A.N: Here we go! The final chapter of the Fishman Island Arc, where we get right into the action of the next arc. How we do so? Well, just wait and see...
Chapter 28: Strength
"Report!" That was the first thing Benn Beckman ordered of the Intelligence Division officer.
A young looking Soul Reaper of Squad 12 gave a relieved smile. "We've just received word from Commander Fernandes. The man leading Fishman Island's defenses has been defeated. The remaining troops have either escaped or surrendered."
There was immediate cheering in the immediate area. After how brutal this fight had been, victory was a sweet, sweet relief. The commanders of the Intelligence Division remained focused on the matters at hand though. Victory was only part one. Now they had to get the fleet reorganized so that they would be ready to continue.
"Tell the 5th Fleet to give full quarter to all those who have surrendered." Mavis Vermillion ordered.
"Have anyone who can still fight set up a defensive perimeter around Ryugu Palace just in case those bastards decide to try and take the island back." Shikaku Nara added.
"And get me a sample of that disgusting substance that they used to try and poison them." Kisuke Urahara added, making everyone look at him. "I'd like to see if I can develop an antidote, just in case they decide to use it again."
"Yes!" Intelligence Division soldiers scrambled to get the messages across.
Chitsujo, meanwhile, heaved a sigh of relief. He had heard everything about how Sagi had gotten himself onto the battlefield. This new twist had good news and bad news for the Alliance. The bad news was that they had to deal with the Circles a bit earlier than expected. The good news was that because they were weaker versions of the Circles, the Alliance had a better chance at standing up to them if they went in with a plan.
He sighed to the young-looking woman standing next to him. "Apologies, Jun," he said, "it appears you weren't needed after all."
Jun, the youngest, newest Saint Warrior of Chastity gave her king a smile. "Oh no, Your Majesty, I was more than happy to come here." She said. "This gives me a chance to shop for the other orphans at Takara's Home. I promised them some souvenirs from another world."
Chitsujo chuckled. "I suppose if there is anywhere in the Pirate World to shop for souvenirs it'd be Dressrosa." He acknowledged.
"Although," Chitsujo continued, "if you don't mind, before you get your shopping done, I was wondering if you'd be willing to do me a quick favor."
Jun looked at Chitsujo in surprise. "Eh? Your Majesty, why are you asking me? Aren't you the king? You don't have to ask me. You just tell me. That's what Ms. Kanja says, after all."
"I have this to ask of you," Chitsujo replied, "I want you to go to Fishman Island. There's a certain someone I'd like you to meet and then challenge to a fight."
"Umm...a fight?" Jun was immediately nervous upon hearing this. "Er, if you really want someone to fight another person, you should ask Mr. Majime...or Ms. Kanja. They'd be better for that kind of request, Your Majesty."
Chitsujo gave Jun a reassuring smile and patted her on the head. "It's because you think that, that I want you to be the one to go and do this." He explained. "You've become very strong, Jun. You've earned your place as the Chastity of the Seven Saint Warriors. However, you still don't seem to believe that."
"Well, it's because I still don't compare to the others." Jun said, lowering her head. "And I certainly don't compare to Lady Kyoko."
"You are young and still new, compared to the others." Chitsujo reminded her. "However, you reached the appropriate power level to be named a member of the Saint Warriors. As I have told you, you've earned your spot."
"Your Majesty…" Jun said softly.
"Jun, please go to Fishman Island, and challenge Naruto Uzumaki to a fight for me." Chitsujo ordered her. "This is for both of your sakes."
Jun raised an eyebrow at this. "If...you really think that, I will follow your orders." She said with a quick salute before rushing off to find someone to transport her to Fishman Island.
Monkey D. Dragon, who was watching this exchange, shook his head in disbelief. "That girl," he mused, "I can tell she's stronger than me, but she has little faith in her own ability. That's...kinda sad actually."
Chitsujo smiled. "Jun's young. As far as self-worth go, the young fall into two extremes: too much confidence, or too little. She's the latter."
"But she's so powerful." Dragon pointed out.
"Yes, but her fellow Saint Warriors far surpass her in skill." Chitsujo admitted. "I had hoped that her promotion to Saint Warrior would make her realize her own worth. But while she has become well-liked by the people, she still suffers from nerves and self-confidence issues at times. It stems from...well, never mind, it's not my place to say."
Dragon shrugged. "Well, I hope she gets over it soon. With power like hers, she has no right to doubt her own abilities. And as the war's stakes get higher..."
"I know, I know, but in spite of her own self-doubts, Jun is still without a doubt one of the most effective fighters out there." Chitsujo promised before chuckling. "This is what I mean when I say each of the Saint Warriors have their own...quirks, so to speak."
"Changing the subject, why did you send her to challenge Naruto Uzumaki to a fight?" Dragon asked curiously.
"Simple, to give her more confidence and to remind Naruto that the Sagi he fought was a severely limited version of Sagi. I still can't say I know all the details about the machine he was using to fight, but I can definitely say that if he had been able to fight with all his strength, the outcome would've been far different."
Dragon folded his arms. "Then they're really that powerful." He realized. "I guess you weren't kidding when you told me they'd be our biggest problem besides Konton himself."
"Yes," Chitsujo nodded, "from our POWs from Rakuen, we were able to get a general concept of their army's structure."
"At the top, there is Konton, of course. Just below him is his elite guard: the Nine Dark Circles, who also conduct various political duties across Rakuen. Serving the Circles are their Courts, like those four who had infiltrated Fiore as Tax Collectors. And leading their military branches into the field are 72 high-ranking officers known as the 72 Pillars." Chitsujo reminded Dragon.
"I remember the report." Dragon nodded.
Chitsujo's expression darkened. "I apologize if I'm going to sound like a broken record Dragon," he said, "but the truth is, this fight with Sagi...it may be a prelude to something much worse."
Dragon immediately knew what Chitsujo was talking about. "You think Rakuen's army is going to slowly start taking more of a direct role in this war."
Chitsujo nodded. "All we can do is hope that constant battle has us ready for that moment." He claimed. "But I will say, I think I'm beginning to realize just how my brother plans to become the undisputed ruler of the universe."
"He's weakening every single faction out there, ally and enemy alike." Dragon's eyes widened at Chitsujo's claim. "I certainly cannot confirm this, but all signs are pointing to it."
"With every loss the Coalition experiences, Rakuen soldiers slowly move in to replace the loss of manpower." Chitsujo continued. "And eventually, they take over completely, leaving even his Acts of Chaos irrelevant."
"He'd cut his own allies out of the loop like that?" Dragon was shocked. "I thought he at least thought highly of his own Acts of Chaos."
