Chapter Text
There are intel gathering missions and there are suicide missions. WHY IS HE PILOTING A SUICIDE MISSION.
The captain has lost his goddamn mind. This is the third one in a row since he picked him up from Mihawks island where he is convinced that Law plans on taking the world down with him. They had picked up a tip that a high level beast pirate had defected and turned revolutionary, the information included how they were escaping Wano and where they were meeting the army.
“Captain, all of this is too convenient and it did not cost enough for the broker to risk selling out both these groups to some crazy person with DEATH tattooed on his knuckles.”
The submarine’s captain just smiled at him. “Best way to catch a hunter is to spring a trap, let’s see if we can steal one alive. I have questions.”
Now Louie is crying and dodging so many mines. “What was the point in making it stealthy if you wanted to use the poor blade as a battering ram?!”
Law just cackled at him over the inter ship radio and sent out a new type of torpedo. What was he even aiming at! A shockwave of water hit the sub knocking her sideways as everything electronic went dark… Was he dead? Law finally got them murdered. He did get an extra few years that were pretty fun, kinda wanted to finish that new cargo sub. Maybe make that gyroscope stabilized bridge…
Red lights flashed back on, and the whirring of systems rebooting matched the tone of his groaning. “I guess not dead.”
“NOT YET LOUIE! Take us up that should have ruined enough of their trap to grab somebody useful! Hahahaha!”
His captain has gone insane. He wants to go up? Sure he can do that. “FINE ENJOY THE SPLASH.” Full speed at 45-degree up bubble. If they don’t die the ship will be a mess. They hit the surface and crash hard, the entire right side of his body where he landed will be bruised. “Damn we lived that sucks.”
“I got one! Shit is that King flying over? Time to go. DIVE DIVE DIVE!”
They have somehow escaped the flying monster that is Kaido's right claw. The insane captain has a hostage in seastone chains in the hull and he is pretending that they don’t, because the evil freaking laugh as Law left to go ‘ask some questions’ was not okay. For the love of Nika please answer. Purapurapura CaClick, “Red Force.”
“It’s Louie from Rosie’s Blade. I need help, preferably all of it.” There is cursing and the Den-Den transformed to resemble his sniper buddy.
“Are you guys okay?!”
“Absolutely not! If you don’t stop the psychos rampage we are both going to die. Where are you? I need someone who can reign in Law.”
“We are off of one of Big Moms islands for a party. Is the kill count just up again? You can usually handle that.”
Louie pressed on the receiver and held it up so the other line could hear the echo of screaming and evil laughing coming from the hull.
“Oh shit. That hasn’t happened since a marine killed a new rookie with a lucky shot. Not good. SHANKS!”
The Red Force captain is that a good idea? They kind of have a thing and he knows what is in Law’s pocket right now, “Why not Ben?”
“Law has been able to talk him into dumb stuff before. But he hates using his threes so we will just stop this now. Bring the Den-Den to him.”
Sorry captain, you need a reality check. He pushes the poor Den-Den through the door and there is angry yelling and the beast pirate is definitely crying, but Law comes out with an eye twitching and mumbles, “We have to visit the Red Force.”
“Our hostage?”
“Keeping him till Ben tries to get info.”
With that his captain flips him off and goes back to his room. A stay of execution. He will forever be thankful for Yassop.
-
“Law you aren’t allowed to be mad at me for the order. One, I actually am the captain so I get to do that OCCASIONALLY."
“Tssk.”
“Two, buddy? Didn’t the last time I call you back to the Force it was because you were being crazy and suicidal?”
“I am not suicidal I just have some plans that involve a high degree of risk. I am a pirate and will continue to do that.”
He gives Law a glare, “Any reason that you are trying to take on the world again because I don’t mind fighting Kaido but I don’t want to destroy Wano doing it. Also not sure how to get the lizard to stay down, he is kind of unkillable.” Shanks had decided to reprimand Trafalgar in the galley with the other officers for some backup. Now the jerks are looking at both of them like he is also a hopeless psycho.
“But Shanks, I figured out a plan for that. Sniper-ya.” Law hands over a leather pouch from his pocket to Yassop who folds it out on the table. It is needle darts for the blow gun. Poor Yassop.
The sniper looks at them then angrily points at the scary doc, “How exactly is this going to work with someone covered in scales? Also I don’t want to fight Kaido! Especially not in close enough range to use these.”
“Just asking you to test them on something big. I will be using that tranquilizer on my throwing knives. I need to get past the lizard to get to my ugly bird.” Law shrugs like taking out the emperor called The King of Beasts is just an inconvenience.
His backup in reigning him is not helping, Hongo is picking up one of the darts examining it and asking what the chemical structure is. “Oye you know what? New order before Law dies, we are all getting marooned for having gone insane by osmosis. This time an actual vacation on an island with booze and fights and normal pirate shenanigans. Not killing Yonkos or Warlords or Admirals or whatever the hell gives me ulcers.”
Scary doc smirks at him, “Just remember it is annual liver and lung rehabilitation time.”
“FINE. See Law I can be reasonable about staying alive. We are setting sail NOW.”
-
How long have they been on this island? He feels happy and drunk while sparring with Rockstar who is giggling. Why did he even get his own submarine? This lifestyle is amazing. After practically being a soldier for Doflamingo as a kid this type of peace must have been what Cora-san wanted from him. “Owe.” Rockstar had gotten a pretty decent cut into his forearm while he wasn’t paying attention.
“OH NO DOC!”
“It’s fine knife-ya,” He patted the guy's shoulder, “Let me just sit down and fix it, then I want to show you what I had been working on with those baboons.” They wandered over to the table set out by the never ending bonfire and he set Kikoku down, he may have to put her in time out, the nodachi has been cranky as hell for maybe a week now? Two? A while anyways. He was halfway done stitching up his arm when Yassop and Shanks came and plopped on either side of Rockstar, getting him to start singing shanties with them. Law couldn’t help but chuckle at their mirth.
Shanks, seeing his smile leaned over the table and rested his head on his hands looking up at him, “So you having fun?”
“Mmhmm forgot why we do anything other than this actually.” He finishes the last stitch and ties it off when he does his shin is kicked and he looks at the red haired perpetrator.
