IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE (PLEASE READ)

Some things need to be cleared up that are important to the progression of the story so please read through the entire author's note.

Current Time: Current time is 4 years before canon. (Ch 2 edited accordingly)

Plot "Holes": Some things are not "holes." They're things that are either nonessential or things to be clarified later. Or, things that I'm leaving for you to infer. Take with a grain of salt. Some things very well may be holes lol.

Poll: Poll for "age" is still up. Will close soon. Thanks to everyone who voted. I'm actually very surprised by the results, I'm not going to lie.

Discord Server!: There is now a discord server for this story! Link is discord . gg / UPF6yUZkXf (without the spaces). Come chill and talk about the story, bug me to finish the next chapter, and have a good time.

Beta Readers: Looking for 1-2 beta readers right now. May look for more as the story progresses. Discord server required for beta reading. More information on requirements and application process will come soon on the discord.

Review Q&A: Many reviews this time had common themes so will be answering under those themes.

Kizaru Interaction: To be explained later.

Power Scaling: True that "light speed" shouldn't be slow for anyone. But my analysis was based on the Pacifistas and how Luffy dodges those beams easily when it's supposed to be just as fast and strong as Kizaru's beams. Same with Marinesford. Will keep it in mind for the future though.

Naruto's Role: Naruto is Naruto lmao.

Specific Questions:

Flensingrain: They did have a ship.

Questions for the community: Thanks for all the replies! I'll continue asking these kinds of questions so feel free to keep answering them in the reviews or on the discord server!

Why do you think Kizaru was in Edgesford?

What do you think is the significance of the trees in Ohara?

Do you think Crocodile's plans change with Naruto in action?

Speech Notations

"Normal Speech"

'Normal Thoughts'

"Deep/Demonic Speech"

'Deep/Demonic Thoughts'

Techniques

Two days later: Grand Line (4 years before canon)

Robin and Naruto sat silently in the captain's quarters as their ship, which Naruto proudly renamed the "Ramen Emperor," was carried along by the wind. Two days ago, they'd fled from Edgesford and sailed their way to Reverse Mountain where, anticlimactically, they sailed into the Grand Line without much trouble. They felt several large rumbles quake underneath them as they exited the mountain, but it paused soon after and they never discovered its cause.

For Robin, it was a relief. But now, she had another problem.

"So, that old man was one of the strongest people in the world?"

Robin rubbed her forehead with a sigh. "Yes, Naruto. Admiral Kizaru is considered one of the most powerful people in the entire world, and you decided to call him an old man to his face."

Naruto's cheerful grin never faltered, but he leaned back in his chair with a thoughtful expression. 'No wonder that light beam was so powerful. But that's supposed to be the most powerful in the world?'

He recalled the fights he had with Madara, Kaguya, and the Akatsuki—all of whom could quite literally reshape the ocean and land at will. Kizaru's light beam paled in comparison.

'Don't get full of yourself, Naruto. He could've been going easy on you.'

'I know, Kurama. Always look underneath the underneath,' Naruto sighed. 'We should start building a spy network soon. There's too much that we're in the dark about.'

Naruto sat up in his chair. "So, these Admirals are the most powerful people in the Marines, the 'good guys'. What about the pirates? Is there a ranking system for the pirates as well?"

"There's no official ranking system among the pirates," Robin explained. "Pirates are often judged by their bounties other than the Four Emperors and Seven Warlords."

"What are the Four Emperors and Seven Warlords?"

"The Four Emperors is a title that's given to the four most powerful pirate captains in the world. Right now, that title is held by Whitebeard of the Whitebeard Crew, Kaido of the Beasts Pirates, Big Mom of the Big Mom Pirates, and Red-Haired Shanks of the Red-Haired Pirates."

'Shanks!' Shukaku rumbled. 'That's the same name as the red-haired sonuvabitch that ruined my playtime!'

'Shukaku, you know who Shanks is?' Naruto asked curiously.

'I first thought he was a funny man, but then he took out his sword. That fucking sword! I don't even know what happened! I hate him! I hate him! I hurt him a lot though, kekeke!'

Matatabi laughed. 'So, you lost.'

'I didn't lose! It was a tie! A tieeeeeee—'

Naruto tuned Shukaku out with a frown. So, the Four Emperors were strong enough to handle a low-ranked tailed beast? And Kizaru was at the same level as Shanks? Somehow, that didn't seem right based on what he saw at Edgesford. "So, Robin-chan, who's the strongest pirate?"

Robin hummed. "Well, most people think Whitebeard is the strongest. At the very least, I'd say he's the most well-known."

Naruto mentally noted the name Whitebeard down. "So, those are the Four Emperors. Who are the Seven Warlords?"

"The Seven Warlords are another group of pirates, but they work for the government. The Marines grant them immunity as long as they work for them."

