"First Mate?"
Louis put on a surprised expression. "You're still awake?"
"Well..."
Baro rubbed his waist inconspicuously, looking a little awkward. "All sorts of things."
"But what about you, rookie? Who were you talking to just now?"
The First Mate's gaze suddenly sharpened.
"Who? Who else is here? I was just talking to myself."
Louis waved a hand, looking a little troubled. "After all, First Mate, when you talk about Roger, you mean that monster who's as famous as Admiral Golden Lion, right? The Admiral ordered us to find him. If we really did..."
Though the Golden Lion Pirates held undisputed dominion in the New World, and were the strongest force there with Whitebeard uninterested in conquest and Roger keeping out of sight for years, that didn't mean Roger was weak. Roger, Rayleigh, Gaban, and Oden were all monsters feared throughout the New World. When it came to the officers, the Roger Pirates were the strongest crew in the pirate world—without question.
What's more, it needed to be stressed again that Roger had never been a good person. The Pirate King was the freest man in the world. Freedom meant having no restraints, and having no restraints meant doing whatever you pleased.
If the Blood Hand Pirates, under Rhode's command, found Roger, Louis was genuinely afraid he'd die.
"Is that so?"
Baro narrowed his eyes slightly as he watched Louis, then smiled. "I never would've guessed you were such a sensitive man, the sort who likes talking to himself in the dead of night."
"Heh heh heh."
Louis scratched his head, looking embarrassed.
"Get some sleep."
Baro turned and left.
"Just follow the captain when it comes to Roger."
"Oh, all right, First Mate. You should..."
Louis's smile faded. "Get some rest too."
The next day, the Blood Hand Pirates set sail. They had no particular destination; their only goal was to search places where the Roger Pirates might appear, or where Roger had been seen before. With only one ship, the Roger Pirates were practically invisible on these seas.
The Blood Hand Pirates took their time, like tourists. They eventually found an island and began making repairs. Louis asked Rhode whether he really didn't care about Golden Lion's orders.
Rhode's answer was interesting. He said he was willing to die fighting for Golden Lion's ambitions, but he wasn't willing to die in a place like this for no reason. That would be a waste.
Louis nodded in understanding. No one in this world was a fool; he knew that, so he needed to be even more careful.
After spending a night on this prosperous island in Shiki's territory, the pirates set off again. They didn't need to risk their lives, but there was no need to act as if they were slacking off, either. Rhode was thirty-five, a seasoned veteran who'd spent years making his way in the New World. He looked passionate and fired up, but the search route he chose ran through the most prosperous parts of Shiki's territory. Work and leisure, all in one.
The only regret was that someone else had the same idea.
"Captain, there's a ship approaching from behind!"
Louis was working out at the stern while keeping an eye on their surroundings. He was doing his job to the letter. When playing the part of a pirate, he had to do it properly.
"Hm?"
Louis blinked. "It's Flog!"
A huge pirate ship slowly drew near. It was enormous, far bigger than the Blood Hand Pirates' ship; their gunwale only reached the middle of its hull.
"Ha ha ha! We meet again, Rhode! What a coincidence!"
Flog, a short man standing at the bow of the ship, roared with laughter as the huge vessel headed straight toward them.
"Boom!!"
The Blood Hand Pirates' ship suddenly lurched. The waves stirred up by the other ship's passage alone nearly sent them tumbling beneath the sea.
"Flog!! What do you think you're doing?"
Rhode stamped his foot and glared. "Are you trying to disobey Admiral Shiki's orders?"
Golden Lion was cruel by nature, but he wasn't foolish enough to let his subordinates fight among themselves and weaken his own forces. Fighting among themselves was strictly forbidden in the Golden Lion Grand Fleet.
"Ha ha ha, sorry, Rhode. I didn't notice."
Flog put on an apologetic look. "Still, isn't your ship a little shabby? Doesn't it make Admiral Golden Lion look bad?"
