FicWad

Ch. 1: Call Me Sinker

"I'm telling you I saw something out there!" the guy in the Crow's nest insisted.

"For the last time Wilbur, you saw nothing. Just get down here and grab some oranges from the galley. You might be getting scurvy." Wilbur spun an orange around on his finger like a basketball. He always had food up there.

"Fin, I really think we should be taking him more seriously about this."

"Shut it, El! There's nothing around here but that village we just robbed two miles away. And if our reports are correct, the Marines won't come back for at least another two days."

"He's right." The captain came on deck, "We've monitored their assigned patrol patterns for months now. They don't make changes to plans on a whim you know."

"It's not the Marines I'm worried about", Wilbur shivered in his nest. Then he gasped looking back into his telescope. "There it is again! Two hundred meters out on the port bow!" The crew rushed to the side, only to see nothing.

"What is it Wilbur? You know better than to cry wolf to the crew like that!"

"I'm not! I'm telling you that there was a man out on the water, but he dropped below the surface!" The crew muttered to themselves.

"Relax men! I know what you're all thinking, but that man was last seen five hundred miles inland." The ship rocked suddenly as a leak sprang beneath the boat. "Man your stations boys! We've got a Sea King on our hands!" Some ran down to patch the leak but the majority gasped at something, someone, standing right behind their captain.

"You'll be wishing it was a Sea King", a voice said as a blade was put against the throat of the captain. No one moved.

"I told you guys it was him! Riptide Rinzler!"

"I would have expected more trouble from someone with a forty million beri bounty, Captain Waldo." In about ten seconds, he and the rest of the crew on deck had been decked.

"That was probably the easiest sixty million I've ever gotten", he chuckled as he steered his prize to shore.

.

.

.

I smiled after yet another job well done as Riptide Rinzler my alternate persona. He was a hero to the people and the mysterious "ally" of the Marines. I couldn't help but think about how I was a pirate myself, with a twenty-five million bounty. Not even the Marines figured it out, and I dreaded the day that they would, if it ever came.

My name was Rico J. Sinker, but everyone who has ever had me as a friend calls me Sinker, or Sink. I had been island hopping for the past couple of days, and I had just jumped to a new one.

"Sweet! I haven't eaten all day!" I said sitting down at the diner quickly but neatly eating the bowl of pasta in front of me. I needed carbohydrates to give me the energy I needed to run the distances that I did. The man here knew who I was, as did everyone else, and they were wary around me.

I'm not exactly a criminal, not like those brutes I dealt with earlier. Sure I did take out that Marine captain who was abusing his power back in Clam Town. The higher ups immediately pinned me up as a wanted man, starting with a bounty of five million. I've traveled solo, a pirate without a crew, for two years now, and I haven't done anything more than self-defense.

"Say, just how did your bounty jump like that anyway?" the bartender asked me. A few people leaned in to listen.

I just smiled, "I played hard to catch. I love messing with the Marines who chase me down. You see, many pirates place their reputation off of their ability to eliminate opposition. I establish my reputation by my ability to get away unscathed. Once they see what you are capable of pulling off as an escape plan, they take you more seriously. I've done that enough to quintuple my bounty."

A boy climbed over some of the bystanders. "Man, I think you better get moving man! I just heard that Riptide Rinzler is on this island chain and he just captured the Strychnine Pirates! He's coming for you man!"

I chuckled, then laughed a hearty laugh. "I doubt it. He goes after the pirates who really deserve it, essentially the killers I spoke of before. We've crossed paths a few times and he said that I was the least of his problems. But he typically goes for the big ones. He's probably going after someone worth at least a hundred million." The people muttered amongst themselves. "We'll that's just a theory anyway", I chuckled as I sipped my lemonade.

I put down the empty cup and bowl and I paid the bartender with a very handsome tip.

"But if any of you guys happen to see him, tell him that Rico J. Sinker said hi. Adios compadres!" I dashed out the door, ready to conquer another day. I cleaned my shades and checked my golden pocket watch. It was a little something I liked to do before I hit the road. It helped remind me of my goals in life. That dream I've carried with me from years ago. Until the day I could race him, I just had to keep moving.

.

.

.

(Coral Isles, Ten Years ago)

I remember it all like it only happened a minute ago. Of course it was actually ten years ago, so I was nine at the time. I grew up on a small island chain, fifty five miles due southwest of Switchback Mountain. Many know the chain as The Coral Isles, inhabited by humans and fishmen alike, and they both got along just fine.

I was always interested in this unusually diverse race of people. Thus I spent most of my time with them. My best friend was one, a rare breed of swordfish. Everyone called him Lance, and he was the son of a sage, a great warrior who had mastered the Divine Wind fighting style. I've never seen his full potential before.

