Mission 52: People or merchandise?

[Farris (Kuro)]

The rickety old trade-ship was filled with shady characters as it neared Silvers Island. Unlike most pirate ship that would be gunned down on sight due to the Marine bases on ether sides of the port, This vessel was considered safe. The unwelcoming terrain around the the Island and it's large mountain range circling it making it hard to reach by other means. No one said this would be a pleasure cruise, as a rat skittered past the Fishman okama's feet. His hands and feet were bound in shackles and the Betta wore one of the Slave collars that he detested so much.

Three weeks earlier...

Yuuki had been back to his home, Fishman Island when he caught the news about the boy, Shiro. His parents were besides themselves with grief as they couldn't find their little boy. Yuuki could feel for them, as he imagined that was how his own parents felt when he didn't return home that day. It wasn't that he knew the couple, but understood their plight. Yuuki had searched for the boy for a full week before seeing him on land. It wasn't that that bothered him, It wasn't like Fishman couldn't be on land, but rather were the boy was...Sabaody Archipelago was no place for any Fishman, especially not a young boy!

Memories of being dragged here, of the cruel twisted faces of hate from the people made Yuuki shutter. Draping a black cloak over his exquisitely beautiful form he moved to follow the boy. Quickly to moving to try and catch the boy as he innocently darted off in awe of the human establishment with curiosity, but also being careful not to move too fast and reveal his own heritage to the humans that hated his kind so much. He wasn't quick enough though as he was snatched up by a trader, Yuuki clinched his teeth and followed the woman Trader as he took the boy to the auction house.

The queenly Betta looked for the right moment to strike, but before he could A noble Purchased the boy right there, before they even made it to the Auction, evidently the money she'd got was more than she would have from her cut at the auction. He couldn't just let this happen, but the collar was already being placed on boy. He'd need to follow them and get that key otherwise this rescue wouldn't be much of a rescue. The Noble in question named Alistor Van Rook, and while he wasn't a considered a world Noble he was a closely related to them. Often boasting about how he was the third cousin, twice removed of the uncle of a Saint someone or another. Yuuki recalled him from his days as Kaori's slave. The man was a cold and mean old windbag in the Betta's opinion.

Following Alistor to his ship, the fishman caught pieces of conversation, evidently the noble had been just leaving and had been in a especial foul mood loosing a bid at the auction house, making he's feel all the better for his latest purchase. Sneaking on to the ship, Yuuki attempted to steal the key Alistor had before making his grand rescue. Unfortunately he was caught in the act by Alistor himself who had apparently noticed that he was tailing them. Yuuki cursed as Alistor had Yuuki beaten then bound and locked up. The man thankfully didn't seem to recognize the Betta and just saw this as a two for one deal. Before they could collar him Yuuki jumped ship, and managed to escape.

He was bound and hurt but made it back to Fishman Island to inform the parents of what happened. They helped him get free and the queenly Betta vowed to rescue their boy. He knew were Alistor lived... Silvers Island... and after making some arrangements with some rather shady characters... He was on board their ship as "Cargo". He just had to hope he could actually trust these people to unbind him after they got past the check point at the docks.

Present

The trade ship started to pull up to the docks and the queenly Betta was slowly hauled up to the deck for the routine Cargo checks. Slaves weren't uncommon, they were just another type of merchandise to these people and thus every thing seemed to be going well. As the Traders accompanied him off the ship and towards Champagne city, Unaware that his accomplices had no intention of setting him free...

[Mikan]

~ Mikan Ichinose - A side story: The Capture ~

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What is this? I don't even-

The little girl thought to herself. Though, she stopped in the middle of it when the thing she was holding unto with her left hand gave out. She was climbing the side of an island. Great. But how ever did she got in there? First of all, how did she get to Grand Line? Well, it's actually easy. She's a pirate, and she was caught by the marines, while she failed miserably on climbing Red Line. She was put on the marine ship, seduced a marine soldier, and got off in the middle of the ocean with a raft. It's not really that smart to do that, since, for all we know, the next island will be 7 days travel from where she is. Though, luckily it wasn't. Just one day. She slept on the raft like a log, while the waves sent her here. On this island. She started to wake up when cannons were raining over her heads. As it turns out, she was in the front of Silvers Island. Since she's not a marine vessel, well, she was gunned down.

