One Piece: It All Started When I Found Shanks' Arm

Chapter 72: Nami Joins the Crew

Ten minutes later, Shane stood with his arms crossed, his face dark as he stared at his sister.

"...I looked down, and as soon as I saw her, I realized she'd already eaten half the Devil Fruit. And the little fool, afraid I was going to snatch it back, gobbled down the rest of it in a few bites!" Nojiko tattled, still fuming.

Nami squatted on the ground, looking pitiful with her hands raised in surrender. "Big Bro, I was wrong, I really know I was wrong… Blargh!!"

Before she could finish, her expression changed. She turned her head and began to vomit violently, her small face scrunched up in a grimace. That Devil Fruit was so disgusting!

"She really is a fool," Kuina sighed, facepalming. "She doesn't even know the common sense that you only need one bite of a Devil Fruit for it to take effect."

"What?!"

Nami was dumbfounded. Is that true? Does that mean I suffered through the rest of it for nothing?

"You say you know you were wrong," Shane said flatly. "So, tell me. What did you do wrong?"

"I… I shouldn't have snatched the Devil Fruit that Nojiko found," Nami mumbled, her head down, not daring to look at Shane's face. "Devil Fruits are rare and precious. They can make people stronger. It… it was a waste for me to eat it…"

"Hmm?"

"And! And!" Nami quickly added, "I shouldn't have let Gin bring me here! I should have left him to guard the ship! It would have been bad if someone took advantage of the situation and targeted our ship…"

"Stop changing the subject!" Shane finally lost his patience. "Is that what I want to hear? How did you secretly follow us?! What tricks did you use! And how did you deceive Belle-mère!"

"The L-Log Pose…" Nami's voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

"The Log Pose? You tampered with it?"

Shane was stunned for a moment, then it clicked. He laughed, a mixture of anger and amusement, and grabbed Nami by the collar of her shirt, lifting her up like a kitten.

"Well, well, so clever at such a young age. And what about at home? You've been gone for at least ten days, right? Belle-mère should have called me by now, knowing you were missing for so long!"

"I… I told her!" Nami said stubbornly, her legs kicking wildly in the air. But one glare from Shane was enough to make her deflate like a popped balloon.

"I told her, okay? I said I was bored and wanted to go stay at the Isshin Dojo for a while. So she asked Genzo to take me there. Genzo even followed me secretly and only left after he saw me walk through the dojo's front gate."

"But actually, as soon as I went in, I slipped out the back door, stole Koshiro's cola-powered boat, and followed you guys…"

"You're stealing things now?" Shane's voice shot up an octave. "Who taught you to do that? How could you do something like that!"

"It was the only reliable boat, I had no choice…" Nami said, looking aggrieved. "And it's not really stealing, right? I brought the boat to Kuina."

"She's not wrong about that," Kuina sighed, rubbing her forehead. "But I need to call my father and let him know, so the kids at the dojo don't keep looking for the boat."

"Mmm, go ahead," Shane nodded, then took out his own Transponder Snail and tossed it to Nami. "You, go call Belle-mère and explain everything!"

"Okay…"

Nami didn't dare refuse. She was tossed aside and obediently began to dial.

Between her mother, who was thousands of miles away and still in the dark, and her furious brother, who was right here…

She shivered. Her brother was definitely the scarier option.

…

A short while later, Nami, clutching the Transponder Snail, found Shane and the others busy moving treasure and supplies.

"What did Ms. Belle-mère say?" Zeff asked with a grin, hoisting two large crates of liquor onto his shoulder. "Did she tell us to send you home right now?"

"She wouldn't," Shane said, shaking his head as he counted the treasure chests on the ground. "Remember to prepare an extra portion of food from now on, Uncle Zeff. Looks like we're destined to have another glutton on our ship."

"Huh??"

Nami stared at Shane, her eyes wide. "I haven't even said anything yet, Big Bro. How did you know?"