For a while he was skeptical about me and Lance being friends. But that changed when I saved Lance from a shark attack. Of course I was bitten instead, and I still have the bite marks on my right shoulder. The only reason my arm wasn't left useless was because the sage had reached the scene just in time to scare off the shark by bopping it on the nose. Seriously, sharks are just like dogs, hit them in the nose hard enough and they run for the hills (or is it swim for the waves). But as that shark made a run for it, a tooth came out and was stuck in my arm until Lance's father removed it for me. I now have that same tooth on a necklace which I still wear to this day.

Trench, that was his name, was now convinced of how Lance and I had become the best of friends. And to show his gratitude, he took me in as a student and began to teach me in the ways of the Divine Wind. A master of the Wind could perform seemingly supernatural feats that many people would expect from Devil Fruit users. Of course it is essentially no different from the 36 Caliber Phoenix or the techniques of the holders of the 6 Powers (used by the Marine's Special Forces). Anyone can learn those given the right amount of time and effort. The same applied to the Divine Wind techniques. It was a technique that only a few fishmen were known to use, but today, Trench made an exception in teaching a human.

For the next two years I trained and sparred with Trench and Lance five days a week. At first I had trouble, but I kept thinking about something that Trench told me, "If you want strength, become a fish out of water." It occurred to me that I simply had to get out my comfort zone, far out of it.

Not long after that, I sparred with Lance as usual out by the wooded riverside. Trench watched us, sitting on a rock that stuck out of the stream.

"Alright Rico, I won't be going easy on you this time." As he said this, he got into a fighting stance. I crouched down and extended my legs, also using my right arm to support myself. This is how I typically started a fight, even to this day.

"I don't expect you to", I said competitively. With that, we both went at it in an exchange of punches, only one of which met its target. I shook off that feeling. When in combat, a fishman's skin prickles up slightly, and rubbing it the wrong way will result in a nasty brush burn. I then took to a new fighting style at that moment.

Instead of using my clenched fists, I used the palms of my hands. This allowed me to attack as hard as I wanted with no consequence (just try punching a tree as hard as you can and then use your palms and you'll see what I mean).

I then noticed that my hands were secreting a kind of mist, which trailed behind my hands with each strike. Trench's eyes began to widen. I quickly juked Lance, shoving him back. While he was off balance, I pulled my arm back then shoved it forward in a strike. It never connected.

Trench was there in an instant and he had diverted my hand forty five degrees to the right.

KA-PLOOM!

A blast of misty air shot in a fast moving plume and blew away everything within a thirty foot line. Even the grass was torn from the ground, leaving exposed soil. I trembled at this.

"Oh crab. I almost killed him!" I gasped quietly.

Trench let go of my wrist and smiled. "No, that would have only severely injured a fishman. But I never expected to see this from a human. What you just did was an ancient Divine Wind technique known as the Tempest Palm. Thus far, only my father and I are the only one who knew it." I looked at my hands, misty air still streaming from them. I extended my palm to the sky and fired off a light stream. The mist formed a ribbon-like rainbow in the light of the early afternoon.

"This is unreal!" Lance and I both said with awe.

"That can only mean that you are more than ready", Trench said as he lightly shoved me out into the river. I always had a swimsuit on and today was no exception. But the thing was that I never fell in. rather I fell on. I stumbled a little at first, but I saw how my feet were beginning to mist. More than that I was standing on the water. Trench walked out there too.

"It takes at least six years to learn but you've managed to learn the Walk of the Waves in just two." I was proud of myself, as was Lance. From there, they taught me how to use this system underwater to give me a boost. Then they taught me how to use the mist in reverse. Instead of having water in the air, they taught me how to get air in the water as a group of bubbles which lightly streamed around my nose and mouth, offering oxygen when I needed it. I really thought that I was a big shot then but I tried not to act too cocky in front of my sensei.

But then came the day that the pirates invaded. I was twelve at the time, and I was pearl diving with Lance when we heard a loud THOOMP from the surface.

"Cannons!" I said, "Lance! We have to get up there!" As soon as we did we saw a crew of pirates enter the city, holding hostages in the dinner as they demanded all the money in the safe and a free meal for the entire crew.

We came down the road and I yelled, "Tempest Palm!" blowing away thirty men outside of the diner. We walked in to see the boss right in front of us, with a pair of pistols pointed at our chests. We didn't dare move.

"Too slow boys", he said, "If you had been a little quicker you could have avoided this." I sweated profusely. I wasn't prepared to bring the Divine Wind to a gunfight. He pulled back the flintlocks and prepared to fire. But all went silent when the door opened again.

