Chapter 57: Wanted by All!

East Sea.

Not long after Gao Wen left Cocosia Village, he had someone send the materials linking Rat and A-Long to the nearby Marine Branch 77 base.

And the base commander of this base was, in the original work, Branch Vice Admiral Bunbuntan, who, unable to stomach the Arlong Pirates' actions, led men to wipe them out, but ultimately died in battle.

His character was absolutely beyond reproach.

Counting the time.

The matter of Rat should have now been transmitted back to Marine Headquarters, Marineford.

Gao Wen was still planning to join the Shichibukai, so unless absolutely necessary, he should avoid conflict with the Marines as much as possible.

If the Marines don't deal with Rat, then he'll deal with it before leaving the East Sea!

……

The pirate ship sailed toward Para Island according to the original plan.

With Nami charting the course.

Along the way, the Gao Wen Pirates precisely avoided many dangerous ocean currents and bizarre weather conditions.

The crew's attitude toward Nami went from initial skepticism to near-blind faith in just a few days.

Now her standing in everyone's hearts was almost comparable to Akin's, making her an absolutely core member of the Gao Wen Pirates.

After all, an excellent navigator's improvement to the sailing experience could almost be said to be immediate.

At this moment.

Nami had changed into a swimsuit, lying on a deck chair, enjoying the sunbath.

Fifteen or sixteen-year-old Nami's figure hadn't yet developed to the breathtaking degree of later years, but hints were already emerging.

Slender curves, a waist one could encircle.

Except for the flat as a plain chest, which made Gao Wen exclaim it was utterly tasteless.

"Miss Nami, here's your orange juice."

A pirate wearing a chef's hat fawningly handed a glass of juice to Nami.

"Thank you!"

Nami smiled sweetly, reached out to take the orange juice, took a sip, and her eyes lit up:

"Delicious~"

But just then.

A messenger bird flew from afar, circled the mast a few times, then slowly landed in front of Nami, dropped a newspaper, and with two hundred Berries from Nami clutched in its beak, flapped its wings and flew off.

Nami leisurely opened the newspaper, saw the headline marked on the front page, and a smile curled at the corner of her mouth:

"Arlong Pirates annihilated, East Sea Branch 16 base commander arrested…"

Another stone weighing on Nami's heart truly settled at this moment.

Cocosia would welcome a new life.

Gao Wen hadn't hidden these actions from her, so recalling Gao Wen's deeds now, Nami felt increasingly moved.

Her gaze drifted down, and seeing those bounty posters, an expression of astonishment involuntarily appeared on her face:

"This is…"

"Kuro the Hundred Plans, bounty 33 million Berries; 'Ghost' Akin, bounty 20 million Berries; and… 'Knight' Gao Wen, bounty still 85 million Berries."

"It's just this photo…"

Looking at the familiar photo on the bounty poster, a mischievous smile appeared on Nami's face.

She called everyone to the deck, lined up the three bounty posters in a row, and instantly drew everyone's attention.

"Oh~"

"Has my bounty gone up too?"

A barely perceptible smile curled at the corner of Xiang Keluo's mouth.

The bounty that once plagued him had now become proof of his strength.

"Even that guy Akin's bounty has matched Arlong's?"

"However."

"For us who are entering the Grand Line, this is the strength we should have."

While Xiang Keluo muttered to himself, everyone's gaze converged on Gao Wen's bounty poster, and especially noticing the constipated expression on the latter's face, they couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Hahahahaha!"

"Did the Marines replace the captain's photo with the character from that movie?"

"They even specifically noted that this version is Gao Wen's true appearance!"

A pirate pointed at the row of red, bolded standard characters on the left side of Gao Wen's bounty poster and laughed until tears came out.

Nami glanced at Gao Wen, turned her head, and whispered to Xiang Keluo:

"The captain really is that, that movie's original?!"

Xiang Keluo nodded repeatedly:

"That's right, the knight who was banished for having an affair with the Wang Fei, but this guy has never mentioned his past."

"This… no wonder he reacted so weirdly last time~"

"Hahahahaha~"

Gao Wen listened to Nami's bell-like laughter, gave the two a disgruntled glance, and simply turned and walked into the cabin.

For a moment, he felt utterly depressed.

He used to look at Sanji's bounty photo and just find it funny; now he realized the clown was himself.

Anyone who saw that photo would know the dark history left by the predecessor…

"Sun thief!"

"You really don't treat me like a person!"

"How long do I have to take the blame for you?"

Thinking of this, Gao Wen's mouth twitched uncontrollably.

He turned his head and looked through the porthole at the obvious smiles on everyone's faces, and could only smile bitterly and shake his head.

Unlike those fair-weather friends from his past life who borrowed money and never paid it back, scheming behind his back, these bastards who mocked him ruthlessly were the ones he could entrust his back to.

"Really…"

"How boring, you're never going to let that old joke go, are you?!"

……

Not long after.

The crowd on the deck gradually dispersed, and the sky gradually darkened.

Nami looked up at the clouds growing thicker in the distance, her brow slightly furrowed.

"This is… a sign of a gathering storm?!"

To confirm her guess, she turned and walked into her own cabin, picked up a telescope, and looked out at the distant sea.

Dark clouds pressed low.

Lei Guang flickered.

The sea no longer showed any trace of its earlier calm, but rose and fell ever more restlessly, sending up wave after wave!

Confirming this, Nami turned and strode quickly into the captain's cabin, saying urgently:

"Captain!"

"A storm — a massive storm is coming."

"It will sweep across the entire sea area; with our ship's structural strength, I'm afraid it won't hold!"

Gao Wen nodded, fetched the sea chart, and after conferring with Nami, the two of them furrowed their brows even tighter.

"No, the range is even bigger than I imagined!"

Nami let out a gasp:

"It's been a long time since such a violent storm has appeared in the East Sea; every route back to port is covered."

"We have to find a harbor or an island to take shelter, otherwise we're in real trouble."

Gao Wen nodded; as for Nami's judgment in navigation, he trusted her almost one hundred percent.

After a brief search on the sea chart, Gao Wen pointed his finger at an island:

"We go here!"

Nami glanced at the spot Gao Wen indicated, thought for a moment, then nodded:

"Beast Tamer Island?"

"There's a Shanfeng in the center of the island that can block the storm, and it's only a few dozen nautical miles away — undoubtedly our best option right now."

Soon.

Gao Wen's orders were passed down.

Seeing the sky in the distance grow ever more overcast, and feeling the ship beneath their feet sway more and more violently, everyone hastened their movements.

The ship turned about.

And set course for the nearby Beast Tamer Island.

……

At the same time.

On Beast Tamer Island.

Three figures looked at the small boat that had nearly split in two, then looked at the storm brewing in the distance, and fell silent for a moment.

A few breaths later.

Joseph turned to look at Zoro beside him, the corner of his mouth twitching uncontrollably:

"I must have been blind to choose you to lead the way!"

(End of chapter)