I woke up with my body feeling completely broken.
Every muscle ached. Every joint protested at the slightest movement. My right arm where Daiki's slash had landed was tightly bandaged—still stinging despite having been treated.
"Finally awake."
I turned my head. Dadan was sitting beside the bed looking exhausted—the dark circles under her eyes showing she hadn't slept.
"How long was I out?"
"Two full days. Yamamoto said you had extreme exhaustion—spiritual energy drained almost completely dry. If you push yourself again too soon, you could die."
Two days? That long.
"Luffy and Sabo?"
"Luffy cried nonstop for two days. Only fell asleep this morning from sheer exhaustion. Sabo refused to eat either—just sat in front of your room until I forced him to rest."
My chest tightened hearing that. I had made them worry terribly.
"I'm sorry..."
"Don't apologize to me. Apologize to the two of them," Dadan stood. "I'll call them in. And Yamamoto wants to talk to you too."
She left. A few minutes later the door swung open wide—Luffy came sprinting in with eyes glistening.
"ACE-NII!" he immediately leapt onto the bed and hugged me tightly—almost making the wound on my arm flare up again.
"Easy, Luffy... big brother's still hurt..."
"Luffy thought Ace-nii wouldn't wake up! Luffy thought Ace-nii left like mama!" he sobbed hard against my chest.
Mama. Portgas D. Rouge. Ace's mother who had died after giving birth.
Even though I was Arya reincarnated, this body carried emotional memories of Rouge—a brief warmth before it was gone forever.
"Big brother isn't going anywhere. I made a promise, didn't I? Big brother always keeps his promises."
"Promise again! Promise you won't make Luffy worry again!"
"Okay okay, big brother promises not to make Luffy worry again. Now stop crying. Big brother doesn't like seeing Luffy cry."
Luffy wiped his tears with his small hands—though he was still hiccupping softly.
"Luffy... is so glad Ace-nii is okay..."
"Yeah. Big brother is okay. See? I can still move, can't I?"
I moved my left arm—painful but functional. Luffy smiled with relief—that wide signature smile that always made everything feel a little better.
Sabo walked in with a serious expression—nothing like his usual cheerfulness.
"Ace. Do you know you almost died?"
Straight to the point without any preamble.
"I know. But there was no other choice—"
"There's always another choice! We could have run into the forest! We could have asked Garp for help! We could have—"
"And left Dadan and everyone here as hostages? Let them get hurt or worse?" I cut in as calmly as I could. "I couldn't do that, Sabo. They're our family."
Sabo went silent. His hands clenched tight.
"But... but you almost died... if you died, what were we supposed to do? What was Luffy supposed to do?!"
His voice trembled. He was fighting hard to hold back his emotions.
"That's exactly why I didn't die. I held on. And I'll keep holding on until nothing can kill me. That's a promise."
"A stupid promise! You can't even be sure you can keep it!"
"Then I'll get stronger. Strong enough that nothing can kill me even if they try."
Sabo stared at me for a long moment. Then suddenly—he sat down with his head bowed.
"I... I felt useless. You fought alone against a pirate that powerful. I could only watch from a distance. I couldn't do anything to help."
Ah. So that was what had been eating at him.
"Sabo. Listen. You are not useless. You protected Luffy and Dadan while I was gone. That matters just as much as fighting."
"But—"
"And besides, you're still seven years old. I've been training brutally for two full years. It makes sense that I'm stronger right now. But one day, you'll be just as strong as me or even stronger. I'm certain of it."
Sabo lifted his head—eyes a little wet but with new determination there.
"I'll train harder. Far harder. Until I can fight as your equal. Until I can protect our family too."
"Good. That's exactly the right spirit."
We embraced—the embrace of brothers that meant more than any words.
"Luffy wants to be strong too!" Luffy suddenly shouted while joining the hug and wrapping his arms around us both. "Luffy will train hard! Become strong like Ace-nii and Sabo-nii!"
We laughed—the mood lifting considerably.
The door opened again. Yamamoto entered with a serious expression.