“You know we don’t have too. Plenty powerful of a group already not to worry about attacks. We could just stay like this forever.”
Shanks' smile is soft and carefree. Law looks around at his idiots Roux is cooking next to Limejuice telling a story to one of the younger crew, Bong Punch is standing on some type of giant sized boar he hunted with monster and playing that annoying accordion. “It is a decent island. I like that marine ships pass by occasionally for a fight… Why are you looking at me like that Shanks?”
His face has gone from soft to downright mischievous, “Like what Law? That I love how you could take a tropical paradise and say your favorite thing about it is the acts of violence?”
“Oh so are you in love with a bit of violence too then.” He flicked the judgy captain's forehead.
“Nah, just in love with you.”
Law rolled his eyes, “Please don’t say that. You don’t know what it means and it annoys me.” He got up and grabbed the cranky blade heading to bug Limejuice about teaching him to cook anything other than fish. He still sucks at it and Roux has given up trying to help.
-
Yassop patted his poor captain’s head, “Hey buddy, was your plan foiled again?”
“Nope. Plan worked years ago, getting the cagey dude to admit he feels the same way is what I suck at. I thought the extended relaxing beach trip would get him to understand there is nothing wrong with saying it, but I think that cursed stabby thing is on to me. So jealous.”
Rockstar stuck out his tongue, “You still have horrible tastes but I can’t wait to tell Meera you're fighting with a sword over him. Even more embarrassing than with Dracule. Can’t you just turn up the haki thing you are doing so it stops hissing at all of us?”
His sniper puts Rockstar in a headlock and messes with his hair. “It is one thing for us all to save on booze by taking advantage of the fact the captain is a naturally happy drunk haki monster, and a whole other super messed up thing to start suppressing wills. Even if the thing is an evil piece of work.”
“Ah well. Curses are funny like that. Hey Rockstar, aren't you and Law's birthdays both coming up?”
“YEP! We shared a party a few years ago and I want to do it again. Always turns into a competition for throwing knives at each other and I have gotten pretty good while he has been out doctoring. I'm going to kick his butt this year AND I get to choose the cake flavor."
“What should the crew get you for your birthday?”
“Maroon me with Meera.”
“Gross. What should we get Law?”
“A less angry nodachi or he was wanting more poisonous snakes to study.”
“No to both. Think Ben will let us keep a baby crocodile?” They decide they can drop off Rockstar and an unsuspecting Meera to be marooned on Vino after the party and just get the doc a case of his favorite mind destroying vodka. Shanks baits Bong Punch into a dramatic sword fight where they both pretend to kill each other on the deck of the Red Force to those watching on the beaches delight. The sun is starting to set a red sky painting the festivities as they decide to hold a play of all of their crimes before being executed by the angry judge Beckham via walking the plank. “For the crimes of being a scoundrel, ruining all of my plans, and giving everyone alcoholism.” Shanks does a dramatic bow at the end of the gangplank sticking over the water. “I sentence the no good pirate Akagami no Shanks to a swim back to shore.” Acting like he had been stabbed in the heart by Ben’s words clutching his chest he falls off the side and into the water with a splash. Laughing and shaking his wet head stomping to sit next to the evil judge he watches as their favorite actor takes the stage. Yassop’s death scenes are always so dramatic and heavily feature how he has yet to fulfill his dream of being named best sniper in the world. Now he is doing some rendition of how he will convince the devil himself to resurrect him as a demon rifle which will one day kill the evil judge Beckham who had cut short his fate. Ben points his fingers and pretends to shoot Yassop who has decided he has been shot five times in the chest before rolling off into the water. Ben scowls, “Everyone knows finger guns only have one bullet, it is a pistol. Ah, do I have a new victim Trafalgar?”
Law had been walking out of the infirmary and from the beach they could see he was on his way with a book before smirking and walking to the plank. “What are my crimes Ben-ya?”
“Oh I am sure I can think of something.”
Yassop had made it to the shore shaking off when Law noticed and chucks his book behind him. “I need no conviction to accept my execution most corrupt of judges.” Ben and Shanks start cackling. Law never joins in on their dumb little shows. “I see that the one who has my heart has already left this mortal realm.” Shanks face goes red and there are wolf whistles. “How dare you the Evil Beckham steal away the worlds greatest sniper Yassop before his destiny could be fulfilled!” He hears a bunch of snickers behind him from the bonfire so he raises a middle finger at the judgy jerks. Law doesn’t look done with his monologue and Yassop is blowing doc a kiss who fake catches it and holds it to his chest. “See now what your ire has done to me?” A box with Law's actual heart comes out into his hand and he lifts it forward as if offering it to the crowd. “Now that you have taken it.” The box just disappeared. “I no longer have a reason to continue. I will see you beyond the veil dear Sniper-ya.” Law turns with his back facing them and falls into the water. There is an eruption of whistles and applause for the novelty.
Ben turns to him, “I like executing everyone, I make a great evil judge.”
Limejuice had been sitting on Ben's other side points ahead of him with the bottle he was sipping, “Considering that one has a devil-fruit and walked off the plank you are good at executions.”
The three of them wince and there are no bubbles or movement from the water. “Shit Yassop retrieve your admirer from his suicide please.”
When the dumbass is on shore and coughing up water he gives another dramatic little speech that he was revived because Yassop achieved his dream. His sniper is laughing so hard he is choking. Law disappears to go find where he shambled his heart and a small memorial was held for their starcrossed fates.
After a few more drinks and executions Shanks yawns and heads to his tent set up in the forest. Pulling the fabric door to the side there is a trail of still wet boots and clothing on the floor, kicking them into the corner that is a tomorrow problem. He takes off his shirt and cape flipping his sandals behind him before getting into the bed. Yawning he rolls over and reaches over Law to flick on the lantern. “Tonight was fun.”
“Mmhmm.”
“Do we have water?”
Law extends his hand and a glass and pitcher appear on the nightstand. “Thanks. What happened to your arm?” There is a faint circular bruise under the shoulder heart tattoo.
“Rockstar got me while we fought, you saw me stitch it up. Turn over.”
Law was absolutely going to just steal all his body heat. “Nah I mean the bruise, it looks old.”
“It is old Shanks. I got it in Sabaody last time we were there. For some reason it won't go away. But I will if you keep talking.”
