Once a Pirate, Forever a Pirate

Upon hearing this, Kuro closed his eyes.

His opponent had displayed overwhelming strength and severely wounded him, leaving him unable to fight again. His subordinates had also turned against him. Of course, he knew Gawain was telling the truth.

But he was truly tired of the pirate life.

Rather than remain lost in endless slaughter, he might as well end it all now.

Kuro closed his eyes and assumed a posture of offering up his neck for execution.

Yet Gawain was unwilling to give up just like that. Whether it was Shave or Kuro's talents, he regarded them both as already his.

After pondering for a moment, Gawain said,

"I heard from Jango that you wanted to take off those clothes, assume another identity, and start over?"

Kuro opened his eyes. Before dying, he did not mind saying a few more words.

"You're still young. You still have thoughts of making a name for yourself, achieving fame and success, even seizing that illusory One Piece."

"When you reach my age, you'll understand that endless slaughter has no meaning beyond wearing down a person's will."

"Only an ordinary, peaceful life is real."

As he spoke,

A trace of longing appeared on Kuro's face. Once upon a time, he had lived such a life too, but he had ultimately buried it with his own hands.

"Heh."

Gawain gave a disdainful laugh and asked,

"You don't really think that taking off those clothes means you can escape being a pirate, do you? Even in the East Blue, known as the most peaceful sea, how many towns are attacked every day?"

"How much money do you have to satisfy the nobles' greed and the ever-rising Celestial Tribute? Do you remember what the people on your ship went to sea for in the first place?"

Kuro froze, his face growing paler.

He was an exceptionally intelligent man. How could he fail to understand such a simple truth?

It was just that people always looked at their White Moonlight through rose-colored glasses, even instinctively overlooking its flaws. Now, under Gawain's questioning, Kuro came to his senses, and his dream shattered.

A peaceful life?

That was no different from handing the knife to someone else. Did he expect the nobles, the pirates, or even the corrupt Marines to grant it to him?

"Heh..."

Kuro gave a mocking laugh.

"This filthy world really has no intention of letting anyone live!"

Gawain continued,

"As long as you become strong enough to make everyone fear you, you will naturally have a peaceful life."

"I even know of a living example. He was once a pirate as well, but now he has retired and lives the life you long for."

"The Marines know he exists. The World Government knows he exists. Yet both sides have chosen silence. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because he is Dark King Rayleigh, the Pirate King Roger's former right-hand man. Even if the Marines wanted to take action against him, they would have to weigh the losses."

Kuro fell silent. He closed his eyes and lay on the deck, but the Claw Blades at his fingertips continued to tremble.

For a time, the air fell silent. The pirates all quietly watched the scene before them, while Gawain waited for Kuro's answer.

Several breaths later.

Kuro opened his eyes and looked at Gawain with burning intensity.

"Then what is your goal?"

Gawain thought for a moment before replying,

"First, go to the Grand Line and claim the title of Shichibukai."

Kuro was stunned.

Gawain going to the Grand Line was something he had expected, but the status of Shichibukai held another meaning in his eyes:

Escaping the Marines' pursuit!

If they achieved that, Kuro could also live a relatively peaceful life to a certain extent.

It might not be as perfect as his original plan, but Gawain's words had already proven that plan to be nothing more than a self-deceiving fantasy.

Becoming a Shichibukai was still far away, but it was truly possible!

Kuro pushed up his glasses with his palm, an unusual light shining in his pupils.

"Though I'm unwilling to accept it, please take care of me from now on... Captain!"

"Yeah, Kuro, my First Mate."

Gawain smiled faintly and pulled Kuro to his feet.

The latter had just suffered severe injuries, but his back remained perfectly straight. Standing beside Gawain, he instantly carried the bearing of a second-in-command.

The captain and the three officers had already surrendered.

Naturally, the Black Cat Pirates had no reason to keep fighting.

Under Kuro and the others' orders, they directly laid down their weapons and surrendered.

The battle had lasted only a little over ten minutes, but more than a third of both sides had already become casualties.

Fortunately, the Black Cat Pirates had originally possessed three ships and nearly two hundred men. Even after subtracting the losses, Gawain now had nearly two hundred subordinates.

Gawain organized the Ship Doctors in the pirate crew and began treating the wounded.

The injured were arranged neatly across the Warship's deck. One Ship Doctor after another walked among them, treating their injuries.

"Ah!"

A Ship Doctor poured high-proof alcohol directly over a pirate's thigh wound. The man's body instantly tensed, his face turning as red as a boiled shrimp.

Gawain's eye twitched. If possible, he still wanted more professional treatment.

"Later, I still need to find a proper Ship Doctor."

Conditions at sea were primitive. For injured pirates, all they could do was stop the bleeding, disinfect the wound with alcohol, and stitch it up. Whether they survived a wound infection depended entirely on luck.

As for the pirates whose injuries were too severe to save, all they could do was give them a quick death.

These pirates had long grown accustomed to it, and even Gawain felt no pity.

After all, even at tremendous cost, all it would do was make them die after suffering for longer.

Thus, the Black Cat Pirates officially merged into the Gawain Pirates.

A few days later, Gawain publicly announced that Kuro would serve as the pirate crew's First Mate, while the Catman Brothers and Jango would continue serving as combatants.

Naturally, no one objected.

Gawain's original subordinates revered him as a god, while the former Black Cat Pirates who had witnessed Gawain utterly crush Kuro feared him even more than they feared Kuro.

The very next day,

Gawain ordered everyone to begin training.

The ordinary pirates trained in Swordsmanship under Gawain. Elite grunts such as Kuro, the Catman Brothers, and Jango, who had their own fighting styles, trained according to their own habits.

Having found a new goal, Kuro became a King of Hustle. He spent the entire day holed up in the Warship's training room, training like mad. To avoid getting injured, Kuro even added a layer of padding to the training room walls.

Gawain was naturally delighted by this.

After all,

With two hundred people training together, including many fresh recruits who had only just joined the pirate crew, Gawain gained more than forty points of Swordsmanship Experience and thirty points of Physique Experience on the very first night of training.

Even he was surprised by the sudden surge.

"My original subordinates had nearly reached the limits of their potential. These points should have come from the newcomers, but based on the ratio, those ordinary pirates should only be able to provide a little over twenty points of experience."

"Then could the extra be from Bronze Rank Kru and Kuro?!"

"Bronze Rank potential alone is already this impressive?"

Gawain did some rough calculations.

Kuro alone could provide him with nearly ten points of experience every day. Because of his greater potential, his total output was also far beyond that of ordinary pirates!

"Then how strong will Sanji and Zoro, who start at Gold Rank, be?!"

Gawain could not help but look forward to it.

Suddenly, the system notification sounded in his ear again.

"Skill unlocked—Shave!"

Spoon - LV 0: 6/100!