Scrap-Iron Island, Water 7.
Here, discarded ship materials lay scattered everywhere, and the salty sea breeze carried the gentle ripples of the ocean.
And at this moment, the island was covered with a dense crowd of people.
They were all disheveled, sitting on the ground, sleeping peacefully.
Among them, Iceberg and Franky, their hands covered in sawdust and grease, their eye sockets deeply sunken, lay sprawled by the ship, gasping for breath, without even the strength to lift an arm to wipe away sweat.
Soon, the Straw Hats arrived at Scrap-Iron Island.
"Franky! Uncle Iceberg!" Luffy ran towards the two, waving his hand gently.
"Oh! You're finally here." Franky had big dark circles under his eyes, but he was still full of excitement!
The Straw Hat Pirates saw the ship by the sea, covered by two tarpaulins.
"Regarding the Merry, I didn't make too many modifications. I just strengthened her keel and reinforced her with the remaining Adam Wood." Franky grabbed the noticeably smaller tarpaulin and pulled it down.
"Wow!" Stars appeared in everyone's eyes.
"Merry!" Usopp excitedly ran up to it, touching and patting it all over.
"Then what about this...?" Robin pointed to the other tarpaulin, which was clearly ten times larger than the Merry.
Franky clasped his arms together, raised them high, and stuck out his butt.
"This is my proud masterpiece. This ship is amazing; it can easily cross any sea! It's perfectly suited to take us to the end of our dreams!"
Franky solemnly pulled down the tarpaulin.
A massive two-masted sailboat appeared before their eyes. The bow was shaped like a yellow lion's head, and the sails were pristine white, embroidered with the Straw Hat Pirates' emblem. The foremast had a crow's nest, the ship's sides had "Soldier Dock System" roll-up doors, and the stern featured a measurement room and the Gaon Cannon's muzzle. Its overall design was unique, combining both aesthetics and practicality.
"Wow!" Luffy and Chopper's eyes were practically sparkling. The ship's appearance was similar to the original, but its scale was five times larger, so there were definitely many changes.
Everyone boarded the ship. Luffy rolled around on the basketball-court-sized lawn, Sanji searched everywhere for the kitchen, Chopper swung on a swing, Zoro gazed at the distant scenery...
"It even has the locked refrigerator I've always dreamed of, and a huge oven! Franky, thank you so much!" Sanji's voice came from the kitchen.
"Hahahaha! Of course! This is my dream ship, built with my own hands!" Franky was extremely proud.
Usopp also came down from the Merry and looked at Franky, a little puzzled. "So what about the Merry?"
"So, easy!" Franky went to the control panel and turned a knob. Then, the lion ship's dock roll-up door rose. "Just put her inside!"
Usopp quickly moved the Merry into the lion ship.
"Well, we're setting sail, Luffy!" Nami looked at the Log Pose in her hand, then at Luffy rolling on the ground, hands on her hips, looking very spirited.
"Hahahaha!" Luffy, at some point, had hugged the fluffy Chopper.
"Don't be in such a hurry!" Then, Luffy's gaze turned to the shore, and his smile faded. "No matter what, Franky needs to say goodbye."
Everyone paused, looking towards the shore.
A throng of thugs, dressed in black with five-pointed stars on their chests, had all arrived.
"Boss, goodbye! Please take care of yourself!" They shouted at Franky on the ship, tears welling in their eyes.
"Zambai, and my little brothers!" Franky's tears flowed uncontrollably.
The scenes of the past reappeared. They were all thugs living hand to mouth. Just as they were about to starve to death, Franky gathered them and formed the Franky Family. From then on, they escaped poverty and embarked on the path to prosperity.
"My little brothers! Can you survive without me?" Franky was filled with worry.
At this moment, Luffy suddenly stood up from the lawn and placed his straw hat on the grass.
"You guys say your goodbyes properly. My grandpa is here to catch us, I'll buy you some time!"
As soon as he finished speaking, only faint blue electrical arcs remained on the ship!
...Meanwhile, on the coast outside Water 7,
A massive dog-head warship was docked at the harbor.
Garp and his group were searching for people all over Water 7.
Suddenly, a Marine soldier rushed over. "We found the Straw Hat kid! They're at Scrap-Iron Island on the southeast coast. It looks like they're about to set sail."
Garp crossed his arms. "Everyone on board, head there immediately."
"Grandpa! Didn't you say you wouldn't catch me?" A blue light flashed and disappeared. Not far from Garp, on top of a house, Luffy scratched his head.
"Luffy, I'm sorry, but for some reasons, this old man needs to... catch you!" As soon as he finished speaking, Garp's fist touched Luffy's nose.
"Boom!" A huge Mach ring burst forth, its terrifying power even shattering a large mountain a kilometer behind them.
"Grandpa, you're really too reckless." Luffy transformed into lightning and teleported behind Garp, throwing a punch.
"Bang!"
Fists collided, and Luffy was sent flying fiercely. Garp, however, stepped into the air, a sonic boom sounding as he charged towards Luffy.
"Luffy! Surrender! Fist of Love!"
