Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece

...

For the longest of times, Nami simply sat there in stunned silence, the world around her not mattering in the slightest. She should have known that the briefest moment of weakness she had shown when she had seen Arlong's poster would have been spotted by the ultra observant Warrant Officer. Though with that being said, she had to be thankful that he hadn't brought it up on the Going Merry where she would have been under the scrupulous gaze of those onboard. Here, amongst the crowd of people, their words would go unheard, their reactions not monitored and the topic of conversation would be kept between themselves.

First though, she had to pry what kind of knowledge Luffy knew.

"What makes you think that, in your words, I'm afraid of this pirate?" she asked, her fingers rhythmically tapping on the table.

"There was recognition in your eyes," said Luffy, matching her gaze. "You saw the image of him and almost flinched as you gazed upon a face you had seen before. The way you also deflected the topic of conversation told me that you didn't want to dwell on the topic where you may have said something you would regret."

"You garnered all of that from a handful of seconds huh," said Nami, her fingers continuing their dance across the table rim. "You seem well educated in the ways of the world so I'm going to assume you know more than your fair share regarding the strength of fishman."

"You could say that," said Luffy.

Several more seconds ticked by as the customers around them broke out in a fit of giggles at something which had happened but neither of the two people sitting at the table paid it any attention. There was something far more important happening right there, right now. "You are correct, I have encountered Arlong before, many many years ago," said Nami.

"He killed someone in front of you," stated Luffy. It may have been an assumption but it didn't seem like one in the slightest.

"My mother," said Nami.

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Luffy.

"You seemed to come up to that conclusion rather quickly," declared Nami.

"I came to that solution when you mentioned the number of years," said Luffy. "Given your past in robbing pirates I had originally believed that you had had a less than successful endeavour trying to rob from him but I sincerely doubt you were doing that when you were a child."

Nami chose not to say that it was because of Arlong that she began stealing from pirates in the first place.

"I guess that begs the question then," said Luffy, leaning back ever so slightly. "If we encounter Arlong during our travels, what will you do?"

Nami's fingers stopped moving as she swallowed the noticeable lump that had formed in her throat at the question. Given Luffy's travels it was a distinct possibility that he would encounter the Fishman pirate somewhere down the track. Were she to be in his company at that time, she would inevitably focus on her long term goal, the goal she had spent so long working towards.

The purchasing of Cocoyashi Village.

She was close, painfully close. A couple more expeditions and she would complete her task without failure. She couldn't fail.

Luffy, Zoro, Usopp...those three created an issue she didn't know how to deal with. She had seen how Luffy had dealt with pirates in the past and if he were to somehow be victorious over the mammoth of an obstacle that was Arlong and his crew, he still needed to arrest them and have them hauled off. Were the Marine officers under Arlong's thumb the ones to come in and arrest them, chances were they would simply vanish for a limited time before returning and everything would just go back to the way it was. That was a scenario she couldn't allow to happen. She couldn't allow her friends and family to have their hopes raised at the revelation of freedom only to have it taken away a couple weeks later.

She couldn't do that to them.

She just couldn't.

"I would..." started Nami before the shattering of a table caused a majority of the customers to gasp in shock and horror. Nami meanwhile was just grateful for any kind of distraction. "It seems your Marine friend is making a scene."

Luffy glared at Nami momentarily in a way that told the woman that what they were discussing was merely being put on hold before turning to have a look at what Lieutenant Fullbody was doing. Turns out that he had destroyed the table he had been sitting at in what seemed like a fit of rage as the waiter casually stood over the debris, mildly annoyed if nothing else.

"You want to step in before he does something to sully the Marine's bad name," said Nami, gesturing for Luffy to go and do something about the situation.

"Fine," said Luffy after a long exasperated sigh, pushing himself up from the table. It seemed however that his movements were too slow as Fullbody launched his fist at the waiter's face, rage controlling his actions. The waiter however took a casual step backwards to avoid the highly telegraphed attack before countering, twisting on the spot as his leg rocketed up and his foot connected with the side of Fullbody's head.

While a normal man may very well have fell to the attack, Fullbody remained standing, albeit struggling a little bit after having taken the blow. Before he could make a mockery of himself by trying to attack again, Luffy did step forward. "Lieutenant, stand down!" shouted Luffy, his voice carrying through the entirety of the venue.

Nami meanwhile watched on in curiosity. She had eavesdropped on Zoro when he had been chatting with Johnny and Yosaku about when he had been a prisoner of Captain Morgan. After Luffy had relieved him of his compromising situation he had taunted the high ranking Marine, riling him up to give him sufficient evidence to act upon. The person before him had already taken a swing at a civilian so it effectively already put him well within the wrong, not to mention the fact he had taken a Marine vessel to use as a vehicle to chaperone a date of all things. From her standpoint, Luffy had more than enough reason to act.

"Just who do you think you are whelp," sneered Fullbody as he rubbed at his cheek with the back of his hand.

