After everything they had endured, the pirates who had answered the call finally understood the cruelty of war.
For them, the war was over.
The pirates' withdrawal let the Allied Forces defending the fortress breathe a sigh of relief.
They counted themselves lucky and realized reinforcements would arrive soon.
"It's finally going to end."
One after another, the exhausted fighters collapsed to the ground. At this point, sheer force of will was all that had kept them going.
Almost everyone had reached their limit.
No one blamed them for it.
Even so, some remained at their posts, unwilling to let down their guard for an instant.
After three years of war, the thirty thousand who were still alive were the elite of the Allied Forces.
"Only the affiliated forces and ordinary pirates have left. The Rocks Pirates are still here."
Staff Officer Tsuru stood beside Kong, with Garp, Sengoku, and the others nearby.
Army Generals Storm Dragon and White Ghost stood on the other side of the fortress.
The surviving CP0 agents stood apart under the command of the CP0 Chief.
This war had drained the Navy's strength, built up over many years. More than three hundred thousand Navy soldiers had died.
Countless officers who had formed its backbone had also been lost. Only after they returned could they begin to tally the losses.
"Looks like they're waiting for reinforcements."
Sengoku had seen through the Rocks Pirates' intentions.
But by now, none of them had any will left to fight. They were simply too tired.
The last two hours had been especially brutal. To cover the troops, each of them had endured attacks from several powerful enemies at once.
Even Sengoku, a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit User, could barely keep going.
Garp was worse off, gravely wounded and wrapped in