Sword

Chapter 38

Coby and Luffy were bidding one another farewell by the time Shoko and Zoro returned to the Galley-La Company's HQ building, walking close enough to one another that their shoulders nearly touched.

Shoko stopped next to Coby. Zoro continued past but brushed his hand along her lower back as he did. She forced herself not to react, trying to stay inconspicuous. He apparently had the same goal in mind, choosing not to look at her, but she noted the hint of a smug grin at the corner of his mouth as he took his place by Luffy's side.

"I guess it's time to head back to the ship?" Shoko asked. Coby nodded.

"Coby just said he'll see me in the New World!" Luffy declared. "I better see you there too, Marine Lady!"

Shoko laughed. "I wouldn't want to miss seeing the mayhem this crew causes. There's no way I wouldn't be a part of that."

"Shishishi! And Coby said he'll be an Admiral. You better keep up with him!"

She lifted an impressed eyebrow at Coby, whose cheeks turned an embarrassed pink.

Shoko laughed. "Well, that's a given, isn't it Coby? I'd look up to you as my Admiral."

The pink on Coby's cheeks spread across his entire face and neck. "M-m-me? But-but you'll probably become an Admiral before I get there, r-right, Shoko-san?"

Shoko thought of herself as a small child, swearing that one day she'd become Fleet Admiral of the Marines and making the world a safer place. At that time, becoming Admiral seemed like an obvious step along the way, but now...

She studied Luffy's wide grin as he encouraged Coby to become strong enough to stand in the way of his own goals. She watched Sanji and Chopper, who sat behind him with nothing but pride and support for their Captain.

They all have dreams that they're so passionate about... Is it really necessary that I destroy their ambitions to satisfy my own? Is becoming Fleet Admiral the only way I can get rid of the corruption in the Marines?

"Maybe one day," she answered Coby, trying to hide the uncertainty in her voice, "but I think I have different goals for my life in the Marines."

Her eyes now moved to Zoro, whose eyes were already piercing her. She knew the proclamation would surprise him, since they'd both supported one another in their dreams for so long. The thought of changing her plans hadn't even crossed her mind until Coby asked the question, but she knew that deep down, her mind had been made up for a while.

"Well," Coby continued, turning back to Luffy with a smile, "be ready for the next time you see me! I'll be much stronger, and I'll capture you for sure!"

With that, he turned and ran back toward Garp's ship spurred on by a fresh dose of motivation.

"Yeah, be prepared!"

Shoko whirled around at the new voice to find Helmeppo holding his kukris in challenge.

"Helmeppo?" she asked. When did he get here?

"Huh?! You just noticed I'm here? You were the one who was late! Where were you, anyway—"

Shoko waved dismissively at his words in place of dignifying his tantrum, then gave a last sweeping wave to the Straw Hats. But her eyes were only on Zoro as she called out, "See ya!" before chasing after Coby.

"Heh?! Don't just ignore me and run away! Wait up!" Helmeppo cried as he followed after her.

_______________

Back on Garp's ship, Shoko rested with Coby and Helmeppo in one of the crow's nests after departing from the island.

"What did you mean back there, Shoko-san? When you said that you have different goals in the Marines than before?"

"To be honest, I don't think I know for sure yet," she replied. "Or at least, I don't know what steps I need to take like I thought I did before. I just can't stomach the thought of capturing the Straw Hats just because the World Government orders it."

"They're pirates, Shoko," Helmeppo reminded her. "They break the law. People all over the world are scared just at the tought of powerful pirates like Luffy. Especially now that the news is saying they annihilated Ennies Lobby."

"I know that. And I won't hesitate to capture them if they ever threaten civilians with their chaos. But people used to think of me the same way, even though I'd never hurt them. They were afraid of the 'Bounty Hunter' title, but all I ever wanted was to protect the people who couldn't fight for themselves. I feel like it's the same with Luffy and his crew. You saw how the people of Water 7 defended them. People who see the real Straw Hats aren't scared of them. I don't want to fight good people just because the rest of the world doesn't know them and is scared of them.

"I want to find the people who pose real threats to civilians. A lot of those people are pirates, but we all know that there are people like that in the Marines." She gave Helmeppo a pointed look, remembering his own father. "My own knowledge is just so limited, so I don't know how to find those threats for myself. I need to know more. I need to learn where my fight really is."

Coby hugged his knees to his chest and frowned. "The Marines should be the ones protecting Justice. This isn't right."

Helmeppo stretched his spine. "That's one thing we've all agreed on from the beginning. That's why we all need to rise up and become the big shots here. We don't need to all be Admirals, but we need people to want to listen to us. That's how we'll change things."

Coby and Shoko nodded solemnly. Changing things from the inside would be the only way to bring real justice to the Marines.

But, Shoko couldn't help but think, how deep does the corruption go? If we rise higher in rank will we just be held on a tighter leash by the World Government?

"Hey, Shoko," Coby said after a long, thoughtful silence, "if you need to learn where the real fight is.... Doesn't that remind you of what Rear Admiral Drake said?"

Shoko racked her memory for a moment before her eyes widened.

"He told us to let him know if we decide to fight," she recalled.

"But how are we supposed to find him?" Helmeppo asked. "He's a pirate now. He could be anywhere."

"The Marines probably keep track of his location because of how strong he is," Coby suggested. "Maybe we can find that information at Headquarters?"

Shoko shook her head. "There's no way we have that kind of clearance. They don't want just anyone approaching big-name pirates."

"So we'll need to find someone who does have that clearance," Helmeppo said.

"Vice Admiral Garp?" Coby suggested.

The idea didn't sit well with Shoko. She didn't want Garp to become suspicious of them. He might keep them away from important missions if he feared that they were getting too friendly with pirates.

Coby must have noticed Shoko's hesitation because he leaned forward eagerly, eyes pleading. "Rear Admiral Drake said he trusts Garp-san, remember? I think he told us that on purpose so we would know how to find him!"

Shoko frowned. "Ok, we can start with Garp, but we should be cautious. There's so much we don't know, and I don't want this to hurt us more than it could help."

Before Coby or Helmeppo could respond, all light was suddenly blocked from entering the crow's nest.

Shoko's shoulders tensed. She grabbed an arrow from her quiver on the ground and turned to the window to see what was going on.

But instead of finding a spying attacker or dark storm blocking the light, Vice Admiral Garp's huge shape covered the whole window.

"What are you three doing up here?" he bellowed. Helmeppo squeaked from behind Shoko as they all hurried to their feet. "Get down here and help the rest of the unit!"

Shoko grabbed her yumi and arrows and began making her way down from the crow's nest. As she looked down the ladder to make her descent, she paused and looked to the window Garp had been perched at.

How the hell was he just standing there? There's not a single foothold under that window.

A shiver crept down her spine thinking of the strength it took for a man that size to cling to such a smooth surface.