Water 7 was a beautiful city. Like Venice, the entire island was one massive floating metropolis, and in the One Piece world it was famous for shipbuilding—its craftsmanship was unmatched. From a distance, the whole city looked like a fountain, with water flowing down from a tall tower at the center.
After asking around, I learned that Iceburg wasn't mayor yet.
"Hmm… At this point in time, Iceburg should still have Pluton's blueprints…"
Each Ancient Weapon was powerful enough to threaten the world. Among them, Pluton was a devastating warship built by ancient shipwrights.
But I wasn't greedy for it. I already had the Hyperion from StarCraft, so even the strongest ship in One Piece would be obliterated by a single Yamato Cannon. How would they block an attack from orbit?
I decided to find Iceburg and headed to the area packed with shipyards. There were several companies at the moment—probably because Iceburg hadn't merged them yet. After asking around, I arrived at a company called 'Tom's Workers.' Unlike the other shipyards that were bustling, this place was quiet.
"Anyone here?"
I called out loudly, and a young Iceburg with deep blue hair and a bandana came out, yawning as if he'd just woken up from a nap.
"Yaaawn… Who are you?"
"I'm here to place an order for a ship. I'm Taejin from Merchant's Island."
Hearing my name, Iceburg's eyes went wide.
"Huh! The 'Merchant King' Taejin?"
"Yes, that's what people have been calling me lately."
"It's been a while since we had a big client. What kind of ship are you looking for?"
"I want to order three large, sturdy merchant ships. Make them capable of some armament, and comfortable for the crew."
"Ordering three ships at once… truly the Merchant King. How much are you planning to spend?"
"Pirates sank one of our ships recently. These are for my staff, so I'm not looking to save money. Make them the best, no matter the cost."
I was overflowing with money. The materials didn't cost me anything anyway.
"You're a good boss."
Iceburg's expression darkened. It was probably because of what happened to Tom. Tom was Iceburg and Franky's master, and the company's president.
But he had inherited Pluton's blueprints, and Spandam—who was after them—framed him with every dirty trick in the book, had him dragged to Enies Lobby, and got him killed.
Tom had sensed it coming and passed the blueprints to Iceburg and Franky before he was arrested, so Spandam ended up with nothing.
"I don't see any other employees."
"There was a big incident recently, so they're on leave. Because of that, we don't have any customers either, to be honest."
Iceburg wasn't trying to hide anything and told me the truth. Franky wasn't here either, so it must have been not long after he was hit by the train.
"I see."
"But don't worry. We'll build the ships without any issues."
Iceburg's expression brightened again as he spoke confidently.
"Good. Understood. How much would it cost to build them to spec?"
"If we use 'Adam' and Seastone, I'd estimate about 1 billion Berries per ship."
The Thousand Sunny alone cost 200 million Berries just for the Adam wood, so I already expected a larger merchant ship to cost more. 'Adam' referred to 'Treasure Tree Adam,' one of the few rare trees in the One Piece world. It was the largest and sturdiest wood available, considered the best material for shipbuilding.
"I can procure the Seastone."
"Then we can do it for 700 million. We'll need time to source the wood, though. It's not something that hits the market often."
"I see. Could I see a piece of Adam?"
"We have a bit left over from a previous build. This way."
I followed Iceburg into the workshop. There was a chunk of wood in one corner.
"This is it."
Even at a glance, the grain was far denser than other wood, and it felt tough to the touch.
"Hmm… I think I can procure this too."
Iceburg looked shocked at my words.
"Really? Then we can build each for 200 million Berries."
I pulled 600 million Berries from my inventory and handed it to Iceburg right away.
"Huh! Where did all this money come from…"
"I'm a Devil Fruit user."
If I just said 'Devil Fruit,' people usually accepted it.
"I-I see. We'll get ready, then."
"Understood. I'll come back once the materials are ready. It won't take long."
With the order placed, I left the shipyard. Since I was already here, I decided to check out Enies Lobby nearby. Enies Lobby was the World Government's judicial facility, the island where the sun never sets. It had a courthouse, but the funny thing was, not a single person had been found innocent there in 800 years.
