Chapter VI: Nami's Entrance


Orange Town and its surrounding waters


The sun was bearing down on the crew as they drifted along beneath its intense rays. An occasional cloud would provide momentary respite, but the breaks were few and far between. Alvida's supply ship had enough room for the three of them, but not by much; their proximity only amplified the heat. Just as they were coming upon a swath of shade, a loud grumble tore through the silence and revealed another source of the pirates' woes. "Ugh, I'm so hungry!"

Alvida looked at her Captain with barely contained rage, for he had finished their food supply within the first few hours at sea. "That's rich coming from you! What did you think was going to happen if you got rid of our only navigator then ate all our food?" Not realizing the rhetorical nature of the question, Luffy opened his mouth to answer... only to wisely reconsider as she slumped over and laid herself across the deck.

Zoro chuckled at the one-sided exchange from his resting spot beside a barrel. "You know, she does have a point. It is kind of sad that you don't have any navigational skills. How did you expect to get where your going?"

Luffy felt affronted by the way his crew was ganging up on him, and he held no qualms in informing them of such. "How is all of that my fault? This is your supply boat Alvida, not mine! I just stole it!" The aforementioned pirate was about to retort before she was cut off by the new line of attack. "And what about you, Zoro? How did you manage to get all over the 'East Blue' and still not know how navigate!" On a roll now, Luffy finished his passionate self-defense. "At least I've only been to two islands since I became a pirate. And before that I never needed to do anything more then just wander around."

Alvida was miffed at the nonchalant way he seemed to be treating the situation, so she turned her venom towards the 'Straw Hat' once more. "You really want to start this? What about your mysterious time as a Marine? How did you get promoted to Captain if all you seem capable of doing is going from place to place aimlessly."

Shifting his gaze to a disapproving scowl, Zoro made clear that he didn't appreciate the tone of his statement either. "I have been searching for a certain man, that's why I set out to sea... but I don't know where he might be found. What would be the point of learning navigational skills if I don't know where I'm going in the first place." Luffy nodded sagely at his explanation. "I committed myself to finding him in this manner as well, for I have no idea how to return home." It was then that Alvida realized she was traveling with morons. "Collecting bounties has been the only way to pay for my life style. Do you know how expensive alcohol is these days?"

Luffy had stopped listening a moment earlier though, distracted by something the swordsman had casually thrown out. "So what you're saying is... you're lost?" One track mind as always, he was back to making his case. "See, being lost at see isn't so bad when you compare it to losing your own home."

A thick vein bulged on Zoro's forehead at the ridiculous response. "Shut up! Your the one who is lost! Who ever heard of a pirate that couldn't navigate the seas? How do we get to the 'Grand Line' if we don't know how to get there?"

His response was to start spouting off with a boyish grin. "We just have to find a navigator first!" Having been started on one of his favorite subjects, that little nudge was all it took to get him going. "Ooh, and a cook. And a musician. And a back-up cook..."

Alvida was not amused. "You numb skull, what are you blithering about now? What kind of priorities are those?!" Her righteous indignation soon fell mute next to the renewed rumblings of Luffy's stomach. The noise began to bring about a cascading effect on the crew, and all three took the sound as their cue to collapse once more and start staring up at the now cloudless sky above them.

In the course of their resting, Zoro noticed a small figure flapping through the sky far above them. Holding his hand to his stomach, a small trail of drool began to form. "Is that a bird? Ugh, I'm so hungry that at this point I'd eat anything..."

Luffy thought eating the bird was a fine idea. It would be like killing two bird with one stone, as it was time for him to start actively looking for their next destination anyway. Before either of the other two passengers were able to stop him, he jumped off the boat and into the air. "Hey guys, catch me if you can!" As he finished with his words he burst into a phoenix burning blue and orange. and flew of after the bird.

Aghast faces from what was thought to be the end of their Captain quickly shifted to awestruck. He had found his mark and had landed on the back of the rather large bird. Back in the boat Zoro whistled at the gambit, impressed. "I still have a hard time believing that this is all real, and that I'm not just having a fever dream back on the post in Shells Town. So now he's invincible and a bird?" He and Alvida waited for a moment, but then they saw how the bird had chosen to respond. Shaking the uninvited pirate off, the creature grabbed Luffy by the ankles roughly with its sharp talons before immediately shifting course. Carrying Luffy away with it I of course.

Alvida snapped back into captain mode and commanded Zoro at once. "That idiot, what was he thinking... what are you waiting around for Roronoa? Start rowing! If it is returning to a nest then we can't be far from land, this is our chance!"

Grumbling he complied and picked up the oars, albeit grudgingly. "Why can't you do it, you're strong enough to do it too..."

