Chopper's Star Adventure

by Mechanical Oven

After centuries, Maquano's plan has finally come to play thanks the power of the Silver Stars. Things get worse when he uses this new power to involve other villains from different universes. Chopper is unfortunate to get involved too, and now he goes out to find the twenty Silver Stars throughout the multiverse and restore their power. Only this time, he's not alone.

13. Hideout Break-In

Chapter 13: Hideout Break-In

It hadn't taken long for the three to return to the large chasm. Only now, they at least had some sort of clue on how to get across.

"OK... So you got an ability to dash through Starries?" Silvera asked, flying out of Chopper. She took a look at the chasm before quickly flying down to Chopper. "Well... Thank goodness I'm not you! ...But just to be on the safe side..."

She flew across the chasm with little effort, leaving the others with bewildered looks.

"Wait... What are you doing?!" Chopper cried.

"Making sure I don't end up falling with you," Silvera answered once she was on the other side. "Uhhhh... You go ahead and do what you need to do!"

"Oh... OK..."

"I don't get why she's acting like this toward you," Berry remarked, smiling at Chopper. "I wouldn't mind being near you!"

"I think I'm going to try out my Light Speed Dash..." Chopper trailed, zipping away from Berry and approaching the trail of Starries. "Wait... How are you two going to get across?"

"Oh... I didn't think that far." Flyer realized. "Maybe we can come along on the ride?"

"Let's try it out."

When Flyer and Berry were by Chopper, they grabbed his arm. It wasn't even a second later when Chopper dashed across the chasm and landed on the other side. The former two found themselves in surprise, while Chopper wasn't all that fazed.

"Whoa... That really was light speed..." Flyer commented, he and Berry letting go of Chopper's arms.

"Yeah! I just wish I could do that normally..." Chopper frowned.

"Huh... Well, I guess you got here in one piece." Silvera commented, flying back into Chopper. "Well... I'll let you take it from here."

"You guys should follow me," Berry suggested, moving on ahead. "Although we're heading toward the Katanife Hideout, it's still pretty concealed."

Chopper and Flyer nodded as they followed Berry ahead. Unlike the other section of this desert, there was no trail for them to follow. Plenty of broken architecture was around them as well. In fact, some small, old ruins to the left had some Hyper Energy hidden behind some of the rubble when Chopper checked it out. After grabbing it, he returned to the others to follow.

Unfortunately, this didn't guarantee their safety. A few more Darklings, Tartara Grunts, and even a Wizzam and Slash Knight were there to get in the way. Chopper inhaled the Slash Knight to gain the Sword ability, then he took down the Tartara Grunt in a single hit. Berry had spun her hammer around to take care of the Wizzam and Darklings.

When the enemies were clear, the three forged onward, but their run didn't last long when Berry stopped in front of a large mountain standing in their way.

"Wait... Why are we stopping here?" Flyer asked. "It doesn't look like there's anything of interest here."

"That's exactly what they want you to think," Berry replied, kneeling down to dig out some of the sand. While it was a few inches deep, she was able to find a button. By pressing it, a secret door had suddenly opened. "There. That's the way into the hideout."

"In a mountain?"

"Believe it or not... This isn't actually a mountain. You'll see when we go inside."

Chopper and Flyer nodded before stepping through the doorway, which closed behind them. At first, they saw nothing but darkness, but when they took a couple of steps, they felt no footing beneath them and plummeted.

For Chopper and Flyer, their landings weren't the best, while Berry was able to land on her two feet just fine. The former two slowly got up and rubbed their heads before looking at their surroundings. Brown, rock-like walls surrounded them, with many lanterns lighting up the room.

"Here we are... This is the Kataknife Hideout." Berry stated. "Now... I'm going to warn you guys... While we may have been able to take on those Thiebers... The Kataknifes are on a completely different level. Their hideout is filled with so many traps. So... Don't be reckless."

"Yeah, Chopper," Silvera said.

"Well, we should be able to kick their butts anyway!" Chopper assured. "Those...whoever they are won't be able to stop me!"

"All right, let's get started then," Berry said, being the first to move forward. Already there was a ledge ahead, so she was the first to jump up and reach the top. Chopper was able to use a Triple Jump and grab the ledge. Unlike Berry, he did a flip when pulling himself up, while Flyer simply flew up. "OK... So, my invisibility's not going to work that well here... As you can see with what's up ahead."