'So almost like mercenaries,' Kurama noted.

"The pirates who hold the Seven Warlords positions switch around sometimes, but right now, I think it's held by Kuma the Tyrant, Mihawk the Strongest Swordsman in the World, Hancock the Snake Princess, Doflamingo the Heavenly Yaksha, Gecko Moria, Crocodile, and Knight of the Sea Jinbe."

"And how strong are they compared to the Four Emperors and Admirals?"

Robin shrugged. "No one knows. There's a reason why these three powers are called the Three Great Powers. If any of them come into contact with each other, it usually causes some world-changing event, so no one really knows who the strongest is since they never fight."

"Hmm…"

"Naruto, what are you thinking?" Robin asked curiously.

Naruto grinned. "Nothing. Just thinking about how much the world has changed."

Robin frowned. Even though Naruto was smiling, there was a hidden sadness lingering behind the bright smile. He was hiding something—something that was bugging him ever since he left his island. She made a mental note to ask him about it later.

"Naruto, what was the place you came from like?"

Naruto froze, but relaxed and smiled fondly. "I was born in a village called Konoha. It was a beautiful village that was built in the middle of the forest beside the mountainside. It was one of the great hidden villages that existed in the past."

Robin could almost imagine the lush forest and rugged mountainside as Naruto described it. "That sounds like a wonderful place. What was the village like?"

"Konoha was a shinobi village, a military village as you might call it. So most of the village life surrounds the military."

"What's a shinobi?

Naruto smiled fondly as he remembered a particular pointy-haired kid asking him the same question. "To me, a shinobi is someone who protects what's dear to them. Someone who can stand against anything to protect his loved ones. That's what a friend told me in the past."

"That sounds...wonderful," Robin said hesitantly. She still wasn't sure what it meant to give her everything to "protect someone precious."

"Is the village still on that island?" Robin asked, wondering if she could visit at some point in her life.

"No, not anymore."

"What happened?"

Naruto's eyes hardened and his smile was replaced by a scowl. "War. War happened."

Robin gulped back her next question as Naruto got visibly irritated. An awkward silence filled the captain's quarters, and Robin fidgeted, not entirely sure what she should say. Fortunately, she didn't have to say anything.

"I see land!" a clone shouted from outside.

Naruto's frown quickly flipped to a grin and he eagerly ran out of the captain's quarters and peered over the bow of the ship. Surely enough, an island was slowly approaching in the distance. Faintly, he could hear the sounds of people cheering.

"Robin-chan, do you hear that?"
She frowned. "Yes, it must be quite loud to reach us all the way here."

"You think those people are cheering for us?"

"Let's hope not."

Robin wanted nothing more than to quietly pass by all the other islands until they reached Alabasta, which according to the Eternal Log Pose, was still a ways away.

But to her dismay, the Ramen Emperor soon sailed through the narrow river that divided the island down the middle. Surely enough, a crowd was gathered on both sides of the shore where hundreds of people were cheering.

"Welcome to our town! Welcome to Whiskey Peak!"

"Welcome heroes!"

Naruto waved back with a smile while Robin hid from sight with an exasperated frown on her face. "Naruto, what are you doing?"

"They're waving, so I'm waving back."

Robin facepalmed.

"Am I doing something wrong?" Naruto asked, scratching his head.

"No, you're fine."

The ship slowly came to a halt by the port and a tall man wearing a black button-up trench coat walked up to the ship. He had a long mustache, which he stroked with a cheerful smile.

"Ahem. Ahem. Heroes of the sea, welcome to our town, Whiskey Peak! I am the mayor, Ivanov, and I invite you to stay for a night and we'll throw a party to celebrate you making it to the Grand Line!"

Naruto glanced back toward Robin who seemed uncertain.

"Don't worry," Ivanov said with a grin. "All adventurers of the Grand Line come through this island and get guidance from our townspeople to help them on their journey."

The offer seemed fishy, but the man seemed genuinely hospitable. Robin paused to think for a moment, then shrugged. "I guess it couldn't hurt."

'Naruto can probably handle anything if something happens,' she thought. 'Besides, any information we can get about the Grand Line will help us in the future.'

"We'd love to stay the night," Robin replied with a warm smile.

The crowd cheered with renewed vigor, and as the gangway dropped, people gathered around them to greet them with wide smiles. Naruto smiled back, waving his hands around cheerfully.

'Naruto,' Kurama warned.

'I know. Don't worry."

'Let's just hope they don't do something stupid,' Kurama thought to himself.

"Come, we'll celebrate at one of Whisky Peak's best bars!"

Ivanov led Naruto and Robin to a large plaza that crowded the center of the town. Naruto looked up and whistled in awe when he saw tall cacti growing in the back of the island.

"I've never seen cacti that grow that large," Naruto mused.

"Yes, it's one of our town's wonders. The first residents found them here when they first settled and they've been Whisky Peak's pride and joy ever since."

