Warm Memories and Brotherly Bonds

Chapter 7: To Stand On Your Own Feet

The image faded and they were left alone in the darkness once again—but they had all fallen silent as they thought over everything they had seen here. Family... what a strange word that was for all of them. They all knew what it was like to have their own family... though of course they weren't actually related...

They all knew what it was like to have family... and each one of them was lost in their own heads at the thought of the families they left behind—wondering just how each one of them was doing right now.

But before they could dwell too much on their loved ones, they were suddenly back, and it looked as if they were standing in some dark alley of Edge Town. Sabo was up against the wall, with a gang of thugs cornering him, all of them were smirking as they advanced on him slowly.

"This doesn't look so good!" Usopp said worriedly. "What's going on? Why's he taking them on alone?"

"Don't worry," Franky said, smiling. "These guys are pathetic! Our boys can take them down easy."

"What boys?" Brook asked, looking around, "I only see one."

"Sabo," the mugger up front said with a rather evil grin, "Who gave you permission to enter our territory?"

"His... territory?" Nami repeated, not understanding.

"In the rough parts of any town, there are always those who claim parts of it as theirs," Franky answered, having years of experience of guarding his own home turf from pirates. "And they attack anyone stupid enough to enter it."

Just then, Robin noticed something moving above them. When she looked up, she spotted two small figures looking down at the scene, and she couldn't stop the smirk.

Sabo suddenly smirked, as if he was the one in charge here. "Your territory?" he repeated with that grin. "You guys are so full of it! Talk is cheap! Hurry up and bring it on if you don't want to be beaten."

The man in front sneered. "Fine!" he said, "You asked for it!"

They all ran towards him, one man declaring, "But we ain't going easy on ya because you're a kid!"

"Which is why he didn't come alone," Robin smiled as she looked up above her to see two figures there. Ace jumped from the rooftop of the building above them, holding onto Luffy's foot, who was clinging to the edge so that his leg stretched out for Ace to swing down with the metal staff.

"Not bad," Zoro said, watching as one of the thug's heads collided with Ace's staff and fell to the ground with a loud 'thud'.

"That kid!" one of them yelled in a stunned voice before he held up a knife.

"They should pay attention," Sanji commented with a shake of his head at Sabo, who was now grinning and held up his staff. "This is what happens when you get cocky."

"Pay attention!" Sabo called with a grin and taking him out with the pipe. At the same time, Ace let go of Luffy's leg so that when it shot back like the rubber band and the little guy was thrown off the roof.

"He had so much trouble with his powers didn't he?" Brook asked as he watched Luffy falling back down towards the fight. "Yohoho... it's good to know that he can control it now."

Luffy then fell to the ground, luckily having his fall broken when he landed on one of thugs before he jumped up and charged in to fight with his brothers.

"YEAH!" Chopper called out watching them fight as Franky and Usopp cheered on. Zoro was watching with interest. He had always known that Luffy's fighting style was completely improvised; it followed no particular code of honor, and so if necessary, he will fight dirty. For someone with no formal training, he had always wondered where he learned to fight... now he knew.