Second Wind

51

While Iceburg made a call to the Water 7 bank to confirm the agreed value of the gold on the Going Merry, Lucci and Paulie left to get to back to work, the latter arguing with the former's pigeon all the while. Robin watched them go, an extremely perturbed expression on her face, before turning to face Luffy, her question clearly written on her face for once.

"We'll talk later, Robin," Luffy whispered. Robin didn't look assured, but accepted the promise and dropped the issue for the moment. But even as she did so, a seed of ever-present doubt in her mind took root for the first time in a month as her recent nightmare returned to the forefront of her mind.

"Well, it looks like your story checks out," Iceburg's voice came as he walked back towards Nami, carrying 6 large briefcases with the aid of Kalifa and another assistant. "I took the liberty of accessing Galley-La Company's vault. I'll hand these over to you now, and when Kaku returns, I'll have him organize a team to fetch the gold on your ship. Does that sound acceptable?"

"Of course!" Nami exclaimed gleefully as she eyed the huge sum of money. "Thank you for your help, Iceburg-san!"

Iceburg sweatdropped as he watched Nami eye the briefcases greedily. "Well, sure...anytime," he said.

The 6 briefcases were distributed amongst the 4 pirates. At that point, Kaku arrived back at Dock 1 and confirmed that their ship was irreparable, much to Usopp's dismay. The sniper then proceeded to ask about what kinds of ships they had for sale, and Kalifa handed him a brochure with all the latest models, while Iceburg explained each one in detail. Through it all, Nami and Usopp listened eagerly, Luffy pretended to listen but didn't really bother, and Robin was immersed in her own thoughts.

As they were speaking, two figures watched from the shadows, eyeing the briefcase in Usopp's hand with a predatory gaze. As they inched closer, Robin caught sight of them, and her eyes widened. Before she could take action though, Luffy's voice spoke up.

"Don't even try," the captain said authoritatively, without even turning around. His voice froze them in their tracks. Although he didn't look very intimidating, the Franky Family couldn't help but remember that this was the captain of the man who had kicked their collective asses that they were dealing with. As such, they started to sweat heavily.

Usopp did the same as he turned around and noticed their close proximity. Damn, I shouldn't have zoned out there...I'm carrying a fortune on me!

"Um...hi?" Zambai greeted nervously, seeing the hardened expression on Luffy's face. "We're just your everyday thugs trying to make a living. No need to get all—"

"Fuck off," Luffy interrupted, layering the command with a bit of Conqueror's Haki.

The Franky Family's next actions were wisely to do just that. As they ran, Iceburg sighed. "The Franky Family again. Well, sorry about that. They're attracted to valuables like moths to a lantern."

"Can we be glad they didn't get their hands on the money and consider the matter settled?" Kalifa asked.

"Yeah, it's fine," Luffy said with a shrug.

"Who are they anyway?" Nami asked. "They don't seem like pirates."

"No, they're not. Officially, they're ship dismantlers, but they just do whatever they can to make a profit. Bounty hunting, thievery, black marketing, the whole deal. But since they only target pirates who are passing through, the Marines leave them to their own devices. Franky himself is no pushover, so we tend to do the same unless they target our customers."

"This Franky guy. Where can I find him?" Luffy asked suddenly.

Iceburg raised an eyebrow. "If you're planning to pick a fight with him, we'll be taking some of that money back for property damages, just so you know."