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Chapter Text

"Izuku, wake up. It's morning already," a gentle and lovely voice roused Izuku from his slumber as he rose from his bed and stretched his small body.

"I'm up, Makino. I'll be down in a second," Izuku replied, rubbing his eyes. Then he walked to the dresser in the room and gazed into the mirror. Looking back at him was a 5-year-old boy with green hair and innocent green eyes.

Yes... he was exactly who you think he is, Izuku Midoriya, the hero in training, ninth wielder of One for All, the boy who saved Japan... more specifically, the boy who died while saving Japan, only to wake up in a different world, inhabiting the body of his five-year-old self.

One month ago, when he woke up in this body, he panicked because he didn't know where he was or what was exactly going on. Then, an overwhelming flood of information assaulted his brain, filling his mind with memories and information from both his old and new life, which caused him to develop a high fever for a week. This made the people around him worried, and he was forced to take complete bed rest for a week.

During that week, he processed all the old and new information that was now living rent-free in his mind. First of all, he sorted out the memories from his previous life and found out that he remembered everything that happened to him in that life. He recalled the visit to the doctor where his dreams were crushed, his declining friendship with Kacchan, meeting All Might on that roof, and their subsequent meeting after he saved Kacchan, where he heard the words that changed his life. 

He remembered attending U.A., his friends, teachers, villains, and the various incidents they caused, ...Eri, ...the Liberation War, ...his vow to save Shigaraki, ...the villain hunt, ...All for One's words, ...how his friends came to take him back to U.A., and finally, the final war where he lost his life after dealing the final blow to All for One.

Each and every detail from his previous life was crystal clear as if all of those 16 years had happened yesterday. The more he remembered those memories, the more his heart clenched, longing for his old life and friends. It took him a few days, but eventually, he managed to convince himself that there was no point in crying for something that was out of his reach. After calming himself down, he shifted his focus to the memories of this new world.

His name in this new life was Monkey D. Izuku. At first, he wondered why he had a similar name and looked frighteningly similar to his old self, but then he decided not to think about it too much because it was the least strange thing that had happened to him so far.

Since he was only five years old, his knowledge of this new world was limited to some basic information. He knew that he was currently in Foosha Village, situated on Dawn Island in the East Blue. He found himself in an additional room of a bar, managed by a kind lady named Makino, who honestly reminded him of his mom.

Suddenly, the door to the room burst open, and the green-haired lady, Makino, peeked inside, smiling at Izuku. "Izuku, Mr. Garp is here. Come down quickly, or he'll come here and destroy the door in the process," she said, playfully adding the last part before heading back downstairs to attend to the bar missing the fond smile Izuku had on his face.

"Grandpa is here, huh?" Izuku said as he changed his clothes. Garp, the man Makino had just mentioned, was his grandpa and a Marine. He was the only family member Izuku could find in his memories. When he first discovered this fact, he couldn't help but let out a self-deprecating chuckle, reflecting on how the absent parent was the only consistent thing in both worlds.

Oh, are you wondering what a Marine is? Well, Marines are the law enforcement in this world, responsible for apprehending pirates—yes, real pirates with skull flags and all. Upon learning this information, all Izuku could do was sigh. From what he had read in the newspaper so far, he knew that this world was bound to be even more chaotic than his old one.

Oh well, there was nothing he could do now. He was dead in his old world, and the new one didn't look that bad, especially with Makino here. However, he couldn't help but wonder why his body shivered at the mere thought of meeting his grandfather.

******

After informing Izuku about Garp, Makino descended the stairs and returned to the bar, where Garp was enjoying his beer while engaged in a lively conversation with the mayor, Woop Slap.

"Hey, Makino, is that brat awake, or do I need to go up there and wake him?" Garp asked, wearing a wide grin on his face.

"Don't worry, Mr. Garp. Izuku is already up and changing his clothes," Makino replied with a smile. Garp could also sense the hint of pride in her voice when she spoke about his grandson.

"Really?" Garp raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"Yep! For the past three weeks, Izuku has been acting completely differently than before," Makino said as she cleaned the mugs behind the bar. "Ever since he recovered from that fever a month ago, he has been remarkably calm. Of course, he still gets excited when he encounters something new and asks dozens of questions about it. He has also taken up reading books and newspapers every day."

As Makino spoke, Garp listened, his jaw-dropping in astonishment. It was hard for him to believe that the child she was describing could be the same brat he had entrusted her with.

"She's not lying, Mr. Garp," the mayor interjected with a kind smile. "The kid even came to me and asked if I had any books about the history of our world or any interesting books in general."

"You two must be joking, right? There's no way that brat—"

"Hey, Grandpa. It's nice to see you," Izuku came downstairs and greeted Garp, who stared at his grandson with wide eyes. No insults, no snarky remarks... just a polite greeting. "Grandpa, are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?" his grandson asked with innocent eyes, bringing him back from his state of shock.

"No, I'm not hurt, but what's up with you? Why are you behaving so differently?" Garp asked.

"Different?" Izuku tilted his head, thought for a moment, and then shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said, accepting the fruit juice from Makino, who observed the interaction between Izuku and his grandfather with glee.

"By the way, Grandpa, do you mind if I ask you something?" Izuku asked, his gaze fixed on Garp.

"Y-yeah, go ahead," Garp replied, still feeling unnerved by his grandson's sudden change in attitude.

"You're a Marine, right?" Izuku asked, curiosity shining in his eyes. When Garp nodded, Izuku continued, "So, what rank are you, Grandpa?"

As soon as Izuku asked that question, all doubts vanished from Garp's mind, and a wide grin spread across his face. "Taking an interest in the Marines, huh? That's what I expected from my grandson," Garp's laughter echoed in the bar as he affectionately patted Izuku's back. "Well, Izuku, your grandpa is a Vice Admiral, which is the third-highest position in the Marines," Garp said, puffing out his chest with pride as he noticed the admiration in Izuku's eyes.

"That's not all," the mayor chimed in. "Your Grandpa is also known as The Hero of the Marines around the world."

"Oye! You didn't need to tell him that..." Garp scowled at the old mayor but couldn't say anything more as he observed the stars lighting up in Izuku's eyes.

"Grandpa, you're a hero! That's so cool," Izuku exclaimed, his head shaking rapidly with excitement, while the mayor and Makino giggled at his enthusiastic reaction. Then, as Izuku calmed down, he asked in a low, timid voice, "Grandpa... do you think I can become a hero?"

"Huh?" Garp was taken aback by his grandson's sudden question. "You want to be a hero?"

Izuku nodded and looked at Garp with determination in his eyes. "That's my dream, Grandpa. I want to become a hero who saves everyone with a smile."

The three adults in the room fell silent upon hearing Izuku's dream. The first to break the silence was Makino, who looked at Izuku with fond eyes and gently placed a hand on his head. "That's a wonderful dream, Izuku," she said with a gentle smile.

"Hero, huh?" Garp laughed heartily. Then, suddenly, his expression turned serious as he stared back at Izuku. "That's quite an ambitious goal, Izuku, but it won't be easy. You'll have to train your butt off just to stand beside the weakest of the monsters out there."

"Hey! Don't discourage him like that," the mayor said, glaring at Garp.

"I'm not discouraging him, Mayor," Garp replied, not averting his gaze from his grandson. "The outside world isn't as peaceful as this island. There are people out there who can crush you with the sheer force of their will. So, tell me, Izuku, are you willing to face such people to achieve your dream? Are you ready to confront those who stand in the way of your dream?"

Izuku fell silent for a moment, taking his grandpa's words to heart. Then, he looked at his grandpa with a confident smile. "It's true that I don't know what the outside world looks like or how strong people are out there, but if someone stands between me and the person who needs saving, I won't hesitate to kick their ass."

A wide grin spread across Garp's face upon hearing Izuku's answer. "Hahaha! That's what I expect from my grandson." Garp finished his beer and then continued, "Well then, starting today, we will begin your training." Izuku's eyes lit up with excitement. "And this also means that from today, you will be living somewhere else."

"What!?" Izuku exclaimed, abruptly standing up from his seat.

"Izuku, calm down. I'm not taking you away from this island," Garp reassured, pushing Izuku back onto his seat. "You will simply be living somewhere else."

"But why?" Izuku protested. "Why can't I stay here with Makino?" He glanced at Makino, who looked troubled by their argument.

"It's better for you to stay where I'm taking you for your training," Garp explained. "Izuku, you want to become strong, right?" he asked, and Izuku nodded in response. "That means you'll have to make some sacrifices to become stronger."

"But Makino..." Izuku started, looking at her with sad eyes, which tugged at her heart. She sighed and proposed an alternative.

"Mr. Garp, how about allowing Izuku to visit the town every weekend?" Makino suggested, and Izuku's face lit up with happiness. He turned his eager eyes towards his grandpa, waiting for his answer.

Garp sighed, feeling the combined pressure of Makino's and Izuku's stares. "Fine, brat. I'll allow you to come here every weekend, but in return, I'm going to make your training even harder."

"No problem, I'll work hard," Izuku replied, his determination shining through, and he returned to enjoying his fruit juice.

Meanwhile, Garp looked at his grandson with warm eyes. He couldn't deny that Izuku's sudden change in attitude puzzled him, but honestly, it was a welcome surprise. Most importantly, he was glad that his grandson showed an interest in becoming a Marine and wouldn't turn out like his father.

******

After finishing his fruit juice, Izuku bid his goodbyes, and Garp took him to the massive mountain that loomed in the distance, visible from the town. As they walked, Izuku made a conscious effort to remember the path that would lead him back to the town, all while noticing the unsettling feeling that enveloped the forest.

On several occasions during their journey, Izuku thought he caught glimpses of predatory eyes watching them. However, he dismissed those thoughts, convinced that no grandparent would willingly put their grandchild in harm's way.

After walking for a while, they reached a house situated in the middle of the forest.

"Grandpa, what is this place?" Izuku asked, curious as they stood in front of the house.

"You'll see," Garp replied with a grin and began knocking persistently on the door. After several minutes of knocking, a muscular woman with curly orange hair emerged from the house, yelling.

"Stop it! Whoever you are, do you want to get killed?" she exclaimed, a cigarette hanging from her mouth. However, as soon as her eyes landed on Garp's face, she paled and stepped back. "G-Garp-san!" Just as she uttered those words, two more men peeked out from behind the curtain inside the house.

"You're looking good, Dadan," Garp greeted the woman named Dadan.

"Give me a break! Please, have mercy on me!" Dadan pleaded. "Ace is 10 years old now, and we can't handle him anymore."

"Oh, already? How is he?" Garp chuckled.

"It's not a laughing matter!" the short man beside Dadan exclaimed. "You have to take him back!"

"Putting that aside," Garp grabbed Izuku by the collar. "Take care of him as well."

"Hi," Izuku greeted with a strained smile.

"Who's this kid?" the tall man standing behind Dadan asked.

"He's my grandson," Garp replied, causing all three individuals in front of him to widen their eyes.

"What!? Another one!?" the three exclaimed in unison. "He's Garp-san's grandson!?"

Once they had calmed down, Dadan spoke again. "We can't take him! Taking care of Ace is already a headache, so you can't just dump another kid on us."

"Alright then. Here's your choice, either spend the rest of your lives in prison or raise him. It's up to you," Garp said, a smirk spreading across his face. The three individuals turned pale upon hearing his words. "There are plenty of crimes you've committed that I've turned a blind eye to."

'What on earth is happening here?' Izuku thought, his mind struggling to grasp the situation. Frankly, he could barely follow the conversation between Garp and these people. 'What kind of people are you entrusting your grandson to?'

"Well, I don't want to get arrested, but... sometimes I think it would be better in prison than having to take care of Ace," the short man named Dogra admitted.

"But now you want us to look after your grandson as well," Dadan remarked, glancing at Izuku, who stood quietly next to Garp without interfering in their conversation. "I bet he's a monster too." Despite her words, she couldn't bring herself to believe them as she observed the boy in question.

Meanwhile, Izuku, growing bored with their conversation, decided to explore his surroundings. However, as he did, someone unexpectedly spat on him. "What the heck!? Eww, spit!" Izuku exclaimed, quickly wiping it off with a handkerchief that Makino had given him. His attention then turned towards the person who had spat, revealing a black-haired boy sitting on a massive deceased animal while gripping a stick in his hand. The boy appeared older than Izuku, at least twice his age, and for some unknown reason, he glared at him.

"Izuku, this is Ace. He's five years older than you," Garp introduced as he approached them. "From today, you'll be living here with them. Hey, Ace, say hi to the kid!"

In response, Ace climbed down from the beast and walked past them, not even acknowledging Izuku's presence, and entered the house.

'Great, another Kacchan situation,' Izuku sighed, noting Ace's dismissive attitude towards him.

"Well then, kid, that's all from me," Garp stated, casting a glare in the direction Ace had gone. "Meanwhile, these bandits will train you. I know they may seem like idiots, but they're actually quite strong," he laughed, disregarding the bandits' offended protests. "I've also spoken to them about escorting you to town on the weekends, so don't trouble them. And don't worry, I'll visit whenever I have the time."

With that, Garp departed, paying no mind to the bandits' shouts, demanding child support from him.

'I don't know why I was born into this world or what the purpose of this reincarnation is, but one thing is certain: this time around, I'm going to live my life to the fullest without any worries and achieve my dream of becoming a hero who saves everyone with a smile... and I'll try my best not to die in the process.'

To be continued...

Chapter Text

It has been 3 years since Izuku was reincarnated in this new world of sea and pirates, and he has learned quite a lot during that time.

The first thing he learned was the fact that his grandpa was a good, loving man, but... when it came to training, he would literally turn into a fucking demon lord. And do you want to know how harsh his training methods are? Let's just say that he makes Aizawa's training routine look like child's play.

Grap's training methods were as bizarre as the man himself. Sometimes he would just have him do endurance training like long-distance running, swimming, and climbing hills until he dropped from exhaustion. Other times, he would simply leave him in front of a group of monkeys and expect him to fend for himself. There were occasions when he'd throw rocks at him and ask him to dodge them, and then there were instances when he'd abandon him in a deep forest, forcing him to find his way back home on his own. And all of this happened during the first year of the training.

As Izuku's age increased, so did the difficulty of his training sessions. Once, monkeys were replaced by fierce predators, the forest transformed into treacherous valleys, and the rocks became larger and more daunting. Every time Garp visited him, he would bring a new kind of hellish training session with him. To Izuku's credit, he managed to overcome a plethora of challenges. Though he faced some close calls every few months, he never gave up and persisted with unwavering determination.

The main reason for that was that he could literally see the difference between his current self and his eight-year-old self from his previous life. It was hard not to notice when he effortlessly dodged a black panther's claw and retaliated with a powerful punch to the deadly predator's jaw. In all honesty, he felt like he could easily take on his 16-year-old self from his previous life.

Besides his rigorous training, Izuku was also avidly learning about this new world by reading books and newspapers. On weekends, in addition to spending time with Makino, he would devote his entire day to sitting near the bar, attentively listening to people's conversations about the events unfolding across the world. Although many of the things he heard from the mouths of drunkards were mere rumors and exaggerations, it was still enjoyable to listen to these stories.

Another fascinating discovery for Izuku was the fact that the Old Mayor had an extensive collection of books in his house. To his surprise, the Old Mayor was genuinely delighted to show it to him, stating, "I never thought that Mr.Garp could raise a decent child who would be interested in learning anything from books."

Living with the Dadan Family wasn't as bad as he initially thought. Though they might come across as a little aggressive, they are good people nonetheless, especially Dadan. She likes to act tough around everyone, but beneath that exterior, she is really sweet and kind.

And then there was Ace, the boy who he feared would become the bane of his existence and the second coming of pre Provisional License Exam Kacchan, but surprisingly none of that happened.

After their first meeting three years ago, Ace and Izuku didn't interact much. Generally, Ace would leave the house in the morning and return at night, sometimes with a hunt, sometimes without. Meanwhile, Izuku would usually train around the house with Dadan or spend his time reading in one corner of the house. The important detail here was that neither Izuku nor Ace bothered to interfere with each other's lives, and they refrained from antagonizing one another, which had a positive effect on their relationship. By halfway through his first year there, Ace had already stopped glaring at him, which Izuku considered a huge win in his eyes.

This lasted until a year ago when, one day, Ace himself initiated contact and asked what he was reading. It happened when Dadan and the others had gone to town for shopping, leaving Ace and Izuku to watch over the house. And that was just the start of the friendship between the two boys.

******

Izuku's heart pounded in his chest as he stumbled through the desolate ruins of what was once a thriving city. The once vibrant streets were now reduced to a haunting wasteland, filled with debris and remnants of buildings that stood hollowed-out, their skeletal frames reaching toward a blood-red sky. The air was heavy with the stench of loss and sorrow. His hero costume, once a symbol of hope, was now a tattered mess, reflecting the decay and destruction that surrounded him. 

As he continued through the desolate landscape, he saw a figure in the distance. It was All for One, the embodiment of darkness and malevolence. He had All Might by the throat, and the former Symbol of Peace was weak and gasping for air, powerless in the villain's clutches.

Izuku's heart pounded in his chest as he ran towards them, desperation clawing at his mind. But no matter how fast he tried to move, he found his body was slow and unresponsive as if trapped in quicksand. He screamed for All Might, but his voice was but a whisper, lost in the haunting winds that echoed the city's demise.

As he drew closer, he noticed something chilling - the lifeless bodies of his friends littered the ground around All for One. Ochaco, Iida, Shoto, Bakugo, and countless others lay motionless, their eyes hollow and vacant. A gut-wrenching feeling of guilt and grief overwhelmed Izuku. He couldn't save them, couldn't protect them.

All for One turned to face Izuku, a malevolent grin spreading across his face. "Ah, worthless Izuku Midoriya, how lovely to see you. Witnessing your friends' final moments before your own demise is quite poetic, don't you think?"

Summoning what little strength he had left, Izuku charged at All for One, his fists clenched in determination. But then suddenly, the fallen heroes began to stir, rising from the ground like ghastly specters. Their faces contorted into expressions of anger and accusation, and they pointed accusing fingers at Izuku. Their voices merged into a haunting chorus, their words slicing into his soul like knives.

"You were weak," they hissed, their voices cold and accusatory. "You failed us, Deku! You let us die! You couldn't save anyone!"

Izuku's vision blurred with tears as memories of his fallen friends flooded his mind. Their accusing voices echoed, and he felt the weight of their disappointment bearing down on him like a crushing wave.

"You could have saved us, Deku. We trusted you to be our hero... to be my hero..."

"Ochako."

"Your inadequacy led to our demise. You're not fit to call yourself a hero."

"Iida."

"You let us down, Izuku. We're gone because of you."

"Shoto."

"You were supposed to be my rival, Deku! You should've been stronger, but you're just a pathetic weakling... Worthless Deku!"

"Kacchan."

All for One sneered, reveling in the young hero's torment. "You see, worthless Izuku Midoriya, your weakness is your greatest flaw. Your pathetic attempts at being a hero have cost you everything."

But Izuku couldn't focus on All for One's taunts as his heart was engulfed in unbearable pain and a sense of hopelessness. " I am sorry!"

"Izuku..."

"I am sorry!"

"Izuku..."

"I am-" *Slap* 

Izuku's eyes shot open, his breaths coming in ragged gasps. He was drenched in cold sweat, and his heart pounded in his chest as he tried to shake off the remnants of the horrifying nightmare. For a moment, he couldn't tell if he was still trapped in that nightmarish world or if he had finally returned to reality.

As he took deep breaths, his surroundings slowly came into focus. He was in Dadan's house and in front of him was Ace staring at him with worried eyes.

"Izuku... what happened... and who were you apologizing to?" Ace asked, but Izuku didn't answer. Instead, he hugged his legs and curled into a ball. It's not that he didn't want to tell Ace, but he knew that he wouldn't believe him nor would he understand. "So it was a nightmare?"

Izuku nodded and said in a low voice, without lifting up his head, "Don't worry, you can go back to sleep. I'll be alright."

Despite Izuku's statement, Ace didn't go away; instead, he stood there with his hands folded and a frown on his face. After thinking for a few minutes, he grabbed Izuku's arm and said, "Come with me."

"Huh?" Izuku lifted his head and stared at Ace. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't ask questions, just come with me," Ace said and dragged Izuku out of the house. They walked for a few minutes until Ace brought Izuku to a nearby hill.

"What are we doing here?" Izuku asked, tilting his head slightly.

"Don't look at my face, idiot. Look over there," Ace said with a toothy grin, pointing at the scenery in front of them. As Izuku turned his gaze to where Ace was pointing, he was stunned by the breathtaking view that lay before him. The hill they stood on offered a sweeping panorama of the ocean, its surface glistening under the gentle moonlight. The moon's radiant glow danced across the water, creating an otherworldly and enchanting ambiance. The rhythmic sound of the waves caressing the shore seemed to soothe Izuku's troubled mind, slowing down his pounding heart. In the distance, Foosha Village can be seen, its lights shimmering like distant stars.

"I... I've never seen anything like this," Izuku murmured, captivated by the beauty of the night view. "It's amazing."

"Yeah, it's pretty impressive, right?" Ace said, a grin never leaving his face. "Whenever I can't sleep, I come here to look at this view... it keeps reminding me of my dream."

"Your dream?" Izuku asked, but Ace ignored it, and then both of them sat there quietly staring at the sea until Ace broke the silence and asked the question on his own.

"Hey Izuku... have you heard of Gold Roger?" Ace asked with a little bit of reluctance in his voice.

"Gold Roger? Yeah, I've read about him," Izuku replied.

"I see..." Ace said and fell silent for a moment. "That means you must also think he is amazing, right?" This time, Izuku noticed a hint of bitterness in his voice.

"Well, I never really met him, so I can't say he was really amazing or not," Izuku nonchalantly replied, which made Ace stare at him with wide eyes.

"What!?" Ace exclaimed. "But everyone says he is amazing."

"I'm sure old Mayor won't," Izuku said with a chuckle.

"Hey! I am not joking here," Ace said while still staring at Izuku. "Why don't you think he is amazing?"

"Because, as I said, I never met him, so how can I tell if he was a good person or not," Izuku shrugged. "From what I have read about him, he sounds like a great Pirate, but aside from that, I don't know a single thing about him. So how can I say someone is amazing without seeing them myself?"

