Most people managed to carry only backpacks, but some lucky ones were able to take suitcases stuffed with various things. Thus, Bill, Sasha, and Miyagi organized the evacuation of more than two and a half thousand people in just three hours.
On one hand, what they did was a miracle, but on the other, the people leaving the Island of Mechanisms watched in horror as it sank into the sea.
Not all of the thirty pirate ships could be made seaworthy, so Rans and the others tied them together to create a floating barge.
The "Frontier Run" was filled to capacity, with 250 people on board. The remaining pirate ships were small caravels, each able to hold only about fifty people.
Seeing this complete desperation, Bill realized he needed to address the people.
But what could he say to those who lost their livelihoods, their belongings, and their homes? Everything happened so quickly...
Thinking it over swiftly, Bill decided that, although he couldn't save their island, he could offer them a new home.
This wasn't part of his plans, and he felt resentment towards the Straw Hat Pirates, whom he hadn't seen since they left the castle. Evidently, their ship had descended to the water with the help of a parachute when the island collapsed.
But that was a matter for later. Right now, he addressed the former inhabitants of the Island of Mechanisms.
When Bill was pulling the Bear King from the rubble, he and dozens of others had been digging for several hours, and by then it was late evening. Seeing this, the former inhabitants of the Island of Mechanisms greeted them joyfully from the pirate ships they had seized from the Trump Pirates.
With most of the ordinary members of the Trump Pirates missing or dead, the townspeople directed all their emotions against the symbol of their oppression.
Remembering how he addressed the crowd, Bill decided to simply tell the truth, and soon realized that people blamed the destruction of their island more on the Bear King than on Luffy, himself, or anyone else.
In their minds, even if they themselves created the weapon that destroyed their home, they did so because their oppressors left them no choice.
On his part, Bill believed that the destruction of the island was mainly caused by Luffy from the Straw Hats, though he saw that the pirate hadn't destroyed the island intentionally, but it was his recklessness that led to the damage of the mechanism.
In the end, Bill decided to first uncover the truth about Nami's claims before officially placing the entire blame for the tragedy on Monkey D. Luffy. Additionally, there was the reason why the engineers built the island so high, but he decided to keep that to himself for the time being.
Now, calming the crowd and pulling the unconscious Bear King from the debris, Bill knew the coming weeks would be challenging.
He told the former inhabitants of the Island of Mechanisms that he knew of an island where they could relocate, and they agreed as a community. However, this island was three weeks' sailing from here, and the route lay across the Calm Belt.
They had thirty-four small caravels, each of which could be sold for 5 million Beli, but they lacked food and other essentials for the survival of 2,500 people.
Bill understood well that every minute they spent excavating the Bear King was crucial because the whirlpools around the Island of Mechanisms made nighttime sailing too dangerous.
All this time, they had food for about four days and water for three days. Bill knew they would reach Loguetown, but calculating the costs of food and water for 2,500 people was a massive task.
Taking a deep breath, Bill hoisted the large pirate onto his shoulder and thanked the heavens that the Bear King barely fit into the ship's "Frontier Run" cell, and his Devil Fruit powers posed no threat for escape, as the stone floor stripped anyone of their powers.
Having done this, Bill returned to the main deck and found two engineers who had designed the legendary Diamond Clock. The woman was crying, talking to Borodo and Akisu, and as Bill approached, he heard the boy call her "mom" and start crying too.
As it turned out, shortly after Akisu's birth, the Trump Pirates attacked the Island of Mechanisms. To save their son, the brilliant engineers sent the infant afloat on a raft, and Borodo found him.
Patting Borodo on the shoulder, Bill asked him to leave them alone, and after glancing at Akisu and his mother, Borodo reluctantly nodded.
The two of them entered Bill's office, and as he sat at the table, the marine captain spoke first:
— So, will you tell me about your past?
Glancing back at the door, seemingly calculating escape chances, Borodo sighed, removed his backpack and flight jacket, revealing a mechanical arm, and sat across from Bill.
Bill immediately noticed how similar this arm was to the one in Akisu's parents' souvenir shop, which meant it was almost certainly not cybernetic.
"What is there to tell?" the self-proclaimed thief asked sadly.
Bill:
"Why don't you start with how you got into this line of work?"
Shrugging, Borodo explained that he became a thief from a young age