One Howling Adventure 9 (Patreon)

It was an odd feeling, the difference between fighting like a human and fighting like a beast. Even discounting the enhanced strength, speed, and senses, there were so many things I hadn't considered, but were obvious. Like how my teeth and claws were as much a weapon as any fist or foot. How the pads on my feet were great for traction and maneuverability. How I could move in a way that a human could never even attempt, not without breaking bones or ripping muscles (though given the world I was in, that may just be the result of going all Charles Atlas in my training).

Kangaroo Jack was good. Damn good, actually. He wasn't a master, not even close, but he was good. He was well trained, vicious, and experienced. But, there was one major issue with him: he wasn't disciplined. He had been taught, he was trained, but he wasn't disciplined. Taught how to fight, but never taught how to think. And that's how I was going to beat him.

“Not much to say now, huh?” Kangaroo Jack sneered.

I didn't reply, focusing on him and getting a feel for his style. The way his hips twisted, the tension and slack in his tail, the way his core tightened. All of it told me where his attacks would come from, and I honestly feel like a complete and utter idiot for not having done this earlier. But better late than never.

“Well? What's the matter? Is that all the bark and bite you have? I figured the Big Bad Wolf would have a lot more fight in him,” he continued.

“Fenrir,” I said quietly, as my eyes continued to examine both my opponent and the platform that we were standing on.

“Wha-” he began, blinking.

“I am Fenrir,” I said, focusing my gaze on him, “and while it’s not as glamorous as King of the Pirates or World’s Greatest Swordsman, I am not going to let a jumped up, wannabe okama prevent me from reaching the far end of the Grand Line and fight the strongest in the world.”

With that, I threw myself forward. He balanced on his tail, bringing both legs up in a double kick, but I saw it coming. I dodged, but instead of dodging the way he was expecting, I took advantage of my own Devil Fruit, shifting from hybrid form into my full dire wolf form, flying under his feet, my fangs sinking into the meat of his tail. He let out a screech of pain and rage, his foot slamming into my ribs as he fell, trying to dislodge me.

My hold slipped, but instead of releasing, my jaws simply clamped tighter. He spun, trying to bring his fists to bear, but I wasn't there. I'd dropped, letting his spinning carry him further from his target, before jumping again, this time, biting down on his leg. With a roar of rage and pain, he fell to one knee, glaring at me as I pulled away and backed up a couple steps, giving him a bit of breathing room.

I was bleeding from my ribs and my left ear, but nothing too serious. Kangaroo Jack was bleeding from his tail and leg, but the worst injury he had was probably the broken ankle. I felt myself grin, showing him a mouthful of fangs, before letting out a long, loud howl, the sound carrying across the water and causing him to shiver in fear.

Good. Let him fear. Let him fear, let him cower. Then, I will feast.

I blinked, where did that thought come from? After a moment, I shook my head. Focus now, self reflect later. With a growl, I charged in.

Kangaroo Jack tried to bring his leg around, to kick at me, but I dodged, his foot going over my shoulder. Using the momentum of my charge, I twisted, grabbing his tail in my mouth and pulling. He let out a screech as his injured ankle was forced into an unnatural angle, as he was dragged back. He brought his arms around, slamming his fists into my skull, but I ignored it, dragging him further. There was one other thing that he was bad at: situational awareness. Was it a cheap tactic? Yes. Did I care? Not in the slightest. With a twist of my head and roll of my body, I threw Kangaroo Jack a good fifteen feet. When we were five feet from the edge of the platform.

He screamed, as soon as he realized what happened, but he was too far away from any sort of flotsam to save himself. There was a splash, a brief moment of splashing, and then the surface of the water went still as he sank. I sat on my haunches, watching the spot for a good long while, before nodding and shifting back to human form.

Krieg’s crew were making a fuss, but I turned to Luffy and gave her a nod as I made my way back to the main part of the platform. She blinked, before smiling and turning to Don Krieg. Turning around, I blinked as I realized that a certain something was missing. Ah, right, I'd forgotten about Nami stealing Merry. Okay, I see Johnny, Ussop, and Zoro getting into a dingy, and turn to Zeff to pass on a message.

“Give the scroll to Sanji when he leaves with Luffy, I’m going after Nami now,” I said, ignoring Sanji’s insistence that he’s not leaving Baratie, before getting into the boat with the three.

“Bro?” Johnny asked, stilling at the look in my eye.

“I’m going with you, I have a hunch that there’s more to the story about why Nami took the Going Merry,” I told him, taking the bandages that Ussop handed to me and began to patch up my injuries.

There was a bit more back and forth, but it quickly ended when Sanji started fighting a guy with a surfer accent. Zoro and I rested, while Ussop and Johnny rowed.

[hr][/hr]

We didn't reach the Conomi Islands that day, but settled into a small cove about an hour after sunset. The moon wasn't full, but it was still bright enough to provide just enough light for us to pull the dingy up onto shore and fashion a crude lean to shelter. The four of us curled up and went to sleep.

We woke early, as the sun was barely above the horizon, and ate a quick breakfast. Zoro took out his weights, starting his morning exercises, while the rest of us checked on the dingy, making sure it was ready to go. From a quick inspection, it didn't look like we were on one of the main islands, but we could see another, larger island with a dock a short distance away. A dock that had a Marine ship in port.

