Haunt 13: To Rotting Roots

After about a week of partying, goodbyes (very tearful goodbyes from the 7th) and a good number of people giving both helpful and not so helpful advice, the small crew of four stood on a well stocked Brig Sloop provided by Whitebeard for this journey of theirs.

"And-and make sure you always have enough water in st-ock. And non-perishable food. And citruses. Don't forget medicine for everyone, especially Logan when he eats too much and gets stomach aches." Rakuyo rambled on as tears freely flowed. "Did you make sure to pack those Proses as well? How about your stuffed animals? You always forget one of them when we changed ships."

"Don't worry, I've made triple sure to have everything we need on top of Adam's requests!" Morgiana pridefully puffed out her chest, causing the 7th to cry even more as they felt like their daughter was leaving them, much to her confusion on the matter.

On the other hand, Adam was facing a somewhat similar issue with Izou.

"When in Wano make sure to not grasp your sword meaninglessly or it will be considered as an invitation for a death match. Also, please be weary of some of those uncouth bandits Adam-sama. Oden-sama might have tamed them, but they are still bandits by nature. Also, I would be honored if you could pass on a message to my sister." The crossdressing enthusiast prattled as he subtly checked to see if his 'young lord' was fully ok.

Much to the amusement of Adam as he somewhat towered over him and was stronger. He did reassure him that he was going to pass on the message if he could find her during his trip.

Harribel and Logan were simply receiving wishes of good luck and last minute advice in general compared to that.

Their temporary vessel was actually one they had captured from a smaller pirate crew that tried to cause troubles in their territory, with a Jackdaw figure head, dark grey sails, streamlined body and picked specifically because it was both durable enough to get them to Wano, while being proper and fast enough to outsail a good number of ships. And since they were only going to be four on it, and none exactly had a lot of personal things to bring aboard, they had a lot of room for supplies Adam had requisitioned steadily during his time as an apprentice.

Whitebeard knew, of course, silently approving the preparations his grandson was making for his visit to Wano.

They both knew that Kaidou had likely targeted the country for a few reasons: materials, craftsmen and samurai. Meaning that the country's reputation for its vast mineral deposits, skilled craftsmen and powerful defenders/martial culture, were all things a pirate like him would deeply desire under his control. And to control all this, Kaidou would have to control the country and people, but having overthrown the much loved Kozuki line from power, that meant he had to do it tyrannically, thus both the old and young man knew that the situation would likely be dire for many there.

As such, Adam prepared extra food supplies, weapons, medicine, and some other goodies based on meta-knowledge. Obviously, it wasn't a lot due to the ship's size, but it was still likely to be immensely helpful to those in Wano.

"No matter what the world say, you four are members of this crew, of this family." Whitebeard imperiously declared as he stood before the nodding commanders. "You will always have a place with us and our support.

But for now...GO! AND TURN THIS WORLD UPSIDE DOWN IF IT DARES BLOCK YOUR PATH!"

"HAHA! You got it Gramps!" Adam wildly laughed back as his own presence pushed back against Whitebeard's, causing the air to tremble and the subtle sound of Thunder to grow.

With those simple words, Adam and his burgeoning crew hopped aboard their vessel after final goodbyes to everyone, all looking excited to set off.

"See you all later!" The young sailor shouted with a large smile. "And Gramps...I'm going to get you back for all those beat downs!!"

"Gurararara!! Just try it brat! You're a two hundred years too early!!" He responded without any care, actually being somewhat excited for their next clash instead.

Whitebeard wanted his grandson to grow that much in fact.

Without another word, Adam used his ghostly powers to call up shades of regrets he had solved, having them man the ship swiftly as they obeyed his commands without fail. It was a fantastic ability which really allowed him to do away with fodder he might have needed just to man his ship and they were very useful since they could work together seamlessly and could fly to do their jobs while requiring no additional resources.

Adam loved his devil fruit.

So versatile and convenient even if it didn't offer any truly significant direct combat boosts right off the bat. It was so full of support abilities that it more than made up for it, and if one trained hard enough they definitely gained many powers in the later stages of mastery. Just like how he could now use powerful flames and ecto energy blasts or constructs.

Looking at his Eternal Log Prose as he took the wheel, Adam set his course.

"Alright boys and girls... we sail for Wano!" He declared to the excited trio below as the shades followed his mental commands.

"Let's go!!" Morgiana cheered with a pumped up fist while Logan excitedly grinned and Harribel clutched her blade in anticipation for their journey to the land of samurai.

With another flex of his ghostly powers, he caused gusts of wind to come forth, letting them swiftly gain top speeds as they rapidly distanced themselves from Sphinx Island under the eyes of the Whitebeard Pirates.

"Heh! I can't wait to see the troubles he gives those two pains in my ass and the World Government." The old man chuckled.

