Chapter 32: The Naturally Evil Brat in a Straw Hat!

The straw hat spun lazily at his fingertips; Siano suddenly let out an "Hm," as if sensing something, straightened his body, turned his head, and gazed toward the southwest.

Over there, birds were startled from the treetops, rustling as they flew off into the distance.

Someone coming?

Or perhaps a large beast of prey?

He frowned, spread his legs apart, straddled the tree trunk with his crotch, and slid straight down over ten meters with a swish-swish sound.

Then he came to a steady halt on a branch midway up the great tree; this position maintained a good, open field of vision while allowing him to see clearly every move on the ground below.

"Boss, that kid is only a few years old; is he really that powerful, beating all three of you to the ground?"

A somewhat dull-witted voice suddenly rang out; Siano followed the sound to see a fat man over two meters tall shouldering a spiked club.

"Why would I lie to you? Is this something to be proud of!"

The man following behind, thin as a monkey, shouted in anger, "Look, look! My head is covered in bumps, the swelling hasn't even gone down yet; it was all done by that brat! Don't underestimate that little ghost; he possesses power gained from a demon!"

The fat man looked completely bewildered: "Power gained from a demon?"

"I don't understand either; everyone just says so! His arms and legs can stretch several meters long one moment, then shrink back the next; have you ever seen those surprise boxes that pop open with a spring inside? It's exactly the same; very terrifying!"

"That sounds horrifying, Boss! Luckily Manba Boss has captured him now; otherwise, patrolling these mountains every day in the future, we'd have to live in constant fear!"

"Yes, but we still can't be careless; hearing from the Boss, this kid also has an accomplice who might come to rescue him, which is why he called us all back to camp for strict defense..."

"Someone's there!"

The fat man suddenly pointed his spiked club upward, "Right there in the tree!"

"Hm?"

The thin monkey was startled and immediately looked up.

Sure enough, he saw a black-haired fellow in the tree, looking at the two of them with keen interest.

"It's that little ghost's accomplice! Careful, he might also be a monster with demonic power!"

The thin monkey immediately shouted a warning, grabbed the flintlock gun strapped to his back, aimed it at the other, gritted his teeth, and roared, "Get down here! Raise your hands obediently, or I'll shoot!"

"Why do you always point guns at people at the drop of a hat? Truly terrifying..."

Under the wary gazes of the two, Siano actually did slowly raise both hands, smiling warmly as he said:

"I say, this is our first meeting, isn't it? How did you immediately categorize me as an accomplice of some demonic little ghost?"

"Not an accomplice?"

The fat man paused, then immediately lowered the spiked club back onto his shoulder, turned his head to look at the thin monkey, and said, "Boss, we must have made a mistake; he says he's not an accomplice."

"Why do you believe whatever someone tells you!"

The thin monkey was furious, glaring viciously at Siano again, "You still dare to say you're not an accomplice? Then... then let me ask you, let me ask you!"

He pointed to the back of Siano's neck, "If you really aren't, then how come you have the exact same hat as that little demon!"

"You mean this?"

Siano paused slightly, glanced at the straw hat behind him, and shrugged.

"Just a coincidence; however, I am indeed looking for the same person as you; I've been searching in this broken mountain range for several days now, nearly exhausted to death, so I must thank you for capturing him, saving me the effort."

"No need to thank us; it's what we should do."

The fat man scratched his head, chuckling foolishly as he said:

"It was also that little brat being absurd; during this time, taking advantage of our Manba Mountain Bandit Group being scattered, he went around snatching our roasted meat to eat; Manba Boss was furious, so he personally acted to tie him up at the cliff's edge; now that has made him behave, let's see how he dares to rob anymore!"

"Indeed, this kind of naturally evil little ghost deserves exactly this kind of fate!"

Siano expressed deep agreement, "This kid also owes me something, which is why I've been searching everywhere for him; since we are on the same side, could you take me to that cliff you mentioned?"

"No problem, brother!"

The fat man laughed heartily, "However, that location is a bit remote; how about this, just come with me, and I'll take you..."

"Take your head!"

The thin monkey jumped up and slapped him hard; he had been listening nearby with his mouth agape in shock, and now finally could endure it no longer, roaring:

"Idiot! Bai Chi! This kid clearly has bad intentions; can't you hear he's fishing for information from you!"

"Eh?"

The fat man froze, while the thin monkey already snorted coldly, raised his hand to aim the gun barrel at Siano's forehead, and actually pulled the trigger directly!

Bang!

A gunshot rang out; Siano turned his head aside, watching with his own eyes as the yellowish bullet whizzed past the tip of his nose.

Then he turned back, glanced at the bullet mark on the tree trunk, and frowned.

"People like you who suddenly open fire without saying a word are truly rare."

He narrowed his eyes slightly, staring at the thin monkey bandit whose face was filled with disbelief, "I don't have enough confidence to dodge every bullet, so sorry, I can only take action as well."

Thump!

The moment his words fell, he suddenly kicked hard against the tree trunk, used the force to leap and turn in mid-air, and his body smashed downward like a cannonball.

In the thin monkey's eyes, the black shadow rapidly enlarged; in his panic, before he could even react, his Adam's apple was seized by five fingers as hard as cast steel, and instantly his entire person was lifted into mid-air.

"Cough... cough... let go, let go of me..."

He struggled with all his might, smashing the gun stock fiercely against the opponent's forehead, but in an instant, it was expressionlessly snatched away by the other's hand.

With a gentle snap, the flintlock gun broke in two like a toy with a crack, and was tossed aside.

"Don't bully the Boss!"

The fat man shouted loudly, raising both hands to smash down with the spiked club.

Siano easily dodged with a sidestep, grabbed the fat bandit's arm with one hand, yanked his entire body over his shoulder, and hurled him fiercely into the distance!

Boom!

The giant tree was smashed into a human-shaped dent, pinning the fat bandit tightly inside; no matter how furiously he roared and screamed, he could not move an inch.

Only then did Siano pinch the thin monkey's forehead with his five fingers, lift him up again, and beneath the other's terrified gaze, reveal a polite smile:

"May I ask, can you take me there now?"

……

"Hey! Wake up? Wake up!"

In a daze, Luffy felt someone slapping his cheeks with a rough, large hand.

Slap!

Suddenly, that large hand slapped him hard across the face, making stars dance before his eyes; immediately after, a huge basin of cold water crashed down over his head like a waterfall.

So cold!

With a sudden shiver, Luffy finally woke up completely.

"Eh? What, what is going on!"

Luffy looked left and right, discovering to his horror that he was firmly tied to a Shi Zhu, with a cliff directly behind him; terrified, snot flying everywhere, he screamed, "Waaah—!!!!"

"So noisy! Shut up, kid!"

The scar-faced burly man before him had dark skin; he stomped fiercely onto a chair, looking utterly menacing.

"It took so much effort just to get you to speak honestly; now, can you tell me exactly what grudge we have against each other, and why, throughout this whole period, you insisted on attacking Laozi's subordinates?"

"Attack? Your subordinates?"

Question marks hung all over Luffy's head like strings of little bells; he looked alternately at the fierce, scar-faced man before him and then at the group of bandits surrounding them.

Every one of those bandits gritted their teeth, eyes bulging like bronze bells, glaring viciously at him as if he had committed some unforgivable evil.

Luffy became even more confused; tilting his head, he asked with a face full of puzzlement:

"Uncle, who are you all?"

(End of Chapter)