Enies Lobby Arc

The Enies Lobby arc is the sixteenth story arc in the manga and anime series One Piece, and the third in the CP9 Saga. This arc seems to be a point of advancement for each of the Straw Hats, as almost all of them have become stronger in some way; however, the arc also marks the end for one of the Straw Hat members.

Assault on Enies Lobby
Monkey D. Luffy, Nami, Roronoa Zoro, Tony Tony Chopper, the Franky Family, the Galley-La carpenters of Dock 1, Kokoro, Chimney and Gonbe leave Water 7 in the prototype Sea Train, Rocket Man, and begin to head for Enies Lobby despite a heavy storm known as Aqua Laguna. Meanwhile in the Puffing Tom, Sanji, Sogeking (Usopp) and Franky attempt to rescue Nico Robin. However, their mission ends in failure, and Franky is recaptured by CP9.



Reunited with Sanji and Sogeking shortly thereafter on the Rocket Man, the Straw Hats, along with the Franky Family and Galley-La, begin an all-out assault on the government island of Enies Lobby against thousands of Marine soldiers and the Cipher Pol agents in a last ditch effort to rescue their friends Nico Robin and Franky before they are dragged through the Gate of Justice.

These massive doors are the only thing standing between the Marine HQ and the terrifying prison of Impel Down- Robin and Franky's respective destinations. While the others do battle with giant gatekeepers, dog-riding guards, monstrous jurors and three-headed judges, Luffy runs ahead and does battle with the CP9 agent Blueno.

Luffy defeats him with his "Gear Second" ability which allows him to imitate the technique Soru to great effect and enhances his body to withstand it while using it.



The others finally catch up, and as the CP9 and Straw Hats face each other, Robin's past is finally revealed, as well as her reasons for leaving the crew. Luffy responds by declaring war on the World Government that has hurt Robin so, and makes her confess that she wants to stay with the Straw Hats. Spandam tells the Straw Hats that by attacking Enies Lobby, they have declared war on 170 nations that make up the world government. Luffy doesn't care and tells Sogeking to shoot the Government flag, which he does with his new weapon "Kabuto", sending the flag up in flames.

Invading the Tower of Justice
Spandam tells CP9 that they have permission to kill all of the Straw Hats, which includes Franky at this point due to the burning of the plans of "Pluton". He tells Lucci to come with him to take Robin to the Gate of Justice. This is also the first time we see that Spandam's sword is actually his pet elephant Funkfreed. The sword 'ate' the devil fruit Zou Zou no Mi, which is a phenomenon only seen once before, with Lasso, Mr. 4's gun/dog during the Arabasta arc.

Once the Straw Hats get inside the judicial tower, they are met by Fukurou. He tells them where Robin is being taken and that once she goes through the gates of justice, she can never be saved. He then shows them a key, which he explains is a key to Robin's Seastone handcuffs. He goes on to explain that all the members of CP9 have a key, but only one of them will actually work on her handcuffs. He then runs away. Zoro says that they should all split up and try and find a key, since time is against them.

Luffy goes after Robin, Spandam and Lucci. Nami encounters Kumadori in a dungeon, and Franky meets Fukurou outside the kitchen. Sogeking tries a number of doors before coming across a garden where Jyabura is sleeping. Sanji encounters Kalifa in her bedroom, and, entranced, starts taking afternoon tea with her, while Zoro confronts Kaku in his study.



Luffy finds his way to the top of the Judicial Tower, but finds it deserted. Spandam, Robin and Lucci have already left for the Gate of Justice. Spandam explains that even if Luffy were to catch up to them, he wouldn't know how to get across to the Gate.

Kaku, claiming to be CP9's best swordsman, tests his four-sword style against Zoro, whose skill he admires. After a duel reveals them to be evenly matched, he declares Zoro a worthy opponent, and uses his newfound Devil Fruit powers for the first time. Meanwhile, Usopp tries to steal the key from the sleeping Jyabura without a fight. Before he can reach it, however, a rooster appears and chirps, which scares Usopp into making noise that wakes Jyabura up.



