Chapter 50: Chapter 50
Deciding I have wasted too much time, I quickly jump to my left and move behind another tree, glancing towards my opponent as I do so, only to discover that he is no longer there. Peeking around the tree, I begin to look in every which direction, trying to spot my enemy, but no matter where I look, I am unable to spot them. I try and think about this logically, trying to reason out which direction he could have headed in until I remember that he is different from me and the land is not his only option.
With a start, I begin to pelt it using my full fore back the way I came, heading toward the ocean, only managing to just break through the tree line to see a splash in the surface of the sea and the resulting ripples. Chew had just entered the ocean, his natural territory, meaning I could no longer pursue him, and Arlong is pretty much confirmed to now know about this event. I look to my left, where Arlng Park is, to realise that the workers had not even noticed, so focused on the enclosing marined boats.
Sighing, I begin to make my way back to them, coming to terms with the fact that the element of surprise has been lost. I try to focus on what I can do now, and that is waiting for the marines to land and then provide them with as much information as possible on what they are facing and hope that they are actually decent strong marines capable of handling this. If they have come here, then I at least know that they are very much above that coward Nezumi whose base is nearby and yet he has not shown his ugly face once.
As I join the others and wait patiently for the Marines to get here, I contemplate on the possible ways this can go and what precautions I might have to take. Then, going through a mini checklist in my head about the things that are of utmost importance, I cross them off one by one when I confirm they are not in danger. For example, Nojiko should be at her home on the tangerine farm, which is isolated and should be fine. The orphanage is also separate from the villages and should be fine until the dust settles from the battle.
Genzo- Genzo is his own man and is also the sheriff, so I can't waste time thinking about him. He is a man, and knowing the type of man he is, I know he will be in the fray, trying to help or assist in some way to the benefit of all of the islanders. So I will try and see if I can do anything if I see him. Now, my ultimate concern, in both meanings of the word, is Nami. Nami should be at the temporary base of the Arlong pirates, that same little shack that I woke up in. They had taken over the surrounding buildings there and were living there until construction was finished, and I know that they had given Nami a room there.
Not a nice room or anything, aside from a bed, all she had apparently was a desk and reams and reams of papers and the tools necessary to make maps, as well as some books to help her. That is where she will be, even now, working her fingers to the bone on maps. She would always come home with bloodied hands and her fingers stressed, and Nojiko would always have to patch her up. They gave her a bed because they wanted her to stay there all the time, but I managed o get them to let her go home so she could get her hands mended. Otherwise, she would be unable to continue working on the maps.
But as I said, my concern for her should be evident. And my concern, speaking purely in terms of survival, would be if she didn't get caught in the crossfire. I should want her to get caught up in it and result in a state where she can no longer command me, based purely on survival. That is what I should want. Except, it isn't. I don't want her to die or get hurt. I have seen her suffering ever since the Fishmen came, and for her to die before having another taste of freedom, before having any sort of joy or happiness. I would rather live under her commands forever than be the sort of person that would commit such a horrible act and condemn this innocent girl to death.
I refuse to be that sort of person. I decided to live my life properly and to get as much out of it as I could. But the right way. To do things properly, without running away and to face things head-on instead of cowering. To live a life I can be proud of, that I can take pleasure in and look back on without regret or shame. The Marines will likely be heading towards Arlongs base since all the islanders know where it is, and that has probably been communicated towards the law-keeping force.
This means Nami will be caught up in the ongoing fight. So I need to get there quickly, before anything happens, and sneak her out of there. So instead of waiting for the Marines to get here, I make the decision to be proactive and go and get Nami to a safe place before the violence ensues. But when I turned around, I realised that there was no need for me to go and get her... because she had come to me.
"SHAHAHAHA! What is going on here, then!?" My heart drops as I see Arlong walking calmly towards us from the village path. However, that is not what is causing me such dread. It is the fact that he is dragging an unwilling Nami along behind him directly towards the confrontation. The mood and situation change drastically with his appearance. The happy and joyful countenances of the people surrounding me instantly deform and disfigure into abstract disjointed expressions of horror and despair.
