Kuro, I Need Your Help with My Training

Usopp rushed to Kaya's mansion.

He snuck past the guards, ran to the tree beside Kaya's room, and jumped onto a branch.

"Kaya, something terrible has happened!"

Usopp saw Kaya lying on the bed by the window, quietly reading a book.

His anxious heart finally settled.

There was still time. As long as he quickly told Kaya the truth and got her to leave…

"What's wrong, Usopp?"

Kaya brushed a strand of golden hair from her ear. She was happy to see the boy, but then noticed the panic on Usopp's face and couldn't help but feel worried.

"Kaya, listen to me, your butler, Kuro…"

"He's a pirate!"

Usopp hastily blurted out the information he had just learned to Kaya. "You need to come with me now. I'll explain everything later."

"Hahaha, what are you talking about, Usopp?"

Kaya paused for a moment after hearing him, then started laughing. "Is this today's story?"

Ever since Kaya's parents passed away, she had fallen into a state of depression, and her health began to deteriorate as a result.

Usopp had always stayed by her side, often coming to tell her tall tales.

Kaya knew they weren't true, because she had read some of the stories in books.

But she never exposed him, simply playing along with Usopp and occasionally smiling.

Sometimes it was because the story was funny, and sometimes it was because she inexplicably felt happy just by looking at the boy.

Usopp's expression grew even more strained. He knew Kaya was taking his words as just another story.

His voice involuntarily grew louder. "No, Kaya! I'm serious!"

Suddenly, he remembered the bounty poster he got from Reiner and quickly fumbled for it in his satchel.

Thump, thump, thump—

There was a knock at Kaya's door.

"Miss Kaya, it's me, Kuro."

"I've brought your lunch."

Hearing Kuro's voice, Usopp instantly stiffened, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

"Oh no, Usopp,"

Kaya said, somewhat flustered. "You should leave quickly, or if Kuro finds you, he'll call the guards to chase you away again."

"No!" Usopp's hand trembled slightly as he spread the bounty poster in front of Kaya.

"Look! I'm not lying to you! This is real, hurry and come with me, I'll carry you and jump out the window, please believe me, Kaya!"

"Th-this is!" Kaya looked at the portrait on the bounty poster, her face filled with disbelief.

Aside from the difference in attire, the face was practically identical to Kuro's!

"How could this be… Kuro, he!" Kaya found it hard to accept.

That gentle and refined butler had suddenly become a great pirate with a 16 million Berry bounty?

"Miss Kaya, are you alright?"

"I'm coming in."

Outside the door, Kuro sensed that something was amiss.

Today was the agreed time to meet Jango, but the man had not shown up, making Kuro feel like tearing Jango to shreds.

And then there was Kaya's reaction…

He clearly heard movement inside but hadn't received any reply from Kaya.

Even if it wasn't convenient for him to enter, she should at least say something, he thought, a vague sense of unease stirring within him.

Could it be?

Jango, that good-for-nothing!

Kuro, as expected of a pirate renowned for his cunning, immediately understood what was happening.

BANG!

Suddenly, with a loud crash, the room door was violently kicked open.

Kuro gritted his teeth, looking at Usopp by the window, who was holding Kaya and preparing to leave.

His face instantly turned terrifyingly grim.

"K-Kuro!" Usopp and Kaya exclaimed in shock.

Seeing Kuro take out his long, sharp clawed gloves from his suit and put them on, Usopp involuntarily began to tremble.

"Why?" Kuro's eyes were cold as he spoke indifferently.

"How did you find out? Don't tell me this trash defeated Jango?"

"Oh, we told him."

Suddenly, a clear voice came from outside the window.

Luffy was squatting on a tree branch, holding a half-eaten plate of food.

He popped a piece of meat into his mouth, then looked calmly at Kuro. "I defeated that weird guy with glasses."

"Who are you?"

"I'm Luffy, the man who's going to be the Pirate King!"

"The Pirate King? So you're also a pirate."

Kuro looked coldly at Luffy. "Why? I have no grudge against you, unless…"

"You want to play the hero?"

"Hero? No, I already said I want to be the Pirate King. As for why…"

Luffy placed the plate on the windowsill, rubbed his fists, and grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

"I don't like you, so I came to beat you up. It's that simple!"

As Luffy spoke, he stretched out his arm, wrapped it around Usopp and Kaya, and sent them downstairs.

"What is this?!"

"His arm stretched out!"

Usopp and Kaya stared in shock at the arm wrapped around them.

"Is that all?"

Kuro's face gradually twisted into a sneer. "Three years! Three years of my painstaking efforts!"

"Because of your inexplicable reason! All of it gone to waste, all because you don't like me, all my efforts ruined!"

"You deserve to die!"

Kuro roared, his Ten Claws spread open, gleaming with a sharp, cold light.

Whoosh!

The next moment, Kuro's figure instantly vanished from his spot. This was his Silent Walk, a high-speed burst of movement that made no sound.

When he reappeared, he was already in front of Luffy!

"So fast!"

Luffy was startled; the sudden burst of speed from his opponent left him momentarily unresponsive.

Schlick!

Blood splattered as the Ten Claws slashed several bloody marks across Luffy's chest.

"Damn it!" Luffy gritted his teeth. Although he instinctively recoiled, he was still cut by his opponent, performing a backflip and landing on the lawn.

However, Kuro didn't stop after a successful strike. Instead, he pressed his advantage, closing in on Luffy as soon as he landed.

The sharp claws swung down fiercely!

Clang—!

A spark of fire flashed out of thin air.

A figure dressed entirely in black, with sharp fangs and claws, held a sword that parried Kuro's sharp claws.

"What the hell is that thing?!"

Kuro looked at the Sword Devil in terror. This person looked…

No, this thing definitely wasn't human, no matter how you looked at it!

It looked too terrifying, this demonic thing!

"Screech—screech—"

A sharp, piercing sound rang out, and another bizarre figure emerged.

Its grotesque appearance surpassed that of the Sword Devil, with three high-speed rotating chainsaws that sent shivers down one's spine.

"Ah!!!"

A sharp shriek rang out, and Kaya covered her face with her hands, as if she had seen something terrifying.

"How rude…"

Reiner walked up from behind, followed by Zoro and Nami.

Seeing the terrified Kaya, Reiner lit a cigarette and said calmly, "Little Blade and Little Saw will be sad."

"Those names are weird on them, you idiot!"

Nami rolled her eyes at him. "This thing is disgusting no matter how many times I see it!"

"So, he's our target, huh? Looks like a decent opponent."

Zoro drew his sword, regarding Kuro with interest.

"Roronoa Zoro?"

Kuro looked at the drawn sword in Zoro's hand. Though he had retreated behind the scenes, he still kept up with information from the outside world.

He was no stranger to the Pirate Hunter, the Three-Sword Style Swordsman Zoro, whose reputation had soared in the East Blue over the past two years.

Looking at Luffy, Zoro, and the two strangely-shaped creatures, Kuro's expression couldn't help but turn grim. "This situation truly isn't good!"

Reiner controlled the two devils, sending them to surround Kuro, while he himself stayed hidden behind them.

He casually took the rifle off his back and began loading bullets.

Four against one?

No, five against one!

This wasn't a duel; no one would find it unfair.

Kuro, I need you to help me train!