A/N: Hey, guys! Hope you all had a great Christmas. Not much to say besides check out my new stories. Today's update was for Overwhelming Hate, so go see what you think of that. Next week, I will update Winds of Change along with this story. Make sure to vote on the Winds of Change pairing poll at Windy Landing and finalize your votes for the Hoshigan poll.

Keep in mind that Alvida is also appearing soon. So, if you want her to join the crew, check my profile and place your vote for her and anyone else you want (max of 3). That's all for today. On with the chapter!

You're Next

I stared out to the ocean as I fiddled with my clothing. I was wearing some of Sanji's spare clothes, but they were too small. I needed to get a new wardrobe while we were docked in Logue Town. Only problem with that was my lack of funds. Despite our advancing relationship, I wasn't going to depend on Nami's kindness for the absence of interest rates. I leaned over the side of the crow's nest, staring down at Nami with trepidation.

"Nami, I have to buy new clothes in Logue Town. Would you mind giving me some money so I can buy some?" I asked politely. She looked up at me and began to smile sweetly, making me sigh in defeat. "Never mind. I'll figure something out." She visibly deflated as I leapt down to the deck, stretching out the kinks in my joints. I rotated my shoulder, wincing at the pain that shot through my arms. They were heavily bandaged from my remaining injuries. For some reason, they were taking an exorbitant amount of time to heal.

"How are you going to pay for new clothes, Screaver?" questioned Nami, causing me to shrug in response. Her cheeks puffed out, making me chuckle at the adorable face she was making. I stroked her cheek, causing her to blush in response. I ignored it, leaping off of the ship onto the water. I ran to the front and jumped up next to a grinning Luffy.

"I'll see you guys in Logue Town, alright? I have to go figure out how to make some money," I explained, getting a nod in response. With a mock salute, I freefalled back into the surf before speeding towards the land mass on the horizon. After about ten minutes, I reached the foliage-covered island without trouble. I followed the canal that was used by ships to reach into the innards of the land mass, whistling a tune from Texas. 'I would kill for a guitar right now. Still pissed that it was stolen by that jerk in eighth grade.' I huffed out an angry breath at the memory before returning my gaze to the path.

"Screaver, there's something going on to your left," alerted Michael, causing me to divert from the main path. "Seems like some kind of contest." That put a spring in my step as I quickly reached a large tent. Contests meant prizes, which meant either cold, hard cash or items that could be traded…for cold, hard cash. I chuckled evilly when I saw the sign. Michael sighed in defeat, a wry grin on his face. "Of course… a martial arts tournament. Should have seen that one coming." I quickly approached the registration booth, an eager smile on my face.

"Where do I sign up to win this thing?" I questioned, getting a shocked look from the blue-haired woman. She blushed at my open vest. It was the only piece of clothing that Sanji had which would allow me to fight, so I had changed into as soon as the Polestar Islands came into view. I began to stretch in the slacks that Sanji had given me, ignoring the incredulous looks I was getting. A clipboard was shoved into my vision by the atomic-faced receptionist, her eyes glued to my six-pack. I smirked and accepted the sign-up, quickly jotting down the required information. "Thank you, miss. Make sure to cheer for me, yeah?" She eeped at being addressed before disappearing inside the tent. I chuckled at her reaction before returning to my warm-ups. It was soon halted by the sun being blocked out by two massive figures. I turned to find two extremely muscled men who were smirking down at maliciously. However, they quickly backed off as I fixed them with a Hoshigan-enhanced glare.

"U-uh, we are ready for you, Mr. B-bartel," announced the blushing receptionist. "Your number is…1045." My eyes bulged at the implications of the number before calming down. I made my way towards the tent entrance and peeked inside, sighing at the amount of contestants present. As I entered, a skimpily-dressed woman approached me, a nervous smile on her face. I frowned at the blatant discomfort she had with her attire before pulling off my vest. She handed me a round token with my number on it. I replied by wrapping my vest around her, buttoning it all the way up.

"Once this over, get out of here," I whispered to her, handing her a small pocket knife I had been given by one of Nami's friends in Cocoyashi. "Defend yourself with this if necessary, but come get me if it gets really bad." The blonde smiled tearily at me, planting a grateful peck on my cheek. I bluched lightly before continuing on to the brackets.

