Outside was a cacophony of noise and cheerful laughter.
The indulgence after being suppressed to the extreme had the entire Cocoyasi Village reveling, celebrating their rebirth.
Arlong Park, the symbol of their oppression, was now a pile of ruins—completely and utterly destroyed.
To the point where, even if you gave every villager outside a cannon, it was debatable if they could have achieved the same level of devastation.
An outsider might think the person who did it had some deep-seated grudge against the Arlong Pirates.
In reality, they had only met for the first time today.
Arlong would never have dreamed in his final moments that his end would be like that.
Forget waiting for the Marines to arrest them; there weren't many left alive. The few remaining fish-men, missing limbs here and there, were dealt with by Zoro and the others who arrived just in time.
"He seems like a very capable captain."
Nojiko looked at Nami, who was lying on the bed with a pale shoulder exposed, a white towel draped over her back. "Didn't you say he's been studying medical knowledge lately? This is a good opportunity. Why not let him practice?"
"Listen to what you're saying."
Be Luffy's guinea pig?
No way.
Besides, she had just broken down and cried her eyes out in Luffy's arms. Right now, just seeing his face made her want to bury her head in the sand like an ostrich.
Nami's face was a mix of embarrassment and annoyance.
Lying on her stomach, she glanced at the tattoo on her arm.
Then she looked at Nojiko's arm, which bore a matching tattoo.
When her talent for navigation was discovered by the Arlong Pirates as a child, this mark was branded onto her arm, forcibly making her one of 'them'.
Seeing how much Nami cried, Nojiko went and got a matching tattoo, becoming a 'delinquent' girl herself.
"Aren't you and your captain pretty close? I heard from that long-nosed guy that you even slept in the same room."
Nojiko wore a teasing smile.
"I told you, that was a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding! We really were just studying!" Nami, flustered and angry, tried to push herself up.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Studying knowledge is fine, and I'm sure the positions weren't bad either. It's not like I'm against you dating."
"Nonsense! And why would I need your permission to date anyway?!"
Nami was getting worked up. She tugged the towel tighter around her chest and sat up. "I think it's been too long since I taught you a lesson. Let me show you what's what before I leave."
"Tch." Nojiko's eyebrow twitched. "How impressive. Are you planning to crush me with your chest this time?"
The corner of Nami's mouth lifted. "Jealous?"
"We're about the same. If you can do it, why can't I?"
Even as she said that, Nojiko reached out and gave a playful pat, gauging Nami's recent... impressive development. Sighing with a feeling of mock emotion, she said, "Now lie back down. This thing's been here a long time; it might not even come off."
"My skills aren't great, so don't blame me if it goes wrong."
"Keep talking and I will flatten you."
The two sisters went back and forth.
Just as Nojiko was dampening a cloth with some alcohol, a voice came from outside.
"Nami!"
It was Luffy? Nami instinctively stood up, then realized something, her pupils constricting sharply.
Click-CRACK! The door opened.
It was pushed open with a bit of force. Luffy stood there, panting, looking into the room.
"Huh?"
He saw Nami wrapped in a towel, which seemed barely capable of containing her breathtaking, devilish figure.
Luffy was dumbfounded, his gaze becoming somewhat vacant.
He'd just come to get his hat back!
"...Shut the door!"
"O-okay, okay." Luffy obediently closed the door behind him and came in.
"You didn't lock it?!" Nami glared, gritting her teeth at Nojiko.
"I did! But your captain is just too strong." Nojiko went to the door and looked at the broken lock.
Then, seeing Nami's flustered and angry expression, a smirk crept onto her lips.
Nami can get shy like this?
What a rare sight.
Nojiko wished she could take a picture. She couldn't help but lamented, Is this what they call a girl in love? Nami's personality was usually so brash.
"Ouch, my hand suddenly cramped up," Nojiko announced.
She called Luffy over, explained what needed to be done for Nami, and entrusted him with a 'glorious' task.
"The door's broken. I'll stand guard for you. Keep it down, and don't make any strange noises, okay?" Nojiko gave Nami a meaningful look.
"Have you lost your mind?!"
Nami cried out in shock. "Hey, don't you dare leave!"
Nojiko didn't look back, completely ignoring her pleas.
...
Only the two of them were left in the room.
"What are you looking at?"
"Huh? At what?"
Luffy was still processing what Nojiko had just told him to do. He looked up to find Nami hugging her chest, holding the towel tightly, staring at him with an indescribable expression.
Maybe it was his imagination, but why did he suddenly feel a chill?
"Nami, uh..."
"Hmph."
That 'Hmph' was very telling.
She muttered complaints about Nojiko under her breath, her bare feet padding across the floor as she returned to the bed.
"I guess it has to be you. But keep your eyes to yourself!"
"What's there to look at anyway?" Luffy said, pouting.
"You...!" Nami immediately pushed herself up, causing the towel to slip.
"Waaah! You stupid rubber idiot! Forget everything you just saw!"
"Sorry, I think I have a photographic memory," Luffy said, not lying.
"Die, die, die!"
Luffy didn't have much confidence in his skills, but since both Nojiko and Nami were insisting, he had to grit his teeth and do it. The fact that he was still multitasking, staring with intense concentration, made this even harder than fighting the Arlong Pirates.
"Why did you come here?" Nami asked.
"I came to get my hat."
"Hmph, that's just an excuse, you pervert. You were probably waiting outside, ready to charge in and peep at any moment."
"Does charging in still count as peeping?" Luffy retorted.
Nami was momentarily speechless.
Even a rabbit will bite when cornered.
Luffy's previously pure and simple personality was gradually becoming more... problematic.
It just goes to show, pressure can make a person explode in all sorts of ways.
Luffy was under high pressure all day, a far cry from his usual brain-empty state. The Arlong Pirates were the first to bear the brunt of this change.
Especially since he'd 'opened the door to a new world'...
"Alright, I'm exhausted."
Nojiko walked in just in time to hear Luffy say this.
"Am I interrupting?" Nojiko came in holding some clothes, grinning. "The banquet outside is just winding down for the evening. You two can continue, you know."
"Eh? Is there no meat left?" Luffy wailed.
"There is, there is! Look at Nami." Nojiko poked Luffy's stretchy cheek with her finger.
Nami was now wearing only a bikini top, with blue skinny jeans on her lower body.
The tattoo on her left shoulder had been transformed. It now featured an orange and a windmill, with a tiny straw hat added to the design.
"Nojiko!"
Nami was only dressed like this because she had no other clothes available. A bikini was better than just a towel.
"Nami has great taste in clothes! She has lots of nice outfits in her room... maid outfits, bikinis, stockings and heels... Want to see?" Nojiko completely ignored Nami's protests, propping her chin on her hand as she 'advertised' to Luffy.