He recognizes Sogeking as a pirate and attacks him, revealing his Devil Fruit ability: Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Wolf. The fight is then interrupted by the room's ceiling collapsing. Zoro falls down, followed by Kaku, whose Devil fruit gives him the form of a giraffe. Jyabura finds Kaku's new appearance very funny indeed, and he and Kaku get into an argument. Noticing their distraction, Usopp tries to immobilize them with a pair of Seastone handcuffs he finds, but only succeeds in hitting Zoro, as his aim was spoiled by laughing at Kaku. The later, annoyed that everybody is laughing at him, loses his temper and cuts the tower in half with his 'Rankyaku'. Zoro and Usopp avoid the attack, but find themselves accidentally locked together by the Seastone handcuffs. Since Kaku and Jyabura cannot decide who gets to kill their opponents while theyre handcuffed together, they offer to unlock the two to avoid getting into another argument. Sadly, neither of them has the correctly numbered key.



Meanwhile, Tony Tony Chopper manages to find the room where Zoro and Sogeking are fighting. They tell Chopper that he must find one of the other CP9 members and get the number 2 key. Chopper runs off, hoping that Sanji will have the right key. Down in the dungeon, Kumadori has Nami trapped with his hair attacks, giving her no opportunity to use the Clima Tact. Franky, being low on cola and thus unable to use any special attacks, is forced to box with Fukurou. They compare the strength of their punches, and find themselves evenly matched in strength and toughness. After three cups of tea, Sanji comes to his senses and demands Kalifa's key. She takes advantage of his reluctance to hurt women and kicks him across the room.

Finally, Luffy has reached the bottom of the judicial tower, where he can see the Gates of Justice in front of him. The only problem is that between him and the Gates is a giant whirlpool.

VS CP9
Sanji is paying dearly for his chivalry, as Kalifa deals him a brutal beating while he refuses to fight back. Nami is nearly killed by Kumadori before Chopper attacks him to rescue her, and she escapes having stolen Kumadori's key. Suddenly Sanji falls from an upper story, his body terribly wounded and deformed by some unknown power into a rubbery doll. He explains his plight to Nami, who gently chastises him for his foolishness before advancing to face Kalifa herself.

Back at the Gate of Justice, Luffy nearly drowns trying to cross the ocean by himself, but is rescued by Gonbe and Chimney, who lead him to a secret passage that Spandam had used earlier. It leads to the lower areas of the tower, and eventually to an immovable steel door. Luffy breaks through it with his mysterious new move, 'Gear Third'. Its effects are not shown, but afterwards his body is briefly shrunk to child-size.

On returning to normal, Luffy pursues Lucci and Spandam. Lucci informs his commander that they are being followed, and Spandam orders him to wait behind to hold off any pursuit while he takes Robin to the Gates of Justice.



Meanwhile, Franky and Fukurou's battle has continued into the kitchen, each one trying to punch harder than the other. As the two swap blows and taunts, Franky begins to flag due to lack of cola, but their fight is interrupted by Kumadori and Chopper, who burst in through one wall. Chopper's first rumble Ball has worn off, so he stalls Kumadori by locking him in an enormous fridge. He joins forces with Franky, and after a few slip-ups involving other drinks, Chopper gives Franky a full cola refill. Franky, now super-charged, punches Fukurou out of the building, and their fight continues outside, taking them down into the ocean and then high above the Tower, where Franky ends the fight with his 'coup de Vent' cannon.

Zoro and Usopp are still handcuffed together, and running from Kaku and Jyabura as best they can. The two agents manage to get into another argument in the process, giving Zoro and Usopp a chance to form a plan-- if Zoro can't hold a sword with Usopp on his arm, Usopp must 'become' his sword and be used as a weapon instead. Usopp reluctantly agrees.



