"Noah, Nami... Even Nojiko and Merida."
When Nami and I got off Pegasus, we ended up bumping into Tashigi.
She looked conflicted. And I understood why.
"Don't think too much, Tashigi." I said: "Half a year ago, didn't I tell you something like this could happen?"
"This is..." She looks around.
"It's Nami, the Lady of the Fire Fist, and Noah, the Killer Magician!" a marine said out loud.
However, no one ran.
I lied, a smaller group of pirates turned pale and ran away as soon as they heard that.
"Idiot, did you forget what they did for your sister?" the marine next to him smacked his head.
The marine looked pained as he said: "But... isn't he a wanted criminal now?"
Sighing, I didn't want to make things harder.
"ZIIIIINNNNNNNN!"
Lifting my eyes, an invisible wave passed through those few marines.
One by one, they started to faint.
"Kyahhhhhh!"
Women screamed while men showed fear.
"D-Did they all die?"
"Don't worry, I just put them to sleep for a bit." I reminded Tashigi, gently.
"Noah, I need to..."
I interrupted her: "No need to explain, I understand. Just do what you have to do."
At the same time, on the magic carpet, Nojiko and Merida arrived.
Drawing my sword, which I got from the cards, the sword of Mulan. Its blade is silver, while its hilt is golden with some black details and a dragon's face.
I handed the Hook to Nami to hold.
By the way, besides me, no one I met was able to use the Hook.
--
--
[POV – Third Person]
"He showed up?" Smoker, with two cigars in his mouth, asked.
The marine with the navy hat replied: "Yes! Petty Officer Tashigi confronted him near the port."
"That idiot." Smoker stood up, going to the window: "Alright, I'm going."
Opening it, Smoker simply shot out of the window, flying.
...
"Bang!"
At the metallic sound, Noah and Tashigi clashed again, attacking very fast.
Those who were ordinary people could barely see it, looking impressed as if they were witnessing something unbelievable.
"Noah, surrender, I swear on my sword, Shigure, that I'll try to clear your names." Tashigi said: "Resisting will only make things worse."
"It's no use, Tashigi." Noah said, stopping his attacks: "Such a scenario of our names being cleared won't happen unless we submit to the government and become their loyal dogs. And that's something that's not going to happen."
"Tashigi." From afar, Smoker's voice was heard.
He was flying with the lower half of his body in smoke form.
"Yoh, Smoker." Noah greeted him.
"Noah." Smoker stopped next to Tashigi, looking at Noah in a complicated way: "In the end, everything is happening just like you said back then."
"Haha, it's not like I wished for this." Noah laughed carefreely.
"True." Smoker bit his cigars between his lips. Taking a drag, he said while sweeping his eyes across Nami, Nojiko, and Merida: "You know I can't turn a blind eye even if it's you guys, right?"
"Smoker, no offense, but, have you ever beaten me before?" Nami stepped forward.
"Nami." Tashigi said her name with sadness in her voice.
"Tashigi, don't look at me like that." Nami said: "In the end, what had to happen happened and... I'm okay with it."
Of course, being okay doesn't mean she didn't disdain the system that claims to protect people but is capable of massacring hundreds of thousands and blaming others.
Now they were the ones who took the blame, next time who will it be?
If it means being part of a group ruled by egocentrics who call themselves justice but are the world's biggest cancer, it's better to live as an outlaw.
At least now she was okay with her own conscience.
"Noah, I'll deal with Smoker." Nami said, this time handing the Hook to Nojiko.
"Okay." Noah agreed.
"Nami, it's different now, you know that." Smoker held his Nanashaku Jitte.
"I know you're confident because of that weapon made from sea stone, but..." Nami vanished before his eyes.
Smoker couldn't be more surprised, before, Nami would turn invisible, but her clothes didn't.
However, this time even her clothes disappeared.
What he didn't realize was that, at the moment she began to disappear, she used a hat that she took from her shoulder bag.
This hat only makes a person partially invisible, but she only wanted to use this partiality to make her clothes invisible while she herself could go invisible.
Smoker made a wave of smoke expand in all directions as he stepped on the ground.
When the figure of someone appeared within this smoke, he attacked with his Nanashaku Jitte.
"Got you," he said.
Bang!
Upon hitting the target, Smoker felt like he had struck a hard steel plate.
"Haki?" he murmured.
But then he saw that he hadn't hit Nami, but rather one of her abilities, which he had seen her use to create a kind of almost invisible shield.
Nami suddenly appeared in the air. She revealed herself willingly. At that moment, she hovered on top of a platform made with her Telekinetic Force Field.
In her hands, balls of fire had been condensed.
Bang!
Meanwhile, Noah and Tashigi pulled back after a quick exchange of blows.
