The large man was clearly one of the local shipwrights. When Jerry suddenly approached him for directions, he gently scratched his spiky hair and chose to ignore the second half of Jerry's incomprehensible comment, answering directly:
"You're not from around here, are you? What business do you have with Mr. Iceberg?"
"That's right. Do you know him well?" Deuce interjected politely.
The shipwright didn't seem bothered by their questions and continued in a helpful tone. "I'm an employee of Galley-La Company, and Mr. Iceberg is pretty much the most famous person in all of Water 7."
Realizing they had found exactly the right contact, Jerry explained their purpose. "We're looking to purchase a ship, and we have some other matters we'd like to discuss with him as well. Could you possibly introduce us?"
"No problem, but Mr. Iceberg would need to be available and willing to meet with you personally," the shipwright replied. "We get a lot of visitors who come here because of his reputation but don't actually have serious business."
The shipwright then led Jerry and Deuce toward a crowd gathered nearby, where they could see Iceberg standing with his secretary. The worker approached the bearded mayor and spoke with him in low tones, gesturing back toward the two newcomers.
Iceberg glanced over at Jerry and Deuce, seemed slightly surprised by something, then walked toward them with a welcoming smile.
"Hello there, and welcome to Water 7. I'm Iceberg, mayor of this fine city," he greeted them warmly.
As the two groups approached each other, Iceberg's gaze lingered briefly on Jerry before he asked, "I understand you're interested in purchasing a ship?"
Jerry nodded and took a step forward, quickly noting the secretary and several shipwrights who had followed Iceberg. "That's right. I'm Jerry, and this is Deuce. We're looking to upgrade to a more comfortable ship for continued sailing. Money isn't an issue."
Before Iceberg could respond, his secretary stepped forward to handle the business aspects. She adjusted her glasses gracefully and offered them an elegantly bound catalog.
"I'm Secretary Kalifa. Do you have any specific requirements in mind? Or you could browse through this catalog, which contains our complete ship inventory with prices clearly marked."
"Deuce, take a look at that," Jerry said, passing the catalog to his navigator before turning his attention back to the group of shipwrights. After studying them for a moment, he addressed Iceberg directly.
"These are your top craftsmen, I assume?"
Iceberg was about to respond when his secretary interrupted, consulting her appointment book with obvious concern. "Mr. Iceberg, you need to leave soon. You have a speech scheduled in five minutes..."
"I refuse! I'm staying right here!" Iceberg declared stubbornly, completely dismissing his official obligations.
"Very well, then I'll cancel all your remaining appointments for today," Kalifa replied with professional resignation.
Understanding that his secretary would handle the scheduling complications, Iceberg waved his hand dismissively. "Puru puru puru!" he said with his characteristic verbal tic.
The surrounding shipwrights smiled as if this behavior was completely normal. A tall man with an unusually long nose stepped forward to address Jerry and Deuce, who were still marveling at their client's casual disregard for mayoral duties.
"Good afternoon. My name is Kaku," he introduced himself politely.
"I'm Paulie," announced a blonde man wearing orange goggles with a cigar clenched between his teeth.
"Greetings, honored guests. I'm Hattori the Pigeon, and the gentleman beside me is Rob Lucci. Please treat us kindly," said the unusual man wearing a black top hat and shipwright's overalls, with a pigeon perched on his shoulder that seemed remarkably animated.
Deuce rubbed his eyes in amazement, staring at the pigeon wearing a tiny necktie. "Wait... why can that pigeon talk?"
"Haha! Another customer falls for Lucci's act!" Paulie laughed heartily at the familiar reaction.
"Dear guest, please don't be so surprised. Isn't it common knowledge that pigeons can speak?" the pigeon continued with expressive gestures.
"Oh! I see—it's ventriloquism! But isn't that pigeon unusually cooperative?" Deuce observed with growing understanding.
"That's exactly right! This guy spends all day practicing with that bird instead of talking normally," Paulie explained with continued amusement.
Everyone watched the demonstration with interest while Paulie grinned at yet another successful prank.
Jerry stroked his chin thoughtfully, then suddenly spoke with a mischievous expression. "You know, with skills like that, you could perform at any theater in the Grand Line."
"Why do you say that?" Skull asked, though his tone suggested he was wary of whatever Jerry was building up to.
With obvious mischief in his eyes, Jerry continued his teasing. "Well, someone who's that good at making others speak for them clearly has talent for entertainment."
"Please stop saying weird things. Aren't you worried about being rude to our hosts?" Skull said, slapping his forehead in exasperation. He knew Jerry could always find bizarre ways to express his thoughts.
"Actually, that's not a bad idea," Iceberg chimed in with genuine interest. "Lucci, have you ever considered a career change?"
"No, I prefer my current occupation," the pigeon responded with its usual wave, having fully embraced its role as Lucci's spokesman.
Afterward, the group walked toward the entrance of Dock No. 1, which had just opened for their tour. What greeted them was a vast workspace filled with towering, spectacular equipment and countless workers moving about like industrious ants, each focused on their specific tasks.
As the various shipwrights provided explanations about their facilities, Deuce's eyes lit up with genuine excitement. He was witnessing the world's leading shipbuilding operation firsthand, and if the timing had been better, he probably would have immediately started documenting this impressive scene in his journal.
After Lucci and the others departed to attend to their regular duties, Jerry turned to address Iceberg directly.
"Mr. Iceberg, if it's possible, I'd like to speak with you privately for a moment."
Iceberg studied Jerry's earnest expression, considered for a moment, then nodded. "Certainly. We can use my small office here in the dock."
Jerry patted Deuce, who seemed lost in thought about the shipyard's impressive capabilities, then followed Iceberg and Kalifa.
As the world's premier shipbuilding company, Dock No. 1 naturally included a private office for the company's CEO to conduct business on-site.
When they reached the door of Iceberg's rarely-used workspace, Jerry suddenly spoke up.
"Deuce, why don't you discuss the specific details of our ship purchase with Miss Kalifa? I have some technical questions I'd like to go over with Mr. Iceberg privately—shipwright to shipwright, you might say."
Deuce looked at Jerry with curiosity, unsure what his captain had in mind, but nodded in understanding.
"Miss Kalifa, I've finished reviewing your catalog. Could we discuss the options now?" he asked politely.
Seeing that Iceberg had no objections to this arrangement, Kalifa had little choice but to agree. She led Deuce into an adjacent office to continue their business discussions.
Once Kalifa and Deuce had left, Jerry and Iceberg entered the private office and took seats across from each other. Jerry discretely activated his Observation Haki to scan their surroundings and confirmed what he had suspected—they were indeed being monitored.
Maintaining a casual demeanor, Jerry began speaking. "Mr. Iceberg, here's our situation. We need our ship completed as quickly as possible. What's your typical construction timeline?"
Though uncertain what Jerry wanted to discuss privately, Iceberg answered the question straightforwardly. "It depends on the size and any special requirements you might have. For something relatively standard, we could complete construction in about three days at the fastest."
"I understand. I'd like to add several custom features. I'm wondering if you could implement them," Jerry said, pulling out a piece of paper and beginning to write something while he continued talking.
"Let me hear about your specific functions and requirements," Iceberg replied, curious but maintaining his professional demeanor.
"I want a pirate ship with unlimited energy that can blow a hole through the Red Line with a single cannon shot," Jerry said with complete seriousness while passing the note he had written across the desk.
When Iceberg saw what was written on the paper and heard Jerry's outrageous request, he couldn't help but exclaim loudly:
"Are you kidding me?!"
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