Chapter 38: The Dragon Master
Just as Chopper ran into the battleground, he suddenly felt himself coming to a halt when he found a cliff right ahead. However, compared to other cliffs, this one had green grass. Considering that he had not seen grass in a while, this surprised him. Various small mountains had surrounded the arena, and several tall trees and bamboo were below him. Several waterfalls were coming down from these mountains too, which probably explained why there was so much fog.
"I...guess I got here too early?" Chopper wondered. Looking around, he leaped off the cliff and landed on the top of the closest bamboo to the cliff.
Just as he landed, Ninju had arrived, leaping onto the farthest bamboo from Chopper.
"Well, looks like you arrived," Ninju said. "Though, you've come later than I thought... What was going on? Were you stuck?"
"No... I was getting ready to beat you and get that Planet Star Piece!" Chopper replied, pointing at Ninju.
"Getting ready? Well... If that means you were getting ready to take me on, then I don't mind. Now that you've finally reached my battleground, we can finally have the fight that I've been waiting for! And don't think I'm going to let you go this time, Chopper. I will throw everything I've got."
"Well... I'm going to do the same! I'm sure I'll be able to beat you!"
"In my battleground? Not likely. You see, I have the playing field here. This isn't your typical battleground. You see all of this fog? It actually makes both of us light enough to jump to the other side of the battleground."
"Wait, it does?" Chopper gawked.
"Of course. This is a little something my ancestors have always did when they too had battled an opponent. Each one of them won, and I plan to do the same against you." Ninju declared, pulling out a couple of shurikens. "But honestly, I don't see you having an advantage here! You will find out why I am above the dragons here!"
Swiftly, Ninju threw his shurikens in Chopper's direction.
Boss: Ninju, Master of of Ninjutsu and Martial Arts
As the true Master of Dragon Mountains, Ninju is considered to be feared by many, including the dragons that roam here. With his deadly combination of ninja and martial arts, no one has managed to get in his way. His attacks can be quick and unpredictable due to being versatile.
Chopper gasped and quickly jumped off the bamboo. Instead of falling, however, he seemed to be moving in the direction he jumped, with that being the left. Chopper started to flail his arms and feet around until he found a bamboo nearby. He managed to land on it with ease.
"Don't think you'll be so lucky this time," Ninju mocked, leaping onto another bamboo and throwing more shurikens Chopper's way. Once again, Chopper dodged them and jumped onto another bamboo far from his opponent. "You know, you can't keep doing this forever..."
Ninju threw more shurikens Chopper's way, but rather than dodge, he threw his kunai knives, stopping the projectiles and knocking both weapons onto the ground below with a metallic clang. That didn't stop Ninju from firing more, though. Of course, the same thing had happened.
"Hmmmmm... OK, so he's gotten a bit better..." Ninju thought, reaching for one of his katanas. "Let's see how he fares against this!"
He leaped off the bamboo, making his way over to Chopper. Chopper decided to do the same thing. Ninju drew his weapon and swung, but instead of hurting his opponent, his attack was blocked by one of Chopper's kunai knives.
Once Ninju was back on a bamboo, he was annoyed. He repeated the same thing as before, hoping to get Chopper this time. However, Chopper had done the same thing and blocked Ninju's attack. This had gone on for several times until Ninju finally decided to stop.
Just as he landed on a bamboo, he heard a whizzing sound coming his way. Looking in the direction of it, Ninju spotted a kunai coming his way. The knife had barely touched his face.
"That was too close..." Ninju mumbled, turning back to Chopper. "All right, you surprised me there. But that won't happen agai-"
He paused for a moment, seeing no sign of Chopper on the bamboo he remembered him being on.
"He was just there a second ago! How in the world did he-"
One moment later, he felt two feet swiftly hit him in the head, knocking him off the bamboo. Chopper landed on the bamboo in his place, smiling as he heard Ninju's thud from below.
"Hey... I did it!" Chopper cheered. "I managed to knock him off!"
