Chapter 123

The Elder took us into a decently sized building where we just managed to fit in. But at least it was cozy and warm.

"I'm sorry for putting you guys in such a small place, but this is the biggest building we have." said the Elder

"It's okay, we don't mind. Say, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"Do you know who I am?"

"Hm? We don't get any news from outside, so we don't really know much."

"Thought so. If you actually knew us, you would never let us come to your village."

He froze.

"Don't worry, we're not going to hurt you guys. Just make sure that that brat doesn't act up."

"I'll make sure he won't. I'm sure that he has become really scared after you kicked him."

Right as he said that, someone stormed in with a knife in his hands.

"You bastard! I've come for revenge!"

"Kid, get out of here!"

He ignored the old man and ran towards me, who is on the other side of the room. He jumped over Van Augur, who is sitting on the ground, and after he jumped over him, I heard a click, and the little boy completely froze. Van Augur put his gun against the kid's head.

"Even if you're a kid, I can't let you get close to the Captain. Take one more step, and you'll be fated to die here today."

The kid glared at him.

"I'm not scared."

He took a step forwards, and Van Augur immediately pulled the trigger.

"BAM!"[SFX: Bullet fired]

I disappeared, and right before the bullet traveled through the gun barrel and shot the kid through his head, I managed to push him out of the way. The bullet flew right past my cheek and through the building.

Almost everyone glared at Van Augur, while the kid and the Elder were shocked to death.

"Good job Van Augur. You saw an enemy and decided to take care of it after warning him. But you should be a little more forgiving with weaklings."

"I understand, Captain."

"What do you mean, good job!? He was about to kill a kid!" screamed Ace

"And the kid was about to kill me. A wise man once said, 'Pistols Aren't For Threats. They're For Actions! Are You Willing To Risk Your Life?'. The same goes for any weapon. If you dare pick one up, you should be ready to risk your life."

I looked at the kid.

"You have guts, but guts alone won't get you far. I don't know which pirate wronged you, but if I were you, I would train till I'm 17 and then sail out to sea. That's what I did at least. But I doubt that a weakling like you would survive even for a second out there."

He stood up and gritted his teeth while glaring at me.

"I'm 15 right now, so I'll come for your head in two years."

He started walking away.

"Hahaha, look at that brat trying to act cool." said Robert

"He must really think he has a chance against this monster." said Perona

"You idiots won't be laughing for long. Once I'm 17, I'll beat all of you up!"

He ran out of the building.

"I'm really sorry for the kid's actions! And I just said that it will never happen again." said the Elder

"Don't worry about it. I'm looking forward to seeing if that kid has more than just a big mouth. Say, do you have some tea or something? It would be nice with this cold weather."

"Of course, I'll go tell them to make you guys our specialty tea."

He walked out of the building and closed the door behind him. I sat back down on my place when Jinbe suddenly punched Van Augur in his face, sending him crashing into the wall.

'Hm? I didn't expect Jinbe to be the first one to stand up, and why didn't Van Augur just dodge that? Is he feeling bad or something?'

"Why would you try and kill a child, you scoundrel!" screamed Jinbe

"Yeah, even though it was to protect Ken, all of us know that the kid wouldn't have been able to do anything." said Ace

"Cough, cough."

Van Augur stood up while coughing.

"I know that Captain is strong, but in this world, you'd never know who you're dealing with. Take Devon, for example, she can transform into anyone she wants, and even for us, it's extremely hard to see through it. So what if that kid also has some kind of Devil Fruit that we can't see through and actually manage to hurt Captain?"

"But that is a really small possibility." said Paulie

"But not impossible. And as long as that possibility exists, I won't take the risk. I already warned him once, and that was me being kind."

'He is really talkative today.'

"You're right. You'd never know who is actually a threat. And since he already went for Captain's life once before, there is no need to show him any mercy." said Tani

"If Van Augur didn't move first, I would have killed him without a warning." said Mura, who is sitting quietly in the corner

The triplets, old man Shoichi, and Laffitte nodded.

"Damn, I didn't know we had so many heartless bastards on the crew." said Ace

"There is one more bastard that has been with us since the beginning." said Sabo

He looked at me.

"What do you mean?" asked Ace

"Ken put his hand on the gun right after the kid walked in with a knife." said Sabo

Everyone looked at me, surprised. I put my hands up in defeat.

"You're as sharp as always, Sabo."

"But why did you save him if you wanted to kill him too?" asked Jinbe

"It was just a reflex. When he came in, my mind identified him as an enemy, and I calculated that the fastest and easiest way to take him out would be by using a gun. But I got ahold of myself at the last second and let him live."

"I guess you can't do anything about a reflex. But the rest are all bastards." said Ace

"Just forget about it already. You can't fault them for protecting their Captain. It actually makes me really happy."

The old man came in, followed by a couple of ladies that handed us some nice smelling tea.

"Please make yourself at home. We'll find you guys some warm places to sleep. All of you can stay here as long as you want."

"Thank you for your hospitality."

I drank the tea in one gulp and stood up.

"Where are you going, Ken?" asked Sabo

"I'm going for a walk."

Mura immediately stood up.

"Sit down. There is no need for you to follow me."

She nodded and sat back down.

"Euhm, sir. The snowstorm is really bad, and it'll only get worse. So it's better if you don't go outside. You could easily get lost and might get hurt." said the Elder

"Don't worry about me. I'm not that incompetent that a snowstorm will beat me."

I walked out and immediately went towards something I sensed the moment I arrived on this island. It's at the complete opposite end of the island. The village where I was just now is the only one on the island. But I still sensed someone pretty strong at the other end of the island, so I became intrigued.

I suddenly sensed someone tailing me.

"Sigh, come out, Mura."

She appeared in front of me.

"I'm sorry, sir."

"It's fine. A little company won't hurt. So just walk beside me."

"Yes, sir."

She stood behind me.

'Sigh, she is too serious.'

I started walking again, and Mura was following behind me. After a 30 minute awkwardly quiet walk, we arrived in front of a cave coming out from the ground with a door. I knocked on the door, and I felt the presence walking towards us. Once the door was opened, I was surprised by who I saw in front of me. Mura suddenly appeared in front of me and blocked a huge black blade that was coming from my head.

"What are you doing here, Azure Ken?"

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Anime Quotes:

"I'm not a pervert… I'm a super pervert!"

- Jiraya (Naruto)

"Look around Eren, at these big ass trees."

- Levi (Attack on Titan/Shingeki no Kyojin)

"Listen up! Let's say you drink too much strawberry milk, and have to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, but it's cold outside your bed. You don't want to get up, but the urge to urinate is just too strong! You make up your mind to go! You run to the bathroom, stand in front of the toilet, and let loose! You think that all your life has led to this moment! But then you realize. It isn't the bathroom! You're still in bed! That feeling of lukewarm wetness spreads like wildfire! But you don't stop! You can't stop! That's what I'm talking about! That's the truth of the strawberry milk! Do you get it?"

- Sakata Gintoki (Gintama)