Usopp hurried to Kaya's mansion.
He slipped past the guards, made his way to the tree beneath the room where Kaya was staying, and leaped onto a branch.
"Something's wrong, Kaya!"
Usopp saw Kaya lying on the bed beside the window, quietly reading a book in her hands.
At last, his pounding heart settled.
There was still time. If he told Kaya the truth right away and got her out of there...
"What is it, Usopp?"
Kaya tucked a lock of golden hair behind her ear. She was pleased to see the boy, but when she noticed the panic on his face, she couldn't help feeling concerned.
"Kaya, listen. Your butler, Kuro..."
"He's a pirate!"
Usopp hurriedly told Kaya what he had just learned. "Come with me first. I'll explain everything once we're away."
"Hahaha, what are you talking about, Usopp?"
Kaya was taken aback, then laughed. "Is that today's story?"
Ever since her parents passed away, Kaya had fallen into a depression, and her health had begun to deteriorate as well.
Usopp had always stayed by her side, often coming by to tell her tall tales.
Kaya knew they were made up, because she had read some of them in storybooks.
But she never called him out. She simply played along, smiling now and then.
Sometimes it was because the stories were funny. Sometimes, simply looking at the boy made her feel inexplicably happy.
The tension on Usopp's face deepened. He knew Kaya thought he was telling her another story.
His voice rose despite himself. "No, Kaya! I'm serious!"
Then he remembered the wanted poster he had gotten from Lina and hurriedly fumbled for it in his pouch.
Knock, knock, knock—
A knock came from Kaya's room door.
"Miss Kaya, it's me, Kuro."
"I've brought you lunch."
At the sound of Kuro's voice, Usopp stiffened, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
"This is bad, Usopp."
Kaya looked flustered. "You have to leave, or Kuro will call the guards to chase you off again if he finds you here!"
"No!" Usopp's hands trembled as he spread the wanted poster out in front of Kaya.
"Look! I wasn't lying! It's true. Hurry and come with me. I'll carry you and jump out the window. Trust me, Kaya!"
"Th-this is...!" Kaya stared at the face on the wanted poster, looking utterly disbelieving.
Aside from a few differences in his appearance, the face was exactly the same as Kuro's!
"How could this be...? Kuro!" Kaya struggled to accept it.
How could the gentle, elegant butler suddenly turn out to be a great pirate with a bounty of sixteen million beli?
"Miss Kaya, are you all right?"
"I'm coming in."
Outside the door, Kuro sensed that something was wrong.
Today was the day he was supposed to meet Jango, but the other man still hadn't shown up. Kuro was ready to tear Jango to pieces.
And then there was Kaya's reaction...
He had clearly heard movement inside, yet Kaya hadn't answered him.
Even if she couldn't let him in, she would at least have said something. A faint sense of foreboding crept over him.
"Could it be...?"
"Jango, you useless fool!"
Kuro was renowned for his cunning as a pirate, and he immediately put the pieces together.
Bang!
Suddenly, the door was kicked open with a deafening crash.
Kuro gritted his teeth as he saw Usopp by the window, holding Kaya and preparing to flee.
His expression instantly turned terrifyingly dark.
"K-Kuro!" Usopp and Kaya cried out.
Seeing Kuro pull a long set of clawed gloves from his suit and put them on, Usopp began trembling uncontrollably.
"Why?" Kuro asked coldly. "How did you find out? Don't tell me a useless fool like you beat Jango?"
"Oh, we're the ones who told him."
A clear voice suddenly came from outside the window.
Luffy was crouched on a tree branch, holding a plate of half-eaten food.
He shoved a piece of meat into his mouth and looked calmly at Kuro. "I beat that weird guy with the glasses."
"Who are you?"
"I'm Luffy, the man who's going to become the Pirate King!"
"The Pirate King? So you're a pirate too."
Kuro eyed Luffy coldly. "Why? You and I have no grudge, do we? Or..."
"Did you come here to play the hero?"
"The hero? No. I told you, I want to be the Pirate King. As for why..."
Luffy set the plate on the windowsill, rubbed his fists together, and grinned, showing a row of bright white teeth.
"I don't like you, so I came to beat you up. It's that simple!"
As he spoke, Luffy stretched out his arm, coiled it around Usopp and Kaya, and lowered them to the ground.
"What is that?!"
"His arm stretched!"
Usopp and Kaya stared at the arm wrapped around them, aghast.
"That's all?"
Kuro's expression grew more and more twisted. "Three years! Three years of painstaking work!"
"And all of it washed away because of your ridiculous reason! Everything ruined because you don't like me!"
"You deserve to die!!!"
Kuro roared as the Ten Blades on his hands unfolded, their edges gleaming coldly.
Whoosh!
In the next instant, Kuro vanished from where he stood. It was his Silent Step, a high-speed burst of movement without a sound.
When he appeared again, he was already right in front of Luffy!
"So fast!"
Luffy was startled. Kuro's sudden burst of speed caught him off guard.
Slash!
Blood sprayed as the Ten Claws carved several gashes across Luffy's chest.
"Damn it!" Luffy gritted his teeth. He had instinctively jerked back, but Kuro still managed to cut him. He flipped backward and landed on the lawn.
But Kuro didn't stop after landing a blow. He pressed his advantage, closing in again just as Luffy hit the ground.
His claws slashed down viciously!
"Clang—!"
A burst of sparks suddenly flashed in the air.
A figure dressed all in black, with sharp fangs, held a blade up to block Kuro's claws.
"What the hell is that?!"
Kuro stared at the Blade Devil in alarm. This guy looked...
No, how could anyone call that thing human?!
That thing was downright horrifying!
"Bzzzt—bzzzt—"
A shrill, grating noise rang out as another bizarre figure stepped forward.
It was even more terrifying than the Blade Devil. The sight of three rapidly spinning chainsaws was enough to make anyone's skin crawl.
"Ah!!!"
Kaya let out a piercing scream and covered her face with both hands, as if she'd seen something terrifying.
"How rude."
Lina walked up from behind, with Zoro and Nami following her.
Seeing Kaya panic in fright, Lina lit a cigarette and said coolly, "Little Knife and Little Saw will be hurt."
"Those names sound so weird for them, damn it!"
Nami rolled her eyes at him. "No matter how many times I see those things, they still make me sick!"
"Anyway, he's our target, right? He looks like a decent opponent."
Zoro drew his sword and regarded Kuro with interest.
"Roronoa Zoro?"
Kuro watched Zoro draw his sword. Though he had retired from the public eye, he still kept up with news from the outside world.
He knew of Zoro, the Three-Sword Style Swordsman and pirate hunter whose name had been rising in the East Blue over the past two years.
Looking at Luffy, Zoro, and the two bizarre-looking creatures, Kuro couldn't help growing grim.
"This situation is really bad!"
Lina sent the two devils forward to surround Kuro while she stayed behind.
She casually took the long rifle off her back and started loading it.
Four against one?
No, five against one!
This wasn't some kind of duel. Nobody would think it was unfair.
Kuro, I want you to help me train!
Before you continue