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3rd Chapter Today, Enjoy!
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Enies Lobby!
Home to the World Government's Judiciary, in its 800-year history, it had never delivered a 'Not Guilty' verdict, symbolizing the World Government's absolute justice.
Due to its unique climate, Enies Lobby was perpetually bathed in daylight, earning it the nickname 'Never-Night Island'.
Behind it lay the Gates of Justice.
Once opened, the only destinations accessible were the great undersea prison, Impel Down, or Marine Headquarters.
When the Gates of Justice opened, massive whirlpools formed, making ship navigation impossible.
Thus, for 800 years, no one had ever escaped from here.
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CHOO CHOO!
With a blast of its whistle, a Sea Train pulled into Enies Lobby.
Enies Lobby maintained a garrison of ten thousand troops, composed of Marine soldiers and World Government direct subordinate forces.
Currently, these Marine soldiers were lined up in welcome, awaiting the return of CP9 members from Water 7—especially the return of Rob Lucci, hailed as the Strongest Killing Weapon in CP9 history.
The train doors slowly opened...
All the Marines craned their necks, eager to catch a glimpse of this historically Strongest CP9 agent—
But to their surprise, only one CP9 member, Blueno, disembarked, along with a CP9 rookie—Nero, a Four-Powers user who hadn't mastered all Six—and Marine HQ Captain 'Ship-Cutter' T-Bone.
The rest were just Marine soldiers and World Government troops escorting a high-profile prisoner...
"BASTARD! BLUENO! Using dirty tricks!" A man in shackles, wearing only underwear on his lower half, was roughly escorted off the train.
It was the head of the Franky Family—the self-proclaimed 'Pervert', Franky.
"SHUT UP!"
Blueno snapped, his expression incredibly grim, showing no joy at completing his mission.
Rob Lucci and Kaku were far stronger than him—Yet, before that Emperor, they were defeated so easily...
'A man capable of defeating a Marine Admiral...' Blueno's forehead was slick with cold sweat.
Like Lucci and the others, Blueno only knew that Marine Admirals were hailed as the World Government's Strongest combatants but had no concrete concept of their actual strength.
As tools of the World Government, a killer group, they didn't need to. Though Admirals were the strongest, Rob Lucci was also called CP9's strongest killing weapon.
Blueno had assumed that even if Lucci was weaker than an Admiral, the gap wouldn't be huge. But Lucci and the other two were instantly defeated by Sky Sovereign Rowen.
Kaku's Transponder Snail had remained active throughout; Blueno knew exactly what happened.
They, CP9, and that man were on completely different levels!
Fortunately, they had at least brought Franky to Enies Lobby; their years of effort hadn't been a complete failure. If they had failed so utterly, they would all be erased from CP9's roster.
The World Government showed no mercy to the useless.
"MOVE IT!" Blueno kicked Franky down, then dragged him by his shackles towards the Tower of Justice—the heart of Enies Lobby, where CP9's Commander-in-Chief resided, and which contained a complex network of secret passages.
At the very top of the Tower of Justice hung the World Government's flag; it was also the highest point on Enies Lobby, symbolizing the World Government's supreme authority.
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"D-DAMN IT! To think Sky Sovereign Rowen would show up in Water 7 at such a critical moment in the mission! And interfering with CP9's business! Nico Robin is under his protection too! Even we, CP9, have no authority to act against Robin while she's under Sky Sovereign Rowen's protection! BASTARD! She was key to my promotion—"
Spandam paced furiously inside the Commander-in-Chief's office as Blueno entered.
"Well? What about Rob Lucci and the others? Why are you the only one back?" After his tirade, Spandam glared at Blueno.
"They... were defeated... by Sky Sovereign Rowen," Blueno reported, his expression incredibly dark.
"WHAT? Is Sky Sovereign Rowen insane?? Attacking CP9—is he trying to declare war on the entire World Government??" Spandam shrieked, his eyes bulging.
Rob Lucci was the Strongest agent under his command! His own promotion hinged critically on Lucci!
"Chapapa! That man defeated a Marine Admiral and trampled Celestial Dragons in Mariejois. He already made an enemy of the World Government, didn't he? Sir, not only is your Doriki score a pathetic 9, less than a normal soldier, but is your brain also that slow?"
Fukurou, the CP9 member with a zipper over his mouth, commented.
A common Marine soldier with a weapon has a Doriki of 10. Spandam's was 9. He only became CP9 Chief due to his father and family connections.
