[61] To Cocoyashi Village

Chapter 61: To Cocoyashi Village

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The boat that was left to nature to choose its course, had ended up on Sunflower Island. 

Although Hashirama was sure he wouldn't find Nami here, he didn't complain since it was such a good place. It was a park on par with the modern amusement parks back in his world. So he could let loose and enjoy a little here.

At the end of the day, Hashirama decided to take a stroll at the shore around the island. He was planning to bring the entire crew here before leaving East Blue, so he wanted to see what else the island had.

Out of pure luck, he met the ginger he was looking for there.

"—Ah, wait, it's Nami! What a coincidence."

Wearing a stunned smile, he saved the ginger and then fled while riding Karoo.

…..

By the time the two humans riding a duck reached their boat that was docked on the other side of the island, the moon had already come up in the sky. It was nighttime.

"Um, hey, is that your boat…? Isn't that too small for the three of us?"

Nami finally spoke. She had been silent this entire time, focusing her attention to ignore his hands that were on her waist. 

"Huh? Small?"

Hashirama found the size of the ship enough to house three people, truth be told. What did she mean it was too small?

Realizing she must be talking about how she would be too close to him, a male, if she rode this ship, Hashirama shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, if it's small I can just make it bigger."

He gently tapped her thighs twice, indicating it was time to get off. He then jumped from on top of Karoo and helped her come down as well.

"...By the way, how do you know my sister- Holy shit!"

Nami turned to look at him as she asked a question. However, she couldn't help but scream in shock with her eyeballs gauging out when he clasped his hands and the boat started to enlarge. 

One moment it was just the size of a room, and the next moment it was double that. It was a clear and visible process.

Nami stood with her jaws hanging. She had never seen anything like this before. What the hell was up with this guy?

Looking at him, at his side profile as he was clasping his hands, standing still under the gentle moon night… Nami realized he wasn't just weird, he was kind of handsome too.

'...No, he is really handsome.'

Why was a guy like this here? How did Nojiko, her sister, get to know such a guy?

Nami had seen quite a lot in her small life. So she could tell that what he did just now must be thanks to a "Devil Fruit". 

It was a rare sight, but she had seen a few before.

What made her curious though was how he knew Nojiko…? Since when did that girl have a boyfriend this hot and capable?

'Damn, I didn't see that bitch for a few months, and she suddenly has a boyfriend? Good for her, bitch.'

Nami suddenly got worried. 

'Wait, could she have seduced him? Did she seduce a person who ate a Devil Fruit so that he could fight Arlong?'

A wild possibility, and perhaps she was reading too much into the lines. But Nami couldn't entirely discard the idea before talking to Nojiko in person.

If it was true, it was a bad idea. This person had a weird power that made him knock out a few people back there, but surely that wouldn't work on Arlong. After all, that Loyd guy was fine. So if a normal human could be fine, how could a monster like Arlong be affected?

And this boat-growing power or whatever? How the hell would that hurt Arlong?

Soon, Nami sighed in her head. 'Well, it doesn't matter if he is her boyfriend or not. Since he is my savior, in any case, I should be respectful and go home with him. That Nojiko better be ready to spill the beans.'

"Hey, you're staring."

Nami blinked and took a step back. Hearing what he had just said, she realized she was staring right at him as he faced her.

"...The moon is pretty tonight, isn't it?"

Nami cleared her throat and said. She looked away while blushing just a little.

"It is?" 

Hashirama tilted his head in confusion.

"My bad, I didn't notice. Since you are so much prettier than the moon could ever hope to be."

Nami paused. What the hell? Was he flirting? He was good, but why was he flirting with her?

"Um, hey, aren't you dating my-"

"Ah, Karoo hopped on the boat. Let's get on top."

"...."

Nami forced herself to control her temper and nodded along.

*  *  *

Hashirama admitted that he had a thing for bratty girls.

Well, he had a thing for calm girls, mature girls, and all sorts of others too. He reckoned his preferences varied too much due to his past life shenanigans.

The point was that he liked bratty girls too, and therefore he liked Nami. It was cute seeing her trying to act so composed and respectful.

The sky was bright blue, dotted with puffs of cloud that moved around and before the sun. The wind was so gentle that it was soul-cleansing, and the waves of the ocean nearby were music to the ears.

In this tranquil atmosphere, Hashirama walked over to a stone bench where the cute little Nami sat, her short hair fluttering in the wind as she looked at him like a cute puppy.

[Image Here]

Hashirama stopped and tossed a can of cola at her, while sitting over the border of the bench and drinking a cola of his own.

This world had cola. That was good news, even though most of the other soda types weren't available outside the Grandline.

"Thanks for the treat."

Nami said, opening the can, as she gulped down the soda to its entirety. 

She was clearly hungry, and her throat was dry from last night's incident. It didn't help that she had fallen asleep not long after entering the boat and woke up just a while ago.

"But this isn't Cocoyashi village? I thought we were going there. Haha, if it was somebody else, I'd think they were kidnapping me…"

Indeed, this wasn't Cocoyashi village, the island where Nami was from. 

Although she tried to sound calm, there was a hint of worry in her laugh that she hid well. If he really turned out to be a kidnapper, she knew she had to start planning a run.

Hashirama smiled awkwardly. "Will you trust me if I say I can't navigate? Like, not at all. I just let mother nature show its magic, and we came to this random island. So until we find a navigator, we will have to keep wandering."

While it wasn't true that Hashirama couldn't navigate "at all" — otherwise he would be an embarrassing Pirate Captain — he truly didn't have the skills to navigate to Cocoyashi Island. Mostly because he didn't even know where it was located, but he couldn't tell her that since it would blow his cover of knowing her sister.

"Aha… I see."

Nami released a sigh, believing that he wasn't lying. Sure it was kinda weird why someone like him would be sailing in the sea, more so when he was a devil fruit eater, but maybe that's why he was carrying a duck.

Speaking of Karoo, she was running around the shore nearby and playing with a few Ostrich type creatures.

"Well, you're in luck." 

Nami stood up, clapping her hands with a smile.

"I happen to be a decent navigator. Did Nojiko not tell you? Tch, that girl should brag about her sister's skills to others."

Nami shook her head and turned to the boat that could be seen floating on the shore.

"Unless you have something to do on this island, can we get going?"

"All right. I don't mind if you are ready to move. It's better the faster we move, anyway."

"...By the way, do you know about Arlong?"

"A little."

"I see. Never mind then."

Nami waved it off and rushed to the boat. Hashirama went to call back Karoo, who sadly departed from her new friends, and then joined Nami.

"But ugh, I stole those things so carefully. Now that I think about it, I should have picked up the loot before leaving. People were too shaken to care back then; I could have stolen those back…"

"Did you say something?"

"Err, it's just a random thought."

The group hopped on the boat, and Hashirama channeled his power to speed up. 

Nami was once again shocked at how useful his power was for this, as she guided him with her navigation skills.

Next thing they knew; they were in Cocoyashi Village. The place where Arlong thought he was God.

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