Chapter Seventy-Three: The Underworld King (Extra Chapter 1)

Behind the execution square stood a building, inside which a thick, malicious aura was gathered, seemingly reveling in its own darkness. More importantly, from the feedback of his Observation Haki, she appeared to be in good condition—unharmed and unscathed.

Only then did Roland breathe a sigh of relief; as long as Nami was safe, nothing else mattered.

He withdrew his Observation Haki, lifted his short blade, and strode toward the building. Now that he had located her, the rest would be simple.

With a single kick, he smashed open the door and entered.

“Who’s there?”

A thug quickly reacted, brandishing a musket and glaring menacingly at Roland.

“The one who’s come to kill you all.”

Without wasting words, Roland vanished in a flash, appearing before the thug and slicing him cleanly in two.

As the other thugs stared in shock, Roland strode swiftly to Nami’s side, his concern evident. “Are you alright? You haven’t been hurt, have you?”

“Roland, you’re finally here.”

Tears streamed down Nami’s cheeks as she threw herself into Roland’s arms. Her morning had truly been a nightmare. She’d only wanted to take a stroll through town and relax, but she’d run into a gang of thugs who harassed her.

It might have ended there; she was skilled enough in hand-to-hand combat to handle a few common street punks. But, to her horror, she realized the entire area was crawling with their accomplices, and she was quickly surrounded.

It was then that Nami understood: this was no accident—she had been targeted deliberately.

After being led here, she saw, standing beside the green-haired, rooster-crested man who seemed to be their boss, a fish-man whose face was all too familiar. In that instant, Nami understood why she was being targeted—this fish-man was behind it all.

Back when they first entered the village, Roland had left one fish-man at the docks for the villagers to vent their anger upon. Later, after Arlong Park fell and the Arlong Pirates were annihilated, the villagers’ hatred for the fish-men dissipated, and they eventually released him.

Never in her wildest dreams did Nami imagine that this fish-man would remain so loyal. Even after fleeing to Loguetown, he hadn’t forgotten to avenge their fallen leader, Arlong.

And Bartolomeo—the green-crested mob boss—turned out to be an extraordinarily loyal man. Deeply moved by the fish-man’s dedication, he refused to accept the treasure maps the fish-man brought and even offered to help him personally.

Thus, all that had happened unfolded as it did.

“Roland, that’s the one—the fish-man the villagers mercifully spared. He’s the reason for all of this,” Nami said through gritted teeth, pointing at the fish-man beside Bartolomeo.

Nami wasn’t one to hold grudges, but this fish-man made her genuinely fearful. If all he wanted now was revenge against her, what would stop him from targeting the villagers of Cocoyashi Village next? The mere thought was unbearable. She didn’t care what happened to herself, but she could not allow harm to come to them.

“I understand,” Roland said, patting Nami’s shoulder and giving her a reassuring look before stepping forward to shield her completely.

“Boss Bartolomeo, that’s him—the one who cruelly slaughtered all my comrades and murdered our leader, Arlong!”

Locked in a glare of pure hatred, the fish-man was emboldened by Bartolomeo’s presence.

“So you’re the one who wiped out the little fish-men’s pirate crew. That’s cold. There aren’t many pirate crews as loyal as theirs, and you butchered them all?” Bartolomeo rose slowly, striding toward Roland with open disdain.

“Loyalty? Hearing that word from your mouth is truly revolting.”

Roland’s contempt was just as palpable as he looked up at the much taller Bartolomeo.

It was no surprise to Roland that a mobster would value loyalty—he’d sensed as much from the unyielding thug he’d slain moments ago. Clearly, Bartolomeo’s entire gang was cut from the same cloth. But his words now were only meant to provoke.

According to the story, Bartolomeo wouldn’t acquire the Barrier-Barrier Fruit until after setting out as a pirate—only then would his power soar. As things stood, Roland was more than capable; if he could hold his own against Smoker, dealing with Bartolomeo would be trivial.

“Kid, you really have a death wish, don’t you?”

For Bartolomeo, a man who prized loyalty above all, such words were infuriating.

“Do you know who you’re provoking? The great Godfather, Bartolomeo, master of over one hundred fifty streets—the most powerful syndicate in Loguetown!”

“Do you realize what that means? With a single command, every one of your family, friends—anyone with even the slightest connection to you—could die because of you.”

Bartolomeo spoke with immense pride.

“Is that so? One of your green-haired thugs said something similar a moment ago. He threatened me if I killed him. But what was the result? I cut off his fingers one by one before ending him,” Roland replied, continuing to provoke Bartolomeo.

“A green-haired thug?”

Bartolomeo’s brows knit together, then his face contorted with rage. “You bastard, you killed Rau? I’ll kill you!”

“Get him, boys!”

Despite his fury, Bartolomeo wasn’t stupid; he quickly retreated to his seat, barking his order.

“Yes, boss!”

The surrounding thugs, already seething, exploded into action. One of their own had been slain right before their eyes, and now this upstart dared to mention Rau’s grisly death. How could they stomach this?

In an instant, a storm of gunfire erupted. Scalding lead shot from their powder-charged barrels, all aimed at Roland.

According to the fish-man’s intelligence, this kid was a swordsman—and a strong one, strong enough to defeat an entire pirate crew single-handedly.

So from the outset, they had no intention of engaging him in close combat.

“Is this all you’ve got? Honestly, you can’t even touch my family, let alone me,” Roland sneered, his blade flashing with lightning speed, leaving afterimages in the air.

Within the flurry of slashes, not a single bullet could penetrate his defense—they were all cut down, one after another.

“Keep firing—I want to see how long his stamina lasts,” Bartolomeo said, unconcerned. He had anticipated this. A swordsman who could wipe out an entire pirate crew must have exceptional swordsmanship. But no matter how deep his skill, his stamina was finite. His own men needed only to pull triggers—a trivial effort. But for this swordsman, maintaining such a relentless barrage of sword strikes would quickly wear him out.

“Roland, what are you doing? Why aren’t you fighting back yet?”

Sheltered behind Roland, Nami was utterly unconcerned. She was well aware of his strength—after all, she’d seen him cleave Moo Moo into chunks with a single blow. So what was he doing now, amusing these thugs?

“Oh well, since you insist, I suppose I should show you my true strength,” Roland said with a helpless shrug. He’d been willing to play along with the thugs for a bit longer, but if Nami was losing patience, then so be it.

Under Bartolomeo’s watchful gaze, Roland flashed a wicked smile, then drew Nara in a backward grip. With a single motion, a dark crimson flying slash erupted from his blade.