At the lively banquet, Luffy and Usopp stood on the table, clowning around.
With a pair of chopsticks stuck up his nostrils and a dustpan in his hands, Usopp danced a strange dance, making Kaya and Genzo laugh.
"That captain of ours is such a goof."
Nami sighed helplessly. "Speaking of which, where are we going next?"
"You're not going to use that trick again, are you?" Zoro couldn't help glancing at Lina.
He still remembered how Lina had once told Luffy to point at a spot on the map at random, and they'd ended up making Syrup Village their destination.
"...What trick?"
"Ahem. I've already got an idea for our next stop."
Lina yawned, then said under Nami's puzzled gaze, "Don't you think our ship is missing an important crewmate?"
"You mean that, right?"
"Yeah, the ship really does need someone for that position."
Zoro and Nami stroked their chins and nodded.
"You guys think so too?"
Hearing that, Luffy came over with a grin and looked around at them. "Then it's settled! We're going to find a musician!"
"A cook, a cook!"
"If you're not going to use your brain, you might as well donate it!"
"Speaking of cooks..."
Lina paused and lit a cigarette. "The Baratie. Let's go there."
"But it's already close to the Grand Line. Before that, I'm thinking of visiting the Konomi Islands to find Arlong."
"The Konomi Islands?"
"Where's that?"
"Arlong!!!"
While the others looked confused, Nami cried out in shock.
She hadn't expected to hear that name from Lina.
"Arlong"—those two syllables were practically a nightmare to her. Every time she heard them, fear and hatred welled up inside her.
She would never forget the day Arlong had killed Bellemere with his own hands to protect her and Genzo.
"Nami, what's wrong? Do you know this Arlong?"
Seeing that Nami looked troubled, Luffy asked her.
Nami's face darkened, and she fell silent. The lively atmosphere suddenly grew quiet.
Lina was the first to break the silence.
"Arlong used to be a member of some fish-man pirate crew on the Grand Line..."
She slowly explained to Luffy and the others how Arlong had come to the East Blue and established his brutal rule over the Konomi Islands...
"He sounds like a real bastard. Lina, Nami, do you know him?"
Luffy asked in confusion, and even Nami turned to look at Lina.
She wondered why Lina wanted to find Arlong. Was she in league with him?
"What are you thinking?"
Noticing Nami's strange look, Lina explained, "Have you forgotten what I can do? I'm just a little tempted by his body."
"Oh, I see."
Luffy grinned in understanding. "Then let's go beat Arlong up first and help Lina collect a new monster!"
"They're undead, not monsters!"
"Hey, wait!"
Nami grew anxious. "Do you even know how strong Arlong is? He's—"
She suddenly stopped. Arlong's strength was already deeply etched in her mind.
Over the years, so many Marines had tried to catch him, only to be sunk along with their ships before they could even see him.
Hearing that they planned to go after Arlong had shocked her.
But...
Nami looked up at the others.
Luffy, Zoro, Lina... and Lina's undead had faced Kuro, who had a 16-million-berry bounty, with such ease.
If it were them, could they...? Nami couldn't help thinking.
Could they really defeat Arlong?
If they could, the villagers of Cocoyasi Village would be freed from Arlong's endless, dark rule.
No, that wouldn't do.
If they failed, Arlong was cruel enough to kill them all.
Nami was torn. She had made a deal with Arlong: once she saved up a hundred million, she could buy Cocoyasi Village from him.
But a hundred million! Even after all these years, it still seemed impossibly far away.
"Hey, Nami, what's wrong with you?"
"You've been acting strange this whole time."
The others were confused. Aside from Lina, none of them knew about Nami's history with Arlong.
"I know Arlong..."
Nami decided to tell them the truth.
Through gritted teeth, she told them about her past.
It turned out that many years ago, after Arlong and his crew arrived in the East Blue, they used their overwhelming strength to rule the Konomi Islands. Everyone had to pay a fee to buy their lives, and her hometown, Cocoyasi Village, was one of the islands' villages...
"So that's why you became a thief?"
From Nami's deal with Arlong, Zoro had more or less guessed why she'd gone out to sea.
Luffy looked furious. "That bastard! I've decided—we're going to find Arlong next!"
"Wait, you still don't understand! Arlong is—"
"Don't try to talk us out of it, Nami."
Lina cut her off. "No matter what, we already consider you our navigator."
"If one of our crewmates gets bullied and we don't go settle the score..."
"...Can we even call ourselves pirates?"
"And with Arlong still around, you wouldn't be able to travel with us in peace anyway."
Lina put out her cigarette and stood, looking down at Nami.
"Luffy can't stand him, I want to collect his template, and he's bullied you."
"Any one of those reasons is enough for us to beat him up. That's how pirates do things."
Nami covered her mouth. She was used to getting by on her own.
She'd never imagined that, after Bellemere's death, she might find people she could rely on. Tears welled in her eyes.
"...Thank you."
"Waaah... That's so touching!"
Usopp was bawling. "One day, I'm going to set sail too and become pirates like you!"
"What? You're coming too?"
"Huh?"
At Luffy's words, Usopp stared at him in bewilderment.
"I'm pretty sure I already invited you."
"Huh? Wait, were you serious? You weren't joking?"
"Yeah, I was serious."
Luffy grinned. "I like you."
Usopp looked around at them, dumbfounded.
"What are you standing there for?"
Lina lit another cigarette and teased Usopp.
"Get back and pack your things. We're setting sail as soon as we finish eating. Miss the ship, and there won't be another one!"
"W-wait!"
Usopp jumped up and hurried out.
Lina glanced at Kaya and teased, "Sorry for stealing your boyfriend. You don't blame us, do you?"
"N-no... Not at all."
Kaya blushed and stammered, "I always knew Usopp would set sail someday."
Though Kaya said that, a hint of sadness still showed in her eyes.
Soon, they finished eating and headed to the harbor, led by Kaya and Merry.
Usopp had arrived ahead of them. A single-masted sailing ship was moored nearby.
At the bow was a white sheep's head. A huge mast rose from the deck, with a triangular sail at the stern and a two-story cabin.
"Although this ship looks a little old-fashioned, I designed it myself."
Merry gestured toward the ship and introduced it to them. "It's a fast-sailing ship. I named it the Going Merry..."
While Merry was introducing the ship to Nami, the others had already hurried aboard.
"Hahaha, this is awesome!"
Luffy lay across the sheep's head, wrapping his arms and legs around it. He looked up and laughed. "This is going to be my throne from now on!"
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