She quickly prayed to God, then with her hands, quickly paddled away. Sadly, the marines in this island are not as stupid as she thing it is. When they saw that raft, and the pink-haired girl sleeping, the marines were already at guard. For all they know, this girl can be a potential threat to the island. She might actually get to this island. That's what the marines though. The fact that Mikan escaped from the heavy cannon attack, the marines quickly assembled soldiers on the edges of the island. Just for safe-keeping.

At that day, when Yuuki's cargo ship arrived at the island, it was very heavy-guarded than it usually does. Now, you know why.

Mikan, after 5 hours, arrived at Silvers Island. She started celebrating with herself by screaming she's alive, dancing, and started singing. It was only minutes when the guards saw her. You can only imagine their facial expression when they saw the pink-haired girl dancing like an idiot, while the soldiers aimed their guns at her face.

"Excuse me, but this is a government island. You are not allowed to set foot in here without a note. If you don't, we'll arrest you for trespassing,"

Mikan's eyes popped out of her eyes as it quickly stretches in shock.

"Marines," she said, sweating, her hands up in the air.

"I-I have a note, but it's down there," she slowly said, putting her head down.

"Where?," one of the soldiers said.

Mikan, like a kid, pointed down the cliff to a small boat.

"Oh. There. Well, wait here, while we g-,"

You should know what happens when a marine shows their back while standing in a cliff in front of a pirate. Before the marine can finish his sentence that was going to be - "Oh. There. Well, wait here, while we go down,", Mikan took the situation in front of her, and pushed both the marines unto the boat.

The marines dropped their hand guns near Mikan, then took a plunge 20 feet below.

Mikan took one of the guns near her, and slowly marched like a marine, away from the cliff.

"Sorry, old man," she yelled back at them as she disappeared in the forest.

[Farris (Kuro)]

In the city limits, and after they got passed the heavily guarded check point, Yuuki looked around for a good spot that him and the traders could stop off into to have the shackles and collar removed. If Champagne city was how he remembered it and assuming the noble still lived in the same place, It shouldn't be hard to find Alistor and the enslaved boy. As he spotted an ally way that looked good he motioned to his companions. "How about there?" He whispered to him directing one of the traders, a Gruff but skinny middle aged man. "Oh? Sorry their pal, we just had a little... change of heart." He said with a sinister chuckle. Yuuki's eyes narrowed as he realized he was being double-crossed.

His red hair cast a shadow over his face as he was lead toward a slave store to be sold as merchandise. The Queenly Betta wasn't giving up though he was pick the man's pocket for the keys to the collar. Once he got it, they were at the front of the store. He knew if they got him in there the chances of him getting out were very slim. The Okama acted swiftly, ramming the two sending them to the ground before making a mad run down the street.

As he ran, he started to unlock the collar casting it aside as it came off, however he still had the shackles to deal with that that was sort of the lesser of the two problems. Heading down on of the streets, he saw a pink haired girl with a gun in hand. "Excuse me Darling." He said politely as he started to run past her. The reason becoming quiet clear as a grope of armed marines and the two trades where chasing behind him a few blocks down...

[Mikan]

Getting the marines to fell down the cliff was real easy. But the forest that extends from the nobles city, and the cliff wasn't Mikan's cup of tea. She ended at the cliff at least four times, and when she goes back there, she would always do something to stop the marines going up. But, by her fourth time going back there, she discovered that the marines were gone. She thought that the marines were around her, when really, they went around the island to the front. With this in her thought, she ran in a straight line, and that actually worked fine. When she ran for her life, her eyes was closed the whole time. She didn't even bother to dodge the trees, since her devil fruit took care of any accidents. She had ran into a tree, but her devil fruit helped her. So, she got off that easily.

This happened until she opened her eyes to see the city. A very sophisticated city full of huge mansions, and a very big building at the center of these houses.

Where am I?, she thought innocently, when a blue figure dressed in girl's clothing went pass her. She smiled at the thing that went by her, because of what she said. Mikan liked polite people, so when that thing said "excuse me" and a "darling" to accompany it, it actually made her day. She turned around to see her run towards the forest, as she smile towards her.

