Seeing his subordinates suddenly fall to the ground, Burgem himself felt an inexplicable fear; this unusual feeling instantly filled him with both shock and anger.
He looked at Ace, who was lying on the ground, with fear and anger, and demanded,
"What did you do, brat?"
Ace had no strength left at this point; he just vaguely looked ahead, at where Sabo was tied, muttering his name.
"Sa... Sabo..."
Seeing this, Burgem was instantly enraged, his face contorted as he said in a deep voice,
"Damn brat, die!"
Just then, Burgem suddenly heard the same words from behind him, like a devil's whisper.
"Die!"
Burgem was greatly alarmed by the sound; it was only a few paces behind him, yet he hadn't felt any presence.
When he turned around in a panic, a sharp, incomparable punch had already landed on his face.
He felt as if his head had exploded for a moment, and then his consciousness completely vanished.
"Ace, Sabo, let's be brothers!"
Luffy suddenly said at this moment.
His voice reached the ears of the two dying individuals.
Both used all their strength to force out a smile.
...
Middle Forest.
Luffy, Ace, and Sabo gathered around a tree stump, each holding a bowl of sake.
"From today on, we are brothers!"
"Oh (x3)!!!"
The three clinked their bowls, drank, and swore brotherhood.
They looked at each other and laughed heartily.
...
In the days that followed, the group returned to their usual lives.
Training and robbing bandits.
After Ace awakened Haoshoku, Luffy began teaching him while also sparring with him.
Soon, Ace's strength far surpassed Sabo and Uta, and Luffy's Haoshoku was also growing daily.
Until several months later.
Just like in the original story, Sabo's noble identity was exposed, and he was taken back by his father.
Afterward, Celestial Dragons came to inspect the Goa Kingdom.
Sabo set sail that day and was sunk on the spot by the Celestial Dragons' cannon fire.
When this news reached Dadan's house, Ace immediately went berserk.
He rushed out the door like a madman, only to be pressed to the ground by Dadan.
"Ugh... let go of me, Dadan."
"I'm going to avenge Sabo!"
Dadan frowned; although she was equally sad and indignant, she remained rational and strictly stopped him.
"Don't do anything foolish! They are Celestial Dragons."
"Even if you go, it will be useless; you'll only die in vain."
Ace struggled desperately, then looked at Luffy.
"Luffy, Sabo is our brother, we must avenge him, quickly help me pull Dadan away."
Facing Ace's plea, Luffy, this time, stood with Dadan, shook his head, and said,
"Ace, Dadan is right. With our current strength, we can't deal with the Celestial Dragons at all."
"And I believe Sabo will be fine."
Defeating a Celestial Dragon is easy, but defeating the Admiral that a Celestial Dragon brings would be a fantasy.
Moreover, on the day Sabo had his accident, Luffy was observing from a distance.
He personally saw Sabo being rescued by his father, Monkey D. Dragon, whom he had never met before.
That's why he was able to remain rational and not be overcome by anger.
Ace calmed down considerably after hearing Luffy's words.
"Will Sabo really be alright?"
Luffy nodded solemnly.
The next day.
Luffy and the others received a letter sent by Sabo before his departure:
"Ace, Luffy, and Uta, I hope you weren't hurt by the fire!"
"Although I'm very worried, I still believe you'll definitely be fine, after all, Luffy has always been so reliable."
"Although I'm very sorry, by the time you read this letter, I'll already be at sea."
"Many things happened, so I decided to set sail ahead of you."
"My destination is somewhere outside this country."
"There, I will become stronger, become a pirate, become a pirate freer than anyone else."
"Let us three brothers, and Uta, meet again somewhere!"
"Somewhere in the vast, free ocean, we will surely meet again one day."
"Also, Ace. Who is the elder brother between you and me? I think, it's probably you!"
"Speaking of which, are we two older brothers not doing a good job? We always need Luffy, our younger brother, to take care of us."
"Two older brothers, one younger brother. Although it's strange, this bond is my most cherished treasure."
"Luffy, this guy Ace is always impulsive and likes to act recklessly."
"But he is our brother, so I leave him to you."
"Ace, you too, must take good care of Luffy."
"Sabo!"
After reading the letter, Ace cried hysterically, Uta's face was covered in tears, and Luffy's eyes were also filled with tears.
He looked up at the sky and silently thought to himself.
"We will definitely meet again, the three brothers together!"
Time flew by, and in a blink of an eye, seven years had passed.
Today was Ace's day to set sail.
Windmill Village, by the coast.
Luffy, Uta, the Dadan Family, Makino, the mayor, and all the villagers came to see Ace off.
People bid farewell to Ace, speaking heartwarming words or outwardly tough but inwardly soft words.
After saying goodbye to everyone else, only Luffy remained.
Ace's eyes were filled with fighting spirit.
"Luffy, I'm setting sail first. I will definitely become the freest pirate."
"When we meet again next time, I'll definitely surpass you."
As he finished speaking, Ace's gaze suddenly softened, and his tone became gentle.
"Goodbye, Luffy. Take good care of Uta."
"I'll be waiting for you somewhere on the high seas."
Luffy smiled, his expression equally gentle.
"See you on the high seas!"
"Take care, Ace!"
Three years later.
The same location, the same scene, the same group of people.
"You brat, you're finally leaving. You've really annoyed me these past few years."
Dadan said with great disdain, but her face was covered in tear stains, and her eyes were full of reluctance.
"Luffy, take good care of yourself and Uta. Remember to cover yourself with a blanket when you sleep, and don't eat too fast..."
Makino carefully gave one instruction after another, tears unconsciously welling up in her eyes.
"Luffy, be a great pirate!"
"Luffy, be the pride of Windmill Village!"
"Luffy, we'll be following your news in the newspapers."
The villagers and the other bandits from the Dadan Family all bid farewell to Luffy, offering words of blessing.
"All of you shut up! Being a pirate? This is simply an insult to the reputation of our Windmill Village."
The mayor sternly reprimanded the surrounding villagers, yet he himself pulled out a handkerchief to wipe away his tears.
Luffy looked at these familiar, warm faces, deeply moved.
"Dadan, Makino, Mayor, everyone."
"Thank you all for taking care of me all this time."
With that, Luffy bowed deeply to everyone.
Uta also imitated Luffy, bowing to everyone.
It wasn't until Luffy and Uta's ship had sailed far away that continuous wailing and sobbing erupted on the shore.