Chapter 25

In fact, the boy's outfit reminded Bill of something he himself might have worn proudly.

With these thoughts in mind, Bill replied, "Excuse me? Can I help you, Sheriff?"

The boy seemed taken aback by this response but, after a moment of pondering, continued with more enthusiasm, "Maybe you can, maybe you can't. Look here..." the boy said, starting to twirl a large bunch of handcuff keys on his finger. "I've been hunting a fruit thief for several days. Every time I think I've found him, I run into someone I've never seen before."

"And since no one has ever seen this Fruit Ninja, and no one has ever seen you, I suspect you fit the description quite well."

Immediately feeling a fondness for the boy, Bill struggled to hold back laughter and instead decided to play along, "Well, Sheriff, you shouldn't make such accusations. What if I'm innocent? With your reputation as a fair lawman, you should have evidence to back up such claims."

"I mean, look at my clothes, do I look like a, uh... ninja?"

Seemingly processing Bill's words, the boy then quietly replied, "A Fruit Ninja would be a master of disguise; all my years of working as a lawman tell me that."

Continuing to twirl the keys with one hand, the boy placed his other hand on his belt and continued, now louder:

"As a fair lawman, I think I should give you a chance. I believe there's only one way to prove your innocence—I'll make you a Junior Deputy Sheriff to help solve this case. No innocent person with honor would let a thief escape, right?"

The boy looked at Bill hopefully.

Deciding it would be fun to play the role of a cowboy, Bill asked:

"Alright, but if I'm the Junior Deputy Sheriff, who will be my boss?"

Hearing Bill's response, the boy leaned slightly forward, pressed his thumb to his chest, and said with a wide smile:

"Rance McGrew, Junior, the greatest lawman the seas have ever seen!"

Hidden behind the fruit stand, two boys about ten years old watched the proceedings. One wore an oversized white cowboy hat and a small badge with the words [Junior Sheriff], while the other donned a hat too small and a large badge reading [Junior Deputy].

At first, following Rance was fun, but after being convinced to wear the "deputy" costume and do nothing but patrol and wait, Bill grew impatient and said:

"Rance, are you sure this ninja will show up here?"

As if not hearing the irritation in his voice, Rance replied seriously:

"All signs point here, yes, this is exactly where he will appear. When it happens, just stand behind me, Deputy Ox."

Hearing the enthusiastic tone of Rance, Bill no longer felt as annoyed but still asked:

"But how do you know for sure that Fruit Ninja will strike here?"

Poking his head out from the edge of the stand for a moment, Rance then turned back and said:

"Have you ever read Wyatt Holiday?" "That's how he always catches the bad guys. Villains are fools; they always return to the scene of the crime because they think that if they got away once, they won't get caught! Fruits have been stolen from this stall daily since I took up this case.

Don't worry, Deputy; I'll show you everything I know."

"Wait, Wyatt Holiday?" Bill pondered, still amazed at the oddities of this world.

"Exactly! Wyatt Holiday, the greatest lawman and bounty hunter who ever lived," Rance replied enthusiastically.

Now more intrigued by this character than the supposed fruit ninja, Bill asked:

"And what makes him so famous, and where did you hear about him?"

Rance said, "You've never heard of Wyatt Holiday?!". The boy seemed genuinely surprised before continuing, "I've read all his books, so I can tell you about him. Wyatt Holiday never lost a fight and never shot a man in the back. Once, while pursuing the 'Mad Six Mountains' gang, he took down all eight members with just two shots..."

As Rance went on with the adventures of his hero, Bill couldn't help but draw parallels with stories he knew from childhood, all quite similar but not identical.

"...and then there was the time when Wyatt Holiday was hunting Rattlesnake Jake; it was then when rustle-rustle - Huh?!"

Hearing the noise, Rance and Bill instantly darted out from behind the stall, quickly scanning the area. Bill noticed a small shadow running away, but before he could say anything, Rance shouted:

"FRUIT NINJA!"

Charging forward in pursuit, Rance yelled again:

"STOP! IN THE NAME OF THE LAW!"

Following close behind, Bill added:

"STOP!"

The chase didn't last long. Although neither Rance nor the fruit thief was as fast as Bill, he was still impressed by their agility. In fact, if he hadn't trained so hard, both boys probably would have left him behind.

"Huff, huff... Damn, did you see where he ran off to, Deputy?" Rance asked, breathing heavily.

Even though Bill had seen which direction the boy ran and could possibly catch up if he really tried, he didn't want to take away the junior sheriff's thrill of the chase. Besides, in Bill's opinion, stealing a few oranges wasn't serious enough to warrant a harsh punishment.