East Blue, Shells Town. Tom and Nami had successfully infiltrated the Marine base.
On their way to the base, they encountered a very cute little girl, who was crying her eyes out as she walked.
"Why are you crying so much? Did something happen? Who are you? Where are your parents?"
Seeing the heartbroken little girl, Nami quickly stepped forward to ask.
Tom saw the genuine concern on Nami's face as she fussed over the girl whose big eyes were swollen from crying. It seemed she really did like children.
"Sniff... My name is Rika. I made a rice ball very carefully for that big brother, but... but it was..."
Rika kept sobbing, and as she spoke, she burst into loud tears. "I wanted the big brother to eat the rice ball I made, but a mean, bad person stomped on it with his foot and made it dirty. The big brother can't eat my rice ball. I'm so sad."
"What?! Who would do such a thing? Bullying such an innocent child! I won't let them get away with it!"
Hearing Rika's story, Nami immediately said, filled with righteous indignation.
"I think the person who did it was that Captain Morgan's son, Helmeppo."
As soon as Tom said this, Nami paused, clearly not expecting the bully to be the Marine captain's son. She had just been thinking of teaching the guy a lesson, but now that seemed rather difficult.
But Nami quickly recovered and immediately said to Tom, "Alright! Then you charge into the Marine base and knock that Helmeppo guy flying!"
Knock him flying, my foot! You're the one who made bold promises to little Rika, and now that it's tricky, you push it on me. You think I'm an idiot?
Though Tom also felt a surge of righteous anger at Helmeppo's actions, he definitely wasn't going to just storm the Marine base and beat him up on Nami's say-so.
Tom knew his limits. With his current skills, he couldn't take on an entire Marine base alone.
Ignoring Nami, Tom walked over to the sobbing Rika, crouched down, patted her head, and gave a gentle smile. "Don't cry. I think the big brother you're talking about will definitely eat the rice ball you made with your own hands, and he'll enjoy it very much."
"Really?"
Hearing Tom, Rika stopped crying and looked up at him, her big eyes still brimming with tears.
"Of course. That rice ball contains your feelings. Even if it got dirty, he'd still eat it. He'd never let your feelings go to waste. That's the kind of man he is."
As Tom said this, an image surfaced in his mind: a man with a dark green bandana, tightly bound to a post, chewing ravenously on a rice ball that had been stomped into the dirt, covered in sand and mud, finishing with the words, 'It's delicious.'
"That's wonderful!"
Rika cheered. Though tears still streaked her tender little face, a smile appeared.
"Thank you, big brother, big sister. I have to go help at my mom's shop. Goodbye!"
Rika ran ahead a little, then turned back to wave at Tom and Nami with a smile.
Watching Rika's small figure disappear from sight, Nami glanced at Tom. "How did you know who Rika was talking about?"
"Don't be silly. I have no idea who she meant. I was just comforting her."
Tom said this, then looked at Nami with a teasing grin. "You seem to like kids so much, yet you can't even comfort a child. Pretty pathetic."
"Yeah, well, you'd definitely make a qualified dad someday."
Nami snorted, then said to Tom, "We can't enter the Marine base from the front. We have to take a side path around."
As Tom and Nami took the small path to the base, Luffy and Koby appeared at the spot they had just left.
While Luffy and Koby were telling Rika the news that Zoro had eaten every last bit of the rice ball, Tom and Nami were already inside the Marine base, searching for the Grand Line map.
"Listen. If we get a chance to see that Helmeppo, you have to teach him a proper lesson."
Nami whispered from a shadowy corner of a hallway, peering around shiftily as she spoke to Tom.
"Why does it have to be me? And why should I listen to you anyway?"
Tom looked around, relieved to see no one nearby. When they'd snuck in from another side earlier, he hadn't seen Zoro tied to any post.
"Idiot, have you forgotten? You owe me a hundred million berries. If you listen to me, I might consider reducing your debt."
Nami said to Tom with a serious face.
For goodness' sake! When did I ever admit to owing you a hundred million berries?!
Tom looked speechlessly at Nami, who was skillfully picking the lock of a tightly shut door with a thin piece of wire. In under two seconds, she had it open. Tom sighed and followed her into the room.
The room appeared to be a Marine dormitory, with four bunk beds and several lockers.
Nami quickly ransacked the entire room. She didn't find the map she wanted but did find quite a bit of loose change.
"The people at this base are really poor. Four lockers combined had less than three hundred berries. Even worse off than you."
Nami said with a look of resignation, glancing at Tom with clear dissatisfaction.
What?
Tom's heart jumped. He quickly felt his clothes' pockets.
Damn it! When did all my money disappear?
Tom's face darkened. He lowered his voice and asked Nami, "When did you steal my money?"
