Conquering Heroines: Starting From A World Of Zombies

"You owe me for that!!"

The moment she realized she could never catch up to that man named Roger—who looked exactly like the Pirate King—Nami didn't hesitate. She grabbed Ryuji by the collar and yelled straight into his face.

But the second he gave her a calm look, she deflated and let go on her own.

"That was a lot of money! And my money wasn't part of our contract!"

She looked up at him seriously, clearly stating her bottom line. She could back down on other things, but not her money.

Ryuji couldn't help but feel a bit speechless.

Sure, he knew Nami was greedy. That was canon. But seeing it with his own eyes? It was even more extreme than he imagined.

"Well, I guess that is true to character. I won't argue."

He ruffled her cheek with his hand.

"That money? Fine, pretend I took it. I'll pay you back eventually—but don't go thinking this gives you the right to extort me for a huge sum."

Truthfully, the only reason he'd even come to the East Blue was because of Nami. If she weren't here, he wouldn't have bothered. All the major beauties with names in the reinforcement system were on the Grand Line—or even in the Calm Belt.

So coming here? Purely for Nami. And maybe, if the opportunity arose, to spot a certain rubber boy.

After all, since he was already in the area… Regardless of how he felt about Luffy, if there was a chance to meet him in this innocent early phase, why not?

"Ugh! That bastard! He better pray I never see him again!"

Nami slammed her fist hard against the railing. She didn't dare argue with Ryuji—not when he still held the power to resurrect her mother. That was everything to her.

If he couldn't bring her mother back… there's no way she'd be this obedient.

Sure, she'd still trade her body to have Arlong killed—but she wouldn't be this compliant about it.

So watching Roger disappear into the horizon filled her with pure frustration.

But even her frustration couldn't compete with the excitement bubbling in her chest. She couldn't wait to share the news that Arlong was dead.

And as the ship slowly made its way to the shore, the reality of what had just happened finally started to sink in.

Roger's slash—cutting the sea itself...

"Arlong… he's really dead…"

As Nami stared at the place where Arlong Park used to stand—now a stormy, shattered coastline—her eyes grew vacant.

Her mind drifted back to the countless hardships she'd suffered since childhood. Sleepless nights filled with fear. The death of Bell-mère. The villagers who had died simply because they couldn't pay the "tribute."

Over the years, one village after another had been wiped out under Arlong's rule. Some because they had no money. Others because they dared to resist.

And those people all died.

Arlong had kept the island under a tight grip. No one could leave—except for traveling merchants and corrupted Marines who worked with him. Any outsiders who landed here were slaughtered.

Only she had the freedom to sail—earning money and drawing sea charts under constant threat.

To make that money, she lied, stole… everything short of selling her body. There was nothing she hadn't done.

She had lived like that for over a decade.

And now, just to kill Arlong and bring back her mother, she'd gone one step further—sold her entire future.

In every sense of the word, Arlong had destroyed her life.

The tears finally flowed.

She stood frozen, watching as the place that had tormented her for years was completely obliterated. There was no relief, only a strange, bitter sorrow.

Look at that...

In front of someone truly powerful, Arlong—who had swaggered and brutalized them all for years—was no more than a bug to be casually crushed.

And yet that same bug had stolen over ten years from them.

This world... is too cruel.

Ryuji quietly walked over and wrapped an arm around her.

He didn't have any deep feelings for Nami—at least not yet—but he knew what was needed in this moment.

Sometimes, a hug says everything.

And for Nami—even though the guy holding her was a perverted jerk—he was still her jerk. That was enough.

She finally broke down in earnest, crying into his chest and releasing every pent-up emotion in her heart. She even bit him once during the breakdown.

Robin, watching from the side, felt a pang in her heart.

Nami's revenge was complete. And easily, at that.

But her revenge?

The people who slaughtered her home and killed her loved ones… were the World Government itself.

Could she really expect Ryuji to fight them, just because of her body?

She didn't think so.

Sure, Ryuji didn't fear the World Government. That's exactly why he had no reason to go out of his way to pick a fight with them.

"…Must be nice," she murmured.

When they finally reached the shore, Ryuji—now awakened to Observation Haki—sensed someone darting into the trees the moment they landed. Curious, he watched as the woman stepped out again, emerging cautiously from the forest.

