Cocoyasi Village coast. Reading
Nojiko, who was only eleven or twelve like Nami, was fishing here with Genzo, the village sheriff.
Although she had an orange grove, it was nowhere near enough to pay the protection money, so she could only take on odd jobs to earn more.
Most importantly, she wanted to earn Nami's share too, so she could help ease her sister's burden.
Thinking of her younger sister Nami, Nojiko worked even harder.
But a moment later, Genzo suddenly stopped what he was doing.
Nojiko was somewhat puzzled, but she saw Genzo staring out at the sea. Following his gaze, she froze.
A pirate ship had appeared on the sea not far away.
And Nami was on that pirate ship.
Besides her, there was also a handsome young man in a suit.
"Nami?"
Nojiko's eyes lit up.
But Genzo's face darkened.
He sensed that something was wrong.
He knew very well what Nami had been doing these past few years.
Nothing more than stealing, swindling, and even dealing with pirates.
But this was the first time Nami had returned here with someone else.
Although the young man had a calm temperament and dressed elegantly, the pirate ship made Genzo instinctively feel that something was off.
"Nojiko, stay here. I'll go notify the villagers—"
"No, Nojiko, I'll stay here. You go notify the villagers and have them bring weapons immediately."
As Genzo spoke, his face grew grim.
He thought Nami might be in trouble, so he immediately wanted to gather the villagers to help.
But it was already too late.
The two people on the pirate ship had looked over and spotted them as well.
Left with no choice, Genzo grabbed Nojiko and remained where he was, somewhat apprehensive.
"Nami."
Once the ship drew close, Genzo immediately called out to Nami aboard it.
Natsuya gave Nami a faintly amused look, then knowingly asked, "You know them?"
In fact, when Nami spotted Nojiko and Genzo, her eyes had lit up.
But very quickly, her expression turned cold again as she put on an indifferent act.
She was the same now.
"They're from Cocoyasi Village too. This is Sheriff Genzo, and this is my older sister, Nojiko."
Nami introduced them blandly.
In truth, she did not want Natsuya to have any contact with Nojiko and the others.
But she could not exactly take Natsuya straight to the Arlong Empire, so she had no choice but to land on this stretch of coast first.
Who would have thought that Nojiko and Genzo would happen to be here?
She could not pretend not to see them either, lest Natsuya misunderstand something and harm the two of them.
"Oh, what a coincidence. Nice to meet you. Just call me Natsuya."
Naturally, Natsuya pretended not to notice Nami's little scheme and smiled without any change in expression.
He looked like an elegant young man from a noble background, greatly lowering Nojiko and Genzo's guard.
Nojiko immediately stepped closer, a smile appearing on her face.
Genzo, however, frowned slightly.
The name "Natsuya" somehow sounded familiar to him.
It felt like he had heard it somewhere before, but he could not recall where.
Soon, though, Genzo's attention was drawn to something else.
At that moment, Nojiko seemingly casually asked, "Nami, why did you come back on a pirate ship?"
Genzo immediately pricked up his ears.
Afraid that Nojiko and Genzo might offend Natsuya, Nami could no longer keep up her cold act and hurriedly explained, "I was being chased by pirates at sea earlier. Big Brother Natsuya saved me."
Hearing this, Nojiko and Genzo's expressions changed at once.
Pity flashed through both their eyes, and when they looked at Natsuya again, there was now gratitude in their gazes.
With that, the pirate ship's presence no longer seemed strange.
Of course, that was not important. What mattered was that the young man before them was Nami's benefactor.
And Nami's benefactor was Cocoyasi Village's benefactor!
Coming back to his senses, Genzo stepped forward with a smile and struck up a conversation. "Brother Natsuya, thank you so much!"
"If something had happened to Nami, it would have been a failure on my part as sheriff."
"You must be tired after coming all this way. Let's find somewhere to rest and have a meal. I need to thank you properly."
A perfectly timed smile appeared on Natsuya's face as he chatted with Genzo in a warm and friendly manner.
As someone from the CP Department, he was skilled in far more than combat.
In fact, every qualified CP agent was an all-around operative. Handling such a minor situation was child's play.
Of course, more importantly, Natsuya had come here precisely to "rest," so Genzo's suggestion suited him perfectly.
Thus, Natsuya did not refuse and simply went along with Genzo toward the village.
Nojiko, who had fallen behind, quickly grabbed Nami and asked in detail, "Nami, who exactly is that person, and how did you two meet?"
Although Nami had already explained it once, Nojiko was still worried.
But Nami did not want to appear overly close to Nojiko. After all, she had brought Natsuya back this time with bad intentions.
If Natsuya noticed anything, Nojiko might be in danger too.
With that in mind, Nami said nothing more and hurried after them.
Nojiko frowned and could only follow as well.
As Natsuya and the others left the coast, they failed to notice several indistinct figures floating on the sea not far from shore.
These figures looked strange and all bore fish-like traits. They were Kuroobi, Hatchan, and the others.
"Kuroobi, what do we do now?"
Hatchan looked toward the coast, alarm appearing in his eyes.
Just moments ago, they had spotted Nami and were about to go greet her when they suddenly noticed Natsuya!
At first, no one paid much attention to him. But then Kuroobi's expression abruptly changed, and he directly ordered everyone to dive beneath the sea.
Hatchan and the others had initially been confused, but after Kuroobi explained in an exceptionally grave tone, they immediately understood!
It turned out Kuroobi recognized the young man beside Nami!
No, that was not quite right. They all recognized him!
Because that young man was Natsuya, the 100 million Beli wanted criminal who had shaken the East Blue not long ago!
As overlords of the East Blue, there was no way they would fail to recognize or take seriously someone who had suddenly risen to prominence within their territory.
Arlong had even specifically warned them not to act rashly if they encountered him!
However, enough time had passed that Hatchan and the others had somewhat forgotten what Natsuya looked like.
After all, even among different human races, almost everyone suffered from face blindness, let alone between different species.
In other words, to Fish-Men like them, all human faces basically looked the same!
Kuroobi, on the other hand, was relatively more reliable. Not only had he remembered Natsuya's appearance, but he had recognized him at a glance.
After identifying the young man with Nami as that Natsuya, they naturally did not dare act rashly. They remained underwater until Natsuya and the others disappeared from the coast before daring to surface.
Hearing Hatchan's question, Kuroobi turned and swam away without a second thought.
"First, we tell Arlong about this!"
Hatchan and the others froze for a moment, then quickly followed.
And so, not long afterward.
When Arlong learned that Natsuya had appeared, his expression darkened.
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