Taking on Arlong Alone

Far to the northwest lay a chain of mountains, one of the few large stretches of connected land in the region. This place, called the Conomi Islands, had twenty villages. They governed themselves and belonged to no kingdom.

Unfortunately, that independence also left them powerless when Arlong invaded. Most Marines were no match for him, and Captain Nezumi covered up the situation from his superiors. As a result, the Fish-Men had ruled the islands for six years.

Rubick thought that if he ever wanted to try being a king, this would be the perfect place.

"All right, head back. Any farther and you'll be in the Fish-Men's patrol area."

Rubick judged the distance. At their current speed, the boat would arrive in less than half a day, and it wasn't too far for him to travel by Geppo. The sailors, on the other hand, would risk being attacked if they went any farther.

The sailors thanked Rubick for his consideration and stopped the boat.

One of them said, "Mr. Rubick, we brought a small boat too. You can row there yourself."

"Even better."

Geppo took a fair amount of energy. With a small boat, he could simply drift along with the current.

Night fell as Rubick slowly came ashore. He didn't know where he had landed, but he could see a five-story tower to the west. There was no question about it: that was Arlong Park.

The nearby villages had lived under oppressive rule for years. There wasn't a soul in sight, not even on the streets.

Of course, that also had to do with the villages' size. None of the Conomi Islands were large, and most villages had only twenty or thirty households. Under such harsh conditions, population growth had nearly ground to a halt.

Rubick found himself with a problem: at this hour, there was nowhere to get dinner.

He headed west, thinking he might as well launch a surprise attack on Arlong Park. Otherwise, he would only be hungrier tomorrow.

Before long, Rubick spotted a dense grove of orange trees on the edge of a village, with a lone house beside it. He suspected it might be Nami's home.

He changed course and walked toward the house.

At the door stood a beautiful woman with short blue hair and a red ribbon tied in it. In the light spilling from the house, Rubick could see her pretty face and the tattoos on her arms and collarbone. She wore a short-sleeved shirt, long pants, and flip-flops. She had a style all her own.

"Hey, who are you?"

Rubick countered, "Who are you?"

Nojiko looked Rubick up and down. "You're an adventurer, aren't you? Outsiders aren't welcome here. You'd better leave."

"Could I have dinner here? I can pay."

Rubick took out 20,000 Beli and offered it to Nojiko.

After some hesitation, Nojiko agreed.

Arlong would soon be coming to collect his protection money again. How much could she make selling oranges on her own? Nami often had to help her out, too. "Come in, then. I don't have much food, but I'm keeping all 20,000 Beli."

"Deal."

Rubick followed Nojiko inside and remarked casually, "Two people usually live here, right? The other one must be a girl too."

Nojiko went into the kitchen to make him a simple dinner. "You don't need to know," she said.

Rubick noticed a photograph on the table. It showed a pink-haired woman and two little girls. The girls looked carefree, while the woman had a cigarette in her mouth. It was clearly Nami's family.

"Oh, right," Rubick said. "I'm looking for someone named Nami. She's from nearby Cocoyasi Village. Do you know where she is?"

Nojiko's hand paused as she cracked an egg. Then she said as if nothing had happened, "Nami? I don't know. There are dozens of villages around here. You can ask on the other islands tomorrow. But whatever you do, don't go west. That's Fish-Man territory."

A fried egg and a slice of orange pie: that was the dinner Nojiko served him for 20,000 Beli.

"I thought there'd at least be some fried noodles," Rubick said.

Nojiko set the plate in front of him. "Be glad there's anything to eat. People here are poor. Finish up and leave."

Rubick ate the egg in one bite and the orange pie in another. Dinner was over.

"Not bad, but way too expensive."

Rubick got up to leave. Staying at a woman's house this late at night wouldn't be appropriate.

Nojiko saw Rubick out and locked the door tight before washing the dishes. When she returned to the table, she saw the family photograph and put it away in a drawer.

Rubick slept in the grove that night. With how strong his body had become, even sleeping in the middle of a road wouldn't have bothered him.

"Hey, mister, you're still here? Did you sleep in my orange grove all night? You didn't steal any oranges, did you?"

Nojiko had come to the grove for her morning rounds and nearly jumped when she found Rubick sleeping there.

Rubick stood, stretched, and yawned. "I was just about to leave. You said the Fish-Men are to the west, right? They're who I'm looking for."

"Hey, mister!"

Nojiko said, "Those are Fish-Men! What do you want with them?"

"What do I want?"

Rubick grinned. "To find that bastard Arlong and turn his head into a spicy fish-head dish."

Rubick headed west without another word. Arlong Park's tower was easy to spot, and he reached the outer grounds in just half an hour.

He hadn't seen a single Fish-Man on the way. Perhaps years of easy living had made them so arrogant they no longer bothered with guards. Rubick strolled right up to the gate.

Arlong Park was surrounded by walls on three sides. Its south side faced the sea and was protected by an iron gate. Rubick stood at the east gate.

He kicked the gate and strode in, slicking back his hair with one hand.

The two gate panels flew backward. The Fish-Men in the park stared in shock. After all these years, another human had dared to cause trouble right in front of them?

Arlong was especially amused. He sat in a chair before the building, his chin propped on his right hand. Tilting his head toward Rubick, he bared a mouthful of razor-sharp teeth in a vicious grin.

Rubick walked toward Arlong. "So you're the damned Arlong!"

"Oh? Interesting!"

Arlong didn't move. A Fish-Man beside him, with the character for "gold" written across his chest, spoke up. "Human, you're not afraid to die. But do you know how many humans have died here?"

Kuroobi walked toward Rubick as he spoke. Rubick passed right by him and kept going toward Arlong.

Enraged at being ignored, Kuroobi threw a punch at the back of Rubick's head.