36 Chapter 36 – Trip to Baratie 06.
[Chapter Size: 2211 Words.]
Third Person POV
Somewhere at sea, East Blue.
...
...
Patiently waiting, all crew members and the recently rescued civilian couple gathered at the corner of the naval ship, awaiting Lami's arrival. A speedboat with an empty raft followed closely behind, approaching the ship as soon as it came into view.
Next to the Navy ship, Lami executed her Room ability, teleporting herself with Bepo and a suitcase full of money directly onto the deck. A smile lit up Luffy's face as he crossed his arms, welcoming his companion's arrival.
"You finally made it," Luffy commented, his smile revealing a hint of relief.
"I guess so. The Marine base was quite a distance away, and the sailors asked a series of questions, as they always do," replied Lami, directing her gaze towards Luffy.
"I hope you guys are okay," Luffy added, expressing his concern before anything else.
"We're fine. In the end, we got the money and came back here," assured Lami, highlighting the success of the financial mission.
"We earned a considerable amount, Captain!" announced Bepo, his enthusiastic voice echoing through the group, and he finally noticed new faces on the ship.
"New people?!" exclaimed Bepo, surprised to see unfamiliar individuals around the captain.
"A talking panda!" exclaimed Usopp, displaying fascination like a member who hadn't seen the unusual creature before.
"Nyke've dōrī ūndegīon iā dȳñes bona talks gō," the woman spoke, capturing everyone's attention, even though no one understood what she really meant.
"I'm sorry!" Bepo said after hearing the woman.
"Wait, do you understand her?" curious Nami asked.
"Hmm... No," Bepo said, causing everyone to fall to the ground in disbelief.
"THEN WHY IS HE APOLOGIZING?!" USOPP SHOUTED.
"I see the crew has grown quite a bit in these days away..." Lami said, raising an eyebrow after hearing the woman.
"Iksan daor rēbagon rȳ kesīr, nyke ȳdra daor sytilībagon naejot se crew," Marta said, so only her husband understood, and everyone continued to ignore her.
"Some pretty weird ones, from what I can see..." Lami murmured about the strange woman.
After hearing Marta and ignoring her, Luffy turned his attention back to responding to Lami.
"It's true, but this couple doesn't belong to the group; we're just helping them until the next point." Luffy said calmly.
"I understand," said the tattooed woman.
"Anyway, rest a bit because I'll need you again in the next few days. We have a few more pirates for you to deliver to the Marines..." Luffy said, and she stared at him for a while with raised eyebrows.
"Why am I surprised... Anyway, I can do that, but I don't want to fall behind the team." She warned while crossing her arms, knowing that with Luffy, the rest of the group would be training while she did these services.
"Don't worry; I want you to deliver this and two more batches of pirates in the future. After that, we're heading to the Grand Line. Once we've done everything we need here, I guarantee I'll personally train you enough to defeat any of your enemies!" Luffy affirmed, as many looked at him with questioning eyes, as only Luffy and Lami knew about the agreement they made.
"Now that we're all gathered, let's take advantage and celebrate! How's our stock, Usopp?" Luffy casually asked; being a pirate, a routine of banquets among his crew was necessary whenever possible.
"Kaya gave us a supply for 6 months, and there are still many things in the Navy's stock, so we're doing very well, Captain!" He affirmed.
"Great, let's drink and eat for the rest of the day!" Luffy announced, and everyone smiled, liking the idea.
"Is the maid still in the group?" Lami asked curiously next to Luffy, seeing Nami still with them and no longer dressed as Baby 5, since she saw how Nami had ulterior motives when Luffy recruited her, the doctor also knew that Luffy wasn't a fool to let this woman abuse them, so she believed that the captain would get rid of her on the next island.
"I'M NOT THE MAID ANYMORE!" Nami shouted with a comical face, listening to Lami next to Luffy.
