The Traitor and the Dreamer

"Crack!!!"

In the sky, thunderclaps exploded, and dazzling white light instantly illuminated this sea area. The sea surface rippled with a faint glow, and the small boat bobbed amidst the waves, constantly buffeted by the sea breeze. But the ship, having lost its helmsman, was completely out of control. Perhaps in the next moment, it would be capsized into the sea by a large wave.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!!"

Heavy rain poured down. The raindrops hitting the deck sounded like tiny glass beads falling on the ground, the sound exceptionally crisp and piercing.

"Ugh."

The man rolled on the deck, and blood instantly stained the water marks on the deck red.

"Splat!"

A black long snake followed closely, smashing downwards like a drill.

"Tch!"

The man leaped, his body suddenly shooting into the sky, landing nimbly on the deck. The deck hit by the black long snake was instantly broken open with several dark holes.

"Mario, what the hell are you doing!"

Rhode gritted his teeth, blood gushing from his mouth. But he knew very well that the blood in his mouth was a minor issue. His more serious injuries were on his back, with several deep holes piercing his internal organs. The bleeding couldn't be stopped. With the rainwater constantly flowing down, it probably looked like a river of blood now, right?

"What am I doing? Can't you see? Aren't I killing you? Sorry, Captain,"

Louis's hair danced in the air like tentacles. He effortlessly split two of them, one to steer and one to furl the sail, "I originally wanted to escape this danger with you."

"A Devil Fruit user?"

Rhode looked at the dancing hair behind Louis and said in a deep voice, "I never expected a newcomer assigned to the new crew to be such a terrifying guy!"

"And,"

He pressed his hand to his back, triggering the wound, and his face twitched for a moment, "Finger Pistol? If I remember correctly..."

"Enough with the nonsense, Captain. My time is tight. Please, die here."

Louis didn't have much time to waste. If he was any slower, the Navy fleet might have already arrived.

"Bang!"

The deck vibrated slightly. Louis's body had already disappeared. His longsword, which he wasn't good at using, was stuck in the deck. Soru was activated at full power, and his body shot out.

"Rokushiki? As expected?"

Rhode, who had been mixing it up at sea for decades, naturally recognized Louis's moves. He said hatefully, "Mario! You bastard, you're a spy!!"

"Whoosh!"

The air was suddenly cut open, and a slightly glowing whip kick slammed towards Rhode's neck.

"Clang!"

Heavily injured, Rhode had no time to react and was directly sent flying. But almost simultaneously, he changed direction in mid-air, stepped on the ship's side, and instantly exerted force, launching his body towards Louis.

"Armament Haki!"

Louis looked at the phenomenon on the man's neck, like black paint. Without a doubt, it was Armament Haki. His attack couldn't break through his defenses at all!

Tekkai was far inferior to Armament Haki in terms of strength.

"It seems you still haven't learned it! Mario!!"

Rhode roared, "I love my comrades the most! But! I hate betrayal the most, you bastard!!"

The claw sheath on his hand was wrapped in a layer of pitch-black Haki, and he clawed directly at Louis's head.

Louis sighed. He didn't use Tekkai to defend. The difference in strength was too great. Trying to block an attack amplified by Haki with Tekkai would probably result in him being torn to shreds instantly.

"Whoosh!!"

The claw sheath drew a brilliant trajectory in the air, and the wind pressure it stirred carved deep marks on the deck.

"What?"

Rhode's eyes suddenly widened. He hadn't hit! His sure-kill blow missed. "What is this?"

Louis's body was like a snake, incredibly soft. It instantly coiled around Rhode's arm. The touch was very disgusting, wriggling. In an instant, it had moved from Rhode's arm to his back.

"Rokuogan!"

"Armament!!"

"Buzz!!"

An invisible wave instantly spread out. Louis was coiled around Rhode, and his two fists easily aimed at Rhode's back. Rokuogan was activated.

"Ugh!!"

Even the invisible armor-like Armament Haki couldn't completely block the impact that directly struck the internal organs. Blood mixed with fragments of internal organs gushed from Rhode's mouth.

"Damn it! Bastard!!"

