"…When I become the greatest pirate in the world, I'll definitely come back to see you! And when I do, I'm going to make up for missing the wedding by eating the biggest wedding cake you can find!
"So make sure you two are happy!"
Listening to Luffy's message, both Shanks and Makino burst out laughing.
That passionate, straightforward way of saying exactly what was on his mind really was just like him.
"Looks like Luffy hasn't changed at all," Makino said with a fond smile.
"Well, if he changed too much, he wouldn't be Luffy anymore."
Sabo stepped forward as he spoke, slinging an arm around Cain's shoulders and standing beside the statues of Luffy and Ace.
Then he smiled toward Makino.
"It might be a little late to say this now, but I think there's still time."
"Big Sis Makino… thank you. Really. Thank you for everything you've done for us all these years."
"Since Luffy and Ace couldn't be here today, Cain and I will congratulate you on their behalf too."
"Congratulations on your wedding, Big Sis Makino!"
Cain turned toward Sabo with a helpless look.
'You already said everything! What the hell am I supposed to add now?'
After struggling for several seconds, he finally muttered,
"…Yeah. Same from me."
"I'm the one who should be thanking all of you."
Makino covered her mouth, tears gathering in her eyes.
"You prepared this entire place, brought everyone together, and quietly did so much for Shanks and me…"
"I honestly don't know how I'm supposed to repay you."
"We… uh…"
Cain and Sabo suddenly found themselves at a loss for words.
Still, warmth spread through both their chests.
The atmosphere had just reached its most heartfelt moment—
when an enormous wail shattered it completely.
"WAAAAAAAH! THESE DAMN BRATS! THEY FINALLY… THEY FINALLY GREW UP!"
Dadan was bawling her eyes out while wiping her face with a handkerchief.
Mayor Woop Slap stood behind her desperately pulling on the hem of her clothes, looking thoroughly exasperated.
"Why did you have to start crying now?!"
"We still need your help with the ceremony! At least pull yourself together for a little while!"
Unfortunately, the tiny mayor had absolutely no chance of restraining Dadan.
She broke free, charged forward, and wrapped both Cain and Sabo in a crushing hug.
At the same time, she somehow kept a death grip on the statues of Ace and Luffy as well.
Then she started crying even harder.
Sabo was nearly squeezed breathless.
He exchanged a helpless look with Cain.
Yet beneath that helplessness was unmistakable affection.
Both of them reached up and gently patted Dadan on the back.
"Dadan…"
Sabo softened his voice.
"This might not be the perfect time for it, but we should be thanking you too."
"If you hadn't taken us in back then, none of us would be who we are today."
Cain nodded firmly.
"Yeah."
"To us, you've always been like a mother."
"We know you're always calling us rotten brats, but you care about us more than almost anyone."
"You're one of the most important members of our family."
His expression softened.
"And we owe you one thing we probably should've said a long time ago."
"Mom."
"WAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"
Dadan's crying somehow became even louder.
Mayor Woop Slap nearly jumped out of his shoes in frustration.
"All right! Enough!"
"At this rate, we'll never get the wedding started!"
"It's almost time! Pull yourselves together and get ready!"
…
In the end, Dadan managed to calm herself down.
After giving Cain and Sabo several more tearful reminders, she finally turned her attention toward helping organize the ceremony.
Mechanisms beneath the stage slowly activated.
Flowers rose into place.
Lights came on one after another.
Soft background music filled the venue.
Every detail had been arranged to create a warm, romantic atmosphere.
A massive wedding cake slowly rose from the center of the stage beneath a crystal-clear glass cover, with Bella carefully maintaining its freshness through her freezing ability.
Even an elaborate champagne tower emerged with the gentle hum of machinery, rows of glasses stacked perfectly and waiting for the bride and groom to fill them together.
"My, my."
Shakky looked around at the assembled guests and beautifully decorated venue.
"You really did prepare everything thoroughly."
"Of course."
Cain folded his arms and looked toward the ceremony area.
"We put a lot of work into making sure nothing could go wrong."
"Exactly."
Uta raised one finger.
"Take the officiant, for example."
"I specifically invited the most serious and reliable person I know."
She sounded so confident that Cain blinked.
"Huh?"
"Uta, you already found someone?"
Uta looked at him.
"Wait… Cain, don't tell me you…"
"Uh…"
Cain paused.
"Yeah. I invited someone too."
"A very experienced vice captain!"
"Oh."
Uta relaxed.
"Then we probably invited the same person. Nothing to worry about."
Shakky raised an eyebrow.
For some reason, she had a strong feeling that the two "vice captains" they were talking about were absolutely not the same person.
