Chapter 13: Meet the Supernovas Part 3! The Hyperactive Shipwright?!

A few minutes earlier

"For the last time, no." Donovan looked at his young apprentice and sighed. "You can't go and watch the race."

"Why not!" Rio, his apprentice, scowled. "It'll be fun! Besides, I'll get to see my ships!"

"You have too much work to do." Donovan massaged his temples. "Have you finished the work on that ship you were building?"

"The new ship?" Rio shrugged. "I finished that last week."

"Then get to work on the next one." Donovan growled. "And don't bother me asking about stupid races."

Donovan was the head of a small shipwright guild on Threshold Island. While Donovan himself was too humble, and stingy, to say so, they were considered one of the best shipwright guilds on the Island. Donovan, himself, was an old, grizzled man, with a thick grey beard and a wrinkled face. He was known for being one of the toughest men on the island, who wrestled grizzly bears and ate nails. That wasn't a joke. He literally ate nails. He stuck a couple in his mouth, in the morning, and slowly they dissolved away in his mouth, over the day. His workers didn't know where he'd come from, or anything about his past and that was the way he liked it. As such there were plenty of rumours around. Some said he used to be a pirate. Some said he'd even met Monkey D. Luffy briefly. Some said he'd killed a dragon, only using 3 fingers and a toenail. Some said the reason he'd lived so long was that Death was too terrified to collect him.

His apprentice Rio, on the other hand, was a completely different story. Found abandoned on the doorstep, when he was just a baby, Donovan had practically raised him. He was easily recognised by his long, flame-red hair, held back in a brown headband. He was also known for being headstrong, boastful and never one to back down from a fight. Which often put him at odds with the stubborn Donovan. Such as now.

"I don't see what the big deal is!" Rio yelled. "It's just a race!"

"Then why are you so insistent on seeing it?" Donovan asked.

"Because I want to see my ships!" Rio growled.

"You've already seen them plenty of times, while building them." Donovan pointed out.

"That's not what I mean..." Rio scrunched up his fists in anger. "Alright then, how about this! If I can beat you in a fight, I can go and see the race!"

"Fine." Donovan shrugged, hammering away at a piece of wood. "But if you lose, you're fired."

"Huh?"

"You heard me." Donovan fixed him with a deadly glare. "If you lose, you have to leave this company and never return. Do you still want to fight?"

"..."

"I thought not." Donovan turned back to his work when-

"I'll do it!" Rio finally worked up the courage to say.

"Fine then." Donovan sighed, cracking his knuckles.

Three Minutes Later

"The winner is Donovan!" The shipwright, who they'd hired as a referee, announced.

"Hmph, you lasted two minutes longer than I expected." Donovan looked at the prone, bloody heap on the floor. "I was joking about you being fired, but get back to work and don't bother me with all this 'race' crap."

"Damn you... you old geezer..." Rio slowly dragged himself back to his feet. "Fine then. If you won't fire me... I quit!"

"No you don't." Donovan ignored him and began hammering a couple of nails into a loose plank of wood.

"Yes I do!" Rio yelled. "I have a right to quit! I can set up my own shipwright yard and survive on my own fine!"

"Do you really think you can survive on your own in the world?" Donovan gave him a stare.

"Yes."

"Then you're dumber than I thought." Donovan sighed. "If you want to quit, quit. You can take that new ship of yours as a leaving present. You have until the start of the race to decide. If you're not back here by then, you're fired anyway."

"Fine!" Rio stormed out of the building.

"Dumb boy." Donovan shook his head and sighed. "Dumb dumb boy..."

Rio stormed his way through the streets, scowling as he went. That damn old geezer! Why couldn't he go and see the race?! It's not like it was that big a deal! Maybe he really would quit! He could set up his own shipwright business and-!

Rio immediately shook that idea from his head. He'd seen how much it costed just to start a business, never mind make it as successful as Donovan. He'd need a huge amount of money. However, that didn't mean he couldn't become the shipwright on a pirate ship! That would pay well! Especially if he managed to join the crew of one of the new Supernovas! But where could he find one of them...

Suddenly, he overheard a nearby conversation.

"Ushio, in case you hadn't noticed, we're missing something pretty important..."

"Of course! A musician! But where would we find one...?"

Ushio?! As in Ushio D. Neptune, 'The Mad Emperor'?!

Rio moved in closer and spied, not only Ushio, but the Supernova 'Magic Sniper' talking nearby! The rumours of their alliance were true! He considered going in and asking them if he could join their crew, but he decided that would be a bit too weird. He considered offering them a free boat, but they probably already had one...

