#akibi

You were not meant to be here. No, you absolutely were not. You were supposed to be at East Blue right now, enjoying the warm weather and the sunny sky while sipping some cold drink, but no! Some asshole decided to ship you away to the North, into the middle of bumfuck nowhere, just because you couldn't keep your big mouth shut.

Though, to be fair, if you are going to do some corrupt shit and make shady deals with the local criminals behind the government's back, at least inform your subordinates!

How were you supposed to know that your Captain was covering up the vast majority of that shark-looking guy and his crew's crimes for bribe money? All you saw was that the people on the Conomi Island were having problems with pirates stealing their stuff and threatening their lives, while your rat-faced, ugly-mugged boss was having trouble "talking things out". So, as a newbie who had just gotten relocated six months ago, you had wanted to be a good champ and do as you were instructed during your military training, and called one of the Commodores for support.

His name was...what, again? Something with "Pudding" or something, but you weren't really sure anymore. Not that it mattered. All you knew was that he had light purple hair with multiple ponytails all over his head and a long goatee. He did kinda look ridiculous, to be honest, but at least he seemed to be a decent enough guy and actually wanted to help the people out.

There hadn't even been any reason in particular as to why you called him, either. It was simply that when you checked the notes and the WG-issued maps, you had seen that the 77th Branch was the closest one to your base; that was all. Nothing more, nothing less.

Well, it turned out that this Pudding guy and your sleazeball of a Captain, Nezumi, had a beef going on for decades now because the other guy knew that he was a corrupt piece of shit, too, but didn't have the evidence to prove anything. So, when he got your message, he jumped on the opportunity to get rid of the man.

It didn't work, of course; that was a no-shocker. You had no idea how he was able to shove this under the rug, but maybe he had strong connections in the World Government. Connections that you did not have. It wasn't like Conomi was a huge place either; the residents were fewer than a thousand people. So, you guessed, it wouldn't even matter if the whole island got taken hostage by these criminals since there wasn't much point in getting the pirates off of there and wasting man-power. It was good, actually, because now they didn't bother with going to the New World and become an actual problem.

Those people's lives were a small sacrifice they were willing to take.

And they couldn't even do anything about it or seek help from the other islands by sharing the news of what was transpiring, because the World Government itself controlled all the news channels.

The worst part, though? If you had known that your Captain was doing shit like this from the get-go, you wouldn't even have bothered with calling anyone or doing anything about the matter. It wasn't like you weren't aware of the fact that there were lots of Marines who exploited the system to get something, and having to be a part of that had been a risk you had been willing to take. All of this happened simply because you hadn't known that there was something you were supposed to be silent about, that your boss himself was the antagonist.

So, you ended up getting kicked out of the 16th Branch, just like that, and sent to the other side of the Blues; to some place called Spider Miles, at that. Why the man chose this place, you had no idea, but you guessed it was because this place was nothing more than a glorified landfill. Dirty and boring. It was a small rock with most of its citizens having to work at the same Waste Processing Plant. You didn't even know what the man gave as a reason for your deployment, and no one called you to question you about anything, either. Not even that ponytail guy.

Everything was done in silence.

You could have called in yourself, of course, but in the grand scheme of things, what would that even change? You were just a nobody with no notable skills; no one, and especially not the higher-ups with better things to do like trying to get those illegal drug trades in control, would care about or believe what you had to say.

You swear to God, though, if you ever see that bastard again, you would grab him by those whiskers he for some reason loved so much and rip them apart from his stupid-looking face one by one! That was the least he deserved!

...The only thing you felt bad about was that girl with orange hair. Why were those fishmen keeping her, anyway? She acted like she wanted to be with those thugs, sure, but anyone who saw her would know better. Especially since she was at that tender age when you didn't know exactly how to hide your real emotions just yet. No matter how brats acted, you could always see what they really felt through their eyes.

...And hers? They were filled with grief.

You sighed, feeling your mood sour even further. Whatever. There was no point in thinking about her now, anyway. It wasn't like you could have just grabbed her by the arm and brought her with you. Not that this place was somewhere a kid should live, anyhow. You could only hope there were still people who cared enough about her to get her out of there, but most likely, she would either end up a pirate herself or get killed before getting the chance to step into adulthood.

Well, such was life.

You pulled your cloak around you tighter when the cold breeze hit you right in the face. There was something in the North Blue's weather that just cut through your skin like a blade. The wind didn't just pass you; it hurt. You would probably have to spend a considerable amount of your wages on moisturizer, it seemed, and lots of new sweaters, and that was if they even sell those here.

The ship docked soon after, and you, with several other men, got off the Warrant Officer's vessel. You walked with a guy who was named, unfortunately, Stalker. You had gotten to know him since both of you were seamen and had to stay on the same ship for two months, and he was a pretty good guy when you got to know him despite his timid nature, but his portly figure and his odd, sickly colored skin weren't doing him any favors. Especially with that name. Why would a parent name their child that, anyway? The poor dude had already lost the lottery of life before he was even born.

...Though maybe they had been onto something, since he did enjoy spying on people. Or maybe it was some kind of self-fulfilling prophecy situation. You give your kid a shitty name, and they turn out to have... less-than-pleasant pursuits and interests later.

"This place looks like shit," you said as you walked past mountains of litter. There were rats almost as big as cats running around here! Downright gross. "I hope our headquarters will be cleaner, at least."

"Yah," Stalker agreed and covered his nose with his collar. The island stank as if the smell was coming from the ground itself. Nasty. "I have no idea how people can live here."

The civilians around the town did nothing more than glance at you guys, though they didn't seem to be too happy about your arrival, either. It didn't take a genius to figure out that, in this case, some sort of criminal activity must be going on on this island as well. Maybe they feared that they might get caught in the crossfire. Or maybe getting attacked as a retribution against the Marines, even though they hadn't done anything wrong.

Well, whatever the case was, you would have to be careful during your stay. An unhappy civilian was a dangerous one, after all, and the last thing you wanted was to get shanked by a random citizen just because they had some cockamamie grudge that had nothing to do with you personally.

They might even work with the supposed criminals to get some money flowing into the island, since it was quite unimaginable for this place to get any real tourism to increase its economic growth, or for protection against other pirates.

And that meant if it was between you and them, they would choose them. At least, that was what you would have chosen in their situation.

The headquarters were just as bad as you thought they would be. The paint on the walls was peeling off, trash bags were thrown at the side of the garden, and the building looked one earthquake away from falling into pieces.

"Could be worse," Stalker laughed and then nudged you with his elbow. "Come on, let's get inside. I want to get dips on a bottom bunker before everyone else."

"You think there can be something worse than this?" You reluctantly followed him. "With all the shit ton of taxes they take from everyone, we should at least have some decent place to live at the very least, don't you think?"

"They probably spend more for Commanders and above. We're the Proletariat of the Navy, as far as they care, and honestly? I'll be glad if we get to eat meat more than once a month." He said, shrugging. "And you're a girl, anyway! I'm sure you guys' room will be so much better than ours! Or, at least, have more room for yourselves."

You scoffed. "And why is that?"

"Look around. How many women do you see here?" He pointed at the front of the base. And, yes, as he had said, there were more men around here. "At least you won't have to fight for the beds or who'll get to the showers first."

Oh, how the mighty has fallen...

"I guess so..."

Then, you noticed a man at the front door. He had messy blond hair and looked fairly old, maybe early fifties. From his uniform, you could tell that he was the highest-ranking person in the base, and was probably your new boss until you were shipped somewhere else.

He screamed, "Attention!" and all of you quickly fell into line before listening to see what he had to say. You were a bit far away, though, and couldn't see his face anymore because of the tall guy standing in front of you.

