Gion left her office to handle the details of the Shipbuilding Island, at the same time, in the port area of G-5 Marines, Issho's fleet and Luther Field's fleet were also orderly entering the port.
Standing on the deck, Uton looked at the extensive groundbreaking work on G-5 and was filled with emotion.
As early as when Ortolan took over G-5, he had considered modifying G-5.
The original G-5 was not grand, nor was it very functional. After all, it was known as the "Marine trash can." No one was paying military funds; everyone spent the money they stole on eating, drinking, and having fun. Who the hell would have time to build Marine Base?
Moreover, due to practical reasons, the location of the G-5 Marine Base needs to be adjusted from time to time according to the situation in the New World. You might just finish building the base today, and then the base has to be moved tomorrow. Wouldn't that be a mess?
For Ortolan, he intended to make G-5 a Marines base, so he definitely had to take into account both the infrastructure and functionality of G-5.
However, at first, he didn't have much money and couldn't afford such a large project, so he didn't start. But recently, G-5 has been gradually renovated. On the one hand, it's to coordinate with the warship project that Master Tom is about to start here, so it's good to renovate them at the same time and save money. On the other hand, it's also because the current carrying capacity of G-5 is really not keeping up with the development.
The island of G-5 Marine Base is not small, but only the southeastern part has been developed; the rest is mostly wasteland and forest.
In this G-5 renovation project, the entire island will be developed, regardless of whether it will be used or not. Planning will be done first, and the Marine Base building will be moved to the very center of the island to build a Fortress of Justice that is no less than G-1 and the Marines Headquarters, Marineford.
Aside from these fortresses, a large number of living areas also need to be built. According to Marineford's standards, the development of the entire island requires the complete abandonment of productivity. In other words, the island can only rely on the outside world for various supplies and does not have productivity itself.
This is actually quite normal. As a central institution, it shouldn't bear the pressure of productivity and other burdens. These are things that islands developed in the Calm Belt need to bear. Here, it's enough to focus on developing the economy, politics, military, and culture.
Without land for production, once the entire G-5 island is fully developed, it is estimated that it could support two to three million people.
Of course, this only means that the space is sufficient. It doesn't mean that if you have enough space, you can accommodate so many people. It also depends on whether the various supplies can keep up with the consumption. Otherwise, they will all starve to death on the island!
Therefore, the G-5 has extremely high external transportation requirements. The plan is to lay at least twelve Sea Train routes and have a long-term fixed transport fleet to stably transport various necessities, including but not limited to food, military equipment, etc.
However, this is all under the condition of being fully operational. There is no need to rush now. At present, the entire capacity of G-5 is only more than 70,000 people, with more than 50,000 on staff. Including some construction pirate laborers, family members of the Marines, and some scattered personnel, G-5 has basically reached its capacity limit.
This was a limitation that Vice Admiral Wolf, the previous base commander, hadn't considered when G-5 was built. After all, he was just an ordinary base commander. It's hard to believe that there would be a ruthless person like Ortolan who planned to turn G-5, this garbage can, into New Marines.
In addition to the main island of G-5, there are three guard islands. The size of these islands is similar to that of Dressrosa in the New World. According to the classification of islands in this world, G-5 is currently considered a medium to large island. If fully developed, it would be large enough to support a kingdom with a population of over one million and would be able to open multiple ports. It also boasts an excellent environment.
As for Dressrosa, according to the classification system, it is just a small island. Such small islands are the most common type of island.
If we were to draw an analogy, the total area of G-5 is roughly the same size as Wano Country.
Further up, there are large islands. However, these large islands are generally scattered throughout the seas, and they are home to ancient kingdoms. They do exist in the Grand Line, but they are relatively rare.
Above large islands are mega-islands. A prime example is Saint Ding Island, where Alabasta is located, which is classified as a 'mega-island'.
It could even be described as a small subcontinent, much like Australia.
