"Hey!"
"Is everyone all right?"
At that moment, Luffy, who had just toppled headfirst onto the ground after Annie popped his bubble, saw everyone ahead rolling into a heap in a sorry state. He laughed loudly as he hurried over, slowing down while asking his companions, who were helping one another up.
"Huh?"
"What's wrong with these guys?"
Only after his new bubble car had come to a complete stop and he jumped down did he have time to look toward the group of strangers ahead, who were holding knives and weapons and blocking everyone's way with malicious intent.
"Ugh..."
"That hurts..."
"Damn it!"
"N-no, I'm fine!"
"Everyone, be careful!"
"Tsk!"
"Luffy, these guys seem to be bounty hunters!"
Once everyone had steadied themselves, Nami rubbed her aching, swollen head and elbowed the carefree Luffy, reminding him to watch out for the people who had ambushed and blocked them here.
"Oh!"
"So they're bounty hunters..."
Luffy nodded, finally understanding why everyone had suddenly rolled into a heap. So that was what had happened.
However, he did not take those people seriously. He had seen plenty of hunters who made a living by capturing pirates, handing them over to the Marines, and collecting bounties. Most of them were useless, and they had never paid such people any mind.
Of course, Zoro was an exception. That guy had originally been a pirate hunter, and he was extremely strong at that. If they encountered someone as powerful as Zoro, even Luffy himself had to treat them cautiously.
"Mm?"
"Here..."
"Straw Hat Luffy, bounty of 300,000,000 Berries. No mistake—the hat and the scar beneath his eye make him the one!"
While Luffy and Nami's group stood together and whispered among themselves, the people blocking Annie and the others also unfurled a bounty poster and