Portgaz D. Ace

**Portgaz D. Ace** (ポートガス・D・エース, *Pōtogasu D. Ēsu*), born as **Gol D. Ace** (ゴール・D・エース, *Gōru D. Ēsu*) and nicknamed "**Flame Fist**" **Ace** (火拳のエース, *Hiken no Ēsu*; literally meaning "Fire Fist" Ace), is both a fictional character and ally from the *One Piece* series. He was the adopted older brother of Luffy and Sabo, and son of the late King of the Pirates, Gol D. Roger and his lover, Portgaz D. Rouge. He was adopted by Monkey D. Garp and Monkey D. Rex as wished by Roger to him before his birth, and took his mother's surname "Portgaz" after the death of his father. Ace was the 2nd division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates and one-time captain of the Spade Pirates.

When one of his subordinates, Sylvester Clown (who is actually a crewmate of the Blackbeard Pirates), killed another crew member, Ace swore to hunt him down only to lose track of him. Hunted by the World Government for his lineage, Ace was two years before the timeskip after being defeated in a duel and captured by Sylvester's true captain, Marshall D. Teech, alias "Blackbeard" and sentenced to death by the Navy, which resulted in the Battle of Navyford in an all out clash of powers, an event that took the lives of both Ace and Whitebeard.

Ace was freed, but he sacrificed his life to protect his younger brother from Akainu, who was a Navy admiral at the time. His death ultimately proved to be the catalyst leading to Luffy to train for two years to become strong enough to protect his friends, paving the way for the second half of the series. Ace's bounty was 550,000,000 Berries.

"*Who do you think you can beat?*"

—Portgaz D. Ace.

## Appearance

*Voice Actor*: Travis Willingham (English), Toshio Furukawa (Japanese), Not Known (Italian), Not Known (Spanish), Not Known (German), Not Known (Finnish), Not Known (Korean), Not Known (French), Not Known (Latin American Spanish)
*Voice Actor (child)*: Chris Burnett (English), Daisuke Sakaguchi (Japanese), Not Known (Italian), Not Known (Spanish), Not Known (German), Not Known (Finnish), Not Known (Korean), Not Known (French), Not Known (Latin American Spanish)

### Biography

2nd Commander of Whitebeard Pirates. Sworn older brother of Luffy and Sabo and son of Gol D. Roger's. His nickname is "Flame Fist" Ace.

With the power of the Logia Devil Fruit, "Flare-Flare Fruit", he can create, control, manipulate, and change his body to fire. The Flare-Flare Fruit- is truly one of the highest power levels of all the Devil Fruits!

He hunted Joker and caught up with him on Thriller Bark, but was defeated by Blackbeard and condemned to death on Navyford. He died after protecting Luffy from Admiral Akainu.

### Appearance

Although they were not blood related, Ace looked remarkably like his foster brother, Luffy. However, Ace was more serious looking than Luffy's lighthearted design, and was also taller and more muscular. He also sported rather childish freckles (inherited from his mother), and tended to make a skeptical facial expression by raising his left eyebrow. Interestingly, his facial features were almost akin to his biological father Gol D. Roger in his youth without his mustache.

#### The Young Past Days

As a child, Ace is shown to have often worn t-shirts with two-kanji phrases on the front (such as "innocence" and "violence"). On some occasions they are linked to the scene in which they were worn, like "independence" when the three brothers built their own tree house to live in. He often wore knee-length shorts and a black elbow guard on his left arm. Ace was always seen wearing dark brown, flat, slipper-like shoes, and in the winter, he wore a green cardigan over his normal clothes.

Upon leaving Dawn Island at the age of 17, he wore an outfit identical to the one he wore when he first met Whitebeard; however, he was less muscular than he eventually grew to be and had rounder, more childlike facial features.

#### To The Days He Died

Ace's tattoos were among his most remarkable, trademark features. He had a tattoo on his back of the Whitebeard symbol — purple bones formed in a cross behind a purple skull with a white mustache — that he described as his pride and joy. Ace had another tattoo on his upper left bicep that spells "ASCE" vertically. The "~~S~~" crossed out is a tribute to Sabo as that's his jolly roger. On the cover of *Chapter 596* indeed, Ace's tattoo is written as "ACE" instead of the original "A~~S~~CE" as the cover is a "what if" image of Ace, Luffy, and Sabo together as adults with the former being known to be alive.

Ace wore an open-front shirt until he received Whitebeard's tattoo - afterwards, he stopped wearing anything over his upper body except when on winter or desert islands due to the weather requirements. He wore black boots, black knee-length shorts with an eyelet-studded orange belt, and a blue pouch belted around his left leg. He also wore a short second belt with a large red "A" on the silver buckle over his right hip, but left it unfastened and threaded the free end along the back of his shorts. A dagger in a green sheath had hung at his left hip. On Ace's left arm, he wore a Grand Compass and a red and white striped bracelet around his wrist, an orange elbow guard on his left arm, and his "ASCE" tattoo. He wore a red beaded necklace and an orange hat with two blue smileys, one frowning and one smiling, and a string of red beads sitting above the rim. Two long orange side straps hung down sides of his hat and met at a large medallion of a bull's skull with orange tassels.

Unfortunately, Ace lost his trademark hat, which he already had when he began his journey as a pirate, on Thriller Bark as a result of his duel with Blackbeard. His knife was also apparently confiscated, as he no longer had it in his next appearance as a prisoner at Impel Down. The tattoo upon his back that he took so much pride in was later destroyed by the same blow that eventually led to his death. However, at his grave, Ace's hat and knife were placed at his tombstone — either they were retrieved, or they were duplicates in Ace's possession.

During the ending credits in the second movie, *Clockwork Island Adventure*, previews of upcoming characters from the Baroque Works Saga were featured. Ace was also included amongst the many characters, but while his clothes were almost identical, he boasted a very different color scheme to the one he was given in his official appearance in the anime.

* Hair Color: Black
* Skin Color: beige
* Eye Color: Black
* Age: 20 (Deceased)
* Birthday: January 1
* Height: 185 cm. (6'1")
* Weight: Not Known

## Personality

Ace was much more intelligent, polite, and generally more bearable than Luffy, which prompted the Straw Hat Pirates to question whether he was truly related to their captain. While several people who knew Gol D. Roger noted Luffy is quite similar to the late King of the Pirates, Whitebeard himself claimed that Ace's personality was not at all like his father's. It seems that among the very few things the brothers shared was their recklessness as pirates (and their near-bottomless stomachs). In addition, Ace liked to party as much as his brother does. When he boarded Buggy's ship, he was drawn by the smell of food and decided to enjoy himself while he was there. Ace could be a bit inappropriate though as he once used a woman's skirt to wipe his face while he was dining at Spice Bean in Alabasta.

There were two running gags about Ace. The first was his rather extreme narcolepsy. He tended to randomly fall asleep while eating and conversing, leaving strangers around him wondering if he had died. This was first seen in Alabasta when they thought he died in the middle of eating. The second was that he did a "dine and dash" routine wherever he went. This went back to his younger days with Sabo and Luffy, when they would often dine and dash in the city of Goa.

His "politeness" is due to Makino's teaching after Ace asked her how to introduce himself to Shanks (being his father's son's savior). Before that, Ace was rather cold and rude to anyone he was not familiar with.

