The Marine

Life on the open ocean was boring and being on a nearly empty ship made it worse.

Holding the Little East Blue Eternal Pose in one hand, Bill leaned over the upper deck and had one eye towards the horizon while the other watched Ranse spar with Sasha.

Bill had to watch these matches because even though she was using a wooden longsword, and he was likewise not using his pistols, their matches always tended to ramp up to a dangerous level.

This time, they had decided to take turns attacking and defending while moving at quarter speed, but that was already very fast Bill thought plus it was easy to imagine how ‘quarter’ speed would turn into ‘half’ speed and so on.

Using her longsword in a two-handed style, Sasha started the match in her Plow Guard stance, holding her sword hilt at her abdomen she stood at a sideways angle, with her left shoulder facing slightly forward, waiting for him to strike.

Ranse, wasting no time, used a weird looking slow version of Shave to appear on the opposite side of her body where the sword was being held, and as she counter attacked, dropped down to use a leg sweep.

Seeing his intention, she backed off before he could connect and took the Fool guard.

Facing directly at him with her sword point facing his ankles Sasha said sharply: “What part of quarter speed didn’t you understand?”

To her question, he started moving and said laughingly: “This is less than quarter speed! Don’t tell me you can’t keep up!”

As he laughed, Ranse appeared in the air front of her attempting a downward axe kick.

But the Fool guard was not called that due to the swordsmen not being threatening, it was called ‘Fool’ because that’s what it made anyone who risked attacking into this stance.

Seeing Ranse fall into her trap, Sasha drew into an upward strike that was impossible to avoid.

As they were going so slow, anyone watching could easily see the blade come up, and see that Ranse had lost this match.

But in a surprise, as the blade neared his outstretched leg his body moved like a sheet of paper blowing on the wind. The strength of her upward swing flipped Ranse into a stationary backflip and as his hand came around, he suddenly regained human proportions as he shouted: “Sickle Wind!”

Using his arm to launch the attack, it was weak due to their reduced speed, but having completely caught Sasha off guard he hit her square in the chest.

Stumbling back slightly and looking down at her ruffled shirt, Sasha looked back at Ranse who had just landed and said mockingly: “Really, Paper Arts?”

Giving another laugh, Ranse gloated and said: “What!? Paper Arts are really good! I just beat you with it! Hahaha”

This was the first time Bill had ever seen that technique, it was well known to counter blade users and cannon balls to a certain extent, but in general it was looked down on compared to the other Six Powers.

Bill looked away as Ranse continued his jeering and Sasha was seemingly unable to hit him and spotted a flock of News Coo.

The birds flew closer to the ship and as he threw up one of his last coins thought that they really needed to catch a pirate soon.

The Coo expertly caught the coin and dropped the latest issue of the South Blue Times that had the headline.

[Kid Pirates Move To Grand Line!]

• The Kid Pirates, known colloquially as the Island Butchers, have been spotted moving into the mouth of Reverse Mountain and successfully crossing the Twin Cape. Reports vary on which path the notorious crew made way to, but a secret source did report that the pirate gang fought their way through a Marine blockade around Briss Kingdom to reach their destination. This action was however not verified by South Blue Marine Headquarters.

Bill thought that this pirate crew probably did break through a blockade because wrapped inside the paper were five new bounties including the pirate Captain Kid whose bounty was now an astonishing 45m Beli, Wanted Dead or Alive.

45m Beli was not so much for those Grand Line pirates he had seen but it was astonishing for a Blue Sea criminal.

Despite that, Bill’s only thought was that it was unfortunate that they didn’t cross paths.

Even though his physical strength and fighting technique hadn’t grown for the past two years, Bill wondered what it would take to put him down now that he had completely mastered Iron Body.

His body was currently tougher than a lump of iron and at the same time he could mend himself from all but the most critical kind of wounds.

He still had the hammer on his belt but as he looked down at his hand and stimulated his knuckles, bone spikes protruded through the skin making them even more deadly.

Then with a sudden notion, Bill continued to stimulate the bones from his knuckles to his elbows and form a barbed exoskeleton of iron-hard ivory.

‘Hmm.’ Was all that he thought from this clearly inhuman sight as he then retracted the bones back into his body.

Looking back over to main deck he saw Sasha slashing over and over with her wooden sword while Ranse used Paper Arts to always dodge by a hair.

This went on for quite a while until Fia came out to call everyone for lunch.

Ricky had night watch the previous day but even he joined the small group as they ate under the sun.

Stretching out as he reached for his plate, the blonde headed boy said casually: “I’m surprised we haven’t run into any pirates, Ranse you were talking like they were all over the place.”

Stuffing a pickled egg in his mouth, the cowboy responded: “s’there were, Fia and I didn’t go a week without encountering them.”

They had been traveling a little over three weeks at this point, so despite nodding her head, Fia added: “It’s probably because we’re cutting through the trade routes.” As she said this, she smashed up some of the biscuits and added them in her sea king stew.

Sea kings came in many varieties, but Bill preferred the kind that tasted like beef, and Fia thought that they were the best for stews.

As the group continued to eat and talk, Sasha suddenly stood up and looked into the distance.

Turning his head to the side, Bill saw a small figure on the horizon and started adjusting his eyes to the distance.

His eyes became binoculars, and he could see it was a small Brig that had a Jolly Roger which featured two forks.

“Oh, good timing.

Hey, Ricky, which island do you reckon is nearby?”

Bill had an idea, but wanted a second opinion and as Ricky said, ‘probably Torino Kingdom’, he figured their guess was right.

