"So much food. You sure you can finish it?"
Marineford.
Inside one of the island's most exclusive restaurants.
Ozz lounged back in a leather chair, one leg crossed over the other, a menu dangling from his fingers as his eyes slid from the wall of astronomical prices to Doll, who was already putting away her first plate like a woman on a mission.
It was almost absurd. Did Marines actually eat in places like this?
Even an admiral's salary would barely cover a few plates of vegetables here. Most Headquarters officers were still people with a conscience. They were not exactly on the take.
Which meant the restaurant existed for high rollers who visited Marineford, or World Government dignitaries. No business for three years, and when it opened once, it feasted for three. A perfectly ordinary dish here ran eight figures. Only someone who had lost all sense of money, or a foolish Celestial Dragon, would order without blinking.
"What does it matter. It is not like you are hurting for cash… slurp."
Still a young woman at this point, Doll had no defenses against truly good food. Faced with a spread she could not afford in ten lifetimes, she lost all restraint.
If the rich dog was paying, she would eat him poor.
With that mindset, Doll chewed without the slightest guilt. Without noticing, the guarded edges in her heart were wearing down. When Ozz had stormed Marineford in the past, she had not even joined the Marines yet. Now he was a Celestial Dragon, half an ally by status. Yes, he still carried the label pirate, but he no longer needed to plunder to live, which meant no direct clash of duties with the Marines.
Ozz did not care about the bill.
Strictly speaking, Doll was the first Marine he had any kind of agreeable rapport with. He had contacts across every major power, but no friends inside the Marines.
A pretty, capable, sharp-tongued officer who also happened to land squarely in his aesthetic. Doll would do nicely as a first.
"But I am buying Doll dinner because she is playing tour guide. You though."
Ozz's gaze slid past her.
"Old man Garp, I never said I was treating you."
On his other side, a broad-shouldered man with a scar at the corner of his eye was demolishing a roast shank, meat juices running down his fist. The moment Ozz had invited Doll, the old man had appeared from nowhere. Once he heard Ozz was buying and that Doll had license to order anything, he glued himself to the party.
"Wahahaha. Do not be so stingy, Ozz. We are old acquaintances, are we not."
Old acquaintances.
Ozz's eyes cooled.
He could still picture that shell Garp had pitched, wrapped in Armament, and how helpless it had left him.
"Please. I am only tolerating you for Lady Rouge and Ace's sake."
"How are they doing."
Garp's face opened in an unguarded grin.
"Great. Mother and son are happy in Windmill Village. And listen. Ace is going to grow up to be an excellent Marine, just like me."
Doll, hearing names she did not recognize, glanced over, curious, then let it go.
The food itself did not impress Ozz. The shredded radish, under the microscope of his Observation Haki, was nowhere near the terrifying precision of Mihawk's knife work. Edible, barely.
"Speaking of which, where did Kuzan go."
Ozz blinked a few ice cubes into his orange juice, stirring with a thin spoon as he posed the question to Garp.
The old man knew exactly how poorly his disciple got along with Ozz. He sawed off another bite of steak and shrugged.
"How should I know."
"You do not."
Ozz looked theatrically put upon, took a sip, and tilted his head toward the ceiling.
"In that case, we split the bill."
"Pffft." ×2
"Cough, cough."
Both sides erupted in choking coughs. Doll and Garp went green.
Split the bill.
They had ordered almost everything the house could plate, some favorites in multiple rounds. Split evenly, that was billions, maybe ten billion Beli per head.
"Ah, right. Come to think of it, Kuzan did head off with Zephyr to the officer trainee camp. Ahahahaha."
Garp scratched his head and laughed with airy innocence.
Doll dabbed at her lip with a napkin and backed the lie with a huff.
"Yeah. I am at Headquarters for that training too."
As a seed officer of a new generation, Doll had come for instruction under Zephyr and the other coaches in Haki, the path to becoming core strength for the Marines. An admiral was a reach, but a future vice admiral at Headquarters, a pillar of the service, was well within sight.
"So as a Celestial Dragon, am I allowed to inspect the academy."
Doll did not mind going with him, but as a trainee she had no authority.
"I do not care either way."
Garp was more direct.
"Do not look at me. Go if you want. Just do not say I told you where Kuzan is."
When it came to throwing his disciple to the wolves, Garp never hesitated.
"Good. I hear you."
…
"Doll, have you thought about where you want to serve after."
They walked. Ozz's tone was idle, almost casual.
Doll arched a brow and actually gave it thought.
"After we learn Haki, they will assign us to different branches. Headquarters decides that."
"Come to the Sabaody Archipelago then. I have been wanting to replace a certain vice admiral who annoys me."
She narrowed her eyes, cautious again.
"You want me stationed on your turf so I will abuse authority for you. I am not doing anything against justice."
Ozz laughed, delighted.
"Justice."
"I do not need the Marines to uphold it for me. On Sabaody, no, on this entire sea."
"My words are justice."
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