Contention

As mentioned by Vice-Admiral Momonga, the Shichibukai Dracule Mihawk arrived at G-5 the next morning. Really, really early the next morning: Smoker was roused from the bed he'd commandeered on a lower floor –as Lisska and her bodyguard were occupying his usual quarters– before the dawn shift change by a trembling Warrant Officer who informed him the World's Strongest Swordsman was standing outside the front gate. Smoker had dressed quickly, sent the man back to his post and hurried down to the gate, silently cursing the day that the World Government had decided to offer certain notorious pirates conditional pardons in exchange for their support. Hawk-Eyes was the most longstanding Shichibukai by far, having served the World Government for twenty years without once doing anything the Gorosei had to cover up or overlook. From reading past reports Smoker suspected the World's Strongest Swordsman was more apathetic towards the government than anything else, but at least he did not thrive of chaos and strife like other pirates did: he simply did as he pleased, wandering the Grand Line and sporadically responding to the Gorosei's summons.

As he hurried down the stairs, Smoker realised that Hawk-Eyes' daughter would have been a little over a year old when the World's Strongest Swordsman accepted the position of Shichibukai. Was that why the man had done it? It would certainly explain why a man who clearly cared for nothing except proving his own strength would let himself be tied down in such a way.

Striding out of the front door, the commodore was confronted with the sight of the tall, dark-haired Shichibukai with his massive cross-shaped sword strapped to his back frowning pensively at the trembling Marines on gate duty. As they were part of Smoker's own new division and had likely been aware of the attempts on Lisska, even if they hadn't participated, their fear was all the more justified.

"Hawk-Eyes," Smoker growled, "you're early."

"White Hunter," the Shichibukai said coolly. "I trust my daughter is well?"

"I'll take you to her," the Marine Commodore said briskly, turning around as the World's Greatest Swordsman walked inside the G-5 compound and fell in step behind him. "Her bodyguard showed up yesterday afternoon." Smoker had been hoping for a response of some kind, but Hawk-Eyes simply nodded slightly in acknowledgement of the statement. The silence remained as Smoker led the way up the stairs to his private office and attached suite, where the White Hunter banged on the door to the bedroom until it opened.

"Shh!" Spadille hissed, raising a finger to his lips as he slipped out into the office in nothing but his underwear. "She's still asleep and I do not want her waking up early after the week she's had."

"Spadille," Hawk-Eyes said flatly. "Where were you?"

The son of Whitebeard sighed, a hand sliding through his hair and down his face. "Good morning to you too, boss. We got cornered on Smokestack by four of Kaido's captains wanting to take Lisska for something; don't know what and don't care. I sunk the ships, made her leave the island and then hunted down every last pirate left on land. Took me three days; could have done it in under an hour but Smokestack's densely populated and Precious doesn't like it when I create masses of unnecessary collateral damage; says it's a sign of incompetence."

"It is," the Shichibukai said dryly. "Continue."

"Followed her to Spinoza, where we'd agreed to rendezvous as it's got a Marine base next to the port and pirates weren't likely to try and abduct her from there," Spadille went on, "but she wasn't there when I arrived and asking around I found out the base Commodore cornered her on her second day there and tried to murder her. I needed more info than that so I visited the base, asked a few questions, found out Smoker here had picked her up and that he was attached to G-5, so I borrowed an Eternal Pose and set out again. Arrived here yesterday afternoon and haven't left Precious' side since." He paused. "Hey, remind me to give that Pose back later, will you?"

Smoker grunted, amused despite himself at what the tall youth had left out. "You also burnt the base to the ground," he said gruffly, "and crippled Commodore Henken."

Spadille blinked innocently, a wide smile on his face. "I did? Really? Can you prove it?"

Smoker growled, now irritated: he couldn't prove it. The Spinoza base had caught fire as this infuriating individual walked through it but the man hadn't actually been caught doing anything. As for Henken, the man's mind had been utterly destroyed by his experiences and he wasn't doing more than whimper in terror or scream in agony right now.

"I'll take that as a no," Spadille said cheerfully. "Anything else?"

"Why was my daughter attacked by Marines?" Hawk-Eyes asked, turning to face Smoker with a slight frown on his face, "and why are some of her assailants still walking around?"

Smoker bit down hard on his cigars. "I accept full responsibility for the stupidity of my men;" he said firmly, "as their commanding officer I can't stand by and let you kill them."

"The World Government has always been very zealous in defending the rights and wellbeing of Pose Artificers," Hawk-Eyes continued, gaze becoming darker and more intense. "They are exceedingly valuable and highly necessary to the smooth running of the Marine forces. It would not be the first time an example was made; certainly Commodore Henken will be written off as a liability after his participation in this… incident."

Smoker realised then that Lisska had likely picked the profession she had for the additional protection it offered: despite having to take serious risks with the Grand Line's weather and other unpredictable factors, Pose Artificers were offered almost as much protection by the World Government as the Tenryuubito were. Capable Artificers were rarer than Sea Stone and far, far more valuable.

"You would die for your men?" Hawk-Eyes asked, raising an eyebrow by a mere fraction. "Would they appreciate your sacrifice, I wonder, or would they discard it through their own blindness and self-serving greed?"

Smoker growled, wishing he still had his jitte; he'd had to order a replacement after Boa Hancock had destroyed his first one and it wasn't finished yet. "Whether or not they appreciate it is beside the point," he ground out. "They are under my command, making their actions my responsibility. All of their actions."

Hawk-Eyes sighed, reaching for his sword. "What a waste."