"I'm Lieutenant Commander Rapanui!" You heard him introduce himself. "I know this dump was the last place you would have wanted to be at, but let's do our best to help the folk out here, got it?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Good. All of you are already assigned something to do, and will be given further information tomorrow morning." The Lieutenant Commander explained. "For now, go to your rooms and unpack. Dinner will be served at 2000. You are not allowed to leave the site after 2100 unless given explicit permission. Does anyone have any questions?"

"No, sir!"

"Well, then, you're dismissed!"

Well, at least your new boss seemed to have a sense of humor, but it was still too early to say anything. You also could have said the same for that rat-faced bastard at the beginning, despite his constant, eerie smirk. This time, you weren't going to say shit even if you saw anything unusual, though.

You got separated from your buddy soon after and followed the others to the women's dorm. The rooms were prepared for two people, and the showers were in there, too. Nice.

You didn't have much to unpack anyway, so you just chucked your luggage into your assigned wardrobe before locking it.

"May I come in?" Someone said then, knocking lightly, and when you turned around to see who it was, you came face to face with a marine a bit shorter than you. She was wearing her hat backwards, which was the first thing you noticed about her.

"Sure," you said. "I don't think that bed belongs to anyone anyway."

"Thanks. I'm Yoko, by the way."

"Nice to meet you."

"Are you new here, too?"

You nodded. "I was at East Blue, Conomi, before coming here. What about you?"

"Really? Me, too!" She exclaimed and plopped onto her bed, making it creak under her weight. Maybe you should check for bedbugs before sleeping tonight. "I was at Kansorn, though. Some call it Little East Blue. Ever heard of it?"

Not really.

"It sounds familiar."

"Oh, it's a beautiful place!" Yoko said, smiling ear to ear. "Much greenery, full of nice people, and we even have a giant beetle named Boss! He's kinda like a guard dog, you know?"

A big bug roaming around? Oh hell no. "That sounds..." you couldn't help but grimace. "interesting."

Your roommate quickly caught on to that, though. "Not a fan of bugs?" She asked.

You shrugged. "Can't say I am."

"I'll handle the spiders here, then."

Now that was an offer you could not refuse. "That would be great, actually."

"So, how did you end up here? This place is very far from your island."

"Could say the same for you."

"My dad is a Marine, too, you know?" She started to explain. "He thought it would be good for me to expand a bit, see different places, and learn how to get along with different people if I wanted to try to rank up a bit."

That was smart. You wished you had connections like that, too.

"He and Mr. Rapanui are good friends, too, from the 'good ol' days'. So he asked them to send me here."

You grinned, then. "So you are a nepo-baby, huh? I had no idea I would meet one in a place like this. You should have asked them to send you to Marineford or something, rather than coming to this landfill."

"It's not like that!" Yoko jumped up, looking scandalized. "He just wanted to have someone to keep an eye on me!"

"Girl...that's the definition of nepotism."

"B-but!" She got red, as if wanting to argue more, but then huffed and gave up. "Fine... I guess I'm a little nepo."

You snorted. "Don't say this to everyone, though. Some might cause a fight with the executives if they hear this. And it'll be you who gets burned. "

"You think so?" She frowned, looking up at the ceiling. You must have given her something to think about from the looks of it. Though, how did she never consider this before? Maybe she was a fairly new recruit and lacked the experience.

"Yup."

"How did you come here, then?"

You shrugged. "I got on the wrong foot with the wrong person."

"How so?"

You didn't really want to say too much; it would only cause more trouble than it was worth. "Let's just say my ex-Captain is an ass."

Yoko hummed but didn't dig it further. That was good. And before either of you knew it, a ball rang outside the hallway.

"It must be eight o'clock already." You mumbled and got up. Your stomach was grumbling now that you were reminded of food. You hoped it was anything other than fish. You had eaten enough of it during your trip here.

"Should we go together?" Yoko asked, looking hopeful. Maybe she didn't want to eat all by herself.

"Sure." You said. "Someone might join us, though."

"Yeah? Who?"

Now this was going to be priceless. You bit your cheek so you wouldn't grin. "Stalker."

And, just as you had thought, her smile instantly froze. "Stal...ker?" She tilted her head, confused. "Does someone stalk you here..?" God, she actually looked worried for your well-being! "Should we talk with the Lieutenant Commander?"

"No." You shook your head. "The dude's name is Stalker."

"...Like a nickname?"

"No. His parents, honest to God, named him that. I saw his ID."

The girl got that 'what the actual hell?' look on her face, but was trying her best not to seem rude. "Maybe... it is cultural?"

You laughed. You had asked the same thing! "I have no idea!"

The dining hall was on the main floor. It was already packed when they arrived. Unsurprisingly, Stalker was already there and enthusiastically waved at you and your friend when he saw you and pointed at the open seat in front of him.

You nodded and got into line after getting a tray.

"So, that's...him?" She whispered to your ear, as if worried that he might hear despite the distance between you guys.

You nodded, "He's a fine dude once you get to know him, though. Nothing to worry about."

She looked like she really wanted to trust your judgement but still had her doubts, "...If you say so."

They had cooked fish soup for tonight, with fish balls, too. It had a strong, pungent smell but at least they had bothered to throw some vegetables in it. You sighed and got the bowl onto your tray before getting a spoon and some bread.

Together, you two walked to the end of the table, passing by several Marines, and sat down in front of Stalker.

"You're already done?" You asked when you saw his empty bowl.

"Yeah. They gave so little!" He complained.

Really, this guy....

"You can have mine, too, if you want." You offered.

"R-really?!"

"Yeah." You took out the small pieces of carrots and broccoli. "I'll just eat the vegetables."

Stalker looked really grateful. "Thank you!"

"You should eat more," Yoko said then, frowning. "That's definitely not enough! You need to take care of your health, you know?"

"It's fine." You brushed her off. "I'm just sick of fish."

"Yeah, we've been eating it almost every day now," Stalker said and eagerly gobbled down your bowl, too. "Are you her new roommate, by the way?"

She nodded, "We just met, but I think we'll get along well."

Then, they talked a bit more as you nibbled your bread. It was dry; probably leftovers from this morning. You could say that today's meal was very disappointing, overall. Maybe you could smuggle some instant noodles here later.

You tuned out the conversation a bit since it was the typical exchange people had when they were trying to get to know each other: where they are from, their last post, who they worked under, et cetera...

Then, someone plopped onto you guys' table and smiled at you. With the arrogance oozing off of him like an open tap, you could say he totally saw himself as a bigshot here.

"Hello there, girls!" He said with a booming, cheery voice. He had a pencil-thin moustache and a receding hairline. It did not look good on him at all, in your opinion. "I'm Akibi, your senior. How's it going?"

"Nice to meet you," Yoko said, giving a polite smile.

"Yup, me too!" Stalker waved his hand onto the man's face. He knew exactly what he was doing.

"I didn't know we had such cute recruits coming today!" This guy said, then, and winked at you two. Ugh. He looked at least a decade older than you.

"You think we're cute?" Stalker blushed, shyly batting his eyelashes. "Thank you for the compliment, man! We appreciate it <3"

Both you and Yoko almost burst out laughing, but managed to keep it in somehow. You dug your nails into your arm so you wouldn't crack, even.

Akibi grimaced and tried to say something, "T-that's not-!"

"Harrasing the newbies, are we, Akibi?" A voice came, then. You quickly recognized him. It was the Lieutenant Commander! You tried to get up and salute him, but he stopped you.

"Relax, you all, no need to get worked up." He said, and all three of you did as you were told and sat back down again.

The Lieutenant Commander put an arm around the other guy, smiling, then choked him. Quite aggressively, too, in your opinion. "I told you to stop messing around, didn't I!?" He cried out while Akibi struggled against his hold.

