The Mad Bull Pirates.
The deck of their ship was littered with pirates.
These pirates were the companions the pirate King, Kaby Rad, had gathered over the past few months; they were essentially just thugs from the towns he had plundered.
These rascals were still in a deep sleep, having partied too late last night.
Only a few pirates in the crow's nest and the helm room were diligently performing their duties.
They would have preferred to be like the others on deck, but it was their turn to be on watch.
Their ship had no specialized roles; everyone took turns.
Just then, a lookout pirate spotted the "Freedom."
"Dead ahead, pirate ship sighted."
He held his spyglass and, upon seeing a pirate flag he'd never encountered before flying on the opposing vessel, lazily shouted down, not thinking much of it.
However, when he considered the bloodthirsty cruelty of their captain towards other ships and people, he couldn't help but shiver, even though it was his own crew.
He turned to watch the Freedom approaching rapidly, silently pitying the people on the other ship.
"Poor souls! To have encountered their pirate crew out here on the endless sea."
As he thought this, a bloodthirsty gleam flashed in his eyes.
Those who could be recognized by Kaby Rad and allowed on his ship, how good could they be?
These guys were all lawless, wicked scoundrels and villains.
...
The Captain's Cabin.
The continuous snores, like "rumbling thunder in the sky before a downpour," continuously wafted outwards.
On the sofa, a middle-aged man lay fast asleep.
The middle-aged man was around 35 years old, unremarkable.
If there was anything special, it was his explosive muscles and the countless scars, large and small, covering his bare body.
This must be the captain of the Mad Bull Pirates, "Kaby Rad"!
Even in his sleep, this fellow exuded an extremely ferocious aura, like a large predatory beast.
Outside the Captain's Cabin.
A nameless pirate hesitated, contemplating whether to wake their captain.
No one in the Mad Bull Pirates dared to defy Kaby Rad.
Creak—!
He hesitated for only a moment before resolutely pushing open the dilapidated wooden door of the captain's cabin.
Compared to failing to report a pirate sighting, waking Kaby Rad was no big deal.
Kaby Rad desired fame, to surpass the reputations of Arlong and Krieg, to become the strongest in the East Blue.
Therefore, this fellow constantly attacked various towns, other pirate crews, and merchant ships.
As a member of the Mad Bull Pirates, he certainly knew these things!
He pushed the door open and cautiously approached Kaby Rad, first calling out softly a few times.
Seeing that he couldn't wake him.
With no other choice, he had to shout loudly at Kaby Rad: "Captain, Captain..." "Huh!"
The snoring suddenly stopped.
Kaby Rad opened his blood-red eyes and stared at the nameless pirate, his face contorted with ferocity.
He said nothing, just stared silently at the nameless pirate.
If this fellow didn't say something that piqued his interest, then there would be no need for his existence on the pirate ship.
The nameless pirate, under Kaby Rad's blood-red gaze, broke out in a cold sweat.
He lowered his head, not daring to meet Kaby Rad's eyes, and spoke with extreme haste.
"Captain, a pirate ship has been spotted dead ahead."
"A pirate ship?"
Upon hearing this, Kaby Rad's ferocity subsided. He slowly sat up.
He took out a cigar, lit it, and took a deep puff.
Then he stood up, picked up the brown overcoat beside him, and put it on.
"Let's go! Let's see who's on the other side."
He said this with an excited expression and walked out.
"I hope the other side can give him something to be enthusiastic about!"
...
As the two ships met, they both simultaneously furled their sails and stopped on the sea.
Ahua and the other two stared intently at the tall man on the bow of the opposite ship, their eyes full of curiosity.
"Is this a Devil Fruit user? They don't seem that strange!"
Kouta, meanwhile, had already leaped onto the opposing ship and stood on the railing at the bow.
His main purpose this time was to let Ahua and the other two get a good look at what Devil Fruit abilities were like.
It was also to serve as a reference for them when they eventually became Devil Fruit users.
It was not to fight this pirate crew, which in his eyes, amounted to nothing.
He grinned and praised Kaby Rad.
"Yo! Mad Bull Kaby Rad, with a bounty of 15 million Berries."
"How scary!"
"You punk, who do you think you're facing?"
At this, a pirate stepped forward and shouted at Kouta.
Anyone with eyes could see that Kouta had just mocked their captain.
"Hmph!" The book readers were still reading.
Kouta turned his gaze to this nameless pirate, his eyes narrowing.
"Scram."
He had no interest in these nameless pirates.
His gaze, infused with Conqueror's Haki, directly stunned the nameless pirate unconscious.
Watching the nameless pirate suddenly collapse with a "bang."
The other pirates behind him collectively gasped.
"What was that?"
"He can knock someone out with just a glare?"
"That's terrifying!"
They looked up at Kouta, their eyes filled with shock.
Kaby Rad glanced at the fallen nameless pirate, a flicker of disgust in his eyes.
"What a loser."
He had sensed a trace of that aura just now.
However, he didn't take it seriously; it only stunned one of his subordinates, not killed him.
He looked up at Kouta and shouted loudly.
"State your name, brat. The great Captain Mad Bull does not kill the nameless."
Of course, this was just the guy's attempt at a joke.
This fellow, when he went mad, would even kill his own subordinates; he was a complete lunatic.
"Me?"
"You can call me a righteous companion."
Kouta introduced himself with utmost seriousness.
"Stop joking. What's a pirate saying they're righteous? Isn't that ridiculous?"
Kaby Rad roared at Kouta, "Pirates are pirates. If you want to do righteous deeds, why don't you become a Marine!"
"Stop fooling around here!"
He hated righteousness, hated righteous people.
Because he had never experienced any sense of justice.
When he was very young, he was captured by human traffickers and sold to nobles.
During the decades he spent as a slave, he never felt any goodwill from this world.
From childhood to adulthood, he was either being abused or on the path to being abused.
His master, and everyone in the town where he lived, had never treated him like a human being.
Therefore, his heart was filled with hatred for this world.
He believed everything should be destroyed.
This idea was further solidified when he accidentally ate the "Yak-Yak Fruit."
The first thing he did after gaining his power was to kill his master's entire family.
Then he massacred the town where he lived.
When he saw the people he once had to bow down to and look up to, suddenly groveling at his feet, begging for mercy.
He went completely mad.
This feeling of dominating others deeply captivated him.
He wanted to use this power to rule the entire East Blue.
He wanted to make everyone feel the pain he had once felt.