“Yeah yeah.” Best of luck you don’t even have a tent punk, it keeps being filled with boxes. But he does take a drink of water then flicks out the light. “Goodnight Law.”
“Goodnight Shanks.”
He once again wakes up alone. Making it over to Roux's outdoor kitchen he must be early as only Ben and Law are there. “Need any help cooking Roux?”
“Sure Cap, anyone is better than your tent mate over there.”
“Tssk. I am not that bad. I can make rice, fish… and coffee.”
“You are. At least Rayleigh keeps giving me free drinks because he thinks I am the one keeping you skinny. Hey Cap, want to do the onions in that pan?”
“Yep!” Shanks walked over and started melting butter in the pan. “I was thinking of going hunting later today. Any requests for dinner?”
Roux taps his skewers on the grill contemplating. “Giant boar if you want more pork sausages.”
“Done! Law you want to help?”
“Nah sorry Shanks, I will be busy helping Beckham here with setting up a new relay snail. Have fun.”
Shanks takes Yassop out with him and has a grand time. They get a boar and an extremely creepy red bird that barked at them. The crew had decided today's entertainment would be Bonk Punch teaching them all to juggle swords which is a horrible idea and there are a few stabbing injuries that Hongo looks annoyed at having to help with. “Captain, go find me scary doc. I don't want to have to deal with these by myself.”
Shanks goes out to find the runaway doc and senses him on the red line side of the island alone. Walking over he sits next to him while Law is holding one page vertically like he is going to flip it but paused, “What you doing?”
“I have figured out how to read one page at a time rather than just using scan on the whole book.”
“Why? You get all the info either way right?”
“I just like reading, this one is a horror that Ben gave me. I have been putting it off because it would suck to know the ending instantly.”
“So you are being less of a control freak and enjoying the little things I like it.” Law elbowed him but put the book down.
“Why not. You are all pretty good at it, actually a little too good at it since we got here…” Law flips the page back and forth, “Everything is blurry when you are around.”
“Yeah don’t be whiny Ben is enjoying that we spend less on booze since I figured it out.” Law tilted his head at him confused. “Ohh yeah we hadn’t really been doing beach parties with you since we went to Fishman Island together, you kept running off ditching us to do doctor stuff.”
“I have no idea what you are…” Kikoku flash freezes the sand in front of Law, cutting him off. “SHANKS YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS. THE CREW KNOWS?!”
Looking over to the new ice, ‘evil haki’ is clawed into it, he knew that sword was pissed at him. “You didn’t?”
Law stands up snarling at him, “You radiate enough background noise I hadn’t even noticed. Fuck no wonder I can’t remember how long I have been here we are all drunk off your neverending cheerfullness you creepy red mutt!”
“Dramatic. I am not that bad. We have only been here for like a year, Rockstar already has plans for your guy's birthday party.”
Law's face has gone full indifferent mask mode and it is creeping him out a little. “Have you been doing this the entire time?”
“Yeah mostly? It is pretty easy.” Okay it is creeping him out a lot now. Law is right in front of him but his presence is just gone like a ghost, Rayleigh was right he is good at that. Why is he acting weird, “You don’t have to share a party with Rockstar if you don’t want to?”
“It is fine. Goodnight Akagami.” Law turns on his heel and starts walking to their base. Something tells him he should not bug Law or his hissing partner tonight.
-
Mihawk gets a slightly odd call while waiting for Francis to lower the gangplank for him. “Oh hello Law. Still enjoying your vacation?”
“Hard to say at the moment, how often have we talked in the last year?”
“About once a month. I was enjoying our last chat about what would be an effective technique against Whitebeard’s Neginata before you fell asleep on the call.” He started walking up the plank and Francis took the Den-Den from him, “Doctor Trafalgar you keep saying you will visit in a few weeks and then forgetting about it. Stop drinking so much and come spar with this imbecile so he stops yearning. He really doesn’t care that you haven’t answered him yet.”
He held out his hand glaring and Francis gave it back then stomped up the stairs. He has not been yearning.
“Sorry Mihawk, there have been some extenuating circumstances, mind if I call you back?”
“That is fine. I do have an idea on that last conversation I think you will find interesting, goodnight doctor.” Ca-Klick
Following Francis up to the chief clerks office he sits on the office chair and puts his feet on the desk glaring while his employee is going through a bookcase looking for ledgers, “I have not been yearning.”
“Have you been mentioning your paramour constantly and I don’t even want to know why but you asked for a book on caring for banana-crocodiles. You already have the scary Humandrills, do you want to start a zoo?”
“Still deciding. Okay maybe a tiny bit yearning. I haven’t had a good fight in a year though.” He is getting bored enough to try his luck against Whitebeard.
“Call your weird retired uncle, or start your own dojo. Something entertaining. The last few fights you did have you were a complete asshole and called them all weaklings, you only used your dagger you are so cranky and bored it is pissing me off.”
That is a fair point, “We are headed to Sabaody anyways, pick me up on your way back from the West Blue?”
“Don’t delay my boat by being late, actually be late and I will leave you there so your pent up mood is Sabaodies problem.”
When he got to Shaky’s he almost spit out his beer. “Please tell me we are not related to whoever that is in the photo with you.” It was the spitting image of Trafalgar as a girl but with all the same scars. There was no possibility that it was a coincidence.
“The evil creature from hell the grim reaper dropped off on Red’s ship? Thankfully not related, our family is human. Not demonic ambush predators.”
Oh thank Nika he thought he slept with an extended relative for a moment, that looked like a family portrait. “Why the photo?”
“Wanted to torture the guy for having to go undercover as girl with Newgates crew. Wiley bastard. Stabbed me once with a dagger and I know he is hiding some more tricks.”
Wait, he had heard about that from Rayleigh before. “I thought it was a child who did that by masking their presence?”
“WAS a child. Now it has grown up and is annoyingly healthy and somehow more stabby. Thankfully he has some aversion to food so he doesn’t have enough muscle to actually kill me.”
Mihawk started laughing to his uncle's confusion. He was trying to come here for a distraction and now all he wants to do is buy all of the Humandrills daggers to practice fighting against. “I am going to see if Hakugan has anyone who would be willing to train baboons. Law keeps surprising me even when he is not here.”
