Ever since Rob Lucci began his undercover assignment at Dock One, he barely said a word, usually relying on the pigeon perched on his shoulder to convey his thoughts. As a result, most of the people at the dock thought he was a strange guy who simply disliked talking.
But Takumi knew better—Lucci didn't speak to them because he simply found them beneath him.
Rob Lucci was a man driven by a dark sense of justice. He was considered the most cold-blooded killing machine in CP9's history, the strongest individual the organization had seen in 800 years. In his eyes, weakness itself was a "crime." No matter how long he stayed undercover at Water 7, his belief that the weak had no right to live would never change.
On the other hand, Kaku, the square-nosed fellow who was also undercover at Dock One, was a lot more humane compared to Lucci's dark and twisted nature.
Despite being the youngest member of CP9, Kaku—who was probably only 17 or 18 at this point—was the second strongest in the group, right after Lucci. His natural talent was impressive, especially considering he hadn't even consumed a Devil Fruit yet. Relying solely on his mastery of the Six Powers and his exceptional physical prowess, Kaku had risen to become the number two figure in CP9. His learning ability and innate gifts were nothing short of extraordinary.
"Haha, interesting," Iceburg laughed. "Alright, go ahead and follow the foremen. You'll all start learning the basics."
With a wave of his hand, Iceburg dismissed the ten selected candidates. An older foreman led them off, assigning them to various craftsmen around the dock to begin their training.
Takumi cast a lingering glance at both Lucci and Kaku. If he didn't already know their backgrounds, their performances would've been worthy of an acting award.
Enel, still watching the bustling activity of the factory, couldn't resist asking one last time, even though he knew the answer. "So we're really not hiring a shipwright?"
Takumi snapped back to reality and replied flatly, "No."
Enel sighed, clearly disappointed.
Iceburg chuckled, "Well, with all the extra hands, your ship should be ready ahead of schedule."
Takumi gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.
Just then, Iceburg's pocket Den Den Mushi started ringing. After answering it, his expression changed rapidly. "What? Someone that important came, and you didn't tell me sooner? Wait... you did? I don't remember... Alright, I'll be there right away."
Hanging up, Iceburg turned to Takumi and Enel, offering an apologetic smile. "Sorry, something urgent came up. Feel free to wander around the factory for a bit."
With that, Iceburg hurried off, leaving the two of them behind.
Enel, now even less interested in staying, muttered, "If we're not hiring a shipwright, then what's the point of hanging around?"
Takumi shrugged. "You can leave if you want."
Enel glanced at Takumi. "Seriously, you don't mind if I go?"
"Go ahead."
Enel stared at Takumi, realizing that he genuinely didn't care. Watching his captain stroll deeper into the factory as if actually interested in a tour, Enel felt a surge of irritation.
Seriously? He's just going to ignore me like that? Fine, then! I'm leaving!
With an indignant huff, Enel turned and walked in the opposite direction, muttering to himself.
He hadn't gotten far before Takumi's voice called out from behind.
"Be back before the ship's ready."
Enel paused, glancing back at Takumi, who hadn't even turned to look at him. After a moment, he grumbled, "Got it, Captain."
Once Enel left, Takumi continued his aimless wandering through the massive factory, eventually ending up near where Enel's unusual-looking ship was docked.
No one had started working on it yet, so the area was completely empty.
"Is that your ship?" a middle-aged shipwright asked as he passed by with two apprentices in tow.
"Yeah," Takumi replied nonchalantly.
The shipwright chuckled. "I heard it can fly. Is that true?"
Takumi glanced over at the man and noticed Kaku among the two apprentices.
Kaku, trying to keep a low profile, perked up at the mention of a flying ship. "A flying ship? Really? Can it actually fly?"
Takumi gave a small nod.
The shipwright laughed again. "Ha! People these days will believe anything. There's no such thing as a flying ship! I've lived my whole life and never seen one."
Takumi couldn't be bothered to argue with someone so narrow-minded.
Kaku, on the other hand, was genuinely intrigued. "Could I take a look? I just want to see it up close."
"Hey, you're only 17, right? Talking like an old man makes you sound ancient," his fellow apprentice teased.
Kaku just laughed. "Haha, you'll get used to it. So, can I check out the ship? Just a quick look..."
"Well..." The middle-aged shipwright scratched his head. "It's scheduled for repairs, but no one's assigned to it yet. If the owner doesn't mind, I suppose it's fine."
Takumi: "..."
"Go ahead," Takumi said, not really caring. There was nothing of value on the ship anyway.
"Great! Thanks!" Kaku exclaimed with excitement, leaping onto the deck in a single bound.
The ship was over 200 meters away from where they were standing.
Watching Kaku clear the distance in one jump left the shipwright and the other apprentice wide-eyed and slack-jawed.
"Wh-what the hell? Is that guy even human? How did he jump that far?!"
"I mean, come on! No one's legs are that long! That's way beyond human limits!"
The two of them were utterly stunned.
Takumi, on the other hand, remained calm and expressionless.
He knew full well just how capable Kaku was. The man's jumping ability and reflexes were insane. Leaping a few hundred meters? That was nothing for him.
Once aboard the ship, Kaku wandered around, inspecting every inch. When he ventured into the cabin and saw the hole in the deck, he peered down and was taken aback by what he found—an intricate network of gears of all sizes.
"What is this...?" Kaku examined everything carefully, inspecting every gear, every mechanism, before moving on to the ship's sides and the propellers at the stern. After thoroughly investigating, he made a single leap back to where Takumi and the others were standing, scratching the back of his head and grinning beneath his hat. "Haha, you know... this ship might actually be able to fly."
The shipwright was still skeptical. "Oh, come on! You're not serious. There's no such thing as a flying ship."