"Is that so…"

Naruto saw Ivanov chuckle nervously and grinned. "Well, let's get the party started then!"

"Y-Yes! Bring out the food!"

That night, the party raged on for hours like a wildfire. Musicians played jaunty tunes in the bar while chefs continuously brought out delicious food for the entire crowd. People packed into the bar as music filled the entire island. Naruto laughed, drinking and mingling with people as the night grew old.

Meanwhile, Robin leaned against a building in a shadowed alleyway, enjoying the slight breeze that blew. From her pocket, she drew out her mother's journal and started skimming it once again. Really, she did prefer the silence of reading over the loud company of others.

'Day 11. We arrived at Alabasta. The county seems very prosperous, and we found evidence of an ancient civilization once being here. We were given an audience with the king as scholars of Ohara, but they are being light-tipped about anything regarding Poneglyphs—'

So, the royal family of Alabasta most likely knew something about the Poneglyphs. 'That means this "boss" that Mr. 5 was talking about might actually have a lead on a Poneglyph…' Robin thought eagerly.

"Why-y aren't you enjoying the party-y?"

Robin looked up from the journal and saw several men grinning at her while holding large mugs. Their speech was slurred and there was a noticeable sway in their steps as they approached.

She smiled. "I wasn't feeling up to it. What about you? Why aren't you enjoying the party?"

"We were worried 'cause you weren't there. We couldn't just enjoy the party!" one of them slurred. His face seemed genuine enough, but his right hand hovered over the sword strapped to his hips. The others followed his lead, drawing their swords from their belts.

Robin crossed her arms in front of her with a frown. "I'm flattered by your concern, but unfortunately, you seem to have a different goal. Diez Fleur: Clutch!"

Back in the Bar

"—then we heard a really loud crash in the ocean, and I thought we were going to die!" Naruto laughed while taking another swig from his mug. Loud music and chatter were still raging in the background, and Naruto could barely hear what Ivanov was saying next to him.

"That must have been Laboon, that goddamned whale banging into the Red Line."

"Laboon?" Naruto asked curiously.

"I heard the story from a pirate many many years ago. There's a whale that lives near Reverse Mountain named Laboon who used to be part of a pirate crew. The pirate crew sailed into the Grand Line, leaving the whale there at Reverse Mountain. It must be fifty years now that Laboon has been waiting there."

Ivanov took a deep swig of his mug. "At least, that's how the story goes."

Naruto hummed, "So there's a story behind that shaking."

"Indeed. So, where are you headed? Why did you enter the Grand Line?"

"My friend has something she's searching for, and we're heading to Alabasta right now," Naruto replied, taking another large gulp from his mug. "Do you know anything about Alabasta?"

Ivanov scratched his beard. "Alabasta, hm? I hear they're going through some kind of a crisis as of late even though they were once a prosperous country. I'm afraid I don't know anything that will be of any help, unfortunately."

Something felt off about the way Ivanov was talking about Alabasta, but Naruto shrugged. "Well, it's getting late, so I think I'll go ahead and crash back on my ship. Thanks for all the food, and I'll make sure to say goodbye before we leave tomorrow!"

"Of course! Be sure to say goodbye in the morning!"

Standing up, Naruto dusted off his pants before heading toward the door. But then he paused. "Ivanov, since you're the mayor, you must've lived here for a long time. Have you never wondered what could possibly make a cactus grow as tall as it does on this island?"

The air tensed and a chilly air filled the room.

"There are many mysteries in the Grand Line," Ivanov chuckled. "I suppose that's another mystery that we will have to solve in the future."

"Is that so…"

Naruto hummed softly, and the atmosphere in the bar grew tense by the second.

"Boss, we brought her!"

Ivanov flinched as if he'd been stabbed as several voices came from the back of the bar. Several men, who had large bruises on their faces, dragged a shadowed figure in behind them.

"The bitch took out nearly fifty of us before she caved in!"

They whipped around the person they held in their hands, and Ivanov jumped back from Naruto, grabbing a small stick that elongated into a pole from deep within his pockets.

"You idiots, the signal! The music is still playing—"

DOOM.

Ivanov's legs trembled as people around him fell to the ground unconscious with loud thuds. The pole he held rattled until it dropped from his hands. Slowly, his knees gave out until he was nothing more than a shivering mess on the ground as sweat poured down his temples.

"Ivanov."

Naruto growled demonically as his eyes flashed crimson.

Earlier Outside

"I'm flattered by your concern, but unfortunately, you seem to have a different goal. Diez Fleur: Clutch!"

Long arms sprouted from the men's shoulders and snapped their necks as they fell to the ground limply. Robin dusted off her hands and put her mother's journal back in her pockets. She needed to go warn Naruto.

"Get her!"

