"Shipbuilding?"
Tom wiped the oil off his hands, took the design drawings, and examined them carefully.
"Many people have come to me asking me to build ships, but I'm currently busy with..."
Before he could finish speaking, Tang Fish-Man's pupils suddenly contracted.
"This... this... this is a truly remarkable design! A flying ship!"
"Oh hahaha~~"
Roy was taken aback by Tom's sudden agitation.
Franky and Iceburg then ran to Tom's side, looking at Roy with curiosity.
"Hey hey hey--!"
" Mr. Tom, let me see what the design drawings are."
Seeing Franky bouncing around trying to grab the blueprints from Tom's hands, and fearing he might damage them, Bullet grabbed Franky's head and pressed it down.
"Quiet down, kid."
Pressed down by Bullet, a five-meter-tall giant, Franky instantly fell silent. Iceburg, who was standing nearby, wanted to help, but after being glanced at by Bullet, he immediately stopped and stood still, behaving obediently.
This scene made Roy chuckle; Bullet's intimidating presence was indeed as strong as ever. Roy then looked at Master Tom.
Tom became increasingly excited and shocked as he looked at the document.
"This is an ancient design! A flight system... an energy core... Brilliant! Absolutely ingenious! To think they could come up with such a method..."
He suddenly looked up, his gaze fixed intently on Roy.
Where did you get this design drawing?
"In a temple on the Sky Island, we not only brought back the blueprints, but also a lot of gold."
As he spoke, he pulled a handful of gold coins from his pocket. "We have plenty of gold like this; it's more than enough for construction."
"Gold... gold?!"
"Super--!! Gold!!"
Iceburg gasped when he heard they had a huge amount of gold. Even the usually composed Iceberg was stunned by Roy's claim that they could build a ship out of gold. Franky jumped up excitedly.
Tom looked at the gold in Roy's hand, but didn't seem excited. Instead, he stroked his chin, seemingly deep in thought, before waving to Roy and Bullet.
"A true man indeed! Go rest in my studio for a while; I need to observe more carefully."
"Thank you for your help, Master Tom!"
"Haha, let's go. I also want to thank you for bringing me such a brilliant design."
Led by Tom, the group arrived at Tom's workshop. Although it looked simple, it was very tidy, with many shipbuilding tools arranged in an orderly manner.
Roy and Tom casually found a chair and sat down. Tom ignored the others and went straight to the desk, spread out the blueprints, and took out paper and pen to carefully sketch them.
Franky and Iceburg, who followed them in, only dared to approach the table, standing on tiptoe and watching quietly from the side.
"Is Roy really capable?"
Bullet looked at the simple studio.
"Don't worry! No one else here can build a ship except him."
Roy patted Bullet on the shoulder.
As the two were talking, Tom stopped what he was doing and took a deep look at the design drawings.
"Brother Roy, thank you... for thinking so highly of me, but I'm currently being harassed by the World Government, and building a ship like this would take several months..."
" Mr. Tom!"
Roy interrupted him directly.
"We understand your situation, but please consider what it would mean if such a spaceship, capable of soaring through the skies, were built."
Seeing that Tom was clearly persuaded, Roy continued to entice him.
"It means breaking free from the sea's constraints, it means true freedom of navigation—isn't this exactly what you've been seeking, the ultimate embodiment of shipbuilding?"
"And this ark is for exploring the unknown and pushing the limits! Aren't they exactly what you've been looking for?"
Roy struck while the iron was hot.
"As for the trouble with the World Government..."
"Our Roy Pirates are not afraid of trouble. We guarantee that no one will be able to bother you until the ship is built."
Roy subtly released his mental energy, stirring up Tom's inner desires. This scene made Bullet strength had greatly increased, raise an eyebrow, feeling that it was somewhat familiar.
" The Roy Pirates? Could you be the ones who... stole the Devil Fruit from Golden Lion...?"
"That's right!"
Bullet clenched his fist and extended his tiger claw. Seeing the Iceburg's frightened expression, he waved the tiger claw in front of him.
Tom stared intently at Roy, his expression shifting. He then lowered his head again, caressing the design drawings. His fascination and passion for shipbuilding finally overcame his concerns.
"Oh, hahaha!"
"Well said! How can a true man give up his dreams? Freedom of navigation! Pushing limits! That's the romance of a real man! I'll take this job!"
Tom laughed heartily, pounding his chest.
"Master!" The slightly larger Iceburg looked worried.
"Super!! That's amazing!!"
Franky, on the other hand, was incredibly excited, as if he could participate in the creation process.
"But,"
Tom's smile faded, and he said seriously,
"Brother Roy, while this ark is ingenious, some of its technologies are too ancient."
What you want are ships that can fly in the sky and sail on the sea, right?
"Um."
Roy nodded.
"That's correct then. We don't need that much gold. The gold in the design drawings is mainly for electrical conductivity."
There are already many technologies that can do this, and we just need more materials and help...
" Master Tom, you decide this matter. We trust the legendary master's abilities."
Roy interrupted.
"We'll take care of the materials. Just tell us what you need and where you can find it, and we'll get it for you."
"Hehehe! Good! That's impressive!"
Tom laughed with satisfaction.
"So, first, we need a large quantity of Treasure Tree Adam Wood, an indispensable material for the key structure of the keel! It is extremely tough, strong enough to withstand the impact of flight and combat."
"As far as I know, there seems to be a batch of Treasure Tree Adam Wood appearing at a recent auction in the Sabaody Archipelago."
"In addition to these, various alloys, transmission devices, etc."
Tom began listing off a list, and Little Iceburg quickly took out his notebook to write it down.
"However, all of these can be ordered as long as you have money. The most important thing is Adam Wood, and of course, you also need money."
"Understood."
Roy listened to the long list of materials, but instead of finding it troublesome, he became even more excited—which precisely demonstrated the ship's extraordinary nature!
Roy looked at the design drawings Tom handed him, but didn't take them.
" Mr. Tom, you can keep the design drawings with you for now."
"We'll have someone send the money to you later. Place the order for the materials first, and we'll bring back enough Adam Wood."
After saying goodbye to Tom, Roy and Bullet headed towards the dock. On the way, Roy thought about the place where Adam Wood had appeared, and a glint flashed in his eyes.
" The Sabaody Archipelago? That's hardly a pleasant place!!"