And we're back! A bit sooner than expected but figured that with some extra free time this week I'd try and pump the chapter out.

Anyways lets just get to it!

"Delicious!" Yamato cried out as she ate some dango the people of Amigasa village gave her. Her eyes were wide as the sweet flavor coated her mouth. Living on Onigashima, she was used to having several delicacies, yet it was different from what Kaido provided for those on the island. She couldn't describe it, but it just tasted different from others. Maybe it was the way it was made by the people of the village.

Naruto chuckled as the white-blue haired woman went through the various foods that the village had prepared to thank them for saving the children Kaido's men had kidnapped. "Slow down Yamato, you're not even tasting the food," he mentioned as he ate a piece of giant shrimp from the table.

"But it's so good!" She wined, stuffing a meat bun into their mouth.

"You guy's sure it's okay that we eat this?" Ace asked, figuring that the village would have probably benefited from all the food they were now eating. Eventually, the food he had on board the ship would run out and they might start suffering again. He didn't want to leave them only for them to die.

"Don't worry about it," Hitetsu said waving off Ace's concern. As of late their crops had started growing once again which helped put them back on track foodwise. It would be a while until they recovered completely from the famine, but at least those that were still around would survive. It seemed that lady fortune was finally smiling down on them.

"I just wish we could have fought Kaido, if we did then maybe this country could get better," Ace muttered angrily. Without the Beast Pirates around, there was no point in doing anything else here. Yamato said that her father might be gone for weeks if not months. At that time he could travel halfway across the world. As long as the Yonko stayed around, this place would never be safe.

"Don't worry about it, there is nothing else you could have done," the masked man said to Ace who nodded his head before picking up a huge piece of marinated meat and tearing into it. Looking at Naruto, he couldn't help but focus on the sword that rest at the blond's side. The scabbard was older and had seen better days. "Would you mind if I saw your sword?" he asked Naruto who was slurping some noodles.

Looking at the older man, he sucked in the noodles hanging out of his mouth before handing the sword over. The tengu-masked man frowned as he felt the strong will of the sword pushing against him, rejecting his touch. Drawing the blade as little as possible, he saw his reflection on the black gleam of the sword. He didn't dare draw it any further or risk being the target of its wrath.

Sheathing the blade again, he handed it back to the blond who was looking at him with a raised eyebrow. "So what's up?"

"Where did you get this sword?" he asked, curious as to where the blond had acquired a weapon of this caliber. One simply didn't stumble across a black blade randomly unless they were insanely lucky…or unlucky if the blade was cursed.

"Took down a casino boss, it was in his vault. Figured that I'd be able to use it," Naruto responded figuring that there was no harm in telling the man about how he got the sword. Wano was deeply isolated from the rest of the world, he doubted anyone besides Kaido had any contact with the outside world.

The masked man hummed his gaze locked on the sword. "From the quality alone I can say that it's extraordinary in quality, it's most certainly a meito. I can not draw it enough to determine its full ranking, but I'm certain that it's at the very least a Great blade if not a Supreme grade…" Hitetsu told the blond, his voice firm given the gravity of the news. He wished he could fully remove the sword from its saya, but the malice he felt from it was immense. One filled with anger and hatred. "Not only that, but I'm sure that you've felt its curse," he stated, knowing that the curse on the blade was strong enough to be felt even by someone who had yet to draw the blade.

Even compared to some of the cursed swords from Wano, none of them were so open about their ill intent. The sword was like a feral cat hissing at you, ready to slash you if needed. He doubted the sword had a peaceful past.

Fully drawing the sword, Naruto narrows his eyes on the black blade. Unlike Hitetsu, he didn't feel the malice of the blade directed at him for long. Once he drew it, it quickly tried to push back against him, only to be squashed by Naruto's own will. After the quick conflict, he found the malicious curse now contained within the sword. "Yeah, but it's not really fighting me once I draw it," Naruto mentioned doing some practice swings with the blade.

