One Piece: I will become stronger by checking in

"Bellemere, did you know?"

"Arlong's been defeated, and the village is finally free!"

"And I... I'm going to be a pirate too!"

"If you were still here, you'd definitely support me, right? But even if you don't, I'm going to follow my dreams anyway!"

"Whee!"

After she finished speaking, Nami fell silent for a moment.

Suddenly, a voice came from behind her.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"This voice is..."

Nami turned around to see Kai standing nearby with a grin. He walked over and sat down next to her.

"Kai ? What are you doing here?" Nami asked, surprised.

"I noticed our navigator was missing from the party, so I came to check on you," Kai explained. "What were you talking about with your mother?"

"We talked about a lot of things. I basically told her everything," Nami said.

"That's great. She'd be happy to know you're doing well!" Kai said.

"I think so too!" Nami replied with a smile.

Kai's gaze shifted to Nami's arm, where he noticed a tattoo. He stared at it, puzzled. "You have a tattoo of a sun..."

"Oh, that. It's a pattern of oranges, windmills, and the sun!" Nami explained.

Kai was a bit confused. He knew the tattoo included oranges and windmills, but why was there an extra sun? Didn't Nami only have oranges and windmills in the original story?

The windmill represented Cocosia Village, and the orange symbolized her mother, Bellemere. So why the additional sun?

However, Kai didn't ask further. It might be something new worth remembering.

An awkward silence fell between them.

After a while, Nami spoke up. "I plan to give all the 100 million Beli I've earned to the villagers. They've suffered under Arlong's rule for so long."

"Sounds good!" Kai nodded. "The villagers should be proud to receive money from you. After all, it's not like you have much to lose!"

"Is 100 million Beli enough? If not, I've got a few hundred million more!"

Nami initially wanted to pinch Kai for his nonchalance, but his next statement left her dumbfounded. "You have personal money?"

"Heh, personal money? I'm not married, so that term doesn't really apply!" Kai laughed. "It's just a few hundred million Beli I saved up here and there. Nothing too special!" He waved his hand dismissively with a smug look.

Nami suddenly grabbed Kai by the collar, shaking him roughly. "Where did you get that Beli?"

"Stop shaking me!" Kai protested, feeling nauseous from the rough handling. He had just eaten and drunk a lot at the banquet and felt sick from being shaken so violently.

Nami stopped shaking him but kept a tight grip on his collar, her eyes narrowing. "Tell me the truth—where did your Beli come from?"

"Can you not ask this?" Kai said, sweat beading on his forehead. "It's really…"

"No! Tell me now!"

Kai sighed, thinking to himself, "I should have kept my mouth shut. It's better to keep treasures private. Why did I let it slip?"

He finally confessed, "I took some from Kuro before, and I also collected 100 million Beli from Arlong's stash this time. And remember the Marines who came two days ago?"

"Are you talking about the one who looked like a rat?" Nami recalled.

"That's the one! I got another 100 million Beli from him. It's not much," Kai said, though Nami didn't look satisfied.

"Not much? How much exactly?"

"Five million Beli?" Kai guessed tentatively.

Nami's stare remained intense.

"Hey, don't look at me like that. I'm being honest. It's really…"

"Well, actually, it's ten million Beli!"

Nami continued to stare, unyielding.

"No, I swear it's just…"

"Twenty million Beli!"

...

...

After a while, Nami looked at the pile of treasure with gleaming eyes, while Kai was left speechless.

Nami turned to Kai, her voice tinged with anger. "Mr. Kai, you're incredible!"

"In such a short time, you've gathered 100 million Beli. If it were me, I don't know how long it would take!"

"And I wondered why Kuro's ship was empty last time. Turns out, you were the first to strike. You're indeed a quick action taker!"

Kai didn't reply, only giving her a resentful look. He grudgingly asked, "You're going to give me at least 10 million Beli out of the 100 million, right? It's only fair."

"This is the result of my hard work!" he added.

"Well…" Nami pondered for a moment. "You make a good point!"

Kai's eyes lit up. "Really? I think it's fair too!"

"In that case…"

Nami pulled out a pile of Beli worth about one hundred thousand and handed it to Kai. "Here, take this. Any more and it would be unjustifiable!"

Instantly, Kai's frustration surged, and he felt like turning into a Super Saiyan.

After a few moments, Kai managed to calm down and watched as Nami snatched the hundred thousand Beli from her hand.

Even if it was a little less, it would add up over time. Wealth accumulates!

Kai then smirked. "You can move the rest of this treasure yourself, humph!"

He turned and walked away from the mountain, wanting to escape this frustrating scene.

Watching Kai's retreating figure, Nami couldn't help but laugh.

Why did she find Kai so endearing for no reason?

Her gaze then fell on the sun pattern on her arm, and a tender smile appeared in her eyes.

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