As the Merry slowly raised its sails, the golden ship carved a brilliant arc across the shimmering sea.
Nami stood at the bow, stretching her slightly stiff body.
"The wind's perfect. At this speed, we'll reach Water 7 soon."
"Luffy, leave the shipwright search to me."
Sanji leaned elegantly against the railing, exhaling a ring of smoke, his eyes full of dreamy anticipation.
"I'll trust my chef's intuition and find you a super beautiful shipwright—with long flowing hair and a devilish figure!"
"Idiot! We need a ship repairman!"
Luffy shot back with a look of disgust.
"That kind of heavy work needs a guy as solid as a mountain!"
"At least five meters tall, with arms thicker than my legs!"
"As long as the skills are good, I don't care who it is."
Zoro sat cross-legged on the deck.
"The real problem is—would someone of that level even be willing to join a pirate crew full of wanted criminals like us?"
Ronan sat nearby, tapping the shaft of his spear thoughtfully.
"No matter what, having a map will make things much easier."
Nami smiled as she unfolded the "map" Granny Kokoro had given them.
But the moment the yellowed paper opened—
The entire deck fell into dead silence.
On it were only a few crooked, worm-like lines, with a large circle in the middle that looked vaguely like… a butt or a bun.
Beside it were completely illegible scribbles.
Silence.
A suffocating silence.
A massive vein popped on Nami's forehead, completely ruining her beauty.
Her hopeful expression collapsed instantly as she crumpled the paper into a ball and slammed it onto the deck.
"What the hell is this?! This isn't a map—it's scribbles!!"
"Who could possibly understand this?! That drunk granny must be messing with us!!"
Chopper timidly picked up the crumpled paper, glanced at it, then let out a deep sigh.
"Nami… calm down. Honestly… this looks about the same level as Luffy's drawings of sea beasts…"
"At least Luffy's drawings look like something alive. This is just abstract art…"
...
The afternoon sun pierced through a thin mist, turning the sea into molten silver.
At the far horizon, a dreamlike white silhouette began to rise.
"Hey, look there! I see an island!"
Zoro leaned against the golden figurehead railing, already spotting the outline.
Luffy jumped onto the sheep figurehead, holding down his straw hat as a magnificent city unlike anything they had ever seen lay before them.
It was a tiered, dome-shaped island, built entirely of pristine white stone.
At its peak, a colossal fountain erupted skyward, powerful enough to seem like it supported heaven itself.
Then it cascaded down in countless streams like a celestial waterfall, flowing through layered waterways across the city.
"So beautiful…"
Robin closed her book, her eyes reflecting the white city.
"This is amazing!"
Nami's eyes sparkled as the Log Pose pointed steadily ahead.
"No wonder it's the greatest shipbuilding city in the world. This scale… it's like a divine chalice left upon the sea."
As the Golden Merry entered the waterways, the city unfolded before them.
It was a symphony of water and stone.
The entire city seemed immersed in endless blue, with water flowing through every street.
These weren't ordinary canals—they were like arteries, the lifeblood of the city.
"An incredible hydraulic system."
Ronan stood with his spear, scanning the surroundings.
"The central fountain creates pressure, distributing water through every layer, forming a cycle. This isn't just beautiful—it's a perfect urban ecosystem."
"Look at those houses!"
Usopp pointed along the canals.
"The whole city's in the water! Are people living underwater here?!"
"Not exactly."
Robin smiled, gesturing to the shadows beneath the buildings.
"The city is built on foundations anchored in the sea. See those elevated bases and massive pillars? They support everything."
"I see… so that's why it's called 'Water 7.'"
Sanji exhaled smoke, enjoying the exotic atmosphere.
After asking around, the Merry, under countless gazes of awe, followed the main waterway and finally docked at the heart of the city's shipbuilding industry—
Dock No. 1.
This was the headquarters of the Galley-La Company, the cradle of the world's greatest shipwrights.
"I am Kalifa, secretary to Mr. Iceburg and representative of the Galley-La Company."
A blonde woman in glasses approached gracefully in high heels, her demeanor sharp and professional.
Her gaze swept over Ronan and the others—and for a brief moment, her composed smile stiffened.
As a highly trained agent, she felt an almost suffocating pressure from them.
"Mr. Iceburg is already waiting for you."
She adjusted her glasses, hiding the deep wariness in her eyes.
Inside Dock No. 1, massive ship skeletons stood like a forest, while muscular workers labored intensely on precise construction.
On a high scaffold, a man with a white pigeon perched on his shoulder watched the Straw Hats enter.
Rob Lucci.
His stone-like face showed no emotion, but his sharp, leopard-like pupils shrank to pinpoints.
"Lucci…"
Beside him, a long-nosed shipwright—Kaku—spoke in a low voice, his tone unusually tense.
"Do you feel that? That straw hat guy… and the one with the spear… their presence isn't normal."
"Not just abnormal."
Lucci's voice was cold and cutting.
"Several of them… give me an extremely dangerous feeling."
His fingers unconsciously carved a deep groove into the wood.
As CP9's strongest assassin, his instincts were razor-sharp.
To him, Ronan, Luffy, and the others looked like active volcanoes radiating intense heat.
"What? They're that strong?" Kaku's expression changed. He had thought they were just lucky pirates.
"Observe for now."
Lucci withdrew his gaze and picked up his chisel again, his tone laced with quiet killing intent.
"As long as they don't interfere with us… there's no need to clash with those monsters."
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