[In which Author- chan is too lazy to write grey terminal fire]
Seven years.
Seven years since the fire.
Seven years since the smoke swallowed Grey Terminal whole.
Seven years since the world decided that Sabo was dead.
You stood at the edge of the cliff overlooking the sea, the wind tugging at your hair as waves crashed far below. Sixteen years old now — taller, stronger, sharper in ways you hadn't been back then. Your reflection in the water barely resembled the eight-year-old girl who'd woken up on the Red Force in a borrowed dress.
Behind you, the forest of Dawn Island was quiet.
Too quiet.
Ace was gone. He'd set sail a year ago, just like he'd promised — with a stolen ship, a stupid grin, and fire in his eyes. He hadn't looked back when he left. You wouldn't have expected him to. Ace never did things halfway.
Luffy was still here.
Fourteen years old now, stronger than most grown men you'd ever met, training every day like his life depended on it. Maybe it did. Garp still visited sometimes, barking orders and throwing him into ravines "for character development," but Luffy always climbed back out, laughing.
Still smiling.
You didn't know how he did it.
The system flickered quietly in the corner of your vision — older now, less intrusive. It rarely spoke unless you pushed yourself too far.
[Time-Skip Registered: +7 Years]
[User Growth Detected]
[Hidden Flags: Trauma Survived, Bonds Altered, Path Divergence Available]
You scoffed softly. "No kidding."
…
Sabo.
The world thought he burned with the rest of Grey Terminal.
You knew better.
You remembered the ship. The cannon. The flash. The silence that followed.
You also remembered the manga panels. The cover stories. The Revolutionary Army.
Sabo was alive.
Somewhere out there, wearing a different name, carrying a different burden. You hadn't told Luffy. You hadn't told Ace before he left. That knowledge wasn't yours to share — not yet. Fate was fragile. You'd learned that the hard way.
Still… it hurt.
Knowing didn't make the loss lighter. It just made it quieter.
You adjusted the strap of your pack, fingers brushing against the worn fabric. Supplies. Maps. A little money. Everything you needed — and nothing tying you down.
You'd already said your goodbyes.
Luffy had grinned at you like always, eyes bright.
"You're really going, huh?"
"Yeah," you'd said. "I've got someone I need to find."
"Is it food?"
You'd laughed, ruffling his hair. "No, idiot."
He'd laughed too — but hugged you tighter than usual.
Now, standing at the shoreline, you let the sea breeze fill your lungs.
Shanks.
Red-Haired Shanks.
The man who had unknowingly set all of this in motion. The pirate who had left you behind — for good reasons, maybe — but left nonetheless. You didn't hate him. Not really.
But you needed answers.
And more than that… you needed to move.
Staying here meant waiting. Waiting for canon to catch up. Waiting for tragedies you already knew were coming.
You weren't willing to do that anymore.
[Main Quest Updated: Find Red-Haired Shanks]
[Difficulty: Unknown]
[Warning: This path may cause irreversible changes to the timeline.]
You smiled, sharp and determined.
"Good."
You stepped onto the small boat waiting at the shore, untied the rope, and pushed off. Dawn Island slowly faded behind you — the trees, the cliffs, the place where you'd grown up, lost people, and survived when you shouldn't have.
Ahead of you stretched the open sea.
Freedom.
Danger.
Possibility.
Somewhere out there was a red-haired pirate with a straw hat-shaped shadow in his past — and a future you fully intended to interfere with.
You set your gaze forward.
"Alright, world," you murmured. "Round two."