Chapter 50 – The Flag
Ron stood in the coral forest with Neptune.
"What are you doing here?" Neptune asked, still confused about why Ron had come here.
"Well, I wanna stretch a li—"
Before Ron could finish, Neptune turned red in anger.
"Absolutely not! Who knows what your 'stretching a little' will do to Fish-Man Island? Just that Haki burst a week ago was enough!"
Neptune glared angrily at Ron.
Even with his kind nature, he couldn't help but feel angry because of Ron. He had been scolded by his father because of him.
Later, he had to run all over Fish-Man Island calming the panicked citizens.
And this bastard was just eating and resting.
"Well, you are no fun, Neptune," Ron said awkwardly.
That Haki blast wasn't intentional.
"Well, anyways, if I can't stretch, let's go and design an awesome flag for my pirate crew."
Ron's eyes sparkled.
Neptune nodded.
"Now that you're up, you'll need a ship, a crew, and a flag."
Ron nodded.
"I already got the ship and crew. Now I need a flag."
Neptune was surprised.
"Ooh, you got a ship ready?"
Ron grinned.
"Of course I have a ship in mind."
"Well, looks like I underestimated you, Ron," Neptune said.
Ron raised his head proudly, clearly pleased.
As they walked toward a painter's shop, Neptune pointed ahead.
"Meet him. He's one of the best painters on Fish-Man Island. His name is Blue."
Ron looked at the merman standing before him.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Ron, Ragnar D. Ron."
Blue was covered in sweat.
Why is Prince Neptune and the Chaos Emperor in front of my store?
Shaking away the thought, he shakily walked forward.
"P-Prince Nep-Neptune... L-Lord Ron... w-what can I do for you?"
His legs were trembling.
"Bwahahaha! Don't be afraid. I'm just here to commission a pirate flag."
Ron patted the terrified merman on the shoulder.
"T-This?"
Blue was completely dumbfounded.
Why was the Chaos Emperor asking him to create a flag?
What if he didn't like it?
Would he get angry and kill him?
His thoughts spiraled out of control.
But refusing outright might get him killed too.
After thinking for a while, he finally nodded.
"F-Fine. I-I will create a flag for you."
After saying that, he picked up his brushes.
The moment he touched them, all his fear vanished.
His eyes became focused.
Ron blinked.
"Oh, he got quite the focus for his art."
Neptune nodded.
"He is one of the best painters on Fish-Man Island after all."
Blue began drawing.
One design.
Discarded.
Another.
Discarded.
A third.
Discarded.
Hours passed.
The pile beside him continued growing.
Ron and Neptune simply sat there waiting.
Their excitement slowly vanished.
Ron's mouth twitched.
"Oi... you sure he's a good painter?"
He looked at the mountain of discarded paintings.
Neptune scratched his head awkwardly.
"Well... that's just how artists are."
Ron sighed.
Not like he had anything else to do.
So he waited.
And waited.
And waited.
As time passed, both Ron and Neptune became completely dumbfounded.
"Oi, you've gotta be kidding me!"
Ron stared outside.
"It's already night!"
"We've been waiting an entire day?!"
His patience was rapidly disappearing.
Still, he took a deep breath.
"Let's just hope he made something worthwhile."
Finally—
Blue stepped back.
A satisfied smile appeared on his face.
"Lord Ron. Prince Neptune. The flag is done."
"What do you think?"
Ron and Neptune, who had somehow fallen asleep while waiting, woke up.
"Huh?"
"What happened?"
"What flag?"
Both stared blankly for a moment before remembering.
Ron shook his head and looked toward the painting.
Then—
His eyes lit up.
"Perfect!"
"I love it!"
Neptune nodded.
"That's actually a really good flag."
The flag showed a terrifying skull with massive black horns.
Orange-gold flames surrounded the skull like a blazing halo.
The eye sockets burned with fire.
A flame symbol was engraved on the forehead.
Behind the skull rested two crossed bones engulfed in flames.
The background was a dark black pirate flag, appearing scorched and battle-worn.
