Shonen Jump and Shanks
Mar. 24th, 2009 06:04 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dethoratsTitle: Cleaning Up
Rating: PG for violence
Pairing: None, Shanks-centric
Word Count: 1075
What a mess. What a damned bloody mess.
The wet popping sound his sword made as he yanked it free of the gasping man’s ribcage was buried beneath the din of the larger battle but Shanks fancied he heard it anyway. Grimacing, he kicked the unfortunate pirate away from him, found his footing and turned to pick out his next opponent. Thunder boomed overhead, louder even than the continued exchange of cannon fire, and the choked cries of dying men managed to drown even the splitting of the skies. Frantic hollering in a familiar voice finally caught his attention and he whirled away from another falling foe, the spray of blood hot on his cheek in contrast to the frigid rain just starting to spit onto the deck. Yasopp waved at him with a boarding rope in hand, beckoning to him.
“C’mon Captain! Charge is ready. Just need to get outta here so we can set it!”
Shanks darted across the deck at the words, noting none of his own crew lying among the groaning bodies, and let Yasopp clap him on the shoulder as he took up the rope. He waited, poised on the rail as Yasopp struggled with his lighter and finally set flame to wick. Counting down, it took them only two seconds to make it back to his ship and Shanks ticked off another ten seconds as he dashed towards the helm. He could hear Beckman bellowing orders, watched as his men scurried to bring the Red Force about. The great dragon-prowed ship creaked and moaned, timbers straining, but it came around. Twenty more seconds and some serious straining at the seldom-used oars and still the blast nearly rocked him off his feet. Bits of timber, little more than splinters, mingled with the rain pattering on the deck. Yasopp crowed somewhere behind him and a ragged cheer rose up from more of his men. Shanks drew alongside his first mate and sighed as he took in a grim face rather than a pleased one.
“Status?”
“Three sunk, two more disabled. Four more spotted and no sign of the flagship. We took a broadside barrage that put a serious hole in the lower quarters. It’s patched and holding for now but won’t for long. And we’ve got six men down with Doc and two more that aren’t going to be here to celebrate our victory.”
“Who?” Shanks voice was a harsh whisper as he held out his hand for the telescope, putting it to his eye and searching for signs of Kaidou.
A large hand settled briefly on his shoulder, squeezed down in the only comfort available in the midst of battle. “Rikki and Nonojan.”
He nodded in acknowledgement, shoving the grief aside for later, and using the information as he needed it, revising his plans ever so slightly even as he scanned the choppy waters for his foe. There was still no sign of Kaidou, not that he’d expected any yet, but about a mile off starboard he caught sight of two more of his fellow emperor’s fleet. The ships were lurking along the coastline and, if memory served, there was a fairly deep cove beyond them but a rather treacherous reef to contend with as well. Shanks frowned and handed back over the telescope, pointing Beckman in the right direction.
“Trap,” his first mate declared almost immediately and Shanks sighed. He’d thought so. The taller man turned, telescope still trained on the water. “Classic pincer,” he added, handing the device back over to Shanks. The captain scanned the horizon where Beckman indicated, quickly catching sight of two more ships bearing down on them. They were heavily armed and armor-clad and were no doubt intending to herd him towards the other ships.
“No help for it, eh Beckman? We’ll have to outrun what we can’t outgun and hope they’re stupid enough to close in later so we can board. And if we’re lucky, Kaidou himself will be lurking in the cove and we can put a stop to this.”
“Aye, captain.”
Shanks let his first mate bellow out his new orders and took up a spot near the bow. Behind him his crew loaded the cannons, checked defenses, and saw to their own weapons. Tension swept over the ship, so thick it was nearly palpable, and Shanks shook his head again and grinned bitterly.
Sometimes he really regretted having a single ship rather than the damned armadas his three fellow ‘emperors’ commanded. Whitebeard at least still loved battle and never hung back unless forced to by his men. But Kaidou…Kaidou played a numbers game and he wasn’t afraid to throw lives away if it meant ultimate victory. Although how his math had added up to taking on Whitebeard now…Shanks scowled at his most recent memory of the stubborn old man. If only the bastard had listened. If only he’d been more forceful, arrived a little earlier. If only he had no regrets, and Shanks snorted at himself, he could die a happy man. Truly, the only way to have stopped Whitebeard from going after one of his own would be to have killed Blackbeard all those years ago when he’d had the chance.
