"Kaku?"
Everyone present was stunned when they saw the long-nosed young man Penn was pointing at.
To be fair, although Penn was stationed at Enies Lobby and had even spoken face-to-face with the CP9 agents on the island, he had never actually seen the real faces of Lucci, Kaku, and the others.
Whenever CP9 operated outside, they wore masks and disguises, rarely revealing their true appearances to outsiders.
Additionally, CP agents were experts in altering their voices, mannerisms, and daily habits.
Since Penn wasn't the most detail-oriented naval officer, he had failed to recognize them.
In Water 7, Lucci and Kaku's cover identities were as shipwrights of Galley-La Company.
For over a year, they had worked in Water 7 under this disguise.
By now, they had gained the full trust of Iceburg, Barry, and the others.
"Kaku, what's going on? How did you become a witness?"
Iceburg frowned as he looked at Kaku.
Kaku scratched his head, subtly glanced in Rorschach's direction, and then shrugged. "Mr. Iceburg, it's like this—when I was passing through the main street earlier, I happened to run into Franky. I saw him moving quickly, carrying a luxurious large chest on his shoulder, and heading toward his home."
He chuckled lightly and gestured toward Penn with his chin. "After that, I came across the marines conducting their search for the thief."
"Was it really Franky who stole it?"
After hearing Kaku's explanation, Iceburg felt a massive headache coming on.
He hadn't expected Franky to steal from Rorschach, of all people.
All signs pointed to the fact that this young marine officer beside him possessed terrifying strength.
This was going to be a serious problem.
Deep down, Iceburg had already guessed the reason Franky had stolen such an enormous sum.
Years ago, Franky had dreamed of building a ship that would become world-famous.
After all, he and Iceburg had the same master—Tom, the greatest shipwright in the world.
Tom had once said that his proudest creations were the Sea Train and the Oro Jackson, the ship he had built for the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger.
The Oro Jackson was the only recorded ship to have successfully sailed around the world.
It was built from the legendary Treasure Tree Adam, making it nearly indestructible.
Franky had likely stolen the money to purchase Adam wood.
And since the navy was the military arm of the World Government—the very organization responsible for Tom's execution—Franky probably felt no guilt about taking their money.
"How are their injuries?"
Rorschach turned to Law, who had stepped forward to examine the wounded marines.
Even he hadn't expected Franky's crew to be bold enough to ambush the navy.
It seemed their loyalty to Franky was absolute.
Law took out some bandages and quickly wrapped a few of the injured soldiers. Then he spoke softly, "Nothing too serious—just a few broken ribs."
"That's what you call 'nothing serious'?"
Rorschach's face darkened.
He turned his gaze toward the group of men and women blocking the entrance to the dismantling house. Then, without hesitation, he strode forward, heading straight for the leading figures.
"Stop right there, marine!"
Franky Family's captain, Zambai, immediately shouted when he saw Rorschach approaching.
At the same time, beside him, a towering five-to-six-meter-tall giant—known among them as the "Destroyer"—raised the massive cannon in his arms and aimed it directly at Rorschach.
"If you take another step forward, don't blame us for attacking!"
"Yeah! Don't come any closer, handsome navy guy. Guns and cannons don't have eyes—if you get hurt, that wouldn't be good."
The square-headed sisters, Kiwi and Moz, raised their flintlock pistols with wary expressions.
"I have to say, you guys are really loyal to Franky. You're even willing to go against the navy for him. Do you have any idea what 'adding crime upon crime' means? Stealing ten billion Berries and attacking the navy? That's not just one crime—it's several."
Rorschach stopped five meters in front of Zambai, standing fearlessly in the face of countless dark gun barrels.
"Ten billion Berries? Navy! Big Bro Franky would never do such a thing! Stop trying to frame him! I'll say it again—if you want to search the dismantling house, you'll have to take us all down first!"
Zambai drew a gleaming steel blade from his waist, glaring as he shouted, "Otherwise, get lost! The dismantling house is our home, and we won't let anyone approach it—whether it's the navy or those backstabbing traitors from Galley-La Company!"
Barry was furious at his words. He pulled out a rope and shouted, "Backstabbing traitors? You useless street punks are the real scourge of Water 7! Look around—who actually likes you? You steal, fight, destroy people's houses, and dress shamelessly! And now you've stolen a fortune! If Iceburg wasn't so soft-hearted, I would have tied you all up long ago!"
"You? Ha! If Big Bro Franky were here, he'd knock you down with one punch. Pah!"
Zambai spat directly at Barry's feet.
Barry was enraged and charged forward, swinging his rope to tie Zambai up.
At that moment, the silver-haired navy officer standing before the Franky Family slowly raised his right hand and gently pushed forward.
"Enough already. If you did something wrong, then own up to it."
"What's he trying to do?"
Zambai and the others were briefly stunned.
The next second, a fierce gust of wind roared through the open space in front of the dismantling house.
The invisible air currents lifted dust and debris from the ground, rapidly compressing and stacking upon each other, forming a wind wall dozens of meters long.
With a thunderous impact, it slammed into the towering men before it.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
A series of heavy thuds echoed as figures crashed to the ground.
In the blink of an eye, the once-menacing Franky Family—whether it was the five-to-six-meter-tall "Destroyer," Zambai, or the sisters Kiwi and Moz—all were sent flying.
They crashed to the ground in a tangled heap, groaning in pain.
For a long moment, none of them could get up.
Barry, who had been charging forward in rage, suddenly stopped in his tracks, staring dumbfounded at the shocking scene before him.
With just a wave of his hand, this entire group of thugs had been flattened.
Rorschach's power had left Barry completely stunned.
"Gulp."
He swallowed hard, his throat moving as he looked at Rorschach.
"What… what did you just do?"
"Nothing much. Just made them quiet down to avoid unnecessary bloodshed."
Rorschach smiled and waved his hand.
Penn immediately understood the signal. Without hesitation, he led a group of soldiers into the now-unprotected dismantling house.
Penn worked quickly. Within two or three minutes, he rushed out carrying a luxurious wooden chest, placing it on the ground.
"Brigadier General Rorschach! We found the chest with the Berries inside! But… half of the money is missing!"
(End of Chapter)
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