"Huh? Big Brother Xiano! What are you doing?"
Luffy was startled and instinctively reached out to grab the item. "You can borrow anything else as a prop, but this is something very important to me. You can't just—"
"Watch closely."
Xiano chuckled as he tossed the straw hat into the air.
Just as the hat began to fall and was about to be caught, it suddenly vanished without a trace.
"?!!!"
Luffy's eyes widened like copper bells. He circled Xiano's open palm, looking left and right, but couldn't find any trace of the hat.
"Stop searching. Believe it or not, it's already in my bag," Xiano said with a smile.
"No way!"
Luffy scoffed and hurriedly unzipped Xiano's bag. Beneath a few pieces of bread, he actually found his straw hat.
"Wow!!!"
Luffy held the hat high and exclaimed, "It's really here! That's amazing! How did you do it, Big Brother? Do it again, please, just one more time!"
He eagerly shoved the hat back into Xiano's hands and shook his arm vigorously. "Just once, just once, okay?"
"Performing the same magic trick twice only takes away its charm."
Xiano smiled and ruffled Luffy's hair. "Alright, that's enough for now. It looks like they're almost done packing, so I should get going."
...
Unnoticed by anyone, at that very moment, beneath the cliff.
A freckled boy was gritting his teeth as he slowly climbed upward.
Several times, he nearly slipped and fell, but he eventually managed to reach the top, grabbing the edge of the cliff and pulling himself up.
"Those damn mountain bandits!"
How dare they capture Luffy? He was going to teach them a lesson!
His gaze shifted to the stone pillar, and Ace froze. Huh? Where is he? He had clearly seen Luffy tied to that pillar from a distance earlier.
He crept behind the pillar and peeked out, only to be horrified by what he saw.
A burly, black-haired man who seemed to be the bandit leader was gripping Luffy's head, tilting it to the side with a sinister grin.
Next to Luffy, a large pot was set up, its contents bubbling with thick soup.
What were they planning?
These bandits had gone completely mad—were they going to cook Luffy alive?
"Stop right there!"
Ace, frantic with worry, roared and charged forward without hesitation, his right fist clenched as he rushed toward the damned bandit leader.
Thud!
In the blink of an eye, the bandit leader reacted, turning sharply and reaching out with a large hand to catch Ace's fist, blocking the blow.
Huh?
Ace was stunned. This guy… had incredibly fast reflexes!
Xiano was equally surprised.
Those distinctive freckles… was that Ace? Why had he suddenly jumped out to attack him?
The two locked eyes for a moment.
Ace yanked his fist back and, at the same time, reached for his waist, pulling out a dagger and thrusting it toward Xiano's wrist.
"You—"
Xiano's words were cut off as he quickly stepped back, sweeping his leg out to kick the dagger away.
"Calm down, kid!"
He grabbed Ace's incoming fist and frowned. "Are you misunderstanding something? This is clearly our first meeting, isn't it?"
"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding? I saw you grabbing Luffy's head, trying to throw him into the pot!"
Ace roared with exertion, actually managing to break free from Xiano's grip. He twisted his waist and launched a fierce upward kick aimed at Xiano's groin.
"You man-eating monster, die!"
Hey, this is never-ending!
Xiano's temper flared in an instant. What was this brat imagining? He had tried to explain properly, but the kid just wouldn't listen.
Well, then he wouldn't hold back either!
He abruptly raised his foot and, without dodging, stomped down on the incoming kick.
At the moment of collision, Ace let out a piercing scream. His face twisted in pain, and a crisp sound came from his leg as it bent at an unnatural angle.
It hurts so much! How is this guy so much stronger than me? Ace, overwhelmed by shame and anger, completely lost control. He grabbed Xiano's waist with both hands, using the leverage to lift his upper body, and slammed his head hard into Xiano's chest.
Still coming?
Xiano had truly run out of patience this time. He clenched his fist and delivered a straight punch to the freckled face that had come so close.
