Great news everyone my previous chapter got a record number of views in a day. Thanks to all the fans of my story. Sorry if the last chapter was too short, but don't worry, because this is the part where the action begins.
Chapter 6
Ren vs. Luffy! A Battle Capable of Shaking The Sea!
The Strawhats were not really sure what to make of their captains cousin. They were still getting over how nonchalant his entrance was. He seemed so similar to Luffy, but yet something about him seemed so different as well, but none of them could put their fingers on it. But based on what they have seen so far they could honestly believe…
"Well I don't doubt he's Luffy's cousin," said Sanji dryly.
"That's for sure. They both take situations way too lightly, as if it were just a walk in the park," said Usopp just as dryly.
"Not to mention they both have that silly grin," said Zoro equally as dryly.
"They're both idiots," Nami said dryly.
"Luffy's cousin is so cool!" Chopper screamed a squeak. Robin said nothing.
Ren laughed at their comments, "Man Luffy your crew sure are a funny group of rogues."
For brief moment Luffy was silent, but gave a small smile, "They really are. Nice to see you again, Ren." Luffy, despite the situation, was happy to see his cousin again, but he knew that he couldn't be off guard. Ren was not the kind of opponent that was easy to beat. Him being on the ship made the situation even more complex.
"Hey Usopp!" luffy shouted getting his attention.
"Uh yeah?" Usopp responded.
"Tell Franky to abort the escape plan for now! Wait until I say otherwise!"
Usopp and the other Strawhats were… dumbfounded. That was actually a good call, which made zero sense from their reckless, idiotic captain. Becoming impatient with the unresponsiveness of Usopp, Luffy shouted, "Go!"
"R-right" Usopp ran for the entrance for the lower deck, but didn't get two steps in before a gun was shot from the marine ship, with the bullet missing Usopp by mere inches, which caused him to shriek very loudly. The Strawhats and Ren immediately turned their heads in the direction of the ship.
"Must have been John who shot," Ren guessed.
"John?" Nami repeated.
On the marine ship Lilia and Shauna looked behind them to see that the sniper, John was on the crow's nest with a smoking standard looking sniper rifle. He grinned cockily, "That was a warning shot."
"John when did you get there," asked Shauna. She then went into scolding mode. "Don't tell me you only just woke up?"
John blinked and made a what are you talking about face. "I've been up since dawn, Shauna. Don't kid me, lady."
"You have?" said Shauna genuinely surprised. "Must not have noticed you. Sorry."
"N-not have noticed me?!" John said upset. "I helped tie up those pirates, I wasn't knocked out by the captain's haki, I made lunch!" but his words fell on deaf ears as the captain and Shauna ignored him and focused on the Strawhat ship again. John sat on his rear and buried his face in his knees.
He wasn't surprised by the fact he wasn't noticed. Even though he had been apart of the Demon Unit since Lilia became a captain, Even though he was one of the more important members of the unit, he was always forgotten. He was a plain looking guy with a total lack of presence. He had had regulation height brown hair, was of average height, and was lightly tanned with brown eyes. A completely plain looking man.
"How is it that no one notices me," John blubbered.
'What's that guy whining about now?' thought Shauna, who was annoyed.
"Hey Usopp," said Zoro. He saw the sniper. "I think you can go now. That sniper seems to be distracted."
"Y-you sure?" said Usopp timidly. He did not want to be shot to death trying to abort an escape plan, but then he noticed john, the sniper, wallowing in a pool of self pity. "Guess you're right…" Usopp ran for the lower part of the ship.
Ren sighed, "That John he's way too sensitive." He then smirked, "Well I can't really complain, since I don't really want to escape with you all. So tell me Strawhats what's next?"
"I think you know," Zoro answered with a smirk, while he pointed his 2 swords (Remember one of Zoro's sword were broken by a marine captain in Enies Lobby) at Ren, Sanji got into a stance, Nami pulled out her Clima-Tact, Chopper had a rumble ball in his hand, and Robin crossed her arms ready to use her power. They were all ready to take anything Ren could throw at them, but….
"Hold on guys!" Luffy ordered with commanding voice. He leaped from the higher level dect to the lower deck and landed in between his crew and Ren. He raised his body to glare at the smirking Ren, who seemed to know what the pirate captain was thinking. "Stay out of this! I'll handle Ren on my own!"
"Luffy are you sure?" Nami asked in concern. She always felt reluctant to leave Luffy to fight strong opponents on his own, but this was especially difficult. This man, Ren, was his family and Luffy himself said that they were close.
"To be honest I'm not," said Luffy with a smile, surprising his crew. "This is the first time in a long time I've had at least a little understanding of my opponent's strength and to be honest it scares me just a bit."
"You're making me blush Luffy," Ren said with a chuckle. "But don't think you're the only one who's getting nervous. I also haven't got the chance to fight someone who strength I know well in quite a long time."
"Well you've always been a smarter fighter than me, so you have less to worry about," Luffy chuckled back. The Straw hats glanced back and forth between the two cousins and they could all tell one thing: The both wanted a one on one fight. The crewmates backed down, but kept their guards up. They wanted to be prepared for anything that could happen next.
