Chapter 40

"I don't have any parents. I am an orphan that lived at the orphanage, but apparently, I was too rowdy, and the other kids didn't like me and were scared of me for some reason. So Mummy Mee and Daddy Dee moved me to a beach, where there was a little shack for me to live in. Over the last four years, I had transformed that small shack and expanded it massively into a full home with all sorts of functions." I reveal, pulling Nami even more out of her shell. The frown on her face slowly lightens as she seems to realise something, recognition blooming on her face.

"Oh, I know those two. They came over sometimes to check on me and Nojiko, my sister... So you built an entire house? It must have been a lot of work to do all that building, way more than just drawing some maps." She says, a bit depressed at the end there, reminded of her situation. I am a bit surprised that she knows Mummy Mee and Daddy Dee, which must mean there were some other factors regarding her household affairs if those two were visiting.

"It was a lot of work, but I had my best friend to help me with it. He did a lot of the heavy lifting since he was so big and strong." Honestly, I don't think my house would be anywhere close to complete if George didn't help me build it. Of course, George didn't even really make anything, but his job was still important, lifting, carrying and handing me things as well as holding things in place so I could secure them. I didn't realise it at the time, but that lazy gorilla would always help me if I asked.

"Best friend? I don't really have one, though I would say my sister Nojiko is my best friend. So what is your best friend like? Where is he?" She questions, trying to distract herself from her own pain and, in the process pulling mine out from where I was trying to forget it.

"George... he died... The fishmen killed him..." I say, the words leaving my mouth with difficulty. Nami doesn't say anything after that, leaving us to stew in the deathly silence, which is even worse. Saying it out loud, telling someone, somehow makes it feel even worse. Before, it was as if it wasn't real because I hadn't talked about it or spoken about it, but now someone other than me knows, and Nami now knows. I can't explain it, but it hurts even more now for some reason.

"...just like Bellemere." I hear her finally say, and I look up to find her staring at me. But she isn't crying or looking like she is pitying me. Instead, there is a look of understanding, not as if she knows the pain I am feeling but as if she knows that I am in pain. Because she is too, probably much more than me, since she lost her mother, and she has never been independent before. I am not lost. I can survive. I don't have any of those doubts and worries, but she is probably full of them, and here she is, locked away in a dingy room, stuck with me.

"That is right. Just like they killed your mother, they killed my best friend. I have no one else now. So, I want to go out a kill them all. Even if they are too strong, even if I am so weak that I can't kill a single one. At least I can injure one of them, making it easier on the rest of the villagers on the island. So let me go. I have no one else waiting for me. I have nothing to lose. So at least let me try to avenge my best friend." Seeing the opportunity presented to me, I strike, trying to convince her to let me go and take them out. A bit hasty, but the desire to get my revenge burns inside me. I can't wait.

"No." I look at her, shocked, unable to understand why she is refusing me. Her face, still red from crying is staunch. Her expression is unrelenting. She is resolved to not let me do what I want, to not let me get revenge for George, for her mother.

"No..? WHY!? AREN'T YOU ANGRY!? AREN'T YOU PISSED OFF!? THEY KILLED YOUR MOTHER!! THEY KILLED BELLEMERE!! THEY COULD KILL ANYONE NEXT!! EVEN YOUR SISTER!! DON'T YOU WANT REVENGE!! DON'T YOU WANT THEM TO DIE!!!" I shouted, losing control of myself the second she refused me. A simple no from her, and I have to follow it. I just don't understand. Why isn't she letting me? Why doesn't she want me to kill them?

"Of course I want them to die... I hate them. But they are too strong. You won't be able to kill them all. And even if you do manage to injure one, or maybe even kill one of them, all you will do is make the rest angry, and they will take it out on the villagers. So don't throw your life away just so you can hurt one of them. Stay alive. No one else needs to die. No one else needs to suffer." So Nami says, surprising me that she is just as angry as me, and yet she won't let me go, even though she understands how I feel.

"Then what am I supposed to do? What are the villagers supposed to do? Do we just wait around forever, hoping for something to change? For the nearby marines to come to rescue us? Because I have met the leader of that branch, and he is a coward that cares more about himself than the people here. He won't come to rescue us, so we have to deal with this ourselves. I am strong. I can beat them. A bigshot marine from the Grandline came here and trained me for a couple of months four years ago. I can do it." I won't be able to take them all on at once. I don't have enough experience for that. But one by one, using sneak attacks and planning each one out down to the point? I can defeat them all.

"You are just a kid, like me. If you try to fight them, you will die. But I can free everyone. Arlong made a deal with me, and if I can fulfil it, then he and his crew will leave. If I can gather one hundred million berries and give it to Arlong, then he will leave." She says, frustrating me even more.

"And you believe him? That he will just leave like that?" That is absurd. There is no way he would just leave. This entire village is a goldmine for him, with income every month with no work under the threat of death. There is no way Arlong will give this up. And one hundred million berries? There is no way she will gather that much. It is an impossible figure to attain. However, Arlong clearly want her for her map drawing abilities for some reason, and to that effect, he has given her hope, so she will work for him.

"What other choice is there? This way, everyone gets to live. While I am working on getting all that money, they will be fine. Maybe someone will come to free the island while I am trying, which would be great." Is she serious? And that is when I realise me and her are different because she is a legitimate ten-year-old. She wants to believe in this, that she can free everyone, and she won't believe otherwise. I can see it in her eyes. No matter what I say, she won't listen. Only when she has definitive proof in front of her will she accept that.