"Ace. We need to talk. Seriously."
Luffy and Sabo stepped out—giving us privacy.
Yamamoto sat beside the bed.
"Your fight with Kurohige no Daiki... I watched from start to finish. And I have to say—you were reckless but also extraordinary."
"Thank you... I think?"
"But there's a serious problem. You used the Hiken White Flame. Blue-white fire far hotter than ordinary flames. Do you know what that means?"
"A stronger fire?"
"No. That is a sign you're approaching Awakening."
I froze. Awakening. The highest stage of Devil Fruit mastery where the user could affect the surrounding environment, not just their own body.
"But I'm only four years old. Can I really reach awakening this quickly?"
"Normally it would be impossible. Even talented users need decades. But you are different. Whether it's from brutal training, or natural talent, or something else entirely—your body is developing far faster than normal."
He fixed me with a sharp gaze.
"This is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because you can become tremendously powerful at a young age. A curse because your body may not be ready to contain power of that magnitude."
"What do you mean?"
"Devil Fruit Awakening puts enormous strain on both body and mind. If forced before you're ready, it can cause permanent damage—or worse, death. You must be extremely careful about using your power. Never force it past its limits."
A serious warning.
"I understand."
"Good. And one more thing—the white flames earlier were seen by Daiki's crew. The story will spread. Before long, many pirates or even Marines will hear about 'a four-year-old with white flames.' You all need to be more vigilant."
Damn. I hadn't thought that far ahead.
"How long before the story spreads?"
"A few weeks. Maybe a month. Depends on how quickly Daiki and his crew talk."
A few weeks. A short window to prepare.
"Then we have to become stronger in that time."
"Yes. And I will help. Starting tomorrow—after you've fully recovered—we begin a new level of training. Harder than anything before. Ready?"
"Always ready."
Yamamoto smiled faintly. "You really are a little monster. Daiki wasn't wrong to call you that."
He stood and walked to the door. But paused for a moment.
"Oh right. Garp sent a letter yesterday. He heard about Daiki and was furious. Says he'll come next month for 'another special training session.' Be prepared."
Then he left, leaving me with mixed feelings—glad that Garp would come to train me again, but also afraid because it would surely be even more brutal than last time.
I lay back staring at the wooden ceiling.
Four years old. I was only four years old but had already fought a pirate with an eighty million bounty. Had nearly reached Devil Fruit Awakening. Had already grasped the basics of Haki.
This wasn't normal. Even by the standards of One Piece.
But I had no time to be normal. Marineford was waiting in the future. A great war that would determine so much.
I had to become strong enough to change the outcome of that war. To make sure no one died—especially myself and Whitebeard.
The road ahead was still long. There was still so much to learn.
But I would get there.
No matter how hard. No matter how painful.
The flame of destiny was already burning.
And nothing could extinguish it.
A week later, the wounds had healed enough to begin light training.
Yamamoto was absolutely serious about the 'new level of training.'
Now we had to run carrying twice the weight in stones. Sparring with real sharp weapons—not allowed to get hit even once or the punishment was a hundred push-ups. And more intense Haki training—had to maintain Armament for five minutes or Observation at twenty-meter radius.
Brutal. But effective.
A month passed quickly. The body grew stronger. Devil Fruit control improved. Haki became more stable.
And as promised—Garp arrived.
With an extremely terrifying wide grin.
"ACE! SABO! GRANDPA'S HERE! READY FOR HELL TRAINING VERSION TWO?!"
We swallowed hard simultaneously.
This was going to be a very long month.
A very, very long month.
But we would not retreat.
Because with every passing day, every completed training session, every healed wound—we grew closer to the goal.
Strong enough to protect those we loved.
Strong enough to change fate.
Strong enough to be free.
The flame of destiny blazed brighter than ever before.
And the world would soon come to know our names.
Portgas D. Ace.
Outlook Sabo.
Monkey D. Luffy.
Three brothers who would shake the world to its foundations.
The story had only just begun.
TO BE CONTINUED