One Piece: I Became a Legend by Seeing Proficiency

Robin seemed to sense Dongze's displeasure and immediately denied it. "Sir, haven't you made it obvious enough these past few days? Nami's the only one who hasn't noticed, because that girl has her mind set on Beli."

Dongze frowned. No way. Was it that obvious? It shouldn't have been! I've seen award-winning actors at work. Have those pretty faces who only know how to widen their eyes rubbed off on me?

There had only been three of them there, so Dongze couldn't tell whether his acting really was that bad. Seeing the certainty in Robin's eyes, he scratched his head and dropped the subject.

Robin slowly breathed a sigh of relief when Dongze finally let it go. Thankfully, her colored contact lenses had kept those eyes of his from seeing through her.

But remembering what she had said made her heart beat faster. Looking back, she had been remarkably bold, speaking her mind so openly in front of him.

Dongze still hadn't noticed, and a strange thrill rose within her. That thrill was beginning to take root.

She grew more curious about the man before her by the day, and more eager to understand what went on in his mind. This time, for instance, he had clearly wanted to help Nami, yet he had made the girl so angry she looked ready to leap onto him and bite him.

"Come on. Let's go take a look."

"Heh. I'm afraid seeing you will only upset Nami again, sir."

"So what? She's eaten my food, drunk my drinks, and worn my clothes these past few days. She's bad-mouthed me behind my back, too. What's wrong with smacking her backside a couple of times? And then she got so angry she stole a hundred million Beli from me!"

"You have some nerve saying that, sir! Nami's a girl!"

"Nami!"

"Where have you been these past two days?"

"Nojiko!"

"Look what I've got."

Nami held out the suitcase.

Nojiko could tell something was different about Nami today. The gloom that usually hung over her had vanished, replaced by a carefree smile.

Nojiko looked at the suitcase, puzzled. What could have made her younger sister so happy?

It had to be whatever was inside. With that thought, she started to open it.

"Nojiko! Don't open it yet. Wait until we get home!"

As soon as Nami returned, she had spotted the Fish-Men keeping watch. If they saw the suitcase opened here, they might cause trouble.

And what Robin had said to her earlier echoed in her mind.

What if Arlong and his crew went back on their word? What would I do then?

They wouldn't. Arlong said he never broke a wager!

Nojiko noticed Nami's expression change. She had been fine a moment ago, but now her face had gone pale, as though something had frightened her.

"Nami! What's wrong?"

Nojiko's voice brought her back. She had finally gathered a hundred million Beli. She could buy back the village from Arlong, along with Merbel's Orange Grove. Yet for some reason, Robin's words kept circling in her mind.

"Nojiko, what if I've gathered a hundred million Beli and Arlong changes his mind?"

Nojiko froze. It wasn't the possibility of Arlong changing his mind that caught her attention. "You've gathered a hundred million Beli?"

A hundred million Beli was no small sum. She had never even heard of anyone having that much cash.

Realizing something, Nojiko's mouth twitched. "Hey, don't tell me what's in this suitcase is..."

The two returned home. When Nojiko opened the suitcase, delight spread across her face. It held exactly a hundred million Beli, no more and no less.

"Hey, Nami, where did you get all this money?"

Nojiko was curious. This time, Nami had brought back far more than usual.

She knew Nami went out to sea, and Nami had told her about the agreement. On Nami's earlier trips, Nojiko had even helped cover for her.

Whenever Nami came home, she brought back only tens of thousands of Beli, a few hundred thousand at most. This time, there was a full hundred million.

They couldn't have sold Cocoyasi Village for that much.

Thinking of the Beli brought someone to Nami's mind. Dongze had played the villain, but Robin had left a deeper impression on her. After all, it was Robin who had given her this last hundred million Beli.

Maybe that jerk has already driven Xiao Yi away. If she's out there alone, I'll invite her to live with us once the Fish-Men are dealt with!

"It's money that some crook made doing shady things! I took a little of it when he wasn't looking!"

Nami said it with absolute conviction. Had Dongze heard her, though, he would surely have shot back, "Shady money? Doesn't it hurt to tell a lie like that?"

Meanwhile, Arlong received word from his underlings that Nami had returned.

He paid it little mind. As long as Cocoyasi Village remained in his hands, the navigator he had his eye on could never escape him.

Before long, Robin and Dongze set foot on the island as well.

Dongze used his Observation Haki to locate the Fish-Men, then quickly found Nami.

At that moment, villagers surrounded Nami. Though she had joined the Fish-Men's pirate crew, they knew she had done it for them and had even struck a deal with the Fish-Men.

They knew how much the girl had suffered over the years.

"Everyone!"

Seeing how they treated her, Nami suddenly felt like crying.

Genzo had heard Nami's plan and told the villagers. One after another, they had come here.

This wasn't one young girl's burden. It concerned everyone in Cocoyasi Village. How many hardships had she endured, how much blood had she shed to gather a hundred million Beli? Now that she had the money, how could they stand by and watch all her efforts go to waste? How could they call themselves human if they did?

At some point, Robin's eyes had grown damp.

"Mr. Dongze, aren't you going to step in?"

Dongze's gaze drifted into the distance. After a pause, he said, "Not yet. A plum blossom's fragrance is sweetest after the bitter cold."

People seldom cherished what came too easily.

It was a common failing, a stubborn one, and it needed correcting.

Besides, the fight for freedom had not begun. Stepping in now would go against his original purpose. Their actions moved him, but he would not abandon his principles.

