Louge Town
"So, who gave you the D, Luffy?"
"Eh? The D?"
"Yeah, who was it? Was it your father or maybe... your mother!?"
There was a brief pause in the conversation Yuna and Luffy were currently having before Luffy tilted his head in confusion.
"I have a father and mother?"
Yuna almost face-planted when she heard Luffy's unexpected answer. Moments later, she clicked her tongue as she decided not to push the joke any further.
'Not bad. Not bad at all. He is a formidable opponent.'
[Isn't he just an idiot?]
'Those are excuses I'm not willing to make.'
"Oi, everyone, I see the next island!"
Yuna's thoughts were interrupted by Usopp, yelling that he could see their next destination. Seeing the island himself, a broad smile appeared on Luffy's face as he started laughing.
"Shishishi, the island of the beginning and the end. I'm excited!"
Hearing the name of the island, Yuna looked at Nami questioningly, causing her to realize that Yuna likely had no idea what was going on.
"It's called like that because it's not only Gold Rogers's place of birth but also the place where he was executed."
Yuna's eyes sparkled with a hint of curiosity after Nami answered her unasked question. Considering the meaning Roger had for this word, she deemed that there must be some interesting sights on this island.
Moments later, their ship docked at a small port far away from the hustle of the inner city. After all, they clearly displayed their pirate flag, so docking too close to popular ports would draw too much attention.
Before they could even fully fasten their ship to the port, Luffy had already jumped on shore and was running towards the inner city.
"I'M GOING TO THE PLACE WHERE THE KING OF THE PIRATES WAS EXECUTED!!!"
Seeing their captain running away and ditching all his responsibilities, a collective sigh went through the crew as Yuna looked at what had just happened in amusement.
'Seriously, why is that guy the captain?'
"Well, leaving Luffy aside, I need to buy more supplies for our journey to the Grand Line."
Hearing Sanji's words, everyone nodded their head as they watched him vanish inside the city as well.
"I'm going to look for two new swords."
The next to speak was Zoro, who had lost two of his three swords in his previous battle with Hawkeye. Since he specializes in three-sword-style, he obviously needed to restock his swords.
"Oh? Are you going to buy swords? I guess I'll come with you."
Everyone was slightly baffled due to Yuna suddenly claiming that she wanted to buy swords. Although she had clearly demonstrated that she could fight when she wiped out Fullbody and his crew, no one here expected her to use swords.
[Why bother? Can't you just make a sword out of ice like you usually do?]
'I could, yes, but before I reveal what I can do, I want to get a better grasp of this world. Right now, I don't even know how weird it is for someone to be able to create ice out of nowhere, so I would rather use real swords for a while.]
"You are a swordsman?"
While Yuna had a brief conversation with Kurama, Zoro couldn't help but be curious about Yuna using swords. However, hearing Zoro's question, Yuna shook her head.
"Depends on the definition of the word. From the way you hold yourself, you are a swordsman, someone who only uses the sword to fight. However, I'm different. I utilize swords in my combat style, but it's not the main focus."
After Yuna finished speaking, Zoro briefly pondered her words before nodding his head in understanding. He could more or less grasp what Yuna was talking about.
"Wait a moment, Yuna? Why would you even go with Zoro? From what I understand, you didn't plan to continue your journey with us, so why bother potentially being seen with a pirate?"
To that question from nami, Yuna could only shrug her shoulders.
"Frankly, I don't feel like wiping out those small fry Marines was enough to compensate you for your help. I'll need to do a few things on this island, and after I'm done, I'll be able to pay you back for fishing me out of the water. No need to worry; I'll be done before you plan to leave."
Although nami wasn't entirely sure what Yuna planned to do, in the end, she could only nod her head in understanding.
"Well, if that is what you want to do, then I don't mind. By the way, considering what you have told us so far, you shouldn't have any money. You wanna borrow some~"
"No thanks, I would rather not get ripped off."
"Ehh, don't say something like that. As a fellow woman, I wouldn't rip you off... too much."
Although Nami only whispered that last, Yuna could still easily hear it, causing her to chuckle in amusement. Considering the way Nami reacted to different things, Yuna had already expected her to be a money grubber, so loaning money from her would definitely be a mistake.
"However, you shouldn't have any money, right? How will you be able to afford a sword."
"Mah, no need to worry about that. I have my ways."
