“Nami, are you alright?!” Genzo, the sheriff of Cocoyasi Village, rushed into Arlong Park with several villagers, his face filled with panic, only to be stunned by the scene before him as the ground was covered with charred, unconscious Fishmen; as someone who had watched Nami grow up, he could only stare in a daze, recalling how he had once led people to resist the Arlong Pirates yet couldn’t even handle a single officer, while now this same girl had single-handedly destroyed the entire crew.
“Genzo?
And… everyone?” Nami looked at the familiar villagers with surprise, especially noticing the two bounty hunters she didn’t recognize and a severely burned Fishman lying miserably on the ground Chu, one of Arlong’s officers causing her pupils to contract as a trace of fear rose in her heart when she realized he must have already gone to the village before she arrived; it seemed she had not been cautious enough, as after defeating Arlong she hadn’t carefully accounted for all the officers, yet Chu’s current state looked as if he had been struck by an explosion.
“Nami-chan… these Fishmen won’t collect protection money from us anymore, right?” one villager asked nervously while stepping around the charred bodies, afraid of waking them, and the others also looked on with hope as Nami’s eyes curved into a bright smile and she replied, “Yes!
The Arlong Pirates will never bully us again, starting today Cocoyasi Village and everyone are free!”
The moment those words were confirmed, overwhelming joy swept through the crowd as cheers erupted “This is great!” “Nami-chan is amazing!” “We don’t have to pay protection money anymore… my dear husband, do you see this?!” and Genzo, filled with excitement, nearly rushed back to spread the news but restrained himself, knowing they first needed to bind the unconscious Fishmen and lock them inside Arlong Park’s cells.
As everyone busied themselves, Nami pointed at Chu and asked, “Genzo, was this Fishman… beaten like this in the village?” since although ordinary Fishmen wouldn’t surprise her, Chu like Kuroobi and Hatchan was an officer-level opponent; Genzo laughed, but before he could answer, Joseph and Johnny stepped forward proudly and declared, “Of course!
He was defeated by our invincible Sword God Joseph and Sword Saint Johnny!”
The two bounty hunters seized the moment to boast, explaining that after opening their jars they had gone to the tavern to show off, only to accidentally trigger the weapon they obtained a strange, oversized firearm and fire it, and after the deafening explosion they ran out in panic to find this Fishman already blown into that state; hearing this, Nami didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as she realized these two were also customers of that mysterious Shop Owner, though when she glanced at the green weapon carried on Joseph’s back, a faint sense of pride rose within her after all, she had obtained a true Devil Fruit power.
At that moment, Johnny suddenly pointed toward the sea and shouted excitedly, “Huh?
There’s an unattended Sea Beast there!
Joseph, catch it with the poké ball!” and Joseph immediately responded with equal enthusiasm, “Heheheha!
There really is a vicious Sea King watch my move!” As everyone watched in disbelief, the enormous sea cow Moo Moo, a creature large enough to devastate a village, was instantly sucked into a small red-and-white ball with a “whoosh,” leaving the villagers stunned.
Noticing their shock, Joseph proudly waved the ball and said, “This is the super invincible Sword God Ball I got from the Boss’s Jar Shop for 100,000 berries!
We spent all our savings on this!” and upon hearing this, a villager who had previously been discouraged by the price exclaimed in regret, “What?
So that Shop Owner wasn’t a fraud?!
If only I had known… but I don’t even have 100,000 berries…” causing murmurs about the jars to spread again.
Genzo, who had been quietly working, recalled Nojiko mentioning that Nami’s strength came from that suddenly appeared Jar Shop, and now seeing even these bounty hunters gain powerful items, he began to consider that perhaps once he saved enough money, he too should try opening a jar, as he could not afford to fall behind the younger generation as the village sheriff.
…
News of the Arlong Pirates’ defeat quickly spread throughout Cocoyasi Village as villagers rushed out of their homes, embracing one another and weeping with joy while spontaneously preparing a grand celebration; the scent of oranges, delicious food, singing, and dancing filled the entire village, and after seven years of oppression, genuine happiness finally returned to their faces.
“Nami!” Nojiko, with her short blue hair, rushed forward and tightly embraced her sister, and Nami laughed softly as she hugged her back, saying, “Haha, I told you I’d come back, didn’t I?” while quietly listening to Nojiko’s voice filled with relief and happiness.
Even after personally defeating Arlong and dismantling the Arlong Pirates, Nami still felt a sense of unreality, as not long ago she had only been the “Cat Burglar” constantly fleeing after failed thefts, yet by chance she had entered that mysterious Jar Shop, opened a jar under the Shop Owner’s guidance, and obtained incredible power, allowing her to defeat powerful enemies and save her hometown, while even her dream of drawing a complete world map now seemed within reach.
“Miracle of fate…” Nami murmured softly, already making up her mind that once the village stabilized, she would head out to sea as a bounty hunter, drawing maps while also helping promote the Jar Shop so more people could change their destinies; with anticipation, she even thought, “Tomorrow, I’ll take my sister to open jars.”
…
Marine Headquarters.
After receiving Captain Nezumi’s report from East Blue Branch 16, the communications operator did not immediately believe the absurd intelligence, as Devil Fruits were extremely rare even in the Grand Line, often serving as highlight items in auctions at places like the Sabaody Archipelago, so the idea that someone in the East Blue the weakest sea was openly selling Devil Fruit-level abilities sounded ridiculous, raising doubts about the merchant’s intentions.
Nevertheless, the operator decided to dispatch personnel from nearby East Blue branches to Cocoyasi Village for verification, which would also allow them to take custody of the defeated Arlong Pirates, while planning to report the matter to Fleet Admiral Sengoku after confirmation; as for who to send, a suitable candidate quickly came to mind the former Marine Headquarters Colonel and Logia-type Smoke-Smoke Fruit user, the well-known “White Chase” Smoker stationed in Loguetown since with such a powerful Marine, even if the report turned out to be true, the situation could be easily handled.