Hitetsu watched the blade closely. The ten pointed star shaped tsuba gave it away that it wasn't one of the Kitetsu swords of Wano. The black blade while sleek and perfectly edged, had a swirling pattern coating the entirety of the metal. "Personally, I do not know it's name. Perhaps one day you'll learn it for yourself, or you'll give it a new one," he told the blond who held the sword up into the air, sunlight reflecting off the blade.

"Maybe…Namikaze?" he asked only to feel the malice of the sword surge forth, as if rejecting being called by any name other than its original. "I guess not," Naruto muttered as he sheathed the blade.

"I'm amazed that scabbard is still able to hold that sword," Ace mentioned seeing that the container was badly damaged from age and lack of care.

The red-masked man nodded in agreement. Normally a treasured sword such as a Meito would be tended to with utmost care. Yet it seems that without an owner for so long and being left to rot had taken its toll. "I can repair the saya and the handle afterward if you have the time," he told the jinchuuriki who looked at the sword before nodding his head.

"Yeah, that would be great!" He replied, feeling that the man wasn't lying about his intentions to help restore the sword. Plus if he ever did need to wield it, it would better to have a nicer handle.

A week passed as Naruto, Ace, and Yamato helped the village recover from the famine while Hitetsu worked on his sword. The man wanted to take his time with it given it's cursed nature, he didn't want to accidentally incur its wrath against him.

Senjutsu proved to be a blessing for Amigasa village, giving Naruto the power to filter the area of some of the toxins and funnel natural energy back into the farming grounds. All in all, it wasn't a bad usage of their time since Ace's next target was Whitebeard and they currently had no idea where the Yonko was at the moment.

"Naruto, I finished," Hitetsu announced as he approached the blond. He had some people sneak into the Flower Capital and steal some materials from one of Orochi's shops. "The saya was completely unsalvagable, so I made a new one to the best of my ability, as for the handle, I replaced the majority of the fabric," Hitetsu said handing Naruto the repaired blade.

The saya was now orange and black, replacing the lavender and gold colors of the previous saya and the handle followed a similar. Looking at the changes, he noticed that Hitetsu seemed to have taken some inspiration from some of Naruto's forms as black magatamas followed the side of the scabbard.

Drawing the blade, anyone would be able to feel the difference. The newer saya allowed for smoother draws and the handle was softer on the hand. "I wish I knew your name," Naruto said cutting the piece of meat Ace was eating in two, slicing through the bone as if it were butter.

"SO COOL!" Yamato as Naruto held his sword.

"You're stance is horrible…" Hitetsu told the blond flatly. Looking at the man, he looked nothing like a skilled swordsman. He was certain that it was through sheer power that the cursed sword allowed him to wield it given just how strong it's curse was. "Have you ever even had any training in how to use a sword?" he asked Naruto.

"Um…I learned the basics of how to use one in the academy," he answered, vaguely recalling the lessons he was given on swordplay back when he was still a student. They didn't teach you much at all given that it was a skill that required years of training to hone and master. Something that Iruka and the rest of the teachers didn't have while trying to teach everything else.

"It's disgraceful for a sword of such caliber to be wielded by someone so lacking in skill!" the man snapped sharply. He held a deep respect for swords, and to see a Meito being handled by someone without any proper training made his blood boil.

Sheathing the blade, Naruto let out a heavy sigh. "Well I always thought Sasuke looked cool when using his, so might as well learn to use one too," he commented before noticing the glare coming from the masked man becoming increasingly harsher.

"It's not about looking cool, it's about skill and dedication," Hitetsu stated firmly, upset that Naruto wanted to learn how to use a sword just because it was something his friend looked cool doing in the past.

Naruto flinched a bit at the passion the man was displaying before looking back at the sword that had been restored for him. No doubt a lot of work had gone into it, and to simply use it to look cool was an insult to whoever forged it originally, along with Hitetsu who restored the handle. "Sorry, you're right. I promise, I'll become a swordsman worthy of a blade like this!" Naruto declared. "And I never break a promise!"

