At that moment, a dark shadow suddenly flew across the sky above the ship.
A passing shadow caught Nami's attention, and she reached out her hand to wave at the sky.
As if receiving an order, the shadow turned and landed on the ship's bow railing.
A white hat, human-like expressions, and a bag hanging around its neck all revealed its identity.
It was a News Coo.
"I'll take one." A voice called out from behind her.
Nami pursed her lips, paid 100 berries, and took a newspaper.
As the News Coo flew away, she casually opened the newspaper. After all, she had paid for it.
As was customary, several bounty posters tucked inside fell out—these were the latest posters for famous pirates in the East Blue.
Nami crouched down to pick them up and then froze, because Hiroto's face was the first thing she saw.
Well, his photo.
[Beheader Swordsman Hiroto]
[Bounty: 7 million]
[Dead or Alive]
"7 million berries for a first-time bounty."
Nami was beyond shocked. In her experience, there were almost no pirates in the East Blue whose starting bounty was several million.
She couldn't help but look up at the deck, where Hiroto's figure flickered with the wind, and his whistling slashes occasionally shot out toward the sea.
Recalling the moments she had spent with him, the words that came to mind were: powerful, rational, hardworking, and extremely talented.
That was the impression he had left on her.
'If he doesn't die halfway, he might become a big shot in the future.' Nami thought silently.
"What's wrong?"
Sensing something, Hiroto sheathed his sword and walked over.
"I think you'll be interested in this." Nami stood up and handed him the bounty poster.
Hiroto took it and looked, his eyebrows twitching slightly.
"Tch, Ryder's network must have exerted some influence. A 7 million bounty... probably because of Alvida. It's within a reasonable range, which is good. At least it won't attract widespread Marine attention."
Hiroto didn't care much about it and tucked the bounty poster away.
After a moment of thought, he said, "I'll give you a sea chart later. Use it to plan the voyage and get us there as fast as possible."
Nami pursed her lips, deciding to add another layer of ruthlessness.
"By the way, whoever performs better during this period will have priority selection rights."
"What?"
Nami was startled, her eyes suddenly lighting up, then she asked suspiciously, "Are you making Carina compete with me?"
Hiroto smiled and shook his head without saying a word.
"You haven't told her yet, have you?"
Nami seemed to understand something, her eyes sparkling.
"Depends on your performance."
"Leave it to me, Captain."
Nami beamed and glanced casually into the cabin.
Although she couldn't see Carina cooking, a hint of triumph flashed in her eyes.
They weren't purely companions, they were more like mutually beneficial partners.
Sometimes they would even intentionally set each other up. They competed more than they cooperated.
I have what you don't—that was Nami's victory over Carina.
"Dinner's ready!"
Carina's voice arrived along with her figure.
She saw Nami and Hiroto standing close together at the bow. Both of them looked at her because of her voice, and Nami's expression seemed a bit off.
A trace of suspicion flashed in Carina's eyes as she asked in a casual tone, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing!"
Nami said loudly as she walked forward a few steps, waving the newspaper in her hand.
"I just bought a newspaper. Oh, and by the way, I saw Hiroto's bounty poster. He's officially a pirate now. Despite it being his first bounty, the amount is as high as 7 million berries."
"7 million?"
Carina's attention was diverted, and she looked at Hiroto in surprise.
A 7 million berries bounty for the first time, even if it was achieved by stepping over Alvida, was an amazing start.
With another 3 million berries, he'd be a ten-million-class pirate.
Keep in mind, the World Government claimed the East Blue was the most peaceful and safe sea, and ten-million-class pirates were few and far between.
"Yes."
Hiroto nodded, looking at the relieved Nami with a strange expression.
The competitive atmosphere between Nami and Carina was, how should he put it...
Nami had reacted quickly in this round. Carina didn't even know she had already lost a point to Nami.
But it didn't matter.
Hiroto would 'accidentally' let her understand these things.
The reason he hadn't told Carina was partly because of Nami's talent and partly to deliberately create an unfair environment to stir up the other's anxiety and desire.
After all, when the two competed, he could more easily reap the rewards of their hard work.
...
East Blue.
A pirate ship braved the wind and waves.
On the deck, a man wearing heart-shaped glasses frowned. "Treasure? Don't let it be another baseless rumor, or just some bastard's prank."
"Working hard to find treasure only to open the chest and find a note saying 'You've been tricked!' and some rotten stones... I don't want to experience that a second time. If I do, I swear I'll hypnotize you and make you show off your primitive side in the middle of the street."
"Captain Jango, don't you worry."
"We brothers bought this information from an old friend at a high price."
Buchi and Sham spoke in unison—the key was that they said exactly the same thing.
"Then let me ask you."
Jango's face was dark as he asked impatiently, "What are the specifics?"
"We know the human trafficker Ryder was looking for a treasure located in the waters under the jurisdiction of Marine Base 153. That old man never wakes up early unless there's profit involved, the treasure is definitely real."
This time, only Buchi was speaking.
"Idiot, do you know how large the sea area under a Marine base's jurisdiction is?"
"Don't call us idiots."
Sham said dissatisfiedly, "You're not the only smart one on this ship. Ryder is already dead, killed by his subordinate who took all the treasure. The one who killed him is the newly emerged Beheader Swordsman Hiroto. He also killed Alvida at the same time, so he must know the location of the treasure."
Buchi followed up, "The way I see it, he'll be coming to collect it soon. We can set up lookouts on the nearby islands in advance. As soon as there's news of Hiroto, we can act immediately."
"...Better be."
Jango's brow relaxed, and he didn't object.
After all, the Catman Brothers were very strong, and he wasn't the true Captain, so he had to respect their ideas.
Thinking it over, he added, "Let's get this straight, you can't touch Morgan. If we ruin the Captain's grand plan, we're all dead."
At the mention of the Captain, Buchi and Sham's faces changed, and they quickly nodded.
Soon, the order was given, and the pirate ship began to turn.
"Going to the area under Marine Base 153's jurisdiction?"
Mixed in among the pirates, a pirate named Arno, wearing a pointed hat, had flickering eyes.
He seized a gap to go to a deserted corner and took out a carefully protected den den mushi from his hat to report.
Two minutes later, Arno walked out from the corner and was startled.
Because he happened to run into Jango.
Jango stared at him with a frown and couldn't help but say, "I've been meaning to ask for a long time. Arno, why do you always wear that kind of hat?"
"Because my head is pointed."
Arno smiled bitterly and took off his hat, revealing a protruding skull.
"Maybe my mom took too many supplements when she was pregnant with me. So I have to cover it with a hat, Captain."
A trace of suspicion flashed in Jango's eyes, but he didn't say anything, intending to continue observing this newcomer.