With a smirk, Alvida answered him simply. "My devil fruit of course! The oars would just slip from my hands. Haven't you seen my club? I had it custom made to be spiked from top to bottom." She conveniently forgot to mention she had much better control over her ability then she did back when she had first ordered her bludgeon. She was enjoying the shift in circumstances too much to let him know that. "Don't slow up, but I think I see something." Ignoring the murderous mutterings coming from the grunt labor, she used her hand as a visor. "What is that?"

In the waters ahead, a trio of men were calling for help whilst staying afloat using debris. "Hey there, you with the boat! Stop over here, we've been abandoned!" Flailing their arms, all three did there best to draw the attention of now passing 'Straw Hats.'

Zoro was well past the point of getting tired, and that fueled his gruff reply. "How can there be people with worse luck then ours...?" Yelling out to the floaters, he kept his pace steady. "I don't feel like stopping, so either get on or don't!"

Two of them managed to grab onto the side, but the last one Alvida had to lift on-board with one of the oars she 'couldn't' hold. Collapsing into a heap, the three rescued 'over-boards spent a second catching their breath. The one with a long face and bushy hairstyle was the first to recover enough to talk. "Whew, thank goodness... I thought we were done for."

His friend, a burly man with a long beard and broad chest, piped up next, though he was markedly less gracious. "What were you thinking being so reckless, you could have run us over! What would you have done then?"

The final one got up just in time to see Alvida and Zoro shrug in response. He wore a Sherpa hat adorned with clown-like skull and crossbones. "Now stop the boat! This is the pirate Buggy's territory." He pulled a small knife from his belt and gave them a vicious smirk.

The rowing stopped and everything went silent. The would be boat nappers engaged in a futile stare off with them before Zoro tossed the oars at them. Wit one last glare he lifted his sword in its sheath With a tinkling laugh, Alvida decided to help them out before they did something they would regret. "I would just row if I were you. He's a bit grumpy today." They didn't need to be told twice.

Deciding to up the ante, Zoro took charge of the situation. "You do realize who we are, right?" Seeing realization hitting their eyes, he sneered. "Now you three are going to help us find the nearest island, and you better hope that we find Luffy there." He returned his blade to its resting position, but his glare was as sharp as before. "After all, you are the reason we lost sight of him."

Alvida tried to play the good cop to smooth over the tense situation. "Enough about that though, let's talk about something else. Why were the three of you stranded out here in the middle of the ocean, drifting around?"

The apparent leader of the group, the one wearing the insignia, latched on to the proffered olive branch. "Yes, of course! Good question!" Despite the clear sniveling, Alvida recognized real anger in the pirates' eyes. "It was that damn 'witch girl.'" A sinking feeling came over her and she was overcome with the compulsion to never mention this person to Luffy. "She was a real hottie, like you, but nowhere near as much of a sweetie."

Having gotten what she wanted the 'nice girl' routine was done for, and Alvida knocked him out with a swing of her bludgeon. "Don't presume you have any right to give me any of this 'sweetie' crap you creep! Now one of you two, tell us more about this 'witch girl.'"


... Flashback ...

The three 'Buggy Pirates' were on route to their current base after their third successful raid. Settling into their course, they took a moment to appreciate all of the hard fought ill gains. "Mwah ha ha ha, there is so much treasure here! We could probably take some for ourselves without Captain Buggy being any the wiser!"

Cackling with glee, the group's leader agreed. "But only a little bit. We want to leave enough for Buggy to reward us for our good work." Thoughts drifting to the most recent raid, he sighed. " If only every time was like this, we'd be favored over those two freak-shows he has running the crew. We'd be the ones in charge." His delusions of grandeur were forced back by the tide of reality as he sighed. "How often will a ship as small as that last one we got have so much gold?"

The final member of the raiding crew diverted his attention from their spoils long enough to notice a change in the scenery. "Hey look over there, it's a small boat." And indeed, there was a dinghy floating towards them. As it came into clearer view, he was able to notice a person draped over the side. "There's a cute girl passed out along the side of it too!"

A small boat hadn't meant much, but a cute girl got his colleagues' attention. The one calling the shots quickly moved to bring the tiny vessel alongside their galley. "Oh, a girl you said?" Having accomplished his task, he tried to rouse her. "Hey there, what's wrong sweetie? You look half dead."

