Danger / What He Truly Wants

"The speed has actually increased a little..."

It's less than a third of the way to the summit.

"Hey! Sabo, did this guy used to hang out around here?"

Ace looked at the huge machine in front of him and gripped the water pipe tightly, his voice a little hoarse.

The King of Mount Colubo!

This was a fully grown tiger, dressed in fine tiger skin, its eyes flashing with ferocity, its limbs thick and strong. Ace and his two companions looked like toys in front of it.

"I don't know. We think we saw him on the main peak before."

Sabo and Ace were quite familiar with this tiger; they had dealt with it frequently, though usually Ace were the ones being chased (because they couldn't find it anymore, and they probably couldn't beat the tiger at that point). This creature was known as the King of Golbor!

I never expected to encounter it again under these circumstances.

The King of Mount Colubo was also quite aggrieved. It was sound asleep when it inexplicably encountered a man whose scent was somewhat familiar to it. Then, after a dizzying moment, it found itself in this place.

"It's definitely that bastard! Damn it, I'll make him pay later!"

Ace gritted his teeth, clearly having guessed that the tiger had been deliberately placed there by someone.

"Achoo!"

At the summit, the person Ace had been talking about suddenly sneezed, then reached out with his free hand to rub the tip of his nose, a thought creeping onto his mind.

"Could it be that the wind is too strong on the mountaintop? Oh well, never mind, those little guys must have run into it by now... Hehehe!"

Atlas chuckled mischievously, then continued turning the Roast Meat in his hands.

Beside it lay a pile of animal pelts and remnants of internal organs...

Chapter 139 Danger

"You bastard!"

A furious shout rang out in the woods. Atlas, who was wolfing down the Roast Meat he had just acquired, looked up in bewilderment upon hearing the shout.

That's a real mess!

This was Atlas's first impression.

His clothes were tattered, his body covered in blood and mud, his hair disheveled, and he clutched a broken water pipe in his hand—this was Ace's current appearance.

Sabo wasn't in much better shape. He too was left with only half a water pipe, his once decent suit was now tattered, his top hat was gone, his golden buzz cut was exposed to the air, his face was covered in patches of dirt, and he was panting heavily with his hands on his knees.

"Huh? Luffy's injured?"

Luffy fared worse. Due to his age, he was the weakest of the three, and he didn't yet possess the Gum-Gum Fruit, making him a burden in the recent battle.

"What are you standing there for, you bastard! Hurry up and save Luffy!"

Seeing Ace Atlas didn't seem to be going to take Luffy from his back, Ace shouted loudly.

"Meat! Roast Meat..."

Rewind the time to ten minutes ago.

"Hey, Ace, this guy seems to have his eye on us."

Sabo stared intently at the King of Mount Colubo before him, his body poised and ready to react at the slightest movement from this behemoth.

"We have no choice but to fight; there's no other way!"

Ace also looked serious. They were still having some difficulty dealing with this guy. They could only try to stall for time and then take the opportunity to escape. They weren't as single-minded as Luffy.

Luffy was somewhat slow to realize what was happening. He had been living in Foosha Village all along and had no idea of the strength of the King of Mount Colubo. In addition, his naturally oblivious nature made him completely unaware of what he was about to face.

"Hey! A big tiger? I wonder if the meat tastes good..."

Looking at the imposing tiger before Luffy, Luffy was already imagining how to cook it, his mouth watering.

"My fists are as sharp as bullets!"

"Etc..."

Before Ace could stop him, Luffy swung his fist and charged forward.

"..."

The King of Mount Colubo stared blankly at the tiny figure charging towards him.

This guy... didn't he just say he wanted to eat me?

"Roar!!!"

The king's anger at being provoked erupted, and a violent shockwave, accompanied by sonic waves, surged toward the three of them!

"That idiot!"

Ace was speechless, but he couldn't bother complaining about Luffy right now, because... that big guy seemed to have been provoked!

Clouds follow the dragon, wind follows the tiger!

Luffy felt a gust of foul wind rush towards him. The King of Mount Colubo, who was originally dozens of meters away from him, suddenly pounced on him, his gaping maw almost swallowing Luffy whole.

"Help! Ace, Sabo..."

Luffy instinctively called for help, but his body couldn't react in time.

Bang!

The moment the King of Mount Colubo set off, Ace and Sabo had already charged towards Luffy, and by sheer coincidence, the two water pipes landed right on the big guy's two fierce-looking eyes!

"Roar!"

As the King of Mount Colubo writhed in pain, his expression grew increasingly frenzied.

Although Luffy has temporarily escaped the jaws of death, they will soon face a raging beast!

"Run! Split into three groups and head towards the top of the mountain!"

The first test made the three realize that they were no match for this creature, so they had to split up into three groups to keep it occupied.