As the son of Roger, he lived in his shadow and is to date the first D. depicted to truly question his own right to exist, while displaying the fewest commonly seen D. related traits. Ace seemed to have lifelong problems dealing with his parentage, even after denouncing Gol D. Roger and accepting Whitebeard as his only father. This was in direct contrast to Luffy, who accepted his father's identity immediately upon learning it and did not seem to care when he was told how dangerous of a man he was. However, Luffy did not grow up with knowledge of the identity (or even the existence) of his father. Ace believed that it was natural if he were to really die as nobody in the world wanted the son of the devil (Roger) to live. Ace commented upon his own death that he had never sought fame or fortune - all he had wanted was the answer to his lifelong question of whether or not he should have been born, as this was the only thing preventing him from dying with no regrets as he and Luffy had vowed to do so and the fact he had a younger brother to look out for. Ace's only regret was that he would not live to see Luffy achieve his dream, which he believed Luffy undoubtedly would accomplish as he was his little brother.

Ace had a tendency to never back down from a fight, saying that he would never run once facing an enemy. Because of this, some people believed that Ace had a death wish, but in truth he wanted to prevent people he cared for from getting hurt. Dadan stated that he inherited this tendency from his father, Gol D. Roger, despite loathing him. While Ace emerged victorious over enemies he refused to run from, such as Porchemy and Bluejam, his stubbornness hurt him on a number of occasions, particularly when he refused to back down against Blackbeard or Admiral Akainu.

Ace was also easily provoked by and became violent towards anyone who insulted or harmed people close to him. In one of Garp's conversations with Curly Dadan, this was revealed to be a trait of Roger as well. During his childhood, Ace had a tendency to severely injure anyone who insulted Roger, though he himself disliked his biological father. After hearing about Sabo's presumed death at the hands of a World Noble, Ace quickly became bent on killing the Noble and Dadan had to pin Ace down and tie him to a tree to stop him.

Ace's temper got the better of him, especially in cases when Whitebeard, proclaimed by Ace to be his only father, was insulted. Believing that this was the case when Joker broke the iron rule of the Whitebeard Pirates and fled after murdering a crewmate, Ace pursued his traitorous subordinate despite his crewmates' efforts and even Whitebeard's orders to stop him. Ace later came to see that his stubbornness had gotten him into the ordeal of being scheduled for execution. Even though he managed to escape death on the scaffold thanks to the pirates' and Luffy's efforts at Navyford and was well on his way to freedom, Admiral Akainu got to him by insulting Whitebeard. Ace quickly turned back to face him, ignoring his crewmates' warnings to not become angered over Akainu's provocations. Unwilling to let him get away of speaking ill of Whitebeard, Ace attacked him out of fury only to have his arm burned by Akainu's Devil Fruit powers. Akainu then took the opportunity to attack Luffy on the sideline, leading Ace to jump in, sacrificing his life to shield Luffy from the attack. While saying his last words, Ace sadly admitted to Luffy that he (Ace) wasted away all of his efforts to rescue him.

## Relationships

### Friends/Allies

* Red-Haired Pirates
	+ "Red-Haired" Shanks
* Straw Hat Pirates
	+ Roronoa Zolo
	+ Nami
	+ Usopp
	+ Vinsmoke Sanji
	+ Tony Tony Chopper
	+ Nico Robin
	+ Franky
	+ Brook
* Nefeltari Vivi
* Buggy Pirates
	+ Buggy
* Kuja Pirates
	+ Boa Hancock
* Jimbei
* Oars Jr.

### Family

* Gol D. Roger (father)
* Portgaz D. Rouge (mother)
* Monkey D. Rex (adopted father)
* Monkey D. Dragon (adopted uncle)
* Monkey D. Garp (adopted grandfather)
* Makino (1st foster mother)
* Curly Dadan (2nd foster mother)
* Monkey D. Luffy (adopted brother)
* Sabo (adopted brother)

### Neutral

* Seven Warlords of the Sea
	+ Bartholomew Kuma
	+ Crocodile
* Navy
	+ Smoker
	+ Isuka

### Rivals

* Monkey D. Luffy
* Sabo

### Enemies

* Bluejam Pirates
	+ Bluejam
* Baroque Works
* Blackbeard Pirates
	+ Marshall D. Teech
	+ Van Ogre
	+ G. Zass Burgess
* World Government
* Navy
	+ Sakazuki
* Impel Down
	+ Magellan

## Abilities and Powers

As commander of the 2nd division of the Whitebeard Pirates, Ace had authority over the lower-ranking subordinates. In addition, as one of the top commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates, he was one of the strongest and most highly-regarded pirates on board under Whitebeard himself. At one point, while being captain of the Spade Pirates, he was even asked to join the Seven Warlords of the Sea but refused. Ace was strong enough to be acknowledged by the Emperors Shanks and Blackbeard, with Joker saying he had earned his spot as Whitebeard's second division commander and Blackbeard wishing Ace had joined his crew.

Luffy comments on how he never defeated Ace in a single fight, despite Luffy already having the power of the Gum-Gum Fruit (Ace did not consume the Flare-Flare Fruit until after he left: Luffy was surprised by Ace's new power when Ace stopped Smoker from capturing him in Nanohana). Ace was trained by Garp, who had hoped to turn him into a fine Navy, Rex, who had hoped to wanting him to have a good and happy life like his son, and possibly Dadan, the three of whom were responsible for training Luffy to the level of power he held before becoming a pirate.

Ace also held a fearsome reputation. It was revealed that Ace received an invitation to join the Seven Warlords of the Sea while he was still captain of the Spade Pirates, though he refused the offer. After he joined the Whitebeard Pirates, a civilian was seen commenting on how Ace's strength was supposedly "outta this world". The World Government granted Blackbeard the position of Seven Warlords of the Sea after he successfully defeated and captured Ace. His overall reputation and abilities had earned him a bounty of 550,000,000 berries prior to his capture and death.

He was also a capable navigator, as he was seen wearing a Grand Compass on his left wrist, while travelling island to island in search for Luffy and Blackbeard on a simple raft.

### Physical Abilities

Aside from the powers granted by the Devil Fruit he consumed, Ace possessed immense physical strength which is attained from the extremely rigorous training in the harsh environment of Mt. Colubo mainly from hunting and fighting wild beast since childhood. His incredible physical prowess were supplemented by his extraordinary fighting skills. Even in his early childhood, he was able to beat some local thugs who spoke ill of his father "half to death" and during his first meeting with Luffy, he was also shown sitting on top of a huge animal (possibly a bull) he killed with his stff. He could also easily break a giant tree with ease. In his childhood, before he acquired the Flare-Flare Fruit, Ace was able to best Luffy in every single sparring match despite Luffy having the Gum-Gum Fruit and underwent harsh combat training under Garp. Ace was already extremely strong when he left his hometown three years before Luffy did the same.

Ace demonstrated his strength during his battle with Blackbeard: he was able to take Blackbeard's punches, which were so powerful that the first made Ace cough up blood and the second nearly broke his neck, and retaliate. Van Ogre noted that, as expected of the Whitebeard Pirates 2nd division commander, Ace's basic combat skills were quite formidable even without his Devil Fruit powers.

He fought equally with Jimbei in the past; they nearly killed each other in a fight that lasted for five days. Ace then survived a battle with Whitebeard that took place immediately after, showing immense stamina and durability. He was one of the few people to be able to take a "baptizing" in boiling water in Impel Down without flinching, which is considered an impressive feat.

