Zoro and Sanji had faced hunters and beasts, but nothing had prepared them for the sheer terror of a four-year-old Luffy waking up, mild-meltdown, in Zoro's arms.
Luffy had barely taken two nibbles of food. Barely even swallowed it. And yet his little lungs were capable of unleashing hell.
Zoro, who had been holding the little hot bundle that had curled under the warmth of the new blanket, which the duo had managed to secure, like a kitten seeking warmth and shelter against Zoro's chest, had blinked when he felt movement. The tiniest twitch of fingers curling into the hem of his jacket, pulling it slightly, and squirming uneasily with his lashes fluttering against his pale cheeks.
"Oi," Zoro muttered, crouching beside the wall of the secluded path, with Sanji hovering over them both. "He's waking up."
The slight groan that followed the tiniest tremble, the softest whimpers, the scrunch of the nose, and the twitch of the brow turned into hiccups, before—
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"
The sound that erupted from tiny Luffy's throat was so loud, so feral, so full of pain and heartbreaking that both grown men couldn't help but flinch.
Zoro even nearly dropped baby Luffy, flinching like he'd just been smacked in the face with his eardrums ringing worse than any hellish shriek he had ever heard. "WHAT THE HELL?!"
"FOR THE LOVE OF—SHUT HIM UP!" Sanji cried, shouting together with Zoro and Luffy in panic, shoving the food back into the pocket and reaching over.
"I DON'T KNOW HOW!" Zoro yelled back, already bouncing the toddler awkwardly in his arms, his expression torn in a mix of horror and new trauma.
Luffy was screaming. Not wailing—but screaming his lungs out. His sobs were cracking his throat, raw and broken. It seemed like the wail of a kid who didn't understand what was happening to his body, who didn't recognize his pain, who only knew it hurt and he didn't want it to. His little legs were thrashing weakly, as if trying to escape, his mouth open wide with those soul-shattering sobs, and his little hands curled in fists against Zoro's chest, clutching with all force, wishing for the pain to go away.
Tears were flooding Luffy's little round eyes—those same wide, brilliant ones that shone like the sun itself, but now red rimmed and shimmering like shattered glass. His face was flushed a soft pink from crying, only for his pale skin to look even more sickly and ghostlike against it.
Zoro stood paralyzed for half a second, holding his baby captain in his arms in a complete loss. "Wh-What do I do with him?!"
"Rock him! Pat him! Do something!" Sanji snapped, looking equally pained as Luffy wailed louder and louder with each passing second.
"I'm a swordsman! Not a nanny!" Zoro barked.
"Well congratulations, you're both now!" Sanji deadpanned, reaching to try and help, only for little Luffy to grasp onto Zoro harder and scream louder.
Zoro tried. He really did try his best. Patting Luffy's back softly through the blanket but with completely uncoordinated taps that might have helped with choking, but did nothing for the shrieking. He even awkwardly but earnestly bounced on his heels, causing Luffy to jolt up and down like a poorly constructed bobblehead, making him cry harder.
"Zoro, you absolute moron! Why the hell are you shaking him that way?!" Sanji didn't want to see more. He really didn't want to see Zoro's pathetic attempts to get Luffy quiet. It wasn't working at all!
"I am improvising, dammit!" Zoro argued, giving all his attention back to the wailing child.
Sanji tch-ed, kneeled down, and tried to shush Luffy with a gentle tone. "Luffy, buddy, it's okay. Sanji-nii's here, yeah? You're okay. You're not alone." He was coaxing, trying to even offer a piece of mashed soft meatball he had made earlier.
But little Luffy slapped it away with a wail, hiccupping harder. And that one hurt Sanji, making him physically recoil at the blatant rejection. "..L-Luffy?"
"Don't freaking make that face, cook!!" Zoro cried, seeing Sanji look heartbroken, more than the number of times he had been rejected by women, more than the time when last he felt useless when Luffy was sick.
"B-But this is worse than the last t-time.." Sanji's voice wavered, his eyes fixated on Luffy's little thrashing form and the meatball lying near his feet.
"Do something, Sanji! Dammit. It's not time for that, swirlly-brows!" Zoro didn't want to handle Sanji on top of the wailing Luffy, whose sobs continued unabated, with his little body seemingly convulsing with each heaving breath.
Chaos was what it was. Even if Zoro was able to get Sanji to get his grips and dance around, making faces, pulling weirdly shaped food out of his pocket once again, trying to coo nonsense like, "Luffy-chwan~ you hungry~?" "Luffy-chwan~ you wanna play~?" While Zoro was bouncing him with the grace of a man who'd only seen babies from a distance, panicking and completely unknown in the field.