Chitsujo sighed. "I'm sure he does...it's just that he cannot allow any attachments to stop him. My brother is ambitious, he always has been. This behavior is nothing new for him. Whatever feelings he has for his creations...they're still nothing but pawns in his design. Everything's like chess to him."
"You keep losing because you're loathed to sacrifice pieces, Brother."
"Well what's the point of victory if your comrades cannot celebrate with you? And besides, with how often you sacrifice pieces to trap mine, there's no way you'd be able to use that kind of strategy in real life, Brother."
"Oh? And why is that?"
"Well, obviously your actual soldiers would rebel if you kept needlessly sacrificing them like that. Any soldier that values their own life would want a general that's loathed to lose even one of them. Soldiers fight harder when there's camaraderie at all levels of the army."
"Ah, but sometimes you have to sacrifice your men to win. Any soldier that values victory realizes this. Eventually, if you keep losing because you fear sacrifice, your men will turn on you as well. There's more to being a decent leader than just being kind to your troops, Brother."
"Hmm, well anyway, I wanna win without having to sacrifice any pieces."
"Then you'll keep losing to me, Chitsujo."
"Ha! I'll beat you eventually, Konton! Just you wait!"
"-jo? Chitsujo?" Chitsujo was cut from that particular memory by the sound of Dragon's voice. "Chitsujo, come on, you can't space out like that on me."
Chitsujo smiled. "I'm sorry, Dragon, just a memory that hit me out of nowhere." He said honestly. "Anyway, the point is, we need to start preparing for the inevitable moment where Konton pushes his own troops aside in favor of his 'universe conquering' army. Because I think Sagi was only the first."
Meanwhile, back in Rakuen, Sagi looked up fearfully at Konton, gazing particularly at the man's disturbing smile. "So Sagi, what did Naruto have to say to me?" He asked.
Uragiri, Midarana and Boryoku all snickered under the breath at the fearful look on Sagi's face. Sagi gulped and managed to work up the courage to respond. "He told me to tell you," Sagi began, "they're...they're coming from you. No matter how long it takes for them to get here."
Midarana smirked, licking her lips. "What a man, making a threat like that to Lord Konton, of all people." She said, moaning suggestively under her breath.
Boryoku grinned. "Oho, I really want to rip him to shreds now. The more confident the fighter, the more I really want to rip them to shreds in the most violent way possible."
Uragiri simply chuckled lowly. If that brat really thinks they can challenge Rakuen just because they reduced someone like Sagi to this state, he has another thing coming.
Konton just laughed. "I see Naruto learned absolutely nothing from the humiliation he received from me back in Fiore." He noted. "Or perhaps...just because he actually has managed to improve a little since Fiore, he's already getting a little cocky."
Uragiri laughed. "Maybe it's both, Your Majesty?" He suggested.
Konton hummed at this. "Well, regardless, it appears that Fishman Island has been lost. Oh well, all this means is that the other worlds continue to weaken from constant battle. Exactly as planned. Losses mean nothing as long as you win where it matters the most. Just as the winner of chess is the one who puts the king in checkmate, rather than the one who captures the most pieces, we will win by overrunning them with Rakuen's might."
"And when that happens, we'll turn the universe into one hell of a party!" Boryoku excitedly exclaimed. "You better let me in on the action as soon as we turn things around, Your Majesty! I want to kill! Kill every last one of them!"
"I agree with our dear Circle of Violence." Midarana licked her lips suggestively once more. "There are so many cute boys on the Alliance that I can't wait to turn into my adorable little slaves."
Uragiri rolled his eyes before smirking. "Sheesh, may the gods help whatever boy toy you get your hands on, Midarana. There's a reason why I don't 'play' with you like I do with my toys." He told her before adding with a grin. "Still...I can't deny there are a lot of beauties on the Alliance I would love to turn into my own toys, and then leave them as lovely pieces of art."
"Yes, yes, you all have every right to be eager for that moment. When that day comes, you have my express permission to ravage everything to your hearts' content." Konton promised.
Konton then gave them all a glare that made every single one of them flinch in fear. "However, let me make one thing perfectly clear." He said to them. "You four...and all the Circles need to understand this. When the day of battle comes, you will not underestimate those Otherworlders, especially my brother's four pet projects."
All four present Circles looked at Konton in surprise. "For real, Your Majesty?" Midarana looked at Konton, trying to understand why he would tell them that.
"Do you all see the state Sagi was reduced to, from setting his pain receptors to a hundred percent?" Konton gestured to his most senior Circle. "That happened because of the strength of an Otherworlder. And they will only continue growing stronger with every single battle. By the time, you fight them in the flesh, while I don't doubt you will win, I can promise you they won't make it easy. If you underestimate them, you will come out with a few scars at best and your lives lost at worst."
This shocked all four Circles, even the immensely violent and battle-seeking Boryoku. "So don't underestimate them. Or rather, do underestimate them, but at your own peril, of course." Konton ordered them.
The Circles lowered their heads. "Thank you for the lesson, Your Majesty." They said in unison.
Konton then gave them all another glare. "And let me make one other thing perfectly clear." He told them. "There is only one man who is allowed to look down on others. And you are looking at him. Are we clear?"
The Circles all nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty." They said submissively.
Konton nodded in satisfaction. "I'm glad we're all on the same page. Rest up, Sagi." He ordered. "Boryoku, you want to get in on the fight, correct?"
"YES!" Boryoku exclaimed. "I want to kill!"
"Good, then go and pair yourself with a Faux Man." Konton ordered. "I'll assign you to a proper post later on."
Uragiri got over his surprise and chuckled, walking after his king. "That was harsh, Your Majesty." He said. "Putting a non-existent fear in our hearts like that."
"It is not non-existent." Konton replied. "If my nine most elite soldiers were to die in battle just because they underestimated their opponents, that not only looks bad on them, it looks bad on me, the man who gathered them all."
"Still, if you keep that attitude of yours up, someone might actually betray you and take your place, Your Majesty." Uragiri told him with a knowing smile.
"Oh, you mean someone like you, Uragiri the Treachery?" Konton responded with a knowing smile of his own.
Uragiri just smiled. "Well, I mean, it's not like I want to stay someone's pawn forever. I want to be promoted to king one of these days, and have my own kingdom to run and do whatever the hell I want!" Uragiri giddily declared. "Everyone in this miserable little universe is nothing more than a stepping stone! And I'm going to keep moving up!"
"Which means that eventually in this war, you'll plot to kill me, right?" Konton asked nonchalantly. "And take my crown for yourself?"
Uragiri laughed in response. Konton smiled. "Oh, it's not like I mind." He said. "Whatever motivates you to fight in the name of my kingdom."