"He is a pirate. There is no way he will abide by that agreement. So just let me go and kick all their asses, and solve this now. There is no point in waiting. Even if you gather all the money, he will just take it and keep ruling this island. You know that, right?" Even so, I try to tell her. Try to convince her and show her reality, but it doesn't seem to work.

"But I have to try. If there is a way for us to be free without any of the villagers having to die for it. Then no matter how tiny, I have to try. We have to try. And if the day comes when he doesn't do what he agreed to, then... you can do whatever you like. You said you are strong, right? So while I am trying to get one hundred million berries, you could maybe keep getting stronger. So if that ever happens, you can try to kill them." That is... something. Honestly, it is the best I can hope for because I am not convincing her otherwise. She is seriously stubborn, just like that mother of hers.

But gathering all that money is going to take years, maybe even decades. And I need Nami to collect all that money as soon as possible, so then Arlong can betray their deal, and I get free range to kill all of the bastards. The only way I can think for her to get that much is for her to resort to piracy and stealing because there is no other way to get that money so fast. So I am going to help her gather that money as soon as possible so that she can get her hope crushed quicker and free me from this restraint.

"Alright, fine, if that is what you want. But collecting all that money by yourself is going to take too long, so I will help you with it. Hell, we can even get some of the villagers to help as well. With all of us collecting as much as we can, we should be able to raise the full amount much faster." And then Arlong can refuse to abide by the terms of the agreement, and Nami will be shattered. Unfortunate, but what other option do I have? Nami needs to have her hopes destroyed so that she will no longer restrict me and allow me to avenge George, as well as Bellemere.

"We can't. The villagers will already be using their money to pay Arlong. We can't take more from them. They might need it in the future. Arlong already said that I don't need to pay the tax because I will be working for him, so you probably won't have to, too, so you can help me." I know that it would have been tough on the villagers, but if they contributed at least something, then the faster this process could go. I am still trying to figure out how to raise that much money, I certainly can't do it on this island, and I am curious if Arlong will even let us leave the Conami Islands.

"Whatever, there is no point discussing this now. I am going to go, and I promise I won't try to fight, not until you have tried your plan. Is that okay with you?" I phrase the last part sarcastically, but it is a genuine question. Because right now, I am still under her orders to stay here, but as I get up and begin to walk towards the door, I feel no such restraint anymore. Without her having to say anything, I can already feel that I can leave, which is good? It shows that I don't have to obey any verbal commands to the letter, and an order can stay or go depending on how she feels... I think.

"A-Are we allowed to leave? Won't they be angry?" Nami questions behind me, trepidation in her voice, but I can hear her footsteps as she follows me. Good, seems like she is latching on to me, which means I can try to regulate her commands. But, of course, if I am in a higher position than her, then she wouldn't give me orders, would she?

"Let's find out." Of course, some might argue that it is terrible, that I should keep my distance, and I would want that too. But I have already met her, and we are both going to be forced to work for Arlong. And she has already declared that I can not attack or kill the fishmen, which means we will be stuck together. So it is best to undercut this thing now and get ahead of it, then try to ignore it and have it come back to bite me later on.

Approaching the front door, I go to grab the handle, but I still when I hear voices outside, and I quickly turn to Nami and bring a finger to my mouth, gesturing for her to be quiet. Thankfully she is quite an intelligent girl, and she listens to my order, letting me listen to the other side of the door. Since I can't attack these guys now, the best thing I can do is gather information in preparation for the day when I finally can. People reveal much more when they don't think you are listening and when they feel they are in a safe space with no one around. So, pressing my ear against the door, I begin to try and listen for anything important.

"What is Arlong-San thinking? We should have killed him. Did you see what he did?" Hmm, they are talking about Arlong sparing someone, and they think he should have killed them. Who could they be talking about?

"Arlong says to keep him alive, so that's what we will do. Arlong knows what he is doing. So let's trust him." Hmm, these guys seem to have heavy loyalty to their captain.

"I know, I know. But- It was all of us, every single one of us. Only the captain was unaffected. I just can't help but feel this could come back to bite us later if we don't deal with it now." So they were all affected by something, and only Arlong wasn't? I wonder what happened, who on this island did it, and what they did.

"Shh, shut up about it. The captain has already decided, so what else is there to say." At his words, they both quiet down, neither speaking further about the topic. Intrigued, I want to learn more, but they start talking about unimportant things, so I decide to leave. I have something to do, and I can't leave it any longer.

Opening the door, the two fishermen pirates spin around to look at me, hands quickly going to rest on the handles of their weapons as they look at me with caution. Strange, but I ignore it. I don't have time to waste on these guys.

"You guys have already taken over the island, right? So there is nowhere for us to go for help, so can we go? It isn't like we can run away." I raise an eyebrow at them, inquiring because I don't want to provoke or start a fight with any of them. Right now, I am forbidden from fighting with them, so if they begin to attack me, I have no idea if I will be allowed to defend myself. So I don't want to risk it.

They both turn to look at each other before looking back down at me, their grasp on their weapons tightening before they simply give me a nod and move to the side, giving me way. I start to walk past them, Nami quickly following behind me.

I notice that they never take their eyes off me as I move away, and their hands stay tightly on their weapons. Very strange, these guys were so rough and loud on the beach, and they definitely don't like humans. But they just let me go without saying a word, not even swearing at me when they seem to hate humans.

Very weird, but I don't have time to dwell on it any further. I have to go deal with... Shaking my head, I quicken my pace, Nami scurrying along behind me.

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