"He's going to turn the world upside down when they finally realize just what he wants and they try to stop him." Marco joined in the imagining of the results of anyone outside Admirals and the recently nicknamed Emperors trying to stop him. "It's going to be like Roger and his crew."

"No... he's going to be worse." Whitebeard grinned widely as he was certain the little monster he nurtured was going to surpass his generation.

"...*Chuckle* Then I guess we should keep a close eye on those papers once they give him his first bounty." The Phoenix-man commented after a brief moment of surprise.

-A few days later

Sailing the New World on their own was certainly an interesting experience for the young crew, but an easily overcome one after years of being in and fighting on it.

Adam's innate understanding of the sea and ability to perfectly coordinate the sailor shades made what most crews would consider dangerous rather manageable. While he ecstatically piloted the ship with an unceasing grin on his face from being behind the wheel once again, the others were mainly taking care of their own things.

Logan was in charge of the crow's nest, his senses being very useful up there as his sense of smell allowed him to pick up information about various occurrences long before any eyes could and his animalistic instincts could forewarn them of danger. Harribel was mostly on protection duty in between meal times when she cooked for the small, but still somewhat gluttonous crew, taking down a small Sea King or two to feed them. And Morgiana was mostly going around the ship making sure there were no damages from the insane weather, that their supplies were still good and all their quarters were comfy while also helping in meal prep when she could.

There were a few times when things became interesting, like when acidic bubbles started to fall from the sky or very aggressive coral tried to destroy their ship from below, but Adam simply marveled at these events as his crew easily handled them. Having someone who can breath underwater is very helpful, especially when they are as strong as Harribel. Dangers from the sky were primarily assigned to Logan as a form of training for his long ranged attacks and aerial mobility, with Morgiana or Adam as fallbacks just in case he messed up.

Soon enough though, Adam felt the shift in the ocean below.

"Be on alert! We're entering Wano waters, so things are going to get a bit fun!" He announced to everyone as the wind slowly started to pick up alongside the currents.

"Grarara! Finally! A land of strong beasts!!" Cheered Logan from above as he readied his lines.

Fighting addict he might be, but he was well trained by Adam for sailing as a Devil Fruit user. So when Adam said things are going to get fun, he made sure he wouldn't fall overboard.

"Look! Giant Carps!" Morgiana pointed out as carps the size of their ship jumped out of the progressively more aggressive waters. "Do you think we could try one?"

"Maybe after we pass these waters." Harribel told her as she didn't want to risk losing sight of the ship just for a fish right now.

Better to look for one later.

Plus, it seemed they were headed in the same direction.

Masterfully twirling the wheel to the rhythm of the currents, Adam smoothly guided the ship through the rapidly worsening waters as a looming shadow began arching out before them.

"Bel! Take a chain a wrap it around one of the larger carps! I'm going to lighten the ship so we can get past what comes next!" He ordered, causing his fellow Fish-man hybrid to snap into action without hesitation.

She wouldn't have to worry about getting back on board with the chain, and she trusted her Captain.

"What's coming next?" Morgiana asked out of curiosity.

"A large waterfall." He simply answered as an excited grin grew on his face.

He'd never made a ship go up a waterfall before, so he was looking forward to the experience.

"Really! That's so cool! We're using the fish to climb a waterfall!" The redhead's eyes sparkled in excitement as she went to head of the ship to get the closest view.

Adam was happy to see her being excited for this experience as well, as Harribel returned from the water with their ship experiencing an increase in speed, to which Adam responded by making his shades furl the sails to not damage them or the masts with what came next.

"Bel, make sure Mor doesn't fall off the figure head. It's going to get a bit rough." He requested as the crew finally witnessed the enormous rock wall and the sole waterfall which decorated it as It somehow flowed upwards.

With a massive grin, he carefully followed the path of the carp as it dove into the water before jumping into the waterfall itself.

"HERE WE GO!!" Adam shouted out as he shrouded the entirety of the ship in his ecto energy.

It was one of the best aspects of his fruit for exploration: the ability to release the shackles of gravity on something or someone that he could coat in his energy. It was how he flew since gravity doesn't affect ghosts. He could also allow other to become invisible and intangible if he desired, but adding multiple effects on something as large as a ship did take a good deal out of him if it was for extended periods of time.

He could have actually caused his ship to fly or lifted it on his own, but this was more fun.

So as the carp tugged on the line, they soon found themselves going up as Adam laughed unrestrainedly, not affected whatsoever by the now vertically inclined ship as Morgiana joined in on the enjoyment by laying down on the top of the figurehead and Harribel simply gripped a railing, all the while Logan was cherishing the adrenaline following through his body during this ride.

Near the top, Adam was preparing for the next stage as he could feel the whirlpools formed by the massive clashing of the reverse waterfall and the overflowing waters trying to escape the 'bowl' that is Wano.

"Bel! Cut the chain a few moments after we reach the top!" He ordered, earning an ok signal as a response.