Rhode's claws directly clawed at his own stomach. Louis, who couldn't use Haki, couldn't possibly withstand such an attack, let alone being in a state of full body relaxation like Kami-e.

"Splat!"

The body instantly contracted, returning to human form, dodging Rhode's attack. He pushed off the ground, his body flipping upright, "Rankyaku - Shattering Rock!"

With a whistling wind, he brought his foot down.

"Clang!"

Rhode's reaction was not slow. He instantly turned, blocking Louis's attack with his arm, then tore through the air with his other hand, lunging straight for Louis's chest.

"Useless!"

His chest suddenly caved in, like a drifting feather, avoiding Rhode's attack with the wind.

"What is this..."

Rhode had never seen such a move. "Is it an ability?"

"Captain, you are far too weak!"

Louis said softly, his hair moving like a shadow. Rhode had no time to change his move, and his rudimentary Observation Haki wasn't advanced enough for precognition. His arms were instantly bound, then his hair hardened like Iron Body.

"Whether it's strength, agility, or reaction, it's all dropped so much. For you now, just standing must be incredibly difficult, right? Then, victory will be mine."

He stacked his fists.

"Rokuogan!"

"Ahhhhhh!!"

The feeling of his internal organs being impacted was absolutely not pleasant. Normal attacks only damaged internal organs when they struck the flesh, but Rokuogan's impact directly struck the body's internal organs. After taking two hits, even with Armament Haki weakening the blows, Rhode couldn't withstand such an attack.

"You bastard!!!"

Rhode hadn't lost consciousness yet. He smashed his head straight down.

"Pfft!"

A dull sound. His hair acted like a shield in front of Louis, its softness absorbing the force, making it an advantageous and incredibly tough shield when hardened.

"Crack!"

Louis spun and kicked Rhode's head, which was covered by his hair, sending the man flying into the sky.

"Waaah..."

Rhode tumbled across the deck, blood and fragments of internal organs continuously gushing out. His body trembled uncontrollably as he lay on the ground, desperately trying to get up, but it seemed futile.

"Bastard..."

Rhode tried his utmost to lift his head.

"Hoo hoo..."

Louis took a couple of breaths. Two consecutive Rokuogans had already left him somewhat exhausted. Although it wasn't the complete exhaustion he felt the first time he used it on Xiluo, his increased proficiency had improved efficiency. However, the stamina cost was still immense.

"It seems you can't stand up anymore."

Louis took a deep breath, his aching body gradually recovering. "Then this is the end! Captain!"

"Shut up, you trash,"

Rhode cursed, spitting blood. "You're not qualified to call me that! A piece of garbage who betrayed honor!"

"Don't be so high and mighty, it's nauseating,"

Louis walked up to Rhode, looking down at the man. "Didn't I just save your life? And you still ignored my refusal and forced me to take you back. Ah, would someone who truly loves their comrades force their comrades? That's laughable, isn't it? What you think you are often isn't who you actually are."

"Mario!!"

Rhode, spitting blood, his voice growing weaker, "Could it be, Baro..."

"Yes, I couldn't help it. Baro suspects me. You're too disappointing, Captain,"

Louis mocked. "Would someone who truly loves their comrades allow another comrade to investigate them? Although I do have issues, you aren't the person you believe yourself to be, Captain. You should have realized it by now, right? Hmm? Your true nature. I, actually, have been annoyed by you for a long time. Shouting slogans about dreams, but you're just trash."

"You guy, you guy!!"

Rhode's eyes were bloodshot, staring intently at Louis, his teeth seeming to grind to dust. "Beast! A heartless beast!! Why should scum like you still be alive on the sea!!"

"Because I don't want to die, it's that simple,"

Louis walked to the ship's wheel, pulled out the sword stuck in the ground, and walked back to Rhode. "It's strange, I don't usually like to talk much before killing. Killing Baro was also quite swift and decisive. But do you know why I specifically belittled you?"

"..."

Rhode could no longer speak.

"Perhaps because I wanted to,"

Louis raised the sword in his hand. "Lower my own guilt? Pfft~ Hahahaha! Something like that."

He burst into laughter.

Whether Rhode lived or died didn't really matter, but I just found this kind of person annoying, lol.