C27:-OnePiece_FanFic_Ace (Patreon)

27. Kenzan Island.

│3rd Person POV│

[Grand Line, Paradise, Momoiro Island, Kamabakka Kingdom…]

“Is this really necessary, Ace?” Izou asked, his voice carrying over the gentle morning breeze, sounding more exasperated than anything.

The first light of dawn painted the sky orange and pink, casting a golden shimmer over the ocean’s surface. Gentle waves rolled onto the shore, filling the quiet with their soothing rhythm. A short distance from the dock, Ace stood on the cool sand, rolling his shoulders as he stretched his arms.

Dressed in his usual clothes, he moved through a series of warm-up exercises with practiced ease—loosening his muscles, shifting into various stances, and throwing a few experimental punches into the air.

Izou, standing nearby with his arms crossed, was now sporting an impatient expression as he watched Ace continuing his warm-up exercises without giving an answer. Honestly, he had enough of Ace’s unpredictable actions.

“So?” He pressed, waiting for an answer. “Are you seriously going through with this ridiculous plan?”

Ace exhaled slowly, finishing a stretch before finally turning to face him. A smirk tugged at his lips as he answered, “Yes. Don’t worry, Izou. If I don’t reach any of the islands the Straw Hats are on within a few hours, I will fly back.”

Izou sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “That’s not exactly reassuring, Ace.”

The gentle waves lapped at the shore as Ace rolled his shoulders again, the smirk never leaving his face. “Come on, have a little faith in me,” he said, flexing his fingers before clenching them into a fist. “This is the fastest way to check on the crew without wasting time. And besides, it’s not like I haven’t done crazier things before.”

“That’s exactly what worries me,” Izou muttered, crossing his arms tighter. “You have no idea where they might be, and you’re just going to fly off in a random direction, hoping you stumble across them?”

Ace chuckled. “Well, not exactly in a random direction as I am going to use Rayleigh’s Vivre Card, aren’t I?”

Izou groaned. “You’re impossible.”

Ace took a deep breath, letting the salty air fill his lungs. With a grin on his face, he said, “Relax. I promise I will try to not cause any unnecessary trouble. Also, if I found any of the islands the Straw Hats were sent to, I will use their Den Den Mushi to give you a call. So, stop worrying about me, Izou.”

Izou shook his head with a resigned sigh.

Then, without another word, Ace crouched slightly, the sand shifting beneath his feet as he gathered strength. Heat radiated from his body, faint flickers of flame sparking into life around him. Then, with a powerful push, he shot into the air, fire erupting from his limbs in full force as he gained speed. The wind whipped past him, the salty air sharp against his skin, and in moments, he was just a streak of orange and gold against the morning sky.

Ace soared higher, his flames intensifying as he pushed himself faster. The morning air thinned, and for a brief moment, everything felt eerily silent to him. Then—

BOOM—!

A deafening crack split the sky as he broke past the sound barrier, sending a circular shockwave rippling outward in his wake.

‘It is so much fun to fly. Now, I just need to pull off a superhero landing; maybe with some explosion for extra style.’ Ace thought, a wide grin on his face.

Adjusting his posture, he steadied his flight while continuing to build speed, leaving behind a trail of searing heat and swirling turbulence. The force of the wind pressed against him, but he adapted, shifting his stance to reduce drag and at the same time, he reinforced his entire body with Armament Haki.

After a while, he noticed that his speed had reached its peak—it wasn’t increasing any further. Accepting this, he gradually began to slow down, easing into a pace where he no longer needed his hands to keep himself balanced.

Even so, he was still moving at a speed well beyond the speed of sound, the wind howling past him as he cut through the sky like a blazing comet.

Then, with a quick motion, he reached into his pouch and fished out an Eternal Log Pose. There were several of them tucked inside; a collection he had privately purchased back at Sabaody Archipelago after parting ways with Law, right after securing Rayleigh’s Vivre Card from Shakky.

Each of these Eternal Log Poses was set to a different island—the very ones where Bartholomew Kuma had scattered the Straw Hats. Ace had managed to acquire Eternal Poses for almost all of their destinations.