Chopper and Flyer gasped when they spotted several lasers at different angles on the path ahead.

"Lasers? I guess those trigger an alarm." Flyer deduced.

"No. They actually hurt you upon touch." Berry corrected. "So... Yeah, don't touch them."

"Then I'll just dodge them," Chopper declared, running ahead. Berry was about to stop him, but when she saw him slide or dodge a few in his way, her concern for him was immediately gone. He was dodging those lasers like they were nothing!

Regardless of that, the other two made their way past the lasers and reached Chopper jumping down to lower ground. Now there were lasers firing down from the short ceiling above. Chopper easily avoided these and dropped down to the lower level. There, he found some platforms to jump across to the other side. As for the lasers, they were now changing angles, whether they were aiming straight down or at a diagonal.

With a combination of some Long Jumps and a few Star Jumps, Chopper managed to avoid the lasers. He barely avoided the last one, but he ended up making it through safely. The others didn't have much of a problem, but one almost hit one of Flyer's wings.

There was another path above, while there was another to the right. Chopper decided to stay on the main path, which had two narrow walls leading up to the ledge. He put his Wall Jump to use and managed to get up easily. Berry had jumped up the narrow walls to reach the ledge, much to Chopper's surprise.

Regardless of how Chopper felt about this, the trio found several Star Blocks that were in the way. Luckily for Chopper, getting past these was no problem. With a Star Dash, he smashed through all of them and came across wider path filled with more Star Blocks. However, there were a few that had a symbol of a timer with a fuse. There was one nearby, and out of curiosity, Chopper touched it, causing it to blink red.

"Uh oh... That block's been triggered!" Berry gasped, pulling Chopper away before it blinked enough times for it to explode.

"That was close..." Chopper sighed in relief.

"Well... I guess we might as well call them Trigger Blocks if they're activated upon touch." Flyer stated. "So... Don't touch them, OK?"

Chopper gave him a nod before moving on. He used another Star Dash to plow through a couple of more Star Blocks and avoided another Trigger Block nearby. Once he passed those, a Pulley awaited him ahead on the wall. He used that to pull himself up to a small area with a door ahead.

But before he could make another step, a shuriken suddenly came his way. Luckily for him, Chopper managed to block it with his sword.

"Hey! I know you're out there!" Chopper cried.

Chopper found himself wincing the next moment something passed by and struck him. His Sword ability had been knocked away, while a few figures appeared in front of the door ahead just as Flyer and Berry reached him. One had gray skin, while another had beige, and the next had brown. All of them had yellow eyes, and they were garbed in a red ninja outfit, which included a hood and mask, an orange sash, white pants, and gray gloves and boots. On their backs were katanas in a sheath, while on their waists were several shurikens and knives.

"That was a warning attack," the ninja stated. "Leave now, or fall to the Kataknifes."

"Not without my grandpa's scarf!" Berry retorted, her hammer already drawn.

"Grandpa's scarf?" one Kataknife raised its eyebrow, but the second placed a hand on its shoulder.

"Never mind that. These intruders do not wish to leave... So let's do what must be done."

The first Kataknife nodded before throwing several knives their way. Chopper opened his mouth and inhaled them, then he spat them out as a large star their way. They were thrown against the wall and became nothing but dust.

"Take that!" Chopper declared, raising a fist proudly.

"Well, they're going to be a lot angrier once we breach through this door..." Berry trailed, tightening her grip on her hammer. "But it's worth it to get my grandpa's scarf back!"

With a Star Dash, Chopper plowed through the door, but he had to stop himself the moment he got a look at what was behind the door. Almost nothing looked like it belonged inside of a mountain. The floors were mainly made up of wood, and all around them were plenty of trees filled with cherry blossoms. Even the buildings around them had this oriental vibe to them. There were even some tall torches lit up, along with large, red curtains with a symbol of a katana and knife crossing each other.

"Wow..." Chopper gawked, only to be interrupted by a Kataknife coming his way. Thankfully, Berry was there to take it out with one hammer swing. "Whew... That was close..."

"You shouldn't waste any time getting a look at this place," Berry advised. "It may look interesting... But a distraction leaves you out in the open."

Chopper gave her a determined nod before the trio hurried ahead. There appeared to be a building up ahead with an open door. The antennae hero raced into the building, only to be launched up by a Wide Spring.

