Ace and Ray just stared at each other for a few seconds, making the vibe on the Going Merry tense.
From Ace's point of view, having some Warlord-level guy on his little brother's ship—someone way stronger than Luffy—made him really uneasy.
Ace had been sailing for two years and had seen plenty of backstabbing.
Especially after his own subordinate, Blackbeard, had just murdered a crewmate for a Devil Fruit.
That betrayal had Ace on high alert.
He'd boarded Luffy's ship to see if his crewmates were legit.
And Ray... Ray was his main focus.
Strongest, quietest, impossible to read.
Ray knew exactly what Ace was doing, and he didn't like being scrutinized.
If Ace pushed it, he wasn't afraid to teach him a lesson.
Luckily, Nami sensed the tension and jumped in.
"Ace!" she said, changing the subject, "Is there a reason you're in Alabasta?"
Ace immediately shifted his gaze.
"I'm hunting a subordinate named Blackbeard," he explained. "He committed the worst crime on our ship: killed a crewmate for personal gain."
Hearing the name "Blackbeard," Usopp perked up.
"The pirate who attacked Drum Kingdom?"
"That's him," Ace said grimly. "He's extremely powerful. Luffy, if you run into him, you must be careful."
Luffy just grinned. "Don't worry, Ace! With Ray's help, we've gotten way stronger! Wanna spar? I'm pretty tough now!"
Ace kept a calm face, but he was thinking hard.
'Ray helped them get stronger? What's his motive? Just helping crewmates? I'd better keep watching.'
"Oh?" Ace smiled. "You sound confident, Luffy. But let's save the sparring for later. Don't you have urgent business?"
At that, Luffy smacked his fist into his palm.
"Oh yeah! We're gonna punch Crocodile into the sky! ...Huh? Wait, where'd Vivi, the duck, and Sanji go?"
It was only then that Luffy realized two people and a duck were missing.
The crew sighed and explained Ray's theory about Crocodile's trap and Vivi's impulsive decision to run off.
Luffy listened, his brow furrowed, thinking as hard as he could.
"Oh... so Crocodile has some unbelievable plan."
The crew sighed in unison. "Yes, Luffy. An unbelievable plan."
But then Luffy's next reaction stunned everyone.
"Even though I don't get that bastard's scheme," Luffy said, suddenly serious, "one thing's clear: Vivi wants to stop the war without anyone getting hurt. That's impossible! How can a war that big have no deaths? She must've lost her mind, right? Only an idiot would say something like that."
The crew just stared, then nodded.
'How can this fool be so dense about conspiracies but understand Vivi perfectly?'
Ray just shook his head and chuckled.
'I thought he was a genius playing dumb, but I must've been wrong. He just has really strong empathy and solid values. He's a goofball about stealing food because, to him, it's not a big deal. But when a friend does something self-destructive? His emotional intelligence just shines.'
Luffy was fired up now. "Vivi is definitely going to her death! This foolish Vivi... she's sacrificing herself to save her country and not telling us because she doesn't want to burden us! Does she even think of us as comrades?!"
By the end, he was practically roaring.
Those simple sentences made it click for everyone.
Vivi knew the risks.
She just couldn't accept the idea of anyone sacrificing themselves, so she chose to sacrifice herself.
It was just too naive.
…
Luffy's sudden wisdom got everyone else fired up, too.
Mikita and Gem stared at him in disbelief.
'Is this the same foolish captain?'
They'd been feeling bad for Ray, wondering why such a strong guy would follow an idiot.
Now... they were starting to get it.
…
Ray found himself thinking back.
Soon after Shells Town, Zoro had asked him why he'd agreed to follow Luffy.
Ray hadn't really had a good answer then.
At first, it was just about hitting the "main story quests" to get stronger.
But as time went on, their sincerity and passion... especially Luffy's... had started to thaw his icy heart.
Luffy was a naive, kind-hearted fool who'd do anything for his friends.
He'd brought Ray a lot of warmth.
Ray didn't want to admit it, but he now considered them his people. (Except Mikita and Gem. They weren't pure.)
'It's just like Sesshomaru and Rin,' Ray thought.
But the moment the thought arose, he shuddered.
'Nope. I'm not Sesshomaru, and Luffy is definitely not Rin. That's a disgusting analogy.'
…
Pulling himself back to reality, Ray actually spoke up first.
"Captain," he said, "make the decision."
Luffy pursed his lips, thinking. "First... I need to go beat up Crocodile. As for Vivi's situation... Hmm... I want to protect Vivi. And I want to help her stop the war... Ugh! It's too annoying! I can't figure it out!"
"Pfft~" Nami and Usopp burst out laughing.
The "wise" captain was gone, replaced by the same old idiot.
Zoro shook his head. "We get the idea, Captain. Ray, you got a plan?"
All eyes turned to Ray.
Chouchou, sitting at his feet, was the first to turn his head, rubbing his little dog eyes.
"What's going on? Did master just laugh in front of everyone?"
What responded was Ray's gloomy expression and 25 consecutive strikes from his energy whip.
Finally, the swollen-faced Chouchou began to relay Ray's plan.
"Ahem! Yu~ inforior humams~" [SMACK!]
"Speak properly."
Chouchou healed his face with a flicker of demonic power and started over.
"Master suggests that he and Luffy go find Crocodile. Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Chopper, and I, the great Chouchou, will go stop Crocodile's plans with the royal army. The 'tool people' can stay on the ship. Of course, it would be best if Luffy's brother could help Nami's group. We'll adjust the plan as needed, but if anyone spots Crocodile in the capital, contact Master on the Den Den Mushi immediately."
Hearing this, Ace smiled, relieved.
The plan perfectly covered Luffy's wishes.
Even though it didn't involve Luffy in the main strategy (not that he'd be useful anyway), the whole operation was built around what Luffy wanted.
Ace's biggest worry had been that Luffy was being exploited.
But now, seeing this... he knew these people genuinely accepted his foolish little brother.
"Luffy," Ace said, a real smile on his face, "you've met some really good companions."
He then turned to Ray, taking off his hat. "Ray, my gaze was excessive when I boarded. I apologize."
Ray just nodded. "It's fine."
With the plan set, everyone got busy preparing to set sail.
Luffy, sitting at the bow, suddenly smiled.
'Ace,' he thought, 'I'm really happy you approve of my friends.'