"Huh? What's this made of?" Franky exclaimed, marveling at the Sea Bass's main mast.
"It's Eve Tree wood... though, of course, only one branch was used. The whole mast isn't made of Eve Tree." Sig didn't think it was anything worth keeping secret.
"Eve Tree? The Eve Tree, renowned alongside the legendary Adam Tree? Fish-Man Island really is something..." Franky circled the mast several times.
At the time, Franky was still passionate about ships. He hadn't fully shifted his focus to firearms yet. Of course, the ships he built were usually warships, outfitted with all kinds of bizarre weapons!
In the original story, it wasn't until after Tom's death that Franky, devastated by the loss, stopped working on ships for more than ten years and became obsessed with dismantling ships and developing weapons.
"You're from the South Blue? I've heard it's a place of great technological innovation." After tying up the boat, Sig struck up a conversation with Franky.
"That's right... Huh? You..." Franky's eyes widened.
He clearly remembered a Fish-Man propelling the boat just moments ago. How had a human ended up behind him in the time it took to turn around?
Sig knew what had surprised him, so he explained, "Half Fish-Man. Half Fish-Man."
Even Sig was starting to believe that explanation.
"Huh? Is that so? Babaya isn't like that..." Franky sounded puzzled, but didn't press him for details.
Babaya was Aunt Cocco's daughter. Cocco had admired Tom when she was young, which was why she had come to Water Seven.
Of course, Tom was a ship-sexual, so nothing ever happened between him and Cocco. Later, Cocco fell in love with a human on the island, and they had a daughter.
Unfortunately, Cocco's husband had died by accident several years earlier during a "Sea God Pilgrimage."
As a Half Fish-Man, Babaya could turn her tail into legs when she turned eighteen. She was a far better swimmer than humans, but not as well adapted to the pressure of the deep sea as a true Mermaid.
But she definitely couldn't "switch" forms like Sig!
Mixed Mermaid heritage was a sensitive subject in itself. Babaya had also faced discrimination from the other residents, outside Tom's Workers. On top of that, she had fallen out with Aunt Cocco during her teenage years and didn't want to stay at Tom's Workers, either. She had gone to sea a year ago, and no one knew how she was doing now. So Franky didn't ask much about Sig's background.
After all, Sig hadn't asked why Franky wasn't wearing pants...
On the way back, Franky and Sig chatted easily. Franky was clearly already interested in weapons and cannons, and even invited Sig to visit his "warship" sometime.
Franky also complained about Iceberg, who was always nervous about his "great feats," afraid they would cause trouble for Tom's Workers.
Franky even brought up the South Blue himself. He thought little of his irresponsible pirate parents, though he didn't say much about them.
"I've been on a pirate ship for as long as I can remember. When I was seven, that pirate crew entered the Grand Line, so I don't remember much about the South Blue. But the ship had a lot of super cool weapons..." Franky perked up as soon as he started talking about weapons.
By the time Sig and Franky arrived at Tom's Workers, the banquet had already begun.
At this point, Tom's Workers had only two shipwrights left, Franky and Iceberg, along with Cocco as secretary and Yokozuna, the "sumo frog," who served as a laborer and mascot.
But when Tom saw Fisher Tiger and Jinbe arrive, he still held a banquet. It was outside the dilapidated workshop, which looked more like a ship graveyard. Tom, Fisher Tiger, Jinbe, and the other Fish-Men sat around a bonfire.
Tom was a Bullhead Fish-Man. Unlike the debonair-looking Dan, he was extremely rotund...
Earlier, he had sent Iceberg and Cocco to buy plenty of Water Seven's famous Water Meat. As for beer, there was as much as anyone could want in the cellar at Tom's Workers...
Tom wasn't actually short on money. Otherwise, he couldn't have supported the development of the sea train. The reason the place was so run-down was that Tom's Workers couldn't find enough workers!
"Guess we've got you to thank for this," Franky said, rubbing his nose.
For a moment, Franky had instinctively worried that Tom's fellow Fish-Men would only bring more trouble here. But he was a good-natured guy and hadn't shown it. By now, he had mostly put that worry out of his mind.
The other shipwright, Iceberg, was also Tom's student. He wasn't much older than Franky, but he seemed mature beyond his years—the sort of person who wouldn't look out of place going bald in a couple of years.
Sig keenly sensed that behind Iceberg's formal, practiced smile was even more worry than Franky had shown, though Iceberg was hiding it just as well.
But when he saw Franky, drunk and dancing with the Fish-Men, Iceberg furrowed his brows. There wasn't much he could do about Franky, who was already having the time of his life.
Franky realized that the Fish-Man Race didn't look at him strangely at all for wearing only his underwear, and decided they were great people.
That was only natural, really. On Fish-Man Island, plenty of people wore swimsuits all year round. And Mermaids had fish tails instead of legs, so they didn't need pants...
Arlong could finally drink to his heart's content, and was having a drinking contest with Willy.
Cocco was off to one side, apparently sharing some sort of advice with the Mermaids. Hopefully it wasn't advice on skincare!
Sig drank and ate with everyone else, and even sang a few songs to liven things up. Cocco told him, "If I were ten years younger, I'd definitely pursue you." Sig couldn't help thinking, Please make that thirty years younger!
By midnight, the banquet was still going strong, but Sig had drunk a few glasses of ice water to sober up and quietly slipped away.
Taking a break was important, but Sig didn't want to let his training suffer just because he was stopping in Water Seven.
Standing punches at 1,400 watts, one, two, three... 3,000. Done!
Underwater punches at 1,400 watts, one... one, one... Huh?
Sig suddenly realized something was wrong. When he threw punches underwater, he should have been especially sensitive to the fluctuations of the "water watts." It ought to have been much easier to gauge them than on land.
But he failed three times in a row, reaching only about 1,200 watts each time.
Sig opened his palm and examined it in front of his eyes. Did I drink too much? No, I didn't drink any more than usual, and I'm perfectly clear-headed. My technique's fine, too. So...
Are the ocean's fluctuations different here?
At that thought, Sig felt somewhat relieved.
The unusual currents had created Water Seven and were now gradually swallowing it up. It was only natural that the ocean's fluctuations would be different here.
There was some discrepancy, but Sig estimated that 1,200 watts here was equivalent to 1,500 watts in a normal location.
Setting high standards for himself, Sig forced himself to finish 3,000 punches at 1,200 watts. By the time he was done, the sky was already growing light.
Once he finally made it ashore, with no boat to row, Sig didn't push himself any further. He lay down at the water's edge and fell asleep.
Perhaps because he was sleeping so soundly, Sig once again "arrived" at a familiar place. The damp, musty smell flooded his nostrils...
Before you continue