It was a mess. A mess of wails. A mess of frantic voices overlapping each other in an orchestra of panic.
And yet somehow, no marines showed up. None of them came out to hear the wails of little Luffy, absolutely tearing down the eardrums of anyone near him.
Because the winds had eaten the noise. Smothered it. Protected it. They were howling louder than Luffy's sobs. Whipping and twisting around the corridor like a barrier, circling them, rustling the leaves, and groaning through the cracks of the fortress. Whistling past every window, shrieking in rhythm with their god's cries, echoing his voice out into the world but not through it. Even the thunder was cracking in rage and sadness, and yet the storm's fury seemed to cradle the baby god's cries, swallowing his voice in a hush that only the winds understood how to.
They wanted to shield him. They wanted him safe. They didn't want his cries to be heard. Not yet. Not now.
Sanji noticed it first. The eerie lack of response from the marines or anyone nearby. After all, the galley was just nearby. "..They should have heard us by now."
"But they didn't," Zoro stated. "The.. wind's helping us."
A second passed between them. No words. Just the silence, the mutual realization that the world itself was protecting him and they needed to do something too.
"..We need to get him to the sea." Zoro uttered, growling low with clenched jaws, as he took the lead instantly, running towards his intended target.
"What?" Sanji blinked, not understanding. Was that idiot's brain doing flip-flops? Was it due to Luffy's loud wails? Or has the damn mosshead lost his head? "Are you out of your damn mind?! He's a… baby, Mosshead!"
"He's not just a baby! At least not a normal one." Zoro hissed, knowing that Sanji knows that too. "He's Luffy. He's Nika! And he needs it!"
"You're gonna dunk a crying baby—"
"I'm not gonna DUNK him! I'm gonna heal him!" Zoro interrupted him, holding the blistering hot, whimpering body of Luffy closer to his chest, lest Sanji think he's crazy and snatches Luffy from him, which won't happen but he does know how crazy he sounds right now.
Sanji squinted, his gears turning as he caught up to Zoro. "Zoro. Explain. Now."
Zoro didn't stop moving, already turning toward the path that led to the base's sea reservoir. He was determined to chuck any marine to hell if they dared to cross his path right now.
"I don't know much, alright? But the last time Luffy fell sick, Sabo told me to get Luffy to the sea. It helps him! He gets better. Back on the ship, the many times the dumbass disappeared at night, the many times he got injured and looked weak and sprang back after a dip. All those times the sea healed him. Rings a bell?"
Sanji's eyes widened. He did remember the times when Luffy almost voluntarily fell into the sea, when he sprang back with more energy than before. When Luffy had looked near-dead, exhausted, only to perk up after being in the presence of the ocean. The times when he just stayed near the sea waters. Breathing. Feeling better. Healing. Living. Yet it had never clicked with him.
Sanji didn't argue again, sprinting beside Zoro, matching his pace, glancing back occasionally to make sure none of the marines sprang up and the winds still held. The path was steep and jagged, but they didn't care. And Sanji made sure to keep Zoro on the right path, no matter how much he was determined to go the wrong way.
They vaulted over crates, ducked under beams and windows, and slid down collapsed stone slopes until the corridor finally opened up to the inner crater.
The sea within the landlocked G-8 Marine Base, which ought to have been calm but wasn't tonight. Waves were rumbling against the inner cliffs like they were trying to break out. The water was roiling and churning in a mess of white foam and angry dark curls.
Still, it was their only chance, even if Luffy's loud cries had begun to rasp with exhaustion and his body thrashing less wildly. But he was still hurting. He was still stuck in his baby form, barely conscious.
Zoro skidded to a halt at the shoreline, his eyes scanning the angry waters. His hands were trembling as he cradled Luffy's crying and slightly thrashing form. "I got you, Captain," he muttered. "This'll help. It has to."
"Keep his head up," Sanji said quietly, standing guard. "Don't let him swallow any of it or drown."
"I'm not gonna drown our captain, you curly bastard." Zoro stepped into the shallows, the water lapping at his boots, and slowly, gently, lowered the wailing baby into the sea. "Shhh.. it's okay. It's gonna be alright. I got you, Luffy," he whispered as softly as his rough voice could.
Sanji stood beside him, one hand resting on Luffy's boiling, small chest, hoping the water would at least cool him down, and the other on Zoro's shoulder for balance.
But the moment Luffy's little thrashing hands and feet touched the saltwater, a violent jolt ran through him. He spasmed, letting out a scream so sharp it rattled the stone wall behind them. His cries were intensifying. Even more broken. Almost inhuman.