After Yuna finished speaking, Nami couldn't help but frown, and moments later, she widened her eyes in shock.
"No way! Don't tell me you want to sell your body!?"
Yuna almost tripped when she heard Nami's outrageous statement and couldn't help but look at her like she was an idiot.
"Sell my body? What are you talking about, little girl? There is no being in existence that has enough money to buy something as exquisite as my body."
Hearing Yuna's answer, Nami's face deadpanned as narcissism so thick it could basically be tasted radiated out of Yuna.
"*Sigh* fine, fine, just go already."
Yuna chuckled in amusement, seeing Nami's annoyed facial expression as she jumped down the ship as well, following Zoro into the depths of the city called Logue Town.
Moments later, Yuna could be seen leisurely walking after Zoro, who made his wait toward the center of the city. However, as they were walking, Yuna looked around in confusion, as she felt she had been there before.
'Is it just me, or is this the second time we walk through this street?'
[Actually, it's the third time. You didn't notice the second one because you were ogling a woman.]
'Well, I prefer calling it a predator looking for prey.'
[That makes it even worse!]
While lightly chuckling, she curiously glanced at the back of Zoro's head, wondering why he walked so confidently while clearly having no clue where he needed to go.
"Oi, Zoro, are you sure you know where you are going."
"Yeah, I'm aiming for the center of the city. Surely there will be something like a marketplace there. There is no way such a place doesn't have a shop that sells swords."
"Mhh sounds reasonable. So, do you know how to get there?"
Hearing Yuna's question, Zoro looked at her like she was a weirdo before rolling his eyes.
"Isn't that obvious? If you want to reach the marketplace, just walk down the biggest roads."
"Yeah, th.... the hell!?"
Just as Yuna was about to agree with Zoro's words, he suddenly turned left and walked into a cramped alley that Yuna had no doubt would end in a dead end.
'What in the world is wrong with this guy? Is he trying to be funny?'
"Damn, why is there suddenly a dead end!?"
Yuna couldn't help but facepalm after Zoro's annoyed yell moments later. However, it got even worse as Zoro came out of the alley and turned right, walking toward the direction he came from. Suddenly, as if guided by a higher force, he straight up turned 180° and continued walking as if nothing happened.
'Wow, just wow. This guy is utterly helpless.'
[Isn't it time for you to either catch that idiot and lead the way or to just ditch him?]
'What are you talking about, Kurama? This is hilarious, so I'll continue observing~'
[Fun over function, huh? Like always.]
Just like that, Yuna continued following Zoro around, observing everything he did like she was in a Zoo, watching an exotic animal.
Currently, the duo ended up back at the Strawhat crew's ship, the Going Merry, for the second time, causing Zoro to curse at how weirdly the city was built, while Yuna almost laughed out loud.
'Wow, this guy is a genius.'
[I would use another word, but sure, let's go with genius.]
'Wait a moment!? I think I just saw a glimpse of the Hokage Building!'
[Haa!?]
'Nonono, that must have been my imagination.]
While Yuna continued observing Zoro's next move, the duo noticed two thugs pressuring a young woman with chin-length black hair wearing a single katana at her side.
Yuna and Zoro both were about to intervene but stopped themselves when they saw the woman's movement, which clearly showed that she had some skill with the sword.
Before either of the two thugs knew what was going on, she had already reappeared behind them, slashing both of them once, putting them out of commission.
Unfortunately, the moment her attack was over, she tripped over a bump in the road, causing her to fall while the glasses she was wearing were sent flying through the air.
Before she could fully fall to the ground, a hand snaked around her waist and steadied her while another hand caught her glasses out of mid-air. While the woman was still dazed from almost falling, she felt someone gently putting her glasses back on her head before she felt her chin gently being raised, forcing her dark brown eyes to meet a set of deep purple ones.
"Oh my, careful there, young lady. Well, now that I can see your face, I have to say you are quite beautiful~ I would like to invite you to dinner, then into my bed, and into my harem~"
"Eh!?"
Naturally, the woman was confused by someone acting so bluntly toward her, causing her to unsteadily stand up while getting more and more flustered.
"W-W-Well, thank you f-for catching me, b-but 'll have to decline. Ah, I'm Tashigi, by the way."
"Geez, no problem. Oh well, now that I have caught you, I guess it's time to capture you~."
"C-Capture me? W-What are you talking about?"
