The Last Spade Chapter 21
"Vincent, we have to help them." Said Maka. "I agree" said Karry. The crew was outside the house discussing what they should do. "Our first priority is getting a ship, but I agree with you guys that these people need help. Who here is good at not being seen? We need to know what we are up against." "I can do that" said Natalie. "All right. We know that they are on the other side of the island, and that they have trained troops. What we need to know is what they number, how many ships they have, and what kind of weapons they have. Whatever you do, do not let them see you." Instructed Vincent. "Right. If I'm not back in four hours, come and find me." Responded Natalie.
After Natalie had left, the group went back inside to discuss a plan. Maka went back upstairs to check on the sick children. "First things first. We can't let that princess and her soldiers know that we have anything to do with Jamie. I don't want to think about what they would do here if they found out anything." Said Karry to the group. "Agreed. However we cannot move until Miss Natalie returns" Replied Barry. "Jamie could you come here for a second, please?" asked Tilly. When Jamie came over Tilly said to her "We have decided that if asked, you do not know us. You never saw us. You never heard us. You will be safer this way." "That's not too hard, I am going to see how Maka is doing upstairs" replied Jamie "Pass the news on to her." Said Vincent. "Well, now that that is covered, what are we going to do about the ones on the other side of the island?" "If everything goes as well we might be able to intimidate them off the island. In all honesty we won't know what to do until Natalie gets back." Said Vincent. "Karry, Barry I have seen the two of you fight but, I have never seen Gregory or Tilly fight. How good are you two ?" asked Vincent to Tilly and Gregory. "If I have to I can use this-" Said Tilly holding up a mace. "-but I am really more of a singer than a fighter." "I am best with a sword but as of right now all I have are these." Said Gregory holding up a pair of chef knives. "I can fight pretty well" "Well, now. All we can do is wait." Said Vincent.
Four and a half hours later the party had decided to move to a house on the other side of town, closer to the pier. "We need to go after Natalie, and soon." Said Barry. "She might just be running late. Ya-know maybe there was a lot of things to scout." Replied Tilly hopefully. "No. Natalie isn't coming back." Said Maka, looking out the window. Everyone gathered around. At the edge of town there was a group of four lizards charging into town. They stopped outside Jamie's house.
There were four men on the lizards. Two of them were in military gear another was dressed in lightly tan colored tee and shorts, the final one was dressed in a robe of some sort with an ornate black katana at his side. Jamie stepped outside. Without ever looking at the men asked "What can I do for you? The food delivery has already been made this week." One of the soldiers responded "There are some rouge Pirates on this island. You wouldn't happen to know anything about them, would you?" Jamie feigned a look of surprise "I had no idea. Rouge pirates on the island. Why I might just die of fright. We should really contact the Navy to help us take care of those horrible ruffians." Her statement absolutely dripped with sarcasm. "Listen you little bitch! If you are hiding anything from us you know what is going to happen!" The soldier got off his lizard and walked over to Jamie. As soon as he was in range he slapped her with his mailed glove. "Now, do you know anything about them, or not?" asked the soldier "No. I don't know about any pirates but you guys." Said Jamie as she fought back tears while her cheek bled. "If you don't know anything about anyone else on the island then where did this come from?" The man wearing the tan clothing had dismounted his lizard as he was talking and walked up to Jamie, at the end of his sentence he pinched something from her shoulder. He put it in his mouth "Watermelon. Hmm, I don't seem to recall sending out fresh fruit with your food package. Where could this have possibly come from?" Jamie didn't answer, she just looked at the ground. "He asked you a question whore!" The guard raised his hand for another slap.
