Chapter 72: No, You’re Getting Off the Ship, Little Robin

Unaware that at this very moment he'd just been branded a "traitor to his roots" by old man Zeek,

Ozz sat with a serious face, legs crossed leisurely, leaning back against the chair, his eyes focused intently on the battlefield before him, brows slightly furrowed.

"Hey... you two. Were you card sharks in another life or something?"

Looking at the utterly unplayable hand he'd just been dealt, Ozz was already starting to regret ever teaching them how to play Dou Dizhu.

After sailing out of Ohara's surrounding waters, Ozz had grown a little bored and dug out a stash of entertainment supplies Sami had packed for him among them, a deck of playing cards.

With nothing better to do, he'd called over Mihawk and little Robin to play. The three of them sat around the table,

and after a quick explanation of the rules, the clever duo understood the game in no time.

And then...

Well, then Ozz just started losing. Over and over.

A cold bead of sweat rolled down his temple as he stared in disbelief at Mihawk, who had already played out his entire hand.

"Again!" Ozz barked.

This next round was way more intense it had come down to the wire. Ozz had just two cards left. Mihawk and Robin each had one.

All he needed... all he needed was to beat both of them with one of his cards, and he'd take the win!

After suffering a string of humiliating losses, Ozz was now visibly tense. He swallowed hard, ready to cheat his way to victory.

But then.

"You... you damn hawk! I can't believe you!"

Ozz's expression was pure shock.

Mihawk, sitting tall and straight, glanced at him sideways. The corner of his mouth curled ever so slightly, eyes sharp and unreadable.

"As expected, Ozz. You tried to cheat after all."

"Damn it!!!"

Robin tilted her head slightly, puzzled. She didn't really understand what the strange exchange between the two meant.

But the truth was...

That seemingly simple card game had layers of mind games going on beneath the surface.

Because Mihawk knew Ozz too well.

The moment he got his cards, Mihawk had already started guarding against him.

For several rounds, as Ozz kept losing, Mihawk had been watching for signs and sure enough, in the final game, when Ozz's expression shifted ever so slightly, Mihawk knew he was about to use Observation Haki to peek into the future.

So Mihawk made up his mind: he simply wouldn't play a card for at least a minute after Ozz made his move.

Just as he predicted, Ozz saw a vision of the future... in which Mihawk didn't play anything at all didn't even say "pass."

No way to tell whether Mihawk's last card was big or small.

So you can see the layers here:

You can predict the future?

Well, I predict your future-predicting tricks.

At that point, Ozz was practically steaming.

"Not playing anymore!!!"

"This game sucks!!!"

He flung his cards down. The table instantly cleared every card vanished without a trace.

Mihawk, unfazed by Ozz's tantrum, shook his head, then quietly picked up his sword and went to the ship's edge to practice facing the sea.

Robin, on the other hand, simply smiled.

Lord Ozz really was quite an amusing person.

With his hands folded behind his head, Ozz lay there sulking until something flickered into the edge of his Observation Haki.

A "target" had entered his domain.

He opened one eye, snapped his fingers.

And a bewildered news gull appeared in his hand.

The poor bird was completely stunned.

What just happened?!

Wasn't I flying a second ago?!

How did I get here!?

Still dazed, the gull looked at the man holding it and the moment recognition hit, it practically jolted in fright.

With the fastest reflexes of its kind, it pulled out a newspaper from its pouch, and with wings outstretched, respectfully handed it over.

"Uh..."

Ozz blinked.

Since when were news gulls this polite?

What was that, the defeated-nation diplomatic bow?

He was almost embarrassed to take it. His frustration from earlier had more or less vanished.

Sigh... Fine, I'll pay this time. These guys fly around all day selling papers isn't easy.

Just as Ozz was about to teleport some money from the treasury room.

The gull suddenly raised a wing in a "pause" gesture.

Then it pulled out a tiny coin pouch from its chest and, right in front of the stunned Ozz and Robin,

shook it for them to see.

Then it very seriously tucked the money back in and made a series of gestures that roughly translated to:

"Boss, consider this paper paid for already. Just let me go, please."

Ozz: "..."

The corner of his mouth twitched.

Looking at this all-business, deadline-rushing news gull, he ultimately released it.

That damn Morgans... did he really train every single gull like this?

Even a random one could recognize him.

Well, fair enough. Looks like the warning he sent last time had reached its mark.

From now on, if he happened to spot one of these guys, maybe he'd spare it.

Shaking his head, Ozz sighed.

The higher his status climbed, the less fun the world seemed to offer.

He really did have to make his own entertainment these days.

"Little Robin, read the paper for me. Put some feeling into it give it some drama."

"Yes, Lord Ozz."

Ozz leaned back into the chair, eyes closed. Back in his past life, he'd loved listening to audiobooks especially ones read by a live narrator.

Beside him, Robin held the newspaper carefully and began to read aloud.

"A few days ago...

...A bounty of 4.49 billion Berries.

Dead or alive!! Most heinous criminal!!"

Ozz: "..."

He slowly turned his head toward Robin, who was still reading with gusto.

"Why'd you emphasize 'most heinous criminal' like that? Sounded like you really meant it."

"Eh?"

Robin looked confused.

Wasn't it Ozz-sama who told her to read it with emotion and flair?

The phrase "Most heinous criminal, dead or alive!" was in bold red print with exclamation marks, after all...

"Forget it... I didn't say anything. Keep going."

Ozz waved it off and settled back again.

"'The great pirate Golden Lion has escaped, successfully breaking out of Impel Down...'"

So he finally got out, huh?

Ozz sat up slightly, remembering he used to have a comrade back in the day.

Though he did find it strange why had the guy waited until the year 1500 to escape?

Might be worth catching up sometime.

With Ozz's powers accelerating the journey, the ship reached the edge of West Blue in no time.

There, they came across a small town that looked lively and prosperous.

Ozz and Mihawk stepped off the ship, trailed by a little figure barely tall enough to reach Ozz's knee.

"Hmm... Let's buy some snacks. Eating proper meals every day's getting a bit boring."

Ozz shoved his hands into his pockets and gazed up at the sky in thought.

"You don't like it, don't eat." Mihawk wasn't exactly the nurturing type. He walked off toward the meat and produce market without so much as a backward glance.

"Eh? I didn't mean it like that!"

Ozz sighed helplessly and instantly vanished, reappearing beside Mihawk. As he walked, he snapped his fingers and summoned a pouch of Berries.

He casually tossed it to Robin.

Little Robin caught the bag, her face lighting up thinking she was finally being entrusted with an important mission. Her cheeks flushed with excitement.

"Is there something I should buy, Lord Ozz?"

"No... no need."

Ozz raised a brow, a gentle smile tugging at his lips

but what he said next hit Robin like a cold gust of wind:

"That's your severance pay.

This town's where you get off."

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