"Crash!"
Faced with Reno's lightning-fast speed, Doflamingo couldn't react in time and ended up with a long gash across his back.
Hovering in mid-air, Reno looked down at the blood-soaked Doflamingo with a calm expression and said, "I may not match you in terms of stamina or endurance, but my speed is something even strong fighters in the New World fear. What hope do you have, being someone who hasn't even made it out of the Four Seas?"
When Reno first transmigrated into this world, he appeared calm on the surface but was deeply insecure inside.
This lack of security subconsciously influenced how he developed his abilities, focusing primarily on speed.
Reno's insecurity was evident in how imbalanced his power development was. His speed became so fast that even powerful fighters like Marco couldn't keep up, while his attack power was pitiful without using his full strength.
Once Reno realized his psychokinesis heavily leaned toward speed, it had already formed a systematic advantage. Rather than trying to rebalance it, he embraced his speed and further refined it, thinking there was no downside to being fast.
Doflamingo slowly turned around to face Reno, his face dark as he snarled, "Don't think you've won just because you've managed to injure me. You're still a hundred years too early to defeat me!"
Reno, hearing Doflamingo's incessant bluster, felt utterly speechless. Did this guy think Reno's earlier attack was a fluke just because he looked young?
Deciding not to waste more words, Reno thought, For someone with Conqueror's Haki, the only way to teach them a lesson is to either knock them flat or kill them outright. Otherwise, they'll never learn what 'fear' means.
"Swish!"
Reno vanished from mid-air and reappeared behind Doflamingo, delivering another swift and vicious slash.
"Slash!"
Another gash appeared on Doflamingo's back before he could even react, only realizing he was injured when he felt the pain.
"Swish!"
Seeing Reno disappear again, Doflamingo furiously roared, "You coward! Fight me head-on if you dare! What kind of skill is this sneaky attacking?"
"Slash!"
Ignoring his taunts, Reno continued his hit-and-run tactics, repeatedly slashing from behind no matter which direction Doflamingo faced.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
"Slash! Slash! Slash!"
With one final blow, Doflamingo collapsed to the ground, his back a bloody, mangled mess. He was now lying there, barely clinging to life.
"You bastard! How dare you hurt the young master like this!"
"Young master, are you alright?!"
By the time Doflamingo's subordinates snapped out of their shock, the battle was already over, and their boss was gravely injured. They had no idea how to intervene.
Seeing them hesitate, Reno turned to Shanks and said, "Shanks, if you don't help me deal with them, once I'm done with them, you and your buddy are next!"
Shanks, who had been watching the fight with great interest, suddenly felt his face darken. This brat was clearly trying to drag him into the mess!
After some consideration, Shanks sighed and stepped forward to block Doflamingo's subordinates. He'd rather deal with this group of small fries than face Reno himself.
It wasn't that Reno was overwhelmingly strong, but fighting him was utterly frustrating. During their sparring sessions, Shanks had never been able to land a single hit on him. Reno would beat him senseless while staying completely out of reach.
Reno, seeing that Shanks was taking care of the underlings, floated over to Doflamingo and looked down at him. "Do you still think you're my equal now?"
Initially, Reno hadn't planned to bother with Doflamingo. But since the guy was so eager to die, Reno figured he might as well oblige him.
However, after beating Doflamingo into a near-death state, Reno suddenly recalled raising pigs in his past life. He decided against killing him, realizing Doflamingo might prove useful in the future especially financially.
I'll fatten him up a bit more before slaughtering him, Reno thought mischievously.
Seeing Doflamingo remaining silent, Reno casually poked him in the back with his blade, creating another small hole, and said cheerfully, "If you don't speak up, I'll just keep poking until you're dead."
Glaring at Reno with eyes blazing with fury, Doflamingo gritted his teeth and growled, "What the hell do you want, you bastard?!"
Reno, satisfied to finally hear a response, grinned and said, "I'm not an unreasonable guy. Give me, say, 80 billion Berries, and I'll let you go. How about that?"
Hearing Reno's words, Doflamingo's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Furious, he shouted, "You want a hundred and eighty billion belly? Why don't you just go rob a bank?!"
