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

Chapter 76: My Fangirls Are All Over the East Blue (2-in-1)

Two hours passed in the blink of an eye, and it was time for everyone to meet.

Nojiko and Nami were the first to arrive at the square. They sat outside a café on the west side, waiting boredly for their friends.

The sky had darkened at some point, and clouds had gathered. A light rain began to fall, tapping against the café's awning and kicking up a fine mist.

Nami held her coffee cup, a small flame dancing on her fingertip as she unconsciously warmed the bottom of the cup. The dark brown liquid bubbled gently.

Occasionally, people passing by with umbrellas would notice and cast surprised glances her way.

"It's so cold…" Nojiko complained. "This rain must have dropped the temperature by ten degrees. I should have bought myself a jacket earlier."

"Has it gotten colder?" Nami asked, confused. "I don't feel anything."

"That's because you're a Flame-Flame Fruit user!" Nojiko said, exasperated. "Your body is literally made of fire. How could you possibly feel cold?!"

"Oh, right," Nami realized. "Want me to warm you up?"

Whoosh!

Her orange hair instantly burst into flames, a roaring fire that shone like a brilliant bonfire in the gloomy, rainy weather.

Wow, it's actually really warm.

Nojiko's eyes lit up. She raised her hands to warm them by the fire, but a scream suddenly came from inside the café.

"FIRE!!!"

"Someone help that customer!"

Splash! Two large buckets of water were dumped on Nami's head, soaking her and her chair completely. But the roaring flames on her head continued to burn.

"It's not enough! Quick! Get more water!" the middle-aged female manager ordered a nearby barista.

"Pfft—" Nojiko couldn't help but slam the table and burst out laughing.

Nami was frozen, still holding her coffee cup. Her soaking wet orange hair sizzled, and coffee dripped from her chin onto her collar.

"Aaaah! You idiots!" she yelled, shaking her fist at the staff. "This is my ability! Haven't you ever heard of a Devil Fruit?! Who just dumps water on a customer's head without even asking?!!!"

This young lady is a Devil Fruit user?

The people of Loguetown were well-informed. The manager instantly understood and hurriedly offered a towel. "I-I'm so sorry! Your hair suddenly catching fire was just so shocking…"

"I don't need it!" Nami huffed. "I can handle it myself!"

With a snap of her fingers, her skin began to glow with an orange light, as if flames were burning just beneath the surface. Steam rose from her pores, and in a few moments, she was completely clean and dry again, with only the brown coffee stains remaining on her clothes.

The manager and the baristas stared, dumbfounded.

"Sigh, forget it. You were just trying to help. I can't blame you," Nami said, looking at her now-undrinkable coffee and sighing. "I'll just pay the bill."

"We are so sorry!" the manager said, bowing deeply. "We've caused you so much trouble! How about this? Our signature steak and pizza set is available in the private dining area on the second floor. It's lunchtime now, so please, let us compensate you. You can choose anything from the menu, and it will all be on the house. What do you say?"

A free lunch?

Nami pursed her lips. She had grown up in a certain kind of environment; she wasn't interested in such a small amount of money.

But seeing the manager's anxious expression, a mischievous thought came to her. She grinned. "Is it really free? We have a few more friends who haven't arrived yet."

"No problem at all! It's all on the house!" The manager looked relieved and smiled gently. "As long as you accept, that's all that matters. Otherwise, I would feel terrible…"

"Hey, Nami, don't bully the nice lady," Nojiko said, poking Nami's forehead. She turned to the manager. "That won't be necessary. Just comp her meal. There are four of us, plus a pet. We'll pay for what we eat. Really, trust me."

She knew her brother's appetite all too well. If the whole meal were free, the café would lose its shirt. And then there was Gin, who was also a bottomless pit, though he was nothing compared to her brother.

The manager was still hesitating, but Nami laughingly pushed her into the restaurant, and she finally went off to get busy.

Just as Nami sat back down, she heard Nojiko's confused voice. "That's strange. When did I become nearsighted?"

What does she mean?

Nami followed Nojiko's gaze and was also stunned.

In the square not far away, there were two Kuinas, sharing an umbrella, walking arm-in-arm towards them.

Huh??

Am I nearsighted too? That can't be right. Nami rubbed her eyes and looked again. Still two of them!

Her jaw dropped.

"Haha, I knew you'd make that face!"