"We need a ship, you idiot!"

"What's wrong with the one we're using now?"

"It's underwater."

Rio could've cheered.

While Tell was ranting about how difficult it would be to find a new boat, Rio ran over and asked, "Hey you! Would you like a free boat?!"

…

…

…

The shocked silence seemed to last forever.

"Sometimes, I think God does this on purpose, just to annoy me..." Tell sighed.

"Sure!" Ushio grinned. "We'd love a free boat!"

"Great!" Rio grinned back. "I've got a cool new one you can have, if you promise me to do a few things!"

"Ah hah!" Tell suddenly laughed. "So it's not actually free! It may sound free, but these 'things' will end up costing more than the ship itself! It's a very clever con!"

"Really?" Ushio seemed impressed. "He doesn't look like a conman."
"Obviously." Tell smiled, with the air of a professional. "Conmen don't exactly go around wearing jackets with 'I'm a conman printed on them."

"They don't?" Ushio scratched. "That's confusing..."

"I'm not a conman!" Rio growled, feeling angry. "Now do you want to hear what I have to say, or not."

"Fine, we might as well." Tell sighed.

"First, you have to enter the Grand Dead End Competition!" Rio explained.

"Fair enough." Tell agreed. "Ushio'd probably end up forcing us to take part anyway, in a rubber dinghy or something."

"How'd you guess my cunning plan?" Ushio asked.

"Second!" Rio ignored the two bickering. "You have to take me on as your crew's shipwright! And that's it."

"Ah hah!" Tell grinned, as if he'd hit on something. "You see! A con! He pretends to give us a free ship, when, in fact, he gives us a free ship and... his services as a shipwright... for free..."

The full depth of what Rio had said hit him, and he turned in surprise.

"Are you serious?"

"Yup!" Rio nodded. "Do you want to see the ship?"

"That'll be fun!" Ushio grinned. "A new ship and a new shipwright!"

"I'm convinced this has to be a dream..." Tell began pinching his cheek, before running off after the two. "Next thing we know, Tsurugi will have accidentally found a large pot of gold while out shopping..."

Much to her annoyance, Tsurugi hadn't been quite that lucky. She'd heard there was an excellent sword shop on the island and had run off to find it. After several hours of searching and asking directions from people who seemed to be terrified of her, she'd finally found it... only to find that Ichiya Mihawk had got there first. Apparently, he'd been challenging famous swordsmen on the island and... well... There really wasn't much left of the shop, or shopkeeper now...

"What do I do now...?" She wondered.

"Yoo~ooi!" A voice suddenly cried out. "What a beautiful girl you are!"

"Huh?"

Tsurugi turned to see a... really odd figure heading towards her.

New Supernova: 'Hundred Arms' Krishin Limbosa

Captain of the Arm Pirates

Bounty: 36,000,000

Krishin was dressed... rather weirdly. He was a rotund man dressed in bright red, old-fashioned samurai armour. He also had heavy amounts of make-up on his face, making him look like some sort of clown.

"Yoo~ooi!" He cried, bowing before her. "You are such a beautiful girl! No wonder we fell in love at first sight!"

…

"Huh?" Tsurugi wasn't sure whether she should be confused or annoyed. She guessed annoyed.

"I got your lovely, heart-filled note!" Krishin announced, pulling out a slip of paper.

Dear Krishin!

I'm in love with you! Love! Love!

I've loved you since we first met! Love!

Please meet me at the old sword shop!

I'll be the one with short blue hair and a sword!

Love, your anonymous lover!"

…

…

…

"Yeah, I'm quite sure I didn't write that..." Tsurugi sighed.

"Ehh~hei!" Krishin leapt back in surprise. "Have I been duped?! That makes me so angry! I shall dance in anger!"

He suddenly began dancing furiously, while Tsurugi slowly backed away...

"Hold it right there, you two!" Another voice suddenly rang out.

Captain Isleague, Marine Captain of Threshold Island, stood with a small group of marines at his back.

"'Devil's Blade' Tsurugi and 'Hundred Arms' Krishin Limbosa!" Isleague loudly announced. "You are under arrest for piracy! Surrender now, or we will be forced to open fire!"

"Damn!" Tsurugi turned to run, but Krishin knocked her over, in his own attempt to escape.

"Yoo~ooi!" He screamed, dashing down the street. "I'm too handsome to go to jail!"

"That bastard!" Tsurugi growled, trying to get her feet, when she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. Obviously her wounds from fighting Captain Stacean hadn't healed yet. Before she could do anything else, she found several guns pointed at her head.

