Chapter 20 Luffy Angrily Slays Fish-Men to Save the Navy"Hey, aren't you guys being a bit too cruel to her?"
Luffy couldn't stand it anymore and couldn't help but complain to Nojiko beside him.
Nojiko looked at Nami's lonely figure and said in a low voice, "Everyone wants her to give up completely. Only when she despairs of us will she leave this hell and live her own life."
Luffy shook his head and sighed, "You guys underestimate Nami."
Although Nami loves money in the Straw Hat crew, she is extremely kind at heart. Even if the whole world misunderstands her, she is unwilling to hurt innocent people for her own freedom.
Even if everyone in the village despises her, she will grit her teeth and rescue them.
"How did you end up passing by here?"
Nojiko turned to Nami and asked.
You see, even if Nami is strong, she doesn't want to face the villagers' cold faces, even if she knows it's all an act; every gaze feels like a whip lashing at her heart.
"I heard a lot of commotion over here, so I came to check it out."
Nami changed the subject, then turned her gaze to Luffy, her eyes instantly turning fierce: "What are you doing here!"
Luffy crossed his arms, grinning and completely unfazed by her attitude: "To wipe out those fish-men, of course! I'm a Marine Headquarters Captain, after all, I swore an oath to Garp."
Nami rushed forward and grabbed Luffy's collar, her eyes reddening: "I don't care who you are! I've raised enough money, I can buy back the village, I don't need your hypocritical Marines!"
"I was just hitching a ride on a ship to make money the whole time. The Going Merry is in port, get on board and get out of here! If you dare ruin my plans, I'll never forgive you for the rest of my life!"
Nami trembled with agitation, growling at Luffy.
After yelling, Nami forcefully pushed Luffy away and ran out of the village without looking back.
She returned this time precisely to prevent a conflict, fearing Arlong might change his mind.
And indeed, that was the case. If Luffy hadn't intervened with his joke, Gen would likely be dead.
On a hillside outside the village, the sea breeze carried a melancholy.
Nami knelt before a grave, hugging her knees, weeping like a helpless child.
It was Bellemere's grave.
Nojiko emerged from behind a tree, looking at her grieving sister, and jokingly remarked with feigned ease, "Your reputation is still as bad as ever."
Nami quickly wiped away her tears, looked up, and forced a carefree smile: "It doesn't matter. I'm a wicked pirate anyway. But even though Arlong is bad, he's still reasonable. As long as the money's there, I can redeem the village tomorrow!"
As she said this, a glimmer of hope shone on Nami's face—her only source of strength.
Nojiko stood behind, sighing helplessly, unable to bear telling her that Arlong had almost been killed.
Luffy, like a nimble monkey, stood steadily on a high treetop, a cigarette dangling from his lips, silently watching everything.
At that moment, he had a real urge to rush over and drag Arlong out, to use "physical persuasion" to teach him a lesson, and force him to sell the village to Nami.
The happier Nami smiles now, the harder she'll fall when her lie is exposed, and the more her heart will ache.
Luffy leaped, his figure vanishing instantly from the treetops. Nami seemed to sense something, glancing up, but the trees were empty.
"You met some good crewmates on this voyage, didn't you?"
Nojiko lit a slender cigarette and slowly approached, speaking.
Nami's mind flashed to Luffy's silly grin, her eyes dimming slightly. She shook her head. "It was all just an act."
"Really?" Nojiko exhaled a smoke ring, not exposing her sister's feigned composure.
"Tomorrow, buy the village, and go with him, okay? To draw your world map, isn't that your dream?"
Nojiko looked at Nami tenderly.
Nami lowered her head, tears streaming down her face again. "It's impossible. He's a Marine, I'm a pirate. We're destined to be different."
"How will you know if you don't try?"
Nojiko encouraged softly. A sea breeze blew by, as if Bellemere's gentle hand were caressing her two daughters' faces.
Meanwhile, Arlong, his face grim, led his men back to their base.
"It's definitely a Devil Fruit user! Have any unfamiliar faces appeared on these islands lately?"
Arlong demanded angrily of his men. He had gained considerable control over the islands over the years; if they were locals, they would have been discovered long ago. It was definitely an outsider.
The underlings exchanged glances and shook their heads.
Only the Kissing Fishman, Aju, stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Of the brothers who were here just now, only Fishman 1 and Fishman 2, who were patrolling Gosa Town, aren't here… Could something have happened to them…?"
"Nonsense! The fishman brothers are utterly loyal to Brother Arlong!"
Hachi popped his head out of the pool, shouting foolishly.
A-Chou, furious, exclaimed, "Idiot! I meant they've probably already been killed!"
Everyone fell silent instantly, the atmosphere becoming heavy. They all knew A-Chou was most likely right.
