Chapter 19: Enlistment
As the navy warship gradually disappeared from view, Ross turned and walked away, carrying Mona in his arms.
Along with Sakazuki, a few of Ross's personally trained fighters had also departed. They were children who had lost their homes to pirates—former candidates for the guard unit of his three great merchant ships.
"Come on, Mona. How about Daddy takes you to play 'Ghost Explosion'?"
"Yay! Ghost Explosion!"
Mona cheered excitedly in Ross's arms, and with her cheer, a few small, visible phantoms popped up around her.
Ross recalled the explosive powers of the Ghost-Ghost Fruit from the original story and had felt Mona—this little genius with a passion for bombs—was the perfect match for it. So on her fourth birthday, he had gifted it to her.
What he hadn't expected, however, was that Mona was still too young to control its powers well. One incident had nearly resulted in Sakazuki being seriously injured from an uncontrolled outburst of her fruit's power.
Thankfully, Ross had been home at the time and managed to avert disaster. Even so, the event served as a serious wake-up call.
At present, Mona could only use the ghosts for simple detonations. The full range of abilities still needed time—and training—to develop.
With the Nasdaq family now running smoothly and no longer dependent on the gold of Sky Island to sustain its commerce, Ross figured it was time to focus on Mona's training.
As for his two sons? One was obsessed with business, and the other constantly dreamed of becoming an adventurer—neither of them gave him any peace of mind.
Mona was likely to be the true pillar of the family's future strength. Well, there was one other possible candidate, though Ross had yet to locate him. All he knew was that the boy was still trapped in a war-torn country where conflict never ceased.
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Meanwhile, aboard the warship, Sakazuki was quietly reading a book.
Thanks to Ross's relationship with Garp—and the trainees' own outstanding strength—their destination was directly the Marine Headquarters.
Since the concept of a "naval academy" didn't yet exist, these recruits would be assigned to various officers for hands-on training. Many were expected to become the backbone of the navy's future.
Especially Sakazuki—after three years of training under Ross, both his mindset and physique had evolved immensely. With his natural talent, enhanced further by Ross's nearly cheat-level training tools and meals made from Sea Kings, Sakazuki's physical strength already surpassed that of most rear admirals at HQ.
Garp had been thrilled when Ross agreed to send Sakazuki to the navy—not only because he could introduce a reliable companion to his own son, Dragon, just like he himself had with Sengoku—but also because Sakazuki would be a living bridge between the navy and the Nasdaq family.
This connection could provide a steady stream of top-tier officer candidates. And although these candidates leaned heavily toward the "hawkish" faction, Garp wasn't concerned about that—at least not for now.
Ross himself also had the potential to reach Garp's level of strength, which made Sakazuki's enlistment a huge win for the navy.
With Ross on their side, the East Blue might truly become known as "the weakest sea"—not because it lacked power, but because no pirate would dare set foot in it.
"Hey there! I'm Monkey D. Dragon. My old man said you're really strong and told me to learn from you."
On the deck, Sakazuki looked up from his book to see a teenage boy with unruly hair, a navy uniform, and a good-natured, rugged face crouching beside him. His features bore a striking resemblance to Garp.
Sakazuki nodded politely and handed over the book he'd been rereading for the hundredth time—The Final Station.
"Nice to meet you. My teacher, Ross, mentioned you before. He said you're incredibly gifted, but that Vice Admiral Garp isn't exactly the best teacher. You should read this—I've been learning from it for three years, and I'm still gaining insights."
Dragon scratched his cheek, looking embarrassed.
Saying his dad wasn't a good teacher was putting it mildly—Garp's methods bordered on child abuse! If it weren't for Aunt Tsuru and Uncle Sengoku keeping a close eye on things, Dragon might not have made it this far.
Just thinking about his childhood—scaling cliffs at five, retrieving needles from the seafloor at six, bungee jumping at seven, surviving underground at eight—made Dragon shudder.
Still, that brutal upbringing had made him one of the strongest in his age group. Even many HQ officers wouldn't be able to beat him.
Shaking off the memories, Dragon opened The Final Station, curious.
The book was well cared for—despite being flipped through over a hundred times, it had no damage beyond yellowed and softened pages. Dragon could tell how much it meant to Sakazuki, so he read it with great care.
With Aunt Tsuru handling most of his education, Dragon actually knew more than Sakazuki in terms of theory. Parts that Sakazuki had likely struggled with came easily to him.
Time passed slowly as the two read in silence.
Compared to the books in the navy library, The Final Station hit differently. It revealed truths about the world that Dragon had never encountered before.
The World Government likely hadn't completely banned the book due to its obscure writing style—and the widespread illiteracy across the seas meant it had slipped under the radar.
As Dragon closed the book and returned it to Sakazuki, he felt… heavier.
In his sixteen years, this was the first time he'd seen the world outside for what it truly was. Though only through the lens of text, it was enough to leave a lasting impact.
In the navy, the idea of "justice" was drilled into him relentlessly. He had never seen the dark side of things—only the evil pirates plaguing the seas.
His dream had always been simple: grow stronger, uphold justice, and wipe out all the wicked pirates.
But…
The Final Station didn't mention pirates at all. Yet every scene painted a picture of desolation, destruction, and despair.
Evil on the seas didn't only wear the face of pirates. Justice might be nothing more than a balancing act—a way to maintain the status quo. Just like war, which served no higher purpose beyond preserving what already existed.
Not better. Not worse.
"How did Mr. Ross teach you, Sakazuki?" Dragon suddenly asked.
Taking back the book, Sakazuki thought for a moment and quietly replied:
"Simple. He let me experience things for myself—so I could truly understand the world and figure out what I really wanted."
"Experience it yourself, huh…"
Dragon repeated the words to himself.
He realized—he hadn't truly experienced anything. Not really.
From being tormented by his father as a child, to studying under Sengoku and Tsuru, to receiving superficial naval assignments—his entire life had been lived under protection.
He'd been sheltered… far too well.