【One Piece】Dawn in the Darkness

"Man, I have to say, I kind of hope this kid can wait until the sun comes up before taking action." Thatch said with a smile as he put the coffee in his hand on the table.

Fusa looked at the coffee on the table and thanked Thatch in a low voice. He took a sip of the coffee to relieve the symptoms of his headache. Then he complained to Thatch, "Don't get me started, Thatch. Six walls. I need more materials. Before this guy came, we didn't need to buy materials for three whole months. He has only been here for three weeks, and Moby has repaired more walls than in the year before he came."

Thatch patted his shoulder comfortingly.

"I should go prepare breakfast for the kid. I don't want him to faint from hunger on our boat." He whistled and walked towards the kitchen.

Fusa looked at Thatch's back and felt a little strange, but when he thought that there were more things that needed to be repaired, his mind suddenly ran out of ideas. He wailed and started banging his head against the table.

Thatch whistled as he walked through the hall, waving to the crew members who greeted him. Soon he came to the boy's door, but what was different from the usual silence was that he seemed to hear someone talking inside. He didn't want to pry into his privacy, even if it was unintentional.

He knocked on the door, then moved sideways to stand on the other side of the wall to avoid any flames that might suddenly appear.

"What do you want to do?" Ace's voice came from inside. Unlike before, his voice was not angry.

"I'm here with food," Thatch said loudly in a cheerful tone.

Ace sighed deeply, feeling helpless about the behavior of the Whitebeard Pirates. He looked at Lucci who had just returned, feeling somewhat helpless, and then said to Thatch outside the door, "Leave it at the door, I'll take it."

Lucci found the helplessness on Ace's face somewhat amusing, thinking of the conversation he had just heard on the ship. It seemed that not only Ace was making the Whitebeard Pirates feel difficult, but Ace also felt at a loss about their goodwill.

Thatch was pleasantly surprised by Ace's friendly response, and was a little curious about what had made Ace's mood improve. But anyway, he was willing to accept their food, which was a good sign. He carefully placed the plate at the door and left.

Lucci waited for a while, and when Thatch's footsteps had completely disappeared, he brought in the food plate from the door, pushed it in front of Ace, and motioned him to eat it. He looked at the bruises and dark circles under Ace's eyes with some helplessness.

Ace looked at the food on the plate. Although he didn't want to accept it, in order not to worry Lucci, he picked up a piece of meat and chewed it.

"Ace, don't tell me that you have been refusing to accept their food since I left." Lucci covered his forehead, feeling a headache over Ace's stupid behavior.

"Hey! You know we can't trust them." Ace looked at Lucci's drooping mouth and said guiltily.

Lucci shook his head helplessly, and then told Ace what he had found out in the past few days. "The members of Spade are now scattered on various ships. They have made the choice to stay. They have joined teams that match their abilities and have integrated well. Now they are fulfilling their corresponding responsibilities." He looked at Ace and added, "They look good. Ace, what is your decision?"

Ace paused with the spoon in his hand, then continued to eat the food in his hand. "I know. Whitebeard's crew told me about their situation. No matter what, it was me who caused this situation. I will defeat Whitebeard, wash away this shame, and take them back."

Lucci looked at Ace and said, "After observing for some time, I can feel that the Whitebeard Pirates have no ill intentions. Even though you, Ace, have been attacking their captain, Whitebeard and his crew have not been angry or retaliated. Moreover, they did not raise any concerns about this during the time I disappeared. Their previous proposal should be serious."

Ace lowered his head and was silent for a moment, then said, "There's no way I can join them."

Lucci looked at Ace and shook his head helplessly, he could see that Ace was no longer obsessed with killing Whitebeard, he was still going on just because he was too stubborn, he wouldn't admit that he liked it here, he just needed a little push before making a decision.

……

Ace leaned against the railing and sighed, enjoying a moment of peace and breathing in the fresh air, he didn't know what time it was but he knew this action was stupid, it was too early, only the duty officers were still awake at this time but they were more focused on the sea and would not pay attention to what was happening on the deck, so he had a moment.

Lucci was already fast asleep. Due to his daytime narcolepsy, he had slept for several hours. He couldn't stay in the room doing nothing. He was thinking about what Lucci had said during the day.

Ace sighed. He knew who he was challenging. Whitebeard was already a rival to the Pirate King before he was born. He was one of the Four Emperors, just like Shanks. Even without counting Whitebeard's own strength, his crew was huge, and each commander was very powerful. He could feel that each commander had enough power to kill him alone, and then there were his allies... Yeah, he had always been stupid. He wanted to prove himself so much that he ignored all the warnings and plunged in. He could feel the gap between them, but he was unwilling to accept that they would be so far apart.

"Be careful, Yoi."

He knew who was talking, Marco, the captain of Whitebeard's first team, he had just heard his footsteps, he just didn't want to pay attention.

"If you fall at this time, the people on duty may not see you." Marco walked to Ace and leaned his back against the railing.

"None of your business." Ace said coldly.

"I'm just expressing my concern for Yoi."

"I don't need or want your damn concern!" Ace gritted his teeth and said angrily.

Silence spread between them. Marco sighed, thought about his words, and said softly, "I think you should have felt the power of Dad."

Marco faced his angry gaze calmly and continued, "After all, he is a powerful pirate who has existed since before the Great Pirate Era. It is almost impossible for you to defeat your father with your current experience and ability."

Ace snorted in mockery, he knew what he said was right, but so what he would beat him "So what's your point?"

Marco shook his head. "I have a suggestion. Since you don't plan to leave, why don't you follow us? You can help us deal with some challengers, become stronger in the battle, and then challenge Dad. In return, we will provide you with food and medical care. I think only in this case will Dad formally accept your challenge."

Ace thought silently and did not respond to Marco's words.

"What do you need, Yoi?" Marco asked calmly, interrupting his thoughts. "For you to trust us?"

Ace was stunned for a moment, to be honest Ace didn't know himself, his brothers had won his trust, there was no exact reason or a specific moment for him to believe them, he just did it.

So he shrugged and said, "What the hell, how should I know?"

Ace looked at Marco and asked seriously, "Why? I want to take your captain's head, so why?"

"I want my dad to have more fun playing." Marco replied with a smile.

An angry symbol slowly appeared on Ace's forehead, and then he turned and left.

Marco smiled as he watched Fire Fist leave. He knew that the boy had accepted his proposal.

……

"Dogura! Dogura! Did Ace appear in the newspaper today?" Luffy asked loudly to the newspaper that Dogura had just received.

"No." Dogula shook his head at Luffy.

"Eh!" Luffy said disappointedly.

"What's wrong, Luffy?" Qi patted Luffy's shoulder and asked.

"Since the last report that Ace was going to challenge Whitebeard, there has been no news about Ace in the newspapers for two months. Luffy must be worried about Ace." Dogula explained.

"No, Ace is very strong. I believe he will defeat that man!" Luffy said proudly.