"Boss, Tang An is here."
Early the next morning, Tang An was woken up and brought to the deck.
Today, he was going to the Gray Terminal with Hirt to collect items, which essentially meant collecting protection money or simply engaging in robbery.
Originally, this kind of work was handled by Porchemy--the guy who had captured Luffy, hung him up, and beat him nearly to death in order to force Luffy to reveal the whereabouts of Ace and Sabo.
Unfortunately, he ultimately failed and was shot through the head by Bluejam.
Therefore, Hirt had stepped up to take his place.
Hirt was a three-meter-tall giant holding a one-meter-long machete. With a fierce and vicious expression, he looked like bad news from the very beginning.
"From now on, you follow me."
Hirt stood up, casting a shadow like a dark canopy.
Tang An's height was merely half of the giant's.
An overwhelming disparity.
"Yes."
Tang An stood straight, his face full of excitement.
Soon after, the five of them finished eating, disembarked from the ship, and headed toward the Gray Terminal.
One of the pirates tossed Tang An a long knife about half a meter long, with two or three notches on the blade. Everything about it screamed shabbiness!
Arriving at the Gray Terminal once again, Hirt and his men immediately got to work.
Aside from collecting Berries in designated areas, they also engaged in robbery and even murder.
For instance, right now.
Tang An looked at the corpse split in two amid a pool of blood. Aside from the stench of garbage, his nose was filled with the reek of raw blood.
Tang An's face was pale, almost nauseous. The terror in the eyes of the dead man--who had died with his eyes wide open--and the bloody scene were intensely shocking.
Although Tang An had no problem getting into fights and brawls, when it came to killing--especially slicing someone in half--he had never experienced it before.
"Haha... Scared?"
Treating the dismembered body like a crushed ant, Hirt flicked the blood off his machete. Seeing Tang An's pale face and continuous twitching, he looked somewhat morbid.
Tang An did not speak, but he quickly recovered.
At first, it was just unfamiliarity, but gradually, a hint of excitement and eagerness began to well up inside him.
"Let's go."
Without paying much attention to Tang An, Hirt walked toward the next destination.
He had to collect enough Berries, or he wouldn't be able to answer to the captain.
The five of them walked through the Gray Terminal, but no reckless thugs dared to step out to provoke or rob them.
On the contrary, many people looked at Hirt with terror.
"Stop right there."
Chaos erupted in the distance as three young boys carrying items leaped across the ruins, with several people chasing behind them.
"Come and catch us!"
Luffy jumped onto a broken wooden board, pulling down his eyelid at the men chasing him.
"You idiot Luffy, hurry up."
Ace punched Luffy on the head, grabbed him by the collar, and vanished into the ruins.
"Boss Hirt, it's those three brats, Ace."
"Get them."
Hirt took the lead and gave chase.
There was bad blood between their sides, and Bluejam had previously given orders to wipe out these three brats.
As far as they knew, these three brats had stolen quite a bit of treasure, some of which belonged to the Bluejam Pirates.
Tang An followed along in pursuit, though he did not believe the five of them alone could capture Ace and the other two.
Things might even backfire terribly.
However, there was also an opportunity.
Tang An looked at the handgun inside the light screen.
Reality was cruel. By the time they chased all the way to the edge of the Gray Terminal near Mount Colبو, the targets were already long gone.
At that speed, even if he rode a donkey, he might not be able to catch up.
"Damn it, consider them lucky!"
Panting and resting their hands on their knees at the edge of Mount Colبو, the group stopped the pursuit.
After resting for a while, the men cursed and headed back into the Gray Terminal to resume work.
And just like that, the day passed.
The second and third days followed in the exact same manner.
However, Tang An did not run into Ace and his companions over the past two days.
"Kill him."
Still in the Gray Terminal, Tang An gripped his long knife and looked at a terrified thug lying on the ground. Because he failed to pay enough protection money, he had been targeted by Hirt.
"Cowards cannot stay on the Bluejam pirate ship."
Hirt stood behind Tang An, holding his machete at an angle as if he would do the deed himself if Tang An hesitated--and his target would be Tang An.
The light suddenly dimmed. Tang An gripped his long knife and stared at the thug on the ground. With a fierce look in his eyes, he stepped forward and slashed down. He did not hesitate for long.
If he wanted to be accepted by these pirates, he had to wallow in the same mire.
He could not afford to be driven away.
He needed to make use of the Bluejam Pirates.
Amid the blood and screams, Tang An found himself not reacting as badly as he had imagined.
Frothy blood bubbled from the thug's mouth, and after struggling for a few moments, the man gradually stopped breathing.
Tang An pulled out his long knife, his hand trembling slightly.
He was actually feeling somewhat exhilarated.
It was like a surge of adrenaline.
Afterward, Tang An wandered around the Gray Terminal alongside Hirt, though no more killing took place for the rest of the day.
Upon returning to the pirate ship after a busy day, a guest arrived while they were eating.
Tang An had originally thought he would have to wait a few more days, but he hadn't expected the plot to kick into gear so quickly.
Sabo's father had come to commission Bluejam to capture Sabo.
This meant that by tomorrow or the day after at the latest, Bluejam would capture Ace and the other two. That would be his chance.
Yet this opportunity had arrived so quickly that it caught him somewhat off guard.
His backup plan was not ready yet.
Even so, a rare opportunity like this could not be missed.
Plans cannot keep up with changes. He would just have to risk it all.
The night passed quietly. The next day, Tang An did not go out with Hirt; Bluejam had given orders to completely deal with the three bratty kids.
Led by Bluejam, more than thirty pirates headed toward the Gray Terminal.
Tang An followed at the back, keeping his presence to a minimum.
The group laid an ambush in the Gray Terminal, and the targets appeared at around 11:00 AM.
"If only we could find a telescope."
Ace and the other two walked out from the forest, Luffy's face full of anticipation.
"What are you looking for a telescope for?"
The three of them jumped down a small slope and entered the Gray Terminal to start searching for things.
"Forget the telescope, hurry up and look for materials. Our base needs repairs."
Ace's face fell as he spoke and began rummaging through the debris.
"Okay!"
Luffy replied listlessly.
"Let's split up and search. I'll go that way."
Sabo pointed into the distance, and the three of them separated.
Not long after walking, Sabo's eyes lit up when he saw a patch of ruins.
"Isn't this a telescope? Luffy is going to be so happy."
Picking up a somewhat damaged and worn-out telescope, Sabo smiled.
"Hello there, young master!"
"I never expected that among the three notorious bad boys, one of them is a noble."
The pirates hiding in the surrounding area stepped out one after another, surrounding Sabo in the center. Bluejam walked forward with his hands in his pockets, wearing an arrogant expression as he looked at Sabo.
Before last night, he had no idea this kid was a noble.
Tang An gripped his notched long knife, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Bluejam, how do you know?"
Sabo tightened his grip on his pipe, watching his surroundings warily as he searched for an escape route.
"Don't hurt him."
At Bluejam's command, the pirates behind Sabo lunged forward, but Sabo merely leaned to the side, dodging the attack while simultaneously kicking the pirate in the face.
Amid flying blood and teeth, the pirate was sent hurtling three or four meters away.
Standing nearly three meters tall and weighing at least over two hundred pounds, the man had actually been kicked three or four meters away by Sabo, losing teeth in the process.
Tang An's eyelids twitched.
One had to remember that Sabo was only ten years old.
As expected, this world could not be viewed using conventional logic, or you would die without even knowing how it happened.