A World Where Only Kuro Gets Hurt

The harbor fell silent in an instant.

Everyone looked at Rat expressionlessly, unsure what to say for a moment. Even Kuro and Akin, who had been facing off, exchanged a glance and tacitly put away their weapons.

What a goddamn pain in the ass.

Gaza looked at Gawain, then at Akin, before asking with an odd expression,

"Um... was your opponent also Hundred Plans Kuro?"

Rat froze slightly.

He thought of the little nobodies on his ship, whose Bounties were under five million, then looked at Kuro and Akin in the distance, who seemed terrifyingly strong at a glance.

Determined not to lose face, Rat craned his neck and said,

"That's right. Hundred Plans Kuro, the great pirate of the East Blue with a Bounty of 16 Million. I fought him in a bloody battle and beat him so badly that he fled in panic."

Beside Gawain.

Kuro, who had been slowly sheathing his Claw Blades, suddenly froze, nearly gritting his teeth to pieces on the spot.

If he were not considering the Big Picture, he truly wanted to rush over and chop those three...

Those two bastards into pieces and feed them to the dogs.

So anyone could come bully me now, huh?

Noticing Kuro's resentful gaze, Gawain had to exert tremendous effort not to laugh out loud.

Behind him, his subordinates' bodies visibly trembled. If no one else had been present, several of them probably would have laughed themselves unconscious.

"Cap... sir... use your own name next time."

Kuro said through gritted teeth.

Gaza looked at Rat, who stood before her with an arrogant, imperious expression, and her face turned cold.

If Akin merely looked sickly and murderous, clearly a cold-blooded killer, then Rat had deceit and vile wickedness written all over his face.

"Then, esteemed Marines, please make sure you know who is one of us and who is not."

"Otherwise, I cannot let you enter directly. I am responsible for the civilians living in the harbor, and no one can guarantee that you are not pirates in disguise."

Rat was briefly stunned before flying into a rage.

"I am the commander of the 16th Branch Base! Do you know the price of offending me?"

"You damned bitch!"

Gaza's expression grew even colder.

Rat's attitude only further convinced her that he was no decent person. Even if he truly was a Marine, he was the sort who colluded with pirates and oppressed civilians.

Besides, she had never held much goodwill toward the East Blue Marines.

More than a decade ago, the Marines had begun collecting taxes from the people around Raven Port, claiming they would build another Branch Base to maintain the nearby trade routes and protect the locals.

Yet even now, there was not even a shadow of that base.

Only now did Gaza realize that this had merely been a means for those people to line their pockets.

Thinking of this, Gaza looked coldly at Rat.

"Please hurry, sir."

Rat shouted furiously,

"You dare defy the Marines?!"

The moment Rat's words fell, a row of pitch-black gun barrels swung toward him with a swish.

Cold sweat instantly drenched him.

Unlike the Marine Officers who had risen through military achievements, Rat had climbed to his current position entirely because he wrote good reports and knew how to flatter his superiors.

Even his subordinates were mostly cut from the same cloth, and none of them dared make any rash moves.

After all, if they truly started a fight with these guards, who looked anything but easy to deal with, their chances of losing far outweighed their chances of winning.

"Don't do anything rash!"

Seeing that a fight was about to break out, Rat immediately panicked. He raised a hand to make the people behind him lower their guns, then looked at Akin and Gawain, who stood facing each other in the distance.

Resentment surged in his heart, and his tone became much sterner.

"Which Branch are you from?"

Akin glanced at him and replied,

"I serve under Colonel Better of the 18th Branch. You should know him well, sir. As for them, they claim to be from GL-5 Branch and say they serve under Vice Admiral Vergo."

"What kind of joke is this?"

"GL-5 Branch is located on the Grand Line, even in the New World in the second half of the Grand Line. How could people from there possibly..."

As he spoke, Rat's voice gradually weakened. The moment he saw Gawain's face clearly, a chill ran through his entire body.

Not long ago, he had seen that face at an East Blue Marine meeting, where they had discussed the man's Bounty.

In the end, Major Brandnew from Headquarters had given an outrageous figure.

48 Million Berries.

It had directly shattered the upper limit for pirate Bounties in the East Blue. And most of the time, a pirate's Bounty was tied to their strength.

A pirate with a Bounty approaching fifty million could slaughter everyone present even if he were alone.

For a moment.

Rat was so frightened that he could barely speak, his tongue stumbling over itself.

"Y-you-you—!"

"You're the pirate in disguise!"

Pal stepped forward first and said,

"I told you there was no way the East Blue had a Marine Branch starting with GL. And how could those big shots stationed on the Grand Line possibly be willing to come to the East Blue?"

"Now you've been exposed, haven't you?"

As Pal's words fell, Gaza turned to look at Gawain as well, a trace of wariness showing in her eyes.

She might be lovestruck, but she was not stupid. In fact, she was very smart. Otherwise, she would never have gained such a vast territory at her age.

The guns around them instantly turned toward Gawain and the others.

Akin, who had nearly been exposed, had just had his palms soaked with sweat. Fortunately, as long as they got past this hurdle, the later arrangements would be much easier.

However.

Another worry rose in his heart.

If the other side truly resorted to desperate measures, then even with their own strength, the harbor guards, and Rat's soldiers added together, whether they could survive the attacks of these two was still a question.

Sure enough, as the situation took a sharp turn, Kuro once more drew his Claw Blades from their sheath, a faint but palpable killing intent spreading from his body.

He bent forward slightly, already assuming the opening stance of Shave. The moment Gawain gave the order, he would strike.

This time, Gawain did not stop him. He merely looked at the crowd with an indifferent expression.

If he had a choice, he certainly did not want to fight here.

After all, given how prosperous Raven Port was, as long as they established a stable channel within it, the pirate crew would not lack weapons, food, or even medical supplies for a long time to come.

"...Sigh."

A sigh reached everyone's ears as Gawain quietly tightened his grip on the Knight Sword, instantly releasing an overwhelming pressure.

At that moment.

Even Kuro, standing behind him, whose presence had made Akin struggle to breathe and filled Pal with fear, lost all sense of presence.

In everyone's eyes, only Gawain remained.

"Hey, hey, hey~"

"Are you serious?"

Akin swallowed and tightened his grip on the Iron Crutch, feeling as if Gawain before him were a waking beast.

Every inch of him radiated the aura of a predator, and Akin himself was the prey in his eyes!

"There has to be a limit to how wide the gap can be!"

But at that moment, a piercing voice shattered the atmosphere...