The deck of Moby Dick was full of food and wine with over 1600 crew members, all of whom are the children of the strongest man in the world, Whitebeard.
Everyone was congratulating Ace for becoming the 2nd division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates.
After a year, 100 assassination attempts and defeats at the hands of Whitebeard, Ace finally joined the Whitebeard Pirates and found a family and a man he could look up to, admire, and respect. One who accepted him and one he could truly call a father.
In the following year, Ace had not only shown great strength but also honor and loyalty, gaining the friendship and respect of both the Whitebeard Pirates and all their allies.
His strength and charm even brought many other New World pirates under the banner of Whitebeard, convincing everyone that Ace was the one they had been waiting for, one who could fill the shoes of the previous 2nd division commander, Kozuki Oden.
"From this day forward, Ace will be our second division commander!!!" Marco said, holding up a big glass of sake, followed by other shouts and cheers.
Ace looked astonished by the love they showed him. He was still having a hard time understanding how all these people could care for him.
Marco suddenly came over and put his arm around him. "Don't look so dazed, buddy, you're the star, so eat." Marco showed giant meat to Ace, and with that, he started chowing down everything he could get his hands on. Even chewing down the bones on meat and chugging down all kinds of sake.
Everyone was laughing before joining in eating and drinking when suddenly a kid with a straw hat stepped forward, walking up to Ace, who had not noticed anything.
"You know, this isn't fair... if you were going to join a crew, you should have just joined me. I would even have made you vice-captain," the boy in the straw hat said, causing everyone to look at him in surprise, but Ace was choking on a piece of meat when he heard the voice.
"Agh...ufhh...afqd..." Ace tried to speak, but he could not make out a word. Marco was about to intervene when the boy hit Ace hard on his back, causing him to throw up a giant bone he was choking on.
Ace coughed a little before looking back and staring at the boy in the straw hat.
"LUFFY!!!!" Ace shouted out, his eyes almost popping out before grabbing his collar. "LUFFY, WHY ARE YOU HERE, HOW ARE YOU HERE, WHAT WHAT...."
Ace was too shocked to be able to formulate a proper sentence, and everyone was looking at them in confusion.
"Shishishishi, good to see you again, big brother, how've you been?" Luffy asked with his infamous D grin.
"How... I... been? No, no, no, no, this cannot be possible, how the hell did you get here?!?! You're even supposed to set off before another year!!" Ace exclaimed, still unable to process his little brother just appearing here out of nowhere.
Whitebeard, who had been watching the scene unfold with amusement, finally spoke up, his deep voice booming. "So, this is the famous brother of yours, Ace? The one who aims to be Pirate King?"
Ace nodded, still holding onto Luffy's collar. "Yes, Pops. This is my little brother, Monkey D. Luffy. But he's not supposed to be here yet!"
"It's nice to meet you, Whitey," Luffy said with a small bow after removing Ace's hands from his collar, which sent another shock through Ace at his brother's strength.
Luffy looked up at Whitebeard and with a sly smirk. "You know, old man, you really need to work on your security on the ship. I arrived here last night, and if I was an enemy, I could have killed everyone on board."
The entire crew fell silent, jaws dropping at Luffy's boldness. Whitebeard's laughter broke the tension, echoing across the deck. "Gurararara! You've got guts, boy. I like that. But don't underestimate my crew. They knew you were here the whole time."
Luffy's eyes widened in surprise. "Really? Wow, you guys are good!"
Ace facepalmed again, a mixture of relief and exasperation washing over him. "Luffy, you can't just sneak onto pirate ships! This isn't a game!"
Luffy just laughed. "I know, but I missed you, Ace! And I wanted to see what kind of crew you'd joined."
Marco, still chuckling, shook his head. "Well, he's certainly something, Ace. You've got an interesting brother."
Ace sighed, feeling a mix of pride and frustration. "Yeah, he sure is... BUT WAIT, this still does not explain how you got on the ship?!?!" Ace exclaimed again, causing Luffy to raise an eyebrow and smirk while pointing a finger up in the sky.
"I flew, of course," Luffy said like it was the most casual thing ever.
"FLEW?!?!" everyone said in shock.
"Yeah, how else? Do you think I swam?" Luffy asked while keeping his D grin.
Ace blinked, trying to process this. "Flew? But... how?"
"With my devil fruit, of course, Ace. Are you feeling alright? You're not sick, right?" Luffy asked with amusement before turning towards Whitebeard. "Hey, Whitey, you been feeding my brother well, right? He gets delirious when he doesn't get his 13 meals a day."