"Don't worry; she's one of us now. After a serious talk, I trust her, and she's a great navigator!" Luffy affirmed; the rest of the crew already knew this since Luffy's announcement yesterday, so they just nodded and trusted his decision. They changed their behavior and relationship with Nami as well, improving a lot and trusting her more after hearing her sad story, which she opened up to them.
Nami was also amazed by each story told by her new nakamas; one was a prisoner of her father, another returned from the dead. Needless to say, the cat-thief had a reality check. But the person in the group with whom Nami seemed to connect better was the young mermaid, who shared a similar story since both mothers were killed in front of them and understood that pain very well.
Anyway, the Straw Hats spent the rest of the day eating and celebrating without their infernal training. Luffy wanted to give them some fun, besides strengthening them; they deserved a break from time to time.
The next day, Luffy handed over the Black Cat Pirates' bandits, along with Jango and Kuro's lifeless body, to the raft behind Lami's speedboat. By starting the engine, the woman and her partner, Bepo, headed toward the nearest naval base after reviewing the marine map with Nami's help.
"Are they gaining fame?" Zoro asked beside, watching the boat move away.
He was a pirate hunter until recently; he knew that after Lami and Bepo caught a few pirates, their names would start to circulate, especially when Lami caught a pirate with a 15 million bounty like Buggy. It wouldn't take long for her to become quite famous in this sea.
"Are you afraid of losing your reputation so quickly?" Kuina mocked beside.
"I doubt I have any reputation now; I'm a pirate with a 5 million bounty on my head. But I won't be surprised if the woman and the panda gain a great reputation just for delivering Buggy to the Marines. Now, with Kuro, a pirate who was dead on the records, that will attract a lot of attention to them," Zoro concluded with a smile.
"Whatever Lami's reputation is now or in the future, it will end once we enter the Grand Line. Now, forget about it, and today won't be a day off; let's train!" Luffy announced, earning a smile from Yamato, Kuina, and Zoro. In contrast, Nami, Usopp, Shirahoshi, Megalo, and Chouchou shivered and lamented upon hearing those words. Their infernal training would begin soon. Meanwhile, the rescued couple watched patiently from the side. Most of the time, they showed compassion for the weaker members, witnessing Luffy's torture and ruthless attitude.
"What are you looking at like that? To the training area, move!" Luffy shouted at them, and everyone ran to train. The captain would make them suffer even more if they made him wait.
"YES, CAPTAIN!" They shouted quickly.
Some time later.
"Please help me!" Luffy heard Nami scream, looking like a bug on the ground from so much suffering. She was the one suffering the most since those rigorous training began. Not even in Syrup Village had Luffy been so relentless, but he had the goal of strengthening her.
Luffy sighed and picked her up in his arms like a princess, taking her to one of the cabins, where she would rest until she recovered to be able to help with the ship's navigation again.
Upon returning to the deck, Luffy was approached by Usopp, who had spotted something in the sea.
"Captain, is that a rock? Can I shoot?" he asked.
"No, there's a person in that location!" Luffy replied with a smile, believing that meeting was predestined, like many others in the canonical work.
"A person, Luffy-Sama?" Shirahoshi asked curiously, flying to his side.
"I only see a rock, and my Haki doesn't reach the location..." Yamato complained.
"Don't worry; I'm telling the truth. They seem trustworthy; let's help them since it looks like they went through a shipwreck." Luffy said, and Zoro took the helm in the indicated direction.
Thus, the ship arrived alongside that rocky formation in the middle of the ocean.
"Sharky!"
Megalo was the first to inspect the site, flying out of the ship.
"A FLYING SHARK!" Luffy and the others heard an astonished voice as they spotted Megalo.
"GET OUT OF HERE, MONSTER! I WON'T LET YOU EAT ME AND MY PARTNER!" The voice sounded indignant but also carried fear in its tone.
"SHARKY SHARKY!" Megalo, scared by that phrase, began to squirm and fled back to the ship.
"He's scared! Are they not bad people?" Shirahoshi hugged her friend, showing concern in her voice.
"You say that as if people could find it normal to see a shark wearing a T-shirt, flying out of the water," Kuina commented calmly, understanding the point of view.
