"Hi there" Normal Speech

"Hi There" Thought

"Hi There" Biju and techniques

"Hi There" Biju thoughts and techniques in head

Flashbacks

"Hi There" Normal speech

"Hi There" Thought

"Hi There" Biju and Techniques

"Hi There," Bijuu thought and techniques in head


Chapter 19: The Wheel of Fate Turns

A fist slammed into the wall of a ship in the middle of the ocean making the wood creak and shake. A thick killer intent hung in the air as a giant figure looked upon the form of a battered woman lying upon a bed. The woman has hooked up a breathing apparatus with machines whose names that the figure couldn't even pronounce all to keep her alive. The woman was none other than the First Mate of the now deceased Captain Egburt Thorton known better as Blacktooth. The woman lay on the bed struggling to breathe, feeling her lifeforce slowly beginning to fade.

The figure beside her was a man who towered over eight feet in height with a large body that possessed overwhelming muscle that could flex steel in half. His arms were wide the size of tree trunks while his legs were quite disproportionate to his arms and were significantly thinner. The man was like a gorilla concerning his physical stature. He had rock hard abs that could break jade over them. He dressed in black khaki pants with a black coat over his shoulders, on his back was a great sword over three meters in length. His look was finished with black shoulder length frizzy hair and beady black eyes.

"Mother I swear I will find and get revenge on those who hurt you and killed father. I vow this for my name is Egburt Maltos Belzebob Thorton Junior!" The man vowed as he stood tall placing a hand on his bare chest. The man was none other than the twenty-year-old son of Captain Egburt 'Blacktooth' Thorton and his first mate Estella Belzebob. The man then knelt down beside his dying mother and clasped his giant hands around hers.

"Don't worry mother, I will take over for father as I am his son. The Blacktooth pirates will rise on under my command." Unlike his father, Junior had a full set of pristine white teeth.

The dying woman looked at her son taking in a deep breath, before moving her hand from his grip to gently stroke his face.

"Avenge…. your…. Father. They must….pay" The woman gasped between each word struggling to breathe let alone speak. The woman's hand dropped as it grew cold, her eyes began to close as she died. Estella parted from this world and moved on to the afterlife.

Junior gripped his heart as a hole opened up and pain coursed through. He roared to the heavens throwing his arms out to the side. The entire ship shook as ripples washed out over the oceans. Tears spilt down the pirates face like waterfalls as he fell upon his mother's corpse crying into her body. He remained for who knows how long simple allowing the grief to overcome him. People thought pirates didn't have emotions, but that wasn't necessarily true. When it came to their loved ones even pirates could cry and to Junior, both mother and father had been his most precious people, now that he had lost them a hole had opened up in his heart. The pirate clenched his fists and stood up wiping his tears as he put on a brave face. He could mourn later he had to take command of the ship.

The pirate gave his mother's body one last look before exiting. Junior made his way through the halls of a giant ship up to the quarterdeck. Junior climbed the stairs as he did the pirates aboard cleared a path as the man was leaking with killer intent. The man walked up to the wheel where a man of titanic proportions stood. This man towered at twelve feet in height with a build that put Egburt Junior to shame. The man was five times the size of Junior and could bend him like a toothpick. The man wore only a pair of black shorts exposing his trunk sized limbs, bare and hairy chest to the world. The man was holding onto the wheel with a firm grip as he guided the ship.

"Greetings Captain." the man raised his right hand to salute the son of his previous captain. The man's voice was incredibly deep and baritone filled with a thick masculinity.

"At ease Aldrich. I have come with terrible news. Mother has passed away." A look of grief flashed across Aldrich's eyes, genuine sorrow. A lone tear fell from his massive round green eyes that were the size of soccer balls. The man lifted a giant digit to wipe the tear away; no others were shed.

