Far away in the East Blue, Ren had no idea that the small gust stirred by his butterfly of fate would one day become a hurricane shaking the world to its core.
The battle on Quint Island was drawing to a close.
When Ren brought Nojiko to find Nami and Zoro, the last of their enemies had already been flattened to the ground by Nami.Zoro, though looking rather idle, held a sword whose blade was unmistakably stained with blood.
"All done?" Ren asked.
"Everyone we met is dead. As for the ones we didn't—no clue," Zoro replied, pausing before asking, "Should we sweep the island? Hunt down anyone that slipped away?"
"No need. This island's got plenty of fishing boats. Chasing them down would be a waste of time. Let them fend for themselves."
Ren shook his head and walked across the wet ground toward them.
His gaze swept over Zoro before landing on Nami—her drenched clothes clinging tightly to her skin.Hmm… that shape… she's definitely becoming more and more S-shaped.
"Another look and I'll charge you two hundred thousand Beli," Nami said, rolling her eyes as Nojiko checked her over."I'm fine. Those guys couldn't even see where I was."
"That's good. You were too impulsive—throwing me behind like that," Nojiko scolded gently, rubbing her sister's damp orange hair and dabbing her face with a tissue.
Ren, meanwhile, had returned to his serious tone. "How are the weapons and potions working out?"
"The invisibility potion is amazing. None of them could see me. The gun's powerful too, and that red targeting light makes aiming easy—just not for long distances. The Ruyi Staff's handy to carry, and that knockback spell, when used right, can snap a neck in one hit."
Nami gave a full report, then leaned close and caught Ren's hand with pleading eyes."I did really well this time, didn't I? I even took down Zoro's prey! Maybe you could reward me? At least give me a whole box of that potion?"
"A potion worth a million Beli a bottle? You might as well kill me first," Ren muttered, his eyes unconsciously dropping fifteen centimeters.So that's the famous "Nami Valley"… quite a literal name.
Still, the invisibility potion was indeed impressive. Despite its flaws, its advantages couldn't be denied. He'd have to stockpile more—just in case of emergencies.
"Did you finish off the enemy leader?" Zoro asked as he wiped blood from his blade.
"Yeah. Might bring us some trouble later, but that's a problem for the future."
Ren looked at him. "How's Ryuen?"
"Excellent. I think it qualifies as a fine blade," Zoro said with satisfaction, patting his faithful partner at his hip.
"Good."
Ren nodded, then casually reached behind himself and pulled out the Desire Compass.
Click!The needle spun, finally pointing toward the hall where they'd fought. Its target: the Buggy Pirates' treasure.
"Let's go. Time to collect our spoils."
Three hours later, the group returned to the Pipi Shrimp.A thunderous cannon roar echoed from the docks.
At Ren's command, Nami had manned the shore batteries and sunk the Buggy Pirates' ship.
Once it was done, the Pipi Shrimp sailed away into the horizon.
On the distant shore, a group of ragged natives watched the departing ship in stunned silence.
"Lord Thunder God is gone… he's sailing away!"
"Someone just confirmed it—the Buggy Pirates have been wiped out!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. We caught two of Buggy's crew—the same bastards who robbed your house and killed your wife. Your son knocked out their teeth, and they spilled everything."
"Thank goodness… thank goodness…"The village head fell to his knees, bowing deeply toward the departing ship.
The other villagers followed suit, kneeling one after another.
They were lucky—Lucky such people had come.
Ren, far away, was completely unaware of the prayers behind him. He never bothered to find out where the natives had gone.But one thing was certain: because of his arrival, the miserable fate of Quint Island's people had been changed.
Meanwhile, the so-called "Thunder God" was frowning.
Too little.
The loot from the Buggy Pirates was pitiful compared to their previous hauls. After deducting the cost of the invisibility potions used, their profit barely reached three million Beli.And that much only because Buggy's crew had recently gone on a robbery spree.
But then again, they were pirates—squandering their gold on booze and women was perfectly normal.
Three million Beli... might as well round it off.Save three million and give the rest as bonuses to Nami and the others. It wouldn't look good to snatch it all back through "debt collection." Nami might cheat behind my back, but Nojiko's different. Gotta keep things looking fair—helps keep everyone united.
Ren was deep in thought when the door suddenly burst open with a kick.
Nami stormed in, waving a rolled-up chart in her hand."Look! Found this among Buggy's loot—it might be the legendary chart of the Grand Line from hell!"
She plopped down onto Ren's soft bed and proudly spread it out."Good thing I have an eye for treasure! I knew this chart looked special, so I searched Buggy's ship and found his diary too."
"Oh? Not bad. So why didn't you report it?" Ren arched an eyebrow, teasing.
"I… forgot," Nami stammered, her smile freezing.
Stealing wasn't a big deal—but getting caught was.
"Punishment," Ren said flatly.
"Nooo!"Nami lunged at him, half-pouting, half-attacking. "I only came because I thought it'd be useful for you!"
"Just kidding," Ren said, catching her cheek in one hand—then delivered a sharp smack to another, softer target.
A tremor rippled. Nami's eyes widened in shock and fury.
"If you keep struggling," Ren said coolly, "the one who'll lose out won't be me."
"What the hell!"She sat back down, clutching her sore backside, glaring daggers at him.Ah, right… she'd forgotten just how shameless this man could be.
Every time they were apart for a while, she somehow forgot his wickedness—and only remembered his good points.
Ignoring her sulking, Ren asked, "So what's special about that chart?"
"If we ever head to the Grand Line, this chart, along with Buggy's diary, will make our voyage a lot smoother."Nami rubbed her aching rear and handed over the map. "Want to keep it? Usually, the captain stores things like this."
"No thanks. You're the navigator. I'm six holes short of understanding navigation."
Ren waved it off, sending a delighted Nami out the door.
Then, alone once more, he opened the Dimensional Roulette—ready for his long-awaited draw.
Lucky Lighter.
Blessing of the Goddess of Fortune.
Rider of Fate's Tide.
(End of Chapter)