Reno wasn't bothered by his outburst and maintained his cheerful demeanor. "Why rob a bank when I can just use this method? A few words from me, and it's a hundred and eighty billion. Way faster and way less risky than robbery, don't you think?"
Doflamingo almost spat blood at Reno's twisted logic. He didn't have anywhere near that amount of money, so he steeled himself, looking resolute as he said, "I don't even have that much in my entire family's coffers. Just kill me already!"
Reno could see he wasn't lying. Considering that Doflamingo hadn't yet established himself as the king of the underworld, it made sense for him not to have such a fortune. Thinking for a moment, Reno proposed, "You don't need to pay it all at once. How about this: you pay me ten billion belly each year for the next ten years. Deal?"
With this "raising pigs" plan in mind, Reno also remembered the Golden Emperor of the future. Secretly, he thought to himself, I'll figure out a way to make him owe me a fortune someday too, and then he can spend years paying me back. Once he's done paying, I'll make him owe me again. An endless cycle! Wahaha!
Unaware of Reno's schemes, Doflamingo found the ten-billion-per-year offer manageable. After some thought, he agreed, "Fine, ten billion belly per year until the debt is paid. Can we go now?"
Watching Doflamingo struggle to his feet, Reno cheerfully reminded him, "Don't forget to send the money to the Whitebeard Pirates every year. Just say it's for Reno. I'll come to collect it when I return to the New World after handling things here."
Doflamingo froze, his body stiffening. His expression twisted with shock as the realization dawned on him Reno had connections to the Whitebeard Pirates. Until now, Doflamingo had been thinking of ways to investigate Reno's identity and possibly dodge the debt later. But now, there was no need. Just the mention of the Whitebeard Pirates was enough to crush any thoughts of defaulting.
After regaining his composure, Doflamingo lowered his head and led his men away. Soon, they vanished from Reno's sight.
Reno had his reasons for asking the money to be sent to Whitebeard. It wasn't convenient for him to handle it personally, and among those he trusted, Whitebeard was the most active figure in the seas. Kozuki Oden was an option too, but considering his struggle with even climbing Wano's waterfalls, Whitebeard was a more reliable choice.
After the group left, Shanks approached Reno and cautioned, "Little Reno, the commotion earlier has likely caught the Marines' attention. We should get out of here fast."
Reno, who had already sensed the Marines closing in, responded nonchalantly, "I don't need to fear the Marines. After all, I'm not a pirate. You guys should be the ones rushing to escape!"
Shanks' face darkened at Reno's words, and he mentally retorted, You little punk, you've been with two of the strongest pirate crews in the New World, and you're still claiming not to be a pirate? Talk about shameless!
Without arguing further, Shanks bid farewell, "Alright, Little Reno, we're off. Until we meet again!" He grabbed Buggy and boarded their small boat, paddling away as quickly as they could, not daring to linger a second longer.
Reno watched the duo disappear into the sea before opening a spatial portal and stepping through.
"Click, click, click…"
Not long after Reno left, a group of Marines arrived at the battlefield, surrounding the area. But they were doomed to disappointment the combatants had already vanished without a trace.
At Reno's small courtyard in Windmill Village
When Rouge saw Reno stepping out of the spatial portal, she breathed a sigh of relief. She now treated Reno as family, and knowing he had gone to such a dangerous place had made her deeply worried.
After calming herself, Rouge asked, "You're back. Did they leave?"
Reno replied, "Yeah, they're gone."
With confirmation, Rouge went into her room and shut herself in. Seeing this, Reno shook his head, thinking, After all, they were once husband and wife. It's not easy to move on so quickly.
Reno didn't disturb Rouge, figuring she needed some alone time to process her emotions. With nothing else to do, he returned to his room, deciding to write a few books for Dragon. The revolutionary cause needs some solid ideological guidance, he thought.
Reno recalled the books he had read in his previous life and began to write, starting with values. This world lacked a cohesive set of values everything was either "justice" or "evil," which was far too simplistic.
