Night fell, and the neon lights of Water 7 shimmered in the intricate waterways, masking the shadows creeping beneath the bridges.
Within the mental "Channel Network" of the Eclipse Pirates, Carina's voice echoed with crystal clarity.
"Carina, beautiful job locking onto that intel," Ace's thoughts transmitted to every crewmate as he strode toward Scrapyard Island.
"Listen up. The CP0—the strongest hounds of the Celestial Dragons—are air-dropping onto this island by midnight. Before they arrive, the CP9 agents lurking among us have orders to divide and assassinate us. They want to stop us from regrouping at the Eclipse."
A hint of bloodthirsty anticipation colored Ace's mental tone. "They want to play at assassination? Fine. Everyone, stay exactly where you are. Don't move toward me. Treat tonight as your graduation exam from the Sky Island training. If you can't handle a few government rats, don't bother showing your faces in the New World."
"Understood, Captain," Leona's thought was sharp as a blade. "My twin steel has been craving a life-or-death dance."
"Gah-hahahaha! Lurking agents?" Buggy's laugh boomed in their minds. "With my 'Perfect Splitting,' they won't even touch my shadow! This special training wasn't for nothing!"
Once the combat state was confirmed, Ace locked onto the final piece of his plan.
"Sabo, go to the Galley-La headquarters. Find Iceburg. Expose the moles around him. I don't care how you do it, but bring him alive to Scrapyard Island. We need the best eyes in the world to finish the Eclipse."
"Consider it done," Sabo replied, severing the link.
The Mayor's Office: A Glass Shattered
Half an hour later, inside the Galley-La headquarters, Mayor Iceburg rubbed his weary eyes. A small white mouse, Tyrannosaurus, dozed in his pocket. The pressure from the World Government regarding the Pluton blueprints was becoming a physical weight.
Suddenly, a figure appeared in the armchair opposite his desk. Deep blue tailcoat, blonde curly hair. Sabo sat there like a ghost.
"Who are you?!" Iceburg's hand twitched toward the alarm under his desk.
"I wouldn't," Sabo said gently. "The foremen and secretaries you trust to answer that alarm are actually the executioners waiting to take your life."
Iceburg froze. "Nonsense!"
"Is it? The Five Elders have wanted Master Tom's legacy for years," Sabo leaned forward. "Lucci, Kaku, Kalifa, and the bartender Blueno. They are CP9. Tonight, because of us, they are tearing off their masks. If you stay here, you're already dead."
Iceburg felt a cold buzz in his brain. He had sensed a net for years, but to hear that his core staff were espionage machines of the Celestial Dragons was a blow to his soul. "Why believe a pirate?"
Sabo stood up, looking out at the darkening sky. "You don't have to believe me. But I believe the bastard cyborg Cutty Flam—the one who wasn't afraid of death and spent his days in swim trunks—has a better eye for people than you think."
"Cutty... Flam?!" Iceburg knocked over his coffee. "He's alive? Where?!"
"At Scrapyard Island, rebuilding a warship. If you want him to live, and if you want to see a vessel that can cross eras, come with me."
Without a word, Iceburg grabbed his coat and followed the blonde youth into the night.
Scrapyard Island: The Three-Way Fusion
At the hidden dock, the Eclipse stood like a gargantuan steel skeleton. Sparking welders and high-intensity cutters lit the darkness. Iceburg arrived to see a burly back directing a dozen cranes.
Blue pompadour. Floral shirt. Triangular shorts.
"You bastard... it really is you," Iceburg whispered, his eyes moistening. He would know that wild, stubborn shipwright soul anywhere.
"Huh? Stupid Iceberg?!" Franky turned, tears instantly erupting like waterfalls. "Waaaaah! Why did you come to this junkyard, you idiot!"
After a brief, bone-crushing hug, Franky explained the situation and the Eclipse's design. As Iceburg looked at the blueprints—the Moon Engine, the Starfall Black Steel, and the Adam Wood keel—the exhaustion left his eyes. The fanaticism of a master shipwright took over.
"The stress-points on that chassis connection are all wrong!" Iceburg barked, rolling up his sleeves. "You can't use standard joints for a Starfall ram! Move aside! Let me use the 'Underwater Multi-dimensional Tenon-and-Mortise' method to lock the keel!"
Jeno blinked, then grinned behind his goggles. "Now that is some local craft! Suit-man, you know your stuff! Grab a torch—we close the main valve tonight!"
Franky, Iceburg, and Jeno—the ultimate trio of shipwrights—began a construction frenzy. Assisted by the small Lunar robots, the progress bar for the Eclipse surged forward.
The Owls of Death
Meanwhile, above the lightless sea, three figures in white suits and expressionless masks stepped on the very air, approaching Water 7 like silent owls of death.
CP0 had arrived.
In the city, Lucci and the others received the final signal: "Arrest or execute on sight." The masks were off. The hunt was on.
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