Back in the kitchen, Kumadori escapes from the fridge by eating his way out, and confronts Tony Tony Chopper, who is forced to eat another Rumble Ball in the hope of beating this powerful enemy. However, eating two Rumble Balls in such a short time makes his transformations random and erratic, leaving him open to attacks. In the end even his strongest attack cannot defeat Kumadori, and he falls, badly wounded.

In the moment before Kumadori finishes him, he remembers the last time he took three Rumble Balls in a row, and how he woke up to hear that a monster had destroyed much of his village. His mentor Dr. Kureha had told him that the monster had been him, and made him promise to never do it again. With an apology to Kureha, and hoping that his friends aren't nearby, he takes a third Rumble Ball, and grows into a gigantic, terrifying monster than dwarfs Kumadori. He crushes the CP9 agent and throws him across the island.

In Kalifa's room, Nami's battle seems to have ended prematurely-- she lies paralyzed on the floor as Kalifa blithely takes a bath. Nami, recovering her strength, tries to attack the CP9 agent, who defends herself with her newfound Devil Fruit powers-- she is revealed to have eaten the Soap Soap Fruit, which allows her to create bubbles which can weaken enemies (As with Nami as she entered the room), harden into soap for defense, or transmute an enemy's body entirely (As in the case of Sanji). Having worked this out, Nami continues to fight, but is soon weakened by Kalifa's bubbles.



Down in the basement, Luffy finally catches up to Lucci, who holds him at bay while Spandam escapes towards the Gates of Justice with Robin. When Robin tries to escape, Spandam attempts to summon CP9 with his ordinary Den-Den Mushi, but uses the Golden Den-Den Mushi by mistake, which summons the Buster Call, a massive Marine fleet with orders to carpet-bomb the entire island. Realizing his mistake, Spandam alerts all the Marines stationed on the island, ordering them to evacuate. Robin cuts in on his broadcast with a warning appeal against the indiscriminate cruelty of the Buster Call.

Spandam, not realizing that he is still on air, retorts gloatingly that the lives of the Marines don't matter as long as he can bring Robin alive to the Gates of Justice. Understandably alarmed, the listening Marines evacuate the island, leaving the Franky Family and Galley-La workers behind as prisoners.

Hearing Robin's warning, Luffy tries to force his way past Lucci to reach her, but Lucci fights back fiercely and stops him in his tracks, forcing him to continue the fight. Jyabura and Kaku decide to wrap up their fight with Zoro and Usopp quickly in order to escape the approaching bombardment. In Kalifa's room, Nami is struggling against the superior skill and powers of her opponent, who begins to transmute Nami's body just like she did with Sanji. Before she can finish Nami off, however, Chopper breaks into the room, still in monstrous form and totally out of control.

The giant Chopper attacks Nami wildly, uprooting Kailfa's bath in the process. He throws it down the stairs to where Sanji lies unconscious below, drenching the whole areas with water before storming off. The water from the bath washes away Kalifa's weakening bubbles, and Nami joins the battle once more, using her mirages to confuse Kalifa before eventually finishing her with her Thunder Lance attack and taking her key.



Meanwhile, Chopper has wandered into Zoro and Sogeking's fight, and Zoro fights to protect him from Jyabura and Kaku. Franky arrives and decides that the only way to stop Chopper is to knock him into the ocean. He knocks Chopper out of the tower with his Coup de Vent, then jumps in after to save him. Nami unlocks Zoro and Sogeking's handcuffs, allowing the real fight against Jyabura and Kaku to begin. The scene switches to Robin, who is trying to escape from Spandam. However, Spandam stops her by attacking with Funkfreed. With Chopper safe and out of the water, Franky remembers that Nami told him to head towards the Gates of Justice to try Fukurou and Kumadori's keys on Robin's handcuffs, so Chimney and Gonbe show him the way.