The first thing Chopper noticed was the narrow hallway leading up to a high ledge. Getting through that looked easy, but the ledge itself was a problem. However, he took notice of a gray block a few feet away from the high ledge.

Once he ran up to the block, he tried pushing it. Unfortunately, he couldn't do much to move it further, only making it move about several inches.

"Ummmmm... How am I going to move this box thing?" Chopper wondered.

"You may not be able to push it normally, but I think you could find other ways to move it," Flyer informed.

"Oh... Uhhhh... Oh!" Chopper jumped a few inches off the ground, and with a kick, he managed to sent it forward to the wall. This made it much easier for him to jump on the block and then reach the high ledge. "I did it! Now we can keep moving!"

When Chopper forged onward, he was immediately caught off guard by the square-shaped room, along with the second floor above. A few Kataknifes were here, and the moment they spotted him, they got into a fighting stance and charged toward him. Luckily, all he had to do was inhale one of them and spit them out.

Once they were out of the way, Chopper's attention was drawn to some small poles sticking out of the floor. They seemed to get taller upon going up to the second floor. While Chopper himself was gawking, Berry stepped in and began to jump on the tip of each one until going up to the top.

"How did you do that?" Flyer asked.

"Scarvanas can do this kind of thing," Berry noted. "Well, all kinds of desert ninjas on Ava can do this."

"I wish I was a ninja..." Chopper frowned. "Then I could probably do that."

"I don't think you'd be able to do it as good as I can..."

"Well, technically..." Flyer began, only to notice Chopper making his way up to the second floor by climbing up each pole and leaping to the next. He eventually landed by Berry, then Flyer flew up to the two in order to land. "Question... Do you have an idea who might have your grandfather's scarf?"

"Uhhhh..." Berry gave the Wingel a puzzled look. "...No?"

"So you didn't come up with any plan?"

"To be honest, I don't think I've even thought this far... I don't normally come here..."

"Well, I think we'll find it. We just need to keep moving!" Chopper declared, going forward.

"Of course that's what you'd say..." Silvera deadpanned, though Chopper didn't seem to be paying much attention to her voice.

Apparently the small hallway had led to the roof of the building. Before him was a slope going down further across the rooftop. Also in front of him was a large barrel that was lying on its side. Then he took a look at the Kataknifes on the rooftop.

Out of curiosity, Chopper jumped on the barrel, causing it to roll down the slope. He yelped as he moved his feet backwards to keep himself on, all the while making the barrel move forward. The Kataknifes had noticed his arrival, but not even they had a chance to react when they were plowed down.

At the end of the rooftop was a ramp that Chopper launched off with the barrel to land on the ground. There, he continued to bring down some Kataknifes, a Wizzam, Major Dice, and Lasher that was in the way.

But when Chopper found another high ledge ahead, his eyes widened as he jumped off the barrel, letting it smash into pieces. As he landed, Flyer and Berry had finally reached him. Thankfully, there were a few smaller platforms that were going up to that ledge, so Chopper had no issues getting up there.

When Chopper took a small path ahead, he found two paths to take on his left and right. To the left, he could see a slope going down to an orange rail, while to the right were plenty of trees and some small ponds.

"Let's go to the right," Berry suggested. "It looks a lot nicer!"

"OK," Chopper shrugged, going over to the right. Sure, the place was nice to look at, but a few Kataknifes were more prominent here, whether they were training via dummies or exchanging attacks between each other. But the moment they spotted the three, they bolted their way. Thankfully, Chopper's Star Spin was able to take them out.

A small staircase going down stood before Chopper and Co., but with the rail sticking out, Chopper decided to hitch a ride on it. Surprisingly, Berry ended up doing the same.

"Well, I think Flyer can do that to..." Chopper thought as he leaped off the rail and landed in an open area. Three separate ways were before him, with the left sporting a few structures in the shape of a spire. The one ahead seemed to go through another building, while to the right was another barrel near a path along a pond.

For now, Chopper took the right path and hitched a ride on the barrel along the path beside the pond. Along the way, he collected some Starries on the path. He also noticed a few small bamboo sticking out of the water, but he didn't pay too much attention to it. Well, until a Kataknife leaped out and knocked him off the barrel, which began to roll away.

Before it could make another move, it was suddenly frozen solid by Flyer's Blast-O. When Chopper got up, he kicked the frozen Kataknife away before giving Flyer a thumbs up.

