Chapter 22
The Blind and Love
On stormy days, when the first lightning struck, Nami always closed her eyes to savor the shiver that thunder sent through her, one of the few sounds she not only felt but could actually hear. She had admired storms since she was little. Her mother used to tell her that, when Nami closed her eyes at just a year and a half old, Nojiko would start crying, knowing that even if the sky was clear, lightning would soon come, something her sister loved so much.
For years, Nami thought that was the blindness her mother spoke of when she explained love. Whenever Bellemere introduced her to new people, she'd say:
"Nami loves to draw and is hopelessly in love with storms."
And though mothers sometimes exaggerated their children's virtues, giving them grandeur where there was only a tiny spark, Nami knew Bellemere spoke the truth.
She was born in love with storms.
When she curled up in Luffy's arms, with the taste of chocolate on her tongue, she closed her eyes tightly, knowing the storm had arrived, awaiting the thunder.
On the other side of the window, the sun made a feeble attempt to return, and with it, the world stirred again.
Ace, who had remained silent, waiting for his brother to speak, quickly leaned over them and gently brushed his hand through Nami's hair, inspecting her from head to toe. Although he usually cracked jokes to lighten serious moments, his dark eyes were shining when they locked onto hers, now open but still unfocused. The corners of his eyes were red, and his forehead creased with deep worry.
"Never…" he began fiercely.
Nami averted her gaze, unable to bear the disappointment she thought she saw in Ace. Sometimes, when she looked at him, she felt like she was staring into a mirror. But Ace placed a firm hand on her cheek and forced her to face him.
In the depths of his black eyes, she saw herself again—uncertain, small, and aching.
"Listen to me," Ace demanded, his tone leaving no room for defiance. "We will never betray you. Doubt anything else—whether Luffy takes showers, whether he stole your food. Doubt whether I killed a king or pooped gold. But never doubt us. Never. Got it?"
She stared at him for one, two, three seconds, then nodded so faintly it seemed unreal. But Ace exhaled in relief. The doubt was still there, as he suspected it always would be, yet it felt smaller in that moment.
Nami opened her mouth, and beyond Ace, she caught sight of the fish-man, watching her closely, as if ready to react to her every word.
"I feel dizzy. I think I'm going to throw up."
The phrase wasn't her most eloquent, perhaps her most honest, but it was the greatest act of trust she had ever shown. Voluntarily admitting physical weakness in front of someone was practically a death sentence at sea.
Her thoughts dissolved as she bent over the toilet, the world spinning like a summer typhoon. Full of wind and cold, yet surrounded by warmth.
There was a loud knock at the door early in the morning. Lying on her side on the sofa to avoid putting pressure on her injured shoulder, Nami had the distinct feeling that whoever was outside wasn't planning on leaving the house standing. Her mind immediately went back to Arlong, but what greeted Garp on the other side was the fury of the Marines.
"Vice Admiral, your grandsons…"
The old man squared his shoulders, blocking the doorway like a wall, and Luffy, sitting at the foot of the sofa, shuddered.
"I've said it a thousand times. My grandsons aren't giving any statements until they've recovered. Got it?!"
"But, sir, we have orders…"
Garp took one step—just one—toward the Marines, and they fell silent.
"You tortured my grandson on mere suspicions, so now your orders can wait until the boy is well."
"The thief…"
"She's still as sick as she's been these past four days you've been squawking like parrots! Now scram!"
Garp slammed the door shut with a bang that felt like an unfinished sentence to Nami. Despite the rage and force in his voice, as he turned back, he ran a hand through his hair and let out a heavy sigh.
"I won't be able to hold them off much longer. Sengoku's starting to stir things up over the king's death and all the mentions of Arlong."
Jimbe, the blue-scaled man who kept Nami from falling asleep, placed a reassuring hand on the old man's shoulder but withdrew it as soon as he caught the alarmed look in Nami's eyes. Every move he made was carefully measured under her watchful, anxious gaze.
"Today, I'll inform them that I'm taking over the Arlong matter, and we'll see what to do about the king."
