"Marine Headquarters has its hands full right now."
Shakky exhaled a puff of smoke, her tone calm.
"Akainu is seriously injured. Kizaru and Aokiji have to deal with the aftermath. As for Garp, he is probably getting an earful from Sengoku. The Marine branch on the Sabaody Archipelago cannot control these sharks that smell blood."
"Hmph. Just a bunch of small fry."
Golden Lion scoffed dismissively. The bandages on his head made him look a bit ridiculous. "In my prime, trash like that would not even be qualified to approach my ship."
"But you are not in your prime now, Shiki."
Rayleigh did not hesitate to call him out. "With a watermelon on your head, you should talk less."
"Who are you calling a watermelon?!" Veins bulged on Golden Lion's forehead.
Luffy ignored the two old-timers bickering. He looked toward the direction of the commotion.
He could hear more distant sounds.
The shattering of bottles, the thunder of shops being smashed, the hoarse commands of Marine branch soldiers, and some powerful presences moving in the shadows.
The world was changing because of the storm he had stirred up.
It was a strange feeling, but not surprising.
He had anticipated it ever since he decided to save Ace and killed the Celestial Dragon.
"Where are you planning to go next?" Rayleigh turned his head and looked at Luffy.
His gaze swept over the two people beside Luffy.
Just the legendary pirate Golden Lion alone was enough to drive pirates in the first half of the Grand Line crazy.
Golden Lion owed Luffy a favor and had been staying by Luffy's side.
According to Luffy, even if Golden Lion did not join, their alliance was not over.
Luffy was silent for a moment.
He looked toward the source of the noise. The commotion in the distance grew louder. He could vaguely hear the excited roars of pirates.
"The Marines are finished!"
"Let us take advantage of this!"
"The New World is our stage!"
"We are not ready to enter the New World yet," Luffy said.
"Ha?"
Golden Lion raised an eyebrow. "You nearly destroyed the Marines yourself, and you are still not ready?"
He had fought alongside Garp and Whitebeard. He had cut off Akainu's arm. And now he had the Gura Gura no Mi.
If that was not ready for the New World, then the pirates in the New World might as well kill themselves.
"If you go to the New World now, no one below Emperor level would dare to provoke you," Golden Lion said.
Luffy shook his head and grinned. "I want to be with my crew. Now is not the time to enter the New World."
Zoro, Sanji, Nami, Usopp, Chopper, Robin, Franky, Brook, Vivi, Merry... and Perona, who had just joined.
The Pirate King was not the strongest person, but the freest person. And freedom had to be sought with one's crew.
"No matter how strong you are alone, you cannot be the Pirate King," Luffy said.
Golden Lion was stumped. For a moment, he could not think of a rebuttal.
"Are the Merry and the Sunny alright?" Luffy suddenly remembered something. He turned to ask Perona.
He was worried about the ships.
For pirates, a good ship was the greatest treasure. With no crew around, pirates would surely target them.
Perona floated closer and said somewhat proudly, "I checked. A group of pirates is guarding our ships."
Perona naturally considered herself part of the Straw Hat crew.
"A group of pirates?" Luffy was stunned.
Who would guard their ships?
"Let us go see," Luffy said.
The group followed the coastline toward the interior of Grove 44.
The sounds of the commotion gradually faded behind them, but the tension in the air grew thicker.
Along the way, they encountered several groups of fleeing civilians and a few excited pirates carrying stolen treasure toward the harbor.
When those pirates saw Luffy and his group, they first showed greedy expressions and were about to draw their guns.
But after recognizing Hancock, Golden Lion, and the others, they immediately fled in terror.
Why were these people, who had just shaken the world, here?
"It seems this old man's reputation still works," Golden Lion grunted.
"It is this lady's beauty that makes them ashamed of themselves," Hancock flipped her hair.
Perona floated nearby, muttering, "Narcissist."
"What did you say?" Hancock narrowed her eyes.
"N-Nothing!"
...
When the group reached the shore where the Merry and the Sunny were anchored, Luffy was somewhat surprised.
The two ships were intact. Around them, unconscious pirates lay scattered.
And in front of the ships stood two groups.
One was the Flying Fish Riders led by Duval. The other was...
"Kuma?" Luffy frowned.
The huge figure standing quietly, holding a Bible, was none other than Bartholomew Kuma, one of the Seven Warlords.
At that moment, Duval was sweating as he faced Kuma.
If it could even be called a confrontation.
"Hey, what do you want?!" Duval shouted, his voice trembling.
He had just driven off a group of pirates and returned to find this.
Kuma did not answer. He just stood there quietly, like a silent mountain.
"Boss, this guy appeared out of nowhere half an hour ago and sent all the pirates trying to steal the ships flying."
A Flying Fish Rider member whispered in Duval's ear. "And then he just stood there without moving."
Duval was panicking.
The Flying Fish Riders had volunteered to guard the Straw Hats' ships.
