By the time the sun began to set.
The setting sun cast a slanting glow, scattering shimmering golden light across the sparkling sea. In the sky, a figure covered entirely in pink scales flew in a winding, serpentine path.
Sanji had transformed into a pink dragon. The golden mane on his head swayed in the wind like waves, while Allen and his crew either stood or sat on his back.
Nami looked down at the Log Pose to confirm, saying, "The direction is correct. If we maintain this speed, we'll reach Dressrosa tonight, assuming we don't run into any severe weather."
The weather at sea was extremely volatile, and since this was a long-distance flight, Sanji needed to conserve his stamina to deal with any sudden emergencies.
Therefore, his flying speed was a bit slower than the Sea Train, but even so, it was still many times faster than sailing a ship on the sea.
Doffy had mentioned earlier that the Straw Hat Crew was expected to arrive tomorrow. Barring any accidents, they would easily catch up, so there was no need to rush.
Meanwhile, as Allen and his group headed toward Dressrosa, on the other side, aboard the *Freewill* which had just sailed out of the Rainbow Kingdom.
Inside the third-floor medical bay, Kid woke up in a hospital bed. He slowly opened his eyes, his blurry vision gradually coming into focus.
Bright incandescent lights shone from the ceiling, various precision instruments crowded the bedside counter, and multiple IV tubes were connected to his body.
"Is this... a hospital...?"
Kid muttered groggily. After looking around at his surroundings, he tried to sit up, but his body was completely devoid of strength.
"You're awake."
Just then, a fair-skinned man wearing glasses, a surgical mask, and a blue headcap walked over.
"I am the captain of the Demon Lion Pirates' medical team. You can call me Doctor Erwin."
"Just lie down and rest. After all, you still have one foot in the grave."
Erwin said in a low voice as he approached the instrument console by the bed and began operating it.
"Is this... that bastard's ship...?"
Kid voiced out weakly.
Erwin didn't turn around, focusing intently on the instruments as he replied, "That bastard? Are you referring to the man who spared your life twice, fished you out of the sea when you were critically injured and on the verge of death, and then spent a massive amount of medical resources to treat you?"
"Yes, this is his ship."
Erwin turned back around, bent down, and used his thumb and index finger to prop open Kid's eyelids, shining a penlight to observe his pupils.
"As expected, you're just like the Governor-General—able to rapidly absorb nutrients to heal your injuries. Having absorbed the concentrated nutrient solution from the IV, you are no longer in any serious danger."
"Sometimes I really have to sigh. If everyone in the world had a monster-like constitution like you guys, the entire medical field would probably switch careers to become chefs."
Erwin let go, turned off the penlight, straightened his posture, and said to Kid, "But you're not quite ready to be discharged yet. I'll go notify Killer to come over. Is there anyone else you want to see?"
Kid didn't answer. Instead, he stared at the ceiling and asked, "Why? I clearly attacked you all. Why go through so much trouble to save me?"
"I don't know what the Governor-General is thinking, but as for me," Erwin said calmly, "Because I am a doctor. Saving people is my innate duty."
"Heh, you're quite the professional."
Kid chuckled disdainfully.
Erwin, however, shook his head and said, "Not necessarily. I was lost for a very long time. Fortunately, someone planted the seed of a cherry blossom in my heart."
"Although it took a lot of time, I eventually found the right path again, following the blooming, dancing cherry blossoms."
Erwin smiled in relief, turned around, and walked toward the door.
A short while later, Killer appeared at the door of the medical bay.
Behind him were Heat, Wire, Pappas, Hippo, Gig...
Over a dozen people crowded the doorway, all scrambling to rush inside.
"Are you okay, Kid?!"
"Wuu wuu wuu! Thank goodness, I thought you were going to die, Kid!"
"Stop crying, you idiot!"
"I knew he'd be fine. It's not like you guys don't know how tough the captain's life is."
"You guys are so damn noisy. Can you all just shut your mouths?"