Having swaggered around in the East Blue for so long, they'd almost forgotten that fish-men found alone by humans often met a terrible fate—either killed or captured and enslaved.
Arlong's face was ashen. He ordered A-Chou and the soft-boned fish-man, Croobi, "You two lead a team to Gosa Town and check it out. Those damned inferior races, have any remnants of Gosa Town called the Navy or bounty hunters?"
A-Chou and Croobi nodded and immediately mustered their men, ready to depart.
Before leaving, A-Chou suddenly remembered Nami's words and couldn't help but ask, "Big brother, you're not really planning to sell the village to that little girl, are you?"
Arlong, upon hearing this, revealed an extremely sinister smile: "Of course. I'd rather commit seppuku than break a monetary contract. I, Arlong, am a man of my word."
The fish-men were stunned, seemingly not expecting their leader to be so "honest."
Then, Arlong grinned, revealing a mouthful of fangs: "But that'll have to wait until she draws us the entire world map!"
Upon hearing this, the underlings burst into laughter: "By the time she finishes drawing the world map, she'll be an old woman, right? Then we can be merciful and let her retire!"
"Hahahaha! That's hilarious!"
"Besides, she couldn't possibly raise 100 million Berries. Who told her to be so stupid as to leave the treasure map on the table at Arlong's Paradise? That greedy rat colonel is probably already on his way!"
"Hahaha, Arlong, you're so mean!"
Amidst unrestrained laughter, Achu and Croobi led their team towards Gosa Town.
Meanwhile, Luffy was also heading towards Gosa Town.
"Even if I don't just take down Arlong, helping the Marines here is at least doing my duty as a 'colonel,' right?"
Luffy stared at a warship appearing on the horizon and muttered to himself.
"You guys are lucky to have run into me. I'm bursting with rage right now."
With that, Luffy leaped into the sea.
An astonishing scene unfolded: on the turbulent sea, Luffy moved as if on flat ground, each step firmly planted on the water as he raced towards the warship.
In the jungle, a little boy grabbed Nojiko's hand and ran as fast as he could: "Faster! Faster!"
"What's wrong?"
Nojiko, stumbling from being pulled, asked in confusion.
"The Navy! The Navy is finally here!"
The little boy's face flushed with excitement: "The surviving uncles of Goza Town contacted the government, and the Navy is here to rescue us!"
The two ran to the shore, where a large group of Goza Town survivors had gathered, all gazing expectantly at the distant warship.
On the warship's deck, the Commodore of the 77th Marine Division was giving a passionate address to his soldiers.
"Is that the legendary Arlong Paradise over there?"
"To allow pirates to establish a nation so brazenly, this world is truly in chaos."
"Listen! Our mission is to rescue the survivors of Goza Town!"
"But to see these pirates so rampant and yet turn a blind eye, justice will not allow it!"
The Commodore shouted, waving his fist.
The soldiers saluted in unison, their roars echoing through the air: "Never forgive!"
"Excellent! All hands prepare for battle! Annihilate Arlong's gang!"
"Yes, sir!"
Just as morale was high, a green figure suddenly leaped from the water onto the deck.
"Dare to challenge us in these waters? What a bunch of reckless humans."
Achu, hands in his pockets, sneered.
He took a deep breath, his mouth puffing out like a balloon, and a water bullet, as powerful as a cannonball, shot out, blasting several marines who were about to fire.
"Hmm? You're Arlong's men?"
Commodore Brinbrin stepped forward confidently. "I'm a Commodore of the 77th Branch. We're an elite unit. Surrender if you know what's good for you!"
His answer was a water bullet fired at close range by Achu. The commodore didn't even utter a sound before being sent flying like a rag doll.
"Damn it! The Commodore has been killed!"
"Everyone, charge!"
Before the soldiers could rush forward, the ship suddenly shook violently, as if it had hit something, and instantly lost power.
"What?! What happened?"
The navy was in complete chaos.
Achu looked smugly at these lambs to the slaughter: "Sorry, I just casually took apart your rudder."
"I have a question for you. Back in Gosa Town, didn't you kill our fish-man brothers?"
The commodore, clutching his chest, struggled to his feet. "What nonsense are you spouting?"
"You're pretty tough, still alive."
Achu glanced at the commodore with some surprise.
"But that's enough for now. Do you know what happens when you move a huge reef to the center of an ocean current?"
Achu teased, his face full of smugness.
At that moment, the sea began to tremble more violently.
"Move a reef? Are you kidding me? How could anyone do that?"
Commodore Brin exclaimed in shock.
Before he finished speaking, a massive whirlpool appeared directly in front of the warship!
"Oh no! There's a huge whirlpool ahead! We're losing control!"
The helmsman screamed in terror.
"Hahaha, I told you, the rudder's gone! This ship's destination is the bottom of the ocean!"
Achu laughed maniacally.
