Return to the Blue Sea, Recruiting a Shipwright

Whoosh~

The Going Golden Merry, which fell from the sky, landed in the sea.

"Haha, we're back!"

"The long-lost blue sea~~~ No wonder the Skypieans call us Blue Sea People."

They landed back on the familiar sea, and everyone cheered and jumped for joy. Then they looked up at the sky—who would have thought that there were islands and humans above those white clouds and the boundless blue sky?

"It's unbelievable that we actually risked our lives at an altitude of 10,000 meters." Sanji lit a cigarette.

"Especially after falling, it felt even farther away~~"

Even the intellectual Nicole Robin couldn't help but sigh.

"It's like a dream."

·······

"Okay, so here's today's workout schedule—"

"Don't be such a spoilsport!" X7

Roman rolled his eyes at Robin, who had already integrated into the Straw Hat crew. "When you're adrift on the in the Grand Line, you're bound to get hurt sometimes. If you don't train regularly, you won't even be able to run away from a skilled opponent—that's truly miserable!"

We can't keep ending up in jail every time...

"Forget it, I'll take a day off today."

Having just returned to the Grand Line from 10,000 meters above sea level, the sudden increase in oxygen levels definitely takes some getting used to. Roman canceled today's training schedule, which also provided an opportunity for everyone to organize their gains from the Sky Island.

"Cloud Shell can't be used here,"

Usopp took out a large pile of Sky Island shells that he had traded for.

"What a pity, otherwise the people with abilities on our ship wouldn't have to worry about falling into the water~~~"

"Actually--?"

Roman, who was being held back by Nami, turned to look at the orange-haired girl beside him and asked her with his eyes.

Why won't you let me tell Usopp that I have better military-grade shells?

Let Usopp use civilian-grade equipment for research first; don't waste materials.

Ah, that makes sense.

"What are you two doing, exchanging glances?"

Seeing Usopp's question, Nami waved her hand. "It's nothing, let's get down to business!"

"Clang clang clang~~~"

A huge pile of gold ornaments was displayed on the cabin table, dazzling the Straw Hat crew! After all, how could pirates be without gold and treasure?

As for the one who's sailing the boat outside, that's obviously Roman's tool, the 'White Knight'.

"The treasures obtained from the adventure should of course be shared among everyone. I estimate that this should be worth several hundred million Beli."

"Yeah!!"

"I want to buy a huge bronze statue!"

"I want books, medical books~~"

"I need to replace my kitchenware, my cast iron pot, and my giant Rat..."

"Finally, I can drink to my heart's content!"

In any case, having money is a good thing. So:

"First, divide the spoils into six portions..."

"Hmm, that makes perfect sense—"

???!!!

Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, Sanji, and Chopper, who had just been nodding, suddenly paused in surprise:

Shocked! X5

"What kind of looks are those?" Nami, hands on her hips. "You're looking at me like I'm a monster. That's so rude!"

"Nami... Miss, are you sure it's six portions?"

Sanji pointed shakily to the group of people around him: Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, Sanji, Chopper, Robin —six people indeed.

"Yes--"

"Who are you!!"

Luffy is furious!

"Where is the real Nami hidden?"

Usopp was in despair~~

"Could you be Mr. 2, that transvestite in disguise...?"

Sanji so scared he dropped his cigarette!

"No, I think it should be Roman's 'puppet'~~"

Zoro calmly analyzes the truth.

Bang! X 4

"What nonsense are you spouting!"

Nami, who had been rewarded with a book weighing '100,000 kilograms', rubbed her forehead.

"I understand, you are indeed Nami." X5

Several men who had pulled their heads out of the deck nodded seriously, but:

"That's not right,"

Luffy stroked his chin, unusually entering a serious state.

"If you were Nami, you would say, 'Keep 80% as my personal savings' instead of dividing it into six parts."

"Huh? Ah... this..."

A flustered Nami waved her hand, "I didn't do this on a whim..."

"And,"

Extending his index finger, Luffy pointed at Nami with an air of "you're the culprit."

"You didn't include your two shares of Roman in your calculations, which means—"

Cold sweat, cold sweat~~

Oh no, oh no! Could it be that Roman and I were secretly hiding the golden pillar...?

"So Nami, you weren't a greedy person after all~~ Waaaaaah!"

Nami, her face covered in cold sweat, was caught in Luffy's tearful pleas as Luffy grabbed her hands.

"I've been wrong about you all along, I'm so sorry~~"

"Waaaaah, it turns out we were all wrong about Nami ~~" x2

Nami, who was being clung to by the three Straw Hat crew' idiots and crying her eyes out, awkwardly turned her face away.