She whipped around as other voices called out from the buildings around her and broke out into a run. She wasn't entirely sure where she was going as she weaved in and out of the alleyways. But eventually, she found herself in an open area, cursing as she realized that she'd run herself in a circle right back to the town plaza.

"She's here!"

Robin swiveled around and paused as nearly a hundred men and women surrounded her from all sides, appearing from various alleyways that stretched from the plaza. Knives, swords, and guns were tightly gripped in their hands, all pointed toward her.

She grabbed her hands in front of her. "Cien Fleur: Clutch!"

A hundred limbs sprouted from people's shoulders, torsos, and legs as loud cracks erupted throughout the plaza. People slumped to the ground in waves as the limbs rendered them unconscious, or hopefully, dead.

Bang.

Robin tumbled to the ground as a loud shot erupted from the crowd and a piercing pain shot through her thighs. She grit her teeth to block out the pain and put her hands together. "Cien Fleur: Slam!"

Hundreds of hands rematerialized, but before they could fully form, people rushed toward her and she felt someone roughly grab onto her wrist and clamp something cold onto it. Immediately, all her strength drained from her body. The summoned arms disappeared in a flurry of petals.

'Seastone Cuffs?' Robin thought, panicking. She tried tugging her arms free, but the cuffs held her arms tightly behind her back.

"Fucking bitch!"

Pain exploded across her face as someone kicked her and several more blows landed on her body, making blood well up in her mouth.

"Take her back to Ivanov!"

Several people started dragging her by her arms toward the bar that Naruto was currently at.

'Naruto…'

Back to Present

"Ivanov."

Naruto slowly trudged toward Ivanov like a beast stalking its prey. The man tumbled backward, crawling as fast as he possibly could from what he could only describe as a demon.

"G-Get away from me!"

Ivanov felt warm liquid trickle down his pants, but he couldn't find it in him to be embarrassed at the moment. The crimson-eyed demon in front of him had his full attention. The aura the demon exuded was frightening. No, it was downright terrifying. If he made one wrong move, he felt as if he'd be tossed into the lowest depths of Impel Down.

"P-Please. M-Mercy…"

Robin's breathing quickened as her entire body trembled. The stinging pain that she felt from the kicks and beatings numbed, overwhelmed by the pressure that Naruto pressed down on her.

"N-Naruto, this— this is just part of the entertainment—" Ivanov stuttered.

"Entertainment?"

"R-Right! Surely you know this is Nico Robin, the d-devil child?"

Naruto silently stalked forward.

"I-I promise that we weren't going to harm your bounty! It was just— just a little fun—"

The pressure increased twofold, dragging Ivanov and Robin down to the ground. The rest of the people in the bar slumped onto the ground unconscious.

"Fun? You think this is funny?"

Ivanov whimpered, and suddenly, the bar's door slammed open. Several people holding weapons crowded the doorframe, all equally terrified as Ivanov was. Their legs visibly trembled and they barely stood by holding onto the doorframe, but at the very least, they were still conscious.

"B-B-Boss!"

Naruto clicked his tongue and grabbed Ivanov by the collar of his trench coat. He angrily chucked the man at the door, and the men collided, scattering like bowling pins.

Naruto slowly walked outside, savoring every single moment. The sight that greeted him made him grin. Terrified people huddled around Ivanov who was nursing a nasty wound on his arms, and surrounding them in a protective formation were hundreds of men and women who were struggling to hold onto their guns and swords.

"K-Kill him!" Ivanov shouted.

Hundreds of deafening gunshots and shouts rang through the plaza as shards of metal flew toward Naruto.

"Doton: Doryuuheki."

The ground in front of Naruto rumbled as a large wall erupted forth, stopping the gunfire and weapons thrown toward him in their tracks. The dirt wall then crumbled, leaving the hundreds of men and women dazed.

"Ivanov," Naruto repeated. "I gave you a chance. I ignored the thousands of graves that you call the 'pride of Whisky Peak' and gave you a chance to repent. This is how you repay me?"

Ivanov shuddered and slowly dropped onto his knees. "I-I'm sorry! I won't do it again!"

Naruto paused, then started laughing darkly. "Ivanov, you hurt someone very close to me. Do you know what that means?"

Ivanov nervously shook his head.

Naruto grinned, bearing two sharp canines.

"Don't blink."

Naruto disappeared in a flash of yellow and appeared in the middle of the crowd. Metal met flesh and corpses dropped in the plaza in sprays of blood and gore.

Naruto grinned and disappeared again.

Robin thought she'd seen everything. When the Greybeard pirates attacked, she saw a glimpse of Naruto's power. She'd remember it as the time she'd felt the safest in her life. But now, this memory would be etched in her mind as the time she felt the most afraid—and the most helpless. This was who Naruto the shinobi was. No. Naruto the demon.

Yellow flashes blitzed throughout the entire plaza, and a wake of red blood always followed after.

