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Chapter 337: Protectors of the City of Water

Arc: Water Seven · Saga: Water Seven · Released:

Summary

The morning after the night of attacks, the Galley-La shipbuilding factory at Dock 1 stands half-wrecked and the crowd of Water Seven citizens are relieved the shipwrights stopped it from being “destroyed… thanks to Franky and those pirates.” But the mood turns instantly: the Galley-La foremen — “the company’s five strongest guys” — descend on the Straw Hats, and the Franky Family crash in too, brawling the crew over the stolen money and over Luffy himself (“That kid’s mine!!”). Franky trades blows with Luffy (blond pompadour, sunglasses, cyborg arms, a “SHIP” chest tattoo); Paulie lashes out with rope techniques (“Rope Action — Half-Knot!!”, “Air Drive!!”) and demands whether Luffy “ate the Devil Fruit”; Tilestone (“strong as a monster as always!!”) and the other foremen pile on. Nami can’t understand why every shipwright is suddenly an enemy (“Why are all the shipwrights our enemies too?!”). Finally a foreman in a “1” jacket and sunglasses (Paulie) stops the fight to deliver the explanation the crew has been demanding: last night, somebody broke into Galley-La Headquarters and attacked Mayor Iceberg — and “that somebody was you guys.” The World Government told Galley-La that one of the assassins was “a bounty named Nico Robin,” and the mayor reported there were two assassins. The shipwrights reason the attackers are striking again because Iceberg is still alive. Luffy explodes — “Stop telling lies about her!! You don’t even know Robin!!” — and refuses to believe Robin was involved (“It’s gotta be a mistake! It couldn’t have been Robin!!”). But the Water-Water Newspaper Company is already promising to pay witnesses and is printing that “The Straw Hat Pirates were behind the attack on the mayor,” and the townspeople begin chanting to seize the criminals (“They tried to kill the town’s hero!!”). The chapter closes on Robin, alone elsewhere in town, silently reading the newspaper headline: “THE CRIMINALS ARE HERE ON THIS ISLAND!!”

New reveals

• The night-attack fallout, named. The Dock 1 factory was nearly destroyed and Mayor Iceberg was attacked inside Galley-La HQ the previous night; the shipwrights and townsfolk now treat the Straw Hats as the culprits (pp. 3–4, 14). (VIZ renders the mayor’s name “Iceberg” on-page here; the vault wikilink is [[Characters/Iceberg]] per prior convention.)
• Robin is named as an assassin. The World Government told Galley-La that one of Iceberg’s would-be killers was “a bounty named Nico Robin” — i.e., a Straw Hat (pp. 14–15). This is the on-page launch of the Robin frame-up that drives the Enies Lobby road.
• There were TWO assassins. Iceberg reported “there were two assassins” — Robin plus an unnamed second figure (p. 15). The pair-of-intruders detail seeds the later CP9-disguise / second-assassin reveal. ([[Crews/CP9]])
• Iceberg survived. The crew/town believe the attackers will “take another shot at the mayor… because he’s alive” — they’re trying to finish the job (p. 16). Confirms Iceberg lived through the night assault.
• Galley-La’s “five strongest” attack. The Galley-La foremen — explicitly “the company’s five strongest guys” — fight the Straw Hats: Paulie (rope techniques: “Rope Action — Half-Knot!!”, “Air Drive!!”), Tilestone (named, brute strength), and others; the Franky Family brawl in parallel (pp. 6–13).
• Franky in open combat. Franky (named p. 4 onward) fights Luffy directly — blond pompadour, sunglasses, mechanical/cyborg arms, “SHIP” chest tattoo (ed. note p. 5), a “BOSS”-marked motif. Asked “Did you eat the Devil Fruit?” (p. 9) — the check is raised but he is not a Devil-Fruit user; his power is cybernetic.
• The press weaponizes the frame. The Water-Water Newspaper Company will “pay any witnesses who have information about the pirates” and prints “The Straw Hat Pirates were behind the attack on the mayor” (pp. 18–19), turning the city into a manhunt (“Find all the Straw Hat Pirates… and hang every last one of ‘em!!”).
• Robin reads the headline. The final page shows Robin, separated from the crew, silently reading the newspaper: “THE CRIMINALS ARE HERE ON THIS ISLAND!!” — she knows about the frame (p. 19).

Foreshadowing seeds planted

Payoffs (seeds from earlier chapters that resolve here)

Mentions / appearances

• Straw Hats: Luffy (refuses to believe Robin attacked Iceberg; “You don’t even know Robin!!”), Nami (asks why all the shipwrights are enemies; grabbed by the mob, p. 18) (Straw Hat Pirates)
• Galley-La Company: Paulie (rope-action foreman, “1” jacket — the one who delivers the explanation; named in arc, not in dialogue this chapter), Tilestone (named p. 4, p. 11), the “five strongest” foremen incl. silhouetted top-hat & cap figures consistent with Rob Lucci and Kaku (pp. 2, 13) (Galley-La Company)
• Franky Family: Franky (named p. 4; fights Luffy; “SHIP” chest tattoo) and his gang (Franky Family)
• Named-not-shown / referenced: Iceberg (Mayor Iceberg — attacked the previous night; VIZ on-page spelling “Iceberg”; referenced, not on-panel), CP9 (latent — the true second assassin / the real plot behind the frame), the World Government (named Robin as the assassin to Galley-La, p. 14), the Water-Water Newspaper Company (pp. 18–19)
• Nico Robin: Nico Robin — named as an assassin (pp. 14–15); shown on the final page reading the newspaper, alone (p. 19)
• Location: Water Seven (Dock 1 shipbuilding factory; the wrecked yard; town square)
• Cover serial: Gedatsu — “Gedatsu’s Unexpected Life on the Blue Sea, Vol. 21: ‘The Unexpected Arrival at the Desert Oasis‘“

