The Problem Of Saltrock Island

Just over an hour later the Rione docked in the Harbour of Saltrock Island. The sheer size of the ship dwarfing all the other vessels currently docked there.

Endrino on the deck before his crew, everyone was eager to explore… well almost everyone.
"Okay, who wants to go?" Endrino asked, having to make the decisions as to who stayed with the ship.
Unsurprisingly it was Katashi that spoke up first, eager as ever to search out the beauties of the Island. "I'll go!" he called, barely able to stand still for more than a second.
Isamu sighed from his deck-chair in the shade of the main mast, "I'll stay here, I think I'll get heatstroke if I go wandering about anywhere".
At Isamu's words, the small trainee doctor raised his hand, getting Endrino's attention, who nodded at him to speak. "I'll stay with Isamu, just in case the heat does get to him".
Endrino smiled gratefully at Kotex, glad the mousey brown haired doctor had read his mind. It was a lot of weight of his shoulders not to have to worry about his first mate's condition. "Alright then, I guess you will be staying too Yuu?" He looked up at the giant, who was sat cross-legged on the wooden deck.
Yuudai smiled at his captain. "Yes I shall stay, Endrino-kun~ I think I'd cause quite the fuss if I started wandering around town". His large brown eyes glittered with amusement at this idea.
Endrino nodded, "well that's the three people I wanted to keep an eye on the Rione sorted, as for the rest of you, it's your decision as to what you all do".

Eric tugged on Endrino's trouser leg to get the captains attention, grinning enthusiastically at Endrino when he turned his attention to him.
Endrino smiled warmly at Eric, knowing instantly what he wanted as soon as his green eyes met the brown irises of the boy. "Oh alright then," he said mocking annoyance "I guess you can come with me." And with that he lifted Eric up with ease onto his bare shoulders.
Eric giggled with excitement. "To Adventure!" he yelled as loud as he could.
Endrino winced as the boys voice rang in his ears. "Oi, you. I want to keep my hearing thank you very much!" He protested, but he wasn't angry at the boy.
"Sorry Da- Captain" Eric apologised, blushing red as he realised that yet again he had almost called Endrino 'Dad' again.
Cozmo joined them, dragging a protesting Katashi with him, before the navigator could run off.

Osamu and Takeshi teamed up to get some more food supplies, as any chance to top up their stocks was a chance better left unmissed, what with the potential conditions in the grand line being so unpredictable.

Sangrie walked off on his own, muttering something about needing more explosive powder as he passed his older half-brother. He was far happier being alone, where he could keep himself, to himself, rather than go with someone and be pestered.

Isamu leaned back in his chair as they disappeared into town, sighing. "Yuudai," He called out to the giant.
"Hmmm?" The giant replied as he turned his attention from the town to the white haired teen.
"Is it a really good idea to let those idiots go off together?" Isamu asked the giant opinion, his pale blue eyes searing the giant expression.
Yuudai chuckled, "You mean Endrino, Eric, Cozmo and Katashi?" He paused, and Isamu nodded confirming his guess to be correct. "Who knows" Yuudai said light-heartedly.

As Endrino's group walked further into town, it became increasingly apparent that something wasn't right. There wasn't anyone walking around, no children playing in the streets, no-one was about to even acknowledge their arrival, forget treat them like pirate heroes as Katashi had predicted they would.
Needless to say in this atmosphere all the pirates were rather subdued, Eric was now sitting on Endrino's shoulders quietly, instead of bouncing up and down with excitement. Cozmo and Endrino walked along in silence, and Katashi had even snapped out of his usually land locked lecherousness.

The town wasn't abandoned, Endrino was sure of that. His sharp hearing could pick up the faint sound of people talking as they passed a house with an open window. The harbour town was a pretty, tidy and generally well-kept place, the atmosphere surrounding them was all wrong for it, being the kind of atmosphere you would expect to find in a beaten up, old ghost town.

Cozmo pointed out a welcoming looking pub further up the street, and with a nod, the pirates agreed to try it out.
Inside were a few people, a bunch of older men sat around a table near the bar, and a couple of families out for lunch. But even despite this, the bar had an unusual stifling atmosphere, just like outside. Chatter seemed minimal and quiet; it made Cozmo's hair stand on edge.
The bar-maid was a young woman, with wavy dark brown hair pushed back behind her ears.
Naturally Katashi had left the sides of his comrades to talk with her, leaning on the bar, ignoring the curious stares that everyone was giving not only him, but the rest of the group as well.

