Chapter 504: Kazu (1)
West Blue, a relatively chaotic Town.
Fierce fighting between Gangs, illegal transactions were rampant, and the whereabouts of Pirates often appeared.
Human Traffickers were also active in the shadows.
The small Town was a microcosm of the entire West Blue, and even the entire World.
"Caw!"
A harsh sound occasionally rang out.
On branches and rooftops, several crows looked around, swaying their bodies.
A few were circling in the Sky.
They weren't noticeable, and the Residents of the Town were even somewhat used to them, not paying them much attention.
In the chaotic Town, fierce fighting was a frequent occurrence, and you never knew which Alley might have a few corpses lying in it.
And they were the crows' food.
In the dead of night, when no one was around, the crows, unmoved during the day, would swarm over, and in just a few minutes, a complete corpse would be picked clean.
They were the Cleaners of this chaotic Town, so generally, no one would clean up those corpses.
At most, they would be dragged to a corner somewhere, out of the way.
If someone were to specifically observe the number of crows in the Town, they would definitely find that the number had increased considerably, defying common sense.
If they gathered together, it might be noticeable.
But they were scattered throughout the Town.
In the eyes of each crow, a light of intelligence flickered.
While others weren't paying attention, the crows continuously gathered in blind spots, strangely merging into one.
When all the crows had merged together, the form of the crow suddenly changed.
It transformed into a man wearing a black robe, and hidden beneath the shadow of the hood was Kazu's face.
He had short purple hair, deep azure pupils, a headscarf wrapped around his head and neck, and his upper body was bare.
Just moments ago, Kazu's body had split into hundreds, even thousands, of parts, all transforming into crows to monitor every movement in the Town.
This was Kazu's habit.
He traveled throughout the Great Sea, similar to Möbius, but Kazu went with the flow, going wherever he wanted with a sea chart.
Kazu had learned the relevant navigation knowledge at the Royal Military Academy, and coupled with his wandering on The Great Sea over the past few years, honing his skills through practice, he had become an excellent Navigator himself.
Furthermore, Kazu had come all the way from the New World by himself.
On The Great Sea, Kazu would generally transform into a bird for travel.
And whenever he arrived at a place, Kazu would use his ability to split himself into hundreds or thousands of birds or other creatures suitable for the local environment.
He did this to observe the situation of that place.
When all the divided cells completely converged, as if playing a video in his brain, all the scenes the crows had seen during that time flashed through Kazu's brain.
Many of these scenes would be filtered out by Kazu's instinct.
They weren't complicated for Kazu; as a Cell-Cell Fruit User, Kazu's brain was already a Super Brain, capable of processing information at high speed.
Observing local customs and gathering more information was a pleasure for Kazu.
On an Island, if nothing unexpected happened, Kazu would stay for half a day.
Sometimes he would also discover some interesting things.
For example, transactions between Gangs, certain secret messages, and even information about Devil Fruits.
Although such information was very rare, he might not find anything worth paying attention to even after passing through several Islands.
But Kazu remained tireless; this was training for his ability, and he wasn't short on time either.
Over these past three years, Kazu had also gained quite a bit.
As a Cell-Cell Fruit User, Kazu was an Ultimate Lifeform possessing the abilities of all creatures in the World.
Not just animals, but also various races; as long as he obtained a bit of tissue or blood, it would immediately be added to Kazu's biological database.
Especially after obtaining a bit of Monster Blood, Kazu gained mutation factors and also underwent transformation himself.
In a sense, Kazu didn't need training at all; as time passed, his strength would continuously increase, as if there were no limit.
After a short while, a bright light flickered in Kazu's eyes; his gaze spanned several kilometers, and through his perception of temperature and air current, he found his target.
Just now, he had personally witnessed an interesting farce.
A Child had quietly snuck into a Gang's Base, attempting to steal treasure right in front of numerous Mafia members.
The crows, transformed from his body's cells, had witnessed that scene firsthand.
This Child was a Transparent Fruit User, and this was also the source of the Child's confidence in daring to steal treasure.
The Child, using invisibility, was undetectable by naked eye or perception.
However, perhaps due to being too nervous, they accidentally made a slight sound.
The entire Gang reacted quickly and also discovered the stolen treasure; in today's Great Sea, Devil Fruit Abilities were not unfamiliar, so they immediately determined that there was a thief.
And they very decisively sealed off all exits.
For a Child merely seven or eight years old to dare venture into a Gang's territory was undeniably a form of courage.
Of course, it was also a foolish act.
Possessing the Clear-Clear Fruit Ability, obtaining money would have been an easy matter, yet they directly provoked one of the largest Factions in the area.
In a sense, this was a manifestation of ignorance, even though they were still just a Child.
Did Kazu take an interest in them?
Of course not.
As a Lone Wolf, he traveled throughout the Great Sea; why would he take on extra baggage?
Between Islands, he could cross simply by transforming into a flying bird.
Moreover, Kazu wasn't that kind-hearted; not just because of his background, but having witnessed too many dark things along the way, it was already difficult for his heart to be stirred.
If he were to concern himself with such trivial matters, what would be the point of his journey?
He wasn't that kind of person, nor would he care about things unrelated to him.
At the very least, he currently had no plan to take on Subordinates.
This Child also didn't catch his eye; at the very least, they didn't show any qualities or talent that would make him take notice.
(end of chapter)