-----
-----
"Paper Soldiers" was a mystical Taoist skill.
To use it, you had to draw a soul-gathering charm on human-shaped paper, then leave it in a Spirit Incubation Array for 49 days. After that, the paper figure could come to life.
Using them was simple.
Bai Ye formed a hand seal, muttered an incantation, and tossed the stack of yellow paper onto the open deck.
In a flash, those tiny paper men—just palm-sized a moment ago—grew rapidly, each becoming a towering 6'3" giant.
These were the results of Bai Ye experimenting with talisman arts in his inner world.
Now, being a martial artist who believed in good old-fashioned fistfights, Bai Ye had no plans of creating an army of paper soldiers.
Mass-producing soldiers just wasn't his style. Real men fight shirtless!
Yep, that's the reason. Definitely not because he hasn't figured out how to make stronger ones yet.
So right now, these paper guys could only do basic labor and maybe act as ship guards. Put them against someone a little tougher, and they'd be toast.
Still, seeing over thirty tall paper soldiers standing at attention was pretty shocking for Luffy and Zoro.
It was the kind of "I have no idea what I'm looking at, but I'm impressed" feeling.
"Uwaaah!!"
Luffy gasped as the paper men shot up before his eyes. He instantly turned into a human monkey, bouncing all around them.
He couldn't stop poking, prodding, and playing around.
Then—
"Hey! Luffy, stop biting them! You're gonna drool all over the paper!"
Bai Ye finally couldn't hold it in and snapped.
"…Wait, are they weak to water or something?" Zoro asked, suspicious.
"Of course not. I waterproofed them. It's just… Luffy's drool is disgusting," Bai Ye said without even turning around.
Zoro: "Seriously?" Luffy: "Huh?"
After a whole lot of chaos and nonsense, Bai Ye and the other two finally decided to do something useful.
Once the basic instructions were given, the paper puppets on the deck started heading to their respective posts.
A short while later, the pirate ship slowly sailed out of the harbor. As for Luffy and the others?
In this world, any man setting out to sea wouldn't say no to lying back in a deck chair on a calm evening, with the sea breeze blowing gently, the sky turning golden, and their favorite food in hand.
Luffy was chomping on grilled meat, Zoro hugged his sake jug, and Bai Ye sipped on a fresh watermelon juice.
As the sun began to dip below the horizon, all three of them sighed at the same time:
"So relaxing!""So relaxing!""So... damn nice!"
Luffy and Zoro turned to glare at Bai Ye, clearly a little annoyed.
This guy totally ruined the mood!!!
Of course, Bai Ye didn't do it on purpose. It was just that—right at that moment—he received some intel from one of the paper puppets.
Apparently, someone had snuck onto their ship.
And based on the puppet's description, Bai Ye was 99% sure that the intruder was...
"Wahhh! What the heck is this thing?! Why is the paper doll moving?!"
A girl's voice, shaky and on the verge of tears, rang out. Bai Ye turned his head and couldn't help but smile.
Knew it. The sneaky little cat burglar—Nami.
Luffy and Zoro turned too, having heard the commotion.
A girl was being escorted over by two paper puppets. She was clearly freaked out—wailing and screaming the whole way.
Even when she got right up to them, her eyes were shut tight and she just kept yelling.
"Looks like we've got ourselves a stowaway."
Looking at the girl in front of him—black headscarf, a hint of orange hair showing, and a figure that was definitely starting to develop—Bai Ye said with a teasing smile.
Huh? Someone just talked?
Nami paused. The paper puppets moved but didn't talk—this was definitely a person's voice.
Only then did she realize that the puppets were no longer holding her.
She finally opened her eyes to see where the voice had come from.
Three men came into view.
She saw Bai Ye, dressed in a traditional robe, long hair tied up neatly—
Nami: So hot!!!
She saw Zoro, arms crossed, three swords at his waist—
Nami: So scary!!!
She saw Luffy, wearing a straw hat, picking his nose—
Nami: What an idiot!!!
"A thief, huh? I think Makino mentioned something like that once."
Totally unaware of Nami mentally labeling him an idiot, Luffy just mumbled to himself.
"Think she's edible?"
Nami : WHY is your first thought about EATING me?!
Her opinion of Luffy dropped another level.
"Should I just chop her up and toss her overboard?"
Zoro said calmly. For him, the quickest way to solve any sudden issue was with his sword.
Nami: You didn't even ask any questions and you're already ready to kill me?! What are you, a psycho killer?!
In Nami's eyes, Zoro had now become a straight-up homicidal maniac.
Off to the side, Bai Ye watched her expression go from "Did I just run into a complete idiot?" to "Crap, I'm totally dead," and nearly burst out laughing.
Damn, is your face a live monitor or what?
"The Cat Burglar of the East Blue. Sure, she loves stealing treasure, but she's also an excellent navigator."
Bai Ye spoke up and looked over at the other two. "Looks like we got lucky."
"Huh? She's a navigator?"
Luffy's eyes lit up in surprise.
He might be dumb and clueless about most things, but he did remember that sailing needed a navigator.
"What's with that look? You think a thief can't know how to navigate?"
Seeing the doofus she mentally labeled as an idiot looking at her with doubt, Nami got flustered and snapped, baring imaginary fangs.
"Alright, I've decided!"
Luffy, totally ignoring her angry outburst, clapped his hands together.
"If Bai Ye says she's that good, then she should totally join us! She can be our navigator!"
Like he'd just solved a major problem, Luffy threw his hands up in celebration.
Even Luffy himself hadn't realized yet just how much he trusted Bai Ye.
Nami: …
"Whatever, doesn't matter to me."
Zoro turned around and walked off.
No fight = not his problem.
Also, that sake Bai Ye gave him earlier—he hadn't finished it yet.
"Don't just go making decisions for me!!!"
Seeing how quickly they decided her fate in just a few lines of dialogue, Nami shouted in frustration.
She was seriously regretting it now. All she wanted was to get that 100 million Berries to buy back her village's freedom.
So she snuck onto what looked like an empty pirate ship.
And now? This mess.
Once again, her fate was being decided by three laughing idiots.
Thinking about everything she'd been through, her expression twisted with frustration and helplessness.
"From the look on your... uh... display screen—I mean, your face—you seem to be thinking about some pretty dark stuff."
Bai Ye's voice cut in smoothly.
"....."