Bang!
His fist struck Kuro before even he could react. His body flew toward the tree and struck it.
Thud!
His body started aching as he slowly stood up.
"You bastard." Anger swells up in his eyes. Kuro used his ultimate move to move fast once again. He instantly disappeared and the next moment, he slashed his claw toward Luffy.
"You don't think this will work, do you?"
Luffy didn't dodge this attack and instead used his body to block it
Splash! Splash!
Those claws slashed his chest and blood gushed out. But, Luffy didn't stop at all.
He instantly appeared in front of Kuro and swung his leg.
[Jet Leg Whip]
"Damn it! We are being hindrances for Luffy. Kaya, let's leave!" Usopp saw Luffy using his body to block the attack. That attack was something Luffy could easily dodge it.
But, it was coming their way. If he hadn't dodged it, that claw would've slashed him again.
This time Kaya didn't say anything. She was already feeling powerless because of Usopp's injuries. Usopp and Kaya quickly ran away.
Bang!
Luffy's leg whip struck Kuro and the direction he flew was just toward Kaya and Usopp.
Bang!
He struck the tree and fell to the ground. But, he was just in front of Kaya and Usopp.
"Damn it! Kaya, let's go this way."
Usopp screamed and pulled Kaya towards the right. But, his legs turned weak and he almost fell to the ground.
"Usopp-san!"
Kaya screamed and held Usopp in her arms. Usopp was constantly losing blood so he was barely able to run.
"You bastard, since I can't kill him. I will destroy you."
When Kuro saw this, he swallowed the pain and roared. His mind was clouded with anger.
He slowly stood up and activated his Silent Step. But, he found himself too weak to move. Because of previous attacks from Luffy, most of his bones were broken
He quickly tried to run toward Usopp and Kaya with sheer willpower.
"Your Will is commendable. But, that's exactly why I can't let you…."
Luffy's voice rang which startled Kuro. Before even he could react, Luffy had already sent his attack.
[Gomu-Gomu No]
[Jet Bazooka]
Bang!
His palm struck Kuro so hard that he flew toward the forest. His bones and muscles were broken. He coughed out blood constantly while crashing against the trees.
[You have defeated Captain Kuro and obtained 60 EP and 1AP]
After getting the notification, Luffy stopped and deactivated his Gear Second. Although he wasn't technically as strong as Post-Time skip Luffy, he didn't suffer any backlash from gear second.
The main black lash is a weakness. He still felt as good as before as if he never used Gear Second.
That being said, using those moves in Gear Second did drain his stamina like crazy. But, considering the fact that he had been using his fruit for so long, his stamina was almost infinite.
This kind of consumption was a breeze for him.
"Luffy, are you alright?" Zoro rushed toward him and asked worriedly. He had seen the backlash that Luffy would suffer after using this form.
Now that Luffy had used it for so long, he was a bit worried.
"I'm fine. I have improved quite a lot." Luffy released a deep breath and spoke. As for the wounds on his chest, they had already disappeared.
"Zoro, kill him!"
Luffy lowered his voice and spoke.
Although his voice was low, everyone around him still heard him. Everyone except Zoro was stunned for a moment.
Zoro nodded his head and walked toward Kuro without a second of hesitation.
Nami clenched her fist and remembered her hatred for Arlong. She realized that it wasn't bad to kill them.
Jango was affected the most. Although he had left the crew, he still didn't want his captain to die.
"Jango, you have to remember one thing. You are loyal to me and my crew, not related to anyone related to me. One day if I am no longer there and my son or brother is in trouble, you don't need to help him."
"Just like that, the moment you left his crew, you no longer have any responsibility to feel pity for him."
"He is one of the three smartest people from East Blue. With his intellect, if he wants to take revenge in the future, Kaya and this village will be in trouble for sure."
"I could give him to the Marines but I am a pirate, not a pirate hunter."
After Luffy spoke, Jango no longer hesitated. He nodded his head and calmly forgot his captain.