She looked a little older than Nami—just barely—but just as thin and malnourished. It was clear she hadn't had an easy life under Arlong either.

Maybe a little better than Nami's… but only just.

It made him feel a little regretful, in hindsight, that Arlong died too easily. Too cleanly. That guy deserved much worse.

The moment Nami spotted her, her face lit up with joy. She sprinted forward and threw herself into the woman's arms.

"Nojiko!"

Her voice was no longer filled with the usual bitterness and strain. There was only pure, unrestrained joy.

"Nami, are these your friends? Was that… Arlong Park? Did you guys do that?"

Nojiko had seen the ship arrive. She'd hidden at first, uncertain. But the moment she saw Nami, she couldn't hold back.

Nami nodded firmly.

"That's right!"

Even if it had started as a deal, she had no doubt now—Ryuji was her companion. He did help her kill Arlong.

Sure, it was that guy Roger who threw the slash, but none of that would've happened without Ryuji setting things in motion.

"…I see."

Nojiko suddenly swayed, her legs unsteady. The weight that had hung over her for over ten years… just vanished.

She couldn't wrap her mind around it. Couldn't find words to express the sensation.

Like the entire world had suddenly stopped being dangerous.

"It's really... over."

She covered her face and sobbed, hugging Nami tightly. The two sisters cried together under the sun.

"Wow," Robin said, holding a book lazily in one hand. "The more I look at these two poor girls, the more I think—you really are a bastard."

Ryuji shot her a look. "If you think I'm that bad, why don't you take over Nami's role for a while?"

He smiled at her, eyes full of mischief.

"Ah… I think I'll pass. I'm not that desperate to make a deal with you just yet."

Robin chuckled, stepping over to stand beside him.

"But what if she changes her mind?" she asked, voice light but probing. "You two only made a verbal deal. And frankly, she seemed to care more about Arlong dying than her mother coming back."

"You just love stirring the pot, huh?"

Ryuji knocked her lightly on the head.

Robin shrugged. "I'm just pointing out the risk."

"If you were trying to stir things up, you wouldn't say it so nicely."

"Ah, so you do get it. Look at you, shedding your good-guy act."

"Say one more word, and I'm locking you in the cargo hold."

"Hey, hey now…"

Robin's lips twitched. She hadn't expected him to be this blunt.

"Well, well. And here I thought you were all sunshine and virtue."

"You were clearly mistaken."

Ryuji crossed his arms. At the moment, he wasn't in the mood to play around.

Because he could still feel it.

That slash. Roger's Divine Departure.

It had left a mark on his body.

Not in a fantasy "power transfer" kind of way—but his body had memorized the technique.

That's why Roger had him open his Observation Haki beforehand—so he could etch that strike into his senses, into his memory, into his cells.

He didn't just see the slash. He understood it.

How the Armament Haki strengthened it. How the Conqueror's Haki wrapped around it. If he could just master those two things himself…

He could reproduce Divine Departure.

His hand touched his chest. When he focused, the image of that strike returned with crystal clarity.

No gaps. No blur.

It was a cheat code, honestly.

But then again… even Oden, that dumbass, had managed to scar Kaido with a proper technique. So Roger leaving behind a sword slash in someone's memory wasn't that unrealistic.

Ryuji was more inclined to believe that it was his own survival instinct—on the edge of death—that allowed him to imprint the move so clearly.

"And when he used his Conqueror's Haki… did I…?"

He could feel it.

A faint, elusive presence stirring inside his body.

Logically, he hadn't intended to learn all three types of Haki. He already had too many systems to deal with—magic, blood energy—both could strengthen the body just like Armament haki.

And they had higher potential, too.

Not to mention, Haki's strength didn't scale well. In One Piece, some people could fully coat their bodies in Armament haki and still get beaten by someone using it sparingly.

In the end, raw power and plot armor always trumped "precision."

But now…

"I've got all three."

Black energy curled around his hand—awkward, not fully under control, but definitely there.

It wasn't the kind of thing you could master just by grinding in a training room.

You had to fight.

And somehow, despite everything… his attitude hadn't changed much at all.

Haki consumed stamina, and for Ryuji, using that same energy to generate mana or blood energy was far more efficient. The main advantage of Haki was its ability to harm Devil Fruit users—but in practical combat, his other powers served him better. Using both mana and blood energy at once was already his current limit. Before fully mastering them, adding Haki into the mix would only disturb their flow and severely tax his body.

