50 Fish-Man Island

After I finished talking with Calvin, I waited for the rest of the crew to come back and told Ken to move the ship to Grove 42.

Everyone was gathered on the captain's quarters. Me and Calvin we are playing pool, Diana, Amber and Ken are playing cards, while the others are just sitting around.

I proceeded to explain to them the plan that I told Calvin before.

"But what kind of history does that island have?" Diana asked.

"It was the place, where the Legendary Rocks Pirates were formed" I stated, everyone looked confused since they naturally never heard about them.

"Legendary? Never heard of them" Ian said while looking perplexed.

"Of course, you never heard of them the name was erased from history along with their captain's name…Rocks D. Xebec, only a few people still know about him"

"How do you know about it then?" Enel asked.

"I have my own sources"

"Erased from history? He most has been someone dangerous to the world government if that's the case" Calvin commented, looking curious.

"Ah, Rocks had an ambition to become the King of the World…he used to be the strongest person of his era until the pirate king Gold D. Roger and the marine hero Garp took him down" I stated then proceeded to take my shot, and potted three balls consecutively before I missed the 8-ball "Damn it!".

"Shit! Are you telling me he was stronger than the pirate king?!" Franky yelled in shock while everyone looked dumbfounded at the statement I just made.

"I'm starting to like this guy" Ian said with a vicious smile while clenching his fist "Now I'm getting fired up! Let's go to that Hichichosi or whatever the fuck it's called!" Ian said while getting on his feet.

"A marine and a pirate had to work together to take him down…" Calvin said, while leaning on the table and aiming the cue ball at the 8-ball, before he proceeded to take the shot and missed as well "You mentioned someone strong residing at that Island right now"

"Yes, a former member of the Rocks pirates…Wang Zhi"

"We are going to fight someone that strong, I'm also getting excited" Urouge said "I've been itching for a good fight since I left Birka"

"We're not ready to fight someone like him yet, that's why we are going to sail for a while in the New World to hone our skills before that, I just wanted you to know what's up ahead"

"Xebec…wait that's the name of the ship! Don't tell me-" Ken looked at me tensely.

"Yes, I named it after him"

"I knew you wouldn't name it something normal" he said while scratching the back of his head.

"Got it!...I won" I said.

"Let's go another round"

…

After we finished talking, I waited for a while in the ship until Rayleigh finally showed up. He was carrying several tools with him, most likely related to the ships coating procedure, including oversized paint brushes.

"You came earlier than I expected!" he said while slowly approaching me "Nice ship you got there"

"Thanks, how long would it take to get it done?" I asked him.

"You can come back in a week" he said while examining the ship from a distance.

"Perfect, I'll leave it in your hands then"

Everyone left after that, and we went to search for a hotel to stay at for the next few days.

…

A week later,

Nothing major happened during our stay here, we just laid low and waited for Rayleigh to finish his job.

We are currently gathered near the ship, ready to leave Sabaody.

"It looks cool!" Yamamoto said in excitement while looking at the coating surrounding the ship like a bubble-like membrane "I heard we are going under water"

"Yes, we are visiting Fish-Man Island" I said as I stood beside him.

"Are we going to meet mermaids then?"

"You'll see" I replied with a smile while patting his head.

"Not bad old man" Franky said while looking at the ship's coating in satisfaction.

"I'm glad you're satisfied" Rayleigh said as he approached me "Are you ready to go under water?...The journey to Fish-Man Island is notoriously difficult, only a few ships manage to survive" He said with a serious face.

"Anyone who doesn't have the resolve to risk their lives, has no place in this sea"

"I see…" Rayleigh just smiled at that while slowly rubbing his beard with his hand.

"Have any advice for a rookie like me?" I asked him.

"Hmm…You seem to be in hurry, try to take your time and enjoy the journey more"

"*Smile*…Thanks, I'll keep that in mind" I said as I immediately boarded the ship, and everyone did the same after that.

"Do you have a New World log pose with you?" I asked Ken who was standing near the helm.

"Yeah, I got one with three needles"

"Good, just checking"

After everyone settled in, I turned back to Rayleigh.

"We are ready!" When I gave the signal, he started draining the air bubble underneath the ship that was keeping it from sinking into the coating, causing it to inflate, while giving us a supply of breathable air before the ship started going down.

"Wow! We're sinking!"

"Ken, our destination is 10,000 meters below the surface" I informed him while standing on the ship's prow.

"Got it!"

Ken used the underwater sea currents to navigate the ship. It was the same as using the wind on the ocean surface, so there wasn't much trouble.

We kept diving down until we reached a depth enough to see giant sea kings swimming on our sides, though they didn't attack us, and we managed to sail pass them unnoticed.

"Holy fuck! What are those big fishes!" Ian exclaimed.

"Are we going to be alright?" Amber asked me nervously.

"Don't worry, just enjoy the view…Ken, keep us on track. If they get in the way, we'll deal with them" I said in confidence with my arms crossed.

"O-Okay"

A few hours later,

Our journey was smooth until now, we managed to reach an incredible depth before we got swiped by a strong underwater current and lost control over the ship. Thankfully the bubble roof held out and didn't receive any damage and ship was tossed out eventually.

"Huff…Huff…That was scary…" Diana said in relief before her facial expression changed when her eyes fell upon the breathtaking view.

Everyone was looking at the island encased in a giant bubble in awe. We are currently at the lowest point in the ocean, the ocean floor.

Normally it should be completely dark, but the place is so brightly lit that we could see everything clearly. It was due to the Sunlight Tree Eve which absorbs the sunlight and transfer it to its root.

"This is crazier than the sky island!" Ian looked dumbfounded.

We proceeded to enter the bubble through the front entrance and docked the ship on the port after that.

"Alright, we are going to stay here for a few days until the log pose captured the magnetic field of the next three islands, we'll decide which one we go after that" I informed everyone "You're free to do whatever you want in the meanwhile, just don't go around causing trouble…This is Whitebeard territory after all"

"I'll keep them in check" Calvin assured me "Hey kid…" he grabbed Ian from the back of his collar.

"The hell are you doing?!"

"You're coming with me" Calvin dragged him away after that.

'Well, he's the most troublesome one' I though, as I observed everyone leaving.

"I know someone who can recoat the ship for us" Franky exclaimed.

"Really? I'll leave that to you then"

"Don't worry he's a trustworthy person" he said, then proceeded to leave as well.

As for me, I decided to explore the island later. For now, I just wanted to stay inside the ship and sleep.