Past, Present, Future

Everyone sat down. Rayleigh poured Sal a glass of wine, and the two clinked glasses before drinking.

After hearing his companions talk about Rayleigh, Luffy finally looked utterly shocked. He had only just learned that Rayleigh had been the Pirate King's first mate.

Even though Rayleigh had already caused quite a stir at the auction house, and the others had mentioned his full name several times.

"..."

Shakky asked curiously.

"Didn't Hachi tell you before you came?"

Hachi lay on the sofa and replied weakly.

"They only needed their ship coated, so I didn't tell them."

Rayleigh merely smiled, then began recounting how he had met Hachi.

"Back then, I was shipwrecked and Hachi saved me. That's how we became friends despite our age difference."

Black Leg Sanji took a drag from his cigarette and asked the question that had been bothering him.

"Senior Rayleigh, logically speaking, if the Pirate King was captured, his crew should have been captured too. Why are you able to show up so casually on the Sabaody Archipelago?"

When the subject turned to Roger, Shakky and Rayleigh suddenly glanced at Sal before telling everyone the truth.

"Roger wasn't captured. He turned himself in. The Government only claimed they had captured him to show off their achievement."

"..."

The sudden revelation stunned the Straw Hat Pirates once more. Ever since they were children, they had believed the Pirate King had been arrested. Sal merely continued drinking, showing no reaction at all. After all, he possessed all of Roger's memories from before and after his capture.

Rayleigh secretly watched Sal's reaction before continuing.

"Four years before Roger's public execution, he had already contracted an incurable illness. During that time, he suffered terribly every day, yet still forced himself to smile in front of the crew.

It wasn't until we invited Crocus aboard as our ship's doctor that his brilliant medical skills extended Roger's life by three years. Only then were we able to conquer the Grand Line and make him the Pirate King."

As Rayleigh explained Crocus's story at Twin Cape, Crocus had agreed to come aboard only to search for the Rumbar Pirate Ship. Brook was deeply moved. He had never expected Crocus to sail out to sea for their sake.

Rayleigh sighed.

"Although Crocus was only aboard for three years, he became a true companion to us. If I ever get the chance, I'd really like to catch up with him. And before Roger turned himself in, he had no regrets left. Now, the companions who disbanded have all gone their separate ways."

"On the eve of his surrender, the two of us drank together. He told me his will would never disappear. Then, at his execution, he spoke those words and ushered in the Great Pirate Era. I had never been as happy as I was that night, nor had I ever been in as much pain. Isn't that right, Sal?"

Sal drank another glass. Normally, it meant little to him, but as Rayleigh spoke of those memories, he could not help reliving them as though he had experienced them himself.

"Yes. Roger truly had no regrets before turning himself in. With his limited life, he accomplished great things of limitless possibility. But in the end, he still misjudged one thing. He was not a good husband or father in the end. Even if he entrusted them to someone he trusted, he still wasn't worthy of everything Rouge gave for him."

"..."

At those words, Rayleigh's expression instantly turned grave. Roger's descendant was something that still weighed heavily on his mind. Meanwhile, Shakky seemed to have connected something in her thoughts. Her hand paused as she poured wine, suspicion appearing in her eyes.

[S-rank character Shakky has developed ordinary emotions toward the host. Moderate surprise. Experience increased by 2000]

Sal curiously glanced at Shakky. What had she connected it to?

The unfamiliar name Rouge meant nothing to anyone in the Straw Hat Pirates except Robin, prompting Nami to ask.

"Who is Rouge???"

When Sal heard Nami ask who Rouge was, a fleeting tenderness appeared in his eyes as he slowly answered.

"Rouge was Roger's wife, a very gentle woman. Like you, she was a good woman who could give everything for someone important to her."

Hearing the praise, Nami shyly covered her face, then slapped Zoro to the ground, leaving him furious but unable to say anything.

After hearing the two describe Roger, the Straw Hat Pirates formed a rough picture of the Pirate King in their minds. Usopp then asked.

"The current age of piracy was entirely started by Roger, right?"

Rayleigh gave an ambiguous answer.

"I can't answer that for you. Roger is already dead. Only the living can create this era. Find the answer yourselves on the journey ahead."

After talking about Roger, Rayleigh explained why he had wanted to meet Luffy.

"Luffy, your savior and guide, Red-Haired, and Buggy the Clown were both apprentice crew members of the Roger Pirates. Red-Haired has now become one of the rulers of the sea, one of the Four Emperors."

This stunned the Straw Hat Pirates once again. Not only had Buggy the Clown been a member of the Pirate King's crew, but Luffy's identity had become even more unbelievable. He was the grandson of a Marine hero, and one of the Four Emperors had been his guide.

Sal suddenly interjected.

"Straw Hat Luffy's father is named Dragon. Monkey D. Dragon."

Luffy nodded.

"Yeah, my father is named Dragon."

Rayleigh froze for a moment, then chuckled.

"The leader of the Revolutionaries, the world's most dangerous man. Garp truly has a fine son."

"Then why don't you plan on having one, Rayleigh?"

Sal's sudden question made Rayleigh sneak a glance at Shakky before putting on a helpless expression.

Robin looked as though she wanted to speak but hesitated. A legendary figure stood right before her; if he gave her the answer, the question she had thought about day and night would be resolved. In the end, she still asked.

"You should know about the Void Century recorded in One Piece, right? Senior Rayleigh, I hope you can tell me what it contains..."

Before Rayleigh could answer, Sal asked instead.

"Robin, the Roger Pirates had no historian. In the early days, Roger could only barely interpret the Poneglyphs through the Voice of All Things. Later, they gained a half-baked translator, Kozuki Oden. Everyone has their own interpretation. Don't you want to find the answer yourself from the Poneglyphs? Luffy, why do you want to become the Pirate King?"

Luffy struggled to swallow his meat, then answered seriously.

"Because the Pirate King is the freest man in the world."

"Ha ha..."

"Ha ha..."

Sal and Rayleigh looked at each other, then burst into laughter. That kid's answer was truly so much like Roger's.

Seeing their captain's answer, Robin and Usopp did not ask any further about the details of One Piece. They believed in their captain.

Their time together soon came to an end. Rayleigh picked up his coating tools and prepared to leave. As for the Straw Hat Pirates, they planned to find somewhere to hide for three days and reunite once the coating was complete. They all had Rayleigh's Vivre Card.

As they parted, Rayleigh suddenly asked Sal.

"What is your goal in going to sea? You should know where One Piece is, shouldn't you?"

Sal looked up at the azure sky, raising his palm toward it as though trying to catch something, and slowly said.

"Yes. Although it's in my mind, I should leave it for those who wish to seek it. My goal is to drag that guy down from the throne. He has stood upon the throne high in the heavens for eight hundred years. It's time for him to come down and walk the earth."

Rayleigh instantly understood who Sal meant. His gaze sharpened as he met Sal's eyes. Their Conqueror's Haki faintly clashed against each other. In the end, Rayleigh slung his tools over his back and left, leaving behind one sentence.

"I won't help you deal with that guy. These old bones of mine can't take that kind of trouble."

"Don't worry, old friend."

Sal had his own ambitions, but he would not force an old friend to risk his life for them. Whatever he wanted, he could only obtain with his own hands, unless the other party was willing.

He put on his hat and headed in the opposite direction from the Straw Hat Pirates. If nothing unexpected happened, the Straw Hat Pirates would suffer their most crushing defeat. He had no intention of joining in that excitement.