With the sea cow's assistance, you're making an excellent time to reach the Conomi islands. Luffy is now balancing dangerously close on the bowsprit of Sanji's boat cheering loudly as the ships bounce roughly against the waves from being pulled by the sea cow. "YEAH!! FASTER TO ARLONG PARK!!"
He showed no worry about falling from his perch and just smirked. "Nami, hang on!!"
Soon enough the island began to appear on the horizon. But things started to go wrong.
"Hang on tight, fellas!! This will be a bumpy ride!!" you shouted.
Sanji, Ghin, and Yosaku started to brace themselves when the sea cow went crashing head-first into a rocky cliff. The boat was flung over the rocky wall.
Amazingly, Luffy still managed to stay perfectly balanced on the bowsprit as the boat flew into the air.
You wrapped both Sanji and Ghin in your arms as you landed on the ground safely. You let them go and helped Yosaku out of the wooden rubble.
"Awesome!! We're here guys!!" Luffy brushed off the dust off his hat and treated the crash landing like it was nothing.
"What the hell . . ." a gruff voice came from underneath the pile of splintered wood. ". . .were you doing?!" Zoro bared his teeth at Luffy and looked ready to cut someone in half.
"What do you mean?? We're here to pick up Nami. Duh. How come you haven't found her yet??" Luffy questioned.
"You got lost again, huh Mochi?? It seems your sense of direction hasn't changed one bit" You scoffed.
"No, I'm not lost!!" Zoro blushed in embarrassment but then changed the subject when he saw the former Kreig pirate. "But what are you two doing here?!"
"Oh, him?? He's your new quartermaster and as for me, I came along since we're going the same way" you explained.
"He's a part of our crew now?!"
"Yup"
"Oh, yeah!! And what about Usopp and Johnny??" Luffy asked.
"Usopp!!" Zoro remembered. "C'mon. We gotta hurry!!" he grunted as he shook off the splintered wood and began to sprint past everyone.
"Why?? What happened??" You asked.
"That dumbass has been caught by Arlong!! We gotta hurry before they kill him!!"
"He's already dead"
Everyone turned to see Johnny slumped to the ground in exhaustion and began to sob. "We're too late" He panted. "Big Bro Usopp is dead. Nami . . .murdered him!!"
Everyone except you gapes in shock at Johnny's statement and doesn't speak a word after that.
"You can't be serious!!" Yosaku is the one to finally break the silence.
Johnny seats himself on the ground. "Yeah, it's true. She was a traitor all along. She's been winning Arlong's favor, she could have the treasure buried in Cocoyashi Village all to herself. That woman is just a cold-blooded killer. She won't stop until she gets what she wants. Nami had us fooled this entire time-"
He was quickly cut off by Luffy rushing in and grabbing him by his jacket, hauling him up so he could look the rubber boy dead in the eye.
"Quiet!! Say another word and you'll regret it!!" He growled.
"Hey now. Don't kill the messenger. This has got nothing to do with Johnny" You broke these two off before things got ugly.
"Believe whatever you want but I know what I saw. Nami killed Big Bro Usopp!!" Johnny shouted.
"I know her more than you guys. She wouldn't hurt a friend" you defended Nami.
"B-but I saw it!!"
"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!! NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS WOULD NAMI KILL USOPP!! SHE WOULDN'T DO THAT TO HER FRIENDS!!" Luffy bellowed.
"What was that about friends, Luffy??"
Everyone looked to see Nami with her wooden Bo staff in her hand. "What are you doing here??" she crossed her arms with her wooden Bo staff and cold gaze aimed at them.
"What are we doing here??" Luffy repeated. "You're our friend. Came to get you" he explained.
"What a pest" Nami scoffed.
"Nami??"
Nami continued. "Friends, huh?? Don't make me laugh" She said with a blank yet cold look, stunning Luffy into silence. "You're just pathetic enough to deserve each other"
You look at Nami blankly with a neutral expression while ignoring the voices of other people. Next thing you know, you walked over to Nami slowly.
"(First Name)!! What are you doing?! Get back here!!" Zoro shouted.
