East Blue, Goa Kingdom, Foosha Village.
"Ace! Look, look!"
Luffy ran after Ace, following him into Foosha Village as they made preparations for the big day ahead.
Ace was sitting in Makino's bar, eating, while a large bag filled with newly bought clothes and daily necessities sat beside him.
"Huh?"
Hearing Luffy's excited shout, Ace turned his head and saw Luffy bursting into the bar, waving a newspaper in his hands.
"Ace! Look! The paper says that Uncle Wright has become an 'Admiral Candidate'!"
"Oh! That's amazing!" Ace exclaimed, standing up in surprise.
"But... what's an Admiral Candidate?"
Luffy tilted his head in confusion, looking troubled.
"..."
Ace felt a vein pop on his forehead—this idiot! How could he be so excited without even knowing what it meant?
"Hehe… Luffy is still as energetic as ever!" Makino chuckled as she walked out, carrying a basket of bread. She poured Luffy a glass of orange juice.
"'Admiral Candidate,' huh? I think I heard Garp mention it before. It means he's one of the top figures in the Marines!"
"Makino!"
Luffy jumped onto a chair and grabbed a piece of bread, stuffing his mouth full.
"Mmmph mmph mmph…"
"Idiot!"
Ace sighed, rubbing his forehead. This guy was so careless—what would happen if he wasn't around to watch over him?
"Swallow your food before you talk!"
Luffy gulped down his juice, swallowing the bread. "Ace, I know what an Admiral is, but what's an Admiral Candidate?"
"An Admiral Candidate in Marine Headquarters is someone with the strength of an Admiral. If a vacancy opens up, they are directly promoted to the position."
Ace took the newspaper from Luffy and read it carefully.
Stationed in the New World, standing as a shield against the threats of the Four Emperors;
Leading forces against the most powerful of the Four Emperors, Whitebeard's fleet;
Defeating and killing Jack 'the Drought' of the Beasts Pirates, then successfully repelling Kaido, the so-called 'Strongest Creature'...
The newspaper detailed Wright's recent exploits.
After setting the tone with Sengoku, Wright had worked with Morgans to have the World Economy News Paper cooperate with Marine Headquarters on a reputation-building initiative.
His achievements, which earned him the title of Admiral Candidate, were reported—though not in full detail.
Even so, the stories were enough to ignite the passion of young men like Ace, who had yet to set sail.
"This is incredible!" Ace's heart pounded as he read about Wright's accomplishments.
"Uncle Wright is fulfilling his promise..."
"Then I have to give it my all, too!"
"But, speaking of which… if I really do become a Marine, how am I supposed to thank Captain Shanks?"
"Hmm… I guess I'll just get stronger, and when we fight, I'll thank him then!"
"Ace, your birthday is coming up in a few days. Are you really ready to set sail?" Makino asked while wiping a glass, looking at Ace with some concern.
Ever since Luffy had started staying with Dadan, Makino had often brought clean clothes and food to the three brothers, even teaching them basic manners.
After what happened to Sabo, Ace had asked Makino to teach him more about etiquette, determined to be a better older brother to Luffy.
To Makino, Ace was like a younger brother himself.
So, while she supported the three brothers' promise to set sail at seventeen, she couldn't help but worry.
"Don't worry, Makino," Ace replied with a confident smile. "I'm really strong—ordinary pirates won't stand a chance against me!"
"Soon, I'll make a name for myself all over the world… Just wait for the good news!"
"Ace, you're not going to be a pirate?" Luffy asked, adjusting the straw hat on his back. Now fourteen, thanks to Wright's training, he had grown much stronger.
"Haha… Luffy, pirate, Marine, or adventurer—what difference does it make?"
Ace knocked Luffy on the head. "No matter where we are or what we become, we'll always be brothers!"
"We all have dreams we want to chase. That's why we're setting sail!"
"Yeah!" Luffy grinned. "I'm going to be the Pirate King!"
"Ha! Then you'd better watch out, or Wright… Uncle Wright might catch you!"
"No way! I'll take down even Uncle Wright!"
"Hahaha! You can't even beat me yet!"
Finally, the day of Ace's departure arrived.
Standing on his small sailboat, Ace waved goodbye to Luffy, Makino, and the mountain bandits who had come to see him off from the cliff.
"See you, Luffy!"
"When I set sail in three years, I'll be even stronger!" Luffy shouted.
The small boat drifted farther and farther, until the shore disappeared from view.
"Ah… The sea is beautiful, just like Uncle Wright said."
Thanks to Wright's lessons, Ace had some knowledge of navigation and could tell that today's weather seemed favorable.
"Becoming an adventurer… doesn't sound too bad either."
Dreaming of the future, Ace yawned and fell into a deep sleep.
The sea seemed to favor him at first. For the first few days, the waters were calm.
Unlike a reckless fool, Ace had at least planned out his route. He soon arrived at an island to resupply on fresh water and food.
"Taking free food is bad, Ace—paying for meals is the most basic form of respect."
Ace had taken Wright's lessons to heart. But how would he get money…?
Well, he'd just have to make some pirates 'contribute'!
A few more days passed, and Ace lay slumped over the side of his boat.
His little vessel drifted pitifully on the water. The mast had snapped, and if not for a single plank serving as a makeshift oar, he would've been completely at the mercy of the sea.
"Ugh… Everything was going great at first, so why is everything going wrong now?"
"First a storm, then raging winds… If I hadn't learned some navigation skills and listened to Wright's stories about his first voyage, I might've been shipwrecked…"
"But I'm almost out of fresh water, and I haven't seen land…"
Ace sighed and rolled over, then suddenly froze. "Huh? What's that?"
At the edge of his vision, a small island came into view.
"Hahaha! I'm not doomed after all! Let's go!"
Revitalized, Ace grabbed the plank and paddled toward the island with all his might.
"The currents around this island seem strange… This flow is weird!"
As he got closer, he realized something was wrong—his boat was speeding up!
He was being pulled in by the island's unusual currents!
"Whoa, lucky me… Wait! How do I stop?!"
His boat shot forward and, rather embarrassingly… crashed onto a rocky shore.
"Damn… The hull's leaking!"
Ace jumped ashore. "What kind of ridiculous current is this? It just drags everything to the island!"
"Well, since I'm here, first things first—fresh water and food!"
Just as he was about to pull his boat ashore, something caught his eye.
A bright orange-red fruit, covered in swirling patterns, rolled onto the shore at his feet.
Ace trembled as he picked it up, remembering Wright's words:
"Fate works in mysterious ways."
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Author's Notes: In the official Ace novel, he drifted to Sixis Island in the East Blue, where he first met Deuce before finding the Mera Mera no Mi on the beach. Here, however, the sequence is reversed—he discovers the Mera Mera no Mi first and then encounters Deuce. Well, that's just fate at work! (ω)
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