The conversation Izuku was having with Ace right now reminded him of Endeavor and how his perception of that man changed several times. For example, if someone had asked him about his views on Endeavor before the Sports Festival, he was sure that a hero fanboy like him would have sung the praises of the No. 2 hero. But then he heard Shoto's story, and that changed his entire perception of that man. More importantly, it taught him an important lesson about not judging someone based on their public image, whether it may be good or bad.

Meanwhile, Ace just stared at Izuku with a stunned expression on his face. This was not the kind of answer he expected from the younger boy. He had expected a more enthusiastic and idolizing reaction towards his father, considering the pirate's legendary status and reputation, especially among kids his age. Then, after a few minutes of silence, Ace burst out laughing. 'Oh boy! You are a really strange kid!'

'Strange?' Izuku asked, tilting his head once again, which made Ace laugh even louder. At that time, Izuku didn't know, but this night... this interaction between him and Ace was going to bring new adventures to his life.

******

After that night, Izuku noticed that his interactions with Ace felt much more natural than before. Not only that, but now he had a sparring partner, and oh boy, Ace didn't hold back while whooping his ass. Of course, Ace being older than him was one of the factors, but more importantly, Ace was a natural fighter and had extremely good reflexes. Izuku found out the hard way when he tried to outsmart him by using both skills he learned in this world and some tricks from his previous life, but somehow Ace always managed to come out on top.

But surprisingly, Izuku didn't find it frustrating; instead, he had a feeling that he was progressing much more now compared to before when he was training alone. He knew that part of it was due to the constructive criticism that Ace gave him... of course, with a toothy smug grin while kicking him around.

Then one day, Ace took Izuku to the forest and introduced him to Sabo, a curly blond-haired boy with round eyes and a missing tooth. Sabo wore a large black top hat with a pair of blue goggles wrapped around it, along with a blue jacket with rolled-up sleeves.

It didn't take much time for Izuku to become fast friends with Sabo due to his fun and free-spirited nature. And since Ace also saw Izuku in a good light, Sabo didn't mind him either. And that was the start of Izuku's new adventures with Ace and Sabo.

The adventures ranged from exploring the Gray Terminal, a massive junkyard located on Dawn Island, just outside the great gate of the Goa Kingdom, to exploring the forest, navigating through difficult terrains, and picking fights with dangerous predators within that forest. They also stood up to local bullies and troublemakers, whom they encountered every now and then.

He also sometimes helped them with their other 'activities'... albeit reluctantly. At first, he denied taking part in them, but slowly but surely, Ace and Sabo managed to convince him that the people they were stealing from were not good people either. That logic didn't fit well with Izuku, but he rationalized it by thinking that the rules of his old world didn't apply here, and in the end, he gave up and started tagging along with them. And for the record, he was a seven-year-old child who didn't know any better... that's what he decided would be his defense if his grandpa ever found out about this.

They also built a secret treehouse in the forest, which served as their hideout and a place to plan their adventures. Then one day, Ace came to the hideout with a large bottle of Sake in his hands.

"Ace... where did you get that?" Izuku asked, narrowing his eyes at Ace.

"I stole it from Dadan's stash," Ace said with a smirk on his face, disregarding Izuku's exasperated sigh. Then he placed three small cups in front of them and poured sake into them. "Do you guys know? We can become brothers if we exchange this cup of sake!"

"Awesome!" Sabo cheered with a wide grin.

"Brothers, huh? Sounds nice," Izuku said with a small smile, feeling a warm sensation tugging at his heart.

"Listen! We may have different dreams and goals. Maybe we'll set out independently and follow our own paths, but our brotherhood will always be with us!" Ace said, and all three of them held cups in their hands. "Wherever you are, whatever you do, we'll always be bonded together! So from now on, we're brothers!" They clinked their cups together and drank the sake.

And so, another three years passed, and unlike before, these three years were much more enjoyable for Izuku as he spent them with his friends... his brothers, going on various adventures. But sadly, every good thing has to come to an end, and in this case, the end brought along a fiery disaster with it.

******

It was late at night, and ten-year-old Izuku was soundly sleeping in Dadan's mountain house when suddenly he was forced to wake up due to the commotion going on around him.

Rubbing his eyes, he quickly got out of bed and walked outside the house, only to be met with a horrifying scene that jolted him awake. The night sky, instead of being dark and serene, was now tinged with an unsettling glow. Thick plumes of dark smoke rose into the air, blotting out the stars.

"What are you all screaming about?" Dadan walked out of the house.

"The sky in the north, look!" one of the bandits said.

"Is it the town?" another asked.

"No, it must be closer than that, it must be Grey Terminal. It's on fire!" Dadan said, and as soon as Izuku heard that, his eyes widened in surprise.

'Wait a minute! Where is Ace?' Izuku thought and looked around, but he couldn't find him anywhere, giving him a bad feeling in his stomach.

"Dadan, I am going to find Ace," Izuku said and started running towards Grey Terminal.

"Wait! Brat, don't—" Dadan tried to stop him, but Izuku was already out of sight. "Since when do ten-year-olds run that fast?" she grumbled and ran after him with some of her men.

Meanwhile, Izuku was running towards Grey Terminal with all his might. He honestly had no idea what was going on. Just yesterday, he had returned from Foosha Village after spending a weekend there, and today he couldn't find Ace or Sabo anywhere, no matter how much he tried. In the end, he discarded his search, thinking they must be doing something on their own. But now, he was feeling bad for not searching for them a little harder. A few minutes later, he started feeling the heat on his skin as he got closer to Grey Terminal. When he arrived, he saw people running around, screaming in fear and panic as their houses and surroundings were on fire.

Amidst the chaos, some were trying to put out the flames, others were attempting to save their loved ones, and some were running around like headless chickens, screaming and crying in despair.

Izuku wanted to stop and help these people, but right now, he had a different priority... he needed to find Ace and Sabo. So, he steeled his heart, pushing all the guilt and fear down, and ran past those people, starting his search for Ace.

As he ran, his heart kept pounding, and the distressed shouts of people around him only intensified his inner conflict. The hero in training inside him was cursing him for prioritizing his own interests over saving people, but his mind and heart, which belonged to Monkey D. Izuku, didn't care about any of that. All he cared about right now was saving his brothers and getting them out of this mess.

His inner turmoil stopped when he came across a passed-out man. No, that wasn't odd since the smoke that surrounded the area was actually making breathing hard for everyone, so a passed-out man wasn't a surprise. But what he found surprising was the weapon lying near the man, which looked quite expensive—the kind you don't find in Grey Terminal.

Feeling that something was odd, he looked around, and sure enough, he found more passed-out men with weapons of a similar kind. Then he followed the trail of passed-out men and arrived at a house that was also burning, just like everything in its surroundings. Then he heard some noise from inside the house, so he peeked inside and saw Ace tied to a pole, struggling to free himself.

"Ace!" Izuku yelled and quickly ran inside the house.

"Izuku! What the hell are you doing here?" Ace asked without halting his efforts to cut the rope.

"I'm here to help you, idiot!" Izuku said, quickly moving behind him and attempting to loosen the knot on the rope. "Dammit! This stupid knot won't open," Izuku said in frustration as he struggled to release it. Then he looked around and saw a machete lying nearby, so he picked it up, only to wince in pain. "Fuck! It's hot!" Izuku hissed, but he endured the pain and started cutting the rope.

"Oye, Izuku! Where... did you learn... that word?" Ace asked, panting due to the smoke and heat around them.

"Forget about that! More importantly, how the hell did you get here?" Izuku said as he cut the final rope and freed Ace. "And why is everything on fire!?"

"It's the royal family's doing," Ace said with venom in his voice as they escaped the burning house. "They planned this with the help of the Bluejam Pirates. I tried to stop them, but they overwhelmed me and tied me inside that house."

"But why would they even do that?" Izuku asked with wide, horrified eyes. "What did these people ever do to them? And isn't it inhuman to try and burn so many people, no matter what their reason is?"

"You think those bastards care if it's inhuman or not," suddenly another voice interrupted them, and they saw a tall man with short hair and a blue captain's jacket walking towards them, with several people with weapons following behind. "They don't see us as humans. To them, all of us are nothing more than trash in this junkyard."

"Bluejam!" Ace said, glaring at the man in front of them. "Why are you still here after setting the fire? You were supposed to have escaped by now."

"We are helpless, you know," Bluejam smirked at the two kids. "Humans are strange creatures, aren't they? When you hit rock bottom, you can't stop laughing," the men behind Bluejam were laughing maniacally, which reminded Izuku of a certain muscle augmentation quirk user from his past life.

"Ace, we need to run," Izuku said, immediately dragging him without waiting for the older boy's response.

"Don't let them," Bluejam said, and his other men surrounded Ace and Izuku, blocking their path. "I'm not going to let you go before you tell me where you keep your treasure."

"You're mad! Your life is in danger, and all you care about is treasure," Ace said with a glare.

"You don't mess with me now!" Bluejam roared in rage as he glared at Ace. "Those royals betrayed me. The king promised to make me a noble if I burn down this disgusting place, but then once I did my job, they burned down my ship and left me to die," he said in a low, growling voice. "But I will not die here! I will make a comeback and take my revenge on those nobles. That includes that blonde friend of yours."

"Sabo!?" Izuku exclaimed. "What does he have to do with any of this!?"

"Oh! So you don't know?" Bluejam said with an amused smirk. "That blonde friend of yours is also from a noble family," he said, noticing how Izuku's eyes widened in surprise—just the reaction he wanted from the boy. "And you know why a noble brat like him was hanging out with you? He did it to mock you, just like adult nobles do. I bet he was always looking down on you poor fools," he said and started laughing at Izuku and Ace.

"Shut up!" Izuku's voice roared, interrupting Bluejam's laughter. "Sabo is not like that. He laughed with us, ate with us, went on adventures with us, and we even shared sake, making us brothers. So don't you dare badmouth our brother," Izuku said, glaring at the fuming pirate.

"That's right! No matter what you say about Sabo, we don't believe you because we know that he wants freedom more than anything," Ace said with a smirk. A part of him was proud that Izuku had the same amount of trust in Sabo that he did.

"Idiots," Bluejam shook his head. "I don't care what lies you want to believe in. If you want to live in that delusion, be my guest. Just tell me where you have buried that treasure if you want to keep your lives."

Ace clicked his tongue, considering his next move. Then he sighed as he realized the choice was obvious. Normally, he would have fought until his last breath if he was on his own, but right now, Izuku was with him, and he couldn't put his little brother's life in danger for some treasure. As he reached into his pocket, about to take out the map of their hidden treasure, Izuku yelled at him.

"Ace! What are you thinking so hard about? Isn't it obvious what we're going to do here?" Izuku asked with a smirk, assuming a fighting stance. "If Grandpa found out that we surrendered to some run-of-the-mill pirates, he'd pound us to the ground."

A smirk appeared on Ace's face as he heard Izuku's words. The message was clear: if they were going down, they would go down fighting. So he pushed the map back into his pocket and said, "Yeah, you're right! That old coot will make us run for our lives if we lost to these nobodies," he said, assuming a fighting stance as well.

"Who are you calling run-of-the-mill pirates, brat!" one of the underlings swung his sword at Izuku.

That's when Izuku noticed something interesting: 'So slow...' he thought and easily avoided the swing, countering with a roundhouse kick. Then another pirate attacked him, and just like before, he easily dodged and counter-attacked. 'Just as I thought. Grandpa's casual punches are much faster and stronger than these fools.'

Meanwhile, Ace was having a much easier time than Izuku, being older and more naturally skilled in fighting compared to the younger boy. Earlier, when he got caught, he was overwhelmed by the pirates' numbers and in emotional turmoil due to what happened with Sabo and his father. But now, with his brother watching his back, Ace's head was clear, and he punched, kicked, and threw pirates around like toys.

"What the hell, how are these brats so good at fighting!" one of the pirates asked as he witnessed his fellow pirate getting punched in the face by the tiny green-haired kid. "We are experienced pirates. We're supposed to be stronger than them."

"First of all, the predators in the forest are much stronger and scarier than you idiots," Izuku said as he appeared in front of the pirate. "And I'm sure you guys are the kind of people who corner the weak and assault them to dominate your victims, but you can't do anything when you face a truly strong person," he said, delivering a punch to the pirate's gut before he could respond.

Meanwhile, Bluejam was getting increasingly agitated as he watched these two no-name brats defeating his crew. Izuku's comment, however, pushed him over the edge. "Enough!" he roared and pulled out a gun, pointing it at Ace's face. "I don't care about your treasure anymore. I know there's a town across that mountain. I will just ravage that town to get back on track."

As soon as Izuku heard those words, he clenched his fist, and his hair shadowed his eyes. The faces of Makino, the Old Man Mayor, and other good people who lived in that town flashed in his mind. "How dare you..." he said, lifting his head slightly, giving Ace and Bluejam a look at his one rage-filled eye.

"Izuku?" Ace asked with wide eyes. He had never seen Izuku like this, especially with that kind of rage in his eyes.

And then, before anyone could say or do anything, Izuku launched himself at Bluejam. In an instant, he was in the air, in front of the man, his fist moments away from making contact with Bluejam's face. "Don't you dare talk about hurting those people in the town when a scum like you can't even hold a candle to them," Izuku declared. And at that moment... for just a moment, right before Izuku's fist made contact with Bluejam's face, his fist turned obsidian black, and black lightning surrounded his hand. Then, with a powerful impact, Bluejam was sent flying back, landing on his back, unconscious with a broken, bleeding nose.

"Izuku! What was that!?" Ace asked with wide eyes. He knew Izuku was strong, but not this strong.

"I... I don't know," Izuku said, staring at his hand, trying to figure out what was going on. He knew he had done something, and it surely wasn't One for All since it lacked the feeling of familiarity that he always experienced while using that quirk. It was different, something he didn't know or understand. "I just felt this overwhelming need to protect Makino and others, and before I knew it, I was already punching him with all my might."

As the brothers were busy wondering about this, one of the pirates sneaked up on them and raised his sword to slice at Izuku.

Ace noticed and yelled, "Izuku, watch out!" Unconsciously, he released a wave of power, rendering the rest of the Bluejam pirates unconscious.

This time, it was Izuku's turn to stare at his brother with wide eyes. Before he could ask anything, Dadan arrived with the other bandits. She scolded them and started escorting Izuku and Ace back to the house. However, now Izuku's mind was in a different turmoil. Up until now, his focus had been on saving Ace, so he had ignored the voices around him. But now that they were safe, he couldn't ignore them any longer.

The guilt was piling up in his heart as he kept walking, but then he heard, "Someone, please help! At least help my child! Please!" And that did it... something inside him snapped, and his legs started running towards the voice even before his mind could catch up with him, ignoring the shouts of Ace and Dadan.

When he closed in on the voice, he noticed a woman trapped under the rubble, with a small four-year-old girl trying to pull her out. Then, when the woman noticed Izuku, a smile appeared on her face. "Hey, boy! Listen, please take my girl away from here, take her to safety!" she said in a frantic voice.

Suddenly, the little girl clung to Izuku's leg while crying. "Big brother, please save my mom," she said, pointing at her mother.

"Don't worry, I've got this," Izuku said with the best smile he could produce as he started lifting the large wooden pillar from the woman's legs.

"Idiot! What are you doing!?" the woman yelled at him. "Forget about me and save my girl and yourself." Meanwhile, the little girl kept trying to pull her mother out of the rubble.

"No! I won't give up," Izuku said as he strained to move the pillar. "If my actions can save anyone... then I've gotta do something," he said, putting his entire strength into lifting that heavy load.

"Well said, boy," suddenly a man in a green hood arrived there. "Allow me to lend you a hand," he said and effortlessly lifted the pillar off the woman's leg. "Take them to the ship," the man then instructed another hooded person standing behind them.

The man nodded and started escorting them, but the woman suddenly stopped and looked at Izuku. "Thank you for helping us!" She bowed to him, and the little girl with her mimicked her mother.

"Please don't bow to me. Helping someone is common sense," Izuku said while shaking his hands, a blush on his face. Then the other hooded man took the mother and daughter away from the fire, leaving Izuku and the green hooded man behind.

"What is going to happen to them?" Izuku asked cautiously.

"Don't worry, my men will take them to safety, just like we did with the other people here," he said, and that's when Izuku noticed that there were other hooded men assisting people to safety.

"By the way, if you don't mind me asking, why did you decide to help that woman instead of saving yourself?" the hooded man asked.

"Honestly, as soon as I heard her voice, my legs moved on their own," Izuku said, his vision starting to blur. "I... should go... now, my family..." And suddenly, he passed out, but the green-haired man caught him before he could hit the ground, a faint smile lingering on the man's face.

Meanwhile, Ace, Dadan, and the other bandits were searching for Izuku, shouting his name. Then suddenly, they spotted a green-hooded man holding the passed-out Izuku in his arms.

Immediately, Dadan, Ace, and the bandits assumed fighting positions.

"You don't need to be cautious; I am here to find this boy's guardian," he said, gesturing towards Izuku.

"That would be me," Dadan said, quickly taking Izuku from the hooded man's arms. "Where did you find the brat?"

"He was helping a woman who was trapped in the rubble," the hooded man said with what sounded like a happy voice. "After he successfully helped her, he passed out."

"Exhaustion must have caught up to him," Dadan said, looking at Izuku with worried eyes.

"Not just exhaustion, but the heat and smoke around here must have done some damage as well. I suggest you take him out of here and get him medical help as quickly as you can," the hooded man advised before vanishing from their sight. Soon after that, Dadan and the others also left the Gray Terminal as it continued to burn, reducing whatever once stood there to ashes.

******

"Where am I?" Izuku slowly opened his eyes and found himself looking at the familiar ceiling of Dadan's house. Then his eyes widened as the events of Gray Terminal started rushing back to his mind. He attempted to sit up, but his entire body screamed in pain, forcing him to fall to his knees.

"Dadan, the idiot woke up!" he heard Ace shouting as he entered the room. Ace helped Izuku to his feet and guided him to sit on the bed. Then, he bonked him on the head. "Idiot, what the hell were you thinking running into the fire like that?"

"I was trying to help that woman," Izuku grumbled while rubbing his head.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Ace asked, glaring at him.

"I didn't want to put you guys in trouble," Izuku said in a small voice, but Ace heard him and let out a tired sigh. "By the way, what happened after I passed out?"

Then Ace informed him that it had been three days since the Gray Terminal incident, and Izuku had been in a deep slumber the entire time.

"I see," Izuku nodded, his gaze fixated on his bandaged palms. "What about Sabo? Have you heard anything from him?" Ace looked at the ground, clenching his fist, which gave Izuku the answer he was looking for. With a sigh, he asked, "Could you at least tell me how you got there and what that pirate was talking about?"

Ace remained silent for a moment before starting to recount the events that unfolded while Izuku was at Makino's place. It began with Sabo's father forcefully taking him away and ended with Bluejam tying Ace to a pole, leaving him to die.

Izuku absorbed the information and asked, "Is there anything we can do to help Sabo?"

"I don't know," Ace shook his head. "Let's give it a few more days. If he still hasn't come back by then, we'll go and search for him," he said, and Izuku nodded in agreement.

The day went on, and after another round of scolding from Dadan, evening approached. It was then when Dogra returned from the city, bearing the heart-wrenching news of Sabo's death.

"What? Sabo is..." Ace's voice trembled as Izuku and everyone else around him listened in shock. "Stop lying, you fool! Don't even joke about it!" Ace leaped at Dogra and pinned him to the ground, his anger and grief evident.

"I am not lying or joking about it! It was so sudden, I could barely believe what I saw!" Dogra explained, trying to defend himself.

"Cut the crap! Sabo went back to his family's home! How could he be at sea?" Ace's voice was filled with rage and disbelief.

"A hoodlum like me understands how he feels! People don't always want to go back to their homes!" Dogra retorted, pushing Ace off him. "If he was really happy, he wouldn't go out to sea! He wouldn't go out to sea by himself with a black flag on his ship!" he yelled, tears welling up in his eyes.

After Dogra's outburst, stunned silence fell over the audience until Izuku crumbled to his knees, tears streaming from his eyes. As the weight of the news finally started sinking in, Ace was the next to break, falling on his back and blaming himself for Sabo's death.

"Why, why didn't I go there to take him back?" Ace cried, pulling at his hair in anguish. Then, without warning, he lunged at Dogra and once again grabbed his collar. "Where is the guy who killed Sabo now? I'm going to kill him!"

"Kill the Celestial Dragon? That's impossible..." Dogra said, trying to reason with the distraught Ace.

Without paying any attention to Dogra's words, Ace sprang to his feet and grabbed his pole. "I will make him pay!" he declared, determined to seek revenge. He started walking away, but suddenly Dadan's hand landed on the back of his head, forcefully slamming him to the ground.

"Stop it, you little dumbass! How can you talk about killing a Celestial Dragon when you're not strong enough? What do you think you can achieve? They'll just kill you," Dadan said firmly, holding Ace down as he struggled to break free. "You'll die, and people will forget about you by tomorrow! You're just some nameless kid! Sabo was killed by this country, by this world! What can you do about it?" She lifted Ace by the collar and locked eyes with him. "Your father changed the world with his death! When you become a man that important, then you can do whatever you want!"

Then Dadan tied Ace to a tree in the courtyard, and Izuku spent the rest of the night locked up in one of the storage sheds of the house. The next day, they received a letter addressed to Izuku and Ace, which was written by Sabo before he set out to sail. Izuku and Ace took that letter to their hideout and read it there while crying their hearts out. At the end of it, they made a promise to each other that they would become strong and would never die, leaving the other alone.

Meanwhile, somewhere in the sea, a pirate ship with a Jolly Roger flag featuring two red stripes across the skull's left eye was sailing towards the weakest of the four seas...

To be continued...

Chapter Text

Two months have passed since the Gray Terminal incident and Sabo's tragic demise. The pain of losing someone so close to them still lingers in their hearts, yet the brothers understand that life must continue. Nevertheless, the passing of their third brother has undeniably affected Izuku and Ace, a fact evident as it showed in how it affected and altered their daily lives.

Ace has significantly intensified his training since he was the most affected by Sabo's death. The determination to honor his brother's memory and fulfill his dream compelled Ace to push past his limits every day. In an attempt to better himself, Ace followed Izuku's example and began delving into books about the sea and the world, since he was dead set on setting sail in three years when he turns eighteen.

