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Chapter 13: The Pirate with 20 Million
1,260 Words
The three pirates who were leading the way recognized the orange-haired girl at a glance and immediately shouted in surprise and anger.
"It's that woman! The one who stole our treasure and our ship!"
"Damn it, she even dared to steal Lord Buggy's nautical chart!"
After they shouted, Zoro and Luffy, who were initially confused, finally realized what was going on.
This orange-haired girl was the female con artist the three pirates had been talking about.
"Interesting." Zoro's lips curled up slightly as he watched the large group of people relentlessly chasing her.
He had no good feelings towards the pirate crew that plundered the town, but he actually admired the girl who dared to steal Buggy's nautical chart.
He thought to himself that if she asked him for help, he wouldn't mind helping her.
But who knew.
Nami's eyes lit up the moment she saw Zoro. She ran towards him at full speed, excitedly shouting:
"Boss, you've finally come to pick me up!"
Boss?
_ Zoro was taken aback. Before he could figure out who this "boss" was, the girl swept past him like the wind and stuffed something into his arms.
"Boss, these henchmen are all yours!"
"Don't even think about running away, you female liar!"
The three pirates who had been deceived by Nami rushed forward in a fit of rage when they saw her charging toward them.
However, Nami was exceptionally agile. She easily dodged their attacks and continued to rush past without stopping.
Soon.
She saw Ganyu and Luffy behind Zoro and the others.
When she saw the innocent-looking boy in the straw hat and the blue-haired girl with her mouth slightly open in surprise.
Nami was taken aback for a moment, a hint of distress flashing in her eyes.
Haven't these two young people figured out the situation yet?
Didn't they see that the green-haired man I "dragged into trouble" is about to fight the pirates?
That's right.
Nami mistook Zoro, who was leading three pirates, and Ganyu and Luffy, who were standing behind him, as two different groups of people.
Zoro, with his fierce expression and three pirate "underlings," was mistaken by her for another group of pirates.
In her eyes, Ganyu and Luffy, who looked harmless, became innocent civilians.
She felt no guilt about dragging her own troubles onto another group of pirates, but if it affected two innocent civilians…
Nami shook her head violently, then a determined look flashed in her eyes.
"Come with me!"
As she brushed past Ganyu and Luffy, she suddenly reached out and grabbed their wrists, pulling them along as she ran wildly.
Luffy and Ganyu, for some reason, did not resist at all and let her drag them along.
A short while later.
Tap-tap-tap-tap…
As the sound of hurried footsteps faded into the distance and the dust settled, the three of them had vanished without a trace.
"Hm?"
Zoro frowned, looking in the direction the three had left with a hint of doubt.
Did those two just run off with that woman?
Didn't we agree to go and defeat Buggy together?
Wait…
Something seems off.
Zoro turned his head stiffly, only to find that he was surrounded by people.
One… two… ten… thirty…
In the blink of an eye, fifty or sixty pirates occupied every passable corner of the street, completely surrounding him.
Without exception, these pirates were all eyeing something in his possession.
"Could it be?!"
Zoro gasped. He looked down and was shocked to find that he was holding a nautical chart!
What?!
That damned woman actually gave me this "stolen goods"!
A bead of cold sweat dripped down Zoro's forehead. He now knew perfectly well that he had been framed.
Moreover, the woman who framed him had also abducted two of his companions.
In other words, he now had to face an entire enemy pirate crew all by himself.
BOOM!!!
As thunderous artillery fire erupted behind them, a fierce battle ensued.
"Wait a minute, why are we running away?"
Luffy finally realized what was happening. He abruptly stopped, grabbing Nami, who was still trying to escape.
His strength far surpassed Nami's. If he didn't want to run, Nami absolutely could not drag him.
"Haven't you realized yet? All those people chasing me are pirates!"
Nami was surprised by his strength but still said irritably:
"If those guys catch up with us, we're dead!"
"But I don't know those guys. Why are they bothering me?" Luffy was puzzled. He was a pirate himself, what was there to be afraid of?
Upon hearing this, Nami patted Luffy on the shoulder and said in the tone of someone who had been through it all:
"Pirates are unreasonable creatures. They are greedy, vicious, and violent. They don't care if you've offended them or not. They'll kill you with a single slash just for passing by."
"You were hurt by pirates before?" Luffy's eyes darted around, and he got straight to the point.
Ganyu glanced at him in surprise, feeling that this guy was sometimes frighteningly perceptive.
"I…" Nami froze, as if recalling some nightmare, her eyes filled with both fear and hatred.
After a while.
"I have a relative who died at their hands," she said calmly.
The air fell silent immediately after she spoke.
Anyone could hear the sadness and resentment hidden beneath her calm tone.
Ganyu and Luffy stared at her blankly, unsure of what to say.
"In short, you'd better stay away from pirates in the future, or you'll end up like me."
Nami pointed to Zoro, who was already engaged in a fierce battle with the Buggy Pirates behind her, signaling Luffy and Ganyu to continue their escape with her while they had the chance.
She had thought that her tragic experience would instill fear of pirates in the two young people.
Unexpectedly, their reactions were completely beyond her expectations.
Not only did they show no fear, but they even looked at her with a strange expression.
"Is it possible that we're pirates too?" Luffy and Ganyu exchanged a glance, then Luffy spread his hands and asked.
"What?!"
Nami's expression changed abruptly, her gaze sweeping back and forth between Ganyu, Luffy, and Zoro, who was fighting fiercely.
A moment later, her eyes filled with hostility.
"So you're all in cahoots! You're pirates too!"
"That's right! And we're pirates with a bounty of over 20 million!" Ganyu smiled lightly.
The emphasis on their bounty amount was a prelude to their later assistance to Nami in fighting Arlong.
Nami's village, Cocoyasi, was occupied by a group of fish-man pirates for ten years. The leader of those pirates was named Arlong.
He was a pirate with a bounty of 20 million, and his strength exceeded that amount. He was an absolute monster in the East Blue.
Nami had made a deal with him: if she could raise 100 million Berries, she could buy Cocoyasi Village from him, allowing the residents to return to a free and peaceful life.
Nami firmly believed in this and had worked towards this goal for ten years.
But Ganyu knew that even if she gathered ten billion or a hundred billion Berries, it wouldn't be of any use.
In the original story, Nami collected 100 million Berries, but Arlong colluded with a corrupt Marine, Captain Nezumi, to have the Navy steal it all.
What Arlong truly valued was Nami's talent for drawing nautical charts. He would never let her leave until he obtained the charts he desired.