"I-it's not like that!" He tried to explain through chokes. "I was j-just being nice!"

"Then why do I see you talk only to the girls, huh, you fool?!" He swung at his head. Then, he turned towards you and Yoko. "Don't fall for his lies, girls. He's a total Casanova!"

"Lies!" The man tried to defend himself despite his position. "I'll sue you for defamation, you bastard!"

"And I'll get you written up for not following orders!"

"You two must be close, sir," you commented, then.

Lieutenant Commander chuckled, "Absolutely. This subordinate of mine is a childhood friend. Though maybe I should be harsher with him hereafter!"

"Okay, okay!" the other tapped out. "I'll be well-behaved from now on! I swear!"

"I heard they were both pirates before joining the Marines," Stalker whispered to you, then. Though he must not have been as silent as he had hoped, because both men stopped their quarrel and screamed, "Where the hell did you hear that?!" They looked flabbergasted.

"I-I, uhh!" Stalker stuttered, and you wondered what kind of bullshit he would spew now to get out of this. "I overheard some people saying stuff, that's all, sir!"

More like eavesdropped, but you didn't point that out. He looked frightened enough as it was.

"Ah..." Mr. Rapanui groaned. "Can't believe people are still talking about this damn thing. It's been decades already!"

"Really, it's so embarrassing!"

Yoko looked astonished to hear this, "So, it's true?!"

Both Mr. Rapanui and Akibi looked at each other for a moment, then burst out laughing until their eyes teared up.

"We just liked to play pirates, that's all." The Lieutenant Commander huffed. "The townspeople aren't letting it go, though!"

"We called it the Pumpkin Pirates!" the other guy chuckled, reminiscing. "We were total menaces here!"

"Really?!" Stalker leaned in, curious. He liked a good gossip, and hearing it from the source itself must have been priceless for him.

"Oh, yeah. We claimed a wrecked Marine ship as our turf, even."

"We would go vandalize the walls, steal candy from the shops, egg our neighbors' houses, and run around screaming!"

"Yeah." Lieutenant Commander reminisced. "The amount of ass whupping we got was crazy."

"It was fun, though."

It sounded like they had a fun childhood. You were an only child, and most of the people living in your apartment were elderly, so you mainly had to entertain yourself, which meant messing with your cat and making her scratch all over you for the most part. Sometimes your neighbors' grandchildren would visit, and you would play with them, but that didn't happen often. Maybe three or four times a year.

"How did you decide to be Marines, then?" Yoko asked, then looked a bit apologetic. "If you don't mind me asking, of course!"

"It's fiiiine!" Akibi laughed and then used this opportunity to plop his flat ass right next to Yoko. "There isn't much to say really-"

"-We just outgrow our childishness." Mr. Rapanui stated, and then flicked his friend on the forehead.

"Auch!" Akibi cried out, "What was that for?!"

The man ignored him and turned to you three instead, "Well, I hope you guys will get used to this place. It isn't much, but nothing bad happens usually. And don't be intimidated by the townspeople being so grouty, they're a fine bunch when you get to meet them."

"Yeah, unless you anger them." The other man sighed. "Then they won't sell you shit."

"That's what you get for getting drunk and making a scene at the pub."

"It wasn't even that bad."

"I had to go and save your ass before they threw you to the sea."

"That says more about their character than mine."

"Sure." Lieutenant Commander rolled his eyes. He still looked fond, though. "Now, get up. We have stuff to talk about."

"Wait!" Akibi jumped up, suddenly turning pale. "Are you really going to write me up!?"

The man didn't say anything and started to walk away, "Come on, follow me. And you three have a nice evening."

"Thank you, sir."

"You too, Lieutenant Commander."

"T-thank you, sir..!"

"Pasqua!" Akini screamed and ran behind him. He sounded agitated. Probably because he was close to being demoted or something. Maybe they would stick him with the cleaning duty as a penalty. "Answer me, you bastard!"

"Our chief looks like a lively man," Yoko said after both men disappeared. "And very friendly, too."

"Hmm, hmm!" Stalker agreed and wiped rest of of the soup in his bowl with the last piece of bread before popping it into his mouth. "Definitely a hundred times better than the Warrant Officer who got us here! I still don't feel my hands after all the scrubbing I had to do on the deck."

"You can say that again." At least it didn't look like he would make them run around like headless chickens just to mess with you. It wasn't every day getting a boss who treated you like an equal, rather than a servant whose only job was to do their bidding.

Who knows? Maybe this "punishment" would actually turn into a blessing.

After you got your, Yoko's and Stalker's trays and put them away, you two wished the guy a good night before parting your ways and heading towards your shared room at the other side of the base.

"See you in the morning." You told him.

"Yup." Stalker stretched. He looked already ready to go to bed and get a good night's sleep. "Have a good night, girls!"

"He doesn't seem half bad," Yoko said after. "He's actually funny."

"Well, other than his 'spying', I guess." She added quickly.

"Yeah, that can get a bit annoying sometimes." You went to take your pyjamas from your wardrobe. It was just an old pair of sweatpants and a black tank top. "But he'll always tell you the juiciest gossip whenever."

Yoko laughed. "Isn't he afraid of getting caught, though?"

"Oh, he does get caught. I saw it several times." You told her and threw your uniform into the laundry basket. You should probably wake up early this weekend to wash your clothes before all the washing machines are full if you want to have a clean uniform for the next week. "He always finds a way to get out of the situation, though."

You were the first one to get into bed, and, thankfully, Yoko also followed soon after. Your last roommate had the habit of staying up late, sometimes past midnight and into the early morning, and talking with her boyfriend on the denden despite being in the same building and being together the whole day, so this was a welcoming change.

Since Spider Miles's population wasn't that much better than Conomi's, you could still see the stars pretty clearly thanks to the lack of light pollution. The sky was getting clouded, and the wind was making the branches hit your window, making a small 'tak, tak, tak' noise. It would probably start raining soon. Or, at least, in the upcoming days.

It was nice.

You slept like a baby, deep and uninterrupted. The blankets could have been a bit thicker, but maybe they hadn't changed the beddings since it wasn't winter just yet.

Your peace didn't last long, however, when that damn alarm was blasted again through the speakers at six in the morning. It was ear-screeching.

You first tried to drown the noise by holding your pillow over your head and reluctantly got off once it was over.

"Yoko." You poked the other. "Do you want to take a shower first, or should I?"

She just groaned and pulled her cover over her head even more. You took that as a no and got into the bathroom first.

It was small but still pretty good. At the 77th Branch, all the women shared the same bathrooms, and it had six showers. You always had to get in line and bang on the door for the person to finish already.

You used that white and cheap soap that all the Marine bases gave out to clean yourself before quickly rinsing and getting out.

While you were getting ready for the day, your roommate was still lying on her bed like a dead fish. You knew that if she kept lazing around like this, she would be late.

"Hey, Yoko, get up," you nudged. "You'll be late, and this is the first day."

"Mmhp! It's fine!" She groaned and turned away to face the wall.

"Don't you want to grab some breakfast before we work?"

"H-hmm!" She waved you off. "I'll... I'll get up in five minutes...you can go ahead if you want."

You did not really believe her one bit, but she was old enough to make her own choices. If she got scolded and made to clean the toilets, it would be her own fault.

"Fine," you huffed after you fixed your collar and brushed your hair in front of the mirror. You looked fine enough. "I'll be going, then."

"See you lateeerr..." Yoko grunted and closed her eyes again as she snuggled into her pillow.

Really, this girl...

You walked past the other women around you and went to the dining hall. You hoped, no, really begged God, that they would give you something good. Your stomach was grumbling with how empty it felt.

