"So that's how it is."
Hades looked at the newspaper in his hand and thought to himself.
It carried news about the Rocks Pirates.
Edward Newgate, a core officer of the Rocks Pirates, had fought Gol D. Roger of the Roger Pirates on Fish-Man Island.
The full outcome of the battle was unclear, but Newgate's retreat said plenty about Roger's terrifying strength.
It also confirmed one thing: the Roger Pirates had refused the Rocks Pirates' invitation.
The Rocks Pirates were a terrifying force that had defeated the World Government in open war.
Countless pirates dreamed of joining them, yet the Roger Pirates had turned them down?
They would rather offend the Rocks Pirates than join them. Hades couldn't understand it.
For fighters of their caliber, how much would joining the Rocks Pirates really restrict them?
They could keep doing exactly what they had been doing.
They would even gain powerful comrades to help plunder treasure, making their ventures safer.
Fighting the Marines was already a normal part of a pirate's life.
The Roger Pirates, for instance, were constantly being hunted by Garp, now a Marine Vice Admiral.
The Marines were already after them. With the Rocks Pirates against them too, where in the New World could they survive?
Joining the Rocks Pirates was hardly a difficult choice.
Once the Rocks Pirates disbanded, they could simply leave. Nothing would be different from before.
Many pirates agreed that the Rocks Pirates were bound to disband. Few pirate crews lasted forever.
Their absolute center, Captain Rocks D. Zebek, was already fifty-seven.
He was at the peak of his strength, but how long could that peak last?
In another decade or so, Rocks would be nearly seventy.
How would he keep those fully grown monsters in line then?
The news shocked the world and