Above the Blue-Eyed White Dragon.
Storm's Observation Haki clearly picked up the distant "plop" of someone falling into the water from the uninhabited island behind them, causing the corners of his mouth to curl up slightly.
That's what you get for calling me "clam" all the time, you ill-mannered Supreme Grade Sword!
Swim back to Dawn Island on your own!
Storm steered the Blue-Eyed White Dragon further away from the Goa Kingdom.
Although Portgas D. Ace's attitude earlier had been quite awkward...
Storm could still consider this a successful recruitment of this exceptionally talented "Supreme Grade Sword."
Under these circumstances.
Storm decided against meeting the other member of the D Clan on Dawn Island.
After all, Monkey D. Luffy was Ace's "foolish little brother."
It wouldn't be appropriate for Storm to do anything too extreme to him.
To be honest.
When Storm first planned his trip to the Goa Kingdom, he'd come with the ambitious idea to "beat up the old Marine vice admirals and kick the child Sun God."
Unfortunately, Monkey D. Garp—who kept taking leave to visit his grandsons—wasn't on Dawn Island today.
The island only had Ace and Luffy, along with some ordinary mountain bandits who'd claimed the territory.
Naturally, Storm abandoned his "beat up the Sun God" plan.
Regardless.
The future "Sun God Nika" was still just a kid barely over ten years old.
Storm wasn't some kind of monster.
With his current strength level, beating up a preteen Sun God...
Would be outright bullying.
The sea had its own rules.
Better to wait until Luffy set sail before fighting him!
"Successfully recruiting Ace is still a pleasant surprise."
Storm withdrew his Observation Haki and fell into thought.
"But the current Ace isn't yet the Pirate Supernova 'Fire Fist,' nor has he eaten the Flame-Flame Fruit.
"If I remember correctly, Ace ate the Flame-Flame Fruit before entering the Grand Line.
"This means the Flame-Flame Fruit is currently somewhere in the East Blue!"
Storm carefully combed through his memories until he finally retrieved information about the Flame-Flame Fruit's whereabouts.
"After setting sail, Ace accidentally drifted to the East Blue's 'Ant Nest Hell,' where he ate the Flame-Flame Fruit and met his first crewmate for the Spade Pirates...
"Which leaves just one question.
"Where is Ant Nest Hell?"
Storm pulled out both the Germa Kingdom's map and Nami's hand-drawn version, searching carefully across them.
While he personally believed—Flame-Flame Fruit? Not even dogs would eat it.
Still, the Flame-Flame Fruit was a Logia-type Devil Fruit with wide applicability and a guaranteed power floor.
Even if Storm neither ate nor used it himself.
This Logia Devil Fruit could still be entrusted to one of his other subordinates.
Unfortunately.
After scrutinizing both maps, Storm found no mention of "Ant Nest Hell" anywhere.
"Guess I'll have to ask the 'specialist' later!"
Storm took a deep breath and put both maps away.
He gently rubbed the [Thunderclap Ring], his entire body entering the naturalized state of "Lightning Man."
[More-More Fruit: Hundredfold Speed]!
A streak of lightning moving at extreme speed flashed across the sky and vanished instantly.
...
At the same time, on the Conomi Islands.
Nami had already been back in Cocoyasi Village for several days.
On the day she first returned, Nami kept thinking she was dreaming.
Everything she saw and heard seemed like an illusion.
After all, the Arlong Pirates were so powerful—even Bellemere hadn't been a match for those fish-men. How could they have died so easily?
Moreover.
White Dragon was one of the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea, a legendary figure of immense stature.
How could someone like that possibly come to the East Blue just to save a young girl's life?
Girls from the East Blue don't dream of Royal Seven Warlords.
But what Nami never expected was...
When she woke from her slumber and opened her eyes...
The Arlong Pirates had truly vanished.
Cocoyasi Village, along with the other villages on the Conomi Islands, was swept up in jubilant celebration.
The villagers all said—
"The Arlong Pirates have been completely wiped out!"
"Only one sea bull managed to escape!"
"The nearby Marine Branch 16 was also taken out in one fell swoop!"
"The new Marine officers are much more reliable than that corrupt Captain Nezumi!"
When Nami ran to what used to be Arlong Park...
The once grand and imposing Arlong Park had been nearly torn down by the furious villagers, leaving behind only ruins.
The Arlong Pirates had truly become history!
Nami was both thrilled and terrified.
She was overjoyed that she no longer had to work for the Arlong Pirates.
But she was horrified... because she seemed to have "sold herself" to an even more terrifying figure!
And the most ridiculous part?
Nami had sold herself willingly—and she hadn't even taken a single berry from White Dragon!
Damn it!
That bastard!
Didn't even give her a single coin!
Just thinking about it made Nami's blood boil. She couldn't even bring herself to draw her beloved maps.
She flopped onto her bed, legs kicking wildly as if electrified.
"This is so annoying!"
"Nami, what's wrong with you now?"
Nojiko, hearing the commotion, frowned as she looked at Nami thrashing on the bed and scolded loudly.
"You're not a child anymore! Stop acting like one! Get up—the orange grove needs help!"
"Ugh! Nojiko! Not again!"
Nami grabbed a pillow and covered her head.
"I want to go to sea! To sea! I refuse to spend my life growing oranges!"
On Nami's first day back, Nojiko had been incredibly gentle with her.
By the second day, Nojiko's gentleness had faded considerably.
By the... day.
The two sisters were already sick of each other.
Smack!
Nojiko strode forward and delivered a sharp slap to Nami's backside, producing a crisp sound.
"Get up now! If we don't grow oranges, what will you eat? What will I eat? Drinking seawater won't fill your stomach!"
"Ow! That hurts!"
Nami sprang up like a startled cat.