As you got in line, someone tapped you on the shoulder. You turned around. It was Stalker.

"Mornin'," he said. "How was the first night?"

"Pretty good, actually. How about you?"

"My roommates are either smelly or snore all night," Stalker complained. "And I got the top bunk."

"How many roommates do you have?"

"Five."

"Off." You grimaced. They must be cramped in there, to say the least. "Sucks to be you, not gonna lie."

"Why?" Stalker asked. "How many roommates do you have?"

"I've only got Yoko."

"What?!" The other shrieked. "You have a big ass room only for two people?! That's not fair!"

You decided to put salt on the wound. "Our showers and bathrooms are in it, too."

"Oh, come on!" Stalker groaned and threw his hands in the air. "I had to fight off three other dudes before getting in. You're so lucky. I wish I were a girl."

You snorted. "It's never too late to change teams if you really want."

The cooks gave out French fries and hard-boiled eggs. You almost cried tears of joy when you saw that. Stalker seemed to like the menu, too.

"Will you share again today, too?" He asked, already drooling.

"No way! This time, I will eat it all."

"Aww, man..."

You two sat at the same table as yesterday, and while eating, the Lieutenant Commander made an announcement.

"Good morning, everyone! I hope you had a good night's sleep!" His booming voice came. "You all are expected to go to the help desk on the first floor after breakfast to get your checklist from Mrs. Isoka for the day. The clock will start at eight, and you'll have until eight in the afternoon to finish your duties unless given instructions otherwise. If you have any questions, you can visit me from eight to twelve-thirty or from one-thirty to eight."

You frowned. "I have never seen a base giving out literal to-do lists before."

Stalker didn't seem to care too much, though. "Maybe since nothing much happens here, they just send us to tend to the town?"

"That sounds like being a chore boy with extra steps."

"I've got no complaints. I would rather help a farmer with his field than run around trying to catch some thief anyway."

Well, you couldn't argue with that logic. No one liked to get shot, after all.

You both were heading to the help desk when Yoko finally arrived.

"Hey, guys!" She greeted them, breathless. She must have ran here. "What's going on? Where is everyone going?"

"We all need to go to Mrs. Isoka to get our chore lists," You said. "She's at the help desk. We're expected to start work at eight."

Yoko looked at the clock. It was seven-thirty-five already. "Shit."

"Yeah. Go quickly, and grab something!" Stalker said. "There might still be some fries left."

"Okay, thanks!" She ran past you. "See you guys later!"

There was a small line in front of the desk, and the Marines who had managed to get their checklist were looking at them and deciding which one to start.

When it was your turn, you saw that Mrs. Isoka had a somewhat droopy face, with short purple hair. She was also wearing a Marine headband. You didn't know that they made those.

"Good morning, Ma'am." You greeted her.

"Good morning to you, too, Miss," The woman smiled. "What's your Marine Code?"

"48001."

"Okay, let's see..."

She went over the stack of papers, then pulled your one out. "Here, this is yours."

You quickly grabbed it and skimmed through. "May I ask something before I go, Ma'am?"

"Of course, darling. What is it?"

"Do we get new checklists like this each morning? Or is this for the month?"

"It is indeed for the month." Miss Isoka informed you. "The chores and tasks rotate every 28 days."

"Oh, okay," You mumbled. Then, turned to walk away. "Got it. Thank you again."

"Don't forget to get it signed by me or Rapauni at the end of the day!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

You walked a bit further to get away from the crowd and then leaned towards the wall before reading your checklist:

🗖Patrol the shoreline for pirate ships or suspicious activity.

🗖Check supply storage (food, ammunition, medicine) for shortages or spoilage.

🗖Inspect and maintain weaponry (rifles, cannons, swords).

🗖Record weather and tide conditions in the logbook.

🗖Report in to HQ via den den mushi.

🗖Check bounty posters—replace old ones and note any updates.

🗖Raise and lower the Marine flag at the appropriate times.

Okay, you thought, this wasn't so bad. Some were even stuff you could handle at the same time. You decided to patrol the shoreline first and get out of this place a bit. Maybe getting some fresh air would be nice. You could even get the bounty posters and replace them while you were at it as well!

You walked to the nearest man and tapped them on the shoulder. "Sorry, but do you know where I can get the new bounty posters here? I'm supposed to put them around the island but I have no idea where to get them."

"They come with direct HQ shipment," you were informed. "Go to the records office. You should probably get a pen and paper, too, and check off the old names."

"Got it, thanks."

"No problem."

The records office was on the fourth floor, and just as you entered the room, News Coo dropped a new bundle onto one of the desks at the nearby window before flying away. It didn't even wait for you to check it or anything.

What great timing.

You weren't sure if you could just grab it and leave; you didn't want to get scolded, but after waiting for ten minutes, you guessed no one was coming anytime soon, so you took the initiative to just leave and deal with any fallout later.

With a notebook in your pocket and the wanted posters under your arm, you left the headquarters and headed towards the shoreline. You weren't really familiar with the island just yet, so it would probably be better if you kept sticking to the roads you had already seen.

The streets near the docks were muddy, but you didn't mind. At least it wasn't thick enough to make your boots stick to the ground.

There, at the stands, you saw two bounties; old and ripped. It was probably safe to say that you could rip those off.

You looked at the photos. One was called Fronfang Darius, and the other Captain Butterbeard. Ironfang actually looked threatening with his swords and jagged teeth, while Butterbeard, as his namesake, had a beard that looked greasy as hell, as if it was dripping from his chin, and, as if that wasn't enough, was rumored to smell of popcorn, apparently.

They weren't kidding when they said that anyone was trying to become a pirate these days.

You took note of those names and slammed two new ones onto the wall....who were called Captain Oopsie-Daisy and One-Eyed Veylor.

Really, how did they even come up with these names?

After some walking, you noticed a fish seller and decided to ask him for directions.

"Good morning, sir." You greeted the man as he slammed his butcher knife into the poor squid as if it had personally offended him or something. "May I ask for directions?"

"What do you want?" He didn't even look up to see you.

"How do I go to the town square?" You asked, and then explained. "I'm supposed to change the Wanted posters around here, is all."

"Go left from here, then straight ahead until you see the bakery. You'll see factories, too." He took the next squealing squid and slapped it onto the cutting board. "You might want to check the taverns, too. The one before you put posters there."

You nodded. "Thank you. Have a nice day."

The man didn't say anything, just grunted. You still felt his gaze on you as you left, however. Everyone felt so hostile here....

You passed the bakery and petted the poor, starving dog sitting near the street lamp a bit. You even stumbled upon another Marine who had gotten something to do outside of the base. You guys didn't talk, but even that acknowledging nod felt nice.

You changed a couple of posters here, too, but left the ones that looked fairly new, or at least not vandalized, intact. You would have to get a denden and get in touch with the Main HQ to make sure that these were up-to-date, meaning the criminals were still alive, and not just taking place.

The tavern the man was talking about was indeed up ahead. The first thing you noticed was the sign: It was a neon light of a bird holding a beer bottle, and it suspiciously looked very much like a News Coo. And, of course, it was called the Tipsy Seagull.

Was that a dig at the Marines? You couldn't really tell.

You got in after some pondering. It felt intrusive for some reason, like you weren't supposed to be in here. For a moment, you came eye-to-eye with a man with spiky, light blue hair and a mask, and quickly averted your gaze. The guy was clearly drinking something, but something about him made you on edge: Was it the fact that most of his face was hidden away? Or maybe the knife he had that was far too long to be called a dagger? You weren't sure, but you wanted to get out as soon as possible.

