One Piece: Who still has dreams?

……

Redio untied the Seastone nunchuck from Luffy's arm.

Luffy, who had been listless just moments before, suddenly perked up, sat up abruptly, and angrily exclaimed, "What is this thing?! Why do I have no strength left?!"

Redio said, "This stick contains a mineral called Seastone, which can be understood as a solid ocean. If a Devil Fruit user touches it, they will be like what happened to you just now."

Luffy laughed and said, "Oh, what an incredible stone!"

Ace, still angry, glared at Reddio: "I think you need to explain what you mean by coming to kill my brother Luffy."

"What?" Luffy glared angrily at Reddio. "You're a bad guy!"

Redio said, "I heard this kid wants to be the Pirate King, so I'm here to give him a hand."

"Oh, so he's a good person!" Luffy grinned.

"Does killing count as helping?" Ace asked sternly.

Reddio laughed, "If Luffy's Devil Fruit can awaken, it will greatly help him become the Pirate King. That's why I wanted to give it a try, just in case?"

Luffy and Ace tilted their heads in confusion: "Awakening?"

"To put it simply, when each Devil Fruit's ability is trained to its maximum, it will have a state similar to a 'transformation form'."

"Transform?!" Luffy's eyes lit up. "I want it! I want it! Help me transform!"

"But the fruit you ate, the example I've heard of, was something that suddenly 'awakened' when someone hit you on the verge of death with a stick..."

"no!"

Ace held Luffy down and glared at Reddio, "Are you looking for trouble?!"

Reddio chuckled and looked at Luffy, asking, "Hey, do you want me to help you become the Pirate King?"

Luffy was delighted and said with a grin, "Great! You're just as strong as Ace!"

[Monkey D Luffy requests a mission from you: I am the man who will become the Pirate King]

[Mission Requirements: Become Luffy's crew member, help him reach the final island, and become the new Pirate King.]

Client: Monkey D. Luffy

[Distance: Close]

[Estimated Difficulty: ★★★★★★]

[Task accepted]

Redio quickly accepted the quest, then looked at it carefully, and a question mark slowly appeared above his head.

What does it mean to "become Luffy's crew member"?

humor.

[Mission abandoned]

"You don't seem to understand,"

Redio said earnestly to Luffy, "What I mean is, I'll give you some important help on your path to becoming the Pirate King. I never said I wanted to become your crew member."

Luffy grinned and said, "Being my partner is the biggest help!"

[Monkey D Luffy requests a mission from you: I am the man who will become the Pirate King]

Mission Requirements: Become Luffy's crew member and help him...

[Mission abandoned]

"I know the key clues to getting to the final island and finding the One Piece."

Redio coaxed, "This is a much more important form of help than just being a partner! Try asking me for help in a different way, and I can tell you right now, okay?"

"I don't want to hear it!"

Luffy covered his ears, stuck out his tongue, and said, "I want you to be my crewmate! I don't even want to know how to find the One Piece! Be my crewmate, and we'll go find it together in three years!"

[Monkey D Luffy requests a mission from you: I am the man who will become the Pirate King]

Mission Requirements: Become Luffy's...

[Mission abandoned]

Are you trying to pick a fight?

Reddio was convinced.

Ace smiled.

I can't have come all this way for nothing, can I?

Redio turned to look at Ace, who was watching the show, and smiled slightly, saying, "What about you? You're in such a hurry to die. Don't you have any dreams you want to fulfill? I can help you."

Am I in such a hurry to go and die?

Ace's eyes narrowed, a hint of anger in his voice, but he retorted with a laugh, "Of course I have my own dreams. You joining my crew is helping me. Luffy is right, you are indeed very strong! Just a little bit weaker than me!"

Redio reached out his hand to him.

Ace was puzzled, but being a polite person, he shook hands with him. He noticed that Redio was putting more and more pressure on him, so he smiled and gradually increased the pressure on his hands as well. The veins on the backs of their hands and temples bulged.

