The first stop after leaving Punk Hazard was G-1, well not the marine base itself, but the place where it was located. At this point in time it was still a smaller base and not the massive marine headquarters it would become in the future. It was a place similar to Sabaody Archipelago and the only spot to get a ship coated in the New World. At least as far as Marcus knew, even if there were other ways to cross the Redline.
While Marcus could probably use the marine's transfer point to cross the Redline with Nicholas on the ship. He wanted to visit Fishman Island and finally meet with Jinbe. It would add an extra week or so onto the journey, since the coating process took time, but Marcus already planned for it after coming out of his coma.
The trip to G-1 only took two days since Punk Hazard was at the start of the New World. They were forced to skirt around Raijin Island in the process and while Yamato and others wanted to visit it, Marcus reminded everyone they were on a schedule, so it was skipped for now. Once they arrived at the island, Marcus navigated them away from the marine base and found the civilian shipyard's on the other side of the archipelago.
G-1 was different from Sabaody since it wasn't filled with the same massive trees the other one was known for. Sure it had a few larger trees, but it actually had real land for most of the archipelago. The bubbles were still there though, and while they were mostly concentrated around the trees. You could still find them throughout the entire archipelago and even at the marine base that didn't have any trees.
The shipyard was located between the main concentration of trees and wasn't hard for them to find. Marcus was at the helm and Yamato was powering the ship with the bike alone as they floated into the harbor with the sails down. The harbor was large with one main entrance and a few smaller ones that led deeper into the archipelago. Located round the harbor were five massive trees, similar to the ones Marcus found in Sabaody. They acted as a single large dome that blocked direct sunlight from reaching most of the harbor.
Inside the harbor itself was a decent amount of ships with a handful even proudly flying pirate flags. Marcus noted them, but steered the ship into the deepest part of the harbor where he noticed ships being coated. As they pulled closer to the dock, Marcus glanced towards the galley and called out, "We're about to dock, someone come up and tie off the ship."
The door opened a moment later and Nicholas stepped out drying his hands with a towel as he said, "I've got it."
Nicholas tossed the dish towel over his shoulder as he bolted out of the main cabin and moved onto the deck. While Marcus maneuvered the ship towards the dock he said, "You can stop peddling, we have enough power to coast."
"Alright." Yamato said as she hopped off the bike and stepped outside to help tie off the ship.
Once the two of them were on the dock with lines in their hands, Marcus let go of the helm and left the bridge. He stepped out onto the deck and helped secure the ship before everyone headed back inside to the galley to find the table filled with food. Baby Five, Jasmine and Uta carried over a couple more dishes as Marcus and the others quickly settled at the table. Marcus made sure he sat between Yamato and Nicholas which made Uta pout, but Marcus ignored her as he dug into the food.
After everyone started eating, Marcus glanced around the table and said, "You guys can go explore the island and collect some bounties after lunch, while I find someone to coat the ship."
"I'll come help you!"
Marcus shook his head as he glanced towards Uta and said, "No, go have fun with the others. I don't need any help. Besides, I'll come find you guys after I'm done."
As Uta started to pout and look away from Marcus he let out an exacerbated sigh and said, "If you wanna be helpful, go hunt a couple pirates. We're short on funds and you owe me money."
"We wouldn't be if you didn't waste money paying to fight that idiot!"
Marcus frowned as he jabbed his fork into a sausage and said, "Don't remind me, that still pisses me off."
"Admiral Kiza-." Nicholas started to say when Uta cut him off with, "Is an idiot and leave it at that. No one else on the ship likes him."
The others nodded in agreement as Uta turned back towards Marcus and said, "How about you go collect bounties instead and I'll find someone to coat the ship."
"You stole half my money while I was in a coma, you need to repay me."
Uta pouted again and gave Marcus puppy dog eyes as she said, "I didn't steal anything, we'll be married one day and that was the bride price."
Baby Five nodded in agreement like it made perfect sense, so Marcus turned to the other person who technically stole his money and asked, "Since all three of you took my money, does that mean you're also gonna be my wife?"
"Hell no!" Uta and Jasmine said at the same time while Baby Five took on a thoughtful expression before she said, "More sisters would be nice."
"No!" Uta and Marcus shouted at the same time.
"Okay dear, whatever you think is best." Baby Five said in a happy sing-song voice.
"Are you sure you're not in a rela-"
"Positive!" Marcus said as he cut off Nicholas before he let out a tired sigh and then pointed at each of the girls while he added, "All of you wasted my money, so after lunch go collect some bounties. I want at least two hundred million before we leave the island."
"Handsome jerk!" "Slave driver!" Uta and Jasmine said at the same time Baby Five replied, "Yes, dear."
