Chapter 259: Taking credit for one's fault
...
City of Seven Waters
On the deserted street.
"Da da da!"
There was a sound of orderly and rhythmic footsteps on the cobblestone road.
A group of soldiers in navy short-sleeved uniforms were escorting the handcuffed fishman Tom to the port where the judicial ship was docked.
"Soup, Mr. Tom? What's going on?"
On both sides of the street, residents of the Water City looked at this scene in surprise.
"Hey! Wait a minute! What crime did Mr. Tom commit? Why are you arresting him?"
Franky and Iceberg, who appeared behind the team, shouted. They were about to rush forward but were stopped by two marines.
"Kid, it seems like you have a close relationship with this serious criminal! You should be thankful that your name is not on the arrest list. Get out of here right now, or you will be rude to us."
"Get out of the way! What are you bastards doing? Get out of the way! Give Mr. Tom back to us!"
Franky pushed hard at the marines who were trying to stop him, but unfortunately, as a little kid, he didn't have the strength to break free.
Hearing the commotion behind them, the entire team stopped.
"Uh hahaha, Franky, Iceberg, I'll be fine, don't worry, you guys go back first."
Tom turned around and comforted the two disciples in a relaxed tone.
“Uh hahaha~!”
Tom was urged by the escorting soldiers to keep moving forward, and finally disappeared at the end of the street. Only Tom's hearty laughter could be heard in the distance.
"Mr. Tom! Mr. Tom!"
Franky yelled at the top of his lungs but got no response.
...
"Mr. Gel! Mr. Gel! Something bad has happened!"
Hearing someone calling him, Captain Gel, who was sitting on the sofa at the bow and drinking tea leisurely, turned his head subconsciously and saw Franky running towards him in a hurry.
"Hey! It's little Franky. What's up? Are you here to invite me to visit your new battleship?"
Although he knew why he came, Gel still joked calmly.
"Franky 9 is almost ready to be launched. Ah! No! Now is not the time to talk about this! It's bad, Mr. Gur. Mr. Tom has been captured by the navy! Please think of a way to save him quickly! Everyone says you can do anything. You must have a way!"
Franky hurriedly ran to the front of the boat, his face already covered in sweat. He supported himself with his knees, gasping for breath and shouting.
"Don't be anxious. Come up and have some tea first. I'll tell you slowly if you have anything to say."
"No, Mr. Gul, this is urgent. I heard that Mr. Tom was arrested for helping Gol D. Roger build the pirate ship Or Jackson. He will definitely be sentenced severely."
In fact, Franky didn't know why he thought of asking Captain Gill for help. Maybe he was impressed by the extraordinary Captain Gill.
"Yeah, I understand. I know you're anxious, but don't be anxious. Come up first and talk. We can't just shout at each other from a distance, right?"
Franky thought it made sense, so he didn't waste any time and quickly climbed onto the boat and came in front of Gel.
"Mr. Gur!..."
"Okay, don't worry too much. Mr. Tom will be fine for the time being. The judge is very interested in his sea train plan and will let him make amends for his crime."
Seeing Captain Gill's confident look, Franky was also relieved about Mr. Tom's safety. However, he seemed to have never heard Mr. Tom mention this train plan, so he asked with a puzzled look:
"Mr. Geer, what is the Sea Train Project?"
Gel was also stunned when he heard this. Didn't Tom the Fishman discuss this with Franky when he was conceiving the sea train? Maybe he remembered it wrongly.
"It's nothing. Anyway, you know that Mr. Tom's life is not in danger for the time being and he will be released on bail. Go back. Maybe he has been released."
"Is this true, really?"
Franky was skeptical, but seeing that Ger was so confident, he was willing to think positively.
...
That afternoon.
Judicial ship court.
In the gallery, the residents of Water City who came to watch the public trial of Mr. Tom on the judicial ship were in dead silence. Franky and Iceberg in the crowd clenched their fists nervously, their palms already covered in sweat.
On the high platform in the middle of the court.
An old man with a long beard and gray hair held a gavel in his hand and looked coldly at the fishman Tom in the audience.
The trial begins.
A navy officer wearing a cloak of justice stepped forward, glanced at the people below the stage, and then spoke seriously:
"Mr. Tom the Fisherman!"
"Based on the fact that you built the pirate ship [Ore Jackson] of the executed Pirate King: Gol D. Roger, this act is considered to be assisting the world-class vicious criminal Gol D. Roger, so you are sentenced for aiding criminal activities. It is now decided to escort the fisherman shipbuilder Tom to the Judicial Island for trial and sentence him to death!!"
"What??"
"Did I hear you right? Death penalty?? Doesn't the Seven Water Capital have a rule that you can't build ships for pirates?"
"Isn't this too outrageous? Mr. Tom is a shipbuilder. What's wrong with a shipbuilder just building a ship? He is not going out to sea to be a pirate himself."
"Keep your voice down, or I'll catch you too!"
The whole audience was stunned, and people in the audience were discussing in low voices.
"Hey, you're kidding me, Mr. Tom!"
Franky and Iceberg's pupils trembled violently, and they couldn't believe what they heard.
...
"Hahaha! No objection! I built the [Ole Jackson], it's a great ship!!"
Tom confessed it directly without making any excuses.
The hearty laughter echoed in the hall, instantly breaking the serious and oppressive atmosphere. Then he looked up at the judge on the stage and continued:
"The ship itself is neither good nor evil. It is like my child. As the owner who built it with my own hands, I will never deny it. A man should be proud of the ship he built! And! I feel very honored to be able to contribute to a man like Roger!"
"Mr. Tom!"
Iceberg and Franky were shocked, feeling that Mr. Tom was teaching them a final lesson.
Everyone in the audience was shocked by Tom's passionate speech, especially the shipbuilders of the Seven Waters City, who could relate to him even more and they all spoke up to support Tom.
"Mr. Tom! He just built a ship, and Roger happened to become the Pirate King, so why is he sentenced to death! We in Water City 7 also built a lot of ships for the navy. Many of the warships that the navy officers who successfully arrested pirates took were also built by our Water City. Why don't we get a share of the credit? No! We don't want this credit either. We can just help Mr. Tom make up for his mistakes!"
"Well said! I agree!"
"Seconded!!"
The audience was outraged.
...