บท 65: The Precious Logia, Arlong's New Scheme!
Nami anxiously rushed down the road, stumbling occasionally, but each time, she struggled to get back up.
"Everyone, wait for me! I'll be there soon!" Nami prayed in her heart, hoping the villagers would slow down and delay their confrontation with Arlong's crew. Meanwhile, she was still trying to get used to her new abilities. She felt like she could release lightning at any moment, but she refrained. She had only heard about Devil Fruits but wasn't entirely sure how they worked. What if this power ran out? She had to save it for when she reached Arlong's base.
By now, the villagers had already arrived at the gates of Arlong's base.
"Arlong! Come out!" Ajian shouted without hesitation.
"Damn fishmen, we're ready to fight you!"
"See our resolve, fishmen!" The loud commotion soon caught the attention of the fishmen inside the base.
"Who's making all that noise?" Arlong, sitting in his chair, frowned.
"Boss Arlong, it seems like those villagers are planning to fight us," one fishman said, listening carefully, still in disbelief.
"Ha! Ha! Ha! Fight us? Have those lowly humans lost their minds?" Arlong stood up.
"It seems the fate of our little surveyor has made these pathetic humans very angry. It looks like they're still not afraid of us. They're bold enough to defy me!"
"Let's go! Teach these miserable wretches a lesson. Show them that humans should bow down to the feet of fishmen!"
"Ha! Ha! Ha!" Arlong laughed as he marched toward the gates, his crew following with mocking laughter. The idea of humans fighting them was absurd.
A group of grotesque, menacing fishmen stood up and followed Arlong. They wore cruel smiles on their faces.
Creak.
The gate of the fishmen's base opened, and Arlong's towering figure stepped out.
"So, you're the ones planning to rebel against me?"
Seeing the villagers with their makeshift weapons, Arlong sneered. "With these worthless pieces of junk?" he mocked. "Ha! Ha! Ha!"
More vicious fishmen poured out from the gate, each of them laughing and ridiculing the villagers. The villagers, reminded of the fishmen's strength and cruelty, took a few involuntary steps back.
"Arlong, you scum!" Ajian raised his sword, his expression firm. "Cocoyasi Village will never bow to your rule!"
"Oh? Ha! Ha! Ha!" Arlong laughed dismissively. He paid no attention to Ajian's sword as he scanned the crowd. "Where is my surveyor? Did she just allow you all to come here and die?"
"Arlong, you monster! Nami will never work for you again!" Ajian shouted, his eyes filled with hatred and fury. "Nami has left the village—she's joined a crew of pirates!"
Hearing this, Arlong's expression immediately darkened. His surveyor had escaped! And with some unknown pirates?
That surveyor was crucial to his dream of ruling the world, and she had escaped?!!
In an instant, Arlong lost all interest in wasting time on the villagers. He needed to recapture his surveyor as soon as possible.
"Kill them! Then we'll go after our surveyor! I don't care who those pirates are—I'll make them pay!"
Arlong gave a cold command to his Fish-Man subordinates.
"Fight these Fish-Men! Let them see our resolve!" Gen (Nojiko's foster brother) raised his sword, ready to charge at the Fish-Men.
Just then, Nami's anxious voice rang out from the crowd.
"Wait, everyone, please wait!" Hearing Nami's voice, Gen's face changed.
Arlong's grim expression eased noticeably.
"Hahaha, looks like my little cartographer can't bear to leave you worthless peasants behind." Arlong laughed loudly. "Hahaha!"
"Nami, why didn't you leave with those people?!" Gen's face was full of worry as he shouted at Nami. Wasn't everything they did meant to get Nami out of the village so she could pursue her dreams?
If Nami hadn't left, then what was the point of everything they'd done?
Nami rushed to Gen's side with astonishing speed.
"I finally made it in time!"
Seeing that none of the villagers had been harmed, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hahaha, Nami, you really can't bear to leave these villagers behind!" Arlong sneered, looking at her.
"Nami, you have to go! Don't worry about us!" Gen pushed Nami behind him, and the villagers gathered to shield her.
"Isn't it laughable, Nami, that these worthless peasants want to challenge me?" Arlong chuckled. "Go kill a few of them. Let our cartographer know the price of defying us! Let these lowly humans realize that the Fish-Men are a superior race, and they cannot be defeated by lesser beings!"
Arlong commanded his Fish-Men soldiers.
He had made up his mind. No matter how Nami pleaded, he would kill a few humans to assert the Fish-Men's dominance—and to warn Nami.
Perhaps it had been too long since the Fish-Men had killed anyone, and these lowly humans had dared to resist them!
"Understood, Boss Arlong!" Several hideous Fish-Men stepped forward with cruel smiles, walking toward Gen and the villagers.
