"As expected, the likes of you don't go down that easily," Cindy said. His voice was the same, but his intonation and manner of speech had changed beyond recognition.
There was a hint of arrogance in his words now, as if Rogu were nothing more than a rat that had fallen into his clutches. "Although, if I were you, I'd rather drink that bowl of soup and die right away. It's much better than living and suffering."
Rogu glanced at him, not paying attention to his words. His gaze slid to the door, expectantly. Where was the "big fish" he was waiting for?
- You must be very hurt and angry right now? - Cindy chuckled, watching his indifference. - People like you have long been known to me. They think that they are strong, that they can gain fame and fortune on this great sea. But, to tell the truth, we can destroy people like you in a thousand ways, and you will not even understand it!
"Shut up," Rogu said indifferently. He was getting bored with the chatter.
- You still dare to talk to me in such a tone? - Cindy smiled coldly. - I'll tell you straight: there was poison in that soup you drank. Strong enough to kill a person. Although your strength is impressive - you're still alive. But...
He pulled a dagger from his belt, which gleamed in the lamplight. "Poison can kill, but so can a blade. And since you don't know your place, I won't let you die so easily."
With these words he came closer, holding the dagger at the ready. "We'll start with me cutting the tendons on your hands and feet. And then you'll give me all the money you got from the rewards."
He reached out and tried to grab Rogu's wrist. But the next moment his hand was intercepted by the iron grip of his opponent. Cindy froze, surprised by such a reaction, but then grinned: - This will not change anything... aaaAAAA!!!
His sentence was cut off as a massive iron mace came down on his head with a dull thud. Cindy collapsed to the floor, arms and legs spread out, foaming at the mouth, his body convulsing.
Rogu calmly turned his gaze to the door, where another man had entered. It was a pirate in a captain's cloak, with a pirate's hat on his head and an eye patch over one eye. But when he saw how Rogu had easily dealt with Cindy, he froze for a moment, and then, without saying a word, he turned and ran away.
Rogu blinked in surprise. "What the hell? He ran away? I was just poisoned, and I'm on the verge of death! Pirates, you are men of the sea! Where is your courage? Shouldn't you go straight ahead?"
He jumped to his feet, shouting, "Hey, don't run away, reward! Oh, I mean, pirate! Don't run away!"
Taking long strides, he gave chase. And as soon as he reached the door, two pirates with swords rushed at him from both sides. Rogu took a step back, and then, swinging his iron mace, he hit the wall on the right with all his might.
The wall collapsed with a roar, and one of the pirates appeared behind it, blood pouring from his mouth, and he fell to the ground. After which his body shook in death throes.
"Damn, my five thousand!" Rogu groaned, looking at the lying pirate. Having climbed out through the hole in the wall, he angrily looked at the second one.
— Don't move!
This blow of the mace, which destroyed the wall, made such an impression that the second pirate froze in place, not even daring to move. But this did not save him: the mace fell on his head with a dull whistle. The pirate spun around on the spot and, losing consciousness, indignantly whispered: - But I didn't move…
"That's why I only stunned you. If you had moved, I would have killed you," Rogu replied, turning the mace over in his hands. He realized that he had not yet fully mastered the weapon. It was heavy, and it was difficult to control the force of the blow.
"I'll have to train more," he muttered under his breath and rushed to the deck.
He moved so quickly that in a moment he had the door open and was out. On the deck, under the moonlight, a multitude of pirates had gathered. There were so many of them that the ship seemed cramped.
Suddenly a loud voice rang out over the crowd: "Fire!"
Hundreds of arrows and bullets flew into the air, heading towards the Horn.
"Mad Moon: One Hundred and Thirty-First Form!" Rogu shouted without missing a beat. At that moment, it seemed as if he froze. Only for a split second, but it was enough. Then, like a silver moon, he leaned forward, and light and shadows flowed around him.
The pirates, who had spent their entire lives in the East Blue, never leaving these waters, could not even dream of such a sight. They stood, shocked, with their mouths wide open.
Suddenly there was a sound like rain hitting broad tree leaves. Black dots that filled the sky began to fall on the deck, making ringing, almost melodic sounds.
The pirate captain's eyes widened, his pupils narrowing. He realized what had just fallen from the sky.
Bullets.
All the bullets fired towards Rogu were cut in half and were now falling on the deck. The young pirate hunter standing in front of him cut them with just his technique.
What kind of monster is this?!
The pirate captain, in a panic, cursed Cindy over and over again, thousands, maybe millions of times. But all he could shout in rage was: - RUN!!!!!!!!!!!
This desperate cry echoed over the deck. The captain turned and ran away, with such speed that it seemed that he was about to grind his legs into powder. If he had four legs, he would surely have used them all to the fullest!
But a second later he stopped abruptly, braking hard with both feet. His body tilted at a forty-five degree angle, and the soles of his boots almost smoked from the friction of the deck.
In front of him, blocking his way, stood Rogu. The same one who had just been in the air, cutting through bullets. But how and when had he managed to get there?
But that wasn't all. His black katana, Kuromaru, had already been sheathed. Now in his hands was a massive, black iron mace. Rogu grinned, baring his teeth: - Listen to me, friends, my advice is - don't move!!!
Move? What the hell! Even the captain, not to mention his subordinates, were frantically looking around, trying to find a way to escape. But before anyone could do anything, Rogu spoke again, his voice sounding extremely threatening: "Mad Moon: Form One Hundred and Thirty-One."
However, this time it was not Kuromaru that was in his hands, but the iron mace that had once belonged to Alvida. And the next second, piercing screams of horror filled the entire sea...
When all was finally quiet, Rogu sat on the deck, looking at the battered and maimed pirates. Their faces were disfigured by blows, their bodies were broken. He counted them. Counting Cindy and the five who had joined that morning, there were exactly fifty-six of them.
The only "valuable" figure among them was the captain. A small pirate chieftain with a three million beli bounty on his head. Frankly, this disappointed Roga. He expected Cindy, who had started all this, to bring in someone more significant. But instead, he got only a small fish worth three million...
"Disappointing," he said, shaking his head. His gaze moved to their ship.
"I wonder if there's anything worthwhile on board?" he said thoughtfully...