"It's not like I'm not grateful to you, Your Majesty." Uragiri promised. "After all, through my previous betrayal, I became the leader of the Nine Dark Circles. It's just that kicking people down and then stepping over them is how you reach the top. That's the cold reality of the universe. I haven't stopped exploiting the universe around me to get what I deserve."
"Mmm, but never forget this, Uragiri. I made you the leader of the Nine Dark Circles knowing that you plan to watch my back, waiting for an opening to stab it." Konton reminded him. "Please do not think I have any delusions that you are actually loyal to me."
"I don't want a boring yes man as the leader of my elites, Uragiri." Konton told him. "I want someone with the same level of ambition as I do. You have that ambition, it motivates you to crush everything in your way. And I truly respect that."
"However, you will crush everything except for me, that I promise you. That back you watch from afar. That back you so desperately wish to stab one of these days...you will never have that satisfaction."
Uragiri narrowed his eyes, freezing in his tracks as his king continued to walk away from him. So you claim Your Majesty, but one of these days, I'm going to rip you off that pedestal of yours. Of course, I still need you to get rid of your annoying brother first.
I really don't give a damn about your family squabble, Lord Konton. I just want both of you idiots out of the way. And then I'll be king! So keep watching your back, Your Majesty.
Because I have a secret weapon, just for you!
Uragiri, the 9th Circle of the Nine Dark Circles. The leader with the title known as: 'The Treachery.' And much like how Sagi received his title because he specializes in creating copies of weapons already in existence, Uragiri received his title for a very obvious reason.
The man is addicted to betraying others. He is addicted to stepping over anyone he deems necessary to propel himself higher and higher in status. The man simply has a pathological need to stab people in the back.
Many others had fallen victim to Uragiri's ruthless methods over the years. But right now, Uragiri had his greatest challenge: to stab his mighty king who had given him his position in the back, and then take his crown for himself.
But Uragiri would bide his time. After all, Konton and Chitsujo had to kill each other first. Only then, he would strike.
"I wonder," Uragiri said to himself with a giddy smile, "what should my first order of business be when I'm king of the universe? Oh, who am I kidding, I already know what I'm going to do first."
"A harem of beautiful servants, attending to my every need." Uragiri laughed. "Yeah, that's definitely first on the agenda!"
"Okay!" Back at Fishman Island, Naruto Uzumaki yelled out in relief. "Good, I'm feeling back at hundred percent already."
Jellal Fernandes groaned in slight frustration, still being patched up by a nurse due to his immense magic exhaustion and previous injuries. "You know something," he said, "it's moments like these, where you get right back up from a fight that piss me off about you and your stupid durability, Naruto."
Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I...guess my stamina is something to be jealous of." He acknowledged. "I can't help it, man. I got my dad's Chakra. I've got my mom's Chakra, which is Uzumaki Chakra, which is insanely high might I add. And I've got Kurama's Chakra. I was basically born to be a freaking Chakra battery."
Jellal rolled his eyes before sighing. "Sorry, I guess I just wish everyone had your stamina and the ability to shrug off hits like you did. If we all had that...maybe Erza wouldn't have…"
Naruto smiled. "Jellal, she's still alive, that's the most important thing you know."
"He's right you fool, stop talking like you've buried me already." A familiar voice spoke up, shocking both Naruto and Jellal.
Naruto and Jellal both gasped before smiling. They turned to see Erza Scarlet, out of her armor and staring at them with her arms folded and an irritated expression on her face. "Seriously, I'm not dead yet, you idiot."
"You're okay!" Naruto said happily while Jellal just heaved a sigh.
Erza smiled and nodded. "Yeah," she said, "I have to admit, it was touch and go for a moment. Honestly, I would definitely not be here today if you hadn't used your Chakra to save me. Thanks, Naruto."
"Hey, that's what friends do for each other, right?" Naruto reminded her. "I'd have done the same for anyone else. I'm just glad you were able to handle Kurama's Chakra. Tailed Beast Chakra can be poisonous to people, sometimes. Hell, only the Uzumakis have been able to contain and handle Kurama's Chakra."
Erza glared at him. "So you actually poured Tailed Beast Chakra into me knowing that it might kill me?"
"NARUTO!" Jellal yelled in disbelief.
Naruto just smiled. "Hey now, I had absolute faith you could handle it, Erza." He gave the scarlet-haired knight. "Because you're Erza, and you're strong enough to handle it."
Erza immediately lost her proverbial fangs upon hearing Naruto's faith in her. "I...guess it can't be helped if you really have that much faith in me." She muttered.
"How are you feeling, out of curiosity? You're not feeling sick, right?" Jellal asked. "What about your injuries from Sagi? Will they leave a scar?"
Erza smiled. "Don't worry, they won't leave any scars. Not that I mind of course. I don't mind a few scars if it's for a worthy cause like ours."
"You're an example to us all, Erza." Jellal acknowledged, Naruto smiled and nodded.
Jellal then noticed how Naruto was all-smiles. A thought cost his mind. "Naruto, you're honestly okay, right?" He asked.
Naruto looked at Jellal. "Huh? Why wouldn't I be?"
Jellal frowned. "Naruto, your dad is alive, but he doesn't want to be with you right now. You don't have to pretend you're not bothered by that."
Erza frowned. "Umm...did I miss something?" She asked.
"You missed a lot." Jellal shook his head. "Turns out, Naruto's dad has been resurrected somehow. But not by Konton, and not by Lord Chitsujo. From what I've managed to hypothesize...it seems he managed to make his way out of the Styx on his own...which frankly should be impossible, if everything I've heard about it is true."
Naruto smiled "Jellal," he said, "you're oversimplifying it. Dad can't be by my side right now because he's got something important to take care of first. And he promised once that was taken care of, he'd immediately run back to me."
Jellal sighed. "Minato Namikaze...the 4th Hokage, what an odd man." He muttered.
"Heh, yeah, I guess eccentricities run in the family, huh?" Naruto laughed. "Listen, Jellal, you don't have to worry about me."
"Yeah, I should be bothered that my own father doesn't want to be with me at the moment. However, you don't know my dad like I do. The man you all know as the 4th Hokage, Minato Namikaze, he's one of the most intelligent Shinobi in all of history." Naruto explained.
"Everything he does as a Shinobi, he has a plan in mind. A plan that revolves around his desire to do good for the Shinobi world and for his family." Naruto continued. "That's just the kind of man my dad is, and it's why I'm able to trust him, even when his actions seem...strange at times."
"For example, it was my dad that sealed Kurama inside of me." Naruto gestured to his stomach. "What he did caused the pain I went through growing up. However, he also did it because he had faith that I would earn Kurama's cooperation one day and defeat the man who caused Kurama's rampage across our village in the first place."