"It was barely a thousand berries. Not even enough for interest. You owe me a hundred million. Taking a little from you isn't out of line, right?"
Nami spread her hands, saying it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Tom watched Nami put on an innocent face, as if it was his fault she had stolen so little from him, which annoyed him greatly.
"Don't steal from me again!"
Tom warned Nami righteously.
"Fine. You're so poor all you have left are your clothes anyway. Nothing left for me to steal."
Nami said with a dismissive look.
After wandering the base for nearly fifteen minutes, Nami still hadn't found what she wanted. During that time, Tom had knocked out several Marines for her, or their cover would have been blown.
"The Grand Line map should be here."
Nami scanned the area and slipped with Tom into a room that looked quite luxurious. Inside was a large safe.
Such an opulent room was undoubtedly the private quarters of the tyrannical Captain Morgan.
Tom strolled around the room. Seeing its lavish, imposing decor, he thought, This must be it.
"This safe is pretty advanced. Tricky to open."
Nami studied the large safe in the corner, looking a bit troubled.
"You can't open it?"
Tom walked over to Nami and asked.
"Of course I can open it. It'll just take some time."
After saying this to Tom, Nami prepared to study the safe seriously.
Just then, a click sounded. The previously tightly shut door was opened by someone.
Both Tom and Nami's expressions changed.
Nami hurriedly hid behind Tom. Tom's heart tightened, ready to strike the person who'd suddenly entered, when he saw who it was: the straw-hatted Luffy.
"Will the three swords I'm looking for be in here... Huh?"
Luffy, who was searching for Zoro's swords, muttered to himself as he opened the door. Upon entering and seeing the situation inside, he was also stunned.
Seeing Luffy, Tom felt a surge of excitement, but then he remembered how much Luffy had screwed him over last time. He rolled up his sleeves, thinking, Forget it, I'm going to beat this jerk up first. Otherwise, I won't get over this 'grudge'.
As Tom strode purposefully toward Luffy, Luffy saw him and happily jumped over.
To Tom's astonishment, Luffy gave him a big bear hug, holding him tightly while shouting excitedly, "Great! Tommy! I was so worried about you after we got separated! If something really happened to you, I'd have been so sad I couldn't eat meat for months!"
Tom's bones ached from how tightly Luffy hugged him, showing just how strong the embrace was.
But because of this, Tom could better feel Luffy's genuine joy at seeing him. Luffy had truly been worried about him.
Otherwise, suddenly seeing Tom safe and sound, Luffy wouldn't have reacted like this.
Nami watched as Tom and Luffy hugged so tightly that even she felt nothing in the world could separate them.
Normally, for a man to hug another man, it took an exceptionally strong bond and firm friendship to drive two men to embrace. It was a romance only men could understand.
A man hugging a woman could have many reasons, but a hug between men, if it wasn't that, had only one reason: because I consider you a true brother!
As a man, you might have many friends, but you might go your whole life without meeting one you could embrace so openly. It was, one had to admit, a sad thing for a man.
"It's so great you're okay! Now we can sail together happily again!"
Luffy said with utter sincerity, finally releasing Tom.
"Haha, how could anything happen to me?"
In that moment, Tom felt a passionate,热血沸腾 feeling well up inside, making his resentment toward Luffy fade considerably, almost to the point of being negligible.
"Hey, who is she?"
Luffy glanced curiously at Nami and asked Tom.
"It was you! You really screwed me over that time!"
Nami seemed to remember something, her pretty face flushing, as she said to Luffy in a rather indignant tone.
"Did I really harm her?"
Luffy asked Tom with a confused look.
"Yeah. You harmed me too."
Tom nodded, honestly telling Luffy. If Luffy hadn't slapped him that time, he wouldn't have been so thoroughly beaten by Nami.
"What? I harmed both of you at the same time?"
Luffy's gaze shifted between Tom and Nami as he said with shock.
Tom nodded again, thinking to himself, If you apologize, I'll let bygones be bygones.
"You two must be really unlucky, to both be harmed by me! Hahahaha!"
Luffy held his stomach, laughing joyfully. But Nami's expression turned much darker, and even Tom's cheek twitched.
Screw this! I was being naive, hoping for an apology. I'm just asking for it!
Tom once again rolled up his sleeves. He and Nami, with perfect pose, raised their fists and gave the still-laughing Luffy a thorough beating.
THWACK! SMACK! POW! THUD!
A long time later, Tom and Nami were both panting heavily.
Couldn't be helped. Luffy was just too durable. They couldn't help themselves and kept hitting him, ending up exhausting themselves.
"You better think hard about what you did!"
Tom said, crossing his arms and panting, to Luffy who was lying on the ground beaten to a pulp.
"Sorry. I really didn't mean to harm you guys."
Luffy, now looking like a swollen mess, finally said something sensible...
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T/N :
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