### Devil Fruit

*Main article:* *Flare-Flare Fruit*
The **Flare-Flare Fruit** (メラメラの実, *Mera Mera no Mi*, literally meaning "Fruit of the Flare-Flare"), a Logia-type Devil Fruit, which was eaten by Ace, allows him to become the element of fire and control the flames from his body, making him a "**Fire Human**" (火人間, *Hi Ningen*) and giving him his reputation as "Flame Fist" Ace. Ace displayed his immense power by destroying a handful of Baroque Works ships with ease. His main style is to launch columns of fire by punching, with his signature "Fire Fist". He is also immune to normal physical strikes, all of which will simply phase through his fire-composed body.

For some reason, Ace did not seem to mind his inability to swim. He traversed the seas in a one-man boat that seems to have been specifically designed for him, propelling it with flames from his feet.

He skillfully sent his boat underwater as he leaped over the Billions fleet, timing it precisely so that it emerged underneath him just before he hit the water on the other side. Also, when he turned up on Drum Island, no snow fell at all on the island for an entire day. Later after his death, it was revealed that Ace's burning fists also had the power to annihilate entire cities.

#### Techniques

The named techniques that are used by Ace that involve the Devil Fruit are as follows:

* **Heat Haze** (陽炎, *Kagerō*; literally meaning "Heat Haze"): Ace shoots a stream of fire from the palm of his hand. This was first seen being used to stop Smoker from catching Luffy.

* **Flame Fist** (火拳, *Hiken*; literally meaning "Fire Fist"): Ace's apparent signature attack and the source of his nickname "**Flame Fist**" **Ace**. Ace turns his fist into flames and launches it as a column of fire at his target. This attack is so incredibly powerful that it is able to plow through several ships in one shot. However, it was completely neutralized by Akainu's *Great Eruption*, and is the final attack Ace ever used prior to his death shortly after.

* **Fire Gun** (火銃, *Higan*; literally meaning "Fire Gun"): Pointing the index and middle fingers of both hands at an opponent like guns, Ace turns his fingertips into flames and shoots bullets made of fire from them. This technique was first seen when Ace retaliated against Van Ogre's attack.

* **Flame Commandment** (炎戒, *Enkai*; literally meaning "Flame Commandment"): Ace amasses a large amount of flames around his body (usually by first swinging his outstretched hand around him, summoning the flames) in preparation for an attack. This is apparently the prerequisite technique before Ace can use **Fire Pillar**.

* **Fire Pillar** (火柱, *Hibashira*; literally meaning "Fire Pillar"): Used right after following **Flame Commandment**, Ace shoots the collected flames straight upward, destroying a target above him. It can also be fired downwards to clear any enemies that might be below him while he's in mid-air. This technique and its prerequisite technique were first seen when G. Zass Burgess threw a hotel at Ace.

* **Firefly** (蛍火, *Hotarubi*; literally meaning "Firefly Light"): Ace creates many small, glowing greenish yellow fireballs that float around an enemy. The idea behind this attack's name is that before he attacks with them, the small fireballs look like fireflies in the air. This move is apparently used as in the preparation for **Fiery Doll** and was first seen in Ace's battle against Blackbeard.

* **Fiery Doll** (火達磨, *Hidaruma*; literally meaning "Fiery Doll"): Right after using **Firefly** to send the fireballs floating around in proximity with the enemy, Ace sends them all flying into the target(s) all at once, burning them. This was first seen being used in Ace's battle against Blackbeard after Blackbeard had performed and demonstrated his initial attacks. In the *Pirate Warriors* games, the fireballs from **Firefly** actually home in targets themselves, while **Fiery Doll** is instead a grab attack where Ace captures his target as he plows them into the ground for an explosion (which he leaps back from).

* **Saint Elmo's Fire** (神火 不知火, *Shinka: Shiranui*; literally meaning "Sacred Flame/God Fire: Sea Fire"}}: Ace hurls long lances made out of fire. The lances have the combined effect of simultaneously burning an opponent while piercing them. This was first seen being used against Blackbeard when Ace was being pulled forward by the former's power. The term "Shiranui" or "Shiranuhi" also literally translates to "Unknown Fire", while the term "Saint Elmo's Fire" is a clear reference to the homonym weather phenomenon.

* **Cross Fire** (十字火, *Jūjika*; literally meaning "Cross Fire"): Ace places his index fingers together in a cross shape before launching a cross-shaped column of fire directly at his opponent. In the anime, after crossing his fingers, a cross-shaped ray of light can be seen emanating from the fingers at the target followed by the column of fire. This was first seen being used against Blackbeard after Ace attacked him with **Saint Elmo's Fire**. This attack's name is a pun since "Juujika" refers to crossfire from weapons, yet Ace is making an actual cross out of fire. It also is a possible play on the term juujika (十字架, lit. cross stand/rack), a term used more for the crosses that are meant to crucify people with.

* **Great Flame Commandment: Flame Emperor** (大炎戒 炎帝, *Dai Enkai: Entei*; literally meaning "Great Flame Commandment: Flame Emperor"}: Ace's ultimate technique. After creating great spiraling flames centered on his location before amassing it at a focused point (i.e. the palm of his hand), Ace then turns it into a gigantic fireball resembling the sun and hurls it at his opponent to try to obliterate them. This was only seen once being used during the final moments of Ace and Blackbeard's only-time battle. "Entei" sounds almost similar to "Enkei" meaning "circle," a reference to the attack's shape. In *One Piece: Unlimited Cruise*, Ace activates this move by first bending his knees slightly and then placing the outstretched palm of his hand towards the ground (with his other hand gripping the wrist for support), where the flames manifest themselves into a sphere.

* **Flame Fence** (炎上網, *Enjōmō*; literally meaning "Flame-Up Net"): Ace creates a circle of fire around a selected area, preventing anyone from entering or leaving it. This was first seen being used against the Navy in Alabasta under the command of Smoker, and was named in a flashback against Whitebeard.

* **Flame Mirror** (鏡火炎, *Kyōkaen*; literally meaning "Mirror Fire Flame"): Ace releases a wall of fire to block an attack. This was first seen to counter Aokiji's Ice Block: Pheasant Peck, the two attacks canceling each other out.

* **Twin Guns & Cross Fire**: Ace fires a volley of bullets from his two guns before finishing the technique with **Cross Fire**. This technique only appears as one of Ace special moves for his *Strong World* DLC costume in *One Piece: Burning Blood*.

#### Armament Haki

*Main article:* *Armament Haki*
It was stated in *One Piece novel A* that Ace can use Armament Haki. However, it is not known how proficient he is in using it. Upon awakening it, he was capable of fighting on equal grounds with Vice Admiral Draw with Armament Haki.

#### Conqueror's Haki

*Main article:* *Conqueror's Haki*
While not portrayed in the main storyline, it was revealed in a flashback that Ace possesses Conqueror's Haki, which at the time he had no conscious control over. Ace first demonstrated the ability at 10 years of age, when he knocked the Bluejam Pirates crew unconscious after an outburst of rage (only Bluejam himself remained conscious from the Haki release, and he was a high-tier of East Blue at the time). Much as Luffy used his Haki to knock out a crowd of Kuja warriors, Ace used his Haki to knock out the attacking members of Bluejam's pirate crew.

Ace was first shown to have knowledge about it when during the Battle in Navyford, he witnessed Luffy unknowingly unleash his Haki and remarked "You too?". He was never seen using it as he only relied on his Logia Devil Fruit powers, save for in the video games (such as during the activation of his Kizuna Rush in Wizard Pirate Warriors 3).

