"Ah, it's been so long since I last visited Fish-Man Island," Yamato stretched lazily with a smile.
"When I was little, I used to come here all the time to shop!"
"This isn't the time for reminiscing," Michael shook his head. "Let's go—straight to Ryugu Palace! No matter what Ryokugyu plans to do, as long as we stay close to Queen Otohime and the others, we'll catch him eventually."
With that, he motioned for Jack, Ginny, and Kuma to follow as they hurried toward Ryugu Palace.
Fish-Man Island showed no signs of disturbance—it seemed Ryokugyu and his men had yet to reveal themselves, opting instead to act in secret.
Just as Michael was thinking this, a violent tremor erupted from Ryugu Palace in the distance. Peering ahead, he could faintly make out the silhouette of an enormous ancient tree emerging from within the palace walls.
Wait…
"A tree?"
Michael frowned.
Wasn't Ryokugyu's Logia transformation that of a colossal, vine-wielding treant?
"Kuma! Launch us in that direction!" Michael pointed toward Ryugu Palace. "Ryokugyu isn't wasting a single second—he's already attacking the palace directly..."
"Understood."
Kuma nodded.
He raised his palm, revealing the distinctive paw-pad-like pads on his hands.
"If you had to choose, where would you like to travel?"
"...Seriously? Now's not the time for scripted lines."
"Oh, sorry. Force of habit."
As Kuma spoke, his hands swiftly patted Michael and the others one after another, causing them to vanish from the spot at incredible speed.
Finally, he aimed at himself and delivered a pat as well.
With a spring-like motion, he instantly appeared outside the walls of the Ryugu Palace.
The only difference between the Paw-Paw Fruit's ability and teleportation was that it couldn't pass through obstacles.
Everyone came to a stop here.
Coincidentally, they saw Jinbei being carried out by members of the Whitebeard Pirates.
Michael stepped forward, observing the massive penetrating wound on Jinbei's chest.
There was no doubt—Ryokugyu had done this.
For a fish-man of Jinbei's caliber to survive an encounter with Ryokugyu was no small feat.
The presence of Whitebeard Pirates here meant the division commanders assigned to guard Fish-Man Island had also engaged Ryokugyu in battle.
"Tell me, who are the commanders on rotation?"
"M-Michael-sama?!" The leading Whitebeard Pirate, a veteran who had witnessed Michael's legendary battle with Whitebeard years ago, stammered, "This quarter's guards for Fish-Man Island are Third Division Commander 'Diamond' Jozu and Fifth Division Commander 'Flower Sword' Vista."
Michael nodded.
Not bad—those two were commander-level fighters on par with the Calamities.
If it had been someone like Izo or other division commanders, there might have been two more bodies lying here by now.
"You four, go in and support Vista and Jozu... I'll pull Jinbei back from death's door first."
A wound larger than a human head—if not for the fish-man's naturally robust physique and Jinbei's indomitable willpower, he would've been long gone!
"Yes!"
Ginny and the others glanced at Jinbei, their expressions turning grave.
After acknowledging the order, they charged into the Ryugu Palace without looking back. There was nothing they could do to help with the healing here anyway. E
ven Kuma's Paw-Paw Fruit was powerless against such a grievous injury.
Without hesitation, Michael raised his hand, his body brimming with holy light.
"Holy Healing Art!"
Under Michael's full power, pure white holy light surged into Jinbei's body.
Instantly, dense clusters of fleshy tendrils began wriggling around the edges of the massive wound.
Though the sight was unnervingly Lovecraftian, making the surrounding Whitebeard Pirates Shudder, Jinbei's pallid complexion gradually regained color.
Before everyone's eyes, the gaping hole was soon filled with newly regenerated bones, flesh, and internal organs.
Finally, fresh skin formed over it. Aside from being slightly lighter in shade than the surrounding tissue, the wound had completely healed.
"Jinbei, how are you feeling?"
Michael crouched down, his voice filled with concern.
Jinbei was someone who, under Michael's guidance, had awakened to his ideals and eventually led his people to join the Marines.
He had even taken over as commander of the "Sea God" branch from the SWORD Special Forces.
In many ways, he was now one of their own.
And... Michael had always held a soft spot for stubborn, principled men of virtue like Jinbei.
"Grand Inspector Michael!?" Jinbei slowly opened his eyes, only to see a face he never expected to appear here. "Am I already seeing my life flash before my eyes?"
"If you can hold conversations with your own life flashbacks, that'd be one hell of a feat," Michael said, pulling Jinbei up before patting his chest.
"Lucky I arrived in time, or you really would've been watching that final reel."
"You healed me!" Jinbei touched his chest where a gaping hole had been moments ago. "I'm deeply indebted to you this time."
"Of course, this treatment wasn't completely free," Michael said with a smile. "That Sun Pirates tattoo on your back will need to be redone."
"The tattoo doesn't matter... It was originally inked as a farewell to Brother Tiger. As a Marine now, it's not appropriate to keep bearing it anyway."
"As you wish." Seeing Jinbei had recovered, Michael patted his shoulder and strode toward Ryugu Palace.
"Grand Inspector Michael! You must protect Princess Shirahoshi!"
"Just for still calling me Grand Inspector now, I will."
...
Upon entering Ryugu Palace, Michael immediately activated his Observation Haki.
He had no intention of confronting Ryokugyu.
Instead, he focused on locating Shirahoshi within the palace.
Though Ryokugyu was formidable, he was currently facing not only Diamond Jozu and Flower Sword Vista but also Yamato, Jack, Ginny, and Kuma...
With the vitality of his Forest-Forest Fruit, death was unlikely, but he'd certainly be taking a beating.
Not to mention Yamato and Jack's combat prowess, Kuma the "Hand of Liberation" and Ginny the "Flame of Freedom" were equally formidable.
Thus, Michael preferred leaving Ryokugyu to them—it was a valuable experience against top-tier opponents.
As these thoughts crossed his mind, Michael quickly pinpointed Princess Shirahoshi's location.
She remained hidden in the Hard-Shell Tower, shielded by her three brothers, while Neptune and Queen Otohime stood guard outside, facing the Regional Justice Faction Marines.
Michael unfurled his angelic wings and soared toward them.
"Fishman Island. Regional Justice Faction Marines."
"Tch. My DNA's stirring. The Judgment Flame is getting restless too."