Notable panels

• p. 1 — Title page: “Chapter 337: PROTECTORS OF THE CITY OF WATER.” Cover serial: “GEDATSU’S UNEXPECTED LIFE ON THE BLUE SEA, VOL. 21: ‘THE UNEXPECTED ARRIVAL AT THE DESERT OASIS.’” Inset art: Gedatsu (helmet text “BOSS” / 番; t-shirt “SAND” per ed. note) arriving at a desert oasis with palms, a stranded sea-train-like craft and townsfolk. (Side B-plot — Gedatsu cover serial.)
• pp. 2–3 — “DOOM!!” — the Dock 1 shipbuilding factory shown half-destroyed; Franky and Luffy face off; the Galley-La foremen line up (“SHF…!!”). Crowd: “It’s the foremen! What a relief!!” / “It’s the shipwrights from yesterday! They’ll be on our side, right?!”
• p. 4 — A foreman addresses Franky and Luffy: “Just hold on, Tilestone. We’ll deal with him later.” Franky’s gang: “GRAAAH!!! That’s right, Franky, you fool! How are you planning to atone for this?!” / “Don’t we, Straw Hat Luffy?”
• p. 5 — Luffy: “We didn’t do anything!” A foreman: “You know what I’m talking about. …So our family wasn’t enough for you, huh?” (ed. note: Franky’s chest tattoo reads “SHIP”).
• pp. 6–7 — Paulie’s rope combat: ”…I’ll just turn up the heat!!!” / “Rope Action — Half-Knot!!!” / “Air Drive!!!”; “I’m the one who’s got a score to settle with that guy!!! …I told you not to get in the way!!”
• p. 8 — “It’s a fight with the company’s five strongest guys!!” / “Go get him, Galley-La Company!!” Nami: “Huh? Why? Why are all the shipwrights our enemies too?!”
• p. 9 — Paulie to Luffy: “Did you eat the Devil Fruit?” Luffy and Franky collide (“WOING!”/“BOOM!!”).
• pp. 10–11 — Franky: “…to stay out of it!! That kid’s mine!!”; “Tilestone’s strong as a monster as always!!” (SMASH).
• pp. 12–13 — Luffy fights through the foremen (“KNOCK IT OFF!!”); a foreman: “These guys really are strong!” Luffy: “What’s wrong with you?! At least tell me the way you’re doing this!!” Foreman: “We’re the ones who want an explanation!!”
• p. 14 — The reveal, big panel: ”…LAST NIGHT, SOMEBODY BROKE INTO HEADQUARTERS AND ATTACKED MAYOR ICEBERG… and that somebody was you guys, wasn’t it?!” The crew: “Iceberg was…? What’s this all about?!”
• p. 15 — “When we asked the government, they told us one of them was… a bounty named Nico Robin!” / “After the mayor came to… he said there were two assassins.” Luffy: “Robin?!”
• p. 16 — “They could take another shot at the mayor, so we’re getting rid of them now.” / “We’re doing this because he’s alive.” / “You think these idiots could kill him?!” / “Iceberg’s dead?!”
• p. 17 — Luffy erupts: “STOP TELLING LIES ABOUT HER!!! YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW ROBIN!!” Foreman: “There’s no way we’re letting you anywhere near the mayor!” Nami: “It’s gotta be a mistake! It couldn’t have been Robin!!”
• p. 18 — Town mob: “Off with their heads!! They deserve no less!!” / “They tried to kill the town’s hero!!” A citizen grabs Nami: “You were with the Straw Hat guy! I saw you!” Luffy: “NAMI!!”
• p. 19 — A foreman: “Give yourselves up!! …We’re gonna kill… the whole lot of you!!” The Water-Water Newspaper Company “will pay any witnesses who have information about the pirates!!” → headline: “The Straw Hat Pirates were behind the attack on the mayor!” Final panel: Robin, alone, reading the paper — “THE CRIMINALS ARE HERE ON THIS ISLAND!!”
• p. 20 — SBS “Question Corner” (Oda “drawing stark-naked”; the captain of Iceberg’s Personal Guard kicks it off; afro-power gag). Not story content.

Open questions raised

• Who was the second assassin? Iceberg reported two; only Robin is named (p. 15). (Seeds the CP9-disguise reveal — [[Crews/CP9]].)
• Did Robin really attack Iceberg, and why? Luffy is certain she didn’t (“It couldn’t have been Robin!!”) — but she’s named by the Government and shown reading the frame alone at the end (pp. 15, 17, 19). (The apparent-betrayal hook of the arc.)
• What did the attackers actually want from Iceberg that made him a target while alive? (p. 16.) (Inference toward the Pluton-blueprint motive — not named on-page.)
• Why are Galley-La’s “five strongest” so formidable? (“These guys really are strong!”, p. 13.) (Seeds the CP9-foremen reveal.)
• How will the Straw Hats clear their names now that the whole town and press have branded them assassins? (pp. 18–19.)