Kaya and Usopp weren't familiar with this kind of scene. They were still struggling to accept it.
But, unlike Jango, they didn't make say anything.
"Captain! Captain Usopp! Captain!"
Three children ran toward Usopp and Kaya holding bandages on their hands.
"Nami, take Kaya to her house." Luffy looked at Nami and spoke.
Nami nodded and walked next to Kaya.
"Kaya, let's go!"
But, Kaya turned her head at Usopp with a worried expression.
"Don't worry, Kaya! After he recovers, we will find you soon."
Luffy smiled and crouched down on the ground.
"Thank you, Luffy-san!" Kaya bowed in front of Luffy and finally left with Nami.
As for Usopp, his little brothers started bandaging him.
Luffy turned his head at Jango and said.
"Although Kuro is dead, his pirate crew is still alive. Tie them up and throw them on the ship. Let the ship decide its fate!"
Hearing this, Jango nodded his head. He turned around and left without saying much.
"Luffy, you killed his previous captain in front of him, will he really be okay to join us?"
"Don't worry Usopp, he will not betray us. He just wants adventure. So, for him, joining us is similar to realizing his dream."
"Besides, he is a pirate. He understands just how cruel pirates can become. For them, it would be better to let their own ship decide their fate."
Luffy shook his head and lay down on the ground.
"By the way, your father's name is Jesus, right?" Luffy turned his head and asked.
"You know my dad?" Usopp's eyes widened as he asked.
"Indeed! He might not be a qualified father but he is definitely a powerful pirate."
Luffy remembered what kind of person Yassop was and felt disgusted. Although pirates are free to do whatever they want, they still have families, right?
Just look at Garp. The struggle in his mind was so strong during Ace's execution that if he wasn't a Marine Hero, he would've saved Ace at any cost.
Most people do not understand the cost of losing faith in Marines. Once Marine Hero saves a pirate, a lot of people will stop believing in Marines.
And, this will only make the sea more chaotic.
That's why Garp didn't save Ace but at the same time showed his weakness against Luffy.
Do you think Kizaru was simply playing with Luffy?
Do you think Aokiji was simply helping Luffy avoid Akainu?
Do you think Sengoku was simply punching Luffy without Haki?
No, they wanted to kill Luffy. But, all of them held back for one reason alone.
If Luffy dies in that war, Garp would lose his mind.
No matter how much impact Ace had in Garp's life, it wouldn't be as great as Luffy's.
That was his own grandson.
If Luffy had died in that war, whoever kills Luffy would've died in that war as well.
Garp, that monster would've killed the murderer. Kizaru wasn't playing with Luffy. He was saving Garp from taking any action against the Marines.
Kuzan wasn't saving Luffy. He was helping Akainu.
The half-dead Whitebeard could push Akainu to such an extent in his rage. Just imagine how would Garp react if Luffy had died in his hands.
Of course, Akainu didn't care about Garp's face. He just wanted to kill Luffy and because Sengoku was holding Garp down, he was able to get so close to killing Luffy.
That's why Luffy felt disgusted at Yassop.
He could stay in Windmill Village with Luffy for so long but couldn't visit his wife and his child.
Even if his wife's disease was incurable, isn't it cruel to let Usopp take care of his mother while he was freely drinking with his crew mates?
When Usopp heard Luffy, he didn't get angry with his father instead sadly asked.
"Do you also think he is the incompetent father?"
"In fact, my father is also incompetent but I don't blame him. After all, he has a bigger responsibility than taking care of me."
"Then, there are two more fathers who are not only incompetent but also abused their children. In fact, your father is a bit mild. At least, he didn't do anything wrong to you."
"This world, it's so wrong, Usopp."
Luffy looked at the sky and the more he remembers the tragedies of this world, the more sad he felt.
Usopp also looked at the sky and asked.
"Luffy, do you think you can change this after becoming King of the Pirates?"
"I will definitely change the world." Luffy puts his straw hat over his face and raised his hand.
"Then, I will definitely become stronger and do everything to help you change this world."
.................
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