Chapter 2
CAPTAIN BARTOLOMEO 'THE CANNIBAL'
Justice was a term thrown around rather loosely. Each person he had met had his own definition of this word, one which was embroidered into the cape of every marine.
Some used it as a shield for their own nefarious gains, others thought it to be the maintenance of the status quo. Everyone had their own definition, and those who did not were too insignificant and did not matter at all in this world.
If you wished to rise up in this world and survive, you needed to have a 'will' of your own, a character that set you apart from the common rabble. And though for a regular boy born in East Blue, his little island may be his entire world.
Bartolomeo was no ordinary boy. No, he was special, for even as a child, he had known of the treachery, complexity, and hidden powers that ruled over them all. And while he had thought that this knowledge and understanding would drive him into the path of Piracy, he had understood quickly that, good or not, a Pirate was a criminal.
And though there may be a few who differed from the norm, more often than not, Pirates were monsters, cruel monsters who cared nothing about people at all. They laughed as they plundered a family's entire fortune, smiled as they murdered people, and danced as they left islands upon islands in sheer devastation.
The Marines were only a little better, for their sheer size made corruption rampant. Apart from the areas surrounding the Marine Headquarters, many of the marine bases were embroiled in corruption, often joining hands with Pirates themselves as they exploited the people for their own personal gain.
And that was all in addition to their absolute servitude to the World Government and all its hidden arms, for the Marines acted as a front to one of the most nefarious institutions of the world.
This world was in need of change, someone who stood up for the people. Protected them from all those who would prey on them and exploit them, pirate, marine, or otherwise.
That was his goal, and for that purpose he had joined the Marines, for that was how he could protect the most number of people. Or at least that had been his hope, when he had joined, yet the corruption, the bureaucracy, and the hidden agendas embedded into the Organization continuously ate away at his ambition.
Yet he would fight. He would cling to his ideals, for that was the decision he had made.
"Where are we going, Captain Bartolomeo?" questioned the newest addition to his crew, and the girl had blonde hair, tied in a ponytail with bangs covering her forehead.
She was a sniper that had been added to his crew by the Fleet Commander, though the purpose of it remained lost on him.
"And who are you again?" he asked, much to the surprise of the young girl.
"I am ensign Hibari, captain Bartolomeo. I have been assigned to you by Vice Admiral Tsuru," and the name seemed somewhat familiar. Perhaps, if it had been years ago, he might still have remembered all the details, though now it was a hassle just keeping the major chunks of information in his head.
"So, you are my babysitter," and it was common for captains to have a lower-ranked officer attached to them, his own comrade. Smoker often complained about his own ensign.
He had thought himself spared the duty of caring for another soul, but it seems like he was wrong.
"No, sir. I am here to help you," she said, straightening up, but he could tell that she was growing nervous and for good reason. He had quite a reputation in the Marines, one caused by a few misunderstandings he was too lazy to correct.
"Well, welcome to the crew, Ensign Hibari, come and sit down," he said as he sat there on the deck, resting as they sailed towards their destination.
"Yes, sir," and she was a bit shy and reserved as she came and sat down in the chair beside him.
"So, Captain, may I know where we are heading?" she asked again as he closed his eyes, and answered.
"Didn't Vice Admiral Tsuru tell you where we are going?" he asked, and she shook her head.
"No, sir," and he sighed, cursing the old woman as he began.
"Well, we are going to East Blue Ensign Hibari to meet up with the crew of Vice Admiral Garp," and she recognised that name instantly as her eyes widened.
"We are going to meet, Garp-sama," and the Hero of Marines remained as popular as ever, and their organization seemed determined to milk that popularity to the last drop.
"Yes," and the intentions of the Fleet Admiral were clear to him, for he thought that Garp-sensei would be able to stop him from becoming a part of the SWORD.
But he was wrong. Bartolomeo had made up his mind. He had become a part of the Marines to help people, to save people, and he would remain a part of the Marines as long as the title aided him in doing that.
When this association became a burden for him, he would not hesitate to resign.
"Yes, though before that we are going to do a bit of a clean-up in East Blue, and meet with a few old friends," and it had been quite some time since he had met with Smoker, so it would be good to meet up with again and check in on his 'other businesses'
"Clean up?" she asked, having never heard the term before.
"Yes, we are going to be hunting Marines," he replied with a smile, though the answer seemed to come as a surprise to her.
"Marines?" she gasped, and Bartolomeo nodded.
"Yes," but she, like many other naive and idealistic people, believed the Marines to be a force of absolute good.
"But why would we attack the Marines, Captain? They are our allies," she asked, and she was young and might have just come out of the academy, so she lacked the proper exposure to the outside world.
Bartolomeo gazed at the girl, and he still remained conflicted about her being a part of his crew, though the truth was that until now, he had no actual crew of his own. He liked to act independently, but he was beginning to reach his upper limit and would soon need to gather a proper crew rather than the ragtag of marines he usually used.
"Do you want to know which people are most dangerous for the Marines?" he asked, and she gave the textbook answer.
"Pirates, Captain," he said, and shook his head.
While Pirates are an external enemy, their presence mostly aids the Marines, as people seek refuge and hope under our banner. No, the most harmful people to the image and motto of the Marines are none other than the Marines themselves...."
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NOJIKO
There were times when Nojiko hated herself for being a useless sister and a useless daughter. It had been eight years since Arlong had killed their mother and overtaken their village, yet Nojiko still had not changed at all.
