Cursed Seas and Slashing Tides

At the Franky Family's base by the shore, the gang of outlaws celebrated. Their hideout—a large red and yellow building with a huge "Franky Family" sign—was filled with loud cheers and raucous laughter.

"Two hundred million!?" One of the henchmen gasped in amazement.

"What do you think, bro?!" Another asked their leader.

A man in a blue robe and star mask grinned proudly. "Incredible! You guys did well! With this money, we can finally buy it!"

"This is fantastic, bro! We've been waiting three years! I dreamed about this every night…" One henchman declared.

Their leader continued. "Every time we scraped together some money, I'd bet it all on the Yagara bulls, hoping for a big win, but…"

"We ended up broke!" The henchmen chimed in.

"Or we'd catch a criminal with a bounty, throw a huge party, and…"

"End up broke!" They shouted again.

"But now I have it all! Five million as a token of my appreciation. Eat and drink as much as you like!" The leader boasted before walking off with two women beside him.

"Woohoo!!"

"Yeah!!" The henchmen cheered, unaware of the impending trouble.

Suddenly, a loud explosion shook the hideout, blowing apart the front gate and throwing several men back.

"What the…?!"

"Who dares attack the Franky Family!?" They shouted, alarmed.

From the smoke, two figures stepped forward.

"Where's the money?!" Usopp shouted, struggling to catch his breath.

One of the henchmen burst out laughing. "You again? The weakling from before! And you brought backup? Ha!"

Ryomen shot a dark, intense glare at the man, but Usopp stopped him.

"I…have to do this alone! I can't keep relying on others! I can't…be a coward forever!" Usopp's voice shook, yet he looked determined, his eyes brimming with tears.

"Hahaha! Bring it on, punk!" One henchman sneered, charging at Usopp.

"Explosion Star!" Usopp shot with his sling, detonating an explosive right at the attacker's feet, sending him flying.

"Behind you!" Ryomen shouted as another henchman tried to strike Usopp from behind.

"Where…" Usopp spun around, dodging. "Is the money?" He brandished a flash dial from Skypiea, blinding the assailant.

"Arrgh! You little brat, I'll tear you apart!" The henchman shouted, stumbling back.

"The boss already took off with it." A towering man in iron armor sneered, gripping his massive ax.

"Where is he?!" Usopp demanded, trembling but standing his ground.

"He's long gone by now, on the sea train. But that doesn't matter…because you're not getting out of here alive!" The armored man charged forward, laughing.

"Usopp, let me handle this!" Ryomen shouted, ready to step in.

"No!" Usopp stood firm, pulling out another trick from his arsenal. "Smoke Star!" He shouted, shooting a burst of smoke at the man.

"I don't want to be useless anymore!" He yelled, surprising Ryomen with his resolve.

As the smoke spread, Usopp threw a breath dial, releasing flammable gas. "Gunpowder Star!" He shouted, firing another shot. The projectile ignited the gas, erupting in a massive explosion.

"Did…Did that do it?" Usopp panted, staring at the flames. But to his horror, the armored man emerged, barely scratched.

"Is that all you've got, kid?!" He sneered, and the other henchmen joined in, laughing at Usopp's efforts.

"I…" Usopp faltered, watching the man approach with his ax raised.

"Die!!" The henchman bellowed, bringing his weapon down.

"Cursed Cleave!" Ryomen struck, instantly slicing through the man's armor with a simple touch.

"Usopp…let me finish this." Ryomen said, then turned toward the rest of the gang, who now looked terrified.

Usopp stared in disbelief at the pieces of armor scattered on the ground. "...Damn it!" He muttered, collapsing to his knees.

"He destroyed the iron armor in a single move!" The Franky Family members looked on in shock.

"You won't get away with that!" They retaliated, firing cannons at Ryomen.

"Cursed Dismantle!" With a swift gesture, Ryomen sliced through the cannonballs mid-air, then dashed toward the remaining henchmen, swiftly taking them down.

One of them, cowering, cried out, "It's no use roughing us up! The boss and your money are already on the sea train by now! "

Ryomen glared. "I'm not here for the money. You dared to attack my friend…and I intend to pay that back several times over. None of you are leaving here unscathed."

"T-the Franky Family special! Let's get him!" The remaining henchmen yelled, launching whatever they could find—cannons, food, even animals.

Ryomen sliced through their attacks with ease, incapacitating them one by one.

…

Later, Zoro, Sanji, Chopper and Luffy arrived at the scene, gawking at the destruction.

"What happened here?" Zoro muttered, looking at the wreckage and the defeated henchmen strewn across the ground.

