Cocoyasi Village, the Despair of Nami the Money-Grubbing Cat Burglar

"Arlong? That lowly rotten fish dared to lay a hand on someone I had my eye on?"

Lei En hung up the Den Den Mushi.

A flash of exceedingly benevolent coldness flickered through his deep black eyes.

A terrifying killing intent, tightly restrained yet still suffocating, spread uncontrollably from his body.

Kuina and Kuro, standing beside him, both shuddered.

Kuro in particular had personally seen his boss stomp a great pirate like Don Krieg as though he were a dog.

Now that he saw Lei En wearing that expression, he knew the fish-man called Arlong was truly in for a disaster this time.

"Set sail."

Lei En's voice was not loud, but his tone carried an unquestionable dominance.

"Destination: Cocoyasi Village."

"Today, I want to see exactly what that damned fish is made of, daring to steal someone from my Heavenly Court!"

"Yes, sir!"

Dadi immediately turned the helm. The massive, magnificent Heavenly Court Thunder God carved a graceful white arc across the sea as it sped at full speed toward Cocoyasi Village.

Meanwhile.

At the border of Goya Kingdom, Cocoyasi Village.

This beautiful village, once peaceful and serene, filled with orange trees, was now shrouded beneath a bottomless cloud of despair.

A fine drizzle fell from the sky, as though even heaven itself wept for this village.

The village square was a complete mess.

"Why... why did it turn out like this...?"

A beautiful young girl with short orange hair and a lovely figure knelt weakly on the muddy street.

Her eyes were bloodshot, and tears mixed with rainwater streamed down her face.

Nami.

This strong girl had been enslaved by the Arlong Pirates for eight full years, misunderstood by the villagers, yet still desperately saved money in secret just to buy back the village's freedom.

At that moment, her world completely collapsed.

Just a few hours earlier.

The one hundred million beli she had painstakingly scraped together through lies, scams, and even risking her life.

Had been taken away in its entirety by the incomparably greedy and despicable Colonel Nezumi, who had colluded with Arlong, under the pretext of "confiscating stolen goods"!

Eight years of humiliation!

Eight years of enduring disgrace!

Eight years of effort!

Through the collusion between Arlong and the Marines, it had all become an utterly ridiculous illusion!

"Arlong... you liar!!!"

Nami recalled the piercing, taunting, mocking laughter of the fish-men when she had rushed to Arlong Park to confront him.

It felt as though her heart were bleeding.

From the very beginning, Arlong had never intended to honor the agreement to "buy back the village for one hundred million beli."

He had merely treated her as a tool that could endlessly provide exquisite sea charts and earn money for them for free!

"It's useless... it's all over..."

Nami's hands clawed tightly at the mud, her nails digging deeply into the earth.

Having learned the truth, the villagers could finally no longer endure this inhuman torment.

Led by the village policeman Genzo, every able-bodied adult, and even the elderly, picked up hoes, sickles, and kitchen knives.

Prepared to die, they marched in great numbers toward Arlong Park.

"Everyone... don't go! You'll die!"

Nami tried to stop them, but the villagers only gave her sorrowful yet relieved smiles.

"That's enough, Nami. You've done more than enough for us."

Uncle Genzo patted her shoulder.

"Now it's the battle of us adults. Even if we die, we'll die like men of Cocoyasi Village!"

The villagers' figures gradually vanished into the curtain of rain.

Nami knelt alone in the empty street, feeling the ultimate despair of falling into an abyss.

She knew that if the villagers went, there was no chance they would return alive.

The strength of fish-men was simply not something ordinary humans could contend with.

"Aaaahhh!!!"

Nami let out a piercing scream filled with grief and fury.

She suddenly pulled out the dagger strapped to her leg.

She stared at the black tattoo on her left arm, the mark of the Arlong Pirates that filled her with unbearable disgust and humiliation.

"Die! Die! Die!"

Like a madwoman, she repeatedly stabbed the tattoo with her dagger!

Blood mixed with rainwater and ran down, staining her arm red.

Yet she seemed unable to feel any pain, only mechanically repeating this act of self-harm.

"Someone... someone save us..."

Nami's voice had already gone hoarse, and tears blurred her vision.

She had thought she could face anything with strength, but now, she truly could not hold on any longer.

"Luffy... Zoro..."

The idiots who had once invited her onto their ship, only for her to cruelly refuse them, flashed through her mind.

"If... if it were you..."

Nami's movements gradually slowed, and the dagger dropped powerlessly into the muddy water.

She raised her head, letting the cold rain strike her face.

"Help me... who can come and help me...?"

Just as Nami's will was about to completely crumble and she was ready to give up everything.

"Rumble—!"

An incomparably heavy, oppressive peal of thunder suddenly sounded in the sky!

The gray sky, which had previously held only a light drizzle.

Without warning, was swallowed at a terrifying speed visible to the naked eye by an entire mass of thick, ink-black thunderclouds!

The thunderclouds covered all of Cocoyasi Village, blotting out even the sunlight completely.

A terrifying pressure, like the authority of heaven itself, descended in an instant!

"Wh-what is this?"

Nami stared blankly at the sky, forgetting to cry.

Even the villagers advancing toward Arlong Park stopped in terror.

Before they could react.

"Crackle—!!!"

A gigantic blue pillar of lightning, more than ten meters in diameter, descended like a spear of punishment hurled by a god!

Carrying berserk power capable of destroying heaven and earth, it tore through the black clouds!

With flawless precision, it struck the central tower of the distant, towering Arlong Park—the symbol of fish-man rule!

"BOOM—!!!"

A deafening explosion shook the heavens!

The tower the villagers had considered impregnable was blasted by the violent lightning into flying rubble and dust the instant it came into contact with the thunderbolt, like a fragile house of cards!

The terrible shockwave whipped up a violent gale, making Cocoyasi Village's orange trees rustle wildly.

Nami's mouth fell open at the sudden turn of events.

She blankly watched the tower of Arlong Park collapse with a thunderous crash.

A lazy voice, tinged with mockery and unquestionable dominance, suddenly drifted down from above her head.

"When you run into trouble, instead of calling for help, you're hurting yourself here. What kind of skill is that?"