Chapter 4: Development
"Ace, are we really just letting them go?" Gambi asked, approaching Ace with a puzzled expression. "With your current strength, it should be easy to stop them."
"Ah." Ace didn't deny it. Ever since he ate the Mera Mera no Mi, his power had increased dramatically—even if he hadn't fully developed it yet. He might not have reached the level of a Shichibukai, but his strength was definitely on par with a Marine Rear Admiral. With that kind of power, dealing with a few lower-ranked officers of the Donquixote Family wouldn't be an issue. But now wasn't the right time to go to war with them head-on.
"The Donquixote Family..." Ace thought to himself. "If my identity was already exposed in the original timeline, and Doflamingo was somehow involved, then it would make sense that the Mera Mera no Mi was taken from them."
He was fully aware that the blood of the Pirate King flowed through his veins—and that fact alone was a ticking time bomb. If that secret were to be exposed, not only would the Marines and the World Government come after him, but so would every pirate with a grudge against Roger. Unless he could become powerful enough before that time came, he would need a strong backer to survive.
But even so, it didn't sit right with him. Ace didn't like the idea of depending on others, of living under someone else's shadow. Being forced into someone's "son" again—it was frustrating to even imagine.
In fact, Ace was someone who had awakened the Conqueror's Haki. And yet, he still chose to become Whitebeard's "son." No wonder he never truly used his Haoshoku Haki in the original timeline.
"I don't know exactly when the Navy discovered my identity in the original work, but it must've been after I joined the Whitebeard Pirates. If they knew earlier, I might never have had the chance to join them in the first place."
Ace frowned. "If I can't become strong enough before that happens, history might just repeat itself—and I'll once again become someone's so-called son..." The thought alone was enough to make him sigh.
"Which means... if I don't want to fall into the same fate again, I've got to power up—fast." He paused. "After all... Leave it to the Chinese team—no, scratch that. Leave it to me. My time is limited."
The fastest way to grow stronger right now was to master the power of the Flame-Flame Fruit. In his mind, there was one clear direction for developing his Devil Fruit ability: increase the temperature of his flames. As for how far he could go, that remained to be seen. But Devil Fruit development was only one part of the path—mastering Haki was also essential.
In the New World, Armament and Observation Haki were basic requirements for survival. Fortunately, Ace already had someone in mind to teach him.
"If I want to learn Haki, there's no one better suited than that guy." Ace clenched his fists. "But first, I need to develop my fruit's abilities."
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Later that night, Ace gathered his crew.
"Now that we've clashed with the Donquixote Family, Tenyasha won't just let it slide. From here on, we may be hunted by them." He looked around at his crewmates with a serious expression and raised his voice. "So listen up—train hard! The strength of a Shichibukai isn't something you can imagine. If you're not strong enough by the time they come for us, don't blame me if you die!"
"You jerk of a captain, who do you think you're calling weak?!"
"It's just the Shichibukai! I'll slice 'em up, ha!"
"Wait… is Captain Ace planning to defeat Tenyasha and become a Shichibukai himself?"
"Long live Captain Ace! Long live the new Shichibukai!"
"Yeah! Long live Shichibukai Ace!"
"…You idiots." Ace held his forehead in exasperation. "That's not what I meant at all. I said we're going to be pursued by a Shichibukai! How did you all come to the conclusion that I'm becoming one?! What is wrong with your brain circuits?!"
Looking at the cheerful, rowdy bunch of misfits that made up his crew, Ace suddenly felt exhausted. "Ugh… my future looks bleak…"
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The Next Day
On a small, uninhabited island barely half a kilometer in diameter, a lone figure stood at the center of the dry landscape. It was Ace, having arrived alone with a singular purpose—to train.
His goal was simple: to push the limits of the Mera Mera no Mi. And in his mind, there was only one development direction—raise the temperature of his flames. Unlike the original version of Ace who focused on different techniques, this time he wasn't interested in flashy fire tricks. He wanted pure, destructive heat.
In his memories from Earth, he recalled learning that the key to raising flame temperature lay in the fuel—different fuels produced different burning temperatures. But now, Ace's flames weren't external; they were a part of his body. His physical stamina served as the fuel for his elemental fire. So, traditional logic about using gasoline, alcohol, or other fuels didn't apply.
That left him with only one path: change the structure of the flame itself.
"Flames have layers—the core, the middle, and the outer flame. The deeper the layer, the hotter it is." Ace held up his right hand and focused.
Fwoosh!
A stream of deep red flame erupted from his palm.
Ace stared intently. The current temperature felt similar to paper burning—about 200 degrees Celsius.
Thanks to his connection with fire, Ace could feel flame temperatures instinctively.
"That's way too low. At this rate, I wouldn't last ten seconds against Akainu..."
He narrowed his eyes. "Let's see what happens if I concentrate it."
Ace focused, and the flame suddenly flared forward like a flamethrower.
"This pressurized state... yeah, it's hotter. About 400 degrees. Let's widen the scale and push harder."
He took a deep breath.
"Fire Ring—Fire Pillar!"
His body ignited, a towering column of fire spiraling upward from him. The pillar was over ten meters in diameter.
"Still only 450 degrees... not enough!"
Ace began compressing the fire column. Ten meters… then five… then four… three… two…
As the diameter decreased, the temperature rose.
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