"Get them!" Beckman raised his pistol and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
Sparks flew from the muzzle. The Haki-coated bullet flew toward the group behind Sakura.
With that gunshot as a signal, several executives of the Red Hair Pirates led their men in an attack on Sato Sakura and the others.
"Rob them blind!"
Clang!
Sato Sakura raised her arm and entered her hybrid state. Scales, combined with metal armor and Haki, formed an incredibly powerful defense, deflecting Beckman's bullet.
Though a small dent was left on her arm guard. She then charged into the crowd and instantly transformed into a giant hundreds of meters tall, releasing a roar filled with Conqueror's Haki at the enemies below.
Her fierce charge and will inspired many, driving the members of her own crew to fight with high morale.
The two groups met at the center of the beach. Flames, explosions, and sword light filled the entire western side of the island.
The island's residents endured five days of roaring sounds until the sixth day, when things gradually quieted down.
"Oh, the last brat is awake!"
When Ace opened his eyes again on the stretcher, he saw the Red Hair Pirates' ship doctor, Hongo, packing up his medical kit.
"Oh right, your captain wanted me to tell you." Hongo showed a wicked grin. "The surgery was a success. You're a girl now!"
"!!!"
The black-haired, freckled boy's face contorted in visible shock. He struggled to grab at his crotch.
"Ugh!"
"Hahahaha!"
Hongo left laughing, quietly plotting how to use this trick on Shanks.
"Ace, you're awake! I was so worried about you!" The white-haired Yamato pushed through the crowd with great effort, ready to lunge at Ace.
But the giant Sato Sakura grabbed Yamato's two-and-a-half-meter tall body and pulled her back. "He's injured. Lunging at him like that will make it worse."
"Huh? We only fought for five days. How could he be seriously hurt?" Yamato, held in Sato Sakura's grip, tilted her head in confusion.
Ace and the Red Hair Pirates' members she had beaten all rolled their eyes.
'Sorry for not being Zoan users with ridiculously long health bars and recovery!'
Not far away on the beach, members of the Spade Pirates were talking with the new recruits of the Red Hair Pirates. Some were even exchanging treasure and food. The atmosphere of the entire site was as lively as a large exchange meeting.
"What the hell? Was I unconscious for a month?"
Listening to the pirates' laughter, singing, and dancing, smelling the fragrance of fine wine and food in the air,
the boy felt as if someone had suddenly pressed the fast-forward button on the world, and he seemed to have fallen out of step with the times.
Sakura and Shanks, who had fought for a full five days, sat on the small mound they had created, drinking.
"Those young people are your crew's new recruits? They all look pretty talented." Shanks held his cup and drank heartily the fine wine Sakura had produced with her ninjutsu.
Under the boost of her half-completed Sage Mode, the wine she now made with Wood Release contained a trace of Natural Energy, which could nourish the body and heal old wounds to a certain extent.
A man like Shanks, who fought and held parties at sea every day, discovered its effects the moment he tasted it, and was now guzzling it down.
As a fellow Emperor, he couldn't bring himself to just ask for it directly. But carrying it away in his stomach? He had no qualms about that whatsoever.
"Hahaha, what's wrong? Jealous?" Sakura laughed, raising her cup to clink against his.
"Of course I'm jealous, and also..." Shanks's gaze swept meaningfully over the young people below.
'Three Conqueror's Haki users. The white-haired oni girl was apparently Kaido's daughter. A black-haired brat looked somewhat familiar. And finally, that giant who looked exactly like Sakura...'
"Who's the father of that child?" Shanks shot Sakura a resentful look.
They were all adults, after all, sailing the seas in pursuit of freedom, unconstrained scum and villains. Generally speaking, there was no shame in exploring diversity!
But...
—She was a giant!
"Don't use your dirty mind to judge me!"
Sakura ignored his resentful gaze and stared at Shanks's missing arm. "Sato Sakura is a clone created by the World Government. She was originally a member of the God's Blade. That name shouldn't be unfamiliar to you, right?"
"Yeah, you already know. Did Gaban-san or Rayleigh-san tell you?" Shanks didn't mind. He put down his cup and held his empty sleeve with his remaining hand.
"I have my own sources of information. I've been enemies with the World Government for this long. It's not like I know nothing about them, right?" Sakura formed a hand sign.
A small vine grew from the ground. Its tip blossomed and stretched into the empty sake barrels. Fragrant honey sake flowed, filling four or five large barrels in an instant.
"Anyway, let's not talk about that." Seeing the conversation turning toward a topic he disliked, Shanks shook his head and dropped it. "Speaking of which, among your three new recruits, that black-haired kid is still a bit lacking."
"Lacking? Not at all. Haven't you seen his bounty? His name is Ace. Portgas D. Ace!" Sakura pointed to the sword at Ace's waist.
Shanks looked at the blade and his scarred eyes widened for a moment. He couldn't help but whisper, "Ca..."
"Shh, you know it. That's enough!" Sakura grabbed a cup and stuffed it in his mouth.
Down below, in the lively gathering, someone was the first to call for a party.
Then, members of the two pirate crews worked together to set up several rows of simple stoves. The great chef, Lucky Roux led the new recruits to trade treasure with the locals for various seasonings and began cooking on the spot.
Beckman walked toward the icy-cold, emotionless girl Sato Sakura with his sake, smiling as he raised his cup. "How about a drink?"
"Sure." She raised her cup without a flicker of emotion, and then the glint at the corner of the giant girl's eye became Beckman's last memory.
Yamato, meanwhile, weaved through the gaps in the crowd like a street urchin. Many hot-blooded pirates saw her innocent and carefree look and raised their cups, wanting to go drink with her.
They thought they were in for a wonderful encounter, but what they didn't know was... she was genuinely the Child of Oni!
"Hahaha, next!" Yamato slammed her cup grandly onto the ground. Behind her, dozens of Red Hair Pirates' crew members lay sprawled in all directions.
"All of them can drink like that? Thank you for taking care of my crew!" Shanks's voice suddenly sounded behind Yamato, a smile of an adult about to bully a child on his face.
"When did you—?" Yamato's pupils contracted. Her beastly instincts sensed the danger of the man before her.
"Hey hey, come at me if you've got the guts. Picking on young people is no skill." Sakura followed behind Shanks and landed lightly in the gathering.
"Hmph, speaking of which, our last drinking contest was never decided!" Shanks raised his cup high, rallying the Red Hair Pirates members. "Come on, boys! Today, we'll beat them!"
"Ha, you sure talk big, Shanks. The last time, your whole ship couldn't outdrink me! You think you can beat us today?" Sakura crossed her arms, rallying her own crew members and summoning Katsuyu. "Come on! Today, let's teach this bastard a lesson!"
The members of the two Pirate King's crews burst into laughter, grabbing cups and filling them with fine sake.
"Ooh!" x n