RT_Strawhat_Ninja: this is another Aisuru what if.

--

"D-daddy!" The seven year old girl cried from the arms of the marine. The marine captain pressed the pistol to the girl's head.

Yasopp aimed his riffle at the marine, Benn had his pistol aimed for him as well. The marines all drew their weapons on the Pirates.

"Yasopp. Benn. Put your weapons down." Shanks ordered.

"What?! But, Boss-"

"Let me handle this." Shanks interrupted Yasopp. Reluctantly, the two men put their weapons down.

"D-daddy..." the little girl whimpered.

"Shhh, its okay, Aisuru. Daddy is going to save you." Shanks said and smiled at his little girl. She stared up at him with tear filled golden eyes. She sniffed loudly.

Earlier that same year, Aisuru's mother, Hope, died from illness. Shanks had no choice but to take his daughter to seas with him. He couldn't find it in his heart to leave his little treasure behind.

"Alright, Captain Fisher. Let the girl go." Shanks said. Captain Fisher glared at him.

"Why should I?  She has a devil fruit! I can end your whole awful bloodline right here, right now." He said.

"She's just a baby, Fisher. You really wanna become a baby killer? What would Garp say about that?" Shanks asked. Captain Fisher hesitated.

"She's a baby, Fisher. If your so desperate to take a life, take mine. Just let my daughter go. She's innocent. She's commited no crimes." Shanks said.

"Boss..." Yasopp started.

"Daddy! Daddy no!" Aisuru began to cry. Shanks smiled softly at his daughter.

"Shhh, it's okay, princess. Every thing is going to be okay. Benn and Yasopp will take care of you." He said.

"No!" She cried. Captain Fisher released the girl and she ran right to her father's arm. The one armed father held his little girl close. He turned to the side so that she wouldn't be hit by the blood splatter from the bullet that would take his life.

"Daddy..." Aisuru cried. Shanks brushed some of her long red hair from her golden eyes that were now filled with tears.

"I love you, baby girl. My little princess. You are my greatest treasure." He said. Fisher cocked his riffle and took aim. Aisuru pouted.

"Follow the Straw Hat, princess." Shanks said. Aisuru leapt at her father.

"Daddy!" She cried out. A gunshot rang through the air. Shanks caught Aisuru and immediately, Yasopp, Benn, Lucky Roo and the rest of the Red Hair pirates drew wltheir weapons and attacks the marines.

"Aisuru? Aisuru, no! Come on, baby, stay with me. Keep your eyes open, baby girl. Come on, you're okay." Shanks cried as he applied pressure to the wound in the little girl's lower back.

"She's losing too much blood. No. No she can't die. She won't." Shanks thought. Aisuru held on to his white shirt which was slowly becoming red.

"Daddy..." she whimpered.

"Shhh, shh, it's okay, princess. It's okay. DOCTOR!" Shanks yelled.

"I love you, Daddy. Don't die." Aisuru cried. Shanks held his baby closeto him like he did the day she was born.

"Doc! DOCTOR! HURRY, PLEASE, SHE'S BLEEDING OUT!" Shanks cried. Aisuru's body grew limp against his.

"No! No, no, no! Aisuru, baby, no! NO!" Shanks let out a harsh cry and with it, a pulse of Haki, knocking out the marines. He buried his face in his little girl's hair and sobbed.

Benn and Yasopp got a small row boat and placed the little girl's body in it and set it afloat as a coffin for the girl. Shanks could bring himself to attend. His heart was too broken for him to pull himself out of his sake.

--

"Makino!" Luffy cheered and ran to meet the woman.

"Hello, Luffy." She said. Luffy happily bounced around her, asking her about home.

"Oh, Shanks stopped by the island again." Makino said.

"Aww, I didn't get to see him!" Luffy pouted.

"I think that might be a good thing, Luffy. Shanks wasn't particularly... feeling well when he came in." Makino said.

"What do you mean? Was he sick? He's not dying, is he?" Luffy asked worriedly.

"No, no, nothing like that. It's just... he told me his daughter died." She said with a sad look. She remembered him lying across the bar, holding her hand as he sobbed.

Luffy pouted up at Makino.

"Ai-chan died?" Luffy asked, remembering the stories Shanks would tell him of her. He had wanted to meet her.

"Yeah. You never did get to meet her, did you? Here." She said, handing him a pucture. He took it and looked at it.

The picture was of Shanks before he lost his arm. Sitting his lap, wearing the Straw Hat, was a cute little girl with long red hair and bright golden eyes. She was smiling brightly at the camera, holding on to the hat sonit wouldn't blow away. Shanks was smiling brightly at her.