"So I trust my father. I trust that he'll come back to me, his son, because that's how much faith I have in his love and in him as a Shinobi."
Erza smiled at Naruto's complete and utter faith in his father. A bond like that. She mused to herself. I suppose Master Makarov was the closest thing I ever had to a father.
Still, she continued, I can't help but wonder...what were my birth parents like? Would I be able to believe in them like Naruto clearly believes in his?
Jellal smiled. "Well, I suppose that's that then." He conceded. "My apologies, Naruto. You're right, I don't know your father like you do. And you clearly know him well. And if you choose to believe in him, then as your friend, I will believe in him as well."
"Still though, he better keep his promise and fight alongside us." Jellal continued with a chuckle. "The 4th Hokage, the Yellow Flash himself, someone of his power would be an absolute boon to our forces. We absolutely need him on our side."
Naruto and Erza both nodded in agreement. Jellal folded his arms. "Frankly though, it's one of those things where it's the sooner the better." He added in a more serious tone of voice. "After the nightmare that was fighting Sagi, we really need to bolster our forces."
"You're worrying a bit much, Jellal." Naruto frowned. "We won, didn't we?"
"Yeah, we won against someone who was being restrained by a limited mechanical body he was piloting remotely." Jellal pointed out. "Sagi said it himself. That 'Faux Man' he had been using? It allowed him to use 30% of his power, and he did not even use his Art, which means I can only speculate that the Faux man doesn't allow him to use his Art."
"To be blunt, Naruto, if Sagi had fought us in the flesh, we would've been killed for sure. And I think you know that as well as I do."
Naruto's face fell at this. "Okay, fine." He conceded. "I am well aware that if we had fought Sagi in his actual body, I'd have lost. It's frustrating to admit it, but you're right."
"So we absolutely need to bolster our forces." Jellal repeated. "If we run into another one of the Circles in one of those Faux Men. Or even worse, if we fought one in the flesh, I'd have no choice but to immediately order a retreat."
"Whoa now," Naruto immediately protested this, "come on, Jellal, I'm sure we can pull it off if we all work together. And we certainly can't hope to win if we just run away every time we run into one of those guys."
Jellal narrowed his eyes. "Naruto," he said, "even if I do agree that we could very well win if we all worked together as one unit, there is no way we'd get out of the fight unscathed. We lost 5,000 men in battle today, and twice as many were wounded. And if these Circles are worth an entire money, that means we can expect at least as many casualties, maybe even more."
"I'm the commander of this division, and I'm not going to risk everyone's lives just to kill one individual."
Naruto sighed. "Yeah, you're right, but Jellal, we can't hope to win if we just retreat."
"I do agree with that." Jellal promised. "Naruto, I promise you, I intend to lead this army to victory. I just can't risk the lives of my men when there could be better methods to handle situations like the Nine Dark Circles."
"I believe you, Jellal." Naruto nodded. "You know I do."
At that moment, a new voice spoke up, calling out to them. "Excuse me? Are you Naruto Uzumaki? Or...um...are you just someone who looks like him?"
Naruto, Erza and Jellal turned to see a redheaded girl in pigtails running towards them, flanked by Shinji Hirako and Tetsuzaemon Iba. "'Sup, J!" Shinji said to his superior and friend. "This lovely lady seems to want to chat with Naruto about something."
"Friend of yours, Naruto?" Erza asked.
"Never met her in my life." Naruto replied.
"Er, I was sent by Lord Chitsujo, and-" The girl then tripped over her own feet. With a yelp, she fell forward, landing face-first, making everyone watching this strange display sweat-drop in disbelief.
"...I just got flashbacks to the day I first met Wendy." Erza muttered.
"Er...you okay?" Naruto asked.
The girl lifted her head up, visibly whimpering and tearing up from the fall. "Ow...that hurt so much." She muttered to herself. "Why does that always happen to me?"
"Seriously, are you okay?" Naruto asked. "That looked like a seriously nasty tumble."
The girl nodded and quickly wiped the tears from her eyes. "I'm okay, I'm a proud soldier of Menou, and tumbling over like that is nothing to me." She said, clearly trying to convince herself and not Naruto and everyone else.
The girl then noticed Naruto looking right at her and shrunk away. "Umm, hi." She said nervously. "M-my name is Jun...I'm under orders from Lord Chitsujo to...ch-challenge you to a fight...if that's okay with you and you're not too busy, I mean."
"Wow...she's got Hinata's nerves when speaking." Naruto noted.
"So she's as clumsy as Wendy is…" Erza trailed off.
"And as shy as Hinata…" Naruto added.
"She's perfect waifu material!" Shinji concluded with stars in his eyes.
Tetsuzaemon gave Shinji a deadpan expression. "Wow, Momo wasn't kidding when she said you read too much Jump, Captain Hirako." He muttered.
"Hey, the only way to spend the afternoon is by listening to smooth jazz on a record player and reading Shonen Jump!" Shinji vehemently defended himself. "And tell Momo how I spend my afternoons is none of her business!"
"It is when you push your paperwork onto her, Sir." Tetsuzaemon pointed out.
Jun whimpered and whined at all the attention being placed on her. Naruto immediately smiled and adjusted his tone to something more gentle, to let Jun know that she had no reason to be so nervous around him...or really anyone else for that matter.
"Hey come on, don't be so nervous." He said to her. "You said that Chitsujo wanted you and me to do something? I...kinda didn't catch what you had said earlier."
"Umm...Lord Chitsujo wants me to fight you." She said bluntly.
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Really?" He asked. "Chitsujo wants you...to fight me?"
Jun nodded. "Are...are you sure you didn't mishear his orders?" He asked.
Jun nodded. "I mean, I am pretty strong." Jun admitted. "Not as strong as Ms. Kanja and the other Saint Warriors...but, I mean, I am still a Saint Warrior myself, I guess. Not much of a Saint Warrior, but still..."
Jellal's eyes widened. "Whoa, whoa, what?" He did a double take at this. "You're one of the Seven Saint Warriors?"
"Oh...did I not say that before, I'm sorry." Jun said politely. "Umm, I guess I should introduce myself properly, huh?"
"Well...my name is Jun, I'm also known as the Saint Warrior of Chastity." She explained. "I'm still very new compared to the others...I think Mr. Yasashi and Ms. Kanja have been on the team the longest."
Jellal's eyes widened, knowing what being a Saint Warrior meant to Menou. "Saint Warriors...aren't those like Chitsujo's elite guards or something?" Naruto asked curiously. "So...you're here because he wants you to fight me?"