Kid cursed in a low, impatient voice. Even though his voice was very weak, the look of disgust on his face hadn't diminished in the slightest.
Killer was the first to walk through the door, coming over to sit on the chair by the bed.
"Long time no see, Kid. I knew you would come sooner or later."
"Tch."
Kid scoffed, turned his face away, and said impatiently, "This isn't what I wanted. I envisioned trampling that bastard under my feet and then taking you back."
"Is that so? That's quite a big difference indeed," Killer chuckled and sighed.
Kid immediately glared at him indignantly and reached out to grab Killer's collar.
"Hey! You bastard...!"
"Forget it. You're not wrong anyway. Suffering a crushing defeat and then being saved while lying in the enemy's medical bay... looking like this, I have no right to talk big."
Kid said with a displeased expression. He let go, lay back down, and stared at the ceiling, falling into silence.
The room suddenly went quiet.
After a moment, Killer suddenly spoke up, "Kid, are you going to stay?"
Kid shifted his gaze slightly to glance at him. "What, do you want me to?"
"Not exactly. I'll respect whatever you choose." Killer shook his head and continued, "It's just that if you want to leave, I can help you. Right now, Allen and most of the executives are away. If you're going to leave, this is your only chance."
"Really, Killer?!"
"That's great! This way we can all escape together!"
"No! Maybe we can coordinate from the inside and outside. We might even be able to take them all down while we're at it!"
Upon hearing that Allen and the others were away, the members of the Kid Pirates immediately grew excited.
However, Killer shook his head and said, "If you do that, you'll all die here. When I said leave, I meant only you guys."
"..."
"Hey Killer, aren't you coming with us?"
Hearing this, Heat and the others frowned, their faces filled with confusion.
"If he comes back and finds out you let us go, wouldn't you...?"
"That would be the punishment I deserve as a traitor. Those are the rules of the ship," Killer said calmly.
Kid didn't speak, remaining completely silent.
Two years ago, Allen had taken Killer away and left behind a promise, waiting for Kid to challenge him at any time. If Kid won, he could take Killer back; if he lost, he and his crew would stay.
Although he hadn't directly agreed to this promise, he had still come, and as a result, he had lost.
Kid didn't care at all whether Allen took his life or not. What he cared about was failing to fulfill his promise to Killer.
If he were to take the others and leave now, how would that be any different from abandoning Killer?
"I'm not leaving either. At least, I won't leave by relying on your help."
Kid suddenly spoke up, his tone resolute. "I've made my decision. I'm staying!"
"Kid!"
"..."
"Are you really going to submit to the Demon Lion Pirates?"
Everyone was in disbelief upon hearing this.
As for joining the Demon Lion crew, they themselves didn't really mind. After all, Allen was indeed absurdly strong, and his faction was incredibly massive.
The weak attaching themselves to the strong was the rule of the world.
But Kid was different. Kid was born with the aptitude to become a powerhouse. They couldn't imagine what it would look like for Kid to yield to someone else.
"How could I possibly submit to anyone? I only said I'm staying. I never said I was going to bow down to that bastard."
Kid wore a look of disdain, his eyes filled with indignation, as he said, "Unless I die, I will keep challenging him until I beat that bastard into the ground and take all of you away!"
Meanwhile, far above the open sea, the pink dragon cut steadily through the deepening night.
Hours had passed since sunset. The sea below had turned black, broken only by the occasional white crest of a wave. The crew rode in near silence on Sanji's broad back, the wind pulling at hair and coats.
It was Nami who spotted it first.
On the horizon ahead, a faint orange glow pulsed against the dark sky — not the soft light of a harbor, but the harsh, restless glare of something burning. And it was growing.
"Allen."
She didn't need to say more. He was already looking.
Dressrosa was on fire.
"Full speed," Allen said quietly.
Without a word, Sanji dipped his great head and surged forward, wings cutting the night air. The orange on the horizon swelled brighter with every passing second.