Since the footage of the Impel Down War had been broadcast, a flood of pirates had poured into the Sabaody Archipelago. Many had targeted these two ships.
Duval and his crew had driven off many pirates, but they had still slipped through.
They had been fighting desperately, nearly at their limit, when this Kuma suddenly appeared and sent the surrounding pirates flying.
That should have been a good thing. But the problem was that Kuma was a Warlord.
He was an ally of the Marines.
Duval had no idea what the Warlord wanted.
Just then, he heard a familiar voice.
"So it was you."
Duval spun around. When he saw Luffy and his group approaching, his eyes went wide.
"S-Straw Hat Boss!" Duval's voice shook with excitement.
The Flying Fish Rider members behind him also showed admiration.
They had watched the entire war on the video Den Den Mushi.
Luffy walked up to Duval and patted his shoulder. "Thank you for guarding the Merry and the Sunny."
He had not expected the Flying Fish Riders, whom he had met only once, to guard their ships.
"It is no trouble at all!"
"It is no trouble!"
"What is going on here?" Luffy asked.
Duval snapped to attention, somewhat nervous.
Straw Hat Boss was like a god!
And the people with Luffy seemed to be even bigger names.
The Pirate Empress. A legendary pirate. The Pirate King's first mate. All of them were great figures.
He quickly explained.
About Kuma suddenly appeared and helping them guard the ships.
Luffy looked at Kuma. His expression was serious.
Kuma's state was strange.
He stood there quietly. His eyes were lifeless. He looked like a delicate puppet.
"Hey, this guy is an enemy, is he not?" Golden Lion spoke.
He raised his palm slightly. Sword energy condensed beneath his feet.
The Pirate Empress was the queen of Amazon Lily and had a connection to Shakky. That was understandable.
But Tyrant Kuma was a Warlord appointed by the World Government. He had even appeared as Marine support in the Impel Down War.
He could not be an ally too.
"No. He should also be on our side," Luffy said.
"What?!"
Golden Lion nearly choked on his own saliva.
Luffy explained briefly.
When the crew had faced a crisis on the Sabaody Archipelago, Kuma had helped them escape.
He had also sent Luffy to Amazon Lily.
After that, so many things had happened.
Hancock snorted. "Since he made this lady meet Luffy-sama, he is a friend."
Golden Lion's mouth twitched. He looked at Kuma, then at Hancock, then at Luffy.
"You... are all the Warlords on your side?!"
Crocodile was a former Warlord, released from Impel Dawn by Luffy because he had something on him.
Hawkeye had clearly held back during the war. Even Golden Lion could tell. He had fought Luffy back and forth initially, then wasted time with one of Whitebeard's commanders.
The Empress had directly switched sides, unable to tell friend from foe.
And now even Tyrant Kuma...
No wonder the Marines had lost.
Luffy ignored Golden Lion's complaints. He walked up to Kuma, looked up at the tall Warlord.
"What happened to you?" Luffy asked.
Kuma slowly lowered his head, looked at Luffy with those lifeless eyes, and answered in a mechanical, flat voice.
"Mission complete."
"Mission? What mission?" Luffy pressed.
But Kuma did not answer. Instead, he turned as if to leave.
"Where are you going?" Luffy blocked him.
"Mary Geoise," Kuma answered.
Golden Lion walked over and studied Kuma carefully.
"This guy is not in a good state. So many Pacifistas appeared in the war. As the prototype of those mass-produced human weapons, he must have been modified by the World Government."
Luffy's pupils narrowed slightly.
Bonney had been searching for her father, Kuma.
If Kuma had really been turned into a weapon without a will of his own...
"Then I cannot let you leave."
Luffy said decisively. "I do not know what the World Government did to you. But if you go back, they will only do worse things."
He looked up, meeting Kuma's empty eyes. "Stay."
"Huh?"
Perona floated over in surprise. "Luffy, you want to keep a Warlord with you?"
Luffy nodded. "Bonney has wanted to see him for a long time."
Hearing the name Bonney, Kuma stopped.
His body trembled slightly. Some faint light seemed to pass through his empty eyes.
"Keyword detected... Jewelry Bonney... mission revised."
He turned and stood silently by Luffy's side again.
"He actually stayed?"
Duval was speechless.
Had he just recruited a Warlord-level fighter?
He would not dare to dream of such a thing.
Luffy looked at Kuma, his brow furrowed.
What had the World Government done to him?
Regardless, he was not an ungrateful person. He remembered Kuma's kindness. He would find a way to restore him.
"Luffy!"
A familiar voice called out, coming from the Merry.
Luffy's eyes lit up. "Is that Merry?"
"Yes, it is me!"
He jumped onto the Merry's deck. The golden Merry had accompanied them on their journey.
But strangely, the deck was empty.
"Merry, where are you?"
"I am on the moon!"
"The moon?"
Luffy patted his head.
Right. He knew approximately where everyone had been sent by Kuma.
Merry had been sent somewhere called Vearth.
That was the moon?
"I was sent flying by Kuma, to the moon!"