After running off a curved portion of the path, another pond had appeared, only this time it was in front of him. A few platforms stuck out of the water, with one of them having a blue Item Star. Chopper jumped on it, and after absorbing its power, gained the Water Shield.

Using the shield's ability, Chopper bounced upward via his Super Stomp. This let him easily go to one of the platforms. Add his Star Jump, and precision platforming was super easy. However, his attention was also drawn toward a stream the pond was going toward. Something glowing happened to be there...

Chopper leaped off the platform and swam over to the stream. As he thought, a Hyper Energy was there for him to collect. Afterward, he went back onto the platforms and made his way across.

"That's five Hyper Energy from this world so far," Silvera said. "And if you got six on Clara, then there's likely one more here too."

Chopper nodded as he passed the pond. Once the other two reached him, they progressed onward, going past a few trees and eventually making a sharp turn to the right. They launched off a Dash Ramp and went through a Rainbow Ring. Chopper remained in the air thanks to a few tricks he pulled off, and this helped him land on a completely different pathway over the main one past the building.

Once they were grinding along a rail and got on the path, they found a high wall with one section being more narrow. A few Kataknifes were prominent here, but one enemy looked a little different. Sure, it had an indigo ninja mask and a gold headband, but it also had orange skin, blue eyes, and small, white hands and feet. This Shurija immediately threw a shuriken their way, but Chopper ducked underneath it.

And idea popped in Chopper's mind as he performed a Star Dash and inhaled the Shurija. When he came to a stop, Flyer, Berry, and the Kataknifes gawked as Chopper gained a purple hood on his head with a yellow headband with a silver plate on it, which contained an imprinted star outline. On his back was a sheath where a katana was stored.

"Wait... What?" one Kataknife spoke. "He's...a ninja?"

Copy Ability: Ninja

It's time to be sneaky and hide into the shadows! Throw endless kunai knives, or get close up with your katana! You can even perform a stronger katana swing called the Multi Slash after a Ninja Slash! Or give your foes a surprise with your Blossom Storm technique! You won't even slide down walls when using a Wall Jump, and it's much faster to boot!

"A ninja? Cool!" Chopper smiled, feeling the top of his head, only to become confused after feeling it a few times. "Wait... I feel like I'm wearing something different... It doesn't feel like a helmet!"

"That's because you are wearing something different," Flyer noted. "Admittedly... I like it a lot more than your other ninja hat!"

"Really? Thanks!"

"Not interrupt the moment... But don't you have enemies to fight?" Silvera mentioned, and Chopper's attention was quickly drawn toward the two Kataknifes charging at him. The moment they struck, he suddenly vanished from their sights. They looked around for him, but then an explosion suddenly struck them when Chopper suddenly reappeared via his Hide Guard.

While they were stunned, Chopper raced past them while swinging his katana using his Stealth Slash. The two Kataknifes exploded once Chopper sheathed his katana.

With them out of the way, Chopper's attention was drawn over to the narrow walls. He approached it and started using his Wall Jump to get up to the top. Thanks to being able to cling onto a wall as long as he wanted and his increased speed in jumping to another wall, getting to the top was a snap. Not even Flyer and Berry had problems getting up either.

Via a Dash Panel, Chopper pressed forward and reached the point where the branching paths met. Not too far ahead was the end of the area through a doorway. Chopper wasted no time in making his way over there, all the while jumping up a few small ledges. There was a large Kataknife near one of the ledges in orange. It held a large katana in its hand that had a lot of range. Chopper found himself dashing backwards in the air to avoid its attack.

"Those are Great Kataknifes," Berry informed. "They're much tougher than regular ones... Though, Elite Kataknifes are a bit of a threat too..."

"Well they'll go down the same way as the other," Chopper smiled, dodging one of the Great Kataknife's shurikens. He retaliated with his own kunais that he threw much faster. While they struck the enemy, it didn't seem to make it flinch. So, he leaped above, and diving from a diagonal, he struck it with a Ninja Kick. When on the ground, he swung his katana to perform his Ninja Slash, which created a blue energy wave upon the second strike. While the Great Kataknife was stunned, he put his katana in his sheath and charged up another attack. The moment his sheath was glowing blue, he swung his katana and created many slash waves around him via his Multi Slash. The Great Kataknife was instantly taken out and exploded into dust.

