Late at night, a crescent moon hung high in the sky. Occasional cold gusts of wind blew, bringing a slight chill.
East Blue, on a slope leading into Syrup Village, Tom and the others sat around a campfire, eating grilled fish and discussing their plans.
Because Luffy kept complaining he was hungry, Tom had no choice but to go to the shallow waters by the shore earlier to catch fish.
The fish he caught were just small ones living in the shallows. To satisfy Luffy's extraordinary appetite, Tom had to make several trips back and forth, catching hundreds of fish, most of which ended up in Luffy's stomach.
"You don't have your fishing net anymore, right? How did you catch so many fish?" Nami asked Tom curiously as he ate grilled fish beside her.
"I'm a professional fisherman. I can work without a net. I'm not like you, a half-baked thief," Tom said with a grin. Before Nami could get angry at him, he handed her another freshly grilled fish, silvery-white and crescent-shaped. "This is a Crescent Moon Fish, relatively rare in the East Blue. They usually live in the deep sea and only swim to the shallows occasionally on nights early in the lunar month when the moon is high. They're usually hard to get. I managed to catch one, so it's for you."
"This fish is delicious. It's boneless, and the meat is very tender. See, when it's fully grilled, all the aroma is sealed inside, it doesn't escape. The first bite is the most delicious," Tom said, seeing Nami sitting there blankly, her big eyes just staring at him without speaking or reaching for the fish. He thought she might think the fish wasn't good and added a few more words.
What? This guy can be considerate too? Well, I'll forget about earlier then.
Nami glanced at Tom, slightly lowering her head. The light from the blazing campfire reflected on her pretty face, reddening it, nicely covering up the faint blush of embarrassment on her cheeks.
Just as Nami was about to take the Crescent Moon Fish from Tom, a long arm suddenly stretched over. In a flash, the fish in Tom's hand was gone, leaving only a bare skewer.
"What kind of fish is this? So good!" Luffy said, swallowing the Crescent Moon Fish he'd snatched from Tom in one gulp, licking his lips and looking like he wanted more.
"What are you doing stealing my fish?!" Nami stared dumbly at the empty skewer Tom was still holding out, then immediately erupted. She walked over and gave Luffy a thorough beating.
"WAAH!" Luffy let out a scream, extremely piercing in the quiet night.
Thwack! Thud! Wham!
"These fish are pretty good to eat. Would be even better with some sake, though," Zoro said, seemingly completely unaware of Luffy being beaten up beside him. He scratched his head, took a bite of grilled fish, and spoke with regret.
"Hey, it was just one fish. That woman beat him up like that over it? Is she a devil?" Usopp whispered to Tom, watching in terror as Nami pummeled Luffy into an unrecognizable state.
"Maybe," Tom said, looking at Luffy's swollen, pig-like face and feeling secretly relieved. I've eaten that Crescent Moon Fish a few times before. Good thing I didn't secretly eat it alone this time. Otherwise, if Nami found out, I'd be the one in trouble.
Lady Luck really is on my side.
Tom thought happily, feeling his appetite improve. He ate a few more grilled fish, then patted his stomach contentedly.
Half an hour later, with full stomachs, Tom and the others began discussing the next day's battle plan.
"For those pirates to attack the village from this coast, they have to go through this slope," Usopp said, adding a log to the campfire before continuing. "So as long as we hold this position, the people in the village will be safe."
"That's too simple," Luffy said, rubbing his round belly. Around him were rows of neat fish bones.
Tom and Zoro also nodded in agreement. Holding the high ground on a slope would indeed give them an advantage.
"You guys are underestimating the enemy too much. They have significant numbers. We're only five people. We have to use some strategy," Usopp said very seriously to them.
"Why make it so complicated? Can't we just beat them up?"
"Why make it so complicated? Can't we just cut them down?"
"Why make it so complicated? Can't we just finish them off?"
Luffy, Zoro, and Tom stood side by side, arms crossed, looking at Usopp. They spoke nearly identical words simultaneously, stunning Usopp so much his jaw nearly hit the ground, almost turning him to stone.
"You three idiots! You'll die! You'll definitely die like this! Use your brains a bit more!" Nami bared her terrifying shark-like teeth and yelled at the three of them.