Ninju had made a big jump and landed on a bamboo on the opposite side of Chopper. Only this time, he was narrowing his eyes at him.
"Faster than I thought..." Ninju remarked. "You caught me off guard there... But I'll make sure that doesn't happen again."
Ninju drew his two katanas and made a big leap forward. Chopper quickly got a kunai out and blocked his attack. What he didn't expect, however, was Ninju to kick him and knock him off the bamboo. One moment later, Chopper had gotten back up on a bamboo.
Chopper would've complained about him pulling a dirty trick, but if there was one thing he learned from Kutora's training, it was that opponents do this kind of schtick often. Nevertheless, he threw some kunais Ninju's way, but he didn't expect him to catch the weapons and throw them back. Chopper had just barely avoided them.
Ninju got his own shurikens out and started to throw them at Chopper, who kept leaping onto bamboos beside him. At the pace he was going, there was no way Ninju was able to hit him. That was, until he threw one where Chopper was going to be. This had immediately put him to a halt when the shuriken whizzed by him.
"Eep! That was too close!" Chopper yelped.
"There's more where that came from!" Ninju smirked, firing more shurikens his way. Chopper threw a couple to avoid them, and then he leaped across the battleground, kicking Ninju hard enough to knock him off his bamboo. But just as he got up, he had managed to kick Chopper down as well. Unlike Ninju, Chopper was faster at getting up.
Ninju smirked, seeing this as a good opportunity to finally strike Chopper. He drew one of his katanas and swung. However, it was he that had gotten struck when Chopper managed to strike him with his kunai and create a shockwave that was more than enough to knock him off his bamboo.
When Ninju finally got back on another bamboo, he glared at Chopper once more. "You actually managed to hurt me... Not even Sensin was able to hurt me at the strength I am."
"Well... I was able to beat him!" Chopper declared.
"You know, thinking back, I feel that this arena is only holding us back. What do you say we take this fight below? I won't have any problem taking you down then!"
Chopper nodded and followed him down to the area just below. Most of the ground was covered in dirt, and there was one large, shallow stream here as well. Ninju was on the opposite side of the stream. He narrowed his eyes at him while the wind was blowing through his orange scarf.
"I'll admit, I'm a bit impressed with how you managed to make that move against me. You're fast. Probably even faster than me." Ninju remarked, drawing a few more shurikens. "But now I plan to make you regret ever coming here. I hope you're ready, Chopper..."
Just as Chopper nodded, the shurikens Ninju had were thrown his way. He wasted no time and started to charge Ninju's way. He slid under the shurikens and got his own kunai out. However, Ninju saw this coming and blocked his attack with his katana. Chopper tried swinging a few more times, but all of them were blocked. In the end, it was Ninju who had managed to send Chopper flying back with one katana swing.
Chopper crashed into a few bamboos along the way, but he was able to get up quickly. Ninju's confident look suddenly changed once he saw the boy disappear from his sights. He tried to concentrate on where he'd be, but one second later, he was struck by another kunai knife attack. Unlike before, Chopper dashed while performing the Quad Shock.
Ninju had taken out his other katana, and he swiftly swung in Chopper's direction. Each swing was dodged as the small ninja boy kept jumping backwards. He was caught off guard by a kunai coming his way, but he was able to block it at the last moment.
"If he keeps moving at this rate, hitting him will be difficult..." Ninju thought, taking out a smoke bomb. "Looks like I have to take things up a notch..."
Once he threw the bomb to the ground, an explosion of smoke surrounded the area, causing Chopper to cough and squint around him. Ninju was no longer where he originally stood. Now it was his turn to scan the area.
"H-Hey... Where are you?" Chopper cried.
Just as he asked the question, Ninju sped up, striking him with his two katanas. Chopper quickly looked around after recovering from the attack, but there was still no sign of Ninju. Soon enough, he got hit by another one of Ninju's attacks.