Izuku himself wasn't slacking off either as he too was steadily developing each day little by little. Though he hadn't known Sabo for as long as Ace had, Sabo was still his brother, and news of his death had shaken him all the same. Sabo's demise also served as an eye-opener, making him realize that the world he was reborn into was vastly different from his old world, possibly much more deadly and brutal.

The aftermath of Sabo's death only reinforced his belief about this world as he felt utter disgust upon learning that the person who killed his brother walked away without facing any consequences, even celebrated for three days near the very place where Sabo was shot down. Adding to the pain, Sabo's family completely ignored his death, as if someone like him never existed in the Goa Kingdom. No one searched for his corpse, nor was there any funeral to honor his memory. The tragedy was swept under the rug, treated as if it never occurred, while life continued as usual for them.

Amidst all of this, Izuku encountered a name 'Celestial Dragon'... a name that stuck with him and started bothering his conscience, causing a disgusting itch every time that name flashed through his mind. So, to get rid of that itch Izuku did what he did best and started finding information about it. 

Honestly, what he discovered really disgusted him to his core. Celestial Dragons, also known as World Nobles, stand as the apex members of the world government. Their word is law, and there is no authority in the world that can judge their actions. They can go anywhere, kill anyone, enslave people, and nothing can stop them from doing so. Of course, all of this wasn't written in any book or paper. He learned about these things primarily from people, especially Dadan, whose words dripped with spite and venom whenever she mentioned them.

However, the most unsettling revelation for him was the realization that the Marines operated under the World Nobles. How could this be? Weren't the Marines supposed to uphold law and order, to represent justice? How could serving under such people be considered justice? No, there had to be more to this, Izuku reasoned. His grandfather was a Marine, a good person, a hero. There had to be another side to this story. Why would someone like his Grandpa serve cruel people like them? All he can do right now is wait for his grandpa to return and ask some questions.

At that time, Izuku rationalized his thoughts, but little did he know that his trust in the Marines had already begun to wane... a crack had already formed in his dream of becoming a Marine.

It was another bright and peaceful day in Foosha Village, and Izuku was assisting someone at the docks when he spotted a Marine ship approaching the port. After a few minutes, the ship docked, and a familiar voice called out, "Izuku!" Looking up, Izuku saw his Grandpa Garp standing at the edge of the deck, grinning down at him. Garp leaped down and enveloped Izuku in a tight hug, "How is my little Marine doing?"

"I'm good... I guess," Izuku replied, his voice sounding a bit off, noticed by Garp, who chose to let it slide for the now.

"Good to hear!" Garp gave Izuku's back a reassuring pat.

Turning around, Garp shot a stern glance at a lower-ranked Marine descending from the ship, carrying two boxes in his hands. "Hey, don't drop those boxes, or I'll deduct the cost from your pay," Garp warned, causing the junior Marine to pale. "Now, go and drop those off at the local bar in town."

"Grandpa, what was that?" Izuku asked, watching the junior Marine hasten toward Makino's bar.

"Well, you're interested in reading books, right? So, I brought some from the Marine HQ," Garp replied with a grin, making Izuku's eyes go wide.

"From HQ?" Izuku exclaimed. "Are you serious? Is it ok to take them?"

"Don't sweat it," Garp reassured Izuku, waving his hand dismissively. "Those books were gathering dust in the HQ's library. No one's got the time to flip through those pages anyway."

"If you say so," Izuku shrugged, not complaining about the chance to read new books.

"Anyway, Grandpa... I need to ask you some questions if you don't mind," Izuku said, wanting to get rid of a nagging query, that was clouding his mind.

"Questions?" Garp arched an eyebrow. "Save 'em for later. Right now, how about a tour of the ship?" he suggested, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"This ship?" Izuku pointed incredulously at the colossal Marine vessel docked at the port.

"Do you see any other ships here worth exploring?" Garp chuckled heartily, disregarding the irritated looks from other fishermen on the port.

"Is it really okay?" Izuku asked, his curiosity piqued by the idea of exploring the interior of the massive warship. He had been on various ships before—tourist vessels, fishing boats, civilian transports—but never set foot on a warship of this magnitude so sue him for wanting to go inside.

"Of course, why wouldn't it be," Garp replied with a smirk, though the officers standing behind him wore rather conflicted expressions on their faces. Izuku noticed that but decided to ignore them after all not his problem at all. 

Turning toward the ship, Garp bellowed, "Oye, Bogard! Get down here!"

Within minutes, a tall man sporting a beige suit and a top hat hurriedly descended the stairs, standing before Garp with a straight back. "Sir, you called?"

"Yes, I want you to take my grandson and give him a tour of the ship," Garp instructed, nudging Izuku forward.

"Wait a minute, sir, are you—"

"Is there a problem?" Garp asked with a glare while a red aura flared around him.

"None at all!" Bogard hastily grabbed Izuku. "Let's go, kid, I'll show you around," he said, swiftly taking Izuku's hand, and guiding him towards the ship.

"Wow, this place is huge!" Izuku marveled as he stepped onto the deck, his eyes wide with wonder.

An amused and proud smile adorned Bogard's face at Izuku's reaction. "Well, kid, this is one of the many Marine ships that protect the seas and uphold justice across the world," Bogard declared proudly, missing a subtle shift in Izuku's expression at his words. "So, what would you like to see first?"

"Hmm..." Izuku rubbed his chin in thought. "Could you tell me more about the Marines and their duties?"

"Really? Sure thing..." Bogard was surprised by Izuku's question. He had expected a young lad like him would ask about the numerous cannons around them or about the huge ass ship they were standing on, but well, he was pleased that the kid was interested in their work, so he gladly started explaining nonetheless. "So, to start with, the Marines enforce the laws of the World Government and safeguard innocent people from pirates and other criminals."

"I see... the world government," Izuku murmured as he jotted down notes in his notebook, leaving Bogard wondering where in the hell that notebook had come from.

Then as they strolled through the corridors, Bogard provided Izuku with insights into different sections of the ship. They passed by the armory, where Izuku saw an impressive array of weapons used by the Marines. Bogard emphasized that the primary goal of the Marines was to capture dangerous criminals, ensure peace across the seas, and foster a sense of security among the inhabitants of various islands.

Next, they visited the training grounds where they were greeted by the sight of Marine recruits engaged in intense combat drills. Bogard stopped at the door, but Izuku absentmindedly walked further into the training area. Some of the newer recruits noticed him and decided to show off.

"Hey, look at the new kid!" one recruit said, nudging his friends. "Doesn't he seem too young to be here? Especially if he's from some backwater village in the East Blue."

"Yeah, let's teach him that a weak-ass-looking punk like him doesn't belong here," another recruit added, cracking his knuckles with a menacing grin on his face.

The recruits swaggered over to Izuku with exaggerated confidence, trying to intimidate him. However, Izuku remained composed and unfazed as this was not the first time someone tried to intimidate him, and if he was being honest, staring down the bloodthirsty Muscular had been far more terrifying than these big-headed chums.

Meanwhile, Bogard stood close by, observing the situation attentively, prepared to step in if things took a turn for the worse. He had a watchful eye, ready to act at the first sign of trouble.

"Hey, little kid, do you even know who we are?" one recruit taunted, puffing out his chest.

Izuku blinked, pretending to be clueless. "Um, no? Should I?"

The recruits exchanged smug glances, thinking they had the upper hand. "We're the future of the Marines! You're talking to future admirals. If you want your little backwater village in one piece, you better show us some respect, brat!"

"Why?" Izuku deadpanned, making them all wear dumbfounded expressions. "Respect is earned; you can't force someone to respect you. So, give me two good reasons why I should even bother to respect you?" he finished, maintaining a calm tone throughout the conversation.

The recruits were speechless at first, but then a tic appeared on their foreheads as one of them stepped forward and seized Izuku by the collar. "Hey, punk! Who do you think you are talking to? We made it into the Marines; that already makes us better than a nobody like you from this backwater village. You will—"

"Taro, cut it out and let go of that boy this instant," Bogard intervened firmly, shoving Taro back and fixing a stern gaze on him and the other recruits. "Do you know who this kid is?" The recruits shook their heads. "This 'little kid' you're harassing happens to be Vice Admiral Garp's grandson."

As soon as the words left Bogard's mouth, the recruits' faces turned pale, and their confident smirks vanished. They were suddenly engulfed by a mix of embarrassment and fear, realizing they had attempted to intimidate the grandson of a legendary Marine and their senior, who enjoyed putting them through the grinder for fun.

'Crap! We messed up!' they all thought, wanting to apologize. But before they could, Izuku had already left the room.

"Idiots!" Bogard hissed at them, then hurried after Izuku, catching up to him quickly. He felt genuine shame that the kid had witnessed the unrefined behavior of the recruits who weren't ironed out yet. "Hey, sorry about their behavior. They were—"

"Mr. Bogard, where are we going next?" Izuku cut in, redirecting the conversation before Bogard could defend the recruits and their actions. So instead of pushing the matter anymore, Bogard just sighed and proceeded to tour him through other parts of the ship.

Finally, after touring for a while, they were at the bridge from where the ship was commanded. Once they arrived there, Izuku's eyes lit up with curiosity as he gazed at the intricate control panels and maps, interconnected with a wide array of complex machinery. Then, after a few explanations about the ship's operations and functions, an officer entered the room and approached Bogard, informing him of a pressing matter elsewhere that needed his attention. Bogard was initially hesitant, about to refuse, but Izuku interjected, stating that he had finished the tour and could find his way back on his own. Reluctantly, Bogard eventually agreed with Izuku's suggestion, bidding him goodbye and leaving with the officer. 

Left on his own, Izuku glanced around the bridge once more before setting off to find his way out of the ship, navigating the corridors and staircases while thinking about all the things he learned about the Marines during his tour.

Then as he was walking back, he abruptly halted upon reaching his grandpa's room in the corridor reserved for high-ranking officers. Turning the knob, he discovered that surprisingly, the door was unlocked, so he decided to step inside. Inside, he found a very messy room, with clothes and packets of crackers scattered across the floor. Seeing the mess, Izuku let out an exaggerated sigh, shaking his head with a fond smile tugging at his lips.

As he explored the room, various fascinating items piqued his interest and curiosity. However, what captured his attention the most was a brown-colored diary resting on his grandpa's desk.

Standing before the desk, he found himself torn between his curiosity and his sense of morality. Two options weighed on him: he could turn back, lock the door, return to the village, and forget about the book entirely, or he could succumb to curiosity, open the diary, and read just a little to satisfy his curiosity and potentially find the answers and clarity he sought.

After a few moments of deliberation, his curiosity won out. Taking a seat at the desk, Izuku hesitated for a moment, casting a final glance at the diary. He drew in a deep breath, bracing himself, then opened the diary and began reading the first page.

'I don't know why I am doing this. As a Marine, I shouldn't be helping him. But I made a promise, I gave my word to the King of the Pirates that I will make sure that his child and wife are not killed for his sins. So, after Roger's execution, I set sail for Baterilla to secure Rouge and her child. Meanwhile, the World Government was—'

And then page after page, Izuku delved deeper into the diary, reading secrets and information on the events that a commoner, let alone a 10-year-old should know.

As evening descended upon Foosha village, its residents retired to their homes. Meanwhile, in the local bar, The Hero of the Marines, Garp, could be seen enjoying a drink, with Makino diligently working behind the bar.

"By the way, Mr. Garp, where is Izuku? I haven't seen him since this afternoon," Makino inquired, her gaze fixed on the door, wondering about her little brother's whereabouts.

"Don't worry, I left him with one of my officers for a tour of the Marine ship. But still..." Garp glanced out the window, noting the dusk settling in. "He should've returned by now. I wonder if he's dealing with those new recruits we picked up a few days ago."

"Dealing with recruits?" Makino's worry tinged her voice. "Will he be okay?"

"Don't worry, Izuku's tougher than he looks. He can handle himself against those weaklings," Garp reassured her, taking a sip of his beer. His words might have sounded like a proud grandfather boasting about his grandson, but it wasn't mere pride—Garp genuinely believed in Izuku's ability to handle those new recruits, who couldn't withstand a single punch from him. Izuku, on the other hand, could eat five of those and still keep going.

"Yeah, he's strong, but I'm more concerned about his emotional state right now," Makino shared, leaning on the counter. "Sabo's death hit him and Ace hard. It's remarkable how they've handled themselves, given their ages, but that only makes it more heartbreaking."

"Yeah, it's hard to believe that the little terp isn't with us anymore. He had a bright future ahead, just like my brats..." Garp's voice carried an underlying sadness. Earlier that day, visiting Dadan in the mountains, he was shocked to learn about Sabo's death. His initial shock morphed into anger as he learned the truth about the situation. Yet, he wasn't surprised; it wasn't the first time Celestial Dragons had callously taken a life on a whim.

The incident with Sabo deepened Garp's fears concerning Izuku and Ace. If the world government discovered their lineage, they wouldn't hesitate to initiate a Buster Call on the island to eradicate the children of the Pirate King and The Leader of the Revolutionary Army in one swift, devastating move.

That's why Garp adamantly opposed the idea of Izuku and Ace becoming pirates. He knew that the boys were destined for greatness, but if that greatness came as pirates, then sooner or later their entire history would be laid bare in front of the world, and if that happened, even his influence might not shield them from the world government's fangs.

But if they achieved the same as the Marines... becoming heroes in the public eye, then not even those five coots sitting at Mary Geoise could touch them without risking a backlash from the Marines and the World.

That's why was relieved that Izuku was on the path to becoming a Marine, but Ace... that stubborn idiot was just like his father. But Garp wasn't going to give up, He would do everything in his power to make him a Marine even if he had to hammer it into his brain with his fist of love.

Just then, the bar's door creaked open, and Izuku entered, his head hanging low. A peculiar, heavy aura surrounded him as he trudged slowly toward the counter.

"There he is," Garp announced, giving Izuku a comforting pat on the back. "So, Izuku, how was your tour?"

"Good..." Izuku's voice barely reached audible levels, stripped of its usual warmth, his eyes fixated on the counter.

Makino caught the change in Izuku's voice, a frown etching onto her face as she sensed something amiss. Stepping around the counter, she knelt in front of Izuku, her gentle hands cupping his face. Lifting his chin softly, her shock was evident as tear stains adorned his cheeks. "Izuku, what happened?" she asked, concern and worry resonating in her voice.

Without responding to Makino, Izuku turned towards Garp and bowed deeply, a gesture of gratitude. "Grandpa, thank you for training me and teaching me everything you did." Then, he lifted his gaze, meeting Garp's eyes with steeled resolve. "But I've decided that I don't want to become a Marine anymore."

With those words, he walked out of the bar, without waiting for anyone's response, leaving stunned and speechless adults behind.

To be continued...

So, I wanted to discuss Izuku's devil fruit powers, and I have two ideas in mind:

1)Kopi Kopi no Mi (Copy Copy fruit) - This fruit typically allows users to copy devil fruit powers they've seen before. However, in Izuku's case, the fruit malfunctions, granting him the ability to use quirks from his previous world. Naturally, there will be limitations; he won't be able to master a quirk instantly, and would require practice. Initially, he'll only manage to use two quirks simultaneously. Nonetheless, he'll have a wide variety of powers at his disposal.

2) Gamer ability (Not like the Manhwa 'The Gamer') - Izuku gains a stat page with options like quests and a shop, allowing him to purchase abilities from other games and animes. If I give Izuku this power, the story would be much more light-hearted and goofy as Izuku would literally have and ability to pull solutions out of his ass, however, it will be also much more fun as well.

I'd appreciate your suggestions about which one you prefer, as I'm okay with either. (I will go with the majority opinion)

Thank you for reading ^_^.

Chapter Text

After Izuku's sudden declaration that he no longer wanted to become a Marine, two adults who were left behind remained silent, trying to make heads or tails of the situation.

"What is going on?" Makino asked as she stared at the door from which Izuku had just left. "He was so motivated to become a Marine just a few hours ago, and now to say this all of a sudden..."

"I don't know what changed his mind, but..." Garp stood up with his eyes narrowed and his fist clenched. "I am going to get to the bottom of this," he said and walked out as well.

Meanwhile, Izuku kept walking, trying to keep his emotions in check as the contents of Garp's Diary swirled inside his mind. Reminding him of so many things that the World Government did... so many atrocities they commanded... the things that Marines did under the order of the World Nobles, all under the name of order and justice.

Finally, he arrived at the hill that Ace had introduced to him. He often came here when nightmares haunted his dreams, but today it was the reality of this world that gave him that nightmarish experience.

It was not the first time his rose-tinted glasses were shattered by the cruel reality of the world. His encounter with Nagant had already given him an idea about the corruption that existed in their line of work. Not only that, but after returning from his solo adventure, he had quite a bit of free time in between his training sessions to talk to various people like All Might, Hawks, and Aizawa about this subject, and the answers he got were quite varied.

All Might had told him that he was somewhat suspicious of the HPSC's actions. However, during his prime, he was too obsessed with All for One and dismantling his empire to care about them. After his first fight with the supervillain, he was too injured and depressed to see anything wrong with them, especially when they never gave him any reason to suspect them in the first place, maintaining their facade of purity and public interest on the rare occasions they met.

Aizawa, on the other hand, had told him that he wasn't surprised since there are always going to be people who will prioritize their own self-interest, no matter how bad the situation is. He had also warned Izuku, saying that he shouldn't worry about it right now since he had a bigger responsibility on his shoulders, and tackling too much at the same time would not yield good results in any of the situations.

However, in Izuku's opinion, his conversation with Hawks was the most interesting in nature. The winged hero, no longer under the commission's command, had shared a lot about how the Hero Commission worked, his involvement with them, and how he was trained since he was a child. Parts of his story were quite unsettling for Izuku; however, that also gave him clarity as to why Kaina lost her faith in Hero Society, being exposed to these kinds of things on a daily basis.

He also visited Kaina in the hospital himself to continue their conversation before she literally blew up in his face. He spent at least four hours with her as she had a lot of things to say and even more things to rant about. By the end of their conversation, Izuku had learned quite a lot of things about their old world, which honestly made him dizzy and sick at that time.

However, no matter how bad or unethical the Hero Commission's actions were, they couldn't even compare to the insanity that he learned today. Hell, the things that the World Government had done made the Hero Commission look good in comparison. What's even worse is that the Hero Commission was at least discreet while doing all these illegal things, whereas the World Nobles just go around and do whatever the hell they want without fear of the consequences.

Honestly, this entire situation was making Izuku so sick that a part of him wished all of this were just a lucid dream he was having while lying in a coma in some hospital in his old world. But he knew that wish was too good to be true, evident by the rapidly approaching footsteps behind him.

"Izuku!" A few minutes later, Garp arrived there with a furious expression on his face. "What is the meaning of this!? You wanted to become a Marine until this morning, so what happened all of a sudden? Is this Ace's influence? I swear that brat-"

"I read your diary," Izuku interrupted Garp, causing his expression to shift from anger to pale, ending with a resigned sigh as he rubbed his forehead.

"Izuku, listen. What you read there was just the angry ranting of a drunk old man," Garp said as he placed a hand on Izuku's shoulder.

"What I read there... was that a lie?" Izuku asked, intensely staring at Garp, making the old Marine gulp. "And don't even think of lying, I am not in the mood to play guess the lie right now."

"No... nothing I wrote there was a lie," Garp said, dropping his head. "But what you read in my diary does not paint the complete picture of the Marines as a whole. Marines do a lot of good for many people around the world."

"You are talking like the things I read in there were just some silly disagreements or some minor charges of bribery," Izuku scoffed mockingly at Garp's poor attempt to defend the Marines. "Trust me, Grandpa, I wish it was just that," Izuku continued, his voice tinged with bitterness. "Mass murders, genocides, slavery... and who knows what else that even you are not aware of and for what? For the sake of maintaining their twisted sense of justice and power."

Garp sighed and sat next to Izuku, ruffling his hair. "Izuku, I can't deny that terrible things have been done in the name of justice and order," Garp admitted. "However, you need to understand that the World Government and the Marines are far from perfect. There are those who have abused their authority and acted without honor, just as there are those who go above and beyond to help others irrespective of their position.

"But why... why do you continue to work for people who cause so much pain and misery to others?" Izuku asked, frustration evident in his voice. "How can you stand by and let such things happen? People call you a Hero, Grandpa, does that title mean nothing to you?"

Garp took a moment to gather his thoughts before speaking. "Because I am a selfish person, that's why," he said with a sad smile. Meanwhile, Izuku looked at Garp with a surprised expression on his face. "You are right, there are a lot of things that I don't like about the Marines, about the World Government, about the world itself, but sometimes you have to pick your battles, especially when you have something more precious to protect than the world itself."

Then there was silence for a few minutes before Izuku decided to break it.

"Grandpa, can you answer my one question? And be honest with me, okay?" Izuku said while looking at the sea in front of him.

"Sure, go ahead," Garp nodded.

"What if I want to save someone but am not allowed to save them?" Izuku asked. "What if that person is innocent, but their mere existence goes against the World Government's interests? What if I want to protect someone from getting unfairly punished even when my superiors are ordering me not to? What am I even allowed to do in these situations? What would you do in these situations?"

"Wow, those were a lot of what-ifs," Garp said with a chuckle.

"Grandpa, please," Izuku groaned, glaring at Garp.

"Fine... this used to be a lot of fun when you were a loud and impulsive brat," Garp sighed. Then the air around him suddenly changed, becoming a lot more serious than before. "The answer to your question is: You do what you think is right in that moment," Garp answered. "However, keep in mind that no matter what kind of decisions you make, there is always a price that has to be paid, either by you, your loved ones, and sometimes by the world itself."

Izuku nodded, understanding what his grandpa was trying to convey. After all, his past life had taught him how things, even out of his control, can lead to paying prices for them.

Then once again, the Grandpa and Grandson sat there in silence. This time it was Garp who broke the silence first and asked, "So... are you sure about not becoming a Marine?"

"I... don't think so," Izuku shook his head.

"And you are not going to change your mind no matter what I say?" Garp asked once again.

"I mean... why would I want to become one after learning who they work for?" Izuku asked and then laid his body back on the grass while rubbing his face. "Damn it! All of this is so stupid! I feel like someone just told me that All Might isn't real."

"All Might?" Garp asked, to which Izuku dismissively waved his hand, telling him not to worry about it. "Anyway, since you have made your decision, Izuku, I don't think I will be training you anymore."

