10 Years Ago – Goa Kingdom, High Town
Sabo's hands were clenched at his sides, nails digging into his palms until they bled. Another stiff dinner, another table lined with crystal glasses and silver cutlery, and another night of silent obedience in a family that never saw him—only the legacy they wanted him to become.
His father sat at the head of the long dining table, speaking proudly of noble alliances and the next scheduled tea party. His mother smiled vacantly, eyes scanning through him like he was glass.
Sabo's gaze drifted to the window. Beyond those pristine panes of glass were Grey Terminal and the brothers he'd sworn a future with. Ace. Luffy. His real family.
He pushed his chair back.
His father's voice boomed. "Where do you think you're going?"
Sabo looked him dead in the eye. "Anywhere but here."
Gasps echoed. The butler dropped a spoon. His father stood, trembling with fury. "You ungrateful—!"
But Sabo didn't stop. He stormed out of the house, guards chasing after him.
Sabo was done. That night, he returned to the Grey Terminal, not to hide—but to burn every bridge behind him. He threw off his noble garb and lit the old clothes on fire. The flames roared as if echoing his own pain.
"I'm not their puppet," he muttered. "I'll find my own freedom."
But his rebellion didn't go unnoticed. The nobles sent bounty hunters, men with clean coats and dirty souls. They cornered him near the docks. He fought back—biting, scratching, doing everything a desperate soul could do.
They beat him, bloodied him, dragged him unconscious back toward High Town.
But fate had a different plan.
A cloaked figure appeared from the mist.
A man with sharp eyes, windblown hair, and a tattoo curling up his arm like a dragon's tail.
Monkey D. Dragon.
He looked down at Sabo's unconscious form. "Another victim of this rotten world."
The guards barely had time to draw their weapons before a gust of wind erupted. Smoke curled through the air, and when it cleared—Dragon and the boy were gone.
Sabo woke up on a ship. He blinked at the unfamiliar ceiling. His ribs ached, and his mind was a haze.
"You're safe now," said a soft voice beside him.
He turned to see a girl—Koala, smiling gently—and next to her, a tall fish-man with kind eyes, Hack.
"You were lucky," Koala said. "Dragon-sama brought you here."
"Dragon?" he whispered.
"You were unconscious. Feverish. You kept saying two names. Ace… and Luffy."
But try as he might, Sabo couldn't remember their faces. Their voices. Only the feeling of pain remained.
"Amnesia," Hack explained. "It may return. Or it may not."
Dragon stepped in. "Don't force yourself to remember. Focus on who you want to be now."
Sabo looked down at his bandaged hands.
"I want to fight. For freedom. For people like me."
Dragon nodded. "Then welcome to the Revolutionary Army."
Koala stepped closer, her voice soft but filled with energy. "Everyone, this is Sabo. He's one of us now."
Sabo gave her a confused but warm smile. Somewhere deep inside, something told him this was right. That maybe, just maybe, this was his new family.