Chapter 21: Release

Hearing the mustached man say he was no longer welcome in Baratie, Fullbody's expression turned especially ugly as he growled, "Don't say anything you're going to regret, Chef Zeff. The neutrality of Baratie and the surrounding seas is predicated on the fact that the Marines allow it. If I informed Headquarters that your restaurant willfully serves Pirates, how long do you think your permit would last?"

Undaunted by Fullbody's words, Zeff snorted through his nose, stating, "As if a mere Lieutenant possesses such authority. Go ahead and file a false report, you little shit. I've been operating this business and paying taxes for twelve years without incident. We'll see how long you maintain that little commission of yours once your actions come under the scrutiny of your superiors. Cowards like you can't prevent the more honest men on their crews from disclosing the truth."

Though he clenched his teeth and balled his hands into fists, Fullbody didn't say anything. Baratie was one of the most reputable restaurants in the world and one of the most prominent locations in East Blue. Several higher-ups from Marine Headquarters frequented the floating restaurant, so it wouldn't take long before someone questioned the integrity of his report.

As his career was marginally more important than petty revenge, Fullbody took a moment to pop his collar as he said, "I'll remember this incident..." Then, with a nasty expression on his face, he directed his beady-eyed gaze to Drake, adding, "I'll be monitoring the activities of the 'Wild Hunt' closely from now on. Greedy bastards like Bounty Hunters always turn to piracy sooner or later. The moment you do, I'll be there waiting to arrest you..."

Exhibiting even less concern than Zeff, Drake mused, "You can run along now, little boy. Pray our paths don't cross again. Because if they do, I can promise you'll live to regret it."

Narrowing his eyes, Fullbody cast one final look at Drake's breasts before storming out of the restaurant. As much as he resented her, she was still one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen. If she were willing to express a bit of 'sincerity,' he was certain they could reach an agreement. Until then, she and her Wild Hunt had secured the second spot on his shit list...

As Fullbody stormed off, Drake shifted her attention to Zeff, a teasing smile on her face as she asked, "Are you going to kick me out as well? I don't mind, but a certain member of my crew would be disappointed."

Shaking his head, Zeff replied, "Though you violated the sanctity of these waters, it was in self-defense. As this is your first visit to Baratie, I will not disbar you for standing your ground."

Finished with what he had to say, Zeff turned around and retreated to the kitchen. In his wake, a slim, muscular, long-legged man with short blonde hair, a sparse goatee, and swirly eyebrows made his way over to Drake with a bottle of wine in hand, saying, "A bottle of wine for the pretty lady. Consider it an apology for the trouble you've had to go through."

Narrowing her eyes in recognition, Drake mused, "My, what a gentleman," as she accepted the bottle of wine, uncorked it, and downed its contents in a single go. As she did, she felt the blonde-haired man's gaze shift to her breasts, but by the time she exhaled a contented sigh, he was staring at her face with a cool and composed look.

Adopting a fairly charming smile, the swirly-browed man mused, "Quite the drinker, aren't you?" before pulling out a handkerchief, offering it to Drake as he added, "My shift ends at eight. If you're still around by then, I'd be happy to pour you a few drinks privately..."

Exhaling a light chuckle, Drake left the blonde-haired man disappointed as she teased, "Sorry, kid, but I like my men with a bit of meat on their bones. You're plenty handsome, I'll give you that, but your arms and legs are even thinner than mine. Feel free to ask again once you fill out a bit."

Punctuating her words, Drake gave the tall and lanky man a comforting pat on the shoulder before walking past him with confident strides. In her wake, the swirly-browed man pulled out a cigarette, stepping out onto the balcony before lighting it up, inhaling a deep drag, and exhaling a sigh as he watched Drake depart the Baratie and return to her ship...

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Although Caenis's thighs weren't as soft as Benienma's, they were pliant, springy, and comfortable. Before Thomas realized it, he had dozed off for nearly six hours, only waking once Musashi came over to inform them that dinner was ready.

As he was originally planning to eat at Baratie, Thomas was more than a little confused when he heard Musashi's words and noticed the ship was swaying from side to side, accompanied by the familiar vibrations of the Hind cutting through the water.

Preempting Thomas's query, Musashi explained, "Because of an incident that occurred at the restaurant, the Captain decided to weigh anchor and vacate the premises. Don't worry; we weren't booted out or anything. Our fearless Captain just had a bit of an altercation with a Marine and refused to step down when he tried to throw his weight around. We already shook them off, but we should expect them to badger us for the rest of our stay in the East Blue."

Exhaling a sigh, Thomas said, "I'm not surprised. Not with Drake, but with the Marines. Since East Blue is considered the 'weakest' of the Four Blues, it's where outcasts and troublemakers with no upward mobility are sent to rot. When Luffy and his crew first embarked on their journey, nearly every Marine Officer they encountered was either a swindler or a corrupt tyrant ruling over their posts with an iron fist. If not for a literal rat-themed cunt named Captain Nezumi, Nami's village wouldn't have had to suffer under the tyranny of Arlong and his crew..."

