Chapter 6

In the darkness, a child's figure silently darted through the corridor.

Compared to the state of near-starvation two days ago, Rossi's physical strength had recovered significantly. After consuming the Devil's Fruit, even the "Silent Fruit," which could compete for the title of the most useless, still gave him a slight boost in confidence.

Even the most useless fruit is still far beyond the reach of ordinary people!

Although it is not the "familiar" Great Pirate Era, where the Four Emperors are in their prime and the Seven Warlords are still mere children... many of the pieces of information in Rossi's mind contain significant events.

For example: In three years, the world-shocking "Edd War" will begin, with the Golden Lion's dozens of ships besieging Roger's pirate ship, only to be destroyed by a storm, and the Golden Lion's dramatic end when the rudder pierced his head.

Two years later, the "Roger Pirate Crew" will reach Raftel, becoming the true Pirate King...

After another year of hiding, Roger will turn himself in. On the execution platform, he will shout the famous words that influenced millions:

— "Want my treasure? If you want it, I'll give it all to you. Find it! I've placed all my treasure there!"

Thus, One Piece became the ultimate pursuit of countless pirates!

There are also the "Dance King" of the Land of Wano, the Golden Lion breaking the Impel Down myth, the birth of the Sea Train, and so on...

In these major events, as long as Rossi is willing, a phone call or a letter can completely change the course of the future.

This is the confidence of a穿越者 (穿越者 means "time traveler" or "穿越者" in this context, but it's better to use "time traveler" for clarity), even though Rossi is now in such a dire situation, he still has a sense of pride in his heart.

If he weren't ambitious, would he still be a young person?

But underestimating the enemy will lead to defeat.

Just like now—

"Ha, look what I found!"

As Rossi climbed up the ladder to the second floor, a figure darted out from behind a pile of cargo.

?!

He was too careless, and someone was actually lying in wait here...

There was no chance for Rossi to explain; the other person immediately pulled out a flintlock pistol! The black barrel was aimed at the little boy who had just climbed up the stairs.

Faced with such a dangerous situation, Rossi instinctively wanted to retreat to the next level!

But he suddenly thought of something: If he were the one setting up the ambush, would he only place one person here?

With this thought, Rossi abandoned the idea of retreating and instead suddenly crouched down, almost lying flat on the floor.

He extended his hands, pressing them on the ground, and bent his right leg, exerting force! He shot out of the stairs like a sprinter at the start of a race, lunging at the sailor holding the flintlock pistol!

If it were an adult, in such a narrow environment, they would only be destined to be shot.

But Rossi's small size and the sudden ground-level charge caught the sailor off guard. The sailor was stunned, and by the time he aimed his gun and tried to pull the trigger, it was too late.

The distance between the two was only a few meters, and in a life-or-death moment, Rossi's full sprint brought him to the sailor's face. He jumped up like a spring!

The sailor's vision blurred as he faced the boy lunging at his face, instinctively closing his eyes and stepping back.

Bang!

With a dull thud, the sailor was caught off guard and stumbled backward.

But it didn't matter. He was just a mere child—

Pfft,

A cold blade stabbed upward into the sailor's jaw, piercing through his tongue and continuing up to his nose and brain...

This strike was fatal, even a Surgery Fruit user couldn't save him!

Bang,

The sailor fell backward, the flintlock pistol he was holding spinning and sliding across the floor.

"Jick?!"

At the same time, a voice filled with grief and anger came from behind! Another sailor with a scimitar climbed up from the previous stairs, his face a mix of shock and rage.

If Rossi had chosen to retreat, he would have been killed by this sailor who had sneaked up from behind.

"You bastard, I'll break your arms and legs and hang you on the mast to dry!"

The sailor charged forward, swinging his scimitar, which clanged against the small knife in Rossi's hand, sending it flying.

The sailor's face twisted into a cruel smile as he raised his left fist and slammed it down with a whoosh, clearly intending to fulfill his "promise" and not let Rossi die easily.

The sailor was tall and muscular, and this punch felt like a massive hammer smashing down. Even if the target were a red-hot piece of steel, it would have sparked!

Bang!

Rossi's head buzzed as he was thrown back, spinning and colliding with the ship's cabin wall before stopping.

"Cough, cough,"

What terrifying strength!