### Weapons

Ace carries around a knife but is never seen using it. However, in flashbacks of attempts to assassinate Whitebeard, Ace was shown using various weapons, including an axe and a knife. As a child, he used a long bo staff made from pipe as a weapon.

In *One Piece: Burning Blood*, **Ace (Strong World)** wields two twin double-barreled firearms (which resemble a cross between a pistol and sawed-off shotgun) which he uses as part of his **Twin Gun & Crossfire** special attack.

### Transportation

*Main article:* *Striker*
For some reason, Ace did not seem to mind his inability to swim. He traversed the seas in a one-man boat that seems to have been specifically designed for him, propelling it with flames from his feet.

## History

"*Pops… do you think… I should have really been born?*"

—Ace questioning Rex his birth.
### Growing Up with Luffy and Sabo

Ace's father, the King of the Pirates Gol D. Roger, was executed while Ace's mother, Portgaz D. Rouge, was still pregnant with Ace. She carried him for a full twenty months to protect him from the World Government as they sought to erase every last trace of Roger's blood. A year and three months after the execution, Ace was born in Baterilla in the South Blue. His mother only lived long enough to name him. Former Roger Pirate member Monkey D. Rex and Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp both adopted Ace in secret as a favor to Roger, and Ace was moved to Windmill Village in the East Blue.

Ace was left in the care of Garp's friend Curly Dadan. Ace would travel around town causing trouble and beating people up to those who spoke ill about his father, which annoyed Dadan. At some point Ace befriended Sabo who was the same age as Ace at the time.

Later, when Garp got fed up with Luffy due to the influence of his youngest son and Shanks on the boy, he left his grandson in Dadan's care as well. Upon first meeting Luffy, Ace merely spat at him and gave him a sinister glare, which the agitated Luffy returned.

After having a meal, Ace went out of the house and Luffy decided to follow him. Luffy said that he is not angry that Ace spat at him (since it is not something to get worked out about) and also wanted to be friends. Ace responds by knocking a tree down at Luffy. Ace then crossed a bridge and Luffy followed. Ace charged at Luffy and knocked him off the bridge. He returned to Dadan's house without Luffy and without any concern for him. Luffy returned a week later. When Ace goes out, Luffy followed after him wanting to start a friendship only to get shunned by Ace.

Ace went to the Gray Terminal and meets up with a friend named Sabo. Ace and Sabo had been collecting money for a pirate ship. Ace handed over his share and Sabo put it in a secret spot. Luffy then showed up and both Ace and Sabo tied Luffy to a tree. Ace said that they should kill Luffy to keep their secret safe and Sabo agreed. However, both Ace and Sabo had a hard time deciding who should complete the task since both of them never killed anyone before. They heard someone coming so they took Luffy and hid. Ace then realized that the person he stole money from was Porchemy of the Bluejam Pirates. Ace and Sabo notice Luffy missing and then see Luffy get caught by Porchemy. Both Ace and Sabo watched as Luffy was taken away.

Fearing that Luffy might tell Porchemy, Ace and Sabo collect all of their money and treasure and move them to another location. They managed to move all the money and treasure to a new hiding place by sundown. Sabo, who went to check on the old hiding place, informed Ace that Luffy has not told Porchemy anything much to Ace's surprise. Ace and Sabo then came to Luffy's rescue and defeated Porchemy. Ace then learns from Luffy that Luffy has no parents with him and the reason he follows Ace is because he does not want to be alone. After that, Luffy joined Ace and Sabo and together, they start making a name for themselves.

Ace, Sabo, and Luffy sparred with each other, hunt gators, and beat up thugs. In the Central Town of the Goa Kingdom, the trio did a dine-and-dash and while running, they heard a man calling Sabo's name. Back in the forest, Sabo revealed that he was born in a noble family and the man calling him was his father.

Regardless, Ace and Luffy still considered Sabo as their friend. After the trio made a declaration of what they want to accomplish in the future, they shared a drink of alcohol and became brothers. They continue having adventures, hunting animals, and at one point had a party with Dadan, Wood Slap, and Makino, and also get a beating by Garp whenever he visits.

One day, the trio found themselves confronted by Sabo's father and the Bluejam Pirates. To spare Ace and Luffy, Sabo willingly went with his father and Ace cried out to Sabo as Sabo walked away in tears.

Ace and Luffy were then in the custody of the Bluejam Pirates. Ace and Luffy joined the Bluejam Pirates at the request of the captain and then carry cargo to marked locations in the Gray Terminal with the other pirates. Later, Bluejam revealed to Ace and Luffy that the cargo they had carried was oil and gunpowder and that the Gray Terminal will by engulfed with flames. Ace and Luffy reacted in outrage and were quickly apprehended by the pirates. Bluejam then informed them that they can no longer be left alive and asked them the location of their hoard of treasure. Later that night, the flames started and Ace and Luffy managed to cut themselves loose after they were tied up. Ace and Luffy then run for their lives, but come across Bluejam and his crew, who demand to know where Ace and Sabo hid their loot. Ace briefly demonstrates Haki when Bluejam tells him that Sabo was just using him. Dadan comes to the rescue and tries to get Ace and Luffy to safety. Ace refuses to run away from the fight and Dadan stays with him while Luffy and the rest of the bandits escape.

After the events of the fire but before Sabo's fall at the hands of the Celestial Dragons, Ace came back with an injured Dadan on his back. Luffy greets him crying and Ace is annoyed that Luffy really thought he was dead and punches him in the head telling him not to 'kill people'. He then explains how he and Dadan managed to defeat Bluejam and luckily escape to the "Middle forest" and hide themselves in the riverbank he carries on to tell them that he stole some medical supplies from town and desperately stabilized Dadan's life.

A few hours later, he explains to Dadan why he did not run back when they fought Bluejam, he told her how sometimes blood rushes into his head and he gets worried, that if he runs away then he will lose something big and goes on to tell her at that time Luffy was behind him. Later on, Dogura tells them about what happened to Sabo and an outraged Ace jumps on him stating that he would not forgive him even if it was a joke. Luffy and Ace then realize that Sabo was never happy when he left them and while Luffy breaks out in tears, Ace goes out to beat up whoever killed him. Dadan stops him and yells at him telling him that Sabo's murderer was the world, the country they lived in. To calm him down, the bandits tied Ace to a tree while Luffy spent the whole night crying. The next morning a letter came that was sent by Sabo before he left to become a pirate, explaining that by the time they read it he would already be out at sea, that he hoped they would meet again and that he wished for Ace to take care of their younger brother. As Ace reads the last of the letter, he breaks out in tears.

Some time later, Ace finds Luffy lying face down mourning Sabo's death. When Luffy tells Ace not to die like Sabo, Ace makes a promise that he will never die no matter what. Ace then reminds Luffy that they made a vow that they will become more free than anyone. The two then continue their training and get stronger. Ace asks Makino to teach him how to greet someone properly because Ace plans on thanking Shanks. Ace and Luffy continue with their hunting and fighting until the time has come for Ace to set sail.

