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Grand Line – Paradise
In the sky, above the place where the exchange of punches between Luffy and Garp had just happened
'I knew my intuition wouldn't let me down! Follow that Vice-Admiral Aramoca, Arameki, whatever! The thing is, it was the best decision I've made in a long time! These photos are worth gold, my article is going to be amazing with them, and the Navy pays a hefty sum for photos like these! I can't wait to see Morgans' face when I put my article on his desk, I'm sure he'll want to put it on the cover of the next edition of the newspaper', one of his contacts informed him about an unconfirmed rumor that had reached his ears, Admiral Akainu has a "protégé" and was sending him on missions. His instincts fired up the moment he heard that. So, on impulse, he spent a good amount of money to get the location of this so-called protégé. He had been following this guy for over a month, and nothing worthy of an article had happened during that time. Of course, there was the raw brutality of this protégé, but it was better not to touch that hornet's nest. He was almost giving up when this guy received a last-minute mission, and all of this happened, and he recorded everything with his camera and in his notebook.
Okay, let's explain what's happening. In the sky, being carried by a giant pelican that looked like it could no longer bear his weight, was a middle-aged man wearing a 19th-century-style suit and beret, basically a journalist working for the World Economy News Paper, or WENP for short. Hanging from his neck was a camera with a giant lens, easily twice the size of the camera itself, and in his hands, he had a notepad and a pen, with which he was furiously drafting the body of his article.
"Quaa graah!", the pelican carrying him quacks hastily, its face red from the strain of carrying this idiot all day.
"Oh, sorry! Let's head back to the island, I need to gather a bit more information, then we'll rest for today and leave tomorrow", the journalist says, excited to keep writing, his mind already sketching out the article, 'Battle of colossal proportions just happened on Drum Island, Vice-Admiral [need to check what his name was again] is killed by the Straw Hat Pirates. After an intense fight against the pirate [don't know the name of the long-nosed one], in which he emerged victorious. The Marine fought Roronoa Zoro [that was his name, right?], [still don't know the name of the blond smoker], and that giant wolf [he must have a name too, right?], and after a brutal battle, he end up with his chest pierced and his head decapitated. Later this same day, the crew's Captain, Monkey D. Luffy [this one I know, highest bounty in the East Blue], exchanged punches with the Hero of the Marines, Monkey D. Garp [funny, they share the same last name], and managed to escape. It's still just a draft, but I think I have something good here. I could also write another article mentioning this breathtaking view.'
=Scene Break=
Meanwhile, Garp returns to where he was before the Sakura tree appeared, as if he had never left there.
"Here you go, sir!", Bogard says, handing him the open package of rice crackers he had left behind when he went after Luffy.
"Oh! Bwahahaha! Thanks, Bogard!", Garp laughs loudly, taking the package from his hand and going back to eating noisily.
"Eeeeeehhh...", Dalton.exe is taking a long time to respond; reboot recommended. No, seriously, was this old man for real? He disappears just like Usopp did earlier, a deafening crash echoes in the distance, followed by relentless cold winds, and in the next instant, he returns, acting as if he had never left.
"Nice view, huh? Crunch... by the way... crunch... at some point that I don't remember and don't care at all... crunch... these brats said that... crunch... Sakazuki's official cum dumpster was here or gave them some order, I don't know, I wasn't really paying attention when he was talking! The thing is, where's that annoying brat?", Garp casually comments on the view still lingering in the sky before going back to stuffing rice crackers into his mouth, asking, between chewing sounds, something that came to mind.
"He fought the pirates they were after and ended up dying, not even the body was left in the end", Dalton says, informing them about Aramaki's morbid outcome.
"WHAT? VICE-ADMIRAL ARAMAKI DIED? HOW?", the tied-up marines shout in shock, they knew Aramaki's strength; how did these rookie pirates manage to kill him?
"Yeah, chest pierced by a flaming leg and decapitated head, he turned to ashes in seconds!", Dalton comments, giving details about Aramaki's death.
"Did you see him being killed?", one of the tied-up marines asks. Was this guy at the scene when Vice-Admiral Aramaki was killed?
"No!", Dalton replies. He only found out about Aramaki's death afterward.
"Then how do you know so many details about the Vice-Admiral's death?", Helmeppo asks doubtfully. This guy shouldn't know those things if he wasn't present at the scene when it happened.
"One of the pirates told me what happened while his companions who carried out the act were receiving medical treatment", Dalton says. Sabo wasn't a pirate, but he had no way of knowing that, right? The thing is, the revolutionary witnessed the end of the fight and informed him about what had happened at some point.
