"4997, 4998, 4999…"
On the deck, the girl with emerald-green eyes vigorously swung a wooden sword proportionate to her size.
Sweat on her forehead dampened her short cherry-blossom pink hair.
To facilitate her training, Sakura had specifically asked Scopper Gaban to cut her hair short.
Incidentally, the wooden sword in her hand was also made for her by Gaban.
Although Gaban himself kept protesting Sakura calling him 'uncle'... but, whatever.
"5000!"
Sakura put all her strength into the final swing of the wooden sword, the airflow stirred by the blade whistling.
The gust of wind swept up the sweat droplets from her hair, sprinkling them onto the deck already soaked through beneath the girl's feet.
In the distance, on the crow's nest of the Oro Jackson's mast.
Two boys were watching the girl train.
"Ah! That guy dirtied the deck I just cleaned."
The boy with a blue knit cap covering his blue hair and two short swords at his waist had a vein bulging on his forehead.
"Buggy, Sakura-chan is training hard, you know." The red-haired boy wearing a straw hat patted Buggy's shoulder, "And look, isn't she going to clean the deck now?"
"Shanks, when did you get so familiar with her, calling her 'Sakura-chan' right off the bat?"
Buggy gave Shanks a disdainful look, pulling down his own cheek skin to mimic Shanks' serious expression from earlier.
Buggy's imitation was so vivid it made Shanks, who had been about to spout some grand reasoning, burst into laughter.
"Wahahaha, you're not holding a grudge because you couldn't outdrink her last night, are you?"
Shanks held onto his straw hat, grinning as he slung an arm around Buggy's shoulder.
"What did you say?!"
Buggy instantly turned red, steam practically rising from his red nose.
He pulled open the door to the crow's nest, grabbed a rope, and prepared to slide down.
Before leaving, he turned back angrily, baring shark-like teeth at Shanks and roaring, "Wait, I'm going to challenge her to a rematch right now!"
"Hey, Buggy."
Shanks, who had only meant to tease him, was stunned. He hadn't expected Buggy to care so much about this.
But thinking about it, losing to a delicate-looking girl like Sakura in spirit (appetite) was probably why Buggy was hung up on it.
On the deck, Sakura emerged from the lower decks after putting away the cleaning tools.
Facing the setting sun and the pure blue sea, she stretched luxuriously.
"It's really, so beautiful."
"Hey! You..."
A boy's voice came from afar, growing closer. Sakura turned her head.
She saw a red nose charging straight towards her, aimed right at her face.
"Huff... huff... huff!"
Buggy, who had run over, was panting heavily.
"Buggy, sorry, I... don't like boys."
Sakura frowned and patted the red-nosed boy's shoulder in front of her.
"Ah! Buggy got friend-zoned!"
Shanks, who had jogged over behind Buggy, timely delivered the coup de grâce.
"Damn it, I'm not here to confess!!!"
Buggy's inverted white-triangle eyes were bloodshot, his wide-open mouth turning into a shark-toothed shape.
Fuming, Buggy pointed a finger at Sakura, "You, I challenge you to a duel."
Hearing Buggy's words, Sakura's head began to tilt gradually, until it was cocked at a 90-degree angle.
A look of sudden understanding dawned on the girl's delicate face.
"Oh! Let's fight!"
Sakura bent her right arm into a fist, placed her left hand on her bicep, her two emerald-green eyes sparkling with anticipation.
She looked every bit the pure warrior... a pure fighter.
"Hey, the kids seem to be doing something interesting."
The helmsman, Donquino, saw the commotion on the deck and excitedly started calling over other members of the Roger Pirates.
Soon, the deck was crowded with spectating middle-aged men.
"Go for it! Buggy!"
"Don't let a girl look down on you, Buggy!"
"If you lose, you're doing the laundry for the whole ship!"
The Roger Pirates, never ones to shy away from excitement, surrounded the two, egging them on.
By now, Buggy, who hadn't even stated the terms of the duel, was in a bind.
From the moment Sakura uttered those words, the course of the entire event had slipped from Buggy's control.
'But-'
'-Retreat is not the way of a man of the sea, so go for it!'
With resolve, Buggy assumed a fighting stance.