...Did this count as "suspicious activity" that he was supposed to report on? Even though his vibes were off, that didn't mean he was doing anything illegal, though. You couldn't just arrest someone when all they did was get drunk, even if it was this early in the morning.

You saw a board near the counter and headed towards it.

"What the hell are you doing, lass?" The bartender scoffed, however, and made you freeze.

"I'm here to put some bounties." You tried to explain and showed the papers in your hand.

He looked you up and down, squinting. "I've never seen you here before, have I?"

"Yeah," you rubbed your arm. Your hand was itching to get a hold of your pistol, but you knew better than that. "My squad and I arrived here yesterday. We've just been given some small tasks to do around town."

"Give me the bounties."

"What?"

He sighed as if you were being a great nuisance. "Give me the damn papers and I'll hang them myself."

"Oh, no need for you to bother, sir," you tried to back off. "I don't have much else to do, anyway."

"I said, give them to me. You think you know my stuff better than me, huh, is that it?"

Okay, the situation was escalating. And it was escalating quickly!

"Of course not, sir!" You quickly said, and chuckled awkwardly. Everyone in the damn tavern was staring at you now. "I just didn't want to bother you, you know, make a good first impression and all. But if you insist, you can have it."

You got in front of him and put the bounties on the counter. "Here. No harm done, yeah?"

The bartender looked at the posters for a moment, then looked up to you again, then huffed. "Thank you for ya' service, then. See you never."

You nodded. This was definitely your cue to leave already. "Of course. No problem. Have a nice day, sir."

As you walked towards the exit, the only thing you heard was your footsteps. The Lieutenant Commander must have a few screws loose if he really thought that these people were a "fine bunch"; that was for damn sure.

You felt like you could finally breathe once you were out, and quickly turned to the opposite direction to get away from the tavern. You only had a couple of bounties left, anyway, so you might as well finish and return to the base before those assholes decided to come after you and cause a fight.

It takes a bit of walking to find the rest of the bounties, and if there were any more left around this soul-sucking town, you weren't going to search for them anymore, but you finally finished your task with pockets filled with torn papers and a notebook full of names to check for later.

The sun was up now, staring down at you, and even though you didn't have any clocks near here, you could guess that it was probably around noon. You noticed that there was a small, very small, school nearby and children running around. It was nice to see that no matter the place, kids were always kids. Though maybe you could talk to Mr. Rapanui about repairing the building a bit; it looked like one bad hurricane away from falling to pieces. Surely, they had enough resources for that?

You stretched your arms above your head, satisfied, when you heard cries and screams coming from that direction. They didn't sound agitated, per se, but more disappointed and angry. The teachers could probably handle whatever problem there was, but you decided to look into it, just in case.

You saw them running up and down a hill, pushing each other. "Hey!" You shouted to get their attention, "What's going on in there? You need help?"

They first froze a moment, maybe they thought they were in trouble, then ran up to you. "Marine! Marine! Look!" They nudged at each other. "She can get it!"

"Get what?" You asked.

"Our ball flew up the fence and we can't get it out!" The girl explained, eyes filled with angry tears. Then she stomped her feet and glared at her friend, and said, "I told you not to kick it that hard, idiot!"

"And I told you, it was an accident!"

"You always do this! And into the factories, too! Mama told us we can't go in there!"

"I knoooooow!" The boy screamed, done with the girl's nagging. "I know, I know, I know!"

"Then why do you keep doing it?!"

Okay, this was enough. Both of them were screaming at this point, and if you didn't intervene soon, you were afraid that you would start to bleed out of your ears.

"Okay, okay, let's calm down, please!" You tried to smile and crouched to their level. "Why don't you show where it is so I can get it for you, hm?"

This seemed to melt away the animosity they had, and both the girl and the boy smiled, "Yes, please!"

"This way!" He ran to the hill again.

She, on the other hand, grabbed your hand and started to pull, "Come on! Let's be quick before the bad guys come!"

"The bad guys?" You asked, and frowned. "What do you mean?"

"The men who work there are soooo mean! They scream and say many bad words and get angry at us when we get too near the fence, even though we aren't doing anything!" She huffed. "Mama doesn't like them, either, so she forbade me from playing with their kids. I don't like them, anyway; they are mean, too. One threw a stone at me and then laughed, you know?"

That didn't sound good. "Is that so? We should be careful, then."

"Yeah!"

When you reached that supposed factory, you saw that it was surrounded by wired fences like the kids were talking about. You looked around. The place was filled with junk and debris, and it did not look at all like it was an active workplace.

Where were these supposed workers? It was the middle of the day. Shouldn't they be working? No matter how much you tried to listen closely, you heard no noise coming from the building.

...This was really suspicious. But if anything was happening, would the base not be aware of this and warn you all newbies before they sent you out?

"Why don't you two go back to school while I get your ball?" You offered the kids, then. "And I'll bring it to you after?"

"No, no!" The boy shook his head, he was too impatient for that. "I want it now!"

"Me, too!"

"But the mean men will scold you again if they see you," you tried to persuade them. "And then you'll have to stand there and listen to it all rather than play together. They might even pop the ball if they get really angry!"

That seemed to do the trick.

"I... don't want that..."

"Me neither...."

"So you'll wait for me at the school?"

They nodded.

"Don't take too long, though!"

"Yes! We can't be out after five o'clock!"

"Okay, okay. Don't worry." You chuckled. "I'll be back in ten minutes."

God, this better not be another "Nezumi" case. If they sent you to another island, you would lose your shit this time.

You watched the duo walk away to make sure they didn't actually hang around here at the last minute and get hurt somehow, then faced the old, abandoned-looking factory once more.

Well, you definitely weren't going to jump from the fence. You would mangle your hands with all that wire. And with how dirty and rusty it looked, you would have to get a tetanus shot, too, after the stitches.

You circled around the factory to try to find an entrance. The area of it was larger than you initially had thought, however. So what you stumbled upon was a small hole; the fence had been cut open, wide enough to allow a dog to get through.

It looked ragged, as if someone had done it in a hurry, using blunt force rather than the sharpness of their tool.

You sighed, got onto your knees, and crawled inside while making sure you didn't get scratched. Your arms and legs were all brown and wet when you finally got up and were sticking to your skin. Not the best sensation.

You walk back from the inside to the place the kids had shown you and start to search around the overgrown grass. You had half the mind you get inside, but the gnawing feeling inside of you kept you from doing that.

Then, finally, you spotted the damn toy! It was colorful despite looking worn: pink, yellow, and green. And it was peeking at you behind a tire that looked like it belonged to a monster truck near one of the windows of the building.

"There it is!" You smiled and hurried to grab it.

Then, it happened.

Someone grabbed you by the collar behind your neck and lifted you as if you weighed nothing, making your feet dangle under you. The ground felt like it was several feet down, making you wonder if you could break your ankle if you fell from this height.

Holy shit.

"Who are you supposed to be, huh, you punk?" Another person got in front of you, then. He had a long face, and his mouth seemed to take up half of his head.

"I-I, uh..." you stuttered, and then lifted the ball between your hands. "The kids, from the town, said that they accidentally threw their ball here, and I wanted to take it back for them."

"Kids?" He tilted his head, confused, and sneered. "What the hell are you even on about?"

"That sounds like bullshit to me!" The man holding you said, then, and his incredibly high-pitched voice caught you off guard. You wheezed. It sounded so ridiculous, like a cartoon character!

That seemed to be the wrong thing to do, however, because he wrapped his huge hands around your waist this time and squeezed so tight you thought your organs would come out of your mouth.

"Did you just laugh at my voice, you cunt?!" He screamed at you and dug his fingers even deeper into your sides. It hurt like a bitch. "I'll kill you!"