"Huh?" Izuku got up from the ground and stared at Garp with wide eyes. "But why?"

"I told you about paying prices for your choices, didn't I?" Garp said with a shit-eating grin across his face. "Well, this is a price you pay for giving up on becoming a Marine."

"Grandpa... you are just being petty now," Izuku whined. "You know I have a very good reason not to become one."

"Don't give me that crap; I am definitely not going to help a brat like you become a threat to Marines," Garp retorted while sticking out his tongue.

"Who said I am going to become the enemy of the Marines?" Izuku shot back, glaring at Garp.

"If you are not going to become a Marine, then you will either become a Pirate like your brother or a Revolutionary like-" Suddenly Garp stopped himself, making Izuku wonder what he was going to say. However, before he could ask, Garp cleared his throat and continued. "Anyway, as I was saying, I am not going to help create a troublemaker who will become a menace for Marines in the future."

"And what if I didn't want to become either of them and just stay as a normal civilian?" Izuku retorted.

"Then why do you need to train in the first place? Just sit back and let the Marines do their job," Garp replied with a cheeky smile, leaving Izuku grumbling and unable to come up with a retort.

"Fine, in that case, you will have to spar with me every time you are in the village..." Izuku said, trying to strike up a compromise.

"I guess I could punch you around sometime," Garp said, shaking his head.

"Sweet!" Izuku said, giving a thumbs up. "I am going back now; I need something to eat before going to bed. I still have a headache after reading that stupid diary of yours," he said and started walking towards the village.

Meanwhile, Garp just sighed and looked at the sky, thinking, 'Well, there goes my hope to keep my grandchildren safe.' He shook his head. 'I can't even beat some sense into Izuku after what he just learned... I am just glad that the boy is more reasonable and understanding than his father and mother...' A frown appeared on Garp's face as he remembered two people who were the primary reason why Izuku's life was in danger in the first place. 'I really hope he doesn't turn out like his parents and learns not to abandon people for his goals.'

'Well, even if Izuku has his mind set on not becoming a Marine, I can still beat some sense into Ace and make him into a fine Marine.' With that thought, Garp walked back to the village as well.

It had been two weeks since Izuku decided not to become a Marine, and by now, the entire village was aware of that. At first, they were surprised, as Izuku had always been a high-spirited kid who helped around the town and talked about joining the Marines like his grandfather. Soon, they accepted his decision since Izuku still kept helping around the town, only now he wasn't as high-spirited as before and didn't talk about the Marines at all.

Makino tried to talk with Izuku, attempting to understand his reasoning behind abandoning his dream. However, Izuku just told her that it would be better for her to not know things that he knew, for both her safety and her peace of mind. She would have pushed the matter further, but the look in his eyes told her to do otherwise. So she just dropped the topic and did whatever she could to cheer up her kid brother.

So, after deciding that he won't be a Marine in the future, Izuku's life continued as usual. He didn't feel any different aside from Ace and the Old Mayor pestering him to become a Pirate and a Marine respectively. Once he learned to zone them out, his life went back to normal. The only thing that annoyed him was the lack of purpose in his life that kept stinging him in the back of his head.

During that time, Garp sent a letter informing them that he had gotten an assignment about taking the new rookies to the New World for some 'mild training', so he won't be able to come back for at least the next 6-8 months. Upon reading the letter, Ace decided that he was going to train hard for the next 6 months and teach that old man a lesson when he came back. Izuku wished him luck and tried to run away; however, Ace just dragged Izuku with him, saying that he makes for a better punching bag since he can punch back.

And so, for the two weeks, life continued as usual for Izuku until one day a Pirate Ship docked at the port of Foosha Village, and along with it came a red and white-haired storm that altered the direction of Izuku's life.

To be continued...

Chapter Text

"Well, that was an eventful day," Izuku muttered to himself as he walked through Mt. Colubo's forest, thinking about the day he had spent there. Normally, he would have had Ace accompanying him, but unfortunately, he was down with he fever at the moment. So with Ace out of the picture, the only choices Izuku had were to stay inside the house while reading something or to go and wander on his own. However, since he was not in the mood to read anything, he decided to do the latter.

After deciding to spend his day outside, Izuku slung his pre-paid 'emergency backpack' over his shoulder and left the house. Once outside, he wandered through the forest for a few hours. Following that, he tried his hand at fishing but couldn't catch a single thing, much to the amusement of the monkeys watching him from the nearby trees. Later, he had to fight those same monkeys when he attempted to take some bananas from the trees and managed to successfully repel them, after all, it wasn't the first time he had to fight them, thanks to his grandfather's weird training methods. Now, he was on his way back to Foosha Village. Since today was a Friday, and as per his agreement with his grandfather, he planned to spend the rest of the weekend at Makino's place.

As he walked, his mind unwillingly drifted back to the memories of his past life, making him wonder what his friends might be doing right now. He imagined various scenarios: who could be dating whom, which pro heroes his friends might be interning with, and many more things that brought a smile to his face.

But then, darker thoughts started flooding his mind, making him think about how they must have forgotten about him by now and moved on with their lives. He imagined himself reduced to a forgotten memory, remembered only by accident from time to time. He wondered if Ochako had found someone...

Izuku shook his head forcefully, steering his mind away from those dark thoughts. He kept reminding himself that his friends were like family to him, and he was to them. They would never let his memory become a forgotten relic in the attic. Moreover, Ochako was his best friend, and he wholeheartedly believed that she deserved better than to be tied down by the memory of a dead man. Despite their unresolved feelings towards each other, he really wanted Ochako to find someone who could love and support her. No matter how much pain he felt just thinking about her with someone else, he knew it was best for her to find happiness in her life.

Another reason he didn't want to descend into the rabbit hole of these negative thoughts was the fact that just the thought of Eri or Kota forgetting about him was enough to send him into depression, which he didn't want right now.

Fortunately for him, his train of thought broke when he heard a sudden noise. 'Hmm? What was that?' he thought to himself, trying to locate the source of the sound. Then he heard the sound again; this time, however, he was able to guess where it was coming from and walked towards it.

"Darn it! Why won't it work!" Uta exclaimed, stomping her feet on the ground. The ten-year-old girl, with red and white hair, was extremely thirsty and irritated making her more agitated than usual. "No matter how hard I try, I just can't reduce the output..." she sighed, looking at the various trees that were snapped in half around her.

Taking a deep breath, Uta decided to give it another try. She closed her eyes and concentrated power in her palm, causing the wind to spiral in her hands until it created a sphere of dense wind with a greenish hue. "Here goes nothing..." Uta said as she threw the sphere at a nearby tree. As soon as the sphere made contact with the stem, it exploded, ripping the tree in half, much to Uta's ire.

However, before she could express her irritation and anger, she heard a voice, "Whoa, that was so cool!" Looking towards the voice, she saw a boy with green hair and green eyes, looking at the tree she had just exploded with amazed eyes.

"You!" Uta said, pointing at Izuku accusingly. "What are you doing here!? Are you stalking me?"

"Huh? Why would I stalk you? I don't even know who you are," the boy said, looking at her as if she were saying something stupid, much to Uta's ire. "I just came to investigate who was making those loud, weird noises in the forest."

"Hey! I wasn't making any weird noises, I—" Uta's rant was cut short as she started coughing, unable to stop herself due to her already dry throat.

While Uta was coughing her throat out, she heard footsteps rushing towards her. Looking up, she saw the boy she was arguing with standing next to her, his eyes filled with concern. "Here, have some water; it will make you feel better," he said, offering her a bottle of water.

Normally, she would have been more hesitant before accepting something from a stranger, but right now, her throat was killing her, so without a second thought she quickly grabbed the bottle and gulped half of the water.

"Wow, that was bad," the green-haired boy said, sounding relieved. "Did you eat something weird recently?"

Uta thought for a moment and pointed at the cluster of mushrooms she had gathered in the morning for her backup snacks. The boy walked towards the mushrooms and examined them. Then he looked at her and asked, "You're not from here, are you?"

"No, I just arrived here three days ago," Uta replied, feeling much more relieved than before.

"Yeah, I figured as much," Izuku said, bringing one of the mushrooms close to her. "Everyone in the village knows that these mushrooms are a bad deal; they make your throat extremely dry and don't lose their effect until you drink something."

"I see..." Uta said, glaring daggers at the mushroom in the green-haired boy's hand. Then she looked towards Izuku, "My name is Uta. Thank you for helping me."

"I'm Izuku, and it's quite all right," he replied. "Although I am tempted to ask why you were deforesting this beautiful land, I think it's getting late, and it would be best for you to go back," he said, looking at the setting sun.

"I wasn't deforesting! I was just—anyway, you are right. I should go back to the village," Uta said with a sigh.

"Well, I'm heading towards the village as well, so I can accompany you if you don't mind," Izuku offered.

"Suit yourself," Uta said with a shrug as she started walking, with Izuku walking next to her.

"Well, it looks like we're going to the same place," Izuku remarked as he and Uta stood outside Makino's bar.

"Seems like," Uta nodded with a shrug.

Before wandering off on her own, her father had shown her this place and had told her to return here in the evening. However, it turned out that her new... friend? was going to the same place.

As they walked closer to the bar, they could hear men cheering and laughing from inside. "I didn't know there was going to be a party today..." Izuku muttered under his breath.

"Well, it's always a party with these guys around," Uta said, shaking her head. "Let's go; they're not going to stop anytime soon," she added, dragging Izuku inside.

As soon as they entered, all eyes turned towards them, specifically focusing on Izuku. Though he was weirded out by the sudden attention, he ignored it and walked towards Makino, smiling. "Wow, that's quite a crowd, Neesan," he said, glancing around. "You need a hand?"

"Thank you, Izuku. I would really appreciate that," Makino returned his smile, but then she noticed how ragged he and his clothes looked. "But first, go get washed up. I won't allow you to work here looking like that."

"Of course, Ms. Owner," Izuku said, giving her a playful salute before heading upstairs.

Meanwhile, a red-haired man who was sitting near the counter dejectedly hung his head. "I knew this day would come... but my heart was not ready for this."

"You are right, Captain," another man with long, light brown hair and a cigarette in his mouth remarked. "We knew that one day, our dear little Uta would bring a boy home, but I think it's too early for her."

"Maybe we should scare that boy a little before giving our blessings to him," a fat man added while taking a bite out of his meat.

"Yeah, let's mess with him for trying to take our princess away," the other man added while polishing his pistols.

"Oh my, are you perhaps planning to mess with my little brother?" Makino, who was quietly listening to their conversation, chimed in with a smile that didn't reach her eyes, causing the men in the bar to shut their mouths.

Meanwhile, Uta was getting progressively angry and irritated by her father and his crewmates. "Morons, every single one of you is a moron," she said and walked towards the counter while stomping her feet. Then she accusingly pointed at the red-haired man, "And father, stop saying stupid things!"

"Calm down, young lady. Here, have some juice," Makino said, placing a glass of orange juice in front of her with a kind smile.

Uta glared at her father one more time before she took her eyes away from him, shifting her focus to the juice.

A few minutes later, Izuku came back to the bar and started helping Makino with her work. Once he assisted her for a while, the boy took a seat behind the counter and continued observing the pirate crew, while the red-haired man continued flirting with the bartender and Uta did her best to ignore him.

After some time, Makino stepped outside the bar as she remembered some urgent errand, leaving Izuku in charge for a while. As soon as she left, Izuku walked in front of the red-haired man and asked, "Hey, do you mind if I ask you a question?"

"Sure, kid, go ahead," the red-haired man replied while taking a chug of his drink.

"You are Red-Haired Shanks, right?" Izuku asked, slightly leaning ahead. "The newly crowned Emperor of the Sea?"

Izuku's question got the attention of the Red Hair Pirates, and all of them were looking at him with amused smiles.

"And here I thought we would be inconspicuous here in the East Blue," Shanks said, shaking his head with an amused smile. "I wonder if my brief stay will turn complicated now that news has reached here as well."

"You don't have to worry about your identity since very few people know or care about the pirates in these parts," Izuku replied. "Besides, the last time your picture reached our little village, you were very young and thin. Not to mention you still had your left arm attached to your body."

"Darn, you make me feel old and useless, just like a swordsman friend of mine," Shanks shook his head with a sigh while his crewmates laughed at him.

"If what you said is true, then how do you recognize him?" Beckman asked, taking a puff from his cigarette.

"That straw hat and the scar on the left side of his face is a big giveaway," Izuku explained, pointing at the left side of Shanks's face. "Besides, my Grandpa loves to complain about you."

"Your Grandpa?" Shanks asked, mildly intrigued by who that person might be.

"I had heard my Grandpa grumbling about you when you ascended to your title of the 'Emperor' last year," Izuku explained as he started cleaning the glasses. "He was complaining to me about how you were just as troublesome as 'that person' and how he should have beaten some sense into you when you were on that 'other crew.'"

"Hmm... it seems you know a lot about me," Shanks said, the amused smile never leaving his lips.

"Not really," Izuku shook his head. "Just something that most of the Marines would probably know about you."

"You don't seem much troubled despite knowing who I am," Shanks pointed out. "Normally, a kid like you would be trembling at the sight of pirates, let alone the Emperor, and running around the village warning them about us."

"Yeah, I would have done that, but I don't usually judge people based on their appearance or rumors. Also, there are two reasons I think our village will survive a visit from an Emperor," Izuku glanced at Shanks. "First, I assumed that an Emperor and his crew wouldn't bother to loot such a small village since you won't get anything worthwhile and only attract unwanted attention to yourselves. Second, you don't look like bad people. The way you treated Makino earlier and your interaction with Uta tells me that much at least. In short, as long as you don't cause any trouble for this village or Makino nee-san, I am chill with you guys."

As Izuku finished his little explanation, the Red-Haired Pirates were looking at him like he had grown a second head. 'Is this really a kid talking?' Shanks thought with a comically large sweat drop at the back of his head.

Meanwhile, Uta was impressed with her new friend, as she knew that it takes something truly absurd or weird to make her father and his crew speechless.

"And what if you are wrong about us?" Yasopp asked with a cheeky smile. "What are you gonna do if we do decide to cause trouble, brat?"

"Then I will do whatever I can to stop you," Izuku declared without any hesitation in his voice.

"Really!?" Shanks asked, somewhat impressed by this 10-year-old kid's lack of hesitation while answering the question. "You think you can stop us?"

"Oh, absolutely not," Izuku chuckled, dismissively waving his hand. "I would be lucky to last for a minute at most as I am right now."

"And you still said you will stand up to us?" Beckman asked.

"I mean, I would rather die protecting someone than run away and save my own life," Izuku said nonchalantly, not noticing the odd looks he was getting from the pirates around him. Uta herself was at a loss for words at how easily he said those, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"You are one strange kid," Shanks laughed out loud before taking another chug of his drink.

"Thanks, I have heard that before," Izuku said and went back to doing his work. Then he remembered something and turned towards the only person who was of his age, "Hey Uta, you never told me why you were torturing the trees earlier."

"I wasn't doing anything like that!" Uta exclaimed, glaring at Izuku.

"I am sorry, calm down, I was just messing with you," Izuku chuckled, raising his hand in mock surrender. "Jokes aside, so how did you do all that? Was that a quirk or something?"

"Quirk?" Uta tilted her head. "What is a quirk?"

'Right... why would she know what a quirk is,' Izuku thought and scolded himself for a slip of the tongue. "I mean superpower... no wait, what it's called?" Izuku scratched his forehead. "Yeah right... Devil Fruit. Do you have a Devil Fruit?"

"Again, why does a kid from East Blue know about Devil Fruits?" Shanks asked, shaking his head with an amused smile.

"I read a lot," Izuku replied, not wanting to reveal that the books his grandpa brought from Marine HQ had many mentions of these strange fruits that gave powers to people. Then he turned towards Uta again and asked, "So?"

"Yeah, I accidentally ate one, and now I can control the wind," Uta replied, preparing herself to be called a freak or weird, like other children had called her before when they learned that she had eaten a Devil Fruit.

"Wow, that's so cool," Izuku said, looking at her with stars in his eyes. "There are so many amazing applications of this power. Like..." and just like that, Izuku went off on a tangent about her power until Uta snapped her fingers in front of his face. Looking up, he saw her looking at him with amused yet questioning eyes. "Sorry, my bad..." Izuku blushed a little, rubbing the back of his head.

"It's okay. I am just glad that you are not weirded out by my power," Uta replied. "Besides, that's the problem, you know. My power is a little too 'amazing.' Whenever I use it on something, I just shred it into pieces, and I want to avoid doing that."

"Hmm... maybe your output regulation is the problem here," Izuku muttered out loud, remembering his own struggle with controlling the output of One for All.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Uta asked.

"Well, I'm not sure, but the issue might be that you're using all the power you could muster in a single attack," Izuku explained. "You should try and regulate the output of the power you're using."

"Regulate my output? How do I do that?" Uta asked. "I don't know if it's even possible to do something like that."

"It is totally possible, and I have a trick that will make it easy for you," Izuku said as he walked out from behind the bar counter and sat next to Uta. "Now close your eyes and do as I say," he instructed.

Uta wasn't sure what to do but decided to trust her gut feeling and closed her eyes. "Now, imagine that your power is stored in a huge tank," Izuku said, and she imagined a huge tank filled with green liquid. "Now, imagine a small tap on the bottom of that tank," he said, and she once again did as he said and imagined a tap on that tank. "Now, give me your hand," he gently took her hand and held it upon his own, palm facing up. "Now slowly open that tap, but only a little. Do not let it flow on its own; you have to be the one to control how much power comes out of that tank." Uta did as Izuku said and carefully opened the tap but immediately felt that it was going to overflow, so she closed it again. Then she tried again and again until she finally controlled the flow, and only a little stream of power started flowing out of the tank. "Now, open your eyes," Uta followed Izuku's instruction and opened her eyes only to be pleasantly surprised upon seeing a small tornado swirling in her hand.

"I did it! I regulated my power!" Uta said cheerfully.

"You sure did," Izuku smiled at Uta, remembering how Eri had a similar expression on her face when he and Mirio had used a similar method to help her use her quirk. "Now you just have to keep that image in mind while using your power, until you learn to regulate your power subconsciously."

"That won't take long," Uta declared with a confident grin. "Now that I know the trick, I will-" her words were cut off as suddenly she felt a strong sting in her head. "Ughh, what is going on!? What is with this sudden headache?"

"It must be a drawback of forcefully suppressing your power," Izuku said as he handed Uta a glass of water. "Don't worry though, the more you practice with this, the more your body will get used to it."

"That will happen when it happens, but right now my head is killing me," Uta groaned.

"In that case, why don't we retire for the night," Shanks said, ruffling Uta's hair. "Benn, take her back to the ship; I will join you after I finish my drink."

Benn nodded and picked up Uta in piggyback style as he and the rest of the Red Hair Pirates went back to the ship, leaving Shanks and Izuku behind.

After the Red Hair Pirates left, there was a moment of silence in the bar until Shanks looked at Izuku and smiled, "Thank you for helping her," he said.

"It's not a big deal. Helping someone in need is just common sense," Izuku replied. "Besides, you would have found a way to help her one way or another."

"That's true, I would have, but if I had, then she wouldn't have gotten a new friend like you," Shanks said. "By the way, that thank you from earlier was not just for helping her but for becoming her friend as well. If you ever find yourself in trouble, you can come to me or anyone from my crew; they will wholeheartedly help you, to the best of their ability."

"Again, there's no need to thank me. It was just a coincidence that we stumbled upon each other in the forest," Izuku said. However, just then he thought of something. "Although if you do want to repay me, can you answer a question of mine?"

"Sure, kid, ask away," Shanks said, ordering another drink for himself.

"In that case, can you tell me what it means to be King of the Pirates?" Izuku asked as he served Shanks his ordered drink.

"Huh? That's a strange question, kid..." Shanks looked at Izuku as if he was studying the kid in front of him. "Why do you want to know that?"

"Just curiosity," Izuku shrugged as he poured a juice for himself as well. "To me, titles always hold a certain meaning and responsibility to them," he continued. "There are titles like 'Hero,' someone who does the right thing no matter what the situation is. But the thing is, anyone can be a hero; even the act of helping a cat down from a tree is heroic in itself," he said as Shanks silently listened to him, quite intrigued by his words.

"But then there are titles like the 'Symbol of Peace,'" Izuku said, as a smile bloomed on his face. "A title like this represents the person who brings hope to the people who have lost their will to fight. Someone whose name brings a smile to a child's face. Someone whose mere existence becomes a crutch for people going through hard times. This is what it means to be a 'Symbol of Peace.'"

'Symbol of Peace... sounds too good to be true,' Shanks thought to himself. 'If a person like that even existed, any and all factions that use fear as a currency to oppress people will be on that person's neck, under a week.'

"That's why..." Shanks snapped out of his thoughts as Izuku continued. "...I want to know what it even means to become the 'King of the Pirates'? And who would be better than the man who traveled with Mr. Rogers himself," Izuku finished, looking at Shanks, expecting an answer.

Shanks chuckled as Izuku called his former captain Mr. Rogers, wondering how his captain would have reacted to that.

Shanks thought for a moment, taking a sip from his drink before answering Izuku's question. "Honestly, there is no right answer to your question," he replied. "Every person who sails those seas has their own goals and ambitions, for which they have left their homes behind. Even my crew, when I first assembled them, had their own goals they wanted to achieve, and now, after all those years, some have achieved theirs, and some of us are still trying to find ways to do so. Similarly, being 'King of Pirates' differs from person to person."

"For my captain, the title of 'King of the Pirates' was more than just having the most treasure or being the strongest," Shanks explained, his eyes reflecting the weight of his words while a fond smile found its way to his face, remembering his old days. "For as long as I knew him, above everything else, he valued having the freedom to explore every corner of the world without any boundaries. To him, the King of the Pirates was a man standing at the pinnacle of freedom and embracing everything the vast ocean has to offer."

"And there is your answer, I guess," Shanks glanced at Izuku. "I think that the essence of the title of the 'Pirate King' is based on freedom itself. That title offers the freedom to decide whatever that title will mean to whoever will achieve it. Roger had his own meaning, I have my own, and so will others who are gunning for his title." Shanks got up from his seat and walked towards the door. "The only difference between Roger and everyone else is that Roger had the will and the heart to accomplish his dream and die with a smile on his face." With those final words, Shanks left the bar, saying he was retiring for the night.

