Warm Memories and Brotherly Bonds

Chapter 53: Goodbye Ace... my brother

R.I.P Portgas D. Ace

("Ace, may your soul be eternal. Your brave soul will always be with us.")

It was a blaze of victory as the Straw Hats stared in amazement and bafflement at what had just happened. It just sent everything they thought they knew at what happened at Marineford crashing down around them. It made no sense, no sense to any of them at all. But at that brief moment, not a one of them cared as it finally fully sunk in what just happened.

"Luffy... he... he saved him!" Chopper gasped before his eyes turned bright and he yelled, "HE DID IT! HE SAVED ACE AFTER ALL!"

"I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!" Usopp shouted as tears of happiness fell from his eyes and he was hugging Brook just as Franky grabbed them both from behind and swept them up into his arms in a massive Bear Hug. "AFTER ALL THE HELL HE WENT THROUGH, HE DID IT IN THE END! HE FOUGHT AGAINST THE WHOLE GOVERNMENT, SPITTING RIGHT IN THEIR FACES AND SWIPED THEIR PRISONER OUT FROM UNDER THEIR NOSES.

"OH, LUFFY-SAN!" Brook sobbed out joyfully, "I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU!" He then added to Franky, "Franky-san... you're crushing my lungs! Ah! Not that I have lungs anymore, Yohohoho!"

Nami was also laughing happily, her own heart soaring at the sight of it all, seeing this—after everything—made it all feel like it had just been a bad dream. Sanji clapped loudly and chortled as Franky twirled around them with Brook and Usopp still in his arms, looking close to dancing.

Robin was smiling as well, enjoying the hug that Chopper was giving her as he leaped around her legs. But what hurt the most was that she just couldn't bring herself to break the happy mood by reminding them all what was bound to happen.

Zoro was the only one who wasn't smiling, and yet there was an air of pride hanging around him as he watched the scene. Like Robin, he just couldn't speak up and try to tell them that something was seriously wrong here. He felt his own insides roar with approval when he saw the three of them in Ace's protective flames. But it didn't make any sense to him... Luffy did what he set out to do and saved his brother at long last. They got him back and all they had to do was run from this place... so how could it have possibly gone so horribly wrong?

He thought hard to remember all that he knew about the end of the war...

From what he heard from Mihawk and the papers was that Whitebeard and Ace both died on that battlefield... and according to Mihawk, with Luffy seeing his brother's death before he managed to escape...? Just what happened?

The Whitebeard Pirates and their allies were all cheering in joy at the sight of seeing Ace free from those chains while the Marines stared up in horror and stunned disbelief. And at last, Zoro couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter when he saw their stupefied expressions... they couldn't have looked more stunned at what they were seeing...

Luffy just had that effect on people.

"Fire-Fist Ace... is... IS FREE!" the Marines all cried out in shock.

"HELL YA!" Franky roared out cheerfully, finally dropping his two crewmates and struck a pose as Brook, Usopp, and Chopper all cheered together, jumping up and down as if they were at some kind of party.

"YEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" the Whitebeard Pirates all screamed out, some of them dancing for joy.

"Straw Hat Luffy really did it!"

"He's set Ace free!"

Ace stretched out a hand to grab Luffy by his shirt and held onto him as they flew through the fire, with Luffy sure to hold onto Mr. 3, who seemed to have been in such a state of surprise that he had become somewhat cationic... if not fainting right away.