"If it's all so…"
Nami interrupted with a sharp cough. Since her mother's death, she had lost the childhood fear of interrupting adult conversations.
"Who are you, fish-man? You keep saying you'll deal with Arlong, but all I see is another one of his kind."
Garp choked, but the fish-man stepped between him and the girl before he could scold her.
"She's right. We're both fish-men and belonged to the same pirate crew. Arlong is my brother."
Luffy's eyes sparkled at the word "pirates," but the full implications of the statement made him hesitate before bombarding Jimbe with questions. Garp, on the other hand, glared at Nami, reproach clear in his expression.
"So you're another filthy, heartless fish-man."
"Nami!" her grandfather scolded.
The blue giant raised a hand, silently signaling for calm. He stepped forward, the house trembling with the motion, and Nami shrank back. She clutched the blanket Ace had draped over her legs, and when the boy tapped her foot to signal she'd gone too far, she kicked him away, seething.
"Nami, you have every right to grab a knife and kill me, but I can't let you insult my race."
She laughed, bitter and sharp with fear. Luffy tried to reach for her, but any touch felt like fire, and she pulled the blanket tighter around herself.
"Why don't I have the right to insult your pack of fish-men, Jimbe?" she spat his name as if it were venom, and her friend turned to scold her for her tone as well. "Why are you superior? Is that it? Do you also enjoy the sound of human bones cracking? Like they're… what was it? Toothpicks? How do you use that superhuman strength of yours? Do you prefer breaking necks or blasting heads off with a spit? Are you more like Kuroobi or Chew? Or are you the type who takes pride in leaving hand-shaped bruises beneath clothes, just like your dear brother Arlong?"
Nami took advantage of the tense silence in the room, charged with the energy of a storm, to sink even deeper into the corner of the sofa.
"I could never take pride in belonging to a race that kills for pleasure and uses its strength solely to see the weak crushed beneath them. What kind of pride is there in that? You disgust me, and…"
The blue-skinned man's face paled until it nearly disappeared beneath the vibrant hues of his kimono. He collapsed into one of the chairs at the dining table, his large hand partially covering his face.
"A race enslaved, turned into slavers…" he murmured.
Nami inhaled sharply, her anger swelling, ready to lash out with more accusations against that so-called "superior" race. But Luffy stood up and faced her, his expression serious.
"There are bad humans too, Nami," he said firmly. "The mountain bandits were bad, but Dadan is fair, and she loves us even though we're kids and not bandits. You always say all pirates are bad, but Shanks is good. And I don't like the Marines, but there's Grandpa." He frowned as he processed his own words, then added, "Well, Grandpa's… different."
"Childish dreams are fine, but you have to learn to…"
Ace silenced her by placing a hand on her leg, and Nami fell quiet, though the spark of resentment still smoldered in her chest.
"My father was a bad man, Nami," Ace said softly. She turned toward him with the speed of a snake, ready to counter with the same intensity, but he continued. "I shouldn't have even been born. So every day, I try to find the reason why I was. I've spent my whole life living in his shadow."
Her hands clenched the blanket, searching for his, and when she found them, Ace's long, cold fingers intertwined with hers, steadying her unrest.
"Shadows are heavy and vast. Living under one is the worst burden—I know. But we're different people, and I'm sure Jimbe and Arlong are different too. If Grandpa brought him here, it's for a reason. The only thing the old man wants now is to destroy the man who's tortured you all these years. Just like Luffy. Just like me."
She wanted to reject his words, to shut her eyes and give in to the hatred. It was an easy path, one she had tread many times before.
But instead of closing her eyes, she turned her head, and Luffy's gaze caught her like lightning in the middle of a storm. Ace's hands enveloped hers, anchoring her amidst the tempest.
"Please, Nami," Ace pleaded. "Let's just hear him out, okay?"
She exhaled and extended a small, trembling hand toward Luffy, surrendering to the weakness that told her, for once, she could let herself lean on someone else. Someone with long, flexible fingers and warm skin, like summer rain. Burning and soothing, clean and vibrant, never still.
"You're a damned storm."
Luffy laughed, and she closed her eyes to savor the sound of the thunder.