In other words, the natural environment of Saint Ding Island is somewhat harsh. The vast island area is mostly occupied by an endless desert. If the natural environment of this island were the same as that of Spring Island like Kingdom of Goa and Dressrosa, the overall strength of Alabasta would probably rise to an extremely terrifying level, and the Nefertari Family would probably be truly untouchable.
The three islands outside the main island of G-5, similar in size to Dressrosa, are not natural formations. When Ortolan came to be the leader here, these islands didn't exist at all.
It was brought here by Yixiao when he explored the Calm Belt. The purpose was to create a triangular satellite island around the main island of G-5, serving as three fortresses to protect the safety of G-5!
These three islands are fully militarized and fortified, with extremely high levels of firepower coverage and saturation. Because they are close to the main island, the sea depth is not exaggerated. Therefore, the plan is to build an undersea tunnel to connect these three islands with the main island, which would make them more concealed and safer.
Of course, there should be ports outside, and Sea Train should be laid. It may even be converted into warships so that it can move with the G-5 main island at any time.
However, these are all currently just plans. None of the three islands have been developed yet; they're just being put on hold for now. The reason is that G-5 can only support 20,000 workers at present. It's not that Impel Down can't import pirates, but that it can't accommodate or support any more.
First, Ortolan doesn't have money, so these developments can only be done step by step. They'll develop the main island first, and then gradually implement all the facilities and other things in the grand plan once they have the funds.
Although the renovation of G-5 was only just beginning, just by looking at the bustling scene, Umit could feel that this place was full of vitality and hope, and was an island that was growing and becoming stronger.
While Umit was thinking about all sorts of things, the ship finally came to a safe stop, and then the gangway was quickly lowered, allowing them to finally set foot on G-5 land.
There was hardly anyone to greet them, and the port was even a bit chaotic. Yi Xiao said apologetically, "I'm sorry, G-5 has been quite busy lately, and the port has been a bit disorganized due to the transport of various supplies..."
"No, no, no..." Luther Field waved his hand dismissively, "That's precisely why it's so vibrant and full of life..."
With a smile, Yi led Lu Field and Umit through the harbor and into the base, explaining various matters along the way, and the atmosphere was quite pleasant.
Soon, they arrived at the base headquarters. Led by Yixiao, they took the elevator to the top floor... Well, to be honest, this Marine Base was rather unimpressive, with only five floors in total.
He knocked on Ortolan's office door, and after a response came from inside, he smiled and pushed the door open, saying, "Base Commander, Mr. Lu Field and Umit have arrived."
Ortolan had naturally received the news long ago. Although Yixiao did not notify them, the port servicemen had already reported it as soon as they arrived at the port.
However, he still feigned surprise and greeted Yu with a smile, "You've finally arrived? Quickly, please invite them in!"
With a smile, the guy stepped aside to let Lou Field and Umit enter.
Lou Field and Ortolan had met on Cake Island before, so they were quite familiar with each other. As soon as he saw Ortolan, he smiled and quickly stepped forward, extending his hand. "Vice Admiral Bane, it's been a long time since we last greeted each other."
Ortolan didn't move, sitting in his office chair and shaking hands with him with a smile, "Your Excellency Field still looks as energetic as ever."
Meanwhile, Umit was also observing Ortolan. He had heard of this big shot for a long time, but this was the first time he had seen him in person.
This was somewhat unexpected for him, because Ortolan's reputation outside of the military was quite formidable, such as the base commander of the G-5 Marines base, Charlotte Linlin's Fifth Son, the monster of the heavens, the user of the Goro Goro no Mi, and the person most not to be trifled with in the New World, etc.
In addition, Umit had seen photos of Ortolan, who did indeed have a very rugged and Haki appearance. Therefore, he subconsciously believed that Ortolan must be a rather rude, irritable, but somewhat cunning person.
Unexpectedly, upon seeing Ortolan, I didn't sense any of the imposing and beast-like aura he should have had. Instead, I felt as if I were bathed in a spring breeze.