After weathering countless storms, Wano Country had undergone many changes. The greatest of them was that it had directly opened its borders.
To be honest, Oda had clearly shown Wano Country special favor. With Sea Stone, Sake Iron Ore, and highly skilled swordsmiths, it would have been hard for an open Wano Country not to become famous. Through mutual trade, its national strength had also grown rapidly.
Kozuki Hiyori, only nine years old now, was already something of a celebrity in the New World. Of course, Clown Buggy was even more famous.
To deter other pirates and ensure the safety of Wano Country after it opened its borders, many of Wano Country's master swordsmen had joined the Clown Pirates, greatly boosting the crew's strength.
That was how things stood in the New World. In addition, Kaido had withdrawn from Wano Country, and most of the prisoners he had once held had also left, including the future Gecko Moria.
This time, Moria had only spent two years as Kaido's laborer before escaping. He had been fairly lucky.
Meanwhile, Doflamingo's forces had finally raised their own flag, calling themselves the Dragon Hunting Pirates. The meaning behind the name was obvious.
Although Sancho had initially found fault with the name in every possible way, Doflamingo's Soul Food ultimately overcame his appetite, and he agreed to it.
New World, Dressrosa.
Moria looked up at the pirate flag flying overhead and stroked his chin.
At this point, his chin and neck had not yet merged into one. He still looked fairly lean and capable; otherwise, he could not have fought Kaido for hundreds of exchanges before being defeated.
"So this is the Dragon Hunting Pirates' flag? Dragon hunting—hunting Celestial Dragons? How utterly arrogant. Kishishishishishi."
"Yeah! The strongest among the Shichibukai, perhaps even the strongest