"I, I -ugh!- I d-didn't!" you managed to say, dropping the toy on the ground in an attempt to stop him from actually crushing you. "I swear! I didn't laugh at your voice!"

"Look at her clothes," another person said then. When did he come here anyway? The guy looked one step away from dying, given how old he was. And who had the genius idea of putting a grandpa into spandex? "Isn't that a marine uniform?"

Oh, shit.

"It sure as hell looks like it!"

"I told you-dasuyan! I saw her crawling under the fence!" A boy squeaked, rushing to the men's side. He was almost as big as you despite how young he looked.

What the hell? What did these people eat to grow so tall?

"Yes, yes, Diamante-sama!" A girl with a maid outfit enthusiastically nodded and stood next to her friend. These must be the meanies the kid from before was talking about. Why was she wearing that, though? "I saw her while shopping with Law, too!"

"Hey," this Diamante guy grabbed your face, his fingers digging into your cheek. You hated how close he was. "Are you a marine?"

You didn't think lying would really help you in this situation, considering you carried a Marine-issued notebook in your pocket along with your uniform, so trying to explain it was. "Y-yes, but I was just--!"

"Goddamn it!" He huffed, as if this was it, and then pulled his hand away as if you were too disgusting to touch.

"Should I kill her, then?" asked the giant holding you, then.

Oh, no! No, no, no, no!

"Do it, do it, do it!" The kids chanted when they heard that, and started to jump up and down as if the thought of you getting ripped into two was the most entertaining thing they would get to see this month.

What the hell was wrong with them?! No wonder no parent wanted their children to play with these two little monsters!

"Wait, wait, wait! One moment! Don't just rush things!" You yelled and tried to clarify. "I wasn't snooping here or anything! I just came to get that ball over there, that's all! I wasn't doing anything!"

The old man grabbed the ball you dropped as if he just noticed it was there and held it up, examining it. "This means there are witnesses who saw her get here." He mumbled under his breath.

"Well, fuck." Diamante swore. "What should we do, then?"

"Should we find them and bring them here?" The girl asked, excited about the idea of a manhunt. The boy, not so much. Not because he thought it was wrong or anything, no, because it sounded like too much work.

The man patted her head and said, "It's fine, Baby 5. Go and practice your shooting with Buffalo, okay?"

That seemed to break her heart, because her eyes started to water as if she could cry at any moment, "B-but... Am I not useful enough? Do you think I'm too weak to do this..?"

"For fuck's sake..." Diamante swore again, "Yeah, yeah, you are very useful. And now I need you to go away and do whatever so you don't bother us, got it?"

"Of course, Diamante-sama!" Baby 5 smiled then, happy to finally get an order. "I'll do anything for you."

Buffalol looked at her with disappointment, "Really, you need to get a backbone..."

The old guy hit his head when he heard that, "Shut it, boy."

"Auch! What was that for!?"

"Come on, let's go, Buffalo!" The girl grabbed his hand and dragged him away despite their size difference. "We'll get Law, too!"

"Now, coming back to you..." Diamante pulled your hair to make you look up at him. Fucking asshole.

"Let's just tie some blocks onto her feet and throw her into the water! Easy peasy."

Oh, hell no! You would rather get a bullet to the head than drown like that! But what the hell could you even do to escape?!

"Tsk, we can't do that, Pica!" The old man scoffed.

"And why is that?!"

"I agree with Lao G," Diamante said. "Having witnesses makes it complicated. What if there are people who decide to search for her?"

"There definitely are!" You interrupted them, thankful for getting that idea. "I have got a lot of friends here, you know! If I don't go back for dinner, they'll definitely look out for me!"

"Let's just bring her to Doffy," Lao G huffed, clearly already done with this situation and wanting nothing more than to return to his midday nap. "He'll know what to do. As far as we know, she could be a spy."

"A spy?!" You gaped at him, dismayed. How the hell did he even come to that conclusion?!

You feel Pica's hands getting even tighter when he hears that. This was not good! Not at all! "I'm not a spy! How would I be a spy?! For what?!"

None of them cared what you had to say, though.

"Aghhh, I hate when you're right." Diamante groaned. "Okay, whatever. Let's bring her to Doffy, then."

"Look, I'm not a spy!" You persisted as they dragged you inside. "I don't even know who you guys are! I told you, I just wanted to get that damn ball because some kids asked me to! I have no idea what's going on!"

"Yeah, yeah." That annoying ass rolled his eyes. "I'm sure you don't, sweetie."

"Yeah. That ball just soooo conveniently fell into our hideout, of all places."

"It did, though, it really did!" They closed the door, and you felt your stomach drop. You couldn't even reach your pistol! "It isn't my fault the town brats play around here! They told me you even scolded them for it!"

One of them grabbed you by the nape, hard, and dragged you across the hall.

"Who's that?" You heard a woman say. And from the side of your eye, you saw that she had orange-blond hair with a sneer on her face, with a glass of wine between her hands, and a baby on her lap. Really, why did an organized crime group have so many children hanging around?

Another man was sitting across from her, too. Unlike the first three, however, this one actually looked normal, like a banker. "That's no way to treat a woman. Did she refuse to go on a date with you or something, Diamante?"

"Fuck off. She is just a rat and was snooping around the hideout. The brats saw her."

"I fucking wasn't!" You spat, then, through gritted teeth. If he kept pulling your hair like this, you would surely go bald. No matter how much you scratched his hand and stood your ground, the guy didn't budge, though. "Let go already!"

Diamante ignored you. "Where's Doffy?"

"In his office." The woman said.

"I think Corazón is with him."

"Who cares? He doesn't do much anyway other than smoke up Doffy's room."

"I hate that smell!" Pica huffed. "It makes my throat itchy!"

"You can leave this to me, if you want," Diamante turned towards the two. "Go sit with Pink and Giolla."

They didn't argue and did just that as this asshole continued to drag you to some other place. Really, his hand was big enough to engulf your whole head. You wouldn't be surprised if he were strong enough to crack it like a walnut if he really put his mind to it, either.

Then, he knocked on the door and waited until you heard a "Come in" come from the other side. With this being his cue, he slammed open the door and threw you in.

"Ugh!" You fell onto your side and almost hit your head on the ground. The pain in your shoulder was horrible. "Fuck..."

When you finally managed to hold up your head, you saw a blond man with spiky hair in front of you, sitting behind a desk. He was even bigger than some of the others, as if that were humanly possible, and looked even more vicious despite doing nothing in particular. Maybe it was the sunglasses hiding his eyes that made him look less human, since you were able to read his expressions even less, or that grotesquely pink and humongous feather coat.

This must be the "Doffy" the guy was talking about just moments ago. It did sound like he was the boss around here, too. He wasn't alone, however, just as the banker-looking dude had said. What was his name? Pink? You weren't sure; maybe you had misheard it. And this "Corazón" he had mentioned was sitting on the couch at the right side of the desk, holding a cigarette to his mouth.

His hair was blond, too, just like the other, but maybe a shade darker. Thanks to his bangs and the shaded glasses he was wearing, you weren't able to see his eyes either. He had blood red lips, though, painted from side to side, cheek to cheek, and there was a weird pattern under his right eye you didn't recognize.

Despite his make-up, you still saw the similarities between the two men, however. Did they share blood, maybe?

"Who is this, Diamante?" The blond man asked and folded his arms in front of his chest, leaning against the chair.

"A marine. Buffalo saw her come here."

"Is that so?"

"Like I said before," you quickly said before they shut you up again. Your heart was beating wild; these criminals could kill you at any moment. "Some kids said they accidentally kicked their ball here. I just wanted to get it back for them, that is all."

"Ha! Really, Pajarito?" He laughed with that deep voice of his. It grinded against your ears. "A ball? How... convenient considering how your boss was trying to get a search warrant to get inside our 'factories' for months now."