The waters were rippling around him, not violently but calmly, as if sensing him, getting a check. There was a golden sheen dancing across the waves, the moment Luffy's body was submerged waist down, almost like light refracting wrong.
Zoro tightened his grip, panicking. "He's not calming down! Why isn't he–?!"
"I-I don't know!" Sanji yelled back, grabbing Luffy's little wrist and checking his pulse. It was erratic. Wild. His breathing wasn't improving at all. Nor was his clammy skin and hot yet cold temperature, which was a mystery of its own. Even his eyes were clenched shut, he was in so much pain.
The healing wasn't working. The Sea wasn't reacting. Was he wrong?
Luffy was flailing, sobbing harder with all his remaining might, his tiny fists hitting the water with pitiful splashes. Even his body didn't stop trembling. If anything, the pain was getting worse. His skin flushed cold. And his mysterious nightly glow flickering, then fading. Even his hair—streaked with white and looking cloudy—was drifting like seaweed around him.
Zoro's voice cracked. "He's.. he's not healing.. This always works! Why isn't it–?!"
"No, no, no! Dammit!" Sanji cursed, kicking the water and grabbing Luffy from the waves and Zoro's trembling, shaky hands, cradling the wailing child closer into his chest.He was still burning hot and it was breaking his heart, shattering it into millions of pieces.
"Shh, Luffy," Sanji whispered, keeping his voice as calm as he could, leaning against Luffy's little temple, with tears dropping from his eyes. "Hey, baby captain. You're okay. You're okay.. We are gonna fix you. Please.. It's go-gonna be okay." He was practically begging as his hands brushed Luffy's soaked bangs.
"What do we do?!" Zoro demanded, voice tight and laced with something he rarely let anyone hear—fear. The same as Sanji who was looking helpless.
"We need Sabo. Or Ace." Sanji's voice was wavering, yet he kept going as at the same time, he removed Luffy's wet clothes, which were oddly drier than he expected, shielding him from the heavy downpour using his jacket. "They'll know what to do. They have to."
"But the den den mushi is on the Merry," Zoro snarled. "And we can't get to it. Not with the Marines crawling everywhere. We're trapped." They could've gotten to the Merry, killed all the Marines present, but they weren't that insolent and naive to not realize that it would hurt their captain more.
"We can't go there. Not with him like this," Sanji muttered, while Luffy hiccuped in his arms, letting out choked sobs that sounded like he was calling for someone, or saying something, but his voice was way too broken and hoarse from the constant screaming to understand. His fingers were curled weakly into Sani's shirt, tugging at his already breaking heart. "..We need to go to the med bay."
Zoro blinked. "The marine med bay?"
"There's no other option. If we can't call for help, then we have to find something else—medical kits, herbs, alcohol, bandages. Hell, maybe Chopper ended up there by accident!" Sanji argued, already taking the lead, knowing that Zoro would follow this time. Properly and surely.
"It's worth a try," Zoro stated, looking down at Luffy in Sanji's arms, trembling and whimpering. "You carry him, I'll clear the way if the marines come up." Zoro wanted to carry Luffy, but right now he was also itching to kill someone, most probably the marines, who were one of the reasons why Luffy wasn't able to get medical attention.
Sanji nodded, taking the lead while Zoro took the rear.
.
The night started with the wind. Not the casual coastal breeze that tousled the flags and filled sails like a gentle whisper. No, this one came in screaming. Way too unpredictable for even the Grand Line. Rattling windows, slamming shutters, and ripping a seagull right out of the sky.
Vice Admiral Jonathan stood at the window of his office, high above the courtyard of Marine base G-8, his strategically enhanced base, with his brow furrowed and mouth pressed into a tired line. Below, the calm, landlocked waters had turned pitch black and violent. The cliffs that once guarded them now looked like measly ledges as the ocean swelled and climbed like it wanted in. Even the rain pelted the glass in sharp, sideways slashes.
"...This isn't natural," he muttered, eyes narrowing as the sky cracked open with a low growl of thunder. The color of the clouds was wrong—too red, too gold. The night sky even looked ominous with a sheen of red, devouring it. Like something otherworldly and furious was crawling through the heavens, asking for something.
The sea could any moment pour in. It wasn't safe at all.
And this reminded Jonathan of what he read in his daily newspapers. That these occurrences happened when the 3C's—'Orange Wrath' Cole, 'Blue Sly' Cyane and 'Red Manic' Cyra—were around. Even Admiral Akainu had enforced new rules and codes because of pirates, especially because of the 3C's, making any Marine worth his salt react immediately if there was even a small chance they were here. Because it's better to overreact than underreact after all.