The girl in question looked up at them. She slowly opened her big, baby blue eyes, peering out at them from behind bright orange bangs. She shifted her body to rest against a sizable treasure chest. Her face was revealed to be quite adorable, but their appreciation of it was soon tarnished by her feverish appearance. "Aah, is this a dream, or have I finally died? Did I really just find someone out here in the middle of this vast ocean?" She picked herself up, only to trip and fall straight into the arms of the one who had spotted her. "I'm so sorry, I know we don't know each other... but please... please could you spare me a cup of water?" Lifting herself up again, she fell back down. This time the leader made sure to position himself as the one to catch her. "And maybe, if it isn't to much of an inconvenience, you could provide me with a small piece of bread?" At this point, the pirates could only nod along dumbly, captivated as they were with the way her sweaty clothes clung to her shapely curves. "I was in a shipwreck you see... if it's a problem of money, I have plenty."

The men took the bait hook, line and sinker; their lewd thoughts were banished to be replaced with their lust for gold. Setting the girl down, the pirate raked her body over with predatory eyes before shifting his attention. "Of course poppet, we'll save you. You wouldn't mind us taking a look at that treasure first though, would you?" Without waiting for permission, three of them jumped into the dinghy to inspect the expensive looking chest.

Standing up, she smirked with a victorious glint in her eyes. "Since you guys seem to like it so much, take the whole thing. With a shove of her leg, she pushed away from her former ship. "I'll ever throw in that boat as a bonus!"

She had timed her maneuver perfectly. Right as they opened the chest, finding it empty, they felt the lurch. "That wench, she took our treasure and our ship!" Searching for oars to start rowing, figuring there superior numbers would allow them to catch her soon enough, they discovered their last hope snapped in half.

Shouting back at them, the mysterious girl gave them something else to worry about. "Sorry about that, but you have bigger fish to fry than little ole me. Gesturing to dark clouds blowing in from the south, she predicted a dire forecast. "A storm system is approaching, and your sailing on borrowed time. When you feel the wind start to pick up, you can say goodbye to more than just this treasure... that boat is done for."

... Flashback end ...


... Back in the present, nearing the island ...

With another heaving pull of the oars they wished they had back then, the two 'Buggy Pirates' finished their tale. "And so that's what happened, terrible huh? As soon as I find that girl I'm going to kill her."

Zoro however, was intrigued by the girl they had just heard about. "That's some ability to predict the weather though, I'm sure she would make a great navigator!" Alvida was hesitant to trust someone being called 'witch girl,' but after hearing their forced labor's story she relaxed to the idea. "That might not be a half bad idea. I wonder if she'd join us..."

The other conscious captive did not take kindly to this suggestion. "Are you crazy? She'll take you for everything your worth and then some! Stay as far away from her as possible!" Realizing this might be their best chance to get back at her though, he soon changed his tune. "After we catch up to her and get our treasure back of course." Remembering their treasure, the rowers felt the blood drain from their faces. "Speaking of, we need to find her before we head back into Orange Town! Captain Buggy will make an example out of us for sure if we don't bring anything back this time!"

Having heard them make reference this Buggy character several times already, Alvida finally asked about their boss. "Who is this Buggy you keep talking about anyway?" She had a nagging feeling she had heard of him before, and had been wracking her brain only to come up empty. "

It was Zoro that answered her question. "I'm surprised you haven't heard of him, considering his bounty is nearly double that of yours. They call him 'Buggy the Clown.'" Alvida snorted at the pirate's name, but reserved her judgment of the man until they actually met. You don't amass a price on your head like that without having some skill.

The last of his subordinates had finally regained consciousnesses, and took the moment to send a chill down his captors' spines. "That's our captain alright, the $15,000,000 man." Dropping his voice, the one that had spoken up finished with a nasty smirk. "You better watch yourselves where we're going, he's dangerous. More then you can possibly know." With a conspiratorial look he broached a subject they were all too familiar with. "Have you ever heard of the devil fruits?"


... Along the streets of Orange Town ...

Orange Town was a new and small community, not much older then 40 years. The townsfolk had mostly lived on the island for their entire lives, and would often be found walking about the quiet little village. But there had been no leisurely strolls of late. Not since the Buggy the Clown and his band of pirates had moored the Big Top, their galleon; they had been looting the town as well as taking over the local tavern, 'Drinker's Pub.' It was these circumstances that had attracted the attention of a certain thief, an orange haired girl fleeing a group of three pursuers who just so happened to be members of the very same pirates that had driven the residents from their homes. Breathing heavily she banked a hard right and kept on sprinting. "I finally have it... I finally found a map of the 'Grand Line.'"

The men chasing her were not going to be lost so easily though, fueled by their embarrassment. "Damn it girl, come back with our map!" Following her around the bend, the men kept after her. "We're dead men if she get's away! If the Captain finds out just how she managed to take it..." Nothing else needed to be said after they were reminded of how events had transpired to bring them to this point. That evil woman had made it seem like she was interested in the pirates, acting all flirty and hanging off of them. Only for her flirtation to be a distraction, and hanging over them a means of getting close enough to swipe the map. With a loud gulp, the group redoubled their effort and picked up their pace.