#### The Path to Piracy

At the age of 17, Ace set out from Mt. Colubo and began his life as a pirate. Less than a year after he started sailing, he was shipwrecked on the East Blue island Sixis. There, he met two men: Buckrun Oscar who possesses a curse which his presence brings unpredictable (good, neutral or bad) luck to anyone or thing around him and the other without a name, and gave the man the pseudonym of Masked Deuce. They talked about their families, and when Deuce brought up Roger, Ace's expression gave away his true heritage. With mixed feelings about Ace being Roger's son, Deuce left him and Oscar. Several days later, Ace was still unsuccessful in getting off Sixis, and Oscar came back with a fruit, which unbeknownst to them was the Flare-Flare Fruit. A starving Deuce prepared to kill Oscar Ace for the fruit, but they spotted him after hearing his stomach growl, and decided to split the fruit into three offered him one of the pieces. Deuce became guilty for his attempted plot and refused, but the three reconciled and formed a partnership. They split the Flare-Flare Fruit, but Ace consumed it first, gaining its powers. They then worked together to build a ship to escape, building the Striker, which ran on Ace's flames. The three set out, forming the Spade Pirates.

As time went on, the Spade Pirates increased to twenty crewmates in number as well as a lynx, and they became more and more infamous, being targeted by hordes of bounty hunters. One day, they were confronted by a Navy warship battalion, and Ensign Isuka came onboard their ship. Despite her strength, she could not harm Ace, and the Spade Pirates sunk one of the Navy ships by leading it into a reef. Isuka jumped in the water to save her comrades, and as she started to tire and drown, Ace threw a life preserver at her because he thought she was not evil. Isuka chased down the Spade Pirates repeatedly, but Ace always easily dealt with her with a casual attitude. Eventually, the Spade Pirates reached Sabaody Archipelago, where they had to wait three days for their ship to be coated. After encountering and eluding Isuka again, Ace and Oscar went on the Ferris wheel, but after their first ride, Isuka confronted them in their gondola and they were locked in for another ride. Despite initial tension, Isuka confided to Ace that she wanted to go after pirates because they burned down her home as a child, and offered him a chance to become a Naval officer. However, Ace refused and leaped out of the Ferris wheel while it was still in motion.

Three days later, Ace, Oscar, and Deuce came to the slums, where they fed some poor children. They were then approached by Isuka and Vice Admiral Draw, who gave Ace an official invitation from the World Government to join the Seven Warlords of the Sea. Ace refused due to his disdain for the system, and although Draw shared his feelings, the Vice Admiral took the opportunity to kill him. Draw attacked with flamethrowers on his arms, setting the slums ablaze, which angered Ace as he went to rescue the children there. Isuka assisted him, and Ace attacked Draw, but struggled against the Vice Admiral's Armament Haki. Draw grabbed Ace by the neck and prepared to kill him, but Ace's flames caused Draw's fuel tank to explode, injuring both of them. Ace then started overwhelming Draw in the fight, awakening his Armament Haki in the process, and after a final clash he defeated the Vice Admiral. Ace then gave Isuka the opportunity to go on his ship and hunt him down in close quarters, but she refused, wanting to still be a Navy officer. Ace and Deuce returned to their ship as it left Sabaody, bidding a final farewell to Isuka.

The Spade Pirates then headed to Merman Island and later the New World. Ace arranged a meeting with Shanks, as he had heard much about him from Rex and Luffy and wanted to see him in person.

As he searched the seas for Whitebeard, he ran into Jimbei, who was aware of Ace's strength and decided to fight him in order to keep him from challenging Whitebeard, the man he owed a debt to for protecting his home, Merman Island. After battling for five days, both collapsed from exhaustion, giving the battle no victor.

Whitebeard, who had heard that Ace intended to take his head, suddenly arrived with his crew and the Moby Dick just after the battle between Jimbei and Ace. Whitebeard told his crew that he alone would be enough, and proceeded to attack Ace's crew. After a fierce battle, Ace got to his feet and cut off Whitebeard from his crew with a wall of flames. Though his battered crew protested, he commanded them to run while he stalled Whitebeard (prompting Whitebeard to call him a cheeky little brat). On the brink of death, Ace was offered by Whitebeard to join his crew, becoming one of his "sons". Ace fiercely refused, but was knocked out and dragged onto Whitebeard's ship nonetheless. Ace's crew later came to retrieve him, though they were beaten up by his captors and abducted onto the ship with their captain.

When Ace came to, he was already acknowledged as one of Whitebeard's crew. To make sure that his crewmates stayed alive, Ace remained on board of Whitebeard's ship; however, on many occasions (counted to be at least a hundred), he attempted to murder the old man, though each time was repelled with little effort from Whitebeard. Eventually he gave in, tempted by Marco's description of the crew's father-son relationship with Whitebeard, and accepted Whitebeard's mark on his back.

After defeating Doma and forcing him to surrender, he was promoted to the position of 2nd division commander. One of his subordinates, Sylvester Clown, and he were on relatively good terms. One day, Ace decided to reveal his lineage to Whitebeard, who merely laughed it off, saying that his personality was nothing like that of Roger. (According to Sengoku, Whitebeard already knew.) When Ace asked if Whitebeard would kick him out due to him and Roger being enemies in the past, Whitebeard simply stated that his past does not matter, as everyone is a "child of the sea".

Then one day, Sylvester murdered his crewmate Thatch in order to obtain the Dark-Dark Fruit Devil Fruit, which he had had his sights on for his true captain, and fled. Since Ace was his commander and the Whitebeard pirates live by a code which means they must avenge a fallen comrade, Ace would have been sent after the murderer. Whitebeard, however, felt apprehensive about the situation and protested, acknowledging that Teach may have become too much for the boy to handle with his new powers. Despite this, Ace demanded that he go after Teach, saying that Thatch could not rest in peace if his murderer was not brought to justice, and that Teach could not get away with dishonoring his "father". Admiring Ace's dedication to both his captain and his duty, Whitebeard allowed his "son" to go, later claiming that it was he who told Ace to leave for the sake of Ace's honor. With this, Ace began his journey to find Blackbeard and finish him off.

## Synopsis

### Alabasta Saga

#### Drum Island Arc

Ace is first seen in the storyline on Drum Island, where he leaves a message for Luffy to meet him in 10 days in the city of Nanohana, Alabasta. In the anime, the reason he was in Alabasta in the first place was to gain information from Scorpion about Blackbeard, something which Scorpion was lying about to draw him out.

#### Alabasta Arc

Alabasta is where he is formally introduced; he is seen sleeping in the Spice Bean restaurant (giving the impression to everyone present that he had dropped dead from eating a Desert Strawberry). As he finishes his meal, he is spotted by Smoker, who attempts to arrest him. However, shortly before he and Smoker begin to fight, both men are sent flying into the wall behind them by Luffy's attack as the latter launches himself into the restaurant.

After picking himself up, he spots Luffy eating, only to be knocked down by Smoker, who then attempts to arrest Luffy. After Luffy dashes out of the restaurant with Smoker in hot pursuit, Ace catches up with Luffy in time to save him from being arrested. His interference allows Luffy to escape while he deals with Smoker himself.

After throwing the Navy off his trail, Ace catches up with Luffy on the Merry Go to offer him a chance to join Whitebeard (which Luffy refuses). Ace leaves them a piece of paper, later identified as a Vivre Card, which apparently will allow the two to meet up again.

### Sky Island Saga

#### Jaya Arc

Ace later appears during the *Jaya Arc*, where he hopped on Buggy the Clown's ship for food and promised to show him the way to Luffy.

### Water 7 Saga

#### Ace's Great Blackbeard Search

After parting ways with Buggy's crew, he infiltrates a Navy base to deliver a letter to the parents of a milk maiden who saved his life and despite being exposed, is able to escape with vital information on Blackbeard that he took from the Navy along with successfully delivering the letter indirectly that led the parents to reunite with their daughter.

