Fish-Man Tom

"Something's wrong! Something's wrong! The Smokescreen Pirates are back!!"

A young shipwright came running back in a panic, shouting in a fluster.

"What? That bastard dares come back?"

The bull-horned Fish-Man Tom flew into a rage, grabbed a shipbuilding mallet, and charged outside!

"Tom! Don't be rash! Watch out for Yimi's smokescreen!" Jerry yelled with all his might, spitting up blood and worrying the shipwrights around him.

"Captain Brook, this is bad. These shipwrights seem to think we're the Smokescreen Pirates!"

Seeing the shipwrights' bloodshot eyes and savage expressions, as if they were about to devour them, Shakky sensed trouble.

"Yimi, you bastard! I'm going to kill you!!"

Fish-Man Tom came charging out with a massive iron hammer and swung it at the Smokescreen Pirates' brand-new ship.

Clang!

A streak of icy sword energy slashed across Fish-Man Tom's path, forcing him to realize that the ship was occupied by a strange man!

"Get Yimi out here! I'm going to kill him!"

Fish-Man Tom was furious. Strong as an ox, he wasn't afraid of a despicable coward like Yimi!

"Smog Emi has already been defeated by me and is now my prisoner. If you want his life, you can buy him with his bounty. That'll be 150 million Beli, if you please."

Brook looked at Fish-Man Tom, the sword in his hand still wreathed in icy energy.

"Heavens have eyes! A heartless bastard like Yimi was beaten as soon as he went to sea. It's karma! Hahaha!"

One of the shipwright foremen wept and laughed aloud, as if he'd gone mad. Countless shipyard workers cheered, but the Jerry Shipyard had been destroyed. How much money would it take to rebuild it?

"You actually defeated Smog Emi? That's wonderful! Hand him over to me. I'll kill him to avenge my master!"

The penniless Fish-Man Tom automatically ignored the bounty Brook had mentioned. He could kill Yimi to get his revenge, then claim the bounty and pay Brook afterward. Couldn't he see the obvious solution? What kind of request was this? Was this powerful stranger an idiot?

Shakky thought of that, too, and covered her face. Had Captain Brook really not figured it out?

"This ship is my spoils of war. Don't even think about smashing it!"

Brook saw the shipwrights pick up their hammers, ready to destroy the new ship, and quickly sent out a streak of sword energy to stop them.

"Everyone, stop! No matter what kind of ship you build, it has no good or evil of its own. Whatever harm a ship you built may cause—even if it destroys the world—the person who made it must cherish it. We who built it have no right to condemn it or blame it. A real man faces the ship he made with his head held high!"

Brook and the others were left dumbfounded by Fish-Man Tom's words. Even the shipwrights behind him stared at Tom strangely. Weren't you the first one who'd wanted to charge in and smash the ship?

Now you were talking as if you were so noble and impressive. We were the only fools here!

Just then, the badly injured Old Jerry, the shipyard's foreman, came out with the employees supporting him. He looked at the new ship that had attacked his shipyard not long ago, then at Smog Emi, whom Brook was holding.

"Thank you, hero, for avenging us. We're truly grateful! Could you leave Smog Emi to us to deal with? And could you return the valuables he stole?"

Old Jerry's first move was to ask Brook for all his spoils of war. Shakky beside him wasn't pleased, even though she could guess how badly they needed the money to rebuild the shipyard.

"Old man, you're going too far. Even pirates don't rob people like that. Smog Emi is a notorious pirate with a bounty of 150 million. Why should I hand him over to you? Besides, I fought hard to defeat him. Everything he has is my spoils of war.

"Of course, if you agree to one condition, I'll agree to your request!"

Brook first turned down Old Jerry's demand, then made his own.

"What condition?"

Old Jerry's badly injured body sagged even more. What kind of condition would Brook make? Was it the blueprints? Had he somehow let the secret slip?

"If you're willing, I'd like to hire this bull-horned Fish-Man Tom as my shipwright. In exchange, I'll hand over Smog Emi and the treasure he stole."

"Impossible! Tom is the backbone of the Jerry Shipyard and our protector. We can't let him leave to become a pirate!"

Old Jerry strongly objected. Tom was his most talented apprentice, and he was getting old. He needed a successor, and had already decided to pass the Pluton Blueprints on to Tom.

"Don't you want to build something that could save Water 7? Maybe I could offer you a few suggestions."

Those words from Brook immediately caught Fish-Man Tom's attention. He really did want to save Water 7, boost its commercial economy, and put an end to the chaos among the seven major shipyards.

"What ideas or plans do you have for saving Water 7?" Fish-Man Tom asked curiously.

"Tom, you can't leave. This place needs your protection!"

Old Jerry hurried to stop Fish-Man Tom, who was already eager to go, in case Brook really did lure him away.

"How about this? Tom can work as my shipwright for two years, and I'll teach him my ideas. What do you say? You can have Smog Emi's bounty plus a few hundred million Beli in exchange for hiring Tom for two years. That's a good deal, isn't it?"

Brook's offer immediately brightened everyone's eyes. Tom could pursue his dream and seek an answer, while the Jerry Shipyard would get the funds to rebuild and everyone could keep their jobs.

Old Jerry considered it, too. Two years—he should still be alive by then. He could pass the Pluton Blueprints on to Tom afterward. Still, the shipyards in Water 7 were fighting among themselves for business. It would be hard without Tom there.

Tom was surprised that Brook was willing to pay so much to hire him. It was practically an annual salary of 200 million Beli. And if he could find a way to save Water 7 in just two years, it was a great deal!

In the end, Old Jerry, who desperately needed money to rebuild the shipyard, agreed to Brook's offer after the shipwrights and Fish-Man Tom urged him to.

Smog Emi, whose memories had all been devoured by the Memory Seahorse, was handed over to the Jerry Shipyard workers in a daze. Old Jerry and Tom led them in beating him until he was limp as a rag. Then they tied him up and took him to the Marine Branch to collect his bounty and rebuild the shipyard.

Brook moved everything from his pirate ship onto the new one, leaving the old ship with the Jerry Shipyard so they could refurbish and sell it.

Old Jerry was still worried that no one would protect the shipyard after Tom left, so Brook left the entire Smokescreen Pirates crew with them. They'd all lost some of their memories, but they were promising prospects for Old Jerry to train.

In Old Jerry's office, he still wanted to squeeze some Beli out of Brook to help them get through the two years without Fish-Man Tom's protection.

"Why have all these pirates gotten so stupid? They're like rookies!" Old Jerry asked, puzzled.

"How would I know? Maybe I beat them until they couldn't even recognize their own mothers. Or maybe I scared them out of their wits."

As Brook spoke, he released Underworld Ghost Qi and Gloomy Nether Qi, frightening Old Jerry into backing away again and again.

"It is pretty terrifying. It's possible the pirates were scared out of their minds."

Old Jerry had no choice but to give up on the idea of squeezing all of Yimi's stolen money out of Brook.