Jonathan turned on his heel and barked into the den den mushi on his desk. "All units, full retreat protocol. Everyone, inside the base, now. Abandon the outer perimeter. Prioritize high ground. Lockdown protocols, now!" They can take care of the rest, after the worst of the weather passes, as both they and their enemies are evidently trapped inside for the moment.
Soon came the reply, in the form of pounding footsteps scurrying away from the abandoned ship, but it was half drowned by the angry pounding sound of rain hitting the roof in rhythmic slaps, as if the rain itself wanted to penetrate the base and the sky was playing war drums.
With that done, Jonathan strode across the room, flipping open a locked panel on the wall. Inside were a series of colored buttons and switches, which were glowing faintly.
"Blue. Orange. Red. Infiltration confirmed." He pressed the final button, declaring his suspicion of the presence of the 3C's to every marine in the base. "Pirate Infiltration Evident."
The base-wide alarm screamed to life at his commands.
"B.O.R.I and P.I.E initiated. I repeat, BORI and PIE! BORI and PIE!" The artificial voice rang out over the speakers, repeating on a loop, ricocheting down every corridor like a ghost, freezing marines in their work. Some marines even bolted for cover while the smart ones knew what this meant.
And Jonathan sighed. He just sighed, his shoulders sinking as he looked up at the ceiling of his office like it would give him the answers he was seeking.
"Why now?" He muttered. "Why, after all this peace? We don't even have any special, classified documents to protect," he groaned.
The storm, the sudden infiltration, the ship of the Strawhat Pirates inside the base were the signs that were screaming to be seen.
But why? Why were they here of all places? Were the 3C's hunting the Strawhats because Straw hat Luffy escaped their grasp once? The 3Pnews did say that Strawhat Luffy not only escaped their deadly grasp but also interrupted them while they were giving a speech to the rebels and royals.
But why was all this chaos happening in his base?
.
A few minutes ago..
Every hallway they entered, every marine they encountered, every step they took towards their destination, after questioning and beating up marines—the latter which Zoro did all the time—was a battle against time itself. Rage didn't count. Worry wasn't disappearing. Not even the marines who were treated as fodder helped in quelling the urgency in Zoro's heart and mind. Even Sanji was beginning to panic with each slowing, heavy breath baby Luffy took.
Baby Luffy, who was once a raging wail machine, was now only whimpering softly. Like he had run out of screams. His cries had even dulled to a muffle, and it felt wrong. He was quiet. But Luffy was rarely quiet before. Not even while sleeping. But yet he changed so drastically to the point that Sanji's trembling hands kept checking to see if he was still breathing. It was scary. It was agonizing.
"T-Turn left here," Sanji was trying to steel himself, but his voice was giving away his true feelings.
Zoro nodded, adjusting his too-tight marine uniform he had stolen off some dead or unconscious sap they'd left in a closet three corridors back. The guy had begged for mercy when it became apparent that he couldn't win, yet Zoro had knocked him out flat with his blade the moment he had gone after Sanji, targeting the bulge—Luffy—in his arms, hidden away by his jacket and blanket.
But with their new get-ups now, which weren't perfect yet, they blended in perfectly. And no one dared to stop them yet. The uniforms, Luffy's shrunken size and the fact that he looked nothing like his bounty poster all played in their favor and would play in the future to get Luffy some medical attention, hopefully.
Still, they were pushing their luck.
"Zoro," Sanji said under his breath. "H-He's burning up. Worse than before."
Zoro glanced down at Luffy's form. His skin had taken on a terrifying sheen, his face flushed red, his cheeks puffy with tears and sweat clung to his baby curls. He was practically glowing with fever, his skin shimmering faintly—almost non-existent—under the hallway lights.
Zoro didn't reply to Sanji. He kicked open the door to the medbay without thinking of any repercussions.
The sterile, 'organized' room inside was almost similar to the chaos outside, with nurses running in urgency to the rows of wounded marines who lay on gurneys, being tended and treated. One of the nurses, a woman with lavender-purple hair pulled into a tight ponytail, was the one to turn towards them at the sudden noise.
"Oh no, are you two hurt too?" The woman gasped, rushing forward before they could speak.
"No," Sanji tried to sidestep her but she was persistent, already reaching for his arm, clearly trying to do her job. "I am fine, miss," he insisted, forcing a smile that twitched with worry.