Having dominated King of Mount Colubo Mount Colubo had never suffered such a loss. Ignoring his slightly sore eyes, he set off in Luffy's direction!

"It's coming at me! Ace, Sabo..."

Luffy felt the bloody wind behind him and couldn't help but let out a miserable scream.

"Serves you right for provoking this guy! You're such a nuisance!"

Ace and Sabo had already run quite a distance. If the tiger's target was them, their good skills and keen sense of smell honed by years of living in the mountains meant they had a good chance of shaking it off and reaching the finish line.

But unexpectedly, this guy held a grudge and kept his eyes fixed on Luffy, who had provoked him in the first place.

"Sabo! Go! The two of us will hold this guy off!"

Ace was very annoyed. If Atlas hadn't said that all three of them had to reach the summit, he would have really wanted to just leave Luffy, this burden, here.

"Luffy, you run to the top of the mountain and find Atlas. The three of us can't possibly fight this guy!"

Although he knew that the tiger was definitely placed there by that bastard Atlas, the main goal now was to get Luffy away as soon as possible. Leaving him here would not only be of no help to the battle, but it would also distract him and Sabo from protecting Luffy.

"No! I won't abandon my best friend and run away..."

"Idiot, what are you doing here! You're just a burden to us!"

"I don't!"

Luffy remains stubborn.

Ace is exhausted, never mind...

As they were talking, the King of Mount Colubo had already chosen the right angle to attack the three of them. His sharp, knife-like claws were already outstretched, and his massive body pressed straight towards Luffy!

Swish!

Claws swung down!

Luffy, who had already closed his eyes, felt no pain at all and was somewhat relieved. He then cautiously opened them a crack to check the situation.

Suddenly, Ace was standing in front of him, the water pipe in his hand broken in two!

"Lie down!"

Ace shouted, and Luffy, who was still in a daze Luffy, instinctively fell to the ground.

Bang!

A flurry of sand and stones flew as the two rolled over lazily, trying to escape the attack range of the King of Mount Colubo. But this creature, with its rough understanding of human nature, was far from being so foolish as to easily let the two escape from the jaws of its tiger.

But Sabo wasn't just standing by and watching; he had already secretly circled around to the rear, attempting a backstab!

Bang!

The tiger's tail, as sharp as a steel whip, lashed out fiercely at Sabo behind him!

Fortunately, he managed to block in time, but the water pipe in his hand also snapped. Sabo felt a tingling sensation in his arm, and blood immediately seeped from the base of his hand.

"Hateful!"

Although his attack failed, Sabo was unwilling to give up. If he didn't draw this guy's attention, Ace and Luffy would be in grave danger.

With a sudden surge of determination, he grabbed the broken water pipe and dodged the sweeping attack of the King of Mount Colubo by lunging left and right, before thrusting the pipe forward!

Pfft!

Blood splattered!

Chrysanthemums wither, leaving only sorrow on the ground!

King Gorbo shuddered instantly as a sharp pain shot through him, causing his body to involuntarily curl up.

"A great opportunity..."

Seeing this, Ace slid forward and used the sharp edge of the broken pipe in his hand to stab it hard into the soft abdomen!

Sizzle!

In the blink of Lightning Flash eye, the situation took a sharp turn for the worse, and two bloody wounds appeared on the King of Mount Colubo. Ace and Sabo's fighting talent and teamwork were undeniably strong!

"Roar!"

Although the big guy looks disheveled, the beasts in the Pirates world are just like humans, with abnormally strong physiques, almost like monsters. Even with such injuries, their fighting ability will not be reduced much. On the contrary, the pain stimulates their ferocity!

Chapter 140 What I Really Want

Following the principle of proximity, the King of Mount Colubo opened and closed his claws, a terrifying sonic roar accompanied by a strong sense of sharpness as he clawed at Ace!

"Ace! Watch out!"

When Luffy got up Luffy saw the scene in front of him, he gritted his teeth and pounced on Ace with his two little chubby legs!

Swish!

Three deep, bone-revealing gashes appeared on Luffy's back, the seeping blood instantly staining his white shirt red! Flesh and blood churned; no matter how strong Luffy's physique was, he was still just a five-year-old child!

Hey! Luffy!

The King of Mount Colubo showed no mercy to their brotherly bond and made a move to launch another attack.

Sudden!

The massive tiger's body shuddered, and the back of its head felt as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer. A nameless sense of panic filled its heart, and its biological instincts drove it to leave this place.

Swish!

Without pressing its advantage, the King of Mount Colubo quickly departed under the puzzled gazes of Ace and Sabo, as if something nearby terrified it.

"Hey! Luffy, wake up!"

Seeing that he was out of danger, Ace carefully pulled himself out from under Luffy and shook the unconscious Luffy.

"Let's go to the top of the mountain first. Mr. Atlas will definitely have a way, Ace!"