The flames seemed alive, as if they were constantly moving.
The entire design radiated destruction, dominance, and overwhelming presence.
It perfectly matched Ron.
Ron laughed loudly.
"BWAHAHAHAHA!"
"This is it!"
"This is my flag!"
He immediately threw a large sack toward Blue.
Blue caught it.
Then froze.
Inside were fifty million berries.
"This...?!"
Blue's entire body trembled.
They had never even discussed payment.
He had expected to work for free.
Yet Ron casually handed him fifty million berries.
His eyes became hazy.
"T-Thank you, Lord Ron!"
Ron waved casually.
"Blue, paint it on my ship."
Blue saluted instantly.
"Leave it to me!"
Neptune turned toward Ron.
"But where is your ship?"
"Don't you need to bring it here from the New World?"
Ron looked confused.
"Huh?"
"What are you talking about?"
"My ship is already on Fish-Man Island."
Neptune blinked.
"What?"
"How do I not know that?"
Ron grinned.
"Of course you know it."
"The Ship of Promise."
"Noah."
"Oh, you mean Noah. Hahaha, of course I know—"
Neptune froze.
His eyes nearly popped out.
"WHAT?!"
"Hey! That's not your ship!"
"Well, it is now."
Ron shrugged.
"It's big."
"It's awesome."
"It's made from Adam Wood."
"All it needs is some renovation."
Neptune was speechless.
Ron continued.
"And as for the promise, once Gloriosa arrives, that'll be completed too."
"Then I'll fly my flag over Fish-Man Island."
"Not even the World Government will dare attack you."
Ron spoke with absolute confidence.
Neptune was completely lost for words.
If the Fish-Men could finally live under the sun, then Noah's original purpose would no longer be needed.
Blue, who had been listening nearby, was trembling with excitement and fear.
Ron turned toward him.
"Blue, I leave painting my flag on Noah to you."
Blue saluted immediately.
"Leave it to me!"
Neptune rubbed his forehead.
He was definitely getting another lecture from his old man.
The two eventually left.
Neptune followed Blue to begin preparations.
Ron wandered through the coral pathways alone.
"Hmm, I wonder—"
Before he could finish, his Observation Haki detected two familiar presences entering Fish-Man Island.
Ron grinned.
"Speak of the devil."
One of the presences suddenly vanished.
CRACKLE!
Lightning exploded nearby.
Then—
Shakky materialized from the thunder itself.
"RONNNNN!"
She jumped straight into his arms.
Ron caught her effortlessly.
Tears flowed from Shakky's eyes as she hugged him tightly.
"Why did you take so long to wake up, you bastard?!"
She sounded both angry and relieved.
Ron gently stroked her hair.
"Sorry, dear."
For the first time in a long while—
He truly felt alive.
A moment later—
Another figure shot toward them at incredible speed.
"RON!"
Ron smiled.
Then caught Gloriosa too.
The three hugged each other tightly.
For a while, nobody spoke.
There was no need.
Eventually they sat together beneath the glowing coral trees.
Stories were exchanged.
Laughter echoed.
Time passed unnoticed.
Ron looked at the smiling faces of Shakky and Gloriosa.
A strange feeling rose within him.
This...
This was what he had been missing.
A tear escaped from his eye.
"Hm?"
"You crying?"
Both women looked at him suspiciously.
Ron touched the tear.
Then laughed softly.
"Hahaha... I just missed being with you two."
He genuinely meant it.
As he looked at Shakky and Gloriosa smiling beside him, his heart finally eased.
The future.
The past.
The battles.
The enemies.
None of it mattered.
He simply wanted to live in the present.
After talking and laughing for hours, the two women eventually fell asleep.
One rested against his shoulder.
The other rested on his lap.
Ron sat quietly beneath the glowing coral trees.
His hand gently stroked their heads.
A soft smile appeared on his face.
That feeling...
Being with them.
That was exactly what Ron had been searching for in both his lives.
A family.
He finally had one.
[Flag image in comment and review]