A chance encounter with Nami

Outside Hammer Town's docks, Rubick and Zoro, who had gone hungry all day, squatted by the roadside and ate the food Zeff had given them.

Pithsgar's corpse lay right beside them.

Eating beside a corpse in the middle of the street had already drawn two Navy patrols over to question them. Thanks to that, several nearby taverns now knew that the Pirate Hunter had come ashore with a Pirate's corpse.

Old Zeff was a little unreliable. Much of the food he had given them was fruit, and as Zoro had said, it would all go to waste if they did not eat it soon.

The two big eaters squatted there, chomping their way through the food.

Rubick liked chatting while he ate, so he asked something he had been very curious about.

"Zoro, don't you have any money? With your strength, you must earn plenty."

"Of course I don't. Meals eat up most of my money, and the swords I buy never last. Every bounty gets spent in no time."

Neither of them noticed an orange-haired beauty quietly approaching from behind. After overhearing their conversation, she stood behind them and listened closely.

"That doesn't make sense!"

Rubick asked in confusion, "A Pirate's worth at least three million Beli, right? How can that run out so fast? How much do you eat at every meal?"

Zoro thought it over carefully, then said, "Every time I kill a Pirate, I put his head on a dining table, and the owner treats me to a month's worth of meals. Come to think of it, with how much I eat, the owner probably doesn't make much money either."

Isn't that taking advantage of honest people?

Rubick fell silent. With Zoro's appetite, the owner must have pocketed two and a half million Beli through his tears.

"Hey, are you Pirate Hunter Zoro and his lackey?"

Zoro's mouth was stuffed with food, and he still held bread and fruit in his hands. When he heard a girl addressing him, he merely nodded indifferently.

Rubick, however, was not pleased. Ignoring the food still in his mouth, he said thickly, "I'm not his lackey. I'm his big brother!"

Zoro said, "Mm-hmm."

Rubick's older, so he can be the big brother. Dealing with this food is more important right now. With that thought, Zoro went back to taking huge bites.

Rubick swallowed hard. He suddenly realized that the beauty in front of him looked rather familiar.

Beneath her short, ear-length orange hair was a finely sculpted face. Her big, dark eyes sparkled with every smile and frown. When she grew up, she would surely be a beauty capable of bringing nations to ruin.

Unable to contain his curiosity, Rubick asked, "So, who are you?"

Nami frowned at Rubick. "Old man, shouldn't you introduce yourself before asking someone else's name?"

Rubick pointed at himself in disbelief. "Me? An old man? Has anyone ever told you that you're not cute at all?"

Not only is she not cute, her figure's nothing special either. She's like a beanpole, with no curves anywhere. Nothing to look at.

Zoro was more straightforward. "I'm Zoro. He's Rubick."

"I'm Nami!"

Nami smiled cheerfully. "I overheard your conversation just now. You don't seem very experienced at managing your business. I could be your agent. Whenever you catch a pirate, just give me twenty-five percent of the bounty as my fee."

Well, that's a new one. Rubick had never heard of bounty hunters needing agents.

He was about to refuse when Nami added, "Do you know where to find those Pirates? You don't!"

Her tone was absolute and brimming with confidence. "But I do. I'm very well informed. With your skills and my information, you'll catch Pirates far more efficiently and make money much faster."

Nami spread her arms, revealing her meager chest. "Let's join forces! We can grow together and make money together!"

Nami talked until her mouth went dry, but Rubick and Zoro stared at her as though she were an idiot.

Zoro even said, "I don't need partners. I can work alone."

Rubick added, "Our team doesn't need children. You're too little."

"I'm little?"

Nami bristled like a cat. "What's little about me? I've been getting by on these seas for ten years! I'm an old hand!"

Rubick pointed his thumb behind him. "Then, old hand, are those people looking for you?"

Nami looked behind the two of them. Her eyes immediately went wide, and she turned to run.

Seeing that, Rubick stepped forward and grabbed her arm. Nami tugged, but could not pull free.

"We've caught the Cat Burglar!"

A group of somewhat drunken men surrounded them. The man at the front wore an eyepatch over one blind eye. He pointed at Rubick. "Old man, hand that Cat Burglar over to us. She stole our money."

Rubick looked at Nami's waist, where several fist-sized coin purses hung. So she had just stolen them. No wonder they were all different styles.

Nami broke into a cold sweat and looked pleadingly at Rubick. "Old man, save me. If I fall into their hands, my whole life will be... boo-hoo..."

Nami burst into tears on cue, leaving Rubick completely bewildered. He could never bear to see a girl cry.

So Rubick pulled Nami behind him and told One-Eyed Dragon, "She's with me. Tell me how you want to settle this."

Zoro stood up too. Although he was still chewing, he had already taken a stance to draw his swords. This Nami girl might be a thief, but those drunks did not look like good people either.

Seeing Nami being protected, One-Eyed Dragon sized up the two unfamiliar men before him. He figured bullying a couple of outsiders should be no problem.

He rolled up his sleeves, only for one of his lackeys to suddenly stop him.

"Boss, don't do anything rash. That's Pirate Hunter Zoro. The corpse of a pirate worth several million is still lying right beside him."

This lackey was fairly quick-witted. He had heard about it in the tavern earlier, and now that he saw Zoro's stance and the corpse beside him, he sobered up at once.

These two men were not people they could handle!

"Hmph, so what if he's Zoro? I'm not afraid of him!"

One-Eyed Dragon blustered, "Out of respect for the Navy, I'll let you off. I hope you can protect her for the rest of her life."

A Navy patrol approached from the distance, and One-Eyed Dragon sauntered away with his lackeys. Still, all three of them could see how nervous he was.

The corporal asked, "Nothing happened here just now, did it?"

Rubick gave a breezy laugh. "No. What could possibly have happened?"

The corporal gave Rubick a hostile look. "Pirate hunters are outlaws, just like pirates. In any case, don't let me catch you doing anything wrong."

The Navy soon left. Blushing a little, Nami said, "Old man, could you let go of my hand now?"

Rubick blinked innocently. "You're with me. Why should I let go?"

Zoro could not stand watching any longer. "Old man, don't take it too far."