January 3rd, 1520 of the Sea Circle Calendar.
East Blue, Cocoyasi Village.
"Arlong, I've finished the first set of sea charts. I'm going out to sea."
Nami walked out of the tall tower in Arlong Park, looking at Arlong sitting on a beach chair, her tone cold.
"Of course. Do as you please."
Arlong held a glass of juice, revealing a smile that he thought was gentle, but in Nami's eyes was nothing but ferocious and evil. "I look forward to the day you gather 100 million Beri."
Nami didn't catch the playful tone in Arlong's voice and snorted coldly, "Remember what you promised me back then."
After speaking, Nami walked out of Arlong Park.
She didn't return to the village, because she had a falling out with the villagers when she was eight.
For ten years, whenever she appeared on the streets, the villagers would invariably avoid her.
This attitude of disregard, without cold stares or curses, made Nami terrified to appear before them.
She planned to buy back the village from Arlong after collecting 100 million Beri, and only then confess to the villagers why she had joined the Arlong Pirates.
But Nami didn't know that the villagers had long known the truth.
The reason they avoided her was to play along, otherwise, they feared their own weakness would show, that they wouldn't be able to stop their tears from flowing as they tried to comfort the ten-year-old girl who had set out to sea alone.
After leaving Arlong Park, Nami first went to the tangerine grove to pick a few tangerines, then went to a slope by the sea.
Sitting before Belle-mère's grave, Nami recounted her recent experiences to her adoptive mother and told her she was about to set sail again.
As she spoke, Nami once again couldn't help but shed tears.
The strong young woman would only open her heart and vent her grievances at this time.
After expelling all her negative emotions, Nami stood up, placed her hands on her hips, and grinned just as she did in her childhood, revealing a cute smile as she gazed at the vast sea in the distance. "Twenty million Beri left. On this next trip, I must gather the full twenty million before I return."
After psyching herself up, Nami was about to leave.
"Huh? What's that?"
Just then, Nami seemed to spot something on the sea and couldn't help but take out a retractable telescope from her pouch.
When she looked through the telescope, her face filled with disbelief. "An... an outsider? How is that possible?!"
Ever since Arlong occupied the twenty villages and established the Arlong Empire, the sea area centered around Cocoyasi Village had become one of the East Blue's hidden forbidden zones.
Any vessel that entered or strayed into this sea, from a warship to a small boat, would be sunk by the sea cow Mohmoo, who patrolled the area.
The only ones who could enter and exit this sea were Nami, a member of the Arlong Pirates, and the warship of Captain Nezumi, who was in collusion with Arlong.
This very sea beast from the Grand Line had completely extinguished Nami's hopes of finding outside help.
And now, someone had actually appeared not far from Cocoyasi Village. Was it just luck?
"No, I have to make him leave quickly."
Snapping back to her senses, Nami ran towards the seashore with a worried expression.
Although the reputation of the Arlong Empire had spread throughout the East Blue, its location was well-hidden, and few knew that the Arlong Pirates' base was in Cocoyasi Village.
If this outsider came to Cocoyasi Village and was discovered by the fish-men, he would be killed on the spot if he was lucky. If he was unlucky, he might be tortured to death or become food for Mohmoo.
The kind-hearted Nami didn't want to see such a scene.
So, while keeping the small boat locked in her telescope's view, she made her way to where it would land.
She prepared to persuade the person on the boat to leave after they came ashore.
At the same time, Nami was sizing up the person on the boat, checking if he had any weapons or if his face looked like that of a bad person.
If he had a weapon or a face she couldn't trust, she wouldn't warn him, and might even go report him to Arlong.
But soon, Nami dismissed that idea.
Because the person on the boat... was too handsome!
The person on the boat was a young man, appearing to be around twenty years old.
He had long, black, and shiny hair.
His skin was fair, not a sickly white, nor a delicate pinkish-white, but a very healthy kind of fairness.
Just by looking at his skin, one would think this person was of noble birth and had never suffered hardship.
But if someone with good eyesight or some medical knowledge were here, they would discover that this kind of fairness was due to a powerful constitution.
It was a fairness that even the sun could not affect.