She was still the same useless girl as before, waiting to be saved by someone else. She had spent eight years watching her little sister toil through pain and suffering as she tried to gather that Million Beri so that she could buy off their village from that wretch Arlong.
The entire village knew of her plan, yet they held their tongues, putting as they put their faith in her younger sister's hands, for she was their only hope. Arlong and his crew had deep ties with the Marine Captain who oversaw the East Blue base.
And anytime they tried to reach out to Marine HQ, Arlong and his pirates would simply destroy any and every force sent their way.
And so they had no hope apart from Nami, her little sister, who continued to struggle for their sake. And they could do nothing else but survive, cling to life, and believe in her.
But as that wretched Marine Captain Nezumi and his men dug around at the hiding spot where Name had buried her money, she felt even that small glimmer of hope vanish.
"Arlong! That bastard!" she cursed in a whisper as she saw the Marine captain smirk when they came upon the hidden stash of cash.
"Now what do we have here?" he whispered as his men handed him a stack of cash.
"Let go! I said Let go of that!" Nami screamed from behind her, her chest heaving, indicating that she had run to the place.
"Nami," she gasped as her sister walked forward in a trance.
"As a marine captain, I must apprehend all this illegal money," and he smiled, as Genzo-san cut in.
"That money is not illegal. It has been earned by Nami so that she may buy back the village from Arlong! Do what you wretched marines are supposed to do!" Genzo cut in, much to Nami's surprise.
"You knew," her sister gasped as the village leader nodded.
"Of course we did," Genzo added, revealing the secret as Nami gasped.
"It was why we kept quiet and continued to suffer, for each and every one of us knew that you were suffering more than us. That you were carrying a burden much greater than us all," and he rubbed his head as he stepped forward, and pleaded to the Marine Captain.
"It is your job as Marines to stop scum like Pirates, yet you not only fail to do that, but you join hands with them and help them in their purpose," the Marine Captain said, and his demeanor shifted as he looked at Genzo and smirked.
"DO YOU HAVE NO SHAME!"
I don't know what you're talking about. We were just informed about an illegal stack of cash, and we just came here to investigate. And now that we have found it I have no choice but to confiscate it all," and Nami whose eyes had begun to water, looked up as she gripped her staff and walked forward.
"Get away from that," she whispered.
"You have no right to touch that," she screamed as she ran forward, staff in hand as she tried to attack the marines.
"You dare threaten a marine," and Nojiko stilled as she saw that Marine captain take out a pistol, and she was reminded of that scene from years ago, when Arlong had shot their mother.
Her body moved on its own, as she saw the Marine captain aim it at Namie as Nojiko pulled her back and put herself in between Nami and the pistol barrel.
"WATCH OUT!" she screamed, as she heard the pistol being fired from behind.
BOOOOM!
"Nojiko!" Nami screamed, finally out of her trance as she prepared herself for death.
SWISH! CLANG!
Yet neither came the pain, nor the death, and she glanced back in trepidation and saw a barrier separating them and the Marines.
"What the hell!" the marine captain screamed, and he fired again.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Yet none of the bullets managed to reach them, as the translucent barrier between them stopped them.
"WHAT IS THIS SORCERY!" he screamed, panicking as they all frowned, and a glimmer of hope began to bubble in her heart as a foreign voice cut through the air.
"Its not sorcery," and they all looked up at once, and there in the air was another person, looking down at them all, with a raised brow, his uniform much similar to the one worn by that wretched Marine Captain.
But their physiques were entirely different. He had green unruly hair, and his canines were long enough to protrude out of his mouth, yet the most striking thing about him was his age.
He seemed no older than Nami, yet if the medals on his shirt were anything to go by he held the rank of captain.
"Though that is all a question for later," and he seemed to be flying in the air, and lowered himself and landed in front of them, and the power and pressure emanating out him reminded Nojiko of Arlong himself.
"A marine," Genzo gasped as the Nezumi began to sweat.
"First of all, I would like to know why the hell is a Marine captain shooting their weapon at an unarmed civilian?" he asked, and suddenly a wave of pressure oozed out of him as Nojiko felt herself getting pushed down to her knees.
And she was not the only one, as she saw Nezumi and his crew had been unable to resist and were now on the ground, sweating and trembling as this new marine looked down at them.
"And who are you to question me?" Nezumi screamed as this new Marine stepped forward until he was right above him.
"Me! I thought I wouldn't need to introduce myself anymore, given my infamy," he asked, his hands still in his pockets, and she saw the words register as Nezumi paled.
"You are him! You are the Cannibal!" he gasped, and for the first time since he had intervened, the Marine captain broke into a smile.
"So, you have heard of me," he whispered.
"Indeed, I am Captain Bartolomeo from the Marines' Internal Division, and I believe I have asked you a question?" he said, and he put his foot down on the Neszumi's hand. The captain screamed as the sound of his bones breaking spread through the clearing.
"AGHHHH!" he screamed.
"Why the hell did you fire your gun at an innocent civilian?" he asked again, his voice thundering, as Nezumi screamed.
"Pirate! She is that Pirate girl's sister! I was just trying to seize her loot..." and the newcomer glanced towards the stack of cash, before he turned towards them, and Nojiko felt herself still as those eyes landed on them all.
"Is he telling the truth?"
"Are you really a pirate...."
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