A lone marine vessel populated the calm waters of the South Blue directly east of Marine Base Seventeen. It had been sent out on a routine patrol under the command of Commander Burrell, and things were proceeding smoothly as was the usual. What was unusual about this particular patrol though, was that the newly appointed Lieutenant, Hoshikita Cross, had also been assigned to the patrol. Hoshikita had never been out on a patrol before, having been routinely stationed at the base and only heading out to sea when setting out on leave or accompanying the Captain or Commander to another base. This was the first time he had gone out on an assignment to merely ascertain that there were no threats in the surrounding waters, and it was actually rather pleasant. He was still under some pressure as Commander Burrell had him under his constant supervision and he wouldn’t be able to merely sneak off and take a nap below decks, but sailing along on the open sea was certainly not something to complain about.

The skies were blue and clear, and the ensigns worked diligently to keep the ship in working order. Commander Burrell and Hoshikita stood near the helm of the ship, keeping an eye on all of the proceedings as the ship sailed calmly through the waters of South Blue. Hoshikita thought he had seen a large creature moving in the distance, and he desperately hoped that he had been seeing things and that there were not any Sea Kings in the area. A man he could fight, but he had very few skills that would allow him to put up any kind of resistance against any monstrous sea creatures and he would certainly rather not run into any on his first patrol. Thinking of sea creatures however, Hoshikita remembered that he had been briefed on a small group of Fishmen from a notorious pirate crew that were thought to be in the area. He hoped that they wouldn’t encounter any of them either, and that this patrol would pass peacefully and without conflict. Hoshikita was a peaceful man by nature, and though he was a capable fighter he always preferred to avoid fights altogether.

Over an hour passed without incident, and Hoshikita was truly beginning to believe that there would be no incidents to be found during the patrol. The waters were calm, and they were only scheduled to be out for another two hours before they were to return to the base. The young lieutenant now eagerly awaited the meal that he would be receiving upon his return, as while not to the point of rumbling, his stomach was certainly starting to show signs of hunger. Still, he remained at alert and scanned the waters with the best of his ability. Still green as a lieutenant, he was eager to prove himself and he wanted to work diligently so that he might one day work his way up the ladder once again. He had learned over his assignments that commanding a group of men and ensuring that they all do their best and make it through safely was extremely satisfying, and he thought that perhaps climbing the ranks of the Marines might allow him to not only protect more people with his actions, but also delegate more of those actions to others while he took naps. Hoshikita pondered all of those things as he continued working along, but eventually he was asked by Commander Burrel to head up to the crow’s nest and relieve the marine who had been stationed there. The young lieutenant was happy for a change of pace and he quickly climbed the rigging up to the nest and traded positions with the ensign. The younger marine handed him the spyglass and thanked the lieutenant before climbing down the rigging to the deck.

Hoshikita pulled out the spyglass and held it up to his eye, scanning the horizon for any signs of pirate flags or really any ship in their general area. He didn’t really expect to see anything, but he still thought it was a novel and interesting experience to look through the spyglass and he did so enthusiastically. He scanned all of the surrounding waters for any sign of anything suspicious, or possibly another glimpse at that object he’d thought might be a Sea King. His efforts didn’t bear fruit immediately, but as he was gazing through the spyglass he noticed some strange movements out of the corner of the lens. He quickly turned the focus to the movements and saw two figures treading water very near the boat. They were close enough that he was able to ascertain fishman features in the figures, and his mind instantly associated them with the fishmen who were thought to be in the area. It wasn’t certain, but Hoshikita thought to immediately inform the commander regardless. “Two figures sighted in the water! Presumed fismen, possibly Angler Pirates!” He shouted down off the crow’s nest. Commander Burrel heard this and proceeded to command the marines accordingly. He ordered them to proceed with caution, and to pull the ship around to face them. As the ship was maneuvering however, Hoshikita watched the two figures dive under the water and out of view. He relayed that to the commander, who ordered the men to remain alert and return to base. A large marine ship was far too cumbersome to pursue two lone fishmen, and the Commander didn’t want to take any chances on a routine patrol. The rudder was adjusted, and the ship began to turn back towards Base Seventeen.

Hoshikita was ordered to return to his original post and another marine was sent up to the crow’s nest, and the ship made full speed back to the base. The sun was getting close to setting, and the Commander certainly didn’t want to be sailing at night when there were dangerous fishman criminals in the waters. Hoshikita was rather nervous about the whole thing, as he felt as though he had sensed animosity coming from the figures he had seen, and he had an inkling that he certainly hadn’t seen the last of them. He was keeping a close eye at the waters immediately surrounding the boat waiting for the ship to return to the base when he noticed a strange shaking motion of the ship. He assumed it to be a strange current they had ran into, or an odd wind had caught the sails. Their speed also seemed to have taken a dip, and Hoshikita wondered if the two were possibly connected. He leaned over the side of the railing to get a look at the hull when he saw something that made the color drain from his face. There was a noticeable hole in the ship’s planking beneath the surface of the water.