"We got ambushed on patrol," Zoro interrupted smoothly, taking control of the situation. "Found a kid caught in it. We need medical help. Urgently."
"A child?!" The woman gasped.
But Zoro had brushed past her, tugging Sanji with him. His eyes were locked onto a nurse in the far back with her curly orange hair tucked under a cap and a medical mask hiding half of her face. She was scribbling on a clipboard with confidence of belonging in the medbay. It was Nami. And next to her was Chopper in his too-big doctor coat and circular glasses and surgical mask, clearly discussing something with the former.
"Nami. Chopper." Zoro's voice was low and urgent, making both of them and Sanji turn towards each other in shock.
"Zoro? Sanji?" Nami's eyes went wide. "Where is Luffy?"
"Wha–?!" Chopper's voice cracked, his sense of smell recognizing something familiar from the bundle in Sanji's arms.
Sanji didn't wait. He stepped into the staff-only zone like he owned the place and gently peeled back his coat, revealing a tiny, burning Luffy lying curled against his chest. His little hands were clutched weakly at the fabric and his face was bright red from fever and crying. Even his little squeaky voice was hoarse now, the hiccuping sobs coming in broken rhythms.
Both Chopper and Nami recoiled in shock. Recognizing their captain, even if they didn't want to believe that it was him.
"..What the hell happened?" Nami choked, stepping closer with a look between horror and disbelief.
"Is that–?" Chopper leaned in, his hooves already touching Luffy's tiny forehead. "Is this really Luffy?"
"He shrank," Zoro muttered. "Like, actually turned into a three-year-old."
"And h-he's burning and cold at the same time," Sanji added quickly. "Like he's gonna melt right out of his skin… and disappear."
"He's not gonna disappear!" Zoro snapped, gritting his teeth and looking at Chopper. "You're a doctor, reindeer. Fix him."
The purple-haired nurse hovered beside them, stunned. "W-Wait. Is this.. someone's baby from the base? Did he sneak him in? Is he both of yours?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at the suddenly flustered teens, while gently touching Luffy's temples and flinching away. "His fever is sky-high with.. maybe a cold?! This is serious. I-I'll get the ice packs and towel."
Chopper nodded sharply, getting into his doctor mode, as he gently laid his little captain on a bed and covered him with blankets. "We need to cool him first."
With that, they worked fast. Towels, cold water, a fan, anything they could get. But yet nothing was working. Not the medicines. Not the blankets. Not the ice packs.
The fever was not going down. It was only rising with each passing moment.
"Come on, Luffy, don't burn up on us. Not now, not like this.. Please." Nami, wiping Luffy's forehead herself, was whispering to him like a desperate sister.
"It's not getting any better," The purple haired nurse uttered, her voice shaking. "We should–We should check if he has an infection. A blood test could.. show something." Her hands were trembling as she said those words.
The Strawhats were instantly alert at her words. They could not allow anyone other than them to witness Luffy's anomaly. Not yet. Not now. Not when Luffy was vulnerable.
"No." Chopper uttered before Zoro could bring out his blades or Sanji could shield Luffy with his body or Nami could drag the nurse away with an excuse. "I'll take care of it. You're scared of blood. So, don't push it."
"I can handle it–!"
"Please," Chopper said more gently. "You should help the others. I'll call you if I need you–"
"Bori and Pie! Bori and Pie!" The speakers suddenly came to life, screaming again and again like an endless, mechanical wail, interrupting Chopper. Even the medbay's lights were flickering, sirens blaring and the voice kept repeating over and over in a harsh, metallic rhythm.
The purple haired nurse froze mid step, her eyes wide in instant horror as her trembling hand gripped the clipboard for her dear life.
"No.." she whispered. "Not now. Not here. Please."
Chopper blinked, not understanding the sudden alarm. Was it due to their infiltration? Or something else?
"Protocol B.O.R.I and P.I.E is only activated when they think–" she gulped, "–the 3C's are involved. That storm.. that unnatural storm.. They are h-here, a-a-arent th-they?"
Zoro's eyes instantly sharpened, his hands ghosting the blades hidden behind the marine jacket. He glanced at Sanji, noticing the bead of sweat that trickled down the side of his face. They knew who Cyra was. They knew who the absolute moron was! And the one responsible for the deadly storms to wreck the base. But they couldn't say it. Not to the Marines. Not to anyone. At least, not yet.
"You don't understand," the nurse said breathlessly, her pupils shaking with quiet horror, as she began backing away. "If they're here.. no one is safe. Anyone could be one of them in disguise. We shouldn't trust anyone.. Not even the people next to us," Her voice was trembling as she glanced at baby Luffy once before looking steadily at the group. "I-I'll stand guard outside and shout if anyone suspicious comes anywhere near. So, please, Dr. Chopper, save the baby."