Shaky came over to see what the fuss was and cooed, “Ahh the heartstealer strikes again. Our poor little Warlord.”
Rayleigh was looking both shocked and disgusted, “I never should have trained that demonic twig. Who knows armament at fifteen? The tattoos and everything just spell trouble. Please Mihawk, I beg of you to have better tastes.”
“Don’t tell me anymore, too much fun being surprised. Could I borrow your Den-Den, I have to call some cannibals and visit a blacksmith.”
[Readers Brief moment of levity has now ended at callbacks to me touring Law with Rayleigh. I am wrong but I definitely decided the world's greatest swordsman is related to Boa Hancock so now he is related to the dark king. Cannon Can Bite Me. Now we get back to your regularly scheduled programming of Law’s horrible luck and childhood.]
-
Tssk Shanks couldn’t have known… He checked. The whole crew thought it was a cool little party trick. In his last life he had trained relentlessly after escaping Doflamingo against conquerors haki, now here he was accidentally inoculating himself to ignore it by being with Akagami. He remembered when he first joined the Red Hairs crew knowing it was creepy but assuming that unless it was just Mugiwaras or Roronoas he would always find it creepy because of his history with the ugly bird and blackbeard.
He was gripping the Den-Den receiver too tightly and the snail was giving him an angry look, “Sorry.” He put it down and laid on his bed in the infirmary of the Red Force. Kikoku was above him, sounding content to finally be out of the crew's basecamp on the beach. Even from here he could hear their partying happily at the shore, to everyone else that party trick was just like cheerful background music, but to anyone who worked on DonQuixote's insane crew it would have been a call to arms. The ugly bird threw his powers around as a king manipulator. You could go from a sad kid like Baby5 desperate for acknowledgement to laughing while shooting someone point blank between the eyes. A haki built for controlling people like puppets. One of the reasons the tall creep became obsessed with him was because at that age he had an equal amount of hate and bloodlust. Barely had to use his strings on him at all, could trust that when Law was acting alone on Doflamingo's behalf it was like he was right next to him. It only took a year before their wills were indistinguishable from each other. Once that happened noticing who was in control had become unnecessary. He had grown to rely on another person in a fundamental way to act, and he would always be weak to something he didn’t notice he should fight against.
Law had been complacent, the only time he had been near the red head before dying was during the marineford battle and his haki had swept away everyone's will to fight with just a few words. Pirates and admirals alike had bowed to the danger of it. He should have known better than to underestimate Shanks. It was almost worse that he knew his intentions were benign, he just was a fun loving captain that wanted everyone to relax and have a good time. A large part of Law wanted it to. There wouldn’t be a chance to sleep tonight. He would have to stay up and retrain himself so his subconscious would reject the buzzing haki spreading out from the shore, or risk waking up and forgetting it was happening as more time slipped by.
He is sitting in the abandoned galley drinking coffee in the morning and trying to decide what to do with the fact he has been a lazy drunk for almost a year and sharing a tent on the beach with Akagami for almost half of that. He had even stopped beheading the idiot for saying ‘love’ at some point, Law would like to blame it all on the bullshit he had found out that Akagami was pulling, but the most it had influenced was just in making him a bit loopy.
He groaned when he recognized who just got on the empty ship. When the door opened he accepted his fate, “Hello Sniper-ya.”
“Good morning doc, haven’t seen that dark of circles around your eyes in forever. Going back to your insomniac habits for fun or is there a reason you didn’t stay in camp last night?”
“A reason and it is messed up… Did I use any of my threes during this past year?”
Yassop grabbed his own mug and sat down across from him as he filled it from the pot, “Well to everyone's surprise you used two. One on a ship rule to stop us from dressing up your cat, and the other to not celebrate your promotion. You hit your head and forget?”
“What promotion?”
“I don’t see a head wound there, vice captain.”
“NOOOO Ben finally got away with it… The asshole. How drunk was I?”
“Very, he forked over duties from winning a card game and he cheated really blatantly. I am actually worried now, this was like forever ago. Can you scan your own brain? How does that work?”
“Okay… I am taking advantage of the position I should not be trusted with, I order you to take this conversation to your grave. If you tell anyone, especially Akagami, I will sink the ship and never come back.”
“Okay. I keep a lot of secrets without the threats by the way, you would faint knowing what I do about the captain. So lay it on me.”
“I barely remember the past year. It is a drunken blur of being mind controlled because I have a weakness to conquerors haki that I would never normally admit to anyone.”
“Law are you…”
“Shut up. The only reason I am telling you is that you helped me hide that I have the ope-ope fruit this whole time right under the crew's nose. Now I need your advice on explaining away what I will have to do to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
“Mind controlled for a year… I will just kill the captain. Problem solved.”
“We both know Akagami is too much of an idiot to have noticed or done it on purpose. The red monster is such a prodigy at haki it is like breathing to him.”
“The level of not okay… How did I not notice? How did this happen? Everyone else is fine. You are one of the most stubborn assholes I have ever known! How could his weak ass party trick mess with you?”
“Don’t be a dick Yassop. If I know something is a threat I have no problem fighting it off. I shall always be a stubborn asshole. But this type is just… insidious. I didn’t even recognize it.”
“You have to tell him. How could you not recognize your own will that is like your soul man… Oh no this is going to restart the ‘psycho gave me depression fund’ isn’t it?”
“It's not important, partially the ugly bird's fault, I already know how to deal with that. Also what would be the point in telling Akagami? He would just feel horrible and be so annoying about it. Look, we are skipping the you being a therapist thing and going straight to the actual issue. I have to hide my presence for at least a week till I get used to doing it constantly again, and you need to tell me how to act like I have been so no one gets suspicious.”
“You haven’t even called him Akagami in forever. You both have been using your given names all the time… and sleeping together… Do I need to drown him or shoot him?”
“Neither, I kind of expected that last part even without all of this. I have been a bit all over the place for a few years and Mihawk wouldn’t even care. The warlord doesn’t have a jealous bone in his body.”
“So just shoot him?”
“Yassop, I order you not to shoot your own captain.”
“Belay it or I will shave his head.”
He shrugged, “Shave his head, sounds hilarious.”