"Haha, hahaha, is that right...?"

"I'm not a greedy person, am I, Roman?"

"How should I know?" Roman rolled his eyes. "I'm not short of money."

······?

"Oh right, before that."

Luffy, now in serious mode, looked around.

"I think we should repair the Going Merry."

That's true. Although Roman habitually wraps the Going Golden Merry in paper when in combat or in emergency situations, greatly increasing the ship's resistance, Roman can't prevent various impacts and blunt force injuries.

After all, even Roman himself needed strong physical abilities to withstand such an attack.

"Agreed!" X7

For a crew like the Straw Hat crew, who spend most of their time at sea, writing about pirates and reading about adventurers, their ship is like their home, their best partner for sheltering them from storms and escaping enemies. Therefore:

"Since we don't know how much it will cost to repair the ship, we'll hold off on using this batch of gold for now."

"Agreed!" X7

"Great, let's eat first."

As Sanji prepared the food, Robin helped carry the plates, and the group began to eat and chat.

"In fact, we can't always rely on Usopp's tinkering and repairing methods."

Zoro glanced at the long-nosed man beside him. Every time a battle broke out, Roman would simply wrap the ship in paper, a crude and effective way to increase its 'armor'. But after the battle, when the paper was removed, cracks and tears were everywhere...

After all, the Golden Merry was just an ordinary wooden sailing ship.

"Just to clarify, I'm a sniper!"

Usopp was annoyed. "I do two jobs for one paycheck... well, I don't even get paid. Do you think it's easy for me?"

"Yes, it really should be taken to a professional shipyard for repairs."

Roman nodded after taking a sip of coffee. As the Straw Hat crew's strength steadily increased, Roman gradually became less anxious.

Luffy has already developed Second Gear, and his Observation Haki is quite proficient. While his Armament Haki is unpredictable, it deals considerable damage when unleashed. Combined with his rubber body, he's at least on par with a Marine Major General.

Zoro, wielding two fast swords and one Great Grade Swords, along with his prowess in Iron Cutting and wielding sword energy, has also reached the threshold of Rear Admiral. On the other hand, there's himself:

Although the Devil Fruit ability are incredibly diverse and versatile, none of them stand out in any particular way...

"Seriously," Nami rubbed her forehead and looked at the guy next to her who was holding a coffee to his lips without moving. "Roman, you're spacing out again."

"Let's do it this way!"

Luffy summarizes everyone's opinions.

"Let's find a boatman to join us."

"Our journey is still long, and we must find a professional ship repairman!"

"The Golden Merry is our home, our crewmate!" Luffy said, spreading his arms wide as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "Let's find a shipwright who can protect him."

·······

"Agreed!" X7

"This kid," Sanji remarked as he brought over the plate.

"Sometimes he hits the nail on the head," Zoro finished speaking, and then the two exchanged a glance after realizing what he meant.

"Hmph!" X2

We both loathe each other.

A boatman?

Franky.

"Nami, could I have the newspapers from this period?"

Roman took the newspaper from Nami and carefully flipped through every corner, but still couldn't find what he was looking for.

Has the 'Wapol Corporation' not appeared yet?

After Wapol was knocked away by Luffy, he began living a life of wandering.

The Munch-Munch Fruit be effective at bullying ordinary people, but this world is truly full of hidden talents. Wapol quickly encountered two veteran Marines and was chased relentlessly. Forget about using his power to bully others; he didn't even dare fight back when bullied by a little girl and a dog. He ended up selling matches and living under a bridge, utterly disgracing the image of a Devil Fruit user...

Later, he used his "Baku Baku Factory" ability to synthesize metal toys from discarded items under bridges and sold them to children to make a living. However, he unintentionally synthesized the infamous "Wapol Metal"!

That metal is hard enough to withstand a punch from Big Mom without Haki, and it also has self-healing abilities. Its formidable power is evident! — Its appearance immediately attracted heroes from all walks of life to purchase it, and even led the World Government to reinstate Wapol as one of its member states!

Even if he "sold" the country...

"Pity·····"

Wapol, where are you still eating garbage? Can't you hurry up and synthesize Wapol Metal?

Roman and Nami both possess the 'Baku Baku Pages' from Wapol. Once they obtain the finished Wapol Metal, they can immediately reverse engineer it to obtain the formula and then use the pages to produce the alloy.

In an instant, a General Franky with a strength of over 100 million can be created!

Unfortunately... oh well, I'll just stick to regular training.

How could mere alloy compare to muscles honed through countless trials? Roman could only console himself with that thought.