Falling from the Sky, Iron Fist Garp

As he fell into the seawater, a string of bubbles slipped from the corner of Ron's mouth, his face as dead as a salted fish... Within a single day, he had experienced three things he had never felt before.

First, the pain of being struck by a shockwave.

Second, the power of lightning within his body.

Third...

As a Devil Fruit User, soaking in seawater brought that terrifying, panic-inducing weakness and helplessness!

His bones cried out in agony, his fingers could not move, and his body drifted like duckweed with the current.

"This feels awful! I want to die! I can't breathe..."

As he slowly sank, a Sky Shark swam over. Once it spotted its target, it excitedly flicked its tail and opened its huge jaws.

As a carnivorous fish at the top of the White Sea's food chain, the Sky Shark knew very well what happened to these four-limbed creatures when they fell into the sea.

There was no room for resistance at all. This was practically a meal delivered right to its door!

Glug glug...

The disturbance in the water caught Ron's attention. He forced his eyes open and saw the Sky Shark drawing closer, his face immediately turning livid.

"Fuck, what do you think you're doing, you stupid shark?!"

He tried to gather the lightning within him and drive the Sky Shark away. But if so many people had been unable to overcome this suppressive relationship, how could he, a rookie Devil Fruit User, defy the heavens? Forget firing off lightning attacks—he could not even feel the power inside his body anymore.

All he could do was watch helplessly as the over-two-meter-long Sky Shark charged over and sank its mouthful of sharp teeth into him.

Bzzzt bzzzt bzzzt!!!

Blinding lightning flickered, and a huge school of fish was stunned unconscious on the spot.

In the murky seawater, the Sky Shark convulsed wildly in place, its tail thrashing frantically. It regretted this... The exhilarating sensation of being electrified all over was truly something no "shark" could stop once it started!

The "Pyrobroin keratin particles" in seawater could indeed suppress Devil Fruit Users and prevent them from using their powers, but their concentration was minuscule and could not alter a Devil Fruit User's physical form.

Only Seastone, "Crystals of the Sea," with its higher concentration of "Pyrobroin keratin particles," could strip Devil Fruit Users of all their abilities... including Elementalization!

So rubber submerged beneath the sea could still be stretched, and lightning submerged beneath the sea was still lightning.

Caught off guard, the confident Sky Shark bit down on Ron's stomach, only to be instantly electrocuted by the lightning spilling from him. Its entire body spasmed, leaving it unable to move.

"So why did you bite me? If you don't court death, you won't die!"

By the light cast by the lightning, Ron weakly looked at the Sky Shark stuck to his stomach, swaying and twitching. He wanted to laugh, but he did not have the strength.

Splash!

Suddenly, sunlight poured down!

Strength returned to his body, and his vision brightened. Ron looked up at the sky and said in surprise.

"I broke through?!!!"

But his face immediately darkened, and he was left speechless.

"Uh..."

The good news was that, since the White Sea was not the Blue Sea and had no seabed, he had fallen through the underside of this sea and emerged from beneath it, so he did not need to worry about drowning.

But the bad news was... below him was still a vast ocean!!!

As far as the eye could see, the azure sea stretched out without end. Where sea and sky met, they blended into one, while several seagulls soared along the beautiful curve of the planet. The sight was breathtaking.

He plummeted at high speed, his loose hair standing on end. Ron sat cross-legged in midair and rubbed his chin.

"Come to think of it... Logias ignore all physical damage, so there's no way I can fall to my death. But there's an ocean below. Even if I don't die from the fall, I'll drown!"

"So..."

His gaze shifted to the Sky Shark beside him, its eyes rolled back as it twitched from time to time, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

One could not die from falling, but would drown. The other could not drown, but would die from falling.

This was bad, bro!

Grand Line, first half.

A colossal dark-blue warship, bristling with gun batteries and masts, cut through the waves and split the sea as it sailed straight ahead.

On the deck of that mountain-like giant ship, the soldiers bustling about in white Marine uniforms looked as tiny as ants running across a banana leaf. From the thick mast at the ship's bow hung a broad white sail, emblazoned at its center with the seagull-and-scales emblem that represented the preservation of world peace and order.

This was a warship from Marine Headquarters, Marineford... and the largest model, the War Beast, which only officers of admiral rank and above were qualified to command!

An ordinary pirate crew could be easily destroyed by its ramming attacks and cannon fire alone!

Whenever the Marines escorted the Celestial Dragons, the World Nobles, they would always deploy this kind of warship, which showed just how confident they were in its power!

Yet the bow cannon of such an extraordinary and immensely powerful battleship had been replaced by some unreliable fellow. In its place stood an adorable dog-head statue, wearing a collar and holding a bone in its mouth. All dignity was lost, making it a laughable sight.

However, no one who had ventured through the Grand Line—and even residents of the Four Blues who paid the slightest attention to Marine intelligence—would dare feel even a trace of contempt for it.

Because this Doghead Warship was the mount of Monkey D. Garp, the legendary figure of the seas who had personally captured the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, defeated Rocks, the King of the New World, and earned the title of Hero of the Marines!

At that moment, at the front of the spacious deck, there was a red beach chair utterly out of place with the solemn atmosphere of the warship. An old man lay on it, having kicked off his leather shoes and propped up his legs as he snored with his head tilted back. His muscles were knotted all over, his frame broad and powerful, his beard and hair gray-white, and his face naturally imposing even in repose.

If one ignored the glaring red beach chair, the beach umbrella standing beside it to block the sun, and the snot bubble inflating from his nostril, anyone who saw him might have said—

"What a vigorous old man, Iron Fist Garp!"

Unfortunately, no one did...

Drip...

A drop of water landed on his bare foot. Garp drowsily opened his eyes and glanced at the sky, smacking his lips.

"It's going to rain again... The weather on the Grand Line..."

As the highest-ranking among the Division Vice Admirals, Garp rarely went on missions. Whenever he felt even slightly displeased, he would ask Sengoku—his comrade-in-arms and Fleet Admiral—for leave and return to the East Blue to see his grandson. His last bout of passive resistance had finally enraged Sengoku, who forced him to take this mission. Garp was very unhappy about it.

But what was truly despairing was that he had messed up this mission.

"Ugh!!"

Imagining Sengoku's livid face and the spray of his saliva, Garp muttered, "Take it slow. I'll drag this out for as long as I can."

Then he rolled over and called to the adjutant standing behind him.

"Traine, a storm's coming. Get the soldiers moving!"

"Understood!"

Adjutant Traine immediately nodded and saluted before turning to find the navigators.

Though Garp knew nothing about navigation, he had roamed the seas for decades, traveling north and south. He understood the Grand Line's weather like the back of his hand. Ordinary navigators truly could not compare to him.

However, Traine soon returned, scratching the back of his head.

"Vice Admiral Garp, the navigators say it won't rain?"

If only one or two people had disagreed, Traine definitely would not have come back to report it. But all dozen or so navigators had confirmed that it would not rain, so Garp's conclusion was open to question.

Hearing this, Garp opened his eyes in confusion and looked up at the sky again.

As he raised his head, he said, "That's not right. Rainwater hit my foot just now, and the wind direction is strange too. If it's not going to rain, then it must be... uh..."

"What is it?"

Traine asked curiously.

In response, Garp slowly lowered his head, stared into his eyes, and said seriously, "It's... a strange shark and a person!"

Traine: "..."

I originally wanted to write another section about Birka before having Ron arrive in the Blue Sea, but the early plot needs to move faster. What would be the point of dragging things out on a sky island? After thinking it over, I decided to skip it.