"Nojiko, I'll fight you!"
Just as the sisters were roughhousing...
A sudden thunderclap erupted in the skies above Cocoyasi Village.
BOOM—
The deafening roar made both Nojiko and Nami freeze in place.
"What was that sound? It sounded like cannon fire!"
"No! That was thunder!"
Nami hugged Nojiko, trying to calm her panicked sister, but then a puzzled expression crossed her face.
"That's strange... I checked the weather this morning. It was supposed to be a clear, sunny day. How could there suddenly be thunder?"
Just then, a steady knock knock sounded at the door.
"Nami."
The moment that long-missed voice reached her ears, Nami instantly recognized who it belonged to.
The little cat burglar immediately abandoned her sister and darted to the door with feline agility.
She quickly ran her fingers through her messy hair, straightened her rumpled clothes, took a deep breath, and then pulled open the door.
"Hi~ White Dragon-sama! Good morning!"
"Ugh!"
Storm shuddered at the sickeningly sweet, high-pitched tone of Nami's voice, nearly gagging.
Nojiko, who had followed Nami to the door, also broke out in goosebumps.
"Nami! What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Shut up! Nojiko!"
Nami first turned to glare fiercely at her sister before swiftly spinning back around to face Storm, her face instantly transforming back into a sweet, charming smile.
"White Dragon-sama, are you thirsty? Tired? Would you like some oranges? The ones we grow here are perfectly sweet and tangy—they're the best!"
Ignoring the clearly unhinged Nami, Storm turned his attention to Nojiko instead.
"What's wrong with her? Has her brain not recovered yet?"
Hearing this, Nami's sweet smile faltered for a split second.
Nojiko sighed dramatically.
"Ah... She's always been like this. Completely nuts."
"You're the one who's nuts! You brute!"
Nami didn't dare act up in front of the White Dragon, but she had no problem snapping at her sister.
"No wonder no man in the village wants you!"
"Nami! You've gotten so rude!"
"Nojiko! You're just too uptight!"
Storm watched silently as Nojiko and Nami engaged in their "friendly exchange."
The two sisters started bickering, and before long, their argument escalated into a full-on scuffle.
Storm found the whole scene thoroughly entertaining.
It was a little embarrassing to admit...
But he really enjoyed watching women fight.
In the end, Nojiko was the more rational and mature one.
Before their sisterly "war" could spiral completely out of control, Nojiko seized an opening, wrapping her arm around Nami's neck in a tight headlock.
Clamping Nami's head under her armpit, she hastily apologized to Storm.
"Sorry, Storm-sama. There's just a little issue at home—we'll have it sorted out in no time..."
With that, she forcibly dragged Nami away.
The delightful sisterly brawl Storm had been enjoying vanished before his eyes...
When Nojiko and Nami finally reappeared in front of him, they had both regained their composure.
Though the air between them was still frosty, at least they weren't throwing punches anymore.
What a shame...
Storm sighed inwardly.
"Storm-sama—"
Nojiko started to speak, but Nami immediately cut her off.
"White Dragon-sama! Let's go! I'm fully prepared to set sail!"
"Nami."
Storm said softly,
"You should listen to your sister."
His voice wasn't loud, but it easily subdued the feisty little thief cat.
Nojiko shot Storm a grateful glance and quickly added,
"That's right, Lord Storm. Nami is still far too young—she hasn't even reached adulthood yet—"
Nami interrupted Nojiko again, raising her voice.
"I've been sailing alone on the sea for four years already!"
Nami knew exactly what Nojiko was thinking.
It was nothing more than an excuse to keep her locked up at home because of her age.
How could that be acceptable?
Nami dreamed of charting a map of the entire world.
Such a goal couldn't be achieved by just sitting at home and daydreaming!
She had to set sail!
Sure enough.
Nojiko insisted, "You're too young!"
Nami resisted, "I'm not!"
"You should stay at home for now!"
"I will go to sea! It's my dream!"
The atmosphere between the sisters grew "heated" once more.
But this time, Nojiko and Nami finally remembered they had an important guest present and managed to hold back from coming to blows.
"Hmph!" x2
In the end, the sisters concluded their argument with a single, curt "Hmph!"
One turned her head to the left, the other to the right, acting as if they'd never speak to each other again.
"Miss Nojiko, I understand your concern for Nami," Storm interjected, seeing no further entertainment to be had.
"But Nami is now under my care."
Nojiko's face paled for a moment.
She caught the underlying meaning in the "White Dragon's" words—
Her little sister would be taken away...
Nami noticed Nojiko's pallor from the corner of her eye.
But given their earlier argument, she said nothing, silently whispering an apology in her heart.
'Nojiko… I have to go to sea. Please don't stop me… I'm sorry…'
Storm continued,
"Would you like to hear my plans for Nami?"
Nojiko took a deep breath.
"Please, go ahead."
"I also think Nami is still too young, and her knowledge is somewhat lacking."
Storm spoke in an utterly matter-of-fact tone.
"First, most of my subordinates are currently training intensively elsewhere.
"Second, I have a territory in the Grand Line, very close to 'Little Sky Island Weatheria'—a renowned island for climate research.
"My plan for Nami is this—strengthen her physique through training, and sharpen her mind with knowledge.
"As for the rest… we'll discuss it when she's older."
As Storm laid out his intentions,
Nojiko's expression visibly brightened.
In contrast, Nami's face turned ashen.
"Lord White Dragon,"
Nami looked up at Storm with pleading eyes.
"I don't want to study… I want to sail..."
"Nami."
Storm fixed his gaze on her and suddenly brought up the verbal contract they'd agreed upon earlier.
"Aren't you my 'slave' now? Or do you intend to refuse your master's orders?"
The little thief cat screamed internally.
Why were a "master's orders" to train and study?!