However, there were two exceptions—Baltigo, the hidden headquarters of the Revolutionary Army, and Momoiro Island, home to the Kamabakka Kingdom.

The former was far too secretive for an Eternal Pose for that island to be publicly available. As for the latter, Ace hadn’t needed to purchase one himself; Ivankov had already arranged for an Eternal Pose to be delivered to him through Revolutionary Army members in the New World, ensuring a smooth meeting with his brother and the transfer of Kuma.

At the moment, the Eternal Pose in his grasp was set for Kenzan Island, the homeland of the Longarm Tribe.

Glancing at the steady needle, Ace’s eyes narrowed in thought, ‘I hope that Brook had already been brought to Kenzan Island by the people of Longarm Tribe.’

Given his current speed, he estimated that it wouldn’t take long for his destination to come into view.

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│3rd Person POV│

[Grand Line, Paradise, Kenzan Tribe, Tena Gena Kingdom…]

“Roll up, roll up!! This is one spectacle you don’t want to miss! Witness this astounding body! A skeleton thorough and thorough! And these ridiculous single jointed arms! Could there possibly be a stranger creature in this whole wide world?!”

At the heart of the bustling square, a massive cage stood atop a stone platform. Inside the cage was a skeleton with a wild afro. Clad in a tattered coat, top hat, and trousers, he was none other than Brook—the star of this attraction and the musician of the Straw Hats Pirates.

“Hold it! You’re trying to trick us, ain’t ya? You damn conmen!” One of the people in the crowd yelled loudly.

“Excuse me?! Is there some kind of problem?” The showman asked, looking taken aback. 

“Well, look at it! It ain’t moving at all! It’s just an ordinary model or something!”

“What…?!” The showman spluttered, momentarily thrown off.

Immediately, the showman and his two assistants turned back to the cage, their expressions shifting from confidence to desperation. “Come on, do something!” one of them whispered harshly. “Move, speak—anything!”

Brook, however, remained as still as ever, his skeletal frame motionless. It was impossible to tell if he was ignoring them or simply lost in his own world, but either way, the lack of response only fueled the growing doubt in the crowd. Murmurs of frustration and suspicion spread like wildfire.

Then, a streak of red cut across the sky, moving at unimaginable speed. For a split second, it was barely noticeable—a blur against the clouds—but before anyone could properly register it, the streak collided with one of the steep hills surrounding the square.

A beat of silence followed.

Then—

BOOM—!

The shockwave hit a moment later, a deafening explosion rolling through the square. The ground trembled beneath the sheer force of impact, and a powerful gust of wind blasted outward, kicking up dust and loose debris. Gasps and startled cries rippled through the crowd as everyone instinctively turned toward the source of the commotion.

One of the hills now bore a deep, smoking crater, steam, and embers rising from it.

From within the settling dust, a flicker of orange flame ignited—then another, and another—before a swirling haze of flames finally parted the smoke to reveal a lone figure standing amidst the wreckage.

Portgas D. Ace straightened, rolling his shoulders as if shaking off the landing’s impact. With a lopsided smirk, he muttered to himself, “Man, I really need to work on my landings.” He adjusted the brim of his hat before finally glancing down at the square below.

Silence.

Every single person in the crowd had frozen, their eyes locked onto him in stunned disbelief. The spectacle with the skeleton in the cage was momentarily forgotten—now, all attention was on the man who had just quite literally fallen from the sky.

Ace let out a slow breath, the heat around him simmering down. Then, as if he hadn’t just caused a scene, he casually raised a hand in greeting and said,

“Yo. Hope I’m not interrupting anything important.”

No one answered. The stunned silence stretched on, the crowd still frozen in place.

Ace merely shrugged, not bothered by their lack of response. With an effortless jump, he landed on the stone platform beside the cage, his movements fluid and relaxed.

Stepping forward, he stopped in front of the bars and met the hollow sockets of the skeleton inside. Brook was also observing him now.

Ace tilted his head slightly before speaking. “You’re Brook, right? We haven’t met before but you may have heard of me. I’m Ace, Luffy’s older brother.”

