The Traitor and the Dreamer

"Crack!!!"

Thunder roared overhead, and dazzling white light instantly illuminated the sea. The surface glimmered as the little boat rose and fell with the waves, buffeted by the sea wind. But without a helmsman, it was completely out of control. At any moment, a towering wave might capsize it.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!"

The rain poured down. Raindrops struck the deck like tiny glass beads falling to the ground, their sound unusually clear and grating.

"Ugh."

The man rolled across the deck, and blood instantly stained the water on its surface red.

"Smack!"

The black serpent followed close behind, slamming down like a drill.

"Tch!"

The man leaped into the air and landed nimbly on the deck. Where the black serpent struck, several dark holes had been punched through the planks.

"Mario, what the hell are you doing?!"

Rhode gritted his teeth as blood poured from his mouth. But he knew that was the least of his problems. His back was much more seriously injured: several deep holes pierced straight into his internal organs, and the bleeding wouldn't stop. With the rain washing over him, surely the blood had already gathered into a river.

"What am I doing? Can't you tell? Killing you, obviously. Sorry, Captain."

Louis's hair danced in the air like tentacles. With ease, he sent two strands elsewhere: one to steer the boat, the other to furl the sail. "I'd originally planned to get us both out of danger."

"So you're a Devil Fruit user?"

Rhode eyed the hair writhing behind Louis and spoke in a low voice. "I never imagined the new recruit would be this dangerous!"

"And..."

His hand pressed against his back. The wound flared, and his face briefly twisted in pain. "Finger Pistol? If I remember right..."

"That's enough chatter, Captain. I'm short on time. Please, die here."

Louis had no time to waste. If he was even a little too slow, the Navy fleet might arrive.

"Thump!"

The deck trembled slightly. Louis vanished, leaving the long sword he was unskilled with stuck in the planks. He unleashed Soru at full speed and shot forward.

"The Six Powers! I knew it!"

Rhode had spent decades at sea, of course he recognized Louis's techniques. He snarled, "Mario! You bastard, you're a spy!!"

"Whoosh!"

The air split as a faintly glowing kick swept toward Rhode's neck.

"Bang!"

Too badly injured to react in time, Rhode was sent flying. But almost immediately, he changed direction in midair, pushed off the railing, and launched himself at Louis.

"Armament Haki!"

Louis stared at the black, lacquer-like sheen around the man's neck. There was no doubt—it was Armament Haki. His attacks couldn't even break through!

Tekkai was nowhere near as strong as Armament Haki.

"Looks like you still haven't learned it, Mario!!"

Rhode roared, "I love my crew more than anything! But betrayal? I hate it more than anything, you bastard!!"

The claws covering his hands were coated in black Haki as he lunged straight for Louis's head.

Louis sighed. He didn't bother using Tekkai to defend himself. The difference in strength was too great. If he tried to withstand a Haki-coated attack with Tekkai, he'd be torn apart in an instant.

"Whoosh!!"

The claws traced a dazzling arc through the air, and their wind pressure carved deep grooves into the deck.

"What?"

Rhode's eyes flew wide. His sure-to-land strike had missed. "What is this?"

Louis's body was as supple as a snake, impossibly flexible. In an instant, he coiled around Rhode's arm. The sensation was revolting, his body writhing as he slid from Rhode's arm onto his back.

"Rokuogan!"

"Armament!!"

"Vmm!!"

An invisible shockwave burst outward. Wrapped around Rhode, Louis easily lined up both fists with his back and unleashed Rokuogan.

"Gah!!"

Even armor-like Armament Haki couldn't fully withstand the impact that struck directly at his internal organs. Blood, mixed with fragments of his organs, poured from Rhode's mouth.

"Damn you! You bastard!!"

Rhode raked his claws toward his own belly. Louis, who couldn't use Haki, had no way to defend against such an attack—especially while his body was relaxed in the Paper Art stance.

"Smack!"

