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Sailing away from that frozen, burning wasteland felt absolutely amazing. The children had been taken care of and were now under the care of several marine vessels. With each minute, the Sunny got further and further away from the weird climate zone caused by the very unnatural mixture of fire and ice, prompting everyone to peel out of their stolen coats, very pleased with finally experiencing somewhat normal weather conditions again.
With the speed they were going, the marines shouldn‘t be a problem right now. Nami had sat their course towards Dressrosa after consulting with Law on how and where to best approach their destination in order not to be spotted right away. Of course, their new alliance and the planning on how to precede from here on out were still very rudimentary and would definitely need some more work, but for the time being, it would suffice. Now, they could take some time to rest after everything that had happened the previous days.
Still though, the mood on the Sunny was far from carefree.
It was obvious that most of the straw hats still were cautious around their latest addition, despite their Captain insisting that they could trust the grumpy warlord.
Luffy and Law really made for an unlikely pairing. One was loud, full of energy and more straight forward then most people could handle, while the other was quiet, reserved and preferred to be left alone most of the time.
Of course, they all knew the horror stories on how Law had come by his title, which made the atmosphere even more tense.
Luffy was definitely good at picking up on the true nature of people, but this time around, the straw hat crew was beginning to fear that this would be the first time their Captain‘s intuition had failed them completely.
They would be spending the next couple of days on the open ocean, which was probably a good thing. Like this, they would all be able to get used to each other and maybe figure out how to deal with this new situation. None of the crew had expected Luffy to form an alliance with probably the shadiest person on the entire grand line in order to take down not only a Yonko, but a guy that was known as the strongest creature alive right now. Especially Nami, Usopp and Chopper had voiced their displeasure with this arrangement very loudly, hoping in vain that their pleas would somehow motivate Luffy to change his mind on this, of course, without success.
To say they were not convinced was putting it lightly.
To their great dismay, Luffy had only grinned and assured them that things would be fine and they were going to have lots of fun while fighting, before jumping away towards the galley and beginning to bother Sanji for more food.
Now, after everyone had made sure their ship was in order and no one was carrying around any injuries that needed excessive treatment, things finally calmed down somewhat.
Luffy was perched on his favorite spot after being chased out of the galley, Sanji was in the kitchen, preparing dinner, undoubtedly using up the few leftovers from the excessive party they’d held only hours prior. Nami at the helm and Chopper was rearranging the infirmary. Everyone else was scattered around deck, relaxing after their latest brush with insanity and keeping an eye on their prisoner, who wasn’t showing any signs of stopping his whining about his treatment and capture, slowly but surely getting on everyone’s nerves while he was at it.
Everyone‘s attention was suddenly drawn to their newest arrival as the dark haired man walked straight towards the figurehead, obviously intending on getting to Luffy, who was still staring out over the calm ocean, as the sun slowly started setting, bathing the waves and the sky a blazing orange.
None of the strawhats liked this very much, still believing that Law would definitely attack their leader rather sooner then later.
The fact that Law was, as always carrying his weapon with him made everyone even more nervous. Zoro‘s hand wandered towards his swords, just as Robin subtly moved her hands into position, in order to summon her powers if needed. They knew of course that their Captain was more then able to defend himself if need be, but ever since that disaster two years ago, they had grown fiercely protective over him. Also, the fact still remained that Luffy was strangely trusting towards Law, making him unlikely to react in time, should a surprise attack occur, or simply not take it seriously enough to genuinely defend himself.
“Ne, Strawhat-ya“, Just shy of the figurehead, Law stopped, apparently remembering the info he’d gotten from Franky earlier. The cyborg had taken it upon himself to show the guest around their home, making sure he knew where he could go and which areas were off limits. He’d paid extra attention to making sure that Law knew that no one was to go up onto the Sunny’s figurehead without an invite from Luffy himself.
Turning away from the stunning view he’d been absolutely mesmerized by up until now, Luffy stretched his neck in order to look behind the Lion’s mane and straight at Law, who did a very good job at not freaking out upon seeing this display of inhumane flexibility.
“We need to talk.”