With the carp making the final jump, allowing their ship to follow suit over the 'beginning' of the waterfall, Adam reinforced it with his powers while Harribel swiftly slashed the chain to free them for the carp.

Now, the rest of the crew noticed their 'welcome' from Wano waters wasn't done as Adam immediately began using the currents to their advantage, building up speed while heading directly for the whirlpool.

"Kikikikikikyaaa!!" One could hear Morgiana wildly laughing as she fully trusted both Adam and her own ability to survive since land wasn't that far away.

Adam could also feel Logan's fighting intent surge as he readied himself to face this 'foe'.

Honestly, he could easily get them through this, especially since the water was all fresh and he could just lift the ship, but where was the fun in that?

So like a madman, Adam made their ship rush at great speeds into the deadly waters, allowing it to gain more momentum as the twirled around, until he felt the perfect moment and lightened the ship anew while directing it outwards. As such, in one perfectly timed moment, he sent their ship flying out of the whirlpool and towards Wano as 3/4 crew members laughed in a way most would consider 'madly', escaping the final natural hurdle to enter the country.

"THAT WAS FUN!" Adam exclaimed as he barely controlled his intense joy and excitement.

"Kikiki! We have got to do that again!" Morgiana agreed as she jumped back on deck, soaking wet but smiling like she just went on the best of rides.

"I was rather surprised that somewhere other than the Red Line holds reversed waterfalls." Commented the much more composed Harribel.

She was less enthused about these sort of things than the others, but she could still appreciate the phenomenon. In fact, she actually felt inspired by it and planned to see if she could make a new sword technique from this experience.

"We'll be having plenty of experiences with the Red Line later since I want to see all four blues, so this is nice practice." Adam told them, earning nods of understanding.

"Boss! Land ho!" Logan announced from above as he pointed out to the landmass beyond.

"Well ladies, Wano awaits!" He acknowledged with a simple hand sign while the shades unfurled the sails to get them moving.

Adam focused his powers on creating a ghostly fog to conceal their arrival, not wanting to be careless here and reveal themselves. Luckily enough, it was one of the easiest weather phenomenons to create due to how many ghost stories are linked to foggy nights, also why wind and rain were in the same category, even if he couldn't do it on a massive scale yet.

Approaching the shore, Adam slowly brought the ship as close as possible to a deserted beach.

Knowing the general geography and layout of Wano from the very memorable arc and his father's writings, he knew he was somewhere in the Kuri region as the only other waterfall they could have climbed up would place them near Onigashima and that place is very recognizable.

"Logan, go sniff out anything nearby but make sure not to engage anyone in battle yet. I want to make sure we don't cause trouble before we know the situation of the Country and if my half-siblings, father and Step-Mother are still alive with Kaidou's actions." Adam ordered the younger teen, earning a sharp nod before he bolted into the nearby greenery.

Rough he may be, but he has grown very protective of what is considered 'family' after experiencing warmth and care for the first time amongst the crew, so he wouldn't jeopardize that until he got permission.

"Mor, I want you to go look for somewhere we can hide the ship. I spotted some rocky cliffs to the west, go look there first to see if there are any sort of caves." He then continued, earning a salute before the girl vanished in a burst of speed. "Bel, i need you to guard the ship while I check a few things out from my father's writings. Make sure no one spots it and if they do, it's your decision kill or capture.

I'd prefer if it didn't come to it, but we work with what we're given.

My fog should last until the weather shifts though, so take advantage of that."

"Understood." She dutifully nodded, jumping on top of the figurehead to gain a better view and proper jumping off point if needed.

As for himself, Adam shifted into his ghost form before turning invisible and concealing himself fully from the world of sight and haki, flying off to see the current state of things.

From high above, Adam could spot several zones containing dark smoke stacks as well as the heavy deforestation which had taken place in the region, with only the nearby greenery really being at the borders of the giant fresh water lake surrounding Wano and the bamboo grove which most likely contained Amigasa Village. The rest was rife with evidence of rapid pollution and reckless, short-sighted policies made out of spite and greed, showcasing just how big of failures Orochi and Kaidou really are at governing.

Big Mom is a complete tyrant and unarguably insane, but she runs her territory far better than Kaidou ever could. The man isn't a ruler and never was, he is what happens when a general overthrows his king basically. All he wants is to fight and have a glorious war because that's all he really knows, while Orochi is greasy rat who wants to watch Wano slowly burn for what it did to him and his family.

Although the second is relatively justified since Wano heavily persecuted the entire Kurozumi family for the acts of their Daimyo, it is still stupid, but it's not like he can go against Kaidou anyway.

