On the hill behind Senkita Town on Starfish Island, Qingcheng's spiritual pressure had already reached the level of a third seat, and he had fully mastered the Shikai of his Zanpakutō, Sakuho.
"Qingcheng, Qingcheng…"
"What?" Qingcheng looked at Garp and asked.
Garp looked at him and said, "I'm planning to head out to sea. Want to come along for a little adventure? By the way, ever since we met, you haven't been out to sea even once!"
"Not interested. Go by yourself," Qingcheng replied listlessly.
"Really not coming?" Garp threatened, "Once this mission is over, I'll have a month off. Which means no one will be around to protect you during that time. If pirates capture you then, don't blame me."
Qingcheng rolled his eyes. "Like I need protection from the Navy?"
Garp: "You really don't want to come with me?"
Qingcheng waved him off. "Not interested means not interested. Now go already."
"You stubborn brat… fine, I'm leaving." Garp muttered and walked back the way he came.
"The Navy is so persistent. And what's with Whitebeard? He still hasn't come to pick me up. It's been so long, and not even a single message. Has he seriously forgotten about me?" Qingcheng's face darkened as he thought.
"Forget it, I'll give it another year. If Whitebeard still doesn't come, then I'll go find him myself. Anyway, I've already mastered my Zanpakutō's Shikai. And with all the Bakudō and Hadō under level 90 at my disposal, my strength shouldn't be too bad."
As he thought this, Qingcheng headed back to his lab.
Elsewhere, half an hour later at the harbor, a seemingly ordinary man watched the distant Navy ship sail away. He pulled out a Den Den Mushi from his clothes and made a call.
Buru~ Buru… Buru~ Buru…
"Hello? Young Master?"
"I'm Trebol. Who is this? Spit it out." came an impatient voice.
The man shivered at the irritated tone. "Lord Trebol, this is Tlein, the one assigned to monitor Harvis D. Bilia Qingcheng. Just now, Vice Admiral Garp set out to sea with his troops, leaving Dr. Qingcheng behind. That means this is a rare opportunity."
"Got it. You did well. If this plan works out, you might catch the eye of our king," Trebol's voice responded with a tempting tone.
Click.
"Yes! Finally, a chance to join the Donquixote Family!" The man's face was full of excitement as he looked at the now-hung-up Den Den Mushi.
Scene change. Two days passed in the blink of an eye. On this morning, just as Qingcheng finished his training and was about to head back to rest, the sharp sounds of gunfire—bang bang bang!—suddenly echoed. Soon followed by the screams and cries of townsfolk from the direction of the town.
"What the hell? Pirates? That's strange. There haven't been pirates here in a long time. And they just happen to show up right after Garp left? That's too much of a coincidence." Qingcheng frowned as he ran toward the town.
But before he could reach it, four figures appeared in front of him. The one leading them—wearing small sunglasses, holding a staff with a spade emblem, and with snot dripping from his nose—spoke.
"Nah nah, isn't this the famous Dr. Qingcheng? Where are you off to so early?"
"Who are you? Pirates?" Qingcheng asked while narrowing his eyes. He thought they looked familiar but couldn't quite place them.
Just then, the tallest man among them stepped forward and said, "We're from the Donquixote Pirates. I'm Diamante, top officer of the Diamond division. This guy is Trebol, top officer of the Club division. That's Pica from the Spade division. And this here is our king, Donquixote Doflamingo."
Qingcheng's pupils shrank. He finally remembered—the blonde brat barely over ten years old in front of him—wasn't he one of the future Warlords of the Sea, Donquixote Doflamingo?
"So you're the famous Donquixote Pirates of the North Blue. What do you want with me?" Qingcheng asked.
Doflamingo stepped forward and said, "We're still short one doctor. If you join our Donquixote Pirates now, I'll make you the top officer of the Heart division."
"Uh…" Qingcheng looked speechlessly at the boy who barely reached his chest, acting all high and mighty. Sure, he'll be strong in the future, but right now? Not impressive at all.
He walked up to him and, to Doflamingo's stunned expression, pinched his cheek. "Kid, I'm an adult. I'm not about to play pirate house with you. Go home."
Smack! Doflamingo slapped his hand away and glared. "I'm not a kid! I'm serious. I'm warning you—refuse our invitation and the consequences won't be pretty."
"Wow, getting cocky now, huh?"
Before Qingcheng could respond, Diamante cut in. "Doffy's serious. Also, we forgot to mention—he may be small now, but he's got the potential to be king."
"Yeah, he's got Conqueror's Haki," Trebol added, afraid Qingcheng didn't get it.
"Doffy, why even bother talking—"
"Puhahaha! That voice is so sharp! It's killing me!" Qingcheng burst into laughter, pointing at the muscular Pica. "Now I remember—you're that guy! Man, your voice is even worse in real life!"
"Bastard! How dare you laugh at my voice! Unforgivable!" Pica's shrill voice rang out as he charged with a punch.
"Pica! Don't go too ha—!"
"Bakudō #1: Sai."
Thud!
Before Doflamingo could finish, Pica was already face-first in the dirt, restrained with his arms twisted behind his back by an invisible force.
"Bastard, what did you do to me?" Pica roared, pinned to the ground.
"Didn't expect you to be so kind, even as a kid. Telling your men not to go all out," Qingcheng said as he walked toward Doflamingo.
"Kind?" Doflamingo's smug face cracked. He shouted, "That's not what I meant! I just finally found someone worthy of being Heart division's top officer. If he got crippled, what use would he be? But now that I know you're not just some regular doctor, even better—saves me from having to assign someone to protect you."
"…"
Qingcheng looked at him speechlessly. "Kid, don't act like I actually plan to join your little gang."
"Then what would it take for you to join us?" Doflamingo asked. Despite his usual arrogance, this was his first time seriously inviting someone to the family, so he looked a bit hesitant.
"Hm… I'll need to think about it," Qingcheng said, rubbing his chin.
Time passed slowly. Diamante and Trebol stared blankly at Doflamingo. Ever since meeting Qingcheng, his behavior had been unusually weird…
Until—
"Hey! Have you thought it over or not?" Doflamingo snapped impatiently.
"I got it!" Qingcheng's eyes suddenly lit up like he'd struck gold.
Yes, he had a brilliant idea—to adopt Doflamingo as his son.
Exactly. Make him his son. The kid had great future potential. If he raised and trained him now, not only would he gain a powerful ally, but he could also prevent him from growing up all twisted.
"You… What are you planning?" Doflamingo asked, startled by the glowing expression on Qingcheng's face.
Qingcheng extended his hand seriously and said:
"Become my son, Doflamingo."