Nami’s betrayal is one of the most irksome developments in the early days of One Piece, but why did the Straw Hat navigator do it?

After sailing the harsh seas of the world of One Piece, the bonds between the Straw Hat Pirates are now almost unbreakable. They know almost everything about each other, and they are willing to sacrifice even their own lives if it means helping their crew mates. Each of them also has a dream ambitious enough to make most people laugh. Even so, none of them think of their dreams as absurd, especially when it comes to Luffy becoming the Pirate King. However, despite their seemingly unbreakable bonds, there are also moments when their friendships are tested — and the first one to betray their pirate crew was none other than their navigator, the Cat Burglar Nami.

Nami is technically the third member to join the Straw Hat Pirates. She witnessed the pirate crew at their lowest, though that didn’t stop her from joining them. According to her, she didn’t mind helping them if the two — Luffy and Zoro — helped her. She turned out to have stolen Buggy’s treasure and was on the run. The two then defeated Buggy and his crew, and Nami officially joined their journey. However, just as they were about to recruit Sanji, Nami made a heartbreaking decision: she took the newly-acquired Going Merry and the stolen treasure from Buggy, then sailed back to her hometown alone.

Hints of Betrayal Were Already Dropped Prior to the Incident

Prior to joining the Straw Hat Pirates, Nami openly declared her hate for the criminals roaming in the seas. When she learned about Luffy’s occupation, she instantly revoked her offer to join him. She only changed her mind after persistent Rubber-man agreed to help settle the score with Buggy. Even then, she immediately tied up Luffy and presented him as an offering to the red-nosed pirate. She told Buggy that she had betrayed her captain. In exchange for her freedom, she handed over Luffy. Luffy was then imprisoned and even almost blasted by Buggy’s strongest cannon. In addition to that, she explicitly told Luffy that their relationship was purely for business.

The main reason Nami plotted such a vile plan was to steal Buggy’s treasure. She has a very unhealthy relationship with money, which turns out to be because of a heartbreaking reason. Nonetheless, the earliest version of Nami is nothing short of a greedy witch. She doesn’t let anybody get between her and her treasure, and she is also willing to deceive any pirate if it means raking in money. In fact, Nami has prioritized her treasures over her crew mates on more than one occasion.

There Was a Catalyst to Nami’s Betrayal

While Nami initially didn’t intend to join the Straw Hat Pirates, she can’t seem to hate them the more she adventures with them and has witnessed firsthand how genuine Luffy and Zoro’s kind-heartedness is. During Usopp’s arc, she was genuinely captivated by Luffy’s desire to help the long-nosed brat. At that point, she had somewhat integrated herself among the Straw Hat bunch. She even put herself in danger as the pirate crew warded off Kuro from assassinating the sickly Kaya. Luffy further won Nami’s trust after he pulled off the stint with Gaimon, the man who was stuck in a treasure chest. Knowing that the old man could no longer climb to fetch his treasures, Luffy ended up getting them instead. However, Luffy refused to bring them down — not because he became greedy but because all the chests were empty.

Nami arguably had been enjoying Luffy, Zoro and Usopp’s companionship, and it can even be argued that she had become a full-pledged Straw Hat by that point. However, what really caused Nami’s change of heart was their journey toward the floating restaurant Baratie. While contemplating their dilemma about food, the motley crew of four encountered Johnny and Yosaku. The pair of bounty hunters brought them to Baratie, where they could find a good candidate for a cook. Given that the duo were bounty hunters, they carried with them a bunch of bounty posters, including that of the Fish-Man Arlong. When Nami stumbled upon this poster, her expression turned grim.

Nami Didn’t Want to Endanger Her Newfound Friends’ Lives

Nami’s betrayal earned the irk of numerous One Piece fans. After all, the series made it seem like Nami had already changed her ways as she sailed with the Straw Hats, and she didn’t seem to be merely pretending. This raises the question of why she pulled a fast one on her friends. Clearly, it has something to do with Arlong. There are multiple possible interpretations of her reaction to Arlong’s poster.

The first interpretation is fear. As someone who worked for the Arlong Pirates for the past eight years, Nami was well aware of what the Fish-Men pirate crew was capable of. She also knew how strong their leader was. When she was suddenly reminded of her adversity, all her built-up fear of the Fish-Man came rushing up. Another possible interpretation of her reaction is anger. Arlong later revealed that despite working for them for the past eight years, Nami hadn’t given up trying to assassinate him. That said, the poster only reminded Nami of her mission. Since she was already very close to achieving her goals, it became a reminder for her to stop dilly-dallying and resume her operations.

In reality, however, it was likely a mixture of the two. Nami knew how capable Arlong was, which is likely the reason why she decided to abandon her newfound allies. She didn’t intend for them to get caught in her business and suffer any unnecessary danger. Of course, that didn’t mean she wasn’t angered. After stealing Buggy’s treasure, she knew that she was very close to fulfilling her end of the deal with Arlong. Since Arlong supposedly kept his promises bound by money, One Piece‘s beloved Cat Burglar believed he wouldn’t back out on their agreement. Adding to the fact that she didn’t want to endanger Luffy and the others, she reluctantly believed that betraying them and continuing alone was the best and safest course of action.

Src: cbr.com