Zoro begins to once again battle Kaku. Kaku reveals more impressive abilities through the use of his Devil Fruit, using his nose as a larger version of shigan; the deflected blow easily punctures a boulder nearby.

Usopp tries frantically to defend himself against Jyabura, but even his new Kabuto is no match for the CP9 agent's speed. Jyabura catches Usopp off guard by offering him the key without a fight, but sucker-punches Usopp at the last moment, knocking him down. With his opponent helpless, Jyabura begins to gloat at Usopp's weakness, but is cut short by the sudden arrival of Sanji, returned to his normal self by the falling water from Kalifa's bath. He distracts Jyabura, and tells the wounded Usopp to help any way he can.

Outside, the Sea Train is departing, filled to capacity with escaping Marines. Meanwhile, Paulie has managed to untie himself and the other captives, and they try to find an alternative way off the island.



Fighting Sanji on the tower's high landing, Jyabura reveals his 'Tekkai Kenpo'- a fighting style which allows him to move and fight while using Tekkai, making him all but immune to Sanji's kicks. Suddenly Jyabura interrupts the fight, tearfully offering Sanji his key and telling him that Robin is really his long-lost sister. Sanji ignores the lie and continues the fight. Meanwhile, Usopp, high above on the tower, has come up with a plan.

To combat Jyabura's impenetrable Tekkai, Sanji creates a new technique, Diable Jambe, where he heats up one foot with friction, resulting in powerful kicks that burn through his enemy's defense. He kicks Jyabura all the way down to the ground floor, defeating him. Meanwhile, Spandam takes Nico Robin across the bridge of hesitation, onto a long bridge that leads to the Gate of Justice.

Franky catches up to Luffy and Lucci, where it seems that Luffy is losing. Franky asks Luffy for help. Luffy snaps at him, telling not to interfere. He tells Franky to take the keys and head to where Robin is behind the door Lucci is standing in front of.



Zoro and Kaku continue their duel,with Kaku using his Devil fruit power to gain the upper hand, wounding Zoro with a rain of Rankyaku. Zoro stalls Kaku by mocking his voice. Angry now, and experimenting wildly with his transformations, Kaku changes to a more powerful form which removes his long neck while lengthening his arms and legs, and prepares his finishing blow, the same powerful Rankyaku that sliced the tower in half. In response, Zoro debuts his mysterious 'Asura' technique, appearing as a many-limbed figure in the style of an Asura deity. The attack he delivers is so powerful that Kaku's Rankyaku is negated and he himself totally incapacitated.

In the end, the downed Kaku freely gives Zoro his key, and even shares a joke with the man who defeated him. Key in hand, Zoro meets up with Sanji and the two run to the Gates of Justice. The scene changes back to Spandam and Robin. Robin tries to escape but fails and soon they reach the gates of justice. Robin admits she is afraid of death and bites down on the bridge, refusing to budge. At the same time, she insists in her mind that the crew will be coming to save her.

The scene changes again back to Luffy and his fight with Lucci. Luffy is unable to hurt Lucci, who hits him with a rapid-fire Shigan. Franky comes to Luffy's aid by trying to hit Lucci with the same moves he tried to Fukurou. Franky's move is unsuccessful and soon Lucci comes to strike Franky. Luffy however enters his gear 2 ability and blows Lucci away. Franky is surprised by Luffy's strength and power and eggs on Luffy to beat Lucci. Luffy manages to keep Lucci at bay and allows Franky to leave the room to chase after Spandam and Robin.

On the bridge, Spandam drags Robin by a rope, claiming that no one will ever reach her because he set up landmines to keep anyone from helping her. He then gloats that his father, Spandine, was the one who led the destruction of Ohara, which infuriates Robin. Franky activates the landmines, so Spandam laughs that no one will save Robin. Spandam is suddenly hit in the face by a huge fireball, and the Marine ship waiting is also attacked. Sogeking had fired the shots from the top of the judicial tower, a distance that none of the Marines could hit with any weapon and none could see without binoculars. Robin escapes and the Marines fire at her, but Franky jumps in the way to block the bullets. Sogeking then shoots Zoro and Sanji's keys to Franky, leaving him with all of the keys to use on Robin's cuffs. Spandam is shocked that CP9 was defeated.