"W-what are you doing?! Stay back!!" Nami raised her Bo staff at you.
You looked at her blankly and leaned to her ear, whispering. "Do you think I would just buy your act and leave?? When I have a promise to fulfill??"
Nami stood frozen while you leaned back. "Are you saying my promise is empty?? When I went through all this trouble to get here from the Grand Line??"
Luffy and the gang are confused by your statement but focus their attention on Nami who is trembling and then composing herself and coming out from behind you.
"You outsiders have no right to butt into this island's affairs. Don't you get it?? The only reason I got close to you idiots was to rob you of everything you had. But now you're broke, looks like the dream's dead. So, take your ship. Go on. Find a navigator dumb enough to join you and go to the Grand Line. Continue on your quest to find the One Piece or whatever. Just leave here!!" She pointed her Bo staff at you in a threatening manner. "You're an eyesore!!"
"Goodbye now" Nami finished and waited for your response.
However, Luffy refuses to leave and lies down on the sandy beach saying that he's tired. Zoro facepalmed in agitation. You scoffed. "If that's the case . . ."
"You wasted my time in coming here," you said coldly as you walked past Nami who was in shock and gritted her teeth. Little did she know, you planned on taking things into your own hands.
"B-big Sis (First Name)!! Wait!! You're the only strongest out of all of us!!" Yosaku shouted. But you ignored him and left the scene.
__________________________________________________
You were walking to Cocoyashi Village with your bag in tow when the villagers recognized you.
"It's that girl from 8 years ago!!"
"What is she doing here??"
"Whatever it is, she can't stay here!!"
You walked to Bellemere's house and knocked on the door. Nojiko opened the door and noticed that it was you.
"It's you!!" her eyes widened at you.
"What's wrong, Nojiko??" Bellemere rushed in and was shocked.
"(First Name)??"
You smiled. "Forgive me for taking so long to come back"
Bellemere and Nojiko ran and hugged you while you did the same in return. After settling in, they explained to you what happened over the past 8 years after you left. You are very determined to settle the score with Arlong as you clenched your fist. Back then, you were inexperienced when it came to fighting a group and battle tactics but now not only have you gained experience, but you also gained more knowledge and grew stronger. You can now kick Arlong's ass and free the village of his tyranny.
With your observation haki, you sensed an orange aura coming this way. It was Nami and you can't let her see you here. You quickly took out your face mask and put it on your head. After that, you placed your fedora hat back on your head.
You explained to them that Nami would be here soon and told them to not tell her that you were here. You grabbed your bag with your spear and left Bellemere's house through the window at the back.
You reached Arlong Park. You walked to the wall at the far side where the Fishmen wouldn't be able to see you sneak in. You grabbed the necessities from your bag for your heist and jumped over the wall as you left your bag hidden in a bush. With your exceptional skills in stealth, you managed to sneak past all the Fishmen guarding the building and went inside. You went through all the rooms and floors until you finally reached Nami's room which is filled with handwritten ocean charts.
This is Nami's prison and you were disgusted that someone like Arlong is exploiting her like this. You know that the corrupted marines from the nearby branch are responsible for the money. For example . . .robbing off the money that Nami saved and worked so hard for 8 years from looting pirate ships. You looked down half-lidded at the flammable liquids of gasoline in containers on your hands and started pouring it all over the room including the whole inside of the building.
Once done, you light up the match from the matchstick, and before you drop the match. You heard a loud explosion coming from below. You looked out at the window to see Luffy and his crew in the middle of a fight with the Arlong Pirates.
You smirked at them. "These fools . . ." you muttered.
You decided to watch the show with the matchstick still lit. Things didn't go well with Luffy since he's stuck to the concrete because of his new move and Usopp is being chased by one of the Fishmen. It was then you noticed that Arlong decided to intervene in the fight. Luffy stretched his arm to attack Arlong but he tilted his head slightly and avoided the strike. Before his arm could return to Luffy's body, Arlong nabbed it in midair.
Arlong dug his webbed hand into the concrete and pulled out an enormous chunk of it. The very same concrete that Luffy is still stuck in.