Diamante snorted. "That's what we said, too."

"With all due respect, sirs," You slowly got up, not daring to move a single finger in fear that they would see it as aggression and slam you down again, "I came here just a day ago. I have no idea what your deal is with this island, and I don't care. It's none of my business, anyway. I'm just trying to go about my day."

"How mean, Miss Marine! Don't you care about these people here?" He asked, with a mockingly sweet voice. He sounded really amused. "You should be bringing justice, you know? Not just cash a paycheck!"

"Looks like the civilians pay that shit load of taxes for nothing, right, Doffy? Ha ha!"

You couldn't help but roll your eyes. This was rich coming from... your eyes wandered at the skull painting on the wall. Were they pirates? Whatever. Some sort of bad guys. Did they really think you would fall for this ragebait, though?

"I'm not trying to cause any problems, sir," you repeated. "So, please, just let me leave and do...whatever you're doing."

The blond hummed. "I don't think I can let you so easily, however, Cariño. Maybe if you had left before we had seen you, I could have let that slide, but now? It feels too... how can I describe it? Deliberate? Calculated?"

It wasn't, though! It was just your shitty luck! Anyone could have made this mistake!

"Especially since we were just about to relocate, too, right?" Diamante added. And, God, at this point, he was just trying to find an excuse to get rid of you.

"Very good timing indeed." The other agreed. "And we had found such a nice nest, too..."

You frowned. What was he talking about? A nest? That didn't make any sense. Unless... were they talking about Swallow, a few islands away from here? The mountain there did look like a bird if you thought about it, at least on the map. You never saw it personally. But... what was the point of even going there? There were no towns there, no cities or shops, just trees and wild animals. Nothing to tempt pirates.

"What do you think, Corazón?" He asked then and turned towards the other man.

Corazón inhaled the rest of his smoke like he had all the time in the world, then threw the butt into the ashtray. Some of the burning ash still fell onto his lap, though.

You weren't going to lie, he looked hot as hell when he did that, despite almost putting himself on fire while doing it.

Then, he pulled a pen and paper and leaned onto the side table to write something.

Was he mute?

After some waiting, which felt like hours for you thanks to the anticipation of what his decision would be, he raised the paper and held it up in the air. You had to squint your eyes to read it.

You hoped, hoped, hoped to God that at least one person here would be siding with you and actually get you out of here.

[She saw too much. Can't let her live.]

"Wow, looks like there is something we can agree about, Corazón!" Diamante laughed.

"Maybe I could slice her up," the blond said then, thoughtfully. You felt your stomach churn. "We can send each piece to a different headquarters to send a message." What the fuck? "It would be fun to watch them frantically try to figure out who she is, too."

You were done. You were, honest to god, going to get torn apart limb by limb just for getting into someone's lawn without permission to fetch a stupid ball. What a way to go.

"That's a genius idea, Doffy!" That ass-kissing lackey of his said, but, to your surprise, Corazón shook his head. That seemed to get the other's attention as well.

Hoped bloomed in your chest. Maybe he would stick for you after all...?

"Hmm? What is it, Corazón?" He asked. "Don't like the idea?"

The man raised a note again.

[It'll get too much attention while we're trying to relocate. Better to do it silently.]

Nope. That asshole just wasn't happy with the method, that was all.

You really wanted to cry. How did you manage to get into these situations all the time?

"I can do it!" Diamante offered. All too enthusiastic in your opinion. "There was some new stuff I wanted to try out anyway."

Oh, great. So you were going to be used as target practice in your last moments. Fun-fucking-tastic.

The blond seemed fine to leave it to the other, and was about to verbalise it, too, but Corazón got his attention again.

[Leave it to me, Doffy.]

"Are you sure?" He tapped his long fingers onto his desk, looking thoughtful. "Diamante's fine with handling this, anyway."

"Yes, Corazón! Don't meddle! I want to do it!"

The man shook his head.

[He leaves too much mess. I won't.]

"Well, he's right about that." The blond said, then. "You do like to blow shit up and paint everything red."

You were going to throw up.

"I'll make sure to keep her in one piece, then!"

"Nah, let's just let Corazón handle it." He decided then. "You can find something to kill on the next island."

"But I don't want some tiger or bear!" that psychopath pouted. "I want a human!"

God, if an afterlife exists, you would find a way to come back just to haunt these pieces of shits so they can't hurt others even if it was the last thing you would do.

[This is exactly why I should do it.] Corazón pointed it out.

The blond laughed. "Go on with it, then. I want you to finish this before dinner. You'd better join us, Corazón."

This was it. If you were going to die, you might as well take some of them with you.

As your executioner got up from the couch, you grabbed your pistol and pointed it at the man. You heard Diamante gasp behind you and jump to stop you, but you still managed to fire three shots.

The smoke blurred your vision for a moment, but then... nothing. None of the bullets had even grazed either of them.

You tried to turn around and run, maybe you could manage to pass that asshole from before, but you noticed that your body didn't move.

Why the hell did it not move?!

You struggled, struggled, and struggled. You tried to move your head, raise your hands, get up on your feet, but nothing. Nothing was happening. Not a single muscle was listening to you. It was as if you were paralyzed somehow.

What was happening?!

Diamante kicked you down and pressed onto your back, making sure to stomp his feet right onto your spine. Fuck, it hurt so much! You felt all the air leave your lungs with his weight, and couldn't breathe!

"You little bitch!" He hissed. "You thought you could kill Doffy, is that it?!"

"Go fuck yourself!" You managed to say, and got a kick in your ribs for your efforts.

"She's a feisty one!" The blond laughed. Oh, how you wished you could punch him in his stupid and handsome face.

Corazón kicked away your pistol, and it slipped under the desk with a small screech. Diamante used this moment to pick you up from your hair again like a doll.

You had to hold your breath so you wouldn't scream; he would not get that satisfaction out of you. However, your eyes did tear up a little. You couldn't help it; it just hurt too much!

"Here," he threw you into the man's arms. Corazón somehow caught you before you fell down again and held your arms behind your back so you wouldn't be able to struggle free. Thankfully, his grip wasn't too brutal to break your wrists or anything.

He walked you out, and no matter how much you tried to kick his legs, he wouldn't budge. Not that most of your kicks landed anywhere near him, anyway.

When you two passed the hall near the door, that woman -Giolla, you remembered- screamed, "Don't get any guts near my garden! I just planted those roses!" but Corazón didn't seem to give a damn about what she had to say.

Outside, you tried to reason with him again, or say anything to get him to stop from slicing your throat, really, "Look, just don't kill me, okay? I might be new here, but a lot of people know me!"

You got dragged out of the door.

"This means if I go missing, they'll search for me!"

He led you past the gates.

"And don't you think the first place they'll search for is this place? You guys will get busted before you even get the chance to board a ship!"

You noticed that he was walking you away from the town, to the nearby forest. An ideal place to bury a body without anyone noticing, you suppose.

"I already got into trouble with the Headquarters, too! This means their eyes are already on me! They'll definitely want to know what's up!"

You two walked past the trees, going further away from that small civilization with each step. You could hear animals roaming around, and bugs buzzing near your ears.

Was this really it? Did you honestly have no out of this? You felt a couple of tears fall down your cheeks. No, it couldn't be. You hadn't even done anything much yet, and you had so much stuff on your bucket list! There had to be someone, anyone, who could save you. Your Lieutenant Commander was just at the other side of this island, for God's sake!

Then, as you were lost in your lament, the hands holding you left you to stumble forward, and before you even knew what was happening, you heard the sound of fingers snapping.

"Silence."

For a moment, your vision was blurred with blue, like looking behind a tinted glass. Then it dawned on you...