I took the Talaria and followed the Water 7 sea train tracks toward Enies Lobby. When the main gate building came into view in the distance, I got out, used, and teleported to the top of the gate tower. Looking down at the main island, I saw several buildings.[Stealth]
I pulled out [Jack Sparrow's Compass] to see if there was anything worth taking. The needle pointed to one spot, so I headed there. When I got on top of a certain building, the needle started spinning. The building had no windows, only a metal door, and two guards stood in front of it.
It was clearly a warehouse guarding something important. I used [Matter Manipulation] to turn a person-sized section of the roof into water, removed it with, and stored it in my inventory. There might be traps inside, so I entered slowly while looking down. There didn't seem to be any.[Telekinesis]
Looking around the warehouse, I saw various weapons, and further inside were Devil Fruits.
'Lucky!'
I immediately used to identify them.[Appraisal]
[Devil Fruit: Ox-Ox Fruit, Model: Giraffe]
Grants the power of a giraffe.
[Devil Fruit: Cat-Cat Fruit, Model: Leopard]
Grants the power of a leopard.
[Devil Fruit: Door-Door Fruit]
Can turn anything you touch into a door.
[Devil Fruit: Bubble-Bubble Fruit]
Produces bubbles from the body.
'Oh~ the Door-Door Fruit!'
The Door-Door Fruit was broken too. Especially with Air Door, you could hide in a pocket dimension and avoid any attack, and unlike my inventory, you could put people inside.
I didn't hesitate and ate the Door-Door Fruit right away. Tasted awful, as expected. I considered taking the others but left them. If I took too many, Luffy wouldn't grow properly.
I went back to the roof, used to fill the hole with water, and used [Matter Manipulation] to turn it back into the same material as the roof, sealing it. I teleported around Enies Lobby a bit more to look around.
Then I saw a tall, brownish, hexagonal building—probably Gwanhao, the CP9 training facility. Inside, I could see several young boys and girls being trained. It was extremely harsh; instructors would beat anyone who fell behind without mercy.[Telekinesis]
I wanted to rescue them, but I couldn't bring myself to take kids who might have been mentally conditioned since childhood. Rob Lucci had been killing people since he was 10, after all.
'I'll be satisfied with the Door-Door Fruit.'
I teleported straight back to Merchant's Island and started making materials for the ships.
The next day, I returned to Water 7 and delivered the materials to Iceburg. He was shocked I'd gotten them in a single day, but I just said I used a merchant's connections.
Now I needed to find a swordsmanship instructor. I could teach it myself, but I had too much to do. So I decided to visit Zoro's master, Shimotsuki Koushirou.
"Shimotsuki Village, was it? Kuina would be dead by now."
I pulled out [Jack Sparrow's Compass] again, set the direction, and took the Talaria. It didn't take long since it was still in the East Blue. I teleported straight to the village and asked around, quickly finding the Isshin Dojo that Koushirou ran. It was a small village, so it didn't take long.
Knock knock knock.
"Is anyone home?"
I knocked on the dojo door and called out. A kid who looked about nine, with green hair and wearing Japanese hakama, came out. It was Zoro, obviously.
"Who are you? Here for a dojo challenge?"
That line was so ridiculous I had to hold back, but I answered.
"Kid, is the master here?"
"So it is a dojo challenge. Bring it on!"
"This brat!"
He kept spouting nonsense, so I flicked his forehead.
Thwack!
"Ow! I was definitely going to dodge…"
Zoro said while rubbing his head. There was no way a kid who hadn't even learned [Observation Haki] could dodge my punch. Then the dojo door opened wide, and a kind-looking middle-aged man with long hair tied back and glasses came out. This was Shimotsuki Koushirou.
"Who might you be?"
"I'm Taejin from Merchant's Island. I'm looking for a swordsmanship instructor."
"I see. Please come in."
I followed Koushirou into the Isshin Dojo. We passed the training hall where kids were practicing and arrived at a Japanese-style room, where we sat down. Koushirou served tea and sat across from me.