"OK... I don't know how you can do all of these weird things..." Berry gawked. "But maybe we should save that for later when we're not in any place like this."

After sheathing his katana, Chopper entered through the doorway ahead, only to stop at a dead end ahead. He looked around to see if there were any other routes to take, but then he looked up and saw a ladder a few feet above the ground going up to a foothold. Smiling, Chopper jumped up to the ladder, grabbed it, and started his climb up. A few Kataknifes were on some of these platforms, but thanks to a rainbow Item Star that was on the platform he reached, Chopper was able to absorb its energy and become invincible.

"Yay! I'm invincible!" Chopper cheered, using a Wall Jump to leap over to the platform behind him. The Kataknife there tried hitting him with one of its shurikens, but it disintegrated upon touch. The moment Chopper touched the enemy, it was already wiped out.

Once he was reeled up by a Pulley, Chopper landed on a larger platform. There were a few Kataknifes that charged at him, but they were simply knocked back when their weapons made contact with him.

"OK... This is just weird..." Silvera remarked. "In fact, your kind are a lot weirder than I thought with the energy you can absorb..."

"Ahem..." Berry spoke up, but then something else made her blink. "Wait... If Choppy can absorb Star Energy... Could I do it?"

"That's...a good question," Flyer replied, following Chopper over to a few small spires near the left. There was a Star Medal that Chopper claimed by jumping from each tip, leaving Berry with widened eyes.

After landing back on the path, Chopper charged up a Star Boost and pushed forward. A Great Kataknife had tried to attack him, but with a Star Dash, he had wiped out the enemy with ease. The moment he touched a Dash Panel and ran up the curved path, his invincibility wore off.

Upon landing, Chopper spotted another barrel before a slope. Since the area he was in was a little caved in, it was rather difficult to jump on. So instead, he gave it a push, and it started rolling down. He spotted several Kataknifes getting sent flying in the air before exploding into dust.

And that was when Chopper got a ginormous view of the rest of the hideout before him. It stretched out pretty long, with plenty of more buildings and Kataknifes training. But that was not what grabbed his attention the most.

There was a literal sky to this hideout, and it revealed a large view of the sandy landscape.

"Whoa... This place looks so cool!" Chopper gaped, taking a step forward. At that moment, alarms suddenly went off all over the place. "Uh oh..."

"You messed up again, Chopper..." Silvera sighed.

"Oh, crud... This isn't good." Berry gulped.

"Wait, didn't you know about the alarms here, Berry?" Flyer asked.

"I don't know the whole layout to this place... It's why I needed you two to help me in case of something like this happened."

"Well... I can take these jerks!" Chopper assured, charging up another Star Boost. "They don't scare me!"

Once he was off, Chopper had run full speed down the slope. Up ahead were three loops, which appeared to lead toward different directions due to the way they were formed. Chopper had chosen to take the left loop, which led him over to a Dash Ramp, along with a Starries leading up to a Dash Ring above. He used his Light Speed Dash to go along the Starries and through the Dash Ring to land on top of one of the buildings where a Star Medal awaited him.

However, the moment he landed, Kataknifes in yellow ninja gear had jumped on the roofs. Their gloves and boots resembled that of armor, and in their hands were two katanas.

"We Elite Kataknifes do not tolerate intruders," one of the Elite Kataknifes stated, rushing toward Chopper. When one got close, he managed to grab it, and then he leaped high in the air. When falling, he and the Elite Kataknife faced toward the ground upon impact. While Chopper was completely unharmed by his Air Drop, the enemy had exploded into dust. Said explosion hit one of the others, taking it out as well.

Two other Elite Kataknifes jumped in to attack, destroying Chopper's Water Shield. Before they could land another hit, Berry threw her hammer at them, then caught it when it spun back toward her.

While running on the streets wasn't a bad idea, it was filled with many Kataknifes throwing shurikens their way. And sure, jumping from each roof was risky, but Chopper didn't see as many enemies prominent.

Using his Long Jumps and Triple Jumps, Chopper was able to leap from building to building. One of the roofs was shaped like a triangle, which allowed him to grind across and leap off onto a bridge going over a small river.

While running across the bridge, Kataknifes riding on what appeared to be hovering bikes. These Kataknife Bikers pressed a button on one of the handles and fired a red laser near Chopper. Sensing the attack, he jumped over the laser and started throwing kunais at the Hoverbike. A few kunais was enough to make the vehicle crash and explode.