Jun nodded. "Well, originally His Majesty wanted me to come here just in case you needed help with Sagi." She admitted. "However, when word got out that you won without my help, I honestly thought I would just be asked to go home."
"However, he instead gave me an order to come here and challenge you to a fight, Mr. Naruto." Jun told Naruto.
"...Please do not call me Mister, I am not old enough to be called Mister." Naruto told her.
"AH! I'm sorry!" Jun flinched, looking like she was going to tear up again.
Erza glared at Naruto. "You're horrible Naruto." She said.
"I didn't mean to scare her!" Naruto yelled.
"Jun, right?" Naruto addressed Jun now. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you like that. So, you want to fight me, right?"
"Well, I don't want to fight you, His Majesty wants me to, and he's very nice to me so I want to follow his orders." Jun explained.
"...Fair enough." Naruto rubbed the back of his head.
Jun then got to her feet. "Umm, I'm not really sure how much of a challenge I'll be able to give you, but I'll do my best regardless, since I know King Chitsujo would want me to."
"Okay…" Naruto raised an eyebrow. This girl's lack of self-esteem could actually have given Hinata a run for her money back when she was suffering from those issues. "...So, what then? We go to the nearest clearing and just fight?"
"You're seriously going to fight her then?" Tetsuzaemon asked in surprise.
"What, you gonna go all white-knight and say that a cute, nervous girl like her shouldn't get down and dirty in a fight." Shinji deadpanned, making Tetsuzaemon glare at him.
"Naruto, do you mind if I come and watch this fight?" Erza asked. "I'm...actually kind of curious about how this is gonna turn out."
"NO!" Jun wailed. "I can't fight if there's a crowd!"
"N-no, I'm not a crowd, I'm just one person." Erza promised. "Er...two, three or four I guess, if Shinji, Tetsuzaemon and Jellal want to watch."
"I'll stay here and rest up." Jellal raised his hand. "Just let me know how the fight turns out."
"I guess I'll watch." Shinji shrugged. "I'm kind of curious myself."
"Same." Tetsuzaemon added.
Jun whimpered slightly. "Well...I guess if it's only three people watching, that's fine. I mean, three's company, right? Is that some sort of saying?"
"Actually, it kinda is." Shinji admitted.
With that, Naruto and Jun walked towards the nearest clearing with Erza, Shinji and Tetsuzaemon following them. "Seriously, how's this going to turn out?" Tetsuzaemon wondered.
"Well, honestly when I look at her, she doesn't really look like she can fight." Shinji admitted. "She doesn't look like she could hurt a fly. Still though, the fact that Lord Chitsujo made her one of his Saint Warriors...that has to mean she's one of the strongest people out there. Honestly, I can't see it. But still...she might actually be doing a great job suppressing her Reiki."
Erza remained silent. That was the only explanation she could think of. Chitsujo was a kind man, but there was no way he would just make anyone a member of his elite guard. Either this girl lulled people into a false sense of security with a non-threatening personality, or in spite of her incredible self-esteem issues, she was actually as strong as her title dictated.
Which begged the question: did Naruto actually have any chance at beating this girl? And if he had no chance...was this some kind of lesson Chitsujo was hoping to impart? Considering what he did to Naruto and Luffy after their long battle outside of Dressrosa, it did sound like something he would do.
Jun and Naruto then stood three hundred feet apart, ready to fight. "So, umm...feel free to come at me with everything you've got." Jun told him.
"You...really want me to do that? Are you sure?" Naruto asked. "I don't mind holding back just a little until you're comfortable enough for me to go all out."
Jun shook his head. "No, I think it's best you go all out. Honestly, I kinda want to end this fight as quickly as possible."
Naruto sighed. "Well, you heard the girl, Kurama. We're going all out."
"I'm...genuinely going to feel bad about this fight." Kurama admitted. "That's...a first."
With that, Naruto became completely covered in the Nine Tails Chakra Cloak. Jun's eyes widened. "Oh wow, is that the Nine Tailed Fox's power? It's so...powerful."
"If you're ready, Jun, I'll come at you with everything I've got." Naruto promised before running towards Jun.
Immediately, he created two Shadow Clones that helped him form a Rasenshuriken in his right hand. "Tailed Beast Rasenshuriken!" Naruto yelled, tossing the certain-kill Jutsu at Jun.
"Naruto what the hell? You're throwing a killing move at her?" Shinji's eyes widened.
Jun then easily dodged the attack and the explosion of wind blades that followed, disappearing into a slipstream with the help of Vanishing Walk and making Shinji, Tetsuzaemon and Erza say in surprise. "Whoa she's fast!" Tetsuzaemon explained.
Jun appeared behind Naruto with a look of surprise on her face. "Wow, that was very strong." She said.
Naruto spun around. "Naruto...I think she might've been faster than Madara." Kurama warned him.
"Thank you, Kurama, I realize that." Naruto quickly readied another attack.
"Planetary Rasengan!" Naruto yelled, thrusting a variation of the Rasengan forward, only for Jun to jump over the attack easily.
"Lock - Damage!" Jun yelled, striking Naruto in the back with an open palm and then rotating it clockwise.
"Huh?" Naruto could only say in confusion. "Wait...what do you mean Lock - Damage?"
Naruto then shook off his surprise and summoned his newfound Heavenly Body Magic. His Chakra Cloak was shining brightly now. "Cosmic Rasengan!" Naruto yelled, thrusting an even stronger version of his Rasengan at Jun.
"Eep!" Jun yelled, holding out her hands to defend herself and blocking Naruto's Cosmic Rasengan with both hands. The impact enveloped the entire area around them in an explosion, only for it to vanish and reveal that Jun was completely unharmed.
Erza, Shinji and Tetsuzaemon gasped in disbelief. The attack that destroyed Sagi's Faux Man was blocked by this Jun girl with ease. "Umm...am I dead?" Jun asked with complete sincerity.
"NO!" Everyone yelled at her, making her yelp in fear once more.
She blocked my Cosmic Rasengan… Naruto could only think in shock.
"Well, if I'm not dead...I guess I should attack now, right?" Jun wondered out loud.
Before Naruto could respond, or really do anything for that matter, Jun started punching him repeatedly with such speed that Naruto could not register the attacks until they actually landed. Then things got even stranger. Jun's attacks were connecting, but they were not hurting him. In fact, they were not leaving any visible signs of damage.
I...what is happening? Naruto wondered.
Meanwhile, back in Dressrosa, Monkey D. Dragon raised a curious eyebrow at what was apparently the name of Jun's Art. "Lock?"
"Lock," Chitsujo nodded, "out of all the Arts I've seen over the years, it's definitely one of the most interesting ones."
