"Hey, Marimo." Sanji suddenly turned to Zoro, "Got a light?"
Zoro rolled his eyes but still tossed over a lighter. Sanji elegantly lit a new cigarette, taking a deep drag: "I'll give you three seconds to jump into the sea yourself." He glanced at the system interface, "Or I can help you."
Kuroobi let out a grating laugh: "Damn it, ignoring me, a mere human..."
"Three." Sanji's figure suddenly vanished.
"Two." When he reappeared, he was already above Kuroobi's head.
"One." A burning shoe stomped down heavily!
"Fish-Man Karate..."
Kuroobi hadn't even finished his move before he was kicked into the sea, splashing up a huge amount of water.
The deck was silent for a few seconds.
Usopp tremblingly pointed at the sea: "He... didn't he just say he was going to charge a toll?"
Luffy finally swallowed the meat in his mouth: "So... there's a village ahead? With meat to eat?!"
Zoro sheathed his sword: "Idiot, is that the point?"
Ron's God's Eye perception had already detected abnormalities on the distant island: dozens of fish-man auras, and... a familiar short-haired orange-haired girl.
The corners of his mouth curved slightly upwards: "Prepare to dock. It seems our Navigator Miss has run into trouble."
Sanji, however, stared at the system interface, having been startled. That guy suddenly jumped out, scaring him so much he almost clicked to use the Transparency Experience Card!
Damn guy, truly damned!
Wait!
He seemed to have heard something!
"Navigator Miss?!"
Sanji's ears instantly perked up, completely unaware that the cigarette in his mouth had fallen onto his shoe. He darted in front of Ron, his eyes having turned into exaggerated heart shapes: "Vice-Captain! Did you just say the words 'Navigator Miss'?!"
Ron's sea-blue cape gently swayed in the wind, a faint smile on his lips: "That's right, on the island ahead is our future Navigator—Miss Nami."
"Navigator... Nami... Miss..." Sanji swayed as if drunk, two fountains of nosebleed spray from his nostrils, "What a wonderful combination of words!"
Usopp's long nose twitched: "Hey, hey, are you sure you won't die from that nosebleed..."
"That doesn't matter anymore!" Sanji suddenly stood up with renewed vigor, placing his right hand on his chest and performing a perfect knight's bow, "On the open sea, beautiful ladies don't need any reason to board a ship! This is common sense!"
Usopp looked at Sanji's bleeding volume in shock, exclaiming: "The 'Combat Endurance' system is great, it's like having a locked HP cheat, you just can't die!"
Luffy hung upside down from the mast, his rubber face close to Ron: "Big Brother Ron! Do we have a new crewmate?" His eyes sparkled, "Will she make delicious food like Sanji?"
Ron gently shook his head, his gaze directed at the distant, vaguely visible outline of the island: "A Navigator is an indispensable guide on the open sea, but right now, our Navigator Miss has run into some trouble..."
"What?!" Sanji's golden hair suddenly stood on end, visible flames of anger burning around him, "How dare they put a beautiful lady in distress?!" He kicked the rudder, "Full speed ahead! Saving the Navigator is every knight's duty!"
Zoro's three swords clanged to the ground: "This idiot..."
"Acceleration device activated!" Usopp fumbled to pull down a lever, and the stern of the ship suddenly shot out exaggerated sparks—this was his latest invention, the "Super Thruster," which only needed two cannonballs to propel the ship forward at extreme speed!
The Going Merry shot towards Cocoyashi Village like an arrow from a bow, the waves at its bow rising more than ten meters high. Luffy excitedly sat on the sheep's head figurehead: "Wahahaha! This is so thrilling!"
Ron's God's Eye perception locked onto the short-haired orange-haired figure on the island.
He could "see" Nami being surrounded by a group of fish-men, and he could "hear" her rapid heartbeat. Further away, the spire of Arlong Park shimmered with a cold light under the sun.
....
Cocoyashi Village, Arlong Park
The scorching sun baked the central plaza of Arlong Park. Nami's orange hair was soaked with sweat, clinging to her pale cheeks.
Her fists were clenched white, her nails digging deep into her palms, yet she felt no pain.
The empty box spread out before her rustled in the sea breeze. That was the proof of freedom she had exchanged for eight years, countless lies, and blood.
"Why?!" Nami's voice was hoarse beyond recognition, "I clearly saved up 100 million Berries!" She suddenly pointed to the iron box in the corner of the plaza, "The money was clearly all here! Why is it gone?!"
Arlong sat on his tall throne, his serrated nose gleaming coldly in the sunlight. He leisurely toyed with an orange emblem—that was the most cherished relic of Nami's adoptive mother, Bellemere.
"Little Thief Cat~" Arlong's voice was like a blunt knife cutting meat, "Did you think you were the only one keeping track all these years?"
He suddenly crushed the emblem, "Cocoyashi Village's annual 'protection fee' interest is 20%, calculated with compound interest..." The fish-man accountant, Hatchan, timely handed over the ledger, "You still owe me 380 million Berries."
"You're lying!" Nami trembled all over, her map needle sliding from her sleeve, "You clearly said 100 million Berries back then..."
"Back then?" Arlong suddenly leaned forward, his shadow completely engulfing Nami, "Back then I also said that once you join the Arlong Pirates, you can't leave."
His sharp nail lifted Nami's chin, "Your village has survived until now entirely because of your hands that can draw sea charts."
The surrounding fish-men burst into laughter. Kissing fish-man Chuu deliberately mimicked Nami's tone: "'I want to buy the village~'" Octopus fish-man Hatchan clumsily imitated counting money, drawing more mockery.
Nami's vision blurred. Every sleepless night over the past eight years, every scar left from stealing, every fake smile practiced in front of the mirror... all turned to ashes.
"What if I insist on leaving?" Nami suddenly looked up, the tears in her eyes dried by anger.
Arlong's smile vanished. The air in the plaza instantly solidified, and the fish-men's laughter ceased abruptly.
"Then I'll let you watch with your own eyes..." Arlong slowly stood up, his body casting a shadow of death, "How I nail Nojiko to the signpost in Cocoyashi Village..."
His serrated blade pointed towards the orange grove, "How I make Bellemere's orange trees bear the heads of the villagers."
Nami's pupils contracted to pinpricks. She seemed to be back in that rainy day, Bellemere's warm blood mixed with rain, seeping into her trembling fingers...
"So, smart Little Thief Cat~" Arlong sat down again, tossing her a new contract, "Keep drawing sea charts. This time... it's a lifetime contract."
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