Chapter 32: The Naturally Evil Brat, Luffy!
The straw hat spun leisurely on his fingertip. Suddenly, Shane grunted, "Hm?" As if sensing something, he sat up straight and turned his head to look southwest.
In the treetops over there, some birds had been startled, flying away into the distance.
Someone's coming? Or is it a large beast?
He frowned, spread his legs, and slid straight down the tree trunk for a dozen meters. He then stopped steadily on a branch in the middle of the tree. This way, he maintained a good, open field of view while also being able to see every move on the ground below.
"Boss, that kid is only a few years old. Is he really that strong? He beat up all three of you?" a somewhat foolish voice suddenly sounded. Shane followed the voice and saw a fat man over two meters tall, carrying a spiked club on his shoulder.
"Why would I lie to you? Is this something to be proud of?!" the man following behind, who was as skinny as a monkey, shouted in annoyance. "Look, look at all these bumps on my head! They still haven't gone down! That damn brat gave them to me! Don't underestimate that kid; he has power from a devil!"
The fat man looked bewildered. "Power from a devil?"
"I don't get it either, but that's what everyone says! His arms and legs can stretch for several meters one moment, then retract the next. You know those jack-in-the-box toys that spring out when you open them? Exactly like that, it's terrifying!"
"That sounds so scary, Boss! Good thing Boss Manba has caught him now. Otherwise, we'd have to be scared every day on our patrols in the mountains!"
"Yeah, but we can't let our guard down. The boss said this kid has an accomplice who might try to rescue him, so he called us all back to the camp to guard it strictly..."
"Someone's there!" The fat man suddenly pointed upwards with his club. "Up in the tree!"
"Huh?" The skinny man was startled and immediately looked up.
Sure enough, he saw a black-haired guy in the tree, looking down at the two of them with great interest.
"It's the brat's accomplice! Be careful! He might be a monster with devil powers too!" the skinny man immediately shouted a warning. He grabbed the flintlock from his back, aimed it at the other, and roared through gritted teeth, "Get down here! Put your hands up, or I'll shoot!"
"Why are you always pointing your gun at people? That's so scary..."
Under the two's wary gazes, Shane actually did slowly raise his hands and said with a grin, "I say, this is the first time we've met, right? How did you just decide I was the accomplice of some devil brat?"
"Not an accomplice?"
The fat man was taken aback and put his club back on his shoulder. He turned to the skinny man. "Boss, did we make a mistake? He said he's not an accomplice."
"Why do you believe everything people say!" the skinny man fumed. He glared fiercely at Shane again. "You dare say you're not an accomplice? Then... then I'll ask you! I'll ask you!"
He pointed at the back of Shane's neck. "If you're really not, then why do you have the exact same hat as that little devil?!"
"You mean this?" Shane was slightly taken aback. He glanced at the straw hat on his back and shrugged. "Just a coincidence. But, I am indeed looking for the same person as you guys. I've been looking for him in these damn mountains for days and I'm exhausted. I should thank you for catching him and saving me the effort."
"No need to thank us! It's what we should do," the fat man said, scratching his head with a silly grin. "That little brat is just asking for it. He's been taking advantage of our Manba Bandits being spread out to steal our roasted meat. Boss Manba was furious, so he personally went and tied him up on a cliff's edge. That'll teach him to be honest! Let's see him try to rob us now!"
"Indeed! A naturally evil brat like him deserves such a fate!" Shane agreed deeply. "This kid also owes me something, which is why I was looking for him. Since we're on the same side, could you take me to that cliff you mentioned?"
"No problem, brother!" the fat man laughed heartily. "But that place is a bit remote. How about this, just follow me, I'll take you..."
"Take him, my foot!"
The skinny man jumped up and smacked him upside the head. He had been listening with stunned disbelief and could finally bear it no longer, roaring, "You idiot! You moron! This kid is obviously up to no good! Can't you tell he's just trying to get information out of you?!"
"Eh?"
The fat man froze. The skinny man had already snorted coldly, raised his gun to aim at Shane's forehead, and pulled the trigger without hesitation!
BANG!
A gunshot rang out. Shane tilted his head, watching as a gleaming yellow bullet flew past the tip of his nose. He then turned back, glanced at the bullet mark on the tree trunk, and frowned.
"It's rare to see someone who just suddenly opens fire without a word."
He narrowed his eyes, staring at the incredulous skinny bandit. "I'm not confident enough to dodge every single bullet, so I'm sorry, but I'll have to make a move too."
BOOM!
The moment his voice fell, he kicked off the tree trunk, using the force to launch himself into the air. He twisted his body and shot downwards like a cannonball.
In the skinny man's eyes, he only saw a black shadow rapidly growing larger. Before he could react in his panic, his throat was seized by five fingers that felt like they were cast from steel. The next moment, his entire body was lifted into the air.
"Cough... cough... let go... let me go..."
He struggled desperately, smashing the butt of his gun against his opponent's head, but in an instant, the gun was snatched away with an expressionless face. With a gentle twist, the flintlock snapped in two like a toy and was tossed aside.
"Don't bully the boss!" the fat man shouted, raising his club high and bringing it down.
Shane easily dodged it, then grabbed the fat bandit's arm with one hand, pulled his entire body over his shoulder, and threw him violently into the distance!
CRASH!
A human-shaped crater was smashed into a giant tree, embedding the fat bandit firmly inside. No matter how much he roared in fury, he couldn't move an inch.
Only then did Shane lift the skinny man up again by his head, and under his terrified gaze, offered a polite smile.
"Excuse me, could you take me there now?"
"Hey! Wake up! Wake up!"
In a daze, Luffy felt someone lightly slapping his face with a large, rough hand.
SMACK!
Suddenly, the hand slapped him hard, making him see stars. Then, a large basin of cold water was poured over his head like a waterfall.
So cold!
With a shiver, Luffy was finally wide awake.
"Huh? Wh-what's going on?!"
Luffy looked around and found that he was tied firmly to a stone pillar. Behind him was a cliff. The sight made his nose run, and he screamed, "Waaaah—!!!!"
"So noisy! Shut up, you brat!"
The scar-faced, dark-skinned man in front of him slammed a foot on a chair, looking incredibly fierce. "It sure took a lot of effort to get you to talk properly. Now, can you tell me just what grudge you have against us? Why have you been targeting my men all this time?"
"Targeting? Your men?"
Question marks hung over Luffy's head like a string of little bells. He looked from the fierce, scar-faced man to the group of bandits around him.
The bandits were all gritting their teeth, their eyes wide like copper bells, glaring at him as if he had committed some heinous crime.
Luffy became even more confused. He tilted his head and asked, completely bewildered, "Uncles, who are you guys?"