One Piece:Starts by Collecting Nico Robin

"This is just too strange. A complete stranger suddenly shows up and says he wants me to be his navigator or something... Although I'm truly grateful for your help with the village, it's still quite presumptuous to immediately talk about conquering the seas."

Nami rubbed her head in frustration, her tone tinged with dissatisfaction. "So... why do you have such a dangerous idea?"

"Since you've met Fish-men, you should know that their physical strength is ten times that of humans, right?"

Caesar, true to his usual style, didn't rush to answer but instead posed a question first.

"So, does this have something to do with those Fish-men? Has the World Government been taken over by them?"

Nami's tone was teasing. Although Cocoyasi Village had once been ruled by Fish-men, to be honest, she didn't know much about the race.

"No, actually, Fish-men are a highly sought-after type of slave in the Grand Line. Because they're stronger than humans and can survive underwater, even an ordinary Fish-man can easily fetch a price of millions, or even tens of millions. As for the legendary Mermaids, their starting bid is over ten million."

"Most nobles believe that Fish-men are fish, not humans, and thus hold a deeply discriminatory view of them. This is a significant reason why the Fish-men race has become such a popular commodity in the slave trade."

"Because of their beauty, Mermaid slaves become playthings for the nobles. Because of their strength, Fish-man slaves are turned into Slave Gladiators for the nobles' entertainment, or even used as mounts for travel."

Caesar's tone was calm, but the facts he revealed left Nami stunned.

"That's impossible! Fish-men are so strong and can survive underwater. How could they be captured and made into slaves?"

"The strength of Fish-men is only relative to ordinary humans."

Caesar scoffed lightly. "This group lives in the deep sea and knows very little about the human cultivation system. To put it bluntly, they're like frogs at the bottom of a well. You've seen it, haven't you... how Vice Admiral Garp dealt with those Fish-men?"

"With a single punch..."

Nami's expression changed.

Her impression of Garp was too vivid. She still clearly remembered how the old man had appeared out of nowhere, asked her for directions, and then casually headed straight for Arlong Park.

Out of respect for the elderly, she had even warned him about the dangers of Arlong and his crew, but the man hadn't been fazed at all. He simply flew up and threw a punch from a distance toward Arlong Park!

That punch had completely shattered Nami's understanding of the world...

It was like a heavy cannon had exploded within the park, reducing the entire Arlong Park to ruins in a single blow.

Nami's expression turned serious. "Was Arlong originally a slave? Is that why he hates humans so much?"

"No, Arlong wasn't originally a slave, but many of his Fish-man companions were once slaves of the Celestial Dragons. It was precisely this racial conflict that created someone like Arlong. I have to admit, although that guy is a scoundrel, he truly cares about his fellow Fish-men."

Caesar shook his head slightly. "Arlong was once a member of the Sun Pirates, following a Fish-man traveler named Fisher Tiger. Even Jinbei, one of the current Royal Shichibukai, was once his subordinate."

"Later, Fisher Tiger infiltrated Mary Geoise and liberated tens of thousands of slaves, sending them back to their homelands one by one. He then founded the Sun Pirates and used a branding iron to remove the slave marks from his fellow Fish-men, using the sun symbol as the crew's emblem to conceal their true identity. You must have seen it—the sun symbol."

Nami nodded, remembering clearly that the Fish-man named Hachi had such a mark on his head.

"Without a doubt, Fisher Tiger can be called a hero, both to humans and Fish-men. Even someone as extreme as Arlong was almost changed by him, until one incident occurred..."

Caesar spoke calmly, "The World Government bribed the families of the freed slaves and ambushed Tiger in his hometown. Because of this, Tiger became utterly disillusioned with humanity. He refused to hate humans but also refused to use human blood for a transfusion. In the end, he chose to die, leaving behind a final wish to not perpetuate hatred."

"After that, Arlong became a complete racist, choosing to take revenge on humans, which ultimately led to his imprisonment."

"Another Fish-man who followed Tiger, Jinbei, chose to uphold Tiger's final wish. He didn't like humans but was willing to strive for peace between the races. Later, to secure a seat for Fish-man Island among the World Government's member nations, he chose to become a Royal Shichibukai."