Every single round up to this point had blended together. A total of 1,100 fighters had begun, but only a hundred remained. Once it was down to the last fifty, we would be transported to Loguetown to an arena that was being finalized. No one knew the grand prize, but we did know that up to five places received a prize, with sixth getting some form of a consolation prize. However, that was later. Right now, I was facing off against a very familiar foe. I glared at the green-gloved boxer before me.

"C'mon, Mac! Show 'im whatcha got!" cheered a deep, male voice. I turned to find a heavy-set man with a blading head and a full goatee. His red tracksuit contrasted with his deep skin color. "Don't let 'im getcha down!" I turned back to the now identified Little Mac. I cracked my neck before adopting a loose fighting stance. The brunette wasted no time as he sped towards me, his fist cocked back for a cross. I held my hand out, catching the powerful punch in the palm of my hand.

"Ughh…" I groaned, feeling pain lance up my entire arm. I strengthened my hold on the speedy boxer while adopting a deep stance. I rotated my hips quickily, heaving the man over my shoulder before releasing him out of the ring. He wasn't out yet, however, rebounding off of a nearby pole, hurtling towards me. However, I was ready retaliating with a spinning hook kick that was enhanced from the previous throw's spin. It laid Mac out flat, leaving the unfortunate fighter unconscious. I picked him up and gently deposited him at Doc's feet. "Keep training. You would have had me if I was even a fraction slower." Dox smiled at my praise before I hopped down from the ring to watch the final qualifying matches. Many caught my interest, but a few stood out.

There was the thick-thighed street fighter, Chun-Li. While she was originally looked down upon by many of the men, they all now feared her mighty kicks. Her traditional clothing and style stood out among the more modern fighters, but still held up very well. I winced as she slammed the top of her foot into her opponent's side, sending them flying through the tent fabric. My gaze snapped to the long-haired desert man, Yamcha. His flying companion, Puar, cheered him on from the sidelines as he slammed his Wolf Fang Fist into an unfortunate karate user, knocking them out instantly. And lastly, my eyes alighted upon the greatest fighter in this tournament.

"Flame Dragon Kick!" cried the warrior as his leg combusted. He flew towards his opponent, plowing through them and leaving their body with severe burns. Liu Kang was beyond good. His fierce kicks and fiery projectiles rivaled those of someone like Rock Lee or Ryū. His fierce gaze landed on me as he leapt from his ring. I noticed that the other two I was watching were also making there way over to me. I breathed in deeply before raising a hand in greeting.

"Yo. What's happenin'?" I asked, getting a snort from Yamcha, a giggle from Chun-Li, and a grin from Liu. A pointed look at each of their decimated opponents wiped away the light atmosphere. "I see that we make up the strongest here. I am looking forward to fighting any or all of you." I stuck a hand out to Kiu, getting a firm shake in response. I saluted Yamcha and winked at Chun-Li, getting a blush and a predatory gaze locked on my ripper torso. I shook my head before making my way towards the carriage sitting outside the tent.

"Good luck, Screaver. Impressive work," praised Yamcha before turning to talk with Liu and Puar. However, Chun-Li quickly followed me, her eyes shining with mirth. I paled before speeding away. Michael snickered as I activated my jet boosters, causing me to rocket away towards the city.

Logue Town Arena (3rd Person POV)

The entire Straw Hat crew was in shock. Somehow, they had all arrived at this massive arena, only to witness what seemed like the final matches of a fighting tournament. However, what shocked them was that their very own Screaver Bartel was currently locked in a three-way bout with a traditional-looking female martial artist with legs as tall and thick as tree trunks and a wild-maned man in a sleeveless green gi top and orange pants stuffed into blue boots.

"What is Screaver doing?!" shouted Nami, her face ashen. "Those two look like the real deal. He could be seriously hurt!" Zoro sighed as he focused on the match. Everyone else was in too much shock or awe to do anything else. Even Sanji was stunned at his friend's moxie. However, all worries dissipated as Screaver was wreathed in a fiery cloak. His opponents stepped back, startled at the sudden transformation. The man recovered fastest, blurring towards the flaming pirate. He and Screaver began to trade harsh blows, bruises forming their exposed arms from the force behind their strikes. Yamcha was also sweating profusely and cringing at the burns he was sustaining.