"You gave them medical treatment?", one of the marines who had come with Aramaki asks accusingly.
"Yes, why? You wanted us to fight them? No, thanks! We were lucky they were kind, so the best thing to do at that moment was not to push our luck and just do what we were told!", Dalton says, telling the story in a way that didn't make it sound like they had been friendly and helpful with the Straw Hats of their own free will.
"Ehhh...", not knowing what to say, the marine decides to stay quiet. Dalton had a valid point; these were pirates capable of killing a Vice-Admiral. What else could citizens do besides cooperate and hope they'd leave without causing more destruction?
"Sorry, but just curious! What were the names of the members of the Straw Hat crew again?", an unfamiliar voice asks suddenly, coming from within the crowd of civilians surrounding them.
"All of them? Ehhh... let me see... the one with the straw hat is Luffy, the green-haired swordsman is Zoro, the long-nosed one is Usopp, the blond guy in the suit is Sanji, the dog is Chouchou, the duck is called...", not paying attention and thinking it was one of the marines asking, Dalton starts listing off the names he knew from overhearing their conversations, only to be cut off in the middle of his speech.
"No need to continue, I've got all the information I wanted!", the voice interrupts him. Just between us, it was the journalist, and now he had the names he wanted for his article.
"Wait a minute, who asked that?", Dalton asks, noticing how strange that dialogue had been.
"That's enough, it doesn't matter! Tell me, kid! What is that giant pink snow cloud?", Garp suddenly asks, curious about the pink snow cloud that formed the crown of the Sakura tree.
"Hmm, no idea, but it's coming from the castle on the central mountain! So it must be something from Dra. Kureha", putting aside what just happened, Dalton replies, giving his opinion.
"Dra. Kureha? Hmm, take me there", raising an eyebrow upon hearing that name after so long, Garp asks, wanting to go to the castle.
"Alright! Hmm, it'll just take a bit to prepare the cable car", Dalton says before turning to some civilians and asking them to get the cable car ready to take them up to the castle.
"Alright! Bogard, have the men transport these troublesome brats to the ship while you, me, Coby, and Helmeppo go see an old witch", Garp turns to his right-hand man and gives his orders.
"Could it be her, sir?", Bogard asks doubtfully.
"I don't know, but it's better to keep our eyes open", Garp says, not certain, but caution never hurts.
And then, some time later, right after the civilians, who had gone to inform the Straw Hats about Garp's arrival, descended the mountain, Garp, accompanied by Dalton, Bogard, Coby, and Helmeppo, arrive at the castle.
"Heehee hee hee! Look who we have here, Marine Hero, Garp, the Fist! The man who used to fight Roger almost daily! What are you doing here, brat?", Dra. Kureha comments upon noticing Garp's arrival, stopping in the middle of his return to the castle.
"I came to beat up my troublemaking grandson, who decided to become a pirate! But the real question here is, what is an old witch like you doing here? I haven't heard from you in a long time, Kureha", Garp comments, his eyebrows raising in surprise at really finding this woman again after so long.
"Watch your mouth, brat! You looking for a beating?", Dra. Kureha warns him angrily, a vein popping on her forehead upon hearing this brat call her an old witch.
"Bwahahahaha! I'd like to see you try! So, what are you doing here?", Garp asks, patting his belly while laughing out loud.
"Tsch! I live here, idiot", Dra. Kureha answers irritably. Was this brat always this annoying?
"You live here? You? What? Don't tell me a pirate like you has settled down?", Garp asks mockingly. This old witch, retired? Seriously?
"I'm not a pirate anymore, I'm clean. I have worked as a doctor on this island for quite some time now, in a legitimate way! These days, I only rob people one way, by healing my patients by force and charging them outrageous prices", Dra. Kureha says, just wanting this conversation to end already.
"She telling the truth?", Garp turns and asks Dalton, suspiciously.
"Well, yes, she's been the island's doctor for years! She was the only one for a while, actually", Dalton replies, confirming what Dra. Kureha had said.
"Alright, now that is something impressive! Who would've thought you would end up leaving piracy behind?", Garp comments, raising his eyebrows, seeing that Dalton was being sincere and wasn't hiding anything, unlike before. Yes, he knew Dalton had been hiding things, but honestly, the guy didn't seem like a bad person or anything like that, so he simply decided to ignore it.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever! Now, if you all could leave me alone", Dra. Kureha says, dismissing them with a lazy wave of her hand as she begins walking back toward the castle.
"Sure, sure! But just one quick question before I leave you alone with your retirement…", Garp agrees without really caring, starting to speak only to be interrupted.
