One Piece: Star Sea Legend

Chapter 18: Friends (Part 1)

“Ah, I’m hungry.”

After delivering another punch to Morgan, Luffy jumped off him and turned to Qin Ming, who was still busy beating up Helmeppo. “Stop messing around with them. Let’s go get something to eat!”

“Damn, I was just getting into it.”

Qin Ming, hearing Luffy’s words, glanced at Helmeppo, who was lying beneath him. The once-arrogant rich kid was now completely unconscious, his face twisted in pain, making his already unattractive features even uglier.

“Fine, I’ll just give him a few more punches and then call it a day.”

Qin Ming thought to himself. After thoroughly beating Helmeppo, he felt a sense of satisfaction, and his earlier frustration had completely vanished. He felt incredibly refreshed.

Just as Qin Ming was about to throw another punch, Morgan suddenly stood up behind Luffy. His face, already battered by Qin Ming and Luffy, was now completely unrecognizable, covered in blood and looking utterly terrifying.

“I am Captain Morgan, the Axe-Hand!”

Morgan, breathing heavily and with a dark expression, raised the giant axe attached to his right arm and swung it down at Luffy, who had his back turned.

Luffy seemed completely unaware of the danger behind him and continued walking towards Qin Ming. When Morgan’s axe was less than a centimeter away from Luffy’s straw hat, Koby, standing far away, turned pale and screamed, “Luffy, watch out!”

As Koby shouted, a figure swiftly passed by Luffy.

“Oni Giri!”

Zoro, with a sword clenched between his teeth and his other two swords crossed, delivered a single strike that sent the towering Morgan flying. Morgan’s eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness, a large X-shaped wound now marking his body.

“Zoro.”

Luffy adjusted his straw hat and turned to Zoro.

“Just a small matter, Captain.”

Zoro, wearing a dark green bandana and still holding a sword in his mouth, replied casually.

“Captain… Captain Morgan has been defeated!”

The surrounding marines stared in shock at the fallen Morgan and Helmeppo. Many of them still couldn’t believe what had just happened.

Clang!

Zoro sheathed his three swords and coldly scanned the marines. “If any of you still want to capture us, step forward now!”

The marines, hearing Zoro’s words, exchanged uneasy glances, but none dared to step forward.

“Finally, we’re free!”

“We’re liberated from Morgan’s control! Long live the navy!”

After a moment of silence, the marines erupted into cheers.

“What’s going on? Their captain was just defeated, and they’re celebrating?”

Luffy, puzzled, looked at the cheering marines.

“They must have been forced to do evil things out of fear of Morgan.”

Koby, realizing that these marines weren’t inherently evil but had been coerced by Morgan’s tyranny, felt his hope in the navy reignited. He looked much more spirited than before.

Thud!

Just as Koby’s faith in the navy was restored, Zoro suddenly collapsed to the ground.

“Ugh, I’m starving.”

Zoro, lying on the ground and staring at the blue sky, hadn’t eaten for three weeks while tied to the wooden post. It was no wonder he was starving.

Luffy gave Zoro a knowing look and then turned to Qin Ming, who had just finished beating up Helmeppo. “You carry Zoro back.”

“Why me? Why don’t you carry him?”

Qin Ming shook his hands. He had beaten up quite a few people today and was indeed feeling tired.

“Because both of us are hungry. We’ll meet you at the eating place.”

Luffy said this, patted his slightly deflated stomach, and walked out of the marine base without looking back. Koby, seeing this, bowed to Qin Ming and said, “Please take care of Mr. Zoro,” before hurriedly following Luffy.

“Damn it, you guys forgot I’m injured too!”

Qin Ming mentally complained but walked over to Zoro and helped him up. The two of them slowly made their way out of the marine base.

As they left, Qin Ming noticed that the marines made no move to stop them. Instead, their gazes held a hint of gratitude.

This made Qin Ming feel secretly pleased. He had beaten up quite a few people today, and instead of seeking revenge, they were thanking him. Life was truly strange.

Some time later, at a restaurant in Shells Town.

“Ah, that was satisfying. Not eating for three weeks really takes a toll.”

Zoro, patting his slightly bulging stomach, let out a satisfied burp.

“What? You’re already full? If I hadn’t eaten for that long, I’d be dead by now.”

Luffy, still shoveling food into his mouth, spoke to Zoro.

“Why are you eating more than me?”

Zoro, seeing that he was already full while Luffy still looked ravenous, was utterly shocked.

“Because the food here is just too good, right, Koby?”

Luffy swallowed a piece of meat and turned to Koby, who was helping Qin Ming bandage his wounds.

“I’m really sorry. I ate a lot too.”

Koby scratched his head apologetically and spoke to the restaurant’s owner.

“It’s fine. You saved us, after all.”

The owner, holding a stack of empty plates, smiled warmly.

“By the way, why did it take you so long to get back here? I’ve been eating for over an hour before you showed up.”