The immense suction instantly snapped the warship in two, countless sailors screaming as they were swept into the deep sea along with the wreckage.
Apoo and Croobi, witnessing the horrific scene, were ecstatic.
"This is our absolute dominance in the ocean! With Nami's sea chart, conquering the seas is just around the corner! Hahaha!"
The villagers on the shore, seeing the warship sink, collapsed to the ground in despair, their last hope shattered.
"How could this be..."
The little boy who had led the way stood frozen in shock.
Nojiko, her eyes vacant, muttered to herself, "This is reality. We can't escape Arlong's grasp..."
Just then, a sharp-eyed villager suddenly pointed at the sea: "Look! Is that a person? Walking on the sea?"
"Don't be ridiculous, are you out of your mind? How can a person walk on the sea?"
"It really is! And he's wearing a straw hat!"
Nojiko whirled around, and amidst the raging waves, Luffy's figure stood as steady as a mountain, appearing beside the whirlpool.
"Who are you?!"
Apu was startled; this scene was beyond his comprehension.
Luffy glanced at him casually: "Me? Marine Headquarters Captain, Monkey D. Luffy!"
"What!? The Marines?"
Achu instantly became alert.
Luffy's hands moved swiftly, forming hand seals, and terrifying chakra instantly surged into the sea beneath his feet.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Wave!"
Boom!!
A thunderous roar erupted from the ground, and towering waves surged forth out of nowhere, lifting the sinking wreckage of the warship!
Luffy had single-handedly defied the power of nature!
"How is this possible!"
All the fish-men were dumbfounded, their jaws dropping.
Achu and Croobi, wading through the water, watched the boy standing atop the wave, a chill creeping into their hearts.
Luffy unsheathed his Samehada sword and casually swung it a couple of times: "As expected of Kisame Hoshigaki's sword, the amount of chakra in the ocean is practically cheating."
Commodore Pudding, sprawled on a plank, stared at Luffy in disbelief: "Excuse me, who are you...?"
"The old man sent me to clean house, didn't he mention you?"
Luffy glanced at him sideways.
Pudding's heart skipped a beat, remembering that headquarters had indeed given orders, and he hurriedly kowtowed: "Yes, yes! So it's Young Master Luffy... Thank you for saving my life, Young Master!"
Luffy curled his lip in disdain: "You're such a weak commander, you can't even handle a small fry like this?"
Brin awkwardly forced a smile: "How could we compare to you, young master..." He stared at the giant wave beneath his feet, swallowing hard; this was too monstrous.
Luffy ignored these rookies, looking down at the group of fishmen swarming like dumplings in the water.
Achu's expression turned grave: "Did you kill those two brothers?"
Luffy tilted his head back, feigning thought, then gave a wicked smile: "You mean those two small fry? Oh, I chopped them up and fed them to the sharks."
The fishmen in the water felt a chill run from their tailbone to the top of their heads.
Realizing what had happened, the fishmen roared in fury: "Damn lowly humans, how dare you kill noble fishmen!"
With that, dozens of fishmen charged towards Luffy on the wave.
The marines cried out in terror, "Captain, watch out! The water's their territory!"
Luffy, watching the swarm of fishmen charging towards him, a cruel smile playing on his lips, "Outnumbered?"
His hands formed hand seals again: "Thousand Sharks!"
In an instant, countless splashes erupted on the sea surface, and thousands of sharks, formed from chakra, appeared out of thin air.
"What the hell?!"
The fishmen were terrified, completely bewildered by where these sharks had come from.
This was Kisame's signature ninjutsu; the summoned sharks were incredibly ferocious, far beyond the capabilities of ordinary creatures.
Dozens against thousands!
This wasn't a battle; it was a one-sided massacre, or rather, a feeding frenzy.
In the blink of an eye, dozens of fishmen were torn apart and submerged by the countless sharks, the sea instantly turning crimson.
Only Aju and Croobi, the two executives, remained, barely holding on thanks to their formidable strength.
But their exhaustion would only last a few minutes.
Luffy coldly surveyed the carnage below, his eyes unwavering.
"Superior? I don't know where your sense of superiority comes from. You're just a bunch of brainless beasts."
Luffy unleashed his full sarcasm.
These fish-men are not only ugly and deformed, but their minds are filled with nothing but the law of the jungle and violence. Those with brains like Jinbe are extremely rare.
Achu and Croobi, their eyes bloodshot, stared intently at Luffy.
"Fish-man Karate!"
Croobi punched several sharks flying.
Achu seized the opportunity to launch several water bullets, aiming straight for Luffy's face.
"Idiot, still can't see the difference?"
Luffy held Samehada horizontally in front of him.
With a few "splatter" sounds, the bandages on Samehada tore apart, revealing its grotesque body covered in barbs and its terrifying maw.