The Fear of Being Ruled by Kahn!

Deep in the jungle of Mount Colubo.

Three figures darted swiftly through the branches.

"Hahahaha! That fat guy's expression just now was hilarious!"

Luffy laughed so hard he nearly fell out of the tree.

"That kick felt so good. Those guards couldn't take a hit at all."

Ace still looked unsatisfied.

He took off his mask and hung it from his waist.

It revealed a face that was still youthful, yet already somewhat defined.

His freckles looked especially vivid beneath the moonlight.

"Don't let your guard down."

Sabo took off his goggles as well.

His curly blond hair was a little messy.

"We just got lucky this time. We didn't run into any real experts."

"I heard the king plans to hire actual pirate hunters to deal with us."

"Tch."

Ace curled his lip dismissively.

"Pirate hunters? Could their fists be harder than the old man's?"

"Could they be scarier than Brother Kahn's glare?"

At the mention of Kahn.

All three of them paused at once.

Their earlier arrogance visibly shrank by a notch.

Luffy even hunched his neck.

"Um..."

"Did we... stay out a little too late today?"

Luffy asked cautiously.

Ace looked up at the moon.

It was high overhead.

They were long past curfew.

Cold sweat trickled down his forehead.

"Probably... maybe... perhaps..."

"We're dead."

Sabo closed his eyes in despair.

"Brother Kahn said we had to be back before sunset."

"Now the moon's practically roasting our asses."

The three looked at each other.

They saw two words in one another's eyes:

We're screwed.

But they still had to go home.

Not going back would get them killed even worse.

Ten minutes later.

Outside the Dadan Family home.

The house Garp had kicked down had been forced back into shape by Kahn over the past three years.

It had even been expanded to twice its original size.

It was built from the finest mahogany.

Where had the money come from?

Naturally, it was the earnings of these three "High Town Vigilantes" over the past few months.

At that moment.

The courtyard was utterly silent.

Even the watchdog that usually guarded the gate did not dare make a sound.

A bonfire burned in the middle of the yard.

The flames flickered.

They cast light over a massive figure reclining in a lounge chair.

Kahn.

He wore a pair of loose shorts, his upper body bare.

He held a book that had come from who knew where.

Hearing their footsteps.

Kahn did not look up.

He merely turned a page slowly.

"Finally decided to come back?"

His voice was soft.

Yet in the silent night, it sounded like thunder.

Luffy was the first to cave.

He hid behind Ace, trying to shrink himself into a ball of air.

Ace forced himself to step forward.

"Um... Brother, we..."

"Shh."

Kahn raised a finger to his lips.

"Let me guess."

"Today, you went to High Town and wrecked the home of a fat man named Bally."

"You stole five million Beli."

"Luffy bounced twelve bullets away with his belly."

"Ace kicked three spears in half and sent a one-hundred-and-fifty-pound guard flying."

"Sabo used his half-baked Moonwalk twice."

"Then you hung that unlucky fat man from the balcony."

Kahn closed the book.

He raised his head.

His golden pupils shone brightly in the firelight.

"Am I right?"

The three brats' mouths fell open.

They looked as if they had seen a ghost.

"H-How did you know?"

Even Sabo's voice trembled.

High Town was at least a dozen kilometers from here!

And there were high walls in the way!

Even with a telescope, he should not have been able to see what happened inside the bedroom!

Could Brother Kahn really see through walls?

Or did he have ears that could hear the wind?

"This little distance?"

Kahn pointed to his ear.

"As long as I want to listen, I can even hear that fat guy snoring last night."

That was super hearing.

As his body developed.

Kahn's senses had strengthened to an absurd degree.

With just a little concentration.

Every movement throughout the Goa Kingdom was under his watch.

"Hand over the money first."

Kahn held out his hand.

Sabo obediently handed over the bundle on his back.

It was a large, heavy sack.

It was filled with gold coins and jewelry.

Kahn did not even look at it before casually tossing it to Dadan, who was trembling in a corner.

"Use it to buy meat."

"These three bottomless pits are growing. Every meal needs meat."

Dadan clutched the bundle, tears nearly spilling from her eyes.

This was five million!

She had never seen so much money in her life!

But she did not dare pocket any of it.

Because Kahn's next words were:

"If even one coin is missing, I'll hang you from the Foosha Village windmill as a weather vane."

Dadan nodded frantically, hugged the money, and ran off in a flash.

Once the stolen money had been dealt with.

Kahn's gaze returned to the three brats.

"Talk."

"Why were you late?"

This pressure.

Was even more terrifying than facing hundreds of guards.

Ace gritted his teeth.

"It was because... Luffy insisted on eating the roast chicken left over at that fat guy's house!"

"Lies!"

Luffy immediately retorted.

"Clearly, Sabo said the liquor cabinet there looked nice and wanted to see whether there was any good alcohol!"

"You shut up too!"

Sabo's face reddened.

"I was gathering intelligence! Intelligence on the nobles' network!"

"Enough."

Kahn cut off their mutual snitching.

He stood up.

Over two meters tall.

Like an iron tower, he completely enveloped the three brats in shadow.

"I don't care what excuses you have."

"Rules are rules."

"Since you came back late, you'll be punished."

Kahn rolled his neck.

It cracked loudly.

"Perfect. I've gotten a little stiff from sunbathing these past few days."

"Want to train with me?"

The moment they heard the words "train with me."

The three brothers' faces instantly turned green.

How was this training?

This was plainly a one-sided beating!

"Run!"

Someone shouted.

The three were remarkably coordinated.

They fled in different directions.

Luffy stretched out his rubber arm toward a large tree.

Sabo used Moonwalk to shoot toward the roof.

Ace smashed through the fence and charged into the forest.

As long as even one of them got away, it would be a victory!

Kahn smiled.

His smile was cruel.

"Run?"

"Where do you think you can run to under these eyes?"

Boom!

The ground exploded.

Kahn vanished in an instant.

The next second.

A scream rang out from midair.

Like swatting a fly, Kahn slapped Sabo out of the sky.

He was embedded in the ground.

So deep they could not even pull him out.

Then came the forest's turn.

"Waaahhh! I don't want to play anymore!"

Luffy's screams echoed through the valley.

Kahn grabbed his stretched-out arm and swung him around like a yo-yo several times.

Then he slammed him precisely into Ace's escape route.

Bang!

The two brothers collided.

They rolled into a ball.

Kahn landed before them.

He did not use any special moves.

Just simple punches.

One punch each.

"This is what you call getting stronger?"

Bang!

Ace flew away and ended up hanging from a tree branch.

"You can't even use Haki, yet you dare call yourself the Red Devil?"

"You're more like a red-assed monkey."

Bang!

Sabo was kicked into the pond.

"You Moonwalk like a duck paddling through water, and you call that the Dark Knight?"

"You're a moth flapping around in the dark."

As for Luffy.

Kahn lifted him up.

He curled his finger.

Aimed it at Luffy's forehead.

And flicked.

Thunk!

"Ow!!!"

Luffy clutched his head and rolled all over the ground.

Tears and snot streamed down his face.

That one flick.

Had contained no Haki.

But its penetrating force made even Luffy, a rubber man, feel as though his soul had left his body.

"Too weak."

"Way too weak."

Kahn clapped his hands.

He looked at the three battered brothers.

His face was full of disappointment.

"You think beating up a few nobles who only know how to eat, drink, and play makes you impressive?"

"You've been having quite a blast playing house, haven't you?"