Ace's Roar
Just as the thunder and sandstorm were locked in a fierce entanglement, the giant golden ship that had been stretching across the sky finally descended slowly.
Ace was finally able to see the whole picture. This Golden Ark was indeed a rare treasure in the world, extremely luxurious. Even he, who had no concept of gold, was dazzled and mesmerized. He could only sigh that those who died chasing gold were truly worthy of their deaths. Anyone who saw this scene would find it difficult to suppress their greed.
As for those standing on the ship, in his perception, there wasn't a single weakling. In fact, several of them gave him a faint sense of threat, far stronger than his mediocre crew.
As for Nightmare Roy, he didn't need to bother searching for him at all. His penetrating eyes that saw through everything and his composed demeanor that controlled everything were as dazzling as a firefly in the darkness. Once you saw him, you could never forget him.
Of course, the most crucial point is that Roy looks exactly the same as he did in the newspaper two years ago...
"These two guys just won't stop for a moment," Roy sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Different Dimension Space!"
For some reason, Ace suddenly found that the space around him had become unfamiliar, and the whole world gave him a sense of alienation, making him feel lost and disoriented, and he didn't know what was wrong.
When he looked up, he finally realized where that strange feeling came from.
Crocodile the Sand and Enel, who were still locked in fierce combat, had stopped fighting because no matter what attacks they made, they couldn't harm the other in the slightest, as if there was an infinite distance between them.
To be precise, the two are no longer in the same dimension. If they cannot break through the boundary between reality and illusion, no matter how many attacks they make, it will be in vain.
They were no strangers to Roy's method of forcibly breaking up fights, so they stopped immediately as soon as they sensed something was wrong, only looking at Roy with resentful eyes.
But Ace had no idea how things worked. All he knew was that Roy had used a method he couldn't comprehend to prevent the two guys from attacking each other, thus stopping the fight.
The fact that two Logia Fruit users, whose strength far surpassed his, couldn't even put up a fight against Roy undoubtedly filled him with despair.
But he was determined and quickly overcame the negative emotions.
"Nightmare Roy, for the past two years, the entire ocean has been speculating about your whereabouts."
"Some say you were wiped out by the World Government; others say you secretly joined the Revolutionary Army; still others say you perished in a massive storm."
"However, everyone was wrong. You actually went to the legendary, non-existent dreamland— the Sky Island."
Ace took a deep breath, feeling a surge of excitement. The man in front of him was one of the two people he had decided to challenge when he set sail!
"I know you, Fire Fist Ace who ate the Flame-Flame Fruit." Roy changed the subject.
"I never expected someone as important as you to know my name. I'm truly flattered." Ace was genuinely surprised. In his mind, shouldn't Roy and the others have been staying on the Sky Island for two years? How could they have had time to pay attention to his information?
"So, how about it? Interested in coming aboard my ship?"
Everyone was speechless. The captain had started again. Could it be that he had a collecting fetish for Logia Fruit users?
Ace was completely bewildered again. What the hell? Why did the turn of events happen so abruptly? It felt like there were hardly any normal people in front of him!
"Haha, that's impossible. I made a promise with some fool to march toward becoming the Pirate Kings together. How could I give up my dream here?" Ace wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and straightened his body. Although his injuries hadn't even healed halfway, he refused to show weakness in front of his enemies.
"Is that so? You should know that a dead man can't become the Pirate Kings!" Roy's tone was chilling, and he seemed ready to start a fight at the slightest provocation.
"But I understand even more clearly that a person who kneels down will never become the Pirate Kings." Ace said, then laughed. "A man who bows his head in fear of death loses his dignity in life. I will never leave a stain on my life... Do you understand?"
Even as enemies, they couldn't help but feel a deep respect for this man. They had only ever seen such spirit in one other person: their captain.
Those who had followed Roy earlier were reminded of the scene in West Wind Town before they even entered the Grand Line, where Roy faced Doflamingo head-on. How similar it was to the present! If this man could survive until today, his achievements would be absolutely limitless.
But the prerequisite is that they must survive this calamity. Their captain is not as careless as Doflamingo. He has never been defeated since setting sail and is more secretive than anyone else. Even the executives who have always followed Roy cannot figure out their captain's thoughts at all.
Moreover, Roy's strength may not be comparable to that of Marine Admiral, but he has no weaknesses and is definitely more troublesome than any Admiral.
"It would be such a waste for a man like you to die here."
"If I really fall here, it will prove that I am nothing special. Besides, it is still unknown who will win and who will lose."
"Commendable courage, but unfortunately, an absolute gap in strength cannot be reversed by fighting will alone."
In fact, Roy knew from the beginning that this recruitment would be fruitless. If the difficulty of conquering Crocodile the Sand and Enel was catastrophic, then the difficulty of conquering Ace was definitely hellish.
Born with the burden of "sinful bloodline," Ace has an unyielding obsession with becoming the Pirate Kings. Only by achieving the highest honor can he prove the meaning of his life!
He didn't even acknowledge a man like Whitebeard. He tried to assassinate Whitebeard hundreds of times without success. After revealing his identity, Whitebeard just laughed it off, which finally won him over.
However, in Roy's view, the most important part was that he felt the long-lost fatherly love and the warmth of that big family in Whitebeard, which allowed this "lost" prodigal son to find his final home.
After a crushing battle, Roy easily defeated Ace.
"Be my son!" Roy smiled and extended his right hand.
"Old Man!" Ace shouted, tears streaming down his face.
The thought of such a scene sent a chill down Roy's spine.
Feeling uncomfortable under Roy's strange gaze, Ace finally couldn't hold back any longer. His body burst into flames, and his soaring fighting spirit shone as brightly as a star in the night.
"Nightmare Roy, unleash your full power and fight me! I will not fall here. I will make my name resound throughout the world and make everyone in the world acknowledge my existence!"
(P. S.: I've done a lot of research, and it seems Ace never explicitly said he wanted to become the Pirate Kings. But when Ace was a child, he said he wanted to become a great pirate and achieve the highest honor. When they first met in Alabasta, Luffy also said that Ace's goal was the One Piece. So, I think Ace's initial goal when he set sail was to become the Pirate Kings... It seems that the official novel mentions that he wanted to surpass the Pirate Kings, but I don't think I found that in the manga.)