Kuina, who had been trying to hold back her laughter, finally couldn't take it anymore.

"Ta-da!" she said, presenting the other girl with a flourish. "Ta-da-da-da! Allow me to introduce… a Private First Class from the Loguetown Marine Branch! A sword-obsessed girl who looks exactly like me, Tashigi!!!"

"N-Nice to meet you all!" Tashigi fumbled with her glasses, nearly dropping the books she was holding. "Lady Kuina, please don't introduce me like that! I'm… I'm not obsessed with swords! I just have a deep respect for the blades that serve justice…"

"Still denying it?" Kuina said with a grin, draping an arm around her shoulder. "Hey, you guys have no idea how funny she looked when she found out I was a Swordmaster. She was drooling like some kind of pervert, pestering me with questions about this and that. My throat is dry from all the talking…"

She grabbed Nami's coffee from the table, but after one sip, she spat it all out. "This is disgusting! What is this? It tastes like bathwater!"

"Close enough. That would be shampoo water," Nojiko said drily. "It's rare to see you so excited. But this is all very confusing. Shouldn't you start from the beginning…?"

"Right… sorry, I got a little carried away," Kuina said, slapping her forehead.

…

A few minutes later, Tashigi was sitting meekly across the table, clutching her books with a slight blush on her face, while Kuina finished her story of how they had met.

"So, you just happened to run into each other at the bookstore? You'd never met before?"

Nojiko and Nami looked at each other, their eyes wide with amazement.

What a coincidence.

Two girls, born thousands of miles apart, with no blood relation, looked identical, right down to their height.

And their hobbies were remarkably similar too. They both loved practicing swordsmanship, they both had a taste for Wano-style things, they both loved famous swords, and they both loved to read…

From the moment Tashigi noticed the Wado Ichimonji, the two of them had hit it off, their conversation flowing endlessly. They both felt they had met a kindred spirit.

Of course, after learning that Kuina had already grasped the ability to cut steel and had become a Swordmaster, it was mostly Tashigi asking the questions and Kuina answering.

Though they were about the same age, the gap in their swordsmanship was immense. A few words of guidance from Kuina were enough to enlighten Tashigi, and Kuina's knowledge of all things sword-related was vast.

In Tashigi's eyes, Kuina's status had soared, and she had even started addressing her as "Lady Kuina."

"So you weren't wrong when you said she was obsessed with swords…"

Nojiko looked with interest at the thick stack of books in Tashigi's arms.

The Complete Illustrated Guide to Grade Swords, A Discourse on Sword Forging, When Famous Swords Fall into Evil Hands! The Pain That Ace and the Murakumogiri Left the World…

Huh, Ace?

She frowned slightly. She vaguely remembered that one of the little brats her brother had met in the Goa Kingdom was named Ace.

It must be a coincidence…

As she was pondering this, Kuina sighed. "It's such a shame we're heading to the Grand Line soon. Otherwise, I would definitely take her back to Shimotsuki Village to see if my father could tell us apart! He'd probably be so shocked his jaw would drop!"

"I doubt he'd be fooled," Nojiko shrugged. "Forget him, even Nami and I were only tricked at first. After watching you two for a little while, it's easy to tell you apart."

Nami nodded in agreement.

It was true.

The two looked almost identical, but their auras were completely different.

Kuina often had a gentle smile on her face and seemed approachable, but she was actually very ambitious. There was a cool, proud air about her, born from absolute confidence in her talent and skill with the sword.

As for this Tashigi…

Tsk, maybe it's because her glasses are thicker, but she seems a bit of a ditz. A little clumsy.

She didn't seem very brave either. Even though she had been chatting with them for a while, she was still clutching her books nervously, looking shy and timid.

And this girl, according to Kuina, was a Marine-in-training?

"It must be fate that we met. Tashigi, why don't you join us for lunch? It's on us. By the way, Kuina, have you seen my brother?" Nojiko asked, checking her watch. "It's 11:52. Only eight minutes until we're supposed to meet. Honestly, where is he?"

"I haven't seen him," Kuina shook her head. "Don't worry, let's just wait a little longer. Lord Shane is always on time. If he said to meet at twelve, he'll be here before then."

"You have such unconditional faith in him."

Nojiko was speechless. Just as she was about to say something, Tashigi suddenly gasped, her face flushing with excitement. "—Wait?! H-Hold on!"

