"Boss Arlong! Word just came in from Nezumi. The group from Cocoyasi Village who went to Sika Island to sell tangerines... something happened to them!"
"What happened?"
"Apparently, two people knocked out all the Marines guarding them, stole the tangerines, took the people, and even made off with the ship!"
"Hmph. Humans really are useless waste."
'''
Elsewhere on the island, a ship had already docked.
Two Fishmen waiting at the harbor didn't react with much alarm. They simply stepped forward to count the heads and lead the group back to the village. After all, they recognized the ship, and they were currently unaware of the chaos unfolding at Arlong Park.
However, as they reached the side of the boat, a blur of a figure shot toward them.
The speed was blinding.
Before they could even react, two crimson gashes appeared across their throats.
The attacker was Ain. Fresh, red blood dripped from the two short swords she held.
This flash of violence left the villagers of Cocoyasi Village frozen in terror. In their minds, Fishmen were born with at least ten times the strength of a human; they were a race that no human could possibly hope to challenge.
While that claim would be a complete joke on the Grand Line, to the sheltered ordinary villagers of Cocoyasi, it was an absolute fact.
'Hiss...'
'Is that female Marine really that strong?'
'Maybe... maybe they actually can defeat Arlong?'
The villagers felt a sudden surge of hope. Three years of misery might finally end today!
However...
"Ain, your Soru is way too slow. You really need to practice more," Sean remarked.
"Mind your own business!" Ain snapped, glancing back at him with a glare.
"So cold! You're breaking my heart, you know!"
"Then stay here and be heartbroken. I'm leaving!"
She sheathed her short swords and marched off with a toss of her hair.
'It's just Arlong. I can handle him on my own!'
Seeing this, Sean shook his head slightly.
If this were seven years in the future, Ain as a member of the NEO Marine would indeed have the power to subdue Arlong with ease. But the current Ain was still too naive. If it were just a brawl, she'd be fine, but actually defeating Arlong...
Unless Arlong became careless and allowed Ain to land a hit with her Devil Fruit ability, it would be an uphill battle. After all, Ain's current strength was, at best, around the level of a Commander from Headquarters.
Sean didn't say anything more and simply followed behind her. With him around, nothing would go seriously wrong anyway.
A moment later, the two had walked far into the distance, leaving the villagers behind to question their reality.
"Did... did they forget about us?"
"No, they're probably going to face Arlong now. It's too dangerous to take us along, right?"
"Right! That must be it!"
The villagers quickly filled in the blanks. After all, Sean and Ain were righteous Marines here to save them, not like those bastards from the 16th Branch. Such noble and just Marines couldn't possibly forget them. Therefore, the only logical explanation was that it was too dangerous to bring them.
Regardless, this was a massive development.
"We have to get back to the village and tell everyone!"
The villagers nodded to one another and sprinted back toward the village as fast as they could.
'''
Half an hour later, Ain stopped.
It wasn't because she was afraid, but because...
She was lost.
Now that she thought about it, she had completely forgotten to ask the villagers where Arlong was.
"Sean, where is Arlong?"
"What? You don't know? Then why have you been walking so confidently this whole time?"
"Shut up! Just tell me if you know or not!"
"Of course I don't know! Why else would I be following you?"
They stared at each other, both momentarily stunned.
But that was fine. They didn't know, but the villagers did!
Wait... where were the villagers?
'Crap. I think we left them at the harbor.'
Sean's face fell. Was he and Ain about to pull a Zoro?
Then it hit him.
"Ain, you've awakened Observation Haki, right?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Then hurry up and use it to sense where Arlong is!"
"I only awakened it recently! I can only sense things within ten meters, okay?!" Ain snapped irritably.
'This guy... do you think I'm an Admiral that can just casually cover several kilometers with my Haki?'
"Useless," Sean muttered.
"I'll give you one chance to rephrase that."
"Miss Ain is truly gifted! To awaken Observation Haki before the age of twenty is a rarity in this world!" Sean replied instantly, his lack of principles on full display.
Still, what were they supposed to do now?
While Sean could use Reiryoku to sense his surroundings, the range was similarly limited. Reiryoku sensing primarily targeted Spirit Particles; in the world of the Shinigami, whether it was a Shinigami or a Hollow, their bodies were composed of Spirit Particles, making them easy to track.
But in the world of pirates, it was a bit more frustrating. While useful in a fight, its sensing range was quite restricted.
"Who are you?"
Just as they were worrying, a voice rang out.
They looked toward the sound and saw a little girl nearby, watching them with guarded eyes.
She was indeed a little girl, appearing significantly younger than Sean.
Wait... that orange hair, and that face!
'Hiss... that's Nami!'
'Thirteen-year-old Nami?'
Sean was stunned. He had just wandered off and happened to run straight into Nami?
"Little girl, we aren't bad people!"
"People who say they aren't bad people are usually the worst ones!"
"We're Marines! We really aren't bad people!"
"Marines? Aren't they just bad guys?"
Ain was speechless. What kind of logic was this? 'Because you're a Marine, therefore you're a bad guy?'
'Well, I guess I can blame that rat, Nezumi.'
Recalling what the villagers had mentioned on the way, Ain suddenly understood why the girl viewed Marines as villains. In the end, it was all because of that parasitic Marine, Nezumi.
"Step aside, let me handle this," Sean said, patting Ain on the shoulder.
"You're Nami, right?"
"How... how do you know my name?"
"The reason we're here is that we ran into some villagers from Cocoyasi Village pleading for help on Sika Island. They told us a lot on the way over, including some things about you."
Beside him, Ain frowned slightly.
'Did those villagers actually mention her?'
'Why don't I remember that?'
'Then again, if Sean knows the girl's name, they must have...'
"Really?"
"Of course. For instance, your sister's name is Nojiko and your adoptive mother is Bellemere. Am I right?"
At the mention of Bellemere, Nami's eyes instantly welled up.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up something so painful."
"So... are you really here to take down Arlong?"
"We are. Now, can you tell us where Arlong is?"
Hearing this, Nami nodded vigorously.
"That way! It's about a ten-minute walk from here!"
"Right. Go back to the village; your nightmare will be over soon."
Sean gently ruffled Nami's hair.
But he was met with a look of fierce determination in the girl's eyes.
"No! I want to see Arlong defeated with my own eyes!"