Less Than Human

Edited: 29/08/14 due to looking through the one piece timeline and recognizing that the buster call at Ohara happened much before the events below. Naruto will be Ace's age.

Alright, so here's my attempt at a Naruto/One Piece crossover. Hope you enjoy.

P.S. Naruto's heritage will be known later in the story.

Chapter 1: The first glimpse of freedom

Screams radiated off the walls of his cell, signifying the successful torture of an unfortunate soul. Two hands clamped themselves over the ears of a child as he unsuccessfully tried to block it all out. Even after years of the same exact screams, the small boy could never get used to the pure emotion that rattled out of them. Almost like a guttural echo of defeat sounded out, constantly reminding him that there was no hope of escape.

But then, this was all he had ever known. He had only heard stories of a life outside of the cold walls that surrounded him. Stories that made him dream of a better life, one full of love and comfort, one where he could decide what he wanted to do… one where he was considered human.

Scratching the very mark that 'branded' him as less than human, the boy struggled to keep the tears of agony in. If there was one thing the boy would never give to his captors, one thing that he would hold onto and keep him 'human' it would be his strength. Not once, that he could remember had he cried in the presence of anyone else. He had to be strong… for it was all he had.

Spikey blond hair rolled over his face as he tilted it down so that the steel bars in front of him could not see his pain. Lonely was the boy as he kept to his cell, for this was his cell and no one else's. He did not know whether or not every slave had their own cell, nor did he really care, all it meant to him was that it made it easier for him to hide his ever growing pain.

For the few times he was let out of his cell to do labor, he would always cover his face with a fake smile as his deep blue eyes guarded his damaged soul from anyone who bothered to check. His human-made whisker marks would be seen as the slavers would laugh while the slaves looked at him with worry. Never did the boy see pity in the eyes of the other slaves though, and for that he was thankful… they were all in this hell together, he didn't need their pity.

A soft wind blew down the corridor as it whistled and waned against the wall that surrounded him. It seemed it was one of those rear times that the guards had decided that they should actually feed him. The creak of his cell doors caused the blonde to raise his face with that ever fake smile adorned. This did not deter the slaver at all as he had seen this smile many times before.

"You know, some day I'm gonna wipe that smile away… and I'll tell you now. I'm going to enjoy every second of it." The slaver stated as he threw a molded up piece of bread at the boy before shoveling a gallon of murky water down the blonde's throat causing the boy to choke and sputter. A sadistic grin formed on the man's cruel face as he laughed at the tortured boy before finally allowing the boy to hack up most of the water he had been 'given'.

"… I'll see you in a few hours for work" The slaver stated before he left with another cruel laugh emitting from his lips.

As the boy got himself back together he wondered what sort of labor he would be made to do today. It was unlikely that he would be working directly for a 'world noble' as they tended to be more involved with the female gender of slaves than the male… It disgusted the boy, who like most of the male slaves, were left in the 'caring' hands of the slavers who worked under the 'world nobles' like dogs waiting for their treats.

Still, they had just finished making a 50 feet tall statue that was over 100 tonnes for the illustrious 'saint' Jalmack. The boy could not believe that the 'world nobles' had the audacity to call themselves saints but knew not to speak up of it as it would surely result in a punishment of some kind. There was no need to give them an 'excuse' for torture after all.

Even so, the boy quickly escaped from his wondering by allowing his fantasies to take over… what, he may be strong, but he's seven god damn it… or something around seven at least. The boy never had known his age, or name for that matter. Only ever being called 'boy', 'slave', 'scum', or his favorite 'lowly commoner'. Still, it was better than some others he knew and he was content, he didn't need a name to be strong.

He often daydreamed like this in order to escape from it all, as he imagined a life full of adventure, saving damsels in distress and most of all… having a family. For that was his one true wish. It did not matter if they were in the slums, or even if they did not like him that much. All he wanted was that familiar bond that he had seen between some of the slaves. That will to protect your kin until your dying breath. That was his one true wish.

The banging of doors awoke the boy from his daydreaming as he began to stand in preparation to be 'escorted' to his labor for the afternoon.

However it was with a shocked expression that the boy looked upon not a guard or slaver… but the biggest fish man he had ever seen. Being a slave himself, the boy had seen many fish men in his life, but by far this was the biggest one he had ever seen.

Standing at a height of 10'3" the fish man had round eyes, salmon-pink coloured skin, a flat nose, wide lips with slight peach fuzz, a thick dark beard and side burns. A spiky dorsal fin shot out of the back of his head, sprouting from under his long, curly hair. He had a broad and muscular physique, with his long legs being quite thin in comparison. A branded sun stood out on the middle of the fish man's chest.

As if that wasn't scary enough, the guy seemed to be carrying a pistol in one hand and a huge sword in the other… was that a bazooka on his back.

The boy now feared for his life as he crept back into the corner of his cell and tried to stay hidden in the shadows. It was not to be, as the boy heard his cell door opening as the hulking figure made its way inside. Seeing the boy in the state that he was, the fish man quickly put down his large sword and leant down to his level before whispering.

