112 Tyranny and Malevolence

The next day, at the Party Bar.

"Hey! I don't know, how come I don't see Makino?" As usual, every day at noon when the sun was high, Uncle K would come to the bar for a bottle of ice-cold beer.

"Uncle K, Makino sprained her ankle yesterday, so it's just me today," Buknow said with a shy smile from behind the counter.

"It was nothing serious at all; you're just making a mountain out of a molehill!" Just then, Makino hobbled in from the back door and gave Buknow a massive eye-roll.

"Why did you come out? Didn't I tell you to get some rest? Don't worry, I can take care of the bar all by myself!" Buknow grumbled as he stepped out from behind the counter, looking a little annoyed.

"I'm not a child, am I? Didn't Uncle K say I should walk around a bit?" Makino pouted. Although she looked impatient, she felt a sweet warmth in her heart.

"Even so, you shouldn't be doing this. You can go out for a stroll, but leave the work here to me," Buknow said, carefully supporting her as he urged her to rest.

"It's not like I can't move. I can still help out a little here, like clearing plates or something."

"No, that won't do. You need to rest properly! I've got things covered here!"

"No..."

"Why are you being so disobedient..."

"I just don't want to!" Makino tossed her head, looking very unhappy.

"Tsk, tsk... how affectionate. So cheesy, I've got goosebumps all over," Uncle K remarked from the side, shivering so hard he nearly dropped his beer bottle.

"Heh... hehe..." Makino blushed deep red, too embarrassed to lift her head, while Buknow just stood there with a silly grin.

"Uncle K, would you like another bottle? My treat!"

"Now that sounds good!" Uncle K chuckled.

"Hmph! I'm ignoring you both. You only know how to bully me!" Makino sat down to the side, determined to stop talking to them.

"Yo! Little Makino is actually angry."

"Bang!" At that moment, a frantic man burst in, looking terrified.

"It's... it's bad! Pirates have landed on the island. The village chief says we need to hide immediately."

"What! How could pirates come here? Don't they know this is Garp's hometown?" Uncle K stood up, looking furious.

"I don't know, but the village chief is at the harbor negotiating with them right now." The man who brought the news was dripping with sweat.

"Hmph! Daring to run wild on Dawn Island? Let's see how I teach them a lesson!" Seething with rage, Uncle K slammed the door and stormed off.

"Sigh... Buknow, Makino, you two better hide..." With that, the messenger ran out as well, clearly heading to the harbor to defend his home.

"Pirates?" Buknow looked dazed for a moment before saying anxiously, "Makino, you need to hide."

"I won't. Everyone is out there defending our home, how could I hide?" Kind-hearted Makino didn't hesitate, hobbling toward the exit.

"Makino, this is very dangerous!" Panic etched onto his face, Buknow followed behind, trying to persuade her.

"I won't hide by myself. I want to stand with everyone else!" Makino declared with a firm expression.

"I..." Buknow wanted to argue more, but seeing the resolve in her eyes, he ultimately fell silent.

Before long, they arrived at the harbor, where the entire village of Foosha had gathered. Everyone held some form of weapon, however feeble and ineffective they might be.

At the very front, an elderly man with a short stature, leaning on a cane and wearing a striped hat, stood before the crowd, confronting nearly a hundred vicious-looking pirates. This was the village chief, a kind old man with a stubborn streak.

"Ahahaha... Old man, hand over everything valuable in your town, or else... hehe!" The leader of the hundred pirates, a scarred man with a menacing aura, held a large axe and looked at the chief as if he were eyeing a lamb.

"Hand over all your treasure, or we'll slaughter the lot of you!"

"We are the Blood Axe Pirates..."

"..."

With threats and malice, the hundred pirates jeered without restraint.

"My good sir, I apologize, but our small village is very poor. This is all the wealth we have." With a forced smile, the chief gestured to two men behind him who placed one hundred thousand berries on the ground.

"Are you trying to feed beggars?" The pirate captain's face darkened. He slammed his axe into the ground with a loud thud, looking truly lethal.

"S-sir, this is truly all the money in our town!" The chief pleaded, "This is the hometown of the Marine hero, Monkey D. Garp. Please, let us go!"

"Hmph... this little bit of money? Do you really think we're that desperate? Marine hero? Who is that? Do you know him?" The pirate leader asked his crew with disdain.

"Captain, never heard of him!"

"This pocket change isn't even enough to get between our teeth. Why don't we just massacre this village?"

"Yeah!"

"Kill them all..."

"It's over!" The villagers turned pale. These pirates didn't even know the Marine hero; they were clearly reckless rookies. But even so, they were far beyond what the villagers could handle.

"How could you do this? This is all the money we have!" Unable to hold back her anger, Makino pushed through the crowd, her face flushed red.

Seeing the hobbling Makino, the eyes of the pirates lit up. Her flowing hair, delicate features, and fragile, sickly posture made them all grow restless with excitement.

"Where did this beauty come from? How about it? Want to join my ship and be my captain's lady?" The pirate leader leered, reaching out to touch Makino’s face.

"Slap!" Trembling with rage, Makino raised her hand and slapped the pirate. She looked at him with utter disgust. "You wretched pirate, keep dreaming!"

"Hmph, you don't get a choice today!" The pirate retorted with a vicious slap across Makino's face. She collapsed to the ground, a purple bruise instantly forming on her right cheek.

"Boys, kill all the men, leave the women. Today, you can do whatever you want." The pirate captain waved his hand with a cruel smile.

"As for you! I'm going to make you suffer." He leaned down, ready to have his way with Makino.

"Get away from her!" A roar echoed as a figure blocked Makino, glaring at the pirates with fury.

"You dare to bully Makino? You all deserve to die!"

With a murderous aura radiating from him, the space around them suddenly grew heavy. Without a breeze, his dark hair began to drift, and his entire body ignited with golden-white flames. He stared at the pirates with icy coldness.

He raised a hand and pointed into the distance. The sky above turned crimson, and countless mystical weapons manifested. Like a downpour, they pierced through all the pirates in the blink of an eye.

Wails, screams, and desperate attempts to flee followed. In an instant, the air was filled with the pungent scent of blood and scorched flesh.

The entire harbor fell into a deathly silence. Everyone stared, stunned, at the furious, flame-engulfed figure.

Was this really the Buknow they knew? The same goofy, peaceful Buknow?

Corpses and severed limbs lay everywhere. Some villagers couldn't take it and doubled over, vomiting, while others looked at Buknow with a strange, apprehensive gaze.

"Buknow... are you okay? Your body is on fire again!" Makino scrambled up from the ground, looking nervously at the dazed Buknow.

"Makino... I... I killed people..." Buknow stood still, looking at her with wide eyes. He didn't feel the expected repulsion or nausea; instead, he felt a strange sense of familiarity, which terrified him because he cared so much about what Makino thought of him.

"Well done! Buknow, you did great!" The village chief suddenly shouted, drawing everyone's attention.

"Buknow is a hero! He saved us all! Let's have a party tonight!"

"That's right! Buknow saved everyone!" The villagers looked at each other, and smiles began to spread across their faces.

"Well done, Buknow!"

"Makino didn't waste her feelings on you!"

"What are you all talking about... I... I didn't..." Makino stammered, her face turning bright red as she tried to deny it.

"Hehe!" Buknow just stood there, flashing his usual silly smile.