Franky now has all the keys and tries one after another to unlock Robin's Seastone cuffs. Finally he unlocks the cuffs and Robin is now free. Robin thanks Sogeking but he replies that she should save the thanks until later. Sogeking also tells Robin that she is now free to do whatever she wants, and Robin makes her decision. Using her "Sies Fleur Slap" attack she takes down Spandam. The celebration is cut short when the buster call arrives and a nearby island is totally annihilated. The defensive fence surrounding Enies Lobby is also destroyed. Franky shouts out that this is their last chance to escape as there is an escort ship by the side. The scene changes to Nami, Kokoro (carrying Chopper on her hat), and Chimney who are continuing their escape.



The battle with Luffy and Lucci still continues. Luffy is able to land an attack on Lucci, who is forced back with pain. Lucci then explains to Luffy that his gear 2 form is wearing his body away and shortening his life span by pumping air into his legs, causing his blood-flow to speed up. Luffy yells back that he does not care and wishes to save his nakama first. Lucci then uses a rankyaku to smash a wall so that it crumbles and water begins to flow into the passage, drowning anyone in it.

The scene goes back to Spandam who tells the Marines to take back Robin, but the Marines stop as they see the buster call approaching. The buster call is now upon Enies Lobby and is about to destroy everything. The fleet appears along with the five Vice Admirals.

Buster Call
The Buster Call personnel say that they can destroy everything but the bridge on Enies lobby because Robin is standing there, although Spandam thinks it's because he's the CP9 chief. Apparently, during the last Buster Call, everything on Ohara was destroyed except for the ground where Spandine was standing. The Franky Family continues to rush to the Gate of Justice, while Sanji and Zoro are trying to get Sogeking to leave, who says he can't because he has broken all his ribs. He also is trying to say something special about the properties of Kabuto, but is cut off by Sanji. Nami, Kokoro, Chimney, and Gonbe are under the room where Lucci and Luffy are fighting, which is also filling up with water. Having run out of Gear 2, Lucci begins to pound Luffy, saying he thought Luffy was stronger. Luffy activates Gear 3 and explains that Gear 3 is different from Gear 2 because instead of pumping blood through his body faster, he is blowing air through his bones, inflating them. His arm then swells to massive proportions, and attacks Lucci with a Gomu Gomu no Gigant Pistol, sending him flying through the wall, toward the sea.



The scene then changes back to a Marine asking a Vice Admiral Doberman on how to handle the capture of Nico Robin. The Vice-Admiral tells him to leave her and begins to tell about Lucci's past. Sometime, 15 years ago, an incident happened where 500 soldiers were captured on an island by pirates. The pirate’s captain wanted to become the king of the island in return for sparing the soldiers lives. Just as the island was about to fall, the World Government sent a boy to the island. The boy infiltrated the pirate's hideout and killed the 500 soldiers on the spot. The pirates, infuriated, then began to shoot at the boy. The boy emerged from the explosions and killed the pirate's captain and ended the incident. That boy who had many bullet wound scars, at the age of 13, became a member of CP9 and has since been there serving justice from the darkness and became the strongest and coldest killing machine since CP9’s inception.

The Marines hearing the story became frightened with fear. He tells the Marines that as long as that man is here assisting in the escorting of Nico Robin, they don't need to act and will do nothing until all but the Bridge of Hesitation is destroyed. The scene changes again to Zoro, Sanji and Usopp (Sogeking). Usopp starts hearing the sound of water, when all three sees Nami, Kokoro (with Chopper on her hat), Chimney, and Gonbe running away from the rushing water. The water begins filling up the passage and swallows them all in.