"I'm Warrant Officer Monkey D. Luffy," proclaimed Luffy as he stepped forward, all eyes on him. Straight away Nami could see people gossiping amongst one another, probably wondering what kind of upstart Warrant Officer would dare speak in such a way to someone with a higher rank. She couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.

Many likely expected Fullbody to lash out but it seemed he had been informed of Luffy's presence in the area and as such did his best to compose himself. The glare he sent the blond haired man who had struck him however did not simmer down in the slightest. "Warrant Officer, would it be prudent of you to allow me and my date to join your table, it would seem that this one is currently unfit for customer use," said Fullbody, gripping his blazer tightly.

"By all means," said Luffy as he gestured to his table, watching as Fullbody's date seemed to follow the man out of fear rather than anything else. He didn't blame the woman. She had come out for what was meant to be a nice time between herself and her date only to have the man react in such a way.

Nami meanwhile smirked as the number of patrons on their table doubled, Luffy being a gentleman and pulling back the woman's chair for her. She didn't particularly know why Luffy had allowed them to join them but it seemed clear to her that Fullbody intended to suck up as best he could, likely to not make Luffy's shit list.

Regardless of the company, Nami felt that the upcoming meal would be entertaining if nothing else.

...

"So are we meant to wait for them to come out or..." started Usopp, allowing his question to hang in the air.

"We'll receive orders when we get them," said Zoro nonchalantly as he laid against the mast, his hands behind his head.

"Yeah well I hope they bring us something to eat at least," said Usopp as he slumped down on the railing.

"Hey, guys," said Johnny slowly, pointing towards the Marine vessel. "Is it just me or do they seem far more active there then they should be?"

"What do you mean?" asked Yosaku as he followed his fellow bounty hunter's gaze.

Usopp turned his attention towards it as well just as a Marine soldier was hurled off the edge of the ship, yelling momentarily before his head bounced off the side of the ship. The blow rendered him unconscious before he crashed into the waves. "Shit," he cursed before he unburdened himself of his shirt and dove off the side of the ship.

"Usopp!" shouted both Johnny and Yosaku as they watched their friend go after the unconscious Marine. They couldn't help but admire the courage that he showed in that moment in time.

Little did they know that he had done so in order to make sure that he didn't encounter the person who had thrown the Marine soldier overboard in the first place.

"Well," said Zoro as he pushed himself to a standing position, gripping onto his katana as he did so. "Seems like things finally got interesting."

"Are you going to fight whoever that is?" questioned Yosaku before Johnny hit the back of his head.

"Of course he's going to fight them," he declared boldly moments before Zoro leapt off the ship and landed on the Baratie's floating floor.

With calm steps, Zoro marched forward towards where the Marine had planted it's gangway, paying little attention to the screams of the soldiers as they were systematically taken care of. All that meant for him was that the person who would be facing him was worthy of his time. He had only fought random crewmates of late, members of Buggy and Jango's crew respectively. His thirst for combat demanded a challenge.

Coming to a stop, Zoro turned to face the vessel, waiting patiently for who it was who would come his way. He didn't have to wait long as a weary looking man progressively made his way down the gangway, pistol in hand. "And just who are you meant to be?" he said between steady breaths as he clutched at his stomach.

"Roronoa Zoro," announced the swordsman as he analyzed the person before him.

"The bounty hunter huh," said the pirate before he swiftly raised his pistol towards Zoro's head and fired. Zoro however was already on the move, bounding to the side and drawing his two unnamed blades and holding them tightly. He watched cautiously as the man's hand tracked him and he focused on the barrel of the pistol, preparing to pounce sideways once more and avoid the follow up shot.

His preparation was well worth it as the next shot also missed its target as Zoro closed in slowly but surely. The pirate seemed to notice the upcoming conundrum but instead of backing away, launched himself forward and ducking beneath Zoro's initial horizontal slash.

The swordsman quickly leant back, avoiding the shot at his chin which had come from beneath. The close proximity however made it difficult to properly try and slice at his opponent. His right foot stepped backwards only for his enemies left foot to step forward as if it were a dance of some kind. Resorting to questionable tactics, Zoro thrust his face forward and crashed his forehead against that of his opponent who remained unflinching, blood trickling from the fresh wound.

"Roronoa Zoro," said the pirate, licking at some of the blood which had seeped past his lips. "I must admit I am enjoying this far more than I should."

If he had planned to say something else he was interrupted by the growling of his stomach, audible enough that even Zoro could clearly hear it. If the minor distraction was enough to cease the combat however the people bearing witness were sorely mistaken.

The pirate's pistol rose once more only for Zoro to knock it to the side with the handle of his weapon. His spare hand lashed out in an attempt to strike at an opening in Zoro's defence, only for his fist to meet the unforgiving steel of the wielded katana. As he tried to pull his hand back however, a small adjustment was all that was necessary for Zoro to act in the small confines and slice at the man's forearm.

