A massive sailing ship cut through the waves. One crew member trained relentlessly, another handled chores, and the third slept.
That was the current state of the Silver Pirate Crew. Jora, still lacking in strength, pushed himself through grueling training without pause. Riddle, the non-combatant of the group, had no need for such power and simply kept the ship running smoothly.
As for Shirakawa, the captain, his strength would not improve much in the short term, so he had settled into a calm routine of simply enjoying life.
"Ah, this feels good."
Shirakawa lounged in his chair, stretching lazily with a contented groan.
He glanced sideways at Jora sweating through his drills and Riddle bustling around the kitchen, a flicker of boredom crossing his face.
"Tch, so dull."
At first the endless ocean scenery had been refreshing, but after spending so much time at sea every direction looked the same. Even the Sea Kings in the water were always the same few types. Shirakawa could not muster any interest anymore.
"Is there nothing that can actually entertain me?"
He suddenly stood up and shouted toward the sea.
Then came a sharp bang. His shield activated automatically, and a bullet lodged firmly in its surface.
"What the hell?"
Riddle and Jora both rushed over at the sound. Riddle in particular looked visibly worried.
"I just got sniped."
Shirakawa plucked the bullet free and stared straight ahead, but he could not spot the shooter anywhere.
"That sniper is insanely good."
Riddle muttered. His old crew had once had a marksman, but compared to this guy the difference was night and day. The three of them had not even caught a glimpse of the attacker.
And Shirakawa's Observation Haki had not picked up the presence either. That meant the shooter was truly far away.
Riddle quickly pulled out a telescope and scanned the horizon ahead.
"Captain, I see him. There's a guy on a small boat still aiming at us."
The moment the words left his mouth, another bang rang out. The exact same scene repeated itself, and Shirakawa caught the second bullet.
"Looks like his aim is perfect, but the firepower is nothing special. He probably hasn't even mastered Armament Haki yet. Still, his Observation Haki must be top tier."
After all, even Shirakawa's own Observation Haki had failed to sense him, and the distance was far beyond what ordinary eyesight could handle. The man had definitely relied on advanced Observation Haki.
Shirakawa took the telescope from Riddle and peered through it himself.
"Tsk tsk tsk, this kid really knows how to show off."
"What do you mean?" Jora asked Riddle.
He's sniping us from a tiny fishing boat. One decent wave and he'd get flipped straight into the sea.
The attacker seemed unwilling to give up and fired again, but the result was exactly the same.
"Hey, you think this guy has a grudge against me? Why does he keep aiming at my head? I don't even know him."
Shirakawa sounded puzzled. Every shot had been aimed straight at his skull, clearly going for an instant kill.
"Maybe the captain stole his woman and he's holding a grudge."
Riddle offered his guess with complete confidence. After all, Shirakawa's looks already counted as strikingly handsome in the pirate world.
"Get lost."
Shirakawa remembered the only woman he had ever gotten involved with was Catherine, but she was in the New World and had never come to the first half of the Grand Line. There was no way this was about her.
"Then maybe the captain killed his family and he's out for revenge?"
Jora's guess sounded far more plausible.
Shirakawa had killed plenty of people. It was entirely possible he had wiped out this guy's relatives and the survivor had come looking for payback.
"That's actually possible. But we'll only know for sure once we catch him. Speed the ship up."
"Captain, the distance between our ships is too great. We might not catch him."
"Doesn't matter. Just chase. Whether we catch him or not is up to fate."
"Understood, Captain."
The ship's speed increased noticeably, but the other vessel seemed to sense their intention. It quickly turned and began to flee.
"Captain, he's running!"
Riddle, who had been watching without pause, shouted the warning.
"No problem. Keep chasing. If we hit a big wave his little boat will capsize for sure."
The moment Shirakawa finished speaking the sky began to darken. Light rain started to fall, the clouds grew heavier, the wind picked up, and the sea grew restless.
"Captain, your mouth really is something special. It's like it's blessed."
Riddle offered the praise without hesitation.
"Your captain isn't an ordinary man, you know."
Shirakawa had not expected his words to prove so accurate, but since the heavens had handed him the perfect chance he was not about to waste it.
Seeing the worship in Riddle's eyes, Jora simply muttered two words.
"Idiot."
Jora did not understand why the weather had changed so suddenly either, but this was the Grand Line. Anything could happen. The only explanation was pure coincidence.
Shirakawa did not expect Jora to worship him. One fanboy on the ship was already plenty. Any more would just become a burden.
Riddle ignored Jora's comment. He kept his eyes fixed on the target. If they lost sight of the boat the blame would fall on him, and he refused to disappoint the captain.
"Captain, I think his boat is about to flip."
In Riddle's view the small vessel was in serious trouble. It had ridden out the first few smaller waves, but as the swells grew larger the fishing boat started to struggle.
"Raise the speed another notch. We need to reach him before he sinks."
Shirakawa was extremely curious about the attacker now. After all, not many people dared to take shots at him these days.
This time Jora handled the acceleration, but his steering skills left a lot to be desired. Shirakawa made a mental note to teach the man proper ship handling when they had time. That last burst of speed had nearly capsized their own vessel.
He quickly had Riddle take over the helm instead.
As time passed Shirakawa could see the struggling fishing boat with his naked eyes.
"It's over. He's going down."
Right in front of the small boat a massive wave was forming. It crashed down without mercy and slammed the vessel straight to the bottom.
"He couldn't have died just like that, right?"
The thought had barely formed before the man appeared, clinging to a piece of broken planking and drifting on the surface.
"Guy's got a strong life."
The distance between the ships had closed considerably. Shirakawa's crew quickly pulled the survivor aboard. The weather cleared just as fast, returning to bright sunshine.
/-\
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