Cocoyasi Village (Thanks to Not Megatron for the 15,000 Qidian coin tip!)

"I've been messing around outside?"

Ma Qiao finished the giant bento box Vivi had prepared, licking up the last bit of soup, and then replied casually:

"First of all, I'm not married. This meal was prepared for me by my lovely disciple!"

"Secondly, I was fishing all night, and I even caught a Mermaid, you know that!"

"Hmph, I'm human, not some Mermaid!"

Nami gritted her teeth and said, "Fish-Man or Mermaid, who wants to become that kind of thing!"

In the East Blue, there are also stories of Mermaids, and many people even know the legend of Fish-Man Island.

Nami, in particular, knew that Mermaids and Fish-Men were a race that lived together.

Mentioning them, she instinctively clenched her fists, her fingers digging into her flesh, trembling slightly.

However, Nami quickly regained her composure, acting as if nothing had happened, and sweetly nuzzled against Ma Qiao: "If you want, I can dress up as a Mermaid too! Just take off these annoying handcuffs, and I can do anything..."

"Oh?"

Ma Qiao's eyes lit up. "Really, anything is possible?"

"Certainly!"

Nami nodded, a hint of allure appearing on her youthful face. "Whether it's Mermaid, a nurse, or a schoolgirl, I'm fine with it!"

That's wonderful!

Ma Qiao picked up the handcuff key and waved it in front of her. "Customer service, I'm currently short a female customer service representative!"

"Female customer service? What's that?"

Nami was stunned.

Are city dwellers this adept at having fun now?

Having lived in the countryside of East Blue for a long time, I've seen quite a lot, but I've never heard of female customer service representatives before.

"What? You can't handle it?"

Ma Qiao shoved the keys back into his pocket, Nami quickly struggled, saying, "Sure, sure, customer service? I've been playing role-playing games with my sister since I was three!"

You have an older sister?

"Oh, well... my sister is a huge fat woman who weighs 280 pounds, and she never brushes her teeth, so they're very yellow... You don't want to see her!"

"I didn't say I wanted to see her."

Ma Qiao shook his head and silently pressed the record button on the Big Bird Den Den Mushi.

Ma Qiao thought Miss Nojiko would be very happy to hear this precious recording.

In fact, since last night, Ma Qiao hasn't believed a single word Nami has said.

For Cat Burglar, lying is as natural as drinking water; it's almost an instinct.

But precisely because of this, isn't she the best candidate for a female customer service representative?

If it were Vivi, she simply couldn't do something like that!

Shaking his head, Ma Qiao moved a stool over and sat down next to the handcuffed Nami, beginning his fishing session for the day.

A gentle sea breeze blows, and the water glistens.

The "Twitch," having undergone simple repairs, sailed southeast with its sails billowing.

They didn't encounter any extreme weather along the way, so Ma Qiao didn't have a chance to test Nami's sailing skills.

The only places they passed through were a few scattered uninhabited islands.

Merchant ships passing by, upon seeing the wrecked naval vessel, all quickly turned their rudders to avoid it.

This area is already under the jurisdiction of the 16th Branch.

Merchant ships viewed warships as bandits, which speaks volumes about the reputation of the 16th Branch.

Nami leaned against the railing, giving it all a cold laugh.

But gradually, she stopped smiling.

Where are you going?

Nami looked at the increasingly familiar scenery around her and asked with a frown.

"Cocoyasi Village, do you know that place?" Ma Qiao turned his head, revealing a smile as bright as the rising sun on the horizon.

"Nami..."

"Um?"

Do you think it will rain today?

"How could I... Well, it's definitely possible it will rain today."

The orange-haired girl twitched her nose; the sudden increase in moisture concentration and the low air pressure indicated that a heavy rain was imminent.

In fact, from a very young age, Nami discovered that she could always tell the weather changes earlier than others, even the most experienced sailors.

This was the first time someone had predicted the arrival of heavy rain before he did.

How did you know?

Nami couldn't help but ask curiously.

How would I know?

Ma Qiao was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I just think a heavy rain would be more fitting for the ceremony."

Nami:???

Cocoyasi.

A typical small island in the East Blue with nothing particularly special about it except for oranges and windmills.

Nami spent a happy time here with her sister Nojiko and her adoptive mother Bellemere.

Until that man appeared.

Fish-Man - Arlong.

He ruined everything.

This destroyed Nami's originally poor but beautiful childhood.

Nami stepped barefoot onto the soft sands of Cocoyasi, Nami expression as somber as the sky.

Thick cumulonimbus clouds lingered over this area of the sea, and distant rumbles of thunder could even be heard.

"Ma Qiao, what exactly are you and these navy men doing on this island?"

Nami, wearing a large, boyfriend-style white shirt, asked in a low voice, "This should just be a worthless agricultural island."

You'll find out soon enough.

Ma Qiao took out his watch and checked the time. "But we need to wait for a few people first... Also..."

Glancing at the lush greenery covering the mountains in the distance, Ma Qiao shook his head and said, "No agriculture, no stability; no commerce, no prosperity. I have never believed that agriculture is worthless."

"Heh heh, nobles linger at balls, the wealthy squander their gold and silver, pirates indulge in wine and meat, while the peasants..."

Nami sneered, "No matter how carefully you take care of your orchard, the money you earn won't be enough to survive!"

At that moment, the image of her foster mother being trampled underfoot by Arlong flashed through Nami's mind once again.

If only then...

If Bellemere had had a little more money back then...

Or if the villagers had just received a little more money, she might have survived...

"Huh? Why are you crying?"

"No! It's just snot! Only an idiot like you would handcuff a beautiful girl like me to the deck all night! I have a cold!"

Drink more hot water!

"..."

Nami turned away speechlessly.

She seriously wondered what kind of crazy woman would make a love-filled bento box for this guy!

When it comes to cooking, Nami is quite skilled.

However, she swore that she would never cook for such a jerk!

At this time, all the Root Division crew members on the "Good Guy Twitch" and more than two hundred sailors from Morgan's unit had disembarked and lined up.

Nami leaned against Ma Qiao, trying her best to hide herself.

She noticed that some villagers from Cocoyasi Village were anxiously looking around on the street in the distance.

Although it wasn't a pirate crew, the sudden arrival of so many Marines, especially the infamous 16th Branch Marines, caused great concern among everyone.

Nami doesn't want the villagers to see her like this.