"Can I keep this, Makino?" Luffy asked. Makino blinked.

"Why?" She asked.

"If I keep this with me, then I can take her in my adventures as I become King of the Pirates!" Luffy said. Makino smiled at him.

"I think Shanks would like that." She said. Luffy ran off to show Ace the picture.

--

"Hey, are you feeling okay, little one?" A gentle voice asked.

"My back hurts." The little girl said.

"Yes. It will for a while. It's a pretty bad bullet hole. You were losing a lot of blood. Lucky for you, my surgeon, Collins, was able to save you, however, that scar is always going to be there." The woman said.

"What is your name, little one?" She asked.

"Aisuru." The little girl said.

"... I see. Well hello, Aisuru. My name is Dawn." The woman said.

-10 years later-

"Straw Hat..." the woman said. Luffy blinked back at her. He reached in to his pocket. He pulled an old photograph from his pocket. He looked at it, then her, then back to the picture.

"It can't be..." he said. The woman stared at him. He looked back to her.

"Is your name Aisuru LeRoux?" He asked.

"Luffy?" Nami asked. The woman stared at him.

"How do you know my name?" Aisuru asked. Luffy held out the picture to her.

"I'm friends with your dad. He thinks your dead." Luffy said. Aisuru blinked, then smiled.

"Yeah, that's why I want to find him. So I can tell him I'm not dead." She said.

"Join my crew. I plan to meet up with your dad again one day, anyway." Luffy said. Aisuru nodded.

- 2 years later-

Aisuru tugged at the chains above her head.

"Ow." She grumbled and slumped against the wall. Her swordswoman friend looked over at her.

"Crazy circumstances, huh?" She asked. Aisuru sighed in responce.

"You scared?" Ki asked.

"Honestly? No. I'm not scared of death. I never have been. I just want to see my dad again. Let him know I didn't die that day." She said.

"And now here we are. The elf and the fox, about to have their lives decided by a game." She said.

"Well, our crew isn't the only one in this game. Heart Pirates and Kidd Pirates are here, too." Aisuru said.

"Yeah, we've been sitting here for a while. Wonder what's going on out there." Ki said.

No sooner than the words left Ki's mouth, the door was flung open and light flooded the room and in stalked a short, cloaked figure. The figure looked at the prisoners.

"Shachi and Penguin of the Heart Pirates. Killer and Heat of the Kidd Pirates. Naitou Ki and Aisuru LeRoux of the Straw Hat Pirates." The figure said.

"Who are you?" Killer asked. The cloaked figure opened the cell door and released his arms.

"A friend. My friend's ship is just out side. Jump on to it and he will ensure you return to your crews." They said. They freed the others. Aisuru stopped them.

"Dawn?" She asked.

"Hey, kit. Your dad's ship is the one you'll be boarding. You ready?" Dawn asked.

"It's been twelve years... He won't believe that I'm me." She said.

"You will if you show him the mark. I'll back you up. I did save you after all." Dawn said. Aisuru nodded.

"Let's go." She said. Dawn, Ki and Aisuru stepped on to Shanks's ship.

"Is that everyone Daw-" Shanks stopped mid question. He stared at the red head. Whispers scattered about the ship.

"Daddy... I'm not dead." She said.

"No. My daughter died twelve years ago." Shanks said.

"I'm here, Daddy. I'm not dead." She said again.

"I was holding her! I still have the blood stained shirt! You can't be my Aisuru!" Shanks snapped. Aisuru turned and raised her shirt.

"Boss. Oh my god." Yasopp gasped. Shanks turned and gapped at the scar on the girl's back. Right where she was shot as a child.

"Yasopp has a son my age named Usopp. The last words I said to you were "I love you, Daddy. Don't die." My mother died when I was seven from a disease. I pushed you out of the way of that bullet because I'd rather die than live in a world where my father didn't live." She said.

"It's really her, Shanks. I found her in the boat coffin you put her in. Her heart was still beating. I had Collins patch her up." Dawn said.

"Ai.. Aisuru?" Shanks asked.

"I'm not dead, Daddy." Aisuru said as she dropped her shirt and turned to her dad. Shanks stared in disbelief. Aisuru shifted to her fox form and let out a squeak. Shanks fell to his knees and tears fell down his cheeks rapidly.

"Aisuru... my Aisuru. My baby. My princess. My treasure. You're alive." He cried. Aisuru returned to her human form.

"I'm alive, Daddy." She said and hugged him. Shanks held her close.

Finally. After twelve years. Father and daughter reunited.

[the end]