Marking the location of the Bamboo Grove in his mind, Adam continued onward to Mt. Atama in order to check if the bandits might have formed already. Being easy to find due to its resemblance to a shaved head with a topknot on it, Adam managed to swiftly scan the area using Observation Haki, but couldn't find anything significant, which he did somewhat expect due to it being at least 13 years before the Strawhats appeared here and some information stated that Ashura Doji, one of the few Red Scabbards of his father whom did not time travel, did not return to being a bandit until his men died in a desperate bid to strike back at Kaidou and Orochi in 3 years.

Adam doubted his presence would have changed that.

Looking out though, he could spy an area he knew he would have to visit during his time here, but he preferred to do so with his crew, so he flew back to the ship.

Having returned, he spotted Logan with a frown on his face even with Morgiana there, so that meant he found things he really wasn't happy with, and the resident redhead being back meant she likely found a good place for the ship.

"What have you found?" Adam asked them as he landed and turned back to human.

"There's a cave down the coast that we can use to hide the ship really well. We just need to place some camouflage to conceal the entrance." Morgiana easily answered as she pointed towards the direction.

"That's good. Now I don't have to bury the ship and likely damage it." He nodded with a thankful smile to the teenage girl. "Logan? What's got you so grumpy?"

"This place stinks." He grumbled. "The air is bad and so are the beasts, but I only found one place with people close by."

"Yes, I spotted far too many factories polluting the region and they also chopped down all the trees too, exacerbating the issues." Adam revealed to his crew mates, causing them to frown in displeasure. "Although it's definitely the Kuri region, it doesn't look anything like my father wrote about and he was the Daimyo of the place, so he at least knew what it looked like."

"That is worrisome." Harribel summarized as she did not like what she was hearing.

It was as if someone was poisoning the land of samurai.

"Is that why you wanted us to bring so much stuff? Did Shya predict this?" Morgiana worryingly asked as she mentally went over their supplies and what they could use.

"It wasn't her." Adam sighed with complicated emotions. "It was just my own prediction over why Kaidou would want Wano.

It was always going to be about it raw resources, craftsmen or Sea Stone, but it looks like he's doing everything he can to milk all three out of Wano without any regard for the long term."

"Fucking bastard!" Logan growled.

Even he understood how stupid this was because even animals knew to not over hunt/eat or they wouldn't be able to live in or maintain their territories for long. But the supposed 'Strongest Creature' seemed not to care at all as long as he got what he wanted.

"What's the plan Captain?" Harribel then asked with a serious tone, causing the two younger members to look at their leader expectantly.

"We need to find out the current situation of Wano, or at least Kuri." Adam began as he put together a short term plan to mix with his overarching one. "From up high, I spotted a few places with people living there, we need to quietly get some information.

That means that you all are going to need local clothing since I already have yukatas and kimonos. We might be able to modify my own somewhat, but those are temporary measures. And before you complain Logan, you'll be dressing like a bandit anyway so there won't be any stuffy clothes."

The open mouthed teen shut it when he heard that.

"I can do it until we find a proper store." Morgiana stated as she the only one good enough with a needle and thread to adjust clothing.

"Thank you. I'll just need to go to the largest town and obtain some local currency for us to buy new clothes. After that, I'm going to scout the larger settlements I've spotted.

I want you two (pointing at the youngest) to head to a bamboo grove of in that direction and check out the inhabitants while Harribel goes to what looked like an abandoned town near a ruined castle. I want to know if anyone's there." Adam parceled out his orders, with only minor grumbling and blushing from Logan about bad smells getting on Morgiana.

It was cute to see him unknowingly crushing on the girl.

Not taking long to modify a few sets of clothing, Harribel was wearing one of Adam's wave pattern yukata with a chest binding, somewhat looking like a yakuza woman with her cold demeanor and blade. The fact that she had olive skin, sharp teeth and blonde hair really completed that look.

Morgiana had a darker, night themed kimono which she shortened to her mid thigh and removed the sleeves, appearing remarkably similar to Nami and Carrot's styles during the Wano arc.

And Logan was just wearing shorts and one of Adam's old wind themed kimonos on his shoulders.

"You all can handle yourselves, but no unneeded risks for now. We aren't in a rush and even if we had reports about Kaidou being busy in a clash against Big Mom right now, I don't want to risk it since he can come back easily with his devil fruit." Adam warned one last time. "Also, be very careful of Queen's biological attacks. You all know what that fat bastard is capable of, so steer clear."

Gaining nods of understanding, the three crew members headed off to handle their tasks while Adam flew to their ship, coated it with his power and transported it to where Morgiana reported the cave to be. It wasn't exactly hard for him to find, so he quickly placed their ship within and formed some shades to monitor and conceal it, while placing some surveilling will-o-wisps around the area.

People were far too superstitious to approach a place like this with obvious signs of ghosts, so it served as an additional security measure.

Satisfied, Adam them flew off towards what he assumed should be Bakura Town.

This was one of the only half dozen places in the entirety of Wano which was prospering to a degree, and that was only the case because it housed the officers of the Beast Pirates and Orochi's officials.

