Infiltrating

Chapter 28: Infiltrating Them

Leo's open and composed demeanor immediately earned Rindou's favor. She had initially assumed he was nothing more than a spoiled brat who couldn't even handle an increase in training volume, but his mind held a clear understanding of himself, this world, and his enemies. He neither shied away from his own weakness nor denied the strength of his foes—a person with this kind of potential was formidable indeed.

One could say that most people in this world lacked such clarity.

"He's achieved a bit of his goal—recognizing exactly what level he's at."

It was as if he had ranked the strong of this world into tiers: the Four Emperors and the Three Admirals, the Emperor's officers and the Shichibukai, Marine Vice Admirals and the Supernovas, CP9 and those who could use Haki, Devil Fruit users, and finally, those just entering the Grand Line.

And in that last tier, beneath the pirate captains newly arrived on the Grand Line, there were further ranks: First Mates, officers, Combat Chiefs, and ordinary crew members.

His current stamina sat somewhere between an ordinary crew member and a Combat Chief, while his combat experience couldn't even match that of an ordinary crewman.

But that was easy to fix—he just had to keep fighting.

Keep fighting, accumulate experience. As long as he didn't die, he had enough time to raise himself to the level of a Combat Chief.

He had only rested for fifteen minutes before standing up, stripping off his shirt again, and walking toward the mast.

"Hey..." Rindou called out in surprise, but couldn't stop him. She only saw Leo standing by the mast, shouting, "Barbaro, I've rested enough. Let's go again."

It wasn't just Rindou—the pirates who had been gradually dispersing grew excited again. This kid clearly hadn't had his fill of getting beaten.

Barbaro was seething with rage. In his view, he had let Leo off easy, yet the brat showed no gratitude and even dared to provoke him again. If he didn't break a few of his ribs this time, his name wasn't Barbaro!

But this time, things went differently than Barbaro expected.

Leo fought boldly and aggressively, closing in immediately with a straight jab aimed at Barbaro's face—much like Todlin's earlier tactics. But this time, Leo wasn't Todlin, and Barbaro wasn't Leo.

Barbaro stepped back and dodged with explosive speed, but Leo didn't mimic him with a Spiral Kick. Instead, he pressed forward, fighting purely with boxing.

He used what he knew to attack his opponent, rather than clumsily imitating techniques he hadn't mastered.

The boxing shuffle step was extremely practical—quick and agile whether closing in or retreating to evade.

Leo didn't have a large, powerful build, so he stuck to conventional fighting patterns. The jab was direct and fast, well-suited for someone of his smaller frame.

As for hooks and uppercuts, their wide arcs left too many openings. The jab was the fastest, most routine way to attack.

But his opponent, lacking systematic training, refused to guard and take the hits when faced with jabs, instead constantly retreating.

Leo's attacks came in an unbroken stream, most of them feints that wouldn't hurt even if they landed. But Barbaro, with his high self-regard, absolutely refused to let Leo hit him even once, backing up step by step.

However, his crewmates were scum who couldn't stand him fighting so pathetically. He had nearly retreated to the edge of the circle when a pirate behind him shoved him hard. Barbaro never expected an attack from his own comrade; he stumbled, completely losing his balance. A fist grew larger before his eyes, but the expected blow never came.

Leo stepped back two paces, didn't attack, and waited for him to steady himself before beckoning him forward.

Barbaro sneered and charged in...

What followed was like a brawl between two children. Barbaro, knowing Leo lacked experience, took two punches to grab hold of him and slammed him to the deck. Then they devolved into a messy, scrappy fight like two kids.

But this time, Leo didn't back down. He fought back viciously.

They grappled on the ground, their fight unbearably ugly. The pirates were used to seeing one-strike kills, maybe two at most, but they found this ugly spectacle oddly entertaining, cheering and fanning the flames.

Leo lost, as expected.

Barbaro ground him into the deck, but when it was over, he stood on the deck and extended a hand to Leo.

His grim face was bloodied, but his tone was light.

"You're weak as hell, but you're a worthy opponent."

Leo wiped the blood from his nose, laughed, and grabbed his hand to pull himself up.

"Boo!!!" The pirates were completely dissatisfied with this drama, jeering wildly around them. The story's ending wasn't what they wanted at all—they had no desire to see the two develop mutual respect and bury their grudge.

A pirate's hatred could only be quelled by death.

"Hmph!" Great Bay Blade William let out a cold snort, and the pirates' noise gradually died down. Barbaro didn't have enough authority, but Great Bay Blade William was different. He swept his gaze over the surrounding pirates, and once it was quiet, he smiled and asked Leo, "I hope you're satisfied with this fight."

"Thank you, William." Leo used his shirt to wipe the blood off his body, then looked up at Great Bay Blade William.

"Not at all, not at all." William waved his hands hastily. "So, are you heading back now?"

He asked Leo with some unease, clearly worried that the Empress might hold him accountable for Leo getting beaten like this.

But... he glanced discreetly at the unconcerned Rindou. Since that woman hadn't stopped it, it should be fine... right?

"Then, let's start preparing dinner."

Leo walked toward the lifeboat.

He lifted the tarp covering the lower section of the lifeboat and pulled out a bunch of fishing rods.

"Tonight's dinner depends on what you can catch yourselves!" He planted his hands on his hips and laughed heartily.

He had no intention of returning to the Kuja Pirates' ship before sleeping. He was going to spend some real time with these pirates.

He hadn't just brought fishing rods for them—he'd also brought plenty of cooking utensils.

He wanted to see just how skilled these pirates were, and more importantly, how lucky they were.

To infiltrate their ranks, observation was essential, and he had already made a good start, reaching a certain unspoken understanding with Barbaro, the captain, and the First Mate.

Next up—infiltrating them...

PS: Everyone knows I've been off my game the past couple of days, but you definitely don't know why.

PS1: It started because a friend of my mom's had a batch of office chairs to get rid of, and I needed a new one. Perfect match. Yesterday I went to his place and picked up a chair. It feels a bit bad to say this, but a chair that costs over two hundred is really rough on the lower back. I sat in it for just a little while yesterday and today, and my back hurt so much I couldn't take it. I had to toss it aside, but it still hurts. My old chair is much better.

PS2: Anyway, these two chapters can't be changed, so just consider me on a two-day break. Tomorrow I'll definitely get up early and write for everyone.

Kowtowing, thump thump thump.