"Sorry, Commodore Cross, this kid is too strong!"
A few Marines released their grip, looking embarrassed. They then watched as Cross reached out, grabbed the kid in the kimono by his collar, and held him up in the air. No matter how much the kid struggled, he couldn't break free.
"Hey, a little fuss is fine, but don't overdo it, you brat!" Cross threatened with a fierce expression.
However, the Marines present were quite familiar with Cross and knew he was just trying to scare the kid, so they couldn't help but laugh.
"I'm not a brat! I'm a samurai! You rude guy, put me down! I'm going to kill that guy!" The kid in the kimono wasn't scared by Cross's threats and continued to struggle in Cross's hand.
"How interesting!" Cross raised an eyebrow and asked in a deep voice, "What's your name? Why do you want to kill that guy? And are you from Wano Country?"
"Why should I tell you, you stinking Marine?" The kid in the kimono struggled in vain, glaring at Cross with angry eyes. "You guys are all in league with those pirates! You bastard, don't think I'll be grateful just because you saved me! When I grow up, I'll chop all of you down!"
"What are you spouting, you little brat!"
"You little punk, don't think I won't hit you just because you're a kid!"
"Don't you dare slander us! We are the Marines of Justice! How could we be in league with pirates!"
"..."
The kid's words angered the surrounding Marines, causing them all to start cursing at him. Surrounded by a group of burly men, the kid in the kimono didn't seem scared at all. He held his head high and screamed like a little madman, "Come on! I'll take on all of you by myself! A samurai never surrenders!"
"Silence!"
A furious shout quieted the deck. A look of impatience appeared on Cross's face. He said with annoyance, "You brat, talk about being a samurai when you've grown up! If you don't tell me who you are, I'll throw you into the sea to feed the tiger sharks, and you won't even be able to become a samurai!"
With that, he held the kid by his collar, extended his arm, and moved the kid's body off the deck, leaving him dangling over the sea.
Gulp...
The sea breeze cooled the kid's head quite a bit. He looked down at the churning seawater, his throat bobbed, and he nervously swallowed a mouthful of saliva.
"I'm telling you, that sea area ahead is a forbidden zone. There are tiger sharks the size of ships there, with teeth that can tear through steel. Your tiny body isn't even enough to get stuck between their teeth. Now, tell me, and I'll pull you back in!" Cross threatened.
"What a rude guy!" the kid in the kimono muttered under his breath before honestly saying, "My name is Shimotsuki Hirakawa, I'm 9 years old, and I'm from Wano Country..."
As the kid spoke, Cross and the others understood why he was so angry and desperate to kill "Kangaroo" Mas.
Shimotsuki Hirakawa was a distant relative of Shimotsuki Ushimaru, the daimyo of the Ringo region of Wano Country. However, over a decade ago, before Hirakawa was even born, the great pirate "Kaido of the Beasts" and the Beasts Pirates landed in Wano and colluded with the current Shogun, Kurozumi Orochi, to rule the entire country.
A year ago, Hirakawa's father, Shimotsuki Akisuke, couldn't bear the oppression and exploitation of the people of Wano Country by the Beasts Pirates and Orochi. He took his wife, Shimotsuki Eriko, and his son, Hirakawa, and stole a small boat from a port called 'Date Port' and left Wano Country under the cover of night.
However, on their way out of Wano's waters, the family ran into a storm, and both the boat and the family were swept to a small island. Unfortunately, they ran into a group of pirates who were resupplying with fresh water on the island.
A conflict ensued. Hirakawa's father, Akisuke, was a swordsmith with decent swordsmanship skills, but he was already exhausted from the storm. He was quickly overwhelmed by the pirates, injured, and eventually captured. In the battle, Hirakawa's mother, Eriko, was killed by a stray bullet while protecting her son.
Later, as a swordsmith from Wano, Akisuke's impressive skills made him quite valuable. So the pirates sold the father and son to a slave-trafficking group. That group then took Akisuke and Hirakawa to the Sabaody Archipelago, where they were to be sold to the Celestial Dragons.
As a result, when Akisuke was demonstrating his skills and forging a sword for the slave traffickers, he secretly forged a long, thin steel awl.
At night, he used it to pick the lock on his Seastone collar and the cell door. He released all the innocent people who had been captured, set fire to the traffickers' base, and escaped with his son.
According to Hirakawa, his father, Akisuke, was a yakuza punk in Wano when he was young and often did things like picking locks, which is why he was able to use the steel awl to escape.
However, the luck of the Shimotsuki father and son was as tragic as the fate of Wano Country.
After leaving the Sabaody Archipelago, they were unfamiliar with the outer seas and aimlessly drifted on a small sailboat for over ten days until they ran into the Mas Pirates led by "Kangaroo" Manol Mas.
Akisuke's main profession was a swordsmith, and his side job was a swordsman. On the sea, with only a small sailboat, he was naturally no match for the Manol Pirates, who numbered in the hundreds. He was, predictably, captured again. Fortunately, the Mas Pirates also worked as slave traffickers and understood the value of a Wano swordsmith. They didn't kill the father and son but prepared to sell them for a good price.
Unfortunately, Akisuke had been severely injured while resisting the Mas Pirates earlier. After being locked in the cell at the bottom of the ship, his wounds became infected, and he died. His body was thrown into the sea, leaving Hirakawa all alone.
As for why Hirakawa didn't trust the Marines, there was a reason for that, too. A few days ago, the Mas Pirates stopped at an island to resupply with fresh water and provisions. They let the dozens of slaves who were locked in the cells at the bottom of the ship out to get some fresh air and clean themselves up so that not too many of them would die. That was when a Marine warship arrived. The captured civilians were excited when they saw the Marines, thinking they were about to be rescued.
Who would have thought that after the warship docked, not only did they not fight the Mas Pirates, but a Marine Captain came down and had a friendly conversation with "Kangaroo" Mas for a long time? He eventually took a chest of money and left with his men.
Witnessing this scene, not only did the captured slaves feel despair, but Hirakawa also mistakenly believed that the Marines and the pirates were actually on the same side.
After listening to Hirakawa's story, all the Marine officers, including Cross and Kibin, fell silent.
The Beasts Pirates oppressing and exploiting the people of Wano Country, the Celestial Dragons enslaving civilians, pirates and slave traffickers rampaging across the seas... Hirakawa's story perfectly exposed the dangers of the great sea.
"Haaa..." Cross let out a breath of air, put Hirakawa back on the deck, and carefully smoothed out the dirty kimono collar on the boy's chest. He said in a deep voice, "I won't deny that there are bad people in the Marines, but there are more good people. So, please give the Marines a little trust and understanding!"
"Also, it's the Marines' duty to deal with pirates. Please let us have this chance!"
"I will not let these scumbags on the sea get back on the sea in one piece!"
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