"Rubber Gatling!"
"Weapon Left!"
Inside Dock 1, dust churned as explosions echoed relentlessly.
"Stop! Don't fight anymore! Stop!"
Shipyard workers, watching Franky and Luffy clash, covered their heads in panic, eyes wide with horror:
"Oh my god! Stop it! You two fools! This ship, nearly complete, will be destroyed!"
But the two fighters, consumed by their clash, ignored the shouts.
"Rubber Whip!"
"Franky Triangle Cutter!"
Flames and impacts tore through the air, the surrounding structures trembling with each strike.
"Oh no! The ropes are breaking! It's falling! It's really falling! No, no, no!"
The workers' screams filled the air as the almost-finished ship began to collapse.
Gulp, gulp…
Suddenly, streams of white, sticky wax shot from the ground, lifting and restoring the vessel to its original form.
"Heh, fighting is one thing, but don't destroy people's hard work!"
Shirogai, seated on a wooden crate, calmly manipulated his Wax-Wax Fruit powers, repairing the ship with precise control. A faint, amused smile tugged at his lips.
"Hero!"
"Savior!"
"Great benefactor!"
The shipyard employees cheered, tears of gratitude in their eyes as they turned to glare at Luffy and Franky, still locked in battle, spitting curses:
"You two fools! Keep fighting and we'll call the foremen! Don't destroy other people's property!"
From above, five figures descended with unyielding authority.
"Get out of the way!"
One, with a pigeon perched on his shoulder, delivered a swift kick—Luffy with one foot, Franky with the other—interrupting their attacks.
"Who!" Luffy shouted, confused as he tried to react.
Another of the five figures kicked Luffy's arm, sending him flying into a pile of discarded wooden boards, splinters embedding in his skin.
"It hurts! So many splinters!" Luffy howled.
A towering man gripped Franky tightly.
"Warship Throw!"
With a roar, he hurled Franky into a distant pile of iron nails. Franky landed with a groan.
"Ow! That hurts like crazy! Bastard! My back is my weak spot!"
The five foremen observed, indifferent, their expressions grim.
They were Barry, cigar in mouth, muscles taut and imposing; Lucci, pigeon on his shoulder, eyes sharp beneath his top hat; Kaku, arms crossed, face obscured by his hat; Lulu, wielding his modified nail gun; and Dalston, a giant figure, fists rubbing with controlled power.
The shipyard workers, witnessing the intervention, erupted in relief and admiration:
"It's the foremen! The shipyard is saved!"
"Foremen! These two almost destroyed the shipyard and the nearly finished ship!"
The workers waved sticks in anger, venting at the five who had arrived just in time.
"Leave it to us!"
Barry's gaze swept over Luffy and Franky, his voice icy.
"You two are bold, daring to cause chaos here! Explain yourselves!"
"Ow, that really hurts!" Franky twisted, yanking iron nails from his body, then glared at the five foremen, a mischievous smile on his face.
"So it's you from Galley-La! Interrupting my fight with this Straw Hat… do you want a taste of Franky's firepower too?"
"Franky, shut the fuck up!" Kaku said flatly, surveying the wreckage, his nose twitching.
Barry cut him off, eyes narrowing, voice cold:
"You two dare to show up here after what you did to Iceberg Mayor?"
Humph.
Among the five foremen, two shared a silent, sinister smile. Barry's anger would serve perfectly.
A trap had been set—provoke the Straw Hats in front of the dock workers, channeling the crowd's attention. As spies, they could not act too overtly, nor attract the Fifth Emperor's gaze directly.
The perfect bait, and the hotheaded Straw Hat would take it.
Indeed, Barry barked at Shirogai and Luffy:
"Straw Hat, Shirogai, you caused havoc for Iceberg sama, and you still dare show your faces here!"
"We? Did what?" Luffy asked, confused, glancing at Shirogai.
"Nothing, Captain," Shirogai replied calmly, seated on his crate, faint amusement in his voice. "What did we do? Can you tell us?"
"Still playing dumb? Death is at your doorstep!" Barry sneered, hurling two ropes through the air. They shot like snakes, binding Shirogai and Luffy by the neck.
Humph.
Lucci watched intently. Are you going to act, Fifth Emperor? Kill Barry now, and the mission is complete.
If the crowd witnessed Shirogai's strength, the story would spread—painting the Fifth Emperor as a dangerous, untouchable figure, exactly as the World Government intended.
And the Pluton blueprints… surely with Franky.
Lucci's doubts about Shirogai lingered. Once, he had been CP9's ultimate killing weapon, a combat genius unmatched by any ordinary opponent, master of Marine Six Styles and formidable Haki. A born king of slaughter.
Yet Shirogai's meteoric rise defied expectation. Half a year ago, an unknown pirate; now, the highest bounty for first-year pirates, then recruited and valued by the World Government. Two hundred million Berries, the Gorosei themselves attempting to recruit him as Shichibukai.
All of it seemed trivial to Lucci… until the reports of Shirogai defeating the Three Admirals reached him.
He could actually defeat Kizaru, a Marine Admiral?
And later, news of him taking down a Four Emperor-level threat… Lucci seethed with envy.
The world now recognized him as the Fifth Emperor.
"I am the World Government's trump card capable of rivaling the Four Emperors!"
Lucci stared at Shirogai's bounty poster all night, fury burning like wildfire.
________
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