A great deal had happened over the past two years. Though Barn had always wanted to be a participant rather than someone who changed things, he had still unwittingly altered the course of history...
First came the sweeping changes within the Navy. Mary Geoise, left almost unrecognizable by Whitebeard, Barn, and Blackbeard during the Paramount War two years earlier, had been fully rebuilt. The rebuilt Mary Geoise looked far sturdier than before. With vast quantities of high-density steel incorporated into its construction, it now resembled a mechanical island whose technology surpassed anything of the current age. Of course, that was also thanks to Vegapunk, the genius scientist who had escaped disaster two years earlier.
As for the area behind Mary Geoise, the district originally reserved for the Celestial Dragons had been blown to dust by Barn's Primordial Stone, leaving only an enormous crater. Vegapunk had turned that crater into a vast testing ground, surrounding it with black metal that blocked out the sunlight and kept anyone from seeing what secret experiments he was conducting inside.
The Navy's personnel had also undergone major changes. The previous Fleet Admiral, Sengoku, had resigned to take responsibility for letting Red-Hair leave with Whitebeard's body without authorization. His successor was Aokiji, the only remaining Admiral of the older generation. Kizaru and Akainu had both died at Barn's hands, while Fujitora had been gravely wounded by him. Fortunately, Fujitora had recovered after receiving treatment. Because of this, a few people eager to stir things up had even given Barn the title of Admiral Killer.
None of that mattered anymore, though. After the Paramount War, the Navy had launched another massive recruitment drive. Spurred on by its victory in the war, countless recruits had enlisted. Rather than weakening after the Paramount War, the Navy had actually grown