"Arlong! This is bad! The villagers from Orange Town are all coming!"

"A pack of Seedlings. So what if every last one of them comes? There's no need to panic!"

Arlong was unconcerned. In his eyes, the people of the East Blue were little different from slaves. With none of those terrifying humans who could shake heaven and earth at a whim, this place was paradise to him.

He thought so little of Nami and the others that he opened the gates of Arlong Park and let them in.

"Well, well! My little navigator! You're back!"

At the sight of Nami, Arlong split his huge mouth in a grin. His enormous tongue swept over his sharp teeth as he gave a chilling laugh.

Nami got straight to the point. "Arlong! I'm here to fulfill our agreement!"

Arlong and the Fish-Men stared at her. "Huh? What agreement?"

They had long since forgotten it. To Arlong, it had only been an excuse to make a navigator of Nami's exceptional talent work for them.

"I'm buying back Cocoyasi Village!"

The Fish-Men paused. After a moment's silence, they burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha! Hahahaha! Hahahahaha!"

Their laughter struck the villagers who had come with her like a slap to the face, leaving their cheeks burning.

Since when did they have to buy their own village back from someone else?

"Nami, that's a hundred million Beli. Even we haven't managed to steal that much. Don't get the wrong idea!"

Chew, one of the Fish-Men beside Arlong, chuckled as he mocked her.

They had spent years plundering nearby villages and towns without amassing that much money. How could Nami, a young girl, have done it?

"Exactly! If you don't have the money and you've come here just to make a fool of me, I guarantee you won't all leave in one piece!"

"Hachi! Go get Momoo. Seems some people have forgotten how frightening the Arlong Pirates can be!"

"Arlong! Are you saying you won't honor the agreement?"

Genzo saw the Fish-Men stirring and realized they weren't taking the matter seriously. Anger flared within him. He had loved Bellemere, and he had hated Arlong ever since Arlong killed her.

Arlong's arrogance was more than he could bear, and Genzo shouted at him.

With someone taking the lead, the other villagers raised their voices in support.

"That's right! Arlong, are you going to break your word?"

"Shut up! You Seedlings. Don't say I never gave you a chance. Bring me a hundred million Beli, and I'll give you your freedom. If you can't, you'll regret it!"

As Chew had said, Arlong didn't believe Nami could produce a hundred million Beli. It was an enormous sum. Even his entire pirate crew hadn't managed to gather that much, let alone one young girl.

But what happened next left Arlong dumbfounded.

"Arlong! Open your eyes and look!"

Nami took the suitcase from Nojiko and opened it in full view of everyone. Inside lay a neatly arranged hundred million Beli.

The sunlight glinting off the suitcase full of Beli dazzled the Fish-Men. Even the villagers couldn't help swallowing. They had heard Nami had gathered a hundred million Beli, but seeing it for themselves still stunned them.

Arlong and his crew were equally stunned by the sudden appearance of the money. One Fish-Man stepped forward to check it, then nodded to Arlong, his eyes vacant with shock.

"Arlong! I've brought the money. Honor our agreement!"

Nami looked up at Arlong, who towered over her, and shouted with unwavering resolve.

The villagers added their voices to hers.

Arlong looked at the roused crowd, his eyes turning savage and cold. Let them buy back the village? Impossible. Protection money was how his pirate crew had grown strong.

And if he let them go, would a gifted navigator like Nami stay with the Arlong Pirates?

Soon, though, an idea came to him.

"I'll honor the agreement!"

The Fish-Men stared at him, but none dared interrupt their captain. Everything seemed to be going smoothly. Yet while the villagers rejoiced, a cruel glint flashed in Arlong's eyes.

"Men, take Orange Town again! I never said I'd give up the village for good!"

"Oh, I see! For a moment, I thought Arlong really was giving up Orange Town!"

"Good thinking, Arlong!"

"That's right! We won't be breaking the agreement!"

"You buy it back, and we'll just seize it again!"

"A pack of Seedlings think they can have freedom?"

"Haha! Haha! Hahahahahaha..."

At their blatant words, Nami's face flushed red. "Arlong, you bastard!"

"You broke your word! Didn't you say you never went back on an agreement?"

Arlong bared his mouthful of sharp teeth and laughed brazenly. "Hahaha! Nami, how does that break our agreement? Didn't I sell you the village?"

Furious, Nami shouted, "And what happens after that? You despicable creep!"

A cold light flashed in Arlong's eyes. "Nami, I'll teach you a truth today. The strong prey on the weak. That's the only rule for surviving in this world. Only the strong get to make the rules, and the rest of you can only obey! You're nothing but trash!"

"Haha! Hahaha! Hahahahaha!"

The helplessness and despair in Nami's eyes pleased Arlong all the more. He had once been like that before the Celestial Dragons—worse, even. Now he wanted these people to know how it felt, to satisfy something twisted inside him.

Arlong opened the suitcase and ran his large hand over the stacks of Beli. "Not bad! Next time you want to buy back the village, I'll give you a discount: two hundred million Beli!"

The crowd erupted at Arlong's words. Nami had gone through so much to earn that money. Angry cries rose, and the situation teetered on the edge of chaos.

Genzo's gaze gradually hardened. He was certain now that Arlong and his Fish-Men would never let them go. Years ago, he had held back for everyone's sake. But seeing Bellemere's daughter Nami treated like this after all she had done for them, he could hold back no longer.

When there was nothing left to endure, there was no need to endure it.

As a philosopher had once said, "If we do not rise up from silence, we will perish in it!"