Celebration Of Life

The time was a little past noon. Hancock stood on the port with Luffy, Jessie, and Astrid. 

"They're here." 

As Hancock spoke, a pirate ship could be seen appearing from beyond the haze. This ship belonged to the Kuja Pirates. 

"Sister!" 

Upon arrival, Mariegold and Sandersonia hastily approached Hancock. 

"Oh no, Sister you're injured!" 

They became paled when they saw the bandages peeking from under Hancock's clothes. 

"Marie, Sonia, I'm fine." 

Hancock dismissed their worried gazes. She looked at the rest of her crew who she left behind. 

"I called you all here to help the people of this island repair their homes. Whether it be construction, healthcare, or just some heavy lifting the Kuja Pirates will assist them." 

"Yes, Snake Princess!" 

Hancock nodded. 

"Then enter the town. These men will lead you there, where you will meet up with Ran and the others." 

"Roger!" 

The Kuja Pirates did as Hancock commanded and followed Jessie and Astrid. 

"Sister, can you inform us of everything that happened here?" 

Marie asked. Hancock smiled. 

"Let's walk and talk." 

Just like they were ordered, the Kuja helped the citizens repair the damages across the island. The sudden appearance of pirates came as a shock to the citizens which resulted in a tense atmosphere. However, this was quickly resolved by Jessie. 

"Remember everyone, these are allies. Be at ease, they're here to help." 

After his words and seeing the Kuja Pirates cleaning up the area, the citizens began to relax. After some hours of working together, they and the Kuja even started conversing in a friendly manner. 

"I feel like shit." 

Astrid grumbled while lying on a hospital bed. 

"That's what you get for sneaking out when you're in extremely bad shape." 

Caria said while lying on the bed next to him. 

"Ughh…." 

Jessie only groaned while lying across from them. After making sure everything was going smoothly, they returned to the hospital to continue their treatment. Luffy and Hancock were also getting treatment. 

"Man, this meat is delicious! I thought hospital food was supposed to be horrible?" 

Luffy had a cart in front of him stacked with plates of food. He was eating so fast that he almost swallowed a plate a few times. This was his treatment. 

"My~. Not even a fight to the death can stop your appetite~." 

Hancock was watching Luffy with heart eyes. This was her treatment. 

"Ugh…." 

They heard a groan and looked towards Frantz's bed. He slowly opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling. 

"Did I die?" 

"Frantz!" 

Jessie jumped off his bed and jumped on Frantz. 

"Ahhh!" 

The two of them screamed in agony. Jessie rolled off Frantz holding his ribs. Frantz's face became pale. 

"Yup…I'm in hell." 

After a few minutes of shedding tears, Jessie was back lying in his bed. He and Frantz's eyes were still watery. 

"I don't even know what to say to you guys anymore." 

Caria sighed. Frantz stared at the ceiling for a bit before speaking. 

"…..So we all survived." 

"Yeah, we did." 

Jessie answered his mumbles. Astrid and Caria lay in silence. 

"So…What now?" 

Frantz asked. 

"You live." 

Luffy answered his question while munching on a turkey leg. 

"You guys fought and fought and made it out alive. That means you have no choice but to live enough for those who didn't." 

He grinned. 

"What's next? You live, that's all." 

They looked at Luffy for a bit before smiling. Jessie burst out laughing. He sat up and looked at his comrades and paused on Luka who hadn't woken up yet. 

"I'm going to become the greatest Bounty Hunter in the world." 

Astrid sat up with a groan. 

"I'm going to help you." 

Caria sat up. 

"I'm going to live and challenge every person that disgraces the way of the sword." 

Frantz forced himself to sit up. 

"I'm going to help create a free world." 

They all looked at Luka and spoke in unison. 

"And our little brother will definitely return to us!" 

Luffy's smile grew wider. He flung his arms in the air. 

"And I'm going to be King of the Pirates!" 

"And I'm gonna marry Luffy and have three kids!" 

"Huh?" 

Luffy looked at Hancock in confusion. 

"Huh?" 

Hancock looked back at him confused. 

"Pfft! Hahahaha!" 

Caria burst out laughing. Jessie started laughing as well. Soon the room was filled with laughter. 