"Boom!"
The Blood Hand Pirates' ship lurched again as the other vessel drew close once more. This time, it crashed directly into them. If First Mate Baro hadn't swiftly turned the helm to avoid it, they might really have sunk.
"Oh, oh, there I go being careless again."
Flog laughed loudly. "Honestly, trying to get close while making sure the waves don't capsize you—it must be quite a challenge for someone as strong as you."
"Oh? You mean..."
Without changing expression, First Mate Baro handed the helm to a pirate and casually swung his hand. A slash roared through the air. "You're strong, and we're weak?"
"Clang!"
Flog opened his mouth, and his tongue whipped out like a snake. Coated in Haki, it scattered Baro's slash with a single strike. "Hey, Rhode! Is this a provocation? I'll report this to Admiral Golden Lion exactly as it happened!"
"Hey, Captain!"
Louis cried indignantly. "Let's fight! Take this guy out! He's just a stinking toad!"
He really did think Flog was being far too arrogant.
"Toad?"
Flog's face turned green, the vivid color spreading across his skin. His slick, slimy appearance was unmistakable. "I'm a frog! Can't you see how smooth and tempting my skin is? Do toads have skin this beautiful?"
He seemed to take it personally.
"Hah, just a toad!"
Louis sneered.
"Kid!!"
Flog glared at Louis. His tongue shot out, but he stopped it at the last instant and pulled it back. Then he started laughing again. "Ha ha ha, you crafty little brat. You want me to make the first move?"
"Had enough, Flog?"
Rhode said coolly. "I'm going to carry out Admiral Golden Lion's orders."
"Ha, so cold to an old friend? You really are the Ripper!"
Flog leaned over the gunwale, looking down at Rhode. "Whatever. You wouldn't dare fight me anyway. I'm off."
"Whoosh!"
Though he said he was leaving, the instant he turned away, his head swung back around and his tongue shot out. It was incredibly fast, darting straight toward Louis.
"..."
Louis instinctively took a step back, his arm already raised to shield himself. He had assumed a defensive stance.
"Pretty alert, aren't you, little boy?"
Flog laughed as his tongue withdrew. "Next time you speak out of turn, I'll kill you!"
Only then did he sail away.
"..."
Baro watched Louis's stance and narrowed his eyes slightly. Although Louis's weapon was a sword, his first instinct had been to raise his arm and defend himself.
"Don't worry. I'm here."
Rhode smiled and patted Louis on the shoulder.
"Yeah."
Louis nodded firmly, watching the ship disappear in the distance. Personally, he didn't like being threatened.
"Buzz!"
But just then, he felt his wrist vibrate. A moment later, the vibration stopped. The Den Den Mushi hidden inside the compass was receiving a call! Now of all times!
That wasn't the problem. The trouble was that his hand was resting on the gunwale, and the vibration made the compass's wristband knock against it, producing a dull sound.
"Hm? What was that?"
Baro furrowed his brows. "Mario, what are you wearing on your wrist?"
As soon as Hua Yiji posted an update, the other authors all looked at him and laughed. "Hua Yiji, you got crushed by another new book again." He didn't answer, but said to his readers, "Could I get a few recommendations? Maybe a little support?" Then he posted a four-thousand-word update. They deliberately called out in loud voices, "Your new book ranking must've dropped again!" Hua Yiji opened his eyes wide. "How can you slander me like that?" "Slander? I saw it with my own eyes yesterday. Your new book got crushed again and again on the second-dimension rankings. The big shots beat you up!" Hua Yiji's face flushed, and veins bulged across it as he argued, "You can't say a ranking on the new book list counts as... getting a big recommendation or a tip... Being outdone by the big shots doesn't mean I got beaten up!" Then came a string of incomprehensible words, things like "readers won't vote" and "I'll die without more favorites," which made all the authors burst out laughing. The author chat group was once again filled with cheer.
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