"Aren't we all full already?" Luffy believed being full meant no problem beating up the enemy in the morning.
"It's not a party, so it's okay if there's no alcohol," Zoro believed even without sake, cutting down the enemy in the morning was no problem.
"I already guessed that so-called butler was a pirate earlier, and you didn't believe me then. Now who's the real idiot? Isn't it obvious?" Tom believed having foresight meant no problem finishing off the enemy in the morning.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
Nami without hesitation knocked the three confident ones flat. "Where does that confidence of yours even come from? The opponent is the notoriously vicious Black Cat Pirates of the East Blue. As pirates, you're not even on a wanted poster yet. Get real!"
A few minutes later, Usopp spread a large amount of oil on the middle section of the slope. "Good. Now they won't be able to climb this slope."
"Listen up. Our battle plan is to attack the enemy when they slide down this slope," Usopp said, arms crossed, looking at the oil-slicked slope below.
"That doesn't sound bad," Zoro had no objections to Usopp's plan.
"We have to be careful too, not to slip down ourselves. We'd fall into the trap," Nami said, pointing at the oil on the slope.
"You're really sneaky," Luffy said, crouching and cautiously testing the oil on the slope with his foot.
"Of course. I have full confidence in my sneakiness and my marksmanship," Usopp said with a proud look. "You're looking for crewmates, right? If you don't object, I could reluctantly agree to be your captain. Under the leadership of me, the great Captain Usopp, you'll definitely have a brighter future."
"..."
Luffy, Zoro, Tom, and Nami all fell into silence upon hearing Usopp's words.
"I need to pee," Luffy said, walking away without looking back.
"I'll sleep for a bit," Zoro said with a yawn, walking to the side of a rock, leaning against the cliff face ready to sleep.
"I'll rest," Tom said, lying flat on the ground, looking at the stars twinkling in the night sky.
"It's a bit cold," Nami said, shivering, also moving away from Usopp.
A cold night wind blew. No one paid attention to Usopp standing there alone.
"Your attitude is really hurtful, you know?" Usopp said, deeply affected by their reactions.
Later, Tom asked Usopp about Captain Kuro. He learned the man was called "Kuro of a Hundred Plans," a powerful and cunning pirate in the East Blue who had once single-handedly wiped out an entire Marine warship's combat force.
Three years ago, Kuro had been publicly executed by the Marines, but he was still active and well, proving the man was indeed skilled in schemes and plots, having even fooled the Marines.
"I'm thinking, why don't we just go deal with that butler directly?" Tom asked Usopp, lying spread-eagled on the ground.
"You saw it. Kaya absolutely doesn't believe me. If we just charge into her home to deal with Kuro, Kaya will do everything she can to stop us. I already disappointed her greatly today. I don't want to hurt her again," Usopp said, sitting beside Tom. "As long as we successfully stop the pirates here, Kuro's plan will fail. He'll definitely come here to check the situation. Then, we'll defeat him right here. I won't let him return to the village, to Kaya's side, ever again. That's the best outcome for Kaya."
"I see. Suit yourself. I'm just helping out as a favor anyway," Tom said, hands behind his head, watching the twinkling stars in the night sky. Unknowingly, he fell asleep.
Nami, seeing Tom covered in bandages sleeping on the ground like that, remembered him covered in blood back in Orange Town. Only about twenty days had passed. His wounds weren't healed, and he was about to fight again. Her heart softened, and she thought of an idea.
The next day, the sky began to lighten. In his sleep, Tom felt some commotion around him and heard many clamorous voices.
"There's actually treasure worth five million Berries on that ship! Seize it!"
"But Captain Jango, there's still one person on that ship. What should we do with them?"
"Take the treasure, kill the person on board, and throw them into the sea to feed the fish. When we, the Black Cat Pirates, are attacking, they dare to sleep there as if nothing's wrong? A complete fool. Such a person has no reason to live."
"Yes, Captain Jango!"
Tom heard their conversation. Were they talking about me? And calling me a fool?
He snapped his eyes open and saw a large man wearing a black cat eyepatch raising a sword to chop down at him.
BOOM!
Tom kicked the sword-wielding man, sending him flying out to crash heavily on the shore. "Who called me a fool? Looking for a fight?"
Resting a hand on the side of the ship, Tom got up and saw a large group of men holding swords and wearing black cat eyepatches glaring at him with fierce expressions.