Before entering, Adam lessened his resemblances to Oden using his mastery of Seimei Kikan, straightening his hair before tying it in a tight ponytail, lessened the arcs in his eyebrows and adjusted the muscles on his face to make his appearance softer while narrowed his eyes to make them less piercing. Minor things which served their purposes very well as most people only gave him the briefest glances since he did appear to be from Wano, even if his skin was much darker than most.

People just assumed he was some samurai due to his stature and blade.

Making his way through the town, Adam scouted various locations like the major businesses, houses of important individuals and places to get information.

Stealing money from a couple of different sources was laughably easy for him and so was pickpocketing. Just phase through everything beside the coin pouches and then bring them along with a minor application of ecto energy while moving his hands at speeds far beyond what anyone could notice.

Just for the hell of it, Adam even stole four dozen stacks of gold coins using the bedding of some asshole he saw mistreating a worker at a tea house, effectively bankrupting him.

He hid the stuff outside of town, beneath a very large dead tree.

After that bit of fun, he bought some clothing for his group and even himself as they made some good stuff, knowing everyone's current measurements made it a smooth venture. He then entered a nearby bar, ordered some sake and some Yakitori, then proceeded to calmly enjoy both as he subtly listened to gossiping and rumors.

Mostly it was things like 'official/officer did something horrible', laughing at people's suffering, 'Orochi is great' and the likes.

But then came some interesting bits.

"Did you hear about how Jack-sama was injured fighting one of those fucking Red Scabbard remnants near the local dump?" One generic looking samurai spat.

"Everyone knows, but he still managed to force that glorified bandit back to his hiding hole." His spike haired drinking partner replied dismissively before leaning closer to whisper. "but get this, that hasn't been the only Red Scabbard sighting.

There's a rumor going around that one of the monsters that fool Oden trained was sighted in Ringo with some kind of wolf demon."

"Then what are we doing here? Capturing one of those abominations would be a massive stroke of fortune!" Bland samurai whisper shouted as he almost stood up and rushed out, only stopped by the grasp of his buddy.

"Yeah, but us knowing about it all the way out here means we lost that chance anyway. I'm just telling you so you don't start acting like a child when the notice of its capture comes through." The spiky one informed the samurai who deflated enormously from the revelation.

"Damn! This could have been our chance to be noticed by Orochi-sama and climb the ranks." He huffed, sitting back down, obviously upset.

Adam tuned the rest out as he placed everything together in his mind, adding random bits people might think are unimportant or unrelated to paint a decent picture of at least Kuri and the general state of Wano.

He knew for a fact now that Ashura Doji was in Kuri and active against just the current regime and not totally apathetic yet since there has been no mentions of any kind of strong bandit group in the region, but there was a clash between Jack, who became the overseer of Kuri, and a Red Scabbard who can only be Ashura Doji since only three of them are supposed to be in the country/timeline, with the other canonically being in the Capital and the third being reported on the other side of the country.

That is, if matters still worked out the same, but he would need to find a Red Scabbard to find out.

Preferably it would have been Denjiro as Oden's smartest retainer, but Ashura Doji would do for now.

Waiting a few more minutes as he finished a second serving of his food, Adam paid and then proceeded to move about between a few shops, buying a small stuffed elephant for Morgiana before heading into an alley and phasing into the ground before heading out.

As fast as he could, hid the stuffed elephant where he had placed the stolen gold and then bolted northward.

If things went as they should, Kawamatsu should be the only Red Scabbard people of this country could call a 'monster' since, as usual, humans turn anything different into things to be destroyed or controlled, so Kawamatsu being a Fish-Man, something the people of Wano had not likely seen in centuries, it made him seem like a monster, just like when they discovered Minks in the forms of Inuarashi and Nekomamushi.

Honestly? Adam found Minks infinitely more honorable than the people of Wano who extol honor as extremely important. At least they remember their promises properly and who they made them to.

But anyway, Kawamatsu would be the only one in the country since both Minks should be in Zou right now.

The only issue was that the Fish-Man, or Kappa as he took to calling himself to protect himself from prosecution by making himself something 'known' by the residents of Wano, should be the one in protecting Hiyori. And the matter of the wolf demon confused him as he wracked his brain.

Of all the canine related activity in Wano he could think of, there were only a couple of possibilities he could come up with: One, Yamato somehow broke out and joined up with Kawamatsu. Two, Onimaru might have been found out to be a fox with 'Sorcery' *Cough* a devil fruit *Cough*. And three, his presence might have made Inuarashi stay or come back to Wano for some reason.

No matter, he needed to head north to try and make sure his half-sister was ok and/or to gain Kawamatsu's assistance in his plans.

Adam already felt some guilt over not informing his father of the traitor in their midst and for not warning him about Kaidou and Orochi, but he doubted he would be believed and would have only made the situation worse or put a target on his back. The least he could do is make sure his half-siblings were alive and as well as could be under the circumstances.