Meanwhile, Izuku stayed in his seat, as Shanks's words kept repeating in his mind. "Freedom to choose what I want..." Izuku muttered to himself as he walked towards the window and stared at the moon in the sky, a myriad of thoughts debating in his mind.

To be continued...

Chapter Text

Three months had passed since Izuku first crossed paths with Uta, and life has been going pretty well during that time. With Uta now a part of his life, his weekends looked quite different than before, as now he was helping Uta in controlling her power, as well as coming up with new applications of it much ire of the trees and stone in the forest. Well, it was not like he was helping her for her benefit alone, after all, he too was interested in learning how the devil fruits work, as well as to see what kind of boundaries Uta could push with her power. 

Aside from Uta, Izuku's relationship with Shanks and the Red Hair Pirates had developed significantly as well. He often found himself enjoying their company whenever he was at Mainko's place. Izuku was fascinated with the tales the Red Hair Pirates had collected over the years. However, they weren't always present in the village, as the Red Hair Pirates frequently sailed to different locations in East Blue. Despite this, Uta often found herself staying back in the village, especially when it was closer to the weekends.

When asked for a reason, Uta just shrugged and mentioned that she was more interested in improving her control over her power than traveling with a bunch of old men. However, Shanks knew, even though Uta would never admit it, that she was actually enjoying Izuku's company and wanted to spend more time with him. Though a little sad about this, Shanks understood that Izuku was the first person of her age that she could call a friend. Moreover, it's not that he or his crew disliked the boy; on the contrary, they were always amazed at how unchildlike that kid acted most of the time. Not to mention, with Makino always around, Shanks thought that Uta could use some female, and more importantly, a motherly presence in her life.

Aside from this, nothing interesting was happening in Izuku's life as it continued like usual, with stability and peace around him. However, today was different as Izuku had decided that he was going to do something that had his heart racing and his mind overthinking, as it usually did in stressful situations. Despite that, he wasn't going to chicken out. He needed to have this conversation with his brother right now because he had already prolonged this conversation long enough, and more importantly Ace deserved to know the truth.

So after steeling his resolve, Izuku walked to their usual sparring spot. Upon reaching it, he saw that Ace was already there, doing some warm-up exercises.

As Izuku approached the older boy, Ace noticed him and smirked, "Hey there, little brother, ready to eat dirt like usual?"

"Well, I keep losing because you are older than me," Izuku retorted with a frown. What he said was true, but only half the truth. From his own experience in his past life, Izuku knew that age mattered little when skill was involved. With Ace not only being five years older than him but also a monster when it came to fighting instincts, at the end of the day, Izuku was always the one on the ground.

"Why don't you stop complaining and get good, little brother?" Ace said as he laughed at Izuku. Then he put on a serious face and asked, "So what's the matter? You wanna talk about something?"

"Huh? How do you know that?" Izuku asked.

"Two things: first, because I am your big brother and you can't hide anything from me," Ace said. "And second is the face you are making right now. So stop wasting both of our time and just tell me what is going on."

"Well, you see..." Izuku sighed and decided to just get this over with. He looked down and said, "...it's just that I learned about your father."

After Izuku's admission, there was a moment of silence as he continued to gaze at the ground.

Then Ace decided to break the silence. "I see," he said. "How long have you known about him?"

"Three months ago... I accidentally stumbled upon that information when I was going through Grandpa's stuff," Izuku replied. "Listen, Ace, I know that I should have told you this sooner, and I also know that you hate to talk about your father, so trust me, I never intended to go behind your back and learn-"

Izuku's rambling was cut off when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Ace smiling at him. "It's alright; you don't have to apologize for anything," he said. "Honestly, I think it's my fault for not telling you this sooner."

"No! No! What are you talking about?" Izuku asked, looking at him wide-eyed. "You are not obliged to tell me anything!"

"No, I am not, but I should have told you this the moment we became brothers, if not years ago," Ace explained as he squeezed Izuku's shoulder. "Don't dwell on it so much. Instead, tell me, is there something else?"

"Well, you see, there is this pirate crew that is currently using Foosha Village as their home base," Izuku said.

"Huh? There's a pirate crew in the village?" Ace asked, sounding surprised.

"Of course... you don't know about them," Izuku said with a sigh, remembering that Ace doesn't actually visit the village much due to some past bad blood between him and the villagers. Although Ace is much calmer now, the villagers still see him in a bad light and since Ace knows that Izuku has a good relationship with the village, he tends to avoid coming down as much as he can.

So after one brief explanation about the Red Hair Pirates, Ace was up to date with the current happenings in the village.

"So there is an Emperor and his crew in the village, cool," Ace said. "So what does that have to do with me?"

"The captain of the Red Hair Pirates, Emperor Shanks, was on your father's crew," Izuku explained as he saw realization dawn on Ace's face. "That's why. Do you want me to introduce you to him?"

Upon hearing Izuku's offer, Ace actually took some time to think it over. After pacing around for 15 minutes, he finally had his answer. "No, I think I am good."

"Are you sure?" Izuku asked. "I think he can provide some of the answers you are looking for."

"Yeah, I know, but I don't think I even care anymore," Ace shrugged. "Besides, why should I even bother to know what kind of man he was? Does it even matter? Not to me, at least. Izuku, you, Gramps, Sabo, and Dadan are more of a family to me than that man would ever be," he said with a smile. "Also, I am going to sail out to the sea in three years anyway, so if I ever want to find answers about anything, then I will find them on my own. That's why I would rather stay away from anything and anyone related to my father for now."

"Well, if that's what you wish for," Izuku said, respecting his brother's wishes.

"Great, now get off your ass, my fists are tingling for some action," Ace said, dragging Izuku along with him.

Later that weekend, Izuku once again found himself behind the bar counter, tending to Makino's bar as she was out in the village for some shopping along with Uta. In front of him were the Red-Haired Pirates, occupying the seats in the bar, drinking, laughing, and having the time of their lives.

Just then, the door of the bar swung open, and in walked an unknown man. As soon as the man entered, Izuku sensed he was bad news just by the way he walked, the smug smile on his face, and the sword at his hip. Still, Izuku believed that as long as the man didn't cause any trouble, he would serve him and let him go on his way.

"Hello, how can I help you?" Izuku asked in a polite voice.

The man looked at Izuku and frowned, raising his brow. "Huh? What are you doing here, brat? Where is that woman who usually runs this bar?" he asked.

"No, she is not here right now," Izuku replied, pushing down the irritation he felt upon hearing the way the man addressed Makino.

"Well, that is a shame. I was hoping to go a few rounds with her," the man said with a lecherous grin on his face, completely oblivious to how the temperature of the room dropped all of a sudden. "Whatever, just hand me a few bottles of booze."

"We don't have any in stock," Izuku instantly dismissed him in a cold voice.

"What do you mean you don't have any?" the man asked in an enraged voice. "Then why are they having booze served to them?" he asked, pointing at Shanks and his crew.

"Oh, sorry. Let me correct myself," Izuku looked at him with an innocent smile and cold eyes. "We don't have any in stock for scum like you."

It took a minute for the man to digest Izuku's words, but when he did, his face turned red with rage. "How dare you say that to me, brat!? Do you know who I am!?" he yelled as he unsheathed his sword and held it in front of Izuku's face.

Unknown to that man, as soon as he unsheathed his sword, the Red Hair Pirates were already reaching for their weapons. However, before they could do anything, Izuku held the hostile man's wrist and started applying pressure to it.

"Sorry, but we don't allow weapons in our establishment," Izuku said as he broke the hostile man's wrist with a loud crack, making him drop his sword and fall back on his butt while clenching his broken wrist and screaming in pain.

"You!" the hostile man glared at Izuku. "Do you even know who you are messing with!? I am a member of the Higuma Bandits! We will destroy you and this stupid bar!"

"Yeah, sure, whatever you say," Izuku said, dismissing the man's threat. "Now, if you're done threatening me, just leave."

"Why, you—"

"I think you should do what he said and leave," Shanks interrupted the bandit, directing his killing intent towards him. It was enough to scare the bandit, who promptly ran out of the bar.

Once the bandit left, Izuku leaned onto the bar counter and rubbed his temples. "I really hate resorting to violence, but when he said bad things about Makino, I just lost my composure."

"It's okay, kid. Your reaction was totally natural," Shanks reassured him, understanding that he would have done worse if someone had made that kind of comment towards Uta or any of his female friends. "However, I must say, you are really strong for a kid your age. Breaking someone's wrist with a bare hand is not a small feat."

"Well, my grandpa has been training me ever since I was five, and honestly, I don't think that man was strong at all," Izuku replied.

"That is true; however, anyone who points a sword at a child cannot be called a man," Benn said.

"You're right, man. That guy was just a moron!" Lucky added, and everyone in the bar burst out laughing.

At that moment, Makino returned to the bar and was curious about what was going on to make everyone laugh like that, but they just told her not to worry about it.

"Hey, Makino, where is Uta? She was with you, right?" Shanks asked, noticing the absence of his daughter.

"Oh, she went back to your ship, saying that she had a gift for Izuku," Makino explained. "Oh, that reminds me, Izuku, Uta had asked me to tell you to meet her at your usual spot."

"Yeah, sure, I will head there right now," Izuku said as he walked out of the bar, wondering what kind of gift Uta had gotten for him.

Upon reaching their usual meeting spot, Izuku noticed that Uta wasn't there yet. Not knowing how long it would take her to arrive, he found a nice spot, sat down, and overlooked the village below him.

Now that he was alone with his thoughts, once again his mind wandered off to the contents of his Grandpa's diary and, more importantly, toward his abandoned dream.

This feeling of being purposeless was quite a new experience for Izuku. In his past life, becoming a Hero like All Might was the only thing he had on his mind for as long as he could remember. Even when his prospects of becoming a Hero were down in the dumps, he clung to the hope of achieving that dream and never considered any alternative paths in life. So now, in this life when his initial goal is shattered, the empty feeling keeps growing in his gut.

Honestly, spending life as a nameless civilian was quite appealing to Izuku, especially considering how he died in his last life. However, to Izuku, that option died the day he read his Grandpa's diary. And now, he wants to help people who are being wronged, but he honestly has no idea how to go about it.

"You know, Izuku, I always wonder how big that head of yours is, that you are almost lost in it," a familiar voice broke Izuku out of his thought. Turning around, he saw Uta standing there with her favorite white bag and a cheeky smile on her face.

"Big enough to know your devil fruit better than you," Izuku retorted back with an equally cheeky smile as he noticed a twitch in Uta's eye. "Anyway, Uta, do you mind if I ask you something?" he asked and continued when Uta told him to go ahead. "Do you have a dream?"

"Yeah, I do have a dream," Uta said, looking at the sky. "I want to find out where I came from."

"What do you mean?" Izuku asked.

"You know, I love Shanks, and even if we are not blood-related, he is my father. However, I still want to know what happened to my real parents," Uta looked down with a sad smile. "Father never told me where he got me from, and whenever I try to ask him about it, he always changes the topic. This makes me think that maybe my parents never wanted me or they just threw me away for some reason before Shanks found me."

"Maybe, you are overthinking it too much," Izuku said, offering her a reassuring smile. "Maybe things are not as bad as you think they are. Perhaps the decision to give you up to Shanks was born out of desperation and necessity, and not by their own choice."

Uta glanced at Izuku with a smile, thinking how much she appreciated having a friend like Izuku who always tried to find the good in any situation in front of him. "Yeah... I hope that is the case, but still, I am not giving up on my goal. One day, I will find out about my origin."

"I am sure you will," Izuku returned the smile. "And if you ever need help, you can always count on me."

"Darn it! Stop saying things like this!" Uta said with a frown. "You are only making what I am going to tell you that much difficult!"

"What happened? Is there a problem?" Izuku asked.

"No, it's not a problem per se..." Uta bit her lip and twiddled her fingers. "Listen, yesterday Father told me that we are going to leave for the Grand Line by the end of next week."

"Oh..." Izuku said, feeling saddened by the sudden news. "I'm sad to hear that, but I understand that you all can't spend your entire lives here in this small village."

"It's not that," Uta shook her head. "Father says that Marines are starting to notice our presence here in East Blue, and they could cause trouble for this village if they find out that we are frequent here."

"It's okay, Uta, I understand. Even I don't want any Marines around my village," Izuku replied. "Moreover, just because you won't be staying here doesn't mean we won't be friends anymore. Besides, we can always make a promise to meet each other in the future."

"Of course, we are going to meet again! I still need to show you how awesome I am!" Uta grinned at him. "Now let's put this depressing topic behind because I have a gift for you."

"Oh yeah, Neesan told me you had something for me," Izuku said, recalling Makino's words.

"Trust me, you will love this," Uta said, taking something out of her bag and holding it in front of Izuku.

"What is this?" Izuku asked as he stared at the weird object in Uta's hand. Its shape and the stem at the top made him almost tempted to call it a fruit. However, what made him hesitant was the rainbow-colored appearance of the fruit, as well as the weird swirl pattern all over it.

"This is a Devil Fruit!" Uta said with a smug and proud voice.

"What!?" Izuku exclaimed, doing a double-take as he looked at Uta and the fruit in her hand. "Where the hell did you get that from?"

"Two days ago, we were on this cool inhabited island with lots of beautiful flowers and tasty fruits. There, while I was exploring the island, I came across this, and since I already ate one, I thought why not give this one to you," Uta explained.

"But what about Shanks or any of his crewmates? Doesn't any of them want this?" Izuku asked.

"Honestly, I don't think any of them are too keen on eating one since we've come across various devil fruits in the past. But every time the Crew decided to sell it away instead of giving it to anyone on the ship," Uta explained. "Besides, we have a rule on the ship that anyone who finds any kind of treasure has complete ownership over it."

"But you told me that Devil Fruits sell for millions of Bellies? Are you sure you want to give something like this to me?" Izuku asked, uncertain about accepting something so expensive and valuable from Uta.

"Why are you being so stubborn about this?" Uta asked in an irritated voice. "Why are you so against accepting my gift?"

"It's not that I don't want your gift, but I just don't want to take advantage of our friendship by accepting something so rare and valuable," Izuku explained.

"And I am telling you that I want to give this to you because I want to," Uta insisted with a tired expression on her face. "Izuku, you are the first and only friend I have ever made. You helped me control my power without asking anything in return. You and Makino neesan always treat me so nicely and never ask me to pay for anything that I eat or drink at her place. So after all of that, I thought I should do something nice for you. Please, Izuku, don't reject my gift."

Izuku let out a sigh, knowing that he wouldn't be able to deny Uta's gift anymore, especially after hearing those heartfelt words. "Fine, I will take it," he said, shaking his head.

"Great!" Uta exclaimed with a cheerful smile. Then she held the fruit in front of him and said, "Eat this!"

'Deja vu...' Izuku thought with a comical sweatdrop on the back of his head. He took the fruit out of her hand and stared at it for a moment before a question popped into his mind. "So, what powers does this fruit grant?" he asked.

"I have no idea," Uta replied without a care in the world while keeping a sweet smile on her face.

"So... you want me to eat this fruit without knowing what it does?" Izuku asked with a deadpan expression.

"Oh, come on! Stop being such a party pooper!" Uta whined. "Even I didn't know what my fruit did before I ate it, but it still gave me amazing wind powers, right?" Uta said with a cheeky smile while waving her hair with the wind.

"Didn't you eat your fruit on accident, though?" Izuku muttered under his breath, knowing that there was no winning against this girl. "Fine, I am eating it. I just hope it doesn't turn me into an insect or something."

"Don't worry, even if you turn into an insect, I will make sure that you are not eaten by a frog or something," Uta said, chuckling to herself.

"That's reassuring," Izuku muttered, shaking his head with an amused smile. "Well then, here goes nothing," he said and took a bite of the strange, rainbow-colored fruit. However, he immediately regretted it. "Ughh, that was disgusting..." he said as an indescribably unpleasant taste filled his mouth. Then he heard Uta laughing at him, making him glare at her as he realized she purposefully hid that fact.

"Ha ha, very funny, good job," Izuku said, rolling his eyes. "Now let's figure out-" Suddenly, he stopped as intense pain assaulted his body and mind. He fell to the ground, his mind rapidly assaulted with memories of his past life—showing him various people, scenarios, and battles that he had seen or been part of. Simultaneously, he felt physical pain as if someone was constantly breaking and reshaping his body.

"Izuku!" Uta screamed her friend's name as she rushed toward him and kneeled beside him while Izuku gritted his teeth and squirmed on the ground in pain. "Izuku, please talk to me! What is going on?" she said, her voice turning desperate, tears welling in the corners of her eyes.

Then Izuku's movements suddenly stopped as he passed out from unbearable pain, giving Uta the biggest scare of her life. Panicking, she thought something had happened to Izuku and decided to take him back to the village. However, when she tried to pick him up, she realized that he was too heavy for her. "Darn it! What do I do now?" she cursed under her breath. Just then, an idea clicked in her mind. She used her power and created a small tornado under Izuku, lifting him off the ground.

Once she managed to lift him up, she quickly took him to Makino's bar as fast as she could, ignoring the strange glances the villagers were giving her. However, the entire time she was running, the crippling fear kept growing in her heart, and her mind desperately hoped that her stupidity hadn't caused any harm to her friend.

Meanwhile, when Izuku opened his eyes, he found himself in a vast, infinite plane surrounded by mist.

'Where am I?' he thought as he started walking forward, continuing until he found himself on a familiar beach, in the presence of a setting sun. "Takoba Beach... never thought I would see this place again," he muttered with a faraway look in his eyes.

"You and me both, lad," suddenly, Izuku's eyes widened as he heard a familiar voice. Slowly, he turned around, and immediately his eyes teared up upon seeing a skinny man with wavy blonde hair, two long strands coming down from his hairline, and a wide, reassuring smile on his face. "It's nice to see you again... young Izuku."

Izuku's breath hitched as he tried to find words until he finally gathered his composure and whispered, "All Might..."

To be continued...

Chapter Text

"All Might..." Izuku whispered as he stared at the skinny, grinning man in front of him.

"Haha! Indeed, young man!" All Might laughed and assumed his buff form, only to swiftly return to his original state, coughing up blood.

Normally, Izuku would have questioned why All Might was coughing up blood in this peculiar place, but at the moment, he was too overwhelmed by seeing his mentor again. "All Might... I don't understand how I am able to meet you... talk to you. No. More importantly, where are we?"

"Well, I assumed you'd recognize this place. After all, among all of us, you were the first to interact with it while still alive," All Might replied, making Izuku confused for a moment before he widened his eyes.

"Are you saying this is a vestige realm?" Izuku asked, surveying the beach around them. "But how is that possible? As far as I know, the vestige realm was supposed to be a part of a room floating over a void."

"That's because the vestige realm you're describing originated from Yoichi's memories, and this one is from yours," All Might explained. "You see, young man, One for All wasn't just a simple quirk. It might have started that way, but by the time you received it from me, it had become a unique existence, completely merging with your soul and strengthening it beyond that of a normal human. That's why I believe it allowed you to recall memories from your past life, even though you didn't inherit any stockpiled power or quirks from One for All."

"I see..." Izuku whispered, trying to make some sense of All Might's words. Then, a sudden realization hit him like a truck. "But last time we were here, you just had your silhouette representing you because..." Izuku stopped, unable to utter the words that were almost on his lips. Instead, he just sat down on the sand and tucked his head between his knees, not even wanting to entertain the thought.

All Might sighed and joined his protege, sitting beside him. "You guessed it right; I passed away in our old world," he said, gently placing a hand on Izuku's trembling shoulder.

A moment later, Izuku gathered himself and looked at All Might with teary eyes. "How?" he asked, stumbling upon his words. "When?"

Once again, All Might sighed and looked at the setting sun. "It all began after the three months following your battle with Shigaraki and All for One, when my age and past injuries caught up with me. For the next nine months, everyone tried all they could to help me. However, after All for One's defeat and your passing, there was nothing left in that world to bolster my will to keep going. So, after nine months of struggle, my body finally gave out, and I took my final breath."

"But then, when I opened my eyes again, I found myself here in your mindscape, witnessing your new life," All Might continued, moving his hand to Izuku's head and ruffling his hair. "I must say, this is quite a peculiar world you've found yourself in. Well, knowing you, I can't say I'm surprised."

"Well, I can't deny that, can I?" Izuku chuckled, injecting a bit of lightness into the somber atmosphere.

After a moment of comfortable silence, All Might spoke again. "So, young Izuku, how are you?" he inquired, prompting Izuku to turn his head toward his mentor and raise a brow at the unexpected question.

"I... am good?" Izuku replied with a question, unsure how to respond.

"That's not the answer I was looking for, and I'm certain you know what I'm asking about," All Might said, shaking his head. "So, I'm going to ask you again. How are you, young Izuku?"

This time, Izuku took a minute and thought over All Might's question before he realized what his mentor was actually asking him. "I am... I feel so lost, All Might," Izuku replied with a sigh.

"This is about becoming a Marine, isn't it?" All Might asked.

Izuku nodded, turning towards his mentor. "I thought, once I became a Marine, I would be able to continue my dream of helping people like in my last life. But then I learned all those things about the Marines and the World Government, and now I don't know what to do anymore. How do I help people without serving under those who are one of the reasons for their problems?"

All Might stared at his student for a moment before he asked, "Tell me, young man, was becoming a hero easy for you?"

"I mean... in a way, I guess it was after receiving One for All, and I shouldn't-"

"No, not that crap," All Might cut him off. "One for All only allowed you to stand at the starting line. Was the journey from there easy for you? And don't give me that 'I was blessed' and 'I shouldn't be complaining' crap; give me an honest answer."

"No..." Izuku replied, remembering everything from the hellish training he did with All Might, ten months before U.A. to the last breath he took while surrounded by his friends. "...it was not."

"Was saving all the people you saved easy?" All Might asked again.

"No... not at all," Izuku replied, the memory of the scars earned from helping and saving Eri, Kota, Shoto, and other various people vivid in his mind, even though he would never regret them.

"Was the decision of going for that final attack easy, knowing that you won't walk out alive after that?" All Might asked.

