This was the first half of the Grand Line.
At this moment.
Some time had passed since the final battle ended.
Ever since the Land of Grass won, life for pirates on the seas had grown harder by the day. They did not even dare fly their pirate flags so casually anymore.
After all, being spared from getting hanged out to dry by the Land of Grass was already lucky enough. How could pirates still swagger through towns and plunder ashore like they used to?
But without plundering... where were pirates supposed to get the Beli to cover the enormous expenses of sailing, adventuring, and partying?
Pirates pursued freedom, not budget travel!
So, as the pirate industry's prospects dimmed, their living space shrank, and conditions worsened, many pirates began packing up, disbanding their crews, turning over a new leaf, and returning to their hometowns to find work.
Although their time as pirates still made life difficult after returning home, and finding jobs was not as easy for them as it was for others, it was still better than sailing around in a wreck of a ship, following their captain in pursuit of freedom, and going hungry nine meals out of three days!
And today.
The Buggy Pirates, the famed crew of the East Blue rumored to be the only pirate crew to escape the Land of Grass, the former Shichibukai, survivors of the final battle, and a crew that had somehow still not disbanded, also had to make a choice.
Buggy darkened his face. He glanced at the resignation letter in his hand, then looked up at the crew standing before him.
Though, as pirates... the fact that they had actually prepared resignation letters when quitting left him unsure how to mock them. But that was not the important thing