"Seems you took care of it." Sanji noted as he saw Ryomen holding the unconscious Usopp.

"Did I miss the fight?" Luffy scratched his head.

"Yeah." Ryomen replied, handing Usopp over to Chopper.

"Is he gonna be okay, Chopper?" Luffy asked.

Chopper nodded after a quick check. "He'll be fine. Just some injuries, nothing life-threatening."

"Those bastards…" Sanji growled, lighting a cigarette as he surveyed Usopp's wounds.

"Did you get the money back?" Zoro asked curiously.

"No." Ryomen shook his head. "Their boss left on the sea train. It's probably gone by now."

"We still have more, it's fine." Zoro shrugged.

"Yeah, and Usopp's safe. That's what matters." Sanji added.

"Let's get him back to the ship." Ryomen said as they started to head back.

The crew then noticed Luffy gazing at the sea, his expression uncharacteristically serious.

"Luffy!" Sanji called.

"The ship…" Luffy murmured.

Ryomen looked over, concerned. "What about it?"

Luffy's gaze hardened. "I've decided…we're going to say goodbye…to the Merry."

"What…?" Ryomen whispered, stunned.

…

Back aboard the Merry, the crew gathered together in silence.

"It can't be repaired…" Ryomen muttered, looking at the figurehead.

He sighed, sadness etched into his face. "Hard to believe I'd get so attached to a ship…" He chuckled softly, though his smile was tinged with sorrow. "But…you'll always be a part of the crew."

"I'll miss you…"

Chopper then came running out. "Usopp's awake!"

Luffy broke into a grin. "Really? That's great!"

But as they celebrated, Sanji mumbled, "Robin still isn't back…"

"What? She's not here?" Ryomen said, alarmed.

"No, last I saw, she was following a masked man into an alley. When I went after her, she was gone." Sanji replied, concerned.

Ryomen clenched his fists, suspicion gnawing at him. 'Could it be them? Those shipwrights who seemed to be fixated on me?'

"After we check on Usopp, we'll search for her." Ryomen told Sanji, his face set with determination.

Sanji nodded. "Of course! I'd never leave her behind!"

"Good." Ryomen nodded, deep in thought. 'Barging into the factory isn't a good idea, especially since this is just speculation… Those guys seemed strong too…I can't fight them on my own.'

They headed to Usopp's room, and Ryomen's mind kept spinning. 'If they're looking for Robin…they might be looking for me, too. Who else would be after us but–'

The door opened to the sound of Usopp's voice, choked with tears. "I'm so sorry! Because of me, all that money…"

"Hey, calm down!" Zoro said as Usopp, covered in bandages, clung to him, weeping.

"But I lost so much money, and I let those guys take it away!"

"Usopp, you need to lie down." Chopper advised.

"Yeah, you don't need to worry so much. We're just glad you're safe." Ryomen added, hoping to reassure him.

Usopp seemed to relax a little. "So…you couldn't get the money back, then…?"

"Well, until this Franky guy shows up, we won't know if we can. But even if we don't, we still have plenty left here. No worries!" Luffy said, flashing his usual grin.

"Usopp, how could you be so reckless, wanting to go after them like that?" Sanji chided. "Good thing Ryomen was with you, or you could've been killed."

"He shouldn't have brought Usopp there in the first place." Nami retorted, giving Ryomen a pointed look.

"I wouldn't have let anything harm him." Ryomen protested.

Nami then turned to Luffy, her expression hard. "And it is a worry! That was a fifth of our money!"

"I'm sorry…" Usopp apologized again, his face downcast. "It's just…the Merry can still be repaired, right? She needs to be strong enough for our future voyages."

Luffy's face turned serious as he pulled out a book with sketches of ships. "Usopp…I've decided to switch ships. We owe a lot to the Going Merry, but this is as far as she can take us."

The crew fell silent.

Luffy took a deep breath. "I've been looking at some ships to replace her. With our money, we can get a top-of-the-line one."

Usopp's eyes widened in shock. "Hold it. You can stop joking now…is our money not enough to repair her? We have eight hundred million! Do they not want to repair her!?"

"That's not it!" Luffy replied, his face firm.

"Then explain! Don't hold anything back!"

"I'm not holding back! This has nothing to do with the money or the shipwrights!"

"Then…why are you talking about replacing her!?" Usopp's face twisted in disbelief.

"Usopp, just listen to what he has to say." Ryomen told him. "It's important."

"Yeah, stop shouting! Speak calmly." Zoro added, a note of warning in his voice.

