East Blue's Bug-Level Existence

In the blink of an eye, three years had passed.

Over those three years of traveling, Wright had awakened Armament Haki early on, though his Armament Haki was somewhat special... He had also gained an initial mastery of Flying Slash and developed it in combination with Holy Light Power.

His growth in strength was one aspect. On the other hand, due to the death of Pirate King Roger and the legend of "ONE PIECE," more and more people had chosen to set sail as pirates, "dreams" in their hearts.

Yet among those pirates, very few truly wanted to pursue their dreams—or rather, very few could persist in doing so. Far more were bloodthirsty, cruel, greedy, hypocritical, sinister, and cunning. Becoming pirates fulfilled their dark desires and endless ambitions. To that end, they slaughtered civilians, plundered merchant ships, raided towns, and powerful pirate crews even dared to attack kingdom ports. Some were bolder still, daring to attack Marine bases.

The Four Seas were relatively peaceful, and East Blue was even known as the "Symbol of Peace," the "Weakest Sea" of pirates. If East Blue was already like this, what must the other three seas and the Grand Line be like?

The "Sea of Dreams" had always been nothing more than an adventurer's romance. This ocean had always been fraught with danger and shrouded in darkness. True pirates would forever be a spreading cancer upon the sea.

Pirate crews like Roger's, Whitebeard's, Shanks's, and Luffy's were, at their core, adventuring groups pursuing their own dreams. People like Kaido, Blackbeard, and Golden Lion were the real great pirates. BIGMOM... in a sense, she was also a dreamer—just far too insane.

As pirates grew more numerous, the harm they inflicted upon the world grew greater. For all kinds of reasons, the Marines' forces became increasingly stretched thin, and their control over the seas grew ever more inadequate.

Over the past three years, Wright had traveled throughout East Blue as a Pirate Hunter. He landed on nearly every inhabited island, and whenever he encountered an uninhabited island, he would train alone for at least a month. Thanks to the extraordinary recovery power of Holy Light Power, many of Wright's survival needs were greatly reduced, while the pace of his improvement soared.

As a swordsman who wielded Two-Color Haki, possessed swordsmanship at the Flying Slash level, and was also an "ability user," Wright's existence was simply bug-level in East Blue. Under Wright's pursuit, pirate crews that had successfully departed from Loguetown for the Grand Line over the past three years had become exceedingly rare.

To hone his combat experience and swordsmanship, Wright usually did not use Haki or his abilities. He had wiped out countless pirate crews through swordsmanship alone. Holy Light Power was more often used to restore his stamina during long pursuits, for training, and to heal civilians harmed by pirates.

This unique healing ability became Wright's trademark. Back then, the people of Orange Town had spread the legend of the "doctor" across the seas. Combined with Wright's distinctive Holy Light Power, the name of East Blue's strongest Pirate Hunter, the "Dawn Divine Healer," had resounded throughout East Blue over the past three years.

The dawn that brought hope to the people and drove away East Blue's darkness—the name Pirate Hunter "Dawn Divine Healer Wright" was praised by civilians everywhere. The Marines had also actively cooperated with Wright, nearly wiping out all of East Blue's already scarce pirate crews with bounties exceeding ten million.

Letting a group of pirates go back like he had when he first set sail? That was far too rare... Unless they truly had no intention of doing evil. But under the coverage of Observation Haki, how many pirates like that could there be?

Yet desire and ambition were endless. Even under the deterrence of Wright's overwhelming strength, pirates continued to set sail. They firmly believed that someone as powerful as Wright could not remain in the "Weakest Sea" forever. He would inevitably go to the Grand Line, and once Wright left, they could make a comeback!

Over the past three years, the Marines had invited Wright to join them. After being refused, they had given up. Such powerful fighting strength could practically sweep through East Blue, and every Marine base in East Blue coveted Wright immensely. But conversely, how could they recruit someone so powerful that he could instantly defeat an East Blue Marine branch colonel, the highest-ranking Marine officer there?

Even if a headquarters colonel came, Wright could probably fight them. Not to mention the mere Four Seas branches, ranked three levels below headquarters!

Besides the reasons he had mentioned before, Wright had not joined the Marines yet because of Shanks. Over the past three years, Shanks's Red Hair Pirates had already been formed. Though they came and went like ghosts, they occasionally returned to East Blue to rest and resupply. As a "true adventuring crew," they had never committed evil beyond Wright's bottom line, so Wright and Shanks had maintained a fine relationship as drinking buddies.

Whenever Wright felt he had gained some insight or made progress, he would seek out the Red Hair Pirates for a secret "friendly exchange"—sparring with swords, trading barbs, drinking contests, eating contests, throwing banquets, and so on...

Thus, at least before heading to the Grand Line, the identity of a Pirate Hunter offered relative freedom and made Wright's "friendly exchanges" with Shanks much more convenient. Until—

"Oh? Shanks, is this your new crewmate? Let me guess..."

Wright had come by for his usual drinking contest... no, sword duel. The Red Hair Pirates' crew had long since grown used to it, greeting Wright one after another. A few even begged Wright to cure their "stubborn ailments," like hemorrhoids... What the hell was a "stubborn ailment"?!

Just as Wright was utterly dumbfounded, he saw Shanks walk out with a familiar face, beaming like a fox that had finally stolen a chicken.

"Look at that lecherous grin. Don't tell me this is the sharpshooter you've been obsessed with for three years—Yasopp from Syrup Village?"

"Hahaha, Mr. Light, you make it sound like we've never met before..." Yasopp scratched his head and smiled helplessly. "I haven't even had the chance to thank you for helping our village fend off those pirates—along with treating our illnesses."

"No need for that..." Wright stepped forward and bumped fists with Shanks in greeting, then leaned toward Yasopp. "Never mind treating illnesses. If I hadn't been there, you could've handled those lowlife pirates all by yourself, couldn't you?"

"I heard from Shanks why you turned him down last time... Just like you!"

"This time, you're willing to get on a ship with this bastard. Could it be...?"

Yasopp helplessly glanced at the smug Shanks, then watched Wright's smile gradually turn perverse. He could only surrender. "The captain really is... That's right. Not only am I married, but I also have a son. It's just that... I'm destined not to become a good father, I suppose..."

"But Mr. Light, as someone else who turned down the captain, your 'dream' is... Pfft, hahaha... Sorry, sorry..."

"Hahahahahaha!"

When Yasopp brought it up, the Red Hair Pirates burst out laughing. That bastard Shanks was laughing especially hard.

"Come on, Wright, no matter how many times I hear it, I still want to laugh... Don't worry, don't worry. When your wish is close to coming true, we'll definitely go help you!"

"Damn you, Shanks! And all of you! Bring out the booze! Today, I'll show you what it means when one man's dream is sacred and cannot be desecrated!!"

"Every last one of you—if even one of you is still sober by tomorrow morning, I'll eat this Red Force whole!!"

Ben Beckman: "Hahahaha! We've got reinforcements today, Wright. You might not keep winning!"

Lucky Roux: "There it is again! Wright's 'There's Nothing I Can't Eat' series!"

Shanks: "Let's have a banquet!"

Everyone: "Oohhh!!"