You knew what its gonna happen as your eyes widened in horror. Arlong threw Luffy into Arlong Park's waterway. The sawshark Fishman laughed maniacally.
You squatted down with your matchstick in your hand and jumped out of the window in style, releasing the matchstick into the gasoline.
Everyone looked up and gaped in shock at the scene sending the whole of Arlong Park ablaze.
"My, my. Did you miss me??" you grinned and landed in front of Luffy's crew.
"Who are you??" The same stingray Fishman questioned.
"My, my~ You don't recognize me??" you smirked.
"The Phantom Theif, Arsene. One of the Shichibukai of the Seas. To what do I owe the pleasure of meeting you??" Arlong queries. Deep down, he was very pissed off that the ocean charts are burned and Arlong Park with it.
The villagers are shocked at this information, even Nojiko and Bellemere.
"No way. (First Name) is a Shichibukai??" Nojiko muttered.
"Wait. Arsene?? Isn't that . . .??" Sanji was about to say something till Ghin stopped him.
"Don't reveal her real name. Just to let you know that she keeps her identity a secret so it's best if we call her by her Epithet" Ghin warned.
Sanji nodded and observed the situation quietly.
"Oh, it's just. . ." you cracked your knuckles. "I'm just doing what I always do. You know me so don't underestimate me" you drawled half-lidded.
With your speed, you were in front of Arlong and kicked him right in the face, sending him flying off the ground.
The Fishmen are in a fighting stance, warily at you. You may be a human but a Shichibukai is not someone to be underestimated or scoff at.
"As much as I want to get this done quickly, there is someone else I have business with so I'll leave these people behind me to do the job. See you~" You jumped into the waterway. Once fully in the water, you shifted to your hybrid form and swam towards Luffy. You punched the concrete and freed Luffy from his sticky situation. Luffy saw you and was relieved that you came. You grabbed Luffy and swam up to the surface at full speed, leaping out of the water. You quickly shift back to your human to avoid the attention.
Everyone looked at you with wide eyes.
"Luffy, go nuts. He's all yours" You said as you threw the rubber boy at Arlong.
Luffy laughed loudly and shouted, "Thanks, Arsene!! I'M BACK!!"
The villagers broke into cheers while Nami looked at you in confusion and shock.
You landed on the ground and dragged the unconscious Zoro and Ghin to their hiding place where Sanji tried to strike a match to light another cigarette but his whole box was too damaged from the water.
"If they lose, we all . . .die" He flicked the useless match away.
"No need to fret. I have full faith in Luffy. Besides, I simply let off some dead weight you guys were carrying" You smirked.
"And where were you?? Nojiko told us that you made a promise to Nami that you would save her"
"Earlier, I lied and put up an act that I broke my promise since she's too insistent that I leave her out of this. I have to make sure that she hates me" you explained while looking up at the sky. "What better way than to crush that sliver of hope??"
"Still, you could've done so in a different way"
"That's true but I can't always reveal all my cards early. It's better to keep our allies in the dark for our plans to work well. Even if they hate me, despise me, or loathe me, if it's to protect the ones I considered close and love, it is truly worth it" You smiled close-eyed. You didn't notice Sanji looking at you with a soft look.
You are like Medusa who represented a threat meant to deter other dangerous threats. An image of evil to repel evil. To the world, you're a danger and a threat but to the ones who were saved by you, you're their savior. (First Name), you may think that way now but I won't let them see you as a monster in their eyes.
Everyone cheered for Luffy to finish off Arlong but Arlong was not deterred by it.
"Cheer all you want but it won't change a thing" Arlong's destroyed teeth fall out and in only a few seconds, a new set grew in and took their place.
"He's got new teeth!!"
"He's a sawshark Fishman. When sharks' teeth break or fall out, they've got a new set right behind the front ready to take its place" you explained.
"The little lady's correct. New teeth will grow one after another. And with each set, they become stronger. Endlessly. As many as it takes"
"Is it the same case for you??" Ghin asked.