A few other Kataknife Bikers flew to Chopper's side, but Flyer and Berry backed him up with their own ranged attacks. The bikers were instantly beaten within seconds.

Near the end of the bridge was a Zip Line over to the right. Chopper grabbed onto it to hitch a ride and was taken over to a taller building ahead. There, he found another Star Medal, along with a Trick Ramp. Launching off it, he performed a few tricks to keep him airborne, allowing him to go past the rest of the buildings.

Upon landing, Chopper spotted a doorway up ahead. Nearby were two Great Kataknifes and two Elite Kataknifes. He was about to attack, but one of the Elite Kataknifes struck him, knocking the hero back. Before it could go in for another attack, Berry jumped in and slammed her hammer on its head.

"None shall go forward," the first Great Kataknife warned. "Master Ninjaster does not want the likes of you to be here."

"Ninjaster? Well thanks for telling me who's the boss." Berry smirked, leaping forward to bring her hammer down. While she did hit the Great Kataknife, one of the elites managed to kick her back toward Flyer. The Wingel drew his weapon and open fired, stopping the Elite Kataknife.

But once Chopper got up, he raised his arm, and while leaping, a pink fan materialized in his hand. Upon swinging downward, cherry blossoms appeared around him, damaging the rest of the Kataknifes around him. Berry spun herself around and struck them all while they were weakened with a hammer swing.

With them cleared out of the way, the trio headed through the doorway. This had taken them to a narrow path leading to a large arena-like area. Near Chopper was some food to eat, along with a Copy Essence of Cutter, Stone, and Ninja. Diamond's Copy Essence was a bluish green and had an image of diamonds on it. Ninja's, meanwhile, was purple and had a ninja star.

However, he had no reason to use any of those, so he proceeded forward and into the arena-like section of the area. He, Flyer, and Berry were instantly caught off guard by the large number of Kataknifes that were surrounding them with their weapons drawn.

"Oh, crud..." Silvera gulped, flying out of Chopper. "Uhhhh... Hey, guys..."

Every one of the Kataknifes' eyes narrowed angrily as they drew closer toward the four.

"Wait."

The sound of the stern voice caused every Kataknife in the area to swiftly put away their weapons and step away. The heroes gawked, but then their attention was drawn toward a light brown Kataknife in golden ninja gear ahead. Unlike the regular or elites, he was equipped with a cloak hanging from the left side of his body, and around his neck was a yellow scarf.

"So... You must be Ninjaster..." Silvera spoke first.

"Correct," Ninjaster nodded, stepping closer toward the group. "And what gives you the right to come into our hideout?"

"Ummmmm..." Chopper began, but he stopped once Berry stepped forward.

"We've come to retrieve something from your hideout," Berry stated.

"Ah, so you've come to steal from me... Too bad for you, because you're already caught." Ninjaster chuckled. "But I must admit... I don't think there's ever been an intruder that's made it this far. You're no Saninja or Bandorm, and you're certainly not a Thieber... No, they wouldn't have even gotten close. Yet... You, girl... You've got an outfit that's more fit for a desert ninja. Who are you?"

"I'm... I'm Berry... I'm a Scarvana."

Every Kataknife either stared with widened eyes or guffawed, but Ninjaster raised an arm to silence them.

"A Scarvana, you say? That's ridiculous. We can only think of one Scarvana that exists, and his name is Kiwi."

"I am Kiwi... Well, that's my disguise..." Berry trailed.

"Is that so?" Ninjaster got a better look at Berry. "Hmph... You know, now that I get a better look at you, you do look like a Scarvana I saw four years ago. But why would you come here of all places?"

"You... You have my grandpa's scarf."

"Your grandpa? ...You mean Almond?" the Kataknife Master placed his hand on the scarf. "Well, I do have your grandfather's scarf... But I'm not going to just give it to you after invading our hideout. Then again, why would I give it to you in the first place? You may be a Scarvana, but you don't deserve such a thing as this!"

"But that's ridiculous!" Flyer exclaimed. "Of course she deserves her grandfathers' scarf!"

"Oh... So I guess she didn't tell you what happened?" Ninjaster chuckled, and Berry started shaking nervously. "That she was the reason why Almond and the rest of the Scarvanas were wiped out?"