Marcus shook his head and glanced towards the only person who was focused on eating before he asked, "Yamato, will you help the girls out and take down some pirates with them?"
"Churr." Yamato mumbled through a mouth full of food and a slight nod of her head as she reached for more.
"What about me?"
"Go with them and keep them out of trouble."
Nicholas nodded in reply as the group continued eating and chatted about random things until finished with lunch. Afterwards everyone helped clean up the galley before they separated into two groups. Nicholas and the girls headed towards the dock with the most pirate ships while Marcus looked for the dock master. After finding the man and paying the dock fee, Marcus asked about ship coaters and was given some directions.
The location wasn't far from the dock and turned out to be a tavern. When Marcus entered he found that the place was split with most of it being a bar and restaurant, while a small part of it was a counter. Above the counter was a large sign that read, 'Coating Services' and below that sat a woman reading a book. The rest of the building was bustling with noise but the woman at the counter seemed oblivious to everything as she turned to the next page.
She didn't even look up at Marcus when he stepped in front of her and cleared his throat loudly. It wasn't until Marcus moved his hand in front of the page that she finally looked up and said in an annoyed tone, "That was rude."
"I tried to get your attention, but you didn't respond."
"Clearing your throat next to someone isn't how you get their attention, you need to actually speak to them." The woman said before she turned back towards her book and promptly ignored Marcus.
Marcus stared at her for a few moments before he asked, "Excuse me, is this where I can hire a ship coater?"
"Yes."
Marcus waited a few moments for the woman to continue, but when she ignored him again and turned to another page of her book he finally said, "I'd like to hire a ship coater."
Without a word she pointed to the far side of the counter where a little display was tucked away. It had some paper slips and pencils stored in it and it read, 'Coating Form.'
Marcus moved over and pulled out a paper which asked a couple questions, boat type and the dock number it was stationed at. Marcus filled it out quickly and then stepped back in front of the woman before he placed the paper on the counter and said, "Done."
The woman took it without a word and placed it in an empty bin without looking up from her book as she said, "Have a crew member wait around on the ship and someone will come by to give you a quote for the coating. If you agree it will start the same day and will take three days to a week to finish."
Marcus waited a few more moments before he tentatively asked, "That's it?"
"Yes. Now go away, you're holding up the line." The woman said in a dismissive tone as she ushered him away with her free hand, never once looking up from her book.
Marcus glanced around him and found no one else close by, but decided to just leave. Since someone would come by to visit the ship, Marcus decided to head back and wait instead of trying to find everyone else. After he stepped outside and started walking back to the ship, he heard the sound of gunfire and fighting in the distance. As he approached closer to the dock, he noticed a fight happening on one of the pirate ships and he smiled slightly. Rampaging on the deck like an oni was Yamato in her hybrid form as she smashed people with her kanabo.
As he walked, Marcus thought about heading over to join in on the fun and sending someone else back to watch the ship. But decided against it after he realized how weak the opponents were. There was a chance the captain and other heavy hitters weren't on the ship, but Marcus was positive Yamato or Nicholas could handle them in any case. Once back at the ship, Marcus went inside and pulled out his acoustic guitar and a hammock which he strung up.
Once Marcus was comfortable and had a decent view of the free show Yamato and the others were putting on. He took up his guitar and started to tune it before playing a random song. About half an hour later, after Yamato and the others subdued the pirates, Marcus sensed someone approaching. He continued to strum his guitar, but turned to see who it was and paused. The person approaching walked confidently along the dock with their head buried in a book without issue.
Marcus stared at her and his eye lid twitched slightly when she stopped in front of the ship. She stood there for a few moments reading before she flipped the page and finally lowered her book halfway. She scanned over the ship with a critical eye for over a minute before she asked, "This is the ship?"
"Yup."
"Are you sure you want it coated?"
Marcus glanced over his ship for a moment before he asked, "Is there a problem with it?"
"It's tiny compared to most ships and doesn't look like any type I've ever seen… Is it properly tested? Can it withstand the currents and weather of these seas?"
"It's my own design and was built in East Blue. It's sailed all the way to Elbaph and back here so far without issue." Marcus said with a hint of pride.
The woman glanced over the ship once more before she nodded curtly as she said, "For a ship this size, two hundred thousand and it will take about a day."
"Alright, give me a minute and I'll grab the money."
The woman raised her book and began reading again while she walked away as she said over her shoulder, "You have to pay at the counter. A coater will be sent out after payment is received."
Marcus rolled his eyes at the woman, but went to stow his stuff away before he collected the money. A few minutes later he showed up at the counter and paid before he left to go find the others. It wasn't hard to find them, since they had a line of prisoners they were leading to the marine base. After catching up with them and turning in all the bounties for a little over three hundred million, they went to explore the island together and by the next day the ship was coated and they left the island.