"Who are you?" Jango asked, holding his sharpened rings, taking a few steps forward and looking at Tom by the ship.
"Judging by your looks, you must be the Black Cat Pirates, right? What a coincidence. I have business with you too," Tom said. Seeing a large ship anchored not far away, flying a cat-faced skull pirate flag, he immediately knew who these attackers were.
Though Tom's face was calm, internally he was cursing. What the hell is going on? Why am I here alone? Where the hell are Luffy and Zoro?
What puzzled Tom most was that he clearly remembered not being on this part of the coast last night, but on another part with Usopp and the others. How did everything change after one night's sleep?
But Tom also clearly realized one fact: Usopp and the others had definitely guarded the wrong place. There were two slopes leading into Syrup Village!
At that moment, Luffy and the others waiting for the Black Cat Pirates' attack on the other slope finally realized their mistake.
"Because I saw Kuro meeting his accomplice on this part of the coast, I thought the pirates would land here. They must be attacking the village from the northern slope now. A fifty-fifty chance, and we bet completely on the wrong option," Usopp said urgently. "Running north from here only takes three minutes. The terrain there is similar. We just need to stop the pirates on the slope."
"Right. Zoro, let's hurry! Tom's all alone over there. We need to help him quickly!" Luffy said, looking anxious, and in the blink of an eye, he was gone. Usopp also ran toward the other slope.
"Dammit! It's all your fault, woman, leaving Tom somewhere else! If anything happens to him, I'll cut you down!" Zoro said to Nami, who stood there stunned. He was about to run off when Nami clutched her head, a look of panic on her face. "Oh no!"
Seeing Nami looked genuinely worried, Zoro was about to comfort her, saying Tom should be fine. But before he could speak, Nami said, "Our ship is docked on the northern coast! The treasure on the ship will be stolen by those pirates!"
Seeing the woman worrying about her treasure at a time like this, showing no concern for Tom who might be in danger, Zoro was so shocked his foot slipped. Unfortunately, he stepped onto the oil-slicked path Usopp had prepared earlier. Then he slid down the slope, unable to get up for the moment.
"You idiot! What are you doing?!" Nami yelled, seeing Zoro had fallen into the oil-slicked section. He tried to get up several times but kept slipping. How could he fail at such a critical moment?
"Shut up! It's all your fault! Find a way to get me up!" Zoro shouted, lying face down on the oily path. Seeing the culprit blaming him instead made him furious.
"Figure it out yourself. I need to save my treasure at top speed," Nami said, waving at Zoro down the slope before running off briskly.
"I'm definitely going to kill her!" Zoro said through gritted teeth, slipping on the oil again as he watched Nami's retreating back.
Originally, Zoro had said last night he'd stay with Tom on the other side. But Usopp and Nami had both confidently stated the pirates would logically attack from this side, and there was no need to split their forces, which would actually be detrimental. So they all bet wrong, screwing Tom over.
"Why are you opposing us, the Black Cat Pirates?" Jango asked, seeing Tom was alone yet had stopped all his men. Remembering Kuro's warning not to mess up the plan, he started to feel anxious.
"Who knows? Maybe I just don't like the look of you. Satisfied with that answer?" Tom said, knocking down two pirates who charged at him.
Despite Tom's relaxed expression, he was still full of confusion. Can someone explain why I'm the only one guarding here? Is everyone else just slacking off?
Tom had no idea that after he accidentally fell asleep last night, Nami thought it necessary to let him, the injured one, rest properly. She told Luffy they should move Tom back to the ship; he didn't need to participate in this fight.
After a brief discussion, even Usopp agreed Tom didn't need to fight—first because his old injuries weren't healed, and second because he was only good at fishing, which Usopp thought offered limited help.
So that's how it ended up: Tom sleeping comfortably alone on the ship, while Luffy and the others prepared for battle.
But reality often surprises. The result was Tom alone fighting the Black Cat Pirates first, while Luffy and the others were still not in position.
How did it turn out like this? The one time I show concern for him, I end up harming him instead. But there are only two slopes leading to the village—a fifty percent chance. That guy's luck with misfortune is really strong.
Nami was frantic internally, running desperately toward the northern slope...
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T/N :
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