Hoshikita raced to inform the commander of the damage to the ship, and as he arrived he quickly went into a salute and began the report. “Commander Burrell, sir. There’s a hole in the hull of the ship, permission requested to take a small group of men below decks to investigate and make repairs.” He said, taking initiative and wanting to fix the problem as soon as possible. They were still a good ways away from Base Seventeen and the hull would continue to take on water as they made their way on. “Permission granted. Careful down there, those fish men are still about.” Said Commander Burrell, looking concerned. Hoshikita quickly moved to do so, and wondered why a report hadn’t come up from any of the ensigns working below deck. They certainly should have noticed it first and sent someone up, but it was possible it was so urgent that they needed all hands to solve the problem. With that thought in mind, Hoshikita rushed to gather a group of five men and quickly led them below the decks.

Once Hoshikita had made it halfway down the stairs, he realized why none of the ensigns had come up to report the breach. It hadn’t just been a breach. It was an infiltration, and the infiltrator appeared to be some sort of eel fishman who had pulled apart a few of the planks and snuck in that way. It seemed that all the ensigns who had been stationed down here had been taken out by the fishman, and he was now proceeding to gather up the supplies that had been stored down there. He had noticed Hoshikita rushing down and looked to now be looking to eliminate him and his men as well. “Damn it, Joble. You were supposed to take care of all the ones above deck.” Hoshikita heard the fishman mutter as he stormed his way towards the stairs through the water that had collected on the deck. Hoshikita didn’t need orders to realize that this man was a threat, and he quickly commanded his ensigns before he could close much distance. “Yeralt,” Hoshikita began, referring to one of the ensigns in the back. “Go report to the commander about this. The rest of you, stay back and cover me. I’m going in.” Hoshikita stated, beginning down the stairs quickly and ready to fight.

The fishman noticed that his opponent was also approaching rather than retreating, and stopped his charge. He instead took a fighting stance that Hoshikita was unfamiliar with and began standing his ground. The young marine didn’t like the look of that, and had a bad feeling about stepping into the water once he reached the bottom of the stairs. With that in mind, he looked straight towards the man and instantly executed a flawless soru that sent him flying towards the fishman at incredible speeds. Before the enemy could react, he dashed to a point a few feet in front of him and executed a powerful upward kick to the opponent’s jaw. Hoshikita was sure that this blow would send the opponent reeling, but while it had certainly sent his opponent’s jaw pointing upwards, it didn’t appear to have phased the opponent who merely looked back towards the young marine with a smile. Hoshikita was in shock, and was about to attempt another follow up attack when he saw the eel man suddenly punch out at him. He dodged the attack, but a moment later a seemingly invisible force was sent out that slammed into Hoshikita’s gut and sent him reeling backwards. “The hell?” He questioned rhetorically, clenching his gut in pain. The young marine wasn’t sure what had just happened, but the eel man was certainly looking confident. Hoshikita watched as the opponent punched out at the air again, and not sure of exactly what to do he leaped out of the way in an attempt to dodge whatever his opponent was trying to do. He succeeded in avoiding the effects, and as he landed he noticed that the water where he had been standing suddenly erupted up into a geyser as if it had been hit by some massive force. It was then that Hoshikita realized that whatever his opponent was doing, it worked similarly to the Ryankaku and he had to avoid it at all costs. It would also be troublesome to fight him close range when his attacks extended past his fists, so Hoshikita determined the best course of action would be to use his own long range attacks.

The enemy seemed to be aiming to strike out with another punch, but Hoshikita’s legs were much quicker having been trained for such purposes and having naturally evolved to be adept at doing so. He let out a devastating side kick that collected a blade of wind around it that sliced through the air towards his opponent at such a speed that it would be impossible for him to avoid it. The hull of the ship was cut into slightly, and the opponent’s nearly extended fist and chest had been gashed deeply by the blade of wind. His opponent cried out in pain, not having expected his opponent to also be capable of similar techniques. Hoshikita was perfectly in focus though, and pressing his advantage he dashed forward to deliver a devastating front kick to his opponent’s gut. He had realized during his earlier strike that his opponent’s neck was too beefy to be a viable attack target, so he had chosen a softer area instead. The strike seemed to have hit home too, as the fishman was sent flying backwards from the force and looked to be quite dizzied.

