity.
Upon witnessing Sabo in the picture, even those who knew Sabo as the second-in-command of the revolutionary army were bewildered.
This man... wasn't he the second-in-command of the revolutionary army?
Could he have some connection with Luffy?
Why did he reappear in the arena for the duel? Did he also seek the Devil Fruit?
Question after question surfaced in the minds of everyone.
Even those familiar with Sabo only recognized him as the second generation of the revolutionary army.
However, they were unaware of Sabo's additional identity...
He hailed from the windmill village!
And he was the brother of both Luffy and Ace!
While most of the world remained perplexed about Sabo's identity...
There were two individuals who could never forget...
Upon seeing Sabo's face, they froze instantaneously!
Tears welled up in their eyes, mirroring Luffy in the image, and a profound surge of emotions stirred within them!
And those two individuals were Luffy and Ace!
Whitebeard Pirates!
"Sa... Sabo."
Ace gazed at Sabo's figure in the image…
At that moment, his expression visibly stiffened, and his eyes widened to their full extent!
As if he had witnessed something utterly unbelievable...
Due to the overwhelming emotional turmoil, Ace's body trembled uncontrollably.
Tears gushed from his eyes instantaneously...
In this moment, Ace wept like a child! How closely did that expression resemble Luffy in the picture?
Observing this scene, Whitebeard, Marco, Vista, Jozu, and numerous other crew members gathered around, their concern evident.
"Ace, what's the matter?"
"What in the world is happening? Ace, why are you crying?"
"Could it be that the person in the picture is someone you know?"
"Speak up, Ace, what's wrong with you? Don't just cry without saying anything!"
"Yeah, you're really worrying us a lot..."
Under the collective care and inquiries, Ace managed to temporarily rein in his emotions.
Yet, his eyes remained red, tears lingering...
Eventually, when he glimpsed Sabo's figure in the image once more, he grinned.
A bright, joyful smile!
It was a smile that radiated sheer happiness!
Then, akin to introducing Luffy earlier, he proudly declared to everyone, "Sabo... is same as Luffy!"
"All my brothers..."
As soon as these words escaped Ace's lips!
The members of the Whitebeard Pirates were utterly shocked!
An endless chorus of "eh" echoed!
The second-in-command of the Revolutionary Army was Ace's younger brother!? How come he never mentioned it!
Naturally, the details of Sabo's death had always been a hidden secret within Ace's heart. Hence, he never disclosed it to the rest of the crew.
Had he not seen Sabo's face just now, he might never have realized that the second-in-command of the Revolutionary Army was actually his younger brother!
After all, he had only heard of Sabo's name and never laid eyes on the real person.
He had always assumed it was merely a shared name with his deceased brother, but now...
It turned out he had known about Sabo for a long time, unaware that he was still alive.
He hadn't realized that the Sabo of the Revolutionary Army was the same Sabo he held dear in his heart! At this moment, Ace's heart surged with excitement!
He couldn't wait to reunite with Sabo and Luffy, reminiscing about their childhood...
The smile on his face grew brighter and more radiant.
Increasingly gentle...
Ace gazed at the sky with teary eyes and murmured softly, "Sabo, I originally thought I would live your portion."
"But now it seems unnecessary..."
"The three of us will meet again someday!"
...
Water 7!
With Franky and others toiling day and night to construct the Thousand Sunny.
Almost all members of the Straw Hat Pirates were involved in the efforts...
Even if you can't help with shipbuilding, you can contribute by assisting with materials, pounding nails, or something of the sort.
After all, the abilities and strength of Robin, Chopper, and Franky are still quite useful. It's essential to shorten the construction period as much as possible, given that there are still comrades waiting to witness their own and others' salvation.
Everyone willingly put in the effort to work and help, with one notable exception—Luffy. Given his reputation as a king of sabotage and troublemaker, even if he wanted to help, no one dared to let him. They feared that the Thousand Sunny, painstakingly built, would be torn apart by him.
So, Luffy found himself bored and could only watch the live broadcast from the sky to pass the time. However, when he saw a figure crying in the picture, leaning on Sabo's neck like a child, he was taken aback.
He recognized Sabo's face in an instant. Despite the passage of years, Sabo had grown up. But the scars on his face, the familiar smile, the gentle tone, and the childhood memories were all there.
In Luffy's mind, Sabo's face reappeared.
"Sabo..."
Luffy was stunned, and his expression mirrored Ace's stiffness. He never imagined that Sabo was alive after all these years. Finally seeing him again brought tears to Luffy's eyes.
In the blink of an eye, he resembled the figure in the picture, crying like a child. Even the matter of whether Ace was alive or not was momentarily forgotten. Luffy kept wiping his tears and chanting Sabo's name.
His body trembled with sobs.
Watching this scene, Nami, Sanji, Yamaji, and the others were puzzled. Though they were also following the sky broadcast, they didn't know the exact relationship between Sabo and Luffy. When Luffy burst into tears upon seeing the picture, they were still trying to understand the situation.
However, in the next moment, Luffy in the real world also burst into tears. His cries were so loud that nearly the entire dock could hear it. Everyone stopped their work and rushed over.
"Luffy, what's wrong with you?"
Despite the concern from his crewmates, Luffy paid no attention. He continued crying like a child, wiping tears away.
After crying for an unknown amount of time, he spoke with a trembling voice.
"Sabo, Sabo is still alive... to see him alive makes me so happy! Sabo is just like Ace... both are my brothers!"
"Wow..."
Upon hearing these words, Sanji, Nami, and the others exclaimed. The reaction was akin to when Marco and the Whitebeard Pirates learned that Ace had a younger brother named Sabo. They never thought Luffy had an older brother aside from Ace.
This brother, as it turns out, is the second-in-command of the Revolutionary Army!
The shock of this revelation was no less than when they learned that Vice Admiral Garp is Luffy's grandfather, the Revolutionary Army's leader is Luffy's father, and so on.
As everyone was absorbing this shocking news, they suddenly realized that their captain's background, from his father and grandfather down to his two brothers, was outrageously formidable.
**********
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