"Defeated a Marine Admiral... The Fifth Emperor... Lucci and the others were taken out by him, Hey, you're lucky to have made it back alive—Blueno," Jabra, user of the Dog-Dog Fruit, Model: Wolf, taunted habitually.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY??" Blueno glared murderously at Jabra.
"Yo-yoi~ Don't say that! Our comrade of five years has returned! Since Lucci and the others were defeated by Sky Sovereign Rowen... I can only commit seppuku and join them in the next world—" Kumadori lamented in his strange, theatrical tone, drawing a short sword and aiming it at his own stomach.
"Tekkai—!" The blade struck his abdomen but was stopped by Tekkai.
"Regrettable... It seems I cannot die!" Kumadori wailed dramatically.
"Then just hurry up and die already!" Jabra roared, fed up with Kumadori's theatrics.
"But at least Franky was brought back. Has it been confirmed? Is Franky that Cutty Flam from years ago?" Spandam, though frustrated with his bizarre subordinates, knew their strength was key to his ambitions.
Since Lucci and the others were defeated, so be it.
What Spandam cared about most now was the whereabouts of Pluton's blueprints. If he could obtain them, not only would he be blameless, he'd have performed a great service—
Since even the World Government forbade engaging Sky Sovereign Rowen... Lucci falling to him wouldn't reflect badly on Spandam.
"Confirmed. He is Cutty Flam," Blueno stated.
Before Kaku's Transponder Snail went dead, Blueno overheard Rowen and Iceburg's conversation.
That's why he acted so decisively against Franky. He also confirmed it with Franky on the Sea Train here—CP9's rigorous interrogation training allowed them to discern truth from reactions, even without explicit answers.
"EXCELLENT! Bring him in!" Spandam cackled.
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Soon, Franky was dragged in, cursing loudly.
"Oh? He certainly looks like he did back then," Spandam sneered, looking at Franky.
Beneath his own mask were scars from Franky's gunstock years ago. Though Franky was now a cyborg and looked very different, Spandam still recognized him.
"Spandam," Franky growled, his eyes bloodshot. Spandam was the bastard who framed his master!
Tom, though guilty of building the Pirate King's ship, had developed the Sea Train to atone. But Spandam, to get Pluton's blueprints, framed him by having his creations attack a judicial ship, leading to Tom's capture.
Tom then used the merit of inventing the Sea Train to pardon Franky, accepting death himself.
"Hahaha! Long time no see, Cutty Flam... NO—I should call you Franky now! How does it feel?! Just like your master—forced to submit before my power!" Spandam laughed neurotically.
"BASTARD!"
CHOMP!
Enraged, Franky, despite lacking cola and energy, lunged and bit down hard on Spandam's head!
"OW OW OW! LET GO! BASTARD! CP9, SAVE ME!" Spandam, whose Doriki was less than a common soldier's, shrieked in agony.
"Chapapa! If the Chief gets bitten to death, maybe the next one will be smarter?" Fukurou, true to form, couldn't keep his mouth shut, often leaking classified information to enemies—
The zipper on his mouth was meant to restrain him, but it rarely worked...
Spandam wasn't just weak, he was also somewhat idiotic and extremely neurotic. If he weren't their CP9 Chief, they would have eliminated this fool long ago.
"Hahaha! Wouldn't that be interesting!" Jabra laughed, showing no intention of helping Spandam.
"Yo-yoi! Y-You people are too cruel! The Chief is still the Chief! I shall save you!" Kumadori declared in his strange tone, then kicked both Franky and Spandam into the air.
THUD!
Franky, being a cyborg, landed unharmed. Spandam, however, crashed down miserably.
"Yo-yoi~ Where did the Chief go~?" Kumadori feigned ignorance, looking around.
"I-I'm fine!"
Spandam struggled to his feet, trying desperately to maintain his dignity as CP9 Chief, though his bruised and swollen face made it impossible.
"Franky. Just hand over Pluton's blueprints quietly! Now that you're here, no one can save you! This is Enies Lobby—unbreached for 800 years! Hahahaha!" Spandam, keeping a safe distance from Franky, laughed neurotically.
CRASH! BANG!
The words had barely left his mouth when the large window of the Chief's office exploded inwards!
A massive gunpowder pellet struck Spandam squarely in the back!
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Accompanied by a scream of agony, Spandam's back burst into flames, sending him rolling on the floor in pain!
"!!!" Blueno, Kumadori, Fukurou, and Jabra—the four remaining CP9 members—instantly tensed, their pupils constricting.
This was Enies Lobby! The Chief's office... Who attacked this place??