A slight growl of agony was all that emitted from the pirate's mouth as he tried to swing his pistol round once more only for Zoro to knock it downwards. The gunshot did ring out however and Zoro couldn't help but grit his teeth in pain as the bullet pierced into his upper thigh. Acting quickly, he allowed the katana in his right hand to drop from his grip and plant itself tip first into the wood by his feet. With his free hand he grabbed at the pistol and gripped tightly, his brute strength enough to shatter the weapon.

The pirate took this in stride as he spun on the spot and tried to land a sickening elbow into Zoro's cheek. His blow failed to land however as Zoro used that brief window to duck and grab hold of his katana once more, holding it close and using his momentum against him, the edge of the katana cleanly cutting through the man's skin and flesh.

The pirate couldn't help but drop to his knees as he clutched at his wound, pain searing through his system. "The wound isn't fatal," said Zoro as he took a step back and sheathed his katana, knowing full well that the cut was too shallow to be lethal.

"Heh, you think that after starving me for days they're going to treat my wounds," said the pirate as he looked up at the man who had bested him. At this Zoro could only scowl as men rushed down from the Marine vessel, rifles in hand. A couple of them ran over to the edge of the platform where Usopp was treading water and had been for quite some time while holding on to the body of the Marine who had fallen into the ocean. While he had surfaced with the man, he had had no intention of garnering any attention to himself until the fighting was well and truly done.

"Take him back to his cell!" ordered one of the Marines, pointing at a couple of the soldiers. Before they could move too far forward however, the sound of a katana unsheathing caused everything to slow down.

"Oi Zoro, what are you doing!" whispered shouted Usopp, clearly thinking the man had gone insane.

"Zoro?"

"The pirate hunter?"

A couple of the pirates had clearly heard of him and Zoro had full intention of using that to his advantage. "We will be taking custody of this pirate," he declared boldly, his eyes scanning those around him. "Would you deny me my bounty after having defeated this man?"

Several seconds passed by as the Marines looked amongst one another awkwardly. The pirate had just killed multiple men on his route to freedom only to be stopped by the man now wishing to take custody of him. Considering he had broken out of his cell once before, there was nothing saying he couldn't do so again and kill even more men out on the open water.

However, this was not a decision they could authorize.

"We will have to authorize the transfer of the prisoner with Lieutenant Fullbody," said one of the Marines, stepping forward and taking charge of the situation.

"Very well," said Zoro as the men surrounding him and the pirate raised their weapons. "Usopp, go inside and get some food for our prisoner."

"Ah, yes," said the sniper, quickly rushing off to do as told as the Marine who had taken charge went to speak with the Lieutenant.

"Johnny, Yosaku, get some medical supplies ready," ordered Zoro to those still on board the Going Merry as he knelt down before helping the pirate to his feet.

"Why are you doing this?" asked the pirate as he clutched at his wound.

"Because not all the people on this ocean are shitheads," said Zoro, helping move the pirate towards the Going Merry.

He didn't comment on the tears that began to slowly seep down the pirate's face.

...

Luffy watched as Fullbody listened in to a whispered conversation from one of his subordinates as Usopp requested some food in the background. While they had been conversing, something which had mostly consisted of Fullbody sucking up to him to try and boost his standing with a certain Vice Admiral, something had been going on outside. "Everything alright?" asked Luffy as the lower ranking Marine stepped back two paces.

"It would seem," started Fullbody as he clenched his hand into a fist, "That a prisoner of mine broke free from his confines and killed several of my men before being apprehended by Pirate Hunter Zoro."

"So he got recaptured by a member of my crew did he," said Luffy leaning back in his chair. "I take it that means that he's my prisoner now."

Lieutenant Fullbody glared at Luffy before pushing himself up from the table. "I believe that is fair, after all with him no longer keeping my cell occupied it means I have a place to stash his Captain."

"I wish you well in your endeavours," said Luffy as the high ranking Marine turned and left, his date swiftly following behind him.

"So we're going to be transporting a wanted felon then," said Nami as she turned her attention to Luffy.

"Seems that way," said Luffy. "The Going Merry doesn't really have any sort of holding area though so we're going to have to figure out where to stash him. Oh well, we can figure that out while we scout ourselves a chef to join us."

It was at that moment the blond haired waiter that had struck Fullbody earlier approached the table. "I feel that I must apologize to the lovely mademoiselle for my display earlier," he said with a light bow.

"Please, after having had to sit through his drivel I wouldn't have mind had you beaten him worse," said Nami laying her feelings on the table.

"Then next time please do not hesitate to tell me so and it will be done," said the waiter as he stood at full height once more.

"Oh, I like you," said Luffy as he looked up at the person serving them.

"On a separate topic, your long nosed friend said that you recently gained custody of a pirate who apparently hadn't been fed in quite some time, is this true?" asked the waiter.

"As far as I know, yes," said Luffy.

"Then I will be sure to whip them up a meal they will never forget," declared the man before he made his way towards the kitchen.

"I like him a lot," said Luffy as he stood up from the table.

"He's the one you're going to try and get to join our crew aren't you," said Nami.

"Was it really that obvious?"

"Yes, yes it was."

...

Hope you enjoyed.