He looked to be about 1.9 meters tall, wore a long black robe, and had exquisite, handsome features. With a sword hanging at his waist, he looked just like a young nobleman on an adventure.
After a careful look, Nami suddenly felt that this handsome young man was a bit familiar.
But she could guarantee that she had never met him, so where did that sense of familiarity come from?
Before Nami could search her memories, the small boat reached the shore.
The next second, a magical scene occurred.
The young man on the boat suddenly vanished into thin air.
Immediately after, a black shadow flashed before Nami's eyes, and the young man had already appeared in front of her.
Although Nami wasn't far from the boat, there was still a distance of twenty to thirty meters.
In other words, the young man had crossed a distance of twenty to thirty meters in an instant.
This teleportation-like speed scared Nami so much that she stumbled back a few steps and fell to the ground.
Before she could beg for mercy, she saw the young man ask, "Is this Cocoyasi Village?"
"...Yes."
Startled, Nami nodded blankly.
"Then I'm in the right place. I've finally found it."
After speaking, the young man walked towards Arlong Park, as if he already knew its location.
Only after the young man walked past her did Nami react. She quickly got up and chased after him, saying, "This is the headquarters of the 'Arlong Pirates'! Arlong is a great pirate with a bounty of twenty million Beri, the overlord of the East Blue's pirates."
"There are fish-men patrolling everywhere, and they remember the face of every villager. If you're discovered by the fish-men, they will definitely kill you."
Hearing this, the young man glanced at Nami and smiled, "I know. Thanks for the warning, Little Cat Burglar."
"Eh?"
Nami was slightly stunned, looking at the young man in astonishment. "You know me?"
"A thief who's made a small name for herself in the underworld, of course I know you."
The young man introduced himself as he walked, "My name is Link. You could say we're in a similar line of work."
"Link? That name is so familiar..."
Nami first frowned slightly, then her beautiful eyes widened as she stared at Link, exclaiming in shock, "You're... 'The Impaler' Link?!"
"Mm."
Link nodded, then glanced at the Arlong Pirates' symbol on Nami's arm, feigning surprise. "I didn't expect the Cat Burglar, who has betrayed so many pirate crews and stolen their treasure, to actually be a member of the Arlong Pirates."
Hearing this, Nami's delicate body trembled, and she clarified in an anxious tone, "Don't... don't misunderstand! I didn't join the Arlong Pirates willingly, and I don't have a bounty. Please don't kill me!"
"Is that so?"
"It's true, I swear I'm not lying."
Seeing Link's disbelieving face, Nami quickly explained, "The Arlong Pirates are all fish-men, they look down on humans. The only reason I joined is because my talent for navigation is extremely high, and they threatened me with the lives of the villagers, forcing me to draw sea charts for them."
"So that's how it is."
Link feigned a look of realization, then smiled. "In that case, please trouble yourself to lead me to the Arlong Pirates."
"No problem!"
Nami immediately agreed, her face full of excitement.
If it were anyone else, Nami would never have agreed.
Because leading him would be tantamount to tearing off all pretenses with Arlong. If they failed, not only would she die, but the villagers would also be implicated.
But if this person was Link, then Nami was willing to take the gamble.
No, it wasn't a gamble. Did a game that was a guaranteed win even need to be gambled on?
The person before her was a new star who had emerged in the East Blue in the latter half of last year.
At the same time, this new star had used only half a year to become the strongest in the East Blue!
He was a bounty hunter who, in just six months, had surpassed the man known as the demon beast, "Pirate Hunter" Roronoa Zoro.
This was not only because the bounties of the pirates Link hunted were extremely high, but also because he moonlighted as a mercenary.
In half a year, he had influenced the outcome of over a dozen kingdom wars, a walking strategic-level weapon.
Whichever side he was on would achieve victory, an overwhelming victory.
It was said that a certain kingdom, in gratitude, had even granted him a noble title.
Rumor had it that the Marines had tried to recruit him multiple times, but he had refused them all.
The Impaler was the title the newspapers and the world had given Link.
Because anyone killed by Link would die a very gruesome death.
A single glance at a photo of his work was enough to give a large number of wanted pirates nightmares for a long time.