We didn’t dock in port, instead finding an out of the way spot down the shoreline. Turning to look at Ussop, Johnny, and Zoro, I said, “I’m going to do some scouting.”

Zoro nodded, and I shifted to my dire wolf form before Ussop could protest, running into the shrubbery. Almost instantly, my nose was filled with the smell of people, citrus, and...fish? But not really fish, more like a mix of fish and human? Huh, that's a first, I didn't think the 'fishman' thing would extend to their scents. Shaking my head, I followed my nose, letting it lead me through the undergrowth, before coming upon a village.

Well, the remains of a village.

The place was a mess, buildings destroyed, some of them quite literally flipped upside down, the air heavy with the sounds of crying and lamentations. What the hell happened here? My ears flicked, swiveling to the source of the noise, before I ran. It didn't take long to find the source, a number of men and women, crying into the dirt, outside a pair of houses that had been destroyed.

I was trying to decide how to proceed, when a familiar scent carried through the air. Turning my head, in the direction of the wind, I followed the scent. Soon, I saw Nami, walking up a hill and coming to a stop by a grave. I remained hidden, watching Nami as she placed flowers and incense. I could try to sneak closer, to try to hear what she was saying, but I didn't, letting her have her time.

Not that I was able to move, when a red haired, blue skinned toddler with a fin in the middle of her back and on the back of her elbows ran up to Nami. My crewmate had a gentle smile on her face as she knelt down and picked up the girl, carrying her on her hip with the kind of ease that only comes from practice.

Nami’s a mother?!

A memory struck me, a conversation that Nami and I had. She’d told me that if Katara hadn’t vouched for me when we first met, she’d have ensured that I wouldn’t make it to the next island. Considering that Karara had been well over eight months pregnant, I was spending most of my time in hybrid form around her, so much made sense.

But I couldn’t imagine Nami choosing to have sex with a fishman, not after what Arlong had done to her mother, so…

A chill went down my spine, even as anger and fury began to burn within my chest. I didn’t think Arlong would, I would have thought that he hated humans too much to even consider it, but it might have been one of his underlings.

This wasn’t the time or the place, I reminded myself, forcing down my rage. I needed more information, more details. I needed to confirm my theory. So, I waited until Nami was done, the young girl with her leading her off towards the town, before I slunk forwards.

When I got close enough, I took a deep breath, committing the smells of Nami, the girl, and the grave to memory, before turning and following their trail. I could hear the two speaking, and I listened in, trying to get an idea of the situation.

“...ncle Hachi took me to see Momoo, and made ta-taka-taki, fish balls!” I heard the girl ramble on.

“Did you make sure to thank him?” Nami asked. The girl didn’t say anything, but I could hear her moving her head rapidly, in what I assumed was a nod.

I was about to leave, when I heard her say, “Mama, did you see a dog out there? I saws some funny feets in the dirt earlier, and...”

“Don’t you worry about it, Tsunami. Go see Aunt Nojiko, she wants to speak with you about something. I need to finish putting this money away. Then, you and I are going to do some training, okay, baby girl? And remember, not a word about the treasure or the ship, okay? If Arlong or his men find out, they might take it, and then the village wouldn't be able to afford food or medicine anymore, okay? It's a secret between you and me, alright, little one?”

“Alright, Mama!”

The toddler ran off, and after a moment, Nami called out, her voice cold and rigid, “Logan, get out here or I'll turn you into a fur rug.”

I walked out from the treeline to the road, looking up at Nami as she glared at me. I sat down, still in my animal form, roughly five feet from her.

“How much did you hear?” she asked, her voice and face just as hard and cruel as they’d been when she called out, but I could see a hint of concern in her eyes.

“You’re a mother,” I began. “From the rest of it, I’m guessing that there’s someone in one of the villages that’s an honorary uncle and an honorary aunt, probably the ones who look after her when you’re away. I’m going to take a guess and say that you’re officially one of Arlong’s crewmates. I suspect that you’ve spent the last few years doing everything you can to get up some arbitrary amount in order to try to hire a sufficiently skilled bounty hunter to take out Arlong. How am I doing?”

Nami just stared at me for a good long while, before sighing and gesturing for me to follow her. I did so, without complaint, as she led me to a hidden basement/cellar/thing. The entire room was filled with bills and other forms of treasure, and it was all I could do to keep from letting out a whistle. My current form would make that a bit awkward.

She turned back to me, and said, “Yes, Arlong is extorting the village. Yes, he took over after murdering my mother. Yes, I've been stealing for him. Yes, I've been planning on betraying him, and have been for years. Yes, I have a plan for dealing with Arlong and his crew, but it's not nearly ready. Yes, I will explain everything, but not yet. Please, Logan, trust me and be patient, I will explain, and the crew will know everything, I just need a bit more time.”

I tilted my head and asked, “Is the money not for a bounty hunter?”

Nami sat in the sole chair in the room and sighed, “After he killed my mother, he promised that if I managed to raise one hundred million belly, I could buy my village’s freedom. It’s been eight years since then, and I’ve gotten close. Even with a year of not gathering money to take care of Tsunami, I’ve gotten eighty three million. A few more trips out to steal from pirates, and I’ll have enough.”

I wasn’t sure that she noticed, but when Nami mentioned her daughter, a warm, genuine smile spread across Nami’s face, and her body relaxed, ever so slightly. Before I could point it out or ask about the...father, there was a commotion outside.