"It is a sad day sir. In remembrance of your father on my honour on this day I shall serve you faithfully. Any who dare to revolt shall be squashed beneath my fists." The man smashed his fists together letting go of the wheel momentarily. As his fists slammed together, a strange energy began to generate between them before it dispersed. Aldrich grabbed the wheel as it had begun to spin to the left. He spun the wheel back to the right returning to course.

"My parents would not wish for us to grieve them for long. The business proceeds even them. Where is Garroway I want an immediate report? If I am to take my father's place I must be brought up to speed immediately," As Junior finished speaking footsteps could be heard slowly approaching the two. A short hunched over being could be seen walking up the stairs on the left side. The figure was covered from head to toe in a thick black hooded robe that revealed nothing about the person's gender. The hooded figure looked up their face covered by a white mask that expressed only an unnerving smile as a pair of blood red orbs pierced through the eye holes of the mask. The only thing that could be seen of the person was their right hand which poked out of the sleeve. The hand, however, was bone thin, the flesh didn't stick to it there was no flesh nor muscle tissue just bone. The skeletal hand slipped back into the sleeve as the mysterious being approached.

A raspy voice escaped from behind the mask that sent shivers down Junior's spine, "Greetings Captain. I am here at your behest." The robed figure bowed to Junior, but the son of Blacktooth felt like behind that mask was a mocking smile.

"Garroway, get to the point. When will the latest product arrive? You know HE doesn't like to wait." Junior pressed the 'he' as he referred to the crews backer, a pirate who could level them with a wave of a hand. Not even Junior's father dared to cross the man should he suffer his wrath. Garroway, however, appeared unaffected at the mention of the crews backer like he didn't care.

"The latest shipment will arrive within the week, however, there were issues with two of our collection teams. It seemed that they ran into trouble."

"What kind of trouble." This was the last thing Junior needed, his parents were dead and now there were complications with the retrieval teams. What else could go wrong?

"From the report over the den den mushi they encountered resistance. A team of children and their apparent teacher. While I would laugh at such foolishness, these children were not to be underestimated as without the aid of their teacher they not only stopped the shipment from leaving but also killed off a number of our crew. The team sent to Yoni Islands lost eighty percent of its personnel. While all those sent to Nora Village were wiped out with the exception of one" The cloaked figure reported in a monotone voice, he wasn't particularly concerned with the death of his fellow crew members nor the loss of shipment. The man Garroway was indifferent to the world and its problems all he cared about was himself.

Junior gritted his teeth as anger bubbled inside him, it wasn't bad enough that they had lost not only his parents but hadn't been able to obtain Parvati due to the interference of some children, but now two more shipments were gone and a number of his crew was dead.

"Funny enough each group of children consisted of three, six in total and each wore a strange metal plate with a symbol engraved on it, a swirl." Junior's head snapped towards Garroway in an instant as his beady black eyes bore holes into the man's form.

"A swirl you said!"

"That is correct. Does this mean anything to you?" The robed figure tilted its head to the right appearing confused at the question.

"Mother when she regaled what had happened on that beach, she said the three kids that attacked them each wore some cloth with a metal plate and on it a swirl. Mum said the one who fought father wore it on the back of his gloves, whereas the two she fought the girl wore it like a belt and the boy a bandana." Junior gripped his chin as he adopted a thinking pose, mulling his thoughts over in his head.

"I have heard similar reports from my network. Teams of four, three children and one adult all wearing this symbol have been popping up in locations all over the world. I have been keeping tabs, as they peaked my curiosity. Apparently, they belong to a place called Uzushiogakure no Sato located on Uzu no Kuni, better known as the Forbidden Island." Garroway dug into his left sleeve and removed a rolled up parchment. He held it in his skeleton hand and offered it to Junior.

