17 - Encounter in Alabasta: Reunion with Another Foolish Brother
After a couple of days, they arrived in Alabasta's maritime zone.
—Aah… it's so hot… —Chopper muttered as he lay on the floor of the marine ship.
—Are you okay, little Chopper? —Tashigi asked while handing him a glass of cold water.
—Ah, thanks —Chopper replied cheerfully as he took the glass.
—Such a weakling —Kara commented, looking at him mockingly.
—K-Kara?! —Chopper exclaimed, not recognizing her immediately and getting scared by her appearance.
—Why are you dressed like that? —Smoker asked, observing Kara, who was completely covered in a cloak that only left her eyes visible.
—Obviously, I don't want to get sunburned —Kara replied as if it were the most normal thing in the world—. By the way, Hina should be nearby. Why don't we join her? —she asked, turning to Smoker.
—No need. We'll just wait for Straw Hat to arrive, and then we'll leave —Smoker responded calmly.
—Tsk. How boring —Kara said in annoyance.
After that, they saw the vast sandy island, and the ship approached the dock where they could disembark.
—Well, I guess this is where we part ways —Kara said as she stepped off the ship and began walking.
Before she could take more than a few steps, Smoker grabbed her by the cloak.
—Where do you think you're going? Sengoku told me to keep an eye on you so you wouldn't try to attack Crocodile without reason —Smoker said, irritated.
—Of course, I wouldn't attack someone without reason. I just want to take a walk —Kara responded while adjusting her cloak, revealing her face. Then, in a quiet voice with a hidden smile, she added—: If they give me a reason, though, I definitely will.
—No… —Before Smoker could reject her idea, Kara jumped and disappeared in front of him.
—See you later. Take care of Zoro and Chopper —Kara said as she moved at high speed through the sky before vanishing.
—Tsk. That woman… —Smoker muttered, annoyed as he watched her disappear—. Let's find a place to set up base and wait —he ordered quickly.
—So, what should I do first? Beat up Crocodile or drain him of all his money? —Kara murmured as she strolled through the town—. Though first, I need to figure out where he is —she added, realizing that she couldn't sense him nearby while scanning the area with her Observation Haki.
—Mmm… I found someone familiar —she whispered with a smile before increasing her speed toward the entrance of a restaurant.
Meanwhile, inside…
—Sir, give me another one of these —said a young man, whose table was already filled with empty plates.
—Coming right up! —the chef replied with a grin, pleased to see the amount of food the young man had consumed.
Suddenly, he witnessed the young man face-plant into his food as if nothing had happened.
—Hey, kid! Are you alright? —he asked quickly. When he received no response, he approached in alarm.
—What happened? —the customers around started asking.
—Could he have just… died?
—No way…
—I heard about a desert fruit that causes sudden death… Could he have eaten it?
—Poor guy, and he looks so young…
—You're scaring people, you idiot —Kara said, appearing behind the young man and smacking him on the head.
—Miss! You can't just hit a dea— AAAAH! —the chef screamed as he saw Kara strike the supposed corpse. However, his shock grew even more when the young man sat up, rubbing his head.
—That hurt, Kara… It's even worse than the old man's punches —the young man complained, massaging the spot where he had just been hit.
—Hey, Ace —Kara greeted with a smile as she sat down next to him.
—By the way, what's up with that outfit? —Ace asked, noticing that his sister was completely covered.
—I don't like getting tanned —Kara replied nonchalantly as she motioned for the waiter to serve her something.
—But we're inside, so the sun won't get to you, right? —Ace said, continuing to eat normally, as if this wasn't the first time he had reunited with his sister after a long time, but rather as if he had just gone out to buy something and come back.
—True —Kara admitted, removing her cloak. Her beauty left everyone in the restaurant a little stunned, but neither Ace nor Kara paid any attention to the gawking bystanders as they continued their conversation.
—By the way, what are you doing here? —Kara asked while eating.
—I was about to ask the same thing. Aren't you supposed to be punished in Marineford? —Ace said with a teasing look—. The old man will come looking for you soon, right? Hahaha.
—Of course not. This time, I have permission to be out —Kara responded calmly—. And you? Why are you outside the New World?
—I heard about a guy who betrayed Whitebeard, and one of his commanders is chasing him, so I want to take the chance to capture them both —Ace explained, sharing his plans.
Kara sighed.
—Whitebeard again… Didn't you learn from last time? —she said, looking at him intently.
—Of course not. I need to avenge Thatch —Ace replied seriously.
After Kara appeared in the brothers' lives to annoy them and take on the role of their older sister, she had also learned about their dreams.
While Luffy's dream was something she couldn't make him reconsider, Ace's was different. Ace wanted to make a name for himself on the seas and prove that he was worth something, but he never said that he necessarily had to be a pirate.