"Where is he?! Where?!"
For minutes, all she could hear were the sounds of tearing flesh, cries of agony, and bodies dropping to the ground. She struggled to try and cover her ears. She didn't want to hear this anymore.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

More bodies dropped to the ground, ten people at a time. A blue orb held in Naruto's hands tore through the crowd of hundreds as if he was mowing through blades of grass.

Her throat felt dry and bile rose up in her throat. She heaved on the ground as Naruto plunged his hands through the body of a man who had his eyes wide open in agony. Then, as if time paused, the remaining people who had still been standing slowly dropped to the ground in a splatter of blood and gore.

Naruto stood in the middle of that bloodbath.

His orange jumpsuit was stained in red as blood dripped off his long fingers. His mouth was bared, showing a set of razor-sharp canines that glistened in the moonlight. Then, there were his eyes. His crimson eyes glowed in the dark as his slitted pupils shifted and dilated, choking her with fear.

She knew. She always had known. She'd known that Naruto was hiding something ever since she met him on that island. But somewhere down the line, she'd forgotten. His cheerful attitude and caring personality made her forget one crucial thing:

There must have been a reason why nine ancient demons deferred to Naruto.

Now, she got a glimpse of why.

He was a ruthless killer. He was a ruthless demon.

Naruto breathed heavily as he tried to get his adrenaline back in control. He flexed his fingers and grinned. 'It seems I'm recovering from being sealed fairly well. The rust is coming off my body.'

'—ruto! Naruto!' Kurama growled.

'What?'

'You're finally listening! What the hell are you doing?!'

Naruto tilted his head curiously. 'What do you mean?'

'Look around you!'

He looked around the plaza and saw the corpses that littered the ground and cringed. 'I admit, I could have controlled myself much better.'

'You what?'

Naruto felt a sudden pull coming from his core and he found himself back in his mindscape where he was met with a curious sight. Kurama was staring down at him with narrowed eyes while in the back, Kokuo and Isobu were trying to keep a thrashing Matatabi back.

"What's going on?" Naruto asked.

"What's going—" Kurama growled, but stopped in shock. His eyes widened as he noticed one key detail. "You. You're not Naruto. Who are you?"

The Naruto standing in front of him looked like Naruto down to every detail. The blond hair, ugly orange jacket, and built physique was Naruto Uzumaki. Except for one difference: his red eyes and black sclera.

"Naruto" grinned. "Feel free to call me Yami. I'm back."

"Why are you back?" Kurama growled. "Rather, how are you back? Naruto should've gotten rid of you at the Falls of Truth."

"Tch, I'm not fucking here by choice," Yami spat spitefully. "This fucker back here—"

Yami pointed behind him as the room further behind him lit up, and the nine tailed-beasts reeled back. There, chained onto the wall, was another identical Naruto that was dangling from the metal wall by thick chains. His head limply rolled around and he seemed unconscious.

"I'm forced to be here because this dipshit fucked up while being inside the seal."

"Explain, now," Kurama growled.

Yami sighed and sat down. He brought his hands together to form a small sphere. "This is the seal that the dipshit was in, and as he fucking said before, when he woke up every hundred or so years, he used that time to take in the world's energy. You follow me so far?"

The nine beasts nodded.

"Then every time this dipshit does that, natural energy inevitably seeps in through the seal. But since he can't consciously channel that energy outwards while sealed, it cycles through the seal instead of leaving—"

"—meaning that Naruto was trapped inside a seal that was teeming with the world's malice for thousands of years," Kurama finished with a furious growl. "But why couldn't he just channel the energy outwards?"

"It's because of the way that the Thousand Years of Solitude is engineered," Yami sighed. "I'll be the first to admit that your senile old man Hagoromo is a fucking genius. The complexity of that seal is off the charts."

"Explain what you mean," Kurama growled impatiently.

"That seal can be simplified as an overcomplicated storage seal," Yami explained. "The only fucking difference is, your old fart figured out a way to store the contents of a seal in a dynamic stasis. Meaning, the object can remain in 'stasis' while functioning normally."

"But that's—"

"Right, it's basically faux immortality. But that's not the important part. The important part is that things can enter the seal freely, but not exit without the specific release condition which is the Unsealing Jutsu the old man gave you. That's why once the natural energy goes in, it can't come back out freely."

Kurama slammed his tails against the ground in frustration. "Naruto said that he was fine while being in the seal!"

"That dipshit wouldn't tell you about that even if his life depended on it. But let's talk about the reason I'm back—" Yami paused. "Fuck, I'm running out of time."

"Your hand…" Kokuo whispered.

Yami's arms were slowly turning translucent as the chains of the Naruto on the wall also started fading.