### Thriller Bark Saga

#### Thriller Bark Arc

*Main article:* *Duel at Thriller Bark*
Despite all the efforts from Shanks to convince Whitebeard to recall Ace, Ace finally intercepts Blackbeard on Thriller Bark just in time before the Blackbeard Pirates could even engage the Straw Hats. Sylvester welcomes Ace and offers him to join Blackbeard's crew. Ace tells him Blackbeard that all the more reson he can't allow them to leave or go another step towards Luffy, because he is Luffy's brother.

Van Ogre shoots at Ace sparking a fight between him and the crew. Ace attacks back but then G. Zass Burgess picks up a house and throws it at Ace. Ace summons a pillar of fire and effortlessly destroys it, and unleashes Flame Fist, badly burning both Sylvester and Blackbeard's front. Sylvester gets up first, finally admitting he did kill 4th Division Commander Thatch of the Whitebeard Pirates. He tells Ace he had no other choice because he had the Devil Fruit that Blackbeard wanted. That the ships' rule was anyone who found a Devil Fruit could eat it. Blackbeard sent Joker to spend several decades under Whitebeard's service, believing either Roger or Whitebeard's crew would be the best chance of finding the one he (Blackbeard) "needed" with them. Blackbeard laughs, and decides to turn his attention towards Ace for the time being.

He then reveals the power of the Dark-Dark Fruit, believing it to be the most powerful of all Devil Fruits and he is invincible. Just as the two are about to fight, Blackbeard's crew run away to not get caught in between the two. Blackbeard uses Black Hole, and sucks up the entire area of Thriller Bark around them and then spits it out as a pile of destroyed rubble. Ace uses Firefly Light, as many green orbs of flames gather around Blackbeard and then engulfs him. Ace questions why Blackbeard is not dodging his attacks if he is a Logia user now. Blackbeard then absorbs the flames and tells Ace because of his earlier demonstration, he is temporarily unable fend off attacks the way other Logia users do for the next 24 hours. Additionally, due to the unique ability his darkness can also suck in anything, including pain.

Blackbeard then shows off another ability, using Black Vortex to pull Ace towards him and is able to grab him and nullify his Devil Fruit ability. He then sends Ace flying with a strong punch. He attempts it again but Ace hurls long lances made out of fire into Blackbeard's chest. This doesn't stop Blackbeard who hand chops Ace, almost breaking his neck sending him back. Ace puts his index fingers together in a cross shape before launching a cross-shaped column of fire directly at Blackbeard's face but he once again stops Ace's attacks.

He announces he has a plan to bring Whitebeard's rule to an end, and that he came to Thriller Bark to capture Luffy and hand him over to the World Government. Blackbeard then offers ultimatum to everyone to hand Luffy to him and Ace one more time to join his crew, but everyone refused his offer, with Ace stating if he gives up now there would be no point to him living. That he wants to live his life free of any regrets, even if it means dying. He then tells Blackbeard he will make Whitebeard the King of the Pirates, as he summons up a gigantic fireball resembling the sun. The two clash one last time, almost destroying the entire island with fire and darkness clashing together. In the end, Blackbeard is victorious. He successfully captures Ace and hands him over to the World Government, rewarding him with the title of Warlord.

### Summit War Saga

#### Impel Down Arc

Although he did not at first find out precisely what happened to Ace (because his was unconscious and everyone chose to keep everything happed as a secret), Luffy discovered part of the truth in another way. After learning about Vivre Cards from pirate Lola the Proposer, he realized that the piece of paper he received from Ace was in fact one such Vivre Card. But, as Luffy took it out, he saw slowly it burning away - a sign that Ace's life-force was fading. Unaware of the urgency of Ace's situation, he assumed that he could deal with it himself, and that he would not want any help from Luffy.

It was revealed that Ace was sentenced to a public execution in the central plaza of Navyford, the home of Navy Headquarters. The execution is scheduled to take place a week after Luffy's triumph over the Gorgon Sisters on the island of Amazon Lily.

He is next seen with Sea-Prism Stone chains on his feet and arms, in his holding cell in Impel Down. There he is visited by Garp, who notes that Ace is in terrible shape and asks if he is still alive. Ace asks Garp to kill him, but much to his grief is told that even with his death, Whitebeard will not stop his advance. Garp states that they had angered the "Ruler of the Seas".

He recalls that he had wished Ace and Luffy would become great Navy officers instead of doing the exact opposite and becoming terrible criminals. Ace replies that with the blood of world renown criminals running through their veins, becoming Navy officers would have been impossible for the two of them.

He goes on to say that he took the name "Portgaz" from his mother, to whom he owes a great debt, but he does not care one bit for the half of his blood that came from his father - his only father is Whitebeard.

Ace is later seen talking with the Warlord Jimbei, who happened to share the same cell with him. Jimbei explains that he owes a great deal to Whitebeard, because in the past, his home, Merman Island, came under continuous attacks by pirates and slave traders. However, when Whitebeard declared the island his territory, the attacks and kidnappings stopped. Thus, Jimbei wishes to stop the war for fear of Whitebeard's safety. However, they are interrupted by Crocodile, who apparently was placed in a cell opposite theirs. He chuckles that many "Silver Medalist" pirates have a grudge against Whitebeard and the late King of the Pirates, Gol D. Roger, after being defeated by them, and wish to kill Whitebeard or see him killed. Boa Hancock later visits him in his cell and (while causing a scene) cryptically informs Ace that Luffy is in Impel Down trying to save him, much to Ace's dismay. Ace is later seen muttering for Luffy to stay away. During Luffy's fight with Magellan, Ace shakes his chains to draw the attention of the guards outside his cell and demands to know what is going on upstairs. They blankly tell him that nothing is happening.

In several of Jimbei's flashbacks, during their time in Impel Down, the two talked about Luffy, that when Ace met the Straw Hats, that he was no longer worried about his brother because he had friends he could rely on now. He also asks Jimbei to look after his brother if Ace should die. Jimbei refuses, claiming he has no loyalty to people that do not interest him (though he would later protect Luffy anyway after being impressed by his character).

It is revealed that Ace is actually in **Level 6, Eternal Hell**. Jimbei mentions that Hancock might have been lying about Luffy, but Ace angrily denies that she came all that way just to lie to him, and then apologizes. He explains that Luffy has always done crazy things to make him worry, and what is happening right now is exactly the sort of thing Luffy would do.

When the time for Ace's execution arrives, the jailers begin to make preparations for his transfer. He is shown to be with Magellan and Domino and a few other jailers. Magellan takes Ace to Level 1 with the lift before Ace, hearing a report that Luffy is on Level 6 and about to be assaulted with sleeping gas, attempts to escape back to the lift. Magellan immediately recaptures him and tells him to stop resisting since Luffy, as a pirate, was doomed the minute he stepped into Impel Down. Ace reveals that he had been hoping that Hancock was lying and silently asks Luffy why he came.

Ace is seen being handed over to the Marines and is evidently en-route to Navyford, since the Vivre Card no longer points directly up from Level 6. As six hours approach to Ace's execution. Ace is seen on the deck of the Navy battleship escorting him to Navyford, chained to a chair and given one last chance to look at the sky before his execution. The battleships arrive before the Gates of Justice, requesting permission to enter and advance to their ultimate destination.

#### Navyford Arc

As Ace is led to the execution platform, he remembers a childhood promise that he made with Luffy: that they would both go out to sea and live their lives without regrets.

