A year and a half later, in the year 1502 of the Sea Calendar.
The first half of the Grand Line, after the dawn of the Great Pirate Era, had come to be known as "Paradise."
At an unnamed island, a standard Marine warship arrived. On the shore, a shameless old man was being scolded by a thoroughly ordinary-looking middle-aged man.
"Vice Admiral Garp! You've been gone from G-3 Branch and Marine HQ for a full year and a half! Sengoku-san keeps sending orders to me! Making a mere captain like me, just your adjutant, handle an entire branch affairs! Do you have any idea how much pressure that is?!"
"Hahaha! Bogart, I was just giving you special training!"
"Do I even need training? Haven't I always been the one assisting you with administrative work!? If anyone needs training to improve their management skills, it's you, Vice Admiral!"
The middle-aged man was none other than Bogart, Captain of the Marines and adjutant to the Marine Hero Garp.
And the man he'd cornered on the beach was undoubtedly the "Marine Hero" himself—Vice Admiral Garp, who had sailed off with Michael and Stella a year and a half ago without getting back!
"Vice Admiral Garp, I've finally found you today! While you were away, I've brought all the orders from Fleet Admiral Sengoku and the backlog of critical intel from various factions!"
As he spoke, Bogart hauled an entire desk off the warship and set it right on the sand.
The documents atop it were already meticulously sorted and organized.
"Huh? No way I'm reading that!" Garp crossed his arms and turned his head away like a petulant child.
"Vice Admiral! Have some dignity!" After several deep breaths, Bogart added through gritted teeth.
"If you keep treating me as your administrative tool, I swear I'll request a transfer from Fleet Admiral Sengoku!"
After this scolding laced with polite venom, Garp finally sat down at the desk.
Did that mean he'd comply?
This was Garp we're talking about!
The bastard only sat down to eat rice crackers.
He had already made up his mind—absolutely no paperwork for him!
Instead, it was Stella, who had been watching the commotion nearby, who gently poked Michael waist, signaling him to say something.
Michael rolled his eyes but still leaned forward and said.
"Old man Garp, enough already! You became a grandfather a year ago, yet you're still acting like a child!"
Without waiting to see if Garp had even listened, he eagerly began flipping through the documents on the table. Eighty percent of these were classified or top-secret intelligence, but Bogart wouldn't dream of stopping this young man.
What a joke—before, Michael had been low-key and diplomatic. But a year and a half ago, he burned slave ships, offended the Celestial Dragons, countered Shiki ultimate attack and saved Marineford.
Now, who didn't know the name of the biggest nepotism case in the entire Marines?
As Michael browsed through the reports, he realized that for the past year and a half, his life had been nothing but waking up and fighting.
Garp training methods might have been ridiculous, but the results were undeniable.
Michael had practically engraved the word "combat" into the deepest part of his DNA, making it the foundation of his survival.
His combat instincts had sharpened several times over compared to a year and a half ago.
But the downside was… He hadn't used his brain properly in a year and a half!
This was the perfect opportunity to get back in shape.
After skimming through several unimportant reports, Michael finally found something that caught his interest… It had now been a year and a half since the death of the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger.
The increasingly chaotic seas proved one thing—this planet would keep spinning, no matter who was gone.
And that infamous war maniac from Roger crew, the child soldier Douglas Bullett, had gone on a rampage during this past year and a half.
After the Roger Pirates disbanded, members like Rayleigh and the others vanished without a trace, as if the crew had never existed.
But Douglas Bullett gave the entire world a brutal reminder.
As the only former Roger Pirate still making waves so brazenly, the World Government would never let him go.
And so… The absurd happened—a Buster Call launched against a single person.
Bullett was defeated and captured by Sengoku, then thrown into Impel Down Level 6 to keep Shiki company.
The torrent of time and history surged forward, unstoppable and irreversible.
Michael wasn't sure now whether the groundwork he'd laid a year and a half ago could divert some of this world timeline… toward a different ending.
Tossing aside the report about bullet captured, Michael kept searching.
Nearby, Garp seeing him so engrossed, gradually grew curious.
His massive hand reached out and randomly picked up a report.
After just one glance, he froze.
Reading it word by word, he suddenly burst into roaring laughter.
"Michael! Take a look at this one! It's Morgans' exclusive intel for the Marines!" Garp spoke as he placed the intelligence report into Michael hands.
Michael skipped over Morgans' exaggerated rhetoric and subjective analysis, flipping directly to the details of the report.
"Three months ago, in Wano Country, Kozuki Oden seized the opportunity during the fierce battle between the Beasts Pirates and the Thrillerbark Pirates to swiftly lead his samurai in a successful uprising!"
"Executed the traitors! Stormed the Shogun palace! And publicly beheaded the current shogun, Kurozumi Orochi!"
By this point, Michael was already taking deep breaths.
This was more than enough—it proved that his strategy was effective, capable of gradually altering the world timeline!
But as he read further, even he, a reincarnator was caught off guard by what unfolded next!
"After beheading Kurozumi Orochi, Kozuki Oden exposed the crimes of Orochi and Kaido, igniting public outrage. Countless samurai from the populace flocked to Oden banner!"
"After reorganizing their forces, Kozuki Oden immediately chose to lead the samurai in a surprise attack from the rear against the Beasts Pirates and the Thrillerbark Pirates."
"Not only did they drive both pirate crews out of Wano Country, but they also left three permanent scars on Kaido—on his lower back, neck, and face!"
Michael grew increasingly bewildered as he read, his face full of disbelief.
"Hey, old man Garp, Did Kozuki Oden was actually capable of this?"
"Are you sure this intel isn't just something you made up?"
Garp was also stunned by Michael question.
"Wasn't it you who stirred things up back then!? Now you're asking me? Who am I supposed to ask?!"
[A/N : At this point in the timeline, sengoku still an admiral but he is acting as a temporary fleet admiral, he is going to be promoted soon along with 3 admirals]