"I'll tear you to pieces!" one of the Fish-Men snarled, cracking his knuckles.
Gen and the villagers gripped their weapons, preparing to fight.
"Let's fight these Fish-Men!" Gen shouted as he prepared to charge.
Nami quickly ran toward the Fish-Men, trying to stop them from hurting the villagers. The Fish-Men paid no attention to her—Nami, with her small frame, posed no threat.
They didn't lay a hand on her because she was their valuable tool.
But at that moment, Nami grabbed one of the Fish-Men by the arm.
A powerful surge of electricity erupted from her body.
"Ahhh!"
The Fish-Man who had been touched by the electricity trembled violently, his eyes rolling back.
Moments later, he collapsed onto the ground, his mouth emitting black smoke, to the astonishment of everyone around him.
"Huh?"
Everyone stood frozen, both the villagers and the Fish-Men. They didn't understand why the Fish-Man had fallen just because Nami touched him.
"Amazing!"
Nami stared at her hands in disbelief.
"What just happened?" Gen asked in confusion, his voice snapping Nami back to reality.
She quickly stepped in front of Gen and the villagers.
"Everyone, fall back! I can handle the Fish-Men now!" Nami blocked the villagers with confidence. The fact that she had just taken down a Fish-Man gave her the courage to stand up to them.
The captain was right. She now had the power to protect the villagers.
The villagers exchanged uncertain glances, unsure of what to do.
"Everyone, retreat now!" Nami urged again, seeing their hesitation.
Gen looked at the Fish-Man lying on the ground, and thought about the pirates who had once brought her 100 million Berries. After a moment of contemplation, he ordered the villagers to step back.
"But we can't let Nami face the Fish-Men alone!" some of the villagers protested, wanting to stand by her side.
At that moment, Arlong stepped forward.
He fixed his cold gaze on Nami.
"Even though I don't know what kind of tricks you're pulling, Nami, you'll pay for this!" Arlong suddenly disappeared, his massive hand lunging toward her.
"Watch out, Nami!"
Seeing Arlong charge toward Nami, Gen raised his sword, ready to rush in and help.
"So fast!" Arlong's movements were so quick that Nami couldn't even react. She could only watch in terror as his massive hand closed in on her.
Arlong's terrifying face flashed in her mind, and out of fear, she shut her eyes.
"Is this the end?"
"Even with the power of a Devil Fruit, I can't fight against a monster like Arlong," Nami's heart was filled with despair.
But after waiting for a long time, Arlong's hands never touched her.
Nami slowly opened her eyes.
Arlong was right in front of her, his arm stretched out, staring wide-eyed at her neck, with a bead of cold sweat on his forehead. Following his arm with her gaze, Nami was shocked to find that Arlong's hand had passed right through her neck.
At that moment, her neck had turned into blue electricity.
Is this the power of the Devil Fruit? Arlong couldn't hurt her at all!
"What the hell is going on?" One of the Fish-Men shouted in confusion, his eyes wide in disbelief.
Gen, who had been rushing forward, suddenly halted, equally stunned by the sight.
"Damn it!" Arlong had a bad feeling. He swung his massive hand again, this time aiming to slap Nami's face, wanting to confirm his suspicions.
"Watch out!" The villagers shouted in alarm.
Under the horrified gazes of both Fish-Men and villagers, Nami's head turned into blue energy, and Arlong's hand passed through it without causing any harm.
"What's going on? Boss Arlong can't hit Nami?" "This is unbelievable!"
The villagers were equally shocked by the scene before them. How had Nami changed so much in just a few minutes?
Living in a remote village, they had no idea that Devil Fruits even existed.
Nami, too, was now certain—Arlong couldn't hurt her.
The panic and fear on her face disappeared, replaced by excitement and joy.
The power of the Devil Fruit was incredible! Even Arlong couldn't hurt her.
It was unbelievable that those pirates, whom she barely knew, had given her something so precious!
"Everyone, fall back! Arlong can't harm me!" Nami shouted to Gen and the villagers again.
This time, Gen and the others didn't hesitate. They didn't know what was happening, but they could see that Arlong truly couldn't hurt Nami.
If they stayed, they might become leverage Arlong could use to threaten her.
As the villagers retreated, Nami felt more at ease and reached out toward Arlong with her electrified hand. She had taken down a Fish-Man like this just moments before.
Seeing the electrified hand and recalling the fallen Fish-Man, Arlong's face changed dramatically, and he retreated quickly.
Not far away, Issho slapped his forehead with an exasperated expression.
"Why does she need to touch them? She could just zap them to death from a distance."
