One Piece: I, the Strongest Intern of the Roger Pirates

"Hey hey… Newgate! You can't treat young people like that. You need to show them some love and patience if you want them to grow properly!"

A muscular man in sunglasses appeared, leading a group of Marines.

Behind him lay Dragon, wounded, covered in blood, and unconscious on the ground.

"Gurararara… Zephyr! That young man, one of yours?"

Whitebeard turned to the Marine Vice Admiral Black Arm Zephyr, laughing as he spoke.

"These young men are the future of the Navy! Newgate, you should know better than anyone what the consequences of targeting the Celestial Dragons would be. Pull back! Don't make this worse than it already is!"

Zephyr stared at Whitebeard with deadly seriousness.

"Orders are orders. I can't just ignore my captain's command."

Newgate smiled lightly.

"Besides… I couldn't care less about the Celestial Dragons."

"Then I have no choice but to stop you!"

Zephyr motioned for his men to carry Dragon away.

"Forgive me, Admiral Zephyr… I lost,"

Dragon said weakly as two Marines helped him up.

"Don't give up so easily, kid! Hahaha! Go rest up—I've got this!"

Zephyr chuckled and nodded at him.

As Dragon was carried away, Zephyr rolled his wrists, then launched forward, throwing a powerful punch at Whitebeard.

Clang!

Whitebeard blocked it effortlessly with his naginata.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Even from a distance, the shockwaves of their clash made Dragon pause. He sighed in frustration.

"Commander, don't be discouraged. You were up against Edward Newgate, one of the strongest pirates alive!"

One of the soldiers tried to comfort him, thinking he was upset about the loss.

"What's the situation at the harbor?"

Dragon wasn't concerned about his defeat. He knew he was still young, and when he reached Newgate's age, he'd be stronger.

"The harbor has been overrun by pirates," the soldier answered grimly.

Dragon was silent, a wave of regret washing over him.

If he hadn't pulled out earlier, maybe the port wouldn't have fallen so easily… maybe those Marines wouldn't have died.

"What's the current situation?"

Dragon asked after a long pause.

"Hard to say. We heard another group of pirates arrived after Rocks left and also moved toward the city. Vice Admiral Garp chased after them. Vice Admiral Zephyr received orders from HQ to break through and create a safe evacuation route for the Celestial Dragons."

"I see…"

Dragon closed his eyes. He needed to rest, clear his mind for what was coming.

Meanwhile, having reached the Celestial Dragons' palace, Rocks was now facing the final resistance.

"So this is your last line of defense?"

Rocks sneered, looking down at the fallen Vice Admiral Solari, and the bloodied CP0 agent who'd once been called their "strongest asset."

"You… you bastard! Do you know who we are?! How dare you do something like this?! I'll never forgive you!"

One of the Celestial Dragons screamed at him.

"Gahaha… Still clueless about your situation, huh? John, why don't you help them understand?"

Rocks laughed darkly.

"With pleasure, Captain."

John grinned and began walking toward the Celestial Dragons, but just a few steps in, the CP0 agent on the ground grabbed his ankle.

"Oh? Still alive? Persistent bastard… but let me send you off properly."

**Squelch!

John drew his sword and ran it through the agent's chest without hesitation.

Then, turning to the once-proud Celestial Dragons—now trembling before him—he grinned with satisfaction.

"So… who was talking tough just now?"

"If you want to live, you'd better follow my orders to the letter."

Rocks said as he walked to the throne at the top of the palace and sat down.

"You… you plan to control us from behind the scenes?"

One of the Celestial Dragons turned pale in disbelief.

"Gahaha… Who says all Celestial Dragons are idiots? At least one of you gets it! In that case, things will go much smoother. But for now… why don't you take a little nap?"

Rocks burst into laughter.

After locking all the Celestial Dragons away, John approached Rocks and asked quietly:

"Captain, why haven't the others come to regroup yet?"

"Tch. I know what those fools are thinking. Right now, they're probably ransacking the city for treasure. Short-sighted vermin…"

Rocks squinted, a cold smile on his face.