"Greetings little one, I'm here to set you free… if you could only tell me the layout of this land" The boy then looked up suddenly as he heard the word free. A fleeting glimpse of hope gathered in the boy as he told himself that he had never seen a fish man who was in charge of the slaves and therefore he could trust this man.

Allowing hope to enter his heart the boy quickly nodded his head before replying in a dry horsed voice that spoke of his pain.

"The fish men are kept that way – while pointing left – and the mermaids – points forward – are kept over there. The human men are kept over there – point's right – and the human women – points in front of him once more – are kept with the mermaids."

The fish man nodded his head in thanks before asking for the boy's name. When he was told that the boy didn't have one he snarled before offering his own. The fish man went by the name of Fisher Tiger and apparently he was here to save all of the slaves… even the humans.

Telling the boy to head east towards the easiest escape route, the fish man quickly re-gathered him after noting that the boy did not know what east was and so resorted to pointing behind the boy in the direction away from everything else. He told him that there were multiple ships waiting to set sail and that he should climb aboard and wait for more people before he set sail. He then left the cell while setting the small amount of other prisoner in this block.

The boy had always been honorable however when someone (a slave) had helped him in the past, he would make sure to do anything in his power to help them back. It wouldn't be any different with this fish man as the boy silently followed him while all the other slaves quietly ran in the direction of the boats that would lead them to freedom.

Making sure his footsteps could not be heard, the boy followed the gigantic fish man as he stealthily made his way about freeing the slaves of this cell block. Roughly one hundred other slaves existed in this block and they were all male children of ages anywhere between three and ten. All of the boys were soon gone and heading toward the east exit and the boats where they would wait for the older slaves to come along and help them escape.

Next, the Fishman made his way to the right in order to free the human males first. As much as he wished to free his people first, he knew that they could swim to safety while the humans could not. And so to give the humans the best chance at surviving, he first went to where the blond boy had pointed the male humans were not realizing he was being followed.

The blond boy continued to follow the hulking fish man as he wondered why he would head to the humans first… did he have something against his own kind or something. Then suddenly the boy was faced with seeing the large fish man kill many of the slavers guarding the human men with only his sword while he kept his pistol ready but unused. The blond could acknowledge that he didn't want to raise alarm yet and the male prisoners were smart enough to realize this fact to as they remained quiet and even distracted the guards to make it easier for the fish man.

As soon as they were free they followed their saviors instructions and made their way towards the east exit and their escape, all the while not noticing the hidden boy as they passed him.

Continuing to follow Fisher Tiger, the blonde boy noticed that he then headed across the slave encampment, towards the male fish men. The blond then watched Tiger do much the same to the slavers again while telling the fish men to escape through the east exit which connected to the sea and headed out into the grand line.

While most of the fish men heeded what he had to say and took off to their freedom, many others took up arms alongside the fish man who was to become a legend in order to help him with the final area of enslavement that would surely be the most difficult of all.

Still not noticing the hidden blond boy, the fish men made their way to their final target and were all disgusted by what they saw. Numerous woman crying out for help or just shaking in complete shock as the slavers had their way with them while the little girls watched on in terror hoping that they wouldn't be next. It was with no regret that the fish men came down on the slavers as they freed the woman of both human and mermaid species.

Once again sending the slaves on their way, Tiger rejoiced in just how easy it was. However it was not to be as a hidden slaver managed to pull down a lever that sounded the alarm and caused the marines to come running. It was now that the true fighting began.

Tiger immediately told the fish men to guard the woman with all their might as they ran to the safety of the eastern escape route. Taking off, Tiger made sure that no one was left behind as he took the tail end along with many of the other fish men in order to fend off the advancing marines.

Shoots were fired as the marines closed in. Tiger luck ran out as he noticed a man by the name of Vergo leading the marines to intercept the escaping slaves.

Standing at 6'8" Vergo was remarkably tall for a human. He was a fair-skinned, lean, yet muscular man with short dark hair, a beard, sideburns, and sunglasses. From his sideburns on, his facial hair grew horizontally. On his cheek it grew downwards with a pointed end. In terms of cloths, the man wore a marine coat over top a white business suit.

This man was a Vice Admiral and would definitely be no easy beat for the captain of the Sunny Pirates, but he was up for the challenge if it meant that the rest of the slaves would be able to escape.

Telling the others to keep going and make sure that everyone had a ride out, Tiger stopped in his tracks as he prepared himself for what would surely be the hardest fought battle of his life. Little did the adventurer know that one blond boy was still watching on from the side-line as he hoped he would be able to repay the man who had set him free.

The Marines all stopped their advancing as they came across a lesser known pirate. This man did not even have a bounty, but everyone save a few knew who he was. Even those that didn't know him however could sense his overwhelming power as everyone was quickly told to stay out of Vergo's way as it would be a one on one fight.

No one could see a reason to argue with the giant of a man as the two behemoths of strength took up their chosen fighting stances and prepared for the following onslaught that was about to occur. A blond child looked out from behind a nearby wall as he hoped that his savoir would win, for he knew he held no hope against the powerful looking Vice Admiral.

