The Devil Fruit—Paramecia Type: Heat Fruit.
A fruit that granted Sakura Haruno the ability to freely manipulate the heat of objects.
From now on, Sakura could proudly declare herself the "Heat Human" who ate the Heat Fruit.
"What an incredible power. Too bad you just got it and haven't fully developed it yet," Roger remarked.
In Sakura's hand, a rock melted instantly under her ability, turning into a pool of molten lava. Then, she drained its heat, transforming it into glossy, shimmering obsidian.
The poor rock was like Tom the Cat, toyed with mercilessly by the girl.
"Add heat, and it's Red Hand. Drain heat, and it's Blue Hand. From now on, this move's called Red-Blue Hand!" Sakura announced, her tone shifting as she stuck out her tongue, playing cute for the Roger Pirates.
"Take your move names seriously!" Jabba barked, delivering a light chop to her head.
"Exactly! If you shout something like that in a fight, you'll lose all your intimidation factor," Rayleigh added, nodding sagely.
"Hmph, Uncle Rayleigh, you never shout move names in battle, so you've got no room to talk!" Sakura shot back, pulling an Anya-style goofy face and waving her hand dismissively.
"If you got beaten by a move like that, it'd be the laughingstock of the seas," she teased, her devilish grin haunting the crew.
Never forget: while flashy move names are a dime a dozen, no one could survive the shame of being defeated by "Pink Bunny Blast."
"Hey, crew! We've got our new heading!" Roger called out, bursting onto the deck with a translated copy of the Poneglyph in hand.
The crew swarmed him like he was their savior.
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In the end, Roger banned Sakura from using such ridiculous move names on her crewmates.
The Poneglyph rubbing from Waken Island revealed the locations of the final two red Road Poneglyphs. Sakura followed Roger's crew first to Wano Country, where they returned Kozuki Toki and her two children to Kuri and copied the Road Poneglyph. Then, they sailed to the furry dukedom of Zou.
After securing the final Road Poneglyph, the Oro Jackson set course for its ultimate destination—the Final Island.
On the deck, Buggy, buzzing with excitement, suddenly turned red and collapsed.
"You're getting sick right before the big adventure? What are you, a kid?" Shanks teased, leaning against the door of the medical bay.
"Ho ho, maybe it's the bad luck of getting too close to the treasure," Sakura quipped, placing a basket of fruit by Buggy's bedside.
She casually grabbed an apple from it and took a bite.
"Shut up, you gorilla! I'm fine now!" Buggy snapped.
"Oh?" Sakura's eyes glinted dangerously as she grabbed a blanket and rope, tying Buggy up tightly.
In the process, she accidentally snapped his body in two.
"When did you eat a Devil Fruit?!" Sakura exclaimed, startled by his transformation.
Buggy, now free, ignored her and launched his upper half at Roger's leg, clinging to it. "Captain, take me with you! I don't wanna be the gorilla's unlucky punching bag!"
"No way!" Sakura grabbed Buggy's head, yanking him off Roger and stuffing him back into the blanket, sealing it at his neck.
After the commotion, night fell.
Shanks took an ice pack Sakura made and placed it on the still-grumbling Buggy's forehead.
"With Buggy acting like this, are you two sure it's okay to miss the trip, Red-Hair, Sakura?" Oden asked, arms crossed, as Roger watched them.
"Mr. Oden, Captain, if we go, we'll take our own ship," Shanks replied, donning Roger's straw hat with a grin. "And I'll make Sakura my vice-captain!"
"In your dreams!" Sakura flicked Shanks to the ground and stole his chair. "Conquer the seas, temper your spirit, and turn it all into fuel for your will."
"Only by walking the whole journey yourself can your Conqueror's Haki reach the captain's level, right?"
She turned to Roger with a smile.
"Then it's all up to you, Sakura, Shanks!" Roger said, ruffling their heads. "Oh, and Shanks, winning over our Sakura won't be easy, so you'd better step up!"