Luffy and Ren stared each other down. Most likely to evaluate any kind of changes in each other or maybe just to intimidate the other. Without warning Luffy made the first move, "Gum-Gum Pistol!"
Luffy's arm streched at bullet speed, but Ren braced himself. "Iron Body!" the technique absorbed the impact of the attack as if it were nothing. This surprised neither Luffy, nor any of the spectators, since they had all seen how powerful a defense the 'Iron Body" technique was when they fought CP9, but what really shook them was the powerful shock wave created when Luffy's pistol connected with Ren. The force was strong enough to shake the ship itself.
Luffy retracted his arm, then twisted that same arm, "Gum-Gum Rifle!" he swung another punch and this one connected Ren showed a sign that he actually felt it, although barely.
"Luffy's not holding anything back!" Nami muttered with surprise.
"I don't think that's true," Zoro said catching the attention of the other Strawhats.
"I agree," said Robin. "It looks to me that Luffy is just testing Ren and the same could said for Ren. In a way the battle hasn't even begun yet"
"I think that's what makes this bout even more impressive," Sanji said, in genuine awe. "The fact that neither of them have even begun to show their full strength."
"Even though Ren hasn't made an attack yet, I can still tell he's a powerful fighter," Zoro said knowingly.
"Luffy's family is really strong!" Chopper said excitedly.
"A family of monsters," Usopp said dryly.
"Not to shabby cous," Ren said never losing his cocky smile. "You've definitely gotten a lot stronger since the last time you and I have sparred, but I can't say how strong til we stop playing around."
Luffy smirked. "Thanks, you're a lot tougher too."
"But I got to ask," said Ren in a tone that was inviting trouble. He pointed at the ship behind him "Even if you do manage to beat me, what are you gonna do about Sergeant Smacks-A-Lot and Captain Demon over there?"
Luffy and the other Strawhats glanced behind Ren. Luffy's mom and his cousin hadn't stopped glaring daggers at the Strawhat ship since they got here. The idea of fighting either one of them was not a pleasant thought.
"W-we'll find a way…" Luffy said unconfidently, making the other Strawhats fall flat. Most of them yelled "THAT'S ALL YOU CAN SAY?!"
"Well you're still as annoyingly optimistic as you always were, huh?," Ren said.
"Shut up!" said an annoyed Luffy. "Let's fight!"
"Music to my-" Ren's eyes widened. "Shave!" he disappeared from sight. Luffy looked in all direction searching for the marine, finding him behind him… with his arm around Nami, surprising her. He gently took her hand into his. Ren spoke in a silky voice, "My, my what a pretty girl we have here. Please forgive me, my sweet, I usually make a habit to address beautiful women whenever I see them, but I got excited over seeing my cousin. I hope you can understand and might I say you're even more beautiful in person, than in your wanted poster. Would you please do me the honor of having dinner with me this evening under the moon and stars."
Before Nami could answer, Sanji shouted, as the others just sweat dropped at the 'romantic' scene. "Get your hands away from her you lousy piece of crap!"
"Hey I don't recognize you," said Ren taking his eyes off Nami and glancing at Sanji. "Are you a new member or something? I recognize everyone else here from their wanted poster, did you join at Water 7 or something?"
At the word "wanted poster" Sanji's eyes darkened. Unlike everyone else, he had a draw wanted poster. A very poorly drawn wanted poster that looked nothing like him! In anger he was about to attack him, but something beat him to the punch. A blast of air came hurdling from the sky. Ren, who noticed the air blast, used the Moon Bounce technique to avoid it and the other Strawhats avoided it at the last second. The blast of air exploded on impact with the ship's deck, creating a very noticeable mark on the Sunny.
"What the heck was that?!" Usopp shouted. But before anyone could answer him, someone shouted.
"Ren stop flirting with girls and do your job!" Shauna shouted so loudly the Strawhats could easily hear her.
"Hey you witch! You almost killed us!" Ren shouted back, letting go of Nami.
"Good I was trying to kill you!"
"Why you little…" he couldn't find the right words to say. "When I get my hands on you…"
"Ren!" Luffy said, trying to get his attention. Things had a habit of getting real ugly when the twins had a sibling squabble. "Are you forgetting something?"
"Oh right. Shave!" Luffy, who was expecting an attack prepared himself, but instead of an attack Ren appeared next to Robin and, once again, put his arm around her and took her hand. "I'd like to apologize for my sisters rash actions. She's always been jealous of very beautiful women."
Once again, before Sanji or anyone else could react, another blast of air came crashing from the sky. Shauna shouted, "Get Serious!"
"Stop trying to kill me!" Ren retorted.
"Hey Luffy is this normal?" Zoro whispered.
"Yeah." Luffy sighed. "Ren and Shauna argue as much as Zoro and Sanji. Maybe even worse"
"Seriously?" said Chopper. That was a lot of arguing.
"And does your male cousin always flirts like that?" Nami asked in drawling voice.