Change was coming and Kaidou was just going to have to accept that the status quo could no longer stand. Whitebeard would never leave one of his own to die, especially not in such an obvious ploy from the World Government. The Navy would not permit the drastic movement of one of the Four from the New World into the earlier portion of the Grand Line. And Shanks would not allow Kaidou to interfere. So much was hanging in the balance; the very state of their world and, more importantly, Ace’s life. Another variable wasn’t necessary to muddy the situation, especially not if the message he’d received from Rayleigh was true. There was his trump card to consider after all, and, knowing Luffy, he was probably in the thick of things himself.
No, the crisis had reached a simmer all on its own and it didn’t need one more paranoid, powerful hothead to send it boiling over. The damned quagmire didn’t need another shovel of dirt heaped on and Shanks had decided he was just the man to start mopping up. As his ship sailed into Kaidou’s trap, he let his grin grow fiercer, more determined.
“Forward, lads! Let’s show these bastards how to REALLY make a mess!”
Rating: PG for violence
Pairing: None, Shanks-centric
Word Count: 1075
What a mess. What a damned bloody mess.
The wet popping sound his sword made as he yanked it free of the gasping man’s ribcage was buried beneath the din of the larger battle but Shanks fancied he heard it anyway. Grimacing, he kicked the unfortunate pirate away from him, found his footing and turned to pick out his next opponent. Thunder boomed overhead, louder even than the continued exchange of cannon fire, and the choked cries of dying men managed to drown even the splitting of the skies. Frantic hollering in a familiar voice finally caught his attention and he whirled away from another falling foe, the spray of blood hot on his cheek in contrast to the frigid rain just starting to spit onto the deck. Yasopp waved at him with a boarding rope in hand, beckoning to him.
“C’mon Captain! Charge is ready. Just need to get outta here so we can set it!”
Shanks darted across the deck at the words, noting none of his own crew lying among the groaning bodies, and let Yasopp clap him on the shoulder as he took up the rope. He waited, poised on the rail as Yasopp struggled with his lighter and finally set flame to wick. Counting down, it took them only two seconds to make it back to his ship and Shanks ticked off another ten seconds as he dashed towards the helm. He could hear Beckman bellowing orders, watched as his men scurried to bring the Red Force about. The great dragon-prowed ship creaked and moaned, timbers straining, but it came around. Twenty more seconds and some serious straining at the seldom-used oars and still the blast nearly rocked him off his feet. Bits of timber, little more than splinters, mingled with the rain pattering on the deck. Yasopp crowed somewhere behind him and a ragged cheer rose up from more of his men. Shanks drew alongside his first mate and sighed as he took in a grim face rather than a pleased one.
“Status?”
“Three sunk, two more disabled. Four more spotted and no sign of the flagship. We took a broadside barrage that put a serious hole in the lower quarters. It’s patched and holding for now but won’t for long. And we’ve got six men down with Doc and two more that aren’t going to be here to celebrate our victory.”
“Who?” Shanks voice was a harsh whisper as he held out his hand for the telescope, putting it to his eye and searching for signs of Kaidou.
A large hand settled briefly on his shoulder, squeezed down in the only comfort available in the midst of battle. “Rikki and Nonojan.”
He nodded in acknowledgement, shoving the grief aside for later, and using the information as he needed it, revising his plans ever so slightly even as he scanned the choppy waters for his foe. There was still no sign of Kaidou, not that he’d expected any yet, but about a mile off starboard he caught sight of two more of his fellow emperor’s fleet. The ships were lurking along the coastline and, if memory served, there was a fairly deep cove beyond them but a rather treacherous reef to contend with as well. Shanks frowned and handed back over the telescope, pointing Beckman in the right direction.
“Trap,” his first mate declared almost immediately and Shanks sighed. He’d thought so. The taller man turned, telescope still trained on the water. “Classic pincer,” he added, handing the device back over to Shanks. The captain scanned the horizon where Beckman indicated, quickly catching sight of two more ships bearing down on them. They were heavily armed and armor-clad and were no doubt intending to herd him towards the other ships.