Wasn't Corazón supposed to be mute?!

"W-what?" You turned around, baffled, and raised your head towards the man while trying to get some distance between you. "What are you doing?"

Before you could get any answers, however, he closed that distance right away and put a hand over your mouth to stop you from talking, slamming you into a tree in the process. He had to crouch down a bit to get to the same eye level as you. His palm was covering half of your face, from ear to ear, barely missing your nose.

"I know you're scared and confused," you heard him say. He had a raspy voice, thanks to years of smoking. "But I need you to stay put and listen to me. If you don't do that, I won't be able to help you. Do you understand me?"

You looked at his eyes. They looked really agitated. Not for himself, but for you. He was worried about your well-being despite just meeting you.

You nodded.

"Good," He said, then sighed as if not being sure where to start either. "Look, I'm from the Marines, too, okay? My name is Rosinante."

Then he added the next part when he saw your doubtful face. "My code is 01746. I'm on a mission to infiltrate the Donquixote Pirates. That's why I was in there with them, do you understand?"

Your first gut feeling was disbelief, but no, almost no one outside of the Marines knew that they even had hidden codes, let alone how many digits they were supposed to be.

Could you really be unfortunate enough to get into trouble with pirates, then have enough good luck to get captured by one that had a spy in it who was willing to help you out?

...Maybe God was indeed real.

"I'm going to pull my hand away now," Rosinante said, looking straight into your eyes. "And you will not scream. Because if you do, there will be someone coming here, and it won't end well for either of us. I want to help you, but to do that, I need you to work with me. Will you trust me to do that?"

Again, you nodded. It wasn't like you had much of a chance, anyway.

He reluctantly pulled his hand, but kept himself near you in case you tried anything funny. Not that you would have even if you wanted to. The man towered over you, almost twice your size. A fight with him wouldn't end well, you knew that much.

"I won't be able to say too much about this mission, not to put you in danger any further," he began. "But I can say that Vice Admiral Tsuru will be here any day."

Your gasped. An admiral was coming all the way to North Blue?

"Really?!"

The man nodded. "We've been on this case for a long time now. And, no offense, but I can't let it get ruined now, so you'll have to do as I say word for word."

If the World Government had not only bothered to send a spy against this man but a Vice Admiral, too, you could only imagine what kind of terrors he was capable of.

You were really lucky that Rosinante had been there when they dragged you, weren't you? If he wasn't, who knows what they would have done to you?

"You'll have to return to your base without getting seen by any townspeople. They report back anything they see to Doflamingo," He informed you. And you knew it! You knew they were working with the criminals here! It only made sense!

"You can use the woods to hide your tracks and reach the back of the building. And once there, you need to talk to your Lieutenant Commander there that you've been caught by pirates, that they need to get in contact with the Fleet Admiral, and keep you hidden until Mrs. Tsuru arrives."

Your eyes went even wider. "So Mr. Rapanui knew all about this?!"

"No, not all the details. All he knows is that a battleship will be coming here, but I wouldn't be surprised if he managed to put two and two together."

You nodded, lost in thought. You felt really bad about almost ruining this man's work just by being so careless. "I'm sorry for causing so much trouble for you."

His face softened when he heard your apology, "Don't blame yourself. You couldn't have known that something like this would have happened. But we'll need to be really careful for the next couple of weeks now, maybe even months."

He looked behind again, to make sure that no one was coming near, "I'll need you to give me your jacket."

You frowned, "Why?" But still did as you were told and pulled it off before holding it up for the man. It looked like a hair towel between his arms.

"I'll use it as evidence that I got rid of you," Rosinante said, and then took his own hat and placed it on your head. It was huge, and for a moment, the color red blurred your vision. You had to pull it down from the heart-shaped strings a little from the back so you could see again.

With this, the dirt that covered your pants and your lack of a jacket, you must have looked like a totally different person from this morning.

"This is so they won't recognize you from above. Buffalo and Baby 5 like to fly around and spy on people, sometimes even throw water balloons and all."

You had no idea how two kids managed to roam in the sky, but that wasn't the most important thing right now, you supposed. "Got it."

"Okay, this is it, then. Follow the shore and don't get out of the woods unless it's really necessary," he warned you again. "And once you're back, change your look. Cut your hair, dye it, whatever you can. And wear something thicker so your figure won't be as recognizable."

Yeah. You probably wouldn't leave the base until Vice Admiral Tsuru came here, anyway. And maybe even then, you would ask to be relocated to somewhere far away for your own safety.

There was a more important question in your mind, however.

"Will you be alright?"

That seemed to take him by surprise, because his eyes widened a bit, making him look kinda goofy, then he smiled. And oh, it was so sweet. "Don't worry, I've got everything in control," He said and reassuringly squeezed your arm. "You just focus on staying safe, got it?"

"Yeah," you smiled. The fear that had consumed you moments ago had just melted away. "I've got it."

"Good. But one more thing," He said and held your hands, making it practically disappear, and then repeated the same thing as before.

"Silence."

You even saw that same blueness cover you both again from head to toe.

You opened your mouth to ask what that was about, but nothing came. Your hands shot to your throat, startled.

Why couldn't you talk?!

Seeing you so agitated, he explained, "I'm a devil fruit user. I can make people silent. This way, you can sneak around without getting heard; neither your steps, falls, nor breaths. I'll give you one hour, though, so you can actually talk with your Commander once you get there. Don't forget, one hour. Then, everyone will hear you again."

You tried to say 'Okay,' but then nodded instead. That seemed to be enough for the man.

"Good, go then. It'll be dark soon."

Before turning away to sprint, however, you lifted your head and mouthed a 'Thank you'.

He smiled again, and the way his eyes squinted a little looked so lovely. "No problem!"

'Stay safe, please'

"Of course," for some reason, this was the one thing you didn't believe coming out of his mouth. "You, too."

And with that, you ran and never looked back.

It took you almost fifty minutes to find your way back. Every time you heard someone talk, walk, or turn towards your way, it made you jump. But, thankfully, no one ever stopped you or questioned you.

When you explained what had happened to Mr. Rapanui, with great detail, of course, he got a dark look on his face, and he sent you to stay with Mrs. Isoka. It made you think that, despite what Rosinante had said, the man had known more about the situation at hand, but there was no way for you to confirm that.

You never uttered his name to anyone, however, out of fear of putting him in even more danger. You've got to have a brief talk with the Fleet Admiral. A first. And he sounded just as worried about the man as you had felt.

That comforted you; it meant there was someone strong worried about him, who wanted him safe and sound. You had gotten the impression that Rosinante was the self-sacrificing type, and that never ended well.

You didn't see Yoko or Stalker in the meantime, but just as Rosinante had predicted, eight days later, a battleship was seen on the horizon. This was also your first time seeing such a big Marine vessel.

And just like that, the Donquixote pirates left the island as silently as they had arrived, and you never saw that man ever again. The only thing that proved to you that he had actually been here was his hat, and you kept it well hidden in your luggage so as to never lose it.

みんなでご飯

秋田名物、きりたんぽ・だまっこの鍋を

アウトプット思索中

雪の集落へ。神社に行ってみる。

それぞれのアウトプットの形にしていく。

発表でパフォーマンスを行う人も。

Webディレクション、編集の仕事をしている彼女の作品は、さすがのクオリティ。

落武者の隠れ里として開かれた、北秋田市の根子集落で雪中行軍。キジを狩る。

根子。熊鍋を食す。秋田はマタギ（公益的・狩人）の文化が強く、クマが身近。

根子。熊鍋、キジのスープ、地の食材だけのシンプルだけど贅沢な晩御飯。これこそラグジュアリー。

根子。贅沢やなぁ。