Eventually Chopper had enough and clenched his fists. Just as Ninju made his third attack, Chopper had disappeared when his katanas made contact with him. The ninja paused and looked around, seeing no sign of his opponent.
"What the... Where did he go?!" Ninju gawked.
An explosion suddenly struck him, and coming out of said explosion was Chopper, who didn't appear to be harmed by it. This caused all the smoke to be wiped out as well. While in midair, Chopper performed a Ninja Kick that knocked Ninju to the ground.
Ninju was about to attack Chopper again, but he ended up throwing his own smoke bomb onto the ground. It wasn't as big as Ninju's but it did allow him to disappear from his sights. Before he could do anything, he felt two stubby hands grab him from behind.
"Let's see how you like this!" Chopper cried, jumping high up in the air with Ninju and then diving down. The crash left Ninju seriously hurt, while Chopper was not hurt by the attack, much like his explosion.
Just as he landed, Ninju thrust his open hand forward and fired a wave of orange energy in Chopper's direction. The attack knocked away his Ninja ability and left him lying on the ground.
Ninju smirked and started to fire more energy waves with each punch, and Chopper was forced to dodge each of them. While running, he noticed a Fire Hand left on a rock, so he decided to snatch it. This allowed him to shoot fireballs in Ninju's direction, while he kept firing his punch waves. Many explosions had appeared in the middle of the battle, and it was going quick.
But then Chopper realized that those punch waves looked a lot like his punch waves with the Fighter ability on. An idea struck him, and he suddenly braked. He inhaled the closest punch wave and gained the Fighter ability. With this, he was able to stop the other punch waves with his own.
As smoke had been created between the two, Chopper was able to leap through it and sent Ninju flying into several bamboo with his Spin Kick. Ninju quickly got up and dove toward him as well, trying to throw in katana swings, kicks, and punches. But Chopper easily dodged them and struck him with a fiery punch to the face.
"Argh! See how you like this!" Ninju roared, charging at Chopper and attacking with as many punches as possible. Chopper had did the same thing with his Vulcan Jab, yet neither had managed to land a single hit on each other. It wasn't long until Ninju kicked Chopper and fired a wave of orange energy in his direction, making him get knocked toward the waterfall.
But it didn't take Chopper long enough to get up and rush at Ninju again. He delivered several punches to his opponent, and to finish off his combo, Chopper struck him with a Rising Break that sent him flying in the air. When he finally crashed onto the ground, he started to pant.
"Wow... That training sure has help me!" Chopper thought while gaping. "I'm really giving him a beating!"
"All right, that's it. I'm done messing around." Ninju declared, taking out the Planet Star Piece. "It's time to put this to good use."
"Huh?" Chopper gawked. "What are you doing?"
"Oh, you'll see..." the Planet Star Piece began to glow brighter as Ninju raised it above himself. A new power began to surge into him, causing him to temporarily glow. Along with that, he removed the mask he wore, revealing the lower portion of his face. He started to breathe in some air as he made a pose with his hands after putting the Planet Star Piece away. "Let's see how you deal with my special wind technique!"
A strong gust of wind sent Chopper flying back. This gave Ninju the chance to jump toward him and land a cyclone punch that ended up making him crash through the rocky wall behind him. Coincidentally, there was a secret path right by where he crashed. He looked over at it and then at Ninju, who was charging at him like a cyclone. Not taking any chances with dealing with him, Chopper ran toward the secret pathway. There were several stars he ran up, but when he reached the end, he was in for a surprise.
He had arrived at the mountain's peak, and unlike others, this one was much bigger. While it looked barren compared to where he and Ninju were fighting, he was paying more attention to what was above him. The clouds were so close to this mountain, though a simple jump wouldn't reach them.
"I see you've stumbled upon the top of the mountain," Ninju remarked, arriving at the peak as well. "There's nothing here that will get in our way... We can throw as much as we want at each other now. I didn't plan for you to come here, but since you found this place yourself... I guess I don't have much of a choice!"