"Okay...explain." Dragon folded his arms.
"Lock allows Jun to seal away anything she commands. By rotating her palm on the target clockwise, she can seal away just about anything. Someone's voice, their own physical strength, damage sustained, someone's pain, she could even seal away their breath if she had a single malicious bone in her body and just wanted to kill someone."
"That sounds stupidly overpowered." Dragon bluntly noted.
"It only activates if Jun can touch someone and rotate her palm in a clockwise manner." Chitsujo explained. "Basically, Jun is capable of easily defeating anyone who's weaker than her, even if the margin between their strengths is low. However, at the same time, she would have an extremely hard time against anyone stronger than her, even with her incredible Art, because of the requirements to activate her ability."
"Of course, Jun has taken steps to rectify this, by becoming arguably the second physically strongest member of the Saint Warriors, just behind Majime."
"That dainty, harmless little girl?" Dragon looked at Chitsujo in surprise.
Chitsujo just laughed with a proud expression on his face. "One time, she broke General Tsuchimaru's arm in an accident after the man scared her. An understandable mistake, considering how intimidating he is. But now, even Tsuchimaru, who's temper is...legendary to say the least, tends to keep himself under control when around her now."
"...Wow." Dragon said.
"You see, on average, a Saint Warrior is capable of striking with 300,000 pounds of force." Chitsujo explained. "Majime can strike at 500,000 pounds, and Jun strikes at 400,000."
"400...are you serious?" Dragon could not believe what he was hearing. "What the hell kind of workouts did that girl do to be able to strike with that kind of force?"
"Jun's just blessed I suppose." Chitsujo shrugged. "Which is why even I can't help but get a little upset whenever she talks down to herself. She really needs to be more confident."
"Anyway, consider this Dragon." Chitsujo continued. "Let's say Jun locked away your pain and continued striking at you with 400,000 pounds of force per blow. You wouldn't feel the pain of being hit by 400,000 pounds because she's 'locked it' so to speak."
"Right." Dragon nodded.
Chitsujo then smiled. "Now imagine if she hit you 100 times while your pain was locked away. And afterwards, she unlocked your pain. What do you think would happen?"
Dragon thought it over for a moment and then his eyes widened. "Chitsujo...you don't mean…"
Chitsujo nodded. "All that pain would hit you at once. You'd experience what it's like to be hit by 40 million pounds of force in an instant. As long as she can activate her Art, Jun is one of the most dangerous fighters in all of Menou."
Back at Fishman Island Jun assailed Naruto with a hundred speedy punches. Little did Naruto know, because she had locked his pain away with her Art, he did not feel each blow of 400,000 pounds of force.
Jun then stopped after punch number one hundred. "Umm...okay?" Naruto was still very confused by what had just happened.
"I'm sorry about this." Jun muttered before placing her palm on Naruto's chest. She then rotated it counterclockwise. "Unlock - Damage!"
At that moment, Naruto experienced the sensation of being hit by 40 million pounds of force at once. And holy crap did it hurt. He felt his bones shatter everywhere as he was immediately forced out of Kurama's Chakra Cloak. "WHAT?!" Kurama could only scream in shock, feeling his Chakra immediately go into overtime to try and heal all of Naruto's injuries.
Naruto's mouth was open in a silent scream. He did not even have the strength to vocalize his pain, such was the force of the attack itself. Naruto Uzumaki then fell onto his back and immediately lost consciousness. Jun let out a frightened yell at how badly she had damaged Naruto. "I'm sorry!" She yelled before gasping in shock. "Wait...did I actually win?"
"Am...am I seeing things?" Tetsuzaemon said in disbelief. "Did she actually just beat Naruto?"
"Beat him? She freaking destroyed him!" Shinji yelled.
"Naruto!" Erza ran over to Naruto, cradling his injured body.
These wounds are horrible. She looked at Naruto, then at Jun, in disbelief. I can't believe someone like this is capable of this!
Jun then realized once again and started bowing repeatedly. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" She chanted. "I knew I shouldn't have punched him a hundred times. I should've only done half as many. I was just so scared that if I didn't end the fight quickly, he would've won!"
"Oh no," Jun whimpered, "I knew I should've asked Mr. Hakuai to come here as soon as I found out I'd be fighting Naruto, I wasn't thinking."
Jun then leaned down next to Erza and Naruto. "Umm...it's not much, but I can specifically lock away his pain so that he doesn't go into neurogenic shock."
"Umm, Mr. Shinji, Mr. Tetsuzaemon, could you please go get a medic?" Jun requested.
"...Something tells me we're going to need Hacchi for this." Shinji noted before vanishing to get his trusted ally.
"Okay, Lock - Pain." Jun quickly locked away Naruto's pain.
"Jun...that Art…" Erza trailed off.
"It's...well, you saw what it can do." Jun said. "I can seal away damage and therefore seal away pain as well by locking it. And then I can unlock it to hit my enemy with all the accumulated damage at once. Of course, if the damage is already done, I can at least seal away pain by locking it."
"Er...either way, Naruto is going to be hurting for a while." Jun nervously added. "We need to keep him closely monitored after this Hacchi that Mr. Shinji is going to get so that he doesn't go into shock."
"...I'm really confused as to why Chitsujo sent you to fight him now." Erza admitted.
"I'm still trying to figure out why myself. But I trust His Majesty." Jun said in a surprisingly resolute tone. "He hasn't steered anyone under his command wrong, me included."
"...I guess I'd just have to live as a citizen of Menou to better understand the man." Erza conceded.
Hachigen Ushoda, better known as Hacchi, then arrived, flanked by Shinji. He gasped. "Shinji, you didn't tell me it was that bad!" He exclaimed before Flash Stepping to Naruto and began healing him with his unique Kido.
"Sorry…" Jun whimpered.
Naruto's body immediately began to repair itself thanks to Hacchi's efforts. Naruto then regained consciousness. "What the hell happened? Jun...did you…"
"I'm so sorry Naruto!" Jun wailed. "I didn't want to hurt you that badly, I just wanted to end the fight quickly!"
"N-no...it's fine." Naruto promised. "Why can't I feel any pain?"
"I locked it away." Jun explained. "Once we know all your injuries have healed, we'll unlock it. Fair warning though, it's going to hurt a lot."
Naruto sighed. "Well, I think I now know why Chitsujo asked you to fight me." He revealed.
"You do?" Erza asked.
"I had just fought Sagi at 30% of his full strength." Naruto reminded her. "So, Chitsujo wanted to show me what an elite of the Watchers was really like at 100%, so that I knew I still have a long way to go."
"That...does sound like something His Majesty would do." Jun admitted.