"I'll try my best," Shanks replied.
"Captain! And you, Shanks, you jerk!" Sakura yelled.
"Hahahaha!"
That night, the ship rang with laughter, and Shanks sported bruises for quite a while.
At dawn, Sakura, Shanks, and Buggy disembarked in the North Blue. Under the sunrise, Sakura watched the pirates cross the Calm Belt toward the legendary Final Island.
---
A week later.
"Sakura, look!" Shanks burst into the inn, slapping a newspaper on the table.
"Circumnavigating the World: Pirate King Gold Roger…"
Sakura read the headline in the World Economy News and burst out laughing.
"What's so funny?" Shanks asked, scratching his head, confused by the pink-haired girl.
"You grew up on the ship and didn't know the captain's real name?" Sakura teased.
"Gol D. Roger!" Shanks gasped.
"Yeah, isn't it hilarious that the World Government's scared of a name?" Sakura laughed, slapping the table, though her mirth hid the tears in her eyes.
The journey to the Final Island was over, and Roger's life was now on a countdown.
"It's like a dream," Sakura sighed, starting to pack her things.
"Huh? What are you guys talking about?" Buggy asked, emerging from the bathroom, clueless.
Soon, he understood why Sakura was packing. That afternoon, as news birds swarmed the port, the Oro Jackson cut through the waves and docked.
After picking up Sakura, Shanks, and Buggy, it hurriedly left the North Blue.
Roger, now the talk of the seas, had earned a legendary title: Pirate King.
Countless pirates set out to defeat him, craving his wealth, fame, and power, aiming to become the next ruler of the seas. The Marines and World Government's agents mobilized to hunt down the man who'd touched the forbidden.
One sunset afternoon, Roger gathered his entire crew.
"Looking back, it's all been a miracle. A guy like me, who wasn't supposed to live long, made it this far thanks to all of you," Roger said, his gaze sweeping over the crew before settling on Sakura.
"Now, my final captain's order!"
"The Roger Pirates are disbanded!"
With a relieved smile, Roger let go of the vast empire he'd built. Sakura felt the immense weight of his presence—forged by sailing the entire world, far beyond the narrow vision of ordinary men. How many could pick up everything and then let it go so easily, despite being near death?
"No, Captain, don't!"
"Roger, you idiot!"
"Wahhh…"
The crew scrambled, some pleading, others trying to change his mind, but none could sway him.
"Heh, let's find a place with no Marines. I'll be the first to disembark!" Roger suggested with a laugh, this time without his captain's authority.
The Oro Jackson sailed to the South Blue and docked. The crew stood at the ship's edge, tears streaming as they watched Roger walk toward the distant town.
Suddenly, a figure broke from the crowd, rushing toward Roger.
Thud!
Roger opened his arms, catching Sakura, and spoke with a helpless tone. "Come on, didn't we agree on a manly goodbye? No need to see me off."
"Who cares? I'm a girl!" Sakura retorted.
In her two years with the Roger Pirates, she'd fought and laughed alongside Roger, tasted the pain of losing comrades, and cherished the joy of the journey's sights. The Roger Pirates were her second family.
And now, that family was breaking apart.
An overwhelming sadness welled up, a heavy sense of loss gripping her heart.
"Jeez, I chose this way because I couldn't say goodbye properly," Roger muttered, gently patting her head as her tears soaked his shirt.
He untied his legendary sword, Ace—one of the twenty-one Supreme Grade blades—and, before Sakura could react, used it to swap places with her.
"Thanks, kid from another world. Thanks for being my crewmate!"
The sea breeze lifted the Pirate King's hat, revealing a gaunt face ravaged by illness. Yet his bold, unwavering smile never faltered.
Roger raised his fist, turning away without a hint of regret, leaving everyone with a dashing silhouette.
"Goodbye, Captain Roger!" Sakura called, clutching the sword tightly.
Wiping her tears, she turned and walked back to the Oro Jackson.