'Don't move!" Isleague growled. "You're the one Vice Admiral Minos wants so much aren't you? Put your hands in the air. You're under arrest."

Suddenly, the sound of a gunshot reverberated around the street, and a marine collapsed to the ground, clutching a bullet wound. Then another! And another!

"Take cover!" Isleague yelled, diving behind a nearby barrel. His soldiers followed his example, sprinting for cover, leaving Tsurugi in the middle of the street, wondering what was going on.

"Up here, sweetie!" A voice sounded out.

Tsurugi turned to see a figure sitting casually on a rooftop. A very familiar figure... or so she thought.

"Tell?" She asked, surprised.

"My darling, I can be whoever you want me to be." The figure jumped down and landed next to her.

New Supernova: 'Magic Sniper' Brurrage Seraphin

Captain (and only member) of the Sniper Pirates

Bounty: 29,000,000

Seraphin looked... well, almost identical to Tell. Similar clothes, similar hairstyle, similar build, everything. However, there were some slight differences. Seraphin wasn't wearing any sunglasses, and his jacket was slightly more fancy and expensive. He also had a larger gun than Tell, a rifle that he'd strapped to his back.

Tsurugi stared at him for a few minutes.

"Nope, you're not him." She finally decided, heading off.

"Wa-Wait!" Seraphin ran to intercept her, grabbing her by the shoulder. "Aren't you going to thank me, for saving you?"

"... Fine, thank you." Tsurugi tried to get past. "Now let me through!"

"Oh, I see!" Seraphin chuckled. "You're obviously overwhelmed by my presence and are so embarrassed, you feel you need to escape! I understand."

"No." Tsurugi's eye twitched. "I'm trying to get back to my crew..."

"In which case, I'd be honoured to escort you there!" Seraphin smiled.

"Please don't..."

"It's no trouble!" Seraphin laughed, oblivious to Tsurugi's barely suppressed anger. "It's the least I can do for an admirer!"

"A... what?"

"Well, didn't you send me this letter?" Seraphin reached into his pocket, pulled out a note and passed it to Tsurugi, taking great care to caress her hand.

Tsurugi resisted the urge to break it and read the note

Dear Seraphin!

I'm in love with you! Love! Love!

I've loved you since-"

"Dammit!" Tsurugi swore, tearing the letter to pieces. "Who keeps sending these things?!"

"So you don't 'love love' me?"

"Tell! Tsurugi!"

Before Tsurugi could answer, Seraphin was struck by what seemed like a small cannonball.

"Oh thank God I found you guys!" Yura sobbed, holding Seraphin's chest tightly. "There's this really scary woman who's going to kill me!"

"Who the hell are you?" Seraphin got to his feet, pushing the sobbing Yura away. Suddenly, some sort of large tree, in the shape of a hand, slammed into him, trapping him against a wall.

"So, you're Neptune's first mate?!" Sophia growled. "Tell me where your worthless Captain is, so I can kill him!"

The large, tree-like thing that had slammed into Seraphin appeared to be growing from her arm.

"Wait, what?!" Seraphin was confused. "But I'm my own worthless Captain!"

"Don't lie to her Tell!" Yura gasped. "Or she'll kill us both!"

"Who's Tell?"

"I don't have time to listen to your whining!" Sophia snarled. "Tell me where your Captain is! Now! I want Ushio D. Neptune!"

"But I'm the Captain!" Seraphin protested. "And I don't care about this Ushio guy!

"Eh?!" Yura was taken back. "You mean you finally usurped Ushio from the captaincy?! I had my suspicions, but I never thought you'd go through with it, you bastard!"

"So... Neptune's dead?" Sophia looked suspicious. And confused.

"I don't know what any of you are talking about!" Seraphin wailed. "I was just talking to this blue-haired chick and-"

"Of course, Tsurugi!" Yura grinned, turning to face the swordswoman. "Do you know where Ushio i-"

He found himself talking to empty air. Tsurugi was nowhere to be seen.

"Tsurugi?"

A short way away, Tsurugi stopped to catch her breath.

"Sorry Yura." She apologised. "But that was too weird."

She stretched a bit and began to continue her wanders when suddenly she spied a figure across the street.

"Are you 'Devil's Blade' Tsurugi?" The figure asked. "Swordswoman of the Neptune Pirates?"

"Yeah." Tsurugi moved her hand to her sword hilt. "Who's asking?"

"Good." Ichiya Mihawk smiled, drawing his sword. "Once I beat you, I'll be one step closer to achieving my goal..."