-----
-----
Near Cactus Island, off the coast.
"So, that's Logan, Captain of the Logan Pirates?!"
A woman with a mysterious aura, seated on the back of a large turtle, frowned slightly as she gazed at the wanted poster in her hand. Beside her were the unlucky duo of sea otters.
"Return and report this matter to the Boss. The fact that he was able to recruit Valentine is not to be underestimated."
Receiving the order, the giant sea turtle quickly swam towards Alabasta with Robin on its back.
Inside the temporary base, the battle had concluded.
Kaya used her healing ability to treat the wounded Igaram.
Now completely recovered, Igaram began dealing with the chaotic aftermath.
"That sea otter could actually paint?" Nami asked Valentine curiously.
Valentine answered truthfully, "They are the Baroque Works' Punishers and messengers."
"Once they return to Alabasta, they will definitely report what they saw to the Boss. We will definitely be chased by even stronger high-ranking agents after this."
"Captain, we should leave quickly. Let's not get dragged into this mess."
The thought of those assassins made Valentine feel utterly wretched. She was only Mr. 5's partner; Baroque Works had four even higher-ranked assassins. Especially the ruthless Mr. 1—if he made a move, she could only imagine...
"Don't worry, as long as Brother Logan makes a move, he'll definitely defeat Crocodile." Vivi leaned her small head against Logan's arm, radiating a sense of deep reliance.
"Crocodile?! Who is Crocodile?!" Valentine was utterly confused.
Wait!
Isn't Crocodile one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea? Why did Vivi suddenly mention him?!!
The slow-to-realize Valentine covered her face with her hands and gasped, "Are you saying the Boss is Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords?!!"
"Yeah, you didn't know that?!" Vivi tilted her head, looking puzzled.
What the hell!
How was I supposed to know that? Valentine grumbled internally.
Seeing Valentine's panicked expression, Logan teased, "Putting aside his status as a Warlord, Crocodile's current bounty is probably in the hundreds of millions of Berries." (This is based on his pre-timeskip appearance; he didn't have Haki two years ago, so his bounty would be around this much at most.)
"However…" Logan suddenly changed the subject, looking at Nami: "Nami, you might even be able to defeat him, you know."
"Huh?!"
Nami was a little overwhelmed, pointing to herself and asking uncertainly, "Can I really?!"
Logan nodded in confirmation, "Crocodile is a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, the Sand-Sand Fruit, and he does not possess Haki."
That simple statement revealed a lot of information. Nami, no longer a naive girl fresh out on the sea, instantly understood.
She was also a Logia-type Devil Fruit user—the Rumble-Rumble Fruit—and she had mastered all three forms of Haki! Wouldn't that mean she could completely overwhelm Crocodile?!
She could hit Crocodile, but he would be completely helpless against her.
Kaya and the others immediately huddled around, throwing themselves into Nami's embrace with helpless looks.
"Nami, our lives are in your hands! You have to defeat Crocodile!"
"That's right, Nami, you have to look out for us!"
Nami looked at her overly dramatic crewmates and couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time.
She immediately put her hands on her hips, raised an eyebrow, and guaranteed, "Don't worry, everyone! As long as Logan is here, everything will be fine!"
Afterward, Nami playfully stuck her tongue out at Logan.
Logan shook his head with a wry smile.
"Everyone, let's take a rest. We'll set sail for the next island once the Log Pose finishes recording the magnetic field."
At nine in the evening, the Log Pose took one hour longer than expected to record the magnetic field.
Logan took Nami, Tashigi, Vivi, Nojiko, Kaya, Makino, Carmen, and Valentine—the eight women back to the Going Merry, ready to set sail.
As for Igaram, he took Vivi's Permanent Pose and went ahead to Alabasta to inform King Cobra of the news.
Logan was naturally delighted by this; he didn't want any other men on the Merry. Besides, he still needed to head to the next island to recruit Miss Goldenweek.
Alabasta was already rotten to the core; a day earlier or later wouldn't make much difference.
What surprised Logan was that Robin didn't appear at Whiskey Peak, unlike in the original story. He wasn't sure what had gone wrong in the timeline.
In fact, Robin had already seen their wanted posters. When she saw the images, she immediately recognized Logan and Nami. One had a bounty of 30 million Berries, and the other had 50 million. Although her bounty was higher than both of theirs, those who knew the backstory understood why.
The other two, however, had genuine fighting strength, especially Nami, who was a Rumble-Rumble Fruit user.
Her Flower-Flower Fruit powers couldn't handle that, so she promptly retreated.
With the girls' laughter and cheer, the Going Merry set sail once more.
After dinner, the girls tacitly left the room.
Valentine entered her quarters with a nervous feeling. This was the first time she had lived on a ship with so many people. It felt strange.
Before the door was fully closed, Logan walked in right after her.
"Captain… is there something you need?!" Valentine's heart jumped, and she instinctively swallowed, her chest rising and falling quickly.
"You're not a child; don't play dumb!"
"It's late, and we're alone. What do you think I want to do?" Logan skillfully shut the door and got straight to the point.
Valentine instinctively backed away. Of course, she knew, but did he have to be so impatient?! It was only the first day.
Logan didn't care about the timing. His hand reached out, and the thrilling touch made Valentine's body tremble.
Valentine bit her lip. She had betrayed Crocodile, and her only chance of survival now was to follow Logan.
With that thought, Valentine tossed her hat aside, raised her right foot high, and pinned Logan against the wall, striking a kabedon pose.
Their faces slowly moved closer. Valentine curved her lips into a seductive smile, and her delicate hand gently lifted Logan's chin. She whispered in a charming voice, "Captain, please take care of me."
"....."