"Because of the Royal Shichibukai's legal privilege to plunder, Arlong and his crew were released from prison. However, they had already fallen out with Jinbei after Tiger's death. Even after being released, they didn't return to Fish-man Island but instead went to a small place like the East Blue to pursue their dreams of becoming overlords..."

Hearing this, Nami's expression darkened. "You're not trying to tell me that they became like that for a reason, are you?"

"Of course not! Arlong deserves to die—that's beyond question!"

"But what I want to tell you is that while it was indeed Arlong who killed your mother, the root cause is actually the system of this world."

Caesar clicked his tongue and shook his head. "As long as those lofty Celestial Dragons exist, as long as this corrupt World Government continues to operate, tragedies like the one that happened to you will keep repeating themselves like a cycle all over the world!"

"The World Government explicitly states that slave trading is illegal, but what does that matter? The biggest buyers in the slave market are those Celestial Dragons, those nobles!"

"As long as these scum don't die, there will be ten! A hundred! A thousand Bellemeres who will die because of this! They'll die in this meaningless racial conflict!"

Gazing at Nami's tense face, Caesar's tone was calm and steady, carrying an air of undeniable certainty.

The air was filled with a long silence.

After a while, a sly smile suddenly appeared on Nami's lips. "So? Is this your reason for recruiting me onto your ship? What's your own reason? Simply disliking the existence of the Celestial Dragons? Or do you want to become the next generation of Celestial Dragons?"

"What a clever girl. But honestly, I have no interest in power."

Caesar chuckled at Nami's response, and then, to her surprise, his eyes turned blood-red, and a pair of pointed ears added a touch of delicacy to his handsome face.

"I am a user of the Vampire Fruit, eternally youthful, immortal, and possessing the most formidable power on these seas. Things like power and wealth are merely a matter of reaching out for me..."

"My personal goal is actually quite simple, just as I said, to unify these seas and accomplish this unprecedented feat. And this journey can just as well carry your dreams."

"So, what do you say? Will you join?"

"Sounds pretty good..."

Nami propped her chin on her hand: "If the terms are right, I might consider it~"

Caesar raised a finger: "An annual salary of one hundred million Berries, how about that?"

"You've convinced me, boss!"

Nami's eyes sparkled with the symbol of Berries, her tone as firm as if she were joining a political party.

Honestly, she still had some reservations, but Caesar was offering too much to refuse!

Caesar chuckled lightly, not at all surprised by Nami's reaction.

"Since that's settled, let's set off~"

"Huh? Now?"

Nami was taken aback: "I'm not mentally prepared yet, and the bookstore..."

"The bookstore is yours, do with it as you please. Speed is of the essence, everyone is waiting."

Caesar beckoned, and Nami had no choice but to quickly follow.

As they stepped outside, Nami noticed Nojiko, Ken, and Yamato waiting outside.

"Nojiko, Ken, you're here too?"

Nami's eyes lit up: "Perfect timing, I have something to tell you—I'm setting sail!"

Nojiko just smiled, as if she had expected this all along.

Ken, however, looked at Caesar with concern: "Isn't it a bit too early for your age? And... you're not being coerced, are you?"

"Don't worry, I'm not being coerced. This guy made me an offer I couldn't refuse."

Nami grinned slyly: "Also, could you help me clean up the stuff in the store, Nojiko?"

The stuff in the store...

It's the earnings from all these years, right?

Nojiko was speechless: "Is it that urgent?"

"Very urgent..."

Caesar nodded: "I need to gather the crew quickly for unified training. Before entering the New World, we need at least a year of training. There are other things to do afterward, we can't afford to waste too much time."

"This is too rushed, isn't there even time for goodbyes?"

Ken looked anxious: "At least give us some time to say goodbye, right?"

Caesar: "There's a batch of treasure to retrieve..."

Nami: "Let's go! Let's go now!"

Ken: "..."

"I knew it..."

Nojiko smiled gently: "Take care of yourself, Nami."

"There's no need to worry so much."

Caesar casually wrote down a number and handed it to Nojiko: "This is my Den Den Mushi number. All crew members will be equipped with Den Den Mushi in the future. Considering the various dangerous situations we might face, I suggest Nami be the one to call you."

"That's quite thoughtful. That does make me feel much more at ease."

Nojiko took the number, glanced at it, and handed it to Ken.

Ken looked at the number on the paper, his expression softening slightly: "In that case, we entrust Nami to you."

