Chương 50: Chapter 49: Hyena
The gold the hyena had won from gambling was placed in a wooden box in front of him, tightly clamped between his legs as if he were guarding against any mishaps. With so many eyes on him and such secure protection, it would be nearly impossible for an ordinary thief to make a move. But Kado didn't see it as a problem. Armed with skills inherited from the Thieves' Guild, coupled with speed and strength hundreds of times greater than the average person, as well as a unique Devil Fruit ability, it would be easy for him to get his hands on the gold in front of the hyena.
Taking advantage of the hyena's focus on the turtles, Kado blended in with the crowd, mimicking their loud cheering while inching his foot toward the wooden box beneath the hyena. Activating his Devil Fruit ability, he trapped a small, razor-thin layer of air at the tip of his foot. With a few subtle movements, Kado lightly slid his foot along the box's side, successfully cutting a slit into it.
The faint sound of the wood chip falling to the ground was completely drowned out by the intense shouting and cheering of the crowd. Even the hyena, who was the closest, didn't notice a thing.
At that moment, the race came to an end. In this round, turtle number 1 finally unleashed its potential and easily claimed victory. While the hyena was busy handing double the gold to the winners, Kado leaned forward slightly. With one swift motion, his hand slipped through the small slit in the wooden box, and the entire stash of gold was now in Kado's possession.
Kado's movements were incredibly agile. Adding to this, the crowd was already gearing up for the next round of betting, so no one noticed Kado's sleight of hand. Even if someone had seen it, they would likely dismiss it as a trick of the eye. Kado hadn't changed his demeanor in the slightest—his expression remained the same as he gazed intently at the three turtles, as if he were seriously considering which one had the best chance of winning the next round.
Seeing that no one had caught on, Kado cautiously stepped to the side, positioning himself directly in front of the hyena. Pulling out a handful of gold nuggets, he casually tossed them into the box for turtle number 3 and shouted, "Number 3! I'm betting on number 3!"
Since turtle number 1 had performed exceptionally well in the previous round, leaving the other two far behind, most bets were placed on it. Hardly anyone wagered on turtle number 3, the largest of the three, which had consistently displayed a lazy demeanor, barely moving at all.
Now, when the onlookers saw Kado suddenly place such a large amount of gold on turtle number 3, they couldn't help but all turn to look at him. They thought to themselves, Is this guy crazy? Does he have so much money that he doesn't know what to do with it?
Even the hyena glanced at Kado a few times and gave him a grin. With Kado betting so much on turtle number 3—a choice with an extraordinarily slim chance of winning—the hyena was naturally more interested in this "foolish benefactor."
As he observed Kado, the hyena felt a faint sense of familiarity in Kado's appearance. However, back when Kado had stolen the hyena's gold, he had only been 14 years old and still growing. Now, eleven years had passed, and with so much time gone by, the hyena didn't immediately recognize Kado. Instead, he merely thought that Kado resembled someone he had met before, so he didn't dwell on it further.
The race officially began, and in this round, turtle number 1 still held a shaky lead. As it neared the finish line, the crowd couldn't help but cheer. Some of the onlookers, particularly those who had placed large bets on Kado's choice, occasionally glanced at him, their eyes showing a mix of pity and mockery.
But just as turtle number 1 was mere centimeters from the finish line, it suddenly stopped, turned, and crawled to the side of the stone slab, poking its head around the wooden boards, and came to a halt.
"Damn it, why did you stop? Keep going, just a step forward!"
The people who had bet on turtle number 1 shouted desperately, urging it on, but the turtle couldn't understand their words. It continued to turn in place, and perhaps because of the noise of the crowd, it raised its head and started staring at the people around, seemingly distracted, unwilling to move even an inch forward.
At that moment, behind number 1 was the slow-moving number 2, which was still half a distance away from the finish line. The crowd, who had already given up on number 2 and thought number 1 was the guaranteed winner, suddenly noticed that turtle number 3, the last one, had somehow gotten a burst of energy. It began to move towards the finish line, chasing after the others with surprising determination.
The distance of just one meter wasn't long, and since turtle number 3 was considerably larger than the other two, it quickly gained ground. With its determined effort, it managed to overtake the others and was the first to reach the finish line.
"Ah, I should have bet on number 3 too. The other two are so disappointing."
"That guy has foresight. He bet so much gold on number 3, and now the stall owner is in for a rough time."
Everyone around sighed in disappointment. They hadn't expected turtle number 3 to suddenly burst into action. This time, apart from Kado, no one had placed a bet on number 3, and they all lost.
"No way, I won!" Kado exclaimed in surprise, his mouth hanging open in disbelief as he pointed to his own nose. He had originally just been playing around, thinking he would lose the gold to the hyena, but now he had unexpectedly won so much. Since Kado had bet more on number 3 than anyone else, the hyena would definitely have to pay him from the gold in the box in front of him. Now, the hyena would definitely realize that his gold had been stolen, and would probably suspect Kado, the generous bettor, as the culprit.
After the round ended, the hyena, twitching at the corners of his mouth, opened the wooden box in front of him, ready to pay Kado the winnings. But to his surprise, the box was completely empty. There was no gold—nothing at all, not even chicken droppings.
"What's going on? Who stole my gold?!" With a snap, the hyena smashed the box to pieces and leaped to his feet. He grabbed Kado, who was trying to push through the crowd and escape, lifting him by the collar and angrily roaring, "You, it must have been you who stole my gold!"
"Heh heh." Kado, suspended in mid-air, let out a dry laugh and pulled out a handful of gold from his pocket, handing it to the hyena. "Hyena, long time no see."
"You are..." The hyena recognized Kado immediately and was about to shout his name, but then suddenly remembered something. He quickly shut his mouth, giving Kado a fierce glare, before accepting the gold and packing up his stall, shouting, "No more gambling! No more business today!"
"Hey, what's wrong? Aren't you happy to see me? We're both stranded on this island, and you're still holding a grudge?" Kado took a step forward, offering an awkward smile.
The hyena quickly finished packing, not even bothering to take the three little turtles with him, and rolled up the gold, preparing to leave.
As Kado was about to call out to him, he suddenly froze, his eyes widening in shock. The hyena's hunched figure was exactly the same as one of the invaders he had seen earlier on the beach, which meant that the hyena was most likely one of the invaders from Naga.
"Damn, how did I not think of this before? A pirate with a bounty of 120 million wouldn't be here gambling like an ordinary person. This guy must have some hidden agenda," Kado thought, and quickly began to chase after the hyena's retreating figure.
After chasing for a long distance, the hyena vanished into the crowd in the blink of an eye, disappearing without a trace. Kado was astonished. The hyena had managed to disappear right under his nose, just like he had never been there at all. This ability was exactly the same as when the three invaders had disappeared earlier. At this moment, Kado was even more certain that the hyena was definitely one of the invaders.
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