"I'm a little sleepy. I'm going to bed first."
Guts yawned, waving lazily as if to excuse himself.
The horizon was already blushing with the first light of dawn, yet drowsiness chose this moment to crash down on him.
Of course, it wasn't just him...no one on the ship had managed a wink of sleep. The violent tremors of the sea caused by his battle with Garp had made it impossible for anyone to truly rest.
"Hah! It's better to eat before bed, that's the most enjoyable!" Garp roared with his usual grin.
"Well~~ I can't argue with that." Guts smirked and followed him toward the mess hall.
The dining table was still stacked high with plates of food.
While Garp and Guts tore into the feast with the enthusiasm of starving beasts, Luffy sat quietly, barely touching his meal.
Every so often, he'd lift his wide, unfocused eyes to glance at the two monsters devouring everything in sight.
Guts didn't need to read his thoughts to understand. It was the same expression Zoro wore when he first faced Mihawk.
The world view he thought he understood had just been shattered. It would take time before Luffy could recover from this blow.
When their stomachs were finally full, most of the crew, save for the men on watch, trudged back to their bunks.
The ship sailed steadily, unknowingly drawing closer to their destination—Cocoyasi Village.
What Guts didn't expect was the knock at his cabin door.
And even more surprising, it wasn't a Marine soldier, but Nami.
The girl who had kept her distance from him the whole time, suddenly standing at his door.
"T-then… um, Mr. Guts—no, I mean, Captain. Are you awake? The ship is about to arrive at Cocoyasi Village." Her words tumbled over themselves, her tongue tripping clumsily mid-sentence.
"Come in," Guts answered evenly, suppressing the amused smile tugging at his lips.
He threw the coat draped over the cabinet across his shoulders and looked up just as Nami entered, holding a cup of coffee with a bright...if somewhat forced smile.
"Here, would you like something to drink?"
"…Why?" Guts narrowed his eyes, scanning her from head to toe.
"That's pretty unnatural of you. And I don't have any money for you to steal, so what are you really after?"
He already knew.
After witnessing his clash with Garp, she must have been shaken. Awe, fear, maybe even relief—twisted together.
She was desperate for his help against Arlong, and now her attitude had flipped completely.
Nami's lips curved into a smile that was anything but natural. "Wh-what do you mean? I just admire you a lot, Captain, so it's perfectly fine to bring you coffee, right? Hehe~~"
Snap!
Guts flicked her forehead with his finger, a look of disgust on his face.
"Gross. Don't act like that. I told you already...I'll deal with Arlong. He won't be around much longer. So quit this fake act."
"Ah—!" Nami yelped, clutching her forehead. The sting almost made her drop the tray, coffee sloshing dangerously near the rim.
After letting Nami sit across from him, Guts casually grabbed the tray, shoved it toward the doorway, and leaned back in his chair.
"By the way, I don't know much about your past yet. Why don't you tell me before we reach your village?"
After all, she'd be his navigator day and night for some time to come. If they were going to get along, he wanted her to at least be herself.
Of course, he pretended not to "know" her from the anime, best to hear it directly.
"Th-that… me, uh…"
The question froze Nami. She licked her lips nervously, her expression stiff, clearly tugged back to memories she didn't want to face.
"Forget it," Guts said, waving it off. His tone changed as he fixed her with a steady look.
"Say it when you feel like it. But don't act fake like just now. Just be what you are...the 'Thief Cat' greedy for money and life. In short, be yourself."
His gaze softened slightly, and he added:
"And since you've chosen to follow me, there's no need to care about anyone's face. Say and do whatever you want."
He tapped her lightly on the head twice before striding out of the room.
Nami blinked at his back in surprise.
This man...this captain who had just fought and even defeated the Marine Hero… was unexpectedly easy to get along with.
Her lips curved into a small smile as she muttered, almost defensively:
"Who's greedy for money? I just… prefer money~~"
Just then, Guts reached the deck. Ahead, the outline of Cocoyasi Village was visible on the horizon.
But before the ship could get closer, the sea erupted.
A massive shape surged upward...a manatee with tusks, blocking their path.
Nami, who had hurried after Guts, gasped.
"That's Momoo! The Arlong Pirates pet, it's used to sink any ship that tries to approach Cocoyasi Village!"
"Oi, is its meat tasty? The cooks said we're running a little short," Garp quipped from the side, grinning as though he was eyeing a buffet.
Guts smirked, resting a hand on his chin. "I've always wondered how good merfolk meat is. Sashimi sounds nice. What do you think, Nami?"
"Wha—?!" Nami almost tripped. Her eyes widened in horror. "That's way too cruel, isn't it?!"
Sure, Momoo belonged to the enemy who had destroyed her life, but the thought of slicing it up still shook her.
"You're too soft to achieve anything big," Guts said, pinching her nose with a crooked smile.
"Stick with me, and you'll fix that. Got it?"
In truth, Guts remembered... Arlong in the anime had only been captured, not killed.
But if it were him in Nami's shoes, he wouldn't stop until Arlong was carved into sashimi.
Otherwise, how could that hatred ever fade?
On the other side, Momoo caught sight of Garp's hungry gaze. The old man's eyes gleamed like he was already planning how to season the meat.
Terrified, the poor beast dove straight back into the depths of the sea never daring to show its face again.
"I'll head to the Marine 16th Branch. That rat of a Marine garbage must be sanctioned!"
For once, Garp's expression hardened as he spoke to Guts.
Letting a pirate crew control an entire village for nearly ten years throughout Garp's almost sixty-year career, such negligence was nearly unheard of.
Pirates committing crimes was one thing, but Marines turning a blind eye? That boiled his blood even more.
"Leave those worthless fish-men to me. I'll slice them into sashimi." Guts smiled calmly, as though stating a simple fact.
"Ha-ha-ha!" Garp tilted his head back with a laugh. And with that, the two men parted ways.
"Let's go."
Guts turned to Nami, and the two stepped onto the soil of Cocoyasi Village.
Even knowing his strength, even after clinging to his side aboard the ship, Nami's body trembled the moment her feet touched her homeland.
The scars of childhood trauma cut too deep Arlong's shadow loomed over every corner of this place.
Then...warmth.
Her left hand was enveloped, his much larger hand wrapping hers completely.
"As I said before, and I'll say it again… from today, you don't need to be afraid."
His words carried a calm confidence, a quiet certainty that sank into her chest like sunlight after years of storm.
Nami's throat tightened, and her voice trembled as she squeezed his hand back. "Thank you."
At first, he only wanted a navigator. But standing there, hearing the weight of her gratitude, Guts couldn't help but feel moved.
Her scars… her pain… in a way, wasn't it just as heavy as Naruto's in the anime?
Arlong Park rose ahead, modeled crudely after the design of Sabaody Archipelago. Inside, the fish-men roared with laughter and drunken cheer, carrying on their carnival as if the world belonged to them.
From outside the gates, Guts and Nami could hear the jeers echoing.
"Just this kind of fodder… they really need your navigation skills?" Guts muttered with a smirk.
"At best, they'll rot in this little puddle for the rest of their lives."
He shook his head, genuinely baffled.
Why bother chaining Nami here? With Smoker stationed at Loguetown, these small-time thugs could never even leave East Blue.
Talk of sailing the seas, of grand ambitions… laughable.
Holding onto Nami wasn't strategy. It was just arrogance, releasing their superiority complex on the weak, because in the grand scheme of the world, they were nothing.
PS: Happy New Year, readers-kun! 🎉💥💥
May this year bring you good vibes, big Ws, and even better chapters.
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