Through the Eyes of the Dragon

Chapter 20

Chapter 20 - Rough Seas

“ALRIGHT YOU DOGS! From this moment on, all authority goes to Moi, your lovable Captain! Any scallywag wise enough to oppose me shall be tossed overboard, so you’d better obey! ANY QUESTIONS?” Having pounced upon his authoritative crate, Shun stared down at his new shipmates with a crooked smile, dull eyes glinting with excitement.

“Is it really alright for a blind idiot to lead us?” Tsuru grumbled, crossing her arms and sighing. If she had the choice, she wouldn’t be there... but apparently, Lord Masamune had requested that the crew bring a healer along and she was pretty good at her only job so... She figured all she could do for the time being was to put on a fake smile and try her best not to groan too loudly.

Leaping down from his crate, Shun stomped over to confront her, his abrupt movements startling her. “I’m sorry,” he scoffed, raising his voice to an unnecessarily loud volume, “But I’m pretty sure you already know the answer to that considering that I already saved your ass once.”

Backing off slightly, the sea nurse clenched her hands into fists and stomped her own foot angrily. “What, are you deaf?! Okay, whatever!” she screamed, easily matching his loudness.

Frowning, Shun pulled back as well, left brow twitching slightly with irritation. Though he did tend to butt heads with most of the people he spoke with, she was probably the most daring out there. It kind of interested him, actually. Was she really doing this because she hated him? Because she was jealous of his blood ties to Nao? Or was it something else? ‘Maybe it’s a girl thing that I’ll never come to understand no matter how hard I try...’

“Naw, I’m pretty sure my hearing’s pretty sharp. But, I can say they have natural bullshit filters, so that could be it,” he snorted with a shrug, spinning around to listen for his first mate’s softer footsteps.

“Why you filthy little-” Tsuru was in the midst of screaming before Shun’s fill-in Navigator, Miyamoto Musashi, burst out of the main cabin with his arms filled with various maps and telescopes.

“CAP’N! Preparations are almost ready! We should make it to Herba on the selected course in say, 2 or 3 days time!”the brute shouted over his stack of things.

Grinning, Shun did a little bow to express his thanks, before finally managing to locate Genjiro and wringing his arm around the older male’s shoulder. “Alright then! All that’s left is for you, Genji, to put the useless to work. Since our crew’s considerably smaller than what we’re used to, I expect you’ll figure out how to fill in the gaps and such, yes?”

Nodding slowly, Genjiro shifted his soft gaze to where Satou Riichi, Saika Daichi, and Tachibana Ginchiyo stood in wait upon the deck. “Yes... Aerosians, do come aboard for assignment.”

Pumped by the thought of sailing in a boat for the first time ever, Riichi practically jumped onto the boat, teetering slightly when it rocked under his weight. Though, once he got the hang of it, he managed to jog his way over to the ship’s first mate, soon to be joined by his other two companions. “Yes sir! I shall do whatever you need me to!” the soldier squeaked, saluting him stiffly.

Smiling slightly at his enthusiasm, Genjiro picked up his feather pen and pointed towards the complicated set of ropes towards the main mast. “Hmm... I’ll have you work the ropes. It’s a tough job for a beginner, but important all the same. Think you can handle it?” he suggested, giving the petit man a quick glance-over.

Nodding eagerly, Riichi observed the ropes from a distance, attempting to size them up and such. “Yes, I’ll do my best!” he promised after giving an approving nod, running over to investigate his new job. Seeing as he might cause some issues with his inexperience, Shun stalked after him quietly, prepared to instruct him if need be.