Merry's voice was aggrieved. "This is what they call the Endless Land. I cannot come down for a while."
Her voice choked as she continued, "I miss you so much, Luffy. I do not know what is happening down there. I do not know what happened to everyone."
Luffy quickly comforted her. He sat on the deck and recounted everything that had happened recently.
From going to Amazon Lily, to infiltrating Impel Down, to rescuing Ace. From fighting Whitebeard and Garp, to obtain the Gura Gura no Mi. From Red Hair's appearance to the end of the war.
He explained in detail. Merry listened quietly, occasionally gasping in surprise or sighing with concern.
When she heard that everyone was safe, Merry visibly relaxed.
"So we will all get together again and then go to the New World?" Merry asked eagerly.
Luffy was silent for a moment. Then he slowly shook his head. "No. I was being too hasty. Everyone is not ready for the New World yet."
He looked up, as if he could see the moon through the blue sky. "Now everyone is in a good place to train. I want to take some time to train as well. When we are all ready, we will go to the New World together."
He needed time to master the Gura Gura no Mi. He needed time to refine his Conqueror's Haki. He needed time to create a fighting style that combined two Devil Fruits.
And his crewmates needed to become stronger too. Everyone needed time.
After a brief disappointment, Merry nodded firmly.
"I understand. I will train hard here too!"
As a ship spirit who had eaten such a valuable Devil Fruit, she also had great potential.
Merry did not want another incident like the one on the Sabaody Archipelago.
Facing those strong fighters, she had been helpless.
Only when one was strong enough could one truly be free.
Merry also wanted to sail with Sunny to every corner of the world.
"Oh, Luffy, I also met Enel here."
"Enel?"
Luffy thought for a moment, then realized. "That guy from Skypiea?"
"Yes! But he looks very pathetic now."
Merry giggled. "His Ark Maxim crashed here. Now he is just a laborer for me, fixing the ship. But seriously, this place is amazing. There are lots of ancient ruins and strange creatures."
Luffy listened to Merry talk about her experiences on the moon. A smile appeared on his face.
The Endless Land?
This world was full of wonders.
The sky. The land. The sea.
There were still many unknowns in the world waiting for them to explore.
On the nearby shore, Hancock bit her finger, jealously watching Luffy talk to the air.
"Who is that woman?!" Hancock gritted her teeth.
"Jealous."
Perona floated nearby, muttering.
Hancock's ears perked up immediately. "What did you just call this lady?"
Perona flinched and tried to run, but Hancock was faster. She grabbed Perona by the collar.
"L-Let me go!"
Perona struggled.
"You said this lady was jealous?"
Hancock narrowed her eyes. Her other hand pinched Perona's cheek.
"Ow, ow! So what if I did?!"
Perona, now irritated, reached out and pinched Hancock's cheek.
The two women stood on the shore, pinching each other's cheeks, neither willing to let go.
Perona thought Hancock was beautiful, but she had seen how terrifying this woman could be when they were on Amazon Lily. She had talked about eliminating her any minute.
Perona was no longer in awe of Hancock.
Shakky watched the scene and could not help but laugh. "To be young."
Soon, Luffy jumped off the Merry.
He walked over to the group. Hancock and Perona had stopped fighting.
Red marks remained on both their faces.
Neither looked willing to give in to the other.
"What happened?" Luffy asked.
Rayleigh shook his head and smiled. "They were just having a friendly exchange... But if you want to train, the Sabaody Archipelago is too chaotic for you."
He agreed that Luffy should rest and train for a while.
The seas would be chaotic in the coming days. And it had been less than a year since Luffy set sail. Going to the New World now would be reckless.
Luffy needed a quiet, undisturbed place.
Luffy nodded.
He did need such a place.
Rayleigh looked at Shakky. "Any recommendations?"
Shakky exhaled a smoke ring. Her gaze drifted toward Hancock.
Hancock immediately straightened. Her cheeks flushed. She wanted to speak but hesitated. Her fingers twisted nervously.
"What about Amazon Lily? There are many uninhabited islands nearby. Quiet and secluded."
Shakky glanced at her and smiled knowingly. "There are also many Sea Kings around. Little Monkey's food supply will not be a problem. And with Hancock there, safety is guaranteed."
"Really?!"
Hancock could finally contain herself no longer. She stepped forward. Hands clasped over her heart. Her eyes turned into hearts. "Luffy-sama! Please come to Amazon Lily! This lady will prepare the best residence and the most delicious food!"
"Ahem. I was also thinking..."
Rayleigh coughed.
Hancock's expression instantly darkened. She glared at Rayleigh. "You old bastard are not allowed to come!"
"Hey, hey. Hancock, do not be so cruel."
Rayleigh smiled bitterly. "I was also the consort of a former former empress of Amazon Lily. It is not too much to go back and see the citizens, is it?"
"You are in the past!" Hancock snorted. "And Amazon Lily does not welcome men!"
Rayleigh: "???"
Since when was he a former husband?
***
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