Clover D. Hatch

Clover D. Hatch...

History
Hatch was born as the first and only child of Scratch and Cabin Clover on the island of Gourd, an archipelago situated somewhere within West Blue. Pintown, in which the family resided, was known for its high crime rates, essentially being a haven for unlawful behavior, attracting all kinds of criminals, namely pirates and bandits, polluting every corner with gang wars. Even the doctors of the village, who are normally looked towards as caretakers, were corrupt, desiring large sums of money in return for subtle operations. It is said that Hatch's first heroic moment was when he peed inside the mouth of the doctor who delivered him, showcasing a talent for good aim with his first drawn breath. The arrival of Hatch within the lives of the Clover family was inspiring, while at the same time, incredibly stress inducing, for the visit to the hospital had cost them nearly all of their savings.

In his early years, Hatch was restricted to staying within his home, for the fear that exposure to the outside world may result in his corruption by the various criminals looming about. He lived a very sheltered life, knowing of no other persons beyond his mother and father; this resulted in the establishment of great bonds with both. Hatch's mother, Cabin, worked from home as a florist. Hatch often offered his hand to work alongside his mother, helping her tend to her garden of vibrant flowers. She was a woman renown for her beauty, who had married Hatch's father, Snatch, based off of an arrangement from her own parents; he, as a school teacher, was meant to do all of earning. However, their shortcomings had forced Clover into labor as well.

Being a school teacher, Snatch owned a separate property away from the house, a small hut that was enough to fill the handful of children within the village. He tutored them only in the essentials before they dropped out to help provide for their own families. During the nighttime, he would return home for private sessions with his own son, educating him more diligently than the rest of his students because of the amount of time they had together. Hatch admired his father greatly, looking to him as the smartest person in the world. He appeared to have an answer for each and everyone of his questions, no matter their tendency to escape logic. He also taught Hatch how to play some of his favorite games, such as skipping a rock across the pond and shooting pebbles into a plastic cup. With his superior level of intellect, in comparison to the rest of the village's citizens, Snatch accumulated great respect, and was regarded as Pintown's mayor of the sorts, making him the primary voice of reason within the area.

Snatch's authority allowed him to speak out against several gang leaders, who remained silent in return, out of the fear of how many supporters he had backing him up. He also made several decisions for the sake of the village on his own, such as collecting taxes to supply the village with a new plumbing system that would allow for fresh water daily. Even beyond his son's unprecedented constraints of love, Snatch was praised by the village at large and looked towards as a rolemodel, for having a beautiful wife, an able family, a well paying job, and a lot of political power. He was essentially the example of success amongst the people of Gourd as a whole, yet somehow managed to remain the same simple, humble man he always had been. Seen as the truth within the eyes of many, his reputation was all that succeeded him, until the arrival of the Red Brick Pirates.

Storming in from the seas of North Blue, the Red Brick Pirates were led by their captain, the infamous "Strong Arm" Bison, with a bounty well over 10,000,000. Under his leadership, they invaded Pintown and took control almost immediately, demonstrating their power and conquering the other groups that ventured the village. For their own benefits, they sought to take advantage of the soft terrains of Gourd Island and turn it into a drug farm; however, because they wanted the villagers to remain on the island --so that they could seize control over an entire community, and thereby charge them for daily income-- they needed a way to convince them into working for them. They saw their chance by yet again displaying their power, and preaching their ideals of orchestrating a new nation, one that would bring great riches to not only the village, but the entire island.

Snatch, however, was not so easily convinced. He sensed trouble in the motives of the Red Brick Pirates, as the production of a community wide drug project would most certainly get the entire village into trouble. Not wanting to involve all he loved in such issues, Snatch began to petition against Bison and his pirate crew, gaining back majority of the followers he had lost to them with words alone. Realizing the impact Snatch had in the community, Bison turned to another scheme; one that involved dethroning Snatch as the village's "leader". One night, after learning of Snatch's occupation, Bison set his plan into action by sending word that the school house was to be holding a special exam that night; whatever student passed the exam with the highest grade of all, would have been awarded a special type of jewel said to be unobtainable anywhere else in the world.

