"That was really dangerous just now. You two almost got crushed." Luffy walked slowly toward Tom and, looking at the rubble from the roof he had shattered, made a careless comment.
"Huh? Tom, is that a stone hat on your head? It kind of looks like my straw hat! Ahahaha!" Luffy, seeing Tom lying on the ground with five pieces of rubble neatly stacked on the back of his head—the top one noticeably larger—burst out laughing. From his angle behind them, he didn't yet know what had transpired between Tom and Nami.
Tom remained in a semi-petrified state. Normally, hearing Luffy say something like that would have made him jump up and beat the guy senseless.
But Tom had no mental energy to deal with Luffy right now. His first reaction upon realizing Luffy was approaching was to get off Nami immediately.
Once Tom stood up, he felt utterly dazed, his thoughts sluggish as if he had early-onset dementia.
Glancing at Nami, whom he had just helped up, he saw she also wore a dazed, stupid expression, clearly still in shock.
Everything had happened too suddenly. With zero psychological preparation, Tom and Nami had ended up lip-to-lip.
Most importantly, this was the first time for both of them kissing someone of the opposite sex. And this 'first experience' felt absolutely terrible to both of them.
Tom's thoughts raced: So, after coming to this world, the first time I meet Nami, I grope her chest. The second time we meet, I kiss her. Even if it was an accident, it's a fact.
It shouldn't have been a big deal. Tom figured that as a man, if something happened and Nami didn't object, he should take responsibility.
But what Tom found hardest to accept was that his first intimate contact with the opposite sex, with Nami no less, happened while he had five rocks stacked on his head.
He asked himself: What man in the world has his first kiss with a girl while looking like an idiot with five pieces of rubble on his head? This was a devastating blow to Tom, who genuinely felt like a freak and that his image in Nami's eyes was utterly destroyed.
This was natural. What man doesn't want to show his most handsome side when kissing a girl?
Nami's feelings were far more complex than Tom's. She was well aware she had developed feelings for him, but not to the point where they should be kissing. Yet now it had undeniably happened.
What made Nami feel particularly embarrassed was that Tom's first kiss with her could be described as anything but gentle; it was downright forceful.
When Tom's lips met hers, Nami distinctly felt her mouth ache from the impact.
There was no helping it; Tom had been under external force at the time, far beyond his control.
Nami's primary concern remained her hometown. Though she had entertained the idea of partnering with Tom, her main goal was still to raise 100 million Berries as quickly as possible.
As for her feelings for Tom, to be honest, Nami hadn't thought that far ahead.
For years, Nami had held onto a dream: to use her navigation skills to travel the world and draw a map based on what she saw with her own eyes.
But all of that could only happen after she resolved the crisis in her hometown. Only then could she pursue her ideal with peace of mind.
But now, Tom had unexpectedly barged into her life, making her feel as if she was changing.
For so many years, Nami had lived a life of stealing treasure from pirates, constantly in mortal danger, endlessly collecting money just to save up that one billion Berries as fast as possible.
Every time she narrowly escaped death in the quiet of the night, Nami would think of her home, of the yellow-orange tangerine groves, of her sister, of the people in her village, and of the person she held most dear and respected in her heart—Bellemere, the woman she considered her mother.
These were Nami's emotional pillars, supporting her will to live, giving her the courage to steal treasure from vicious pirates again and again.
However, after parting with Tom last time, Nami discovered that during her idle moments, she would actually start missing this man. This was the first time she realized that some things couldn't be forgotten just because you wanted to forget.
When she saw Tom again in Orange Town, Nami had felt some inner joy. But before she could express that joy, she and Tom had experienced a massive "surprise," one she found hard to process immediately.
"Hey, Luffy. Do you know what you did wrong?" Tom grabbed Luffy by the collar. He figured if Luffy hadn't torn that roof loose, this awkward situation with Nami wouldn't have happened. This glutton had screwed him over again.
"I did go a bit overboard." Luffy seemed to know he'd done wrong, speaking quite sincerely. "I actually destroyed someone's house. When the owner comes back, if I get the chance, I really should apologize to them."