In walked a man with a pair of sunglasses. He wore a black leather trench coat with a white shirt and black pants. A golden watch hung at his belt along with a pair of katanas. His hair was long and brown. He walked in nonchalantly ignoring the situation and he walked up to the bar and took a seat. Everyone was shocked by this man's behavior.

He looked at the menu and said, "I'll take the sirloin with a Sea King salad. You guys have any more Vineyard Bloom on hand?" The bartender looked to the captain and back to the customer.

"You don't have any money on hand do you?" he said nervously.

"I will in a moment."

"Hey!" the pirate said, "If you don't mind you're interrupting a meal! Step aside, we were here first!"

"I don't see you sitting down at a table. And you still haven't ordered yet."

The pirate pointed his right pistol at him. "Do you have any idea who you're talking to?"

"You better duck", the man said to the bartender who complied immediately, "Captain Harlock of the Hydra Pirates. Yes I know. But the question is do you know who I am?"

"I know who you are," Harlock said and finished before he shot his gun, "a dead man."

The man clicked his pocket watch and flickered from that seat, in front of Harlock, and back again. I saw that his swords were being sheathed and he clicked his watch once more.

"Too slow, Harlock", he smirked as Harlock's guns were sliced down the middle. Just as he realized what happened, his chest exploded in blood and he fell to the ground unconscious. In the wall behind the man, I saw that there were two bullet holes despite the single shot. He had sliced the bullet in half!

"There we go, that's thirteen million in my pocket" he said to the bartender, "I'll pay you as soon as I turn him in."

The bartender came out from behind the bar with shock, "No, by all means, your meal is on the house! Thank you so much!" The crew outside ran away in a panic.

"You", Lance stepped forward, "You're Jean Blackwater, AKA 'Stopwatch' Jean."

Jean looked to him with a smile while pushing up his shades, "So you've heard of me."

Oh, I've heard of that name. Stopwatch was a famous solo sailor, not pirate nor Marine. He hated being called a bounty hunter, claiming that he only went after the troublemakers. But what made this man special was that he was said to be the fastest man alive. I had no idea that he was this fast. He had a habit of timing his fights with a golden pocket watch. I was absolutely awestruck.

After the pirates were taken away, the whole town partied in celebration of the traveling hero. He told stories of his great exploits, daring escapes, and incredible backstories that surprisingly connected them all. He was also a big time drinker, somehow able to down several bottles of wine without feeling even a trace of drunkenness.

By sunset, we all saw him off as he set out to sea again, his little boat powering up. And he rode off to sea. But as soon as the citizens left, going back to their ordinary lives, I dashed out onto the water after him. He was rather surprised to see me pop up right beside him.

He whistled, "Never seen a human able to use the Walk of the Waves. What was your name again?"

"Rico J. Sinker", I stuttered.

"How can I help you kid?"

I was nervous, but I asked, "How do you do it? How do you move so fast?"

He stopped peddling and walked over to me. "Kid, doing this requires a will and determination that most people could never reach. I had to bring myself above and far beyond my boundaries. But I trained not with a sense of burden, but a sense that I was being presented with a challenge. I trained so much that I didn't just do it for speed, I did it for the sheer fun of it." I thought on this, moved by his words.

I held out my fist and said, "I'll do it! When I see you again I'll challenge you to a race! I will be just as fast as you, just you wait!"

He smiled and took off his shades, putting them over my eyes. "You're going to go far someday, kid. I was just like that when I was your age. Don't ever take these off while you're running, you'd be shocked how much the wind affects your line of sight." He put on an identical pair, "And you'll need this", he tossed me a golden pocket watch. "It's one of the watches I used as a kid. Can't wait to see you again Sinker", he said before he whispered something to me, a secret that forever would help me in my training.

As he paddled away I yelled, "Thank you for everything, Jean!" I haven't seen him since. But ever since that day, I trained like the fate of the world depended on it. I always looked at that watch before I ran, and I always wore those shades. Stopwatch had become my hero, the man I strove to be someday. Someday, I planned to be the fastest man that ever lived.

(End of Chapter 1)
.
.
YO-HO-HO-HO! Good afternoon my fellow pirate friends! Beowulf has taken to the Five seas (if you include Sanji's All Blue, of course)!

Once again, this is another one of my stories from FanFiction. I've already posted in Legend of the Chronogan Jinchuuriki (CH 2) a few hours ago and nothing much has changed since.

I'd love to hear your feedback and suggestions if you have any that you would like to share!
Until next time, don't watch the horizon, because Rico's adventures are coming in from the place you'd least expect!

This is Beowulf and the entire OC crew signing off! For now.