The Dawn Ship continued its voyage around the South Blue.
During this time, Ash spent his days traveling back and forth between Gourmet Island and Carnival Island, doing little more than eating, relaxing, and enjoying himself. His lifestyle carried a quiet intensity, as if he were making up for all the time he never had the chance to enjoy in his previous life.
Only when the Dawn Ship reached a new island would he return briefly. Using the space gate, he would appear on board, leave behind spatial coordinates for the location, share a meal with the crew, enjoy the Kirk siblings' craftsmanship, then quietly depart once again.
This pattern continued for three months.
Eventually, the Dawn Ship arrived at the Sorbet Kingdom in the South Blue.
This time, Ash returned to the ship ahead of schedule, clearly more attentive than usual.
The kingdom itself held nothing remarkable in his eyes. Like most nations in this world, it was riddled with corruption. However, there was one person here who made it different.
A man unlike any other.
The last known survivor of the Buccaneer race, Bartholomew Kuma.
As a child, Kuma had been captured alongside his parents and enslaved by the Celestial Dragons. He witnessed their deaths firsthand, yet his heart did not harden. Instead of hatred, he retained an almost impossible level of kindness and sincerity.
Even after escaping and gaining immense power, Kuma did not seek revenge. He chose a quieter path, one focused on helping others and living peacefully.
Despite possessing overwhelming strength, he would rather endure capture and imprisonment than harm innocent people.
The woman he loved, Ginny, had been taken by a Celestial Dragon. She gave birth to a child, suffered from Sapphire Scale Disease, and eventually died. Yet Kuma accepted the child, Jewelry Bonney, as his own daughter and raised her with unwavering care.
All of this had already happened before the year 1516.
If Ash had to describe Kuma, he would call him a living saint.
A future Shichibukai, known to the world as Tyrant Kuma.
There was a saying that came to mind. People despise saints within their own ranks, yet admire them when they stand elsewhere.
To Ash, Kuma was both admirable and frustrating.
He respected the man, but he could never become like him. Ash was lazy, not submissive. If anyone ever tried to trample over him, he would make sure they understood the consequences.
At this time, Kuma had already left the Revolutionary Army and was living in hiding within the Sorbet Kingdom, caring for Bonney, who suffered from the same Sapphire Scale Disease that had taken Ginny's life.
Ash had long accepted a harsh truth.
This world was rotten.
If he had arrived earlier, if he had possessed enough power back then, he might have changed certain tragedies. Not out of regret, but simply because some outcomes were too cruel to ignore.
But he had come too late.
Belle-mère had already died a year before his arrival.
Ginny had passed away three years earlier.
Truly kind people were rare in this world, which made them all the more valuable.
This time, Ash intended to change Kuma's future.
No one knew what Ash and Kuma discussed behind closed doors.
But the next day, Kuma stood silently with a Den Den Mushi in hand, watching Bonney board the Dawn Ship.
He did not speak.
Not until the ship vanished beyond the horizon did he let out a deep breath.
Lowering his gaze, he looked at the Den Den Mushi Ash had left behind. Then, he took out another one and made a call.
After a brief pause, the line connected, but no voice came through.
Kuma spoke calmly, already accustomed to the silence.
"Dragon, it's Kuma. Bonney's situation is settled for now. I will come to find you soon."
The Dawn Ship continued its journey through the South Blue.
Meanwhile, Ash brought the four year old Bonney back to Gourmet Island.
Despite her young age, she already carried the same Sapphire Scale Disease that had claimed her mother's life. The illness was the result of human experimentation conducted by Saint Saturn, one of the Five Elders.
Would Ash treat her himself?
Of course not.
Healing was not his strength, nor his interest. He preferred to eat, relax, and watch events unfold.
However, that did not mean he would leave her to suffer.
He knew exactly who could cure Bonney.
More importantly, he knew where that person was right now.
Before making his move, Ash made a call.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, this is Ash."
Five days later, he arrived in the New World.
It was his first time here, and the chaotic weather and volatile environment immediately caught his attention. The climate shifted unpredictably, and the seas felt far more dangerous than those of the first half of the Grand Line.
Even so, none of it posed a real challenge to him.
Unlike Shiki, the Golden Lion, who relied on his Devil Fruit to float his fleet, Ash moved through the sky with complete control.
Speaking of Shiki, Ash had previously given two instructions before the Dawn Ship began its South Blue voyage.
One concerned the Sorbet Kingdom.
The other was to remain alert for floating islands or pirate ships in the sky.
Kuma had been found.
Shiki, however, had yet to appear.
Soon, Ash arrived at Punk Hazard.
At this point in time, the island had not yet become the frozen wasteland it would later be. It remained an active Marine research facility, heavily guarded and filled with scientists.
At its center was the greatest mind in the world.
Dr. Vegapunk.
This was Ash's destination.
In the future, a catastrophic gas leak would force the evacuation of this facility, leading to Vegapunk's relocation to Egghead, also known as Future Island.
During that transition, Monkey D. Dragon would learn Vegapunk's whereabouts and inform Kuma.
Kuma would seek him out.
And then, everything would go wrong.
Under pressure from Saint Saturn, Kuma would agree to become a test subject in exchange for Bonney's treatment. In the end, he would be transformed into a Pacifista, a weapon stripped of his will.
To Ash, that outcome was absurd.
Kuma possessed the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi, a power capable of repelling anything, even himself, at incredible speed. In many ways, it surpassed even Kizaru's light speed movement in practical escape.
During those years, Kuma had countless chances to escape with Vegapunk.
He could have saved Bonney and himself.
Yet he did nothing.
He simply waited.
Endured.
Accepted his fate.
Ash could not understand it.
Perhaps that was the tragedy of kindness.
Left unchecked, it became a weakness.
Pushing those thoughts aside, Ash approached Punk Hazard with proper authorization.
As a Shichibukai trusted by Fleet Admiral Sengoku and highly regarded by Vice Admiral Tsuru, gaining access to Vegapunk was not difficult, especially under the pretense of treating a rare illness.
Of course, Ash withheld key details.
His relationship with the Marines was built on mutual benefit, nothing more. There was no reason to reveal everything when a convincing explanation would suffice.
Fortunately, Kuma had not yet drawn the full attention of the World Government.
Only Saint Saturn had taken notice of him.
And Ash, known as the Heavenly Emperor, did not belong to any special race that would raise suspicion.
For now, everything remained under control.