A hot, steamy wind whipped across the water and slammed into a massive ship shaped like a flamingo.
Dark, oppressive waves pounded the hull, making the hardwood groan and creak.
One moment the ship was hurled skyward by a swell, the next it plunged into a trough, nearly swallowed whole by the sea.
Even in this god-awful sailing weather, nothing could dampen the crew's giddy relief at having survived.
"Never thought we'd actually slip away from that legendary Marine's grip," Diamante chuckled, tugging his frayed hat down over the two tattoos on his face.
"…Maybe fate's smiling on us for once," Doflamingo rasped. Thick bandages wrapped his head and chest as he lounged in the captain's chair on deck.
"Hey, hey, Doffy, where we headed now?" Trebol wheezed through a face swollen out of shape, leaning hard on his cane. Every word came out with a whistle of air.
"You guys just don't get it," a strange voice cut in, derailing the conversation completely. "Times like this call for booze and meat—a full-on party!"
Every Donquixote officer whipped around, shark-toothed grins bared, ready to tear into whoever dared interrupt their meeting.
Then they spotted the nightmare: that pink-haired girl perched on the mast, casually wiping grime off her face with a fluffy coin purse.
"You—how the hell are you on our ship?!!" the executives roared in unison.
"…What, you wanna join up, witch?" Doflamingo raised a hand and beckoned a crewman over. "Fetch the wine."
"Pass. Your whole family put together couldn't give me a decent spar. Why would I sign on just to chase a Warlord seat?"
Sakura squinted against the raindrops, voice lazy and unbothered.
She talked tough, but the reason she was here was simple: during the fight with Garp, the eternal pose hanging around her neck had shattered from the impact.
"You little punk, insulting the Young Master—you lookin' for a fight?" Pica's high-pitched voice boomed from his massive frame as he stepped in front of Doflamingo like a wall.
"Doesn't bother me. It's your ship." Up on the mast, Sakura flicked the broken pose fragments and shrugged.
"Easy, Pica. Don't ruin this beautiful bond forged in the fires of shared near-death," Doflamingo drawled.
The crewman he'd sent for booze returned, pulled a bottle of the finest stuff—meant for Celestial Dragons—and lobbed it up to the mast.
"Give it a taste. Straight from the Holy Land. And that Devil Fruit I promised? It's yours too."
Doflamingo kicked his legs up, posture all swagger, not even trying to hide the recruitment pitch.
"Oho!"
Amber liquid sloshed inside the brown bottle—looked like top-shelf stuff. Sakura's eyes lit up.
She dropped to the deck, snatched a corkscrew from some random pirate, and popped the cork with a satisfying fizz. Then she threw her head back and chugged—glug glug glug—downing the whole thing in one go.
"Young Master!" Diamante stepped forward, eyes pleading caution.
The warship that had been hauling their heaven-gold tribute got snatched back by the Marines during the escape. Only a handful of treasures and two Devil Fruits stayed safe aboard the pirate ship.
Handing over half their remaining haul? Every officer, Diamante included, felt the sting.
"No arguments. My mind's made up." Doflamingo's tone left no room for debate. He sighed inwardly at his family's short-sightedness.
What choice do I have? She could solo the entire ship. If she decides to just take it, who's gonna stop her?
"Flamingo, you've got some guts!" Sakura's Observation Haki picked up his thoughts loud and clear. She grinned and raised the empty bottle in salute.
"Fufufu…" Doflamingo cracked a wide grin, waved for his own bottle, and clinked it against hers.
In the crisp clink, both drained their drinks dry.
"Listen up, crew! We're celebrating cheating death—party time!"
"YEAH!"
With the captain's order, cheers and laughter started echoing across the pink flamingo ship.
Unlike the laid-back, anything-goes vibe on Shanks's crew, Doflamingo's ship had clear hierarchy. Crew split from crew, officers from officers—lines drawn sharp and neat.
"So? Pretty good to my family, right?" After a few rounds, Doflamingo teased, clearly still angling for recruitment.
"Nah. Ever since I left Captain Roger's ship, I haven't found another one that gets my blood pumping."
Doflamingo nearly choked on his drink. Gets your blood pumping? By your standards, even tearing through the New World wouldn't turn up many crews that'd satisfy you!
He rolled his eyes behind his shades, not even bothering to hide it.
"Whatever, enough about me. You still gunning for Warlord?" Sakura tilted her head, suddenly remembering someone eerily similar—Rocks D. Xebec. "Wanna know what I—"
Before she could finish, Doflamingo's building aura got cut short.
"What's so special about being king of a World Government affiliate country that you and that guy from forty years ago are both dead-set on it, no matter the cost?"
One sentence, and Sakura laid his entire plan bare. His heart hammered.
"How did you… right, you sailed with Roger."
Doflamingo sat up straighter, face grim.
"Precisely, I don't need an affiliate country—I need a ticket back to the Holy Land. A ticket to the next era!"
No secrecy. The man bared his ambition to Sakura without a shred of pretense.
Racketeering, arms dealing, starting wars—it all boiled down to one brutally simple goal:
Survive the coming catastrophe, whatever it takes.
"…The age of chaos is almost here. People will fight tooth and nail for the last scraps of living space. Slaughter, war, conspiracy—that's the new melody. And the Holy Land is the only safe harbor."
"So be my right hand, Sakura Haruno. With your strength and my intel, we'll seize the Empty Throne in the next era—and become gods!!!"
The man threw his head back and laughed wildly. His new feather coat snapped in the sea breeze. Arms spread wide like he could hug the whole world, his invisible Conqueror's Haki surged skyward.
"Too bad I'm not interested in ruling, Doflamingo."
The girl's frame looked fragile, but behind her loomed the phantom of a red-coated captain, eyes open, gazing down on all creation.
Between them, tiny black lightning crackled.
In that instant, they both knew: alliance was impossible. Their dreams and paths were polar opposites—enemies, now and forever.
"What a shame…"
"Hahaha, forget all that—let's drink!"