"Yup." he nodded. He looked at Ren, who was still arguing with Shauna. Wanting to get Ren off the ship as soon as possible, Luffy shot his pistol at the distracted Ren, who, at the last second, used Moon bounce to avoid the attack.
"Cheap shot cous," Ren shouted in mid air.
"Anything to get you off my ship!" Luffy shouted. This is where the real fight begins. Luffy jumped in the air to attack Ren. "Gum-Gum- Pistol!" Luffy stretched his arm at high speed and it seemingly cleanly hit Ren, but at the last second Ren used the Moon Bounce technique to lessen the damage and used both his hands to grab Luffy's arms in a tight grip. "Crap!"
"Luffy!" Nami, and Chopper shouted with concern. Ren tossed Luffy up in the air and then shouted, "Tempest Kick!" He swung his leg so fast it created a wind so strong it would slice Luffy in half if it hit. Luffy, using exceptional acrobatics, avoided the attack by inches by doing a midair somersault.
"Crafty punk!" Ren muttered bitterly.
"Gum-Gum…" Luffy was going to take advantage of the altitude. He pulled his arms as far back as he could.
"You want to turn this into a mid air battle, then fine!" Ren shouted at the top of his lungs. "Let's see how you can handle a guy who can actually stay in the air! MOON BOUNCE!" He launched himself skyward using a very powerful Moon Bounce that made a very loud sound. He got into a stance similar to Luffy's by sticking his arms behind, but instead of his hands sticking out he just stuck out his index fingers. "Finger…."
"Bazooka!" they both shouted in unison. The Strawhats were amazed at the sight. Ren's fingers clashed with Luffy's palms creating another shockwave even more powerful than the ones before. The clashed lingered for only seconds, but to the fighters it was lasting hours.
"Copy… cat," Luffy managed to taunt.
"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery... cous," Ren managed to retort.
"Those two are amazing," Chopper said in awe. He knew his captain was fighting for his life, but he's never had the chance to see him fight someone with strength equal to his before.
"Indeed." Zoro said with a smirk. "Luffy's cousin truly is a formidable foe. Almost want to fight him myself."
"I hope Luffy kills him," sanji said bitterly. He was still angry about his initial encounter with Ren.
"You guys do realize Luffy's fighting for his life, right?" asked Nami annoyed at them, while Robin just watched.
Still in their clash Ren took his shot. "Moon Bounce… Kick!" Ren attacked Luffy with a roundhouse kick powered with the Moon Bounce and sent him flying and he crashed onto the crows nest roof.
"Luffy!" some of the Strawhats called out in concern.
On the marine ship of the Demon Unit Shauna watched with the look of someone who was impressed. "Wow. I didn't think those two softies would go all out like this. I kind of expected them to be unable to actually use any of their real power to attack an be reluctant to use any of their real skills at all."
"Both of them remember…" Captain Lilia said mysteriously. This was the first time she had said a word in a since Ren left.
"What?"
"They both remember their sparring matches when they were younger." Lilia continued as if that were enough to explain everything. "They have an even record, right?"
"Right." said Shauna certainly. "217 win 217 losses. I had almost forgotten about that."
"But those two have never forgotten. Mark my words, win or lose, this is a battle capable of shaking the sea itself."
Shauna nodded with understanding. This really is a battle capable of shaking, not only the Grand Line, but all 4 Blue Seas as well. This isn't a battle between a pirate and a marine this is a fight between men. Shauna grinned and whispered to herself, "Those two are such big saps."
On the Thousand Sunny, Ren gracefully landed on to the deck. He ignored the glaring Strawhats and focused his gaze on the rising Luffy, who was picking himself up from the roof of the crow's nest and dusted himself off. This fight was far from over, but he wouldn't be Ren if he didn't throw an insult or two at an opponent. He cupped his hands over his mouth and shouted at the top of his lungs. "What's wrong I thought you wanted to kick me off your ship!"
"That's right I will!" Luffy shouted back. He got into the position of the Gum-Gum Pistol. "Which is why I won't hold anything back! Gum-Gum Pistol!" he jumped from his spot and shot the powerful attack with added momentum of a downward angle. Like before Ren was prepared "Iron Body!" Ren's technique absorbed the power, but this time he appeared to really feel the blow.
Luffy landed hard on the deck. "That Iron Body technique is real pain in the neck."
Usually Ren would make a smart allec response, but this time he seemed to be thinking about something else. He was, creepily, muttering something from his breath. "Pistol… rifle… bazooka… there's also gattling and battle axe too and what else?"
"Ren what are you-"
"Luffy, you still use those moves you developed with sis and I back then a lot, right?" Ren asked mysteriously.
"Yeah…?" Luffy responded. This was an unusually tense atmosphere for a talk with Ren. The Strawhats listened closely at what he had to say.
"Then I've got some bad news for you," Ren said with a grin.
"What?" Luffy asked feeling uneasy.
"Pretty soon all those techniques you had used against me will be completely neutralized. This I promise you, Cous."
So what do you think of Ren? Do you like him? Hate him? Think he's funny? Think he's cool? How do you think the fights going? Please review