"Anyway, let's help them," declared Luffy, and the ship advanced until the crew faced that strange voice.
"Hm?! A Marine ship? We're saved!" said a man with sunglasses, while a second beside him was lying on the ground, looking quite debilitated.
"WAIT! THESE AREN'T SAILORS! PIRATES?" the man exclaimed as soon as he noticed Luffy's look and smile, clearly denouncing that shirtless, tattooed man as a wrongdoer on a marine ship.
"So, do you want help?" Luffy asked calmly, noticing the man's hesitation.
"Hm?! You!" Zoro arrived next to Luffy with a bored face, but when he saw who the man on the rock was next to the fallen companion, he shouted in astonishment.
"Hmm, aren't those pirates on a marine ship?" Yosaku murmured, almost fainting beside the group, clearly not sailors.
"We fell into a trap, brother!" Jhoony shouted in frustration.
"Wait, isn't that Zoro?!" Yosaku opened his eyes a little and said weakly.
"Hm?! Brother Zoro?! ZORO-ANIKI!!!" Johnny, the bounty hunter, expressed joy upon seeing Zoro.
"Johnny, what the hell are you doing here?! Hm?! And what happened to Yosaku?" Zoro inquired loudly.
It didn't take long for them to be brought onto the boat. Observing the state of the man lying and muttering incomprehensible things, Yamato commented.
"He doesn't seem well. It's a shame Lami left not long ago; as a doctor, she could help..." lamented the horned woman.
"Damn it!" grumbled the man, apparently not caring that he was now among pirates. His focus was entirely on saving his partner.
"He's vitamin C deficient!" Nami's voice reached the group. She was a bit weak and limping, but she was recovering from training.
"Then let's nurture him. Usopp, get some citrus fruits from the stock." Luffy ordered.
"Yes, Captain!" Usopp ran to the stock. While Nami explained that his worst situation was exposure to the sun without the necessary nutrients, Usopp filled the man's mouth with lemon.
It didn't take long for the man to get up, as if he had just woken up from a long sleep and not from the critical state he was in just 5 seconds ago.
"He woke up so fast!" Nami exclaimed.
"HAI HAI HAI HAI HAI HAI"
"HAI HAI HAI HAI HAI HAI"
As part of a ritual, they began to dance and sing strange words.
"Issi strange," said the woman named Marta, who spoke in an incomprehensible manner.
"True, dear, they are quite strange." Said her husband.
"THEY ARE WEIRD, THEY SAY?!" Everyone exclaimed to the bizarre couple.
"Hehehe! How funny!" Shirahoshi said laughing at the duo still dancing.
"A beautiful woman with a tail!" They shouted, seeing the mermaid seriously for the first time, as she wasn't wearing a dress on the ship.
"NOW THAT YOU NOTICED THE MERMAID?" Zoro shouted in a comic way.
"Jhoony and Yosaku, as slow as always..." Zoro complained about their reactions.
"Zoro, how do you know these guys?" Usopp asked beside.
"We sailed together for a while; when I defeated them in a fight, they started following me, but I wasn't accepting disciples, so they joined me for a while to learn and hunt some pirates..."
"They seem so weak!" Yamato said calmly.
"Who are you calling weak!" The two turned to Yamato and both protested.
"Anyway, Brother Zoro, so it's true!? You've become a pirate with a 5 million bounty?" Johnny asked; he still couldn't believe the news that appeared to him a few days ago.
"What can I say, I had some problems with the Marines and recognized a man as my captain, as I aim to become the strongest swordsman in the world!"
"Sorry, Zoro-Baka, but I'm going to be the strongest swordsman in the world now!" Kuina announced with conviction beside.
"Let's decide that in the future then!" Zoro said, exposing a smile in the face of Kuina's challenge; he didn't underestimate her at all, even with her 11 years of delay.
"Anyway, why don't you tell your story and why you ended up in this sea?" Luffy finally spoke, but before they could answer, Yosaku fell to the ground again, sick.
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