The most is something he was already planning.

So at a speed which could easily match fighter jets of his past life, thank you elimination of air resistance due to being a ghost, Adam flew over the country in less than an hour.

He then fully focused his Observation Haki to cover the whole region of Ringo and cleared his mind to feel for urgency, worry, shame, determination, as well as larger sources of greed, anger and general chaos. But most importantly, he wanted to sense the strongest beings around as Fish-Men naturally have a greater presence and Kawamatsu was one of the strongest fish-men in the world.

Soon, he found a trio of relatively vibrant presences running away from a group led by a singularly bright one.

Opening his eyes, he burst forward again.

Adam didn't understand why there were three presences like that, but he would find out.

What he did find was a rather big surprise though.

Because below him was the large and stocky figure of Kawamatsu in his signature kasa, fluffly orange hair spilling out from his tattered red kimono and scarf. An even larger person dressed like a battle monk carrying a large naginata signifying the presence of Onimaru somehow. And the third was a much smaller and slender lupine girl with pale teal fur and almost flame-like tail, wearing an old winter kimono.

To Adam, it defiantly looked like Yamato, but it wasn't.

There were no horns or kanabo. The outfit was wrong and so were the emotions he could feel and the way she moved.

But then, a thought crossed his mind.

A what if...?

As a result, he decided to take a gamble and headed down to wait ahead of them. Undoing any sort of transformations and re-placing his amulet on his blade as he waited under the shadow of the large tree.

Only a few moments later, he was met with the sudden halting of the trio as Kawamatsu and Onimaru protectively stood before the wolf girl with weapons ready to strike.

"Who are you?" The kappa cautiously asked.

"I would ask the same question to two of you, as my father's writings have told me much about your skills mister Kappa of the Red Scabbards." Adam responded somewhat playfully as he raised his hands to as a show of not being here to fight. "But my name is Adam."

Stepping out from the obscuring shadow, Kawamatsu's eyes widened while the wolf girl gasped.

"Well, Kozuki Adam would be my full name since Oden did accept me as his child, even if a bastard one." He grinned. "So I'd like to know if that's my half-sister, how she got her hands on something like a mythical Zoan Devil Fruit and if you would like some help in escaping your predicament?"

"W-what?" The poor fish-man responded with as his brain was short circuiting.

"Adam-Niisama? Is that really you?" The now confirmed Hiyori hopefully asked.

"Indeed. But if you want to catch up, I would suggest we do it away from here. Your hunters seemed to have picked up a scent." Adam warned as he felt them head in their direction with fervor.

"Prove it." Kawamatsu suddenly said as he became deadly serious. "Prove that you are who you say you are."

"Kawamatsu!" The lupine Hiyori gasped as the fish-man resolutely stood before her.

"Not really sure how beyond my amulet, sword and looks though." Adam replied with a bit of trouble as he kind of expected something like this to happen the first time he approached a Red Scabbard, but they were on deadline here.

"Oden-sama's swordsmanship! He spoke of how he left a manual for his other son in regards to his style. Prove you have that." The kappa demanded with complete combat readiness.

"Although I am a one-sword style user, I can show you a move I developed from my father's sword technique." Adam agreed as he drew his Moonlit. "Do you agree to be my target? I promise to not harm you."

"Hiyori, Onimaru, step away and prepare to flee if needed." Kawamatsu ordered the duo, much to the former's silent reluctance as the large monk picked her up. "Come."

Drawing his own blade, the kappa sword practitioner stood ready.

"This is based on his Tougen Totsuka, but with my own spin." Adam revealed with a nostalgic smile as he remembered his father's display of strength and Adam's first real taste for the immense heights people could reach in this world.

Raising his blade solemnly, in a standard upper stance as he took a deep breath and fully imbued his Haki and intent into it.

"Deep Sea style:" He softly spoke as he lifted his foot of the snow covered ground, "Taki no Uwagara (Behind the Waterfall)."

In an instant, Adam was already in front of Kawamatsu, swing down his blade in a seemingly simple manner, imbued with immense amounts of Ryuo which the kappa attempted to hastily block, but to his shock, the blade just went through his own and then his body, but left no harm.

He hadn't been cut.

And this confused him until Adam sheathed his blade with a satisfactory nod and then he noticed.

He noticed the large X on his clothing, and as his focus changed from only his opponent, he heard a sound behind him, making him turn thinking that their pursuers had already caught up, but was met with yet another shock.

Two large grooves in the earth, angled in a way on could cleanly follow as they continued through the now cleanly cut trees and all the way up to the sky as the heavens and the earth were used to display the power of that one sword strike.

And only a now sweating Onimaru had noticed that on Kawamatsu's back, there was another X.

"That was based on his Tougen Totsuka." Adam informed them, snapping the trio out of their stupor. "And although I haven't yet reached his level, I think he'd be proud."