The smile that the blond gave him, Hitetsu couldn't help but compare to the one his son often wore. "Then I'll leave my trust in you," he replied before walking back towards his home. "I'm going to sleep, that sword took a lot out of me…"

"Um…Naruto…would you mind if I…"Yamato started, poking her fingers together while looking bashful. "If I held your sword?!" she blurted out causing Ace to cough up his beer.

"Context Yamato!" Ace yelled.

"She meant this one you pervert!" Naruto yelled at the shirtless man, holding up the cursed blade before handing it to Yamato. "Give it a shot," he told her.

Yamato looked absolutely giddy at the prospect of holding a sword like her idol did. She'd always wanted to learn how to in order to be more like Oden, but a kanabo suited her better. Drawing the blade, Kaido's daughter instantly felt the pressure of the curse, the heavy malice that radiated from it. She winced as the blade seemed to reject her, a dreadful feeling building up in her stomach the longer she held it. A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead before sheathing the blade. Immediately the feeling faded away once the sword was in its saya again.

Handing it back to Naruto, he returned it to his waist, "So? How was it?"

"Intense, I can't believe you can just draw it whenever you want," she said lowly in awe at the fact that her friend could repel such an ominous feeling.

"It always fights back a bit when I do, but I can repress it pretty easily. Hitetsu said that some swords 'test' their user to make sure they are worthy. I don't know what makes me worthy but I guess the curse accepts me for now," The jinchuuriki replied.

"You know…there are plenty of qualities you have that could make you 'worthy'," Kurama said from within his seal.

"You okay Kurama? That was oddly nice of you!" Naruto jabbed back as he sat back down next to Yamato.

"So where to next Ace? We can't just sit around here forever," Naruto asked the Captain of the Spade Pirates only for him to be asleep on the other side of the table. "Wake up!"

"Huh? What's up?" He questioned, groggy from being woken up.

"Where are we heading next?" Yamato asked.

Ace hummed a bit, thinking of what the best course of action should be for their crew. "Well, I figured that we could stop at the nearest island after we leave Wano and start asking for any sighting of Whitebeard. We follow any leads, find the old man, and beat him!" Ace declared before looking at the blond.

"Just gotta call Dragon and get him up to speed," Naruto said before recalling the stories that Ace told them from the night before. The days he spent on with Luffy and…Sabo. Thinking back, the way Ace described Sabo, it sounded like he looked exactly like…the Sabo he knew from the Revolutionary Army. "Oi…Ace, can we talk about something? In private," the whiskered blond asked, figuring that it would have been for the best if he told Ace before he found out on his own.

"Yeah, sure…" Ace said as the two walked towards the beach. Yamato looked at their backs with a raised eyebrow before returning to her meal. It probably wasn't her place to pry. She just hoped that the two were okay.

"What's going on Naruto?" Ace asked, figuring that if he wanted to talk in private, then it must have been something important that he didn't want to talk in the village.

"Before, you mentioned that you're friend Sabo died right?" Naruto asked, unsettling the dark haired pirate at the sudden mention of his dead friend.

"What about him?" Ace questioned.

There was a moment of hesitation from the blond but his will hardened itself, "In the Revolutionary Army, I met a man a few times named Sabo. Who looked exactly like how you described your friend, blond with a tophat and goggles on his head," Naruto told the pirate whose eyes were shadowed by his hat.

"Is that some kind of joke?" Ace asked, his voice trembling. His fists clenched before he grabbed Naruto by the collar of his shirt and lifted him up. Their eyes locked, allowing Naruto to see the tears forming in Ace's eyes. "Are you making some sort of joke?!" Ace asked again, demanding an answer from the blond shinobi. He had seen his friend die, there was no doubt in his mind that Sabo died that day.