Izuku took a moment before answering this question, letting the memories of his final attack settle in his mind. "No... I went through a lot of emotions before that final strike," Izuku admitted, clenching his fist. "I was scared, knowing that I was going to die. I was angry at the fact that it was the only choice left. Sad, knowing that my decision was going to hurt Mom, you, and all my friends. But also happy, knowing that I was the only one who could have ended that war and me going for that attack would keep everyone I care about away from harm."

All Might couldn't help but smile at his protege's words but refrained from praising him, knowing he had a point to make. "Well, if all of those things weren't easy in the original world, then why would it be any different here?"

"I know that All Might, and you know that working hard has never been my problem. I always knew that becoming a Marine wouldn't be easy; Grandpa drove that point home the first time I told him about my dream," Izuku replied. "Right now, my main dilemma is how do I help people without joining the Marines."

"Well, if it's all about helping people, then what's the problem?" All Might asked.

"Didn't you hear me? I can't become a Marine-"

"You becoming a Marine has nothing to do with helping people," All Might cut him off once more. "Besides, if I recall correctly, you were quite fascinated by Shanks's tales of adventures, the various discoveries he made on his journey, and his vision about what a pirate and the 'Pirate King' is," he said, prompting Izuku to avert his eyes.

"Hmm, I see. Maybe your biggest problem is that you are held back by the morals and beliefs of our old world," All Might speculated but then he dismissed the thought with a shake of his head. "No, that's not entirely true. More than that, you are held back by the idea of what people from your past would think if you did something that Izuku Midoriya wouldn't do," he said, and once again instead of replying, Izuku just looked down.

All Might sighed as he studied his protege, recognizing that it would require one more push to break him free from his 'I owe it to the world' mindset. "Young Izuku, look at me," he instructed, prompting Izuku to lift his head. "Now, you will listen to what I have to say without interrupting me, do you understand?"

After Izuku nodded, All Might continued, "You are not Izuku Midoriya anymore. While you carry his memories, ideals, and ambitions, you are not bound by his morals, burdens, debts, and promises," he declared, locking eyes with his student. "You are Monkey D. Izuku! You have the power to forge your own path without being shackled by your past life. And know this, no matter what path you choose, I will always be proud of you."

With those final words, All Might's smile finally emerged as he witnessed a newfound determination kindling in Izuku's eyes.

"I suppose you're right, All Might. I've been overthinking this far too much," Izuku admitted, rubbing the back of his head.

"Well, you wouldn't be young Izuku if you didn't," All Might replied with a hearty laugh.

"Hey, All Might, did you truly mean what you said?" Izuku questioned, staring directly at his mentor. "The path I am thinking of taking might force my hand to do things differently than what I've been taught is the 'right' way to help people. I might have to break a lot of hero protocols, you know?" he added the last part while chuckling to himself.

"Absolutely, young man. Even if the whole world turns against you, you can always count on me to stand by your side," All Might assured, giving a comforting pat on Izuku's shoulder. "Besides, I've always thought that protocols were overrated anyway," he added, joining in on Izuku's humorous remark.

"I'm sure somewhere Aizawa-sensei must be holding back the urge to glare at both of us," Izuku chuckled once more, shaking his head with an amused smile. However, just then, Izuku noticed something. "Hey, All Might... what's going on with you?" he asked, prompting All Might to look down and realize that his body was gradually vanishing, turning into particles.

"Oh, it seems my time is up," All Might said with a sad smile.

"I see..." Izuku responded in a quivering voice. "Will I ever see you again?"

As All Might gazed at his successor, the parental side of him yearned to promise Izuku that they would meet again, but the mentor in him recognized that offering false hope could be detrimental in the long run. Thus, he chose the tougher path. "I don't believe so," he honestly conveyed to his successor. "I was already living here on borrowed time, and now I've used up the last of my energy to sustain this form. Nevertheless, I'm grateful to have this final moment with you... grateful to be able to tell you that we've found a better successor than we could have ever hoped for."

Izuku, on the other hand, didn't know how to respond; his mentor's words felt like a sudden slap to the face. Instead of relying on words, he moved forward and hugged All Might. "I will miss you," he muttered in a low voice.

"Me too, kid," All Might replied as tears slid down Izuku's cheek. "Listen, Izuku, I know you want to help people, and I'm incredibly proud of you for that. But in doing so, I want you to prioritize your own goals and happiness," he said, his body on the verge of vanishing completely. "The night before the battle where Nana lost her life, she told me that, no matter what happens to her, she wants me to live a happy, fulfilling life and face my problems with an open heart. In the end, I failed to heed her advice. However, I don't want you to repeat the same mistakes I made. Follow Nana's advice kid, and become the best version of yourself."

With those final words, All Might vanished, leaving Izuku falling to his knees. In the next moment, he heard a faint, "Goodbye, son," before everything went white.

When Izuku opened his eyes again, he found himself in a familiar room, back at the Makino's house.

Getting up with a start, he rubbed his face, feeling the fresh tears running down. Once he wiped his eyes, he glanced outside and noticed the sun high in the sky. 'Didn't I pass out in the evening? Then how come... oh, I must have been unconscious for the whole night.' As he reached that conclusion, he realized that everyone must be worried about him. So he quickly wiped his face and descended the stairs; however, once he reached the bottom, his eyes widened in shock and horror.

"What the..." he muttered as he laid eyes on the state of Makino's bar. Scanning the area, he noticed tables and chairs knocked over, with shards of broken glass scattered all over the ground. "Neesan! Are you here, Neesan?" Izuku kept calling out to Makino, but despite his loud calls, he received no reply, causing the pit in his stomach to widen.

'Damn it! Please be alright, Neesan!' Izuku thought as he carefully navigated through the broken glass and exited the bar.

"Now, what should I-" Izuku was pondering where to start searching for his Neesan when he was abruptly cut off by someone calling out to him. Turning towards the source of the sound, he saw the Old Mayor running towards him, looking tired and out of breath.

"Izuku! Thank God you're alright!" The Old Mayor said as he stood before Izuku, panting heavily.

"Mr. Mayor! What the hell is going on here!?" Izuku asked. "No. More importantly, do you know where Neesan is? I couldn't find her anywhere!"

"So, you don't know?" the Old Mayor asked with a grim expression on his face.

"Will you tell me what the hell is going on?" Izuku narrowed his eyes at the Old Mayor, pressing him for answers.

"A few minutes ago, some bandit named Higuma came with his men and dragged Makino to the docks," the Old Mayor explained.

"A bandit named Higuma?" Izuku muttered to himself as he thought he had heard that name somewhere before. Then, suddenly, his eyes went wide as he remembered the man he had humiliated yesterday. 'Oh no, it's my fault! I-' Izuku halted his train of thought and scolded himself for succumbing to panic. 'I can apologize to Neesan later; right now, saving her is more important,' he concluded, clenching his fist with determination.

"You said they took her towards the docks, right?" Izuku asked, and the Old Mayor nodded. "Good, at least I don't have to waste my time finding out where they are."

"Wait a minute! Don't tell me you're planning to fight-" Old Mayor attempted to stop Izuku, but before he could complete his sentence, Izuku was already sprinting towards the docks. "Damn it!" he cursed and started running after Izuku. However, as he chased behind Izuku, a single thought crossed his mind, 'Strange, since when did that kid start smelling like caramel....'

To be continued... 

Chapter Text

Sometime before Izuku woke up, Makino and Uta could be seen in Makino's bar. The former was working behind the bar while the latter was sitting at one of the tables, looking gloomy and sad.

"Uta, will you stop sulking now?" Makino asked, letting out a tired sigh as she glanced at the little ten-year-old who had been acting like this ever since yesterday.

"But Izuku still hasn't woken up," Uta lamented, her frustration evident as she slammed her forehead onto the table. "I really shouldn't have pressured him into eating that Devil Fruit."

'No, you shouldn't have,' Makino retorted in her mind; however, she didn't say it out loud. Honestly, she really wanted to give an earful to Uta for forcing her little brother to eat some weird fruit. However, she held herself back, knowing that reprimanding Uta wouldn't improve Izuku's condition or the overall situation.

"So, where's your father and his crew?" Makino interjected, attempting to shift Uta's focus.

"They set sail early this morning," Uta answered. "They fitted a new sail yesterday and wanted to give it a trial run," she added, casting a glance at the clock. "Although they should've returned by now."

"I'm sure they must have made a pit stop for a drink," Makino suggested.

"Yeah, sounds about right," Uta agreed, knowing how much her father and his crew loved partying.

Just then, the door of the bar burst open with a resounding crash, and a couple of men entered, led by a tall, tan-skinned man with black hair, a black goatee, and a lecherous grin across his face.

"So, this is the place where you were humiliated and kicked out of," the leader jeered, his laughter echoing in the room.

"Yeah, this is the place," one of the men in the group said, gritting his teeth and ducking his head in shame. Then he directed his venomous glare at Makino as he walked towards the bar. "Hey! Where is that green-haired brat!?"

'Why are they asking about Izuku?' Makino thought to herself, wondering and fearing what these men want with her little brother. "No, he is not here right now."

"Don't give me that crap!" the man bellowed, sweeping his sword across the bar, shattering the neatly arranged bottles. "Hand over the brat, or else," he threatened, pressing the blade against Makino's throat.

"Now now, calm down. You don't want to damage the goods like her," the man leading the group said as he walked towards Makino, the lecherous smile never leaving his face. "I am sure all of you will like to take turns once I, the great Higuma, am done with her."

"Fine, boss, if you say so," the man said, retracting his sword.

"However, that green-haired brat still insulted one of my men, and I can't let that slide," Higuma narrowed his eyes at Makino. "That's why, before we leave this stupid place, we are going to make an example out of her," he said, grabbing Makino by the hair and starting to drag her outside.

In that moment, Uta lunged forward, grasping at Higuma's leg in a desperate attempt to stop him. "Leave her alone!" she shrieked with all her power.

"Insolent brat," Higuma sneered, delivering a brutal blow to Uta's head with the hilt of his sword, knocking her out.

"Uta!" Makino screamed, seeing Uta get struck by the sword.

"Are you really wasting your time worrying about that brat?" Higuma taunted, his laughter echoing through the bar. "Well, whatever. Once I break you, you won't be thinking about anything at all," he said as he dragged her outside the bar.

A few moments later, Uta regained her senses as her mind caught up to the recent events. As soon as she did, the wind violently stormed out of her body, creating a mess of furniture and glass bottles around her.

Once she calmed down, she realized that Makino was still in danger, so she rushed outside and soon arrived at the docks where Higuma was boasting about himself and how he was going to punish Makino, while the gathered villagers watched with fear and dread in their eyes.

"Cowards..." Uta sneered under her breath as she rushed forward, making her way through the crowd, and stood in front of the bandits. "Hey! Leave her alone!" she yelled, getting the bandits' attention.

"Oh, little miss, what are you going to do if I don't?" Higuma taunted, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Then I will kick your ass!" Uta declared, ignoring Makino who was telling her to run away.

"Oh, I would like you to try," Higuma challenged her with a grin.

"Well, you asked for it," Uta said and produced three white hawks made out of air, launching them towards the bandits at rapid speed.

Higuma was shocked for a moment, but he somehow managed to dodge one of the hawks by a hair's breadth. However, his men weren't so fortunate. Three standing behind him were hit by the hawks and knocked out.

Once he overcame his shock, Higuma gritted his teeth and glared at Uta. "How did you do that, you freak!" he spat, then turned to his men, who were still standing there with their mouths agape. "What are you standing there for!? Go get that freak you fools!"

In response to their leader's command, five of Higuma's lackeys charged toward Uta, brandishing their swords in their hands.

The sight of incoming men with swords frightened Uta to no end; however, she pushed back her fear and closed her eyes while concentrating on her power. Then, just as those five men closed in on her, she created a decent-sized tornado, which lifted those men in the air, spun them, and threw them around.

Although the attack was powerful and saved her from those five men, it also affected her. She was panting heavily, taking deep breaths as the attack drained her stamina.

'No, I can't give up now,' Uta thought to herself. However, when she opened her eyes, she was met with the chilling sight of a gun aimed directly at her face.

"Damn brat! You've made quite a mess," Higuma growled, his expression twisted into a sneer of disdain. "Usually, a freak like you would fetch a pretty penny on the black market, but I have a feeling you're more trouble than you're worth. So, I'll just put an end to it right here," he declared, hovering his finger over the trigger. "See you in hell, brat!"

Uta closed her eyes and clenched her trembling hands. Instead of the deafening bang of a gunshot, she heard a resounding boom that reverberated through the air. Startled by a sudden noise, she cautiously reopened her eyes, only to find herself away from the gun, being shielded by Izuku, who had shock written all over his face.

When Izuku arrived at the docks, his heart sank at the sight of Uta, who was about to get shot. He felt a tingling sensation in his palms, but before he could comprehend what was going on, his legs moved on their own, and then he heard a boom. The next thing he knew, he had rescued Uta, and there was smoke coming out of his palms.

'No fucking way! Did I just...' Izuku's mind raced as he stared at his hands in disbelief. 'How? Why?' Oh...' as Izuku was panicking, suddenly he remembered how he was assaulted by memories of his past life after he ate that Devil Fruit, specifically memories of different Quirks that he had seen, known, or read about. Then there was that terrifying physical pain that felt like someone was reshaping his body. All of those things pointed to only one possible conclusion, '... am able to use quirks from my past life?' he questioned himself.

"Well, looks like there's another freak in this village," Higuma sneered, clicking his tongue as he leveled his gun at Izuku. "Well, doesn't matter, just one more bug for me to finish off."

Izuku immediately shielded Uta with his body as his mind began to race. 'Damn it, I wish I had a better environment to test my theory, but I have no other choice right now,' he thought and crossed his arms in front of his face. 'Kirishima, buddy, don't let me down now,' he thought as he concentrated his mind on one specific quirk, and in the next moment, his flesh transformed, becoming jagged and rock-like.

It was precisely at this moment that Higuma decided to open fire on Izuku. However, to his astonishment, the bullets ricocheted off Izuku's hardened skin. Gritting his teeth, Higuma fired four more shots, only to witness them bounce off harmlessly once again, fueling his frustration even more.

Izuku, meanwhile, was totally amazed and excited by what he did. 'I really did it! I really used [Hardening]! I-" his thoughts were interrupted by a surge of agony coursing through his arms, snapping him back to reality, making him realize that while [Hardening] had shielded his arms from getting pierced by bullets however, the force of impact still damaged his arms. 'Yep, I am totally not unbreakable,' he thought while gritting his teeth against the pain.

Seeing Izuku seething in pain, Higuma's lips curled into a sinister smile as he drew his sword. "Well, if bullets won't do the trick, then the sword will," he taunted, as he started walking towards Izuku.

This time, it was Uta who positioned herself in front of Izuku and glared at Higuma. "I won't allow you to hurt him!"

"Oh, really?" Higuma's expression twisted into a cruel grin. "Then I'll just have to cut through both of you," he snarled, raising his sword. However, before he could bring it down, the sound of a gunshot echoed through the air, and a bullet pierced through Higuma's hand, making him drop the sword.

"How dare you raise a hand on my daughter?" Still clutching his wounded hand, Higuma stared at the source of the sound and saw a very angry-looking red-haired man glaring at him.

"Father!" Uta exclaimed, relief flooding her voice as tears welled up in her eyes.

Higuma quickly took out a smoke bomb and slammed it on the ground. Taking advantage of the chaos, Higuma grabbed Uta by her hair and started running towards one of the boats.

"Ow! Let go of my hair, it hurts!" Uta shrieked, as she squirmed in Higuma's hand.

"Like hell, I am going to drop you now!" Higuma said. "You are my ticket to get out of here!" he said and grinned as he spotted an empty boat. However, before he could enter the boat, suddenly a wall of spiky ice blocked his way. "What!?" Higuma exclaimed and looked to his right, seeing the green-haired kid smirking while the right side of his body was covered in ice.

Meanwhile, Izuku was barely standing on his feet, his arms throbbing with pain and his body wracked with cold. "Damn it, Shoto made it look so easy..." he muttered weakly, feeling consciousness slipping away. "Not again..." he thought before he fell to the ground and passed out.

When Izuku opened his eyes again, he found himself in a bed, cocooned in layers of snug blankets, and a mild pain in his arms. With a little effort, he managed to sit straight up and saw his arms in casts.

"It's an oddly familiar sight," Izuku muttered with a weary smile.

Just then, the door creaked open, and Makino stepped into the room. As soon as she laid her eyes on Izuku, she rushed towards him and pulled him into a tight embrace. "Thank God you're awake, Izuku! I was so worried about you!" she said, her voice trembling with emotion as tears fell onto Izuku's shoulder.

Izuku's heart warmed at Makino's evident concern for him. He really wanted to return her hug, but his arms wouldn't allow it, so he decided to respond with humor instead. "Neesan, you're crushing my arms!"

Hearing Izuku's complaint, Makino quickly pulled back in panic. "Oh, I'm so sorry—" Makino began to apologize but stopped when she noticed her little brother smirking to himself. "Really, Izuku? You think this is the time to tease your poor, worried sister?" she chided lightly, delivering a playful tap on his head.

"Sorry, my bad," Izuku said, giggling to himself. "Anyway, what's the deal with these casts?" he inquired, nodding towards his arms.

"What do you mean by 'what's up with these casts'?" Makino asked, with an incredulous expression on her face. "Mr. Izuku, when we brought you here, you had several fractures in your arms along with a minor case of frostbite!"

"Wow, that's quite a lot of damage," Izuku remarked casually.

"Don't 'wow' me, young man!" Makino retorted, though her stern expression softened with a hint of amusement. "Izuku, please stop getting hurt like this. I hate seeing you in pain," she added, in a low, somber voice. "And on top of that, you did some really absurd things today. Speaking about them, how did you do that?"

"It's all thanks to my Devil Fruit abilities," Izuku explained, a spark of excitement igniting in his eyes. "Let me show you," he said and placed his hands on his opposite shoulders. In the next moment, his body started emitting smooth green light. Then, once the light died down, Izuku started panting again as if he had just run a marathon.

Seeing her little brother out of breath, Makino immediately rushed to his side, gently stroking his head. "Izuku, are you all right!?" she asked with a hint of worry in her voice.

"Yeah, just a bit winded. I could use some water though," Izuku responded between breaths.

"Okay, I'll get it for you," she said and quickly went downstairs. When she returned with water, she was taken aback to find Izuku removing his casts. "Izuku, what do you think you're doing!? You need to keep those casts on for at least a week!"

"It's fine, Neesan, really. I feel completely fine," he said as he spun his arms around, showing he was not in pain at all. Then he walked towards her and took water from her glass.

"Izuku, did you just heal yourself?" Makino asked with wide eyes.

"In a way," Izuku responded once he had caught his breath. "I essentially accelerated my body's natural healing process, albeit at the cost of draining my stamina," he explained, as Makino nodded along, somewhat understanding what he did.

"Anyway, forget about that, I have something important to tell you," Izuku interjected, gently taking Makino's hand and leading her to the bed. Once they were both settled, he continued with a determined expression. "Neesan, I've finally figured it out. I know what I want to do!"

Makino's eyes sparkled with anticipation upon hearing Izuku's words. She knew how her little brother had been affected after he gave up on becoming a Marine, so she was eager to listen to what he was going to say next.

"Neesan, my dream is to..." Izuku began, outlining his aspirations to Makino. As he spoke, her expression underwent a series of transformations: curiosity, surprise, shock, and finally, a blend of exasperation and amusement.

"Izuku, you're really aiming high there," Makino remarked, shaking her head with a fond smile. "So, to achieve your dream, you want to become the King of the Pirates?"

"Well, to realize my dream, I'll need considerable influence and power. Becoming the King of Pirates checks both those boxes," Izuku explained earnestly. "Plus, I also want to travel around the world and see all the amazing things out there," he said in an excited voice.

Makino, meanwhile, observed Izuku, the boy who had become her younger brother in all but blood, with warm, motherly eyes. She always knew that Izuku was different from the other children his age. Even though he was only 10 years old, talking with him felt like talking with someone much older. That's why she trusted him to look after her bar when she was not around.

So when Izuku told her about his dream, she listened carefully and tried to understand it instead of thinking of it as some sort of joke. And once he finished explaining it to her, the first word that came to her mind was 'impossible.' However, she didn't say it out loud. After all, Izuku was her little brother, and she was going to believe in him, she had faith in her little brother, that he could defy the odds and achieve the seemingly impossible.

But despite her faith in Izuku, Makino felt the need to ensure that Izuku was on the right path. "Izuku, where is this coming from?" Makino asked. "Is it because of Shanks?"

"Yes, he's part of the influence. Talking with him gave me the idea that despite being a pirate, it would be my choice to become a good person or not," Izuku explained. "The other part is that I still want to fulfill my goal of helping people. However, due to some circumstances, I can't join the Marines like I wanted to, so I decided to fulfill my goals on my own terms."

"Very well," Makino said with a smile, although she still didn't like the idea of Izuku putting himself in danger, but she wasn't going to discourage him. "Just promise me that you will do everything in your power to remain safe."

"Of course, I will do my best," Izuku said as he once again found himself embraced by Makino.

Just then, the door of the room burst open as Uta rushed inside, launching herself at Izuku and enveloping him in a tight embrace. "Idiot! What were you thinking, putting your life in danger like that!?" she exclaimed, her voice muffled against his shoulder as tears streamed down her face.

"But I'm perfectly fine," Izuku reassured her with a chuckle, returning the hug.

"That's because whatever reckless stunt you pulled actually worked," Uta retorted, pulling back to glare at him. "And don't lie to me. I saw your face back then, you had no idea what was going on."

"Guilty as charged," Izuku admitted with a sheepish grin, raising his hands in surrender.

"Izuku! This is not a joke!" Uta's glare hardened. "What if whatever you were trying hadn't worked? What if... you had gotten shot?"

"Then that's game over for me, I guess," Izuku replied casually, immediately realizing his mistake as he felt two pairs of eyes boring into him. "Oops, my bad," he apologized, offering a strained smile.

"Uta, I know what I did might be borderline idiotic, but when I saw you in danger, my feet moved on their own, even before I could think of anything else at all," Izuku explained earnestly. "And honestly, I don't regret what I did. If my other idea had failed, then I still would have bought you some time to save yourself, and that would have been better than me doing nothing at all."

