Innocent Man...

Chapter 28

Title: Innocent Man...

….

-Ace POV-

I look through the wreckage for Arlong, I have nothing personal against the guy. I can even understand why he does what he does. 

After all, he grew up in an environment where his people were enslaved daily. If humanity was getting enslaved by some alien race, I can't say that I wouldn't be angry. Probably not take some dumb actions that Arlong took, but I can definitely see where he is coming from.

Anyway, that doesn't matter to me, there is no need to take the moral high ground. It's not like I am any better either.

Baam!

The rubble next to me shifts and a charred Arlong comes out with an angry look on his face and looks at me.

"You bastard!" Yells Arlong as he charges at me.

I only give him a side glance, he isn't important at all to me. Honestly, I am not really even mad at Sabo for taking them out. But acting childish on my part is way more fun.

Fwish!

As he gets close, with a clean slash, I cut off his head. No need for theatrics or gloating in front of an enemy. It isn't logical, and it's retarded.

As his head separates from his neck, I grab it from his hair and start walking towards Sabo.

Sabo looks at the fishman's head and says. "Wow… that looks gross."

He is of course talking about the decapitation.

"Well, it's still better than the burned corpses." I tell him with a slightly annoyed look on my face.

"Hey, c'mon now Ace, no need to be so grumpy about something like this." Says Sabo, trying to ease my annoyed mood. Which is nonexistent, to begin with, but I like the reactions of my actions, so I will take it.

"I am not grumpy." I tell him in a grumpy manner. I see Druce write all this down, even mine and Sabo's conversations. Damn, his book will be more of a comedy if he writes it right.

….

-General POV-

Nojiko, Nami, and every other villager goes towards Arlong's Park. They all saw the huge fire pillar that appeared in the sky, they couldn't help it as a trace of hope appeared in their hearts. 

The fishman has been terrorizing them for years now, they understand what that all means for them all. They are slaves, except in name.

And as they walk towards Arlong Park, they see three young men. Two of them are arguing, while the other is casually writing in a book without a care in the world.

"And I told you, the North Pole is colder than the South Pole." Says Sabo with an annoyed look on his face.

"You dumbass, they would both be around the same temperature. What you say doesn't make sense at all." Argues Ace, he has an angry look on his face. "One day we will visit them and we will see."

"We don't even need to. I know what I am talking about here." Says Sabo with a smirk.

"You mean you bullsh*t." Snidely insults Ace, this makes Sabo mad and he is about to turn around and punch his friend but he notices that people are looking at them. 

"Oh hey there." Greets Sabo the villagers with an embarrassed look on his face as he scratches the back of his head. "Sorry, you had to see that."

Ace looks at the people and he waves at them politely too. But the people are too shocked to even react as they see the decapitated head on Ace's hand. But while everyone else was stationary, he saw Nojiko in the crowd and waved at her. "Yo! Nojiko~."

"Yo! We killed Arlong, you can have his bounty if ya want it." Says Ace as he just throws the man's head on the ground. He then points back with his thumb and adds on. "If you also need something more from Arlong Park, we destroyed it. There might be some treasure, we didn't really check the place out."

"What?!! Really??!" Exclaims a villager in surprise and also with a trace of happiness in his voice. Other villagers also immediately were in a celebratory mood altogether.

"Y -You really killed him?" Comes a voice from the celebrating crowd. Ace looks at where the voice came from and sees Nami on the ground crying.

Ace walks towards her and sits on the ground too. "Yep, sorry if you cared for him or something like that. If you feel confident enough, you can come and try to kill me in the future."

"No, I am glad that he is dead." Says Nami as she wipes her tears. Everyone in the village also has tears of happiness coming out of their eyes.

"You could say that he is dead fish now." Says Ace, seemingly trying to make a bad joke. Nami has an unimpressed look as she gazes at the man who apparently saved them.

"That is such a bad joke." Says Nami, but she still laughs at the ridiculous joke and the ridiculous moment. She gets close to him and touches his arm and with a smile on her face thanks him. "Thank you…"



"You are welcome?" Says Ace confusedly. "I mean we didn't do it to save you guys especially so I would feel bad taking credit for your happiness."

In the end, though, Nami laughs, even more, out loudly. "You are ridiculous."

"Bahahaha." Laughs Sabo as he comes towards Ace and says. "Yep, our captain is quite ridiculous."

As soon as he says that Ace turns around and looks at his friend with a dangerous look on his eyes.

"What?" Sabo is confused by this. "She called you ridiculous too."

"Well, it's different when a cute girl calls me ridiculous and when you do it." Says Ace, 'accidentally' saying that Nami is cute and 'unintentionally' making the teen blush.

"Y- You think I am cute?" Asks Nami with a slightly embarrassed look on her face.

"Hm?" Ace looks at her surprise and bluntly says. "Yep, you are one of the cutest girls I have ever seen."

As he says that, he has a completely honest look in his eyes.

"INDECENCY!!!" Yells a middle-aged man with a mustache, as he comes in between Nami and Ace, separating them. "Nami!!! You can't fall into the tricks of a handsome man!"

Nami only sticks her tongue out in a rebellious attitude. "I can do whatever I want Genzo."

She then boldly hugs Ace, shocking every villager here. Nami looks at her benefactor and asks. "I heard your friend call you Captain, what was that all about?"

"Oh, I am a pirate captain." Says Ace honestly, shocking everyone once more.

That is when Ace feels a hand touch his shoulder, he turns around and sees that it is Nojiko. *sigh* "I know that you are a pirate and all that… but can you stop flirting with my little sister."

"Flirting?" Ace seemed genuinely confused by the word. "What is that?"

Nojiko is surprised to hear that Ace doesn't know what even such a basic word means. 

"Uhhh…" Nojiko doesn't know how to answer that question. Seeing someone as innocent as Ace… is strange for her.

"Oh yeah! I almost forgot!" Exclaims Ace suddenly. "I also need to take care of something else."

….

A/N: Ace acts differently on the outside, he is different on the inside.

P.S: Hope ya like it~

https://www.pa treon.com/MessyLife

(5 chaps in advance in there)

I now also have a discord server for Q&A and I also share some pics in there too. Like the one where Ace and Nami were sitting on the ground. On Patreòn I have them as you read along, here I can't put them so you have them in Discord.

https://discord.gg/nCZjhUKVRH