"He's coming to," Yami growled. He turned to Kurama. "Kyuubi, things are changing and changing fast. Something out there in the world is forcing me back to the surface, and I'm nearly certain that it has to do with those devil fruits. Make sure to tell the dipshit to start looking into those when he comes back."

Yami's body turned entirely translucent as small particles started drifting away from his body.

"Also," Yami growled. "Tell him to stop acting like such a fucking idiot. I'll break his bones the next time I come out if he doesn't stop."

With those irritated last words, Yami faded away entirely, and the Naruto on the wall dropped into the water with a small splash. Kurama shrunk down to his smaller fox form and flipped Naruto around. His expression seemed peaceful, almost making him feel stupid for how worried he had been when Naruto started going berserk.

'What are we going to do with you…'

Naruto woke with a jolt and grimaced as he felt a warm liquid trailing down his arms.

'Welcome back.'

Naruto flinched. 'Kurama, I—'

'We'll talk later. You have more important things to take care of right now.'

'...right.'

Naruto looked toward the bar, and Robin was slumped against the wall with a vacant expression on her face. Her body slightly trembled every so often. He walked through the doorway and his heart clenched as she flinched away from him.

"Robin-chan, are you okay?"

She silently nodded, turning away from him.

"I'll get those cuffs off."

Naruto grabbed the metal cuffs in his hands and channeled wind chakra, easily cutting through the thick metal. The cuffs clunked to the ground and Robin stood up, rubbing her hands together.

"Let's take care of your bruises, Robin-chan. I can—"

"No, it's okay," Robin cut off curtly. "It's only a small bruise. You don't have to worry about it.

Naruto felt like he'd been slapped. "A-Alright. Then, I'll wait for you on the ship."

Naruto hung his head as he trudged out of the bar. He gazed up toward the night sky and sighed. "I really messed up, didn't I, Kurama?"

With a poof, Kurama and Matatabi materialized beside him. Kurama looked as annoyed as a fox could look while Matatabi had a clearly perturbed frown on her face. "Yes, you did, and you have a lot of things you need to explain to us."

"Right…"

Naruto marched up the gangway and summoned ten clones who nodded and began preparations to sail. With a heave, he jumped up to the crow's nest and laid down. He started counting the stars in the sky, sighing every time that he lost track.

Soon, he drifted asleep.

With Robin

Robin winced as she dabbed at the large bruise that was swelling on her cheeks. It stung like fire burning on her skin, and she clenched her teeth to keep from screaming.

The bar around her was in shambles: walls were cracked, drinks were spilled all over the floor, and unconscious people laid limply. She shivered. She wanted to get away from this place.

Robin limped out of the bar and grimaced as she was once again met with the sight of hundreds of corpses lying in the plaza. It didn't horrify her as much as it did before—whether that was a good thing or not she wasn't sure.

She limped through one of the alleyways, and the harbor came into view. The Ramen Emperor caught her eye and Robin winced. She could see several blond-haired clones running around the deck getting the ship ready to sail.

Robin hesitated near the harbor, wondering if she even wanted to go back onto the ship. 'What if he starts attacking me?'

But as she realized that she really didn't have any other choice, she timidly went up the gangway, trying her hardest not to make eye contact with any of the clones. She wasn't sure if the real one was among them. Fortunately, they were all busy with something and didn't pay any attention to her as she darted into the Captain's Quarters.

She cursed when she didn't find any lock mechanism on the door. Quietly, she sat on the bed and again thumbed through her mother's journal to try and calm herself down.

'Day 24. We've arrived at an island in the sky named Skypiea. An old man who called himself 'God' spoke of Vearth and spoke of an unknown ancient energy called chakra. Unknown if this energy is related to haki and the ancient Poneglyphs that refer to the Void Century.'

Robin paused. What was haki?

She continued thumbing through her mother's entry regarding her time in Skypiea, but the journal never explained what haki was. Soon, hours passed, and Robin was getting frustrated as her search led to no results.

Several soft knocks tapped at her door.

"Robin-chan, are you there?"

It was Matatabi's voice. Robin shivered. She wasn't ready to talk with any of them yet. It was far too soon.

"He's not here with us."

That was Kurama's voice.

She cradled her head in her arms, curling into a ball on her bed. 'Why are they here? I don't want to talk to them right now…'

"Robin-chan?" Matatabi called again.

Robin paused and bit her quivering lips. "You— you can come in."

The door creaked open and Kurama and Matatabi walked in with serious yet worried expressions on their faces. They sat on a couch that was next to her bed silently. Robin nervously sweated as the two sat there without saying a single thing.

"Did you know that Naruto was kicked out of hundreds of stores before he even turned five?"

Robin froze. What?

"Before that child could even start talking properly, he was already being kicked out of stores and buildings without ever being told why."

"Why would people do that?" Robin asked.

"...because they thought he was a demon."

Robin froze. Her heart clenched in guilt as she recalled thinking the exact same thing hours ago. "But he… he's so nice. M-Most of the time..."