With that, the purple haired nurse backed into the curtain walls, with determination flickering in her eyes.
Just outside the medbay, the footsteps thundering across the metal floor could be clearly heard. The Marines were running in all directions, questioning everyone to see if anyone was suspicious.
"You think it's really them?" one of them asked, panting.
"I dunno, man! But the storm's insane! And the base just locked itself down! I didn't even know we had that facility! But that definitely happens when it's them!"
"I heard one of 'em can control weather."
"Nah, bro, that's just a myth! It can't be real!"
"No, I swear! One of them's called Orange Wrath. And he laughs when setting fire to marine bases–"
"Oh crap, oh crap, what if they're already inside!?"
"I'm not scared," a cocky voice declared suddenly. "I've got the latest line of anti-pirate gear from the P.P.P. We're talking plasma rounds, illusion breakers, auto-lock magnetic cuffs–"
"Lucky bastard.." another groaned. "I only got the standard issue!"
"Yeah, well, then start praying that it's not actually the 3C's!"
Nami's face was paling with each passing snippet of conversation she was hearing. She couldn't believe it. There was no way! How in the bloody hell were the 3C's here? Were they after Luffy from the very day they failed? But why Luffy? Why their sweet captain who is sick right now!? Why?!
"Why are those guys here?!" Nami half shrieked, her fists clenching tight in anger and helplessness.
"We ain't got the time to wonder about that," Zoro took the lead, turning towards Chopper the next moment. "Tell me this isn't as bad as it looks."
Chopper didn't answer. He just rechecked Luffy's temperature. At first he thought his thermometer was broken, but somehow, no. "72.8°C.." His voice dropped. "This is lethal. Even for Luffy's unnaturally high average temperature."
"Shit," Zoro cursed, as tension spiked through his shoulders, while Sanji's hands flew to his mouth and NAmi staggered back half a step, her heart sinking.
"I need to take a blood sample." Chopper said with a trembling voice. "We have to figure out what's going on in his system before it's too late." With his shaky paws, he slid a needle into Luffy's tiny arm, gently, as if afraid for something bad to happen.
The vial filled slowly. But the color wasn't right. It wasn't the way it was supposed to be.
"No way.." Sanji gasped, seeing the blood shimmering like liquid metal, like molten sunlight bottled in with red. It was his time witnessing the spoken mystery from Sabo. It was his first time seeing gold coming out of someone's vein. It was his first time seeing the gold-dominated tube, vibrant and warm, evaporating slowly yet steadily, under the thread of crimson.
"It's about 75% gold. 25% crimson." Chopper whispered. "It has changed. It's not just his fever.. Something inside him is changing rapidly."
Zoro's hands clenched. Nami looked pale. And Luffy whimpered. His back arched slightly. With the mark on his back—the holy tattoo—beginning to glow dimly beneath his skin, pulsing faintly like a heartbeat.
"Something's wrong," Chopper dared to utter. "His body's going into a frenzy. It's like his cells are screaming. There's too much energy and his body doesn't know what to do with it. Like it's overheating from the inside. Similar to when you transform into a different zoan transformation, you need energy. Luffy has this energy and more bottling up inside, but instead of letting it out through the normal process, I hypothesize that his body is refusing to transform and is alternatively trying to remove the excess energy through heat."
Baby Luffy's body twitched again. He let out a choked sob, which turned into a coughing fit soon enough. His face contorting in pain and his tiny fists gripping the sheet.
"Luffy.." Chopper leaned over him. "Breathe, Luffy. Just breathe."
Luffy started wailing again, beginning to cry harder, louder—almost inhumanly loud. And his tears hit the cot like drops of rainwater which began turning gold, rolling down his cheeks, mixing with sweat, and glowing faintly like the last rays of dusk. It was unnatural even for Luffy. Unholy and divine at the same time.
Outside, a sudden crack of thunder rattled the windows. And the sea that once hugged the G-8 had shifted. No longer peaceful, no longer calm, but desperate.
.
The air was reeking of salt and tears. It was sickening. It was suffocating.
In all of this, Sabo's boots were pounding against the soaked stone floor as he ran and ran with horror and fright in his blue eyes. Rain was battering the windows. Emergency sirens were screaming through the base, but not the red ones which screamed invasion, not the white ones which signaled for retreat. But the ones which were painted in gold.