Chopper and Flyer looked at Berry in surprise, who was slowly losing her confidence by the second.

"N-No... I..."

"We all know about it, Scarvana. All of us were there when we saw you and the rest of the Scarvanas fighting that sacred sand dragon, Saderta! You thought you could help them out... But that only led to their demise...especially your grandfather's!"

"Wait... So was that why you were so worried?" Chopper asked.

"Y-Yes..." Berry sniffled, looking down at the floor.

"You know, maybe I should thank you... Now that the Scarvanas are out of the way, we don't have to worry about them anymore!"

"Hey, we came for that scarf, and we're going to get it from you, even if we have to fight!" Chopper declared, getting into a fighting stance.

"Hmph... Fine then..." Ninjaster trailed, removing his cloak. "It's very rare for me to take on intruders myself... So consider this an honor from yours truly!"

"Then let's do this!" the hero declared, while Silvera had flown back into Chopper.

Wasting no time, Ninjaster made a dash forward.

Mid-boss: Kataknife Master, Ninjaster

Being currently the greatest Kataknife, Ninjaster is no slouch. His variety of different ninja-based moves can bring any type of clan from Ava on their knees. Watch out for his dual katanas!

Ninjaster had drawn one of his katanas and made a quick swing at Chopper. What he wasn't expecting, however, was for him to duck underneath it like a pancake. The next thing he knew, he was knocked back by Chopper's Foot Sweep.

While skidding back, Ninjaster drew several shurikens and threw them Chopper's way. He countered this with his own kunais, causing them to clash and create many metallic clang sounds.

One kunai had managed to go past the rest and reach Ninjaster. Noticing it, a puff of smoke appeared. Chopper and the others found themselves surprised when a log took Ninjaster's place once the smoke cleared.

"Huh?" Chopper gawked. "Where'd he-"

A kick from behind managed to throw Chopper on the ground in a daze. Ninjaster had landed right behind him and raised his katana. He was about to attack, but a projectile struck his back, making him bring his attention toward Flyer.

The Wingel gasped when he saw several shurikens coming his way. He was able to dodge them barely, with a few being a few inches close to his wings. Ninjaster would've made another move, had Chopper not struck him with his Ninja Kick.

The moment Ninjaster turned around, Chopper unleashed his Blossom Storm upon him. Even the Kataknifes watching were surprised when both the fan and blossoms made their leader cringe in pain.

"Gah... Impressive..." Ninjaster panted. "I don't know how you've managed to pull off some impressive ninja skills... But you haven't seen the kind of things I can do!"

Ninjaster drew another katana and began to swing them quickly Chopper's way. He took out his own katana to try to block the hits, but after a few parries, Ninjaster was able to knock his blade a few feet behind him. Next thing he knew, he was thrown back by the Kataknife leader's swings.

"Ow..." Chopper mumbled as he got up. After grabbing his katana, he looked over at Berry, whose legs were shaking, and her hands were over her mouth. "Huh? Berry? What's wrong? Don't you want to help?"

"I... I don't know..." Berry trailed nervously.

"It's funny how you're just a coward without that disguise," Ninjaster chuckled. "You know, we were admittedly worried about dealing with Kiwi... But now that we know of your true colors... We can't take you seriously anymore! In fact, maybe I might be willing to just let you leave. There's no point in dealing with someone as cowardly as yourself."

"Berry, don't listen to him!" Flyer exclaimed, firing a few shots at Ninjaster, only for him to go up to him and knock him onto the floor.

"If you really value your life, Scarvana, then you'd abandon your worthless friends and leave. You'll just get in the way in the same manner as four years ago."

Berry's eyes widened when Ninjaster began spinning his blades around like a tornado and started to attack both Chopper and Flyer. Despite the former putting up his guard, it wasn't enough to stop him from being knocked back. Ninjaster then dove toward him, his blades aimed directly at the boy.

That was, until something suddenly knocked him onto the ground.

Grumbling, Ninjaster quickly shook his head and looked ahead. Standing in between him and Chopper was Berry, only now the look on her face was drastically different.

"I'm not going to let you hurt my friends," Berry growled, gripping her hammer with two hands. "And they're not worthless..."

"You..." Ninjaster hissed, drawing several shurikens. "I gave you a chance, and you blew it! Now you're going down!"

