The marine stumbled to his feet and began his counterattack. Pogo dodged every last punch with ease. Turns out this guy was all show and had no strength at all! He was all talk! Pogo landed another punch on him.

The man was now enraged, he sent a deadly attack toward Pogo, and Pogo didn’t even see it coming. Fast as lightning, the punch whipped him in the face and sent him flying into a sword shop, breaking the glass.

Pogo shuffled to his feet, grabbing up two swords and returning outside, waving them out and around the marine. The marine was an even better swordsman, as he parried each strike like the amatuer Pogo was. “You are a fool for challenging me!” He said with a vicious snarl to his demeanor.

“You’re the fool! I will be the pirate king!” He parried the swords once again, and sent them flying into the air. Pogo took this opportunity of distraction without stopping to kick the marine in the chest. “Hyahh!” The foot landed, and knocked the breath out of the marine.

He slid back, planting his sword in the ground to keep his balance. A fierce determination lit up in his eyes. “Since you are fighting me, I assume you’re a pirate. You’ll meet your end here in the name of justice!” He pointed his sword at Pogo.

Pogo laughed, “Hahaa! That’s right! I’m a pirate, and yeah I don’t like the marines. My parents were slaughtered by them. Why would I ever like anyone who gave me family problems? Who made me an orphan!!” Pogo screamed, charging the man.

“Sinister Slice!” The marine shouted, his blade expanding in an allusive state that cut into Pogo’s arm like butter. “AGhhh!” Pogo yelped in pain, grabbing his arm. This was no ordinary seaman recruit. He was definitely stronger than the fodder.

“I am Ryan, a future marine admiral! You should bend over and die now while you can!” He sent a flurry of strikes that would cut at Pogo’s skin. Pogo would simply dodge the best that he naturally could.

An eye-opening moment appeared to him, as he saw a blindspot in the marine’s swordsmanship. “You justice brats speak of justice, but seek power and fame more than anyone else!” He said, his fist seering through the air toward the side of his rib cage. The sword came down over his shoulder, cutting down on him as the punch landed, the strike carrying throughout the back of the marine.

Ryan staggered back, coughing up blood as he carried his sword with him, the steel slicing through Pogo’s flesh as it slid off of him. Blood was running down Pogo’s shoulder. “I won’t give in!” Pogo barked.

“You look ready to die anyways!” He screamed, sending a leg strike up at Pogo’s chin and sending Pogo into the air. Pogo lost consciousness momentarily and reaffirmed his strength and came crashing down on the marine, a fist making contact with Ryan’s face. “Like hell I am!”

Ryan scoured to the ground in a heap of pain. He was pretty much clocked after that strike. The problem was not with Pogo’s victory, but his condition after his victory. “Stop right there pirate!” A bunch of marines surrounded Pogo with weapons and sabers.

“Oh… Why must it be this way?” Pogo clenched his teeth, and tried to run away, but the marines were everywhere and had swarmed him. Captured with no chance of escape, Pogo had been detained by the marines in Shells Town, early in his adventure.

The marines said little to him, only attending to his wounds as he had immediate blood loss. Blacking out a few times, he didn’t remember much, but instead woke up in a cell with another man. He had a bandage wrapped around his shoulder and arm. It seemed the marines had saved his life for the time being.

It wasn’t that they wanted to save him, but it was their duty. As justice called for it, Pogo was only a minor criminal for assaulting a single marine. It wasn’t as if he were a massively wanted pirate with an infamous title or anything. Just some kid who had aspirations bigger than life itself.

The man in the cell looked at him peculiarly. The man had black hair and white crystal cleary eyes with a black beard to suit. He was slender in form, and had a distinguishable scar that ran along his arm with a tattoo that read, “G7.”

Pogo’s eyes popped at G7. G7 was the most infamous East Blue mafia known to man. They ran all kinds of corrupt dealing and were nasty people. Being apart of G7 meant throwing away your life if you were caught. It was obvious this man had comforted himself with death. They would surely have any G7 affiliate executed.

“Y-You’re from that group?” Pogo asked timidly. He didn’t want to get beat up, and he was sore enough already. He scoured to the corner to be safe.

“Kid. Those days are long past me. I haven’t been affiliated with them in a long time. I ran away from that life, but they still put me in here because of the tattoo. Looks like I’m gonna die for my mistakes.” He said rather open about his situation.

“Well, I’ll help you get out of here if you’ll join my pirate crew!” Pogo said childishly. So it begins, the inevitable downward spiral of Pogo trying to gather a strong pirate crew. The man was just so shocked at this statement, and no one could blame him. How idiotic!

“Kid, what’s your name?” He asked Pogo with an irritated tone, and lit a smoke from his back pocket with his lighter that he had hidden from the marines.

“Pogo...Pogo D. Shuttle, and what’s your name mister?” He asked him eagerly, not really afraid of the man in question anymore.

“I’m Sero Inuzuka. So, do you know how dumb you just sounded about now? Kid, you don’t look like you could ever pull my weight. If only I could shave this damn beard….” He mumbled to himself. He completely doubted Pogo and his abilities.

“So what? If you think I’m not strong, then I challenge you to a fight!” Pogo stood up, the seriousness in his eyes said everything, and Sero’s demeanor changed.

“If that’s how you want to do this. Then let’s go.” He stood up, towering over Pogo at a hefty six foot three. “I’ll kick your ass.” He said.

“Let’s see you try.” Pogo said, flexing his muscles and feeling a sudden surge of energy within that he didn’t realize he had. Pogo felt unbeatable.