CH 38

All but you Nami. You're above them all, my trusted navigator."

"What the? Why are you acting all friendly with them Nami?" Zoro asked.

"You know this guy?" Arlong asked.

"He's just another idiot who I got friendly with to steal his treasure." Nami said as she approached Zoro and sat down until she was eye level with him. When she did, Zoro got a look at the tattoo on her arm, which looked exactly like Arlong's Jolly Roger.

"That tattoo." he said in shock.

"That's right. I'm a part of Arlong's crew." she said with a grin. "Everything we've been through has been nothing but an act." Zoro just glared at her.

"Did Luffy know?" he asked.

"What?" Nami said, her smile fading.

"When you stole the ship, Luffy defended you by saying you had your reasons and nothing else. Did he know that you would steal from us?" Nami froze for a moment, but remained calm.

"Hmph. He's just an idiot as well." she said.

"Shahahaha!" Arlong laughed. "This is the real Nami! Nothing but a cold-hearted, money lover. Not even the death of her mother shook her up." Arlong said. Zoro watched as Nami's eyes widened in pain at that before he smirked and lept back into the water.

"Huh?!" most of the fishmen there said.

"Is he trying to swim away?"

"Even if he tried, that human can't do anything tied up like that."

"Just leave him to drown." Arlong said.

'That idiot.' Nami thought before she jumped in after him, making all the fishmen watch in disbelief. She surfaced with him moments later, both coughing a bit for air. "Why'd you do that?" she asked.

"I could ask you the same question. Heartless huh?" Zoro said with a smirk. Nami only scowled before punching his wounds, making him double over.

"Tie him up. I'll deal with him later." Nami said.

"Arlong?!" screamed a fishman.

"What is it my brother?" Arlong asked.

"There was another human with a long nose. He got away, and I think he's hiding in Cocoyashi Village." said the fishman.

'Usopp!' Zoro thought. 'That moron was found out.'

"Cocoyashi huh?" Arlong said with a grin. "What a coincidence. I have business there as well."

()()()()

Later in Cocoyashi Village, Arlong and some of his crew came and surrounded a heavily scarred man with a pinwheel in his hat.

"You're the one that was found with weapons huh?" Arlong asked.

"That's right." Genzo said. "It's just a hobby of mine to collect them."

"That's against the rules. Weapons are forbidden in my town." Arlong said. As they were talking, Usopp and Nojiko were looking from a safe distance.

"That's Arlong?!" Usopp whispered.

"That's him." Nojiko said. "He's go twenty villages under his control." She explained about the tribute that they needed to pay to keep their lives. "If even one person doesn't pay the montly tribute, he turns that town into another Gosa."

"That's insane!" Usopp said. Nojiko explained that those were the rules and that they wouldn't think twice about killing a human. She stopped when she heard a yell, knowing who it came from. "Genzo!" she yelled as she ran to confront Arlong, who was holding a beaten Genzo up in the air with one hand. "What are you doing? We've been paying the tribute! No one here has any intent to rebel! Let him go!"

"This human had weapons." Arlong said. "Even having them is a sign of rebelion. To show you all that it will not be tolerated, he dies." Everyone began to protest, but stopped at Genzo's orders.

"You all must live, or the last eight years will be for nothing." Genzo said. All the villagers stopped at that while Arlong laughed before raising him into the air.

"Let this be a lesson to you all!" he screamed before he brought Genzo's head toward the ground.

"EXPLODING STAR!" Usopp yelled as he shot at Arlong. The explosion caused him to release Genzo and everyone to look up at him.

"Who are you?" one of them asked.

"I am Captain Usopp!" Usopp shouted as he stood dramatically with his legs shaking. "I am a man feared around the world! I have 8,000 men under my control! Leave now and I may spare you fishmen!"

"You can bring 100,000 men." Arlong said in a low voice. "I'll tear them to pieces. Even though your just a scrawny human," he said before looking at him in a crazed manner. "YOU DARE ATTACK ME YOU HUMAN FILTH!?"

'My threats and attacks didn't faze him at all?!' Usopp screamed in his head as Arlong picked up the building he was standing on. Usopp screamed as Arlong's crew begged him to calm down and stop.

"If you destroy the village, our funds decrease!"

"Then we'll take over a different one!" Arlong said before he threw the building into another one, smashing both as the villagers cried out for their village. Usopp appeared from the wreckage with almost no damage before he took off, with Arlong being held back by his crew and taken to Arlong Park to cool off. The other half of the crew chased after Usopp while the villagers gathered around Genzo, asking that he go and get treated for his injuries.

"Hi everyone." came a voice. Everyone turned to see it was Nami holding some flowers. Everyone turned away and ignored her as she walked through. She looked at the damage with a sad look. "This looks like Arlong's doing."

"That's right." Nojiko said. They talked for a bit before Nami went to a lone grave which consisted of a small wooden cross on a hill. She placed the flowers next to it before sitting down and staring out at sea.

"Only 7 million berris left." she said.

"As infamous as ever." Nojiko said as she watched her sit there.

"I'm a pirate, but Arlong knows better. He knows that money is best, so I only have a little to go to keep up our bargain. Soon, I'll buy the village from him." Nami said with a smile. Nojiko smiled as she sat down next to her. They both stared out before curiosity got the better of Nojiko.

"Hey Nami. Does the name Luffy mean anything to you?" she asked. Nami sat up straight, but kept her gaze at the sea.

"Luffy?" she asked. "Why do you ask?"

"Someone mentioned his name, a Cpt. Usopp." she said. Nami rolled her eyes at 'Cpt. Usopp' but kept listening. "Is Luffy the owner of that ship you came here on?"

"Yeah." Nami said as she lowered her head.

"So he's a pirate huh?"

"Right."

"And you stole from him like any other pirate?"

"Is this going somewhere?" Nami asked as she finally looked at her sister.

"That long-nosed visitor said that the only one who didn't get angry when you took their ship and treasure was this Luffy guy." Nojiko said. Nami just stared at her as her eyes widened a bit.

"Really?"

"Yeah. He said something about Luffy knowing why you did it. Now how would he have known about that?" she asked as she leaned her head into her hand. Nami only looked back out to the sea before she got a gloomy look on her face.

"I told him." she said in a low voice. "I don't know why, but something about Luffy just made me feel safe to tell him."

"First time I've ever heard you trusting someone else besides me and Genzo." Nojiko said. Nami sighed before a small smile crept onto her face.

"You know what he said when I told him?" Nami asked before she looked at her sister.

"What?"

"He offered to kick Arlong's ass for me." Nami said.

"He what?!" Nojiko said as her eyes widened. "He does know who Arlong is right?"

"He does." Nami said before she looked back at the grave. "Even so, he said he'd do it. That's why I stole the ship when I had the chance." Nami placed her knees to her chest with her arms and head in her knees.

"Nami?" Nojiko asked before she noticed Nami trembling a bit. "You okay?"

"I'm fine. It's just..." Nami said. Memories of Luffy came to her as tears filled her eyes. "Even though it's suicide to fight Arlong, just knowing that he wanted to fight him..." Nami said, unable to continue as her tears fell. Nojiko just put a caring hand on her shoulder as Nami cried as she looked at the ocean.

'For Nami to trust someone with something so painful.' Nojiko thought. 'I don't know who you are Luffy, but thank you for caring for Nami.'

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