"But it doesn't matter. Now that I have the Celestial Dragons, they don't matter anymore."

Just then, Wang Zhi entered the room and whispered something to Rocks.

"Oh? Looks like we have guests… well, let's go greet them."

Rocks rose with a grin.

In the city square, three factions had entered a tense standoff.

On one side was the pirate alliance that had broken into the city to free the slaves. Though they had numbers, nearly everyone was wounded and fatigued.

Opposite them were the remaining Marines—not lacking in numbers, but with all their high-ranking officers dead, only junior officers and regular soldiers remained.

But with Garp now joining them, Marine morale soared.

If nothing else changed, the Marines could still wipe out the pirates with relative ease.

The third faction was Roger's crew, the Roger Pirates.

They weren't here to fight on either side.

As Roger and Rayleigh had agreed, they supported freeing the slaves, but they didn't want a global war to erupt. The Celestial Dragons were the key to everything.

Roger was currently trying to talk both sides down, urging the pirates to retreat and the Marines not to attack.

"Roger, I respect you… But do you think I can back down now?"

The pirate alliance leader looked resolute.

"Our people are still suffering. Even if it costs us our lives, we will rescue them!"

Roger sighed, then turned to Garp.

"Garp, you know the truth—these men came to rescue slaves. They're not the real problem anymore. Rocks has already made it to the Celestial Dragons' palace. We don't even know what's happening over there."

"So what are you suggesting?"

Garp asked after a brief silence.

"Let them go. Your real enemy is Rocks, right? Don't waste soldiers here."

"That's bull—!"

Before Garp could respond, a blood-soaked Marine shouted angrily,

"These bastards caused all of this! You think you can just let them walk away?! So many of our brothers died! Vice Admiral Zephyr's already on his way—once he and Garp are here, plus you lot, none of them will—"

Thud!

An arrow landed right by his foot.

Everyone turned.

Fang Yi, standing behind Roger, had his Sun Piercer Bow drawn, a cold smile on his face.

"Hey Marine—watch your mouth when talking to our captain. Otherwise, my arrows won't be so polite next time."

Shanks, standing beside him, gave Fang Yi a thumbs-up.

In moments like these, projecting strength was everything.

Jaba turned to give Fang Yi a wide grin, clearly not upset by his bold action.

Roger then turned back to Garp.

"Even if Zephyr arrives, it won't be enough. The Rocks Pirates are too powerful. You can't beat them with numbers. All four coastal exits are under their control. The only way out is the main port—and do you think the Celestial Dragons can break through Rocks head-on?"

If this were any other Marine, they'd never agree to let the pirates go.

But this wasn't just any officer—this was Monkey D. Garp, a Vice Admiral who had long resented the Celestial Dragons.

After thinking for a moment, Garp finally said:

"Fine. Let them go."

"Vice Admiral!"

Pokato, his adjutant, rushed forward in a panic.

"Please reconsider! These pirates led the attack on God Valley! We can't let them walk away!"

"And what if we don't?"

Garp replied calmly.

"We'd just be sending our exhausted men to die for nothing. The real enemy is over there—with Rocks. Let's not waste lives. I'll take full responsibility for this decision."

His words silenced the angry murmurs.

Garp was thinking of them.

He was even willing to take the fall for them—how could they argue with that?

"Captain! Someone's coming!"

Fang Yi, using his Hawk Eye ability, spotted a group approaching from a distance.

Everyone tensed up.

If reinforcements were arriving, the delicate balance could shatter instantly.

"Gahahaha! Leave? Where to? Aren't we all partners here? Shouldn't we be enjoying the spoils of war together?"

A booming voice rang out as Rocks and his entourage approached, grinning like madmen.

"Rocks D. Xebec…"

All eyes turned to him.

Not a soul dared take him lightly.

Fang Yi swallowed hard.

This was his first time seeing the legendary pirate in person.

Even his full name was new to him—everyone had always called him "Captain Rocks."

But now he knew—

He was a D.

And perhaps... the strongest existence in the entire pirate world.