Going Merry

The sea breeze, carrying the smell of gunpowder and rust, swept across the dock ravaged by artillery fire, leaving only a few pillars standing. The Straw Hat crew was forced onto one of the pillars, surrounded and attacked by numerous marines, all of them panting heavily.

Aside from Luffy, who was battling the CP9 ace next door, everyone's gaze couldn't help but drift towards another pillar. There stood Luna, dressed in a crimson dress, surrounded by ten burly men draped in cloaks of justice, her longsword gleaming alarmingly, like a still, autumnal spring.

"Yunxiu!" Nami gripped the Weather Stick, gritting her teeth, unsure how to help.

Those were ten lieutenant generals, each exuding a terrifying aura. Their killing intent mixed with domineering power made the air thick and heavy. Even they, standing here, felt an overwhelming sense of oppression.

"Surrender, you female pirate!" The vice admiral's voice was deep and carried an undeniable authority.

The girl didn't answer. She simply lowered her waist slightly, the tip of her sword pointing diagonally at the ground, her eyes as calm as the sea before a storm.

The next second, a storm suddenly arose! Sharp winds swept in like a tornado, carrying crescent-shaped slashes that were released without any pattern.

The ten attacks erupted almost simultaneously! The fist winds wrapped in Armament Haki, the fierce storm kicks, and the sword blades thrusting from tricky angles instantly engulfed the space where she was.

However, the figure vanished, as if it had vaporized or turned into mist, completely disappearing. Of course, Luna could sense her true location with her Observation Haki, but she wouldn't give them that time.

The sword light was not a single beam, but hundreds upon hundreds that exploded in an instant! The massive load-bearing pillar at the landing point collapsed, and amidst the billowing smoke, the sword energy was like sunlight bursting through the clouds, dense and impenetrable, with the clanging sounds so sharp they pierced the eardrums.

Boom boom boom!

A chorus of sobs echoed as the lieutenant generals ascended into the air on moonwalking, each bearing wounds. There, atop the cannon barrel of a warship, stood a young woman, a smile playing on her lips, waving at them.

"hateful!"

"How can it be repaired!"

"Lieutenant General Huoshaoshan, fellow admirals, please calm down!" The sailors on that ship were terrified. If ten admirals charged at them like that, the ship would be totaled.

Luna glanced at him, her Sharingan flashing as she used a small genjutsu to make the fist land on the deck. She then moved a few centimeters to the side, dodging the attack, and casually gave him a light push in the chest.

"Aaaaaah!" The lieutenant general, whose name was unknown, screamed violently, as if his internal organs had been crushed.

"Oni Spider?" The lieutenant general with the rooster-comb haircut was startled and quickly came down to help him.

"Don't worry, the internal organs aren't ruptured. Relieving the pain is simple, just knock her out." Luna dodged the sneak attack with a light tap of her toes and spoke with a smile.

These vice admirals all possess Haki-based defenses; to actually penetrate their stomachs and ribs and rupture their internal organs would require the use of the Kaleidoscope Illusion. Now isn't a life-or-death situation; they can simply wait for Luffy's situation to end so they can escape. Therefore, in her current incomplete state, she's just stalling for time.

"Damn it!" Another person rushed up, only to be patted on the back by the girl who appeared out of nowhere. He instantly felt his bones breaking inch by inch, and he collapsed to his knees, groaning in pain.

Luna continued to dodge with ghostly speed, only to be met with a barrage of insults from the crowd: "Witch! No wonder General Aokiji told us to keep a close eye on you!"

"What? You're targeting me because of that bastard Aokiji?" Luna's forehead cracked, her magic surged with anger, and her long hair flew up!

She wondered why these lieutenant generals were keeping a close eye on her!

It seems someone was behind this!

"How dare you insult Admiral Aokiji?"

"Huh? So what if I cursed? That stingy bastard!" Luna no longer held back, taking down all ten lieutenant generals with a single blow. She angrily stomped on their heads, kicked them, and roared, "Tell that idiot, a woman won't let this go unpunished!"

"oops!"

"Ahhh!"

The lieutenant generals were all groaning in pain. Their bodies were perfectly fine, yet they were experiencing waves of excruciating pain. Their internal organs and bones were perfectly fine, but their limbs were becoming cold and clammy, their faces were pale, their hearts were pounding, and they were feeling dizzy and lightheaded.

The marines below were terrified and didn't care about Luna at all. Or rather, seeing that the enemy wasn't coming at them, they subconsciously 'ignored' her and chose to rescue her first.

Luna was about to return to everyone when she heard a soft, childlike voice calling her name. She instinctively looked down and saw a small boat with a sheep's head swaying in the waves, drifting gently into view.

I've come to pick you up.

In an instant, Luna's eyes welled up with tears. Even though she knew what was about to happen, she couldn't control her tears. She sobbed and bit her lip, walking towards the Straw Hat crew's pillar, completely unable to hold back her tears.

"Waaaah." In this turbulent sea, the small boat that hadn't been with them for very long appeared, covered in wounds.

"Yunxiu? What's wrong?" Chopper, Robin, and Nami were all startled; she had never cried before.

"Waaaaah!" Luna suddenly hugged Chopper and burst into tears.

"..."

"..."

The Straw Hat crew went ballistic, forcing back the surrounding marines and rushing over to check if she was injured. Was it the same vice admiral who had attacked her earlier, making her cry?

"Look down, look down." Luna sobbed, wiping away her tears as she looked at everyone. Her dark eyes were filled with sadness and sorrow, as well as an indelible joy.

"Huh?" The crew members were taken aback; they had indeed heard that sound just now. Now that there were no enemies around, they looked down, and in an instant, everyone except Sanji and Zoro had tears in their eyes.

