NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 41: "New Bonds, Old Secrets."
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"SUUUGOI!!! That was amazing, Bai Ye!!!"
Of course, the one with stars in his eyes was none other than Luffy.
"That guy's supposed to be the strongest swordsman in the world! Bai Ye, you actually freaked me out a little."
Even Nami looked stunned.
"Hahaha! As expected from my crewmate! Back in the day, I had 80 million men under me, y'know!"
Usopp was back to flexing his usual tall tales.
"You were that strong all along?"
Sanji had assumed Bai Ye was just a cook or support-type, and didn't expect him to be that powerful.
"You bastard, Bai Ye! You've got crazy sword skills like that and you still said crap like 'I believe in you, Zoro' or whatever…"
Zoro sounded seriously pissed: "Were you just watching to laugh at me!?"
"Hey now, you could tell, right? That whole match was just technique-based."
Bai Ye shrugged and explained, "Besides, I'm not aiming to be the world's best swordsman. Never planned to take swordsmanship that seriously anyway."
"As for my sword style—Taiji swordplay—it doesn't really mesh well with your Three-Sword Style. But if you're interested, I'm happy to show you some stuff anytime."
"Hmph~"
Zoro just snorted and turned away without saying anything more.
"Hey! You damn pervy cook, help me get back on the ship already! Can't you see the ice is melting!?"
"Hah?! Moss-head, don't push your luck! Want me to toss you in the sea right now!?"
"Stupid pervert kappa!!!"
"Damn seaweed head!!!"
Seeing the two of them bickering again, the rest of the crew looked helpless.
Meanwhile, Luffy just grinned and said, "Zoro and Sanji sure get along well!"
???
How the hell did you get that impression?!
Back on Baratie, that little detour came to a close.
Bai Ye resumed coordinating things with Hody.
Captain Don Krieg's bounty: 17 million Berries.Gin's bounty: 12 million Berries.
In just one day, the Straw Hats racked up another 29 million.
After subtracting recent expenses, their total treasure now surpassed 55 million Berries.
With everything wrapped up, the crew finally decided it was time to set sail again.
Baratie even closed shop for the day—a rare occasion.
Two lines of chefs stood solemnly on the deck. No one said a word, but their intentions were clear.
They were sending off their assistant head chef.
Among them, Patty even gave Sanji one last challenge.
The result? Sanji beat him effortlessly, and Patty ended up flat on the floor in tears.
Who knows when he'll get a chance to settle the score. Maybe never.
As Sanji smoked a cigarette and slung his luggage over his shoulder, heading toward the Going Merry—
A light voice floated down from the second-floor balcony.
"Don't catch a cold out there, Sanji~"
The moment he heard that, Sanji couldn't hold back anymore.
He dropped to his knees and slammed his forehead to the deck.
"Thank you… for taking care of me all these years."
"I, Sanji… will never forget this as long as I live!!!"
Then, without looking back, he jumped aboard the Merry.
Even after the ship started moving, he didn't glance back once.
"When this journey's over, let's come back and share another meal here."
Bai Ye patted Sanji on the shoulder as he spoke.
"Yeah…"
Sanji quickly pulled himself together, looked at the others gathered around him, and said with a smile:
"From now on, I'll be the cook on this ship!!!"
"YEAHHHH!!!" Luffy jumped up, pumped. "Sanji! I want meat!!!"
"Didn't we just eat?!" Usopp looked completely flabbergasted.
Sanji ignored Luffy the glutton and strolled over to Nami, eyes turning into hearts, wiggling his way over.
"Namisaaaan How about I fix you a special afternoon tea, just for you~?"
Just moments ago he'd been crying like a baby, and now here he was, acting like a total creep again.
Zoro snorted, "Damn pervy kappa…"
Sanji immediately fired back, "Shut it, moss-head! What do you know?!"
Just as the two were about to go at it again, Bai Ye's voice cut in.
"Alright, enough of that. But before we go any further, there's still one important thing we need to take care of."
Even Luffy put on a serious face when he heard that.
Because with Bai Ye, if he says something's important—it really is.
Once everyone quieted down, Bai Ye nodded, then looked at Nami.
"Now that Sanji's joined the crew, Nami—it's time for you to keep your promise."
Seeing how serious Bai Ye looked, Nami knew she couldn't dodge it anymore.
And it wasn't just because of the promise.
More than that—
She'd really come to love this pirate crew.
Stepping forward, she rolled up the sleeve of her shirt, revealing a tattoo on her left arm.
"Woooah~ Even with a tattoo, Nami-san, you're still sooo beautiful~" Sanji immediately swooned.
But he quickly realized he'd said the wrong thing.
Because the moment he finished speaking, Nami began to cry.
"I've seen that tattoo before," Zoro suddenly said. "Isn't it the symbol of a pirate crew?"
"NANI!!!" Usopp's eyes nearly popped out. "Wait—Nami was in another pirate crew?!"
The mood instantly shifted.
Luffy's smile vanished as he looked at Nami with a calm, unreadable expression.
Sanji stared at her in shock.
Zoro quietly looked toward Bai Ye.
Usopp, realizing he just blurted something really bad, was already trembling.
Bai Ye stepped up to Nami and gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Didn't we agree? Stuff like this—you've gotta share it with everyone, so we can decide together."
His voice was soft, his smile full of warmth, as he encouraged her:
"Trust me. But more importantly, trust the bond you have with everyone here."
The bond…
Nami repeated the word softly, then looked around at everyone.
Finally, she made her decision—to reveal the past she'd tried so hard to hide.
"Eight years ago… a pirate crew came to my village—Cocoyasi Village…"
As Nami began to speak, the pain in her voice was clear.
And slowly, the rest of the crew started to understand the truth that had been hidden behind her greedy smile all this time.
A vicious gang of fish-men attacked Cocoyashi Village.They didn't come to just kill and plunder. No—they came to build their own brutal kingdom.
As long as they ruled the village, the villagers had to pay tribute.Every single person had a price.
They'd done this to countless villages before, and they thought this one would be no different.
But this time, a retired Marine named Bellemere dared to fight back.
Of course, one ex-Marine wasn't enough to change the outcome.And in the end, the girl she'd adopted—the one with a natural gift for map-making—was taken by the fish-men.
The pirates made her a deal:as long as she kept drawing maps for them, they'd leave the village alone.
Then they added one more condition—one she couldn't refuse.
100 million Berries.Just 100 million...and she could buy her village's freedom.
"....."