One of the best stories in One Piece is that of Luffy and Portgas D. Ace. It is also one of the saddest stories in the series. The friendship and bond that formed between the two adopted brothers became real over the years, and with its tragic ending, a beautiful story actually had a very dark ending. But, putting that aside for now, in this article, we are actually going to tell you if Luffy and Ace were related by blood, that is, what the real nature of their relationship was.

Luffy and Ace are not related by blood

Ace was born on Baterilla Island in the South Blue 15 months after the death of his father, Gol D. Roger. His mother, Portgas D. Rouge, gave birth to him after a 20-month pregnancy to save him from the World Government and the Navy, who were searching for Roger's possible child to execute him. His mother named him "Gol D. Ace" and died of exhaustion.

He took his mother's name in honor of her sacrifice. Garp, having witnessed his birth, took him with him and took care of him as he had promised Roger 15 months earlier. By the time Luffy entered his life by returning to the Mountain Bandit family, Ace had been trying to get rid of Luffy for about 6 months. At first, when he saw Luffy, he spat on him and Luffy became angry.

But later, Luffy finally forgave Ace and wanted to become his friend. Luffy discovered Sabo and Ace's secret; their treasure to buy a pirate ship. The young boy was then caught by Porchemy and his men and tortured. Ace and Sabo then arrived to rescue him, nursed him back to health, and, realizing that he wanted more than anything to be friends with them, accepted him into the group.

They spend their days training, and then one day, Ace steals a bottle of sake from Dadan and reveals to the other two boys that if they share a glass of alcohol, they will become brothers, no matter what they do in their lives. Later, the trio went to the city and went to a restaurant. After their meal, they left without paying, and during their escape, they encountered Outlook III, who seems to know Sabo.

Back in their lair, Ace and Luffy question Sabo, and the latter reveals that he is not an orphan as he claimed, but the son of a nobleman. This does not change the relationship between the boys, and the three remain sworn brothers until Ace's subsequent death, and despite Sabo's apparent death.

What is the relationship between Ace and Luffy?

Ace and his adopted brother, Luffy, were very close as children and remained pirates even after more than three years apart. As a child, Ace was initially lonely, hostile toward Luffy, and angry when Luffy cried. But later, he became protective of him, especially Garp, even insulting his grandfather in an attempt to protect Luffy. This defensive trait remained later.

Ace was the first to step in to protect Luffy from Smoker in Nanohana. Even as he died, he continued to protect Luffy—asking Jinbei at Impel Down to take care of Luffy if he died. Later, when he discovered that Blackbeard wanted to kill Luffy and turn him over to the World Government, Ace immediately warned him that he would not let him capture his little brother.

Despite their closeness, Luffy often angered and worried Ace by doing reckless things. Because of this, Ace did not doubt Hancock's words when she informed him that Luffy had infiltrated Impel Down to save him. Although Ace often worried about Luffy's recklessness, he was deep down proud of his brother's past exploits, and in the anime, he was shown smiling slightly, listening to Garp in prison talk about Luffy's actions on Enies Lobby and Sabaody.

Apparently, Ace often shared his stories about Luffy with other Whitebeard Pirates allies (including the Shichibukai Jinbei). He was delighted to learn that Luffy had received his first bounty and wasted no time in showing it to Whitebeard. Therefore, after Luffy's unexpected appearance on the Marineford battlefield, Marco easily recognized Ace's brother.

Ace used to adopt typical good older brother behavior, such as asking Luffy's friends to look after his younger brother. He also gave Luffy part of his Vivre Card so they could finally reunite. They respected each other's choices despite their differences and outlooks, arguing that the other was strong enough to take care of themselves.

Certainly, as Ace himself stated, he would never stop worrying about Luffy, as he is his older brother. Luffy believed that if he worried about Ace and rushed to his aid, Ace's pride would prevent him from being saved. Thus, he initially left him alone even after discovering that Ace's Vivre Card had begun to fester.

However, when he learned that Ace had been captured and sentenced to death and saw that Ace's Vivre Card had almost completely burned, Luffy, determined to save his brother, put aside all his business, such as returning to the Sabaody Archipelago to reunite with his associates. During Ace's execution, it was revealed that Ace was actually the son of Gol D. Roger, and not, as previously believed, Monkey D. Dragon, and that he had been raised by Garp from birth.

Therefore, Ace and Luffy are named and not blood brothers, since they are not related by blood. A flashback shows Luffy and Ace first meeting as young children, meaning Luffy is aware of this fact. It also reveals that Luffy, with his distinctive straw hat and scar under his eye, met Ace after meeting Shanks and leaving the island.

Later, in a flashback, they officially identified themselves as brothers after drinking sake. In a conversation with Ivankov, Luffy also revealed his knowledge of Ace's true father. Although the Whitebeard Pirates and Luffy invaded Marineford to rescue him, Ace gave his life to save Luffy. He was fully aware that he would be burned by Akainu's blow, but did not hesitate to protect Luffy from the fatal blow.

Ace's only regret was not living long enough to see Luffy's dream come true, which he thought surely would. Ace dies smiling as Luffy collapses into an abyss of despair following the death of his dear brother.