Naruto then gave Jun a gentle smile. "And I think he also asked you to fight me to show you that you deserved your position as a Saint Warrior, Jun. Because that's also something he would do. He cares that much about his people."
Jun looked at Naruto in surprise. "Have confidence in yourself Jun." Naruto told her. "Because without a doubt you are one of the strongest people I've ever fought against. I can tell that much by fighting you for five minutes at best."
"I'm...I'm being praised by one of the Acts of Order." Jun muttered. "This is...such a happy day."
"Please don't start crying again." Naruto chuckled.
"I'm...I'm not going to cry!" Jun promised. "I'm not!"
Naruto then leaned up. "I think you fixed me up completely, Hacchi. Thanks."
"If that's the case," Jun spoke up, "I think I should go ahead and unlock your pain. But, it will hurt. Mr. Hacchi, please stay here just in case Naruto goes into shock."
"Shock?!" Naruto yelled before Jun placed her palm on his chest.
"Unlock - Pain." Jun commanded.
"YOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!" Naruto's screams of pain echoed across Fishman Island…
Elsewhere, Minato Namikaze chuckled slightly, hearing his son's screams. He knew he would be fine and was in no immediate danger. Those may be screams of pain, but they weren't screams of the dying.
"Keep getting stronger, Son." Minato said softly as he approached a downed Rakuen soldier that had been kept hidden. The soldier he had marked so that he could teleport to Fishman Island. "And I'll hold up my end of the bargain as well, so that we can be a proper family."
Minato then teleported away from Fishman Island, landing in a forest in Sabaody Archipelago. "Kushina, my beloved," Minato looked up to the sky, thinking of his beloved wife, "wherever you are...wait for me."
"Because I'm going to find you, and I'm going to bring you back to our son."
"Now then," Minato looked around, "I've already searched this area, and I found nothing that could be linked to Kushina."
"I guess that means," Minato continued, "I should go elsewhere to another place I had marked. I'll say this much. This little universal travel that I've been doing has been something else…"
"I just hope at the end of my journeys, you're at the end of them...Kushina."
Meanwhile, in the Kingless Lands of the Watchers' World, the vast lands between Rakuen and Menou, a beautiful redheaded woman had fallen to her knees, dirty, bruised and beaten. This was her limit, she could not fight any longer.
Kushina Uzumaki, wife of Minato Namikaze and mother of Naruto Uzumaki, glared upwards at the golden-haired woman who had bested her yet again. She was tall, dressed as a shrine priestess with white and blue robes, had lovely blue eyes, wore her hair in a bun, and was brandishing Khakkhara like a weapon.
"Well congrats," the priestess said to her, "since ending up in our monastery, you've challenged me to battle a hundred times. And after a hundred challenges, you've finally lasted a single minute."
Kushina growled. "Not yet." She claimed. "I can...keep going."
That was a lie and even Kushina knew it. But she tried to get up anyway, only to fall right back to her knees. The priestess sighed. "We'll have your injuries treated, but please do not try to challenge me again for the rest of the day. I do have other duties besides this."
"You're the one keeping me here, damn it!" Kushina yelled. "The deal was, if I manage to last more than five minutes against you in a fight, you'd have to let me leave here!"
"And to be honest, I'm surprised that you haven't tried to run when we aren't fighting." The priestess admitted.
"Because we both know you'd catch me like you did after you treated my wounds and told me I couldn't leave." Kushina told her with a deadpan expression. "And besides, I keep my promises. I'll leave after I win our wager...even though I don't like it."
"I understand if you are angry, Kushina, but I am only doing this for your own good." The priestess promised.
"Why you...my son is out there fighting a universal war!" Kushina yelled at her. "And my husband is who knows where! Because he's certainly not in the freaking land of the dead! Of course, knowing Minato, he probably got out himself."
The priestess sighed. "Considering that it's Minato Namikaze, you're probably right." She acknowledged. "However, please understand, it is because you love your son and husband so much, that I am doing this."
"If you attempted to help them as you are now, you'd only throw your life away and accomplish nothing. Were it up to me, I'd honestly send you back to the Styx, since your time has come to an end. However, when you became insistent on helping your son and husband, I must admit you touched my heart. So, I came up with this as a compromise."
"But be warned, Kushina, that war is a fool's errand and will accomplish nothing."
"It will, I'll protect my family." Kushina said resolutely.
The priestess sighed. "Just have the girls treat your injuries as usual. Get something to eat. And if you could help out around the monastery like you usually do, I'd really appreciate the extra help."
"Yeah, yeah, sure." Kushina relented with a pout.
The priestess began to walk away. "Hey, Head Priestess!" Kushina yelled, getting the woman's attention.
The woman known only as 'Head Priestess' looked at Kushina once more. "Who are you exactly? I've been here for three months now, and I've never learned your name. What gives with that?"
The Head Priestess fell silent before turning away. "I discarded my old identity long ago." She replied. "Now, I am but a humble priestess helping the people of the Kingless Lands. Of course, if knowing who I am means that much to you, I will add it to the wager."
"If you can last more than five minutes against me, I will tell you who I really am." The Head Priestess promised.
Kushina frowned. "You and your damn wagers." She muttered. "Okay, fine, you're not going to tell me, so I'll just beat it out of you. You better be ready though, you just gave me more motivation to work my ass off in training."
The Head Priestess chuckled. "Whatever you say, Kushina Uzumaki." She said, before leaving Kushina to her own devices.
Kushina then tried to get up again, only to fall forward. "Umm…" she looked over at the shrine maidens who were meant to treat her injuries and gave them a sheepish expression. "Help?"
As the shrine maidens rushed to treat her wounds...something they had gotten used to since this wager had begun. Kushina frowned, thinking of her son and husband. Naruto...Minato...I'll overcome this wager. She promised. And I'll go find you both, I promise.
Consider that...a promise from a mother and a wife. We'll be a true family soon!
Meanwhile, back at Dressrosa, Dragon heaved a sigh, now fully understanding the reason Chitsujo had sent Jun to fight Naruto. "Seriously, Chitsujo, you're as blunt in dealing with situations as I am." He noted. "And you sent someone as strong as Jun to teach Naruto that the gap between him and Rakuen was still really large?"
"I'm definitely not one for half-measures." Chitsujo chuckled and acknowledged. "But remember, this was just as much for Jun's sake as it was for Naruto's."
"Jun's a very strong asset to Menou, strong enough to be recognized as one of the Seven Saint Warriors." Chitsujo noted. "But she has no self-esteem. I wanted her to fight Naruto and win to give her a bit more confidence."
"I...guess that's one way to make her more confident." Dragon acknowledged.
