The Raid Team made it past the gates. As the Polar Tang dove after dropping off the samurai as Trafalgar Law and his crew circled around the batl as the others look in awe at the sight of statues of oni and kitsune as well as paper lanterns, katanas, paper umbrellas and all sorts of Japanese decorations.
"So this…is Onigashima." Hop said in awe.
"It's…huge!" Piccoletta said.
"And this is only the docking area. There must be tons more to see all over the interior." Zebei said.
Connor looked to see some grunts partying inside. "They're still partying their asses off inside. Kanjuro hasn't reported in to Orochi yet. We still got surprise on our side."
"Ah!" Usopp said seeing some guards near the docks.
"Urp. Huh…are those…" one of them said as something hit them.
"Green Star: Sleep Grass!" Usopp called out as plants grew from the seeds as the guards there soon went to sleep.
"Hmm…though with this many ships…we may lose the element of surprise." Cocytus brought up.
"That won't be an issue." Kin'emon as some of the samurai got off their ships as they suddenly sank. "We sink them before we head in. On this mission, we've no need for return ships."
"Do we have to do it to the ones we brought?" Izuku asked.
"Over my dead body!" Franky called out.
"I concur!" Ar-Kaius agreed. "We can hide the rest so no worries."
"Guess this shows how serious these samurai are about their resolve." Erza said.
"Every last one is resolute. They win, or they die. Can't give nothing less than 100% with the lineup we've got waiting for us, right?" Yuzuriha asked.
As they got closer to shore, they saw a number of what appeared to be Beast Pirates.
"What the heck? The shore's got tons of bad guys!" Oshawott said.
"No…it's not them. Look." Robin said as a samurai crossed one side of the bridge before coming out dressed like the enemy.
"I see. This is how we're gonna blend in and infiltrate the festival." Glimmer said.
"Yes. This is an application of my Garb-Garb power. I call it Kin's Clothing Company." Kin'emon said.
"Kin'emon, you're a credit to samurai and streamsters everywhere." Scarlet said. "This way, we can have a little stealth while going in."
"Take heed everyone. This is only my power doing this. Should the garb be removed or damaged, your normal clothing will return. So please avoid any unnecessary conflict." Kin'emon said.
"Understood." Francisca said.
"Alright then, let's get changed." Hope said. "Who wants to try it out first?"
"I don't mind being the guinea pig." Connor said, going through the gateway. In a huge puff of pink smoke and glitter, he came out re-styled to actually look like a Beast Pirate. His leather jacket was open to expose his chest, his pants were now black, his mask was turned into a bandanna and black horns were growing out of his head going through his hat. "Hey, not bad."
The rest of the group (minus those in Spirit Force) continued to go through as they came out as the enemy. Kin'emon soon led an army to the east as Denjiro took one to the south.
"Looks like it's just us." Jexi said.
"No worries…we'll catch up." Franky said as two vehicles were ejected from the Sunny. "The Black Rhino FR-U4. And the Brachio Tank 5!"
"Oh…!" Chopper said as some of the group got in the tank. "I'm Commander Chopper and I run this tank!"
"Wow…he is really enjoying this." G Aqua said.
"Least we can travel around in safety." Kazuma said.
"You are all in good hands, soldiers!" Chopper said.
"We should probably catch up with the others. Uh… where's Luffy?" Hope asked.
"He saw the Kid Pirates run towards the front door. He said this. 'They have no idea what Kin'emon's plan is! Don't worry! I'll go bring them back!' And then he ran off." Benedict said.
"That's only going to make things worse!" a number of them said.
"Then the one called Zoro said that same thing and said he'd go find him." Rinkah said.
"Zoro?!" Eddy exclaimed. "He'd get so lost he'd end up in Alabasta! Great, now we gotta find all those guys!"
"Yeah…while I go and…" Sanji said seeing the tank was full of a number of members from all the groups.
"Sorry, we're full." Usopp said.
"What the heck? And with some of the girls? Get out of there, Usopp!" Sanji said.
"You think you can aim the cannon better? Give it a rest, man." Usopp said.
"Ouch. You just got denied hard, Casanova." Emo said.
"Hey, any of you wanna ride in back with me?" Franky asked as he sat on the bike.
"Oh…how generous." Brook said, getting on.
"Hey! That seats supposed to be for the chicks!" Franky said.
"Nothing wrong with some male bonding. Yohohoho!" Brook laughed.
"Ah, whatever… Commander Chopper! Lets each take one of the infiltration routes and link up at the rear. Over and out." Franky said as Chopper was more excited about commanding the tank.
"Such a disgusting outfit." Constance said, using the cloak to hide her chest.
"Yeah, I get why you dont wanna leave it all out, Coco." Hapi said. "Is that why you guys didn't go through the gate?" she asked Ace.
"Yeah, some of us aren't too fond of wearing those kind of outfits." Simon said. "Besides, Tormal or any of the Shadow Knights would recognize us instantly."
