Staring at Will's towering figure ahead, Nami walked forward while silently praying in her heart:
"Buggy the Clown, your strength better be enough."
"Otherwise, you won't be able to stall Will for long..."
After seeing how effortlessly Will had taken down Toregai, Nami had briefly considered using the money she had painstakingly saved over the years to ask him to take care of Arlong for her.
But after a night of careful deliberation on the ship, she ultimately abandoned the idea.
No one understood Arlong and his crew's strength better than she did.
Each of those fish-men possessed monstrous strength far surpassing that of humans. And as their leader, Arlong's power was even more terrifying.
Lifting an entire house with one hand, slicing through a building with his jagged saw blade—such feats were effortless for him.
So even though Will was strong, he couldn't dispel the deep-seated fear she had of Arlong.
She had witnessed too many humans die at the hands of Arlong and his crew.
Maybe Arlong was right after all—humans could never defeat fish-men.
If Will failed to defeat Arlong, not only would he lose his life, but the entire village would suffer the consequences.
If she truly sought Will's help, she couldn't just stand idly by in the shadows, waiting for the results.
And if they failed to kill Arlong and his men, even if Arlong spared her, he would undoubtedly take his wrath out on the village as punishment and warning.
She couldn't take that risk.
Besides, she was so close—just a little more money, and she'd have the 100 million Berries needed to fulfill her deal with Arlong and buy back the village.
There was no reason to gamble everything.
Thus, she decided to stick to her original plan and keep Will and Karina out of this mess.
All she had to do was find a way to shake them off.
Her proposal to come to Orange Town was merely a diversion, using the Buggy Pirates to distract Will and create an opportunity for her to slip away unnoticed.
And if she could snatch some treasure from either the Buggy Pirates or Will in the process—well, that would be even better.
Thinking of this, a faint smirk played on Nami's lips, her eyes betraying a mix of tension and anticipation.
Karina, walking beside her, subtly observed her shifting expression and couldn't help but smile to herself.
However, she said nothing, simply shifting her gaze away—evidently, she had her own plans as well.
The trio walked through the silent streets of the town, noticing that all the houses were eerily empty.
Yet, there were no corpses, no bloodstains, not even significant signs of battle.
If it weren't for the fact that the townspeople had vanished, this place wouldn't look like it had been invaded by pirates at all.
Karina was surprised. "Didn't expect the Buggy Pirates to occupy the town without slaughtering and pillaging."
"That doesn't quite match their reputation."
By now, Nami had already regained her composure and replied indifferently, "Who knows? Maybe the townspeople evacuated in time, leaving the Buggy Pirates no one to prey on."
"Hmm, that's possible." Karina nodded in agreement.
After all, in her experience, pirates who didn't loot or kill were practically nonexistent.
She had never met one before.
Will, walking ahead, listened to their conversation in silence, lost in thought.
They continued deeper into the town, still encountering no one—no signs of life, no corpses, and hardly any damage to the buildings.
When they arrived at the entrance of a tavern, Will suddenly stopped.
He had already used his Observation Haki to scan the entire town and pinpoint the Buggy Pirates' exact location.
So, the noise coming from inside didn't surprise him in the slightest.
He pushed open the door and ducked slightly to enter, straightening up as he swept his gaze around the room.
A group of pirates sat drinking and laughing.
The moment he entered, his towering figure, hands in pockets, exuding an aura of cold indifference, made him look anything but approachable.
The pirates' movements froze, and the room instantly fell silent, their eyes filled with malice and wariness.
Ignoring their stares, Will coldly scanned the room and asked in a low, commanding voice:
"Who's the strongest fighter here?"
A heavy silence settled over the tavern.
Then, one pirate suddenly slammed the table, gripping a bottle of liquor in one hand as he forced out a loud declaration:
"The strongest, of course, is our Captain Buggy!"
After speaking, his eyes instinctively darted upward.
The thought of their 'invincible' captain being right upstairs instantly bolstered his confidence, and his bravado grew, his expression turning fierce.
"You've got a death wish, barging in here alone to challenge the Buggy Pirates!"
Will, already paying close attention, immediately caught the crucial clue from the man's reaction.
Combined with what his Observation Haki sensed, he was now certain—Buggy was here.
Without wasting another word, Will vanished in a blur.
A cacophony of cracking bones, crashing bodies, and agonized screams erupted.
Like a conductor orchestrating a symphony, Will controlled the tempo of their suffering with his fists.
Nami and Karina, arriving just a moment later, stepped through the door only to find Will effortlessly pummeling a room full of pirates.
They froze momentarily before exchanging a glance, barely fazed, as they stood by the entrance, watching Will's display of violent efficiency.
Moments later, after tossing aside a pirate who was foaming at the mouth, blood trickling from his lips, Will finally turned to them.
Karina lightly patted his solid arm and asked curiously, "You're not even keeping one alive to ask about their captain's location?"
Will's gaze lifted, as if piercing through the ceiling above them.
"Buggy the Clown is right upstairs."
"Let's go see just how terrifying this so-called legend really is."
With that, he turned and headed straight for the staircase.
Though Nami and Karina didn't understand how Will could be so certain, they didn't dwell on it.
They quickly followed him up the stairs.
Step by step, the trio ascended toward the rooftop.
As they neared the top, the raucous sounds of laughter, shouting, and drunken revelry grew louder, echoing from above.
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