Chapter 32: Luffy, the Born-Evil Brat!

The straw hat rotated leisurely on his fingertip. Suddenly, Xia Nuo let out a soft "hmm," as if sensing something. He sat upright and turned his head toward the southwest.

In the treetops over there, birds were startled, fluttering away into the distance.

Had someone arrived? Or was it a large beast?

He frowned, straddled the tree trunk with his legs, and slid down more than ten meters in a quick, rushing motion. He came to a stable halt on a branch in the middle of the tree, granting him a clear, expansive view that allowed him to monitor every movement on the ground below.

...

"Boss, how old is that kid anyway? Is he really that tough, enough to beat all three of you into the dirt?"

A somewhat foolish voice suddenly rang out. Xia Nuo followed the sound to find 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 looked like a skinny monkey, shouted in annoyance. "Look, look here, this bump on my head hasn't even gone down yet. It was all that brat's doing. Don't underestimate him; he has power that came from a devil!"

The fat man looked bewildered. "Power from a devil?"

"I don't get it either, but that’s what everyone is saying! His arms and legs can stretch for meters at a time, then shrink back. You know those jack-in-the-box toys? It’s exactly the same—it’s terrifying!"

"That sounds horrific, Boss! It's a good thing Scar-Face captured him, or we’d be living in fear every time we patrolled the mountains from now on!"

"True, but we can't let our guard down. I heard the boss say the kid has an accomplice who might try to rescue him, which is why he called us all back to camp to keep a tight watch..."

"Someone's there!"

The fat man suddenly pointed his spiked club upward. "Right there in the tree!"

"Huh?"

The skinny man jumped in surprise and looked up immediately. Sure enough, he saw a black-haired fellow in the tree, observing them both with great interest.

"It's that brat's accomplice! Watch out, he might be a monster with devilish powers too!"

The skinny man shouted a warning, grabbed the flintlock rifle from his back, aimed it at the stranger, and gritted his teeth. "Get down here! Put your hands up, or I'll fire!"

"Why are you always pointing guns at people? That’s really quite scary..."

Under their wary gazes, Xia Nuo slowly raised his hands and said with a smile, "Tell me, this is our first time meeting, isn't it? How did you conclude so quickly that I’m an accomplice to this so-called 'devil brat'?"

"Not an accomplice?"

The fat man paused, lowered his club back onto his shoulder, and turned to the skinny one. "Boss, did we get it wrong? He says he's not an accomplice."

"How can you believe whatever someone tells you!"

The skinny man was infuriated. He glared fiercely at Xia Nuo again. "You still dare to say you're not an accomplice? Then... then tell me this!"

He pointed at the back of Xia Nuo's neck. "If you're really not one, how do you have the exact same hat as that little devil?"

"You mean this?"

Xia Nuo was slightly stunned. He looked at the straw hat on his back and shrugged.

"Just a coincidence. But, I am indeed looking for the same person you are. I’ve been searching these godforsaken mountains for days and I'm exhausted. I should thank you for catching him and saving me the trouble."

"Don't mention it, it's what we do," the fat man said, scratching his head with a silly grin. "That little brat was acting weird, taking advantage of our Mountain Scar Bandit crew being spread out to steal our roasted meat. Boss Scar-Face got so angry he took matters into his own hands and tied him up at the edge of the cliff. That'll keep him quiet; let's see him try to rob us now!"

"Indeed, such naturally evil brats deserve that kind of fate," Xia Nuo agreed heartily. "The kid owes me something, which is why I’ve been looking for him. Since we're all on the same side, could you take me to that cliff?"

"No problem, brother!" the fat man laughed heartily. "But that spot is a bit remote. How about this, just come with me, I'll take you—"

"Take you, my foot!"

The skinny man jumped up and slapped him on the head. He had been listening in stunned silence, but now he could hold back no longer. "Idiot! Moron! The guy is clearly up to no good—can't you tell he's fishing for information?"

"Eh?"

The fat man froze. The skinny man let out a cold snort, raised his gun to aim at Xia Nuo’s forehead, and pulled the trigger!

Bang!

As the shot rang out, Xia Nuo tilted his head, watching the golden bullet graze past the tip of his nose. He turned back, glanced at the bullet hole in the tree trunk, and frowned.

"It's rare to meet someone who just starts shooting without a word."

He narrowed his eyes slightly, staring at the incredulous bandit. "I don't have the confidence to dodge every bullet, so I'm afraid I have no choice but to take action myself."

Thump!

The moment he finished speaking, he kicked off the tree trunk, vaulted into the air, and plummeted downward like a cannonball.

The skinny man saw a black shadow rapidly expanding in his vision. Before he could react in his panic, his throat was gripped by five fingers as sturdy as steel, and he was hoisted into the air.

"Cough... cough... let go, let me go..."

He struggled violently, trying to strike the stranger's head with his gun butt, but it was snatched away instantly by his expressionless captor.

With a light snap, the flintlock broke into two pieces like a toy and was tossed aside.

"Don't bully the boss!"

The fat man yelled, raising his spiked club high and swinging it down. Xia Nuo dodged easily, grabbed the fat bandit's arm with one hand, hoisted him over his shoulder, and flung him away!

Boom!

The fat man slammed into a giant tree, leaving a human-shaped crater as he was wedged firmly inside, unable to move no matter how fiercely he struggled or roared.

Xia Nuo then grabbed the skinny man by the forehead and hoisted him up again. Under the man's terrified gaze, he offered a polite smile:

"May I ask now, will you take me there?"

...

"Hey! Wake up? Wake up!"

In a daze, Luffy felt a rough, large hand patting his cheeks lightly.

Slap!

Suddenly, that hand delivered a fierce strike that sent stars dancing before his eyes. Immediately after, a large basin of cold water poured down over his head like a waterfall.

So cold!

With a violent shiver, Luffy finally regained full consciousness.

"Huh? What, what's going on!"

Luffy looked around and realized he was tied firmly to a stone pillar, with a cliff right behind him. Terrified, snot streaming from his nose, he began to shout, "Waaaaah—!!!"

"So noisy! Shut up, you brat!"

The scarred, burly man in front of him had dark skin. He slammed a foot onto his chair, looking menacing.

"It sure took some effort to get you to talk. Now, can you tell me what kind of grudge we have, and why you’ve been targeting my men for a while now?"

"Targeting? Your men?"

Question marks filled Luffy's head like a string of small bells. He looked from the fierce, scarred man to the group of bandits surrounding them.

The bandits were all gritting their teeth, eyes wide as saucers, glaring at him as if he had committed some heinous crime.

Luffy grew even more confused. He tilted his head and asked with a bewildered expression:

"Mister, who are you guys?"