Luffy didn't remember much.

Why did a punch hurt so much?

Luffy had his eyes shut.

It hurts!

He desperately clawed at the cuffs on his wrists.

I don't want this! It's so painful!

He sank as far into the corner as he could, shivering.

Where's Boshi?

He patted himself down, looking for the hat that Shanks gave him.

Where's Ace? He'll come save me, like before with Bluejam!

The room rocked, and Luffy faceplanted into a wall.

What's with the cuffs?!

The room rocked again. Luffy reckoned he was on a ship, from all the shaking.

Why am I not rubber?

He opened his eyes.

The small boy was sitting in a cell. A cell meant for prisoners, not for scrawny children like him. There was a door in the metal bars, separating him from the other side of the room.

Now he remembered. Sabo was killed just the day before. He and Ace were looking for Sabo, in case he was washed up. He had lost Ace in the city, and had walked to a cliff. Then some men called him out, and in his attempts to fight them off, his hat flew off. He tried to get it back, but then someone slapped cuffs onto him and punched him in the face.

He stared at the cuffs on him. He couldn't stretch. Must be that Kiroki or Kiseki thing his grandpa had mentioned once...

Then he blanched. Ace! He had just lost Sabo... now he had to lose another brother... he could only imagine how Ace felt...

A man walked in.

Gathering up his courage, the 7-year-old boy slammed into the bars, "LET ME OUT OF HERE!"

The man just raised an eyebrow, before turning to where he had entered, "Hey! The kid's awake!"

He turned back Luffy, who had thrown himself against the bars again. "Stop it. You're a Devil Fruit user. If you get hurt, you won't fetch a high price. We won't get so much profit!"

Another man walked into the room. "Don't worry about it. A few bruises can show how tough he is. Look at that scar under his eye! Saint Charlos will love to add him to his little sparing ring!" He stretched his hand into the cell and pinched Luffy's cheeks, "Plus, he's young and cute!"

In retaliation, Luffy attempted to bite off his finger. It didn't work, but he did manage to break the skin.

Retracting his finger, the man smiled even wider, "And feisty too! They will definitely have fun breaking him!"

By now, Luffy had managed to piece some things together.

A profit. A saint. Breaking people for fun.

They worked for people. People that shouldn't even be called people. Beings that aren't even humane.

Beings that treat others like dirt.

Beings that those that burnt Grey Terminal, razed it to the ground.

Beings that killed Sabo in cold blood.

The shaking lessened considerably.

"Well, we're here." The first man said, unlocking Luffy's cell. Luffy howled in protest at being manhandled. Between being with those men and being in the cell, Luffy prefered being in the cell.

Nonetheless, the men grabbed Luffy and pulled him off the ship. Luffy barely had time to take in his surroundings before he was stuffed in a sack.

He saw a large tree.

A tree with the number 1 painted on it.

"Welcome to Sabaody, kid!"

Portgas D. Ace trudged back to the cliff. He had spent the past few days searching for his brother. He wasn't that worried, he told himself, probably got lost or something.

The something caught his eye.

A straw hat.

With a red ribbon.

Luffy's straw hat.

Letting a squeak out, Ace picked up the hat.

Luffy never leaves his hat like this.

Ace saw signs of a fight.

No...

Ace sank to his knees, the straw hat falling to the ground as his grip loosened.

I just lost Sabo... I can't lose Luffy too...

Tears welled up in Ace's eyes.

I'm a failure as a big brother...

He clenched his fists.

I should have never left Luffy alone.