"SHAHAHA! Now, what's with the long faces..? Why so glum?" He grins toothily, now reaching us, his oversized stature looming over us until it comes to bear entirely down on me. His big blue sandal-clad feet stop in front of me, and he bends down, blocking the sun from my view as his dead fish eyes look directly down into mine.
"You didn't have anything to do with this, did you, Detoro?" He emphasises my name as the grin disappears, leaving only his cold merciless face behind. He is trying to intimidate me, and while I do feel some fear in front of his ugly scary face, I am sure most people that don't have shit for brains would. But that doesn't mean I am gonna let him see it.
"Does it matter?" I reply, neither confirming nor denying his suspicions. I did not actually have anything to do with this, though I did know that something was in the works since Nami told me about it a while ago. Still, I am not going to deny it either since I am not backing down, and I at least have this much pride. I won't wipe my hands of the matter because these workers under me clearly knew about it, and they are under my command. To abandon them would be the work of scum, and I just decided I would never be scum.
"Hmm, well, I guess not. I will deal with that stuff later, but right now, I have to deal with those bastards." He continues to walk forward, dragging Nami along with him. The Villagers start to move, first starting t split like the sea around him and then slowly moving behind him and towards me. However, that process momentarily stops when Arlong stops, and not of his own accord.
"Hm?" He glances back to find me holding onto Nami's other arm, refusing to allow her to go forward towards the danger with him. The girl herself has tears brimming on the rim of her eyelids as she looks at me like I am signing my death warrant, rapidly shaking her head no at me to try and dissuade me from this course of action and make sure I don't risk myself for her. But, seriously, what kind of piece of shit was I for even thinking about taking everything from her.
"She doesn't need to be here. Neither do the rest of the workers here. We will leave. Come get us when you want us to resume working... If you can." I say, not relenting in the least as I stare back into his eyes, refusing to let him take her there. I adamantly try to ignore the slight bits of blood on Nami's fingers that I can feel with her palm against mine, confirming for me that she was being worked to the bone before being abruptly forced here.
"I brought her here so she could see the results of her work and how much good she is doing. In fact, I want everyone here to see this. But I suppose you can watch from a distance. Make sure not to go too far, and make sure you keep your eyes on those marines." Strangely he smirks at me, seeming to see something in this situation that I do not. Of course, I want everyone here to get as far away as possible, but I can't push my luck right now.
"Men. Move back to the tree line and stop there." I say, commanding them to stop back there, far away enough to keep looking like Arlong wants but with enough cover if things end up going south and they end up in the line of fire. Arlong nods his head at me after hearing my words and relinquishes his hold on Nami, the girl dropping to the ground as soon as he does. Moving forward, I ignore the big blue beast that continues to walk forward as I quickly grab hold of Nami and move back with the rest of the men towards the treeline.
As I do, I chance a glance back at Arlong, watching as the Fishman walks forward with unending arrogance to meet the fleet of marine ships heading in this direction. He is all alone, none of his men in sight, but this just worries me more. He is confident in beating all of them, and not only that, but he showed up at such an opportune time, making me think that he knew this would be happening. Even with Chew here, I get the feeling that Chew was not watching us but waiting for the sight of the marine ships.
They somehow knew this would be happening today, and instead of cowering or preparing, they anticipated it and have come to meet it head-on. Not only that, but Arlong mentioned the work Nami has been doing. The maps, and as far as I know, have only had her working on this island and the surrounding water so far. And yet, he just said that he wants her to see the fruits of her labour, which confuses me as to how a map of this island would help in any way in a confrontation against the Marines.
As I finally reach the rest of the workers at the treeling, I lay Nami down to rest against a tree before turning to look back out at whatever the hell was about to happen. I have no confidence right now, and all I have is an ominous premonition that things are going to go wildly wrong... for the Marines.
"SHAHAHAHA! MARINE SCUM! WHAT, PERCHANCE, BRINGS YOU TO THIS LOVELY LITTLE ISLAND OF MINE!?"
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