Kyle ignored the townspeople's panic and walked straight towards the port.
The deafening cannon fire and shrill screams did not make him retreat; instead, an uncontrollable excitement burned in his golden eyes.
The melancholy of drifting for several days and the confusion of arriving in a new world seemed to need an outlet.
And this group of thoughtless pirates came at just the right time.
"Hey, brothers, this shop looks like it has a lot of loot!" The wooden door of a shop near the port was violently kicked open, and several Black Shark Pirates thugs grinned as they rushed in, ready to plunder.
Kyle's figure appeared silently behind them, his gaze sweeping over these guys.
Invisible vibration sensing spread like ripples, precisely locking onto the weapons at their waists and the weak points of their bodies.
Almost the instant Kyle's mind stirred, the pirates who were about to lay hands on things suddenly froze.
The leader had just raised his scimitar, ready to hack open a locked box, when the steel blade in his hand vibrated violently from within with a "buzz," then, with a grating "crunching" sound, it turned into a pile of fine metal fragments, clattering to the ground.
"My sword... what, what's going on?!" The pirate looked at his empty hands in astonishment, completely bewildered by what had happened.
Before he could react, a strange tingling sensation came from his internal organs, followed by intense cramping pain, as if his internal organs were being tightly squeezed and violently kneaded by an invisible hand.
He opened his mouth wide but couldn't make any sound, only watching helplessly as his companions also collapsed to the ground one after another, clutching their stomachs and convulsing in agony, blood foam oozing from their mouths and noses.
The entire process was silent, with only the faint sounds of metal shattering and bodies falling.
Kyle didn't even spare them another glance, walking straight to his next target.
"That kid! He did it!"
"Fire! Kill him!"
Finally, a pirate discovered the youth who was harvesting his companions' lives like a ghost and screamed in horror.
Under the threat of death, the other pirates also snapped back to their senses, turning their weapons towards this sudden harbinger of doom.
In an instant, several muskets were aimed at Kyle, spewing deadly lead bullets, and the cold gleam of swords and sabers hacked from all directions.
Facing this dense attack, Kyle neither dodged nor retreated.
Just as the bullets and blades were about to strike him, Kyle's figure twisted without warning, becoming illusory and indistinct, like the air scorched by high temperatures on a summer afternoon, with subtle ripples at its edges.
"Swish swish swish!"
The bullets passed through his "body" without obstruction, hitting the wall behind him.
The hacking swords and sabers found no point of impact, as if cutting into an illusion, only causing a few ripples to spread.
"Cut... cut through air!?"
"Wh... what?"
"A ghost! He's a ghost!"
The pirates were scared out of their wits by this bizarre scene, and their attacking movements froze.
Kyle's lips curled into a cold smile; this was his first time using elementalization so fluidly in actual combat, and it felt... not bad.
He danced as if on a blade's edge, his figure rapidly switching between solid and vibratory forms, each flicker accompanied by the fall of a pirate.
Either their chests would suddenly collapse as their weapons flew from their hands, or their eyes would roll back, and tiny beads of blood would seep from their orifices, as they silently slumped to the ground, without even time to scream.
"Too slow, too weak," Kyle's voice, tinged with a hint of mockery, echoed through the chaotic battlefield.
He abruptly stopped, pushing his hands forward, targeting a dozen or so pirates gathered together in front, looking at him with uncertainty.
The first shockwave, solid as substance, shot out, tearing a clear trajectory in the air, heading straight for the group of pirates.
Immediately following, "Boom! Boom!" two more equally fierce shockwaves came one after another, almost simultaneously.
The faces of those dozen pirates changed drastically, and before they could even think of dodging, they were completely engulfed by these three consecutive impacts.
The violent force blasted them away, collapsing several wooden houses nearby, sending debris and sawdust flying, stirring up a sky full of dust.
The previously noisy sounds of battle at the port fell silent, and the scattered townspeople and surviving pirates stared dumbfounded at this terrifying scene.
"A... monster!" A pirate dropped his weapon and stumbled away, trying to escape.
Kyle was about to press his advantage and wipe out these small fries when a strong sense of dizziness suddenly hit him, and his vision blurred.
He grunted, forcing himself to steady his body, the excitement receding like a tide, replaced by a deep fatigue from the depths of his soul.
Continuous high-intensity use of his Devil Fruit ability, coupled with not eating for several days, finally made his body protest.
"Damn it..." Kyle thought, realizing the danger, "I need to finish this quickly!"
"Captain! That kid seems to be weakening!" A sharp-eyed pirate noticed Kyle's abnormality and shouted in surprise.
The Captain of the Black Shark Pirates, a burly man with a scarred face holding a giant ship anchor, now had a face so grim it looked like it could drip water.
He hadn't expected that after dominating these waters for so many years, he would suffer such a huge setback today at the hands of an unknown kid.
"Everyone attack! Kill him, and the bounty doubles!" The Captain roared his command.
Just then, a fierce sword light struck from Kyle's side and behind!
A tall, thin sword-wielding officer of the Black Shark Pirates, with sinister eyes, had been lurking in the shadows, observing, and finally seized the opportunity of Kyle's exhaustion.
The tip of the long blade in his hand suddenly became covered in a layer of black substance, like a venomous snake striking out, aiming straight for Kyle's back!
Eh, Bush! Isn't this the Novice Village ? Where did you get Armament Haki?!
Kyle's heart tightened, and he barely managed to turn sideways.
"Rip!"
The sharp blade tip cut through his clothes, leaving a wound on his ribs, and blood instantly stained his black shirt.
The intense pain made Kyle grunt, staggering back a few steps, leaning against a broken wall.
The swordsman, having landed a blow, showed a ferocious smile: "Kid, your ability is indeed strange, but now you're dead! This great one is a master of Armament Haki!" He advanced step by step with his dripping long sword, his eyes filled with triumph.
Kyle gasped for breath, fine cold sweat beading on his forehead.
Damn it! This wave was too reckless!
Do even minor characters these days learn to feign weakness to ambush others?
Am I going to die right after leaving the Newbie Village? This is too frustrating!
Mama, I'm going to turn into a starving ghost.
Just kidding, I lied to you!
A fierce glint flashed in Kyle's eyes, and his figure shifted, creating two light and shadow clones, attacking from three sides along with his main body!
The swordsman's face was filled with uncertainty, and he hastily responded.
Just then, an incredibly swift black shadow descended from the sky!
"Clang!"
A piercing metallic clang rang out!
A figure stood in front of Kyle, wearing a... familiar straw hat!
The swordsman was shaken back repeatedly by this sudden blow, his tiger's mouth numb, looking at the newcomer with surprise and uncertainty.
And Kyle, at the sight of the newcomer's profile, his pupils suddenly constricted, and a monstrous wave surged in his heart.
"A... Ace?!"