"That was amazing Nii-sama!" The awed Hiyori exclaimed as she rushed out of Onimaru's arms and came to her half-brother with stars in her eyes. "You're so strong!"

"Haha! Thanks! But we have to get away now." Adam smiled before getting serious.

"Right, I almost forgot!" She exclaimed as she snapped out of her starry eyed state before turning to her protectors. "Kawamatsu, Onimaru, do you believe Nii-sama now?"

"I do." The kappa confirmed as he composed himself. "Lead the way Adam-sama."

"No need for that, but that's a conversation for later. Right now, I just need you all to grab my hands and not let go even if you're going to be every surprised." Adam instructed to the minor confusion of the trio, but they would listen anyway. "The third person can just grab the hand of some else."

"Where will we be going?" The large monk questioned.

"Currently, me and my little crew are in Kuri, so that's where I'll be taking you. I've heard there was another Red Scabbard in the region, but I overheard a rumor hinting at Kawamatsu being in trouble so I came directly to help before I could find him." Adam answered as Hiyori happily took his hand in her semi-paw and Kawamatsu now respectfully took the other.

"Come Onimaru, we must not delay any further!" The fish-man urged.

"I cannot. I must protect the blades." He refused with a determined gaze. "Worry not for me as I can escape them just fine."

Hiyori looked very worried, but she felt like she shouldn't get in between the two staring off as it had been her fault that Kawamatsu had been found out, starting this whole situation in the first place.

"Fine, but I will return to make sure you are well once things calm down." Kawamatsu finally agreed.

"Understood. Be safe." Onimaru responded before hurrying away.

"That makes things a bit easier, just try not to freak out too much." Adam said as he transformed, shocking the duo, but then they became completely frozen when they noticed that their feat weren't on the ground anymore.

"N-n-nii-sama!?!" A scared Hiyori called out as she desperately clung to his arm.

"Don't worry Hiyori. I won't let anything happen to you, so just enjoy this sight few ever get to see." He reassured her calmly as he turned them all invisible and intangible, then began flying away at a sedated pace for the two newbies.

"K-kappas were not meant to fly Adam-sama!" The oldest of the three stuttered while clenching Adam's hand like it was his lifeline, which technically wasn't wrong, but it was somewhat uncomfortable.

"Then you're the first!" Adam almost laughed since he was pretty sure Kawamatsu would be fine even if he fell from this height.

He wasn't high right now, only about 100m up, which wasn't much in this world.

Adam got knocked away by Whitebeard a lot further and higher, so he would know.

Regardless, after some time, the Kappa elected to keep his eyes closed out of some misplaced notion that Kappa were flightless and Hiyori, who innately trusted Adam a lot more due to things she had heard from her parents about her half-brother before everything...changed, decided to listen and marvel at the sights before her.

How everything just looked so small and how pretty the Horizon looked.

It somewhat made her want to climb Mt. Fuji to see the view from up there or ask Adam to go higher, but she kept quiet mostly because she could see her guardian was not enjoying this like she was.

But after the horrible last few days, when their difficult living situation went from bad to the worst because she tried to get food on her own out of guilt for Kawamatsu choosing not to eat so she could and then getting followed back because of how she looked after eating a particularly horrible tasting fruit, this was a welcomed sight.

Plus, she was excited to return to Kuri. She hadn't been there ever since... things changed.

Maybe she could even pay her respects to the graves of her parents she hoped as the idea made her feel both excited and scared.

Soon enough, the sights beneath changed from the winter region to autumn, then the spring of the Capital in the distance and slowly to the summers near Kuri. Although she couldn't help but frown at the factories, pollution, poverty and large scale changes to the once beautiful lands she had visited when younger.

All of it made her angry at the Kurozumi clan and the Beast Pirates who supported them in turning the once prosperous and happy lands into a poisoned country being slowly strangled to death by those in power.

"It'll be ok Hiyori." Adam's calm and certain voice broke her out of her dark thoughts, causing her to blink and look up to him. "Maybe not immediately, but I believe that the day will come when we can take back this country from them."

"Will you help us nii-sama?" She hopefully asked.

"I'll do what I can, but I'm not strong enough to beat someone of Kaidou's level yet. I need time and challenges to grow, and I won't be able to find them here without risking everything, so I'll make sure to help as many as I can to last until I can return." He tried to explain.

"That sounds like mother's prophecy." Hiyori softly spoke.

"Toki-san made a prophecy? I didn't know she had powers like Shyarly's." Adam questioned as he hid his fore knowledge of such things.

"Her last words when Orochi and Kaidou tried to kill the rest of our clan." The young lupine girl sadly spoke as she held back tears. "You are the moon unaware of the dawn. May your purpose be fulfilled, and cast nine shadows on the night woven of 20 years, and you shall know the brilliance of the dawn."