"You really think I'd lie about that?" Naruto asked calmly, knowing that the man's emotions were likely running high. "Why would I lie? What to I get from pissing you off?" He questioned as Ace put him down, taking a step back as he processed what Naruto had told him. His hand went to the crossed-out 's' on his arm that he got in tribute to his friend.

"Why…why didn't he come back?!" Ace yelled at the jinchuuriki. He felt betrayed by his friend. That his childhood friend had survived that day and never returned to them. Instead he'd run off and join the Revolutionary Army without even so much as a letter to let them know he was okay.

"Sabo once told me that he couldn't remember much of his childhood, and to be honest he never mentioned you or Luffy. Maybe…the accident caused him to lose his memory of his time with you?" Naruto suggested, figuring that given what he knew of the man, it was likely that he had no recollection of his time with Ace and his brother.

"I…see…" Ace said conflicted as to how he felt about the situation. On one hand, his childhood friend was alive, but on the other hand it was likely that he didn't remember them at all, which was why he didn't make any attempt to contact them after his apparent death. "Is he…doing alright?"

Naruto nodded his head, "Well i had to save him from the Big Mom pirates once, got forced into an engagement because of him by the way! But he's the second in command at the Revolutionary Army now, so I guess he's doing alright," he told Ace who seemed to lighten up at the mention that his friend seemed to be okay living his new life.

"I could…try and arrange something for you to meet him Ace," Naruto offered, knowing how important friends were. If Ace was anything like himself, knowing that your friend was still out there despite being separate for so long would drive one to meet them again.

Ace mulled over the offer. It was tempting to say the least, he loved Sabo like a brother, and to be able to see him again after so long would be like a wish come true. "Would it be okay? I'm sure he's busy with his duties as a Revolutionary," Ace asked, figuring that it might be a bother to Sabo to bring up a past he didn't know anything about.

The blond shrugged, "Honestly I can't say, I could ask him next time I see him, see what he says if that makes you feel better?" Naruto suggested.

"We'll see, for now, let's focus on beating Whitebeard!" Ace replied, switching the subject to something more immediate. He needed more time to think about if he wanted to thrust himself back into the life of someone who at this point might as well be a stranger. "After that, we can talk about Sabo," he added on.

"Right," Naruto agreed.

"But…thanks for telling me, it means a lot," Ace said wiping his years away. He was a bit anxious that his friend was alive somewhere out in the world, but he was certain that they would meet again at least once when the time was right.

Getting back on the Piece of Spadille, the crew looked back to see the villagers of Amigasa Village gathered to see them off. "Ace! Naruto-sensei! I promise I'll become a great kunoichi by the time you two come back, then I'll join you both!" Tama yelled out at the two men who stood beside Yamato.

Naruto jumped off the ship and landed in front of the young girl and pulled out his headband, "You know, my teacher gave me this headband when I graduated the Ninja Academy back home. It's a symbol that you're genin, the first shinobi rank," Naruto told her, wrapping it around her head.

Tama's eyes widened as tears started to gather.

"It means a lot to me ya know. I've had it for a long time, so you better take care of it, and honor it by becoming an amazing kunoichi!" He told her with a big grin on his face. It was a lot for him to part with his headband, but she was his first real student. For the past few weeks they had grown close and he could see her drive to become better.

"Naruto-sensei!" Tama cried out hugging him tightly. "I promise to become the best kunoichi Wano has ever seen!" She swore, wanting to make her teacher proud. He had spent so much time teaching her how to throw both kunai and shuriken, as well as the basics of other shinobi weapons. She'd repay him by honoring her word the best she could.

"I'm sure you will!" He responded, ruffling her hair before looking back at Ace and Yamato and leaped up back at them, the ship started to move back into the sea and waved back at the people. "I promise you all, one day we will bring Kaido to justice!" he declared loudly. He felt bad that they couldn't free them during their stay, but he couldn't sit around and wait for someone to show up when it could be months or years until he returned.