Berry spun her hammer around and blocked all of the shurikens. While they were falling, she sent them flying back in the manner of baseball. Ninjaster managed to dodge them and get up close, and with his katanas, he started swinging. Berry split her own hammers into two and started blocking and attacking.

"Well... You're definitely impressive with that hammer..." Ninjaster remarked. "But that won't help you out!"

"Believe me, you don't know what I am capable of as myself," Berry replied, swinging again.

"Neither do you," Ninjaster countered, her hammer making contact with him. This time, a puff of smoke appeared around him, and when it cleared, a log took the leader's place. However, Berry remained calm and suddenly vanished as well. The moment Ninjaster went in for a kick, he was caught off balance.

Then a puff of smoke appeared, and a hammer struck his head from the side. The Kataknifes watched with shocked looks as he was sent crashing into the wall ahead.

When Ninjaster jumped out of the damaged wall, he narrowed his eyes angrily at Berry before kicking her. He began to spin his blades around while coming her way. After forming her hammers back into one, Berry did the same thing, causing the two to be thrown back.

However, Ninjaster was the first to get up, and he wasted no time in reaching Berry. Before she could defend herself, he started swinging rapidly at her, only to be stopped when Chopper stomped on his head.

"Hey! I'm still here, you know!" Chopper exclaimed, grabbing him from behind and using his Air Drop to leave him in a daze. "Get him, Berry!"

"Yeah," Berry nodded confidently, landing a few hits on Ninjaster. Her last hit involved her twirling her hammer vertically before leaped in the air and swinging her hammer downward. "Take this!"

With one hammer swing, Ninjaster had been nailed down and left in a daze. All of the Kataknifes could only watch with widened eyes at their defeated leader.

"Ooh..." one Kataknife cringed.

As Ninjaster slowly pushed himself out of the ground, he started panting. "Guh... All right... I guess I'm no match for you. But no matter how much you beat me... I'll never give you back Almond's scarf!"

"That's OK," Berry assured, putting her hammer away and taking out a yellow scarf. "I've already got it."

"Huh?" Ninjaster placed his hand where his scarf originally was and noticed it missing. "Wha... How did you...?"

"Remember when I turned invisible?"

"Curse you... I won't forgive you for this..." Ninjaster hissed. "Kataknifes!"

Every Kataknife in the area drew their weapons and approached the trio, forcing them into a fighting stance.

"Hey... You can fight us...but I don't think you'd win." Chopper noted. "Because I've taken on things tougher than you... And that dragon won't be any different."

The Kataknifes stopped in place upon hearing that, and they all exchanged confused looks. Even Ninjaster was surprised by this comment.

"Wait... You mean you intend to go after Saderta?"

"That's right! That thing's got something we need!"

"Yeah, he's right," Silvera agreed, flying out of Chopper. "That dragon has one of the Silver Stars. It probably explains why he's awoken."

"Hmmmmmmm... Kataknifes, lower your weapons." Ninjaster demanded, and every one of his minions sheathed their weapons. "Look, I don't care what Saderta has... But you really want to go after that monster? That's...actually the funniest thing I've heard in months!"

When Ninjaster started chuckling, the rest of the Kataknifes followed. However, Chopper still kept a serious look.

"Well... I've beaten a demon a few times before!" Chopper countered. "And I even beat up a dragon on Clara too! So tell us where we can find him before I really kick your butt!"

Ninjaster then chuckled at the glare Chopper gave him as he crossed his arms. "Well... I suppose there's nothing wrong with showing you the way... After all, our hideout is not too far from the way to get to Saderta's Lair..."

"Well, where is the lair?" Silvera asked.

"Sky Sands. You'll find its lair there. How do you get there? It's easily accessible via the tallest mountain here. You will know which mountain it is when you see it."

"Thank you... I guess we'll be going then."

"Yeah, you better go. Take the exit out behind me, you'll spot the mountain easily."

Once Silvera flew back into Chopper, the three headed through the hole in the wall. As they finally left, Ninjaster narrowed his eyes as he put away his two katanas. He especially noticed the uncertain look on Berry's face before she was out of his sight.

"And if Saderta doesn't take you down... I can assure you we'll come back for you, Scarvana... You and the rest of your friends haven't seen the last of the Kataknifes!"

---

This chapter... I remember this one taking forever to do. Writers block along with losing interest in writing fanfiction can leave you stuck on a chapter for four weeks. Thankfully, that wasn't the case for the next four chapters.