Chapter 1

A figure walked out of the flames, carrying a metal pipe in one hand and a velvet wrapped box in another. A top hat shaded his eyes, his blue noble's wear flapping in the breeze that was blowing through the door. The barricaded and reinforced iron door that was currently smashed into the stone floor of the warehouse, fire lapping over it and slowly melting the metal.

"I beg your pardon, sirs. Did I disrupt your meeting?" His voice carried a hint of nobility in them, rising at the end with a courteous lilt. He tapped the box with a leather encased finger. "I'll be taking this, then, if you don't mind."

The men in the warehouse had huddled against the far wall, quivering and clambering over each other to get to the very back and avoid the fury of the flames. The leader shoved his way through his men, taking advantage of their confusion to hightail it to the hidden exit. He didn't plan on dying at this particular moment. The heat had grown unbearable, and the leader wondered how the intruder was standing in the midst of the flames and not being burnt to a crisp. Smoke clouded the building, but certain details could still be made out. Top hat. Noble's speaking habits. Immaculate, expensive clothing.

All of a sudden, he realized who it was. Fear whipped through his heart.

The Bloody Gentleman, co-captain of the assassin and pirate group, ASL.

"That was messier than usual, Sabo," Ace complained as Luffy poked a grasshopper hiding in the sand of the beach. Sabo rolled his eyes. "You're getting careless."

"You're one to talk," Sabo retorted. "You couldn't put one foot inside enemy territory without getting discovered." Luffy looked up from his grasshopper.

"That's true, Ace! Remember when you accidentally lit the whole place on fire?"

"See," Sabo said. "Even Luffy admits it!" Ace looks ready to kill, but Sabo pulls out the box and Ace's attention immediately snaps to it.

"You got it?" He asked.

"Yeah," Sabo grinned. "It was a piece of cake." Ace and Sabo share a look, silently agreeing to talk about it later. Ace turns and prods Luffy in the stomach.

"What?" He asks, annoyed, as the grasshopper scuttles off hurriedly, obviously eager to escape the terror that was Luffy. "It got away!"

"Do you know who's next on the list?" Ace asks. That got Luffy's attention.

"Who?" He was practically bouncing up and down.

"The name next on the list… Marshall D Teach, of the Whitebeard crew!"

"Cool!" Luffy says, eyes shining. Sabo immediately protests.

"We aren't ready for that yet! We can't take on the entirety of Whitebeard's crew!"

"Well, I think we can do it," Ace replies, irritated.

"Choose someone else." Sabo demands.

"He's the closest," Ace says. Luffy went back to his grasshopper.

"Are you seriously going to risk Luffy's life for this?" Sabo asks, knowing Luffy is his weak spot. That went for both of them, actually.

"This is for Luffy!" Ace lowers his voice. "Marshall D Teach has one." Sabo's eyes widen.

"Still, Ace! We could always find someone else!"

"Are you implying that I can't handle myself?"

"No," Sabo says, frigid. "I'm not implying you aren't capable. I'm implying you don't know when to give up and back away. Also, it is very well known you have a personal vendetta against Whitebeard. You'll take it too far."

"Then what do we do?" Ace explodes. Sabo decides that Ace is never going to back down, and goes with a compromise.

"Let me handle this. We negotiate for what we need, and if they break down, we wait. Bide our time. Move when it's safest and easiest. Trust me on this one."

"Fine," Ace says, knowing Sabo is just as stubborn.

"What are you guys talking about?" Luffy asks, wide eyes staring up at them.

"Nothing."

"Are we going to fight Whitebeard now?"

Sabo sighs. "Yes." Luffy cheers, arms stretching to grab onto the railing of their boat docked against the shore. The two older brothers eyes widen, realizing what he's about to do.

"NOOOOO!" Too late. With the snapping sound of contracting rubber, Ace and Sabo are catapulted onto the deck with Luffy, landing in a crumpled heap under his skinny frame. Sabo groans.

"By the way," Luffy asks quizzically, "Who's Whitebeard?"