"But not everyone saw Naruto's kindness. Even as he tried hard to be cheerful and helpful, please always found a way to ignore that."

Kurama sighed. "That's why Naruto is such a secretive person. He has an uncanny ability to love and befriend others, but he's always afraid that he'll lose people and fears that he'll never be good enough."

"Right…" Robin whispered. That explained the choking feeling she always felt when she wanted to ask Naruto about his past. Every time she tried prying deeper into his past, he'd close up. Maybe that's why it hurt so much—because now, she'd accidentally stumbled upon Naruto's secret that he couldn't tell her willingly.

"Why did Naruto kill all those people at Whiskey Peak? He didn't seem like that kind of a person before," Robin asked.

"That… I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"He hasn't told us...not yet," Kurama sighed with a frown. "That's another one of his fatal flaws. He refuses to tell his precious people about his struggles and tries to shoulder the world by himself. He focuses so much on making other people smile that he forgets about himself. In fact, let me show you something."

Kurama held out his paw expectantly and Robin tilted her head.

"Touch my paw," Kurama ordered.

Robin hesitantly held out her hand, and as soon as their hands touched, Robin felt a pulling sensation deep in her stomach and she felt herself floating in the air.

"What—" Robin started, but the words died in her mouth.

A lone swing swung back and forth, hanging from a tree in a park. A small boy with blond hair, wide green goggles, and a bright orange jacket sat on the swing with a frown. His eyes were brimming with tears. Adults around him spoke hurriedly in hushed whispers.

"Look, it's the demon brat."

"Shh, we're not supposed to talk about that in public!"

Robin gritted her teeth in anger as the adults ushered their kids away as if the boy on the swings was the plague. It was just like the adults would do back in Ohara when she used her powers.

Tears leaked out of the boy's eyes. "Why do they keep avoiding me? Do they hate me? Did I do something wrong?"

Robin's heart ached as tears welled in her eyes.

The boy wiped the tears off his face.

"No, the future Hokage doesn't cry, dattebayo!" the boy shouted with a smile. "I'll show them they're wrong. I'll become Hokage!"

The scene shifted around her. The small park faded away as she floated on top of a long bridge hanging over a chasm. She saw the same blond-haired kid, who she now could see was a teenage version of Naruto, standing beside a pink-haired girl and a man with a weird face mask.

"Give Sasuke back!" Naruto shouted.

Red bubbles started appearing around his body as his eyes turned a crimson red. Shockwaves exploded out around the bridge as a heavy pressure pressed down on everyone near him.

Robin reeled back as she felt the familiar pressure and saw his eyes turn red. The scene then immediately shifted, and she found herself above a large chasm. Naruto stood next to the same pink-haired girl that she saw before and a man with gravity-defying grey hair.

"Naruto," a deep voice called.

Robin then noticed a different black-haired boy with a purple robe standing on the edge of the chasm.

"Sasuke," Naruto called. But the black-haired boy, Sasuke, didn't respond. Then suddenly, Sasuke disappeared from the edge of the chasm and appeared in front of Naruto with a blade poised against his stomach.

"Wait, don't—" Robin cried, eyes wide.

Splurt.

Blood spewed down Naruto's stomach.

The chasm faded away and she found herself in a park. The sky was dark as clouds ominously loomed in the air.

Naruto sat on a bench, tears freely streaming down his face. He held an orange popsicle stick that was melting.

"Naruto, I heard about Jiraiya-sama's death."

A black spiky-haired man sat next to Naruto.

Naruto paused. "I wanted him to keep watching over me."

Naruto's body was wracked with shudders and tears welled in Robin's eyes.

"I wanted him to watch me become Hokage…"

The park then faced away and Robin found herself back in her room with Kurama and Matatabi staring at her.

"That was…"

"That was just a small part of Naruto's life. It's incomparable to everything he's seen and faced, but in my opinion, he's more similar to you than different. I hope you'll come to understand."

Robin dumbly nodded. Kurama didn't need to explain what he meant. Naruto was the same as her: an outcast in society. He was also a "demon" for reasons that others didn't understand. Tears flowed down Robin's eyes. Now, she was also no different from everyone that once called Naruto a demon.

"How is Naruto the way he is? How can he be so cheerful all the time?" Robin sobbed.

"That's just the way he is, and that's the reason that we nine respect him. He has a way of just sticking to you after all," Kurama said with a toothy grin.

Robin bit her lips and nodded, but was still unsure.

Kurama sighed. "I don't expect you to forget about everything. The world has seen nothing like our demonic chakra for thousands of years, and I'd be surprised if you could just ignore that foul chakra. But you can trust me on one thing."

Kurama let out a wide grin, showing off his sharp teeth. "As long as you're Naruto's friend, he won't ever hurt you. And if you're ever in trouble, he'd fight the entire world to help you. He's already done it once, after all."