"She just ate the Devil Fruit, give her a break," Sanders said, leaning against a wall with a calm expression. Robin, watching Nami's clumsy attempts, covered her mouth with a quiet laugh.
Sanders smiled playfully, seeming to recall how awkward he had been after eating his own Devil Fruit.
"Logia''?! This is a Logia-type Devil Fruit! How did she get one?!" Arlong yelled, completely incredulous.
He knew all too well that Logia-type Devil Fruits allowed the user to transform into elements and evade physical attacks. Having been to the Grand Line, he was well aware of their powers.
But how could Nami have eaten a Devil Fruit? She didn't have one earlier, when she brought the 100 million Berries for the deal.
"Logia? Is that what just happened? Arlong couldn't hurt me because of this 'Logia'?" Nami touched her neck, murmuring to herself.
Arlong said she had eaten a Logia-type Devil Fruit? Is that a type of Devil Fruit? If so, does that mean there are other types? From Arlong's shocked expression, it seemed like Logia fruits were incredibly rare and valuable.
How could those pirates have given her something so precious?
And they had even given her 100 million Berries earlier. Were they really that rich?
"Damn it, you don't even know what you ate, and it turned out to be a Logia-type fruit!" Arlong shouted in frustration.
Now that he knew Nami had eaten a Logia-type Devil Fruit, he also knew that he couldn't harm her.
Having been to the Grand Line, he knew that the only ways to hurt a Logia user were with Sea-Prism Stone or Haki.
And he had neither Sea-Prism Stone nor the ability to use Haki.
If he knew how to use Haki, he wouldn't be hiding out in this backwater village, terrorizing weak humans.
Recalling his past encounter with a Navy officer who had Logia powers, Arlong's face turned dark with fear.
Long ago, he had been captured by the current Marine Admiral, Kizaru, and thrown into Impel Down. He had felt powerless against a Logia user. Only because Jinbei became a Warlord of the Sea was Arlong eventually released.
But now, Nami, the girl he had always considered a mere tool, had obtained the power of a Logia Devil Fruit.
"Damn it! How did Nami get a Logia Devil Fruit? What should we do? We can't hurt her!" Some of the more knowledgeable Fish-Men began to panic.
Meanwhile, Gen and the villagers had no idea what they were talking about.
What was a Logia? What was a Devil Fruit?
But they knew one thing for sure: Nami really couldn't be hurt by those detestable Fish-Men.
"I get it now! No wonder you were able to pull out 100 million Berries so easily. You must've stolen it from those pirates, right?" Arlong snarled. "Damn it, you're so lucky! Not only did you steal 100 million Berries, but you also stole a powerful Devil Fruit!"
The Fish-Men suddenly realized what was happening.
It seemed that Nami's gains from before were no small matter.
Did this mean that Nami's new abilities were also from those pirates? Though they didn't know the pirates' intentions, they understood one thing—it was definitely a good thing.
"That's not true! Someone gave it to me!" Nami angrily retorted, displeased by Arlong's accusation that she had stolen both the Berries and the Devil Fruit. In her heart, she was filled with gratitude toward Sanders and the others.
They had saved her and the village of Cocoyashi. But come to think of it, she didn't even know their names yet.
Oh, right, weren't they called the Thunder God Pirates? What a cool name! It sounded so powerful!
"Don't be ridiculous. Who would give away such a precious Logia-type Devil Fruit?" Arlong scoffed, completely disbelieving Nami's claim. He knew all too well that Logia-type Devil Fruits were far more valuable than other types.
Who in their right mind wouldn't eat it themselves? Even if someone didn't know it was a Logia-type, they still wouldn't give it away. Devil Fruits were far too rare and precious!
"Believe it or not, I don't care!" Nami shrugged, not concerned whether Arlong believed her or not.
"Now, take your Fish-Men and leave!" She sternly warned him, her face serious.
Arlong's expression darkened for a moment before he sneered. "Do you really think just because you have Devil Fruit powers, you're invincible? Sure, I can't hurt you... but I can hurt them!"
He pointed at the villagers, a sinister smile spreading across his face.
Nami's face paled.
Gen immediately shouted for the villagers to run—they couldn't let themselves be used as Arlong's leverage against Nami.
"Sha-ha-ha-ha! So what if you have Logia powers? If I capture them, won't you still have to obey me?" Arlong laughed evilly. "Sha-ha-ha! With a Devil Fruit user like you under my control, I'll soon rule the East Blue!"
He grinned as his plan took shape in his mind.
As long as he held the lives of the villagers in his hands, what did it matter if she had the powers of a Logia fruit? She would still have to work for him! With such a powerful Devil Fruit user as his subordinate, he would be unstoppable in the East Blue. He could expand his territory without fear!
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T/N:
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