"Grandpa, since you're getting serious, don't blame me!" Luffy stretched out his arm and punched the sky. Instantly, the sky became covered with dark clouds, and streaks of blue lightning, like long snakes, appeared.
"Gear Three - Thunder Elephant Gun!"
Black Armament Haki lightning intertwined with the blue lightning of his Devil Fruit, and a fist, like a small mountain, descended from the sky.
"Luffy!!" Garp looked at the giant shadow above, a smile on his face. Dark red Conqueror's Haki emanated from his body, tightly coiling around his iron fist.
"Learn well, kid! Bone Fist - Impact!"
An extremely tiny figure collided with a mountain-like giant fist, creating an incredibly shocking scene. The entire city of Water 7 was enveloped in dark clouds.
The two fists collided, no, if one looked closely, they would realize they didn't actually touch.
Unexpectedly, the Elephant Gun was pushed back with destructive force.
"Hiss!" Luffy winced in pain, looking at his rapidly healing right hand. That feeling just now, his bones felt like they were about to shatter.
Is this... Conqueror's Haki coating?
It's ridiculous. Although Aokiji is strong, he was confident he could fight him for half a day. But this old man, with his maxed-out attacks, lasting an hour would be impressive.
"But I'm not here to get beaten up!" Luffy whispered softly, then dissolved into a blue electrical arc.
"Nani! He took a punch from this old man and was completely fine?" Garp's jaw dropped, and he stared blankly at his own fist. He couldn't help but feel a little confused: Had he become too old to throw a punch?
Garp shook his head vigorously, casting away that thought. He roared at the Marines, who were stunned by the visual impact, "Still not chasing them?!"
The Marines hastily boarded the ship. Among them, Koby, with his pink hair, couldn't help but dream. Could he also possess that kind of power? Then he sighed, 'Luffy, he's really strong! Can he really consider me a friend?'
Garp, meanwhile, stood in place, relishing the battle he had just had. "Hahahaha! As expected of my grandson!"
Then, Garp lightly flicked his 'Justice' cloak and slowly walked onto the dog-head warship... Scrap-Iron Island.
Accompanied by faint blue electrical arcs, Luffy appeared at the bow of the ship.
"Luffy!" Everyone was both surprised and relieved. Although they knew Luffy was strong, their opponent was, after all, the legendary Marine Hero.
Everyone's Observation Haki was focused, afraid to miss a single detail. But so far, only Zoro, Sanji, and Usopp could clearly see the details of the battle; the others could only see blurry fist shadows.
"Hurry up! My grandpa is coming after us. Franky, get on the ship." Luffy stared at Franky.
"You bunch of amateurs who can only patch holes, how can such a luxurious ship not have a shipwright? No choice then, I'll take care of it." Franky jumped onto the ship!
Soon, the ship slowly set sail!
On the sea not far away, aboard the dog-head warship, Garp squinted his eyes. "Bring me the cannonball!"
A soldier struggled to lift a cannonball with both hands, but Garp casually picked it up and powerfully flung it with one hand.
"Bone Fist - Meteor!"
The cannonball plummeted into the sea like a meteor, creating waves that even rocked the warship.
This cannonball struck with at least ten times its usual force.
"So fast!" Zoro looked grim. His Observation Haki could barely track the cannonball's trajectory, which meant... he couldn't cut this cannonball.
At this critical moment, Luffy stood on the deck, grinning at Garp. "It's no use! Grandpa. We're going to continue our adventure!"
Cannonballs fell into the water one after another, making the ship sway unstably, but not a single one landed on the ship.
"Go! Escape far away! Straw Hat Kid!" The residents of Scrap-Iron Island cheered them on.
And on the ship, everyone had already furled the sails!
"Is it really okay, Franky?" Zoro stood on the mast, gazing down at Franky.
"Of course! You have to believe in it!" Franky was very confident. "Oh, right, this ship needs a name!"
"You're talking about this now?" Sanji was stunned.
"Of course! A ship without a name sailing on the vast sea would be too dull!"
"Then, Luffy, what do you want to name it?" Everyone's gaze turned to Luffy, who was punching cannonballs away.
"A name?" Its name appeared in Luffy's mind. "What do you think, Franky!"
"How about... Thousand Sunny!" Clearly, Franky had been waiting for Luffy to ask.
"Thousand Sunny!!" Everyone was clearly satisfied with the name... On the dog-head warship,
"Are Luffy and the others furling their sails because they want to surrender?" Koby guessed.
"Surrender?" Garp scoffed, a red glint flashing in his eyes. Then Garp pulled out an iron ball nearly half the size of the dog-head warship (it's unknown how it was stored on the ship).
"Luffy, don't even think about escaping (try your best to escape)!"
He forcefully threw the iron ball towards the Thousand Sunny.
But at this moment, Luffy simply stood at the bow, calmly looking at the dark shadow looming above.
At the critical moment, the Thousand Sunny's propulsion system activated.
"Coup de Burst!"
The Thousand Sunny soared into the sky, easily leaping over this sea area. Water 7 was disappearing at a visible rate.
The Straw Hat Pirates were also about to embark on a new adventure.
Thousand Sunny, set sail!
(Water 7, Enies Lobby Arc Concluded)