"Yahoo!"
"Nothing beats having solid ground under my feet!"
Skipping joyfully along the streets of Water 7, Revy beamed with excitement.
Their ship would take a whole week to repair.
So, in the meantime, Kisame joined the crew in searching for a place to stay, while also taking in the sights and culture of this world.
However, He didn't know, Shortly after they left the scrap shipyard, their seemingly ordinary ship received some unexpected visitors.
"Is Spandam an idiot?"
"What's so important about investigating a broken ship?"
"No point complaining. He's got a powerful daddy, after all."
"Then again, father and son are exactly the same—both brainless."
"Seriously, what could possibly be worth checking on this piece of junk?"
Grumbling amongst themselves, two CP5 agents sneaked into the scrap shipyard, making their way toward the docks.
Meanwhile,
Inside the shipyard's small house, Tom and his apprentices had no idea that intruders were snooping around.
And even less so, That their target was actually Kisame's battered old ship.
"Master, are you okay?"
Both Franky and Iceburg looked at their master, concerned by the dark expression on his face.
"I'm fine, but..."
Tom shook his head, though a hint of unease flickered in his eyes.
"Sigh…"
After a long pause, he finally let out a deep breath.
"Iceburg, Franky—come here."
"There's something I want to show you."
Saying this, he walked over to a wall inside the house and reached out to turn a hidden mechanism.
Click, The wall slid open, revealing a hidden compartment inside.
Franky and Iceburg's eyes widened in shock.
They had lived here for years, And yet, they never knew this secret compartment existed!
Before they could recover from their surprise, Tom pulled out a stack of papers from within and handed them over.
Then—Their shock deepened.
"T-This… This thing actually exists?!"
"How… How could something like this be real?!"
Their hands trembled as they held the blueprints.
Franky, in particular, gawked in absolute disbelief—his mouth agape, nearly drooling onto the papers.
Tom, however, wasn't in the mood to joke around.
Instead, his expression turned even graver.
"This… is the most terrifying creation in shipbuilding history."
"That man who came today—he's from the World Government's CP organization."
"It seems… the World Government has caught wind of these blueprints."
"They already suspect me. Keeping them here is too dangerous."
Hearing his master's words, Iceburg silently nodded in agreement.
If what Tom said was true, Then that bastard from earlier definitely wouldn't let this go so easily.
"I understand!"
"I'll keep it safe!"
Seeing Iceburg tuck away the blueprints, Franky suddenly burst into laughter.
"Hey, Iceburg! Let's build it!"
BANG!
As expected, The moment the words left his mouth, Iceburg's fist landed squarely on his head.
"BAKA!"
"Do you even think before you speak?!"
"This is an ancient weapon that could destroy an entire island with a single shot!"
Clutching the blueprints tightly, Iceburg glared at his friend in frustration.
This guy, That kind of thinking is way too dangerous!
"Franky, if this thing is ever brought back into the world…"
"The entire world could be wiped out."
At that moment, Tom spoke up.
Sensing that the atmosphere had turned heavy, he suddenly let out a booming laugh.
"HAHAHA! But now that the blueprints are yours…"
"What you do with them is entirely up to you!"
"If you think it's too dangerous… throwing them away is always an option!"
Hearing their master's words, both Franky and Iceburg froze for a moment.
Iceburg looked up at Tom, his eyes flickering with determination.
Master… don't worry. I will keep them safe.
—
Meanwhile, at the Shipyard Docks
The two CP5 agents had no idea they had just missed the Pluton blueprints.
Having finally found Kisame's ship, the two men stepped aboard.
The deck was in absolute ruins,
It was covered in cracks and scars from battle, with holes the size of a baby's fist littered across its surface.
"Tch, just look at this thing…"
One of the CP5 agents grimaced, about to make a snarky comment.
Then he looked up,
"WHAT THE HELL?!"
"People actually live here?!"
The massive five-meter-wide hole in the ship's cabin left him completely speechless.
By all logic, this thing shouldn't even be able to float!
As for useful intel?
Yeah… good luck finding any.
There's a saying: "Clothes make the man, and a good saddle makes the horse."
But looking at this ship, it was crystal clear—These guys were dirt poor.
"Should we check inside?"
His partner hesitated.
"Check?
"What the hell for?"
"This ship is so wrecked, there's literally nothing worth looking at!"
They say even the most worthless ship still has at least three pounds of iron left.
But in this case, This hunk of junk probably didn't even have that much.
At this point, the agent just wanted to leave, head back to Water 7, and enjoy a good drink at the bar.
"So… we're not checking?"
"The hell are we still looking for?"
Rolling his eyes, the CP5 agent turned to leave the ship with his partner.
But just as they were about to step off, A faint noise echoed from inside the ship's cabin.
"Huh?"
The moment they heard the sound, both agents instinctively dropped into combat stances, eyes locked onto the gaping hole in the ship's hull.
Tap… tap… tap…
A soft scuttling noise grew louder and louder, Slowly, something approached the hole.
Gulp.
Both men swallowed hard, their nerves stretched taut.
The sound was just on the other side of the broken wall.
Crack…
A splintering noise rang out, Both agents tensed, hands gripping their weapons, ready to strike at a moment's notice.
Then, suddenly...
A tiny, gray figure darted out from the hole, panicked and scrambling.
"...A… a rat?"
For a moment, Both agents froze. Then, Relief flooded their faces. Followed by—Pure, unfiltered rage.
"SON OF A—!"
One of the CP5 agents cursed, shaking his head as he turned away.
But—The rat that had just dashed out?
It hadn't expected to run into humans either.
For a brief moment, The rat stared at them.
The agents stared back.
Then—Both sides' eyes widened in shock. Because this wasn't just any rat. This was a rat… wearing a gold collar.
"Bro… bro… are you seeing this?"
"I see it."
"Are we hallucinating?"
"I was just about to ask you the same thing."
The two men stood there, completely dumbfounded, eyes locked on the golden collar around the rat's neck.
A rat… wearing gold
Was the world going crazy?
Or were they just falling behind the times?
"Bro, I think… we should search this ship."
"I was just thinking the same thing."
Because if even the rats in this ship were dripping in gold,
Just how rich were the people on board?!
With no more hesitation, the two agents dashed straight into the hole, rushing inside the ship.
Screw finding useful intel, They wanted to be dripped out like Mr. Rat, too!
"HOLY SHIT— WHAT IS THIS?!"
It hadn't even been thirty seconds before a thunderous scream exploded from inside the ship.
Because right in front of them, A mountain of gold gleamed under the dim light, blinding them with its brilliance.
You gotta be kidding me.
This… is a "broken ship"?!
If it weren't for that rat, they would've never stepped into this place!
"Bro…"
One of them muttered after a long, stunned silence.
"Where… where the hell are we?"
The other swallowed hard, his eyes still locked onto the mountain of treasure before them.
"Bro…"
"We're in heaven."
(End of Chapter)