Bang!
With a single violent crash, the Franky Family's headquarters burst open, splinters flying across the floor.
The rowdy banquet came to an abrupt halt. Every member of the Franky Family froze, eyes widening as they stared at the shattered doorway, unsure of what they were looking at.
"Who's there?!"
The dust cloud rolled thickly through the room, hiding the figures inside.
A calm voice drifted out. "Is Franky here?"
As the dust slowly settled, Franky finally saw the four intruders clearly. His face twisted into fury the moment he recognized them.
"Lucci, Kaku, Blueno, Kalifa… what are you doing here?! And you broke my damn door!"
Kalifa pushed her glasses up, her tone cold. "That comment is sexual harassment."
Franky's jaw dropped. "Calling out your names is harassment now?!"
Lucci ignored the exchange and walked calmly toward him. "Should I call you Franky? Or Cutty Flam?"
The moment that name reached his ears, Franky's pupils contracted sharply. "What did you just say? There's no Cutty Flam here. You must have the wrong place. We don't have anyone by that name."
Lucci disappeared from sight with Soru, reappearing right in front of Franky. His hand closed tightly around Franky's neck.
"Hey! Let go of Big Bro!"
The Franky Family charged at once, loyalty overriding fear. They didn't care that these men were employees of Galley-La.
But Blueno and Carlyfa cut them down in a handful of swift movements. Bodies hit the ground in seconds.
Franky's rage exploded.
"Strong Right!"
His mechanical fist smashed straight into Lucci's chest.
"Iron Body."
A thin trail of smoke drifted upward. Lucci didn't move an inch. There wasn't so much as a dent.
"What?!"
Franky's sunglasses nearly fell off. No one had ever taken that punch without damage.
And these four… they didn't act anything like their usual Galley-La personalities. Something was off, terribly off.
Lucci noticed his confusion. "It seems you still have questions. Allow me to introduce us properly. We are Special Agents of the World Government."
Franky's anger deepened at once. "World Government?! You bastards…!"
Tom's execution flashed in his memory. Anything related to the Government only fueled his hatred.
Lucci tightened his grip. "Cutty Flam, we are here for the Pluton blueprints. Hand them over quietly."
Franky clenched his teeth. "I told you, I'm not Cutty Flam! And I don't know about any Pluton blueprints!"
Kaku stepped forward. "Cutty Flam, your senior apprentice already told us everything. Don't force us to hurt you further."
Franky stiffened. "What?! Iceburg… what did you do to him?!"
For all their bickering, Iceburg was his family. The thought of him tortured made Franky's chest burn with panic.
Blueno sighed. "We had to work very hard to get information about you from him."
That single sentence made Franky tremble. Iceburg must have suffered horribly.
"Let me go! What did you do to him?! I need to see him!"
His struggling only made Lucci's fingers tighten.
"Stop resisting. Give me the blueprints and you can go wherever you want afterward."
Franky coughed violently, fingers clawing uselessly against Lucci's grip. No matter how hard he pulled, he couldn't loosen it. It felt like being held by steel.
"You're wasting your strength," Lucci mocked him. "Our levels aren't even comparable."
"I don't know what you're talking about, and I don't have any damn blueprints. Give it up! I need to go to Iceburg right now!"
Franky's voice held no hesitation or fear. He wasn't going to betray Tom's final trust.
Lucci's eyes hardened. "Since you refuse the easy way… I'll take the hard one."
"Finger Pistol, Rapid Fire."
His index finger flicked forward several times in a blur. Four, five small holes opened across Franky's chest.
Franky coughed blood. "How… how did you pierce me? My body is steel!"
"I told you already," Lucci said calmly, "our strength isn't on the same level. So hand over the blueprints, or I don't mind dismantling your little body."
Franky's vision wavered, but his resolve didn't. If he had to die to protect Tom's legacy, then so be it.
Lucci raised his hand again, ready to strike.
Right then, grains of yellow sand swirled into the room, forming a vortex.
A lazy, amused voice followed. "I heard someone's bullying people in here."
The sand condensed into a familiar figure.
Crocodile stepped forward, cigar between his fingers, and casually dropped a limp Franky Family member he'd been holding.
Kalifa's eyes widened. "Crocodile?! When did you get here?"
Franky blinked up at him in confusion. "I don't know who you are… but thanks for the help."
Lucci narrowed his eyes. Crocodile had taken Franky from his grasp without him noticing. That alone revealed dangerous strength.
He asked coldly, "Ion… are you planning to interfere in this operation?"
Crocodile sneered. "And who exactly do you think you are? Whatever we do has nothing to do with you."
Blueno didn't bother responding. He used Soru and appeared in front of Crocodile in an instant.
"Finger Pistol."
A large hole tore through Crocodile's torso. But instead of blood, sand drifted out. The wound closed immediately.
"What?!"
Crocodile grabbed Blueno's horned head and slammed him into the ground.
"Iron Body!"
The floor cracked with a loud crash. Dust exploded outward.
When it cleared, Blueno was lying in a pool of his own blood.
Crocodile shook his head. "I hate idiots who overestimate themselves. We could've talked. Instead, you chose this."
Lucci, Kaku, and Kalifa stared, stunned into silence. Blueno might've been impulsive, but they never expected him to be defeated in a single exchange.
And now, retrieving the blueprints was impossible. Lucci's mind raced. Reporting back to the Gorosei might be the only remaining option.
But just as he prepared to retreat…
Something else began to happen.
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