Pandaman

As predicted, it took Pandaman 30 minutes to reach the next island. Truly, he was a master at rowing, but sadly, he needed to ship to reach the Grand Line.

Pandaman was now in more than just a big town. He was at the execution spot of the famed Gold Roger. He was in Roguetown!

Vast scenery was all around him. There were big buildings everywhere and the people were happy and full of life. There seemed nothing wrong with this place that is until he saw a discouraging site.

He noticed two men making the moves on a young woman. One of the men, a buff one, walked up to her and squeezed her tender cheeks while saying, "Hello, pretty lady. Do you want to come to my boat so we can get busy? I bet you'd love a tough man like me, wouldn't you?"

The woman shook her head and spat, "No! I don't want a creep like you!"

Suddenly, the tuff guy's associate, a slender young man pushed his friend to the side and said, "Don't mind him. He's always doing this to women. I am so sorry for what he has done to your delicate face."

The woman breathed a sigh of relief and said, "You're so sweet! Too bad I'm not really ready yet."

The man sank and yanked the girl by the arm. "Since you're not willing to be my lover, I'll have to take you in by force!"

Pandaman grimaced and rushed at the two men. He immediately drew out his sword and dashed past both their backs. Let's just say he left a little something behind on their backs to show he was there.

The tuff man turned around and asked, "Who are you? That hurt!"

The slim man trembled and stuttered, "I-is that a p-panda with a so-sword?"

Pandaman turned around and gave the woman a toothy grin followed by a 'thumbs up' and a wink. Then he stepped in front of the two men and announced, "Kneel before me, cruel womanizers! I am the ultimate warrior who travels the land! My dream, you ask, is to become a great hero, and to do that, I must make a name for myself! My sword has defeated many men, but with my skills, I insure that it never kills a living soul."

The slim man turned to his tuff friend and whispered, "This guy is good. He might make a great addition to our crew!"

The tuff man nodded and whispered back, "I know just how to get him to join us."

As this conversation went on, Pandaman continued his speech. "I am the great traveling warrior! I have thwarted many foes! I am the Great Pandaman!"

The woman blushed and said, "For a panda, you're kind of cute."

Pandaman grinned and said, "Say there, young lady, I plan on getting myself a ship so I can sail the grand line. I wouldn't want to put you in danger, but would you join me after I get it?"

The woman shook her head and said, "I don't wish to go to the grand line. Besides, I'm not really interested in pandas."

She walked off while the two womanizers looked at Pandaman. The tuff man held his hand out and said, "Hi, my name is Diego. My friend behind me is Grendel. You have a lot of skill, and for that, we apologize for being so abusive and rude towards that woman."

Pandaman sheathed his sword and smiled. "You two seem like really good people," he said. "Sorry I had to be so rough on you."

Diego bowed and said, "Arigato Gozaimasu. Say, you're really skilled and we would like to ask of you a favor."

Pandaman glanced back with a confused look and asked, "What is it you would like me to do?"

Grendel bowed down to him and asked, "Please, if it isn't too much, will you help us retrieve money that was stolen from us?"

Pandaman gasped and replied, "Of course I will help you retrieve stolen money! If there's anything I hate, it's a thief!"

Grendel gave him more praise and said, "Arigato! Arigato, good sir! See that building over there?" He pointed to a tower just a few feet from where they were.

"You mean the tower with the Marine flag? What about it?" replied Pandaman.

Grendel nodded along and explained, "That's not a real marine flag. See, thieves live in that tower, and they put up a marine flag so they wouldn't rouse suspicion. They took our money in there and we're too weak to stop them. What's worse is that the real marines don't believe us, and the only marines who will believe us are off chasing the Straw Hat pirates! You must help us!"

Pandaman growled and answered, "Of course I will lend a hand. Stealing is one thing, but when you impersonate the marines, you insure my wrath!"

Diego smiled and said, "Thank you, kind sir, but remember… don't be seen. The marines still believe that these thieves are real marines, and if they catch you attacking these people, they'll have you arrested. If you escape, you'll be a wanted man! Either way, you don't want to get caught!"

Pandaman grimaced and said, "I can't let that happen. I promised that small family on the last island I'd become a hero. Okay, I won't roughhouse the thieves, but I will get your money back."

Diego laughed and said, "This is working like a charm! Soon he'll have choice but to be a part of our crew!"

Grendel chuckled and exclaimed, "What a sap! Let's call the boss and tell him the good news!"

Diego pulled a snail phone out of the bag he was carrying and dialed the number to his boss' phone. The boss picked it up and nodded along as Diego explained how they were going to soon have a powerful crew member among them.

Five minutes later, Pandaman emerged with the money. He handed it to Diego and said, "This is all the money they had stolen from you. Use it well."

Suddenly, an alarm went off as the marine leader inside the tall tower Pandaman had just stolen from picked up a microphone snail and announced, "ATTENTION ALL UNITS AND CITIZENS! SOMEONE HAS BROKEN INTO MARINE HEADQUARTERS AND STOLEN 400,000,000,000 BERRIES! I REPEAT, SOMEONE HAS STOLEN 400,000,000,000 BERRIES FROM THE GOVERNMENT!"

Pandaman stared at Diego and Grendel as they laughed and said, "Oh, we forgot to tell you we're pirates!"

Pandaman gasped and said, "I can't believe I helped you! I'll strike you down right now!"

Diego laughed and retorted, "If you do that, we'll tell them you stole the loot!"

Pandaman gasped and said, "I'd rather be turned in than steal!"

Grendel snickered and replied, "What about your dream? Are you going to ditch that? Face it, if that small family finds out you're a convict, you'll be going back on your promise. Your only way out of this is to join our pirate crew! If you do that, we'll keep your secret safe and you'll be our nakama! That small family will never know! We can promise you that!"

Pandaman slumped down and uttered, "You filthy wretch… I accept your offer. Take me to your ship."

Diego gave his partner a high five and said, "You're probably wondering why that family will never know. Simply put, we're headed for the grand line too, so traveling with us won't completely destroy your dream."

Pandaman had to admit that they were right. He was also heading for the grand line. He hung his head in shame and followed them back to their ship.