Yassop, Hongo, Beckham, and him ditched their base by stealing the mini-clipper and leaving a note. ‘Vice-captain is bored and needs a fight. You idiots have fun be back in a weekish.’ The sniper had insisted at least the other two knew he wanted to train against conquerors haki in order to fight Teach so they went looking for trouble and as soon as he got out of range of Shanks, his old paranoia of the sky and general overthinking came back with a vengeance. He had gotten dependent again, freaking terrifying that even knowing the reason he wanted to turn around immediately. He shivered, shaking off the instinctual urge. Kikoku the smug blade was cackling at him for taking so long to notice, he could tell, “You are an evil shit.”
Ben looked down into the cabin, “Talking to yourself Trafalgar? I saw the captain's baldness before we left. Can’t believe you even took his eyebrows.”
“Yassop-ya shaved off his eyebrows too? Awesome.”
Ben sounded surprised it wasn’t him, “Coming to help us sail or hiding out down there till the next island?”
“I am a hindrance sailing Ben-ya and I have a call to make.” Katakuri and him have a shared enemy and his information network hopefully hadn’t spent the last year having a beach party. “Wait Ben, how old am I about to be?”
“Twenty-four idiot. No more vodka for you.”
Damn. Mugiwara is going to set sail this year and no matter what may have changed there is no way it isn’t immediate chaos. Screw Ben, he is going to ask for a case of Vodka for his birthday. He will actually need it on Rosie’s Blade if he has to deal with that rubber monster turning the world upside down. Maybe he can just throw Rayleigh at him for two years again? He needs the time to take out the ugly bird before the Straw Hats get to the new world. For now time to take his mini-crew of powerhouses and mess someone up, he only called dibs on Doflamingo after all.
His friendship with Katakuri had improved in the past year? He has recollections of something called Monday Mochi and something… Either way he has information on some of Teach's old allies and Law is going to take out as many as possible this week while the dumb officers are still following his orders. No doubt the relaxed nature he had at the island is the only reason there wasn’t a mutiny for him being in this position by now, time to drag them through some hell so he wasn’t stuck with Ben's duties.
“Alright we have our target and it is a knock off version of my shambles and Yassops sniping abilities. Who wants to go and hunt down Van Augur.” No one is sounding excited, “Come on, it will be fun! I will throw in a sticker.”
Ben chucks a dead cigarette into the water, “I never have figured out why everyone wants those and now I want one. Why do I want one?”
“HA it finally worked on you. It is a game I started forever ago with Shanks, I gave him a sticker once and he said we should mess with the crew. So over the years I kept giving him more every time he ran an errand or did a chore for me he would pretend to save them up for some secret prize and then chucked them. Now every crew member thinks if they get enough of them I will give them some magical prize.” Yassop and Hongo’s mouths dropped open at his snickering.
“No way, has anyone turned them in?”
“Nope I shamble some into the ocean if anyone gets close to a hundred. HEHE I won the bet already. I said it would take over two years for you to ask because you wouldn’t care, Shanks had bet six months.”
Yassop started shaking his shoulders screaming, “Then why keep doing it!”
“Makes the idiots behave during check ups.”
Ben pulled out two cigarettes and handed him one, “Screw it I want a shiny one.”
-
Luffy is staring down at a very angry Gramps and it is actually not his fault this time. Sure he is going to set sail as a pirate soon and he may have accidentally eaten a devil fruit that he suspects Torao wanted him to have. But he was never told he was supposed to send a Christmas card. What the hell is a Christmas card and who is Senjpoky?
“FIST OF LOVE!”
“OWE! You suck old man! I don’t know how to mail anything? What is a Christmas?!” He had found the tree he was hiding in and his punches always hurt more than Aces or anyone else's.
Gramps sat on the ground next to him while he rubbed the giant bump on his head. “Luffy have I never visited during the holidays? Oh right I always cover for the people with young kids… What about Dadan they celebrate when there is snow with like a tree and gifts right?”
“OOOH that's a Christmas. Yeah of course we celebrate! We sneak into mansions in the capital and take stuff people leave for us under a tree in their house. I thought that was called Pajama Bandit Night?” Flicking a booger he looks back at Gramps thinking he would explain what that had to do with getting punched. The old man's mouth is hanging open so he waves a hand in front of his face. “Hello?”
“Luffy. Are you stealing presents from people's houses dressed in red?”
“Well DUH it is Pajama Bandit Night.”
“FIST OF LOVE!”
“OWE! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!”
“If you see Trafalgar again, give one to him for forgetting to send a card! Also I am coming back in a few months for a normal holiday!” Gramps has started stomping his way out of the forest so maybe he is done with the fists of love. Luffy is going to blame Torao for that last punch because he still doesn’t know what a card has to do with Bandit Night. Makino makes him write apology cards sometimes but he hasn’t done anything wrong he can think of.
-
“Please just stop Shanks.” He is calmly walking into his infirmary and this has become embarrassing. He gives Ben a look to move the peanut squad back to shore before closing the door. They had taken care of Van Augur and when they returned he had calmly let Akagami know he was leaving and would be back for the next checkup. Unfortunately the perceptive red head caught on immediately that something was up.
“Why is Yassop mad at me? Why are you whatever this is at me? Why are you leaving?”
He knows this has come as a bit of a surprise and he knows Shanks just is thrown for a loop after they have acted like a happy little couple for that past year even if he has denied labeling it. This is all messed up now and he is the problem. Law had tried to set boundaries originally, keep it fun and friendly, be adults if it doesn’t work. Now because of his own weakness the guy is sounding confused and pissed. “Shit. Shanks I don’t know what to say. I am a bit broken okay. I don’t want whatever this is. Can’t we just stay friends?”
Akagami sits on his bed and glares while holding Stabby. “We will always be friends but are you going to keep doing this weird thing where you pretend there is nothing else between us? Because it is getting old and I don’t know how to help with whatever the fuck you are afraid of because I haven’t seen you afraid of anything.”
“Tssk. I am not pretending or afraid. There is… something else between us.” He really wishes there wasn’t right now. He has enemies to deal with and problems to solve and he does actually need to go.
“Then just say it. I am tired of throwing myself out there constantly to someone who obviously has felt the same way for forever. You are too smart to act like you don’t know.”