Silence permitted the area as not a sound was made nor a movement felt. Like a drop of a hat it started. The two beasts charged at each other to fast for the audience of marines and a boy to follow as they merrily saw the two take off and heard the collisions as craters seemed to form from every time they meet.

Coming to a stop once more, a thin stream of blood was seen dribbling down from the lips of Fisher Tiger which made the Marines cheer. What they didn't notice however was the sudden lean their leader had as he now favored his left leg. The blond boy stood mesmerized at the pure power that the two opposing forces were able to throw at each other and wondered to himself if he could one day be that strong.

Continuing to watch the battle, the boy was surprised to see Tiger hold the Vice Admiral at bay for a whole half an hour. Surely all the slaves would be on boats and drifting away by now. Still, Tiger fought on in order to give the slaves as much time as possible but Vergo and the Marines were beginning to get agitated as time continued on.

Both fighters were now severely fatigued as they had continued fighting for a long period of time and wanted it to be over before they were too tired to leave if they were the victor. It was with tried nods that the two communicated with each other that the next attack would be their final in this battle.

Everyone could feel the tension in the air as the two prepared themselves before suddenly yelling out the names of their techniques with all of their strength and will.

"Nanasenmaigawara Mawashigeri" (seven thousand tile roundhouse kick) Yelled Tiger.

"Oni Take" (Demon Bamboo) Yelled Vergo.

The two techniques resulted in a huge clash of pure power that created a massive crater beneath the two fighters as both the marines and the blond haired boy were sent flying backwards. After recovering from being blasted away both parties made their way back to the crater as they tried to look through the dust cloud that had arisen to see who had come out the victor.

As the dust began to clear, a coughing was heard coming from the crater. Soon it was seen that it was in fact Tiger who was coughing out blood while he stood above a barely conscious Vergo who was using his last ounces of strength to listen to the powerful pirate who he had been defeated by.

"Be happy that I leave you alive today scum, as even though you are strong, you use that strength for the wrong reasons. To think that a man would protect the 'world nobles' while his own kind is enslaved by them… you are a disgrace to your people Vergo and lucky to be left alive."

Vergo allowed the punishing words to enter his mind as he acknowledged their truth… but did not care as he put on a fake look of regret as he internally complimented himself on his ability to deceive those around him.

Tiger turned his body away from the giant of a man and the other marines expecting to be able to leave after defeating the leader. In reality that fight had hurt him more than he let on as he didn't think he would be strong enough to even defeat the lowly marines that stood outside of the crater.

Vergo's defeated eyes looked back up to the marines under his control, only to widen in surprise as his second in command was aiming his gun at the pirates back. A Marine by the name of Lieutenant Nezumi (that rat-faced guy from the Arlong park ark), he probably thought he could advance significantly in rank if he took down the 'freer of the slaves'.

Vergo tried to sound out a warning to the pirate who had defeated him so that rat faced man could not take the credit and advance while only truly defeating an opponent that he weakened to the point of him barely being able to stand. He found he couldn't however as he was too fatigued from his battle with the fish man. He was still surprised by what happened next however.

As the bullet sounded off, Tiger turned to see a bullet heading straight for him as he cursed himself for believing that humans could have any sense of honour. He hung his head in resignation as he knew he was not strong enough to move out of the way. How could he die like this… it was pathetic.

He waited for the bullet to slice through him and end his days and flinched when he heard the sound of bullet meeting flesh but stood fast in his confusion in the lack of pain. Was it over that quick?

But no, it wasn't over that quick as the bullet had never made it to its intended target. No, instead as Tiger opened his eyes he let a gasp escape his lips that matched that of the Marines that saw what had happened including Vergo. It seemed the blond boy who he had first set free had sacrificed himself in order to save the fish man from his fate.

Jumping in front of the bullet at the last second, the boy had felt an enormous amount of pain streak through him as the bullet lodged itself inside his body. Blood escaped his lips in the form of a cough as his limp body fell to the ground, unable to hold itself up any longer.

As Tiger looked down at the puny human child that had saved his life he couldn't for the life of him figure out why and so he asked the child that very question.

"Why… Why did you save me?" The boy just grinned in the face of death as another splotch of blood escaped his mouth before he responded in a remarkably strong voice given the situation.

"… B..Be…Because you gave me a glimpse" the boy responded. However this answer only served to confuse both Tiger and the Marines further as Tiger once again found himself asking the blonde boy a question.

"A glimpse of what?" This question however only made the grin on the boy's face grow wider as he answered loud enough for the very heaven to hear.

"A glimpse of… FREEDOM"

Chapter end

You know, when I was writing this I was thinking about what powers I could give Naruto and wondered if I should give him a devil fruit power or not and I suddenly wondered just how funny it would be to receive a zoan devil fruit that allowed you to transform into a fish.

But in all seriousness, I am open to ideas about his powers.

Naruto will be about Ace's age due to the one piece timeline

I am open to any and all questions you have to ask and please remember to…

R&R