The Gura Gura no Mi!
The strongest Paramecia!
An ultimate Devil Fruit capable of destroying heaven and earth!
It wasn’t only Rocks who wanted the young Whitebeard to join the crew.
Ren wanted Newgate to join just as badly.
Because if Newgate joined, Ren would be one step closer to that god-tier ability, the Gura Gura no Mi.
Given enough time, he’d eventually have a chance to record it.
Even Ren hadn’t expected the Gura Gura no Mi to be recorded so suddenly and so effortlessly.
All it took was a game of finger guessing and a few drinks.
It couldn’t have been more wonderful.
At present, even though Ren had already recorded the god-tier power of the Goro Goro no Mi, if he were to fight Newgate in a real battle, his chances of winning were honestly not very high.
“Ren, what are you grinning about?”
“I’ve learned how to play now.
Come on, let’s continue.”
Newgate urged him on, unwilling to admit defeat.
“Haha, sure.
I’ll accompany you until the end tonight!”
Ren readily agreed.
Sure enough, during the drinking game that followed, Newgate began winning streak after winning streak, until he had Ren swaying drunkenly from side to side.
Ren, however, was more than happy to keep playing.
His new crewmate had given him such a huge gift the moment he joined.
Naturally, Ren couldn’t be stingy in return.
When it came to providing emotional value, he had to deliver.
…
…
The next day.
As usual, Ren occupied his prized spot at the bow of the ship and held his breath, concentrating.
“Now.”
At a certain moment, Ren suddenly opened his eyes.
Two flashes of lightning flickered deep within his pupils.
He pulled a gold coin from his pocket, placed it between his fingers, and suddenly thrust his hand forward.
“Railgun!!!”
BOOM!
A dazzling beam of lightning shot forward with a thunderous roar, creating a white shockwave across the calm surface of the sea.
“Pretty much there.”
The corners of Ren’s mouth curved upward.
The gold coins he’d spent over the past few months hadn’t gone to waste after all.
“That’s an incredible technique.”
“If you’d used that move in yesterday’s battle, Ganna would have…”
“Either way, I still have to thank you for showing mercy.”
Newgate spoke up.
Although the Brothers Pirates had chosen to abandon him, they had still been his companions.
Whatever the circumstances, Newgate wasn’t the kind of person who would hold a grudge over it.
“The Davy Back Fight is nothing more than a game for fighting over crewmates.”
“There’s no need to take someone’s life.”
Ren waved his hand dismissively.
The key to the Davy Back Fight was stealing the other side’s members.
If someone accidentally killed a person whose friends had been taken onto the same ship, those people would inevitably have trouble getting along afterward.
They might even eventually become enemies.
That was why pirates participating in a Davy Back Fight would more or less restrain themselves.
They would stop once the outcome was decided rather than truly fight to the death.
“I have a question.”
Newgate spoke.
“Ask.”
“I noticed just now that every time you use that technique, you have to consume one gold coin.”
“Can’t you use other metal coins instead?”
Newgate asked.
“Of course I can.
Ordinary coins work almost as well.”
Ren nodded.
“Then why…”
“I’m rich and can afford to be extravagant!”
Ren pointed toward the piles of treasure stacked across the deck.
Newgate: “…”
That makes so much sense that I can’t even argue with it.
Even Newgate, who wasn’t particularly interested in treasure, had been deeply shocked by the wealth of Rocks’ crew yesterday.
“Where exactly did you get all this gold?”
Newgate asked curiously.
“I’ll tell you!
I’ll tell you!”
Brown Bear Little Bear immediately volunteered.
“Newgate, you just arrived a little late.”
“If you’d come sooner, you could’ve gone on the great Sky Island Golden City adventure with us!”
“Sky Island?
Golden City?”
Newgate had spent far too long in a small pirate crew, so it was obvious that his horizons were somewhat limited.
Now, upon learning that there were islands ten thousand meters above the sea—and even an entire city made of gold—he was deeply shocked.
At the same time, a glimmer flashed through his eyes.
The prospect of a Sky Island adventure seemed to appeal to him somewhat.
“Wahahaha!
Newgate, don’t worry.”
“We’ll definitely have another chance to go there in the future.”