The look and tone he is getting from Akagami is that he is pathetic and it is making Law want to snarl. “You are right, you romantically, manipulating, child of a captain. You want a few words like it makes it okay? Fine then. I love you too. Happy? Because I already told you I don’t fucking want it.”
Akagami isn’t saying anything, so he takes back his cat from him and shambles her outside the door. He is not associating this conversation with the fluffballs purring. “Why would anyone not want.. unrequited I get. But this? Are you doing that weird thing you have with hierarchy?”
Law groans and leans back in his chair. This man is so simple and to most people Shanks opinion wouldn’t be wrong. “I don’t care about the hierarchy thing I have been walking all over you forever.”
“Then what the fuck Law I honestly don’t get it.” Shanks is furious and his voice is coming through clenched teeth. “I order you to stay and explain it if hierarchy isn’t your weird ass problem.”
Fine if someone can’t read between the lines to the completely blatant personality flaws he has then he can spell it out for him. “I like my freedom Baka. Love is possessive, it is demanding and I do not want it. How long and how many lifetimes will I throw towards trying to deserve what I should never have been given by a tall idiot with a bleeding heart that saved me as a kid. I will be paying that debt for eternity because I CANNOT let it go. I do not want to love and I do not want anyone else to love me so I beg of you to DROP IT."
“No one told you it has to be a debt. I saw that ghost and it was just happy. Why are you acting like I am trying to trap you?!”
“Because it is a fucking trap and I don’t want to be controlled by anyone. I am incapable of loving normally. Despite all of my repeated warnings you chose badly. Find someone who can give you what you want because it is not me Shanks. I am honestly sorry but you will only be disappointed.” Louie had mercifully brought the sub close enough to be in his room and he shambled to the deck before he had to cut out his own heart and make sure that Shanks hadn’t put a dagger in it. “Fuck.”
-
That's what Trafalgar's problem was?! It was stupid and he was too smart for it. Shanks stood up and went to go out the door to yell at the idiot who was probably running when he saw the jealous nodachi hanging above the bed, he grabbed it with armament haki and stomped out the door while it hissed at him. “Shut up Kikoku or I will make you. Not in the mood for curses tonight.” When it stayed silent he ignored it heading to the beach, Law wouldn’t leave without his needy ass partner and couldn’t switcher-oo it away while Shanks held onto it. They are talking about this whether the psycho wants to or not, seeing the submarine sink it is probably the latter. Law will hide out underwater avoiding shit for the night but would come back to get the sword and yell at him.
He can yell all he wants, tonight the jerk finally said it and as annoyed as he feels right now there is a victory there. Grabbing a chair at the bonfire to wait out the cranky vice-captain Yassop sits next to him glaring and pointing at his hostage. “Don’t get me started Yassop. Of course Law will only admit he loves me back in a fight. The guy is a cagey jerk.”
“Just tell me you didn’t use conquerors' haki on him.”
What in the Vodka-Wolfe does that mean? “No, why would I? Law has been humiliating me trying to intimidate him with it since he came out of the box.”
“Good don’t do that EVER. Or I will have to shave you in your sleep again. Congrats on the confession by the way.”
Yassop was the one who did that? What did he do, his eyebrows had just come back and for some reason took much longer than his head. “Thanks I guess. Why do you think he is so cagey?”
“Probably because with that devil fruit he should be. A home also looks an awful lot like a cage if you are used to a prison.”
“... That says more about him than me.”
Yassop squeezed his shoulder while still looking at the embers of the bonfire, “I doubt he would deny that but it doesn’t change anything does it.”
He stays up all night out of sheer stubbornness. When dawn breaks across the horizon he is once again annoyed at a missing submarine that wasn’t next to the Red Force. He was certain Law wouldn’t just ditch them without the nodachi but looking out there is only a black speck of a ship in the distance, maybe he got pissed and came back? “Limejuice, you have the spyglass? What is out there?”
Limejuice yawns from his hammock and takes out the spyglass from his pocket, “Do we know any pirate ships with three skulls next to each other crowned in bones?”
Ben who was about to light a cigarette almost drops it, “Whoops. This may be my bad… On our outing I was having trouble shaking off Teach's minions. The Blackbeard pirates might have followed us.”
“Awesome, I would love a fight. Wake everyone up and let's welcome them, if any prisoners are taken, gag them. Someone call Louie so the cranky vice-captain doesn’t sleep through it and become more of an asshole.”
Limejuice whistled, "Don't think that is going to be a problem, looks like a torpedo already hit the Blackbeard’s weird raft.”
Grabbing the spyglass from Limejuice everyone runs around him getting ready for a fight. He can just make out a burning section of a giant log when another blast hits the back of the raft. “Why am I not surprised.” Law must be trying to take out their rudder to cripple an escape, he likes doing that. When he sees that blue bubble he scowls, “You don’t even have your sword psycho, AGAIN.” Giving up he walks to the Red Force and up the gangplank. If there are enemies left when he gets there awesome, if not he is demoting Law and throwing him in bad crew jail because he doesn’t get to steal all of the fights it is rude. He sits in a lounge chair on deck stealing some sunglasses and waits for them to get close enough for cannonfire. The rest of his crew are awesome and know what they are doing, even if he is in the way and they have to jump over him.
Watching the sky he sees a flying body overhead and then hears a crash behind him. It takes a moment for reality to catch up to his observation haki so he turns to where the crash will be and a barrel disappears from the deck replaced by a skinny jerk crash landing into the wall. Law's legs are vertical against it, on his back with his head staring at him wincing, “Owe.”
“Having fun?”
There is a smile forming, “The ugly bastard chucked me.”
“If you invite me to the fight I will give you this back.” He shakes the nodachi like a bone in front of a hungry monster. Take the bait punk.
“Come Shanks, why would I not invite you? I couldn’t take all the fun for myself. It is rude.” That is the smile that earned Law the psycho nickname and he absolutely loves it. They do so much better being mischievous little shits than they do talking.
He helps Law up and hands over the evil sword, “Give us all a lift?” Hongo, Ben, Roux, Punch, Monster, and Rockstar are already waiting around them.
“Why not. Don’t forget to count idiots I am still winning.”