Afterwards, Fleet Admiral Sengoku reveals that Ace's mother was Portgaz D. Rouge and that his father was Gol D. Roger. As Sengoku continues, he declares that it was Whitebeard's intention to make him the King of the Pirates, despite Ace's desires to give this title to Whitebeard. Just after this revelation, a massive armada of pirate crews from the New World allied with Whitebeard appear, much to the surprise of the Marines. The Whitebeard Pirates's fleet, including the Moby Dick, suddenly rises up from under the water in the middle of the bay, revealing that the ships were coated and had approached Navyford from beneath the sea. Whitebeard himself appears to greet Sengoku and ask Ace to bear with them as they prepare for battle.

His past with the giant Little Oars Jr., an ally of the Whitebeard Pirates, is revealed when he fights his way towards him. He pleads for Little Oars Jr. to stop since he is such a large target and is injured by Bartholomew Kuma as Ace could only helplessly watch. Ace was deeply saddened watching his friend dying for him. When Little Oars Jr. is finally brought down by Gecko Moria, his outstretched hand lands a few yards from him in a last vain effort to free him.

As the battle continues, Garp comes to sit near Ace and admits that, while he will not interfere with the execution, he can not help his feelings in this matter as he considers Ace family and tearfully asks why Ace did not lead the life that Garp wanted him to. At that moment, however, there is a huge commotion that has Ace looking up to the sky, from which he sees a ship falling down.

When the ship falls into the sea, Luffy climbs out and Ace spots him. As Luffy fights past several Navy officers and Gecko Moria in an effort to reach Ace, the latter can only watch helplessly. He finally snaps, demanding Luffy that he go home and that he should not have come to save him. Ace, in his desperation to keep from dragging Luffy down with him, even attempts to drive him away by shouting that it is humiliating to have a "weakling" like Luffy coming to his rescue, and that he would never forgive him for this. Luffy responds by yelling that he is Ace's younger brother and, after going into Gear Third to defeat a Navy giant, states that he will save Ace even if it kills him.

Ace contemplates Luffy's words, along with those of his comrades that they will not let anyone who hurt Ace live and their determination to save him. Ace comes to an important decision. He will take whatever fate the future brings: If he sees a hand reach out to him, he will grab it, but if the white blade of justice falls on his head first he will accept it. He will not struggle anymore because it would just be disrespectful to everyone if he did.

The fight continues and Ace, incapacitated, can do nothing but stare. Later, when Navyford's walls raised up to prevent the pirates from further penetrating the plaza, Luffy devises a plan to bypass the siege walls with the help of Jimbei's water-launching abilities. Ace is horrified as he sees Luffy standing face-to-face with the three admirals, believing that he does not stand a chance at taking down all three of them at the same time.

Sengoku orders Ace to be executed; as Ace braces himself, he is saved by Crocodile, who knocks the two guards away, much to everyone's shock and surprise. He later watches as Whitebeard and Little Oars Jr. successfully enact their plan, which brings almost all of the Whitebeard Pirates into the plaza, not far from the execution platform. He is horrified when Little Oars Jr. is brought down for a second time by cannon fire. He is later seen noticing that Garp has joined in the battle after Garp punches Marco while the latter is in his Phoenix form while attempting to rescue Ace.

Ace flashes back to his past when some thugs whom he knew insulted Gol D. Roger. Ace beat them until they were half dead because of what they had said. He went on to remember being scolded for his actions and continuing to ask about Roger, only to hear many horrible things about his father. Ace is then seen sitting on a shore, along with Garp, asking if he should really have been born. Garp's response is that he could only find out by living.

Back in the present, Ace, seeing how his comrades, little brother, and father are risking their lives to save him. In tears, he finally realizes that he desperately wants to live.

The battle takes a turn for the worse; Marco, caught by Sea-Prism Stone handcuffs, is shot through the chest by Kizaru; Jozu is frozen and his right arm shattered by Aokiji; and Whitebeard suffers several serious wounds, including a molten punch to the chest by Akainu. Ace stares in horror as Whitebeard states that he cannot die until he secures a future for his sons. Sengoku then orders the execution of Ace once again and Ace closes his eyes in resignation as the executioners prepare to decapitate him. At the last moment, Luffy releases a huge burst of Conqueror's Haki; the executioners, as well as a number of pirates and navy officers, lose consciousness. Ace stares in disbelief at his little brother, as he had no idea that Luffy possessed such a powerful kind of Haki.

As Luffy approaches the scaffold, Garp blocks his path. Luffy is at first reluctant to engage his grandfather, but when it becomes clear that Garp will not move, he activates Gear Second. Just as he throws a punch at Luffy, Garp suddenly recalls the images of Luffy and Ace as young children, and the sight of Ace tearfully realizing his desire to live. Garp's hesitation allows Luffy to counter-punch, sending him flying away from the execution platform and crashing into the ground. Just as Luffy is about to unlock Ace's handcuffs, Kizaru destroys the key with a long-distance laser. Meanwhile, Sengoku has activated his Devil Fruit ability and is determined to carry out Ace's execution himself with a massive punch.

Suddenly, Mr. 3, disguised as one of the executioners, regains consciousness. He then forms a huge Candle Wall while Luffy goes into Gear Third and to take Sengoku's punch with his Giant Balloon. The force of the blow causes the execution platform to collapse. With the help of Mr. 3, who makes a duplicate key out of wax, Luffy frees Ace in mid-air moments before the other Navy officers fire at the platform, causing it to explode.

Now able to use his Flare-Flare Fruit powers, Ace escapes the explosions with Luffy and Mr. 3 in tow by wrapping his flames into a tunnel, all the meanwhile scolding Luffy for never listening to anything he ever says, for always being so reckless and inconsiderate to his advice, and for always overdoing things. His newly-gained freedom causes a considerable morale boost amongst the survivors of the assembled pirate army.

Witnessing the two brothers' coordination as they fight off the Marines side-by-side, Vista remarks that Ace and Luffy have perfect teamwork. Ace comments that Luffy has gotten stronger, to which Luffy replies that a day will come when he surpasses Ace. Ace tells Luffy to let him cover for him until that day, and leaps forward to block Admiral Aokiji's Pheasant Peck attack. He and Luffy are shocked when Whitebeard announces that he is staying behind as he yells his captain's final order.

Ace seems to accept the fact that Whitebeard is determined to stay behind; Whitebeard asks Ace if he was a good father, and laughs heartily when Ace answers "of course". He and Luffy begin to escape with the rest of the Whitebeard Pirates, but when Admiral Akainu provokes him by insulting Whitebeard, calling him a failure, Ace stops and turns back. He clashes with Akainu in fury, but Ace's fire is outmatched by Akainu's magma, so much so that his arm is badly burned. Akainu attempts to strike down the defenseless Luffy, but Ace leaps in between them and takes the hit. The remaining fragment of the Vivre Card that he gave to Luffy rapidly disintegrates into ash as everyone looks on in shock.

After Jimbei, Marco and Vista intervene to keep Akainu from dealing yet another fatal wound to Ace, the latter eventually loses the strength to stand as he falls in Luffy's arms. Ace apologized to Luffy for making his own rescue a failure, however Luffy is unable to accept this, and desperately calls for a doctor to heal Ace. However, knowing that his innards had been charred to cinders and that he was beyond saving, Ace solemnly told Luffy that his life was at an end. Recalling the promise Ace made to him when they were boys, a grief-struck Luffy reminded Ace that he promised that he would never die no matter what. Sharing one last moment with his brother, Ace reminisced about Sabo and told him that if it wasn't for having Luffy as a younger brother to look out for, he would have given up living.

