Arlong's base.
A fish-man came running up to Arlong, who was eating slices of beef, panting heavily.
"Big Brother Arlong, Nami is back."
Hearing that Nami had returned, Arlong quickly broke into a smile.
"Sha~hahahahaha! I wonder how much money our beautiful surveyor brought back this time."
The fish-man subordinate hurriedly replied.
"I don't know exactly how much, but she didn't come straight here. She went home first with several pirates."
Upon hearing this, Arlong frowned. He propped one side of his face on his fist and sat sideways on a stone bench.
"Pirates?"
After adjusting his posture, Arlong fell into thought.
In the past, Nami had always returned home directly with the pirate treasure or money she had stolen.
Yet this time, she had returned with a group of pirates.
There could only be two possibilities.
First, Nami had not betrayed Arlong. In that case, the most likely reason was this.
Nami had failed to steal the treasure, been captured by those pirates, and threatened into handing over more treasure.
Then, Nami had deliberately led them into Fish-Man Pirates territory, hoping the Fish-Man Pirates would take them down.
Second, Nami had betrayed Arlong and found these people to help her escape the Fish-Man Pirates' control.
"Sha~hahahahaha! No matter what, it seems we'll have to pay Nami's home a visit."
Arlong's expression suddenly darkened.
"I hope you won't betray us, Nami. Otherwise—
Every resident in your village will die because of you. Sha~hahahahaha!"
At that, Arlong revealed a wicked, sinister smile.
With that said, Arlong led Hachi the octopus fish-man, Kuroobi the whale fish-man, Chuu the kissing gourami fish-man, and a crowd of subordinates.
Together, they headed toward Nami's home.
Cocoyasi Village. Nami was leading everyone toward her house.
Just then, a man wearing a brown suit and a police cap with a spinning windmill on it stepped out of his house and happened to spot Nami and the others in the distance.
Village officer Gen had never seen Nami return with a group of people.
And since he knew Nami repeatedly went out to sea to steal pirates' treasure, he immediately sensed that something was wrong.
He ran straight to Nami's side.
"Nami! You're back!"
The moment Nami heard the voice behind her, she immediately knew who it was.
She greeted Gen with a cheerful smile.
"Mr. Gen, it's been a long time."
Gen looked cautiously at the people beside Nami.
He leaned close to Nami's ear and quietly asked, "Who are they? Are they dangerous?"
The moment Can Yue saw him, he recognized him as Gen, the village officer who treated Nami like his own child.
Gen's actions made it obvious that he was worried whether Can Yue and the others might harm Nami.
He had even come to Nami's side without regard for his own safety.
Because Nami had people like Gen, who cared for her like a father, as well as her sister Nojiko and other villagers who cared for her unconditionally.
She had been able to endure humiliation and hold on under the Arlong Pirates for eight years.
These people are worth protecting.
Thinking of that, Can Yue sank into his memories.
Before he had crossed over, he too had met several people who cared deeply about him.
Unfortunately, the era had been too chaotic, and he had not been strong enough back then. Those people who cared about him had all met with misfortune.
The pain of that helplessness had tormented Can Yue for a long time.
With that memory, Can Yue pulled his thoughts back to reality.
He thought to himself.
Nami, I won't let you keep suffering like this.
Can Yue silently swore that he would settle the Arlong incident once and for all.
Nami was very happy to see Gen.
With a smile on her face, she explained to Mr. Gen.
"They're all my friends and companions now. They are..."
As Nami introduced everyone.
Can Yue frowned, suddenly realizing a problem.
Their group had just walked into the village in broad daylight.
According to his memories, every village here was monitored by Arlong's lackeys.
If the news got out, Arlong would most likely make a move.
If they handled it poorly, these kind villagers would either become hostages for Arlong and his men or be accidentally injured in the battle.
Sigh, he had relaxed too much and overlooked something so important.
There were two solutions now.
First, Can Yue could use his Observation Haki and sense of smell to find Arlong and the others, who might already be on their way, and wipe them out directly.
Second, they could gather the villagers together and wait for Arlong to arrive with his men, then publicly execute Arlong in front of Nami and every villager.
After thinking for a while, Can Yue decided on the second option.
That way, he could not only protect the residents with absolute certainty, but also let Nami and all the villagers vent the anger they had built up over the years.