Round, dark eyes were staring into gray ones openly before with a sound not unlike a rubber band being flung through the air, Luffy’s body followed his head and soon, the younger Captain was standing back on the deck, looking just as happy and careless as always, as if the last couple of days hadn’t happened at all.
“So? What does Torao need?”
“Stop with that nickname.”
“Nah, your name is too complicated. Also, I like Torao, sounds nice.”
Law looked like he’d swallowed a lemon for a second, though that look passed quickly, being replaced by tired resignation.
Apparently, the man knew how to pick his battles.
“Whatever. Listen, since it’s been two years and I couldn’t stay until you finished healing back then, I would like to examine you, just to make sure I didn’t miss anything. If we are to go up against Kaido, I need to be sure you’re actually up to it. This alliance will be completely useless if you can’t fight at full strength.”
He had by no means spoken loudly, but since all strawhats in attendance were paying very close attention, there had been absolutely no way they had missed this exchange. Also, the older Pirate could feel clearly that his comment on their Captain’s fighting ability hadn’t been received kindly. Seriously, if looks could kill, Law would be dead several times over right now.
Crossing his arms behind his head and turning back towards the sunset, Luffy didn’t seem to agree with their new comrade either. “Hmmm, but Chopper took a look at it and said it was fine, so I really don’t feel like doing that again. Also, I’m doing great anyways, so no need for that.”
“Stop being so stubborn. This is practical and best done before the fighting starts!”
“Eh? But we just fought all those weird guys and it was fine!”
“Strawhat-ya, none of them come even close to Doflamingo or Kaido. I will not accept this sorry excuse of a battle as sufficient proof of your fighting capabilities!”
By now, both Captains were close to shouting, the relaxed atmosphere from earlier completely gone now. Everyone around them had by now stopped pretending they weren’t listening.
“But I said I’m doing great! Also, you poking around my chest hurt a lot back then and you have really cold hands, so no thanks!”
“Stop acting like a damn child about it, you’re still alive, ain’t ya?”
“I’m not acting like a child! Also, I told you already, Chopper said it’s fine!”
A suffering sigh left the older pirate as he seemed to resign himself to argue with probably the most thick headed person on the planet. “I’m sure your doctor is competent enough, but since I was the one to dig through what was left of your organs for more then half a day and make sure you didn’t die repeatedly after that for multiple weeks, I do think I may have a bit more insight on the matter compared to him. Also, I don’t trust you to follow medical advice enough to actually have rested for as long as I asked you to back then, so let me at least make sure you didn’t ruin your own health with whatever shit you got up to as soon as I didn’t watch you anymore twenty-four seven!”
Law had enough of this back and forth. Stepping forward, he reached out a hand in order to touch the remnants of his work present on his new allies chest. But before he could make contact, something happened, he hadn’t expected.
Strawhat Luffy, probably the bravest man he’d ever met, flinched back violently, eyes wide and looking almost… scared.
Dead silence fell over the Sunny. Everyone was staring at the two Captains, completely forgetting that they’d been ready to cut Law down should he as much as breathe wrong in Luffy’s vicinity. They’d never, ever seen this kind of reaction from their leader.
Frown on his face, Luffy dropped his arms to his sides, looking for all intends and purposes like he was trying very hard to ignore the fact that he looked ready to run right about now.
“I actually did.”
“What?”
“Rest, I mean. Old man Rayligh didn’t let me train right away. I tried, but he’d get really mad if he caught me.”
“Well, good to know that I’m not the only one with common sense then. To be quite honest, I have no idea how you were able to move around again that quickly. Anyone else wouldn’t have been able to even stand on their own, let alone run around and-”
“Okay, fine! You win, just let’s get this over with, I’m hungry.”
For a second, Law was silent, starting at Luffy and then turning his gaze towards the other strawhats. After a moment, he seemed to realize something, his face growing darker, as he turned back to the other Captain.
But instead of saying anything. He just waited for Luffy to lead the was under deck, for once silent and more tense then most had ever seen the younger Captain.
Once the door closed behind the pair, all hell broke loose.