Unfortunately for them luck was not going to be on their side. At the exact moment they had rounded the corner, a cannonball shot from the center of the town and struck down a bird flying above them. Luffy suddenly appeared with brilliant crash landing, directly between them and the girl. With a shake of his head he got already up and out of the small crater, walking off the impact as if nothing it were nothing. "Phew! I finally landed. For a moment there I thought I was a goner!" Brushing himself off he finally noticed his dumbstruck audience, and waved hello. "Hey there, do you know why they shot me with a cannon? That really hurt, no way that thing was normal." With a shudder he pushed back dark memories. "And trust me, I would know. You do not want to try my grandpa's training..."

The thief was the first one to recover her senses after his odd entrance, and she capitalized this with a smirk. Grasping the situation for what it really was, an opportunity, she did not look this gift horse in the mouth. Without hesitation she lunged at Luffy only to cling to him as if she knew him on a more intimate level. "Oh Boss, you finally found me! I've been waiting for you to save me. I'll leave the rest to you!" And without further ado she took off running, leaving a confused Luffy still standing between her and the pirates she was escaping from.

He was still staring at the dust cloud left in her wake when the thugs surrounded him. "Heh, we may have lost the girl, but she won't be going anywhere without her boss here." The largest of them cocked back his fist and launched a punch that landed squarely on his new target's jaw. "You're going to get us our map back, right 'Boss?'"

Luffy hadn't heard a thing they said. The force of the blow had knocked of his hat, and his eyes had not left it as it was tossed about by the wind. It finally landed, right in front of the same pirate who had knocked it off of him in the first place. With a sneer, the man lifted his leg and went to bring his foot down a top the straw hat; but his leg never had time to start back toward the ground. Luffy threw a counter punch to the direct center of his opponents face, knocking him back and out all at once. Picking up and returning his 'treasure' to his head, he gave the other two a fierce glare. "Don't you dare mess up my hat."

Pulling out their weapons, the two remaining aggressors charged him. "Damn you!" With a sigh Luffy finished them both with no trouble, and was once again brushing himself off. His attention was quickly captured though by the sound of clapping coming from above him.

Sitting on the roof of a nearby building, the girl now freed of pursuers gave a long whistle. "Damn, I did not see that coming. You're really strong; you beat those guys like they were nothing, even though they had the advantage of swords." Jumping down from her makeshift peanut gallery she gave him a coy smile.

Still slightly confused by the girls odd behavior, Luffy just nodded slowly. "Ah, it's you! Why'd you leave me with them?" Never one to dwell in the past, he was on to his next question, cutting off her answer. "Never mind that, who the hell are you anyway?" Giving her a wary glance, he took two steps back.

Seeing dollar signs, as she often did, she considered her next words carefully. "Me, I'm just a thief, no one special. My specialty is stealing from pirates though." Make a money gesture with her hand, she made her offer. "My name is Nami! What do you say, why don't we team up for a bit? I bet we could make a ton of money off the pirates here!"

Luffy stood there eyeing her down, trying his best to appraise her character. He found it exceedingly difficult, which was unusual for him. "So let me get this straight. You steal for a living... but that's okay because your stealing from pirates?" Shaking his head back in forth, he muttered loud enough for to here his grumblings. "Whatever happened to honor among thieves?"

Inching closer to him once more, Nami did her best to act innocent. "Yeah, I'm a thief who steals from pirates, what's wrong with that? I figure anything they have on them is probably stolen anyway, so it isn't so terrible to steal it back from them, now is it?" Returning to the original offered, she pressed him for his answer. "So what do you say. Just think about all the money we could make together!"

Turning away in disgust, Luffy started toward the center of town to find out who had shot him. "I think I'll pass. I'm not interested in teaming up with someone like you." And with that he started walking toward the town's central district.

Never one to take no for an answer she chased after him. "Hang on a second! Never mind all that for now, we can talk terms later. I'm more interested in that hat. You got so mad when that guy tired to step on it, I knew then and there he was a goner." Her interest in it was then revealed to be more then just his personal attachment to it. "It must be expensive."

Nodding his head Luffy kept walking, but slowed his pace to allow her to keep up. "I don't think it's anything other then a plain old straw hat, but this hat is my treasure." Seeing his point wasn't being taken, he gave up trying to explain further.

Nami was oblivious to this though, and was daydreaming over what sort of treasure it must be. "Ooh, so there are jewels hidden in it? Or a map? I could help you find that treasure, but we'd have to talk about my finder's fee." She continued along in that vain as she followed him further into the town, determined to make the most of meeting this strange man.