Ninju made more poses with his hands, causing him to glow red. Once he struck the ground with his fist, fire shot up from the ground, barely scorching Chopper in the process. Despite avoiding them, Chopper was hit with a barrage of Ninju's punches, and then to finish his combo, he kicked him across the peak.
But Ninju was not done there. He used another one of his cyclone abilities, but this time he combined his fire technique and charged at Chopper. He was no match for the onslaught that Ninju had delivered, and before he knew it, he was on the ground, badly beaten from the hit.
"How did you like that?" Ninju cackled. "I like to call that my Fiery Cyclone. It's definitely a deadly attack..."
Chopper had slowly gotten up. Although hurt, he didn't look like he was giving up yet. Ninju noticed this and narrowed his eyes. He drew his two katanas and swung, but Chopper had jumped to avoid his swings, and he kicked him in the face with a flaming kick. He then made Ninju stumble back with a Smash Punch.
Ninju had jumped back after dodging another Smash Punch and put his fire ability to use once more. However, this time, he fired shurikens covered in fire toward Chopper. He avoided them with ease, so Ninju fired a punch wave at him. He was not expecting him to knock it away with his hand.
"Well... I guess I have to go even further!" Ninju declared, making more poses with his hands. "Let's see how you like my Fire Wave technique!"
He thrust his right hand forward, and a large wave of fire had come Chopper's way. Unfortunately for him, he was unable to escape from this powerful attack, and as a result, he was left scorched by it. Ninju, on the other hand, was much more satisfied. Except for one thing...
"What? You're still not done yet?" Ninju gawked, seeing Chopper still up, but hurt. "Either you're really stubborn, or you're just stupid."
"I'm not going to lose when you have that Planet Star Piece!" Chopper panted.
"Then let's change that," Ninju used his wind technique to launch toward Chopper, and after drawing his two katanas, he swung them both at Chopper multiple times as he sped past him. The final strike had left Chopper on the ground temporarily, but once again, he got up. Ninju decided to fire a wave of orange energy his way, but his opponent had enough energy to fire a Force Blast, creating an explosion that threw the two away from each other.
However, it was Chopper who had gotten more hurt from the explosion than Ninju. It didn't stop the latter from landing a few punches and kicks on him afterward, leaving him stunned for a moment. Of course, Ninju took advantage of this and performed an uppercut kick that sent him flying in the air. He jumped up and struck him with a double kick that sent him crashing onto the ground.
Ninju landed on the ground as Chopper finally got up, not looking too good. Seeing him like this made him feel even more confident.
"Believe me, you're not going to beat me when I'm like this," Ninju smirked. "But if you do give up now, I'll make sure to end this quickly."
"Maybe this is the time..." Chopper mumbled, feeling exhausted from the attacks he received. "He did tell me to get rid of them during this fight..."
"What are you muttering?" Ninju wondered. "Maybe you should speak up. They will be your last words."
"N-No... They won't be!" Chopper declared, putting on a more determined look. "I think it's time I stopped holding back too..."
"Wait, what?" Ninju gawked. "After all of that, you were holding back?"
"Well... I don't know if I was holding myself back. Something was." Chopper raised his arms, revealing the Energy Cuffs on his wrists and feet. "These things were around me since yesterday. They really bugged me at first, but I got used to them and fought normally. Now I just have to say the word..."
"Word?"
"Yeah... OK, here it goes..." Chopper took a deep breath. "Sparkling hope!"
The Energy Cuffs surrounding Chopper had shattered, freeing him from them. That was when Chopper felt something different about himself.
"Whoa... This is a new feeling... I feel so different...but in a good way!"
Ninju was not sure what to say at this point, so he decided not to waste any time and swung his two katanas in Chopper's direction. Instead, he only hit the rocky floor.
He looked around for Chopper, but he couldn't find him anywhere. Then he looked over at the other side of the peak and saw Chopper standing there.
"What the... That was much faster than what he originally was!" Ninju gaped. "Hey, how did you get this kind of power?!"
