Chapter 552: Settling In
The water ahead was becoming too shallow. The Sea Kings could no longer move freely in those depths, which meant there was no way to bring Noah directly to the island's shore. They stopped while the water still had enough depth to accommodate them. This was as far as the Sea Kings could take them. Noah came to rest on the seafloor in that area.
The remaining short distance would have to be covered by the Fish-Men and mermaids on their own.
Fortunately, swimming was something neither group had ever needed to think twice about. That stretch of open water was, for them, little more than a short stroll. If anything, it was easier.
That said, Noah wasn't being abandoned where it sat.
The island ahead was completely uninhabited. Beyond the dense forest covering its surface, there was nothing there at all. Five million people could not simply arrive and begin building a life from nothing. There wasn't even anywhere to sleep. Until a settlement of some basic scale had been established, Noah would remain the primary home for the displaced population.
None of that stopped anyone from going ashore to look around first. To stand in real sunlight. To feel a sea breeze that came from the sky rather than the machinery of the deep.
Before any of that, though, the security measures came first.
Brett sent his people down to deploy Vegapunk's signal blockers across the seafloor in a scattered perimeter, cutting off Den Den Mushi communications to and from the area. Then he had Princess Shirahoshi instruct the Sea Kings to seal off the surrounding waters, prohibiting anyone from entering or leaving without authorization.
Only once all of that was done did the open time begin.
Brett floated above Noah and watched as his people emerged from the ark one by one.
Every face he saw was bright. The grief of being forced to abandon Fish-Man Island seemed to have dissolved almost entirely. There was something else in its place.
Fish-Man Island had always had light, cast down by the Sunlight Tree Eve. But that had been a reflection, a second-hand warmth passed through roots and filtered through thousands of meters of ocean. It was not the same as this.
This was the real sun.
The soldiers of Fish-Man Island were spread out through the surrounding waters, maintaining order and keeping watch so that the excitement of millions of people didn't tip over into accident or chaos.
And one by one, then in groups, then in a surging wave, the Fish-Men and mermaids rose to the surface.
The weather was perfect. The sky above was entirely clear.
The sun hung there, casting its light down across the water and the island and everything.
The island itself was uninhabited but not inhospitable. It was a spring island, temperate and green all year around.
The first thing the people felt when they broke the surface was warmth and brightness.
"Is this — is this really the sun?"
An elderly Fish-Man tilted his head back and stared up at the sky, at the blazing point of light pouring out heat and brilliance in every direction. Whether it was the light making his eyes water or something else entirely, tears were running down his face. "It's beautiful."
"It's so warm. This is nothing like the light from Eve."
The Fish-Men and mermaids could barely contain themselves, and they had only just surfaced. This was a wish eight hundred years in the making. A dream passed down through generation after generation since Fish-Man Island first retreated beneath the waves. Anyone with a heart was going to feel this moment.
"I'm going to the island!"
One Fish-Man shouted it out loud, then launched himself through the water toward the shore at full speed.
He had felt the sunlight. He had breathed the sea air. Now he wanted to set foot on actual land. To see a real forest up close. To smell grass and soil. To experience the world the way the people above the waves had always experienced it.
Almost simultaneously, in ones and twos and then in a great flowing mass, everyone began moving toward the island.
The island was not small. Brett would not have chosen it otherwise. In terms of sheer area it was at least the size of Dressrosa, possibly larger. Accommodating five million people was not going to be a problem.
The reason an island this large and this naturally favorable had remained uninhabited came down simply to the New World itself. The sea here made large-scale migration all but impossible. Developing islands far from established routes required more resources and risk than most could manage. Uninhabited islands were common throughout the New World for exactly that reason.
Brett floated on the surface and watched the great flow of his people moving toward the shore.
"The army moved in ahead of everyone else," Jinbei said below him, treading water with steady, unhurried strokes. "They're keeping an eye on things. Making sure nobody does anything reckless."
Brett gave a small nod.
A million people surging onto an island at once could turn catastrophic with only a moment's carelessness. That was the last thing he wanted.
"Everyone's going to have to work for a while," Brett said. "Use whatever resources the island has. Start building."
The first priority was shelter. Without it, everyone would be sleeping aboard Noah indefinitely.
It was going to be a challenge. The island was large, but sourcing enough material to house millions of people was not a small undertaking.
"That said, nobody has to live on land if they don't want to," Brett added. "Honestly, they'd probably be less comfortable up there anyway."
He thought about it for a moment. "Build on the island and in the shallows along the coast. Anyone who wants to live above water can. Anyone who wants to live underwater can do that too."
The mermaids in particular, and male Fish-Men who had no way to walk on land, would likely prefer the water. And with the coast this close, even those living in the shallows could come ashore whenever they liked.
Underwater construction was also something Fish-Man Island's craftsmen had spent generations mastering. Digging out chambers in the rock, shaping coral, laying foundations in the seafloor — all of it came naturally to them. For a temporary home, it would do perfectly well.
"Push the logistics teams," Brett said. "As fast as possible, as much as possible. Supplies need to start moving."
A settlement this size could not function without incoming resources. Not even temporarily.
Jinbei nodded quietly.
Then there was the other matter.
Brett's gaze dropped. His Observation Haki reached through the water and through Noah's hull, settling on the other group inside.
Humans.
The humans who had been living on Fish-Man Island had been swept along with everyone else. Some had been long-term residents. Others had simply had the misfortune of being there when everything happened. Either way, they were here now. Their communications devices had been confiscated. They had been brought to the island with everyone else and would be expected to contribute.
They would have to bear with the inconvenience for a while. Being cut off from the outside world was not comfortable. But there was no other option right now.