"I don't have any grand dreams, I just want to take good care of my family's Orange Grove, expand the planting scale, and ease the burden on my family!"
Nojiko Gao Nuonuo said that she was a few years older Nami and could understand a lot of things. She knew what her family's current situation was. It was already good enough that they could survive. She had no time to talk about dreams. She just wanted to grow up quickly to help her family share some of the burdens and make their lives better. She was a filial and sensible child!
"Good, very practical!"
Vic complimented her, saying that Nojiko had always lived in Cocoyasi Village in the original story, tending to that Orange Grove. That Orange Grove held great significance for the two girls, so Vic wasn't surprised. Not everyone is the protagonist in other people's eyes; as long as she is the protagonist in her own life, that's enough.
However, being in such a vast ocean, it's impossible to survive without some means of self-defense. There are quite a few pirates in the East Blue. In the original story, Arlong was stationed here, which is why other pirates didn't dare to come. Now that Arlong is gone, other pirates will definitely come to plunder. Therefore, Vic plans to teach Nojiko some physical skills and swordsmanship so that she can have some self-defense capabilities.
"My turn! My turn! My dream is to become a navigator, travel the world, draw all the places I've been, and then draw the first world map! Big brother! What do you think of my dream?"
Compared to Nojiko, Nami younger and more lively and innocent. Upon hearing Vic's evaluation of Nojiko, she eagerly shared her dream and asked Vic to comment on it, showing a desire to be recognized by her elders.
Although the timeline was moved up by three years, Nami had already set her sights on her dream. To achieve this dream, she studied navigation. Since her family couldn't afford books, she would go to the village bookstore to read them, and sometimes she would even steal books to take home. In the end, Genzo would always pay for them.
Judging from the flashbacks in the original work, this wasn't the first or second time such things had happened. Nami, the bookstore owner, and Genzo had all gotten used to it, indicating that this had been going on for a long time. Therefore, it's not surprising that Nami had the dream of becoming a navigator during this period.
"Navigator! That's a good profession, but the sea isn't safe. There are plenty of ruthless criminals like those pirates we saw today. You'll need to learn some self-defense skills, otherwise you won't be able to go to so many places."
Vic was relieved after hearing Nami's words; as long as her dream hadn't changed, that was good. However, a weak woman like her couldn't even leave the East Blue, let alone go to the Grand Line, so she could only wait for Luffy.
Even joining the Straw Hat Pirates wouldn't be enough. The main characters' treatment is extraordinary; they encounter trouble wherever they go, practically fighting wherever they go. Nami would only be in more danger. Even with the protagonist's halo, she's constantly getting injured. Of the three weaklings, only Nami is truly weak.
Vic has high hopes for Nami. Among the Straw Hat Pirates, besides Luffy, Zoro and Nami are the most likely to become gods. Zoro might become a god by comprehending a certain Laws through swordsmanship, but Nami has a stronger talent in celestial phenomena and climate, making her more likely to become a god. Therefore, Vic wants to train her in advance.
"Big brother! You're so amazing, why don't you stay here and protect us? That way we won't be afraid of bad guys anymore!"
Nami looked at Vic with hopeful eyes. She had seen Vic get shot in the chest with her own eyes, and when Vic hugged her afterwards, she worriedly pulled open the shirt with the single hole to look inside. Apart from the bloodstains on the shirt, there was no wound at all.
She was very confused at the time. She'd clearly been hit and bled, so how come there wasn't a single wound? Later, Bellemere told her that only very skilled people could do that, so with strong individuals like Vic around, why would they need to become stronger?
This is an inherent human thought: once someone has someone to rely on, they naturally become less motivated to work hard. Children are even more dependent. However, it's really a bit unreasonable to ask Vic to stay after only knowing him for a day.
"Hahaha! I also have my own life and things to do. I just happened to run into you guys this time. I can't stay here forever. If you want to become stronger, I can stay here for a few more days. If not, I'll leave tomorrow. What do you think?"
Vic could live here indefinitely, with the abundant Primal Spirit within the Soul Fruit, his cultivation speed wouldn't be slow, but it would definitely be far inferior to that of Raijin Island. Moreover, it would also turn Nami into a hothouse flower, which Vic wouldn't want to see. It would be such a pity to waste such a good talent because of personality issues.
We want to become stronger!
Seemingly afraid that Vic would leave tomorrow, the two girls said in unison. Although they had only just met Vic, they liked Vic very much, and even though they had no interest in becoming stronger, they still wanted Vic to stay a few more days.
So Vic settled down in Cocoyasi Village. He didn't personally teach them how to become stronger, as a few days was definitely not enough for systematic instruction. Instead, Vic used illusion magic to pull the mother and her two daughters into an illusion.
In the illusion, one can experience longer periods of learning and systematic training. Reality and the illusion are like two worlds with different time flows. Yes, even Bellemere wasn't spared by Vic. She was an adult and had served in the Navy, so she was more likely to accept many things and grow faster than Nami and Nojiko. She was the Vic chose to protect Cocoyasi and Nami.
Therefore, Bellemere enjoyed the same treatment as Nami, receiving a Soul Fruit every two days. As for Nojiko, she was only given a secondary benefit; as long as she continued training until adulthood, she wouldn't be weak, so Vic didn't give her any more Soul Fruit.
With the combined blessing of the illusion and the Soul Fruit, Bellemere successfully Awakening Observation Haki. With her background as a Marine, coupled with Vic constantly creating dangerous scenarios to stimulate her, and the improvement of her mental strength, Observation Haki naturally Awakening.
With her Observation Haki combined with her gun skills, most pirates are no match for her, especially since this is the East Blue. Moreover, in the illusion, Vic taught her many ways to become stronger, allowing her to continue growing stronger while Nami grows up. She can also supervise Nami and Nojiko's training, so the safety of Cocoyasi Village is basically not a problem.
Five or six days had passed in reality, but nearly half a year had passed in the illusion. Bellemere only learned this from Genzo after Vic left, during a conversation, that only a few days had actually passed.
Bellemere had been taken to many places by Vic to gain experience, so it couldn't have been done in just a few days. However, after asking more people, she finally believed it. Although Bellemere didn't know how Vic did it, she was still incredibly amazed!
Is this the power of the strong? It can even affect the flow of time? They didn't know it was an illusion until Vic left, because it was too real. They wouldn't even make that connection. Months of memories can't be faked!