“No help for it, eh Beckman? We’ll have to outrun what we can’t outgun and hope they’re stupid enough to close in later so we can board. And if we’re lucky, Kaidou himself will be lurking in the cove and we can put a stop to this.”
“Aye, captain.”
Shanks let his first mate bellow out his new orders and took up a spot near the bow. Behind him his crew loaded the cannons, checked defenses, and saw to their own weapons. Tension swept over the ship, so thick it was nearly palpable, and Shanks shook his head again and grinned bitterly.
Sometimes he really regretted having a single ship rather than the damned armadas his three fellow ‘emperors’ commanded. Whitebeard at least still loved battle and never hung back unless forced to by his men. But Kaidou…Kaidou played a numbers game and he wasn’t afraid to throw lives away if it meant ultimate victory. Although how his math had added up to taking on Whitebeard now…Shanks scowled at his most recent memory of the stubborn old man. If only the bastard had listened. If only he’d been more forceful, arrived a little earlier. If only he had no regrets, and Shanks snorted at himself, he could die a happy man. Truly, the only way to have stopped Whitebeard from going after one of his own would be to have killed Blackbeard all those years ago when he’d had the chance.
Change was coming and Kaidou was just going to have to accept that the status quo could no longer stand. Whitebeard would never leave one of his own to die, especially not in such an obvious ploy from the World Government. The Navy would not permit the drastic movement of one of the Four from the New World into the earlier portion of the Grand Line. And Shanks would not allow Kaidou to interfere. So much was hanging in the balance; the very state of their world and, more importantly, Ace’s life. Another variable wasn’t necessary to muddy the situation, especially not if the message he’d received from Rayleigh was true. There was his trump card to consider after all, and, knowing Luffy, he was probably in the thick of things himself.
No, the crisis had reached a simmer all on its own and it didn’t need one more paranoid, powerful hothead to send it boiling over. The damned quagmire didn’t need another shovel of dirt heaped on and Shanks had decided he was just the man to start mopping up. As his ship sailed into Kaidou’s trap, he let his grin grow fiercer, more determined.
“Forward, lads! Let’s show these bastards how to REALLY make a mess!”
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2009-03-24 02:07 pm (UTC)Bleach is only interesting as long as Chad is around!
Somehow, Reborn just can't interest me enough... I don't know why, maybe too much 'meh' characters?
no subject
Date: 2009-03-25 10:17 am (UTC)Bleach, though, is basically a lost cause for me without Chad.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-26 11:42 am (UTC)But, it wasnt enough to get me inte watching the second season...
And Bleach, yea. Only Chad was awesomesause for me. All the ohters are too much of the same to me... nothing special I haven't seen in other anime's/manga's. I just loved the gentle giant and kindofa dork part XD
The only series that got me into liking is a lot is SOUL EATER, because if has very unique characters! If you want a good anime, you should try that one.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-24 04:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-03-25 10:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-03-25 05:34 pm (UTC)I know! The person who made it has skills.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-24 06:00 pm (UTC)*basks*
OMG! Why don't you write more action! This is terrific! Shame on you for writing about Shanks, though. No fair trying to temp me into writing that Ben/Shanks for you yet. :P
Seriously, glad your back and writing again. :) I also enjoy Reborn!, Naruto (well, less so now ~_~), Fairy Tail and YYH (also love his Hunter x Hunter series). And, whut? The new One Piece is out here? With Zoro yumminess? Must get! Though my favorite fight scene has to be Luffy vs Usopp. That battle was epic.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-25 10:23 am (UTC)I hear lots of good things about HxH. So it's worth checking out? Somehow I didn't know it was by the same mangaka. Now I'm curious to see if/how his art style's evolved. There's something so impressionistic about YYH and it works really well with the violence but I don't know if it would work for me on another type of title.
As for the ficlet, *blushes* You are always too nice to me. But Shanks is always fun for me to write and he gets neglected a lot so....yeah...and if it works as temptation ^_^ well, perhaps I'll have to find more time and confidence then.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-24 11:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-03-25 10:18 am (UTC)