"Let's see if you find this funny! Koku Arashi Sai!" Nami's voice, sharp and focused, cut through the chaos.
She had launched herself forward with a surprising burst of speed, the ground blurring beneath her. Her training with KF23, the endless drills on explosive movement and core power, kicked in instinctively. Her body was low, a coiled spring of intent, her right fist aimed squarely at Buggy's ridiculously painted, unsuspecting gut.
Buggy, who had been entirely focused on his grand moment of revenge against Luffy, turned his head with a look of comical surprise, his wide, painted smile faltering. "Nani?! The little thie— GWAAAHH!"
Nami's fist connected. It wasn't just a punch; it was the culmination of a "year's" worth of focused effort, a direct application of the 'Black Gale Breaker' technique. The impact wasn't just on Buggy's torso; it was a shockwave that seemed to ripple through his segmented body. His eyes bulged. A sound like a deflating whoopee cushion escaped his lips. His upper body, from the waist up, separated from his legs and shot backwards with surprising velocity, tumbling end over end through the air like a discarded carnival prop before crashing into a nearby fruit stall with a splintering crunch and a shower of oranges.
His legs, however, remained standing comically in place for a second, wobbling slightly, before collapsing in a heap.
[Combat Technique 'Koku Arashi Sai' successfully executed! Significant impact on Devil Fruit user (Segmented Human)! Opponent Disoriented! GP Earned: +80]
Nami skidded to a halt, panting slightly, her knuckles smarting. A jolt of fierce satisfaction shot through her. It worked! It actually worked! Eighty GP! That was more than some of the individual training drills!
Luffy, still locked in the stocks on the platform, let out a hearty laugh. "Shishishi! Nice one, Nami! You hit him so hard he came apart!"
"This is no time for compliments, you idiot!" Nami yelled back, though a grin tugged at her lips. Her gaze immediately snapped to the lever Buggy had been about to pull. She had to stop it.
But before she could take another step, a squad of Marines, who had been momentarily stunned by the sudden, effective assault on the infamous Buggy, finally reacted.
"It's the Straw Hat Pirates! She's with him! Subdue her!" a Marine sergeant bellowed, drawing his saber. Several Marines, rifles leveled, charged towards Nami.
Nami's eyes narrowed. Her training kicked in again. Multiple opponents. Confined space. Need to create an opening.
"Hmph. Fodder," she muttered, echoing a sentiment she'd often heard from Zoro. She sidestepped the first Marine's clumsy bayonet thrust, the movement fluid and economical, a far cry from her previous, often panicked evasions. As he stumbled past, she pivoted.
"Tasogare Kiba! (Twilight Fang!)"
Her elbow, hard and precise, slammed into the side of the Marine's exposed neck, right on a pressure point KF23 had drilled into her memory. The Marine grunted, his eyes rolling up, and crumpled to the ground, his rifle clattering beside him.
[Combat Technique 'Twilight Fang' successfully executed! Opponent Incapacitated! GP Earned: +15]
Two more Marines lunged. Nami ducked under a wild sword swing, the wind of its passage ruffling her hair. She spun low, her leg sweeping out in a movement that was the nascent form of the 'Silent Typhoon Step,' not quite the full technique but enough to knock the Marine off balance. As he flailed, she brought her other hand up in a sharp palm heel strike – another 'Twilight Fang' – to his chin. He went down.
The third Marine hesitated, clearly unnerved by how quickly his comrades had been dispatched.
Nami didn't give him time to recover. She closed the distance, feinting a punch to his face, then dropped low again, channeling her momentum. "Muon Taifū Kyaku! (Silent Typhoon Step!)" This time, the technique flowed more smoothly. She spun, a blur of orange and denim, and her right leg lashed out in a rising kick that connected solidly with the Marine's sternum. He was lifted off his feet, gasping for air, before crashing onto his back, out cold.
[Combat Technique 'Silent Typhoon Step' successfully executed! Opponent Launched and Incapacitated! GP Earned: +30]
[Skill Proficiency 'Silent Typhoon Step': Competent → Competent+]
It's working! Nami thought, a surge of adrenaline and something akin to exhilaration coursing through her. I can actually fight!
