Sabaody Archipelago
Inside Shakky's Rip-off Bar.
With a lady's cigarette dangling from her lips, Shakky leaned lazily on the counter and casually said:
"Hachi got killed. I thought for sure you, the Pirate King's right-hand man, would be furious and sail out for revenge."
Silvers Rayleigh shook his head, setting down the Den Den Mushi with a sigh.
"The Captain was just executed by the Marines. If I make a move now, the entire Navy will jump. It'll be a hassle."
He paused, then his expression grew serious:
"Besides… if you become a pirate, you should be ready to kill—and be killed."
Shakky looked relieved and chuckled. "So, if you run into that kid, are you really going to fight him?"
Rayleigh shook his head again and casually opened a newspaper:
"The sea's too vast. What are the odds?"
"Finally done."
Naruto exhaled deeply, surveying the battlefield strewn with corpses.
"As expected of a major antagonist in the early story. Wiping out one pirate crew ended up involving half the pirate world."
"Come on, Nami. Let's grab some oranges from your orchard."
Holding Nami's hand, he turned to leave.
Nami hesitated, then blushed and asked softly:
"Um… Naruto-dono, can I… take the treasure too?"
She lowered her head shyly as she spoke.
Naruto blinked, then laughed. Even at her age, Nami was already a money-lover.
"Sure. I'll help you carry it back."
The two worked together to haul the Arlong Pirates' treasure back to the orange grove.
After counting it up, Naruto was shocked to find the total was nearly 300 million Berries.
"All of this was stolen from the surrounding villages…" Nami said quietly, looking a little sad.
"Then go give it back," Naruto said nonchalantly as he munched on an orange.
Nami looked pained and hesitated, her fingers anxiously running over the coins.
Naruto chewed calmly, thinking to himself.
His biggest weakness right now was still his body—it was just too small.
He was only around six years old.
Even with the high-oxygen environment of the One Piece world, there was only so much that could help him grow faster.
Most people here still had normal physiques, after all. The giant-sized pirates were rare exceptions.
"Need to grow fast… fast…"
As he mulled it over, a very peculiar image popped into his mind—
Emporio Ivankov, the Queen of the Kamabakka Kingdom!
Naruto's eyes lit up.
That strange individual from Impel Down wielded the power of the Horu Horu no Mi (Horm-Horm Fruit)—a Paramecia fruit that allowed control over all hormones.
He could manipulate every hormone in the human body, even change someone's gender.
And of course… growth and development were entirely hormone-driven.
In other words, if Naruto could find Ivankov and get a shot—
His physical development would soar.
His eyes gleamed with anticipation.
"I remember he's a king in the New World… pretty well-known over there too."
With his next goal locked in, Naruto turned his attention back to his own jutsu.
"My chakra nature is wind… which means using other elements reduces my jutsu's effectiveness."
"But elemental affinities can be changed—like with Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear, or Orochimaru's body modifications…"
"And in the One Piece world, maybe there are other ways…"
Naruto spent a few more days in Cocoyashi Village.
When it was finally time to set sail, young Nami clung to Naruto's leg, teary-eyed.
"Naruto-dono, please let me come with you! I can draw sea charts! I can be your navigator!"
Naruto gave a wry laugh and patted her on the head.
"Nami, you're still way too young. You can't just run off to sea with me."
"I gave you books on Haki and the Six Powers. Train with those first. Get strong—then it'll be safe to travel."
"No! That's not fair!" Nami shook her head furiously.
"You're still small too, Naruto-dono! You're only 1.3 meters tall! I'm catching up soon, just wait!"
Naruto's mouth twitched.
…And now he was even more determined to find Ivankov.
No way was he going to be called a pipsqueak by a little girl.
Nami's sister, Nojiko, looked equally helpless.
"Nami, you're too young… what if you slow him down?"
But Nami just kept gazing up at Naruto with those watery eyes.
Naruto sighed and picked her up.
"Fine. I do need a navigator. I keep getting lost anyway. Come along—but only to see the world, got it?"
"Yay!!" Nami jumped up in delight.
Nojiko blinked in surprise. "Naruto-dono… is that really okay?"
Naruto nodded.
"It's fine. With me around, she'll be safe. And seeing the world will do her good."
And so—
A pirate crew with just two members… set sail.
...
East Blue — Calm Belt
Dozens of Naruto's shadow clones were busy navigating the stolen Krieg Pirate fleet.
Nami and one of the clones stood at the bow of the ship.
"Bad news, Naruto-dono!!" Nami called out, pointing.
"There's a seahorse-looking Sea King on the left! And a sea cow on the right!"
"Wait, one just lifted the ship up—it's an elephant-looking one! And now we're sinking!"
"AH! There's a giant snake-shaped one with its mouth open! It's gonna eat us!"
The orange-haired girl shrieked excitedly, arms flailing.
Even surrounded by dozens of mountain-sized monsters—
Not a shred of fear in her heart.
After all, as far as she was concerned…
Naruto-dono was invincible.
What were Sea Kings compared to him?
Atop the mast, one of Naruto's clones gazed toward the approaching sea serpent.
Then—
"Fūton: Rasenshuriken!!"
The spinning blue shuriken slammed straight into the creature's neck.
The enormous Sea King let out a piercing cry.
Its massive body twisted violently across the surface, triggering a wave of tsunamis.
(End of Chapter)
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