“So what the FUCK was that?!” Franky, who’d been busy readjusting one of his hands had completely forgotten said task and was now staring at the others in shock, tools and small pieces of hardware littering the floor at his feet.
“Yohoho, it sounds like we do owe Law-san quite a bit, doesn’t it?”
“But why wouldn’t they say anything? If we’d known, we wouldn’t have been this distant towards the guy!”
“We do definitely need to thank him properly at some point.” For Robin to look this surprised about something was rare. “From the sound of it he was definitely the one making sure our Captain survived that war. Though I do not recall the papers mentioning anything about the heart pirates being involves two years ago.”
“That is all nice, but don’t you think Luffy acted off?” Now Nami had come down from her spot at the helm, joining in the conversation. “Whatever Law was about to say really didn’t seem to be something he wanted us to hear. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have agreed that easily.”
“Yeah, makes me wonder what else happened, you know? I mean, the only source of information we had were those papers and since Luffy didn’t tell us anything else, this really comes as a surprise.” Usopp looked deep in thought as he played around with a couple of seedlings as he talked. “Just makes me wonder what else we don’t know about.”
“We should probably let Chopper and that stupid cook know as well.”
“And why is that?”
Zoro looked more tired then ever. “We’ve been kinda cold to the guy who saved out Captain. They should know that this was definitely unjust and they can ease up on the guy.”
“I still think Law is kinda shady.”
“Usopp’s right, though I do agree with Zoro that we maybe shouldn’t be this hostile towards him anymore. And maybe, if we play our cards right, we may be able to get some more information about the war from him.”
“Robin, seriously after that exchange earlier, I’m not sure I really wanna know more.”
They all fell silent at that. Usopp had a point. From the little bit Law had let slip in his conversation with Luffy, they could tell that things had definitely been more then dire back then. But at least now, some things made sense. How Luffy had been so trusting towards someone who was basically a stranger to them, how he’d talked to Law as if he’d known the man for quite some time and lastly, how he’d completely disregarded their concerns on the matter.
It also made sense now that Law had actually chosen the most chaotic pirate crew on the grand line for his alliance. He’d probably seen what Luffy was capable of during the war and had come to the conclusion that he was worth working with.
And, despite his bad reputation, Law was first and foremost a surgeon. So imagining him treating severe wounds with his knowledge in combination with his devil fruit certainly made it more believable that he’d been the one to help Luffy out after being wounded this badly. And maybe, Luffy hadn’t only agreed to the alliance because it sounded fun to battle an emperor, but also as a way to repay the one who’d basically saved his life.
While the crew was busy digesting this new piece of information Luffy and Law had arrived at the currently unused Captain’s quarters, Franky had build so long ago.
“You didn’t tell them, did you?” It was more of an observation then actual question on Law’s part. “Why?”
“There’s no need to worry them. I’m okay and that’s all they need to know.”
“Maybe, you should let me be the judge of that. You definitely haven’t the slightest bit of medical knowledge or common sense in you, Strawhat-ya. Also, the way you flinched earlier clearly shows that you’re definitely not completely fine.”
Grinning slightly, Luffy sat down on the floor, while staring up at the taller man in front of him. “Maybe, but nothing really hurts and I can fight, so it’s okay.”
Law looked unconvinced, but decided to leave it alone for now. “Let’s just get this over with. I do not intend to get in between you and your handling of your crew. I do have my fair share of secrets as well, so I’m not really in a position to judge. Just surprised me that you of all people would decide to handle it like that. Now, let’s begin, shall we?”
Without further ado, Law sat down cross legged in front of Luffy, who started looking extremely weary by now, and extended long fingers towards sun kissed skin. “May I?”
After receiving an affirmative nod, the surgeon started to carefully run his fingers over scarred flesh, gently pressing in between ribs and feeling carefully for anything unexpected.
This continued for a couple of minutes, until every inch of that scar had been carefully examined. The entire time, Luffy had remained silent, albeit a bit tense. That he was more then just a little bit uncomfortable with this was quite obvious.
