After receiving confirmation from Sengoku, Michael couldn't hide the grin tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Heaven is helping me!
He had been wracking his brain over how to get involved with Fish-Man Island, and just like that—someone handed him a pillow when he was dozing off!
It had to be the World Government!
Michael had never seen anyone so eager to offer up an opportunity!
And losing the status of an affiliated nation wasn't entirely a bad thing either.
At the very least, Ryugu Kingdom could now openly defy the will of the World Government.
"So, you want me to go resolve this issue?"
"To be precise, I want you to eliminate the possibility of Fish-Man Island becoming a lawless zone... and, while you're there, ask King Neptune and Queen Otohime what exactly happened that led the World Government to revoke Ryugu Kingdom's affiliation?"
"That's fine by me... but am I going alone?" Michael shrugged. "I've never been to Fish-Man Island. I don't really know anyone there."
"I've already spoken to Garp about it. He and King Neptune go way back. He'll leave with you first thing tomorrow morning."
"Uh, does it have to be Garp? There are plenty of people who could go with me. Like Tsuru, for example..."
"Garp's been living like he's retired these past few years. It's time he got moving again." Sengoku gave a dark little smile. "Living off his salary while babysitting his grandkids at home? Dream on!"
Michael swallowed hard.
When it came to Garp, Sengoku clearly had some pent-up resentment.
...
The next morning, when Michael arrived at the Navy Headquarters dock, Garp's personal warship was already prepped and ready to depart.
Standing at the bow of the ship was the former Navy hero—now a grandfather of two.
Monkey D. Garp.
He looked fairly imposing at first, but the image was quickly ruined by an unrestrained yawn.
Michael smoothly flew up onto the deck of Garp's personal vessel—familiar territory.
In terms of sailing hours alone, he had probably spent more time aboard Garp's ship than even on his ship.
"Sigh, I don't know what's gotten into Sengoku, insisting I accompany you to Fish-Man Island..."
"Come on, don't act like you're doing me a favor. You really want to just collect a paycheck without lifting a finger?" Michael rolled his eyes. "Didn't you always say you were curious about where I get my soldiers? This time, we're going to one of those places."
"Hmm?" Garp immediately perked up. "You mean Fish-Man Island is part of your plan?"
"More than just part of the plan," Michael replied, shaking his head gravely. "You could say it's the most important part of my recruitment strategy."
After all, in the world of One Piece, the true battlefield was always the sea.
And in the realm of the sea, fish-men and merfolk held natural advantages that were simply overwhelming.
With proper techniques, they could even manipulate ocean currents.
In a sense, their ability to harness the forces of nature made their racial talents unrivaled in the One Piece world.
"Alright, alright, I want to see just what kind of chaos you're planning to stir up!" Garp's interest was thoroughly piqued. He stretched hard, joints cracking like firecrackers. "Michael, I've always had high expectations for your plans!"
Michael's mouth twitched.
He could now confirm once again that this crazy old man would definitely become the banner he needed to upend the Navy!
Anyone with a "D" in their name...
Always had rebellion written in their bones.
...
Of course, they couldn't head straight to Fish-Man Island.
First, they had to go through the coating process.
So Garp's ship needed to stop at the Sabaody Archipelago.
Which Michael found slightly annoying.
If they were on the Seraphim, they could've just switched to submarine mode and gone straight down.
Fish-Man Island's geographical advantage was massive. Located directly beneath the Sabaody Archipelago in the deep sea, it received sunlight and oxygen from the roots of the giant Yarukiman Mangrove trees, known as the Eve Tree.
This gave Fish-Man Island its own cycle of day and night.
In fact, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Fish-Man Island and the Sabaody Archipelago were two sides of the same coin.
Thanks to the full mobilization of all the coating artisans, what would've taken a very long time was completed in just a few hours.
Soon after, the ship submerged successfully and began its journey to Fish-Man Island.
"Ahahahaha! Even though this isn't my first time, it always feels so magical!"
Garp laughed heartily as he gazed at the fantastical undersea scenery.
Michael could understand Garp's reaction.
After all, the Navy usually reached the New World by elevator via the Red Line.
Unless there was a special mission, they rarely had a reason to go through Fish-Man Island.
The risks of traveling via Fish-Man Island were no joke.
Just like the Reverse Mountain between the Four Seas and Paradise, which eliminated many who lacked navigational skill or strength—
Fish-Man Island stood as the barrier between Paradise and the New World.
In those terrifying deep seas, countless pirates had perished.
Not at the hands of the Navy or other pirates—
But crushed by the terrifying water pressure after their ship's coating was destroyed.
Even so, Fish-Man Island was always swarming with pirates.
Because any pirate who made it that far was bound to be strong.
And luck... was a kind of strength, too.
When sailing the Grand Line, luck could be even more important than raw power.
After a while, Michael began glancing around and double-checking their position against the sea chart.
"Hey, old man Garp, we're almost there... if I'm reading this map right, once we cross this trench, we should reach Fish-Man Island."
As soon as Michael said this, the dim, glimmering surroundings began to brighten.
Soon, the undersea light looked almost no different from the surface.
That could only mean one thing—
Fish-Man Island was right in front of them.
...
"Hey! Look! There's a Navy warship approaching!"
"What!? A warship!? Could it have been stolen by some crazy pirate? The Navy wouldn't come to Fish-Man Island for no reason!"
"Hmph, even if it is the Navy, so what? When they came here before, they unleashed their so-called 'human nature' just like the pirates. What's the difference?"
"Humans have never treated us as equals... yet Queen Otohime always dreamed that one day we could live openly under the sun."
"Sigh, forget it. We're not even part of the World Government anymore. Right now, we just need to protect Fish-Man Island... Let them through!"
After a few murmured exchanges between a group of fish-men and merfolk, Garp's warship was officially granted entry into Fish-Man Island.
Michael looked at the harbor filled with docked ships and twitched at the corner of his mouth.
"There've got to be at least forty or fifty pirate ships here, right?"