Junior snatched up the parchment and unrolled it, inside was a detailed report on everything Garroway had gathered about Uzushiogakure no Sato and its people. What he read only surveyed to further aggravated him. A large number of the island's population were slaves that Uzu had rescued, integrating them into society freeing them from their bonds. Junior clenched his fists, scrunching up the parchment, add insult to injury on the front gates of Uzushiogakure no Sato was the frayed and bloody flags of pirates, not just any pirates but slave traders. The flags were a warning to any pirate who dared to deal in slavery, Uzu would come for you. Visitors had often asked about the flags, to which the citizens of Uzushio were more than happy to hold their heads high while explaining the symbolism. Because of this, the symbolism began to spread. What made it worse for Junior was there just so happened to be over a dozen flags flying his father's jolly roger. Junior was able to quickly piece together that the ships belonging to his father's fleet that had gone missing only to turn up with cargo missing, flag gone and every crew member dead had been thanks to Uzushiogakure.

Junior stomped a foot on the deck in frustration making the giant ship sway back and forth. "We need to invade Uzu no Kuni and destroy Uzushiogakure no Sato!" Roared Junior, he turned on his heels and pointed at Aldrich, "Set a course for Uzu I will not stand here as they tear my fathers business apart!"

"That would be most unwise my young Captain." Garroway's eerie voice rung in Junior's ears. The robed figure disagreed with the thought of invading Uzushio, knowing full well they wouldn't stand a chance. "Uzu is protected by a series of whirlpools all around the island, with only one entry point with calm waters, but even then the waters are guarded by a giant sea king taller than any mountain. It has never shown itself but many believe it to be a Kraken as tentacles rise up from the waters dragging enemy ships down into the depths of hell."

What little Garroway knew, as the beast he was referring to was Gyuki the Eight-Tailed the Ushi-Oni an Ox with a lower body resembling the cephalopod arms of an octopus.

"Damn it!" Junior slammed a fist down on the edge of the ship cracking the wood on impact. "Fine. If we can't deal with them now, begin recruiting. I want an army, but not just any army one of Devil Fruit users. Scour every part of the world if you have to. I don't care what it costs, recruit as many devil fruit users as possible and find as many devil fruits as you can! We will see how they deal with an army of devil fruit users!"

Garroway bowed to his young captain and shuffled away disappearing out of sight as he headed down below deck to begin sending out his Captain's orders. The moment the man was gone Junior sighed and relaxed as he fell down into a nearby chair, he was exhausted. A giant hand placed itself on his left shoulder. Looking up Junior found Aldrich looking down at him with a grin.

"Don't worry we'll smash them to pieces soon." Junior nodded his head thanking the giant a man. Silence reigned over the two as Aldrich continued on course their destination known only to them.


Mariejois

A fire spread from house to house as people screamed. Alarms sounded as Marine's scrambled to put out the flames. Slave's tried to escape only to be caught or shot if they resisted. As the flames rose and smoke wafted into the air a young and dangerously thin girl thirteen to fourteen years was dragging herself along the stone pavement. Her lower half was that of a cyan blue and white striped fishtail. The girl was a mermaid of the beak-fish variety. Her skinned was scarred with the only thing hiding her modesty a worn out see-through white dress, the girl once had beautiful white hair, but it was full of grime and dishevelled. Blood seeped through the back of the dress as it had been torn to shreds like a giant cat had used it as a scratching post. The source of the blood was a series of freshly made flesh wounds by a whip. The mermaid's tail was in a pitiful state as it looked like it had gone through a blender. Scales had been torn off said tail was bleeding profusely. The ends looked like something had taken a bite out of it.

The mermaid dragged her weakened and beaten body towards the Mariejois cliff. There was only one thought on her mind, to leave this hellish place behind. She wanted her freedom. As she dragged herself a unit of marines gave chase.

With the marines was an obese man in his twenties, blood trickling down the back of his neck as his helmet was broken, "There it is! Stop it! I want my property back!" roared the pain as he pointed a fat digit towards the girl. She was only a toy, a plaything in his eyes to keep himself amused. The young girl wanted to stop and glare daggers but didn't dare, for it would only slow her down. She pushed on dragging her battered body, using determination alone to keep herself going. She had gone through so much planning just to attempt today's escape. The mermaid had torn off one of her own scales and filed it down and used it to pick the bindings that held her. When her 'master' came for their daily 'sessions' her managed to knocked trip him up with her tail. She then grabbed the nearest object, a lamp, and broke it over his head breaking her master's helmet and knocking him out. The mermaid had then proceeded to drag her body to the stables, where using a lighter she managed to pickpocket from one of her guard's, set the place on fire.

