Kino held Nami in his arms. Although she'd made up for the protection money the villagers owed after returning, some villagers had already died. "Nami, it's not your fault. You didn't do anything wrong. Maybe this is just our fate. Nami, go. Get far away from here and pursue your dream. It's what everyone wants."
"No. I'm staying until I've saved everyone." Nami lowered her head, her voice firm.
A warship was anchored by the shore of the Arlong Empire. An officer with shifty eyes and a face much like a rat sat across from Arlong. Arlong placed a briefcase on the table. Major General Rat narrowed his eyes. "Arlong, you've been going a little too far lately. You should know Rogue Town isn't far from here."
Arlong grinned. "Then I'll have to trouble you, Major General Rat. I hope you'll keep covering for us. This is your cut this time. Take a look."
Major General Rat opened the case. Beli were stacked neatly inside, and his eyes turned into Beli symbols. "There's an extra million this time."
Watching the major general's ugly display, Arlong curled his lip in disdain, then schooled his expression and continued respectfully. "That's the extra tax we collected from those lowlifes. Is Major General Rat satisfied?"
"Very satisfied. Leave this to me—I'll see it done." Major General Rat shut the briefcase with a sharp snap. He was ready to leave. If anyone saw a Marine of his standing going in and out of the Arlong Empire, the place they hated most, they might beat him to death.
Rono and his group finally reached the area near Cocoyasi Village. "Excuse me, miss, could you tell us where the Arlong Empire is? We... uh, got lost." Rono saw two girls kneeling on the ground and humbly asked for directions. Sairona glanced at Cocoyasi Village, which looked like a ruin, and furrowed his brows, but said nothing. They'd seen pirate hideouts in even worse shape.
"Hey~" Gelu followed with a polite greeting.
"Who are you? What do you want with the Arlong Empire?" Kino warily watched Rono's group, then stood up and shielded Nami behind him.
"We're going to the Arlong Empire because I can't stand him, so I plan to kill him." Killing intent leaked from Rono, making Kino shudder. How many people did someone have to kill to have such terrifying killing intent?
"Ahem. Could you tell us where it is, miss? Or are you with him?" Sairona coughed, trying to remind them he was there.
"!" Kino was stunned. When had someone else shown up? Sairona ignored his gaze. He'd been through too much to care anymore.
"No way! We'd die before joining that gang of bastards, Arlong and his crew!" Nami got to her feet and shouted, her throat hoarse from crying.
"Nami! We're not with the Arlong Pirates. I'd advise you not to go looking for death. Arlong is a Fishman, and his Arlong Empire is the East Blue's top dog." Kino offered a kind warning, directing the last part at Rono.
"Do you even know who we are?" Rono smirked. A weakling pirate with a 20-million-Beli bounty who didn't dare enter the Grand Line? Rono looked down on him.
Kino scrutinized Rono's group again. The flashy, flamboyant arm guards, fiery red hair, tall frame, and bare upper body—that was Rono. The man in the black high-collared coat, holding a Sniper Rifle, had plain black hair and unremarkable features. He was easy to overlook. That was Sairona. And then there was a strange, half-meter-tall treant.
The Red Devil Pirates! The Shichibukai who made a hobby of destroying pirate crews!
"The Red Devil Pirates!" Nami cried out before anyone else. Seeing Rono's smug expression, she gritted her teeth and made a decision. She dropped to her knees before him with a thud. "Please, help me kill Arlong! I'll do anything you want if you can do it. Even... even my body." Nami pressed her forehead to the ground as she begged.
Sairona remained calm. They'd had pirates they killed kneel before them plenty of times, and there had even been female pirates who stripped naked to bargain for their lives. Sairona's only response was to pull the trigger.
Rono looked disgusted. "What? You're kneeling before a stranger over something like this? I don't dare accept payment from someone like you." His words struck Nami like a fuse and set her off. She wasn't some shameless girl.
"What do you know? You have no idea what's happened in this town!" Nami raised her head and shouted angrily at Rono.
"Was I wrong? Relying on other people's charity is disgusting." Rono sneered. "Tell me where the Arlong Empire is. I don't have that much patience. Arlong? The East Blue's top dog? I'll kill him with one slap."
"I'll take you there," Kino said as he walked over to Nami.
Nami stood up. "I'm coming with you. I'm technically a member of the Arlong Pirates, so I can get you inside."
"Those fishmen supremacists forced you into their ranks. You must have some special talent, right?" Sairona said with interest, studying Nami. With his intelligence, it was easy to figure out why she'd joined the Arlong Pirates. If Nami was a research talent, that would be a huge score. He had to bring her along no matter what.
"I was forced to join the Arlong Pirates because I can draw nautical charts and have a talent for navigation." Nami's expression was complicated, with both pride in her navigational abilities and bitterness at being recruited by Arlong.
"A Navigator, huh..." To be honest, the Red Devil Pirates weren't short on Navigators. Rono the Navigator was pretty damn good, and usually didn't back down. When a natural disaster hit, all they could do was race their ship. "In all my life, I've sailed countless seas. I've never needed oars to sail—only waves." —Wolf Rono
Sairona pondered as they gradually approached the Arlong Empire. Fishmen were patrolling in the distance.
Kino stopped and looked at Nami. "Let's see if you can get us inside."
Nami was about to answer when Rono looked impatient. "We need to sneak into this dump?" With that, he strode out of the woods.
"Who's there?" A sharp-nosed Fishman spotted Rono. Of course, that was because Rono hadn't tried to hide.
"The man who's going to kill you." Rono's face was cold, and he secretly congratulated himself on how cool that sounded.
"Shoo—" The sharp-nosed Fishman spat a small water droplet from his mouth. It was fast, but Rono was Rono. He caught it in one hand, activated Bone Planting Armor, and appeared behind the sharp-nosed Fishman the next instant.
Pfft—blood sprayed out. The sharp-nosed Fishman stared in disbelief as his body broke into several pieces.
Sairona drew his pistol. Bang, bang, bang. Three Fishmen fell, holes appearing in their foreheads.
The patrolling Fishmen were all dead. Seeing the sharp-nosed Fishman's gruesome death, Nami couldn't help vomiting.
Gelu patted her back. "Gelu Gelu (You'll get used to it after throwing up enough.)"
Flowing Fire glowed red, and its pink light danced with Rono's movements. He stood before the wall. Boom—the entire wall crumbled into rubble. "We're under attack!" A Fishman had barely spoken when a bullet sank into his brow.
"One shot, one kill. Gelu, want to go play?" Sairona blew the smoke from his gun and asked Gelu.
"Gelu Gelu." Gelu was excited. His body gradually grew larger as he charged into the crowd of Fishmen.
Before you continue