"They disbanded?! Is that really true?" Sabo asked hurriedly, leaning across the table.
"Yeah..." Drake nodded, a ripple of distant memories surfacing in his mind. "It's only natural you hadn't heard; news of their dissolution hasn't been leaked to the press yet."
"I only learned of it directly from Marco."
"Ace will definitely show up, though. There's no question about that."
"Marco the Phoenix! You ran into him?" Sabo pressed.
"Mm, just a short while ago."
"Why would they..." Sabo began, trailing off as realization abruptly dawned on him. "Could it be..."
"Precisely!" Drake said firmly. "To bring the Great Age of Pirates to an end!"
"That is also the outcome you people wish to see, isn't it?"
Sabo fell silent.
Indeed. Long ago, they had harbored this exact ambition, but the current era of pirates belonged entirely to the legendary four brothers.
Aside from himself, Ace, Drake, and Luffy were all towering figures carrying the weight of this age upon their shoulders.
Had anyone attempted to force the issue from the outside, setting aside whether they possessed the sheer military might to pull it off, they would never have made it past those three titans.
Now that both the Whitebeard Pirates and the Red Hair Pirates had disbanded, how could Sabo fail to grasp what was unfolding?
Once this wedding concluded, Drake's Dragon Flag Pirates would likely...
"Sabo, don't overthink it. Disbanding their fleets was a calculated decision reached after long, deliberate consideration—it wasn't done out of pressure or obligation," Drake added quietly.
"It is simply the best path forward."
Today, the era was completely dominated by the four sworn brothers. Before them, the so-called Supernovas of the Worst Generation were utterly overshadowed, their lights eclipsed into insignificance.
The entire world was cloaked beneath the radiance of these four; ordinary folk had eyes for no one else.
It was time to bow out of the public eye.
Every era inevitably belonged to the young. With their retirement, the delicate balance of power across the four seas would dissolve overnight.
The age of piracy, having flared to its absolute zenith, would pass into the annals of history. No—it was certain to happen!
Ever since the New World Government took shape, it had practically turned a blind eye to the affairs of pirates.
They simply refrained from meddling.
The bounties issued against pirates had frozen in place since that time, neither increasing nor rescinded.
Any perceptive soul could see straight through the situation: it was entirely because of the legendary four brothers.
First was their world-shattering combat strength, and second was their deep, personal ties to the highest echelons of the New World Government.
Under the towering prestige of the four brothers, aspiring pirates grew in number by the day, though most remained small fry incapable of stirring up real waves.
Yet no one could guarantee whether allowing them to roam unchecked might breed another volatile generation of Supernovas down the line.
The New World Government had long drafted contingency plans for this scenario, yet had kept them on hold.
Their sole reservation, naturally, was Luffy and his brothers.
Drake and the others had read the board with perfect clarity. And so... it was time to step down.
To close the book on the Great Age of Pirates!
"Let it end!" Drake spoke up, breaking the long silence as he looked at his thoughtful brother. "The Great Age of Pirates, ignited by Roger to reshape the world, has reached its natural conclusion!"
Countless souls had once swarmed the treacherous seas, chasing Roger's footsteps in hopes of claiming the legendary treasure.
Yet the primordial root of all that suffering had been Im. Now, Luffy had claimed everything; as the Joy Boy of the new age, he had transformed the entire world in ways unseen.
Wherever the Straw Hat Pirates sailed, the land was left echoing with joyous laughter. Every life they touched had changed for the better.
"The new era will never truly die! If a similar crisis threatens the world in the distant future, another Roger will set sail toward the horizon."
"And another Luffy will rise to bring laughter back to the people. Such is the endless rhythm of history..."
"Your sacred duty is to seize the present, Sabo—to build the future that the entire world longs for!"
Hearing Drake's impassioned words, clarity washed over Sabo like a bucket of cold water, and the light in his eyes sharpened with resolute brilliance.
"You're right, Drake."
"It really is time for the Great Age of Pirates to come to a close!"
"Perhaps another age of seafaring will dawn one day, but that is no longer our burden to bear. We only need to shoulder the duties standing right before us!"
"Hahaha... Drink up!" Drake slung an arm around Sabo's shoulder, and the two brothers threw themselves into the revelry, draining cup after cup without restraint.
Gradually, deep night blanketed the village.
In the adjoining room, two soft voices conversed warmly, interspersed with gentle ripples of laughter.
"Just let the two of them drink their fill; there's no need to fret."
"How could I not? Drake was always the one who couldn't hold his liquor. And you—a bride about to walk down the aisle—shouldn't spoil him so rotten," Makino chided gently, peering through the curtain at the two brothers drinking with reckless abandon, itching to step in and stop them.
