-----
-----
After the Straw Hats wiped out the Arlong Pirates, they hauled the whole lot of them back to Cocoyasi Village.
When the villagers saw the very monsters who had ruled them for years, all tied up and half-dead, they couldn't stop cheering.
Some of the braver folks even stepped up and gave the fish-men a few solid kicks for good measure.
Luffy and the others didn't stop them—they let the villagers vent.
And then, when Luffy announced that all the treasure Arlong had hoarded over the years would be shared with Cocoyasi and the other villages he'd oppressed—
The cheering nearly shook the skies.
"We're free!"
"Arlong's finally been defeated! Even that corrupt rat Colonel who protected him is gone!"
"Thank you, Nami! Thank you, Straw Hat! Thank you, Long-Haired Guy!"
The villagers tossed the crew up into the air and caught them again, over and over.
Right then, no one cared that they were pirates. All they knew was—they had been saved. And that was enough.
So when Luffy shouted, "Let's throw a party!"The party started.
That night, laughter filled Cocoyasi Village. Bonfires burned bright, and the villagers danced and sang in celebration.
At the heart of it all, of course, were the Straw Hat Pirates.
But the biggest stars? Definitely Luffy and Usopp, the village idiots.
Not long after the party kicked off, Luffy showed off his famous "chopsticks-up-the-nose dance" again.
Usopp was immediately intrigued.
Before long, the two of them were dancing around with chopsticks stuck in their nostrils, arms linked like total clowns.
The crowd couldn't stop laughing.
"Geez, I can understand Luffy, but Usopp too? This is kinda embarrassing," Nami muttered, watching them act like fools.
"Haha, I actually think your crewmates are kinda fun," said Nojiko beside her, resting her chin in her hands with a slightly envious smile.
"Nami-saaaan~~ Nojiko-saaaan~~"
A smooth, slightly greasy voice slid into their ears.
"I made this fruit wine just for you two. It's sweet and tangy—perfect for your tastes."
Sanji placed two glasses of fruit wine in front of them, all gentlemanly.
Nami didn't reply. She knew if she responded, it'd just get worse.
"Oh wow, you made this especially for us? Thank you so much, Sanji-kun!"
Nojiko, on the other hand, had no idea what she was stepping into.
She didn't know Sanji well—he hadn't stayed at their place long, and he'd spent most of the time arguing with Zoro.
Which led to this moment.
"Wooow~"
Sanji instantly lit up.
"If Nojiko-san likes it, I'll make it for you every day~~~!"
If you had to describe Sanji's face right now in one sentence, it would be:
"Too damn greasy."
"Ugh, pervy kappa…"
Zoro, who'd been quietly drinking and eating nearby, finally couldn't hold back and grumbled a comment.
"Huh? You wanna fight, moss-head?" Sanji snapped, instantly switching expressions again.
Watching Sanji go from smooth gentleman, to sleazy flirt, to aggressive loudmouth in seconds flat, Nami could only shake her head and facepalm.
That face-switching speed was something else.
She couldn't help thinking—
It used to be just Luffy who acted like a total idiot.Now there's Usopp.And Sanji.
Nami honestly didn't want to imagine how bad it might get from here.
If Bai Ye knew what she was thinking, he'd probably comfort her—by telling her there'd soon be a talking raccoon in a hat doing the chopstick dance with them too.
Oh, and a skeleton who's just as much of a pervert as Sanji.
And... even a full-blown cyborg creep.
So… where was Bai Ye right now?
The answer: watching a video.
He'd shown the whole Arlong Park drama to Fleet Admiral Sengoku earlier.
But later, as they headed to Arlong Park, Sengoku had cut the call—and stopped watching the live broadcast.
Sengoku not cooperating? No big deal—White Night didn't bother watching the live broadcast anyway. After all, there's always the recording.
The type of Den Den Mushi White Night used was an Image Transponder Snail—and it could do more than just live broadcasts. It could record video too.
Right now, White Night was watching the footage of him and his crew giving the Arlong Pirates a serious beatdown.
As he watched, he nodded to himself, satisfied.
He hadn't recorded the part where he handed out the Body-Cleansing Pill, though.
Sure, Brian had probably told Sengoku about the healing pills White Night had, and yeah, they were pretty overpowered... but not so overpowered that the Marines would see them as a major threat.
The Body-Cleansing Pill, on the other hand—that was a whole different story. A pill that could fully and permanently boost physical abilities? White Night wasn't about to bet on the Marines ignoring something like that.
Until he and the rest of the crew had grown stronger, he figured it was best not to stir the pot.
Not that he was scared, per se. Just... cautious. Yeah, let's go with that.
The whole reason he recorded the video was to show the Marines just how strong they were now.
From what White Night could see in the footage, their strength already rivaled some of the pirates on the Grand Line.
And yeah, he had a little selfish reason for doing it too.
Now that he was in this world—and a part of the Straw Hats—it only made sense to share in the glory.
In the original story, Luffy was the only one with a bounty at first: 30 million. The Marines based that on him taking down Buggy, Krieg, and Arlong.
But that didn't include Zoro or any of the others—not even the fights against Morgan or Kuro got a mention.
So yeah, for the slightly delusional and definitely dramatic White Night, making small changes to the plot—ones that wouldn't mess up the story too much—was something he was totally down for.
Otherwise, what was the point of coming here?
This time, his goal was simple: Everyone in the crew gets a bounty—and the higher, the better.
This was the future Pirate King's crew, after all. Might as well become world-famous from the very start.
Shutting off the Den Den Mushi, White Night couldn't help but smile.
He was actually looking forward to watching the Marines argue over their bounties.
"Now that I think about it…"
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully and muttered,"Should I give myself a nickname or something?"
I mean, come on—he was a pirate now. You can't go around calling yourself just "White Night." You gotta have a name that turns heads!
"Since I'm the only Taoist in this world… maybe I'll go with that one."
After thinking it over, he finally came up with a name he liked and nodded to himself in satisfaction.
"Hey, White Night! Do you know where I can find prosciutto and cantaloupe?"
Right then, Luffy came rushing in, holding a bunch of ham, asking White Night for directions.
"…Isn't that ham in your hands?"
White Night gave him a blank stare.
"No? I'll go look somewhere else then."
Hearing that, Luffy instantly processed the crucial info: White Night doesn't have what I need.
And with that, he darted off in another direction.
Watching Luffy run off again like a madman, White Night shook his head.
He looked up at the full moon hanging in the night sky and said softly:
"Dawn's almost here~"
"If they're not here yet, then the Marine Sengoku sent... it's gotta be that guy, right?"
White Night had a pretty good idea who was coming—and he couldn't help but feel excited about it.
What he was about to do next was kinda crazy, and if it were any other Marine, he might hesitate.
But if it was that one troublemaker... well, things would be a lot easier.
"....."