"Tashigi said she owed Precious for saving her life," Spadille said abruptly, drawing both men's attention to him. "She's Smoker's ensign, boss. Kinda wimpy but knows her way around a sword."

Smoker stiffened in abrupt fury. "You can't have Tashigi!"

Hawk-Eyes glanced sideways at him. "With you dead, what will become of her?" the Shichibukai asked cruelly. "Spadille says she lacks the resolve to make her own way in the New World."

Smoker bit down hard on his cigars, hating both men in front of him with a ferocious loathing for making him chose between Tashigi and his new command. It was true that Tashigi was soft, but if he died he trusted Hina to take the Ensign in. But if these two persuaded Tashigi to leave the Marines by playing on her guilt should he die…

"Whazzup?" came a slurred voice from his left. All three men turned to see Lisska leaning against the door frame wearing a baggy nightgown, her loosely braided hair hanging past her knees.

"Precious?" Spadille said cautiously, sliding over to hover next to her. "Are you okay?"

The woman leant into her bodyguard's side, arms wrapping around his waist. "S too early for this, Kajin," she complained with a yawn. "Oh. G'mornin' father, Smoker-san."

"How many murder attempts were there by the Marines, daughter?" Hawk-Eyes asked. Lisska straightened automatically, but didn't let go of Spadille.

"Before Smoker-san took me into custody or after?"

"Both."

"Before… Commodore Henken tried to bash my head in, so that's one," the sleepy Pose Artificer mumbled, counting on her fingers. "Then he sent Marine patrols after me, not sure how many-"

"Five six man patrols," Spadille interrupted.

"…'kay. They all tried to kill me first, so I killed all of them back except the last one, 'cause Smoker-san was watching," Lisska went on. "Killed two of the last one, maimed the other four. So… thirty-one attempts at least. After Smoker took me on board his ship there were… four attempts. One guy tried to shoot me, another dropped cannonballs on me, another tried to knock me overboard and then a gang of them tried to kill Tashigi and make it look like I did it so they could kill me next and claim revenge."

Smoker hadn't known one of his men had tried to knock her overboard. "Five attempts while in my care, Lisska-san," he admitted heavily. "A man broke into your cabin on the first night."

Spadille snickered. "Bet he got the shock of his life," the well-built man muttered with a grin.

Lisska blinked. "Oh. Did I make a mess?"

Smoker snorted at her apologetic curiosity. "Less than when you saved Tashigi." Though cleaning their comrades' brains off his cabin ceiling after that last attempt had done a lot to cool his men's' thirst for senseless violence.

"Yet you are reluctant to see me make an example of such scum, Commodore," Hawk-Eyes noted with a frown.

Lisska snorted. "You're just another pirate to Smoker-san, father," she pointed out: "he's a proper Marine. He wouldn't hand over a rabid dog to you if he could possibly avoid it."

Spadille snickered, the Shichibukai's lips twitched and Smoker abruptly got the impression he was about to get even more deeply into debt with Lisska than before.

"You have a solution, daughter?" Hawk-Eyes asked dryly, folding his arms.

"Demand an inquiry and Headquarters will have everyone actually involved court-martialled and shot," Lisska said bluntly. "Marine justice at its finest. I can point them all out if you like." She paused. "You can always beat Smoker-san into a bloody pulp for failing to protect me from his command afterwards. Or before, even: I doubt anyone from Headquarters would care either way."

Hawk-Eyes was scowling but he did seem to be considering it; Smoker had to admit it was a solution he was more comfortable with. Those who'd disobeyed him would be suitably punished and the remaining men would understand how important justice was to ensure order was maintained.

"Why wouldn't they care, Precious?" Spadille asked quietly, though Smoker heard him just fine and likely so did the Shichibukai.

"Smoker makes a lot of the, ah, less principled officers further up the ranks uncomfortable," Lisska murmured back. "No real enemies, but a lot of people would turn a blind eye if he had a nasty accident."

"Ah." Smoker had suspected something like that, but hearing it spoken out loud made his gut boil. He didn't doubt the information; Pose Artificers interacted directly with Headquarters as part of their contracts so Lisska likely overheard a lot of gossip.

"Satisfactory," Hawk-Eyes said eventually. "However I will not be allowing you to wander freely in your current condition now that you are clearly being targeted. I will find a safe house for you and Spadille and you will stay there."

"Father!" Lisska protested. "What about my checkups!"

The Shichibukai raised an eyebrow. "Your doctor can visit you."

"But islands are boring!" the woman whined childishly, pouting.

"You are not in any condition for further 'excitement'," the Shichibukai said repressively. "Or do I have to place you in your mother's custody?"

Lisska wilted. "I'll be good," she muttered, leaning her head against Spadille's side. "Can I at least stay in the New World?"

Hawk-Eyes glanced at Smoker. "I don't see why not, so long as you stay well away from Marines."

"Promise," Lisska said instantly. "Can I go back to sleep now? Moth woke me up but I'm still tired."

Hawk-Eyes nodded and the woman dragged her bodyguard back into the bedroom and firmly shut the door. The Shichibukai then turned to face Smoker again:

"We will leave as soon as my daughter is ready; be sure your men understand that you and she are all that keep me from taking all their lives for their complicity." He strode out of the office.

Smoker clenched his fists and breathed deeply, trying to keep his temper in check. He had been right: he now owed Lisska his own life as well as Tashigi's, not to mention those of his men. Owing her was however less irritating than owing someone like Straw-Hat would be; at least she wasn't a pirate or an idiot.

Smoker meets another Shichibukai, but at least this meeting went better than the previous ones did: Crocodile and Boa Hancock both tried to kill him. That's the only high point though.