A year and a half later…
Reno had stayed in Windmill Village for a year and a half. During this time, Dragon returned once, ecstatic to receive Reno's books. He only stayed for a day before heading off again, eager to implement the ideas he'd gleaned from Reno's writings.
But none of that mattered compared to the birth of baby Ace. This time, Rouge didn't carry the child for over twenty months, so both mother and baby were healthy after childbirth.
Makino, who often visited Reno's courtyard, had finished her duties at the bar and came over as usual. Standing outside the door, she knocked and called, "Sister Rouge, I'm here to see little Ace. Open the door!"
Rouge opened the door with a smile and teased, "Makino, if you want to see Little Reno, you can just say so. No need to use Ace as an excuse."
Makino blushed slightly but retorted, "I just came to see Ace. Who cares about that bad guy?!"
After letting her in, Rouge invited her to sit, and Makino wasted no time walking toward Reno, who was playing with baby Ace. Seeing Ace, Makino immediately scooped him up, playing and cooing while sneaking glances at Reno.
Reno noticed her adorable behavior and couldn't resist teasing her. Leaning close, he whispered, "If you like kids so much, why don't you have one with me?"
Hearing Reno's words, Makino's face instantly turned bright red, the blush spreading to her ears. She averted her eyes, stammering, "W-Who wants to have a child with you? A-And you're still just a kid yourself. How would you even have a child?!"
"Ahahahaha…"
Rouge, who had just walked into the courtyard, immediately burst into laughter upon hearing Makino's flustered response. She quickly realized Reno was teasing Makino again.
Reno rolled his eyes when he saw Rouge laughing so hard she could barely stand. With a look of mock annoyance, he said, "Sister Rouge, I'm discussing important matters with my fiancée. Could you give us some privacy?"
"Ahahahaha…"
Rouge's laughter only grew louder. She laughed so hard that anyone overhearing might think there was a flock of geese in the courtyard.
It took several minutes before Rouge finally calmed down. Wiping away her tears, she said to Reno, "Little Reno, you're still too young for this kind of thing. Only adults can have children, and you're not ready yet!"
Hearing her "advice," Reno rolled his eyes again, feeling exasperated. Every time he teased his fiancée, Rouge always caught wind of it and turned the tables on him.
Still, Reno knew Rouge wasn't seriously trying to lecture him. She was just having fun at his expense. Internally, he thought, I never pegged you as this type of person, Rouge. Aren't you a bit too much of a fujoshi?
Not wanting to dwell on the topic any longer, Reno remembered the conversation he'd been having with Rouge earlier before Makino interrupted. Since both of them were here now, he figured it was the perfect time to address it.
"Little fiancée," Reno began, "it's good you're here too. Saves me from repeating myself." He continued with a serious expression, "I'm leaving tomorrow for the West Blue. I don't know when I'll be back, so I wanted to say goodbye."
Makino's face immediately showed a look of reluctance. "I won't stop you from going to sea," she said softly, "but promise me you'll come back and visit us often!"
Reno's usual smile returned as he assured her, "Don't worry, little fiancée. It took me a lot of effort to get you. There's no way I'd let you go. I'll definitely come back!"
Hearing him mention how she had been "tricked," Makino's face flushed bright red again. She muttered inwardly, How stupid was I back then to fall for this bad guy's schemes?
The next day, at Windmill Village's harbor
Standing at the port, Rouge watched Reno on his small boat and gave him a few parting words. "Little Reno, take care of yourself out there."
Makino, standing beside her, hesitated for a while. Finally, she blushed and shyly said, "H-Husband, please be careful out there. I'll always be here waiting for you, so make sure you come back!"
Reno beamed with joy upon hearing Makino finally call him "husband." With a wide grin, he promised, "With a beautiful wife waiting for me back home, I'd be crazy to die out there. Don't worry I'll definitely come back!"
Makino turned an even deeper shade of red at Reno's words. She lowered her head, unable to look at him again.
After saying goodbye to the familiar faces in Windmill Village, Reno began rowing his small boat toward the sea. Once the village was out of sight, he activated his abilities, lifting the boat into the air and flying toward the West Blue.
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