HOWDY! WHO ELSE IS BUMMED OUT THAT STEVEN UNIVERSE IS OVER?! HAVE THIS CHAPTER ON ME!


Pearl was sitting by the beach, staring at the ocean waves as they crashed against each other. She was lost in thought as she remembered what happened a few days ago...

It had all started with Steven being impressed by Connie scaring off some seagulls with her violin bow while they were having a picnic together. Connie had admitted she always wanted to learn how to swordfight and Steven had suggested Pearl teach her, even though Kisame also offered himself to teach her since he was one of the former Seven Swordsmen of the Mist.

However, Pearl's training of Connie soon became rather concerning to Steven, feeling that Pearl was teaching Connie the dangerous stuff when he should also be fighting alongside her. After a talk with Garnet and Amethyst, Steven learned that Pearl used to always risk her life to help his mother during the Gem War. Worried, Steven went to confront Pearl about it and in the process, he and Connie managed to fight together against several holographic projections that went out of control.

Pearl was pretty upset at this but both Steven and Connie proceeded to fight against her together, even though she eventually defeated them both. This lead to both Steven and Pearl arguing with Steven protesting that he shouldn't be standing on the sidelines while others fight on his behalf. He was then backed up by Kakashi, who expressed disappointment in Pearl for making Connie think that she should see herself as a weapon who solely exists to defend Steven.

"I'm not having what happened in my world continue here...putting children into war."

This ultimately caused Pearl to break down but Steven, being the kind-hearted boy he was, comforted her and she agreed to train both him and Connie. However, the Pale Gem felt that Kakashi was still angry at her and had been avoiding him since then.

As she traced her fingers absently in the sand, she perked up when she heard a familiar voice speak up from behind her.

"Yo."

Turning around, Pearl saw Kakashi standing close by with his hands in his pockets. The Copy Nin walked over and sat beside her as they continued to watch the waves together for a short while longer until the Pale Gem finally spoke.

"Do you hate me?"

Kakashi arched an eyebrow as he turned to her.

"Why would I hate you?"

"Because I'm so intent on clinging to the past...on making children fight the war for us..."

Kakashi placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, I'm a teacher myself. I trained Naruko, Sasuke, and Sakura to be the best ninjas they could be...and I'm pretty sure I failed in that regard."

"What do you mean?"

"Sasuke defected from the Leaf Village to get revenge on his brother who killed his family. Sakura ended up taking up training with Tsunade and Naruko went with Jiraiya. I probably should have paid more attention to Sasuke and just how deep his anger was...maybe it was a bad idea to teach him the Chidori that day."

Pearl as the two resumed looking at the ocean, not noticing their hands slowly inching towards each other in want. It was only when their fingers interlocked did they realize what was happening as they turned to each other.

"You know, this is the SECOND time this has happened between us."

Pearl's cheeks turned light blue and she giggled sheepishly, Kakashi just giving his signature eye-smile. Soon, the Pale Gem leaned her head onto the Copy-Nin's shoulder and they let the sounds of the ocean waves crashing drown out all other noise.


"Alright, Connie, since Pearl has been teaching you in swordsmanship, I think it's best if you get a weapon that fits your style!" Tenten said. Alongside her were Kisame and Shino as Connie and Steven were sitting across from them. Tenten laid out a large scroll and in a puff of smoke, five different weapons manifested.

"Whoa! What are those?" Steven asked with stars in his eyes as Connie looked just as excited, seeing the swords resembling ones she saw in one of her books.

"These are five of the Seven Swords of the Mist. Kisame already has one of them, you probably remember Samehada, right?" Tenten explained as Kisame was busy hugging his signature sword close and lovingly while Shino gave him a deadpan look behind his glasses.

"What about the seventh one?" Connie asked as Tenten scratched her cheek awkwardly.

"Kubikiribōchō the Executioner Blade? Well, it's back on our world being used by one of Sasuke's friends, Suigetsu. I was able to procure the other ones though before we ended up getting transported here."

Tenten then laid out the swords and began describing each of them, the first one looked to be like a sewing needle.

"This is Nuibari the Sewing Needle. Its main gimmick is the wire attached to it that can cut through targets and even pierce through them to wrap them in wire and trap them, hence its title."

Connie looked confused at what looked to be a Hammer and Axe joined together by a thick chain. Tenten saw her confusion and chuckled.

"I don't know how THIS is considered a sword, but its called Kabutowari the Helmet Splitter. It is said to break through any defense!"

"Cool! Can we see if it can bust through my shield?" Steven said as he summoned his shield. Connie took the weapon and despite her clumsiness with it, managed to hit Steven's shield in the center, creating a gong effect that caused Tenten to nearly lose her footing had Shino not been there to catch her. The two blushed as Steven and Connie laughed at what they did.

"That's pretty impressive but right now, let's continue." Tenten then showed a giant sword covered in paper tags. "This is Shibuki the Splashsword. It is covered in paper tag bombs that constantly restock themselves. Every strike with it will detonate the bombs, creating a mighty explosion!"

Steven and Connie looked impressed as Kisame decided to take over the demonstration, presenting a pair of daggers. "These two little ladies are Kiba, no relation to that Inuzaka Mutt. They can channel lightning to increase their cutting power, effectively making them the sharpest pair of blades ever forged!"

Shino then gestured to a sword that was shaped like a flounder fish as it was lifted up by his bugs. "And finally, this is Hiramekarei the Flat Fish. It stores Chakra which allows it to shape itself into different forms."

Steven and Connie took in the information given to them. Tenten herself had actually practiced using each of the swords with help from Naruko except for Samehada because Kisame was fiercely protective of his weapon as if it was his own child and Kubikiribōchō because Suigetsu still had it back in the Elemental Nations.

"You know, I'm pretty proficient in a sword myself," Sasuke said as he walked in from behind Steven and Connie. "If you want, maybe I could help as well?"

"Just don't end up like how Orochimaru did with you, Sasuke," Madara said from within his mind as the Uchiha Survivor scowled at his ancestor's quip.

"Sasuke, I need to ask something," Connie asked as he looked at her. "You told us that your cousin and ancestor are in your head but why do you put up with them? Aren't they responsible for all the bad stuff happening in your world?"

"Well, technically most of what they did was helped by Kaguya, who's also in my head. However, Madara got overzealous and my problems mostly came from Danzo...he's dead now, don't worry."

"From the way you spoke of him, he sounds like a real bad guy."

Sasuke just smirked, remembering his confrontation with the war hawk. "Trust me, kid...he was."


Alright, we got some KakaPearl settled in and we bring in the Seven Swords! Which one would you like Connie to use and should Steven use one as well? Say so in the comments!

Next Time: Keeping It Together