"Don't worry, I may not be a good person, but my ship is never short of kind-hearted souls."

Caesar sighed helplessly, "As the captain, I can't let everyone down, can I?"

"Haha, that's true, but Caesar is actually a really good guy!"

Yamato grinned and walked over to Caesar, "Hello, I'm Yamato, Caesar's girlfriend and the combat captain of the ship!"

She's so tall!

But she's a really cool woman...

By the way, the height difference between this couple is a bit too much, isn't it?

Following Yamato's lead, everyone started introducing themselves.

"Baby5, Caesar's personal maid~ Oh, and also the part-time chef."

"Nico Robin, girlfriend number three, archaeologist, nice to meet you."

"Bartholomew Kuma, support captain and helmsman. This is my daughter Bonney, who dreams of becoming a gourmet traveler."

"Hello!"

Bonney flashed a peace sign and grinned.

"Bartolomeo, well... we've met a long time ago."

Bartolomeo grinned, "My position is Caesar's most loyal confidant! And Caesar's most solid shield!"

"I'm Nami, the navigator. I look forward to working with everyone!"

Seeing that everyone seemed easy to get along with, Nami smiled gracefully and gave a slight bow.

But inside, she couldn't help but rant.

Girlfriend number three?

So that so-called personal maid is also one of his women?

What a joke!

Did this perverted captain really come for my navigation skills?

She glanced at Caesar out of the corner of her eye and saw him looking at her thoughtfully.

"What... what are you looking at?"

Nami felt uneasy and quickly crossed her arms, looking at Caesar warily.

"Relax, I'm not interested in little girls, so you don't have to worry about me doing anything to you until you're at least eighteen."

Caesar chuckled, "I was just thinking about what Devil Fruit might suit you."

"What? That's so rude, I have my charms too, you know?"

Nami pouted, "Are you talking about the Devil Fruit? The legendary treasure of the sea?"

Caesar nodded, "Exactly. In fact, everyone on this ship except you is a Devil Fruit user."

"Eh?!"

Nami's eyes widened in surprise as she pointed at Bonney, "All of you? Even Bonney? If I remember correctly, those things are said to cost at least a hundred million Berries, right?"

"Don't worry, you'll soon find out that our team is never short of money or supplies."

Caesar smiled, "Let's go, we need to get our hands on the treasure first. The most valuable thing in this treasure is a Devil Fruit, and it might just suit you."

Soon, they set sail again.

With Ken and Nojiko seeing them off, the ship slowly sailed into the distance. Nami stood at the stern, a cheerful smile on her face as she waved towards the shore.

Only when Cocoyasi Village disappeared from view did she lower her hand, a hint of loneliness in her eyes.

"Don't be sad. Once we get a new ship, we can cross the Calm Belt and come back anytime. It won't take long," Caesar said as he stood beside Nami, his tone calm.

"You can cross the Calm Belt?" Nami was astonished.

"By embedding Sea Prism Stones at the bottom of the ship, we can traverse the Calm Belt using external wheels. That's how the Navy does it, and as it happens, I am the ruler of Wano Country, controlling the global export of Sea Prism Stones," Caesar said with pride.

Nami hesitated for a moment but still asked, "What about the news that you've allied with the Pirates..."

"That's also true, but the Beasts Pirates are transitioning into a formal military force. Currently, they are the National Defense Navy of Wano Country."

Caesar gazed into the girl's eyes, "Are you disappointed?"

"Don't treat me like a child."

Nami sighed, "Transforming a bunch of scum from the sea into a military force must have taken a lot of effort on your part, right?"

Caesar nodded in approval, "You really are clever."

Nami also smiled with pride, "So, where are we heading? I've occasionally gone out to sea over the years, drawing some nautical charts. I'm quite familiar with sailing in the East Blue."

"Three hundred nautical miles due east of Navy Branch 162, there's an uninhabited island. Do you know it?"

"I know that place."

Upon hearing this, Nami frowned, "But that place is dangerous. You can enter but not leave. The currents around the island are extremely turbulent. Once you're caught in them... the chance of escaping is minimal."

"The treasure is on that island, and I can guarantee that even if we get caught in the currents, I have a way to ensure your safety and bring you out."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go! Three o'clock direction! Full speed ahead!"

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