Izuku's heartfelt words brought a lump to Uta's throat, but instead of letting her emotions show, she adopted a stern expression. "Izuku, you—"

"Anyway, Uta, I've made up my mind about my new goal," Izuku interjected, diverting Uta's attention from scolding him. "I've decided that I'm going to become the King of the Pirates!"

A week later, the Red Hair Pirates were bustling about, loading supplies onto their ship and performing last-minute checks. Today marked their final day in East Blue after several months spent in the region, and they were preparing to set sail back to the Grand Line.

Their captain, Red-Haired Shanks, stood on the deck overlooking the preparations when his daughter approached him. "Hey, Father, do you have a moment? I want to talk to you."

'Yeah, here it comes,' Shanks let out a tired sigh. "Sure, what is it?"

"Actually, would it be alright if I stayed back?" Uta asked, her fingers twisting nervously.

"Uta, are you saying you want to remain here in this village rather than returning to the Grand Line with us?" Shanks inquired, his brow furrowing slightly as he processed her request. Uta nodded in confirmation. "Well, at least you told me this sooner than I thought."

"Wait! You knew I was going to ask to stay?" Uta exclaimed, surprised by her father's insight.

"Uta, you're my daughter. I know you better than anyone," Shanks replied with a shake of his head. "And seeing how happy and cheerful you've been these past few months, it wasn't difficult to guess. Knowing how you've gotten a best friend in Izuku and an elder sister in Makino, I knew you wouldn't want to leave them behind."

"So, you're really going to let me stay?" Uta asked, her eyes widening with hope.

"You know I can never say no to you, princess," Shanks smiled at her. "But are you really sure that you want to stay back? I've told you this before, once I leave this place, I won't be able to come back, at least not for quite a long time. It would be years before we see each other again."

Upon hearing his words, Uta couldn't hold back her tears any longer, her emotions overwhelming her. "I love you, Father, and I'll miss you terribly. But I don't think I'm ready to travel with you," she confessed, her voice choked with emotion. The memory of the gun pointed at her still haunted her, and she couldn't shake off the fear. "I know that I will only hold you back."

"My dear princess, you would never be a burden to us," Shanks reassured her, tenderly stroking her head.

"I know, but I still feel like it's best for me to stay here," Uta insisted, her resolve unwavering.

Shanks let out a resigned sigh, understanding his daughter's stubbornness all too well. He knew there was no changing her mind once she had made a decision. "Well, then, princess, what are you going to do about it?" Shanks inquired, his tone gentle yet curious.

Uta pulled away slightly, meeting her father's gaze with determination. "I'm going to become strong. Then, I'll set sail with Izuku, gather experiences and friends, and one day..." Her grin widened. "...I'm going to surpass you, Father."

Shanks couldn't help but grin at his daughter's declaration and did the only thing that felt natural to him. "In that case, I am giving you my most precious treasure," he said, placing his Straw Hat on her head. "Keep this safe, and return it to me when you think you have surpassed me."

In response, Uta could only nod as she tried to control her tears and hid her eyes under the shadow of her hat.

An hour later, Izuku, Uta, and Makino stood at the docks, bidding farewell to the departing Red-Haired Pirates.

"I'm going to miss you," Uta murmured, wrapping her arms around her father in a tight embrace.

"Me too, princess, me too," Shanks replied, returning the hug with equal affection.

Once father and daughter had hugged each other to their heart's content, Shanks moved towards Makino and smiled. "Makino, I apologize for entrusting Uta to you like this, but would you please look after my daughter?" he requested earnestly.

"Don't worry," Makino reassured him with a smile of her own. "I'll ensure she grows into a fine and well-mannered young lady," she added, a hint of teasing in her tone.

"That's all I could ask for," Shanks replied, leaning in closer. "I've left some treasure in your storage. Take your time selling it off," he whispered into her ear, causing her eyes to widen in surprise.

"Shanks, you really don't have to," Makino protested softly.

"No, I insist," Shanks insisted, shaking his head. "Makino, I couldn't just leave my daughter in your care without offering some form of assistance."

"Alright, I'll accept it," Makino relented with a tired sigh.

Once he was satisfied with Makino's answer, Shanks turned his attention to Izuku.

"Once again, kid, thank you for protecting my daughter," Shanks said, giving Izuku a grateful smile. Izuku was one of the main reasons why he agreed to leave his daughter on this island. After all, it's not every day that you meet people who will willingly take a bullet for you.

"And I am again telling you that it's not that big of a deal. I did what any good friend would do," Izuku replied, reinforcing Shanks's decision to place his trust in the green-haired kid even more.

"Very well, kid, but next time we see each other, we won't be just friends but rivals as well," Shanks grinned at Izuku.

"Of course, I wouldn't have it any other way," Izuku returned the grin. "And Shanks, I will do it first," his tone confident and his held high. "I will get the One Piece and become the King of the Pirates."

Quirks used in this chapter:-

1) Explosion (Katsuki Bakugo) -allows the user to excrete nitroglycerin-like sweat from their palms and ignite it at will to create explosions of various sizes.

2) Hardening (Eijiro Kirishima) -gives the user the power to harden any part of their body.

3) Half-Cold Half-Hot (Shoto Todoroki) -Half-Cold Half-Hot allows the user to generate ice, frost, and cold from the right side of their body, and fire, flames, and heat from the left.

4) Cell Activation (Katsuma Shimano) - allows its user to activate the cells in their body or another person's body through touch. This increases regeneration, and recovery time, and can even improve physical condition.

Chapter Text

Somewhere on the Grand Line, the Red Hair Pirates' giant ship, the Red Force, making its way through the sea, while their captain, Red-Haired Shanks, stood on the deck, gazing out over the ocean.

"I can't believe it's already been three years since we left Foosha Village," Shanks said with a gentle smile on his face. "Time sure does fly fast."

"No kidding," Benn agreed, taking a drag of his cigarette. "I wonder how Uta is doing these days."

"Yeah, she must have grown and changed so much," Shanks mused, turning to look at his first mate. "Honestly, I think we made the right choice by leaving Uta back in the village, considering the things we've gotten involved in over the past three years."

"You're right about that," Benn nodded. "It's probably best to keep her connection with us on the down-low. Especially her connection with you, Captain. At least until she can fend for herself."

"I also think that a peaceful village would be a better place for her to grow up than these wild seas," Shanks added. "Plus, Makino and Izuku would be better influences on her compared to whatever characters we come across here at sea."

"Speaking of Izuku, he's one strange kid, isn't he?" Benn said. "And the Devil Fruit he ate was equally strange as well. I've never seen or heard of a Devil Fruit that can give users so many abilities."

"Yeah, his Devil Fruit definitely stands out, compared to what other devil fruits we have seen so far," Shanks replied, thinking back to the various applications of Izuku's Devil Fruit.

As he thought about Izuku, his mind drifted to the conversation he had with the green-haired boy two days before leaving the village.

*Flashback*

"So you want to become Pirate King, huh?" Shanks asked, laughing out loud. "Can't say I'm surprised. A lot of kids your age hold onto that dream."

"Oh no, Shanks, you didn't understand," Izuku shook his head with a smile. "Becoming a Pirate King is my goal, not my dream. My real dream is much more grandiose than that."

"And what is your 'grandiose' dream?" Shanks raised his brow.

"It's a secret for now," Izuku said, putting a finger to his lips. "But it's gonna take me years to make it happen. So first, I gotta become the Pirate King and carve out my own name in this world."

*Flashback End*

'That kid is treating becoming 'King of Pirates' as a means to an end,' Shanks thought with a strained smile on his face. 

Just then, their attention was drawn by approaching footsteps. Looking towards the sound, they saw Yasopp walking towards them with a huge grin across his face.

"Captain, you've got to see what my kid has whipped up this time," Yasopp said in an eager voice.

"Again?" Benn raised an eyebrow teasingly. "You sure he's your kid? I don't remember you being this intelligent or crafty."

"He takes after his mother in that department," Yasopp chuckled, scratching his head sheepishly.

"And also that long ass nose of his," Benn smirked at Yasopp as he made an off-handed remark.

"What was that, Scarface?" Yasopp yelled in an irritated voice while his eye twitched in annoyance. "You want to go a few rounds?"

"Calm down, Yasopp, Benn is just messing around," Shanks said, defusing the situation. "But I have to agree with Benn. Your kid is quite an inventor; now, the only thing he needs is a bit of backbone."

"Give him a break, Captain," Yasopp sighed. "He's had a very rough life after his mother's death. And the villagers didn't make his life any easier just because he's a pirate's kid. Even now, we encounter crazy strong people, which isn't doing any wonders for his confidence."

"Do you think we should have left him behind in the East Blue, like we did with Uta?" Benn asked.

"I considered it," Yasopp admitted, shaking his head regretfully. "But seeing the conditions he was living in, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Besides, I'm pretty sure my wife would haunt me from beyond if I abandoned him."

"Well, there's no point in speculating about it now," Shanks said, placing his hand on Yasopp's shoulder. "We'll do our best to keep him safe as much as we can."

Just then, their conversation was interrupted by a loud shout coming from the lookout. "Captain! Moby Dick is in sight! Contact in 15 minutes!"

"Well, looks like we've arrived," Shanks said, putting on his serious face. "Let's see how that old man is doing."

Meanwhile, away from the chaos and politics of the Grand Line, in a small village of the East Blue, a thirteen-year-old green-haired boy sat in his room, filling another one of his notebooks.

******

Quirk: Blade-Tooth (Moonfish)

Type: Transformation

Description: Grants the user the ability to enlarge and reshape their teeth into sharp blades. The blades can vary in both size and shape. The user can manipulate the length and direction of the teeth at will. They are powerful enough to break through Shoto Todoroki's ice but can be shattered with enough force.

Lethality: Very High

Possibility of use: Very low.

******

With that, Izuku finished another entry in his notebook and shut it closed. "I can't believe it's been three years, and I'm still remembering new quirks from time to time," he muttered with a tired sigh. He leaned back in his chair as his mind wandered back to the past three years, and he had to admit they were quite eventful, especially with his new Devil Fruit.

The first few days after Shanks left the village, Izuku went overboard and spent his entire day locked up in his room, writing down any and all quirks he could think of. It wasn't until Uta physically pulled him out of the room that he finally stopped straining his mind to come up with more quirks.

After a long and brain-numbing scolding session with Makino, he moved on to the next step: experimentation. And through experimentation, he learned quite a lot about his new power.

The quirks could be categorized into three distinct types: Emitter Quirks, Transformation Quirks, and Mutant Quirks. For Izuku, mastering Emitter and Transformation quirks came more naturally compared to some Mutant-type quirks, particularly those involving physical alterations to his body. For example, when he tried to use Ojiro's quirk [Tail], he had quite a lot of trouble moving the tail and had very poor balance while trying to perform other activities with it. He encountered similar challenges when experimenting with Fourth Kind's quirk [Quad Arms] and Shoji's [Dupli-Arms]. However, quirks like [Jet] and [Zoom], classified as Mutant types, were quite easy to use.

Now, Izuku wasn't just going to give up on Mutant Quirks because they were hard to use. Instead, he decided to take it slow with them and focus on mastering one Mutant Quirk at a time, so that his body would gradually adapt to the sensation of the additional muscle.

On a side note, it turned out that Devil Fruits ignore clothes while being used, thankfully preventing his rear from being exposed while he experimented with [Tail].

The next thing he learned was that he could not use stockpile quirks such as Eri's [Rewind], which necessitated him to store power in his horn, or Fatgum's [Fat Absorption], which required him to accumulate fat before using the quirk.

Talking about stockpile quirks, he also tried to call out One for All; however, all he felt was blank. Well, he was saddened by the fact, even though he expected just that. Then there was also All for One; however, after seeing what happened to Shigaraki, he wasn't going to risk having that vile man in his head. That's why he wasn't even going to try touching that quirk with a ten-foot pole. 

Another thing he learned was that he could switch between quirks quite easily as long as he had a clear image in mind. However, keeping more than one quirk running at the same time proved to be a daunting task. In the beginning, whenever he tried to activate two quirks simultaneously, his body pained, reminding him of the time when he tried to push more One for All through his body. It took him a grueling two and a half years to finally manage to use two quirks simultaneously, and despite that, he was still getting used to the strain it was putting on his body.

Fortunately, there was a silver lining. Mental-based quirks such as [Danger Sense] and [Telepath] didn't put much strain on his brain, even when used with other quirks.

Then there was a group of quirks that Izuku himself classified as skill-based quirks, which were going to be extremely hard to use and master. For example, [Overhaul] was an extremely useful and versatile quirk; however, Izuku would need extensive knowledge of medical science and human anatomy to use it to its full extent. Similarly, [Creation] ranked high among Izuku's preferred quirks. However, to effectively use this quirk, Izuku would need a deep understanding and knowledge of atomic compositions of anything he wants to make, which means he cannot create things he doesn't know how to create down to the atomic level.

A simple solution to his problem would be to learn the things needed to use these quirks; however, unlike his old world, he didn't have whatever information he needed at the snap of his fingers. He also wasn't sure if the science of this world was advanced enough to keep a record of the atomic structures of objects, and unless he gets his hands on some medical books, [Overhaul] would remain in his back pocket as a last resort.

Now, it wasn't like Izuku was the only one who was progressing with his power. Even Uta was now quite proficient in controlling her power compared to three years ago. Now she was able to use her power for much longer without it draining all of her endurance, while also practicing to give shapes to her wind.

Aside from that, Uta had grown quite accustomed to living in the village. Izuku also introduced her to Dadan and Ace, who took quite a liking to the headstrong girl and treated her well whenever she visited them in the mountains. Overall, even though Uta missed her father, she was enjoying her life.

And as for Ace...

"Izuku, are you done with your nerd shit?" Izuku's thoughts were interrupted by his brother, who knocked on his door. With a roll of his eyes, Izuku pushed himself up from his chair and swung the door open, revealing a tall, muscular figure with curly black hair, dressed in an open-front shirt, knee-length shorts, and an orange hat. Grinning, the newcomer continued, "I still can't believe a nerd like you wants to become a pirate."

"I mean, we all siblings can't be similar, right?" Izuku retorted, his smile dripping with sarcasm. "I mean, I am the smart one, Sabo was brave, and you, Ace..." he took a dramatic pause, pretending to think, "...are an idiot."

"What was that!?" Ace's eye twitched in irritation before he swiftly grabbed Izuku in a headlock, playfully grinding his knuckles against his scalp. "Is that how you talk to your big brother, huh?"

"Boys..." A stern voice cut through their antics, and both Izuku and Ace turned to see Dadan glaring at them with a deadpan expression. "Are you two done fooling around?" she asked with an annoyed expression. Not wanting to agitate Dadan anymore, Ace released Izuku and resumed their earlier conversation.

"So, Ace, you packed yet?" Izuku asked, rubbing his head where Ace's knuckles had left their mark.

"Yep," he said, holding up a single backpack in his hand. "All set and ready to go."

"One backpack? Is that all?" Izuku asked in an exasperated voice, while Ace just shrugged, seeing nothing wrong with it.

"Anyway, Izuku, come with me," he said as he dragged Izuku out of the house and only stopped when they arrived at their usual sparring spot.

Once they got there, Ace turned towards his brother with a serious expression on his face. "Izuku, tomorrow I'm going out to sea, and I don't know when we'll see each other again. That's why I want to have a serious fight with you, one last time."

Izuku honestly wasn't sure what had gotten into his brother, but the look in his eyes clearly told him that he wasn't going to accept anything less than a yes for an answer. "Fine, but don't go crying to Dadan if I kick your ass," he said as he put some distance between them and assumed a fighting stance.

"Using my lines now, huh, little brother?" Ace shot back with a smirk.

"So, what are the rules?" Izuku asked.

"Just our regular sparring rules. No lethal attacks, and no hitting the crotch or neck," Ace explained. "Also, this time I want you to use your Devil Fruit powers and don't hold back."

"Really, Ace?" Izuku raised his eyebrows. "You really want me to go all out?"

Ace paused for a moment as he considered his words. "On second thought, don't use anything that will put me in the hospital."

"Of course, you don't need to tell me that. I wasn't going to throw an iceberg at you," Izuku rolled his eyes.

"Okay, smartass," Ace retorted with a tone that laced with mock sarcasm. "Anyway, let's begin at the count of three," he said, and Izuku nodded his head.

"One," Ace and Izuku once again assumed their stances. "Two," the brothers' eyes focused on each other. "Three," as soon as Ace uttered those words, Izuku and Ace rushed at each other.

They traded a few blows, and Izuku quickly realized that Ace wasn't holding back. His punches packed a lot more power than their usual sparring sessions.

After exchanging a few more blows, Ace spotted a weakness in Izuku's defense and quickly went for a fierce right hook, with a smug grin on his face. However, his smug smile quickly turned into shock as his fist harmlessly phased through Izuku's body. Taking advantage of Ace's shock, Izuku countered with a swift kick to Ace's side, propelled by bursts of air from his leg. Ace staggered back for a moment but quickly regained his composure and glared at Izuku.

'What the hell was that? I don't remember seeing that before,' Ace thought to himself, but quickly pushed it out of his mind and focused on the fight.

Refocusing his attention on Izuku, Ace resumed his assault, unleashing a flurry of punches and kicks in rapid succession, trying to find a weakness in this new power of his brother. Izuku retaliated in kind, countering him with [Permeation] and [Jet].

'His kicks are landing with quite an extra power today. It must be that air coming out of his soul,' Ace thought as he dodged another powerful kick. 'I need to find a weakness, and quickly.'

'I need to end this as quickly as possible,' Izuku thought as he panted heavily. 'I'm still not used to keeping two quirks going at the same time, and it's taking quite a toll on my body,' he realized as he phased through another one of Ace's attacks. 'This [Permeation] is really a troublesome quirk,' he thought, remembering how it took him six months to learn the partial transformation of his body, and that too when he had so much information on this quirk due to his frequent conversations with Mirio. However, he also knew that as useful as it was, the drawbacks were quite glaring as well. Now he just hoped that Ace wouldn't notice them too.

Unfortunately for him, Ace was starting to see a pattern that he could exploit. 'Every time my attack goes through his face, his movements flatter for a moment,' he thought. 'Maybe this new power of his is obstructing his vision somehow.' To test his theory, he sent another attack through Izuku's face, and as his hand was phasing through, Ace moved to his left instead of his right, as he normally would. In the next moment, Izuku launched another powerful kick to the place where Ace would have been if he had moved to the right.

Ace smirked as a plan formed in his mind. So, without wasting any time, he rushed at Izuku, once again targeting his face with his fist. However, this time, as his fist was going through Izuku's face, he quickly moved behind him and readied his hand to strike him from behind. "Got you now, little rascal!" he said with a grin. However, he immediately frowned upon noticing a similar smirk on Izuku's face.

"In your dreams, brother," Izuku said with a wide grin as his right elbow split open and protruded a rifle at rapid speed, striking Ace in the stomach at point-blank range, knocking the wind out of him and sending him hurtling to the ground.

'Damn it! That hurt like a bitch!' Ace winced, attempting to regain his footing, only to find himself staring down the barrel of Izuku's rifle.

"Ace, do you yield?" Izuku asked in an icy cold voice.

'I still don't understand how my sweet, nerdy brother can turn into this terrifying boy,' Ace thought with a comically large sweatdrop behind his head. "Yeah, I yield," he sighed.

"Great, it's my win!" Izuku said as he retracted the rifle back into his arm. Then he offered Ace his hand, which Ace took, and got back to his feet.

"So, what were those new powers? I don't remember seeing them before," Ace inquired, rubbing his stomach. "Especially that last thing?"

"Oh, you mean this?" Izuku bent his arm up and protruded a rifle gun from his right elbow. "It's a rifle. Let me show you how it works," he said as he reached for his hair, twirled them around his fingers, and plucked them out after molding them into the shape of a bullet. Then he injected that bullet into a hole that opened in his palm. "Ready, set, shoot!" he exclaimed and fired a bullet, which spectacularly missed its target. 'Maybe I should have used [Homing] for this demonstration,' Izuku thought to himself, but immediately discarded the thought. 'On second thought, I don't think I like the randomized aspect of [Homing] very much, and knowing my luck, I'll end up killing someone without intending to do so.'

"So, you're telling me that you can produce a gun from your elbow that uses your hair as ammo," Ace asked with a deadpan expression on his face. "You know, Izuku, your Devil Fruit is getting freakier with each passing day."

"I know, right!" Izuku said with a wide, beaming smile.

Shaking his head with an amused smile, Ace placed his hand on Izuku's head and ruffled his hair. "I'm going to miss this," he said. "Our spars, nonsensical bickering, troubling Dadan, and all the stupid things we do together."

"Me too, brother," Izuku replied with a sad smile.

"Really? And here I thought you'd be happy that you won't have to share your snacks anymore," Ace said, chuckling to himself.

"Now that you mention it, I do see the advantage of that," Izuku returned the laugh. "Jokes aside, Ace, are you sure you want to go without seeing Grandpa again?"

Ace glanced at his brother and let out a sigh. "Izuku, you know how Gramps feels about us becoming pirates, and I really don't want a long, drawn-out argument right before leaving for my journey."

"Yeah, can't blame you for that," Izuku said with a strained smile, knowing how stubborn and headstrong their grandfather could be. "Don't worry, though. I'll handle him when you're gone. Besides, it's not like he's around much these days. He barely manages to visit us once a year."

"I mean, isn't that a much better alternative than eating Gramps' famous 'Fist of Love'?" he said, and both brothers shared a laugh. Once they both calmed down, Ace once again smirked at Izuku and asked, "What do you say? Wanna go another round?"

"Sure, just let me breathe for a moment," Izuku replied.

"Fine, but this time show me something new from your Pandora's box of powers," Ace said.

"Something new, huh?" Izuku asked with a smirk as small pads appeared on his fingers. "Well, you don't have to ask me twice."

The next day, Ace said his goodbyes to everyone and started his journey on a small rowboat, with a promise to make a name for himself. Meanwhile, Izuku spent the next few days with Dadan, who had become emotional after Ace left, even though she kept denying it.

After that, Izuku's life continued as usual. He kept training with Uta, spent time with Makino, and helped her at the bar. He also assisted around the village whenever he could and kept tabs on the news to see if there were any mentions of his brother's exploits.

And just like that, five years slipped by in the blink of an eye...

To be continued...

Quirks used in this chapter:-

1) Permeation (Mirio Togata)- grants the user the ability to phase their body through all matter.

