31 A Lot of New Crewmates...

Chapter 31

Title: A Lot of New Crewmates...

….

It doesn't take even a split second for Ace to recognize the man in front of him. He is a relatively lanky, average-sized man with short, scruffy hair and slight stubble. 

The man is wearing some strange one-piece gray clothing and has two special batons with metal spheres attached to the end of it.

'Gin… why is he looking for me? Shouldn't he maybe be with the Krieg Pirates, or he hasn't joined them already?' Contemplated Ace as he looks at the man in front of him. He does not know why someone like Gin would be looking for him. 

"Yes, I am Portgas D. Ace… how can I help you?" Says Ace casually, carefully positioning himself in front of Nojiko just in case.

Gin's eyes widen in a sense of wonder. Ace can sense that something is wrong, even though he can sense that Gin has no hostile intentions towards him.

But the man still walks close to Ace, and once he is close enough to Ace he bows down and asks. "Can I join your crew?"

Ace's eyes widened at this, not having seen this scenario at all. His eyes almost pop out of their sockets as he hears that.

But it doesn't take even one second for Ace to control his facial features and go back to having a polite smile as he asks. "Why do you wanna join me?"

Gin immediately gets a nervous look on his face, causing Ace to frown. He thinks that maybe Krieg sent Gin to trick him or something similar along those lines.

Though the man stands straight and looks at Ace in the eyes. "I was there that day, I saw what true power was like. I have seen countless pirates in my life, but even those all combined wouldn't be able to even touch your hair."

"Hm?" Ace is even more confused by this situation, not understanding what Gin is even talking about. 'Did… did he get the wrong person?'

In the end, he decides not to ask such a useless question, and he says. "I see, then welcome to the crew… what's your name?"

"Gin." Answers the man casually. "I used to be a Bounty Hunter, but due to certain situations, I ended up as a wanted criminal… thank you again, Captain."

Ace smiles and nods at the man, he understands that Gin respected Krieg because of his power. Was even willing to give his life for the man, but now that Ace has appeared, he is a wholly different reason. 

….

And that is how Gin joined the crew, Nojiko is completely surprised by the casual recruitment way. Both parties were so relaxed.

"So Gin, what are you good at?" Asks Ace, with his hands behind his head as he looks at the sky nonchalantly.

"I am pretty good with these." Says Gin as he shows Ace his weapons. "Also pretty decent with a gun."

"Hmmm… I see." Says Ace as he seems like he is contemplating something. 'He is just being modest, I know just how good he can be with those weapons of his. If he trained he could be quite strong.'

….

Along the road, they have some small talk, but finally, they arrive at the execution platform in the middle of the city. The place where Gol D. Roger was executed. 

Ace has a nostalgic look on his face as he looks at the execution platform. Nojiko notices that something connected to her captain has to have happened here. In the end, though, she doesn't ask. Just like Ace never asks for his crewmates' background. Their past is their business and it doesn't influence who they really are.

But as Nojiko looks around she sees a newspaper stall and at that moment her eyes land on a headline with a bounty poster in it.

"A -Ace…" Says Nojiko as she points at a bounty poster. Ace turns around to look and so does Gin.

————————

"Thousand Fist" Ace 

40,000,000 B

————————

"Woah!" Exclaims Gin. "As expected, yours is the highest bounty in East Blue now."

"Well, it won't be for long." Says Ace as he starts walking away. Nojiko and Gin follow behind him. "After this, we are going to a way more interesting place."

'Well, some of my future crewmates are still here so I must get them too.' Contemplates Ace with a casual look on his face. 

"Where are we going?" Questions Gin curiously.

Ace's smile widens at that. "Why the Grand Line of course."

….

….

Ace and the others wander through the city the whole day, even after everyone in the crew is introduced to each other.

He already bought the Log Pose that he was looking for, he got it from a sketchy shop. 

'That owner really had that whole chunni vibe going on for him.' Thinks Ace as he lies down on his bed. He had got his crewmates the best rooms in a high-end hotel in Loguetown. Still not having met the people that he wanted to meet up with.

….

Later on, Ace notifies his crew that he is just going around looking one last time at the city before he sets sail.

As he walks around the city in the morning he hears in one of the alleys.

Bam! Bam! Bam!...

"You got our money yet, you punk?" Says a voice.

*cough* "N -No sir, please just give me a couple more days. I swear that I will get you the money by then." Says a weak voice.

As he hears the voice a smile appears on Ace's face. 'This is it, finally found them.' Whines Ace, he needed this crewmember no matter what. They would be extremely useful to the crew.

Ace stealthily walks into the alley and turns around a corner and sees the back of two people, one male, and the other female.

"Beat him up a little more, maybe then he will learn his lesson." Says the woman as she shuffles through a stack of papers in her hand.

Ace smiles at this and walks out. "Hello, there ladies. How are you doing on this beautiful morning?"

As Ace says that the man turns around, he is a light-skinned, tall, and lean yet muscular man. He has light green-colored hair that is slicked back in a pompadour style and no eyebrows. He has a demonic-looking face, sharp fangs, and a ring piercing on his nasal septum. There are two lines tattooed under his right eye that curve towards his ear.

The woman also looks at Ace, she has light red hair with traces of yellow in it. She wears a long open blue jacket and covers her chest with bandages. 

"Huh? Turn around if you don't want to get your face beat in." Says the man with green hair, an annoyed look clear on his face.

"Oh… that is quite scary." Says Ace, his hat now shadowing his eyes. He starts imbuing his arm with haki, darkening them up to his elbow. 

"What's that punk?!!" Asks the woman with an angry look in her eyes. She could see the slight smirk on Ace's face, implying that to him they are not that threatening.

"Nothing…" Says Ace, his smile widening even more. "I just wonder how strong you are and if you wanna join my crew."

"No way!" Yells the man while the woman says. "No way we will join a weakling like you."

Ace is not at all bothered by the insults, his eyes just shine as he looks at the people in front of him. The man who was getting beaten up sees this and runs away stealthily, Ace doesn't say anything seeing this. 

'Bartolomeo, Desire… you are perfect for my crew.' Thinks Ace, having already decided that in no way will he let someone like Bartolomeo slip through his fingers.

....

A/N: I hate exams, and I hate grade consultations that make us wake up nine in the morning only to get my turn in two in the afternoon.