"Lord Shane?! Are you talking about the famous Lord Shane from the East Blue? H-He's… he's your brother?"

"To be precise, he's their brother," Kuina said, sipping her tea with a sigh. "Jealous? I've been jealous for a long time. Why do they get to grow up with Lord Shane, while all I had were two idiots who fought all the time and drove me crazy?"

"Did you add a lemon slice to this?" Nojiko asked, shaking her coffee cup at Nami.

"No, why would I? It's not cola," Nami said, confused.

"Then why does it taste so sour all of a sudden?"

The two sisters giggled. Kuina shot them a look. "It doesn't matter. We're all on the same ship now. I get to see Lord Shane every day too. It's the same thing."

"I… I want to see him too!"

Tashigi suddenly clapped her hands together and pleaded, "Where is Lord Shane? Is he on this island too? Will he come here? Please, please let me see him in person! I've been a huge fan of his since I was a little girl! I've read all the articles about him over and over again! The reason I started walking the path of the sword was because of his influence!"

As she spoke, she seemed to remember something and fumbled in her pocket for her wallet.

In the top compartment was a newspaper clipping of the photo from the Cherry Blossom Island incident. A handsome, black-haired young man stood proudly on a wooden stage, holding a bamboo sword, surrounded by a cheering crowd.

"Here, look," she said.

"That was such a long time ago…" Kuina said, her expression a little strange as she took the photo. "It's been five years, hasn't it? You cut this out of a newspaper? It's still here, all yellowed…"

She would never admit that she had cut out the same photo back then.

But she hadn't carried it with her. Instead, she had carefully taped it to her favorite desk lamp, so she could see it every time she looked up from her books.

Unfortunately, a year later, some godforsaken thief had stolen her lamp. She had been so furious that day, with no way to vent her anger, that she had taken it out on Zoro and beaten him up.

"It's old… but he's so cool! Don't you think?"

Tashigi pushed up her glasses, her eyes full of admiration as she recalled the past.

"Did you know? When I saw that article, I stayed up all night and carved a bamboo sword out of a laundry pole! I practiced diligently every day. I joined the Marines because I dreamed of being like him one day, using a sword of justice to protect the peace of these seas…"

The previously shy and timid girl was now spewing a torrent of fervent, excited words, making Nojiko and Nami look at her strangely.

"Hey, I was just thinking," Nami said, still listening with interest, but Nojiko couldn't hold it in any longer. She leaned close to Kuina's ear. "She's exactly like you. Are you sure you two aren't related? Maybe you should call Mr. Koshiro right now and ask."

"Get lost!" Kuina pushed her away, then turned to Tashigi with a smile. "Don't worry, today is the day your dream comes true. He'll be here in a few minutes at most. You can look at him all you want then, and you can even have lunch with him."

Huh?

Lunch with him?!!

Tashigi's glasses slid down her nose. Her breathing became rapid, and her face turned as red as an apple. "R-R-Really…? Wow, I'm so lucky today, am I dreaming? First, I meet Lady Kuina, and now… I get to be with Lord Shane…"

Aaaah! The young girl covered her face, so happy she was about to faint.

Just as she felt like she was about to float up to the sky like a soap bubble, a thunderous roar interrupted her reverie.

"Recruit Tashigi!"

A brawny Marine Sergeant Major, who had just happened to be passing by, noticed them and shouted, "What are you still doing, slacking off?! Didn't you get the message? Captain Smoker's warship is returning ahead of schedule! It's about to dock!!"

"All base personnel are to cancel their leave, and that includes you! Get your butt back to the base! Change into your uniform and report to the docks for formation, now!"

What?

At a time like this!

Tashigi felt like she had been struck by lightning. She looked up at her superior in disbelief, her heart, which had been soaring in the clouds, plummeting to the depths.

"B-But why, Sergeant Major?" she asked, so upset she was about to cry, making one last desperate attempt. "Captain Smoker has never liked all that pomp and circumstance. Why would he give an order like that?"

"It wasn't Captain Smoker's order. It came from higher up. I don't know who."

The Sergeant Major gave Kuina a strange look, then turned back to Tashigi and said coldly, "I heard some big shot is coming. The magistrate and the administrator of Loguetown have already gone to the docks to welcome them. You're just a little recruit, so don't worry about it. Just follow your orders!"

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