"Because that's just how Belle-mère is," Shane said calmly, without turning his head. "Let me guess. First, she yelled at you, then she put on a tough act and said something emotional like, 'If you're miserable being left at home every day, then I'll only be more miserable. So, for my sake, you ungrateful little brat, you'd better go follow your brother and achieve your dream! And don't you dare come back and make me sad!' And she probably made you cry your eyes out and feel so guilty you wanted to slap yourself in the middle of the night."

"..." Nami stood there, stunned. "How did you know, word for word?" she mumbled.

"When did you master Observation Haki?" Zeff asked, puzzled. He had looked closely and had indeed seen the faint, dried tear-stains at the corners of Nami's eyes.

"I can't use Observation Haki. As for why I knew, didn't I just say…?" Shane shook his head. Just then, Nojiko walked over, carrying a chest. Hearing the conversation, she pursed her lips and sighed at almost the exact same time as her brother.

"Because… that's just how Belle-mère is…"

I'll never understand this family, Zeff thought, scratching his head in confusion. He decided to go back to what he was doing.

"So, Big Bro…" Nami asked cautiously, glancing at Shane's expression from the side. "Does that mean you'll let me stay on the ship?"

"I can send you back if you want," Shane said, glancing at her.

"No, don't do that!" Nami quickly shook her head. "But… are you… are you really not mad at me anymore? You're not mad that I ate the Devil Fruit?"

"When was I ever mad at you for eating the Devil Fruit?" Shane frowned.

"Huh?"

Nami paused. Thinking back, it was true. From the very beginning, her brother had been angry that she had snuck away without telling anyone, but he hadn't seemed to care about the fruit at all.

"You think I don't know what you were thinking?" Shane snorted, leaning down to pinch her cheek. "You were just afraid of being a burden, weren't you? You figured that if you ate a Devil Fruit, you'd at least be useful, and then you wouldn't be kicked off the ship. Am I right?"

The young girl's skin was soft and delicate, not nearly as chubby and fun to pinch as it used to be. After a few pinches, Shane lost interest and let go.

"Yes…" Nami mumbled. So it's true. I can't keep any secrets from my brother.

"You're so silly," Shane said, exasperated. "This is my ship. Even if you couldn't do anything, even if you just ate and slept all day, who would ever complain?"

"Big Bro…" A flicker of warmth touched Nami's heart, but then she saw him pinch his nose in disgust.

"Tsk, look at you, all ragged and smelly. You must have had a rough time on the way here. Serves you right. Maybe this will teach you a lesson, and you won't dare to do something like this behind my back again. Go on, go with Nojiko back to the ship and take a good, long bath. This isn't over. There's plenty of punishment waiting for you later."

"Bingo! A bath is exactly what you need. Even Gin is about to pass out from the smell, Nami," Nojiko said with a gentle smile. "Come with me. We have a dedicated hot spring bath on the ship, you know. It's very relaxing."

"…"

Looking at her disgusted brother and her gently smiling sister, Nami stood frozen, blinking. For a moment, it was as if she were back in her carefree childhood, back in the tangerine grove.

Comparing that to the exhausting, lonely two weeks she had just spent drifting on the sea, her nose began to tingle.

She took a deep breath, lifted her head, and flashed a smile as bright as ever. "Okay!"

…

Shane stood there, silently watching his two sisters walk away, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

So it was the Flame-Flame Fruit?

A Logia-type ability. It's quite rare, that's for sure.

He himself had no interest in eating it. It didn't suit his fighting style, and his current strength was more than sufficient. He had no plans to become a Devil Fruit user for the time being.

If he were ever to eat one in the future to increase his physical limits, he would probably prioritize a Mythical Zoan-type that would make his body even more powerful.

As for the Flame-Flame Fruit, if Nami hadn't eaten it, he would have offered it to any of his crew members who were interested.

But still…

Shane looked off into the distance, at the backs of Nami and Nojiko, Nami chattering away as she complained to her sister. He smiled and shook his head.

This isn't so bad, actually. At least with elementalization, very few people in the first half of the Grand Line will be able to hurt her.

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