His body instantly contracted, returning to its normal form, and he dodged Rhode's strike. Bracing one hand against the deck, he flipped upside down. "Rankyaku: Shatterstone!"

His leg came crashing down with a howl of wind.

"Bang!"

Rhode reacted quickly, turning at once and raising an arm to block Louis's kick. Then his other hand tore through the air, striking straight toward Louis's chest.

"Pointless!"

Louis's chest caved inward. He drifted away from Rhode's attack like a wisp of cotton caught in the wind.

"What the hell was that..."

Rhode had never seen a technique like it. "Is that another ability?"

"Captain, you're far too weak now!"

Louis spoke softly. His hair followed Rhode like a shadow, leaving him no time to change moves. His rudimentary Observation Haki wasn't enough to see the future. In an instant, Louis's hair bound both of Rhode's arms, then hardened like Tekkai.

"Your strength, speed, and reflexes have all declined so much. It must be hard just to stay on your feet now, right? Then I'll claim the victory."

He stacked his fists.

"Rokuogan!"

"AAAAAAH!!"

The impact on his internal organs was unbearable. Ordinary attacks only damaged the organs when they struck the body, but Rokuogan's shockwaves hit the internal organs directly. After taking two in a row, even with Armament Haki weakening the blows, Rhode could no longer endure them.

"You bastard!!!"

Rhode still hadn't lost consciousness. He slammed his head downward.

"Thud!"

His hair shielded Louis like a barrier. Soft hair could absorb force with ease, and once hardened, it became an exceptionally sturdy shield.

"Smack!"

Louis spun and kicked Rhode in the head, which was still wrapped in hair, sending the man flying into the air.

"Waaah..."

Rhode rolled across the deck, blood and fragments of his organs pouring out of him. His body trembled as he lay face-down, trying again and again to get up, but it seemed futile.

"Bastard..."

Rhode struggled with all his strength to lift his head.

"Huff, huff..."

Louis took a couple of ragged breaths. Unleashing Rokuogan twice in a row had left him somewhat exhausted. He hadn't been completely drained like the first time he used it on Xiluo. As his proficiency improved, his efficiency had improved too—but the technique still took a tremendous amount of energy.

"Looks like you can't get back up."

Louis took a couple of deep breaths, and his aching body gradually recovered. "Then it ends here, Captain."

"Shut up, you scum,"

Rhode cursed. "You have no right to call me that! You filthy disgrace who betrayed his principles!"

"Don't act so self-righteous. It's disgusting."

Louis walked over to Rhode and looked down at him. "Wasn't I the one who saved your life just now? And yet you ignored my refusal and forced me to take you back. Ah, would someone who truly loved his crew force one of them to do something? That's ridiculous, isn't it? People think they're one kind of person, but often they're nothing like it."

"Mario!!"

Rhode spat blood, his voice growing weaker. "Was it Baro...?"

"Yeah. I had no choice. Baro suspected me, and you disappointed me so much, Captain."

Louis sneered. "Would someone who truly loved his crew let one crew member investigate another? Sure, I did have something to hide. But you're not the person you believe yourself to be, Captain. You must have noticed that by now, right? Hmm? Your true nature. I've disliked you for a long time. You shout about dreams, but you're nothing but trash."

"You bastard! You bastard!!"

Rhode's eyes were bloodshot as he glared at Louis, his teeth clenched so hard they seemed ready to shatter. "Beast! You heartless beast!! Why is scum like you still alive on the sea?!"

"Because I don't want to die. It's that simple."

Louis walked to the helm, pulled the sword from the deck, and returned to Rhode's side. "Come to think of it, it's strange. I don't usually waste time talking before a kill. I was pretty quick about killing Baro. But do you know why I went out of my way to put you down?"

"..."

Rhode could no longer speak.

"Maybe it's because I wanted to..."

Louis raised the sword in his hand. "Lessen my guilt a little? Pfft—hahahaha! Something like that."

He burst out laughing.

It doesn't really matter whether Rhode dies or not, but people like him really annoy me, lol.