Kaku, however, was dead serious. "I'm not kidding. When I was younger, I used to tinker with small gadgets and machines. If everything is assembled correctly and the right conditions for propulsion are met, it's possible to make something that normally couldn't fly... well, fly. With the gears inside this ship, combined with those three propellers, I'd say it's not impossible."
Hearing Kaku's words, Takumi couldn't help but give him another look.
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Besides Takumi, the other two guys couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Seriously? Just because it's got a few gears and propellers, you think it can fly? If it were that easy, we'd be seeing flying ships everywhere by now!"
"Exactly! Making a ship fly isn't child's play. No way I'm buying that this thing can get off the ground."
Kaku scratched his nose, grinning as he joined in the banter. "Hahaha, well, that's just my opinion. Whether it can fly or not, we'll see once it's repaired."
"Alright, enough talk." The older shipwright waved them off, tired of the conversation. "There's still a ton you both need to learn. The sooner you pick it up, the sooner we can lighten the load here."
With a nod to Takumi, he added, "We'll be on our way now."
Takumi gave a brief nod.
The shipwright led Kaku and the other newbie away, leaving Takumi to wander around Dock One a little longer, watching the shipwrights at work.
Some of them even joked about whether he wanted to learn how to repair ships himself, to which he politely declined.
Honestly, he'd rather be at the tavern enjoying a cold drink.
And so, he left Dock One and made his way to a tavern owned by Blueno, one of CP9's undercover agents, where he settled in with a bottle of liquor.
Takumi had barely gotten through his first bottle when the door swung open.
In walked a man with short purple hair, half his face covered by a leather mask, dressed in black with an elephant sword strapped to his waist. Two Navy officers in white uniforms followed him in.
The man plopped down at the bar without even sparing Takumi a glance. "Blueno, a drink," he ordered.
Blueno, always stone-faced, silently poured him a drink and slid it across the counter.
The two Navy officers took up position behind the man, standing guard like they were protecting someone important.
Takumi casually uncorked his second bottle and took a sip, glancing over at the newcomer from the corner of his eye.
Yep, just like I remembered.
This was Spandam, CP9's so-called top dog.
I say "so-called" because the only reason he's in charge is because his dad's reputation carried him there. In reality, the guy's as weak as they come—any random soldier could take him out.
Sure, CP9 members acted like they listened to him, but none of them really respected him. They all knew the true leader, the one they really followed, was Rob Lucci, the strongest of the bunch.
Oh, and Spandam was also the guy responsible for framing Tom—the shipwright who proposed and built the Sea Train, and the mentor to both Franky (a future member of Luffy's crew) and Iceburg, the current head of the Galley-La Company.
That's right, Iceburg, Tom's second apprentice, was the one in possession of the Pluton blueprints. Pluton being one of the three ancient weapons—a warship so powerful it could destroy an island with a single blast.
Takumi had no interest in the Pluton blueprints. As long as CP9 didn't get in his way, they could do whatever they wanted.
And as for Spandam... well, no matter how despicable he was, as long as he didn't try anything stupid, Takumi was content to pretend the guy didn't exist.
But some folks just can't help digging their own graves.
After taking a sip of his drink, Spandam's gaze landed on Takumi.
Thinking Takumi was just some local from Water 7, he smirked and asked, "Hey, kid, you know who I am?"
Takumi: "..."
Yeah, I know. I just don't care.
Spandam grinned wider. "Hahaha, I'm a high-ranking Navy officer! You're probably shaking in your boots right now, huh? Don't worry, I'm not gonna hurt you. Hahaha!"
Takumi, not even bothering to acknowledge him, stood up, grabbed his half-full bottle, and headed for the door.
Seeing Takumi just walk out like that, Spandam's face twisted in anger. He slammed his hand down on the bar, causing everyone in the tavern to jump.
"Hey, punk! I'm talking to you! You deaf or something?" Spandam shouted.
Takumi ignored him and kept walking.
Spandam, never one to let his ego take a hit, especially with a few patrons hiding their smirks, couldn't hold back anymore. He drew his elephant sword and stormed after Takumi.
"Hold it right there!" Spandam barked, pressing the blade against Takumi's neck.
Takumi stopped, but only for a moment.
Spandam thought he'd won and grinned. "I'm Spandam, a Navy officer! You'd better remember that. Now, if you apologize, I might just let this slide."
Takumi's voice was cold as ice. "Move your sword."
Spandam's grin faltered. "You little brat, do you even know who I am?"
"Yeah, I do," Takumi replied, turning to look him dead in the eye. "I just don't care."
Spandam froze.
It was the first time anyone had looked at him like that—especially a kid.
But with everyone watching, there was no way he could back down. He had to show this punk who was in charge.
Taking a deep breath, Spandam snapped, "You'd better watch yourself, kid. This is Water 7, and I'm the one keeping this place safe."
Keeping it safe? Takumi nearly laughed out loud.
You? That's rich.
Takumi turned to leave again, ignoring Spandam entirely.
But the man wasn't done. With a growl, he swung his sword at Takumi's back.
Takumi sidestepped the attack easily, leaving Spandam to stumble forward as the blade hit nothing but air.
"You little…" Spandam snarled, swinging again.
Takumi moved in a blur, grabbing Spandam by the head and slamming him face-first into the ground.
With a loud crack, Spandam hit the floor, a big bump forming on his forehead. His eyes rolled back, and he collapsed, unconscious.
"Sir! Are you alright?" The two Navy officers rushed over to check on him.
Seeing that Spandam was only knocked out cold, they both sighed in relief.
Then, they turned to look at Takumi, who was casually walking away.
"This kid… he's gonna be trouble."
"Yeah. Spandam's not gonna let this slide…"
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