Lucci, who had just gotten hit by Gomu Gomu no Giganto Pistol, feels faint and lands on one of the Marine's ships. Lucci returns to human form and takes off his shirt, showing bullet wound scars that are vaguely similar to the world government's symbol. Luffy is shown blowing air into his chest and then crashes into the ship with a Gomu Gomu no Rocket. The Marines fire at him, and Luffy takes it head-on, saying that his bones are very hard and cannot hurt him. Luffy begins the fight with Lucci again, with him attacking Lucci with a Gomu Gomu no Giganto Axe, but Lucci manages to dodge it, as he turns into his complete animal form and bites Luffy. Luffy escapes by blowing himself up, while Lucci returns to his human form. Luffy tries to hit Lucci with a Gomu Gomu no Giganto Whip but Lucci dodges it and destroys the mast of the ship. Lucci fires a Tobu Shigan "Bachi" and hits Luffy, while revealing that Luffy's speed decreases as his strength increases. The ship's iron brackets are starting to split, while Lucci laughs boldly. Vice Admiral Onigumo notices Lucci and Luffy fighting and tells all the ships to target the ship they're on. He tells them that if it's Lucci, then he will survive. A Marine objects about the idea, saying that 1000 of their allies are aboard on the ship. The Vice-Admiral kills the Marine, asking if he can protect the future from a criminal with his weakness. The ships begin firing and the ship that Luffy and Lucci is on, is hit and starts sinking.

Luffy escapes the bombardment but when he lands he becomes his chibi self and tries to hide from Lucci until he can return to normal size. The scene then switches to Franky, Robin, and Spandam on the Bridge of Hesitation. Spandam is laughing because he thinks Luffy has died in the attack and then he continues to brag about the Buster Call until Franky punches him in the face. Angry, Spandam tries to attack Robin with Funkfreed in elephant form, but it is stopped by Franky and he throws the animal back right on top of Spandam.



The scene then switches back to the Luffy fight and by this time Lucci has just found Luffy and has started beating him up while still in the chibi form. But right before Lucci can finish Luffy off he feels pain in his legs from an earlier attack, as Lucci is on the ground in pain Luffy has returned to normal size. The scene then goes to Zoro and the others having been swallowed up by the sea. As all of them are nearing death Kokoro saves them all by transforming into a mermaid.

Robin and Franky have hijacked Spandam's escape ship and Kokoro soon arrives, jumping into the ship with the unconscious Straw Hat crew. Robin and Franky thank her as she changes back into a human and their friends wake up, but they realize they still need to wait for Luffy. Meanwhile, Oimo and Kāshī, who have been carrying Zambai, Mozu and Kiwi, the Mighty Destroyers, the rest of the Franky Family, Paulie, Lulu, Tilestone, Sodom, Gomorrah, and Yokozuna out of the path of the Buster Call, have finally reached the exit of Enies Lobby when they are jumped by a trio of Buster Call ships. Hit by cannon fire, the Straw Hats' allies tumble into the waterfall below. Luffy, still having trouble with Lucci, transforms into Gear 2 once more to even the odds.



The Straw Hats and Franky continue to wait on the ship for Luffy, and they hear an announcement from the Buster Call ships about the apparent deaths of their allies, leaving everyone, especially Franky, shocked. The group then comments of Luffy's fight with Lucci, claiming that Luffy always seems to know exactly which opponent he has to fight so they aren't overwhelmed. Back at the battle, Lucci hits Luffy with the most powerful Rokushiki technique he knows, damaging Luffy internally. Luffy compares it to an Impact Dial, but much stronger. However, it only leaves Luffy more determined than ever to defeat Lucci. Meanwhile, the Buster Call ships realize that Rob Lucci and Luffy are in tower one, so they destroy half the bridge and isolates the tower. The fleet then aims toward where the rest of the crew were waiting, to capture Nico Robin and Zoro and the rest of the crew. The crew gets ready to fight back so that Robin won't be recaptured. The Marines marvel at the crew, noting that one pirate crew was able to take down Enies Lobby and CP9.