When they appear on the raft it is pure chaos, so many low level fighters are just getting in the way and Monster is stupid scary jumping face to face. Ben and him team up to go below deck and take out all of the canons so they won't pose a risk later. Making their way level by level most just pass out when he enters a room and if they don’t they are met with Gryphon or bullet. It has been a bit since him and Ben took out this big of a ship together without just sinking the thing immediately, “Feels like old times Beckham.”
There is a shot behind him that destroys a lock to the armored door, “I was just thinking it was nostalgic as well.”
When they enter it must be the creepy captain's quarters and it looks exceptionally murdery. He borrows Ben’s lighter and the papers of the bookcase start going up in smoke. He whistles as they walk away to find someone fun to fight.
-
Law had been in a desperate mood for a fight and then the ugly Teach had done him a favor and fell right into his lap. He was not the same as he was last time and Blackbeard didn’t have two devil fruits to use to his advantage. Law however had plenty of knives, grenades, and bloodlust to bury the bastard. As soon as he said good morning with the first torpedo he knocked out the raft's rudder so there would be no escape, the next step was to confuse the enemy. He shambled as many throwing knives as he had in storage into those logs then got on deck and opened a very visible blue room. He was on dock and smiling smugly at the monster, “Why hello. Done already hiding behind your old pops shadow?”
“Done hiding in Red Hairs Law?”
“Come get me if you can Kurohige.” He flipped the guy off and kept transporting himself with one of the minions on the deck each time cutting another's throat with a stolen sword. It was winner takes all last time and he had lost his life and friends, this time Teach will lose everything. He can hear him screaming and trying to track him down.. he just has to piss him off a little more…
“BLACK VORTEX!”
His smile is viscous, face already painted in blood from Teach’s crew as the gravity is gripping him and pulling him with black tendrils, but he won't be the only thing heading there. As soon as he gets close, “Takt” every knife and grenade he had already hidden rises up with him and gets pulled towards Teach the moment the arm grabs his shoulder blocking his devil fruit he can see the anger in his black eyes as all the weapons are still hurtling at them. “What are you going to do now Kurohige? Die with me?”
“You would kill us both?”
He shrugs clenching the wrist that is holding him in the air by his shoulder, “A victory for me is your death.” Pulling a knife from his jacket he stabs it into Blackbeard's arm.
“AHH!”
Teach throws him away into the air, but with how close all of those grenades are there is no way he will be able to use the blackhole ability for all of them. Damn Teach chucked him so hard he is flying through the air and shit it would be embarrassing to die drowning right now, then the Red Force appears in his room and he switches with a barrel right after he hears an explosion from the monster's raft. “Owe.”
Ahh how sweet the red mutt is handing over his hostage. They work so much better together when fighting, the moment Kikoku is back in his grip he feels instant relief. Time to finish Teach off. The moment they land on deck he is chuckling at all of the wreckage his last gamble did. There are bits of people and wood on fire and his prey is still getting up from their knees covered in blood. “Second doc want to have some fun?”
Hongo breaks a jaw with his polearm and looks at who Law is pointing at. “I like fun. Any plan?”
“I could use some backup, if the creepy guy gets his ugly hands on me just smack me out of his grip. Other than that, enjoy yourself, it's a fight after all.” He unsheaths Kikoku and they both run smiling at the soon to be dead Yami-Yami user, the first hit is Hongo’s and unfortunately Teach was prepared for it as black hands absorb the momentum of the strike. Law comes from above distracting him and bringing Kikoku piercing, “Injection Shot!” He lets go of Hongo's pole arm to absorb the blow and Hongo spins, bringing the other side of the staff to the back of a knee. Teach’s stance breaks even as he defends from Law’s ability so he shambles with a minion next to Hongo and smirks as their body drops on Teach’s face.
-
When Shanks and Ben get up to the deck his two doctors are circling Teach like wolves around wounded prey, teeth bared and bloodthirsty at the meal. Ben whistles, “Poor bastard. I am going to deal with his officers, you kids have fun.” Ben turns with a slow stroll to the bow of the boat where Punch and the rest of them are causing trouble. Blackbeard's crew is thinning out and some already are giving up and escaping on lifeboats, which is a good plan as the ones left are dropping silently from his sniper still on the Red Force. He sees it in observation before reality, “HONGO!”
Running full speed to join them before it can happen Law must have heard him and switches places with second doc. “THAT ISN’T A PLAN!” He won't have time to argue and Laws instead of Hongo's leg gets crushed by the blackhole ability so he slashes at the tendrils coming for Hongo who has spun trying to orient himself.
Like before Law uses the proximity of the attack to make his own. There is a cry of pain from Teach as he jumps back clutching his face there is blood and electric burns covering his forehead with that cursed nodachi cackling it is clear the thing wanted pain over depth. Him and Hongo want back in the fight though and he nods at Law to let them step in.
“Just keep swinging, I will make them land. Takt.”
Broken knives, chunks of wood and metal, even bits of people rise in the air around them. Gross. Then one by one they go hurtling at Teach and the fight begins at a breakneck pace. He is no longer questioning where he is aiming and from him and Hongo’s laughter this way of fighting is just plain fun. Everytime he swings a sword down it is at Teach’s back and the look of frustration he gets when just disappearing before the guy can counter is hilarious. They are just toying with him at this point and there will be no way for him to keep defending himself from him and Hongo at these speeds.
“Tssk.”
The attack is stopped as both him and Hongo appear behind Law. “Come on man, that was fun!”
“Shut up for a second Akagami-ya… I know a devil fruit awakening when I see one. Congrats you pushed him to it. Annoying.”
Teach was looking manic, conquerors haki was pulsing off him in lightning and a purple glow from his eyes highlighted all of the blood dripping from the wound Law had inflicted on his forehead. He lifted his hands above him clenching at the air and pulled. Nothing happened, it was silent except for their breathing and the haki was gone.
Then darkness. He couldn’t see anything around him Hongo, Law, Teach, even the sky had disappeared as if the sun had flicked out of existence. He could still sense where Hongo and Law were but even the deck below his feet was pure black. “Cool.”
“Zzzz zzz zzz zzzzz?!
“Huh?”
“ZZZZ ZZZ ZZZ ZZZZZ?!”
“I can’t understand you.”
“ZZZZ ZZMN IT! WHAT ARE YOU DOING BAKA-YA?! If you aren’t going to help, stand back there with Hongo.”