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While dazed, the fishman certainly wasn’t down for the count and he charged Hoshikita once again. The young marine attempted to prepare himself as the long necked pirate closed in, and readied himself to dodge in case he planned on launching another of those air piercing punches. The punch never came however, instead what pierced through the air towards him was the fishman himself who had extended his neck at lightning speed and bit into Hoshikita’s shoulder with tremendous force. The young marine cried out in pain as electricity jolted through his body and his muscles went rigid from the jolt. Hoshikita fell to the ground, his face submerged in the still rising waters and the fishman stood tall. The pirate then moved towards the stairs where the four remaining marines waited nervously, their guns raised but not sure of what to do now that their Lieutenant had been defeated. The fishman walked menacingly towards them as they readied their guns, and the shaking of their boots was audible. The antagonizer was just about to reach the first step when suddenly he cried out in pain and blood spouted from a linear wound that ran vertically down his spine. He fell down in a pool of water and blood unconscious as Hoshikita walked over to the fallen pirate. The young marine had only been momentarily paralyzed from the shock and had quickly recovered, despite still having a large wound in his shoulder. The ensigns at the top of the stairs looked visibly relieved, and Hoshikita walked up the stairs to greet them, still holding his shoulder in an attempt to slow the bleeding.

Hoshikita ordered the ensigns to begin repairs on the ship immediately, and informed them that he would send help down to give the others medical attention and provide back up immediately. The young lieutenant then quickly headed up to the main deck to do so, but was greeted by a sight that quickly dashed all of those thoughts from his mind. The deck was filled with chaos, and several marines had their rifles pointed towards the mast of the ship and were firing randomly. Hoshikita quickly scanned his surroundings for signs of the Commander, but not gaining sight of him instead rushed over to a nearby gathering of marines he thought might know something. As he approached, he realized he didn’t have to ask as to where the Commander was. He was sitting in the middle of the circle of ensigns who seemed to be guarding him, holding his gut that seemed to be bleeding heavily while he received medical attention. “Cross, where’ve you been? We’re under attack.” The Commander groaned, obviously in a lot of pain. Hoshikita was becoming rather panicked, and he realized that the other fishman had likely been referring to the other pirate and that he had been in charge of attacking the main deck. “There was an intruder below decks. I had to incapacitate care of him to start the repairs.” He explained, now wondering if perhaps he should have stayed on the main deck to prevent the Commander from coming to harm. “Ah, so you haven’t had it easy either. As for up here, the enemy is camouflaged and we haven’t been able to locate him. He’s sniping, and he’s already taken out several of our men. I was injured in the initial attack, and I think I’m pretty bad off. I’ve been given orders not to move, but I don’t think the ensigns can handle it. I’m leaving things to you, Lieutenant. You’ve been given temporary command.” The older man said, having to force out some words due to his injury, and losing his breath a few times during the briefing. Hoshikita felt a wave of uncertainty wash over him, but he knew that he couldn’t let the commander or his comrades down in their time of need. “Yes, sir.” He said, giving a quick salute and standing to face the soldiers. “Everyone, fall below decks! This chaos is just what the enemy desires! I’ll stand against him here.” Hoshikita called out, shouting over the roar of battle that surrounded him. He ordered the marines guarding the commander to continue to do so, and then proceeded to the helm of the ship to scan for signs of the enemy.

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Hoshikita was feeling the effects of his earlier battle wearing on him, and his shoulder was still bleeding heavily after the bite his opponent had taken. His muscles ached and his breath was labored after the heavy use of superhuman ability, and he wasn’t sure he could keep himself standing much longer. He watched as the last marine shuffled below deck, and he hoped that he had the strength to defeat the opponent who had managed to take down the Commander. Still, that had been a sneak attack and Hoshikita was ready for him this time, he watched the upper levels of the ship with caution and readied himself to shoot off in whichever direction at a moment’s notice. That moment came quickly, and a bullet soared towards him. Hoshikita was just able to register it due to his training in Rokushiki, and he leaned to the right as the bullet soared past his left ear. He could hear the enemy curse, and Hoshikita shot off in the direction the bullet had come from. There was no hiding now, and the young marine dashed through the air using Geppou towards the mast of the ship where he saw the enemy’s rifle being hastily shoved into a mysterious bulge in the air. It was obvious now that he had seen it what it was, and Hoshikita was there in an instant.

Close up his opponent’s camouflage wasn’t nearly as effective and the young marine dashed towards his opponent. He felt a burst of force slam into him but it wasn’t nearly as effective as the earlier fishman had been capable of and Hoshikita was able to recover without losing momentum as he slammed his foot into the space where the fishman was located. He could feel the collision as he made contact with his body, and the fishman was thrown off balance where he fell off of the mast and onto the deck. Hoshikita could see a barrel smash into pieces and a figure flicker into view on the deck, scrambling to his feet. The young marine would have none of that however, not after the crimes this man had committed. He leaped from the mast with a mighty “Wataa!” and stomped his sandal onto the fishman’s skull, likely fracturing the bone and easily giving the opponent a massive concussion. The fishman fell to the ground, and Hoshikita rushed to inform the Commander and check on how the repairs had been going. When he arrived, he was informed that Commander Burrel was indeed going to be alright, and that they’d been able to repair the damage to the ship successfully. Hoshikita was visibly relieved at the news, and upon hearing it he fell unconscious on the spot and into a deep sleep, after which he recieved due medical attention and the tired marines continued their return to Base Seventeen where Hoshikita was given a warm bed and a long rest.

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