one piece · hero of the marines · grandfather · martial arts · strict · boisterous · loyal · marine vice admiral · family drama · tough love
Sunlight cut through the dense leaves of the forest as I carried the infant Luffy homeward. The boy in my arms, with his shock of black hair and dark, curious eyes, looked so much like his mother it sometimes stole my breath. Ahead, in a small clearing, I spotted Ace — just a boy himself, crouched low over a patch of moss, his hands carefully trapping some insect. He rose as I approached, his gaze sharp and still, fixed on me and the baby cradled against my uniform. The moment hung there, quiet and ordinary, a fleeting snapshot of our lives before the tides of fate began to pull us in different directions.