Chapter 17: Imu's Speculation Regarding the King of Underworld!

In Mary Geoise, within the desolate, silver-gray moon, Imu was wielding a brilliant sequence of sword light under simulated moonlight.

This was a daily task, a way to familiarize himself with the sensation of combat.

Ten minutes ago, he had learned about the situation in Water 7 through a Den Den Mushi call brought by a maid.

Initially, he hadn't actually intended to intervene.

This was because Imu understood all too well the importance of the "Sea Train." It was a piece of technology that was as "black" (shady/unfathomable) as it could get—a steam train over a hundred meters long that could travel unerringly along floating tracks, and whose noise could even disperse sea kings and other fish.

As it turned out, Sea Kings were also fish.

No matter how bizarre they looked, even those with the heads of mammals, they were still fish.

But its most incredible technological feat was that this "Sea Train" could minimize the impact of extreme maritime weather!

What did that mean?

It meant that no matter how hard the wind blew or how massive the waves crashed, as long as the weather wasn't something like a waterspout or an ice storm capable of destroying the floating tracks, the train could operate normally!

Anyone with normal intelligence could imagine how much such a thing would contribute to the development of the entire world.

So, what if an accident occurred because of his excessive interference?

Why was there such a massive gap in the level of development between islands today, where some places looked like the Middle Ages while others were filled with high technology?

It was precisely because transportation between them was too difficult, making it hard for resources to circulate rapidly between islands.

Wasn't Water 7 declining over the following years simply because the import of shipbuilding materials was blocked?

If Tom's Sea Train hadn't been completed in time, it wouldn't have lasted long enough to see the arrival of the Straw Hat crew; it would have been abandoned as a deserted island long ago!

It was precisely because Imu knew all this that he did not prevent Enies Lobby from sentencing Tom.

In his view, a ten-year suspended death sentence served as a beneficial catalyst for Tom's crew, because it would make them realize that only upon the completion of the Sea Train would they have a chance to save Tom's life.

Even though it ultimately took them fourteen years.

But this also proved that the World Government in the original timeline was aware of the Sea Train's utility and did not pursue the issue of exceeding authority at all.

As for whether this would cause Tom to suffer grievances, that was not within his considerations; with him protecting them, Tom certainly wouldn't die.

However, even for Imu, fourteen years still felt too long.

Thus, he ordered the Five Elders to have the Administration Department provide funding to Tom's workshop, solely to shorten the completion time by a few years.

But at the same time, he strictly forbade any interference with Tom's work.

In short, whatever Tom required, they were to comply!

Amidst the bursts of bright silver sword light, Imu wielded the plain longsword in his hand while his mind raced at high speed.

The matters related to the Fish-Man shipwright Tom involved more than just the "Sea Train R&D project."

Take his two apprentices, Iceburg and Franky, for example; both were rare talents.

The former, Iceburg, possessed exceptional management talent in Imu's eyes. It would be a waste for him to merely be a shipwright or the Mayor of Water 7; this man was fully capable of stepping onto a much larger stage.

However, he also knew that any talent requires a period of growth.

If Iceburg hadn't learned shipbuilding by Tom's side, hadn't founded the Galley-La Company, and hadn't served as the Mayor of Water 7, no one knew what he would have ultimately become.

Rather than that, it was better to let nature take its course; once Iceburg had fully matured, he could be transferred to serve in the World Government.

And the other apprentice, Franky—or rather, his current name, Cutty Flam—was an even greater prodigy, a genius in weapon R&D!

Top-tier shipbuilding and cannon-making skills, self-taught human mechanical modification technology, and the technology to convert beverages into special energy, combined with an incredibly high learning capacity—he was practically a treasure of his own civilization!

Therefore, Imu had specifically mentioned Cutty Flam before, instructing the CP2 agents hidden in Water 7 to keep a close eye on him.

Once the Sea Train R&D was successful, Franky would have learned almost everything he could from Tom.

Next, he would send someone to bring him to the Science Division to follow Vegapunk for a few years. Once he reached adulthood, he would be given an independent research institute to focus on the development of various weapons, especially warships.

Besides that, don't forget, Tom possessed the blueprints for "Pluton"!

Regarding the true nature of this so-called "Ancient Weapon," Imu actually held it in his memory. Years ago, he had personally witnessed "Pluton" destroy an island with a single shot, creating a bottomless crater in the sea that had yet to be filled by the endless ocean even now.

However, despite how terrifying "Pluton" was, that great kingdom had still failed to defeat the twenty-nation coalition it had assembled.

As for where the defeated and damaged "Pluton" finally went, the previous Imu did not know.

But he had some thoughts on this.

The appearance of "Pluton" was naturally nothing special to the previous Imu, but to him, a transmigrator, it looked quite familiar!

It was very similar to a combination of the future "Ark Maxim" and the "Thousand Sunny," though the warship's volume was much larger, and the gold used on it far exceeded that of the "Ark Maxim."

This was quite intriguing.

It was understandable that the future Franky had come into contact with the designs of "Pluton."

But what about Enel?

It was obvious that he had seen the actual "Pluton" somewhere, or seen similar blueprints. But where had he seen them?

There was also one more point: according to the original story, Enel completely destroyed his homeland, Skypiea. But the problem was that back then, he hadn't built the "Ark Maxim" yet and couldn't use his ultimate technique, the Raigo. So, how did he destroy Skypiea?

Imu had a bold guess.

Perhaps, back then, Enel had discovered a broken "Pluton" in some corner of Skypiea, and there he found the Logia-type Rumble-Rumble Fruit, perhaps even learned related technological skills, and gained information about his ancestors and the "Infinite Land" on the Moon.

Later, while using his abilities, he accidentally activated it, much like how he accidentally activated the underground city after ascending to the Moon in the future.

But the long passage of hundreds of years was too ruthless. The overly dilapidated "Pluton," upon being activated, might have stimulated the remaining energy from that era to launch a final attack or self-destruct on the spot, leading to the destruction and disappearance of the entire Skypiea.

Enel himself, due to his elementalization, suffered no harm, but having learned that his ancestors came from the Moon and having witnessed the terrifying power of "Pluton," he became a powerful "New God" upon reaching the "Kingdom of God." He collected gold and manpower to try and recreate "Pluton," but ultimately, due to resource and technical limitations, he only managed to obtain an "Ark Maxim"!

"So, the actual body of Pluton is very likely currently in Skypiea, high above the ten-thousand-meter mark," Imu murmured to himself, stopping his sword practice.

"Indeed, it can fly. It makes perfect sense that those people would hide it on a Sky Island to prevent me from obtaining it!"