Tears flowed down Robin's face and she nodded. "I— I don't think it'll be easy."

"It never is," Matatabi said with a soft smile. Matatabi's affection for Robin increased every time she learned more about her. She reminded her of her old container, Yugito.

Kurama stood up. "Nico Robin. I'll tell you this again. At the shrine, I told you that your decision would not just change your life, but the fate of the world."

"That is what I tell you as the shrine's guardian," Kurama said, jumping off the chair. "But as Naruto's friend, I hope that you'll at least give him a chance. At long last, he's found someone that he can once again call 'friend' and that's something he cherishes very much, whether he says it or not."

With those last words, Kurama and Matatabi disappeared with a poof.

Robin draped a blanket over her head and curled up into a tight ball. The splatters of blood and body parts flying through the air in the plaza of Whisky Peak flashed through her mind, but the scene was replaced by the lonely breeze of Naruto swinging in the park as a child.

Tears welled in her eyes, and that night, Robin cried herself to sleep.

With Naruto

Kurama and Matatabi entered Naruto's mindscape and saw Naruto and the others already waiting for them. The air was solemn, though not tense.

"Kurama, Matatabi, where were you?" Naruto asked, already fully knowing where they had been.

"She's not doing well," Matatabi growled. "You need to talk to her."

Naruto sighed sadly and nodded. "Thank you for talking to her. I'll take care of the rest on my own. But for now, let's talk. I'm sure there are some things you want to know."

The nine beasts stood in a large semi-circle around Naruto, patiently waiting.

"Where should I start—"

"You can start with Yami," Kurama impatiently cut.

Naruto raised his eyebrows. "Yami? How do you know about Yami?"

"He talked to us when you were out of control," Kokuo softly said. "He told you to investigate the devil fruits when you got the chance."

"Huh, so that smartass actually talked to you. What a surprise. It took me years to crack him out of his shell."

"At the Falls of Truth, you got rid of him, didn't you?" Kurama asked.

"Darkness never disappears. You can ignore it, hope that it doesn't overtake you, but it's not something that disappears. I'm sure Yami was wandering around somewhere in my mind until he was brought out again."

"And that's because of the devil fruits?"

"It's possible, but not confirmed. I've looked into this matter ever since I met Yami again inside the seal. Though, of course, being inside the seal made any real 'investigation' difficult."

"Here's what I did find," Naruto continued, sighing. "The energy that I sense is very similar to chakra. Yet, it's very different at the same time. I can only assume that the two energies are related somehow, but that's something I don't know."

"Then we're working off of nothing then!"

Naruto awkwardly chuckled and scratched his head. "While I was inside the seal, I was confident that I could control that energy, but clearly, this "incident" showed that I can't do that."

"Well," Kurama said, exasperated. "Then what do we need to do to help you control this energy? We can't let you lose control without knowing what's causing it. You'd be a walking time bomb."

"We'll head deeper into the Grand Line," Naruto said resolutely. "From what Robin-chan said, the Grand Line is where all the world's mysteries are. If we can find someone that knows about the origins of Devil Fruits, we can start investigating them. Besides, if the Grand Line is where all the Devil Fruit users and the world's strongest are, then it'll be even better for our investigation."

The nine beasts nodded, hearing Naruto's plan. Then, Naruto sighed loudly.

"What's wrong?" Kokuo asked.

"If we go deeper into the Grand Line, we'll meet many strong people, maybe even stronger than us. We can't afford to worry about anything else than our goal."

"It should be okay, right?" Matatabi questioned. "You can probably handle most things that come at us."

"I'm not talking about us."

Matatabi paused, and her eyes widened when she realized what Naruto was implying. "But—"

"This is non-negotiable, Matatabi. Robin is far too weak to follow us on our journey. This incident proved that."

Naruto smiled sadly with his arms crossed. "We'll take Robin to Alabasta…and our journey together will end there."

Marineford

Several loud knocks banged against a door, and a frantic voice called, "A-A-Admiral Aokiji! They— they found her!"

Aokiji, who was previously sleeping on a couch, yawned and lifted his eye cover. "Hah? What's all the fuss about?"

"We've received news that Nico Robin passed through Whiskey Peak and is currently heading toward Alabasta!"

Aokiji's eyes hardened and his drowsiness disappeared in an instant.

"You."

The recruit saluted. "Y-Yes?"

"Tell Fleet Admiral Sengoku that I'm taking a personal leave."

A/N: This one took a long time. Ideas kept floating in and out of my head on how this story was going to pan out so trying to write out this turning point took a lot of editing and fixing. This chapter is probably 20% of the original idea I had and 80% a new idea lmao. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and if you want to talk more about the story or just ask questions in general, please join the discord which is linked at the top of this chapter and in my profile.

- Extrella