Early the next morning, the people of the island gathered on the shores. There were thousands of coffins on boats that were linked together. It was time for another ritual to celebrate the dead. Jessie stood in front of the boats while everybody else watched on. 

"I'm not as good at speeches as Tate, so I'm just going to speak from the heart." 

He placed his hand over his chest. 

"My chest feels tight. It feels tight because my heart is crying out. Of course, it is. I've lost a lot of people I call my comrades, a lot of people I call my family. We all have." 

Muffled sobs could be heard behind the veils everyone was wearing. 

"Don't hold back your cries." 

Everyone looked up at Jessie. He wore a serious face. 

"If you're hurting, there's nothing wrong with letting the world know. Forget the old traditions for this time only and show the world how you really feel." 

He walked up to Kelly and Connor who were at the front of the crowd and lifted their veils. Their tear-soaked faces became bare. Jessie showed them a bright smile. 

"There's nothing disgraceful about crying for those we've lost. Cry until you're satisfied, my smile alone is needed." 

A tidal wave of sobs spread through the shores. People cried, people screamed, people fell to their knees, people held each other. Everyone mourned in different ways. Jessie silently nodded as he watched all this. He slowly walked back to the edge of the shores. He sat on the ground and watched them all. He said nothing and allowed them to let out everything they were bottling up. 

"What are you guys doing?" 

He looked at Astrid, Caria, and Frantz with a small smile. 

"I said it's ok." 

"But we're—" 

Jessie lifted his hand to stop Caria from talking. 

"Titles and status don't matter today. Just let it all out. Don't worry, I'm here." 

"B-But…But…" 

Tears started flowing from Caria's eyes. She held onto Astrid and let out a wail. He held her as tears flowed down his cheeks. Frantz stood there silently crying while looking at Jessie, whose smile didn't waver for a second. 

"What about you? Aren't you gonna cry?" 

"There are thousands of tears being shed right now. Mines are not needed." 

"That's not fair, man." 

Jessie started grinning. 

"I guess not." 

He started laughing. Only his laugh could be heard in the melody of sobs. After nearly an hour, Jessie stood up. He looked at the crowd in front of him. The people had started to console themselves after crying for so long. 

"Do you all feel better now?" 

He spoke with a gentle tone. A lot of people started nodding. 

"Good." 

He turned his back to them and faced the boats. 

"How's that? Do you guys feel loved? Do you feel how much you'll be missed?" 

He spread his arms. 

"You were loved and forever will be loved! You may have died but your memory will live on! You won't be forgotten! You will be in our hearts forever!" 

He brought his arms back to his sides. 

"So, be at ease and pass on without worry." 

He stared at two coffins at the centre of the fleet of boats. 

"I will never forget you." 

He whispered. Astrid handed him a bow and arrow. Jessie pulled the bow and Caria lit the arrow. He looked at the two coffins again. He blinked and saw two men sitting on the coffins smiling at him. 

"The next time we meet, I'll tell you how I became history's greatest bounty hunter." 

He fired the arrow and it hit the rope tying the boats. The rope was engulfed in flames and the flames spread to the boats across the ocean. Soon, the sea was covered in flames. Jessie looked at the flames in silence for a bit before turning around. 

"We have lost a lot but the future is still bright as long as we are alive!" 

He placed his hand over his heart. 

"I, Jessie Lockhart, now announce that I will be the new Sheriff of Bounty Island!" 

He pointed at Frantz. 

"The new Mayor will be Frantz Zapata!" 

He looked at everyone's face. 

"Do you guys have any problem with that?!" 

"NO!" 

The crowd shouted. 

"Hurray for the new Mayor and Sheriff!" 

Connor lifted his hand and shouted. 

"OHHHH!!!!" 

The crowd cheered as if they were trying to let their voices reach the heavens. 

"Looks like Jessie will be a great leader." 

Hancock said next to Luffy who nodded in agreement. 

"Snake Princess, is it today?" 

Elder Nyon approached Hancock. 

"Yeah." 

She looked at the people cheering on Jessie and Frantz with a small smile. 

"Today, we say goodbye to Bounty Island."