The slap never connected "Don't you think that you have hurt the poor girl enough?" Barry was holding the soldier's wrist. "I really do think that some retaliation is in order. After all, you are just being a bully. It is only fair that you know what it is like." With that Barry twisted his hand. There was a sharp snap that filled the air. "Graahhaa" The soldier screamed and fell into a heap. Barry had broken his wrist. The tan colored man turned to face Barry "Oh good now that you are out in the open I won't have to destroy this village to find you. You three must be the crew that little sneak was talking about." Barry, Tilly, and Gregory had left the house to confront the soldiers. Vincent, Maka, and Karry had circled around behind the lizards and now revealed themselves. "Six." Said Vincent. The man turned to look at them. "Oh a pincer formation. Do you really want to fight us? I mean I have a bounty of thirty seven million and Wo over there has a bounty of twenty four million." Barry scoffed "you are a fool if you think that three can win against six." "Allright you asked for it." The tan man dashed towards Barry who had already readied himself for a fight, when he abruptly seemed to … loop around Barry and grabbed Tilly from behind. At the same time the man called Wo leaped off his lizard and drew his katana to slash at Gregory. The soldier tried to jump off his lizard but instead Karry was faster, he had barely stood up in the saddle before he was impaled by Perry's pole-arm. The soldier was dead before he hit the ground. Gregory managed to deflect the first blow from the man called Wo, but was struggling to continue fending him off. The tan man had ahold of Tilly with one arm and the other was holding a knife to her throat.
"Now, surrender, or this little sweetheart dies." Said the tan man. When no one reacted he noticed that something was off "Wait, where's the top ha-" Barry had transformed into his rabbit form as soon as Tilly had been captured. Barry had then charged, jumped and transformed back into a human in midair so that he could grab the tan man's knife arm and flip him off of Tilly. The man flew for a ways before he seemed to slow down and spin in midair, then land on his feet. "Tilly go help Gregory" Said Barry "You must be a Devil Fruit user to land like that." "You are absolutely right, and from what I just saw so are you." The man got a sly look on his face " I'll show you mine if you show me yours." "Fine, you go first." Replied Barry. The tan man "I ate the Spiral Spiral Fruit. I can make anything spiral." Said the man holding up his hand as the air swirled above it. "I ate the I ate the Rabbit Rabbit Fruit. I can transform into a rabbit." Replied Barry. "I've heard about you, you're Barry the Bunny. You're this big-shot out in the East Blue. But in here, in this graveyard you're just another pirate destined to be swallowed up by the Grand Line." Said the tan man ominously. "Maybe you are right. Maybe one day I am destined to die in this, the greatest of all oceans, But I am absolutely confident that it isn't today." Barry and the tan man charged at each other.
Gregory would certainly have died if Tilly hadn't intervened. Gregory had lost one of his knives in the fight and the man called Wo was just about to impale him when Tilly charged into him, full force knocking both of them down. The man called Wo threw her off almost immediately and stood to face Gregory once again. He immediately had to jump away to dodge Tilly's mace. "Do you mean to let your woman fight your battles for you?" The man called Wo demanded of Gregory "Control your women so that we may continue to fight as men!" "HIS WOMAN!? I am nobodies property!" Screamed Tilly as she flared up and charged at the man called Wo. The man called Wo effortlessly dodged Tilly and blocked the strike that Gregory had tried to get in on the man called Wo while he was distracted with Tilly. "You do not fight with honor." Said the man called Wo to Gregory coldly. "What do you expect we are pirates?" Asked Karry her pole-arm was sticking out of the chest of the man called Wo. Karry had waited in the sidelines until Wo had forgotten her and then she struck. "My people will never forgive such shameful action, you will live to see your cowardice rewarded!" The man called Wo pulled the polearm out of his back, turned to face Karry, pulled out a small knife from his belt, with his free hand grabbed her neck, held her down, and the man called Wo made three quick slices into her left cheek. Then the man called Wo took his sword and committed Seppuku. "I will at least die honorably and not by the blade of some coward." Were the last words of the man called Wo before he finally died.
"Wo!" The tan man called out as the man called Wo was impaled by Karry. When that happened the tan man knew that he had lost. "You are going to regret this. Princess Kasai will show you! None of you are going to survive this!" With that the tan man used his spiral ability to collapse the foundation of a house then spiral the collapsing mass at Barry. When the dust settled the man had gone.