Bubbles slowly rose from the ground, and the moment they completely detached, they floated into the air, propelled by the wind. They drifted through the bustling crowd, gently passing over the ship masts, and when they reached the top of the Yarukiman Mangrove, they would burst with a high-temperature explosion in an instant.
This was Area GR53, where rows of shipyards and Coating workshops extended along the coastline. Ships of various sizes, with their sails furled, lay like wounded whales, allowing the humans around them to hammer and touch their surfaces.
In comparison, the Coating workshops were much quieter than the shipyards.
Veteran craftsmen, accompanied by young apprentices, carried buckets filled with Mangrove Resin, meticulously applying the Coating to the ships they were responsible for, while occasionally explaining the techniques and tricks of the trade.
However, recently, an anomaly had appeared among them, and this anomaly had become a topic of interest among the Coating craftsmen.
Some apprentices who were closer to this anomaly would occasionally glance over with the corners of their eyes.
Faulkner, a gray-haired veteran Coating craftsman with nearly forty years of experience, skillfully flicked the resin from his bucket.
He then used the air to inflate it into a bubble, carefully merging the newly formed small bubble into the larger bubble on the ship.
This so-called Coating was essentially just that—combining small bubbles bit by bit to create a large bubble that could envelop the entire ship.
So, theoretically, the larger the ship, the more time it would take. And although the process didn't seem complicated, there was a lot of nuance to it.
Take the first step, for example: turning the resin into a bubble required an apprentice to practice for a year or two. After that, maintaining the bubble without letting it burst too easily was even more challenging and required a delicate touch.
"Don't mind their stares. Learn well, and once you've mastered this, you'll have a skill to support yourself."
Such heartfelt words were naturally directed at the apprentice standing behind him, though this apprentice looked much older than the others around him.
This was a man nearly 1.9 meters tall, with a broad chest, muscular build, and a head of luxurious blond hair, wearing glasses. The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were quite noticeable, making him appear to be in his forties or fifties.
"Don't worry, old man, I don't mind these things," said the man, who had taken the alias Old Ray, with a cheerful laugh, while carefully observing the veteran craftsman's movements.
"That's good, that's good," Faulkner nodded happily.
"Huh?"
But just as he was about to continue his explanation, a commotion suddenly erupted in the distance, catching the attention of everyone nearby.
"Move aside! Get out of the way!"
"Make way for me, all of you!!"
A middle-aged man wearing a black captain's hat and a black coat, leading a group of sailors armed with various dangerous weapons, was rushing over.
Anyone who got in their way was kicked aside, but they didn't pursue further, instead continuing to quickly approach.
"Hey, isn't that Captain Gols?" Rayleigh raised an eyebrow. "I remember we agreed to deliver the ship in a week, right?"
"Exactly, we'll take half the deposit first, and when we deliver the ship, they'll give us the remaining amount," Master Faulkner nodded.
As they were speaking, Gols and his crew had already approached. Captain Gols didn't even glance at the two men, leaping directly onto the bow of the ship. At this moment, the Bubble Coating had only covered a third of the vessel.
"Hurry! Move quickly! We set sail immediately!!"
Seeing this, Master Faulkner showed no reaction, nor did he step forward to negotiate. Having worked here for so many years, he had encountered all sorts of situations.
This group of pirates was clearly being pursued by someone, making communication impossible. As for the idea of demanding the remaining payment, it was out of the question. After all, he hadn't finished applying the Bubble Coating, and getting half the deposit was already a good deal.
If he had completed the Coating and the pirates chose to leave without paying, he would have to notify the relevant authorities for handling. The Coating industry wasn't without oversight.
But in any case, it wasn't his place as a Coating craftsman to intervene.
Rayleigh, standing nearby, also showed no reaction. He simply watched as they lowered the sails and hurriedly sailed out of the dock. He was more curious about the situation on the other side, wanting to know what exactly was happening.
Because at this moment, it wasn't just their ship fleeing. Dozens of pirate ships undergoing Coating were scrambling to leave, plunging the area into chaos and noise.
"Search!"
"Lower all the sails! Any ship flying the Jolly Roger, seize them all!" Rear Admiral Avène loudly commanded the group of Marines behind him.
"Yes, sir!!"
Squads of Marines scattered like ants, completely disregarding the protests of some shipwrights or Coating craftsmen, forcibly boarding the ships to conduct inspections.
Since Rayleigh's ship had already sailed out, the Marines merely glared at them and ordered them to stay put for the time being, not allowing any movement.
In an instant, the entire Area 50 became a scene of pandemonium with the arrival of the Marines. The atmosphere grew intensely tense, with occasional gunshots and shouts indicating that some pirates who hadn't managed to set sail in time were being captured by the Marines, attempting to resist arrest with force.
"Master, do the Marines come here often?"
Rayleigh leaned in and whispered into Master Faulkner's ear. He thought that if this kind of thing really happened frequently, he might need to consider changing his retirement profession. He didn't want to constantly face Marine investigations.
"No, in the past few decades, this is the first time I've encountered such a situation. It's really strange," the latter replied with a puzzled expression.
"The Marines have their own Coating craftsmen; they don't need to come here. As for catching pirates, as long as the pirates don't cause trouble on this island, the Marines won't interfere too much."
Hearing this, Rayleigh immediately suspected that these Marines might be here for him. Otherwise, why would something that hadn't happened in decades occur just over a year after he arrived? "But wait, how would the Marines know I'm here? And if they really came to capture me, what good would sending just one Rear Admiral do?"
Rayleigh looked at Rear Admiral Avène in the distance, who was dealing with a group of resisting pirates, his mind filled with big question marks.
"What exactly is going on?"
Meanwhile...
The ship of the Gols Pirates had just sailed less than three hundred meters from the dock when a series of loud thuds echoed from the hull, giving Captain Gols an ominous premonition.
"Captain, Captain, something terrible has happened!"
"What's going on?"
The pirate who came to report was filled with terror as he shouted, "The hull has been pierced by something like harpoons, and not just one or two! It's completely riddled like a beehive, and seawater is flooding in!"
"What?!"
Beneath them, dozens of meters underwater, Neptunian Fish-Man Soldiers clad in armor and wielding steel tridents were smirking maliciously at the dozens of holes they had created in the ship's hull.
Their orders were clear: never engage these pirates directly on the surface.
After all, pirates who could reach Sabaody Archipelago usually had bounties that were far from low. The Neptune Army might not be able to defeat them, and if they encountered a tough opponent with a bounty over fifty million, they could even be wiped out.
So, the plan was to drag them all into the water! If they were Devil Fruit users, they would be unable to swim or fight back. Even if they weren't Devil Fruit users and could swim, they would still be no match for the Fish-Men in the water.
It was important to remember that Fish-Men's combat power in water was several times greater than on land, especially in terms of speed. Moreover, they could breathe underwater without any issues!