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Shanks was the first to move after the battlefield fell still and silent.
Forcing himself not to run like he so desperately wanted, he made his way to stand between Akainu and his nephews, gently nudging them away from Luffy's body and towards a waiting Benn who gathered them up into his arms.
"The war's over. You've won." The red haired man spat the last word, hand tightening around his saber. "Unless you'd like to continue this fight with me."
Akainu opened his mouth - pulled into a sneer - but Sengoku interrupted him, a defeated, exhausted look on his face as he slowly let Garp free, the other man staying down with tears threatening to spill over as he stared at Luffy's body.
"The war's over." The Buddha echoed Shanks' words. "Tend to your wounded, collect your dead. The war's over." He stressed, staring at Akainu, who was watching Benn and the boys retreating with a look of hatred for a few moments more. Finally, the Admiral turned, stalking back towards Sengoku, fists clenched tightly and jaw grinding.
Looking back to make sure that Ace and Sabo were being taken care of, more of his crew and Buggy gathering around them to make sure they made it to the ships alright.
Seeing that they couldn't see him any longer, he allowed himself to drop down beside his brother, hand hovering over his white-streaked hair for a moment. He carefully pulled his cape off, and laid it over him, obscuring the fatal wounds from the world, from the people who caused them, directly or indirectly. He looked to Garp, seeing him finally pushing himself up and limping over, collapsing next to his son and wailing. He apologized over, and over, and over, and all Shanks could do was look to the side as the father grieved.
Benn came back after what felt like years, settling in beside Shanks. "We should bring him back to the ship," he murmured, "to make sure no one gets any ideas."
Receiving a nod, Benn gently picked up the body of their beloved family with a soft grunt, and Shanks softly spoke to Garp as he looked up at them. "You can come onto the ship as well," he offered, knowing the Marines would never allow him back in his position after this show of emotion towards the man they were meant to kill anyway. "But we will be leaving as soon as we have everyone accounted for."
Garp only stared blankly at him, eyes distant and hollow before he stood to follow after Benn and Shanks, only hesitating a moment to look to Sengoku, who wouldn't meet his eyes.
The man looked away, and stepped forward, leaving the life he'd almost always known behind him.
xxxxx
Shanks and Garp sat with Luffy's body in the med bay - Shanks didn't know where else to place him, wanting privacy and comfort that they wouldn't receive on deck, so Hongo offered one of their cots for him. Ace and Sabo hadn't been able to force themselves to visit, instead staying on deck with Buggy and trying desperately to locate their crew with his and his crew's help.
"He never talked about you with us when we were younger," Shanks spoke suddenly, voice raw and rough, "but after Ace and Sabo came along... He would talk about how you were good to them. How you'd give gifts to them, to him, show them off whenever he got a chance."
Garp stared at him silently, lower lip twitching.
"He loved you, I think." Shanks continued, softer, closing his eyes tightly as he took a deep breath, slowly letting it out. "He always had too much love to give to the people he thought deserved it. You earned that."
"I let him die," Garp growled out, shaking his head, holding it in his hands. "He never shoulda trusted me again. I let him die. Oh, gods," he took a shuddering breath, "I let him die. My baby boy is dead, and it's my fault..."
The other man said nothing as Garp’s shoulders began to shake again, only staring down at the clean sheet draped over Luffy’s body, at his face - smiling, peaceful, as if nothing were amiss. He reached for one of the hands they'd positioned on his chest, holding it despite how different he expected it to feel.
That he'd expected it to feel.
Instead, it was still warm, soft aside from the callouses that he'd worked hard for over his life. Shanks stared at his face, eyes wide as he clenched his jaw, gaze searching his face, his hair -
His hair.
White had bleached into his hair further than just the streak that always sat within his bangs, and he could see it changing as the seconds ticked by. He stood fast enough to knock over the chair he'd been sitting in, startling Garp. "Doc!" Shanks yelled, breath beginning to come quickly "Doc-!" He yelled again, and the familiar presence of Hongo crashed into the room, looking frazzled and worried.
"What?" He asked, hand on the doorframe as he stared at the scene in front of him. Shanks was still staring at Luffy's hair, hand gripping his, eyes wide and almost hopeful, almost fearful. Hongo's gaze followed Shanks', and his eyes widened as well. "What the hell..?" He asked no one in particular before pushing forward, shoving into Garp's way as he began to check for vitals on Luffy's corpse, brows furrowing as he removed the sheet, exposing the wounds -
xxxxx
Luffy didn't know where he was, at first.
He blinked open his eyes, squinting at the bright sunlight beating down on him, though he didn't feel the unbearable heat he was sure he should have been feeling. The ground was soft, and as he turned his head, it was a cloud-like grass, not quite like the seas on Skypiea, but similar enough. Slowly, he pushed himself up, and began to carefully step around the area.
"I didn't expect to see you again this soon." A light, bouncy voice spoke from behind him, one that made him freeze and made him remember exactly what had happened.
Made him realize why this place felt familiar.
"Nika..." Luffy murmured, slowly turning to see the being of clouds and sunlight, a crown of sunbeams sprouting from his head and spirals of light racing up his arms, neck, face.
"The one and only!" He laughed, a gentle thing of drumbeats and distant thunder. "You're special, giving up everything for those boys. Not many people would have gone the lengths that you have for them."
"... They're my responsibility, they're my family. 'Course I'd sacrifice everything for them," Luffy said, standing on even ground with the god. "Is this where you tell me that I'm dead, stuck here?"
Nika shook his head, grin never fading. He walked closer, patting Luffy on the shoulder in a friendly gesture that spoke of familiarity. "No, but you must wait for your body to recover enough from the seastone before I can toss you back into it. Being exposed for as long as you had? It's a miracle you could fight as hard as you did, for so long. I'm proud of you, Joyboy."
Luffy shook his head. "I'm not Joyboy, and he's not me. I'm Luffy. You know that." He gently protested, crossing his arm and huffing. It only made Nika laugh and nod.
"Of course, of course. Luffy. My liberator, my warrior. Luffy."
Silence stretched between them for a moment before Nika moved his hand from Luffy's arm to his chest, where the fist had ripped through bone, muscle, flesh. "I'll begin to heal you, and you can continue your journey. Fight well, chosen of the sun."
xxxxx
With a head of snow white, cloudy hair, bright golden-red eyes opened as drumbeats filled the air with a ragged, wet gasp, hand closing around Shanks' own.