Torino Kingdom was famed for its medicinal flora and the gigantic birds that called it home, but not much else. There was a Marine Base nearby though, which Bill was thankful for.

Looking at the pirate ship in the distance, Bill started speaking to his crew: “That flag looks like the one that belongs to the Big Fork Pirates.

If it’s them, the total crew is estimated at forty, and total bounty is 7m Beli… I’d guess we could add 3m Beli for the ship if it’s in good shape.”

Looking up to the sky, he could see it was barely midday, and so he turned his heads back to the others and said: “Alright, time for action.”

When he said this, the group went to their stations. Ricky seemed giddy, and even Sasha seemed excited as this was going to be their first encounter with pirates.

Ranse and Fia acted calmer after having a couple years of doing this.

Ranse took his place on the deck beside Bill while Fia quickly cleaned up the plates they had been eating on.

After just a couple of minutes Fia held the helm as Ricky spotted for her. Sasha was standing at the Con ready to give commands while Ranse and Bill stood on deck ready to make their move.

“Have you learned Moon Step?”

“Not enough to actually use it, I’ll jump as far as I can, then just give me a hand.”

Nodding his head to this, Bill added: “The Big Fork pirates aren’t anything but sea dogs, but still, don’t go easy on them.

I want that ship in good working order, but I won’t trade you for it.”

Ranse didn’t respond but looked determined as Bill drew out his hammer from his belt.

The hammer was big compared to normal sized weapons of its type, but in Bill’s large hands it seemed to be just right.

It didn’t take long for Frontier Run to show that it could easily overtake the pirate Brig, and it seemed the pirates quickly understood this as they sent over their first salvo of cannon fire.

Six cannon balls splashed in the water far in front of the ship but seeing this Bill determined to not give these pirates the warning to surrender peacefully.

If that crew surrendered when he landed on their ship then he would naturally treat them according to his values, but seeing the ship stop running and ready another broadside he figured they would have to learn the hard way.

After another three volleys, the pirate ship was about two hundred yards from the Run’ that Bill looked over and asked: “You good from this distance?”

After Ranse checked his pistol holsters, he nodded his head, and Bill told him to go.

Bill made sure to jump first and would shield Ranse, if need be, but in this he may have been over cautious as there didn’t seem to be any pirates holding muskets.

Instead, all the pirates on the ships deck held some version of the trident, including some weapons that just looked like big forks.

Ranse had jumped a good way, but as he wouldn’t make it the entire distance Bill reached over and launched the cowboy over.

Flying in just behind him, Ranse and Bill hit the deck at the same time launches a series of crippling blows and in a matter of seconds had cleared the pirate ships main deck.

In this kind of fight, Bill didn’t see the need for technique and as he made wide intimidating swings with the hammer Ranse had been cleaning up wherever the swing missed.

Seeing they had cleared the main deck, Bill and Ranse bounded to the upper deck and confronted the hand full of pirates there.

Given that gun crews in this world were only three men, Bill figured at there were around twenty left as he hammered the stunned Captain, a gnarly looking man named Forker.

At nearly the same time he knocked the Captain for a loop, Ranse had put down the assumed first mate. He had a strange three-pronged haircut with a 2m Beli bounty and was aptly named Forki.

With the deck cleared in under a minute, Bill glanced around to the twenty-odd pirates. They were all breathing but were either out cold or groaning in pain.

“Tie them up and sort them on the main deck, I’ll fish the others out.”

Saying this, Bill lowered his tall head and walked down the ships stairs.

Crouching slightly, he yelled out: “This is the Marines, you are under arrest!

Do not resist! And you will see your fair trail!”

As he continued forward, he repeatedly said ‘Do not resist’ until after scanning the second floor went down to the gun deck.

The stairway to the gun deck led to a hallway with doorways on either side.

Bill could hear a commotion and so still crouching repeated his line to not resist and with three long steps came to the first doorway.

Stepping through the doorway, Bill was face to face with a cannon aimed directly at him and five pirates on the side of it.

Instantly registering the situation, he exclaimed ‘Don-‘

Before he could even try to jump to the side, crouched over as he was, there was a loud…

*BOOM!*

Seeing the cannon ball fly in slow motion, its speed was still too much for him completely dodge at so close range and so using Iron Body and Life Return to their fullest Bill caught the ball directly in his reinforced mid-section.

Being flung back by the impact, timber shattered as he broke through the doorframe and wall behind him.

Still on his feet, he heard Ranse shout, and walked forward with the now-deformed cannon ball falling off to the side.

This time, upon entering the gun deck, Bill moved like a shadow in the dimly lit space, sometimes on his feet and others on all fours, he tore through the scared silly pirates.

His pride hurt more than his chest and he glanced at the damage done to the ship he needed to sell.

Once this was done, Bill counted ten pirates and continued to search the floor.

He moved fast and no longer demanded surrender, there were five more pirates hiding on the gun deck which he quickly dispatched.

Stopping to listen before he descended down to the bottom most level, Bill heard muffling and shuffling.

Adjusting his eyes to the dark, Bill moved below in the same manner as before into the ships pawn. There were two rough looking men that seemed to be guarding a door.

Dealing with the pirates, Bill pressed his hands on the door and continued to hear the muffling. Unsure what was on the other side, he burst through ready for anything.

What he found was confusing. It was tied up like a mummy and after it saw him, began to cry, and worm its way in his direction.

Despite the situation of just being blasted by a cannon, Bill could only wonder what he was actually seeing. With two horns and a furry face, the only thing that came to mind was…

‘A goat?’