Usopp gritted his teeth. "How can I be calm when he says something so stupid?"

"I thought this over carefully before making my decision!" Luffy shot back.

"This is something we all agreed on." Nami said, stepping in gently.

"Usopp, calm down. You're not going to heal if you get all worked up." Chopper urged him.

Luffy took a deep breath. "The Going Merry… can't be repaired anymore!" His voice broke as he said it, Sanji and Ryomen gently restraining him and Usopp before anything might happen.

Usopp fell silent, staring at Luffy.

"She just can't be fixed. I wouldn't be saying this if there was any other way."

"But it's our ship…the ship we're on right now!" Usopp argued, his voice thick with pain.

"Yeah, the ship that's about to sink!"

Usopp looked at Luffy, his voice wavering. "Luffy…you're saying she won't make it, just because a bunch of strangers told you so?"

Luffy flinched. "What!?"

"Usopp…they don't have any reason to lie…" Ryomen said, hoping to help Usopp understand.

"How do you know!?" Usopp shouted. "This ship was with us through every wave, every battle…She's a crewmate who was always there for us!"

"And none of you are going to lift a finger… you're just going to leave her behind like this!? Is that all the Merry means to you!? Luffy!? Ryomen!?"

He started coughing, his emotions overwhelming him.

"Usopp, you shouldn't push yourself!" Chopper fussed over him.

Ryomen looked at him sadly. "We all care about Merry, Usopp. She's our friend, our crewmate…but you have to understand…this is her end."

Usopp stared, speechless, as he caught sight of the tears forming in Ryomen's eyes. His face contorted with anger. "No, you all need to realize you've been deceived!"

Luffy stood firm, his face somber. "I made my decision. We're going to part with the Merry."

"I won't allow it!" Usopp grabbed Luffy's collar.

"Hey, Usopp! Luffy feels the same way!" Nami intervened.

"Stay out of this, Nami!" Luffy said sharply.

"Calm down! You won't get anywhere being angry!" Sanji called.

Usopp glared at Luffy, his expression fierce. "Luffy, not everyone's like you, able to just move forward and leave things behind. I can't ignore an injured crewmate and sail away!"

"Shut up! You can't compare a ship to a human being!" Luffy yelled.

"Why are you lying, Luffy!? Merry is just as much a part of this crew as any of us!" Ryomen shouted angrily, stepping in.

Usopp's gaze hardened, sensing an ally in Ryomen. "Exactly! Merry has the will to keep going! You're all just rushing to replace her without a second thought!"

Luffy shoved Usopp back, his patience fraying. "Enough! Don't think you're the only one struggling with this! We all feel it!"

"Then don't abandon her!" Usopp shot back.

Luffy's eyes narrowed. "Fine, Usopp. If you don't like how I'm handling this…you can–"

Before Luffy could finish, Ryomen kicked him back, his face flushed with anger.

"Luffy… don't you dare say it." Ryomen warned, his voice shaking.

"What's happening!?" Chopper yelped, frightened.

"All of you, stop it!" Nami cried out.

"It's too late now." Sanji said grimly as he watched the tension escalate.

Usopp looked up from the ground, resigned. "No, it's okay…I see now. That's how you really feel."

"What!?" Luffy yelled, exasperated.

"Just cut loose anything that's no longer useful, right? If you're so quick to toss aside the Merry…why not toss me aside, too?"

"Usopp, don't say that!" Sanji scolded.

"You're not something we can just abandon, Usopp. You're important to all of us!" Ryomen tried to console him, struggling to hold the crew together.

Usopp's gaze was steady as he addressed them all. "I'm serious…I've been thinking about this for a while now. I can't keep up with all of you…Even with Haki, I'm still the one who has to be protected."

Ryomen's eyes widened, recalling the similar conversation he'd had with Usopp earlier.

"Luffy…you're going to be Pirate King. But I don't have those kinds of ambitions…We're traveling together, but it feels like we're just moving farther apart."

With that, Usopp turned and walked out.

"Usopp, where are you going!?" Nami called, her voice trembling.

"It's my decision to make." He replied, his voice fading. "I'm…leaving this crew."

"You can't!" Nami shouted desperately.

"Come back!" Sanji added.

"Don't go, Usopp!" Chopper's voice cracked as he began to cry.

Zoro's gaze was hard, but he said nothing, while Ryomen stood frozen, struggling to process what was happening.

Usopp paused, glancing back. "I can't follow you anymore…Sorry to have been such a burden." He turned to face Luffy, his stance resolute. "Luffy…I challenge you to a duel! If I win, I'm taking the Going Merry!"