Feeling nostalgic for Dadan as well, Ace asked Luffy to give her his regards if he ever ran into her, and that he misses even someone like her, and also stating that he wished that he could have seen Luffy accomplish his dream. Ace affirmed his resolve and noted that just as they swore to each other, he had no regrets about the way he lived his life, and that it wasn't fame, or glory he wanted, but rather the answer on whether or not he truly deserved to be born. Noticing his voice getting quieter, Ace asked Luffy to pass on his final words to his crew.

"*Old man, everyone!! And you.. Luffy. Even though I've been good for nothing my whole life, even though I have the blood of a demon within me... You guys still loved me! Thank you so much!!*"

—Ace's last words to his family and friends.
With his last breath, Ace tearfully thanked his family and friends for loving him, causing his crew call out to him in grief. Ace dies smiling, satisfied with his life. His psyche unable to handle Ace's death, Luffy enters a catatonic state to protect himself from the trauma. Later, Ace's corpse is seen surrounded by Navy men and covered by a sheet.

### Postmortem

Later, when the Thunder Wolf and Red-Haired Pirates appeared, Rex and Shanks both managed to organize a ceasefire and asked that the bodies of both Whitebeard and Ace be handed over to the pirates so that they could depart from the location peacefully, a request which Fleet Admiral Sengoku accepted and allowed, despite Vice Admiral Doberman's desire of putting their heads for viewing as a symbol of the Navy's greatest victory.

Ace, along with Whitebeard, was buried on an unknown island somewhere on the second half of the Grand Line. His trademark hat, necklace, and knife were made into a grave marker, which was placed beside Whitebeard's and covered with flowers and swords left behind by his crewmates, with the members themselves standing on either side of the island, paying their last respects. Before departing with his crew, Rex thought of how surprised he was by Ace's final sacrifice and likened it to something his late captain Roger would have done.

## Legacy

Although already famous in life, the events of the war and the fact that he was the son of the King of the Pirates has given Ace almost legendary recognition, like his father before him. Although his death left many heartbroken, none suffered more than Luffy, who fell into a coma only to awake in complete and utter despair. Ace's death also proved to be the final debacle for Luffy's resolve to become stronger, next to his crew's defeat and separation at the hands of Bartholomew Kuma.

Similarly to Luffy, Sabo was distraught over his inability to protect Ace from death. After learning about his brother's demise, Sabo gained an immense protective-streak towards Luffy, vowing to come to his aid whenever and wherever he needed him - even going so far as to disregard his duties in the Revolutionary Army if he felt Luffy was in danger. Ultimately Whitebeard's prediction that someone would appear to inherit Ace's will came to fruition when the Flare-Flare Fruit was eaten by Sabo, who gained his brother's Devil Fruit powers and also inherited his signature technique, the "Flame Fist".

## Battles

### Canon

* Portgaz D. Ace and Sabo vs. Porchemy
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Monkey D. Luffy (multiple times)
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Sabo (multiple times)
* Portgaz D. Ace and Curly Dadan vs. Bluejam
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Isuka
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Draw
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Jimbei
* Spade Pirates vs. Whitebeard
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Whitebeard (at least 100 times)
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Doma and his crew (unseen)
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Smoker
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Billions fleet
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Van Ogre and G. Zass Burgess
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Marshall D. Teech
* Portgaz D. Ace and Monkey D. Luffy vs. Navy
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Admiral Aokiji
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Admiral Akainu

### Non-Canon

* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Naguri
* Portgaz D. Ace, Monkey D. Luffy, and Sabo vs. a giant tiger
* Portgaz D. Ace, Monkey D. Luffy, and Sabo vs. Bluejam's men
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Decalvan Brothers (offscreen)
* Portgaz D. Ace and Monkey D. Luffy vs. Billions (Nanohana)
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Scorpion
* Portgaz D. Ace vs. Impel Down guards (Impel Down)

## Anime and Manga Differences

### Alabasta Arc

When Ace first meets Luffy's crew, he tosses them a piece of paper and leaves. However, in the anime, his time with the Straw Hats was extended and he journeys with them. During the journey though, Ace's bead necklace kept appearing and disappearing in-between scene changes, most likely due to mistakes from the animators.

### Flame-Flame Fruit

In the manga, it is unknown if Ace can light things on fire from a distance without spouting flames that make direct contact. However, in the anime, he is shown lighting a cigarette for Sanji simply by pointing his finger.

### Ambition

During his meeting with Shanks in the anime, Ace stated that he would become the King of the Pirates. At no point in the manga did Ace show this ambition, and later he would aim to make Whitebeard the King of the Pirates. Also in the anime, Ace stated that he wanted to show the world his power by taking Whitebeard's head. Ace's reason for going after Whitebeard's head was never explained in the manga.

### Impel Down Arc

In *Episode 439*, Ace is depicted as a child similarly to how he appeared as an adult. While in the manga, Ace is almost always wearing a tank top during his childhood, in this episode he is depicted without a shirt, and is seen wearing a red beaded necklace identical to what he wore as an adult. This can be considered a contradiction to the manga, as Ace didn't start wearing his necklace until he was a teenager, and only stopped wearing shirts when he joined the Whitebeard Pirates in order to showcase his "pride and joy" - Whitebeard's Jolly Roger. It can be presumed that Toei Animation did this because Ace's actual childhood appearance hadn't been revealed yet in the manga.

### Navyford Arc

In the anime, Ace and Luffy's fight against the Navy (after Luffy unlocked Ace's handcuffs) was expanded and Ace showed more of his attacks.

#### Death

Throughout the manga, the anime adaptation, and the specials *3D2Y: Overcome Ace's Death! Luffy's Vow to his Friends* and *Episode of Sabo*, Ace's death has been somewhat censored and slightly changed.

In the anime, when Ace was struck through by Akainu, his beaded **necklace** broke apart and fell all over the ground, and one bead ended up rolling to Whitebeard's foot, who picked it up tearfully. In the manga, as well as the specials, the necklace remained intact.

In the anime and in the *Romance Dawn PSP game*, Ace only had **smoke** coming omitted from his wound and the blood was absent. In the manga, as well as the specials, Ace also was covered in less **blood** than in the specials.

Other oddities include most of the artwork being largely uninspired by the manga.

## External links

* Portgaz D. Ace *One Piece Encyclopedia*

## Notes & Trivia

* Universal Studios of Japan has built a replica of Ace's and Whitebeard's tombs. Ace's epitaph says: "*Ace, may your soul be eternal. Your brave soul will always be with us.*" This epitaph was also shown in *Episode 663* of the anime.
* Ace being captain of the Spade Pirates, is a pun on the "Ace of spades", or "spadille".
	+ Having died through being penetrated is a possible reference to the known saying "Ace in the hole"
* Ace shares the same birthday as the creator of the series, Eiichiro Oda (January 1).
* In the 6th Japanese *Popularity Fan Polls*, Ace ranked as the fifth most popular character in One Piece making him the most popular of the Whitebeard Pirates and also the most popular deceased character in the One Piece series.
* Had Ace been a girl, he would have been named "Anne".
* Ace would have been 21 if he were born on time. Instead he is 20 because his mother held him in her womb for eleven months past his due date, meaning he spent a total of twenty months inside her womb, instead of the usual nine.
* Ace is the first known Devil Fruit user user to die.
* Ace is also the first major character in *One Piece* who died outside of flashbacks.
* His bounty, being at 550,000,000 berries before his death, was the highest amount revealed in the series before the timeskip.