“When we do, you’ll come with us.”
Rocks walked out of the captain’s quarters on the second deck.
After speaking, his gaze swept across the four people on the deck one by one.
“Listen up, boys.”
“I’ve been thinking.”
“Now that we have money, we have to spend it.”
“So our top priority from now on is spending money.”
“Does anyone have any ideas?”
“Me!
Me!
Me!”
Brown Bear Little Bear was the first to raise his hand.
“I want to buy a thousand honey cakes.”
“You idiot, Bear Two!
All you ever think about is honey.”
“You don’t even know how to spend money.”
“When you’ve got money, you have to hit up the hostess clubs and pick up some models!”
Black Bear Big Bear rubbed his hands together eagerly.
Ignoring the two idiots, Ren offered his own suggestion.
“Captain Rocks, let’s put everything else aside for now.”
“First, can we get a proper ship that actually belongs to us?”
Whether it was their previous ship or the one they were currently using, both had been commandeered from other pirate crews.
The size and quality aside, the sanitary conditions alone were enough to make Ren speechless.
With several dozen grown men living aboard a single ship, there was simply no way to keep it particularly clean.
“You’re right, Ren.”
“I almost forgot.”
“Back when I wanted to make money, it was precisely so we could buy a ship and get started.”
Rocks nodded repeatedly.
“If you want to build a new ship, that’s perfect.”
“The next destination on our Log Pose happens to be Water 7, the famous island of shipbuilding.”
Newgate spoke up.
“Wahahaha!
Then it’s decided!”
“Listen up, boys!
Our destination is Water 7!”
“Set sail!”
Rocks waved his hand decisively.
…
…
Water 7.
A famous shipbuilding island in the Grand Line.
It was a water-based metropolis with a complex structure and waterways crisscrossing throughout the city.
From a distance, the city resembled a gigantic fountain, with a three-tiered design.
Because Water 7 was invaded by Aqua Laguna once every year, causing the city’s water level to rise year after year, the entire city was constantly being built higher and higher.
There was a city above the water.
And there was another city beneath it.
As the most famous shipbuilding island in the Grand Line, Water 7’s shipbuilding industry could be considered the finest in the world.
Among its shipbuilding companies, the most famous was undoubtedly Galley-La.
It was said to have been passed down for hundreds of years, even as far back as eight hundred years.
And the origin of the name Galley-La was also connected to a mysterious shipwright organization from eight hundred years ago.
“Hurry, hurry!”
“Today’s a big day!
If we don’t move faster, we’ll miss all the excitement!”
“The excellent shipwright competition is held once every four years!”
“The winner might even become the heir to Galley-La!”
“There are two finalists this time.”
“One is the company’s president’s personal disciple, while the other is a Fish-Man named Tom!”
“What?!
A Fish-Man?”
“Isn’t that a fish?
Fish can be shipwrights too?”
Along the way, the residents of Water 7 discussed the event animatedly.
By the time Ren and the others arrived at the Galley-La headquarters, the grand shipwright competition had already ended.
As expected, the man known as the Galley-La president’s personal disciple had emerged as the final winner.
The Fish-Man shipwright Tom had finished in second place, leaving the competition in dejection.
It was an outcome that could have been predicted from the beginning.
In this world, most people harbored prejudice against the Fish-Man race.
Young Tom, who carried a passionate desire to become the world’s greatest shipwright, had likewise been pushed aside and discriminated against because of his race.
While the other competitors could choose the finest materials for their entries, even if Tom had money, he couldn’t buy the best materials.
He could only search through the scrap-ship island for usable pieces of wood and salvaged parts.
And yet, even under such circumstances, he had relied on his own craftsmanship to make it into the finals, astonishing countless people.
Unfortunately, actually winning was still far too difficult.
The various shipbuilding companies of Water 7 would never allow a Fish-Man to take first place.
It was a competition whose outcome had already been decided from the beginning!
Even so, the young Tom hadn’t been defeated.
There was still a light in his eyes.
Because…
A man should always have absolute confidence in his own ship!!!
“Fish-Man, I like your craftsmanship.”
“Would you be willing to build a ship for us?”
Ren smiled.