One Piece: Adopting Sakazuki and Taking Douglas Bullet as My Godson

Chapter 21: Arrival at Marineford

"Hey Sakazuki, do you think it's too late for me to ask Mr. Ross to adopt me?"

Dragon muttered in despair, eyes lifeless.

Three seconds after the words left his mouth—

BAM!

A massive fist lovingly collided with his head.

"You little brat! Your real father is standing right here!"

Garp fumed, glaring at Dragon with puffed-up cheeks. This wasn't just rebellion—this was practically cursing his own father's death!

"Yeah, well, if you gave me 200,000 Berries a month, I'd be happy to take care of you in your old age!"

Dragon grumbled, rubbing his head and glaring at Garp with no small amount of resentment.

Since he was twelve, he'd been working like a dog. Now, even with his rank of lieutenant, he only made 30,000 Berries a month—meager pay for someone doing real work. Meanwhile, Sakazuki just handed out allowances like a rich uncle.

To say he was jealous was an understatement—he was molecularly envious.

On the other side, Sakazuki had quickly gotten used to the comedic duo and ignored the squabble. Instead, he focused on carefully counting out stacks of Berries—74 in total, each containing 100,000.

That added up to 7.4 million Berries.

He waved to the fellow children of the Nasdaq family who had traveled with him, holding up one stack in his hand.

The message was clear: time to split the cash.

Moments later, amidst laughter and side-eyes from the bickering father and son, the money was distributed. Each of the 74 orphans received their share.

It looked like a bunch of pirates dividing loot—but the excitement in the air was more like kids receiving their first allowance.

Dragon stared, green with envy, while Garp had fallen asleep sitting up, a massive snot bubble growing from his nose. Tempting to pop it—but Dragon knew better. The consequences would be dire.

"Here,"

Sakazuki suddenly handed over two stacks to Dragon. He forced a smile and said:

"Just a little gesture. Consider it a gift. I think I'll need your help in the future."

"Uwaaaaah!"

Dragon burst into tears. His face scrunched up like a spider web, tears and snot flowing together.

He clutched Sakazuki's hand, both stacks of money still in it, and sobbed:

"Th-thank you, Sakazuki! My own dad has never been this nice to me!"

BAM!

Another loving blow from Garp's iron fist shut Dragon up immediately.

He turned to find his father holding a snack bag of senbei and offering it with a look that clearly said, "You want this or not?"

Dragon sighed, resigned, and placed the money back in Sakazuki's hands.

"Thanks, man. I appreciate it. But keep the money. Just buy me a meal sometime."

Sakazuki nodded, visibly impressed. "Deal."

He had a newfound respect for Dragon—someone worth getting to know better.

---

A few days later—off the coast of the Sabaody Archipelago

They had arrived.

The headquarters of the Navy: Marineford.

A massive island with four surrounding mountains and a towering central fortress.

Its sheer size was enough to overwhelm any first-time visitor.

Docked at the shore were dozens of enormous battleships, each dwarfing Ross's previous flagship. A fleet of smaller vessels surrounded them, forming a formidable ring of protection.

This was the epicenter of Justice—the architectural marvel called Marineford.

"Woah…"

Sakazuki couldn't help but gape, dragging his heavy case as they approached.

Towering giants guarded the coast. Up close, the buildings stretched endlessly into the sky, making Sakazuki wonder how they'd even been built—this wasn't some cloud sculpture made by Ross. This was real, solid stone.

"I was just as shocked the first time I came," Dragon said, patting his back. "You'll get used to it. Come on, my old man's taking the others to report in. I'll show you around."

Garp's Dog Head warship had already docked, and the Nasdaq orphans were offloaded under his command.

Sakazuki, however, was special. Like Dragon, he would be trained directly by vice admirals—maybe even admirals or the fleet admiral himself.

Because he had one thing: talent.

"Alright."

Sakazuki rarely said much, but that was enough. Dragon slung an arm over his shoulder and led him off the ship.

"Your dorm's already sorted—next to mine," Dragon said cheerily. "Oh! And our neighbor is the adopted little sister of Vice Admiral Tsuru. I'll introduce you later!"

"Vice Admiral's adopted sister? Neighbor?"

"Yeah, her name's Gion. Real weird kid. She's like seven or eight, but somehow has the vibe of a sexy twenty-something big sister. Don't ask me how—it freaks me out too."

Dragon looked pained, as if recalling a traumatic memory.

From their time together, Sakazuki had already realized Dragon had inherited some of Garp's more… expressive personality traits.

Still, was such a girl really possible? A seven-year-old with the aura of a grown woman?

Sakazuki shivered.

He tried picturing it, comparing it to the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen—a royal princess from a member nation of the World Government. But imagining that energy in a child's body gave him the creeps.

He shook his head and changed the subject.

"Alright, let's eat. My treat. You lead the way."

"Deal! The mess hall food's okay, but if you want something actually good, we'll hit up the family district tavern. Better food, and we can sneak some booze!"

Dragon was bouncing with excitement. A free meal meant he could finally splurge on the good stuff.

Sakazuki just smiled. Seeing Dragon this happy made him happy too.

This was his first real friend.

Not a sibling, not a comrade—but someone he could understand.

Ross had once said:

> "Family is about mutual understanding.

Comrades are about mutual reliance."

So what was a friend?

Sakazuki, arm around Dragon's shoulder, suddenly realized:

> "A friend is someone you have fun with."