Dragon already wasn't the biggest fan of him going around, poking at the Yonkos with Ace. With Big Mom it had been different, he had managed to work out a way to leave without needing to fight against the Yonko herself or her entire fleet. With Kaido, Dragon had been a bit peeved that he and Ace were in essence kidnapping Kaido's daughter. Sure she wanted to come with them, but the leader of the Revolutionary Army doubted that the Yonko would see it that way.

"We'll kick his ass!" Ace declared confidently.

"My father will pay for his crimes!" Yamato added on, clenching her fist as Kaido's crimes extended past Wano and affected her as well. She had been locked away for years because of who her father was.

The people cheered as they sailed out back into the outside world, knowing that they now had friends on the outside.

Yamato couldn't help but smile as she looked out at the seemingly endless sea. Her dream to set sail like Oden was finally being realized. Everything was moving so fast, but she couldn't be happier. "Hey Yamato, wanna see something cool?" Naruto asked getting an almost instantaneous yes from the horned woman.

Smirking, the blond jumped off the side of the ship and into the ocean. Running to the railing only to see the ocean getting further and further away. She could see a bright orange glow under the ship before she realized that the ship was being held by a massive glowing hand. That's when she turned around and saw it, the massive glowing avatar of energy around her new friend.

The entire ship was lifted up into the air by the titanic fox-like construct. It was so larger, several times bigger than ever her father was. Even at his immense hight, her father was an ant compared to the behemoth of a fox. With just his hand, he was able lift up the entire ship with ease. "Naruto?!" She questioned, never seeing this power of his before.

The fox started fly as well, lifting them over the walls that surrounded Wano, ensuring that even of the current ruling government or her father's crew wanted to stop them, they wouldn't be able to. "I have plenty of tricks that I haven't shown off yet!" Naruto laughed as he brought them out of Wano's boarder before lowing the ship back down to the sea.

Stepping back on board, the orange energy retreated back into him.

"You never cease to amaze," Ace said while Yamato was speechless. However, part of him couldn't help but wonder if it would really count as him taking the Yonkos down…if he only was able to do it because Naruto was around to help them. He knew that his friend was stronger than him. Immensely so.

While Naruto's fight with Yamato had been relatively one-sided, he knew that had he been the one to face her, it would have been a more equal battle. 'Damn it…'

The Piece of Spadille arrived on an island a few days away from Wano, docking to restock on supplies given that they had given a lot of theirs away to Amigasa Village. Yamato had been ecstatic to see a real town for the first time in her life.

"There are so many people," Yamato said as the three walked through the town. She'd never seen so many people who weren't pirates or criminals. One would assume that her height and horns would draw in attention, but living in the New World, one got used to all sorts of interesting people. All around her, there were shops of all types. Weapons, food, cosmetics, anything that one could ask for, at their fingertips for them to buy.

"So what are we looking fo-" Naruto said before his eyes caught sight of a man wearing a plumed black hat with a dark red underside and a similar black long coat with red flora sleeves drinking a glass of red wine. The most noticeable feature was the massive black blade on his back with a large golden guard and long handle decorated with sapphire blue orbs.

The man turned towards Naruto, revealing his thin black beard and sharp mustache. Blue and yellow locked eyes for a brief moment before Naruto continued walking with Ace and Yamato.

"Everything okay?" Ace asked when he saw Naruto stop halfway through his sentence. He knew that his friend's sense of nearby enemies was almost unmatchable. Being able to sense hostile intent was a rather handy ability to have after all.

Yamato looked over in the direction that Naruto was glancing at and saw the man with the sword sipping his wine casually, his back to them. "That's a big sword…" she muttered as anyone could that the sword was at least as tall as most people. "You know him?" the newly freed woman asked, figuring that to get a reaction from Naruto, they must be pretty important.