The message was sent but only to one family, who quickly offered their daughter as a participant when learning of the reward. Only, when the little girl visited the school house that night, she was met not by a writing utensil, but rather, a knife running through her stomach. The man holding the weapon was none other than Bison, though he made sure so as not to reveal his identity to the girl; hiding himself quickly, he managed to escape, awaiting for the next sequence of his plan to fall into place. What happened next was all according to his plan; a scream was heard down the block, startling the members of the Clover family. Being their property, they lived quite close to the school house, and Snatch was able to leave behind the comfort of his bed and arrive at the girl's side in the matter of a few minutes.

When Snatch saw the girl in a state of confusion, he went to embrace her, in an attempt to provide her with some comfort. When he went to question what exactly she was doing at the school house so late in the night, however, he came upon her wound; his own hands were tainted with her blood, and in a state of confusion, the girl believed her teacher to be her enemy. It wasn't long before other members of the village showed up at the scene, with the expressions across each of their faces being those of appalling. They could hardly believe what they were seeing, and in a fit of rage, the parents of the now late schoolgirl attacked Snatch, before an angry mob began to surface. In the midst of the scuffle, Snatch was powerless; he tried his very best to explain the situation, however, the dying words of the schoolgirl were enough to plague the villagers.

Bison arrived at the scene pretending to be completely oblivious, until a citizen explained the situation in full detail. By this time, Hatch and his mother had arrived upon the scene as well, and quickly discerned such a theory as being preposterous, knowing darn well that the Snatch they knew, could never uphold to something so horrific. Still, their words of reason were not enough to prevent Bison from playing the role of a hero; garnering his large build, and his lifelong experiences as a pirate, he proceeded into beating down Snatch before a large crowd, much to their enjoyment. During the entire fiasco, Hatch came to his father's aid many times, only to be casted away each and every instance. He tried to hold on to Bison's leg as he made to kick his father in the face, and even attempted to drag his father back home, only to be met by the fury of the crowd himself.

In his final moments, Snatch bid his family farewell, telling Hatch to take good care of his mother. He also went on to praise his son for the future he had before him, as well as thank him for allowing him to become a father in the first place; with his dying breath, he explained how vast the world was, and that there were all kinds of people across the seas, implying that he should never judge others because of his experiences with Bison. Snatch's death brought what appeared to be endless sorrow for the likes of the last two remaining members of the Clover family; the village's citizens, however, had essentially devoted their lives into aiding their new "savior" with his plan to bring riches to Gourd Island. The passing of his father brought great agony to Hatch's heart. After that day, he never looked at anything the same way.

After Snatch's death, the Clover family faced an age of unparalleled hardship. The schoolhouse had been torn down by the villagers in a fit of rage, leaving them without a basis of income; the property had also been taken from them in exchange for their lives. Cabin's flower business ended in a failure as well, with Bison's new agricultural work being in high demand. All Hatch's mother had left was her good looks; to provide for her son, she had no choice but to respond to the many toots and whistles of the village's criminals and resort to prostitution. She worked long, vigorous hours each day, though her responsibilities were often carried home with her at the end of each day, and Hatch was unable to sleep at night because of the many noises next door. He cried each and every time he saw his mother in pain, straining away his vision and eventually rendering his eyes tearless, literally to the point where could no longer shed tears.

To accommodate for the losses in his life, Hatch looked for a motive to survive, while at the same time, provide for his mother and repay the efforts she had been placing forth for him. He turned initially towards mining coal, though after much of the village's focus shifted towards farming drugs, he was left with no choice but to serve the very same people who took away the life of his father. The situation only grew worse, ironically, when his mother was met with a proposal of marriage; because of her beauty, a member of the Red Brick Pirates by the name of Plug had essentially placed claims upon her, demanding her hand in marriage. Because of the sorry state the Clover family had been placed within, for the sake of her son's future, she was forced to take him up on the offer and ultimately marry for a second time.

While this allowed her to move away from her career as a prostitute, it really did no better for her in terms of health, as Plug requested her services just as much as she would have seen on a daily basis in the past. Plug had no clear interest in children, only giving attention to Hatch when he needed a way to relieve his own stress, which was largely comprised of cruel beatings. However, being so very active with Cabin resulted in the birth of his daughter, and Hatch's step sister. Due to his mother's deteriorating health, for the most part, Hatch raised her on her own, and even decided upon her name, naming her "Charm", a reference to the happiness she brought him. He taught her to read and write much like Snatch had done with him in the past, and looked over her as her primary caretaker.