Having made his decision, Can Yue looked at Nami and offered his suggestion.
"Nami, call all the villagers over to your house for a meal."
The moment Zoro, Sanji, Nami, and the others heard that, they were confused.
Can Yue had always been solitary and generally avoided contact with crowds.
Even on the ship, he often stayed alone on the deck.
Why would he say something like that?
But since Can Yue had said it, there was probably a reason.
Luffy, on the other hand, became even more excited when he heard it.
"Are we having a banquet? Hahahaha! Let's get wild!"
The moment he finished speaking, Can Yue knocked him unconscious with a black fist.
Zoro reflexively touched his own head and asked Can Yue why he had hit him.
Can Yue replied, "Too noisy. I couldn't hold back."
Although they did not really understand why Can Yue wanted all the villagers to go to Nami's house.
The Straw Hat Crew trusted Can Yue almost completely.
None of them objected, nor did they dare argue.
They simply waited for Nami's decision.
After pondering for a moment, Nami suddenly realized she had made a huge mistake.
She knew very well that the Arlong Pirates had arranged many people to monitor each village.
And she had openly brought a group of pirates back to the village.
No matter how Arlong saw it, he would definitely send people over.
If a conflict broke out, the villagers would become hostages the Arlong Pirates could use to threaten Nami and the others.
At that thought, Nami smacked her forehead and looked at Can Yue gratefully.
"Can Yue, thank you."
"It's nothing."
Then, Nami asked Gen to gather all the villagers.
Gen did not think much of it. As long as it was something Nami wanted, the village would find a way to help her.
Especially when it was only a simple meal.
Using Nami treating everyone as the reason, Gen began calling out to the villagers.
The villagers all knew how much Nami had done for them over the past eight years.
How could they let Nami spend money all by herself?
Very quickly, more than a hundred villagers voluntarily brought all kinds of ingredients to the area around Nami's house.
A beautiful blue-haired woman in a vest and hot pants was watering the orange trees when she saw such a large crowd approaching. She was so startled that she dropped her watering can.
"Mr. Gen, what's going on?"
The short blue-haired beauty's eyes moved as she looked over the crowd, and she suddenly spotted a familiar face among them.
Nojiko excitedly rushed over and hugged Nami.
After the two sisters shared a brief affectionate reunion, Nami excitedly introduced the companions at her side to Nojiko and all the villagers as if showing them off.
"This idiot who's been knocked out is my captain now—Luffy."
That first sentence stunned not only Nojiko and the villagers.
Even Can Yue glanced sideways. By calling Luffy her captain, Nami had clearly accepted her identity as a pirate.
This was the first time she had said something like that since boarding the ship.
Nami has let go of so many things these past few days.
Nami still seemed very excited. She spread her arms wide and continued introducing everyone to the villagers with a bright smile.
"This handsome guy with waist-length white hair and a mask is sort of my teacher now. If he takes off that mask, hehehe, every woman here will go crazy."
Hearing that, Nojiko looked at Nami with disgust. "You little girl, aren't you exaggerating a bit too much? Do you have a crush on him?"
Gen's reaction to those words was even bigger than Nojiko's. He looked at Can Yue cautiously and examined him from head to toe, causing Can Yue to lose control of his killing intent.
A bone-chilling cold suddenly enveloped Gen and Nojiko.
Although Can Yue quickly realized he had lost control and immediately suppressed his killing intent, the two were still frightened into trembling slightly.
Seeing that, Nami scolded Can Yue.
Can Yue did not argue. His reaction really had been a little excessive.
Although Nojiko had been frightened at first, once she recovered, she became intensely curious about Can Yue's terrifying aura.
This man is so mysterious, so thrilling!
Nami did not notice anything strange about Nojiko and continued with her hands on her hips.
"As for the others, I'll introduce them to you later. Everyone, let's get the food ready first."
Zoro, Usopp, Sanji, Johnny, Joseph, and Chouchou all cursed, their faces full of helplessness: ┐(′?_?)┌
The difference in treatment was far too obvious.
Amid the lively commotion.
This banquet welcoming Nami home was about to begin.
Can Yue watched the scene with a faint smile.
"This will definitely be a banquet where all of you can relax and laugh.
Arlong will be the main course!"
Before you continue