“Ah, so you’re the one I’ve heard so much about from the others. You and Luffy-san were also mentioned in the newspapers the other day,” Brook said as he stood up, dusting off his coat before adjusting his hat. “Yohohoho~! I must say, what an entrance! Though I do hope you didn’t hurt yourself.”

Ace chuckled. “Hahaha! Don’t worry about me—”

“ “ “EHHHHH??!!!” ” ”

Before Ace could finish, the crowd behind him erupted in shock.

“It moved! It actually moved and talked!”

“That’s way too creepy!”

“What the hell is that thing?!”

The spectators finally snapped out of their stunned state, their reactions ranging from awe to panic as they watched Brook move and respond to Ace.

Annoyed by the growing noise, Ace shot a glance over his shoulder and let loose a controlled wave of Conqueror’s Haki.

“Would you guys please shut up for a moment?” he said, his voice calm yet commanding.

He held back just enough to keep anyone from fainting, but even then, the crowd felt a heavy weight settle over them, like an invisible force pressing down on everyone’s shoulders. The crowd fell into silence once again.

Satisfied with the silence, Ace gave a small nod before turning back to Brook.

“As I was saying, don’t worry about me. I’m pretty durable,” he said with an easy grin. “Anyway, let’s get to the point—I came here for you.”

Brook tilted his head slightly. “For me? Ah, I see! Are you here to take me to reunite me with my captain?” He tapped his chin thoughtfully before continuing, “Though, if you plan to carry me the same way you arrived, I must say, that might not end well for me. At the speed you were traveling, I’d probably catch fire! My flesh would burn away completely! Ah, but I don’t have any flesh! Because I’m all bones! Yohohoho~!”

Before Ace could respond, the showman suddenly jumped into the conversation without thinking things through. “W-Wait! You can’t just take him! That skeleton belongs to us!”

Ace didn’t even bother looking at him. With a flick of his fingers, he fired a small, low-powered bullet of flame, hitting the man square in the shoulder. “Shh. Don’t interrupt when the adults are talking.”

“Urgh!” The showman staggered back, clutching his shoulder as fear spread across his face. He didn’t say another word, and his companions wisely followed his lead, staying silent.

Ace turned back to Brook as if nothing had happened. “Anyway, I’m not here to take you out of here just yet. I came to deliver a message from Luffy. He’s decided to train under Rayleigh for two years before heading to the New World. That’s why your reunion is delayed—two years instead of three days.”

Brook fell silent, taking a moment to absorb the information. “Two years, huh…?” He rested a bony hand on his cane, his hollow eye sockets seemingly gazing into the distance. After a few moments of contemplation, he gave a slow nod before bowing politely to Ace. “I see. Thank you for delivering the message, Ace-san. You have my deepest gratitude.”

“Don’t mention it. Just make sure you don’t waste these two years. Next time Luffy sees you, he’ll expect you to be stronger.”

Brook placed a hand over his nonexistent heart. “Of course! I can’t afford to stay here doing nothing! I suppose I shall use this time to train and grow stronger.”

Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, he tapped his chin, “Actually, perhaps I should also improve my musical compositions to be of use to my captain and my crewmates in other ways! Would you like to hear one, by the way?”

An excited expression appeared on Ace’s face. After all, he had been waiting for this moment from the start. “Sure, why not?”

Brook straightened, his skeletal grin widening. “Excellent! And with a crowd already gathered here for a spectacle, what better time for a performance?”

Then, he brought out a guitar out of nowhere, “Now, my friends, are you not bored of merely absorbing? Listen and be amazed! This is my new single— ‘Bone To Be Wild’!!”

…To Be Continued!

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A/N: I am back with another Chapter of Ace Fic. Enjoy!

Now, only Zoro, Franky, and Chopper are left. I hope Ace can finish meeting them within the next few chapters. Then, we will finally be able to see the reunion between the three brothers. Horray!

Anyway, if you guys see any mistakes, don't hesitate to point them out.

Well then, Good Day. See ya guys later.