Sogeking recognizes Luffy and Lucci in tower one and calls out to him. Franky, Sogeking, Zoro, and Sanji, who are on the bridge cheer him on. Newly motivated, Luffy gets ready to fight Lucci again. Lucci, seeing the crew remarks "Quite the little group..." but exclaims that "evil will never flourish."



As the fight of Luffy and Lucci goes on, the Buster Call ships announce for 200 of the best Captains and Lieutenants to finish off the crew and capture Nico Robin. As they get ready to fight back, they realize that Sanji has gone missing. Nami exclaims that they need to get off the ship as Chopper finds himself unable to move. On the bridge, Franky, Sogeking, and Zoro take on the Captains and Lieutenants as Franky notices that there are devils fruit users among them and it would be more difficult. Zoro's sword Yubashiri is broken during this fight, proving Franky's prediction true. Robin and Nami also fights off the Marines that attacked the ship. Meanwhile, in the battle against Lucci, Luffy is starting to struggle as the effects of his Gear 2 begin to show. Lucci tells him that no matter how hard Luffy struggles, in the end, Luffy cannot take down Enies Lobby.

Luffy attacks, but Lucci parries his attack and catches Luffy with another devastating Rokuougan. Luffy falls to the ground, and attempts briefly to stand before collapsing in a pool of his own blood. On the bridge, while fending off the attackers, Sogeking sees Luffy's fall and freezes. He finally takes off his mask, and cries out for Luffy. Usopp then encourages Luffy to get up and to stop looking so defeated. Usopp tells Luffy that he came to save Robin, not to see Luffy being beaten up and challenges Lucci to a fight. Luffy stops him, knowing that Usopp will be killed almost instantly. Now determined more than ever, Luffy gets up again to fight. Despite being attacked again and again by Lucci, Luffy still fights back.

Lucci then hits Luffy with another Rokuougan but this time, Luffy does not fall. He musters up his energy for the Gomu Gomu no Jet Gatling Gun, finally defeating Lucci. As everyone else, Marines and the crew watch Lucci's demise, Luffy falls to the floor tired but triumphant, yelling, "Let's all leave together, Robin!"

Leaving Enies Lobby
The Marines and Vice-Admirals who stood by and watched the fight are shocked at the loss of Rob Lucci, who they consider to be the strongest in all of CP9's history. Usopp, Franky, and the rest of the crew, letting out a sigh of relief, begins to congratulate Luffy and his victory. Suddenly, a Den Den Mushi from somewhere transmits a mysterious voice which also starts to congratulate Luffy. Knowing that they are being heard by everybody, they revealed themselves to be the Franky Family, Galley-la, Yokozuna, Oimo and Kāshī, dangling by Paulie's said "unbreakable" rope. They told them that the giants took all the shots for them, and that they're all safe. All of them begins climbing the rope, as Franky starts crying. Wiping the last of his tears, he yells to the Marines "Bring it on!"

The scene changes back to the Marines realizing that Luffy is seriously injured and hasn't been able to move from that spot. Usopp encourages Luffy again to move, but he can't move at all. The Marines now notices that the pirates are escaping through the escort ship, fires at it, and destroys the ship. The crew realizing that Kokoro, Chimney, Gonbe and Chopper are still there, watch in horror as the ship starts sinking. Suddenly, Sanji pops up and is seen carrying all four of them. A Marine tries to capture Sanji, but Kokoro knocks him out with a kick. The Buster Call ships start firing at Zoro and the others as they start running away from the explosions. They are preparing to fire at Luffy on tower 1. Robin tells everyone that, at this distance, even if she tried to pull him there, Luffy will just fall in the water. Everybody begins to shout at Luffy, saying that he needs to get up.

