Fate doesn't make mistakes, but it does play tricks on people.
The person who fell from the sky turned out to be Bai Yun, and Bai Yun was not as naive as Luffy.
Nami's eyes lit up, and just as she was thinking of a big scapegoat she could pin the blame on, Bai Yun spoke first.
"Boss!"
"I'm here to back you up, Boss!"
With that, he snatched the Grand Line map from Nami's hand.
His speed even shocked Nami, the 'Cat Burglar'.
It wasn't over; after snatching the map, Bai Yun took off running.
"Boss!"
"So you're organized! You thieving hag!"
Nami watched Bai Yun's retreating figure, and from behind, Buggy's subordinates' menacing voices reached her.
Looking at the shadow on the ground, Nami swallowed hard and immediately tried to bolt as well.
But the leading burly man instantly grabbed the back of her collar, sealing her fate.
"Still trying to escape!"
"You stinking hag!"
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. The burly man raised his fist and brought it down. Nami could only close her eyes in despair.
Just as the fist was about to hit Nami's face,
she heard, "Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Three gunshots rang out, and Nami lost her balance and fell to the ground. Opening her eyes, she saw three burly men, one clutching his hand, and the other two clutching their legs, lying on the ground wailing.
Her eyes were filled with confusion, shock, and lingering fear.
"Oh dear, my boss, why are you in such a sorry state?"
"Shall I help you up?"
Bai Yun walked back, bent down, and extended his hand to Nami.
Nami turned to look at him, scanning his waist and hands, but saw no sign of a gun.
"Slap!"
"No need!"
Recovering, Nami slapped Bai Yun's hand away and stood up on her own.
Bai Yun smiled, unfazed, and straightened up... "Who exactly are you?"
"Who's your boss! Give me back the map!"
Nami directly reached out to snatch the map from Bai Yun's hand. Bai Yun dodged, and Nami almost fell.
"You scoun..."
Just as Nami was about to curse, Bai Yun handed the map to her.
"My name is Bai Yun."
"If you want it, just take it. Why bother snatching it? I can't read it anyway."
Nami paused slightly, then took the map back with force.
"At least you're sensible."
"..."
"Were those three shots you fired just now?"
"Why didn't I see a gun on you?"
After putting away the map, Nami remembered the gunshots from earlier.
Besides her and Buggy's three subordinates, only Bai Yun was left. Who else could it have been?
Bai Yun didn't answer, but instead stared at the sky. A target appeared, and he instantly fired a shot.
The large bird that had carried him here immediately fell from the sky, landing not far from the two of them.
"I was waiting for you."
"You dared to come back!"
Bai Yun grumbled as he looked at the bird's corpse.
Nami, on the other hand, watched the gun appear and disappear in Bai Yun's hand. She rubbed her eyes, wondering if she had seen wrong.
"Let's go, find a place to cook it. I'm a bit hungry."
By the time Nami reacted, Bai Yun had already dragged the bird's corpse over.
"Ah... okay.."
..."Soup's ready!"
Looking at Bai Yun's back, Nami hadn't expected him to actually cook.
While she was still guessing his identity, Bai Yun turned around, placed a pot of soup on the table, untied his apron, and sat down.
Nami scooped a bowl of soup and, with a smile, was about to take it when Bai Yun started drinking it himself.
Her smile and the movement of her hand froze in embarrassment.
"..."
She indignantly scooped a bowl for herself.
Hmm? It's quite tasty.
That was Nami's first thought after taking a sip.
"Ahem, I haven't introduced myself yet."
"My name is Nami, a thief specializing in stealing from pirates."
"This town has been occupied by the pirate Buggy the Clown. Everyone has gone to the shelter, which is why you don't see anyone around now."
"And this Grand Line map is what I stole from Buggy."
"My goal is to accumulate 100 million Berries."
"Only by going to the Grand Line and stealing treasure from more great pirates will I have a chance to collect 100 million Berries."
"With your amazing marksmanship, consider this: let's cooperate and make a fortune."
"After it's done... we'll split it 80/20. I get eighty, you get twenty. After all, you can't navigate, but I can. I'll put in more effort, so I'll take more money. No problem, right?"
After drinking half a bowl of soup, Nami put down the bowl and introduced herself, wanting a free bodyguard.
After speaking, she picked up the bowl again and continued drinking the soup. She was thirsty from all the talking and waited for Bai Yun's answer.
Bai Yun secretly chuckled to himself, 80/20 split? Do I look like a big fool, Miss Nami?
"A thief specializing in stealing from pirates."
"Should I be afraid then?"
Bai Yun's answer was miles away from what Nami wanted to hear.
"What do you mean?"
"Because I'm also a pirate."
Bai Yun replied calmly.
Nami's eyes involuntarily widened.
"So you're a pirate too!"
"Then everything I just said doesn't count!"
"All pirates are the same, you damn scoundrels!"
Bai Yun calmly finished his soup, looked up at Nami, and said with a smiling expression,
"Don't be so quick to judge, Miss Nami."
...
A/N: The journey continues! If you're eager to read far ahead and support this story, consider joining the Eternal Phoenix community. You can find me on Patreon by searching for "Eternal_Phoenix".
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