Chapter 23: Arlong's Fall – Cocoyasi Village Liberated
Sol, guided by Nami, effortlessly gathered all the sea charts she had drawn over the years. Together with the treasure Arlong had hidden—which Nami quickly located—they packed everything up and took it with them.
Arlong watched Sol carrying bags and Nami beaming with joy, and instantly understood—these damned humans were brought here by Nami. "Nami… are you betraying the Arlong Pirates?"
"I never once acknowledged being part of your crew, Arlong," Nami replied. "I'm the navigator of the Straw Hat Pirates—Sol, Luffy, and the others' crewmate!"
"Then die!!" Arlong roared in fury. His sharp claws flashed. His body shot forward like lightning, lunging straight for Nami.
But—
BOOM!!
A black shadow moved faster. Luffy's rubber leg chopped down like a battle-axe, smashing into Arlong's face and slamming him into the ground! Shards flew as Luffy stood with his hat pulled low, eyes blazing with unprecedented rage. "What were you going to do to my navigator?!"
"Cough… Devil Fruit user, huh?" Arlong crawled from the rubble, wiping blood from his mouth. Cold light glinted in his fish eyes.
He crouched low, fish tail muscles coiling like springs.
"Shark… ON… DARTS!!"
With an explosive burst, Arlong launched like a torpedo—his saw-like nose tearing through the air, aimed straight for Luffy's heart!
Luffy bent his knees and exploded upward. His rubber legs launched him sky-high.
"Gum-Gum Spear Gun!"
His body spun rapidly in mid-air, legs locked together and pointed like a spear, gleaming with deadly sharpness.
Arlong blinked—and the straw-hat figure vanished in an instant.
Before he could react, searing pain exploded through his back.
"Urgh!" Arlong coughed blood. He had no idea when Luffy disappeared or how the attack struck so hard—his consciousness began to blur.
"Impossible… fish-men are ten times stronger than humans… how can this guy be so powerful?" Arlong's face twisted in agony.
Luffy didn't hesitate. He stretched high into the sky, then stomped down with thunderous force, heel crashing toward Arlong's head.
"Gum-Gum Battle Axe!"
BOOM!
The deafening impact drove Arlong's massive body deep into the ground. Solid stone cracked in a several-meter-wide crater.
Dust settled. The once-arrogant fish-man lay unconscious, eyes rolled back.
Nami stood frozen, pupils trembling. She stared mechanically at Arlong's defeated form—the nightmare that had haunted her for eight years, crushed in an instant.
Bell-mère's smile… the villagers' fear… the endless maps she was forced to draw… countless nights of despair… memories flooded in, overwhelming her.
Until Sol's hand gently rested on her shoulder. She snapped back to reality.
"Wah… waaah—!"
She spun and threw herself into Sol's arms, sobbing uncontrollably. Years of pain, humiliation, and resentment poured out in tears that soaked his shirt. Sol said nothing—just silently patted her back, letting her cry.
Luffy's final blow shook the ground, drawing villagers who had been watching from afar. Seeing the scattered, defeated fish-men, they swarmed forward.
Nojiko rushed up. "Nami!" Sol gently passed Nami to her sister.
Nojiko hugged her tightly, stroking her orange hair until the sobs quieted.
"Nami—who are these people?" She looked up at the Straw Hats, gaze finally settling on Arlong embedded in the ground. "Arlong… really lost?"
Nami lifted her tear-swollen face from her sister's embrace. A relieved smile broke through. "Yeah…" She turned to her crew, voice trembling slightly. "They're… my crewmates."
Luffy—currently poking Arlong's face—jumped up with his trademark grin. "We're Nami's crew!"
Sol gave a small smile and dried his clothes with a burst of heat.
Zoro stood with arms crossed, a faint smirk on his lips.
Sanji bowed elegantly. "It's my honor to serve the beautiful Nami-san."
Usopp puffed out his chest, flashing a victory sign. "That's right! We bravely defeated Arlong and his gang!"
Nojiko looked at this mismatched but sincere group of young people—her eyes welled up too.
She gripped her sister's hand tightly and whispered, "I'm so glad… you finally found real crewmates."
In the distance, Cocoyasi Village's residents cautiously gathered. When they confirmed Arlong's pirates were truly defeated, cheers gradually rose across the village.
"How could the Arlong Pirates…" An oily voice came from the back of the crowd. Captain Nezumi pushed through with armed Marines, shiny boots crunching on gravel. His carefully groomed mustache twitched in shock—he had come for his monthly "tribute" from Arlong, only to find this scene.
"Who are you people?!" Nezumi's beady eyes darted around, hand already on his sword.
"I'm Monkey D. Luffy!" Luffy thumped his chest proudly. "The man who's gonna become Pirate King!"
"Pirates?" Nezumi's whiskers twitched. He glanced at the unconscious Arlong and the ruined park, then flashed a sly, understanding grin. "I see… you must have used some underhanded trick!" He raised his voice for the villagers to hear. "Poison in the food, right? Typical filthy pirate tactics!"
"Soldiers!" he barked suddenly. "Arrest these criminals! And that treasure…" His greedy eyes locked on Arlong Park's vault. "…confiscate it all for 'investigation'!"
Sol's figure blurred—appearing in front of Nezumi in an instant. His left hand clamped like iron around the corrupt captain's oily face. His palm ignited with searing dragon flames, distorting the air.
"You Marine parasite—go repent in the sky!"
"Fire Dragon's Impact!"
A spiraling torrent of flames roared from his palm! Nezumi's face twisted in the heat. His entire body launched as a crimson meteor, streaking across the sky and vanishing into the clouds—leaving only a charred black trail in the blue expanse.
"C-Captain Nezumi—!!" The Marines screamed in panic. Rifles clattered to the ground.
They scrambled like headless chickens toward their vanished superior—some tripping over each other in the dirt.
Luffy stretched his neck to watch the black dot disappear. "Woo-hoo! Sol, you really sent him flying far!"
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