"Retirement is for old people! I'm a young lady in the prime of her life", stopping halfway again, Dra. Kureha turns around furiously and yells. This brat was starting to get on her nerves.
"Yeah, yeah! Anyway, back to the point, what is that pink snow cloud?", Garp asks, not caring about her complaints.
"Just the fulfillment of a promise I made to a certain quack doctor! Now, if you're not here to help rebuild the destroyed parts of the castle, then get the hell out of here", Dra. Kureha says, sending them away, unless, of course, they were going to help with the rebuilding. In that case, they could stay.
"No, thanks! We'll end up passing! Anyway, try not to get into trouble, old witch, I don't want to have to arrest you", Garp says casually, starting to walk toward the cable car station.
"Now you've asked for it! Come here, you little shit! I'm going to beat you up so hard that you'll remember God Valley!", Dra. Kureha shouts, a vein bulging from her forehead as she runs after Garp.
"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! GOOD JOKE! I don't know if you remember, since you're probably suffering from Alzheimer's, but I was the one who defeated your Captain! Anyway, see you around, Kureha!" Garp says, laughing loudly as he starts running while teasing her, changing direction and heading straight for the edge of the mountain.
"You little son of a bitch! Get back here, damn it! I'm going to beat you, your taciturn right-hand man, and these two snot-nosed kids you brought along", boiling with rage at hearing these taunts, Dra. Kureha, veins bulging on her forehead, screams as she runs after the four. And as she passes Dalton, who just steps aside to avoid getting caught in the middle, she starts throwing knives coated with Advanced Armament Haki at them, knives she pulled out from who knows where.
"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! RUN FROM THE WITCH, COBY, HELMEPPO! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA, LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!" laughing to the point he's tearing up, Garp shouts as he runs past Coby and Helmeppo, jumping off the mountain while laughing loudly.
"What? We didn't... AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" "AHHHHHHHHHHH! I DON'T WANNA DIEEEE!!!", shocked and confused by the sight of the Vice-Admiral jumping off the mountain, Coby and Helmeppo are suddenly grabbed by Bogard, who then jumps after Garp, making the two Chore Boys scream in terror.
"Tsch, fucking insolent brat! You had help from that Roger brat, and now you go around bragging like you did everything on your own! If you ask me, I'm not the one with Alzheimer's! Idiot", stopping at the edge of the mountain, Dra. Kureha mutters curses under her breath as she watches the four move away.
And while Dra. Kureha huffed with anger. Dalton approaches, asking, "Since when do you know the Marine Hero?"
"Marine Hero's my pussy! I was already known by the seas before this brat even thought about crawling out of his father's balls", Dra. Kureha growls angrily. These idiots from the past always irritated her in ways she couldn't explain.
"Ehhhh…", Dalton freezes, not knowing what to say, since she had just basically called herself old.
"Don't even start! This brat ruined my mood", Dra. Kureha says grumpily.
"Okay then! Where's that reindeer that's always with you?", Dalton asks, not seeing Chopper anywhere.
"He left with those brats!", Dra. Kureha replies, pushing her sunglasses up onto her forehead.
"Hmm... oh, shit! I forgot to pass the kid's message to them!", nodding with his head, Dalton falls silent for a few seconds before suddenly cursing, remembering the message Ace had asked them to deliver to the Straw Hats if they saw them.
"Hmm! Alright, now I'm curious, what was the message?", Dra. Kureha asks, intrigued.
"Before setting sail, he said, 'If a guy named Monkey D. Luffy shows up here, tell him I'll be waiting for him in Alabasta, for about ten days!'", Dalton says, reciting the message.
"Monkey D. Luffy? Wait a second… HEEHEE HEE HEE! That idiot brat really can't raise anyone properly; his son deserted from the Marines and founded the Revolutionary Army, and now his grandson has become a pirate! HEE HEE HEEHEE! That just made my day!", Dra. Kureha says, laughing loudly while wiping tears from her eyes.
"That kid is the grandson of the Marine Hero? Well, at least now it makes sense how he managed to gather so many strong people into a crew, he must be stronger than all of them", Dalton comments, now things made sense to him.
"Heehee hee hee! That brat said he's going to become the future King of the Pirates!", Dra. Kureha says with a smile.
"Looks like your reindeer left with a very dangerous man, then!", Dalton says, raising an eyebrow.
"Hee hee hee hee! Yeah! Looks like the will of the 'D' is still alive and strong!", Dra. Kureha says with a smile.
"I have no idea what that means! By the way, when you mentioned a quack doctor, were you talking about Dr. Hiriluk?", Dalton asks, recalling that she said this pink snow cloud was a promise to a quack doctor.
