Chapter 447: Naming the New Ship

No matter how loudly Franky shouted, the ship had already sped ahead to Enies Lobby, using the Coup de Vent Cannon twice along the way just to test how sturdy the new ship really was.

“If I knew teaming up with you guys would end like this, I’d never have come,” Franky muttered, sulking on the deck.

They arrived much earlier than expected. The sea train was still behind them, its whistle echoing as it barreled forward, while they’d already reached the main gates of Enies Lobby. With no other choice, the crew waited for the train to catch up.

“Hahaha! C’mon Franky, just join us! After all, you really can’t say no after what we’ve got planned next.”

Luffy noticed Franky crouched on the ground looking completely down. Instead of shying away, Luffy strode over and threw an arm around his shoulder.

Ye Fan had already filled Luffy in on this little trick, and Luffy was all for it. He figured, if there was any way to bring Franky—the best shipwright for miles—onto the crew, it was worth a shot.

On their last journey, not having a shipwright meant the Going Merry took a real beating. Even with Ye Fan constantly patching her up, Merry still ended up with some serious damage.

“Hey, I never said I was joining your crew. Once we’re finished here, I’m going back to Water 7.”

Franky hadn’t made up his mind about joining the Straw Hat Pirates. As the boss of hundreds in Water 7, leading a pretty lively life, why would he just give that up to sail with pirates?

Besides, he had something inside him that no one else knew about—a conviction he guarded with his life. That was his true faith and secret.

“Speaking of, now that the ship’s been rebuilt, don’t you think it’s time for a new name?”

Even though the ship spirit was still Merry herself, the old name hardly suited the future Pirate King’s ship.

“I’m not weighing in on the name, but look—a fridge with a lock! My dream’s finally come true.” Sanji had already spotted the massive, padlocked fridge sitting in the kitchen.

After all, he’d tried every way he could think of to stop Luffy from raiding their food supplies—nothing worked. But locking that fridge? That was guaranteed to save tomorrow’s meals.

“I even have my own medical room now!”

Chopper’s skills held their own against anyone in the One Piece World. The fact he could invent the Rumble Ball that let Zoan Devil Fruits awaken to a whole new level said everything.

“Yeah, the new ship is huge. The bedrooms are way bigger—and we’ve got our own private bathrooms, too.”

On the old Merry, there was only one bathroom. Nami always had to be on guard just to take a bath, ready to fend off anyone trying to get a peek. Now, she didn’t have to worry about that at all.

What made her happiest, though, was finding a storage room just for Berries. And the only key to that vault? Safely in her hands.

That wasn’t all. Turns out, every piece of furniture on board was brand new. In fact, apart from Merry’s keel, every other part had been replaced with fresh materials.

“I’ve got it—the Great Captain Usopp!”

Hearing that the new ship needed a name, Usopp rushed down from the lookout and struck a pose.

“Oi, you’re not even trying to hide your motives! Should I just hang you from the mast and call you our pirate flag instead?”

“Speaking of, Usopp, you really are talented. Isn’t our pirate flag your handiwork too?”

As soon as he heard the compliment, Usopp couldn’t help fluffing his nose, proud as ever. “Of course! I’m a super god-tier painter, after all.”

“No, that’s not what I meant. I was saying, if Usopp can make a ship like this, then putting it on our flag would mean one amazing-looking flag.”

Ye Fan’s teasing words sent Usopp’s face crashing. “No way! Absolutely not!”

“Let’s call it the Berry! That way we can wish for a whole mountain of cash.”

Nami’s suggestion was met with a brief silence before everyone went back to debating the ship’s new name. Not one person dared say her idea was bad to her face—it’s always smarter to play it safe.

After all, Nami was the only one who could beat Luffy black and blue without using a drop of Haki.

“How about the Polar Bear-Lion?”

“I think ‘Hunter’ would be good.”

“No, no, no! I still say we go with the Advance Merry!”

Everyone kept throwing out names, one after another, but they’d barely suggest a name before someone else shot it down.

All the while, Franky listened, getting more and more exasperated by the ridiculous options. He finally stood up, unable to hold back. “Are you guys even trying? Can’t you see the ship’s figurehead is a lion? At least try not to mess up the name!”

“Oh—Franky, you’re finally standing!”

“Well, if you hadn’t said anything, I would’ve guessed octopus,” Luffy muttered under his breath.

In Luffy’s world, the only things that matter are whether you can eat them or not.

Usopp rolled his eyes at him. “Bakayaro!”

“What are you looking at me for? It’s clearly a sunflower,” Zoro insisted.

“Really? I thought it was a sun,” Nami chimed in.

Things were clearly going nowhere. With everyone having their own ideas, Ye Fan hurried to speak up. “Sunshine is a pretty good name. How about we call her the Thousand Sunny? That name says it all—a ship that sails with us through thousands of miles of sunshine.”

“Yosh! That name sounds awesome—bold, but warm,” even Sanji, who’d stayed out of the debate, had to nod in approval.

Chopper threw his hands and feet in the air, all for it.

The others glanced at each other, then agreed as well.

After all, even if they weren’t the most well-read crew, the name just felt right—full of pride and perfectly fitting for their ship.

Wooo wooo!

Just then, the speeding sea train came into view, heading straight for the gate on their right.

“It’s here!”

“Yeah. Let’s go save Robin!”

Everyone kept their eyes glued to the train, waiting for it to stop. Ye Fan just sighed and rubbed his forehead in disbelief.

“Guys, you do know the train doesn’t stop at Enies Lobby, right? It’s gonna go straight inside—you can watch all you want, it’s not slowing down!”

“Soka!”

“Rubber!”

“Hey! Luffy, what are you doing?!”

Luffy stretched his left arm out, swooping up Ye Fan, Zoro, Sanji and Usopp, pulling everyone in close. His right hand shot forward, grabbing the very first railing in sight.

“Let’s go!”

“You idiot! I swear I’ll kill you for this!”

“Count me in!”

“Plus one!”

Boom!

Thanks to Luffy’s… unorthodox efforts, they all landed with a crash on the final car of the sea train. Luckily, it was just the cargo car, so no one got hurt.

“Bakayaro, Luffy!” Zoro yelled, rubbing the welt on his head as he drew his sword. “Luffy, I’m gonna cut you down!”

Sanji nursed a lump on his forehead, fuming. “Luffy, you idiot. Next time, try warning us first!”

“Alright, alright, we’re on the train now. Remember, we’ve still gotta save Robin.”

With Usopp and Ye Fan talking some sense into them, Zoro and Sanji dropped their plans to finish off Luffy, and the group started heading toward the front of the train.

Meanwhile, the crew members still on the Going Merry took advantage of the open gate to sail the ship into Enies Lobby.