One Piece : Marine of the Straw Hat Pirates

Ace scoffed at him, a cruel smirk on his face as he shoved Luffy to the ground. "I don’t need you to save me!"

Meanwhile, Sabo was already weighing his options. He considered using the Revolutionary Army’s power to rescue Ace, but a direct confrontation with the World Government was too risky. He decided the best course of action would be to work with the Whitebeard Pirates, saving Ace under their name.

Just then, Ikki’s Den Den Mushi rang. The strange plop-plop sound immediately silenced the tense crowd. Ikki picked up the snail, and Fleet Admiral Sengoku’s voice came through.

"Hey, Ikki..."

"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, what’s going on? Is Ace innocent?" Ikki asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"The World Government has confirmed that Ace is not guilty, but... they want to use him as bait to lure out the Whitebeard Pirates!"

Ikki’s face became serious. If Ace was to be used as bait, a massive war was inevitable.

"That’s why I’m calling you, Ikki," Sengoku continued. "I need you to find Whitebeard. You have to convince him not to come to Marineford to save Ace. If he doesn’t come, we can avoid this war!"

Sengoku’s voice was filled with a sense of hopelessness. He knew Whitebeard. He knew his old rival would never abandon his son just because of a remote possibility. The man would sacrifice everything for his family, even his reputation.

While Sengoku waited for Ikki’s reply, the voice of the imposter Ace, Black-Leg Ace, came through the Den Den Mushi.

"Just give up! Whitebeard will definitely come!" Black-Leg Ace said, knowing full well that no amount of persuasion would stop the man.

"Is there really no way to stop this war?" Sengoku murmured, his disappointment clear in his tone.

Ikki took the receiver back. "Don’t worry, Fleet Admiral. I understand your concerns. I’ll handle everything. Even if Whitebeard does come to Marineford, this war won’t cause casualties on either side!"

"How do you plan to do that?" Sengoku asked, his voice now deep and serious.

"Don’t worry, I have a plan. You’ll see when the time comes!" Ikki replied with a confident smirk.

Sengoku sighed. "Alright... I’ll leave it to you." He knew the World Government was determined to weaken the Marines and destroy Whitebeard. In this war, they would be the ultimate winners, regardless of the outcome.

After hanging up, Ikki looked at the Straw Hats. "You heard him. The war between the Whitebeard Pirates and the Marines is not something you can get involved in. Your adventure continues. Leave the war to us!"

He then gestured to the people standing behind him. Luffy squinted, recognizing two of them.

"Huh? Hey! You’re Buggy, and... there’s the sand crocodile..."

The rest of the crew just stared at Luffy in disbelief.

"You idiot! I’m Buggy, not ’Giba’!" Buggy yelled, jumping with anger.

"Hmph! Straw Hat Boy," Crocodile said with a smirk. "It’s been a while, Nico Robin, Princess Vivi, Mr. 2."

Luffy immediately stepped in front of his crew. "Hey, Sand Crocodile, I know how to use Haki now! I’ll beat you so bad you won’t even know where you are!"

"Oh?" Crocodile looked at Luffy with a glimmer of interest. "Then tell me, which way is north?"

Luffy’s face went blank. He looked left, then right, and a puff of smoke came from his head as he tried to figure it out. With one simple question, Crocodile had completely shut him down.

Sabo stepped forward, his expression serious. "Ikki, tell me why you’ve recruited these huge pirates." He looked at Crocodile, Douglas Bullet, and the Golden Lion, who were all legends in their own right. Sabo ignored Buggy, but also noted the man who was traveling with a powerful pirate like Shanks.

Ikki finally smiled. "Haha... I knew you’d ask the right question. They’re all private Marines I’ve recruited! They’re the ’shadow’ Marines, the ones who take the blame for the things we do. They’ll take all the heat from the World Government, so the Straw Hats can keep their positive image."

Sabo understood immediately. He knew how corrupt the World Government was, and he knew that with the Straw Hats’ penchant for trouble, they’d eventually come to blows with them.

Having a ’dark side’ of the Marines to take the blame for their actions would be a perfect way to keep them from becoming wanted criminals. "That’s an excellent idea," Sabo said with a smile.

Ikki nodded, knowing he didn’t have to explain any further. He’d let Sabo fill in the rest of the crew later. The Golden Lion also understood what Ikki had in mind.

"So... you gathered us all here just to take the fall for the Straw Hat Pirates?" the Golden Lion asked.

Crocodile took a puff from his cigar and asked, "Is that right?"

"That’s right!" Ikki answered.

"What?! You actually admitted it! You just admitted it!" Buggy shrieked, jumping with disbelief.

"There’s nothing wrong with admitting it," Ikki said calmly. "You all signed up for this, after all."

Neither the Golden Lion nor Bullet seemed to mind. The Golden Lion thought the whole thing was interesting and liked the idea of being a puppet master.

Bullet didn’t care either way; he’d fight the entire world if he had to. He only cared about Luffy and the straw hat on his head. He felt a strange sense of familiarity from the boy—he reminded him of Roger.

Bullet walked up to Luffy and took the straw hat from his head. Luffy didn’t resist, trusting Ikki’s friends to be his friends.

"This straw hat... it’s made for a truly strong man," Bullet said, looking at the hat before placing it back on Luffy’s head. "Don’t disappoint it! Go all the way to the end!"

Luffy grinned, a wide smile spreading across his face. "Of course! I’m going to be the strongest man in the sea!"