Letting the fire spread to draw attention away from her the young mermaid made her escape dragging herself to the edge of Mariejois. Her intentions were to jump off and plummet to the sea. There was a chance to impale herself on the rocks below and die, but she would take it. She would rather die free than be a slave any longer.

A marine jumped at her landing on her tail. Blood coated the sailor as he gripped the tail tightly. The girl reached out with a hand to whatever she could grab. Her fingers coiled around a sharp piece of smouldering wood as a house burnt down beside her. On instinct, she brought the stake down and impaled the marine in his right eye. The marine released and screamed as he rolled on the ground. The mermaid continued, dragging herself faster all the way to the edge.

"Stop!" shouted a Marine as he aimed his rifle at her, finger on the trigger The obese noble pushed the marine aside, as he did the marine fired. The bullet hit the girl in her right shoulder. The mermaid bit back the pain and with the last of her strength through herself over the edge of the cliff. Her body would all down towards the sea missing the rocks below by an inch. Her body hit the water with a loud thud. Too weak to move she began to sink. Her body fell into a current that swept her away from Mariejois and the red line.

"No! No! No! NO! You idiots!" screamed Charlos as he threw a temper tantrum over the fact he had lost one of his favourite toys. The World Noble turned to the marines and pointed at them. "I'll make you pay for losing my property!" The obese man-child than stomped way to find his father.

The marines each shared an unnerving look. They had tried their best but the mermaid had been determined to escape even at the cost of her life, what more could they have done. Now they could only sigh and wait for their punishment. Who could afford to go against a Tenryuubito?

As the Marines accepted their fate, the young mermaid who hadn't accepted her's was travelling along an unknown current. When one current ended, she would find herself on another that dragged her towards the next, an endless stream of them. It was as if fate was leading her somewhere; she had a gut feeling that whatever was at the end would change her forever. As the current came to an end the young woman was shot to the ocean's surface; she didn't know how many days had passed. As she lay there floating along the water heading towards an island surrounded by whirlpools a giant shadow loomed beneath her.

The young mermaid was too weak to care as she began to rise into the air on a tidal wave as something was coming up out of the water. The water rose up to the height of a mountain before it crashed down, the mermaid's body with it. She was swept away pulled under the water, her tired eyes catching the sight of a giant shell coated in spikes. She closed her eyes waiting for death only to find her battered body being lifted up out of the water. Opening her bright yellow eyes, the mermaid was astounded by the creature before her. In front of the mermaid in the water as big as a mountain was a giant turtle with crab-like spikes all over its shell. Sprouting from its back were three shrimp-like like tails. The mermaid was held in one of its giant hand, the right. A single red eye with a crimson pupil looked at her tiny form with pity.

Isobu couldn't help but pity the tiny creature in his hand; it seemed she had gone through a torturous experience. The three tails lifted her up and opened his mouth wide. The mermaid closed her eyes expecting death only to be placed gently on his tongue. Water flooded in but she remained floating within Isobu's giant mouth, he had no intention to swallow her. With the mermaid secured within his mouth, he dived and headed towards his home in an underwater cave deep beneath Uzushiogakure no Sato, out of sight from Lower Uzushio.

Isobu planned to allow the young mermaid to rest and recover her strength. Isobu didn't know what had happened to her, but it must have been unpleasant consider her back was scarred from what looks like a whip and her tail looked like it had been through a blender. To, a mermaid their tail was something most precious to them. Isobu would do what he could for her. Once she was rested, the three tails planned to contact Naruto to have the Sage heal the young mermaid of her horrifying injuries. With those thoughts, Isobu vanished as he dived deep beneath the ocean disappearing.