"It seems these people are just a small squad of the mountain bandits here." Upon hearing the enemy's words, Baichuan analyzed the situation for the other three.
"Yeah, judging from this squad alone, these bandits have committed countless evil deeds. I just don't know whether the four of us can take them all down," Shanks said.
"What? You're thinking of making a move against them?" Baichuan asked.
"If we can defeat them, then yes, I think I will," Shanks replied.
"Haha, as expected of Shanks." Baichuan laughed and patted Shanks on the shoulder. The two shared the same mindset; neither could stand people like these bandits.
If Baichuan didn't have the strength, he might've let it go. But now that he was capable, he couldn't just sit back and ignore it.
Not that Baichuan was someone who hated evil with a burning passion, it was simply that he wanted to uphold justice.
"Hey, hey, you two aren't seriously planning to charge in, are you? We don't even know how many of them there are or what weapons they have," Buggy said nervously as he saw the two seemed to have made up their minds.
If it were just a few enemies, he wouldn't be afraid. The problem was that the enemy's strength was a complete unknown.
"Relax, you just stay in the rear. Leave the front to Shanks and me," Baichuan said.
Looking at the broken gun on the ground, Baichuan felt a bit regretful. He had acted too impulsively earlier. He should've kept the gun and given it to Buggy; it might've come in handy for a sneak attack.
"Besides, don't you know what I'm capable of? Even if we can't win, we can still get away," Baichuan added.
"Alright then…" Buggy accepted his fate; he knew he couldn't stop the two even if he tried.
Since the four of them didn't know where the bandits' hideout was, they could only keep moving forward. Maybe they'd run into another group along the way.
As they walked, the landscape gradually opened up, and they had left the forest. Up ahead was a narrow path, but there were no crops or people around it.
"No way… what is this place? How come there's not a single person?" Buggy glanced around and whispered.
"Who knows… maybe everyone here moved away," someone guessed.
Baichuan could tell that both sides of the path had once been cultivated, but now it was overgrown and abandoned.
"Let's keep going. There's a village up ahead. We should try asking what happened here."
The four walked cautiously, staying alert to their surroundings.
"What's that smell?" Suddenly, Katherine seemed to catch a foul scent, covered her nose, and frowned.
"Yeah," Baichuan said, also noticing it.
"It's the smell of blood," Shanks said, responding to Katherine.
"That's right, it's blood. And it's different from the blood scent from Akda; it's the real stench of fresh blood. There's even a rotten smell mixed in. If I'm not mistaken, that stench is coming from corpses," Baichuan explained.
Upon hearing this, they all turned serious, their eyes fixed on the village just ahead, where the smell was coming from.
"Be careful, stay behind me," Baichuan instructed.
"Understood." Given the situation, none of them dared to be careless. Buggy, in particular, hid completely behind Baichuan, making sure not even a hair was exposed in front.
As they approached the village, Baichuan activated a shield to protect the group at any moment.
Soon, they got a good look at the village, and it was extremely run-down. Most areas showed signs of charring, as if they had been set on fire.
The deeper they went, the uglier their expressions became. Katherine was already vomiting, and Baichuan was doing his best not to throw up as well.
"What on earth happened here?" Katherine asked with great difficulty after vomiting. When she lifted her head and saw the horrifying state of the village, she couldn't help but bend over and gag again.
"A massacre likely happened here," Baichuan said grimly.
There were corpses everywhere, each in a tragically grotesque state. From some of their postures, it was clear just how desperate their final moments had been.
It was Baichuan's first time witnessing such a scene. In his previous life, he lived in a peaceful era, and he hadn't even experienced war, let alone something like this.
Even in this life, although he'd fought pirates on the seas, he had never seen such carnage.
"Anyone capable of doing this doesn't deserve to be called human."
Even Buggy couldn't bear the sight, his heart burning with rage toward the ones who had slaughtered the villagers.
"This must've been done by those bandits, too," Shanks said.
"I think so too," Baichuan replied.
"In that case, we definitely can't let them live."
As he spoke, Shanks's expression twisted with fury, his entire body radiating killing intent. Buggy, standing beside him, was startled, and even Baichuan was slightly shocked.
"As expected of the future Yonko, Red-Haired Shanks, a powerful Conqueror's Haki user. Even as a youth, he already has such an intense presence."
Among the future Yonko, Shanks would likely be the youngest. His full strength was still unknown, but he surely wouldn't be the weakest.
"Shanks." Baichuan slapped Shanks hard on the shoulder, snapping him out of it. Although Shanks hadn't awakened his Conqueror's Haki yet, that day wasn't far off.
"Mm." With the slap, Shanks's killing aura dissipated, but his expression remained grim.
"Shanks, what was that just now? You scared me to death," Buggy said, patting his chest. As Shanks's best friend, he was naturally the first to show concern.
"I'm fine."
"He was terrifying just now," Katherine whispered to Buggy.
"That's normal, after all, he will one day be the ruler of the New World." Buggy didn't mind playing the prophet for once.
"If you survive another ten years or so, I bet you'll hear his name everywhere."
Buggy smiled confidently. He truly believed his prediction would come true.
"Hey, are you cursing me to die young?" Katherine smacked him angrily.
"No, I'm just telling the truth. If you do live another ten years or more, he'll be world-famous by then. And you'll have bragging rights, you traveled with Shanks."
"Really?" Shanks had heard every word clearly, since Buggy hadn't bothered to keep it a secret.
"Of course. Even our captain and vice-captain think your potential is incredible."
"What about me, Buggy? Will I also become world-famous?" Buggy asked.
"Of course." After all, he stole the spotlight during the Paramount War and even became a Warlord of the Sea for a while, making a name for himself.