…
A little while later, Shanks stood waiting at the altar for Dadan to escort Makino toward him.
Then, from the corner of his eye, he happened to glance backstage.
His own vice captain…
and the vice captain of the Roger Pirates…
were wrestling each other.
And thus began the strangest battle of vice captains imaginable.
"Why the hell should you officiate Shanks' wedding?"
Rayleigh grabbed Beckman's wrist.
"If anyone should do it, it should be an old senior like me!"
"He's my captain too."
Beckman twisted Rayleigh's arm in return.
"As an elder, you should sit down and enjoy the ceremony."
"Leave the officiating to me."
"What are you talking about?"
Rayleigh refused to back down.
"I spent the entire night memorizing my speech!"
"You think I'm giving up now?"
"One night?"
Beckman scoffed.
"I've been memorizing mine for a full week."
Their mouths kept arguing.
Their hands never stopped either.
Rayleigh locked Beckman's wrist.
Beckman reversed the hold.
The two began quietly wrestling for control in the cramped backstage area.
"Look at you."
Beckman sounded almost smug.
"You can barely keep your footing, and you still think you should be standing onstage?"
"I was going easy on you!"
Rayleigh snapped.
"Again!"
"All those old bastards behind me have been waiting years to see Shanks get married."
"How could I possibly not go up there and say a few words?"
"A few words?"
Beckman stared at him.
"You wrote six damn pages."
"How long were you planning to talk?"
"What's wrong with six pages?"
Rayleigh protested.
"I already cut a lot!"
"Don't underestimate the bonds of the Roger Pirates!"
"You think you're the only ones with bonds?"
Beckman calmly reached into his coat.
Then he pulled out—
ten pages.
He waved them directly in Rayleigh's face.
"Don't underestimate the bonds of the Red Hair Pirates either."
The argument remained backstage.
But anyone with halfway decent Observation Haki could sense exactly what was happening.
Cain and Sabo, in particular, wore extremely complicated expressions.
Neither knew whether to laugh or cry.
In the end, Mayor Woop Slap marched over, smacked both men on the head, and made the decision himself.
He would officiate.
Rayleigh and Beckman looked at the tiny mayor's completely uncompromising expression.
Then both swallowed whatever they had been about to say.
After all—
the mayor was from Makino's side of the family.
Neither of them could really argue with that.
So they surrendered the officiating duties.
At least officially.
The longing in both their eyes made it obvious that neither had truly given up on the position.
Which resulted in a truly ridiculous scene.
Rayleigh stood on the mayor's left.
Beckman stood on his right.
Taking advantage of their height, the two practically carried the tiny old man between them as all three marched onto the officiating platform together.
And with that—
the ceremony officially began.
Cain watched from below, his mouth twitching.
"This is definitely going to be the most unforgettable wedding of Shanks' life."
He genuinely hadn't expected that he and Uta had both arranged an officiant…
without ever bothering to compare notes.
…
"I do."
"I do."
The two answers came one after another, clear and without hesitation.
Mayor Woop Slap nodded.
Then he gestured for Rayleigh and Beckman to move him slightly backward so the front of the platform was clear.
His voice rang across the venue.
"The bride and groom may now exchange rings."
Shanks froze.
'Rings?'
He hadn't prepared any!
Just as panic started creeping onto his face, Beckman silently sighed.
'It's a wedding, not a proposal.'
'You don't need to provide the rings yourself, idiot.'
Sure enough, Bella was already approaching.
A flower had been tucked into her hair, and she was serving as the flower girl, carefully carrying a small ring box in both hands.
Shanks opened it.
Inside was a matching pair of rings decorated with magnolia motifs.
Magnolias symbolized a noble soul.
Cain had chosen the design himself.
Shanks carefully picked up the smaller ring.
Makino extended her hand.
He gently supported her fingers and slowly slid the ring into place.
It fit perfectly at the base of her finger.
Makino lowered her eyes and admired it for a moment.
Then she looked up and smiled at him.
Next, she took the other ring from Bella.
Holding Shanks' hand carefully in both of hers, she slipped it onto his finger and pushed it gently into place.
Then she pressed her palm over his hand for a moment.
Shanks looked down at the ring.
His smile refused to leave his face.
Applause filled the audience.
Mayor Woop Slap smiled and raised his voice.
"Good!"
"From this moment forward, you are husband and wife!"
Rayleigh and Beckman immediately shouted together,
"THE GROOM MAY KISS THE BRIDE!"
The entire venue erupted into cheers.
Shanks slowly leaned toward Makino.
Both of their faces were slightly red, smiles still lingering on their lips as they closed the final distance.
And kissed.