"My backpack," Nobita said.
"What is inside?" Karina asked.
Nobita put the backpack behind his back, his eyes narrow, pretending nothing happened. "It is nothing."
"Bring it here," Karina ordered.
Marines around Nobita quickly grabbed the backpack in a rude way. Nobita looked upset, not wanting to fight these Marines at all. He had to stay still.
Karina opened the backpack's zipper, looking at Nobita with sneaky eyes. "Where did you get all this?"
"It is not your business. I did not steal or take it. Give the backpack back to me," Nobita said, reaching out to grab it.
Karina pushed his hand away. "No. As a Marine, I have to check money from unknown people."
Karina looked at Nobita, her eyes half-smiling, a little serious. "I will give you two choices. You can come to the nearest Navy branch for tea, or you can walk around the island with me. Then I will give the backpack back."
Nobita sighed, looking at Karina's proud face. He knew this devil had caught him today. * She is trouble, * he thought.
"Then I will let you keep the backpack," Nobita said, shaking his head. He turned to walk away.
Sana, the warrant officer, grabbed his sleeve. She pressed a sword against his neck with her other hand.
"It seems you chose to walk with me," Karina said, her voice full of a smile.
"Other Marines, patrol as planned. Sana, hold him and come with me. Dismissed!" Karina ordered.
"Yes!" The Marines left in an orderly way, leaving only Karina, Sana, and Nobita on the street.
Karina walked around Nobita with great interest, her hands behind her back, humming a song. Sana looked helpless, her hands together. She whispered, "Just stay with Lieutenant Karina. She is very happy to see you." Then she pushed the sword closer to Nobita's neck.
Nobita stared at Sana. His backpack hung on her waist, and her sword was against his throat. Bitterness filled his heart. * This is no way to beg for help! * he thought.
"Fine, fine. Just be careful with that sword. Do not cut me by mistake," Nobita said, his voice bitter.
Outside the small town, the group of two women and one boy got many looks from people passing by. Karina, with her pink hair, jumped around at the front, making deals at every stall. Sana, in her Navy uniform, kept her thin sword on Nobita's neck. More than a dozen shopping bags hung from Nobita's hands, neck, and mouth. His eyes looked like a dead fish, screaming for help.
"Karina, I said enough! You have almost spent all my money," Nobita said, his voice squeaking. The words came out broken because of the seven or eight bag strings between his teeth.
Karina had bought things like she did not need money, using all the Berries in Nobita's backpack. Now the backpack was flat, like it had been squeezed dry.
Nobita begged for mercy, not caring about the sword on his neck. * I have to use that money to buy things for the ship, * he thought.
Karina turned her head and looked at all her new things with happiness. "It is barely enough. Let us go to the summer beach festival over there to play some games."
Karina ran away, giggling. Nobita had no choice but to follow her. The bags pulled his neck down, making it hard to walk.
* The first thing I will do when I get back to the pirate ship is sail far from this devil, * Nobita thought, smacking his lips where no one could see.
At the summer beach festival, a game booth owner shouted, "A fun shooting game! If you shoot ten golden pine cones, you can get this huge plush squirrel worth thousands of Berries!"
Karina passed the booth and stopped when she saw the cute squirrel toy, as tall as a person. Her usual tricky eyes showed a bit of softness.
"Boss, I want to play," Karina said.
"Good, beautiful Navy lady! You only need 3,000 Berries to play," the boss said, rubbing his hands. He smiled like a professional.
* He wants too much money, * Nobita thought.
The boss looked at Karina with narrow eyes, but his greedy and wanting look was hard to hide. Karina did not care. She paid the money.
Then she picked up the wooden bow on the table. In just a few seconds, she shot nine golden pine cones on the wall ten meters away.
"Give me the squirrel," Karina said, pointing to the toy.
The boss frowned. He pointed to the game rules, which were hard to see. "Miss, you only shot nine golden pine cones. You are one short. The rules say the tenth pine cone must be placed on the head of the person next to you. If you shoot that one, you win."
The boss handed out a golden pine cone the size of half an egg. He looked at the three of them with a sneaky smile. * This is how he makes money, * Nobita thought. Normal people would not risk hurting someone close to them.
"Cheating rules! You think the Navy is nothing!" Nobita said, angry. He felt Karina's look on him start to change, and it was not good.
"Good. Sana, put Nobita up there," Karina said. She pulled up a wooden arrow and pointed it forward without looking back.
"What?" Nobita said, his eyes wide. "Karina, you were a devil in your last life!"
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