Eric shrunk down on Endrino's shoulders under the weight of the customer's stares.
Being given little of choice, Endrino and Cozmo joined Katashi and his newest female friend at the bar. Endrino lifted Eric off of his shoulders and down onto a bar stool, to be honest Eric would have been happier left on his large muscular shoulders, at least there he could hide his face amongst his captain's thick jet-black hair.

With a little prompting, Katashi stubbornly introduced his crew mates to the bar maid, Cena.
In comparison to the stifling atmosphere of the pub, she had a bright and cheerfull air about her which was welcoming and light, even Eric cheered up upon hearing her voice.
Cena smiled at Eric and handed him a glass of orange juice, which he took gratefully, smiling back at her.
"We don't often get visitors here anymore" Cena said, explaining the strange looks everyone had been giving them. Her eyes jumped to the daggers on Endrino's belt before making their way up to his face. "Would I be right in guessing you guys are pirates?"
"Yes we are Cena-chan!" Exclaimed Katashi, before another thought hit him "that isn't a problem is it?"
"No, no, not at all" Cena said smiling. "In fact that's brilliant!"
Endrino looked at her sceptically, he had been a pirate all sixteen years of his life, and yet he couldn't remember a single moment where anyone had every considered that to be brilliant. He also realised something else, that was, with the discovery of them being pirates, the whole atmosphere had changed, the once steely curious stares the other customers had given them where now happy and cheerfull, even the chatter amongst them had picked up in both amount and velocity.

"Uhmm" Endrino cleared his throat, "Just how exactly is us being pirates a good thing?"
Cena beamed at him. "You guys are strong right?!"
It was Eric's turn to but in excitedly. "Yeah! Captain's the very, very, very, very, very, very, very" he paused to catch his breath, "very, very strongest!" Eric exclaimed with a massive childish grin across his face.
"That's great!" Cena professed.
Endrino frowned however, sensing they were about to be roped into something.
Cena turned back to the guys, she wasn't sure who was in charge out of them, they all seemed to be a bit young to be the captain that the boy had mentioned. They were probably all lackeys she thought, but still if she told them, word would get to whoever was in charge wouldn't it? "You see there's something I'd like you pirates to help us with"
Here is comes, Endrino thought, but nodded at Cena to continue her request, he wasn't going to jump headlong into something when he didn't know what it was.
"Well, our townspeople are being attacked by a terrible creature. It's already killed several people. Please you have to help us!" Cena begged them; her stare settling on Katashi who she accurately guessed would be the easiest to win over out of the three older guys.
Katashi instantly gave in, putting a foot up on a bar stool and pulling out his twin pistols into a crazy pose. "Of course we will Cena-chan, its ok now I will protect you!" The pose he had struck emphasizing on his words.
"You'll get rid of it for me!" Cena was almost bursting into tears of happiness by this point.
"Yes Cena-chan! We will! I Prom-"
*BAM* Endrino's hand slammed down into the bar cutting off his navigators words and making everyone jump, and stare at him. "Now just hang on a moment!" he turned his head, hand still firmly planted on the bar, to glare at his navigator. "Katashi don't forget who's the captain here!" His anger showed in his voice as must as it did the deadly green glare his was giving Katashi.
"S-sorry captain" Katashi mumbled apologetically, avoiding Endrino's gaze.

"You're the captain!" Cena burst out in surprise, her hand held over her mouth in shock, realising what a monumental mistake she had made in thinking Endrino was just a lackey.
"He sure is!" Cozmo confirmed, pulling a wanted poster out of his pocket, then handing it to her.
Cena took it and unfolded it, if a little shakily. She looked down at the poster, there was a picture of her jet black haired man in front of her, his name, Endrino 'Lion claw' Tsubasa and…. Her eyes bulged and several sweat drops rolled down the side of her face. "One….. One hundred…. A-and Fifty… M-million!" She stuttered as she read out his bounty in surprise.
Endrino looked at her, for the first time his gaze met hers. "Yeah, that right" he confirmed, a menacing grin spreading across his face.
Cena gulped, she really had made a huge miscalculation. Not only was this guy captain, but his bounty was huge, she knew full well that the government didn't put bounties like that on people for no reason. And judging by that grin of his, he knew that too.