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In the Pluton's brig, Nami stared in surprise at the other woman sharing her cell.
"Hey, how'd you end up here? Did you try to steal from them too?" Nami asked Hina.
"Hina doesn't speak to thieves." Hina glanced at Nami with undisguised disdain.
She clearly looked down on Nami—after all, in Hina's eyes, this girl was just a common thief. As a Marine, Hina despised thieves even more than pirates. At least pirates had so twisted honor—thieves were just pathetic.
"..." Nami was instantly annoyed. We're both prisoners! Nᴇw novel chapters are publɪshed on novel·fiɾe·net
"You're a Marine?"
Nami suddenly noticed the Justice coat Hina wore.
"Hina already said she won't talk to thieves. Stop bothering Hina."
Nami was genuinely pissed now. So what if you're a Marine? You still got captured, didn't you? Besides, Nami harbored no love for the Marines.
The reason, of course, was the Marines' inaction. If the Marines were really doing their job, her hotown wouldn't have fallen into Arlong's hands.
Though her adoptive mother had been a Marine, that didn't an Nami respected the organization. Not all Marines were like Bell-mère.
"A Marine reduced to being captured by pirates—how pathetic," Nami couldn't help but say.
Her words hit their mark, making Hina flush with anger and sha. It was humiliating, but being called out by a petty thief made it infinitely worse.
"Say that again and Hina will make you regret it." Hina glared furiously at Nami.
"Am I wrong?" Nami wasn't intimidated. In her mind, they were equals here. Both prisoners with no advantages over the other—why should she care if Hina got angry?
Hina turned away, refusing to engage further. She'd clearly lost the verbal sparring match and chose silence over further embarrassnt.
Seeing Hina go quiet, Nami found herself bored. At least arguing with the Marine woman had been entertaining.
After a long silence, Nami finally couldn't stand it anymore. Her eyes gleaming with sudden inspiration, she turned to Hina. "How about we team up and escape?"
The suggestion made Hina's heart skip—she'd be lying if she said the idea didn't tempt her.
But the temptation lasted only a mont before reality crushed it.
It wasn't that Hina didn't want to escape, but she knew very well that escaping was impossible.
She knew exactly who had captured her—Shin Uzumaki, one of the Four Emperors. Escaping from him was a fantasy.
Besides, these Seastone cuffs weren't coming off. Could this girl remove them? If she could open them, maybe there'd be a sliver of hope. But this thief clearly lacked that ability.
————
"Hey, why aren't you saying anything?"
Nami frowned when Hina's eyes briefly lit up before dimming again.
Why the silent treatnt?
Don't tell she actually wants to stay locked up in here?
"Hina advises you to save your energy. You're never escaping." Hina glanced at Nami dismissively.
Hina was 100% sure that Nami had no ability to escape.
"How do you know without trying?"
Nami refused to give up. Being locked up forever would drive her insane. Plus, she still needed to save her village.
"You've got guts, I'll give you that. Stealing from the Kuja Pirates—Hina's impressed. Though your delusions about escaping are laughable."
Hina snorted.
She might dislike this thief, but the girl's audacity was noteworthy. Robbing a Four Emperor's crew took serious nerve—or complete ignorance.
"The Kuja Pirates? Never heard of them. They can't be famous in the East Blue."
Now Nami understood which pirate crew this was, though she'd never heard of them.
"You said this is the East Blue?"
Hina was caught off guard by Nami's words. She hadn't expected them to already be in the East Blue. It had only been a few days since her capture, yet they had made it there already—the speed was astonishing.
Nami paused, then asked, "You're from another sea?"
"Hina was captured by that bastard Shin Uzumaki in the Grand Line. Been locked up here ever since."
Hina's anger flared when ntioning Shin.
"The Grand Line—you're from the legendary Grand Line?" Nami had heard stories about that sea of powerful pirates and Marines.
Arlong had co from there. Learning Hina was from the Grand Line, Nami imdiately wanted information.
"Have you heard of Arlong?"
"Arlong?" Hina was slightly stunned.
"He's a pirate. A fish-man."
"Oh, I've heard of him. Word is he went to the East Blue. Just so nobody pirate—a forr Sun Pirates mber."
The Sun Pirates were also known as the Fish-Man Pirates, a crew founded by Fisher Tiger after he liberated the slaves. Both Jinbe and Arlong had served under that banner.
"Nobody pirate?" Nami's face filled with confusion. Are you kidding ?
To Nami, Arlong was invincible—her personal nightmare. Yet Hina dismissed him as insignificant.
"So, he's not as good as the Kuja Pirates?" Nami continued to ask Hina.
Hina nearly laughed. Comparing Arlong to the Kuja Pirates? That's like comparing a candle to the sun.
"They're not even in the sa league. Hina thinks your perspective is way too narrow," Hina said, looking at Nami like she was so backwoods hick.
How naive could soone be to even suggest such a comparison? Arlong and the Kuja Pirates weren't even worth ntioning in the sa sentence.
"So there really are people stronger than Arlong..." Nami murmured, her eyes lighting up with possibility. If they were that powerful, maybe she could ask for help.
But reality quickly crushed that hope. Why would they help her?
She was just a captured thief. She'd be lucky to keep her life.
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