Some years later, the news behind the production of drugs within Gourd Island became known to the navy. The type of drugs being grown were not meant for superficial pleasures, but rather went by the name of "energy steroids", and allowed whomever devoured them to receive tremendous power. This, along with the fact that the island was heavily populated by pirates, ultimately led to a buster call, whereby several navy fleets arrived, firing an endless barrage of explosives towards the island in an effort to reduce it to dust. The Red Brick Pirates had schemed together another plan, however, and managed to escape before they were terminated. Being affiliated with the pirates, Plug was able to escape the destruction of Gourd as well, however, at the cost of leaving his family behind.

Plug took only Rose with him, claiming she could have been of some use to him in the future, and set off with his crew. Using the prowess he had obtained during his times with Snatch, Hatch heaved a rock across the ocean and hit Plug just as he was leaving, scarring him across the forehead, leading the pirate to curse him until he was out of view. With little time remaining, Hatch escaped on a nearby rowboat with his mother, and the two set out for sea, narrowly escaping their death, just as the ships for the buster call arrived. From afar, Hatch watched as the marines destroyed his home land. He grew paranoid of who exactly he could trust in this cold world; as far as he knew, there were two sides to this entire conflict, pirates and marines, and everyone else in the world appeared to be caught in between their battle. As both sides had proven themselves to be corrupt, he had no idea which to defer to.

Traveling by boat made to be an incredibly painful experience for Hatch. During the course of the struggle, his mother's health gradually declined, something which only worsened as a result of having absolutely nothing to eat. Unable to even so much as cry any longer, Hatch was forced to do nothing but watch as his mother died right before his eyes. Much like his father, she left the world after addressing a list of her own ideals; she told Hatch to survive, and to claim his purpose in life. She explained to him that the world was a vast place, much like his father had, and that there were several places in the world where people were not as corrupt as those he had come across in his life thus far. She yet again emphasized the importance of his survival, and asked that he stay strong, and grow up to become someone Rose could look up to. Left without food for several days, Hatch eventually resorted to cannibalism, abiding to the last wishes of his mother.

Stranded in the middle of the ocean with no more than a torn corpse in his rowboat, Hatch was found by a passing pirate ship and invited onboard. He did not question their reasons of saving him, nor did he care much, seeing as though he had nowhere else to return to; they offered him food in return for a list of chores, and eventually, he settled down as their cabin boy. The crew went by the name of the "Bluegoggle" pirates, attributed to the nickname of their captain, as most went. Bluegoggle was a pirate known and feared for his marksmanship, and he later revealed that he had spared Hatch's life on a whim; initially having mistaken the boy's rowboat for a marine officer who had given chase to them, he had opened fire. However, much to the surprise of not only himself, but the rest of his crew, he had misfired completely, missing his target. It was made a more severe circumstance when considering the level of difficulty the shot had presented; a sniper of Bluegoggle's level should have never missed such an easy shot. And thus, he deemed the boy's survival luck, and suddenly grew interested in him.

For several weeks, Hatch remained with the Bluegoggle pirates as nothing more than their cabin boy. He tended to their necessities, cleaning their dirty boots and fetching them a snack to nibble on every now and then. He started to attract attention to himself when he began throwing chocolate bars across the ship with incredibly precise accuracy, at times even causing the bar to unwrap itself whilst still airborne, only to have it land within the mouth of the pirate who had asked him for it. This, along with several other impressive feats garnered the attention of Bluegoggle, leading the pirate captain to eventually take the boy under his wing and properly exercise him in the noble arts of sharpshooting. There were very few teachers Hatch could have asked for; in fact, under his circumstances, it was all but perfect. Under the tutelage of Bluegoggle, he learned to maximize his potential, transforming himself into an able pirate, despite his incredibly young age.