Shrugging her shoulders, Musashi replied, "Well, the Conomi Islands are less than a day's journey away. If we sail through the night, we can be in the area first thing tomorrow morning. Once we get there, Benienma or I can take out this 'Captain Nezumi' without anyone realizing it."

Though she didn't have Presence Concealment, Musashi's Emptiness(A) let her move about undetected and even phase through objects. If they wanted to make it look even more like an 'accident,' they could also have Caenis attack the ship from below. She could breathe underwater and, if given time to prepare, conceal their movements by generating a powerful storm. Either way, this Nezumi guy clearly needed to die if they wanted to avoid being demonized by the Marines.

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Hearing Musashi's proposition, a serious and somewhat conflicted look marred Thomas's face. He was initially planning to wait until Luffy made his debut, but if he could end the suffering of Nami and her village sooner, shouldn't he? The only reason not to was to ensure she met Luffy, but so long as he didn't recruit her to join the Wild Hunt, there was a fairly high chance they would meet.

As it was the 'right' thing to do, Thomas eventually nodded, saying, "We'll discuss our plan of action tonight. I kind of wanted to learn how to control my strength a bit before we fought, but I vaguely remember Luffy leveling a multi-story building to take Arlong out. I'm nowhere near that level yet, so I doubt I could defeat him if I held back..."

Deciding to chime in, Caenis assured, "I'll keep a close eye on you during the battle. If it looks like you won't be able to defeat him, I'll intervene and beat the shit out of him. Though, if he's only 10-20x stronger than an ordinary human, you should be fine. Your punches have high penetrative power, so he should drop pretty quickly if you catch him in a soft spot on his body."

Prompted by Caenis's words, Thomas recalled the scene of his fist sinking into the body of the watermelon-themed man. His complexion noticeably paled, but his stomach didn't twist and turn as intensely as before. He still felt a little queasy, but he willed himself to overcome it as he said, "Arlong is a specist asshat that has tormented humans for decades. When the two of us face one another, I won't hold anything back..."

Understanding that Thomas's words were more for himself than either of them, Caenis and Musashi remained silent, permitting his words to settle before the latter suggested, "Let's discuss this over dinner. Come on; you must be hungry after skipping lunch."

As he had gotten used to eating upwards of five meals per day, Thomas nodded his head, answering, "You're right." before rising to his feet and following after the buxom samurai. Then, alongside Caenis, the three of them made their way to the galley. Benienma had prepared a light meal that was easy on the stomach, so, even though he still felt a little sick, Thomas managed to get down quite a bit as they discussed their plan of action...

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As Drake was more than happy to see some action, she violated her usual policy about never sailing at night to ensure they would reach the Conomi Islands by morning. Astolfo had already circled the entire archipelago and made stops at each of the twenty-three communities occupying. She had also flown over the base of the Arlong Pirates, Arlong Park, several times, so they had a detailed map of the enemy base and its surroundings.

Before conducting their raid, Drake dispatched Astolfo to scout the sky, Benienma to scout the interior of Arlong Park, and Caenis to survey the sea floor. The Arlong Pirates were known to swim out and sink any ships that tried to come close, but that wasn't much of a concern for Drake as even Musashi would struggle to cut through the Hind's hull, at least with 'normal' attacks. The only reason she dispatched the trio to scout was to ensure there were no civilians present before she started bombarding the park from afar.

Though she had every intention of letting Thomas fight, Drake wasn't just going to sit on the sidelines. She was the Captain of the Golden Hind and the Wild Hunt, so she at least wanted to lay siege to Arlong Park and take out most of the fodder. According to her, if Arlong and his Officers were too weak to withstand even a 'light' salvo, they weren't worth the time it would take to disembark and face them directly.

Once Astolfo and Benienma had returned, Drake sneered as she made the Hind rise into the air. She wanted Arlong and his crew to feel as helpless as the people of the Conomi Isles, so she planned to bombard them from the sky while Caenis blocked off the sea route. The latter was markedly more powerful underwater than she was on land, so she could intercept and incapacitate any Fishmen that attempted to flee into the sea.

With most of her preparations completed, Drake turned to Thomas with a vicious smile, sapphire eyes glistening as she asked, "Do you know what time it is, my esteemed Master~?"

Though he had misgivings about Drake's plan, Thomas adopted a smile of his own as he answered, "Hunting time...?"

Blinking in surprise, a look of genuine bafflement briefly adorned Drake's face before she regained her grin and shouted, "Ding, ding, ding! That's the correct answer~!" before aiming her pistols toward Arlong Park. The moment she did so, four additional canons materialized around her as the front-facing batteries of the Hind hummed to life. Overhead, dark clouds began to gather rapidly, followed by rainfall as Drake began to unleash a salvo of highly destructive lasers on the unsuspecting Fishmen...

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(A/N: There's no kill quite like overkill...)

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