"How can this be?!"
"It's absolutely impossible!"
"He must have warned Arlong in advance, made him leave, and then set all this up!"
"Roya, you have to believe us! He's definitely lying to you!"
Tears were already welling up in Nami's eyes.
Nojiko, standing beside her, gently tugged at Nami's sleeve, her heart filled with frustration.
At this moment, Nojiko spoke to Roya. "Sir Roya, could you please check Rat Shang Xiao's office? He must have the Berries he extorted from us there!"
"Enough! Do you really think you can toy with the Admiral like this?"
"Stop."
Roya said softly.
He crouched down in front of Nami and Nojiko, gently ruffling the two girls' hair.
Feeling Roya's warm hand on her head, Nami looked up at him and said, "Believe us, we're not lying to you. If even you can't see through Rat Shang Xiao's disguise, then Cocoyasi Village is truly..."
Before Nami could finish, Rat Shang Xiao cut in, "Do you really think the Admiral will believe you again? You little liars!"
Ignoring Rat, Roya looked at the two girls and silently mouthed a single sentence to them.
Before the girls could react...Roya stood up and said to Kensuke beside him, "You should know these two girls, right? Take them back, and make sure to teach them a lesson—lying is a bad habit."
"I'll take them back right away."
"Kensuke" walked over from behind the crowd, took Nami and Nojiko by the hand, and led them toward the village.
The girls were still pondering Roya's words, wondering what he had meant by them.
At the same time, they glanced curiously at the "Kensuke" beside them.
For some reason, they felt there was something off about this "Kensuke."
Rat Shang Xiao also found it strange.
Watching Kensuke, Rat Shang Xiao thought to himself, When did he get here? I didn't even notice. Or was I just careless?
Just then, Rat Shang Xiao's Den Den Mushi rang.
"Brrr brrr~"
After listening to the report, Rat Shang Xiao turned to Roya and said, "Sir, the supplies have been fully replenished."
"Already done? Then it's time for us to leave."
Kalifa nodded beside him and followed Roya back onto the warship.
As the warship gradually sailed away, Rat Shang Xiao burst into laughter. "Hahahaha! Those two are finally gone! That really scared me just now!"
But recalling Nami and Nojiko's earlier actions, he felt nothing but rage burning in his chest.
Picking up the Den Den Mushi, Rat contacted Arlong. "Arlong, you reacted fast. I never thought someone as proud as you would actually take your fishmen and flee temporarily, even leaving a few people behind to put on a show. Impressive!"
"I just happened to be away, that's all."
Arlong would never admit he was afraid of an Admiral's power!
Rat didn't press further, simply recounting what had just happened.
Upon hearing Rat's words, Arlong flew into a rage and immediately said, "Wait there for me. I'll come find you right away, and then I'll crush those two girls to death!"
——
On the warship, Kalifa said to Roya, "Roya, do you really believe what Rat Shang Xiao said? Cocoyasi Village clearly seems off."
"Of course not. But if what those two girls said is true, the Arlong Pirates should still be around. They probably fled because of our arrival, so we need to leave temporarily to draw them out."
Roya added, "Otherwise, just dealing with Rat Shang Xiao would only be treating the symptoms, not the root cause."
"Then we'll return later? But won't those two girls be in danger?"
Kalifa was worried Rat might kill the girls in a fit of anger.
"So, Kalifa, I'll leave the warship to you now!"
With that, Roya's figure shattered.
Watching the Phantom dissipate before her, Kalifa froze in place.
She shook her head, thinking to herself that Roya's abilities were becoming more and more mysterious.
It was impossible to make sense of them!
——
Meanwhile, Nami, still holding "Kensuke's" hand, suddenly realized what Roya had mouthed to her earlier.
"Hey… you're Roya, aren't you?"
As she spoke, Nami's heart pounded with nervousness—and anticipation.Nojiko looked at "Kensuke" in disbelief after hearing Nami's words, then turned to her sister and said, "Nami, what are you talking about? This is clearly Uncle Kensuke."
"But you can use abilities too, right?!"
Nami's large, bright eyes stared intently at the person holding her hand.
The so-called "Uncle Kensuke" smirked slightly as the Phantom covering him dissipated, revealing Roya's true form.
Though Nami had felt she wasn't mistaken, seeing Roya actually standing before her still filled her with excitement.
With an enthusiastic leap, Nami clung to Roya's waist like a pendant. Her beautiful eyes gazed up at him as she said, "Roya, you really do believe in us, don't you!"
Seeing Nami's impulsive behavior, Nojiko quickly interjected, "Nami, you mustn't be disrespectful to Lord Roya. Get down at once."
Roya shook his head slightly at Nojiko before addressing both girls: "My purpose in coming to this island was to deal with Nezumi and the Arlong Pirates."
"So you believed in us from the very beginning!"
Nami's eyes sparkled with realization.
"Of course. Though what surprised me was that Arlong wasn't in Arlong Park at the time."
Quick-witted as ever, Nami's eyes darted as she asked, "So Roya, was that your double just now?"
"More precisely, a Phantom. But enough talk—we just need to wait in your room now for our prey to arrive!"
Nami nodded vigorously, her gaze at Roya brimming with admiration.
Simultaneously, her heart overflowed with a profound sense of security—a feeling she hadn't experienced in so long.
It had to be said, this sensation of safety was truly addictive.
Clutching Roya's fingers tightly, Nami felt indescribable joy.
Meanwhile, Nezumi and Arlong had already joined forces and were rapidly approaching Nami and Nojiko's residence...