Tashigi, who clearly hadn't even digested Yuna's first words, became more and more confused as Yuna continued saying things she couldn't fully understand.
"A-Anyway, I got to go now. Again, thank you for catching me."
Taking some distance from Yuna, Tashigi gave her a light bow and quickly ran away, too flustered to continue the conversation.
Seeing the back of the running Tashigi, Yuna chuckled in amusement as Zoro looked at her in a weird mixture of disgust and dumbfoundedness.
"Are you some kind of female version of that stupid cook?"
Hearing Zoro's question, Yuna frowned deeply while looking at Zoro in contempt.
"Female version of Sanji? Are you looking down on me? Sanji is an inferior male version of me!"
Not happy about Yuna's declaration in the slightest, Zoro only sighed deeply before he decided to drop this matter. After all, this wasn't his problem.
He was just about to yet again walk in a random direction when Yuna caught his arm and pointed at a nearby shop that had a sign that looked like two crossed swords.
"No need to search any further, Zoro. That one looks like a weapon shop."
Hearing Yuna's words and seeing the sign, Zoro nodded in agreement and followed Yuna toward the shop.
Seconds later, the shop's door opened, allowing Yuna to step in first and immediately greet the person behind the counter.
"Yo, shopkeeper, we are here to buy a few swords."
Hearing someone entering his shop, the shop's owner looked up and couldn't help but frown when he saw Yuna enter. Seeing a female swordsman always reminded him of that annoying Marine woman that kept pestering him about famous blades. However, there was something else that bothered him even more.
"We? Are you some kind of royalty?"
Yuna was rather confused by that question and looked behind, where she instantly noticed Zoro clearly no longer following behind her.
'For f*ck's sake, is he serious? That was like 20 meters.'
[Okay, I have to admit that guy really is a genius after seeing this.
Shaking her head with a mirthful smile, Yuna decided to stop bothering about Zoro as her gaze wandered all over the shop, appraising what was available, causing her to frown rather quickly.
Seeing the frown on his customer's face as she inspected his wares caused him to frown as well. After all, from his perspective, it looked like the woman in front of him disregarded what he had accumulated over the years of owning this shop as unsatisfactory.
"Is there a problem, young lady?"
Hearing the shopkeeper's question and the unhappiness in his tone, Yuna couldn't help but smile wryly as she answered his inquiry.
"I prefer using double-edged blades.
After Yuna answered him, the shopkeeper couldn't help but mimic Yuna's wry smile as he immediately understood the problem. After all, double-edged blades weren't really popular, so he sold almost none.
"Well, it can't be helped. As you have undoubtedly noticed, single-edged blades are by far the most popular, and almost no one uses anything else."
"Yeah, I have noticed, but I've always been curious why. Do you know the reason?"
Obviously, the only thing Yuna had noticed was that this shop mostly sold single-edged blades, and she had no idea about the global situation, but she felt that admitting that she didn't know about it would look weird. So, she simply told a lie.
After pondering Yuna's question for a brief moment, the shopkeeper simply shrugged his shoulders and resumed talking.
"Well, I can't be too sure about this, but I think the reason that single-edged blades are so popular is that most of the famous swords are single-edged as well."
After the shopkeeper finished his explanation, Yuna nodded her head, believing that there was a good chance that his theory was correct.
'I see, so the best blacksmiths of the world are mostly creating single-edged swords. Mhh, some kind of Eastern cultured dwarven nation? Oh well, no need to ponder on this any longer than necessary. After all, if such a nation does exist, it's undoubtedly in the Grand Line. Only the world's harshest environments should be able to push blacksmiths to their absolute limit, allowing them to create masterpieces.'
After Yuna discarded the notion of thinking about the situation any longer, her gaze yet again roamed through the shop, and after inspecting a few blades she deemed to be the best ones available, she made a decision.
'There is no adequate blade that fits my taste, so I guess I'll go with something different for a while. Considering the quality of what is available, I guess I'll go with two-sword-style for now and see how things develop from there. Worst case, I can always blow my cover and use my trusty ice blade.'
[Do you even have money to buy anything? Or do you plan to simply rob this guy?]
'Money? What are you talking about, Kurama? I have plenty of money.'
[Huh? Since when?]
'Since I found a bunch of it just lying around.'
[You conveniently found money lying around? Where?]
'Inside the pockets of a bunch of rich-looking guys~'
[Right, I should have expected that.]