Meanwhile, across Loguetown, the other Straw Hats were having their own encounters.
Zoro, his patience worn thin by the prattling sword shop owner and Tashigi's increasingly accusatory lecture about the sanctity of Meito, had finally had enough.
"...and furthermore," Tashigi was saying, her finger jabbing towards Wado Ichimonji, "a blade of its caliber should be used to uphold justice, not to line the pockets of a common cutthroat!"
"Look, four-eyes," Zoro growled, his hand tightening on Wado's hilt. "I got this sword fair and square. It chose me. And I don't care what some pencil-pushing Marine thinks about it." He turned back to the shopkeeper, who was cowering behind his counter. "Forget it. You got nothing here but overpriced junk and annoying parrots." He spotted the Sandai Kitetsu and Yubashiri again, their presence a strange pull. "How much for those two?" he asked, pointing.
The shopkeeper, seeing a chance to offload the cursed Kitetsu, brightened. "Ah, a discerning eye! The Sandai Kitetsu, a Wazamono grade sword, but… it has a bit of a reputation. Cursed, they say! Brings misfortune to its wielders!"
Zoro smirked. "Cursed, huh? I like a challenge." He picked it up. A faint, malevolent aura seemed to emanate from it, making the hairs on his arm prickle. He then picked up Yubashiri, a light, well-balanced Ryo Wazamono grade sword. "I'll test the Kitetsu. If it tries to take my arm, it's not worthy. If I can master it, it's mine." He tossed the Sandai Kitetsu into the air, then extended his arm, letting the sword fall, blade first, towards his exposed limb.
Tashigi gasped. The shopkeeper shrieked.
The blade whirled downwards… and missed Zoro's arm by a hair's breadth, embedding itself deeply into the wooden floor beside him. The wind from its passage was chilling.
Zoro grinned. "Heh. It chose not to cut. Guess it likes me." He pulled it free. "I'll take this one. And Yubashiri." He tossed a small pouch of Beris onto the counter, far less than the shopkeeper would have asked but enough that the man didn't dare argue, especially with a glaring Tashigi and a now-armed-with-three-swords Zoro in his shop.
"You can't just—!" Tashigi began, but Zoro was already turning to leave.
"See ya around, Kuina-wannabe," he said over his shoulder, a deliberate taunt.
Tashigi's face flushed with anger. "Don't you dare compare me to some…! And my name is Tashigi, Master Sergeant Tashigi!" But Zoro was already gone, the Sandai Kitetsu and Yubashiri now secured at his hip alongside Wado Ichimonji. He felt… complete. Ready. Just then, the sky outside darkened ominously, and a distant roar, like an angry god, echoed through the town. Zoro paused, sniffing the air. "Storm's here. And trouble." He started running towards the central plaza.
Sanji, having concluded his marketing with a triumphant flourish (and a few more flirtatious exchanges with pretty vendors), was carefully loading his bounty onto a rented handcart. The sky turning that ugly green-black, however, put a damper on his good mood.
"Tch. What an unpleasant color for a sky," he muttered, lighting a cigarette. "Reminds me of that bastard Zeff's old socks." He heard panicked shouts and the distinct sound of running feet. "Looks like the local entertainment is starting early." He took a drag from his cigarette. "Well, wouldn't want Luffy and Nami-swan to have all the fun." He abandoned the handcart (after ensuring its contents were securely covered) and sprinted towards the sounds of chaos, his long legs eating up the ground.
Usopp, meanwhile, had found a veritable treasure trove in a dusty old junk shop run by a one-eyed, peg-legged old man who claimed to have sailed with Rogers's apprentice. He'd acquired a collection of rare explosive powders, some intricately carved wooden gears perfect for new Usopp-ventions, and a pair of surprisingly sturdy, multi-lensed goggles that the old man swore could see through fog "and sometimes women's clothes, har har!" (Usopp chose to ignore that last part).
He was haggling over a strange, fist-sized metal sphere that hummed with a faint energy when the sky outside went dark and the wind began to howl. "Whoa! What's going on?" Usopp yelped, dropping the sphere.
The old shopkeeper just cackled. "The Dragon's come to Loguetown, boy! Happens every few decades when something big is about to go down! Best find cover!"