"See you-," she stopped when she heard a sound. A sound you don't expect to hear in such a rich city, like she's on. Yes, if she's not making it up, the particular sound she was hearing was the sound of at least fifty people, running. She slowly turned around, a look of resentment, and scowl as she saw the stampede head over her.

Those marines behind those traders recognized the pink haired girl and started to yell at her.

"Hey, it's the intruder!," or "The pink-haired thief" or "The mama's boy"

She was pissed off when she heard the last one. It's a very stupid thing to say, since the phrase he shouted at her was out of the subject they are in.

Her eyes gleamed, as nerves popped up from her forehead. This signals that she's mad. She quickly took the gun strapped on her back, took off the safety pin, and started shooting the groups of people. Not at the people, at the ground.

In return, the stampede started to jump, trying to evade the bullets. After about a hundred shots fired from the gun she had, she quickly threw it at the sky, which caught the traders, and the marines' attention. While their eyes are off Mikan, she slowly disappears, into the air blending with the sunlight. She turned into small cherry blossom petals.

While she was in this form, she catched up with the blue thing, hoping to ask what was happening, and where was she.

Once she saw her, she quickly re-formed her body slowly. The petals slowly came together making Mikan's body.

"Hello," she said in front of Yuuki, smiling.

"I'm Mikan, and I would love to have some answers from you. Oh, excuse me. But what are you?," she said as she touched her skin everywhere, poking it. It's rude, but hey, a pirate's always rude, right?

[Farris (Kuro)]

Now in the forest after passing the girl, Yuuki worked at picking the locks on his shackles. He wasn't very good at it, but he would need full mobility to rescue Shiro. He just hoped that pink haired woman was alright, Yuuki was always the considerate type like that. As the shackles fell and he sat under a tree and inspected his lovely physique for flaws left from the shackles and was relieved that his beautiful skin wasn't damaged, Ivan sama be praised for that.

Then the most curious thing happened the pink haired girl formed from floating Sakura right in front of him. Well at least this meant that she was alright and he could be relieved at that. "Ah, Hello Dear, I do hope I didn't leave any trouble for you back there?" Yuuki commented more than asked apologetically. "I was sort of on the run you see, my kind are viewed as slaves here." He explained casually.

Mikan's poking at him didn't really bother the Queenly Betta. He had traveled enough to know that people got curious about him. "Mikan? My What a lovely name you have Darling. I am Yuuki, a Betta Fishman and Okama." He said bowing politely as he gave his introduction to the pink haired girl. Standing up Yuuki wasn't the larges of Fishman but he still towered over most standard humans at 9 feet tall. "Now you said you had questions for me dear? I shall do my best to answer them But I'm afraid I don't have too much time to spare." The blue Fishman explained politely but informatively.

[Mikan]

"Oh, a Betta Fishman," she said interestingly. But, while she was poking around, the fishman stood up blocking what little sunlight streaming from the trees. She smiled at this. Mikan knew the okama was trustworthy. And she already knew that the okama standing in front of her was a good person. She sat down on the ground, leaning on the tree."No, it's fine, I guess. I slowed those marines down, at least. They'll at least look for me first, before you," she said looking away. She didn't want to admit that she started gunning them down, even though she really never shot any of them.

"Well, Yuuki-san, I was wondering what is this city? It seems like it's full of wealthy people," she said asking the fishman. Honestly, she had no idea.

"Oh, also, why are you in such a hurry?," she continued, taking note of the fishman's reaction when he stood up.

"Maybe I can help?," she said, giving the okama a smile.

But, before she can have any answer from the fishman whatsoever, those people Mikan thought she had slowed down quickly came into Mikan's vision. Her eyes widened in shock, then slowly stood up.

"Yuuki-chan, go ahead. I'll try to stop them. You have something else to do, right?," she said smiling turning to the enemies before them.

"Flower Skin," Mikan said seriously as flowers sprouted from her body. Very colorful flowers sprouted like that everywhere. From her arms, her legs, her face.

"I ate the Sahi Sahi No Mi. The Flower fruit. A very powerful one at that. It has two sub types: Flower, and Petal. One for defense, and one for offense. So, I'm good," she explained to the okama, not moving an inch, as the group of people made their way at Mikan, rampaging like an angry bull.