“Rude.”
He walked over awkwardly to where he could sense Hongo and poked at him seeing if that would make him visible. He got smacked back with the staff and the lights turned back on. He was facing Hongo who scowled at what was behind him and then chucked his staff like a spear. Turning to watch its path, Law was being held by his neck from Teach but Kikoku was buried in the monster's chest and coming out the other side still cackling with electricity. He and Hongo started to run at the enemy, Law was flung out of their grip by being hit in the side by the staff and rolled across the deck. His first strike with Gryphon went through Teach’s outstretched hand a scream of rage as the palm split in half, with four of his fingers gone it would be difficult for Blackbeard to grip anything if he lived through the day. Flicking the blood off his blade he watched as Hongo grabbed Kikoku's hilt and kicked Teach in the chest. His body fell back from being impaled by the nodachi.
Law stood up grabbing his side where Hongo’s staff had hit him, “I know I said to get me out of his grip but fuck second doc are you sure you shouldnt be using a spear?”
“Oh I am not bad with those either scary doc.” Hongo tossed him back the sword and the three of them looked down at a furious blackbeard who was too injured and too out of stamina to fight back.
Shanks kicked his shoe, “Punching a little above your weight class there Teach. Newgate would give me a barrel of sake for your head this time so any last words?”
“Zehahaha. Dreams never die Red. This world will burn even without me in it.” Teach looked at Law as if he was giving him a premonition.
Law answered him with a smug smile while lifting Kikoku with two hands for a strike to chop off his head, “On that we can agree with but you won't be there to see it.”
-
Yassop was watching the fight through the scope of his rifle when his vision went black. Blinking and opening both eyes there was a circle of darkness surrounding what was Blackbeard's ship. “Weird.” They should be able to handle that either way it looked like they were toying with the ugly guy like cats playing with a mouse before eating it. Yelling down, “Hey stop the cannonfire until we have something to aim at.” The ones who went to the ship could all sense and dodge a cannonball in time but Monster couldn’t, didn’t want to hurt the pet with a blind attack. When the black circle disappeared he wasn’t at all surprised the psycho one had decided to risk being throttled for a chance to impale an enemy. “Figures no wonder he keeps saying his life expectancy is shit.”
Hongo already handled it before he took aim at Teach’s hand and for good measure the captain had cut it in half. He didn’t feel that needed as a sniper at this point as the rest of the crew aboard the raft were tying up and gagging any surrendered enemies. Law was about to execute Blackbeard when Limejuice started yelling, “YASSOP THE WATER!”
“What the hell is that?!” A huge face came exploding out of the water underneath Blackbeard's ship. Hongo, Law, and Red had ducked avoiding the swipe of the massive giant hand but as many shots he fired into the colossal head it wasn’t enough to cause damage. “MAN CANNONS TAKE THEIR BACKUP DOWN.” Watching for a good shot the captain was pulling up Hongo who had almost fallen off the raft. Law was running up the giant's arm without his sword drawn but something green was dripping from him, doc must be after Teach who was being cradled by the giant. Roux, Ben, and his bullets were blasting at the fingers to get him to release their target and as soon as the index finger fell sideways to reveal him Law jumped and impaled Teach’s shoulder slicing down the arm with a glowing green dagger. The scream of pain and rage Teach made had Yassop wincing from the crows nest of the Red Force, he couldn’t see blood but whatever that was scary doc used must have hurt. The giant swatted Law like a fly off of him and into the ocean then turned running away with the injured blackbeard through the water. “Limejuice.”
“Yeah yeah I got him.” There was a splash as their goggled navigator went to retrieve Law before he drowned. The giant was escaping faster than they could sail with the low wind knots so he called off giving chase. Red and Hongo were waving for a pickup while Rosie’s Blade rose from the ocean and he could see Law and Limejuice coughing up water on the deck. The attack is over, time to pick up all the trouble makers so they can fight amongst each other again.
-
Law waves over to the raft, “Anyone injured need a lift?” He sees Shanks whisper to Benn and then Hongo, Yassop, Roux, and those two join them waving. Damn shouldn’t have asked it is like when he agreed to joining the Red Hairs, sneaky shit is probably thinking they can convince him into staying. Sighing he shambles them on deck of the submarine, “You staying or leaving Limejuice.”
“Leaving anchor. You should stop swimming, you aren’t good at it. Give me a lift to the Force?”
“I am actually not a transport device.” He flicks his wrist and switches him with his cat. Stabby climbs up to his shoulder and he turns around to the conspirators drawling, “None of you look injured.”
Shanks smirks, “Let's make the rest of them deal with the prisoners while we all get a drink in Jaya.”
“That is a great idea.” He leads them down to Louie who is whistling while preparing the sub to depart. His engineer takes one look at all of his guests and their face scrunches angrily.
“Where?”
“Just a quick drop off on Jaya then you can head out.”
“Oh yeah that's fine. Close enough to not have to dive, you all want to hang out on the deck?”
The rest of the officers do and as expected Akagami follows him to his room, he knew he wasn’t going to escape talking after the captain stole Kikoku. Sitting at the desk chair he pulls out his notebook while Shanks sits on the edge of his bed glaring at the back of his head. “Say what you have to say Shanks.”
“I was kind of just expecting you to yell at me until this worked out.”
“Pfft. Sounds like your kind of plan… I don’t want to yell at you though.” He starts writing down the list of places a heavily injured Blackbeard could go to receive aid.
“I am not trying to control you.”
“I know you aren’t trying to but you do. It is what you are good at, makes you a charismatic captain and even your enemies can’t help but bend to you. Sorry Akagami-ya I don’t bend. I would break first.”
They are silent for a while and he finishes his list as the sub carves through the waves. There is a click behind him and scan reveals two purple jellyfish had brushed against the side of the window. He must have never told that Den-Den to stop taking photos of them. Shanks has picked up the stack of photos that had dropped and looks through them so Law just puts the notebook away and rubs his face tiredly, it had been a fun fight.
“I don’t want you to bend or break.”
He gets up and takes a seat next to him. “I know, but what you want… this past year. I had fun. It was nice but it isn’t in my nature, I have things to do. Trying to stop me from them would make me into someone else.” They hear yelling that they had arrived. “Should we go get that victory drink?”