"When a man can't hold his drink, you have to cut him off."
The woman beside her caught her arm with a gentle grip. "There is no need for that. He isn't the boy who used to keel over after a cup or two anymore. Though, truth be told, I still don't quite understand how his tolerance grew so monstrous..."
"Is that so?" Makino murmured, gazing through the door flap at Drake, who was heartily roaring with laughter over his mug.
Watching their lively antics, memories of the four young boys scarfing down meals together flooded her heart. A nostalgic, affectionate smile spread across her face.
"Those two really haven't changed a bit..."
"Say, Weitian, tell me more about what Drake and Sabo have been up to these past few years."
"Of course," Weitian replied with a tender smile.
And so, the lanterns inside Makino's tavern burned brightly through the entire night, never once dimming.
The next morning, a minute speck materialized on the horizon at the edge of the Goa Kingdom's waters.
As time ticked by, the speck expanded steadily until a titanic, impossibly colossal vessel filled the view of everyone on the coast.
"The Ark Noah!" Drake's eyes gleamed. He could never mistake that silhouette; this gargantuan ship was undeniably the ancient vessel that had rested ten thousand meters beneath the sea in the Ryugu Kingdom!
Its arrival here could only mean one thing...
"It's Luffy!" Sabo chuckled warmly. Gliding ahead of Noah, wasn't that vessel the Straw Hats' Thousand Sunny?
Perched on the figurehead of the Sunny, Luffy hoisted both arms high into the sky, whooping and hollering with unrestrained glee.
"Still, what is Noah doing here..."
"You'll understand in a moment. Things are about to get exceedingly lively around here," Drake remarked with a mysterious grin.
"Whoa, Drake! Long time no see!" Luffy's eyes suddenly lit up as he spotted them on the shore.
"Sabo! You're here too! I brought back something incredible this time—it's gonna blow your minds!"
"Listen up, everyone! This is the legendary Ark Noah that was sleeping in Fish-Man Island! Come on out, everyone!"
At Luffy's booming shout, curious faces began poking out from the deck and railings of the colossal ark.
"Those are... residents of Fish-Man Island?" Sabo drew in a sharp breath, scarcely able to believe his eyes.
"Is this the surprise Luffy was talking about? It certainly catches a man off guard."
So they've finally initiated the great migration to the surface. But bringing them here means...
A sudden suspicion flickered in Drake's mind: could that rubber-brained idiot actually be planning to settle the entire populace of Fish-Man Island right here in the Goa Kingdom?!
Knowing Luffy's impulsive nature, the chances of him pulling a stunt like that were practically nine out of ten. Drake's expression morphed into something truly spectacular.
Reality aligned precisely with Drake's deduction. While the onlookers stood frozen in pure bewilderment, the Thousand Sunny and Noah dropped anchor along the coastline of the Goa Kingdom.
By now, rings of curious villagers and townspeople had swarmed the beaches.
None of them had ever laid eyes on a vessel even a fraction of Noah's size, and they scrambled forward, jostling for a better view.
Yet not a soul harbored any fear of danger—because Drake and his brothers were standing right there.
"Weahoshi! Old man! And the big brothers, follow me! Shishishi...!" Luffy planted his hands on his hips, grinning ear to ear as he waved to the villagers, leading the way into the Goa Kingdom.
Behind him, the royal family of the Ryugu Kingdom stepped onto the soil of the surface world.
Having just bidden farewell to their ancestral home beneath the waves, walking upon the open earth naturally stirred a faint tremor of anxiety in their hearts.
Yet with Luffy striding fearlessly before them, that trace of apprehension evaporated into thin air—especially for King Neptune.
He placed absolute trust in Luffy!
"Lord Luffy..." Princess Shirahoshi murmured from behind. Though she carried herself with slight bashfulness, every trace of her former, paralyzing cowardice was gone.
The instant Shirahoshi emerged in the open air, a tidal wave of breathless hysteria swept through the crowd.
Princess Shirahoshi of Fish-Man Island was a figure of pure myth upon the surface, doubly so to the people of the East Blue.
In their minds, the very existence of Fish-Man Island had always been a tall tale. To not only witness an ocean of fish-men and merfolk in the flesh, but to behold the legendary Mermaid Princess herself...
It was as if a mega-ton warhead had been dropped straight into an already roaring bonfire.
The atmosphere surged to an absolute fever pitch.
The tranquil Goa Kingdom was completely plunged into an earth-shaking uproar.
Yet the merry band responsible for unleashing this utter pandemonium had long since slipped away from the public eye.
Within a quiet estate, everyone was now gathered under one roof.