"Wh-What is that?!" A shadow gradually fell over Enies Lobby from above.
The Marine soldiers and World Government personnel stationed on the island looked up, their eyes wide with horror as they saw, amidst roiling thunderclouds, a colossal flying ship slowly approaching!
Thunderclouds! A flying ship!
Things never before seen above Enies Lobby, the symbol of the World Government's absolute justice!
"E-ENEMY ATTACK!!!" Terrified screams instantly echoed throughout Enies Lobby!
Enies Lobby... unbreached for 800 years was being invaded!
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"AMAZING, USOPP! At this high altitude, with these wind speeds, you still hit the target accurately! You didn't disappoint Rowen's faith in you—"
Nami praised Usopp, who stood at the foremost part of the Ark Maxim's deck—a rare compliment from her. With her Climate Sense, Nami knew exactly how difficult it was to hit a target accurately under such conditions.
"Hahaha! That's because of my newest special weapon! A slingshot modified with Skypiea's Dials—the Giant Black Kabuto!!" Usopp declared, shouldering a massive slingshot, laughing with bravado.
After Skypiea, not only Nami's combat power increased; Usopp, using various Dials and his Inventor Trait, had created many new, powerful weapons.
Rowen had him lead the charge; how could he let Rowen down! Usopp's eyes burned with fierce fighting spirit.
"S-SUGEEEEEEEEE! From such a distance, hitting the enemy leader so precisely! As expected of the man with the 35 million Beri bounty—Sky Sovereign Rowen's reliable right-hand man!" The Franky Family members stared at Usopp, exclaiming in awe.
They had initially dismissed the frail-looking Usopp, assuming his high bounty was solely due to Rowen's protection. They never expected his first shot to be so extraordinary.
But... the most astonishing one—was still that man.
"Gulp!"
The Franky Family looked towards the control throne, where a figure, entirely transformed into lightning, piloted the colossal flying ship from Water 7 to Enies Lobby, and swallowed hard.
The Fifth Emperor, Sky Sovereign Rowen!
It felt like witnessing a miracle.
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"BIG BRO! WE'RE HERE TO SAVE YOU!!!" The Franky Family, now able to see Franky in the office below, roared in unison.
"ROAR!!" The two giant King Bulls also roared.
These were the Franky Family's pets, Like the Franky Family, they were fiercely loyal to Franky, coming along to rescue him.
"B-BASTARDS! Why did you come to such a dangerous place?!" Franky, hearing the familiar shouts, rushed out frantically.
Seeing his underlings on the deck of the giant flying ship amidst thunderclouds—he first roared in anger, then burst into tears.
"I Super Love You Guys!! My Dear Little Brothers!!"
"Big Bro Franky!!!" The Franky Family also sobbed openly.
"Hey! Franky! We came to save you! After we save you, be our shipwright!" Luffy yelled from the foremost part of the deck, grinning broadly.
"Huh? Who are you? And speaking of which, why is your ship flying?? And how did my underlings end up with you??" From such a distance, Franky could barely recognize his own men, let alone Luffy's face.
Franky was utterly bewildered.
Why would someone randomly come to Enies Lobby to save him?? This was Enies Lobby! Attacking here was tantamount to declaring war on the World Government!
For someone to attack Enies Lobby just to recruit him as a shipwright?? Though confused... Franky, who prided himself on being a 'Pervert' and whose thought processes differed from normal people—felt incredibly moved in that moment.
"I'M MONKEY D. LUFFY! THE MAN WHO WILL BECOME KING OF THE PIRATES!" Luffy roared.
"!!!" The moment Luffy's roar ended—Enies Lobby, which had been thrown into chaos and was preparing to repel the attack, suddenly fell silent. Everyone stared dumbfounded at the man yelling from the deck of the flying ship above.
The pirate with the 300 million Beri bounty—Straw Hat Monkey D. Luffy?
A deep, profound fear and horror appeared on the faces of every Marine soldier and World Government agent.
This deep fear wasn't directed at Straw Hat himself.
But—
If Straw Hat was here... Then that man... The Fifth Emperor—The man with the 3 BILLION Beri bounty. Sky Sovereign Rowen—was he here too?!
"Yo, Pervert. We came to save you—" Rowen's voice echoed as he stepped away from the control throne to the front of the deck, looking down upon the entirety of Enies Lobby, then at Franky, laughing with absolute power.
"AN EMPEROR—ATTACKING ENIES LOBBY!!!"
Upon Rowen's appearance, terrified screams instantly erupted across the island.
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