"You're looking for a swordsmanship instructor?"
"Yes. You may not know, but I run an orphanage on Merchant's Island. They're all war orphans or survivors from villages burned by pirates.
Some are women who were kidnapped to be sold as slaves. I want them to be able to protect themselves, so I'm looking for someone to teach them swordsmanship."
"I see. I've heard the rumors."
We were getting famous enough that few people didn't know about us now.
"I'm not sure why you'd make this offer to me. As you can see, I'm just a man running a small dojo in a small village."
"I travel a lot for business. I've been to Wano Country before. They teach swordsmanship very systematically there. That's how I found out about you."
It was a lie. I'd never actually been to Wano. But I chose Shimotsuki Koushirou for a reason—he raised Zoro.
I figured if they just learned the basics, they could handle low-level pirates. Koushirou rubbed his chin and thought, then said,
"Hmm… I understand your situation. But I have to run this dojo, so it would be difficult for me. However, a fellow disciple who trained under my father, our master, is currently teaching the children here. I can ask him. His skill is in no way inferior to mine."
"I see. Understood. I'll leave it to you."
"Please wait a moment."
I drank tea and waited in the room. Then Koushirou returned with a man who looked like his friend and an instructor. I stood first and greeted him.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Taejin."
"Hello. I'm Takeda Kendo. I heard the situation. If I'm acceptable, I'd like to help."
"Thank you."
In the end, I didn't get Shimotsuki Koushirou as an instructor, but this might be better. Honestly, I was thinking he could come once or twice a week since he had to teach Zoro too, but I got a full-time instructor instead.
"We'll need to prepare on our end as well, so please start in a week."
"Understood."
I was about to leave the Isshin Dojo with the instructors seeing me off when little Zoro, holding three wooden swords, suddenly appeared and blocked my path.
"You're not leaving just like that. Fight me."
Seeing that, Koushirou scolded Zoro.
"Zoro, what are you doing to our guest?"
"That guy's weird. His punch was definitely slow, but I couldn't dodge it. I need to figure it out."
Zoro was as competitive as ever.
"Alright. Let's spar once."
"Good! Follow me."
Koushirou said, worried,
"Are you sure? He may not look it, but Zoro is skilled enough to take on adults."
"Hahaha, it'll be fine."
We went back to the dojo where the students were training. The students heard there would be a spar and sat along the walls to watch. Koushirou acted as referee.
"Then we'll begin. Bow to each other!"
Zoro and I faced each other and bowed.
"Begin!"
"Come at me!"
Zoro took a stance, but I just stood there smiling.
"If you won't come, I will! Yaa!"
As Zoro charged and swung his wooden sword, I ducked in as he swung and hugged him.
"What are you doing!"
Zoro struggled to get out of my arms, but I started tickling him with both hands.
Tickle tickle~
"Ehahahaha, stop! Ahahaha!"
"Gonna surrender?"
"Hahaha, okay, I surrender! I surrender! Ahahahaha!"
The students found it funny and laughed too. I let Zoro go. His face was red from laughing so hard, and he glared at me.
"Ugh~! That's dirty."
I grinned wickedly, showed Zoro my hands, and wiggled my fingers.
"Hehehe~ Want to go again?"
Zoro panicked at the gesture.
"Ugh… Damn it! I'm not doing it!"
Koushirou raised his hand toward me and said,
"Hahaha, Taejin wins!"
Koushirou was smiling too, so he must have enjoyed it. I gave the kids snacks and milk as gifts.
"Whoa~ snacks! Thank you, we'll enjoy them."
"Yeah, I'll bring more next time."
I left the dojo with the instructors seeing me off again.
"Thank you for today."
"Not at all. I had fun too. See you again in a week."
"Understood. See you then."
After saying goodbye, I returned to the island and told everyone I'd found a swordsmanship instructor. The kids were thrilled they'd get to learn swordsmanship. I made plenty of wooden swords and bokken the same size as the ones at the dojo.