Given that, there wasn't much point in grinding through Haki training for now.

Besides, many of the powers he already possessed… he hadn't even fully mastered yet.

Roger had passed on Divine Departure to him, sure—but honestly, it wasn't particularly useful at the moment.

While he pondered this, the villagers of Cocoyasi Village arrived. When they heard Nami's story and saw the ruins of Arlong Park with their own eyes, cheers broke out. Ryuji and Robin were welcomed as heroes.

Still, though they treated them like heroes, there was little they could offer in return. The village was poor—so poor that they barely had any fresh meat for the celebration feast. Most of the food was dried meat and fruits, and even the wine was the kind meant to be tribute to the Fishmen. Villagers had none stored for themselves.

Yet despite that, the villagers were overjoyed. Messengers were quickly sent to surrounding areas to spread the news: the Fishmen were gone.

Sure, a few stragglers remained. But the number of Fishmen left was nothing compared to the population of the villages. One Fishman might be stronger than a human, but when surrounded and attacked by five or six desperate villagers? They had no chance.

As for what happened to them…

Well, the villagers weren't kind-hearted idealists like Luffy. And they were entitled to their justice.

"Cheers!!"

Nami raised her cup of citrus wine and shouted gleefully, hugging Ryuji. Under the gaze of the villagers, she kissed him on the cheek before draining the cup in one go.

Ryuji didn't notice the subtle change in Nojiko's expression.

The party went on long into the night. But Ryuji turned in early. He understood their joy, but it didn't mean much to him.

Soon enough, Nojiko led him back to their house and gave him a room for the night.

Just as Ryuji opened his phone to resume his studies and training, he noticed Nojiko leaning against the doorframe, watching the flickering lights of the distant celebration.

"…What did Nami give up to make you help her?"

Her voice was calm—but there was steel behind it.

"Oh? Why do you think she had to give me anything?" Ryuji asked, flipping through vocabulary cards on his phone.

"I'm not stupid," Nojiko replied. "The Marines couldn't beat Arlong. His bounty? Definitely understated. He's strong, vicious, and he had ties to the Warlords of the Sea. People like us couldn't do anything about him. And yet… you brought someone strong enough to destroy Arlong Park with one swing."

She paused. The image of the decimated fortress still haunted her.

"To us, Arlong was practically a god. He could bite through cannonballs and crush warships. And now he's gone."

She looked at him seriously.

"I didn't see you fight, but I can tell—you're not just some ordinary guy. So what did Nami offer? Money? She wouldn't use the money meant to buy the village's freedom. That would leave her with nothing if she failed."

Ryuji smiled slightly. "You've basically figured it out already, haven't you?"

Nojiko was quiet for a moment, then sighed. She stepped forward and shut the door behind her.

"…How far did you two go?"

Her tone was direct, serious.

"Just the mouth."

"Really?"

"Would I lie?"

Ryuji found it a little amusing. Nojiko was clearly trying to offer herself in Nami's place—and she was sharp enough to piece things together without being told.

Nojiko gave a small, sad laugh. Nami had already done so much, just so she could survive. As her older sister, how could she let Nami keep paying the price alone?

So she locked the door and slowly walked toward him.

She didn't know if someone like Ryuji would want a woman like her—a country girl worn down by hardship—but she had no other cards to play.

She slowly raised her arms, gripping the hem of her shirt. Ryuji watched, interest glimmering in his eyes, as she slowly lifted her top, revealing a chest slightly fuller than Nami's, though still lean and malnourished.

She draped the shirt around his neck, rested her knee lightly against his stomach, and flicked her hair back, taking his hand and placing it gently over her chest.

Her skin was smoother than Robin's—perhaps thanks to her youth—and though her palms bore calluses from labor, her body bore no scars. Her touch was warm, her body surprisingly soft.

And yet… her ribs still showed, a testament to the hunger and pain she'd endured for years.

Arlong, your sins are unforgivable.

Once again, that thought surfaced in Ryuji's mind.

But Nojiko had no idea what was going through his head. She simply leaned into him, arms draped gently around his neck, and asked softly:

"Don't you think… Nami is still a little too thin?"

Her breath lingered close as she whispered the next line:

"How about… making a deal with me instead?"