"Wrong! You should be apologizing to us! No, this isn't something an apology can fix anymore!" Driven to immediate distraction by Luffy's single-track mind, Tom immediately grabbed his collar and sprayed him with spit.
"What's wrong with you two? Your lips are all swollen. Did you both catch some lip-swelling disease?" Luffy couldn't understand why Tom was so worked up. He looked back and forth between Tom and Nami, seeing their poor complexions and swollen lips, and couldn't help asking curiously.
"No, it's not that! We just..." Tom, having snapped back to his senses, had just started speaking, about to make up some excuse to brush it off. But Nami beside him, hearing Luffy's words and remembering the lingering warmth of Tom's lips on hers, flushed red for no reason and suddenly burst out: "STOP TALKING!"
THUD!
Before Tom could finish, he was tragically taken out by a punch from Nami.
Damn, that hurts!
Tom crouched on the ground, clutching his head. Earlier, his head had been struck by rubble. Though it wasn't bleeding, a lump had formed. Now, being greeted by Nami's Haki-filled iron fist, it was a miracle he didn't cry out in pain.
"I remember you. You were with Tom. What's your name again?" Luffy stroked his chin and asked Nami.
"I'm Nami. A thief who specializes in stealing from pirates. Let's find a place to talk properly." Nami stole a glance at Tom, who was crouching on the ground, and spoke to Luffy. She remembered that both times she'd run into Luffy, she and Tom had suffered "bad luck." It was utterly beyond words. But right now, her mind was a mess; she didn't even have the energy to punch Luffy.
Some time later, an empty house in Orange Town.
"Is this your house?" Luffy asked Nami, sitting on a chair in the main room.
"No. I'm a wandering thief. I don't know whose house this is. Everyone in town has fled to avoid the Buggy Pirates holed up in the bar." Nami sat casually on a table as she spoke to Luffy.
Tom had found some bandages and basic external medicine in the house and was tending to his wounds.
"Oh, are they that scary? That pirate named... Nami?" Luffy's words made Nami go crazy. "Nami is me! The pirate is named Buggy!"
Tom saw that after talking with Luffy for a bit, Nami seemed a bit more herself. He had to admire Luffy; this guy's offhand remarks could really drive people insane.
"Buggy is famous for his love of cannons. There was a town where some kids made fun of his nose, and he bombarded the entire place with his cannons. And I've heard he uses strange techniques, too." As Nami spoke of Buggy, her expression gradually grew serious, explaining earnestly to Luffy and Tom.
Tom listened without much reaction, still looking down and tending to his wounds.
Luffy kept looking around, asking a question that nearly made Nami lose it. "But why is there no one in this town?"
"Didn't I say they all evacuated? Are either of you even listening to me?!" Nami yelled directly at Luffy and Tom.
Tom, figuring he needed to remove his shirt to treat some wounds properly, ignored Nami's shouting. Taking the bandages and medicine, he walked alone into an empty room, closed the door, and proceeded to tend to his injuries.
It had to be said, Tom's actions nearly drove Nami insane. That she didn't pin him to the ground and beat him senseless demonstrated her incredible patience.
In truth, Tom did this because his relationship with Nami was now unclear. When he looked at Nami, she would unconsciously avoid his gaze. When Nami looked at him, he would instinctively look away, unable to meet her eyes.
It was really awkward.
Over ten minutes later, Tom emerged from the room after treating his wounds, only to find Luffy tied up securely with rope by Nami.
"What are you doing?!" Tom hurried to Luffy's side, untying him while demanding an answer from Nami.
"Why are you a pirate? Why did you lie to me?" Nami's once-bright eyes were now very dim, like someone in despair, staring blankly at Tom as she asked him two questions in a row.
Hearing Nami, Tom's hands, untying Luffy, froze. He turned to look at Nami. Seeing her sorrowful expression and pale face, he opened his mouth but couldn't say anything.
It turned out that while Tom was in the room tending his wounds, Nami had learned from Luffy that he and Tom were, in fact, pirates.
This news hit like a thunderbolt. For Nami, who had always hated pirates, it was the first time in her life she felt utterly discouraged and disheartened.
In a daze, she felt as if she had returned to eight years ago, to the day Bellemere lay in a pool of blood, tragically killed at the hands of pirates. A heart-rending pain filled her heart.