Luffy, still stuffing his face with meat, asked Qin Ming, who looked somewhat annoyed.

“If I told you we got lost and that’s why we were late, would you believe me?”

Qin Ming popped a piece of meat into his mouth and asked Luffy.

“You must be joking. Getting lost in this small town? That’s just being a super directionally challenged person! Hahahaha!”

Luffy laughed heartily, swallowing a large piece of meat in one gulp. He didn’t notice that Zoro’s face had turned dark.

Indeed, when Qin Ming had carried Zoro out of the marine base, he realized he had no idea where Luffy’s so-called “eating place” was.

So Qin Ming asked Zoro for directions, and Zoro confidently claimed he knew the way.

In truth, Zoro had eaten at that restaurant before.

Seeing Zoro’s confidence, Qin Ming, though skeptical, thought the town’s layout was simple enough. Surely Zoro wouldn’t get lost in such a straightforward place.

Thus, Qin Ming carried the weakened Zoro and followed his directions.

Little did he know, under Zoro’s guidance, Qin Ming ended up in a dead end twenty-nine times.

At one point, staring at a trash can at the end of a dead-end alley, Qin Ming, sweating profusely, seriously considered tossing Zoro into it.

“Damn it, this is too much!”

On his very first day knowing Zoro, Qin Ming learned what it truly meant to be directionally challenged.

Every time Zoro gave directions, it led to a different dead end. By the time Qin Ming realized what was happening, they were already stuck.

What frustrated Qin Ming the most was that, twelve times in a row, they ended up in the same dead-end alley, despite taking different routes each time.

Qin Ming was on the verge of a breakdown.

Fortunately, they eventually ran into little Rika, who was out running errands. Otherwise, Qin Ming and Zoro might have wandered around Shells Town until nightfall without finding Luffy.

When Qin Ming saw Rika, it was like seeing an angel. The little girl with her twin tails and adorable face seemed to have pure white wings behind her.

Meanwhile, Zoro, whom Qin Ming was carrying, felt like a green-haired demon. It was terrifying!

On the way back to the restaurant with Rika, Qin Ming couldn’t help but think, “Thank heavens, I’m finally free!”

Earlier, Qin Ming had suggested asking for directions, but Zoro kept insisting, “Trust me one more time,” even going so far as to choke Qin Ming in his enthusiasm.

Thus, Qin Ming ended up trusting Zoro twenty-nine times, carrying him all over Shells Town, only to end up in dead ends every single time. By the end, even Qin Ming was completely disoriented.

“Did you see that? They’re the pirates who defeated Captain Morgan.”

“I saw them walking back and forth so many times. What were they doing?”

“Who knows? They’re pirates. Maybe they were doing some special training. Look at the guy carrying the other one—he’s sweating so much. The training must have been intense.”

As Qin Ming carried Zoro around Shells Town, the conversations of the nearby residents reached his ears, making him feel utterly embarrassed. This isn’t training—it’s just getting lost! As for the sweat on his forehead, it was all from the stress of dealing with Zoro’s terrible sense of direction.

From that moment on, Qin Ming vowed never to trust Zoro’s sense of direction again. If anyone claimed Zoro wasn’t directionally challenged, Qin Ming would be the first to argue otherwise!

“Just eat your food and stop talking!”

Zoro, with a dark expression, scolded Luffy, who was still laughing at the idea of a “super directionally challenged person.”

“Big brother, you’re amazing! Koby told me you taught that nasty Helmeppo a lesson. Where’s the pretty orange-haired sister who was with you? Did you listen to her and beat up Helmeppo? I knew she wouldn’t lie to me.”

Little Rika, helping Koby tend to Qin Ming’s wounds, spoke cheerfully to him.

Hearing Rika’s words, Qin Ming, who had been scowling, immediately broke into a warm, friendly smile. “Yeah, I stormed the marine base and gave that bully Helmeppo a good beating. He won’t dare to cause trouble anymore.”

Qin Ming remembered the first time he met Rika, when Nami was still with him. Nami, upon hearing that someone had bullied a little girl, had promised Rika that she would teach Helmeppo a lesson.

But when Nami found out that Helmeppo was Captain Morgan’s son, she had passed the task to Qin Ming, who had initially ignored her.

Now that Qin Ming had beaten up Helmeppo at the marine base, Nami was no longer here, and he felt an inexplicable sense of emptiness.

“Why did it take you so long to show up? If you had been any later, we’d all be done for.”

Qin Ming shook his head, adjusting his mood, and asked Luffy the question that had been weighing on his mind: Why had it taken Luffy so long to find Zoro’s swords?

“Well, what could I do? I had to search the entire marine base. It took a lot of time to find Zoro’s three swords.”

Luffy, after swallowing his food, explained to Qin Ming.

“Are you saying you didn’t know where Zoro’s swords were at first? So you searched the entire marine base?”