As the rest of them shout at Luffy, Usopp notices another voice. Franky yells at him that it is his family, but Usopp says it's a different voice. Luffy begins to hear the voice too, as it says to look below. Soon, Zoro, Sanji, Nami, and Chopper starts hearing the mysterious voice too. The Marines starts the countdown, when Usopp says "Jump into the sea!" He asks Robin if she could drop Luffy into the sea. Zoro says that it will kill him, but Usopp says that they still have a friend among them, which leaves Zoro speechless. 2 seconds remaining in the countdown as Robin desperately tries to drop him into the sea. Chopper starts crying as he sees a familiar figure, coming up from the water. Sanji, Nami, and Chopper shouts out "To the sea!" as Going Merry comes up and tells them all "Let's all go home!! To the sea of adventure!!"



Kokoro flings Chopper, Robin, and Luffy onto the Going Merry due to their inability to swim, then jumps on the boat. Spandam returns, broken and bruised from being hit with Funkfreed, and says to the Marines that they have permission from Aokiji to fire on the Merry, which is a lie. Two Buster Call ships fire, only to get caught up in a strong current and hit each other. Sanji, during his absence, had begun to close the Gate of Justice. As Nami uses the current to ensure a speedy getaway, more shots are fired, which Zoro and Sanji deflect by using Luffy as a sling. Spandam begins yelling, but Robin uses her extra arms to break his back.

At the front of the island, the Franky Family, Galley-La, Giants, King Bulls, and Yokozuna have commandeered the Puffing Tom and are returning to Water 7. Aokiji arrives on the scene and declares that Enies Lobby was a "complete defeat" for the World Government. The now-reunited Straw Hat Pirates leave the chaos of the Buster Call behind and sail out of Enies Lobby. A moments later, they saw a Galley-La ship with Iceburg and his shipwrights in it. However their joy is short-lived as Going Merry's hull finally gives out and splits in two. Luffy pleads with Iceburg to fix the ship up one last time, but Iceburg cannot. After evacuating to Iceburg's ship, Luffy and the rest of his crew gives Going Merry a Viking's Funeral, by setting her ablaze for her final voyage. As the crew laments the loss of their ship, they each hear the "soul" of the Going Merry thanking them for taking good care of it.

Story Impact
Most of the Straw Hats revealed special abilities in this arc, marking an increase in power for each of them. Luffy introduces both Gear Second and Gear Third, Zoro develops Asura, Sanji unleashes Diable Jambe, Chopper utilizes Monster Point (on screen/panel) for the first time whilst showing other effects from excess Rumble Ball consumption, Nami displays Usopp's latest creation the Perfect Clima-Tact, and Sogeking demonstrates his new slingshot - Kabuto. The remainder of the Franky Schematics are revealed, especially and comically his dependency on cola.

Robin's past has finally been revealed which has begun to have been forshadowed since the Arabasta arc, and more of the Void Century has been revealed, and at the same time, history of the World Government. There once existed an Ancient Kingdom which has fallen to enemys which became known as the World Government indicating that the World Government are possibly more evil then they may seem. From this arc onward, the World Government has shown more hints of their dark nature.

Franky helps the Straw Hat Pirates for the first time leading for him to become a bigger help for them later when he joins the crew.

Shuu destroys Yubashiri leading Zoro to obtain Shuusui during the Thriller Bark Arc

The Straw Hats are seen as an even bigger threat by the World Government, and Luffy and Zoro become Supernovas.

At the end of this arc, the Going Merry is given a viking funeral forcing the Straw Hat Pirates to get a new ship which would later be the Thousand Sunny made by Franky.

Trivia

 * This arc contains the first two Devil Fruits to be eaten (simultaneously) outside of a flashback, Kaku's Ushi Ushi no Mi, Model: Giraffe and Kalifa's Awa Awa no Mi.