Thud!
A dull sound echoed as blood spurted from Ace's nose. His eyes glazed over, and his body swayed before collapsing limply to the ground, unconscious.
He's out already?
Xiano retracted his fist, somewhat surprised as he glanced at Ace on the ground. He hadn't even used his full strength.
The kid's strength and speed were pretty good, almost half of his own level. But his ability to take a hit seemed even worse than Luffy's.
Though Luffy was a special case. The rubber properties of the Nika Fruit allowed him to naturally absorb most blunt force damage even at a young age.
"Ace!"
Luffy's eyes widened, and he rushed over, shaking Ace. "Are you okay? Wake up!"
He had actually wanted to step in and stop Ace the moment he pulled out the dagger.
But everything happened too quickly. Before he could react, in just a few punches and kicks, Ace had already been knocked out by Xiano.
"He'll be fine. He'll wake up in a bit," Xiano checked him and shook his head slightly. "But his leg seems a bit fractured. He'll need to rest properly for a few days and avoid strenuous activity."
He'll be fine?
That's good. Luffy felt relieved, but as he looked at Ace's bruised and battered face, he suddenly couldn't help but point at him and burst into laughter.
"You lost so quickly! How embarrassing! You've finally met your match, Ace!"
"…"
Xiano raised an eyebrow. "I thought you'd come charging at me to avenge him."
"Ace was being unreasonable. I know he was worried about me, but I'm not an idiot. I wouldn't blame you, Xiano. Besides, I can't beat you anyway."
Luffy stood up. "We spar all the time. Ace is much stronger than me. I've never won even once out of a hundred matches. I always get beaten badly and have to watch him strut around smugly. I never thought I'd see the day he'd get knocked down so quickly."
"You're so strong, Xiano!" Luffy pinched his chin. "Hmm, should I ask you to teach me Magic first, or the combat skills you used to defeat Ace…"
"Neither."
Xiano chuckled, slinging his backpack over his right shoulder.
"Man-Scar and the others are all packed up. I'm really leaving now. We'll meet again if fate allows, Luffy."
Huh?
Luffy instinctively looked up and indeed saw that the camp had already been cleaned up. The poor civilians were gathered outside the fence gate, waiting for Xiano.
"Let's go!"
Xiano gave the boy's head one last rub. It was prickly but oddly comfortable to the touch. He smiled, waved his hand, and led Man-Scar and his group away, their figures gradually fading into the distance.
The once lively camp suddenly became quiet and desolate.
...
Luffy stared blankly outside the gate for a long time before finally snapping out of his daze, feeling a pang of disappointment. He touched his slightly hollow stomach.
He was so hungry. He turned his head and glanced at the large pot still bubbling with steam.
Inside, some radishes and wild vegetables were boiling. Normally, he wouldn't eat such things.
But now, he was starving, and he had to stay to watch over Ace until he woke up, so he couldn't go out to find food. He simply scooped a bowlful and began gulping it down.
Just as he was almost finished, a groan came from beside him. Ace, clutching his head, slowly woke up.
"Luffy?"
Ace looked at him in surprise. "You haven't been cooked yet?"
"What do you mean, cooked... You've got it all wrong, Ace!" Luffy scooped another bowl and handed it to Ace. "Those guys weren't bandits at all."
Radishes?
Ace looked down at the soup brought to his lips and scratched his head, suddenly understanding a lot.
He smiled bitterly and took the bowl. "Seems I was too impulsive. What about that guy I fought earlier? He was really strong. Who was he?"
"That guy..."
Luffy recalled the earlier scenes and chuckled.
"He's a really good guy! And he can do Magic too, really amazing Magic. I haven't learned it yet, though. Ace, I'll show you later. Can you perform it for me in the future?"
It's the first day of the month, and the monthly votes have refreshed. I'm asking for everyone's monthly votes~
(End of chapter)