Arlong Park

The group followed Nami quickly into the Orange Garden.

As soon as they entered, they saw a blue-haired girl confronting a group of Marines, her face tense and angry.

"Are you all right, Genzo?"

Nami hurried over to Genzo, then immediately turned to look at the Marines opposite them.

Before she could ask anything, a squinty-eyed Marine officer with three long whiskers on each cheek stepped forward.

"Yeeheeheehee, I'm Colonel Mouse of Marine Branch 16."

"We received a tip that stolen money was being hidden here."

"Now, all of it is being confiscated."

Colonel Mouse wore a sly grin. As he spoke, he gestured behind him, where several of his subordinates were digging up a wooden chest filled with treasure.

Nami's face darkened, but she didn't act rashly. Her thoughts raced:

"Why would the Marines know about this? I've always been careful.

"Besides Genzo, no one knows where the money is hidden, and there's no way Genzo would betray me. Not in a million years.

"Could it be...?"

At the thought, Nami clenched her teeth so hard they nearly cracked. She forced a few words through them. "You bastards!"

"Yeeheeheehee, what are you talking about? I'm afraid I don't quite follow, miss."

"Did Arlong and those pirates send you here?!"

"Hey, hey, hey. Arlong and his crew pay their taxes on time. They're a legitimate organization, not pirates."

"You... What kind of Marines are you?!"

Nami was so furious she could barely speak. Genzo came up beside her and put an arm around her.

He was afraid that if Nami lost her temper, things would take an even worse turn.

"Bzzzzzz!"

Just then, the shrill buzz of a chainsaw suddenly rang out.

Every Marine's gaze snapped toward the sound.

A horrifying demon with three enormous chainsaws growing from its body came hurtling toward them.

"What is that?!"

"Open fire! Stop it!"

The Marines weren't the only ones startled. Nami turned to look at Lina and the others and shouted:

"Wait! If you attack the Marines..."

"Pirates care about that sort of thing?!"

Luffy cut Nami off and charged forward in a fury.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Bullets poured out, but they did nothing to either the Chainsaw Devil or Luffy.

Neither of them slowed down. In the blink of an eye, they were right in front of the Marines.

"Our guns aren't working on them!"

"Damn it! What are those things?!"

"You idiots! Get up there and protect me!"

Colonel Mouse shouted as he stumbled backward in a panic, trying to hide among his men.

But the soldiers were no obstacle at all.

"Gomu Gomu no Whip!"

Luffy stretched out his leg and swept the Marines in front of him aside with a single kick.

The Chainsaw Devil headed straight for Colonel Mouse.

"Bzzzzzz!"

A shrill sound rose behind Colonel Mouse, like fingernails scraping across glass. The grating noise made his skin crawl.

"W-w-wait! Hold on!"

"Who are you people?!"

"I'm a Navy colonel! If you lay a hand on me—"

Squelch!

Before he could finish, the spinning chainsaw slashed across his chest.

A terrible wound appeared in an instant, blood pouring from it.

"AAAH!!!"

"Colonel Mouse!"

The Marines stared in panic as their colonel collapsed to the ground, wailing. Not one of them went to help him.

Fear spread across Colonel Mouse's face. Sitting on the ground, he kicked backward with his legs, scrambling away as he begged:

"Please, don't kill me! I'll give you money! I'll give you lots and lots of money!"

But the Chainsaw Devil said nothing. It only continued to approach him, one slow step at a time.

"Ah!"

"Don't!"

"Stop...!"

The two grotesque chainsaws sent Colonel Mouse from a world of pain and terror to his grave.

"Colonel Mouse is dead!"

"Run!"

"It's a demon! He's a demon!"

As the Marines fled in every direction, Lina recalled the Chainsaw Devil. She had no taste for killing people for fun.

"Let's go. We're heading straight to Arlong. Lead the way, Nami."

Luffy lowered the brim of his straw hat and spoke coldly. It was clear he was in a terrible mood.

"O-okay..."

Nami answered shakily. Everything had happened so fast that she still hadn't fully processed it.

"You were too careless."

Zoro emerged from the orange grove, carrying two fish-men.

They had probably been sent by Arlong to keep an eye on the Marines and make sure Colonel Mouse didn't secretly pocket the money.

He dropped the two fish-men to the ground. Each had a deep sword wound, and neither was breathing.

"Not bad, Zoro. You're pretty alert," Lina said with a grin.

Genzo looked at them, trembling despite himself. "Nami, who are these people?"

"It's all right, Genzo. They're my friends. We came back this time..."

A look of resolve flashed through Nami's eyes. "To overthrow Arlong!"

"Wait, Nami!"

"Don't try to talk me out of it, Genzo! I've made up my mind. I believe in my friends."

"Luffy, Lina, Zoro, let's go."

Nami let go of Genzo's hand and spoke without looking back.

She left Genzo standing there alone, stunned.

"...Nami."

Watching the group head toward Arlong Park, Genzo wore a troubled expression.

Inside Arlong Park.

Beneath a towering structure, a group of fish-men laughed and played in the swimming pool.

A row of lounge chairs sat beneath a long sunshade nearby.

A burly purple-skinned man lounged on one of them. He had a long, sharp, sawtoothed nose, a mouth full of pointed teeth, and a felt hat perched on his head, with his hair sticking out beneath it.

"Wahahahaha! I wonder what kind of face Nami will make when she finds out all the money she's spent years saving has been stolen."

Arlong laughed heartily. The officers gathered around him chimed in.

"That was a brilliant move, boss. But Nami will probably figure out we worked with the Marines."

"So what if she does? Can she fight back against me? Wahahaha!"

"Then we'll just have her save up another hundred million, and take it from her again."

"As long as I have control of the village, she'll never be able to fight back against me. Wahahaha!"

Arlong's mocking laughter rang throughout the park.

"Speaking of which, Hachi took Colonel Mouse and the others over there a while ago. He should be back by now..."

Crash—

Before Arlong could finish, a tremendous noise rang out.

The park's entrance was blasted right off its hinges, knocking several nearby fish-men down and pinning them beneath it.

"What happened?!"

"Hey, are you guys all right?"

"Who did this?!"

The huge commotion drew everyone's attention.

Arlong frowned and looked over coldly.

Through the smoke, a familiar orange-haired figure came into view, walking slowly inside with several people behind her.

"Wahahahaha, it's Nami."

Arlong recognized Nami, then looked at the people who had come with her and sneered:

"Looks like you've come looking for trouble."

"So you're Arlong, huh?!" Luffy called out darkly, walking straight toward Arlong, who was surrounded by several fish-men.

Lina looked around the park with keen interest. Fish-men of all shapes and sizes were watching them from the pool and its edges.

"Two, four... eighty-eight. Heh, not bad at all."

She was already thrilled. Fish-men were naturally excellent swimmers, and their arm strength was generally ten times that of humans.

They'd make great hands for all kinds of odd jobs aboard the ship, as well as useful grunts in a fight.