"I'm telling you, Nereus—do you not trust your own strength, or do you think I'm not strong enough? Harald may have peace on the brain, but his power is unquestionable.
If the three of us join forces, truly unite, then we can take the first step toward ruling the entire world!"
On these seas, conviction was an exceptionally important thing.
Those whose beliefs were weak often found their growth repeatedly stalled.
Even for the same person, losing one's ideals could drastically alter both future and appearance.
Anyone who ultimately stood among the strongest in the world possessed unwavering certainty in their own path.
In Rocks's eyes, there was nothing wrong with his vision.
The problem was simply that no one would cooperate.
"I never said you were weak.
But the World Government isn't weak either.
Think about the elites among the Holy Knights, those chosen Celestial Dragon warriors.
Think about the Admirals at Marine Headquarters.
And CP0, the hidden agents.
Those are all forces the World Government can directly deploy.
More importantly, when necessary, through something like a worldwide military draft, they can replenish losses in an extremely short time and restore their strength almost immediately.
And what about you, Rocks?
What exactly do you truly have that you can rely on?
Those so-called 'loyal crew members' you gathered through Davy Back Fights?"
Compared to infamous pirates feared across the sea, far more people still chose, deep down, to trust the World Government.
Even if rotten—
it still maintained visible order.
A world draft truly was one of the Government's standard methods for rapid reinforcement.
And it replenished more than ordinary soldiers.
Sometimes, it uncovered civilians strong enough to rival Admirals.
Fujitora Issho and Ryokugyu Aramaki had both emerged that way.
Even if Ryokugyu would later earn ridicule for his conduct, against ordinary fighters his power remained overwhelming.
And hidden monsters like them usually leaned instinctively toward established order.
As for the Davy Back Fight Nereus mentioned—
it was a special contest spread among pirate crews across the seas, formally known as the Davy Back Fight, or Davy Jones Battle.
Different contests were set.
The winner claimed either enemy crew members or even the opposing pirate flag itself.
Inside the Rocks Pirates, members were either:
opportunists gathered for their own ambitions,or subordinates forcibly taken through these contests.
When true crisis came—
few of them could truly be counted on.
"The vast majority of people in this world still trust the World Government.
Even if your ideals somehow succeed in taking the first step, endless resistance follows afterward."
"So what if weak trash outnumbers us?!
I'm going to become King of the World!
Whether they resist or not means nothing to me!
Is that the trivial nonsense you're worried about?!"
Their battle never slowed.
Fists, blades, and Haki collided without pause—
yet between every strike came these sharp ideological clashes.
"That's exactly why I said our foundations are completely different."
"You...
To those nobles above and ordinary people below, aren't you still just another unforgivable pirate?
Do you even possess what you're talking about?"
"We've known each other too long for you to ask that.
You know exactly what I've spent these years doing at sea."
The seawater forced away earlier by their violent clash now surged back.
It came like a massive tsunami.
Towering waves rushed toward the center of battle.
Yet those world-devouring waters, under Nereus's precise Fish-Man Jujutsu, became weapons in his hands.
An invisible force gripped the waves and bent them.
Then—
the enormous wall of water crashed down toward Rocks.
"Hmph! Those slaves you free every day?
They can't even protect themselves!
What use are weaklings like that?!"
Rocks roared and slashed upward.
One strike split the descending wave in half.
Then he charged Nereus again without hesitation.
In his worldview, weakness held no value, no matter the numbers.
"I never expected them to fight for me.
Think carefully—
are there more nobles in this world, or ordinary people?
Even citizens of member nations still fall prey to lawless slavers.
That happens constantly."
Across the sea were countless islands.
The number of non-member nations far exceeded member states.
And in the official eyes of the World Government, those places were effectively beyond protection.
Mass killings.
Slave raids.
All legally tolerated there.
By legal logic alone, selling people from non-member nations as slaves was almost normal.
And once someone fell into slavers' hands, no one cared where they came from.
No one checked.
"What I need is simple—
those I free only need to tell others who gave them freedom.
Day after day, island after island, that changes perception.
Changes reputation.
Isn't Harald proof enough?
Already, many people now believe that terrifying-looking giant is actually a kind-hearted man."
"On some islands we passed, I did hear people talking about your fish-man crew freeing slaves.
I even met slaves you freed yourself."
"Hopefully you didn't rob people who had just regained freedom."
Nereus's tone carried open amusement.
He knew Rocks's habits well.
And in truth—
that assumption was not baseless.
"Bastard!
What do you take me for?!
Those penniless people had nothing worth stealing anyway!"
"Then you've already seen the results yourself.
You know whether what I've done matters.
And those two legendary Devil Fruits you keep chasing—
up to now, you haven't truly obtained even one, have you?"
"..."
For the first time, Rocks fell silent.
He could argue ideology.
But facts were harder.
His progress truly remained close to zero.
Harald clearly leaned toward the World Government.
Persuading him would likely be even harder than persuading Nereus.
And if words failed—
then finish the fight first.
Rocks prepared to move again.
But before either side resumed—
a figure with striking golden hair burst through the shockwaves of their battle and rushed toward them.
"You two—stop already!
Stop fighting!
There's news... about Beehive's treasure!"