The person she had thought she could trust, the person she thought she could entrust her life to... was actually a pirate. One of the very pirates she had detested for so many years!
At that moment, Nami found it all bitterly ironic.
"Do you have any idea... the people I hate most in this world are pirates! I only love money and tangerines! Why... why didn't you tell me sooner that you're a despicable pirate?!!!" Nami's emotions were clearly out of control. Her vacant eyes brimmed with tears as she screamed at Tom with all her might.
"Hey, Tom! Why did you make our navigator cry?!" Luffy, still tied up, saw that Nami—who had just agreed to join them as navigator moments ago—was crying. It seemed to be because of Tom. Luffy, who always valued his comrades deeply, assumed Tom had bullied Nami and yelled at him.
In truth, Nami had earlier agreed to join Luffy's crew intending to trick them into confronting the Buggy Pirates. Before seeing Tom, she had been restraining her emotions and easily deceived the simple-minded Luffy, saying she had to tie him up before taking him to Buggy.
The guileless Luffy had thus been easily tied up by Nami.
"Yeah, he bullied me really badly. You have to help me." Nami sobbed slightly, tears flowing as she spoke to Luffy. Her words were half-true, half-false. A single-track mind like Luffy couldn't tell; he believed her completely.
At this moment, Nami still held a sliver of hope for Tom. She naively thought that if Tom and Luffy had a falling out, then he would stop being a pirate. That would count as turning over a new leaf, right?
"She's our companion now! How can you still bully her until she cries? And she's a girl! You're really despicable!" Luffy's face was full of anger. As he spoke, he suddenly stretched his head and slammed it toward Tom. "Rubber Headbutt!"
BOOM!
Tom sidestepped Luffy's attack. Seeing Luffy's stretched head had smashed a large hole in the wall without any restraint, Tom also grew angry. "You idiot! Are you trying to kill me?!"
"That's right! Go die! Someone who bullies his own comrades! I'm gonna punch you flying!" Luffy's expression was serious, a thread of anger between his brows. He didn't seem to be joking at all.
What the—?
Tom was already upset from the situation with Nami. Now this single-track-minded fool, without understanding the facts, was yelling about punching him flying. Even if he were made of clay, he'd have some fire by now, and he wasn't.
"Can't you judge for yourself? Do you know how to listen to explanations?" Tom clenched his fists, took a step forward, and spoke to Luffy, forcibly suppressing his anger.
"Fine, then I'll ask you: Did you really bully her? Is she crying now because of you?" Luffy stared directly at Tom, then continued, "You can't deny it, can you? Because that's the truth! In that case, what more is there to say?!"
Tom was rendered speechless by Luffy's two questions. Strictly speaking, he had taken advantage of Nami twice, which counted as bullying her. And Nami was crying now because of him.
"It seems no matter what I say, you won't listen! Let me ask you one more time: Are you serious right now?" Tom's gaze grew increasingly cold as he looked at Luffy, enunciating each word.
"I wouldn't joke about something like this! I said it: someone who bullies his comrades, I'll punch him flying!" Luffy also took a step forward, not backing down at all.
"In that case..." Tom walked past Nami, whose eyes were still streaming tears, letting out an almost imperceptible sigh. He picked up the fruit knife on the table and, without hesitation, threw it at Luffy. "You're tied up. I won't take advantage of you."
Swish!
The fruit knife Tom threw cut the ropes binding Luffy.
Then Luffy unceremoniously swung his fist and charged at Tom. "You're injured now, but I won't hold back! You'd better be prepared!"
"The one who should be prepared is you! Don't wait until you're in hell to regret your own stupidity!" Tom also clenched his fist and charged at Luffy.
"Monkey D. Luffy!"
"Tom!"
There, before Nami, Tom and Luffy called each other's names. Their arms crossed as they swung fiercely toward each other's faces.
The air current generated by their punches made Nami's short orange hair flutter. Both faces took a heavy blow. Then, their bodies flew backward like cannonballs in opposite directions.
THUD!
BOOM!
Tom and Luffy were both sent flying by each other's punches, crashing through the walls and out of the house, leaving Nami standing alone inside, utterly dumbfounded...
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T/N :
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