That's why Kara had told him that his dream was great, but if he hated his father, Gol D. Roger, so much, why not start hunting the pirates his father had set loose on the seas, the ones who had caused so much harm?
Not only would he make a name for himself, but he would also prove that he was better than his father by cleaning up the mess he had left behind.
Ace eventually came around to the idea and decided to become a bounty hunter since joining the Marines was impossible—especially if they discovered who his father was. After all, all the women and children from his home island were supposed to have been executed to prevent his birth.
Thanks to Garp and Kara, working with the Marines was easy. He hunted down powerful pirates and made a name for himself as the best bounty hunter, especially thanks to the Devil Fruit Kara had secured for him, which made him even stronger.
At the same time, Kara had taken down a Shichibukai who enjoyed killing innocent people. Now, with two vacant Warlord positions, she had been given the task of finding a replacement as punishment. Though, in reality, she had her own reasons for wanting that man gone.
Without thinking too much about it, she went to find Ace to convince him to become a Shichibukai. It was better to have him in that position than another disgusting pirate. Besides, she took advantage of the fact that a Marine named Isuka was in love with him to tease him—and because, deep down, she didn't want Ace to become a pirate. Her disdain for them was too great.
Reluctantly, Ace accepted the position and then headed to the New World.
The problem arose when he captured one of Whitebeard's commanders along with the bounty hunters of the Spade unit, which he led. As they were handing him over to the Marines, Whitebeard's pirates immediately appeared to rescue him, willing to kill everyone present if necessary.
Isuka was taken hostage in exchange for the prisoner, leaving them no choice but to let him go.
Some time later, that same pirate returned seeking revenge with an even larger group. However, he failed in his attempt and was defeated. But before losing, he murdered one of Ace's comrades right in front of him, laughing as he warned that if Ace killed him, Whitebeard would hunt him to the ends of the earth.
Blinded by rage, Ace tried to end him. Fortunately, Kara had been sent as backup and arrived just in time to stop him. Without hesitation, she executed the pirate herself in front of all his comrades and then let one escape with a message for Whitebeard.
That way, all the emperor's fury would fall upon her. This was also one of the reasons why Sengoku didn't want to send her to the New World. Not because he feared she would be defeated, but because it was highly likely she would end up provoking a war against Whitebeard, and at that moment, the Marines couldn't afford to disrupt the balance by facing a Yonko.
Kara, of course, was more than excited about the idea. But this time, she had to obey, as the lives of hundreds of soldiers were at stake.
Ace, for his part, felt guilty. He knew his sister detested killing, and yet he had forced her to do it. Since then, he stopped pursuing Whitebeard's pirates for a while. However, if any dared to enter Paradise, he would be the first to go after them.
This completely severed any possible connection between Ace and Whitebeard—something Kara was somewhat grateful for.
On the other hand, Ace had been protecting Dressrosa from the start under Kara's orders. She had become good friends with Princess Scarlett after shipwrecking in the kingdom while testing whether her Marine vessel could withstand a storm.
Thus, Ace also served as a barrier against Doflamingo, who was negotiating his position as a Shichibukai at the time and became one around the same time as Ace.
If Kara wanted to defeat him, she needed solid evidence. She knew perfectly well that he had once been a corrupt dog of the World Government.
But at the very least, by leaving Ace to protect Dressrosa, she ensured that Doflamingo would think twice before attacking. And when he finally had the guts to do so, Kara captured Vergo before going after him directly.
That was a couple of years ago.
The Government had no chance to rescue Doffy, as Kara executed him on the spot while publicly revealing his alias as Joker and all his crimes.
—Actually, it's better to let them fight and not interfere —Kara said, calmly recalling everything.
—Why? —Ace asked, disliking the idea.
—That guy, Blackbeard, is stronger than he looks. But thanks to him, a war against Whitebeard will break out —Kara replied with a smile.
—War? Are you sure? —he asked quickly, a bit excited. If a war between Whitebeard and the Marines broke out, as a Shichibukai, it was obvious he'd be called to fight.
—Of course. He survived a full-force attack from me. The one they sent after him doesn't stand a chance —Kara said.
—Really? But if I capture him, wouldn't it be the same? —Ace insisted, unconvinced.
—No. It's different. If two pirates kill each other, you don't have to put in any effort —Kara replied calmly. Since arriving in this world, she had understood the true nature of pirates. They weren't like Luffy, who just sought adventure. They were all real pirates.
—By the way, which commander came? —he asked with interest.
—Vista, of the Flower Swords —Ace replied.
—Well, do what you want, but don't put yourself in danger. Isuka will cry —Kara said as she stood up and moved slightly to the side.
Ace looked at her in confusion.
—Why…?
Just as he was about to ask something, he was struck in the back and sent flying.
—----------------------------
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