"Yeah! A little before dying, that charlatan handed me a sack full of red powder and asked me to do this! Who knows what was going through that idiot's mind? He thought the kingdom was sick, and this would heal people's hearts! So you tell me, are you feeling healed?", Dra. Kureha asks, a slight smile creeping onto her face as she mentions the quack doctor.
"Definitely one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen in my life!", Dalton replies. He's not sure if he was healed, but that view definitely stirred something deep inside him.
"I guess that works too", Dra. Kureha says, letting out a huff. Apparently, that idiot got what he wanted.
"I just had an idea!", Dalton says, making Kureha, who had already turned and started heading back into the castle, stop in her tracks.
"I don't care, but go ahead, speak!", Dra. Kureha says, gesturing with her hand for him to continue.
"Drum is no more, and we need a new name for the kingdom! I think 'Sakura Kingdom' would be a nice name for this new phase in everyone's life", Dalton says, elaborating on his idea.
"Weren't you going to wait for the election of a new king before deciding on a name for the kingdom?", raising an eyebrow, Dra. Kureha asks playfully.
"Well, apparently I'm the new king", Dalton gives her the news, a bit sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck.
"Oh! Moved up in life! Welcome to royalty then! But are you sure that naming a kingdom because of a single moment that might never happen again is a good idea?", Dra. Kureha congratulates him sarcastically before asking doubtfully.
"Correction, this is the most important moment! It deserves to be remembered in some way! Besides, we can get sakura tree seeds and plant them around the island", Dalton says, offering a solution at the same time that another idea pops into his mind.
"Sakura trees don't grow in this cold climate", Dra. Kureha says, throwing a bucket of cold water on his solution.
"We can genetically modify them", Dalton replies, coming up with a solution for his solution.
"And how does the genius plan to do that?", Dra. Kureha asks mockingly.
"We have twenty-one of the best doctors in all of the Grand Line", Dalton suggests. A doctor is a scientist too, right?
"Ah, no, don't include me in this madness! I'm not going to help", realizing she'd been dragged into it, Dra. Kureha says, not wanting to take part in it.
"Come on! Just imagine how much money with tourism we could make in the future!", Dalton tries to convince her to join this endeavor with the idea he had a few lines ago.
"Even so, we are doctors, genetic modification of plants isn't exactly our field, it would be very difficult!", tempted by the idea of money, Dra. Kureha says, and, although reluctant, at no point did she reject the idea
"You didn't say impossible", Dalton says hopefully.
"...", silence, Dr. Kureha seemed to be thinking.
"I didn't hear a no!", Dalton says, even more hopeful that she'd join this bold project.
"This better make me rich! And just for the record, it'd be easier to just keep throwing this red powder into the sky!", Dra. Kureha says, pointing a finger at Dalton.
"We can do that too, turn it into part of the tourist attraction, you know how to make more of that powder, right?", turning around and briefly celebrating, Dalton turns his attention to Kureha and suggests. He was really creative today, huh? One idea after another.
"Yeah, yeah! I need a bottle of whiskey! And lots of coffee!", waving her hand dismissing him, Dra. Kureha heads back into the castle, grumbling, leaving an excited Dalton behind. The work would be tough, but the future looked promising.
And from this conversation was born the Kingdom of Sakura, which will be known in the future as a place reference on high-level medical research, home of many of the best doctors one can find throughout the Grand Line, and one of the most popular tourist spots in Paradise, an island covered in snow, sakura trees, mountain resorts, beautiful views, the perfect place to practice skiing, snowboarding, or just to admire the breathtaking scenery. Once a month, there is an event that, according to those who have visited the place for tourism, repairs people's hearts; they say it is beautiful. And right in front of the island's central mountain, there is a giant statue of a wooden sword held by a giant body in pieces covered by vegetation; sakura trees sprout from the sword and entwine themselves on the blade and hilt, creating a magnificent sight, a true work of art and a bastion of the new kingdom.
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(AN: 3,477 Words)
And we've finally reached the end of the Drum Arc, I think it couldn't be more obvious which pirate crew Dra. Kureha was part of the past. I had this idea and ended up really liking it. This is my explanation for why Blackbeard went to Drum. I still have plans for Dra. Kureha in the future; I've always thought she was a very good character to be used in just one arc in the canon. She's lived a long life and probably knows a lot, so I plan to use her a bit more in the future.
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If you guys decide to give ideas or suggestions about things I should pay attention to in the story, keep in mind that on Patreon, the fic is currently at the Alabasta Arc, more specifically, on Rainbase/Katorea/Alubarna.
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