His knuckles were bloodless, his clothes haphazard as he had just woken up to the alarms, to rush outside, while clenching the burning slip of paper in his fist.
It was Luffy's vivre card. It was his lifeline, which was beginning to curl inward, its edges flaking off like dying petals. It was crumbling. The edges were giving up, shrivelling in his palm like a normal paper to fire.
"LUFFY! I'M COMING!" Sabo's voice cracked in the empty white desert of the base. He couldn't fathom what was happening. He couldn't imagine the possibility of his baby brother, his sunshine.. Dying.
He turned sharply, nealy slipping in the puddles, but kept running—past the men stationed in the docks, past the bridges, past someone yelling his name desperately. He didn't hear. He couldn't. Neither did he stop until he hit the final plank of the docks connecting the ocean and the base.
The waves were feral. They were crashing against the docks concontrolably. The sea had risen far too high for the climate of their base. Even the boats were rocking violently in their stations, with the tide dragging at the ropes and hulls like it wanted to steal every ship back to the storm for something.
Still, Sabo didn't hesitate. He leaped into the nearest small vessel, without even checking if it was seaworthy, and cut the ropes—practically dragging himself to the mercy of the waves.
The boat immediately jolted forward, the waves slamming it toward the ocean like they, too, were trying to get him to Luffy faster.
Sabo didn't look back, his eyes fixated at the burning vivre card in his hand, his mind and heart begging for Luffy to be alright.
But if he had looked back, he would have seen a massive shadow emerging from the dock with the flag of the Revolutionary Army flapping wildly in the wind. Practically set out to declare war against anyone who dares to step in their way, and on the ship was a lone figure gazing at him with an unreadable expression, yet expressively worried eyes.
It was Dragon.
"Sabo. My son."
The voice cut through the wind and thunder, freezing the called one, whose hands trembled around the tiller with wide eyes. For the first time since he woke up, he turned back. And something in his chest begged to be let out, cracking and shattering. He hadn't even realized he'd stopped breathing.
Dragon stepped forward as a larger warship coasted up next to Sabo's tiny boat and in one easy motion, he reached down and pulled his son aboard, hugging him tight. Something which he had yet to do with Ace or Sabo in public.
And for once, Sabo didn't fight it. He didn't hold onto his mask of repressed emotions as he buried his face into the broad chest of the man whom he had learnt and loved to call his dad. And yet the pain in his heart was too immense for him to understand the situation he was in. The paper in his hand was half ash now, and the last burning edge was quivering as if in deep, searing agony.
"He's d-dying," Sabo choked. "He's really dying."
"No," Dragon stated quietly, gripping him tighter. "We'll get to him in time. He's not going to die. Do you hear me?"
"I-I should've.. I should've stayed closer–" His words crumbled as guilt surged like bile. "What if the Marines have found him? What if he's in the grasp of the P.P.P? What if they are hurting him? What if–?"
"We don't know yet," Dragon replied. He was calm and controlled from the outside but his narrowed eyes were storm gray, wanting to usurp anything in its path. "But we'll find out. And whoever's responsible–" His voice turned murderous and bloodthirsty. "--will not survive."
Behind them, the small, trustworthy crew of the Revolutionary Army fleet moved with purpose, manning the ship. None daring to interrupt and yet burning with rage and worry for their little sunshine bearer.
.
The sea had never been like this before. Not even when they were having fun escaping from the marine bases after ensuing chaos. Not even when they had to dunk several bastards to hell. It had always been calm. Always bending to the whims of Luffy, and yet it wasn't like that at all right now.
Waves were clawing at the hull like beats, foaming white and gold under the moonlit sky. Thunder cracked in the clouds like bones shattering into pieces. And their ship was creaking with every gust of wind, like even the wood innately knew that something was wrong.
And in the eye of it all, stood Ace, soaked to the bones, knuckles white as he held onto the burning scrap of precious paper in his hand.
Luffy's vivre card.
His baby brother. His sunshine. His everything.
It was curling fast. Burning as if the flames had taken upon themselves to burn it to ashes as diligently as possible. It was almost completely blackened, fragile and.. d-dying.
"Why the hell won't it stop burning?!" Ace raged and screamed, yet there was no answer except for the howling winds, which seemed to be mourning and yet in rage.
"Cap'n!" a Spade member called out, holding the rigging as the mast groaned. "The compass just shattered! We're sailing blind now! What should we do?!"
"Doesn't matter!" Ace shouted back, his eyes never leaving the flickering paper. "We don't need the compass. Just follow the winds! Follow this!" he shouted as he held up the small scrap of the remaining paper, "Follow Luffy!"