Qin Ming asked, puzzled. “Didn’t Helmeppo tell you where Zoro’s swords were?”

“You mean that guy with the weird haircut?”

Luffy, while eating, recalled, “I remember seeing him at the top of the marine base. He was already unconscious, probably knocked out by that Morgan guy.”

At this point, Luffy looked apologetically at Qin Ming. “That’s where I accidentally broke your statue. I’m really sorry!”

“Damn it, I told you that wasn’t my statue—it was Morgan’s!”

Qin Ming’s appetite diminished at Luffy’s words. He asked Luffy, “Do you know why Helmeppo was knocked out?”

“Let me think. I jumped up to the top of the marine base and heard some marines saying someone had broken into the captain’s room to steal something. Then that guy with the axe on his arm got really angry and slapped Helmeppo unconscious. That’s probably what happened.”

Luffy’s casual remark sent shockwaves through Qin Ming’s mind.

So, when Nami and I were stealing the Grand Line map from Morgan’s room, Luffy’s sudden appearance exposed us. Morgan, furious that someone had broken into his room, accidentally knocked out Helmeppo in his rage.

Then, because Helmeppo was unconscious, Luffy couldn’t find out where Zoro’s swords were and had to search the entire marine base, wasting precious time. That delay nearly cost us our lives!

Qin Ming hadn’t expected that his and Nami’s theft of the Grand Line map would set off a chain of events that led to Luffy taking nearly ten extra minutes to leave the marine base. That delay had almost gotten Qin Ming, Zoro, and Nami killed.

“Were you… really serious about finding Zoro’s swords?”

Qin Ming asked Luffy skeptically.

“Actually, it was quite a surprise. Zoro’s swords were in the same room where I was eating snacks. Hahahaha!”

Luffy’s words made Qin Ming’s face darken. “What do you mean?”

“Well, while I was searching for Zoro’s swords, I entered a nice-looking room and found a table full of snacks. I was a bit hungry, so I went in and had a good meal. But there was no meat, so I wasn’t satisfied.”

Luffy said regretfully, completely oblivious to Qin Ming’s increasingly dark expression.

“After eating the snacks in that room, I continued searching for Zoro’s swords. I searched every room in the marine base but couldn’t find them. Then I went back to the room where I had eaten the snacks and finally saw the three swords there. I was so careless! Hahahaha!”

As Luffy laughed, Qin Ming, his face now as dark as coal, suddenly jumped at Luffy and grabbed him by the neck, shaking him violently. “You idiot! If you hadn’t been so busy eating, you would’ve found the swords sooner! Do you know how dangerous it was outside? Do you know how close we were to dying?”

Qin Ming was truly furious. If Luffy had been delayed by some unforeseen circumstance, it would have been understandable.

But the fact that Luffy had been too busy eating to notice the swords in the same room made Qin Ming’s blood boil.

“Even if Helmeppo hadn’t told you where the swords were, and even if you didn’t know which room was his, you could’ve at least paid attention to the room you were in!”

“Your eyesight is terrible! You were in the same room as the swords, and all you noticed was the food!”

“Because of your eating, Zoro, Nami, and I were almost killed! The feeling of having our lives hanging by a thread is something I’ll never forget!”

Qin Ming choked Luffy until he coughed, spraying bits of meat all over Qin Ming’s face.

At that moment, it seemed like Qin Ming and Luffy were on the verge of a fight.

“What’s the big deal? I knew you were outside, so I felt safe searching for Zoro’s swords. Because you’re a reliable person. See? In the end, we’re all fine. I knew I could trust you as a partner.”

Luffy grinned widely at Qin Ming, his smile pure and genuine.

Hearing Luffy’s words and seeing his sincere, infectious smile, Qin Ming was stunned. His grip on Luffy’s neck loosened, and a warm, comforting feeling spread through his body.

Seeing the tension between Qin Ming and Luffy, Zoro, who had been about to tell Qin Ming to calm down, was surprised when Qin Ming suddenly let go of Luffy’s neck.

Then, to Zoro’s astonishment, Qin Ming slung an arm around Luffy’s shoulders and smiled. “Of course! I’m totally reliable. Next time something like this happens, just sit back, make yourself a cup of tea, and enjoy some snacks. I can handle it all by myself. After all, I’m a trustworthy guy! Hahahaha!”

For a moment, Qin Ming’s boastful laughter and Luffy’s carefree, hearty laughter filled the restaurant.

“Two idiots!”

Zoro sat back down, watching Qin Ming and Luffy with a faint smile on his face.

Koby and little Rika, the young girl, stared at Qin Ming and Luffy in shock, completely baffled by their sudden change in demeanor.

“What are they doing?”

The little girl with twin tails asked the pink-haired boy with thick glasses.

“Maybe… This is what they call friendship between men. Probably, I guess.”

The boy adjusted his glasses and, after a moment of hesitation, gave the little girl an uncertain answer.