The Silver Haired Pirate

Chapter 26

"I've been looking for you guys" Zoro called down from the tower. Sanji, who'd heard his yelling, turned to look up at the greenette and shouted at him,

"What are you doing here?!"

"Because those Marines told us to go North" was his short reply. Though his logic would imply that North means up, which Aki supposed it would if you looked at a map, but in this sense that's incorrect. Usopp seemed to have understood the idiocy of his logic, since he too was screaming at the swordsman.

"But that's good! Keep climbing!" Usopp encouraged. Aki hummed and rubbed his pointer finger on his chin. If he was right then the only way to get up to the top of the clock would be through the outside. There were probably some stairs that could be climbed, but that would take forever.

Aki smirked to himself and quietly headed over to where he'd spotted a rusty staircase. In this case, it would be a quick ascend. 

In a couple seconds he'd made it to the top. He rounded to the back and carved a small crawling hole in the wall. He was lucky that it was this type of clock tower and not one that had clocks on each surface.

He pulled the block out and tossed it down over the railing. Aki quietly walked behind the cannon, tilting his head in confusion at the odd size of it. He'd been more used to much shorter and thinner ones, but if it held a bomb that could decimate an entire country it would have to be big, he mused.

When he was a few feet behind the two Baroque Works agents, he could sense Vivi's swift approach. He sighed through his nose for what seemed to be the umpteenth time that day. That thought also seemed to be the umpteenth time he'd thought it. He noticed the Baroque Works agents picked up their guns and pointed it down at the space where Aki assumed Vivi was.

"Lokee here. Chance isn't easily gained!" The woman with a frog hat said.

"Change position, yellow bullet! Hahaha what a good target!" Aki walked over to the two of them and nocked them out in one sharp movement. Vivi's eyes widened when they locked with Aki's. He chuckled lightly and tossed the unconscious bodies out the opening of the clock.

He reached out and pulled Vivi in. She carefully stepped on the ledge and balanced herself with Aki's help. 

"After you milady." He smiled and gestured to the giant cannon. She nodded to him and quickly cut the fuse, with her peacock strings, successfully stopping the lit end from setting it off.  

He ignored the feelings of satisfaction and joy that came off of the princess and headed to the mouth of the cannon. The ticking didn't stop. It seemed Vivi had realized that too. She turned to the clock face and looked out the opening.

"No! This is a timed bomb! IT WILL EXPLODE AT ANY TIME IF IT'S NOT DISASSEMBLED!" She yelled. Aki scratched his cheek. It was definitely a tricky situation. He'd love to help and destroy the bomb but he didn't want to risk it exploding. 

He had little knowledge of the weapon, he was mostly knowledgeable about weapons such as short swords, daggers mostly bladed weapons, but guns and certain devil fruits were also stacked in his mind library.

He loved to read so when he got his hands on a devil fruit book of course he read it until he had every page back to back memorized. Memorization of guns was something that was more or less forced upon him because of certain tasks he was assigned to.

Swords was inevitable considering he himself was a Samurai--or is-- and has to know about the right blade for him. 

Vivi, too, walked to the opening of the machine and gasped when she noticed the bomb ticking away. The devastation on her face was plain as day. She slammed her fists on the lip of cannon. Aki stared at her, mouth open like a gaping fish.

"We finally found and stopped it! But he leaves another way to fire the bomb! When will he be satisfied with playing with lives! How much longer will he laugh at us?! CROCODILE!" Aki went to comfort her, but someone else appeared.

Aki smiled at the man when he realized the supposed Pell was actually alive. Vivi looked back at the man, her eyes blown wide, but they quickly squinted again.

"This place holds a lot of memories. It's just the sand sand group's secret base." Pell began. Aki didn't know where this was going, but he felt out of place.  

"Pell!" Vivi cried out

"Really, you were such a noisy child. You gave me a headache almost everyday."

"Pell listen!" Vivi tried again, "It's a time bomb, it's going to explode soon!" Pell, though, didn't stop with his monologue. Aki realized what he planned to do and was greatly opposed to it, but he also knew that it's an honor to die serving a country that served you back.

"Princess Vivi... I am very pleased that I was able to serve the Nefertari family." Vivi paused her attempt at explaining the situation, now catching on that something was happening. Something besides the ticking bomb that would destroy thousands of families and blow up houses and shops. Pell smiled at the princess.

"It's something from the depths of my heart. That I am so proud of you." He transformed his arms into wings and grabbed onto the bomb. Aki never had much connection with the bird-man. They nodded to each other when they crossed paths in the palace. But they never really interacted.

But for some, odd reason. It was as if the world had stopped spinning. It was like it came to a. Screeching halt. The sounds of violence so close bellow were silenced. He'd experienced something like this before; when his master died.

He could see Vivi screaming, but he couldn't hear anything. he didn't know why. But it was like his master always said.

"Death is something that can silence even the most violent of waves"

The bird flew up, higher and higher. Until he was beyond the clouds. But even then, the explosion was visible. Of course it was. It's giant. No doubt it would've destroyed anything in it's path. There's no way Pell survived. What a sad ending.

But to cry when one dies only makes the dead sadder.