The crew was quick to obey, with no questions asked. Of course, they did that. Because they knew. They all knew what it meant for Ace, for them even. They knew very well that their captain would do anything to protect his baby brother, even if it meant selling his own soul to the devil for eternity to see the little sunshine smile and live.
And they loved the little one, the same. Ever ready to give their own lives for his sake. Because they loved him too. Like their own.
"Ace! What's going on?!" Deuce was the next one to shout, from beside Mihar, who was controlling the wheel, trying to keep the ship from capsizing. "Why's the sea going berserk?!"
Ace didn't answer, except for clenching his fists and looking ahead. Because deep down, he didn't know the exact answer either.
The sea had always been kinder to him, to his crew. Like she knew who Ace and Sabo were sailing for. Like she honored something unspoken between her and the tides. But now it felt like the ocean itself was grieving. But why would she?
So, why is she angry? Why is she panicking? Why?
Ace didn't know the answers but he knew one thing for certain. That he couldn't let Luffy die. He couldn't, even if another corner of his vivre card vanished, the ash mixing into the rain itself.
"Luffy, please," Ace begged, holding onto the railing as the storm stole the tremble from his voice. "Hold on. Just a little longer. Your big brother is coming for you."
He wasn't praying to anyone in particular. Not to the gods. Not to fate. Just begging. Begging for Luffy not to leave him.
He closed his eyes, letting the tears mingle with the rain and the winds to whip at his face, as the storm lashed out harder.
If he doesn't make it in time–
'NO!' Ace's nails dug in his palms. 'No, I wouldn't think like that. Because I am going to make it in time. Because this isn't how Luffy's story can end.'
He was going to reach his baby brother no matter what. And he was going to tear the world into pieces if he had to.
"Just wait for me, Luffy," he murmured, staring straight into the storm. "I'm coming."
.
The air was suffocating, even inside the medbay. But it was not because there wasn't enough to breathe, but because it was burning. The temperature was climbing in waves, leading sweat to cling to every surface, despite the howling winds just outside the shattered windows. The furious storm had become a hurricane, lightning forking endlessly in the sky and the sea was now clawing into the base's lower levels like a monster carving its way inside.
And in the center of it all was their captain. Their Sun. Their Luffy. Lying still. Almost too still.
His breathing was the only factor that kept the Strawhats gathered in the small room sane. That was the only ray of hope they were clutching tightly in their grasp, not wanting to let go. His screams had died again to almost silence. And yet his breathing had slowed, now shallow and rasping. His skin was even glowing faintly under the dim lights, but it was wrong in all ways. Faint. Flickering. Like a candle flame about to be snuffed out.
"Luffy, breathe! Come on, breathe, dammit!" Chopper was running, no, dancing, around the room in a full panic, dragging wet cloths from freezing water, injecting fever meds, keeping him in an oxygen mask, setting up IVs that couldn't even pierce his skin properly anymore. "Please. Please. You can't do this to us!"
But nothing was working. None of it was working.
'Luffy's body wouldn't cool down.'
It was like trying to put out the sun with a glass of water and for obvious reasons, it wasn't working. Not at all.
Nami was standing frozen near the shattered window, her hands gripping the sill until her knuckles turned white. "He's burning alive," she whispered as tears silently slipped down her cheeks. "From the inside. He's m-melting."
"I don't care if you're a god or a mortal or the fucking sun itself!" Sanji begged, his fists slamming the wall so hard that it cracked. "You're Luffy! And that's all that matters! And you–you should always get up! No matter what. So, fucking dammit idiot! Just get the hell up. You can't die! Not this way."
Zoro hadn't spoken. Not a single word. He hadn't moved since Luffy started bleeding, since golden blood slid from the corner of his mouth minutes ago. It was shimmering down his chin, mixing with the golden tears that were flowing down.
Zoro stared at it, wiping the blood meticulously with gentle, shivering hands. His jaw was clenched so tightly that his teeth might have cracked. And when Luffy's body jerked with a cough—a pathetic one, weak and barely there—he stepped forward, crouched and rested his hand carefully on Luffy's tiny shoulder. It didn't matter if he felt he was putting his hand on fire and could feel his skin burning, Luffy needed him.
"Oi, dumbass," he muttered. "You're not done yet. You're not allowed to be done. You haven't even become the king of pirates! Nor the freest man alive! So, fight. Come back to us."
The wind screamed louder as breathing continued to become a labor for the tiny lungs, until.. it fell one last time and didn't rise again.
The line had gone flat. The light on the monitor had blinked out. And the world? It stopped breathing.