To his dismay, Chopper wasn't paying attention to what he was saying. Instead, he was focusing on his Force Blast, which was thankfully charged up. But remembering Kutora's training, he added some fire to it. Once he was ready, he fired the Fiery Force Blast in Ninju's direction. He performed a wind technique to stop it, but it only threw him back. To his relief, he was not harmed by the attack.
For a moment, all Ninju could do was look at Chopper. Despite all the hits he received from him, he didn't look like he was going down anytime soon.
"I don't know why... But I'm not feeling scared." Ninju thought. "For some reason, I actually feel excited. Perhaps I really have met my match..."
Chopper made a charge toward Ninju and started to throw several Fiery Vulcan Jabs. He brought his arms up to try to block the attacks, but many of them managed to hit him. Finally, Chopper sent him flying back with a double kick.
While Ninju was still in the air, Chopper ran behind him and struck him with a Smash Punch, knocking him onto the ground. Ninju slowly got up, actually feeling exhausted.
"You're... You're way above my league now." Ninju panted, clenching his fists. "In fact, if I destroy you now, I think I might achieve something greater than becoming the Master of Dragon Mountains..."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Chopper wondered.
"Remember when we first met? I said you weren't worth my time when you weren't at your full strength. Even if you were at your full strength, I was certain that I'd still win. But I don't know how, but looks like there's someone on this planet who cares about you and your life. Whoever helped you, he's probably a much better trainer than my old master ever was..."
"Yeah... I guess so..."
"Even then, I still think you're a pathetic person. A fighter like yourself should actually have a brain. All I've gotten from you is that you're just a stupid child, and it's truly pathetic how the others lost to you. I won't make that same mistake. I'm miles above them, and I'm sure they know that."
"Well they weren't really nice..." Chopper trailed.
"True... But I can be much worse than them." Ninju stated, making several poses with his finger once more. "Get ready to see the rest of your kind, Chopper! My Dragon Arts should be enough to take you down!"
"Dragon Arts?"
Just before he could wonder what that was, Ninju fired a punch wave in the shape of a dragon. Chopper jumped out of the way and hit Ninju with a diagonal kick, but it didn't stop him from kicking Chopper too. Despite this, he was able to run toward him after skidding back across the floor. Ninju drew his two katanas once more and let them glow orange.
Just as he swung them, Chopper stepped out of the way and fired another Smash Punch. Not only did this knock Ninju forward, but he ended up dropping his katanas as well. Ninju narrowed his eyes as he performed a roundhouse kick to hit Chopper, but this was blocked, allowing Chopper to kick his chest.
Ninju was forced to go all out by throwing rapid punches. Chopper did the same thing, not even bothering to block his attacks. Both were struck with each other's punches, and to finish off their attacks, they each fired a punch wave. The results were explosive.
Unlike last time, both of them had been hurt by this explosion.
"Ungh... All right, I guess I have to resort to my Dragon Blast..." Ninju mumbled, charging up an attack in his hands. "Get ready, Chopper! I didn't expect to be using this attack, but you've left me with no choice!"
"Uh oh..." Chopper gulped. He then began to charge a Fiery Force Blast in his hands. "Well... I'm not going to let that attack hit me!"
When both attacks were fully charged, they unleashed them upon each other. This time, however, both attacks were pushing each other back once they clashed.
Ninju seemed confident at first, but when he noticed his own attack being pushed toward him, he was left shocked.
"No... This can't be!" Ninju gaped, his hand glowing orange. "I cannot let my attack lose like this!"
"Hey, Ninju! See how you like this!" Chopper cried, firing a weaker Fiery Force Blast toward his own. With it combined with his other attack, it was able to break through Ninju's Dragon Blast and strike him.
He didn't even have a chance to get away from it.
When the smoke cleared, Chopper spotted Ninju on his knees, while the Planet Star Piece was by his side. He seemed to be reaching for it, but at his weakened state, he was unable to grab it. This made things easier for Chopper when he ran over to the Planet Star Piece and snatched it.