On the railing of the sterncastle, Roger, Rayleigh, and Gaban leaned casually, observing the chaos on the deck.
"Hey, Rayleigh, Gaban, want to bet on who'll win?"
Roger held a bottle of wine, his drunken eyes looking at the two beside him.
"No."
Roger's right-hand men flatly refused their captain's proposal.
What a joke. Sakura's performance that day in the Edd War's waters had been witnessed by all.
As for Buggy... they felt he needed a few more years to grow up.
In the center of the deck, Buggy's heart sank lower and lower.
'I'm going to die, I'm really going to die.'
'This monster before me could tear the sea apart and clash with Rayleigh-san in spirit.'
But....
"But, the Great Me has a reason not to back down either!"
Buggy, trembling, let out a roar and charged fiercely at Sakura.
The boy's passionate roar reflects his resolute determination to uphold his beliefs.
The eyes of both Sakura, who was facing him, and the Gold, Silver and Bronze trio watching the battle in the stern deck lit up at the same time.
"Good, very good! I acknowledge you, Buggy!"
Sakura leveled her wooden sword, monstrous strength humming within her slender frame.
Even in her juvenile form, the pure violence contained within the Giant Royalty's physique was enough for the girl to look down upon the vast majority of people on these seas.
Now, blazing currents wrapped around the wooden sword, striking with thunderous waves.
"Divine Departure!"
A hollow form, lacking its true essence.
The swordsmanship Sakura had stolen from Roger was stripped of all its refined technique, replicated with a hint of its power through pure violence.
On the sterncastle, Roger's mouth hung open, not even noticing the liquid spilling from his bottle.
The watching members of the Roger Pirates struggled to their feet, wanting to rush in and save Buggy.
But Sakura was too fast. The few meters distance vanished in an instant, the wooden sword already arriving before Buggy.
"What just flew past?"
"Wow, a shooting star!"
"Shouldn't we go save him?"
"She's too fast, we can't make it in time."
"We didn't see anything, ask Roger."
"Buggy, take care."
"She used her full strength, did you think you'd survive?"
Crack-!
A crisp sound came from the girl's wooden sword. Unable to withstand her monstrous strength, it finally met its end.
It was this short, broken piece that caused Sakura's fatal strike towards Buggy to miss.
The storm it whipped up tore through the sky, violently washing over Buggy's face.
"Ahahaha, too bad~ it's a draw."
Sakura scratched her head, crushing the remaining half of the wooden sword in her hand.
She spread her small hands towards the members of the Roger Pirates.
Behind the girl, Buggy, completely pale, collapsed.
The red-nosed, blue-haired boy pulled down his knit cap, but tears were already streaming from the corners of his eyes.
Sakura keenly noticed Buggy's movements, pursed her lips, and looked at the others.
The uncles of the Roger Pirates collectively retreated several meters, giving her a thumbs-up from afar.
"Sigh."
With a light sigh, Sakura walked over to Buggy and extended her hand to him.
"You fought really well just now. Let's introduce ourselves again. I'm Haruno Sakura. My dream is to one day reach the summit and see all the sights the world has to offer!"
Buggy lifted his cap. Through tear-blurred eyes, he saw the sunny smile on the girl's face.
He bit his lip hard, hesitating, but finally grabbed the hand she offered.
"I'm Buggy. My dream is to obtain all the treasures in the world!"
"And remember this! Until I defeat you, you're not allowed to lose to anyone else!"
Supported by Sakura, Buggy stood up, wiping his eyes with his forearm.
Then he loudly declared his dream to Sakura.
"Ah, you guys are so sneaky, not including me!"
Shanks threw himself between the two, hanging his left arm over Buggy and his right over Sakura.
"I'm Shanks. My dream... is probably to become a pirate like Captain Roger, hehehe."
The morning sun shone on the three young people, illuminating the laughter and joy between the boy and girls.
On the sterncastle, the slightly tipsy Roger leaned on the railing, watching the scene with a brilliant smile.
"Budding sprouts... huh?"
Moved by the scene, Roger really wanted to ask the head chef for another bottle of good wine, but alas....
Boom! Kaboom!!!
A sudden cannonball shook Roger, making him tumble over the railing.
"Roger-!"
A shout accompanied by world-shaking black lightning, reverberating across the entire area.