2) Jet (Gran Torino)- grants the user the ability to expel air from open holes on the soles of their feet. This allows them to fly around a limited range as well as move faster than the eye can follow, even on the ground.

3) Rifle (Lady Nagant)- With this Quirk, the user can protrude and retract a rifle gun from their right elbow. It also allows its user to remove parts of their hair to mix and mold the fibers to create various kinds of bullets.

Chapter Text

It was a bright, sunny day in Foosha Village, where people went about their usual daily lives.

One such individual was Makino, a local beauty and the owner of a bar, who found herself in a pleasant mood as she watered the plants outside her shop, humming to herself. 

Just then, an elderly lady approached Makino. "Good morning, Makino. Quite pleasant weather, isn't it?" she said with a smile.

"Indeed, Shijimi-san," Makino returned the smile. "Do you need something?"

"Yeah, is Izuku-kun around?" Shijimi asked. "I have a favor to ask."

"Is this about Tora?" Makino inquired with a knowing smile.

Letting out a tired sigh, Shijimi nodded. "That child loves to run away from home and hide somewhere," she said. "And as usual, she won't return unless Izuku-kun himself goes to find her."

"You know, Shijimi-san, I think for Tora, this has become some sort of game of hide and seek," Makino said with a chuckle.

"Oh, I'm sure of that," Shijimi chuckled as well. "Now, where is he?"

"I'm not sure," Makino said, placing her hand under her chin. "He should be around-"

Makino's words were cut off when suddenly both she and Shijimi heard the flapping of wings above their heads. Looking up, they saw Izuku, a very well-built boy with shoulder-length hair and a big smile, looking down at them. However, the most eye-catching thing about him at the moment was the large pair of red wings sprouting from his back.

Slowly, he descended from the sky and landed in front of the two ladies with a smile. "Hello, Grandma Shijimi, is Tora 'lost' again?"

Shijimi nodded with a resigned smile. "Will you please find her for me, dear?"

"Of course, Grandma Shijimi," Izuku said. "Why don't you and Neesan have a nice chat over tea while I go and get that troublemaker?" With that, he spread out his wings and soared into the air.

He stopped high in the sky, at a height from which he could see the entire Foosha Village as well as the mountain located behind it. "Now let's see where you are, Tora," he said as a rainbow-colored glow appeared in his eyes. In the next moment, his eyes spotted a green-colored dot in a forest located on the mountain.

"Found you," Izuku smiled and donned his sunglasses to protect his eyes. Then he shot towards the mountain at rapid speed. 'It took almost seven years and brain-numbing concentration to master this quirk, but damn was it worth it!' he thought, feeling the cold wind against his face. 'I'm glad I nagged Hawks to learn about his quirk during my brief stay in the hospital.'

Thinking back to his training with [Fierce Wings], Izuku realized that flying with wings was the easy part of mastering this quirk, as he had already learned how to balance himself mid-air while training for [Float]. What made his life hell was learning to control each individual feather. It took him a lot of time to master that art, but the sheer versatility and power it brought to his arsenal were worth all the time he spent on it.

While Izuku had learned to use many quirks well, there were only a few he could say he had truly mastered, and [Fierce Wings] was one of them.

However, he still couldn't use feather blades to their full potential, but that was because Izuku wasn't skilled in using swords, rather than the quirk itself.

Moreover, during the last five years, Izuku managed to increase his quirk limit to four, allowing him to sustain the use of two quirks simultaneously for a longer period compared to before. However, using three quirks simultaneously still put strain on his body, and attempting to use a fourth would require him to push his limits to the maximum, risking serious consequences afterward.

He truly hoped that he would never find himself in a situation where he would need a four or even a three quirk combination to bail himself out. That's why, aside from [Fierce Wings], he had also worked on other quirks that would come in handy if the situation became too dire.

Back in the present, Izuku found himself in the mountains mere seconds after taking flight. Now, he stood before a particular tree bearing some sweet fruits on its branches. Perched on one of those branches sat a brown-colored cat, happily savoring the fruit.

"Hey there, Tora, enjoying yourself?" Izuku asked, looking at the cat.

"Purrr, this fruit is purr-fectly delicious!" Tora replied, happily purring in delight.

"I'm glad you are, but I have to take you back to Grandma Shijimi; she's getting worried about you," Izuku explained.

"Meow! Don't wanna go back!" Tora hissed at Izuku. "Want stay outside! Nyaa!"

"Tora, please don't make this difficult," Izuku said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I have other things to do, you know."

"Meow, okay, but I won't be makin' this easy for ya, Izuku~" Tora purred, her tail swishing playfully. "If ya wanna whisk me away, ya gotta catch me first! Meow~" she said and started running deep inside the forest.

Meanwhile, instead of chasing Tora, Izuku let out a tired sigh as his body was enveloped in a blue-colored aura. "I'm sorry, Tora, but you forced me to do this," he said as a little distance away, Tora was enveloped in a similar pink-colored aura. In the next moment, Tora flew towards Izuku and landed right in Izuku's hand. "Heh, who knew? Magnetism works on animals as well."

"Hey, this ain't fair!" Tora growled, squirming in his grasp. "Let me go, hooman! Let me go right meow!"

"Tora, if you don't stop resisting, I will drop you in a pond," Izuku warned, and the cat immediately stopped resisting, fear evident in her eyes at the thought of getting her fur wet. "Good. Now, let me collect some fruits, then we can head back to the village," he said as multiple feathers ejected from his wings and plucked the fruits from the tree.

After that, he took off from the forest and flew just a few meters above the village, unlike before. As he was flying, a few kids who were playing on the streets spotted him and waved their hands, smiles lighting up their faces. Izuku took note of them and smiled back, dropping some freshly plucked fruits into their hands.

After his brief interaction with the children, Izuku finally arrived at Makino's bar and deactivated [Fierce Wings], causing the wings to vanish from his back. Upon entering, he saw Makino and Shijimi chatting while drinking tea. "I'm back," Izuku announced his presence. "And I also brought this little troublemaker with me," he said, holding Tora up.

"You're back already!" Shijimi exclaimed as she got up from her seat. Then she walked towards Izuku and took the cat out of his hand. "Huh? Why is she making that face?" she asked.

"Don't worry, Grandma Shijimi, I just promised Tora a nice bath," Izuku chuckled.

"Oh my! How cruel!" Shijimi chuckled as well, knowing how much her cat hated water.

"Wow, Izuku, now you're charming old ladies as well, huh?" their conversation was interrupted by another voice. Looking towards the voice, they saw a young woman of medium height with long hair that was white on her left side and red on her right. Her bright purple eyes gleamed with amusement as she smiled at her friend.

"What are you talking about, Uta? Grandma Shijimi looks pretty young to me," Izuku said, causing Uta to roll her eyes.

"You really say some nice things, Izuku-kun," Shujimi chuckled and then joined Makino again to finish their gossip along with the tea.

Izuku and Uta, meanwhile, sat a little away from the ladies, occupying one of the empty tables of the bar.

"So, what does the situation look like?" Izuku asked.

"Not good," Uta shook her head. "I don't think we could gather enough money to buy a small ship before my 18th birthday."

"I see," Izuku nodded. "Well, we could always hijack some other pirate ship and claim it as our own."

"You know, I never thought I would hear those words coming from a goody-two-shoes like you," Uta said with an amused smile, shaking her head.

"Modern problems require modern solutions," Izuku quipped with a smirk.

"Jokes aside, your idea is not bad, but..." Uta frowned as she leaned against the table, "...but it would have been nice to start the journey with a ship of our own."

"Come on now, don't make that face," Izuku sighed. "We still have three months before your birthday. I'm sure we'll figure something out by then."

"You're right, I need to be more positive," Uta smiled at Izuku. "And I'm sorry for acting like a spoiled brat. I know I shouldn't be acting this demanding, especially when we're just starting our journey."

"No, no, I get it. You were used to traveling on that huge vessel when you were young, so I guess you expected the same," Izuku said, and Uta looked away in embarrassment. "Uta, I said it's all right. And as for the ship, I can't promise anything right now, but we'll surely try our best."

"You're right! Let's do our best," Uta said with a sweet smile, pumping her fist in the air. With that, their conversation came to an end, and both of them left the bar to continue with their day.

After Izuku and Uta's conversation, three months passed by in the blink of an eye, and Uta's 18th birthday was already upon them.

So, on Uta's special day, Makino arranged a small party just like every year, celebrating with the attendance of several children from the village, who brought life to the party with their energy.

However enjoyable Uta's birthday party was, Izuku and Uta couldn't shake off the sadness of not being able to procure enough money to buy a ship. It wasn't due to their lack of effort, but rather the limited opportunities to earn money in a small village like theirs. There was only so much they could earn from the small tasks around the village.

Izuku knew they could have earned more money if they had worked in the Goa Kingdom. However, after what happened with Sabo, Izuku wasn't going to let Uta go anywhere near that place. Not that he himself was interested in going there, knowing how likely it was that he could encounter someone or something that might lead him to regret his actions later on.

Now just because Izuku and Uta couldn't afford a proper ship didn't mean they could start their journey in a simple rowboat like Ace did. After all, they were two people of opposite genders, and they were both aware of this fact. So, using some of the money they had saved, they bought a fishing boat with a decent-sized cabin, with the help of the local fisherman who gladly assisted them in negotiating with the merchant.

With that, all of their preparations were complete, and they were ready to begin their journey.

A day before Izuku and Uta were set to depart on their journey, Izuku found himself in his room at Dadan's house, packing his belongings.

"And that should be it," Izuku muttered to himself as he placed the last item into his backpack. Then, as he let his eyes wander around the room to check for anything he might have missed, he suddenly spotted something, prompting him to walk towards his desk.

Once he reached the desk, Izuku picked up a frame containing a picture of him, Ace, and Sabo, gently gliding his finger over it. "I wish you were here..." Izuku muttered in a somber voice as he remembered his deceased brother. "You would have been out at sea by now, making a name for yourself, just like Ace," a ghost of a smile appeared on Izuku's face as he looked up, his eyes landing on the bounty poster of his brother, Fire Fist Ace, the 2nd division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates.

Izuku still remembered how, last year, when his grandpa came to visit him, he brought along this bounty poster along with lots of complaints about Ace, as well as hilarious stories about how he was troubling his fellow Marine officers.

Just then, a voice interrupted his train of thought. "I'm sure Sabo is smiling at you from up there," Izuku turned around and saw Makino standing at the door, smiling at him.

"Neesan, what are you doing here?" Izuku asked. "I thought you were helping Uta pack her stuff."

"I'm already done with that," Makino said with a tired sigh. Then her eyes landed on Izuku's backpacks. "Two backpacks? Let me guess, one is for your notebooks," she asked with an exasperated sigh.

"Of course, one of them is for notebooks," Izuku replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "There are more than thirty of them, how am I supposed to carry them?"

"Right, my bad," Makino rolled her eyes. "Anyway, as for why I'm here? Well, it's simple. I just wanted to spend some time with my little brother."

"Wow, Neechan, you really moved my heart," Izuku said, wiping fake tears from his eyes, earning a playful smack on his arm.

"But really, it is going to be strange without you around," Makino said with a sad smile. "I just can't imagine living without you around."

"You're really silly, Neesan," Izuku lightly chuckled as he sat beside her and pulled her into a side hug. "Why are you talking like I'm never going to come back? You know I don't abandon people, right?"

"I know. Don't forget, I raised you, and I raised you damn right!" Makino chuckled and leaned against Izuku's shoulder, taking advantage of him now being taller than her. "I'm just scared, you know?"

"Scared?" Izuku raised his brow. "Scared about what?"

"I'm scared that I'll never see you again," she said in a low, vulnerable voice. However, just then, she heard a snort from above her head. Frowning a little, she lightly punched Izuku's chest. "Don't make fun of me!" she said with a pout.

"I'm sorry," Izuku apologized and rubbed her shoulder.

"I know what I'm saying might sound stupid to you, but I just couldn't help myself from worrying about you," she sighed. "I lost my parents quite early in my life, and after them, you're the only one I've ever called family. That's why even the thought of losing you scares me."

Izuku sighed as he stood up and kneeled in front of Makino. Then he took her hands in his and stared into her eyes. "Neesan, I'm not going to die without fulfilling my dream," he said with determination in his voice. 'No, not this time,' he thought as he squeezed Makino's hand.

"I know," Makino said, cupping his cheeks in her hand. "I believe in you."

"Thank you," Izuku said, feeling tears threatening to leak out of his eyes. Then he got up and embraced her in a tight hug. "I'm going to miss you, Neesan... I'm going to miss you so much," he whispered, tightening the hug.

The next day, Izuku and Uta stood on their newly acquired fishing boat, with all their belongings already loaded inside the cabin.

Before them stood the villagers of Foosha Village, gathered on the docks to bid farewell to the two kids from their village.

"Izuku, take care of yourself and don't do anything reckless," Makino said with a smile.

"Of course, Neesan," Izuku returned the smile.

"Uta, take care of yourself as well," Makino said, turning towards the girl with dual hair colors.

"I will, Makino-san," Uta replied.

"Also, make sure that Izuku doesn't do anything reckless or spend his entire day cooped up in those notebooks of his," Makino added, giving a teasing grin to her little brother.

"That's quite a task you're assigning me, Makino-san, but don't worry, I'll do my best," Uta replied, giving a similar teasing smile to Izuku, who rolled his eyes.

"You two brats, there's still time for you to choose a good and respectable path in your lives," the Old Mayor yelled at Izuku and Uta.

""Huh!? Did you say something, Mayor-san?"" Izuku and Uta said in unison, with huge shit-eating grins plastered across their faces.

"This new generation of kids has no respect for their elders!" the Old Mayor exclaimed with a frown, while everyone laughed at his response.

While laughing, Izuku noticed something amusing from the corner of his eye.

"Hey Dadan, I know you're hiding there!" Izuku yelled, looking at a particular alleyway. "I know you'll never say it, but I know you love me, you big softy of a bandit!"

"Who are you calling soft? You insufferable brat!" Dadan jumped out of the alleyway with tears visible in her eyes.

"I love you too, Dadan!" Izuku replied, completely ignoring her insult. "And please take care of this village in my absence!"

"Don't tell me what to do!" Dadan yelled back. "And don't you dare die on me! I'm the only one who's allowed to kill you!"

"I'll remember that!" Izuku yelled, wiping his own tears as well.

After another round of goodbyes, Izuku and Uta's ship began to sail. After a few minutes, they were out of sight of the villagers.

'Have a safe journey, Izuku, Uta, and may fortune always smile upon you,' Makino prayed for her younger brother and Uta as she kept her gaze fixed on the direction of their boat.

As the Foosha village vanished behind the horizon, the reality that their journey had truly begun started to settle in Izuku and Uta's minds.

"Uta, this is it," Izuku turned towards his best friend, his eyes filled with fiery determination. "We're finally at sea."

"You're right. This is just the beginning," Uta returned the fiery gaze. "There's no turning back now."

"We'll do it! We'll fulfill our dreams and goals!" Izuku declared firmly, offering her his fist. "I will become the King of the Pirates!"

Uta bumped his fist with her own and smirked, "And I will solve the mystery of my origin and surpass Shanks."

""This is our promise to the world,"" they declared, as if challenging the world itself.

*Narrator Izuku*

At that moment, I couldn't have imagined how my decision to become a pirate would alter not only my fate but also the fate of this world. I wasn't aware that in this world, unattainable dreams can become reality. Oh, that reminds me, I forgot to mention that this is the story of how I became...

To be continued...

Quirks used in this chapter:-

1) Fierce Wings (Hawks) - grants the user a pair of large, red wings made up of dozens of feathers. It also allows its user to manipulate each individual feather using their mind freely.

2) Search (Ragdoll) - allows the user to monitor and observe up to a hundred people at a time. This includes knowing their locations and weak points.

3) Anivoice (Koji Koda) - allows the user to communicate with and command animals through speech.

4) Magnetism (Magne) - allowed the user to magnetize people around them, up to a 4.5-meter radius of themselves at will. Once magnetized, the targets either attract or repel each other, depending on whether they're of the same sex or not. Men are polarized south and women are polarized north.

Chapter Text

Baltigo, known as the Island of White Soil, was a secluded land situated in the Grand Line. The island's most notable characteristic was its white soil, and it was where the notorious Revolutionary Army made their base and headquarters.

Within the walls of their headquarters, a tall middle-aged man with dark, spikey hair strode down the hallway until he reached a certain room. Without pause, he knocked on the door and let himself in without waiting for an answer.

As he stepped into the room, he quickly took note of the two figures already present. The first was an orange-haired girl by the name of Koala, a high-ranking officer in the Revolutionary Army. The other was the deputy commander Estelle, a stunning woman in her middle years with goldish-green locks and matching emerald-green eyes.

"Good morning, Commander Dragon," Koala greeted Dragon with a smile while he simply nodded in response. "I was just going to update Estelle on the recent reports from Arabasta," Koala said, and Dragon motioned for her to continue.

"The latest reports from our agents in Arabasta suggest that tensions are quickly escalating throughout the country, and people's trust in the crown is dwindling with each passing day. From the looks of it, we could very well see a full-blown civil war happening before the end of the year, if not within the next couple of months," Koala verbally reported while handing over the written print to Estelle.

"Hmm... do you think there is an outside influence pushing these events?" Estelle asked with a frown.

"Yes, we do have a suspect, Warlord Crocodile," Koala said grimly. "We have no idea exactly how, but somehow he seems to have gained the trust and loyalty of the people of Arabasta. Our agents and I find this sudden rise in popularity very suspicious."

"Crocodile... well can't say I am surprised, can I?" Estelle said his name with disgust and contempt in her voice. "Knowing his past, I am sure that man is definitely plotting something."

"Anything else?" Dragon asked.

"Yes, it seems Nico Robin is also in Arabasta," Koala replied. "One of our agents spotted her in Rainbase a few days ago."

"Nico Robin, you said..." Dragon mused, rubbing his chin. "Is there a way to contact her?"

"I don't think so," Koala shook her head. "She won't let us find her unless she wants to be found. She's been evading the world government since she was a child; she must have become an expert at it by now."

"That's true... Niko Robin is one hell of a crafty woman," Estelle remarked, absentmindedly spinning the paperweight on the table. "You think she's working with Crocodile?" she asked.

"I don't know..." Koala hummed. "But I wouldn't put it past her."

"Well, there is nothing we can do for now," Dragon said. "Tell our agents to keep trying to contact her, but do not prioritize it. Right now, stabilizing the situation in Arabasta is more important."

Koala gave a nod and excused herself, leaving Dragon and Estelle alone.

"So..." After a moment, Estelle redirected her attention toward the only other person in the room. "Is there a particular reason you remembered my cabin today?" she asked.

"Do I need a reason to come and see my wife?" Dragon replied.

"I would have said no, but considering the fact that we haven't acted like a couple in the last several years, I would say that there is definitely a reason for you to come to my cabin," Estelle said as she folded her hands and leaned back in her chair. "So spill it out."

"It's good to see that, even after all these years, you still haven't lost your bite," Dragon scoffed, but then he sobered up as he continued. "You are right, I am here for a reason. I just received intel that Izuku has set sail from Foosha Village."

At the mention of Izuku's name, Estelle's eyes widened and she straightened up in her seat. It took her a few moments to regain her composure before she continued.  "Oh... is that so?" she inquired. "It's been quite a while since I last saw him. I can only imagine how much he must have matured," she said, her voice trembling slightly as she absentmindedly rotated the paperweight on her desk.

"Estelle..." Dragon opened his mouth to speak, but Estelle quickly raised her hand, silencing him before he could utter a word.

"Don't try to comfort me," Estelle said in a firm and unwavering voice. "I may have agreed with your decision to leave Izuku with your father, but don't forget that I consented to it as well. We both thought it would be safest for him to be with his grandfather... away from us."

A heavy, contemplative silence settled between them for a brief moment before Estelle spoke up again. "I never held it against you, you know? Not even for one second," she admitted. "When I joined you... your cause all those years ago, I knew there would be difficult decisions to make, and pushing Izuku away from us was one of them. It may have been the toughest choice I ever had to make, but I truly believe that it was the best choice for everyone involved."

"You could have visited him anytime in all these years... maybe you should have, for your own peace at least," Dragon said.

"As if that's even an option," Estelle let out a sarcastic laugh. "Dragon, we are not the kind of people who can leave any kind of trail behind us. Besides..." her face fell a little as she looked away. "I don't think I have the heart to face him."

"It's amusing how one of the deadliest and most wanted women of the sea is scared of facing a child," Dragon said with a slight chuckle.

"Scared, you say..." Estelle's words trailed off as she gazed into the distance, a hint of fear in her voice. "I suppose I may be a bit scared, but not of seeing him again after all this time. What really terrifies me is the chance that I'll see the same expression in his eyes...the realization that he may look at me the same way I looked at my family when I left home..." She shut her eyes and inhaled deeply. "If that happens, a part of me will never be able to recover... it will never be the same again."

Then after a brief silence, Estelle broke the silence by saying, "In any case, I think we've talked enough. We still have a lot of things to do, so let's focus on that." With that, she immediately began sifting through documents on her desk without pausing for Dragon's response.

"...Alright, then I'll be on my way," Dragon said, noticing that Estelle had nothing else to say. He turned back to give her one last look before leaving her office.

As soon as Dragon left her office, Estelle released a deep sigh. "If only we could go back to being the people we once were..." she whispered, her eyes filled with sadness as she gazed at the closed door. Then she dug into one of the drawers and took out a silver pendant, gazing lovingly and longingly at the picture of a little green-haired baby while tightly clutching its chain. "I hope and pray that you have a long and fulfilling life, my love," she said, clutching the pendant to her heart. "I hope that one day, you will be able to understand that I had no choice but to stay away from your life so the sins of the path that I had chosen won't befall you," she said as a single tear escaped her eye.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. "Estelle, it's me, Sabo. I have reports from Dressrosa."

Estelle paused, her eyes damp as she wiped them quickly before carefully returning the pendant to its place in the drawer. However, before closing the drawer, she took one last hard and long look at the picture embedded in the pendant and thought, 'There's no point in lamenting over the decisions I made in the past since there's nothing I can do about it. But what I can do right now is work to the best of my ability and make the world a better place for my child.' With renewed resolve, she closed the drawer and got back to work with determination.

To be continued...