"I... I don't believe it..." Ninju panted. "I managed to surpass my old master... I defeated the Grand Dragon... But in the end, I lose to a child. You must really be something if you were a match for me."
"Well, I guess you got what was coming," Chopper remarked as Ninju finally fell to the ground.
"This kind of humiliation is too much for me to bear... Go ahead and finish me off, Chopper."
"But... I can't do that..." Chopper frowned. "I don't want to do that to you. It'll make me feel just like Maquano..."
"Well that's not surprising, considering what I've heard from you..." Ninju scoffed. "You're too soft, and even if you're one of the strongest people in the world, your softness will backfire on you. I can assure you that."
"Well... This is how I want to be. I ended up destroying someone, and I felt so bad about doing that... If you don't like that, well... Well..."
Chopper, unsure of what to say, backed away from him and turned his attention back to the Planet Star Piece in his hands. With a smile, he held it up high.
You got a Planet Star Piece!
He took out the incomplete Planet Star and watched the two fuse together. Now it was starting to look even more complete.
"All right! I've got six of them so far! Now I just need two more!" Chopper smiled, though thinking of where they were made him frown. "...But I don't know where to find them."
"The...sky..."
"Huh?" Chopper turned his attention back to the defeated Ninju. "What did you say?"
"One of the Planet Star Pieces lies in the hands of Maquano's wizard..." Ninju muttered. "He is considered to be one of the strongest Tartaras to ever exist... I doubt you'll be able to beat him for it... But the other Planet Star Piece... The answer is just above you..."
Chopper looked up at the clouds. "You mean those clouds?"
"Yeah... You'll find that shard up in Rainbow Sky... The place is massive, and it's also dangerous when you're running on those clouds... Not even I can handle that place... It's no wonder that Maquano's strongest minion holds that Planet Star Piece..."
"What...?"
"Yes... He was the one who was able to round the others up and help organize where we'd be. While some of the others may not listen to me, they and I easily listen to him if he ever told us to do something. We all know that he is far beyond our own powers and intellect... Even at your strength, you're no match for him. His is equal to that of Maquano's wizard! No wonder he is third-in-command of Maquano's army..."
"Why are you telling me this?" Chopper asked.
"Because there's not much I can do at this point... And you already are by the entrance to Rainbow Sky." Ninju pointed in the opposite of where Chopper faced. "Look behind you."
Turning around, Chopper spotted a rainbow path leading up into an opening of the clouds. A bright light was also shining down from the floor was well.
"Wait... How did that appear?"
"The Planet Star Pieces are a key to opening the way to Rainbow Sky..." Ninju explained. "Six of the eight are needed to open the way. Since you hold six, the way is finally open."
"Oh... Well, thanks for helping me." Chopper smiled. "Maybe you're not so bad..."
"Trust me... I'm not really helping you out. The other five and I weren't allowed to go to Rainbow Sky on our own, which was why we all needed to be together to go there. You going up there alone? You're pretty much heading to your own funeral at this point. I'm only doing him a favor..."
At this point, Chopper was ignoring Ninju and headed over to the beautiful path. He had to slightly cover his eyes from the sun's rays shining through the clouds, but when he adjusted to it, he stepped on the path.
"OK... One of those Planet Star Pieces is up here..." Chopper trailed, putting on a determined look. "It's time for me to get it!"
Feeling prepared, Chopper made a run up the pathway and into Rainbow Sky. At the same time, Ninju had finally become unconscious.
I tried to think of a clever password for the Energy Cuffs...but I couldn't, so I picked that instead. Sorry if it sounded lame. ^^;
The battle itself was definitely intense, and I enjoyed writing it! I'd count it as my favorite boss I've written as of now. I won't say much, but I think the later bosses might be even better... But that's probably a good thing, right?
Even though there may have been some parts that were a bit iffy with this place, Dragon Mountains was not too bad. It did have moments that I enjoyed writing, though!