"Phew~"
The temperature dropped sharply on the autumn night, and the white mist from his breath was faintly visible.
Jon found the neighbor's big wolfdog and slit its throat. The pungent smell of blood attracted dark shadows from the bushes.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Several beasts darted out of the bushes and rushed towards the wolfdog. Just as they approached, the silver-haired young man moved.
His figure, like a ghost, stepped lightly on the rustling leaves. He drew a knife from his belt with a whoosh, and the 30cm-long dagger precisely sliced through the vitals of the first dark shadow.
Blood had barely splattered on his eyelashes when his elbow strike shattered the skull of the second dark shadow.
And while the third dark shadow was stunned, Jon suddenly turned his body, kicked it in mid-air, shattering its bones, and landed steadily on the ground.
Drip, drip.
Blood dripped from his fingers onto the ground, pooling with the rainwater.
His bulging muscles returned to normal, his taut capillaries gradually relaxed, and before his eyes was a golden light screen visible only to him.
[Snake Trait: A long snake that can upgrade the Beast King Trait.]
Baboon Trait, Wild Boar Trait—all were similar.
In two years, he had slaughtered almost all the wild beasts around Cocoyasi Village.
The Beast King Trait was still some distance from upgrading to purple.
However…
Jon looked at his dark purple fist, a smile curving his lips.
While hunting beasts, he had unknowingly mastered the method of subcutaneous tissue hardening, which was the foundation of Busoshoku Haki.
Of course, it was still far from basic Busoshoku Haki; currently, it could only be considered the lowest-tier version.
"Still a long way to go…"
Jon's eyes flickered, his desire for strength growing stronger.
This world had too many unimaginable monsters.
Although he had some talent in combat, he was still within the realm of humans.
His current attribute data was only enough to single-handedly defeat all the strong men in the village.
But…
What he was about to face was definitely not the ordinary people of the village.
Thinking of the news about Jinbe in the newspaper, shadows flickered in the young man's dark pupils.
Having awakened his past life memories, he remembered the storyline quite clearly.
One of the conditions Jinbe agreed to become a Shichibukai was to release his former companion, Arlong, from Impel Down.
After leaving prison, Arlong would break ties with Jinbe and bring his subordinates to the East Blue to become a petty tyrant!
If the timeline wasn't wrong.
In the year 1512 of the Sea Calendar, which was 8 years before Luffy set sail, the Arlong Pirates would set foot on the land of Cocoyasi Village, turning it into hell.
Belle-mère would also be shot and killed by Arlong in the same year, for Nami and Nojiko.
And now…
It was already late autumn of the year 1511 of the Sea Calendar.
He didn't have much time left.
A sense of urgency welled up in Jon's heart. With a grim face, he violently tore off a wild boar's leg and placed it over a torch.
Sizzle! Sizzle! The boar's fur turned into black char under the scorching flames. The next moment, the pungent smell was replaced by the aroma of charcoal grilling.
Behind the gray smoke rising from the flames, the young man's eyes were as cold as ice.
He was getting angry.
Why should a mere small fry like Arlong put pressure on him?
When he first awakened his memories, he would have advised Belle-mère to move, but now he had changed his mind.
Cocoyasi was his home in this life, a place filled with infinite warmth where he had grown up.
Everything he saw held his memories. He even shed two crocodile tears when he stole the little piglets raised by Genzo's family back then.
He had grown attached to this place, so why should he leave?
To hell with that!
The ones who should get lost were the Arlong Pirates!
He grabbed the roasted pig leg and devoured several bites. Only after sprinkling some salt to make it taste better did Jon's violent heart gradually calm down.
He burned the rest and went to sit by the shore.
The salty sea breeze swept across the young man's face. Jon raised his head, gazing at the bright starry river in the sky. Waves crashed against the reefs, breaking into silver light, reflecting in his deep, bright eyes.
"I have the ability to protect myself; it's time to go to sea."
He clenched his fists, muttering to himself.
Cocoyasi Village could offer him too little help. To plunder more traits, he couldn't pin his hopes on this small corner of the world.
In fact, he had long thought of going to sea to "harvest leeks" (gain benefits).
But when he first awakened his memories, he was only twelve years old. He couldn't even beat the village's big goose, so who could he plunder at sea?
Now he had some confidence, but venturing out everywhere was still a bit much. He could set a small goal first: go quickly and return quickly.
As for who to choose as his target…
Without even thinking, Jon immediately knew the answer.
Monkey D. Luffy!
That son of destiny with an immense background, who ate the Nika fruit, and the big-brained protagonist who always had his own BGM wherever he went…
He wasn't envious!
Not one bit!
If he could plunder his traits, even just a random one, Jon believed he could walk sideways on the sea.
It was a pity that two years ago he couldn't go to sea, nor could he snatch the fruit from Shanks. Otherwise, he might have been the chosen one.
What a shame, truly a shame.
...
Having made up his mind.
Jon took a deep breath and walked towards his warm home.
Before reaching his doorstep, Jon took one last look at the distant dock.
He remembered that a cargo ship would leave from there tomorrow, but there wasn't a direct route to Foosha Village; he might need to transfer.
It was better to do things sooner rather than later.
He didn't know how he would knock out Luffy, who had been eating the Gomu Gomu no Mi for a year.
But he no longer had time to consider.
Go to sea!
When the cargo ship's whistle blew tomorrow morning, he would directly go to sea!
Luffy, your grandpa is here!