"I was going to save this for the final four, but you leave me no choice, Screaver!" he cried, hopping backwards and allowing Chun-Li to take her shot. Her insulated boxing boots protected her from burns, but the heat still affected her fighting style. However, Screaver was obviously struggling against the speed of his opponents. He leapt back as Yamcha began to make loud noises, his hands cupped at his sides. "KA…ME…HA…ME…" A blue glow enveloped his hands before he shoved it forward, releasing the energy in a horizontal beam of blue light. "HAAAAA!" Screaver's eyes widened as he set stared at the oncoming beam. He quickly morphed his arm into a bazooka, rapidly charging chakra into it. He yelled in pain as his weapon began to visibly crack with energy glowing through.

"Mortal…Buster!" he exclaimed, releasing the energy in a mammoth orb of energy. The two attacks hurtled towards each other before clashing in an explosion of light. Zoro kept his eyes open, noticing that Screaver was dashing towards a blinded Yamcha, his fiery cloak focused in his fist. As Yamcha's vision cleared, it was suddenly filled with a blazing fist. "Falcon…PUNCH!" Yamcha flew out of the stadium, propelled by the massive amount of force behind Screaver's attack.

"And Yamcha has left the building, everyone!" proclaimed the announcer, breaking the silence and replacing it with exultant cheers. "Wow! What an amazing finisher from Bartel D. Screaver!" The pirate sighed tiredly before turning to face his astonished opponent. He grinned weakly before making a hand sign his entire crew was familiar with. Three clones popped into existence next to him, armed with kunai. "What's this?! Screaver has just created dopplegangers of himself! What kind of abilities does this young man have?!" Zoro chuckled as Chun-Li backed away in fear before she dropped to her knees in stunned awe.

"I forfeit!" she announced as she drew out a white handkerchief. She waved it in the air before sighing in relief, her head drooping. "What a monster…he may be cute, but he sure is deadly." She brought her head up, only to find the object of her mutterings next to her, a smug grin on his weary face.

"Cute, huh? I always thought of myself as handsome, rougish, and, dare I say…" He struck a provocative pose, his nose inches from his former opponent's nose. "…sexy." She blushed heavily before darting around the muscled youth and making her way to the fighters' booth. Screaver chuckled as he followed her, noticing that Yamcha had returned, holding his stomach in obvious pain. Screaver nodded in respect to him before locking eyes with an excited Liu Kang. He pointed at the master martial artist, getting a raised brow in response. "You're next."

Hope you guys liked the cameos. These will be few and far between. I mainly used them because I didn't want to be creating a ton of OCs that we would only see for a couple of chapters. There is no love story between any of the females mentioned here. Screaver is just adjusting to this new lifestyle of limited potty-mouthing by becoming more of a gentleman. Also, he may have seemed overpowered when he seemingly halted a Kamehameha, but I don't think it is outside the realm of possibility. Let me explain.

Naruto uses chakra as its energy source. It mixes the physical and spiritual energies to create jutsu. However, when split apart, we have the light (yang) and shadow (yin) chakras. Screaver's energy attacks fall under the yang since they are physical manifestations of his chakra. However, ki/chi/qi (so many different names!) seems to be quite a bit different. According to my official source (Dragon Ball Wiki), ki is the life force of the user being channeled outside the body. It is used to overcome physical limitations that every being has. Therefore, it seems to be much more similar to yin chakra, but still retains yang attributes.

So, when the two energies clashed, the yang impurity in the ki clashed with the pure yang chakra for a brief moment, creating the blinding flash. After that, however, they canceled each other out due to their opposite compositions. I don't say they merge because no shinobi has canonically mastered that without serious cheat codes, like the Jyuubi or Rinnegan. So, in essence, only a true master of both yin and yang chakra can hope to merge the two polar opposite chakras. Therefore, two attacks from amateur users of their respective energies (Yamcha is in his pre-tournament phase where he has just learned the Kamehameha Wave) would result in cancellation, not a merge.

Hope that made sense and didn't make your bored. Just thought it warranted explaining, especially since we will eventually get into how chakra reacts to Armament Haki. *rubs hands together gleefully* That will be fun. Anyways, thanks for reading! Until next time!

~Sir Zesto