"Dracule 'Hawkeye' Mihawk," Ace answered for Naruto as he caught on to who his friend had been distracted by. "The strongest swordsmen in the entire world, and one of the Shichibukai. I heard he fought with Shanks numerous times for the sport," the flame-human mentioned as the three continued to walk.

Shanks…that was a name she had heard her father mention before. Apparently, the man was a constant thorn in Kaido's side for years now. If someone was able to fight against someone who gave even her bastard of a father trouble, then they were likely a big player in the world. "Big deal I'm guessing?" she asked. Part of her wondered how he'd compare to Oden in terms of swordsmanship. Of course, her idol was number one in her eyes, but it was a fun imaginary duel she could play out in her head.

"Huge," Ace replied.

Naruto turned and started to walk toward the swordsmen. He could see what he was holding in his free hand- his wanted poster. "You two go on ahead," he said throwing a large wad of Beri at Yamato. "It's your first time out of Wano, buy anything you want Yamato. It was supposed to be a present for you," he mentioned before leaving the two.

"Every time…"Ace muttered as his fist clenched slightly, concerning Yamato

Walking up to the table where Mihawk was sitting, he pulled the chair across from him back, "Mind if I sit down?" he asked cheerfully, getting a silent nod from the man.

As soon as he sat down, a waitress brought over a glass of wine he didn't order. He figured that the Shichibukai had ordered it for him. Bringing it up to his nose, he smelled the red liquid to make sure that it wasn't poisoned. "A bit insulting that you think I'd poison you," Hawkeye said to the blond who pulled his nose back before taking a sip from the cup.

"Can never be too careful ya know," Naruto replied.

"If I wanted to kill you, I'd use more direct means," The mustached man said in response, placing the poster down on the table. "I didn't know you were a swordsman?" Mihawk asked, seeing the sword at the blond's hip. He had heard a lot about the new member of the Revolutionary Army. How he had a wide assortment of powers and abilities from his Devil Fruit, a yet fruit that had yet to be named. But a sword was never mentioned until now.

"I've been dabbling recently, still a novice though," Naruto admitted, knowing that should they come to blows, the man would like to be able to tell his skill level from his draw alone given his title.

"Hm…" Hawkeye hummed as he finished his wine. "Well, I've been asked to bring you in by the World Government," he told the jinchuuriki outright.

"So you wanna fight?" Naruto asked curiously, a golden glow starting to radiate around his hand. He knew from his clash with Yamato that some of these people could possibly contest some of his forms above Sage Mode. He assumed that the man would be stronger than the woman given his reputation of fighting people on the same level as her father, a Yonko.

"I don't care about what the World Nobles want," The swordsman claimed. What the World Government wanted wasn't any of his concern. However keeping the Marines off his back was worth the trouble of hunting down one person, not because he feared them, but because he didn't want to be bothered having to fight them. More than any of that, he wanted to face off against powerful adversaries.

Ever since Shanks lost his arm, he lost one of his best challenges. He no longer considered the red haired pirate a worthy enemy due to his loss of ability since the injury. So if the blond was able to give him a proper battle, it would be worth it. "But I'll do what I need to do for my own sake," Mihawk said, standing up and looking down at the still-sitting Naruto.

An annoyed sigh slipped from the blond's lips as he stood up, his eyes now golden-orange. His pupils shifted into a cross-like shape as he entered his Six Path Sage Mode without the energy cloak. "Why?" Naruto asked, wondering what reason Mihawk would have to engage him in battle if not to do the bidding of the World Government.

"It would be less troublesome to just fight you," The Shichibukai claimed.

It was strange, he didn't sense any malice from the man. Unlike others who tried to fight him, there was no ill intent aimed at him. It was as if Mihawk wanted to fight for the sake of fighting, with pleasing the World Government being an added benefit. "Then let's find a place away from the town…" Naruto relented.

AND there we go!

Not sure how I'll approach their duel. Maybe just swords or maybe an all-out battle? Idk just yet

Let me know your thoughts in the reviews! I love hearing your opinions.

Anyways laters!