"Heh. Hehe...haha...hahahahaha!!! That's great! Toki-san sure played them and really gave them the finger with those last words!" Adam heartily laughed as he pictured the end of that countdown and could understand the symbolism woven into those near prophetic words. "No wonder she managed to tame someone like our father!"

"Do you know what does words mean Nii-sama?" She asked as she had been too young at the time to truly understand and no one had explained matters to her.

All she really knew was that her mother had her other brother and four of Red Scabbards escape somehow, while she and Kawamatsu fled in another manner and the other Scabbards hid in separate spaces to await the 20 years.

"I'll explain later, once you get some food and rest." He told her, causing her stomach to rumble loudly much to her embarrassment, earning a chuckle for her older brother as she couldn't look him in the eyes at the moment.

They'd reach the Kuri beach he and his crew had arrived on in a few hours due to how much slower he was flying on the way back, so for now the two simply enjoyed a bit of long overdue familial bonding as Kawamatsu tactfully maintained his silence even if he had actually long gotten used to these new sensations of flight and whatnot.

He was a very good retainer after all, and it had been a long time since he had seen his charge so happy, care free and innocent. Thus he tactfully kept his eyes on the land below for any threats as the two simply talked.


Author Notes:

Oh yeah, first big changes that happened because of Adam's existence are here!

Heheheheheh!

So many plans with this, so satisfying to imagine my altered Wano Arc come to fruition.

But that's later.

In due time, shit will be explained, or really more hinted at, for why Hiyori suddenly found herself with the Dog-Dog fruit Model: Okuchi no Makami, but for now it has to do with how devil fruits, especially mythical zoan fruits, have wills of their own and choose their wielders as best they can.

But to give a quick reasoning as to why Hiyori is still with Kawamatsu and Onimaru's early presence, well it comes from how Hiyori suddenly having the ability to fight changes things on their end.

More on that next chapter.

Side note, it is actually completely coincidental that Adam ended being in Wano around the same time that Hiyori would have run away and been taken in by Danjiro to be trained as a courtesan and Kawamatsu being imprisoned for the next 13 years. I was just regoing through wikis and chapters to shore up my plans for this little arc when those little tidbits popped up and it made things somewhat easier and harder.

Had to adjust things so now he's going to have a bit of a harder time getting into contact with Denjiro, but overall he'd also have an easier time since he would have a Red Scabbard and Hiyori with him already.

But please, don't be too upset with Yamato not getting that fruit. I needed to make this change for both plot reasons, to follow my butterfly effect, and because I have something fun prepared for her later on.

And it's not really a spoiler that she will be heavily involved in my story since she's one of the two names in the damn tags.

But anyway, I know I'm rushing a bit with the first day on Wano, but that's that. Things will be going at a steadier pace now that no one should be in immediate danger.

Moving on, let's talk about Adam's powers.

Now, Adam theoretically has the potential to use any powers shown in Danny Phantom beyond some of the more unique ones like Wish Granting, Banishing Kiss (maybe for a hot spirit lady), Chronokinesis, Sleep Induction and Dream Empowerment, Emotion Empowerment, food manipulation (beyond just telekinesis), Dragon transformation, Love Spell, reality manipulation or Plant manipulation.

The fact that it is in One Piece and a devil fruit, created by an omniversal entity mind you, does change things somewhat as well, hence why some of his abilities are linked to things related to ghosts like the currently limited Weather Manipulation, Will-o-wisp and Shade creation, how he can enter dreams/nightmares and his ability to 'manifest' in places filled with death, regrets and intense emotions.

The rest is mostly stuff Ghosts and Half-Ghost could achieve by learning more about their ecto energy and training it. Which Adam does a lot.

Currently Adam had a few ways of growing his ghostly powers:

1. Matures more with them

2. Keeps training them

3. Fulfills or causes regrets of Spirits he encounters (Links to Adam's own unique ghost powers)

4. Follows his obsession

The last one is actually the one which has been limiting his growth as a ghost since his obsession is sailing and exploring. Plain and simple, Adam want to sail the world.

It's why he grows stronger, why he learns so much stuff, what he prepared for with almost a decade and a half of training, and why he's a conqueror. It is his deepest and truest desire, hence why now that he's started to fulfill his obsession, he can start growing more as a ghost and reach the next level of power.

Yes, I'm going with half-ghosts having obsessions too like Vlad Plasmius being obsessed with getting Danny's mom and Danny with helping people in general.

Next, I've had a few comments regarding everyone's lack of bounties, but that's pretty simple to answer: The World Government is not aware of them attacking anything related to them, committing a crime and standing out while doing so instead of just being a Whitebeard pirate, and they've been mostly fighting other pirates.

It's why Blackbeard was able to have literally no bounty even after spending over two decades as a Whitebeard pirate and even being strong enough to be offered a Division Commander position multiple times. So my kids still being 'clean' after much less shouldn't be an issue.

Anyway, sorry for the long notes, hope you enjoy.