As the crew descended into the grand line, Hatch took up the role as one of the crew's supporting snipers, working the canons for the most part. He visited numerous islands, including Skepia, which he took particular interest in, as their vast array of tools allowed even a youngster such as himself to compete against older pirates. He kept time to himself as well, to read newspapers and strengthen his mind, all the while educating himself of the ways of the seas by first hand experience. He learned of devil fruits and their unique powers, of the various conflicting sides that dominated the seas, the many cultures, the several events in ancient history. Hatch filled his mind with knowledge to become the perfect pirate, giving new reason to his life. He welcomed the carefree lifestyle at a very young age, and while he lost his virginity young to a woman more than twice his age, he refused to smoke so much as a single cigarette, for the fear of his health.

Hatch's time with the Bluegoggle pirates came to an end during the events of a Davy Back Fight. Presenting great confidence in his skills as a sniper, he challenged an opposing pirate to a duel, though lost miserably, taking a bullet to the stomach. In return, he became a member of the Moon Pirates, under the leadership of captain Grain. After the loss, Hatch grew depressed, having lost the people who had rescued him in a time of desperation. They had practically raised him themselves, teaching him the many ways of the seas. However, being a loser, he learned that his fate was unavoidable, and that he had to accept it. As a parting gift, Hatch was given Bluegoggle's infamous blue spectacles, a sign of the bond the two shared, which was likened to that of a father-son relationship. With a tearful goodbye, Bluegoggle told Hatch that he would always be looking out for him, and told Hatch to become all he could be, serving under a separate jolly roger.

Marksmanship
While clearly inferior to others in his field, such as the late and, Hatch is still considered to be one of the greatest snipers in the world, having earned acknowledgement from even high ranking officers in the marines, such as  and , the former of which is known to never praise pirates under normal circumstances. Indeed, it would be nothing short of disrespect to leave Hatch off of a list of the world's greatest marksman, as he has devoted simply too much time to his craft, to the point where it is said that no ordinary gunsmen would even have the slightest chance of standing up to him, even if they were to catch him by surprise. Hatch has demonstrated immediate prowess in marksmanship, dating back even to his birth, when he peed into the mouth of a corrupt doctor. He is an accomplished sniping veteran who has recorded a vast array of feats over the course of his piracy, many of which are said to be outright absurd. He has shown the ability of working several different kinds of guns, such as canons, muskets, pistols and even rocket launchers.

Attributed to his renown as "Fast Hands" and his superb reflexes, Hatch differentiates himself from other snipers not based off his precision, but rather by how quickly he is able to release a barrage of attacks upon his foes. His trigger finger is a work of magic; Hatch has shown the ability to generate sparks, and by extension, even subtle trails of fire, simply through the act of flicking his index finger against his thumb at what to him is considered a "moderate" level of speed. His prowess is such, that on multiple instances, Hatch has been seen shooting down his targets before they could so much as react to his movements, dropping dead upon being unable to comprehend it in the least. It is said that no matter what gun he has within his grasp, as long as he is the one in control of it, it will always have a "fully automatic" feature, due to how insanely fast he is able to click the trigger of his weapons. This most nearly means that he is able to shoot a pistol as if it were a machine gun, a brand which is typically made to be utilized for single fire purposes. Furthermore, the same array of reflexes is evident even in Hatch's reloading processes, when his choice of fire arm requires a replenishment of ammunition in order to continue wrecking havoc. However, because he now possesses devil fruit abilities, he no longer has to waste time reloading a gun, as it is much more efficient, not to mention, much more swift in context, to simply switch out the gun, rather than supply it with more bullets.

Even despite specializing in the game of speed when it comes to firing guns, Hatch has still shown himself more than capable of covering large distances. During his earlier years of piracy, this was essentially the role he uncovered for the most part, until finally taking over the position of first mate. He mostly worked the cannons of ships, hitting his target dead in the eye, while being restricted to the ship as its lookout on the side, due to his keen eyesight. He has demonstrated a vast array of feats, such as being able to shoot across even entire oceans and aiming at targets on entirely separate island than his. His level of comprehension is extraordinary, as without having the ability to properly aim, it would have made his assets of rapid firing essentially futile. It takes him very little time, if any at all, to line up his sights with his target, even despite them being so very far away. His ability to very swiftly line up long distance shots has been dubbed "Quick Scoping" by those who have experienced it. On the contrary, for the utmost precision, Hatch can be seen taking a prone-like stance, where he is quite literally stationed over his stomach with a rifle planted before him. This allows him to cover large fields and shoot down enemies across the grand line while remaining in one measly position. Evidently, the combination of both range and speed makes Hatch an especially tough cover.

