Not long after, guided by the Sky Island Warrior, Sig swam to "Upper Yard" and met the Red Force, which was stranded on the shore, as well as his comrades from the Red-Hair Pirates.
"Lucky Roo, Gennosuke!" Sig swam over quickly.
Meanwhile, it was discovered that a group of Sky Island person were already negotiating with Beckman.
The leader of the group was a tall, thin Old Man with a Whitebeard robe and a golden cloak. He was probably Gan Fall.
However, Sig noticed that even this person, who clearly held a very high status here, also had small wings on his back, and... he wasn't wearing a helmet or any headdress.
"Hey, Sig... I'm glad you're alright." Lucky Roo looked a bit thinner.
"Why did you veer so far off course? What happened to the ship? Where's the Captain?" Sig noticed that Beckman was negotiating with the Sky Island person, but Shanks was nowhere to be seen, and the Red Force had obvious impact damage.
"Damn it, just as we were surfacing, we were entangled by a huge snake. Although we punched it and knocked it away, the Red Force was still knocked off course... and in the midst of the ship's rocking, the Captain fell overboard." Lucky Roo was a little worried, but not too worried.
Sig could sense that Lucky Roo and the others believed Shanks wouldn't just give up like that.
Lucky Roo then added, "And there's White, Morio, and Ooo... White barely managed to hold onto the Captain, Morio barely managed to hold onto White, Ooo held onto Morio..."
Sig:...
They're all Devil Fruit ability, so why are we doing this, like the Calabash Brothers saving their grandfather?
It's truly remarkable that they could still fall down in a chain when they were exhausted!
Lucky Roo said somewhat embarrassedly, "I was chasing away snakes, Beckman was protecting the ship, and the others were too busy to intervene."
Good grief, so it's about Devil Fruit users saving themselves?
Meanwhile, crew members continued to swim back, clearly having been searching for Shanks in the vicinity.
Beckman is also asking the people on the Sky Island for their assistance in the search and rescue...
"I see. You encountered the Sky Lord? How unfortunate... We will assist in finding your companions, but you should also prepare for the worst," Gan Fall said.
At this moment, Gan Fall, who is the "god" of Angel Island, although he has a cold expression, is still very kind to the visitors from the Blue Sea.
Moreover, from Gan Fall's perspective, he didn't see much concern from Beckman and the others, so he interpreted it as "they didn't care much about their fallen comrades," and therefore didn't offer much comfort.
"Where did the Captain and the others fall? I'll go find them too."
Sig said they were going to go together—in the White Sea, Sig, who had Fish-Man features, could also breathe.
Although the "magnetic field" is affected by high concentrations of Seastone Factor, Sig's Observation Haki is still very useful in the water.
"Hmm? Young man, was that your 'Mantra' just now?" Gan Fall glanced at Sig a few times.
"That's right, so what?" Sig asked in return.
"It's nothing... but you should still move your ship to Angel Island later. Theoretically, 'Upper Yard' doesn't welcome Blue Sea person. Since you encountered a shipwreck, let's just leave it at that," Gan Fall emphasized.
Sig could sense that Gan Fall was worried about something—and based on the original work, it was clear that he was worried about the "Golden City Skypiea" being discovered!
Gan Fall knew that if the pirates of the Blue Sea discovered so much gold, it would definitely lead to a fight.
After all, pirate crews like Roger's who had no interest in gold were a very small minority.
Even without an accurate assessment, Gan Fall could at least sense that Beckman, Sig, and the others were not easy to deal with, so he didn't want them to stay here for long. He was even worried that Sig's previously vast "Mantra" had already discovered Skypiea!
Of course, Sig didn't actually discover it, because due to magnetic interference, Upper Yard was only detected by Sig's Observation Haki within a few hundred meters of its depth along the coast.
The location of Skypiea is not among them...
Even without using Observation Haki to detect it, Sig knew of its existence!
At this time, in the Kingdom of God ruled by Gan Fall, although it was not like the future Enel in the original work who forbade anyone to approach Upper Yard, there were still some restrictions. The Blue Sea person were prohibited from approaching, and Roger was allowed to visit as an exception because he made a great contribution.
Seeing that Gan Fall was willing to help, Beckman naturally wouldn't go against local customs in such a matter.
Because of the severe damage to the ship, Beckman led his men to sail away the battered Red Force, and with the help of the Sky Island Warrior, they headed to Angel Island, which was not far away, to dock. Meanwhile, Sig also led a group of people to swim to the place where Shanks "disappeared".
When they arrived near where Shanks' ship had crashed, the Sky Island Warrior who had followed them in the air looked somewhat strange. Seeing this, Sig immediately asked, "What's wrong? Is there a problem here?"
Captain McKinley, who was in charge, hesitated for a moment before saying, "Dangerous people often frequent this area."
"A dangerous person?" Lucky Roo repeated, but didn't take it to heart.
"And if we want to continue forward, we can only... ask 'God' for permission before we can go through." McKinley refused to continue assisting.
Even though "God" had already agreed, McKinley suddenly backed out and said he needed to ask for permission. Sig could tell that McKinley wasn't intentionally causing trouble, nor was he afraid to go forward. Rather, he wasn't continuing because he was mindful of "God's" command. Perhaps... "God" also forbade them to approach the area ahead.
Sig thought for a moment, and considering the original story and McKinley's current attitude, he guessed most of it.
The war between the Angel Island and the Shandorian has lasted for four hundred years. Although the Shandorian were driven out of their homeland, they have been lurking in the Sky Island, always looking for an opportunity to counterattack, and they will attack any Sky Island person who are alone!
McKinley's so-called "dangerous people" are probably referring to them.
In Gan Fall's generation, he also reflected on the Error of his ancestors and wanted to reconcile with the Shandorian, so he negotiated with them many times.
However, four hundred years have passed, and the people of Angel Island can no longer leave their precious land, while the Shandorian aim to completely reclaim their homeland, so the negotiations between the two sides are not going smoothly.
From McKinley's demeanor, Sig could deduce that a considerable number of people within Angel Island likely harbored reservations about Gan Fall's idea of negotiating peace with the Shandorian by "sharing Upper Yard."
Centuries of war have forged a deep-seated hatred between the two sides, and the idea of "preferring to fight for hundreds more years" is not just a one-sided sentiment among the Shandorian.
Even so, negotiations are at least gradually progressing, and although the hiding places of the Shandorian are well-known, a general idea can still be determined.
In an effort to ease tensions, Gan Fall kept in contact with the Chieftain of Shandora while forbidding the Warrior of the Divine Army from approaching the area.
That's why McKinley said he needed to ask for permission, and from the bottom of his heart, McKinley was not afraid of the Shandorian as long as "God" approved.