Chapter 23: Stopping Kratos (Patreon)

Damn it! That bald brute showed absolutely no mercy. Nico Robin was a peerless beauty, yet he didn't hesitate to try and kill her. Honestly, if it were just some ordinary pirates or even important side characters, Kratos killing them wouldn't matter much.

However, avoiding a blood feud with Nico Robin and the Straw Hat Pirates was highly preferable. They were the main characters of this world. Axis couldn't guarantee that killing them wouldn't trigger catastrophic consequences.

If the will of the world suddenly intervened, things would get incredibly complicated. Changing the plot was secondary; Axis worried more about the hidden mysteries within the One Piece universe. After all, Oda had buried far too many unresolved secrets in this world.

Furthermore, Axis had genuinely liked the Straw Hat crew in his past life. As for conquering this world in the future, conflict with the protagonists was inevitable. But that fell under Athena's or Poseidon's jurisdiction. It had nothing to do with him. He was just here to reap the benefits.

"Come on, big guy. You just came to see the skeleton. A few words would have settled this. Why draw your blades and start hacking at people?" Axis complained.

"They struck first," Kratos grunted, sheathing the Blades of Chaos.

'Damn it. You jump onto someone else's ship without a word wearing a murderous expression. Anyone would treat you like an enemy!' Axis thought.

But Kratos was right. If the Spartan had truly intended to kill, these people would have been slaughtered long before Axis arrived.

"Damn it, who are you? What do you want?" Nami yelled. Currently, everyone present lay unconscious, except for Nami the Cat Burglar and Dr. Chopper, who hadn't joined the fray.

Oh, and Momonosuke, who was currently trembling in fear as a tiny pink dragon.

Nami raised her Clima-Tact, glaring warily at the intruders. Chopper popped a Rumble Ball and transformed into his Heavy Point.

"Well, how should I put this? I actually mean no harm," Axis explained smoothly. "I just brought my companion here to see something. Who would have thought he'd be so bad at communicating? It's just a little misunderstanding."

Kratos always managed to cause unnecessary trouble, turning a simple conversation into a bloodbath. 'Seriously, you just needed to check on Brook. Did you really have to chop up the whole crew?' Axis sighed internally.

"A misunderstanding? You bastards crashed our ship and beat up my friends! Even if I'm a reindeer, I'm not that gullible!" Chopper roared.

"Don't think the Straw Hat Pirates are easy targets!" Nami added, her voice trembling slightly. "Our captain, Luffy, and our main fighter, Zoro, aren't here. Otherwise, you'd be finished! They'll be back soon, so don't get cocky!"

The towering, pale-skinned man was simply too terrifying.

'That idiot Luffy had to go play around at a time like this! I'm going to beat him senseless when he gets back. How could he not be here during a crisis?!' Nami screamed in her mind.

"Truthfully, for personal reasons, my companion was very interested in one of your crew members and wanted to check on his condition. I sincerely apologize for the trouble we caused," Axis said.

"You bastard! Are you trying to kidnap one of us? Don't even think about it!" Nami snapped.

"Yeah! What do you want with Robin?" Chopper demanded.

Were these two targeting Nico Robin? Nami and Chopper immediately jumped to that conclusion.

"No, no, he is only interested in Brook, the man who resurrected using the Revive-Revive Fruit. Go ahead, Kratos, verify it now," Axis urged.

"Hmph," Kratos grunted. He walked over to Brook, who lay motionless on the deck, his fate unknown.

"W-what are you doing? Please, don't hurt Brook," Nami pleaded, on the verge of tears.

"Relax, we're just curious about his condition. As long as I'm here, I guarantee Kratos won't harm anyone," Axis assured, offering what he hoped was a gentle smile.

"Just take whatever treasure we have on board, but please leave my friends alone," Nami bargained.

Kratos stopped in front of Brook, hoisted the afro-sporting skeleton into the air, and inspected him closely.

"Cough! Do whatever you want with me, but please spare my crewmates," Brook wheezed, having barely regained consciousness.

It was exactly as Axis had claimed. In a sense, this was true resurrection. More importantly, unlike the undead warriors raised by gods like Hades or Ares, this skeleton wasn't a mindless walking corpse. He possessed free will.

"Can you eat and drink like a normal person?" Kratos demanded.

"Eh? You... you just wanted to know if I can eat properly?" Brook asked, completely baffled.

"Answer me," Kratos commanded.

"Y-yes, sir. If you really want to know, I can eat, drink, and sleep just like a normal human, though I don't quite understand how myself. Yohohoho!"

"I see. Let us go, Axis. We have a deal. For the next ten years, I am at your command," Kratos declared. He dropped Brook and turned away without a second glance.

"Alright everyone, this really was just a misunderstanding. Please don't take it to heart. My friend has suffered a lot of family tragedies recently, and it left him with some mental issues. I apologize to all of you. Goodbye."

With that, Axis followed Kratos and left the ship. He left behind a completely dumbfounded Straw Hat crew. Fortunately, only Sanji had sustained severe injuries; the rest had escaped with minor wounds.

That pale, bald man was absolutely terrifying! He felt countless times more dangerous than Admiral Aokiji, Admiral Kizaru, or Bartholomew Kuma back at the Sabaody Archipelago.