"You're going to have to find another way to get inside the castle then, without alerting the enemy." Kisara noted.
"You can leave that to me." Simon said, kissing his fingers and drawing a magic circle.
"Oh, you guys are gonna conceal yourselves inside Purgatorio, aren't you?" Leanne asked.
"Even if we pass through any of the pirates, they'll only feel as much as a chill." Simon said.
"I guess we'll see you guys inside then." Hope said.
"Oh, do wait for us!" Constance said, ditching her disguise as she and Hapi followed them through the gateway.
"Guess the look ain't for everyone. We'll see them again soon." Balthus said.
"Then let's get going. We need to get started if we wanna win before sunrise." Mark noted.
They all soon departed towards the routes they had decided upon.
"I think Constance had the right idea." Rinwell blushed as Hootle hid inside her cloak.
"Too late to go back on it now. We'll just have to bear with it. Besides, it's not like these clothes are the ones we're actually wearing." Law said.
"Kin'emon said that once we remove these clothes, or if they get damaged, they'll disappear and we'll be back in our normal outfits." Dohalim recalled. "So in reality, the disguise he granted us only layer over our normal clothes."
"Yes, so no need to fret." Sectonia said.
"You're among the few people that seem to be enjoying this." Matthew said.
"Well, those of us in the Nature Universe don't usually have much clothing to begin with, so this is a nice change of pace." Aslana said.
"Same for those of us Beastmen. We have no qualms with these." Glacius said.
"Although… We clearly weren't the ones that were worried about these disguises." Cheetah said.
"Mineta… Don't even think about doing whatever you're envisioning." Esmeralda said.
"Aw…I would never." Mineta said with a shady look on his face.
"Ladies, beware… He's totally thinking it." Roxy said.
"He tries anything while we're like this, he's getting an Explosive Charge to the face." Shionne said.
"And a shock." Rinwell added as Hootle quietly hooed in agreement.
"Yes, yes, Mineta belongs on a watchlist. Can we get down to business? We don't wanna get caught on this early. 'Specially with Luffy already risking the operation." Emo pointed out.
"Don't forget Zoro. No telling where he'll end up or if he'll act reckless." Qadira said.
"I know Luffy isn't the best with covert ops like this but even he wouldn't blow a stealth mission on purpose." Ruby said.
"True. By the way, Qadira you look nice without the turban hiding most of your head." Ajna said.
"Yeah…really shows off her body in all the right places." Mineta said.
*CLONK!*
Mineta was out cold for the rest of the trek down the eastern pathway….
Meanwhile, within Kaido's chamber, David stayed close as he watched him meet with the Tobi Roppo.
"Eeek! It's Master Kaido! It's such an honor! Ever so long time no see!" Ulti cheered.
"Uh… you know that's not actually how a fancy lady talks, right?" Page One asked.
"Are you all enjoying your drinks?" Kaido asked.
"I got nothing to gain with drinking with scrubs. I only wanna drink with you, Kaido." Sasaki said.
"It is…exquisite." A young woman said as she wore a cat shaped cloak with a katana in hand at her right side.
"Let's all go to the hall later, then. Today is all about mingling freely!" Kaido said. "I was planning to introduce Linlin, but she's still changing."
"A lady must take her time getting ready after all." Rime said.
"Anyway…while we've been at it. Something's come up." Kaido said.
"Come on. Spit it out already!" Ulti said.
"Knock it off!" Page One said.
"Thing is…I wasn't the one who called you here." Kaido said.
"Huh?! Then who did?!" Who's Who asked.
"It was me." A voice said as a new face walked into the building. He was the same height as Jack, wearing all black and intimidating clothing with a mask covering every inch of his face, sans his eyes. He had dark wings, and flames were coming off his back. "I called for them.. Kaido."
"King…" Kaido said.
"(So, this is King, huh? He really is just as fearsome as I have heard.)" David thought to himself.
"King? You called us here?" Who's Who said.
"If you knew ahead of time, some of you wouldn't show up. Am I right? Who's Who? Sasaki?" King said.
"Hmm…you got a point there." Sasaki said.
"I know you two are aiming for the position of All-Star." King said. "We have a merit system in place. Skill is what it takes to rise in the ranks. Stay in your place!" he said. "Anyway, I called them here in relation to your…problem. I thought they could help."
"Hmm…good point. Bao Huang! What is today's schedule?" Kaido asked as flying down was a girl with a mask with an eye along with flaps under her arms and a squirrel tail.
Beast Pirates Headliner
Bao Huang
Flying Squirrel SMILE User
"Master Queen is currently MCing the party. After that, the three All Stars and Fukurokuju will hold…a feast! And then Shogun Orochi and Master Kaido will give….. a speech! And upon the arrival of the Big Mom Pirates, Master Kaido and Big Mom together will make a very important announcement of the world's strongest pirate alliance. And then, Master Kaido will give…a very important announcement! That is all!" Bao Huang read off.
"What?! It's not like you to play coy like this, Master Kaido! It's ever so annoying!" Ulti protested.
