News Out

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--xLOVEx--

Coby, watching the scene unfold through his sprouted eye and ear, observed with slight admiration and discomfort. CP9 had played their cards perfectly, using Robin to shoot Iceburg, and all acted like they were Robin's underlings. The act ensured that when CP9 approached Iceburg again, he would view Robin as a real threat to the blueprints, pushing him closer to surrendering them to the government out of fear. Too bad for them, Iceburg would rather die than hand them over—not that he had them in the first place.

As the CP9 agents and Robin made their exit, Coby retracted the extra eye and ear he had sprouted, feeling a pang of guilt for the role Robin had to play in this. He understood the necessity of it all, but it didn't make it any easier to watch.

"This is necessary, Robin," Coby muttered to himself, his voice low. "Sorry for making you suffer, but with this, you'll truly be part of the crew."

With the operation seemingly complete, Coby decided it was time to move. He leaped down from the rooftop, landing silently on the ground below. He needed to get back to the ship before anyone noticed his absence. Moving through the shadows, he retraced his steps, careful to avoid any patrols or civilians.

On his way back to the Going Merry, Coby thought about how things were about to escalate. With Robin now tied to Iceburg's attempted assassination, the crew would be thrust into the conflict with CP9. He knew that Enies Lobby was coming, and with it, the moment when Robin would finally let go of her past fears and fully embrace her place in the crew.

When Coby reached the Going Merry, he found the ship quiet, most of the crew either resting or lost in their thoughts. He slipped aboard without making a sound, heading straight for his hammock. As he lay down, his mind raced with the events that had transpired. Tomorrow, everything would start to spiral out of control, and he needed to be ready.

The next day, the city of Water 7 woke to a chilling rumor: Iceburg had been attacked by an assassin group. Fortunately, he survived, but the news sent shockwaves through the city. The citizens were on high alert, their usual lively demeanor replaced with anxiety and fear. As Coby and Nami walked through the streets, they noticed the change in the atmosphere. People were frantic, hurrying to secure their homes and shops, and a sense of impending doom hung in the air.

"What's going on?" Nami asked, her brow furrowing as she watched a group of townspeople rushing to board up their windows.

Coby scanned the area, listening in on the hurried conversations around them. "Sounds like they're getting ready for something big."

A nearby shopkeeper, hearing their confusion, turned to them with a worried expression. "You're not from around here, are you? Aqua Laguna is coming! It's a massive tidal wave that hits the city every year. If you don't prepare, it'll sweep everything away!"

Nami's eyes widened in shock. "A tidal wave? That's insane!"

The shopkeeper nodded grimly, already turning back to his preparations. "You better get back to wherever you're staying and batten down the hatches. It's going to be a rough one this year."

Coby and Nami exchanged a quick glance. They needed to get back to the ship and warn the rest of the crew, but just as they turned to head back, a tall figure with wild blue hair stepped into their path. The man's eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, but the anger in his voice was unmistakable.

"Are you the ones who wrecked my house?" Franky asked, his voice low and dangerous as he stared down at them.

Nami froze, her hand instinctively reaching for her Clima-Tact. Coby, however, didn't waste a second. Before Franky could react, Coby activated his Super Stealth Feet technique and vanished from sight. He moved with blinding speed, slipping behind Franky and reappearing a few feet away, out of the man's line of sight.

"You're Franky, right?" Coby asked, his voice calm. "You're the one who stole our money and beat up Usopp."

Franky smirked, cracking his knuckles as he straightened up to turn. "Yeah, that's me. You got a problem with that, kid?"

Before Franky could fully turn around, Coby acted. Planting his feet firmly on the ground, he unleashed a powerful kick directly into Franky's back, sending the cyborg flying forward with tremendous force. Franky crashed into a nearby building, the impact leaving a deep dent in the wall as debris scattered around him.

"Shit!" Franky grunted, shaking off the blow as he pulled himself out of the wreckage. He turned to face Coby, eyes narrowed with surprise and anger. "You're faster than I expected, but don't think you can just take me down that easily!"

Franky charged at Coby, his massive fists swinging with brutal power. Coby dodged each punch effortlessly, moving with precise agility that kept him just out of Franky's reach. As Franky swung again, Coby ducked low and countered with a swift punch to Franky's back, aiming at a weak spot in his armor.

The blow connected with a loud clang, and Franky stumbled back, clutching his side. "How the hell did you—?" he began, but Coby didn't give him time to finish. He followed up with a rapid series of strikes, each one targeting key points in Franky's body.

Coby knew Franky's abilities better than the cyborg himself. He knew where the joints were, where the metal was weakest, and he exploited every opening. Franky's attempts to fight back were met with brutal counters, his strength and durability rendered almost useless against Coby's precise attacks.

"Strong Hammer!" Franky roared, throwing a heavy punch aimed at Coby's head.

Coby sidestepped the attack, and as Franky's fist slammed into the ground, cracking the stone beneath it, Coby seized the opportunity. He grabbed Franky by the arm, using his momentum against him, and flipped him over his shoulder, slamming the cyborg into the ground with enough force to shake the street.

Franky gasped, the wind knocked out of him as he tried to regain his bearings. But Coby wasn't finished. He stomped down on Franky's chest, pinning him to the ground. "You're not getting away with what you did to Usopp," Coby stated flatly.

Franky struggled beneath Coby's weight, trying to push him off, but Coby's grip was like iron. "You little shit!" Franky spat, glaring up at him. "You think you can just walk all over me? I'm Franky, damn it!"

Coby didn't respond with words. Instead, he delivered a brutal punch to Franky's face, followed by another and another, each blow more devastating than the last. The street echoed with the sound of metal crunching under the relentless assault. Franky's sunglasses shattered, and blood spurted from his nose as Coby's fists hammered him into the ground.

Finally, after a particularly hard punch, Franky's fell to the ground, groaning in pain. Coby stepped back, breathing heavily as he looked down at the battered cyborg.

Nami, who had been watching the entire fight in stunned silence, finally found her voice. "Coby… you didn't hold back at all."

Coby glanced at her, then back at Franky, who lay unconscious at his feet. "He deserved it."

Before they could say more, a group of people approached from the direction of the main square, drawn by the sounds of the fight. They stopped short when they saw the scene before them—Franky, the feared leader of the Franky Family, lying beaten and bloody on the ground, and Coby standing over him, unscathed.

"Who the hell is that?" one of the onlookers muttered, eyeing Coby with fear and respect.

Nami quickly grabbed Coby's arm, pulling him away from the growing crowd. "We need to get out of here before more of them show up."

Coby nodded, following Nami's lead as they made their way back to the Going Merry. He wasn't really angry at Franky. Sure, what Franky did was an asshole move—beating up Usopp and stealing the crew's money—but he had his reasons. Franky acted like a thug, but in his own twisted way, he was protecting Water 7, much like Iceburg did in the light while Franky worked in the shadows.

But Coby wasn't mad at Franky. He was pissed off at himself. He knew Robin was suffering, but he was letting it happen for the sake of her character development. That was an even more asshole move. He just wanted her to accept that she wanted to live, that she was part of the crew—not just a hitchhiker.

As they moved through the streets of Water 7, the crew began hearing the escalating tension in the voices of the locals. Angry shouts and curses filled the air, and it wasn't long before they pieced together what had happened. Iceburg must have regained consciousness and revealed that it was Nico Robin who had tried to assassinate him. Now, the Straw Hat Pirates were public enemy number one in the city.

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