Without giving Rossi a chance to catch his breath, the sailor's scimitar blade landed just a few centimeters from his face, accompanied by a dull thud as it embedded itself in the floor, cutting deep into the wood!

Even in the dim cabin, the bright glint of the blade made Rossi's pupils contract.

Death was so close!

Whether the sailor missed his attack or was intentionally toying with him, Rossi took advantage of the moment when the scimitar was stuck in the floor and rolled to the side, trying to create some distance.

However, unlike the previous sailor with the gun who was careless, this scimitar-wielding sailor was clearly skilled in close combat. He took a step forward and grabbed Rossi, who was trying to roll away!

Oh no—

Just as this thought flashed through Rossi's mind, he was lifted by one hand and slammed into a nearby pillar.

Crack,

The impact was accompanied by the sound of something breaking.

His chest and back went numb, and his vision went black! When Rossi regained consciousness, he was being lifted again, this time to be smashed into the sharp corner of a pile of cargo.

No way—

Instinctively, he lowered his head and bit down on the hand holding his collar!

His mouth filled with the taste of blood, unsure if it was the sailor's or his own. He clenched his teeth, embedding them into the sailor's hand.

"Ah! You little brat~~" The tall sailor, in pain, shook his hand and threw Rossi to the ground.

As Rossi tried to get up and escape, the tall sailor kicked him in the stomach, sending him rolling several meters away.

"It's over!!"

After being bitten by Rossi, the tall sailor decided to "stop playing." He pulled out the scimitar that was stuck in the floor, but Rossi had already half-knelt and risen.

"Yes, it's over—"

In his hand, he now held a weapon.

A flintlock pistol, though not advanced, was still capable of taking a life!

This was the weapon left by the previous sailor with the gun, who had been stabbed through the jaw by Rossi and died instantly. The gun, which hadn't been fired, had fallen to the ground.

During the previous series of battles, Rossi wasn't just "taking hits." He had been trying to get close to this weapon, and despite almost vomiting up the bread he had eaten, he managed to grab the key to victory.

?!

For a moment, the tall man, who had been overpowering Rossi, was frozen by the sudden threat.

The distance between them was only a few meters, and with the sailor's large build, it was almost impossible to miss! As the sailor's face twisted in a grimace and he tried to dodge, Rossi pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Bang!

Though it was just a flintlock pistol, the lead bullet was no less lethal than many guns from his previous life. Unlike many through-and-through wounds, the soft lead bullet deformed and shattered upon impact, creating a large, trumpet-shaped cavity in the sailor's chest.

"Huff... huff... huff..."

Clutching his chest, unable to stop the dark red blood from gushing out, the fallen sailor stared in disbelief at the little boy before him.

"You... you... how...?"

How dare you?!

As soon as the gun went off, others would immediately come to investigate, and you're dead, you're dead!!

They were the trusted confidants of the noble captain, stationed in various parts of the ship to uncover the identity of the "silent killer."

They never expected to die at the hands of a child...

Sir Klahowya won't let you off!

In his dying moments, the tall sailor suddenly thought of a question:

Why, after I shouted, has no one come to check?

But his question would never be answered. A black barrel appeared in his line of sight, and Rossi, standing above him, sighed.

"Farewell,"

I didn't want to kill you, but you wanted to kill me, so don't blame me for being ruthless!

Bang!

———

?

In the room where the passengers were held, a little girl, who had been sleeping with her knees hugged, suddenly opened her eyes.

"Someone died."

?

The little girl's voice was soft, but it was enough for the bearded swordsman beside her to hear. He opened his eyes and frowned.

"Kiyozumi, what's going on?"

"In the 3 o'clock direction, about fifteen meters away, there was a series of vibrations just now. Especially the last one, which clearly felt like a lead bullet piercing flesh and hitting wood..."

"Impossible,"

The bearded swordsman shook his head,

"If someone really fired a gun so close, I would have heard it."

Although he didn't have the ability to judge things outside his line of sight based on "vibrations" like the little girl, he was still a powerful "stronger" and wouldn't miss a gunshot so close.

"Unless it was a technique like 'Finger Gun,' but that's also impossible. How could a Navy expert skilled in Finger Gun be on this ordinary merchant ship?"

"Maybe..."

Faced with the bearded swordsman's gentle rebuttal, the little girl, Kiyozumi, frowned.

"Is it some kind of Devil's Fruit ability?"