A Gutsy Shinobi
By Silver Dragonfly
Naruto sat on the aft deck with his back against the cabin wall, blue eyes staring unfocused out at the ocean and sky behind the ship. Resting on his lap, clasped between his hands with fingers gently running along the spine, was a well-worn book. I'm doing it again, Ero-sennin. I'm going to fight for your dream; I'm going to fight to find understanding. This world is so different, and there is such a rift between the people, it's not even like they are all rival shinobi… its more than that. I don't know what it is yet, but there is something really dark in this world. Some are fighting against it though, and I'm going to do what I can to make sure they aren't lost… that Shanks-oji isn't lost… that I'm not lost.
Suddenly, a tremor ran through the ship and shook the young man out of his thoughts. "What..."
"Whitebeard," Shanks said as he came out onto the aft deck from inside the cabin. "The fighting has begun."
Naruto blinked. "What's his power?"
Shanks nodded, "The Gura Gura no Mi, 'a Devil Fruit Ability that could destroy the world'."
Naruto stared, "That's… I mean, I've seen some crazy things done with Chakra, but this… that was the ocean floor?!"
Shanks smirked. "Right, there is a very good reason Edward Newgate has been recognized as the world's strongest pirate. We should be seeing the effects of it, even here, shortly." the redhead said as he moved to stand against the ship railing.
"CAPTAIN!" A voice from the lookout post called out.
"Ah! I see it." Shanks called back as Naruto rose to his feet and looked in the direction his uncle's gaze was focused.
"Tsunami…" Naruto whispered in awe.
Shanks smirked. "Whitebeard is setting the battlefield, but we will not be caught up in it just yet."
The Red-Haired Captain rested his hand comfortably on the hilt of his sword, drew it slowly, and stood ready. The growing wave came closer and Naruto noticed the direction the Red Force faced was adjusted to bring the ship perpendicular to the large wave's crest. Then, just as he began to think he should do something, his uncle moved and made a single strike. The wave rushed over and around the ship and then was past it; leaving the Red Force untouched, save for a fine mist.
Shanks chuckled and reached over to ruffle his nephew's hair after sheathing his sword. "No use in rushing to the fight only to have the ship in pieces when we get there, right?"
"I guess." Naruto grumbled as he ducked out from under his uncle's hand only to get snagged around the shoulder and pulled up against the older man's side instead. They stood there together like that for several long moments, both getting lost in thought as they stared out at the ocean behind them, the coast of the Red Line a constant dark smudge to the west.
"What was that book you were holding when I came out here?" Shanks asked, finally releasing his nephew and turning to rest his back against the rail.
Naruto turned to face his uncle and smiled, "It's the first book Ero-Sennin ever wrote. It contains his hopes and dreams for the future. My parent's liked it so much they named me after the main character." Naruto answered, blushing a bit in embarrassment.
Shanks chuckled, "I thought you said your godfather was a pervert? Is it a dirty book, then?"
"NO!" The blonde teen exclaimed quickly in horror. "I'd never live it down…" he groaned, but then laughed lightly. "Ero-Sennin wasn't just a pervert. He was a super-pervert. This was his first book; an adventure story about a gutsy shinobi. Everything he wrote after that was porn, though."
Shanks blinked: he had been joking, "… seriously?"
Naruto snickered and looked at his uncle with a sly grin, "Why, Shanks-oji, would you like copies of them?"
The Red-Haired Pirate stared at his nephew in disbelief; had the boy really just offered to supply him with porn?
Before the redhead could reply, the lookout called out. "Gates of Justice are visible off the starboard bow!"
Uncle and nephew fell silent for several long moments after the alert. "You know, you don't have to take part in this. This fight is between the Marines, the World Government, and the Yonko. You do not need to fight." The red-haired man said gently after a while.
The blonde at his side turned to stare at him in shock. "What—"
"I know you can fight, but…" Shanks sighed. "This isn't like the few fights we've had on the open sea, or your infiltration of that Marine base. This is going to be a war. There will be deaths; a lot of them I'm sure."
Naruto turned back to the ocean and didn't respond again for a while. "War… I hate it."
"That's why I wanted to make sure you had the choice. I won't force you into something you hate." Shanks glanced sideways at his nephew at those words.
"But I couldn't live with myself if I stood by and did nothing while you and the others fought." The blonde replied, his voice heavy with the weight of his decision.
Shanks smiled softly, he really hadn't expected a different answer. "We should be arriving soon..." Shanks turned to face his nephew more fully as the blonde suddenly stiffened. "What is it?"
Naruto did not respond at first as he was suddenly overwhelmed with all the memories of a long-term Kage Bunshin returning. It took precious minutes while he sifted through the memories quickly and then bit out a curse. He turned to face his uncle, "You wanted to know what happens when I draw on Kurama's energy." He said quickly and suddenly was enveloped in golden energy.
The red-haired captain stared in surprise at the glowing energy slowly pulsing around his nephew with a life of its own, noticing the strange black markings that now covered the boy's clothing as if they were tattoos. "What— "
"I'm going ahead." Naruto said softly, his blue gaze meeting his uncles own dark orbs.
Shanks frowned "I told you: this isn't like the Marine base, the strength gathered together for this war… Even with what I know you can do, there are those who could—"
"Ace is dying." Naruto said quietly. "I'm going," reaching a glowing hand out to rest on his uncle's shoulder, the golden energy swirling up to flutter in the man's red hair, "I promise I won't die."
Shanks met his nephew's gaze steadily for several heartbeats, letting the feel of this new energy swirling around him sink deep, then nodded once to his nephew. An instant later the blonde teen vanished, the golden energy that surrounded him blending in with the usual golden flash that accompanied his teleport technique.
Shanks looked down at the book he found himself left holding and chuckled as he read the title. "Tales of the Gutsy Shinobi... looks like you picked a perfect name, Kushina-nee."
Thank you for reading.
One Piece and all its characters © Eiichiro Oda
Naruto and all its characters © Masashi Kishimoto
Special Thanks to my beta readers (and sounding boards): Blue Melodie, Inazuma Pocky, & Aria Ino.
P.S. My betas made me do it.