Whitebeard let out another hearty laugh. "Gurararara! Don't worry, boy, we've been keeping him well-fed."
"Wait, didn't you say your brother has a regular Paramecia rubber fruit? How does he fly?" Thatch then asked, as everyone now looked at Ace.
"He does... I mean..." Ace tried to figure it out himself before Luffy cut him off.
"That's right, I am a rubber man," Luffy said while stretching his cheek to show.
"But then how did you fly?" this time Marco asked more seriously as he was realizing there was more to this kid.
Now everyone was looking at Luffy interested, even Whitebeard. Luffy just smiled.
"It's not really that complicated," Luffy started. "Yes, I am rubber, but rubber has two major properties. One is to stretch, and the second one is to contract."
Luffy showed them his fist and contracted it so it came smaller before releasing it, sending a small shockwave up in the sky.
"When it's contracted and then released, the force generated by it combined with a regular punch or kick is multiplied several times," Luffy explained, while Ace was having an aneurysm, not understanding how his brother even knew how to use such big words. Everyone else listened silently, surprised and amazed at how he could use a simple rubber fruit to such an extent.
"By using this technique continuously contracting, combined with government technique of Geppo to be able to move on air, I can fly with exceptional speed, almost even matching the light bulb Kizaru."
"So, you're saying you use the elasticity of your rubber body to generate force and propel yourself through the air?" Marco asked, his expression a mix of fascination and disbelief.
Luffy nodded enthusiastically. "Exactly! It's all about using the properties of my Devil Fruit creatively."
Whitebeard stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Impressive, boy. You've certainly mastered your abilities."
Whitebeard was truly amazed by this young brat, even holding back his urge to give him proper discipline for calling him Whitey.
Whitebeard then looked over at Ace, remembering him often talking about his brother, but every time making him sound like an idiot monkey. But now, faced with him, he didn't just show ingenuous understanding of his devil fruit, but he was far from the fool he had his brother believe.
The most surprising thing was that he could feel his haki leaking out, but somehow the boy managed to repress it. Such talent at such age even far surpassed the one of Ace.
With those thoughts going through Whitebeard's mind, a sudden grin appeared on his face. "Gurararara, hey brat, become my son and turn the world upside down with your brother."
Luffy's eyes widened in surprise at Whitebeard's unexpected offer. "Me? Your son?" he repeated, incredulous.
Whitebeard nodded, his grin widening. "That's right, boy. Join my crew officially, bear my mark, and together with your brother, we'll shake the foundations of the world!"
The entire deck fell silent, all eyes on Luffy as he processed the proposition. Ace held his breath, waiting for Luffy's response, unsure of what his impulsive brother would do.
"Sorry, Whitey, I don't think that would work out," Luffy said, causing surprise and disappointment among the crew.
"Wait, Luffy, you should really think about it. I know you want to be the Pirate King, but you're young. You're not even meant to set sail for another year. Why not join first and..." Ace tried to convince Luffy to change his mind when Luffy suddenly raised his hand to stop Ace.
"It's not that, brother," Luffy said, everyone narrowing their eyes on him, waiting to hear his explanation.
"It's just not a good idea for the strong to serve the weak."
Luffy's words hit the crew like a cannonball, leaving them momentarily stunned. Even Whitebeard seemed taken aback, his eyebrows shooting up with an amused but also tired expression.
"You... you are just like your brother... you think you are stronger than Pops as well?" Marco stammered, his expression a mix of disbelief and amusement.
Luffy scratched the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. "Well, I didn't say I was stronger... just that it's not a good idea for the strong to serve the weak."
Ace couldn't help but chuckle at Luffy's audacity. "Yeah, I mean, look at him," he said, gesturing towards Whitebeard. "He's got muscles on his muscles. And that mustache? It's like a symbol of power!"
Whitebeard let out a hearty laugh, his booming voice echoing across the deck. "Gurararara! You've got quite the mouth on you, boy!"
"Yes, but unlike my brother, it's not born in arrogance of believing I can challenge the king because of a little devil fruit." Before anyone could say more, Luffy released a massive amount of Conqueror's Haki directed towards Whitebeard, who instinctively released his own.
The clash of Conqueror's Haki sent a massive shockwave around the entire ship, cracks forming on the deck, and several hundreds fainting while those who remained had their eyes widened more than ever before.
The clash continued as they both increased the intensity. As the sky started to divide and many more dropped on deck while some barely able to hold on.
After a few moments, the clash slowly died down, only a few dozen remained standing while Ace was on his knees looking in awe at his brother.
"My apologies, Whitebeard, it seems like I am the weak one after all."