“I’ll check your organs next, so try not to move around.” Not waiting for a reply, Law formed a room and with the help of his sword, scanned Luffy’s upper body, paying very close attention to his heart and lungs. After a minute, the soft blue glow faded as he finished the exam. “Well, from what I can tell, you were right. Probably thanks to Rayligh. If you’d completely ignored medical advice, the internal scarring would be way worse.”
“See? Told ya.”
Raising an eyebrow at this childish reply, Law continued. “You do realize that you being alive after that is something most people would consider a miracle, right?” Not waiting for a reply, he continued. “Is there anything about the area that feels weird? And with weird I mean anything not normal by general standart.” His time spend as Luffy’s doctor had taught him well that the Strawhat’s Captain’s definition of ‘weird’ and ‘normal’ were definitely unique and very hard to make sense of.
After contemplating this for a bit, Luffy shrugged. “Not really, though some parts feel kinds numb when I touch them. And when it gets really cold, it gets a bit achy.”
“You sure that’s all? No trouble breathing, random pains or aches throughout the area?”
“Nah, none of that.”
“Good. That sounds about right. It was definitely a possibility that part of the nerves in your body wouldn’t recover. And the soreness is unfortunate, but not unheard of with severe scarring like that. You’re really lucky that’s all you’re dealing with here. Severely reduced lung capacity and constant pain would definitely also have been possible.”
“Still annoying.”
“I can imagine. Did you tell that doctor of yours? It would be best if he knew as much about this as possible, Just in case. I do have notes on your surgery on my ship he might like to have. That injury was more then severe and there is always a possibility of something going wrong with it, even if everything seems as well healed as possible.”
The younger pirate looked at him, for once completely serious. “He knows enough and I think he might get scared if you showed him any details. I am happy they are all fine and didn’t have to be there as well. There is no need to make then feel even worse for not being there, so no, I don’t think giving Chopper your notes is necessary.”
That definitely hadn’t been what Law had expected at all.
“But-”
“No.”
It was quite clear that Luffy was serious about this. He stared Law right in the eye unflinching and without even the slightest hint of a smile or the upbeat tone of voice he usually used while speaking.
“Fine. It’s your decision. Just make sure to tell me if anything’s going on with that scar. I may not be part of your crew but we’ll still be working together for the foreseeable future and if I can do anything to help, I will. And before you tell me the same thing you undoubtedly told your friends, remember that I was actually there, so I do know what happened and how bad it really was in detail so there is no need to hide anything. I’m sure, Jimbei would tell you the same, if he was here right now.”
Luffy just stared at him for a moment, before nodding and getting up. “Torao, if you want, you can have this room. I don’t use it and you’ll need somewhere to sleep. Also, make sure to come out once dinner is ready. Sanji really doesn’t like if people are late for a meal. He’ll come for you and he can get really scary.”
Sighing, Law nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind. Also, thank you for the room. One last thing though. Right now, there might be nothing seriously wrong with that old injury, but you should really take care to avoid any severe trauma to the area in the future. If you get hurt there again badly enough, it might not heal particularly well.”
“Hmm, okay Torao, though, no promises.”
And with that, Luffy was gone, leaving Law to contemplate this new situation. Apparently, with his little confrontation on deck earlier, he’d made the crew aware of the fact that their Captain was only alive because of him, as well as some details about, how badly hurt the younger man had actually been. This would definitely be annoying. He didn’t like dealing with overly emotional people and something told him that he’d be dealing with a very grateful crew once he left this room later.
For the alliance, this would surely be beneficial, but on a personal level, he felt kinda uncomfortable with it. He hadn’t saved Luffy because he felt some sort of connection to him or something. It had simply been on a whim, something to pass the time. He’d had his own selfish reasons, nothing to get placed on a pedestal for.
Groaning, he hid his face in his hands. As a doctor, he would have to respect Luffy’s wish to keep the details of his injury from his crew. But something told him that at least some of them would do their damnedest to get some sort of information from him regarding the war and their Captain’s role in it.
He was kinda grateful for his own room. If things got too annoying, he could at least hide out in here and pretend to be asleep or something.