The Sea Beast Had No Sense of Pain!

However, Sea Cow Moomoo didn't care at all about the three human snacks on the ship.

After emerging from the water,

its eyes had been fixed on the barbecued meat on deck the entire time.

At that moment, Will stood in the shadow beneath Sea Cow Moomoo and suddenly spoke:

"Over the past two years, I've encountered plenty of sea beasts."

"After fighting them several times, I came to a startling conclusion."

"Any creature feels pain when it's attacked, but sea beasts don't!"

"Because whenever I knock one out with a punch, they never let out a single scream!"

Just then, Sea Cow Moomoo was about to open its mouth and take a big bite of the spot on the ship where the barbecued meat was sitting.

Suddenly, it felt an intense wave of hostility surging toward it from every direction.

Sea Cow Moomoo couldn't help shuddering, and a large amount of cold sweat broke out across its forehead.

When it came to its senses and looked down, the slightly larger human had already vanished.

Before Sea Cow Moomoo could react, Will had appeared beside its head and raised his powerful arm.

Tekkai: Iron Elbow!

Bam—!

The blow came with a violent crash.

Will's elbow slammed into Sea Cow Moomoo's head like a siege weapon!

Its head caved in instantly, then quickly swelled into a huge lump.

Sea Cow Moomoo's pupils shook wildly, then rolled back until its eyes went blank. Its mouth hung open, but not a sound came out.

It fell backward into the sea with a thud, its massive body sending water spraying in every direction.

Plop.

After dealing with the sea beast, Will landed steadily on deck, put his hands back in his pockets, and solemnly reiterated:

"I hit it with a heavy blow and it didn't even scream. Sea beasts really don't feel pain."

Nami, standing nearby, was speechless. She couldn't help chiming in:

"Um, is it possible it didn't scream because it didn't even have time to?"

"Exactly, exactly." Carina hurriedly nodded in agreement.

"How could that be?" Will immediately rejected the idea. "You're underestimating sea beasts too much."

He didn't bother arguing further. He simply walked back, sat down, picked up some barbecued meat, and started eating heartily again.

Nami and Carina exchanged helpless glances, then sat down together and continued eating.

In any case, whether sea beasts felt pain wasn't something they cared about.

After eating and drinking their fill,

Will and the others didn't pay any attention to Sea Cow Moomoo, still floating on the surface. They continued on toward the Konomi Islands.

Not long afterward,

the three of them reached shore and brought the ship to a stop.

But when they got off the ship,

they found a deserted town in utter disarray, its buildings in ruins.

"W-what happened here?!"

Nami stared in shock at the town she had once known so well. She couldn't understand how it had ended up like this when she returned.

"Is this the Gosa Town you mentioned earlier?"

Will looked around. He couldn't see anyone else, and sensing the area turned up nothing either.

It was clear that the area around the town had been abandoned.

Carina folded her arms, her expression grave as she spoke slowly:

"Both are port towns, but this place is in much worse shape than Orange Town."

Every building in Gosa Town had been forcibly uprooted and flipped upside down, with its roof pressed against the ground.

The streets and roads had been completely destroyed, as though some enormous creature had plowed through them.

Nami quickly recovered and hurriedly said:

"Let's go to my house and find my sister. She should know what happened here."

"And we should find out what's going on with the Fish-Men. I've been gone so long that I don't know if Arlong is still at Arlong Park."

Will and Carina had no objections.

The three of them didn't linger. Led by Nami, they headed toward the western part of town.

They passed through a dense forest

and came to an Orange Grove.

Once they arrived, Nami seemed noticeably more relaxed.

The three of them headed straight inside.

There, they saw a blue-haired young woman picking oranges.

A flash of delight crossed Nami's eyes. She quickly waved and called out, "Nojiko!"

"Hm?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Nojiko turned around in surprise. "Nami?"

Then she immediately noticed the tall, handsome man standing behind Nami.

He was at least a meter taller than her.

Nojiko couldn't help thinking in amazement, He looks even taller than Arlong of the Fish-Man Race.

She folded her arms and turned to Nami, teasing her with a smile:

"You've grown up, Nami. You're even bringing a man home now."

"But he looks so strong and fit. Can you handle him all by yourself?"

Nami had been about to say something, but her face turned red at Nojiko's words. She quickly explained:

"Nojiko! What are you talking about?"

"He's... my captain, and he saved my life not long ago."

"Oh?" Surprise flickered in Nojiko's eyes. She hurriedly looked at Will and thanked him sincerely:

"Thank you so much for saving Nami. Sorry for the trouble of looking after her all this time."

"It was nothing." Will said no more, merely nodding slightly.

Then, as if he were in his own garden, he walked over and picked several juicy-looking oranges.

He tossed two to Carina, who was following behind.

Then he popped one whole into his mouth, not even bothering to peel it.

The juice burst across Will's mouth as he ate.

His eyes lit up, and he couldn't help praising them. "These oranges are great. Sweet."

Nojiko paused, then smiled. "Thank you."

Then, as if something had occurred to her, she turned and asked curiously:

"By the way, Nami, you said he's your captain?"

"But didn't you join Arlong's gang a long time ago?"

At that, Nami's expression grew serious. She got straight to the point:

"Here's what happened..."

A little while later.

"What? He's going to defeat Arlong and those Fish-Men?!"

After hearing Nami recount what had happened, Nojiko stared in shock at Will, who stood silently nearby.

"That's right." Nami nodded, her tone earnest.

"That's why we came to find you first—to learn what Arlong's gang has been up to lately."

Nojiko's thoughts were in turmoil.

She had been happy when her younger sister Nami suddenly came home.

But she hadn't expected Nami to abandon the savings plan she had stuck to for so many years and put her faith in this man instead.

Although she had always supported her younger sister's decisions, she still doubted Will's strength.

She simply couldn't believe that a human could defeat those vicious Fish-Men.

Even her and Nami's mother, Bellemere, had been killed by the Fish-Man Arlong.