Carnival

The battle between the two reached a stalemate.

Arlong was extremely confident in his teeth, relentlessly attacking Luffy with his fangs. After Luffy sent his teeth flying, he actually did it again, grabbing the fallen teeth in his hand and using the move he had named the Iron Teeth Technique to attack Luffy once more. In the end, the Iron Teeth Technique did not last long before Luffy blocked it with a Fish-Man he had pulled from who knew where.

After that, Arlong dove straight into the sea. Using the Fish-Men's innate ability to move twice as effectively underwater, he kept leaping out of the water and stabbing at Luffy with his saw-like nose.

At first, Luffy was a little flustered, but later he made use of his rubbery flexibility, stopping Arlong's assault with his stretched-out fingers before violently slamming him onto the floor!

Arlong flew into a rage and flung Luffy away. Then, through the wall, he pulled out a gigantic saw blade lined with sharp teeth. As he swung the saw at Luffy, he moved the battle from the ground floor toward the rooftop.

Everyone turned to look toward the roof as well.

At that moment, Zero noticed Nami's shoulders trembling slightly and could not help asking, "Nami, what's wrong?"

"That is... the room where I drew my nautical charts."

Nami's voice trembled as well. Zero could only sigh and place one hand on her shoulder. The sight made Sanji grit his teeth, but there was nothing he could do. He could only silently walk to the side and cry.

Before long, Luffy smashed through the wall of the rooftop room with his stretched rubber leg, sending sheet after sheet of yellowed paper fluttering down.

As if she understood Luffy's intentions, Nami's eyes reddened once again. Covering her mouth, she turned and buried herself in Zero's arms, sobbing. Sanji, who had only just managed to compose himself, turned back around and immediately resumed his stormy crying.

Not long after, Luffy stretched out his rubber leg, pierced through the roof of the room where they were fighting, and crashed down heavily!

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!

Amid a series of tremendous crashes, Arlong Park began to collapse from the bottom up as it shook violently. Seeing this, everyone hurriedly ran away.

"Luffy, are you okay?"

"Big Brother Luffy!"

"..."

Nami also raised her head from Zero's embrace. Seeing Zero looking at her with concern, she felt a little embarrassed, but her attention was drawn back to the falling ruins the next moment.

"It'll be fine. Luffy will definitely be safe!"

As though Zero's words carried unimaginable magic, Nami had only just calmed down when a figure suddenly emerged from beneath the rubble.

"Nami—you are my partner!"

Hearing Luffy's powerful shout, Nami stared fixedly at him, feeling an unprecedented sense of security in her heart!

And so, the battle ended amid everyone's cheers as they tossed Luffy high into the air.

Straw Hat Pirates VS Arlong Pirates, victory to the Straw Hat Pirates!

Afterward, Colonel Nezumi arrived with a group of Marines, only to be beaten up by the newly awakened Roronoa Zoro. Nami, having regained her spirit, even forced him to deal with the aftermath of the battle. They really were unlucky to have walked straight into the line of fire.

And after this battle, the Straw Hat Pirates officially entered the Marines' sights!

After defeating the Arlong Pirates, the island held a carnival party.

Luffy entered glutton mode and had been stuffing himself ever since the party began. Usopp, meanwhile, ran up to a platform and bragged about his experience defeating a Fish-Man officer. As for Sanji and Roronoa Zoro, one was either hitting on women or on his way to hit on women, while the other was being treated by the island's doctor.

Meanwhile, before a simple grave somewhere on the island, Zero kept Nami company as she told him about what had happened during the time she had been away. When she spoke of fighting one of the Seven Warlords, she cried out in surprise again and again.

Genzo and Nojiko had come by to visit, but when they saw Zero and Nami together, they merely watched quietly for a while before silently leaving.

Suddenly, Nami seemed to remember something and asked Zero, "Zero, how did you know about me being with the Arlong Pirates?"

Ah, she still asked about it.

Zero inwardly lamented that he could not avoid the matter after all. His eyes shifted, and he simply looked earnestly at Nami's face. "Ahem, actually, I ate a Devil Fruit too. As long as I touch someone, I can see the things they have experienced. When I touched you, I saw fragments of your time with the Arlong Pirates, so..."

"Really? That's amazing, Zero!"

"I lied! Hahahaha!"

"..."

Nami stared at Zero's laughing face with dark lines across her forehead. She had not expected someone usually so serious to make such a joke.

"But still, thank you all!"

Zero stopped laughing and scratched his head somewhat awkwardly.

"You're our partner, after all. And Luffy was the one who defeated Arlong in the end. The person you should really thank is our captain!"

"That may be true, but if you hadn't firmly told me to believe in all of you from the beginning, I wouldn't have found the courage to resist Arlong. So don't refuse my gratitude, okay?"

Zero still wanted to say something, but Nami suddenly pressed her index finger against her lips. He could even clearly smell the faint, unique fragrance that lingered on her hand.

By the time he came back to his senses, Nami had already withdrawn her finger. She looked out at the sea before them, and only after a long while did she slowly say, "Zero, it's wonderful to have all of you here!"

"Yeah!"

The carnival party lasted for three days.

On the fourth day, Luffy and the others had already packed up their food and were preparing to set sail once more.

Johnny and Joseph bid them farewell below the ship, saying that they were returning to the ranks of bounty hunters. They agreed to meet again on the sea someday if they had the chance.

However, what puzzled everyone on the ship was that Nami had still not appeared. Sanji dejectedly said there was no point in boarding without Nami, while Luffy alone seriously questioned Sanji about not finding the slices of ham he had asked for, making Sanji lose his temper once more.

Amid the noise on the ship, Zero merely watched a certain direction on the island. Only when that beautiful figure appeared did his eyes light up.

"Everyone, set sail!"

After saying that, Nami suddenly broke into a run, weaving back and forth through the villagers who had come to see them off. Finally, she leaped into the air and barely landed on the ship's railing.

Then, when the villagers saw Nami lift her clothes and wallets fall from her body, they finally realized that their wallets had been stolen by her. They could not help fuming at Nami, who had already boarded the departing ship.

"Nami, you really left them with quite an impression! Hahaha!"

Zero laughed and shook his head. Nami responded by mischievously sticking out her tongue.

Amid laughter and cheers, their journey began once more.