【Name: Portgas D. Ace】

Overall Strength: ★★★

[Mastered: Running (Proficient), Swimming (Proficient), Basic Physical Techniques (Skilled), Conqueror's Haki (Beginner)]

"..." Luffy was amazed. This person's strength was actually comparable to Ace's! Ace was able to beat up all kinds of ferocious beasts in this Colbo Mountain when he was only 10 years old.

"..."

Ace gritted his teeth, enduring the pain in his hand bones, when he suddenly heard the strange man opposite him say, "I don't think you're the kind of person who insists on being the captain yourself. What do you think, Gol D. Ace?"

Chapter 49 Acceleration!

"Gol D Ace?"

Luffy looked around and asked Redio in confusion, "Who are you calling?"

"How many D-Aces are there here?" Redio laughed.

Ace glared at Reddio, his eyes practically spitting fire: "My last name is Portgas!"

Luffy suddenly realized and pointed at Redio in surprise, exclaiming, "You know Ace's father is the Pirate King?!"

Redio said, "Is it that hard to guess? Go look at Roger's bounty posters from when he was young. He looks so much like Ace. What's more, Roger's Supreme Grade Sword was named 'Ace'. There are too many coincidences, so it's no coincidence."

"I have absolutely nothing in common with that person!"

Ace's eyes were practically murderous. He stared coldly at Redio, radiating an astonishing aura. Luffy, standing nearby, was so shocked that he broke out in a sweat and shouted, "What's going on? What's going on?"

“Oh, with that Conqueror's Haki aura, it’s even more like it,” Redio laughed.

"shut up!!"

Ace, unable to bear it any longer, punched Redio in the face, sending him flying.

Reddio rolled over and landed, wiping the blood from his nose, and laughed, "Is this your dream? To sever ties with your father, the Pirate King Roger?"

"I told you to shut up!!!"

Ace charged forward with a livid face, disappearing in a flash halfway, and appeared behind Redio, punching him in the back of the head.

"Your footwork is right, but your proficiency is still lacking."

Reddio ducked to dodge, then turned and punched Ace hard in the stomach. "Too easy to see."

Ace was so badly beaten that he vomited a mouthful of acid and flew out, crashing into the mountainside with a "bang".

"stop!"

Luffy was so angry that he rushed up to help again, but then Yuuki arrived as promised and flew over and hit him in the face.

"Damn it...it's these weird rocks again..."

The rubber man immediately collapsed backward, too weak to even tilt his head to move the sea stone three-section staff. He could only lie there, helplessly watching the sun rise to its zenith at noon, then move westward, the temperature drop, the sky turn orange-yellow, and it was already evening.

The sounds of Redio and Ace's fierce punches and kicks, crackling and banging against the ground and trees, continued for a whole day before slowly subsiding.

The ground in this area was full of potholes, with half-broken tree roots everywhere and thick tree trunks broken into several sections scattered all over the ground. It was unclear whether it was the blood of Redio or Ace that had been splattered everywhere.

"..."

Ace lay sprawled on the ground, covered in wounds, exhausted, panting heavily, staring blankly at the twilight sky.

"..."

Redio struggled to his feet on the opposite side. This was the first time he had been this exhausted since the start of this voyage. His shirt was torn to shreds, his body was covered in bruises, and blood was streaming from his forehead…

He tore off his tattered shirt, wiped the blood into a red blob, and tossed it aside. At the same time, he also threw 7 essences into slot 1 of the three-in-one item.

In an instant, piles of roasted meat, no smaller than the giant tiger he had thrown earlier, appeared continuously on the open ground in front of him. They were covered with different sauces or spices and emitted an indescribable aroma.

“Even if you don’t want to eat, your brother is starving.” Redio casually tore off a heavy piece of roasted meat, which was piping hot and steaming. He threw it into his mouth, and it was tender and juicy. The spices couldn’t mask the original flavor of the meat. He let out a satisfied sigh.

“Coo coo coo”