He Was the Challenger

But Nojiko could see that Nami had clearly made up her mind.

So she decided not to waste her breath trying to dissuade her.

It was just like when Nami had decided to join the Arlong Pirates as a child.

No matter how much Nojiko said, she probably couldn't change Nami's mind.

After a moment of thought, Nojiko slowly began:

"A few days ago, the fish-man Arlong saw that Gosa Town couldn't pay the exorbitant tribute."

"So he brought along his fish-men and a giant Sea Beast, and destroyed the entire town."

"The surviving townspeople are hiding all over the island now. They don't dare show themselves, afraid the cruel fish-men will catch them."

"And for the past couple of days, Arlong's gang have been staying at Arlong Park, apparently holding a feast to celebrate something."

At this point,

Nojiko couldn't help looking over at Will and warning him:

"I don't know why you're so confident about challenging the fish-man Arlong."

"But I still hope you'll think it through. The fish-man Arlong isn't easy to deal with."

Though Will knew Nojiko meant well, he had no intention of talking her around.

Arlong was just a fish-man, not Jinbe. Will couldn't be bothered to waste so much breath on him.

After eating the last orange in his hand,

Will turned and headed west.

As he passed Nojiko, he stopped and suddenly said:

"Actually, you've got one thing wrong."

"Hm?" Nojiko turned to him, puzzled.

"Between the fish-man Arlong and me, he's the one who's challenging me."

With that,

Will paid no attention to her reaction and continued west on his own.

He had already learned where Arlong Park was from Nami.

And with his own senses, he didn't need anyone to show him the way.

"Nami, I'll leave the villagers to you."

"Carina, stay and help her."

"Come over once I've dealt with all the fish-men."

As his words rang out,

Will's figure quickly disappeared from the three women's sight.

"Will!"

When Nami finally reacted, she hurried to chase after him.

Just then, Carina reached out and rested a hand on Nami's shoulder, gently shaking her head.

"Since you've already made your decision, choose to trust Will."

"We should do what we need to do, like alerting the villagers."

"If Will really can't defeat the fish-man Arlong, you can help the villagers hide."

"But in my opinion, Will will definitely be the one who wins."

Hearing Carina's words,

Nami remembered the choice she'd made aboard the ship, and her gaze grew even more resolute.

"Nojiko, take Carina to the village and explain the situation to everyone."

"I'll go to Arlong Park and be ready to support Will."

She knew perfectly well that the villagers had never thought much of her.

If she went to warn them, she might only make things worse.

Besides, Nami could never hide away and wait for the outcome while Will fought Arlong.

"What did you just say?!" Nojiko cried out in shock.

Carina, standing nearby, looked just as astonished.

Nami ignored their reactions. She pulled a three-section staff from behind her waist, gripped it in her hand, and said seriously:

"Don't worry. I know Arlong Park's layout like the back of my hand."

"I'll hide somewhere out of sight. I won't show myself and cause Will any trouble."

"I'm going because I'm worried that, facing so many fish-men alone, Will might run out of stamina."

"Then he'll be in serious danger."

"Either way, Will is helping me save the village."

"Even if he fails, I won't abandon him and run away by myself."

"Nami..."

After hearing her words, Nojiko's expression grew complicated. She didn't know how to stop her.

She trusted Nami's judgment, but still didn't believe that a man named Will could really defeat Arlong.

She had already seen too many people die at Arlong's hands.

But Nami had always been fiercely independent. Once she made up her mind, she never changed it lightly.

So Nojiko knew perfectly well that there was no way to stop her, and it left her feeling deeply troubled.

Carina's eyes flickered as she glanced between them. In the end, she let out a helpless sigh. "Sigh, fine. I'll go with you."

"After all, Will's my captain now, too."

"If you, the Little Thief Cat, aren't afraid, what reason do I have to run away?"

"If anything goes wrong, the two of us can work together. That's better than you facing it alone."

"Carina..." Nami was deeply grateful. After all, the fight against Arlong's gang had nothing to do with Carina.

She didn't refuse her at a time like this. She simply accepted the kindness in silence.

Nojiko rubbed her brow, looking utterly helpless.

"Fine. I'll take care of the villagers. You two hurry and help your captain."

"Okay!"

Nami and Carina nodded, then immediately set off, hurrying west.

At that moment, inside Arlong Park,

a group of fish-men were swimming around in the two large pools in the courtyard.

Beside the pools, in a lounge chair in front of a towering building,

sat a large fish-man with purple skin and an appearance like a great white shark, grinning broadly.

Two other fish-men, both just as large, stood beside him.

The one on the left was muscular, with grayish-white skin, two little braids on his head, and fin-like appendages at his elbows.

The one on the right was thinner, with blue-green skin. He had one hand in his pocket, and his lips jutted out, giving him a lazy look.

Just then, a fish-man who was tall and broad, with six arms on his sides and a trumpet-shaped mouth,

suddenly swam in from the southern entrance by the sea. After coming ashore, he hurried over to the lounge chair and anxiously reported something.

"What did you say? Moo Moo didn't respond when you called?"

The fish-man Arlong, with his saw-like nose, looked distinctly surprised after hearing Hachi's report.

"That's right, Boss Arlong."

"I blew the horn on the shore to call Moo Moo over for a meal."

"But it's been ages, and Moo Moo still hasn't come back."

Hachi looked just as confused. He clearly couldn't understand why Moo Moo hadn't even come back to eat.

"Maybe it fell asleep in the sea."

The muscular fish-man Kuroobi folded his arms across his chest and spoke coldly.

The other fish-man, Chuu, whose lips jutted out, stroked his chin and guessed:

"Maybe Moo Moo isn't hungry yet. Chuu~."

Arlong didn't seem to care. Laughing, he waved his hand.

"Shahahahaha! Whether it's asleep or not hungry, just leave it be."

That was what he said, but he knew Hachi cared a lot about that Sea Cow.

So Arlong reassured him, "Don't worry too much, Hachi."

"Remember, Moo Moo's a vicious Sea Beast. There's probably no one in the East Blue who could hurt it."

"Maybe it got bored and went off to wreck some passing human ship. It'll come back when it gets tired."

Hachi blinked blankly. His boss did make sense, so he nodded.

"All right, Boss Arlong."