Setting Sail!

The massive Barrier-Barrier siege vehicle dissipated. There wasn't a single drop of blood on Daddy, yet his shoes were soaked through with gore and mangled flesh.

Dezaya looked on in terror at this man she no longer seemed to recognize; he had actually slaughtered so many of their brothers!

"Babaya!! You will die a miserable death!"

Seeing so many of his brothers die such tragic deaths, Bartolomeo's eyes turned bloodshot. He grabbed the Skillful Grade Sword: Yubashiri and lunged forward in a rage!

"You bear half the responsibility for their deaths! It was your order that sent them to their doom!"

Daddy, now completely lost to his bloodlust, bared his teeth and offered a cruel, mocking smile.

Daddy used his Barrier Shield once more to block Bartolomeo's strike, then coated his right fist in a thin layer of Armament Haki and slammed it into Barto's face, knocking him to the ground.

Daddy looked at the teeth scattered near Bartolomeo's mouth, leaned down to snatch the Skillful Grade Sword: Yubashiri from his hand, and ripped the scabbard from Barto's waist.

"If it isn't yours, don't go grabbing it!!"

Daddy sheathed the Skillful Grade Sword: Yubashiri and tucked it into his belt alongside the Cursed Blade: Sandai Kitetsu.

Under Bartolomeo's furious glare, Daddy began walking toward the ruins where Granny Yubaba lay.

This old hag—she couldn't be dead already, could she?

With his flickering Observation Haki, Daddy could sense that the old woman was still alive.

He hurried over to dig her out, only to find that her right arm was broken; her shallow Armament Haki, combined with her advanced age, simply couldn't withstand the massive impact of the Barrier Shield!

"Granny Yubaba! Teach me the training methods for both types of Haki, and do it honestly! Otherwise, you and Barto will..."

Daddy sneered. He had contributed so much to the Barto Family, yet not only had he failed to earn her full trust, she had even tried to steal his Skillful Grade Sword: Yubashiri.

As a transmigrator, how could he possibly swallow this insult?

Furthermore, Granny Yubaba had only taught him a tiny bit about awakening dual-type Haki, keeping the rest hidden and refusing to pass it on.

This had significantly delayed his departure to sea; if he hadn't obtained the Barrier-Barrier Fruit, he wouldn't have planned to set sail at all.

He might have waited until Luffy set sail, but now, he could head out a year earlier than Luffy!

This would give him more time to develop and grow stronger!

After all, he didn't possess the monstrous talent of Straw Hat Luffy, who could defeat Shichibukai within months and traverse the Grand Line to reach the New World and defeat the Four Emperors in just two or three years.

"Babaya! How could you become like this? You cannot hurt Granny!!"

The red-haired Dezaya rushed over, blocking the path to Granny Yubaba and glaring at the man with fury.

Seeing Dezaya act this way made Daddy feel somewhat agitated and restless.

"Granny Yubaba! I only want the methods for dual-type Haki. Otherwise, I don't mind letting the Barto Family vanish, or perhaps becoming the Babaya Family instead!!"

Daddy ignored Dezaya's rage. He could not give up the chance to grow stronger, whether it meant killing Yamashita Chuhide to seize the Barrier-Barrier Fruit or obtaining the Haki training methods from Granny Yubaba.

He didn't have enough time to keep trying to earn her trust, for the Great Era was approaching, and he had to race against time to strengthen himself and build his own forces!

"I can give it to you! But you must leave Loguetown immediately, you are not allowed to harm the Barto Family, and you must leave Dezaya behind!!"

Granny Yubaba said furiously. She never expected that in a place like the East Blue, she would be defeated by a mute, ungrateful wolf!

"You're looking to die!!!"

Daddy glanced at Dezaya, then looked at the old woman with murderous intent. She actually wanted him to abandon his first woman?

"Babaya! Don't! Don't hurt Granny!! I won't go to sea with you! You bastard, hurting your own family!!"

Dezaya shielded Granny Yubaba, her eyes red and streaming with tears, gritting her teeth as she glared at the man she had loved.

Not only had he killed their top enforcer, Yamashita Chuhide, for no reason, but he had also harmed Bartolomeo and Granny, and slaughtered so many of their brothers—she could never forgive this man!

Moreover, Daddy had hidden so much of his strength and Devil Fruit abilities from her; did he even love her at all?

Hearing these words from Dezaya, a pang of heartache actually struck Daddy. He stumbled back a step, trembling as he looked at her tear-filled, angry eyes.

He clenched his fists, a look of extreme complexity crossing his face.

"Give me the dual-type Haki training methods!!!"

Daddy shouted at Granny Yubaba through gritted teeth. He neither agreed nor refused, simply staring fixedly at the old woman who had schemed against him.

"In my bedroom, under the third brick on the right side of the bed!"

Granny Yubaba seemed to sense the insane killing intent radiating from Babaya and stopped provoking the enraged beast. If she could get Dezaya away from this ungrateful wolf, she would be satisfied.

"Hmph! I hope you aren't lying to me! Otherwise! I will come back and slaughter you all!"

Daddy glanced at Dezaya once more and walked away without looking back. He began to run, not wanting to see the look in her eyes.

He sprinted to the Barto Family headquarters, broke into Granny Yubaba's room, smashed her luxurious bed to pieces, and overturned the base, finally finding a small manual on Haki training.

He also spotted some rare gold and jewelry and scooped it all up; he hated this old woman and didn't want to leave her a single thing.

The old hag hadn't just refused to teach him the advanced Haki, she had tried to steal his sword, and now she had even schemed against him and Dezaya!

Today, for Dezaya's sake, he would let them live!

He buried the last remnants of his feelings for Dezaya deep within himself.

Emotions were merely obstacles on his path to becoming stronger.

He carried the spoils he had scavenged and headed straight for the port of Loguetown without looking back, where a small sailboat he had prepared specifically for himself awaited.

Over these past two years, he had learned quite a bit of navigational knowledge regarding the Grand Line and the New World.

In the East Blue, a peaceful sea area with very little extreme weather, there was even less need to worry!

He never wanted to see that look in Dezaya's eyes again; he had abandoned his ambition to annex the Barto Family!

He would start from scratch and build his own power!

Daddy steered the small sailboat, fully loaded with supplies, out of the port. As he looked back at Loguetown, where he had stayed for a year or two, a surge of ambition welled up within him!

On this day, he too would be a hidden dragon emerging from the sea, soaring across the horizon!

Suddenly, he caught sight of that familiar red figure, and his heart trembled slightly!

But the very next moment, he steeled himself once more!

Let this relationship be buried deep in the hearts of both, never to be spoken of again!

You need your family, and I have my own ambitions!

Daddy hoisted the sails and set off, moving completely away from the port of Loguetown and sailing toward the distance!

Meanwhile, the red-haired woman by the port finally couldn't hold it in any longer; she collapsed to the ground and began to sob, her heart-wrenching cries echoing through the air!

The man who used to coax her with cheesy pick-up lines to make her happy had left her!

Granny Yubaba and Bartolomeo, having just finished bandaging their wounds, also appeared behind Dezaya, watching the sailboat as it drifted away.

Granny Yubaba looked at the weeping Dezaya and let out a sigh, lost in her own thoughts.

As for Bartolomeo, he cursed Babaya as a traitor, swearing that he would set sail sooner or later to finish off that bastard!