Devil Fruit
Upon eating the Dote Dote no Mi, a class, Hatch became a Pocket Human (衣し人間 Kakushi Ningen), losing his ability to swim as compensation in return for an arsenal of extraordinary powers. The fruit allows Hatch to store various objects seemingly within his own body, even separate entities, such as other human beings, by touching them with his left hand. This causes the article in question to first shrink and then dissolve into any portion of his body, effectively trapping them within, much like a pocket is used to store various items. In reality, they are actually sent to another realm, referred to by Hatch as his "pocket dimension", where they are frozen in time until he chooses to free them. This was proven true when Hatch captured a lieutenant of the marines and kept him imprisoned for several years, only for the very same person to have never aged after he was released, much less remember anything that had occurred before. The period of time in which it takes Hatch to release an already stored item is noted to be nearly instantaneous, while storing any living being is said to take a bit longer. Hatch most frequently utilizes his powers to take hostages and store weapons for usage in battles, ranging from pistols to even larger guns, such as bazookas.

The main usage of this fruit comes in the form of Hatch "spawning" weapons from any part of his body, usually right to his hands for swift measures. This style of combat has since been labeled by him as Quick Draw (クイックドロー). The art is made especially deadly when considering the sheer speed at which Hatch is able to switch between his various plethora of weaponry; the transition between each is said to be incredibly fast, to the point where it allowed him to shoot several marines dead --each with a separate type of gun-- before they could even react to the attack, much less reach for their own choice of weaponry and effectively counter against it. The fruit is also well reputed for its defensive capabilities, especially for the likes of a sniper such as Hatch; by simply blocking any incoming projectiles with his left hand, he is thereby able to store them into his pocket dimension, erasing their presence from the real world. He is then able to release the stored object in question through any part of his body, using the very same attack against his opponent. For this reason, he has become the antithesis to snipers, despite being one himself.

With well over ten years of experience in handling his devil fruit, Hatch has managed to not only master its abilities to a considerable degree, but also gain access to its awakened and most powerful state. While the ordinary set of skills awarded to the wielder of the Dote Dote no Mi are fierce, and without a doubt, quite handy in their own rite, the idea of using them on a much larger scale --as per the prowess of an awakened Paramecia-- are noted to be especially potent. With his awakening, Hatch is able to open pockets within the very fabrics of the air around him, essentially creating portals that can be linked to one another, granting him a means of teleportation. While it is strictly restricted to short and perhaps even mid range, it is still very useful. The process consists of Hatch opening two portals; one beside him, and another on the receiving end, or wherever he would like to appear next. Then, by simply walking through a portal, he can appear through the other.

This fruit is especially useful when incorporated with Hatch's fighting style. For a pirate who usually prefers long distance combat, it provides him with endless close quarters coverage, allowing him to distance himself from his opponent if need be, all within the blink of an eye. Additionally, generating portals away from his own body allows for much better use of his armory of weapons; for example, by opening a portal near his opponent, he can release a grenade or any other means of explosives, from a distance; this makes attacking his enemies much more effective and nothing short of a luxury, as he can do without the additional heaving process that would normally come with launching a denotative assault. The portals also make for potential traps; by placing a portal beneath his opponent's feet, Hatch can force them into his dimension by having them fall into it, thus, trapping them inside effectively.

Weapons
Hatch is reputed for his versatility; as a more than capable marksman, he can be seen handling several different types of weapons, spreading success across them all equally. Much of his prowess is attributed to his devil fruit, whereby he is able to quite literally summon guns he has stored within a pocket dimension beforehand into battle to do his bidding. This method of combat is referred to as Quick Draw (クイックドロー), rendering marksmanship a viable option even in close quarters combat. It is worthy of noting that, while it is possible for Hatch to run out of equipment, such a circumstance is very unlikely, because of the sheer number of weapons he has stored. Similarly, he is known to have several of the same type of guns in stock, meaning if he were to lose one, he would very easily be able to replace it within a moment's notice. Also, the type of ammunition ranges greatly from each individual weapon; while he may possess several of the same gun models, the type of bullets they each utilize can be completely separate.