Sea Circle Calendar 1499.
After nearly a year of endless struggles and battles, the Roger Pirates had finally tracked down all the necessary Poneglyphs scattered across the Grand Line.
Finally, upon the back of the massive, ancient elephant island Zou, they discovered the fourth and final Road Poneglyph.
Kozuki Oden, who could read the ancient texts, found his family's crest carved deep within Zou.
This confirmed the long-standing, secretive rumor in Wano Country about the Kozuki clan forming an ancient unbreakable brotherhood with the Mink Tribe.
With all the necessary coordinates gathered, the crew joyously departed the elephant island, setting their final course for the location indicated by the four red stones.
"Hey Buggy, are you feeling any better?"
Shanks looked worriedly at Buggy, who was lying miserably on a sickbed, while replacing a cold towel on his forehead to reduce his raging fever.
Buggy, who usually spent every waking hour loudly quarreling with Shanks, was now too weak to even speak properly.
"Shanks... am I going to die?" Buggy's voice trembled, tears welling up in his eyes.
He was terrified of death, mostly because he had not yet fulfilled his ultimate dream of finding the world's greatest hidden treasure!
"Do not talk nonsense, Buggy! You just caught a bad tropical fever. It is nothing serious!" Ship doctor Crocus patted Buggy's shoulder reassuringly.
Rayleigh also stepped into the infirmary, offering Buggy a few comforting words before exchanging a heavy, meaningful glance with Crocus.
The two older men quickly left the small room and stepped out onto the deck.
"How much longer can Roger hold on?" Rayleigh asked Crocus, his voice tight with concern.
As Roger's sworn brother, he felt obligated to know the hard truth.
"If Roger completely avoids any further high-level battles, he might live for about another year," Crocus replied grimly, recalling the desperate medical diagnoses he had made for the captain over the past six months.
Rayleigh nodded slowly.
One year.
One year should be just enough time to fulfill Roger's impossible dream.
The ultimate goal was finally within reach.
"We are almost at the destination. We should let Buggy stay here at the nearest port to recover. Nobody knows what the final land will be like," Rayleigh reasoned.
As the First Mate, he had to consider things meticulously.
"If we encounter particularly deadly situations, we might not have the capacity to protect Buggy while he is this sick."
No one knew what the road ahead would look like, so it was natural to prepare for the absolute worst.
"Rayleigh-san... are you heading to the final island right now?"
At some point, young Shanks had emerged from the cabin and overheard Rayleigh and Crocus's hushed conversation.
"Yes, that's right, Shanks," Rayleigh nodded. "What worries us now is Buggy's physical condition. It really won't do to have no one looking after him while we sail into the unknown."
A flicker of intense hesitation and conflict crossed Shanks's young face. On one side was the dream destination of every pirate alive, the world's end, the final island.
On the other was his sworn brother, the boy he had shared life and death with since they were kids.
It seemed Rayleigh and Crocus both sensed Shanks's inner turmoil.
They simultaneously fell silent, giving the boy the time he needed to think.
After a long while, Shanks raised his young face and declared seriously.
"Rayleigh-san, Crocus-san... I have decided. I will not be going to the final island. I will stay behind at the port to take care of Buggy."
Rayleigh's face carried a faint, knowing smile.
"Have you really made up your mind, Shanks? This is the final island. It will be very difficult to ever get another chance to come here."
But once Shanks had made his decision, his expression became exceptionally resolute.
"It is fine, Rayleigh-san! Buggy is my good brother, and I should take care of him when he is sick. As for the final island... someday, I will lead my own crew through the Grand Line and reach it myself!"
The young Shanks clenched his fist, his eyes burning with absolute determination for the future.
Rayleigh and Crocus exchanged glances, then simultaneously burst into hearty laughter.
They really had not misjudged him.
How could a young apprentice raised on the Oro Jackson not have massive, world-shaking dreams of his own?
Especially Shanks, who possessed such an extraordinary, terrifying talent for Conqueror's Haki.
Rayleigh patted Shanks proudly on the shoulder. "Work hard, Shanks. I know that someday, your pirate crew will become just as powerful as ours."
Indeed, after the Golden Lion Fleet and the Whitebeard Pirates had been successively crippled by the Marines in this timeline, the Roger Pirates now possessed the absolute strongest power in the Grand Line.
Even with the tragic loss of Gaban, the Roger Pirates remained unmatched.
...
"Have Roger and the others arrived there? Mamma-ma-ma! How impressive."
On Whole Cake Island, Charlotte Linlin read the newspaper while happily devouring a mountain of pastries.
The paper reported the Roger Pirates' movements from ten days ago.
According to the coverage, the Roger Pirates had basically reached the very last discoverable islands in the New World.
Beyond that point, the mysterious final island could not be found with a Log Pose.
At this moment, it wasn't just Big Mom following the Roger Pirates' journey—the entire world was watching them with bated breath.
In the Fleet Admiral's office at Marineford, Kong was reading the same newspaper, his brow deeply furrowed.
On the sofas across from him, Garp, Sengoku, and Tsuru each held their own copies.
"Bwahahaha! That's impressive, Roger!" Garp remarked loudly while picking his nose. "Truly worthy of being the rival I've chosen! To have already reached this point? Just think—if he actually reaches the final island, wouldn't that make him the undisputed King of the Pirates? And then, wouldn't that make me the natural enemy of the Pirate King?!"
Sengoku moved his seat slightly away from the boisterous Garp and spoke with absolute seriousness.
"Fleet Admiral Kong, I believe we must immediately elevate the Roger Pirates to the highest possible threat level. I recommend concentrating all available Marine forces to annihilate them in one strike, just as we did with the Golden Lion's fleet."
"The Roger Pirates' influence is already terrifying enough. If they truly manage to find the final island... with that unprecedented level of prestige, they could rally a massive, unstoppable armada of pirates!" Sengoku analyzed the danger with utmost gravity.
"I believe their threat level is no less than that of the Rocks Pirates back in the day."
"Sengoku, you are exaggerating! Roger isn't that kind of man!" Garp immediately retorted, tossing a rice cracker into his mouth.
He had absolutely no desire to see the entire Navy mobilize all its forces just to hunt down his favorite rival.
Garp was well aware of how formidable the Navy's current power was.
Even if the legendary Rocks Pirates, who once dominated the New World, were resurrected today and fought with their lives on the line, they would stand no chance against the current Marine roster!
During that great battle at God Valley years ago, the Navy's top-tier combat strength wasn't particularly extensive.
It was led primarily by Kong, with Sengoku, Garp, and Zephyr as the main pillars.
Below them, there weren't many exceptionally powerful naval officers to hold the line against monsters like Whitebeard, Shiki, and Big Mom.
However, things were completely different now.
Kong remained firmly in his position as Fleet Admiral, Sengoku and Garp were at their absolute peak and though Zephyr's spirit was deeply wounded, his physical strength hadn't declined significantly.
At the same time, a host of monstrous, anomaly-level Vice-Admirals had emerged—Sakazuki, Borsalino, Kuzan, and the most dazzling and unpredictable of them all, Christian Raleigh.
At times, even veterans like Garp and Sengoku wondered whether Raleigh's true strength had already crossed that final threshold to truly reach the Admiral tier.
But since Raleigh was always slacking off, no one knew exactly what his absolute limits were.
Kong paid no heed to Garp's loud ramblings, instead seriously considering Sengoku's tactical opinion.