"Yup. I'm a Mako Shark (Fishwoman??) so as long as I'm a shark, I can get a new set of teeth endlessly" you replied. "And I have a feeling that Luffy might need this"
You took out your teeth as a new set took its place in your mouth. You cleaned off the saliva on your teeth while Luffy had a lightbulb idea.
"Hey, rubber boy!! You might need this. Catch!!" you threw your set of teeth at Luffy as he stretched his arm and caught it.
"Thanks!!"
He put the teeth in his mouth experimentally open and closed in a biting motion.
"You knew this would happen??" Zoro groaned.
"Knowing Luffy, I had a feeling he would do such a thing" you chuckled.
"Well, our captain is not the brightest" Ghin inputted.
"You got that right" Sanji agreed.
The fight continued until Arlong was almost down. Luffy was about to land the final blow when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see you smiling.
"Let me land the final blow. I still have a score to settle with him" You looked over at Arlong who was struggling to pull himself together.
Luffy was reluctant at first but then agreed to let you have it since you let him do most of the battle. You ran up to Arlong and punched him with a tenth of your strength to his abdomen, causing Arlong to be knocked unconscious.
Before he blacked out completely, you said your last words to him.
"Sayonara, Arlong. Let us hope we don't meet each other again as Fishmen"
That shocked him and realized that it was the same Fishwoman whom he had met 8 years ago. That explains where she gets the extra set of teeth from.
Arlong has been finally defeated. Luffy turned around and took a deep breath before he shouted at the top of his lungs. "NAMI!!!!"
You turned to Nami and shouted, "NAMI!! I kept my promise!! I'm sorry for my words from earlier that upset you and made you lose hope. I hope you forgive me, Namikan"
The rubber boy's proclamation brought Nami to happy tears but what made her, even more, happier was that her friend kept her promise and this brought smiles to all the shipmates' faces.
"He really won" a villager gasped.
"He won" Genzo repeated, amazed.
All the villagers burst into cheers and tossed Luffy up and down. Bellemere walked up to you and sighed. "You fulfilled your promise and freed my little Nami as well. And for that, I thank you"
You smiled. "I'm not the kind of person who doesn't keep their promises. I'm sorry for taking too long"
Nami came up silently behind Luffy and placed his straw hat back in its place. She then moved to you, drooping her head, and started to sob. "Thank you . . ."
"Thank you so much for all you've done"
You smiled and brought her a hug. You squatted down to her level and wiped off her tears. "There's no reason for you to cry anymore, Namikan"
You grinned at her close-eyed, causing Nami's cheeks to warm with bright red.
However, the happy moment was interrupted by none other than the corrupt marines.
"Damn, it's him"
While he was babbling on and on about nonsensical shit, you got up and quickly walked up to him, grabbing him by his collar in the air.
"Didn't I warn the marines that if I ever find a single speck of corruption from you, you will be my next targets??" you gave him an icy cold glare. Your eyes were shadowed from underneath your fedora hat and goggles but only the Colonel could see it.
"I'll be stealing your loot from your base and giving it to all the villagers of this island. No one should stop me, you got that??" you threw the Colonel at his lackeys.
"I'm sorry . . .I promise . . .I promise . . .I won't touch a thing" They then swam out of the causeway.
"I'll get you, pirates!!" he shouted. "Luffy is your captain, right?? Mark my words, rubber boy. Major things are gonna happen. Cause you made me angry!! I swear you'll regret this!! I'll get my revenge, just wait and see!!"
"Major things are gonna happen??" Sanji recited, tapping off the ashes of his new cigarette.
"Yeah, how does he know I'm gonna be King of the Pirates??" Luffy wondered.
"That's not what he means at all. Are you really that dumb??" Zoro snapped.
"It's Luffy. What do you expect??" Ghin remarked.
"Hold on!! What next?! Are we in super big trouble or what?! Hey. HEY!! What do we do?!"
"Hey, everyone!!" Nako shouted. "Now's not the time to keep this to ourselves. We need to tell everyone on the island what happened here today!!"
And so everyone cheered while you have some unfinished business left to do . . .