A Surprise Assignments [Minion Island: Contestation Arc - Part 1]

Battle raged on every ship. On deck and below it, in one form or another. Some were... over a little quicker... than others. Yumiko for one found herself in a puzzling conflict. On one hand, her foe had her locked in a clash, matching her like an equal... But on the other, she was really hesitant to call him a worthy opponent. For obvious reasons. Firstly, the criminal clearly had no interest in honorable combat. Secondly,  that tangled jungle on his face most certainly did not meet any manner of hygiene code, Marine, Pirate or otherwise. And thirdly... Merely being near him forced her to hold her breath. Eugh... Every careless whiff of air stung her nose like a grog-soaked bee... Wordlessly she prayed her allies had found less questionable foes to face.

With a quick twist of the blade, the swordswoman redirected the wobbly foe’s weight. [UT] [UT] She got away unscathed, but he hit the deck with a heavy thump. The broken bottle clattered away from his grasp. Groaning more in annoyance than pain, the captain called for his crew. “Guys...! Do somethin’!” His lackeys stumbled onto their feet and charged the lone Marine together. [LT][Charrrge] She didn’t wait to get surrounded though. Slashing twice, she launched twin blades of wind forward. [MT][Weasel's Fangs] Reminiscent of sharp fangs, they bit into the nearest crooks. Keeping the momentum, she rushed forward and leapt at the charging enemies. [LT][Storm Chaser] A single slash dropped a couple more. Like dominoes they fell, one after another.

Suddenly a large shadow appeared over Yumiko. She didn’t need to glance up to guess what was coming. She rolled aside as the hefty captain came crashing down. [LT][Bad Belly Bounce] His bulky belly cracked the planks on impact. He rose back on his feet and rubbed his gut. “I see this ain’t yer first time wrasslin’...” The swordswoman’s gaze narrowed. She sheathed her sword... took a calming breath... Regretted it immediately, since that foul stench seemed to permeate the air... Faster than most eyes could see, she drew, slashed and re-sheathed. Steel flashed briefly in the sunlight. [LT][Sickle Wind] At the same time, a sharp gust of wind mimicked the strike. “Ow, my beard!” The drunk staggered backwards, now facially lopsided. And slightly cleaner.

Despite the ongoing loss of face, in literal sense too, the rowdy pirates refused to back down. They kept stubbornly staggering back onto their wobbly feet. Some found improvised weapons. Others decided to rely on their fists and... Well, maybe just their fists. Perhaps it was the booze fueling their decision making, but somehow they still thought they had the upper hand here. Yumiko found a strange sense of admiration towards their... erm... she wanted to say... bravery? Yes, bravery. Yet at the same time, she could not let their crimes go unpunished. They had violated the law and trampled all over the idea of basic hygiene. This had to end. Now. “Surrender now and thou shall be spared. I swear it.” Her offer was met with a chorus of jeers. “In yer dreams, missy!” Her glare narrowed. If they refused to surrender, then so be it. This required drastic measures...

“Then thou leave me no choice...”

Leaving the ominous words hanging in the wind, the swordswoman slowly sheathed her sword. It clattered softly against the deck. With a deep breath she closed her eyes and gathered her focus. The world around her slowed down to a crawl. [Kenbunshoku Haki] Everything felt so much clearer now. Every sound, every motion... Eugh, every smell. Gritting her teeth, she powered through the sensation. The pirates were rushing towards her, but even their footsteps against the deck felt so... sluggish. She crossed her arms. [Hunter Form] Her fingers sharpened into long claws. Tufts of dark fur poked through her skin. Her facial features narrowed, beginning to resemble a snout. Violent winds snaked around her limbs. As her eyes flashed open, they had turned pure black.

Suddenly, the Marine vanished from sight. A gust of cold wind blew across the deck. [HT][Final Mercy] In a heartbeat, her blurry form appeared behind the pirates. They stopped dead in their tracks. Eerie silence filled the air. One after another, the pirates started... losing their hair. Scraggly beards and messy manes simply fell off, leaving behind only a clean shave. First there was shock. Disbelief. T-this couldn’t be real... They rubbed their now bald heads in panic. As they exchanged horrified stares, the grim reality sunk in quickly. This nightmare was all too real. Meekly the captain voiced the one thing in all of their minds. “...we surrender.” Wind blew away the last remains of their pride. It was over.

Yumiko was careful about her sigh of relief, but breathed one nonetheless. Slowly her body shifted back into its regular form. She went to pick up her discarded blade before pointing it at the foes. “Enemies we may be, but I am still glad we could end this without any further bloodshed.” Her kind, hopeful words were met with doom and gloom. Like a dark cloud was hanging over the defeated crew. Some sniffled. Others outright sobbed. The captain quietly lamented how it had taken him years to grow that beard. He even wondered if it would ever grow back. His name, his reputation, his face... All ruined. Seeing grown men cry startled the honorable warrior. “I... I am truly sorry, I did not know...” Of course not. She was not able to grow one herself. Somehow she was beginning to feel like she was the one who had committed a grave crime.

Sometimes, destroying a foe’s will to fight was the most effective path to a bloodless victory. ...So Yumiko’s father had taught her at least. She wasn’t quite sure if this was what he had meant. Somehow seeing grown men cry felt worse than seeing them bleed. Like she had wounded something that would never quite heal right. While searching for shackles or rope to bind the prisoners, she also tried to find the words to apologize. But... What could she even say without sounding hollow?

However, the pirate formerly known as Alebeard managed to wipe his tears. Most of them. “Geh, don’t think this is over just yet, missy...” His men followed the lead, with... varying success. Yet it seemed like they all shared the same idea. One last chance. “Yeah, ye might have beaten us, but he won’t let ye get away with this...” The swordwoman’s gaze narrowed with immediate suspicion. “He...?” She questioned varily, getting a confident nod in response. “Aye, ol’ Eddy will make ye wish ye had never sailed these waters. He be a monster of spines and hate, stronger than twenty men put together.” The other pirates chuckled ominously. That’s right, this wasn’t over just yet.

Yumiko’s worry immediately flared to full flame. “Captain...!” While her experiences with fishmen were limited, she knew the tales that surrounded them. If something happened to the Captain, no... Not on her watch! Once she had let him down, but never again. Not even if it forever stained her pride. She spun towards the Marine ship and spread her sleeves, ready to fly! ...Only to see Anton kicking the aforementioned monster around like a beach ball. Her worries deflated like a balloon pricked by a tiny needle. Slowly. Awkwardly. “Uh...” The display left her rather speechless. Finally the salty splash of the fishman falling back into the sea snapped her out of her daze. Right. The Captain would be fine. Of course he would.

Meanwhile, Alebeard’s pointing finger drooped as his confidence visibly wavered. Hastily his eyes searched for their second ace in the hole. “Erm, well, at least there’s still mighty Boris. He be a fierce warrior who...” Right on cue, in the background said fierce warrior got clotheslined by a towering monster of a samurai. The impact of the flamboyant fellow getting slammed down reverberated in their ears. “...Oh.” And just like that, what little was left of their confidence flew away like dust in the wind. In unison, they huddled around the mast and flopped over. Aaand the sobbing continued.

The lone Marine was unsure if trying to comfort the prisoners was against the code...