"Ugh, what's taking us so long?" Shanks' footsteps pounded against the wooden floorboards, creating a steady drumming pattern with the waves as he paced across the deck. The past few days had been torturous to the crew. The men had hardly slept since the warlord's ominous visit and the captain hadn't been able to hold still. What made it worse was the ever present fear that something had happened to their little Anchor. "Damn it Mihawk. The least you could do is give me a clue as to what's going on. That way I'd know what I'm up against. Or, heck, maybe you could've even stuck around and helped me out! I wouldn't have minded at all. It's not like I'm worried or anything!" Shanks didn't care if the man could hear his ranting or not.
Nearby, Benn took a long puff from his cigarette. "We should be thankful for what he did tell us, Captain. We'll get there soon, so how about we take a deep breath and calm down."
"I'M PERFECTLY CALM!" The crew jumped, staring at Shanks with wide, startled eyes. Giving an angry huff, the captain stomped off childishly. Benn chuckled softly. While he could understand his leader's worry, it was still amusing when he broke the calm persona that he was commonly known for.
"Hey, stop laughin' Benn! This is serious!" Yasopp barreled over, jamming a finger into the vice captain's chest. "You don't know what it's like not knowing if your kid's alright. Anchor's like the captain's own son, so he's probably panicking over every possible situation right now! With other pirates involved, there's no way to predict what'll happen!" The blonde's nostrils flared aggressively. "Just because I'm the only other father on this ship, doesn't mean you can't try to understand!"
The air crackled with tension and Yasopp gulped, realizing he had crossed the line. Benn's eyes narrowed slightly and, with a light tug, he pulled the accusing appendage away from him. "That's enough," he said in a deathly calm voice, "Get back to your post." The authority in his tone destroyed any arguments the sniper might have still had, forcing him to obey the order.
Scrambling up the ship's rigging, Yasopp pulled himself into the crow's nest. He peered over the edge to see if Benn was still watching him, only to find that he was stomping across the deck. Guilt coursed through Yasopp. He had definitely gone too far in suggesting that the brunet didn't care about their young friend, but there was nothing he could do to change things. The words were out and he could only hope that Benn would calm down enough for him to apologize.
Yasopp stood and rested his elbows on the wooden wall surrounding him, staring off into the vast ocean. Why had he gotten so angry in the first place? Nothing the first mate had said was in any way malicious, but when he had heard it, Yasopp felt defensive. All he could think about was how they had no idea what Luffy was doing or how the seven-year old was holding up without them. The kid could be sitting on the shore, clinging to Makino and crying out for them, and they wouldn't know a damn thing about it. What if Luffy started to hate them for leaving? Even worse, what if he started to think they hated him?
His own words ran through his head repeatedly in a mocking manner. 'The only other father on the ship? Yeah, that's a good one.' Mental images of a long-nosed toddler stumbling toward him tugged at his heart, only to be followed by memories of his quiet crewmate and little Anchor. 'Benn's more of a father than I could ever be. What kind of man leaves his wife and son to follow some selfish dream?' He shook his head, frustrated. 'Banchina told me to go!' his thoughts argued. 'She wanted me to sail with Shanks. Hell, she even said she was proud of me! It's not like I left them in a bad situation. Nothing happens on Syrup Island. I'm sure they're fine!' Back and forth his mind was torn between gnawing regret and desperate hopes.
"Hey Yasopp!" a shout interrupted, "Do ya see anything?"
Snapping out of his internal debate, Yasopp scanned the area. "All I see so far are some storm clouds a little ways ahead of us!"
"Storms? But the sky looked fine a few minutes ago."
Yasopp squinted, trying to focus on the clouds slowly drifting towards them. "Wait a minute…" Instead of being large and thick like most storm clouds, the blackness was thin and wispy, creating a delicate veil between the pirates and sunlight. This veil stopped somewhere in the near distance, trailing down to a land mass on the horizon. "That's no storm…Shit! Go get Shanks! There's smoke coming from the island!"
Frenzied activity roared across the boat as the crew prepared to dock within the village harbor. "Everybody, listen up!" Shanks addressed. "Once we make landfall, I want all of you to stick together! We've got no idea what's going on, so I don't want anybody rushing in!" As they pulled in, the red-head took note of a large ship docked along the Eastern cliffs of island. Large purple sails decorated the dark finish of the wood and a red flag bearing a jolly roger fluttered from the mast. The skull and crossbones held no expression, only the white symbol of pirating. No figurehead stared them down and they were met to an empty port.
The town was nothing like Shanks remembered leaving it. The steps where he and Luffy had last talked remained untouched, but beyond them was pure chaos. Buildings breathed plumes of smoke and glowed orange as they crumbled into ruins. The once peaceful streets were splattered with blood and already a few bodies littered the ground. It made Shanks sick.
A barrel shifting caused the captain to whip around, his knuckles white from clutching his saber tightly. "Who's there? Show yourself!" he barked.
"Shanks? Is that you, you trouble making brat?" Shanks breathed a sigh of relief as a familiar red and white cap popped out. Woop Slap stepped forward, pushing his cracked yellow glasses farther up his nose. "Can't believe I'm saying this to a pirate, but I'm mighty glad you're here."
"Captain Shanks! Thank goodness!" Makino ran out of the nearest alley, practically ripping Shanks' arm off as she grabbed his hand. "It's terrible! The pirates have run amok through the village! They've raided almost all of the stores and have destroyed over half of the homes!"
Shifting in her tight grip, Shanks held the barkeeper at arm's length, looking deeply into her eyes. "I'm so glad you're safe, but tell me Makino, where's Luffy? Is he with the other villagers?"
Woop Slap stamped his cane into the dirt roughly. "Those fiends probably dragged him away. The last time either of us saw him, that foolish boy was charging to the shore with a couple of shady looking men, yelling about the pirate ship edging closer. After that, the barbarians pillaged to their heart's content. The majority of the villagers are hiding in the forest near the base of the mountains, but a few of them are still missing. That reminds me," he turned on his heel sharply, "Makino, I specifically told you to wait with the others! It's far too dangerous out here for a young woman."
"I wasn't going to let you go alone! What if they try to harm you?"
"I'm the mayor. It's my job to look out for my citizens. If any of them are still out there and alive, I plan to escort them to safety myself."
"Quite frankly, you should both get to safety," Shanks interjected. "My men and I plan to take care of this, but in order to do that we need to know where they're hiding and where they've taken Luffy." He met the mayor's determined gaze, sensing the elder man's resolve. "Do you think you could help us find them?"
The mayor puffed out his chest and squared his shoulders. "I would be abandoning my duty if I did otherwise. Come, follow me. I may have an idea where they have their base." With a wave of his hand, he marched down the road proudly and Shanks motioned for his crew to follow behind. He feared the worst, but prayed that they would reach the boy in time.
(A.N. Good lord, I'm so sorry this is late! To those on who've been waiting for this story for almost three months, I thank you immensely for being patient with me. There was an unexpected illness in my immediate family that became terminal, so I was away arranging and attending the funeral. Thanks to everyone who's shown continuous support and I hope this return didn't disappoint.)