Test Subject? The Ape-Ape Fruit's Ape-Man?

At this moment.

As the unfamiliar pirate ship appeared, the entire scene fell silent.

It was all because a familiar face had appeared on that strange vessel!

Olig and the others widened their eyes.

Nami's breathing also quickened.

That was a face they had only seen a few days ago!

The impression was incredibly deep!

There was absolutely no mistake!

Natsuya, with a bounty of one hundred million berries, had suddenly surpassed Arlong to become the highest-bountied criminal in the East Blue!

"It really is him!"

"There's no doubt about it!"

"He is Natsuya!!"

At this moment, one of the pirates from the Beast Pirate Crew pulled out the wanted poster they had received a few days prior and let out a startled cry.

For a moment, everyone was stunned.

They had actually encountered Natsuya!

The legendary figure who had been slapped with a one-hundred-million-berry bounty by the Navy!

Meanwhile, Natsuya's gaze fell upon Nami.

Is this Nami-chan?

Although she was much younger, that delicate face, the unique hair color, and that hint of cunning already beginning to show—it couldn't be anyone else.

He hadn't expected to run into Nami.

But thinking about it carefully, it didn't seem that strange.

It was still several years before Luffy would set sail, and since he was in the East Blue and Nami traveled all over the region, it was perfectly normal for him to cross paths with her.

However, Nami's current situation seemed a bit precarious, didn't it?

Just as Natsuya was thinking this, the pirate's shout reached him.

Hm?

Natsuya raised an eyebrow, thought for a moment, and activated the power of the Door-Door Fruit.

He reached out and grabbed at the air in front of him, and suddenly, a wanted poster appeared in his hand out of thin air.

On the other side, the pirate who had been shouting froze, staring at his empty palm in disbelief.

Natsuya ignored the pirate's shock and looked at the wanted poster in his hand.

After seeing the contents, a smile immediately appeared on his face.

"What a grand gesture."

Natsuya understood the World Government's intentions instantly.

They were trying to incite more people to come and take his life.

To slap him with a one-hundred-million-berry bounty right out of the gate—they really thought highly of him!

One had to realize that among pirates, very few people received such a high bounty on their first attempt!

Even Big Mom's initial bounty hadn't reached one hundred million.

Natsuya estimated that this amount had already caught the eyes of quite a few people.

If he were in the Grand Line instead of the East Blue, he reckoned people would have been coming to cause him trouble the very day the poster was released!

Realizing this, Natsuya felt no change in his mindset.

It was the same as before.

As long as he developed the Door-Door Fruit to its limit, then no matter what methods the World Government used or who his enemies were, he had nothing to fear.

Thinking of the Door-Door Fruit, Natsuya looked back at Nami.

Come to think of it, although only a few days had passed since that battle, he had made some progress in developing his fruit ability.

And it seemed he could test some of these advancements on Nami?

"Captain, what do we do!?"

"Should we still move closer?"

At this point, the members of the Beast Pirate Crew had finally snapped out of their stupor, and they turned to their leader, Olig, in a panic.

Given the current situation, they didn't dare to act rashly.

Hearing this, Olig could only offer a bitter, internal smile.

Get closer? Are you crazy!

He was a Monkey-Monkey Fruit user, not a Ship-Ship Fruit user!

Facing an existence whose strength likely far exceeded his own, how could he possibly dare to approach?

But for Olig to give up on Nami, who was right before his eyes, he felt somewhat unwilling.

However, just as Olig hesitated, Nami had already made a wise choice.

She propelled her small boat toward Natsuya's pirate ship!

At this very moment.

A glimmer of hope appeared in Nami's eyes.

Natsuya's bounty was ten times that of Olig's, and his strength was clearly far more terrifying.

But strength did not equate to personality.

Natsuya's handsome face made him look much easier to get along with than Olig.

And most importantly, she was at a dead end; staying put to be caught by Olig meant certain death.

Approaching Natsuya, on the other hand, might offer a glimmer of survival!

"Damn it!"

"She's heading over there!"

The members of the Beast Pirate Crew noticed Nami's actions, and their expressions changed drastically.

Olig's face darkened, his expression shifting between uncertainty and malice.

"Are you Big Brother Natsuya? Please save me, those pirates are trying to kill me!!"

As soon as she got close, Nami used a cutesy, high-pitched voice to beg Natsuya for help.

Natsuya couldn't help but chuckle.

Just as he was about to say something, Olig's voice drifted over from the opposite side.

"Is that Brother Natsuya over there? I am Olig! Captain of the Beast Pirate Crew!"

"I am a Monkey-Man who ate the Monkey-Monkey Fruit, nicknamed the Beast!"

"Don't listen to this woman's nonsense. She is the notorious thief Nami; she stole my money, which is why I am hunting her down!"

"Could I trouble Brother Natsuya to help me intercept her!"

As he spoke, Olig, transformed into a monkey, forced a strange smile at Natsuya.

Hearing this, a flash of oddity crossed Natsuya's eyes.

A Monkey-Man from the Monkey-Monkey Fruit?

Is there such a Devil Fruit?

Uh, he didn't seem to have heard of it.

But then again.

The way Oda-sama set up these ability users to introduce themselves was truly awkward.

Luffy's Rubber-Rubber Fruit Rubber-Man was one thing, but what the hell was this Monkey-Monkey Fruit Monkey-Man!?

And the later ones like Candle-Man or Bomb-Man were just as bad.

If it were like this, how would someone who ate the Human-Human Fruit introduce themselves?

"Hello everyone, I am a Human-Human who ate the Human-Human Fruit?"

And what about Natsuya?

"Door-Man???"

Fine, such an incredibly cringe-worthy self-introduction was something Natsuya would never say, even if it killed him.

Fortunately, it seemed this setting for ability users was abandoned later on, otherwise, Natsuya would have truly died of embarrassment.

Back to the matter at hand.

Olig clearly wasn't willing to let Nami go just like that.

So, he mustered his courage to negotiate with Natsuya.

Of course, the most important thing was that Nami had lied, which gave him an opportunity to make a scene.

Thinking of this, Olig secretly smiled to himself.

In his view, Natsuya shouldn't care about small pirate crews like theirs.

But if it were just a small favor, he probably wouldn't mind doing it, right?

At this moment, Nami's face changed upon hearing this.

However, she was quick-witted and soon fabricated an excuse.

"Big Brother Natsuya, don't believe him! He attacked a merchant ship, and I am the victim!"

Natsuya naturally knew exactly who was right and who was wrong here.

But as he looked at the monkey Olig had transformed into, a thought suddenly struck him.

Just like Nami, could this Olig also serve as a target to test his abilities?