"You've improved," Noah praised her with a smile.
"...If it were before, I'd be overjoyed to hear that from you." She sighed.
"Oh? Does that mean my opinion no longer matters to you?" Noah asked.
"N-No, that's not it!" She got flustered, her eyes looked down, then back at him: "It's just that... I'm not happy at all with this situation."
"You know, Tashigi. This conversation we're having now, even the way it's happening, this isn't the first time for me." Noah said.
"What do you mean?" She tightened her grip around the sword hilt.
"Coming here, I imagined all of this over and over again. Just like what I would do, what I would say, and how I would act." Noah said with a small smile: "So I tell you this, not because I'm wise, but because I already have a ready answer for what you said."
"Tashigi. You're not to blame. Even if people on your side made us villains, blamed us for something we didn't do, they are them, and you are you. Don't carry the guilt for something you didn't do. Just keep doing what you believe is right."
He continued: " And if one day you feel like you can't take so much injustice anymore, there's no problem in walking away from it all. And if you have nowhere to go, you can come to me, and I'll welcome you with open arms."
"Hey, Noah, stop trying to seduce her," Smoker said. "And, Tashigi, don't let yourself be fooled by his pretty face."
Noah still smiled as he said: "Smoker, that goes for you too. If one day you can't take it anymore and want to give up everything, as someone I consider a friend, you can come to me."
"Don't be mistaken, kid," Smoker said. "I know where I've stepped and I know not everything is as it's painted, but that won't make me give up so easily."
"Smoker, I understand your sense of justice, but one day I believe you'll understand that justice doesn't need to be tied to a group itself." Noah said. "I thought and thought, and in the end, I understood. It's easier to do something good without being in the Marines or under the World Government."
"Really?" Tashigi seemed surprised.
"Bastard..." Smoker increased the pressure of his bite on his cigars until they broke.
He grabbed new ones and lit them.
"Of course it is. Tell me, in all of East Blue, who else has caught more pirates in this past year and a half?" Noah asked. "Who has saved more people?"
"It was you..." Tashigi answered immediately, but not very loudly.
Noah just smiled.
Yes, that was it.
Throughout all of East Blue, no one had helped more people than them in this year and a half.
Whether by capturing pirates, giving Sea Kings to starving people, etc.
Besides their island, there were other islands where people were being enslaved or even expelled from their cities. However, the Marines did nothing about it, while a small group did all of this in a short period of 1 year and a half.
That's exactly why it's hard to find pirates nowadays in East Blue.
It's also because of that the Marines mainly wanted to recruit them.
The credit for doing all that should go to them... Or so they must think.
"Now, we're heading to Paradise. Where pirates are crueler and roam more freely." Noah opened his arms: "But not for long!"
Tashigi's body trembled.
Saying that she wasn't moved would be a lie.
But becoming an outlaw... That was...
"Wretch..." Smoker finally understood why it had been so easy to find Noah.
The truth was that he never wanted to go unnoticed, he wanted to be found. Or to be more precise, he wanted to find Tashigi.
Smoker began to notice, in that brief moment, many things.
Noah's words — simple, at times, but full of meaning — always left something hanging in the air.
One of them was: 'Is justice really on the side of the Marines and the World Government?'
At the time, he treated it as words spoken by a child who didn't understand the truth, but over time, even knowing what he knew, he began to doubt.
And, looking at Tashigi and the conversations he had with her, Smoker knew that she had been even more influenced by Noah.
As Smoker seemed like he wanted to say something, two balls of fire flew toward him, forcing him to divert his attention.
Smoker managed to defend against one, but had to dodge the other.
While for Nami it seemed simple, Smoker had to put in more effort.
The reality was that, by common standards, Nami's fruit was far superior to Smoker's. Although that's not what defines someone's strength, Nami wasn't just a pretty face.
And using the advantage of being in the air, attacking from a distance while Smoker could only defend himself, he was at a disadvantage.
He could fly, but it wasn't a very wise choice.
Meanwhile, Nojiko lost interest and said to Merida: "Merida, while they're at it, let's go shopping."
After giving one last look, Merida nodded: "Yes."
Nojiko looked at Pegasus: "Pegasus, come with us."
Neighing, Pegasus hesitated, but Noah said: "Go with them."
Reluctantly, Pegasus went with them.
Smoker, who saw them leave, didn't say a single word. And he didn't have time to, either — Nami kept firing ball after ball of fire in his direction.
He felt as if he were in a war zone with fiery attacks constantly raining down.
The real problem came when she put her nickname into practice. Throwing punches in the air, each punch generated a fist of flames that was launched toward him at great speed.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
Each time the fireballs hit the target, a loud sound echoed.
Meanwhile, the people from before had already taken a safe distance.