It's the Going Merry!

The Merry is here to pick everyone up.

Luffy also won. With the announcement from the warship, everyone present knew that Straw Hat Luffy had defeated Rob Lucci.

Luna rushed over and carried Luffy onto her back, and everyone jumped into the sea with smiles on their faces. Perhaps, others cannot understand, but the Straw Hat crew is now invincible.

Being with my friends fills my heart with freedom.

"Let's all go back together!" Luffy cheered, grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh!" the crowd responded in the air, filled with unparalleled joy.

【Come back, let's return to that sea of ​​adventure once more.】 The Going Merry cuts through the ocean currents, hoisting the Straw Hat crew's pirate sails, carrying everyone upstream.

“Merry—” Chopper, Usopp, and Franky were all crying their hearts out.

Luna tossed Luffy aside, then clung to the deck, rubbing against it and touching it repeatedly. She now hated that she wasn't a necromancer, or possessed dark magic capable of studying souls and containing spirits.

"Waaaaah..."

The Going Merry never uttered another word until it encountered the ship that came to pick them up, at which point it broke in two again. It had reached its limit, fulfilled its wish, and delivered its companions to safety.

The final voyage has been completed; that is enough.

Luffy was still pleading with the shipwrights on Shipbuilding Island to help him repair the ship; the joy of victory vanished in that instant. The Going Merry had long been their comrade.

A fire was lit to bid farewell to the leaky and sunken Merry. Everyone watched from the small boat, their lips pursed with reluctance.

"I'm sorry..." It was a tender and gentle apology, and tears welled up again: "I'm running to take everyone to a farther place. I'm sorry, I want to keep adventuring with everyone."

"Waaaaah..."

"Merry!"

"Waaah!" Luna cried until her eyes were red, but then it started to snow. The fine snowflakes didn't feel cold on her skin, like the Going Merry's final farewell.

Robin reached out and gently hugged her, stroking her fur tenderly, her eyes red-rimmed. She had gained everything in the Straw Hat Pirates: such good companions, such a good ship, and a place to call home.

"Yunxiu, please stop crying, or your eyes will hurt." Everyone on the boat knew that Yunxiu's eyes were quite fragile, and she had gone blind several times.

Usopp, wearing a mask, glanced at Luna and Robin beside him; their clothes were soaked with tears. He opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't utter a word.

Seeing the beautiful older sister's embrace beside her, Nami reached out and wrapped her arms around Robin's waist, leaning on her shoulder and sobbing.

Zoro and Sanji watched quietly, while on the ship that came to pick them up, countless shipwrights, obsessed with their ships, were filled with mixed emotions. They had heard many legends of ship spirits, but witnessing such a breathtaking scene was a first for them.

The flames carried away the wood debris, and the Merry was gradually reduced to nothing. The mainmast fell, and it slowly sank into the deep sea along with the flames.

>>>>

After the battle, they returned to Water 7 and rested at the hospitality of Mayor Iceberg. Luffy was fast asleep, while everyone else woke up, except for Usopp, who hadn't returned yet.

Franky's lumber arrived, and he decided to use the money the Straw Hat crew had raised to build them a new ship. He also came over to ask about everyone's needs: Sanji wanted a lockable freezer and made some requests regarding food storage. Zoro needed a training room, and Chopper wanted a medical room.

The girls' dormitory has specific requirements regarding home decor, bookshelves, and bookcases. Luna wants a meditation room, not one shared with Zoro's training room—the sound of that idiot swinging dumbbells is too noisy.

"Understood!" Franky gave a thumbs up and happily went to revise the design.

The original outline had already been completed; now it was time to divide the ship into sections and cabins, trying to meet everyone's needs as much as possible. As he drew, he realized that he had also drawn the shipwrights, repairmen, and so on.

Even if you tell yourself that there must be a shipwright on this ship, you can't deceive your own heart.

I want to go with them!

I want to board this ship and set sail together.

I want to achieve my dream!

While everyone was recovering from their injuries, resting, and waiting for the new ship, Garp arrived. Luna immediately hid away to avoid being beaten up by the old man for assaulting a vice admiral. Using a different identity, she spent money shopping in Water 7 and ordered eight large gold bracelets for herself.

Each one is quite substantial, perfect for wearing on your wrists or ankles during physical training. They're shiny gold, beautiful and attractive, and the weight is very appealing.

Before long, a new bounty was issued for the Straw Hat crew.

Straw Hat Luffy has a bounty of 300 million Berries!

The bounty for the magician Yunxiu is 288 million Berries!

One Piece Hunter Roronoa Zoro's bounty is 120 million Berries!

Nico Robin, the Devil's Child, has a bounty of 80 million Berries!

Sanji Blackleg has a bounty of 77 million Berries!

The King of Snipers has a bounty of 30 million Berries!

Nami the Cat Burglar has a bounty of 16 million Berries!

Tony Tony Chopper has a bounty of 50 Berries!

Another one is the bounty of 44 million Berries on the cyborg Franky.

"Luffy and I have both increased our bounties by 200 million," Luna said, looking at the bounty poster and calculating her considerable net worth.

"Hahaha, ahahaha!" Luffy was extremely happy; 300 million bounty made him a great pirate.

Zoro was slightly dissatisfied with the bounty, but upon seeing Sanji's portrait, he calmly... laughed: "Hahahaha!"

"Hahaha!" Usopp, who was standing next to him, also laughed.

Chopper wanted to laugh along, but when he saw his 50 Berries, he couldn't laugh anymore.

Sanji had long since recovered from his slump; now he was only filled with rage at the despicable portrait: "Damn it, I'm going to be seen like this by all the beautiful women in the world!"

Everyone: "..."

Is this what you care about?