Chitsujo nodded. "I just wanted to kill two birds with one stone. I wanted to help Jun with her self-esteem issues and I wanted to remind Naruto that he had to keep training and growing stronger before we had to fight Rakuen at its best."
"And frankly, while both situations are very important to me, and both are for the Alliance's benefit, hammering that reminder into Naruto's head was crucial."
"Oh yeah?" Dragon raised an eyebrow.
"Do you remember what happened to Edolas, Dragon?" Chitsujo asked.
"That weird parallel universe to Earthland, of course." Dragon nodded. "It's royal capital was...destroyed by two of the Nine Dark Circles, right?"
Chitsujo nodded. "I had some men investigate the world after Jiraiya and Unohana had helped out the people." He explained before his expression turned grim. "Dragon...it wasn't just the royal capital. The two Circles razed practically all of Edolas. The only reason anyone survived was...well, I can only imagine it was because they just weren't interested in being thorough and were only concerned with sending a message to us."
Dragon's eyes widened. "God…" he muttered.
"That's the kind of power that awaits us." Chitsujo explained. "The power to raze nearly an entire world and feel absolutely no empathy while doing it. Fighting a man with righteousness in his heart is a difficult fight, that is most certainly true."
"However, fighting men with zero empathy is even more difficult. Men like that are willing to do anything for victory."
"Those are the kinds of battles that await us. And that's why I need everyone to constantly seek to improve themselves. My Saint Warriors will of course do their best to even the odds, but if the worst happens and it comes down to all of you...I just want you all to be ready."
Dragon fell silent at Chitsujo's grim description of the Nine Dark Circles. Chitsujo heaved a sigh. "To be honest...I can't help but wonder if Konton already has the Circles working in the shadows like he did with Edolas."
"And if they are...then may the gods be with whomever becomes their next target."
Far, far away from Dressrosa-in the East Blue, in fact-a single ship was sailing across the seas. On this ship was an old but incredibly muscular man, standing at the bow of the ship. Behind him were a young man with pink hair and another young man with long blonde hair, wearing a strange visor.
"Report," the old man said firmly.
"Er...well, Vice Admiral…"
"Don't call me Vice Admiral anymore, Coby." The old man shook his head. "I resigned from the Marines to be an instructor. And after what I've done today...I have no right to be called that, even if I do believe that what I have done is right."
"Nonsense, sir, once our superior, always our superior." The blonde man said.
"Helmeppo is right, Vice Admiral Garp, we believe you made the right decision, and that's why we chose to follow you." Coby told him. "We believe in you as our superior, Sir. We promise."
Monkey D. Garp smiled sadly. "You boys had such bright futures as men of the navy." He sadly noted. "And you threw that away out of loyalty to an old man…"
"And we'd do it again, Sir." Coby promised. "Vice Admiral...we were looking for an out of the Coalition ourselves. You gave us that opportunity."
Garp looked over his shoulder to see tens of hundreds of refugees that he had managed to save from various islands across the East Blue. "Is that so?" He mused.
Garp smiled. "I suppose I can be glad we managed to save these people at least." He said before his expression darkened. "But the fact that a bunch of people from the East Blue were abducted...just what the hell are those madmen up to."
Garp sighed. "Well, all we can do now is get all these people to Dressrosa."
"Why Dressrosa, Sir?" Helmeppo asked.
"That was the last place my Grandson had been." Garp explained. "So if I had to guess, I'd say the Alliance has stationed themselves in Dressrosa."
"So it's simple," Garp continued, "we go to Dressrosa with these refugees. Offer penance to the leader of the Alliance. And warn him that the Coalition is engaging in human trafficking."
And considering who I know that's been taken...I think I know why they're choosing to engage in trafficking now.
"I hope they're reasonable." Coby sighed. "I mean, I'm sure they're good guys if Luffy's willing to work with them, but still...they're working with a bunch of other pirates, right?"
"Coby, please don't tell me you're having doubts now." Helmeppo frantically said to him. "I left the Coalition because I trusted yours and Vice Admiral Garps' judgement, you know."
"I'm not. Luffy's there so I'm trusting that the Alliance is good people, overall." Coby promised. "I guess I'm just trying to understand what kind of man the leader is."
"Let's not worry about that right now. The more important thing is getting these people somewhere safe. And right now, it seems the safest place is Dressrosa" Garp told them.
Sengoku, Garp thought to himself, I'm sorry I couldn't help you. Just stay alive and keep your sanity intact my friend. We'll find a way to get you out of the Coalition's services, I promise. I hope you know that we're doing our best as navy men to save lives, like you'd want.
"Oh? Dressrosa, huh? Well, we knew that was where the Alliance's base was, so it's no surprise that's where you're heading." A playful voice spoke up.
Garp, Coby and Helmeppo's blood chilled at that voice. "Still, taking all these people to Dressrosa after running away from the Coalition. That's pretty naught of you."
The three men turned to the source of the voice. They looked up to see a single man in a crimson red cloak staring down at them while casually sitting in front of the topsail. Garp was immediately put on guard at the sight of him.
In all his years, he had only seen two men who radiated this much power: Rocks D. Xebec and Gold Roger, the King of the Pirates.
"A pleasure to meet you, Monkey D. Garp, I've heard so much about you. My name is Itan of the Nine Dark Circles. I am designated as the 6th Circle, the Heresy." Itan introduced himself.
"Sorry for being a little presumptuous...but I'm going to have to ask you to make a quick detour for me." Itan gave Garp a chilling smile.
"Don't make me demand it."
A.N: Once again, a lot to unpack here. Uragiri's actually a Starscream and his boss is well aware of it. But hey, he's known as The Treachery so what do you expect? A Saint Warrior/Dark Circle-class fighter can curb-stomp a fighter like Naruto in a few minutes. Minato is indeed trying to find Kushina, who's being semi-held captive by a kindly priestess who has made a wager with her. And Garp, Coby and Helmeppo are trying to make their way to Dressrosa, only to be impeded by one of the last people they could've run into: Itan.
Honestly, my favorite part of writing this chapter was without a doubt Jun's abilities and her character in general. It's like Shinji said. She's got all the waifu quirks down and her ability is insanely overpowered. It's basically like Knocking Master Jirou's fighting style in Toriko, especially the Knocking ability. Which fits, considering Faux Men were so heavily inspired by the GT Robots from Toriko.
Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Honestly, I'm surprised I got this one out so quickly, compared to the others. This is what I mean when I say the order just depends on what inspires me the most at the moment. Even I don't know what I'll finish first. For crying out loud, 70% of this was done in a day. Not even kidding.
All the same, hope everyone enjoyed this. I'll see you all next time.