"I know. Thing is…I want you to go find my idiot son Yamato and bring him back here." Kaido said.
"Hmmm… I take it he is connected to this 'important announcement'?" Rime asked.
"He is." Kaido said.
"What a pain! This is your stupid family problem!" Ulti said.
"Stop it!" Page One said.
"What do we get if we bring him back?" Who's-Who asked.
"I'll give you the right to challenge any of the All Stars of your choosing." Kaido said.
"I'm in!" Who's who smirked.
"What say you two? Any complaints?" Kaido asked Jack and King.
"None." both of them said calmly.
"(Whoa… They both seem very confident in their strengths to agree to something like that.)" David thought as he observed the Tobi Roppo's reactions.
"Allow me to assist in the search." The cat cloaked woman said.
"Do whatever you want." Kaido said.
The woman nodded before she flash stepped away.
On the Performance Floor, Queen was dancing and singing his usual song as the Beast Pirates and some of the allied enemy forces ate and danced to their heart's content, none of them paying any heed to the three strangers wearing their uniforms.
"Wow, this would be a great party if, y'know, it was anyone besides these guys." Eddy remarked.
"Definitely." Simon said from his comm in Purgatorio.
"Focus, gentlemen. Luffy must be here somewhere. We must locate him and make sure he doesn't do anything rash." Double D said.
"Considering there's food, he'll probably be stuffing his face." Zero said.
"Good point. Ed, follow your nose." Eddy said to his friend.
The boy sniffed the air several times, then pointed foreward. "Thataway!" Ed said.
"Great. Okay, lay low boys." Eddy said as the Eds silently passed through the crowd until they came upon the sight of a buffet table, Luffy nearby it.
"Hey! Have you seen Jaggy?" Luffy asked a pirate.
"Jaggee? Who is…say…have I seen you somewhere before?" they asked.
"Aw crud…" Eddy said.
The trio caught up with Luffy and stood by him.
"Oi, Laffy! There you are!" Eddy said. "Don't get ahead of us like that!"
"Eh?" Luffy said.
"Right…as if we could ever forget our dear friend Laffy." Double D said.
"But I'm…" Luffy said as he looked at the buffet. "Whoa! Look at this spread!"
"Yeah, it's pretty great. They're loaded here." Eddy said.
"Gravy!" Ed yelled in delight as he lept up and grabbed a pitcher of his favorite food.
"Hahaha!" one of the Beast Pirates laughed. "Go ahead and dig in! We have Kaido on our side, so we'll be taking the world and eating all we can!"
"Yes…quite right." Double D said, letting out a sigh of relief. "(Thank goodness the immediate danger has passed…)"
As Luffy was about to dig in, a pot of something was tossed onto him.
"Ah, Laffy!" Eddy said. "Alright, who's the wise guy?!"
"Ugh…what is this? It's Oshiruko! Who wants to eat this crap when we're drinking?" said a drunk pirate.
"They made too much, so we gotta get rid of this garbage somehow." the pirate that was carrying the pot said.
"This is sweet! You can't have this with booze! Dump it out, it's useless here!" a pirate said. "That sweet red bean soup too!"
"Hey. Let's dump it outside of Okorobe Town." another said.
"Good idea. They'll gladly suck the dirt dry." another said as they laughed.
The Eds had more energy awareness than the pirates around them, so it was easy for them to feel the aura that came from the pot.
"(...and now it's back.)" Double D said.
"Double D?" Eddy said calmly. "I'm no Luffy, and I'm certainly no Mark, but…I'm just a little mad as all heck." he stated.
"I'd be more worried about the former you just mentioned, Eddy…" Double D said nervously as Luffy, covered in Oshiruko, was glaring at the laughing pirates all around him with a look of absolute rage.
Ed was also the same as he had red spiral eyes and began pulling at his unibrow.
"(Oh, not again…)" Double D and Eddy thought to themselves.
"You don't waste food. That is not the way!" Ed said seriously.
"How come? This stuff is crap. Hey, bring out some more Oshiruko! We'll have a food fight." they said.
Luffy looked serious as he blew into his fist and inflated it. "You all have all the food…so why are people of Wano like Tama's stomachs…still empty?! Gum Gum….Elephant Gun!" he called out as he beat the pirate into the floor.
"BIG TROUBLE!" Ed yelled as his unibrow snapped into two and he plowed straight into a crowd of Beast Pirates and knocked them all back. After that, he breathed out and looked to his friends. "I am sorry, fellows…but these pirates do not respect anyone but themselves! I cannot stand back and do nothing! Not as a holder of Lothar's name…and not as Ed!"
"Y'know somethin' Ed? I'm not even mad. They had that comin' for sure." Eddy stated. "Even on my worst days, I wasn't half as bad as these guys…"
"I can respect your dedication for standing up for what's right, but what if…?" Double D started.
"Let me stop you right there, Sockhead." Eddy said. "What do we look like right now?"
"Beast Pirates, of course." Double D answered.
"Exactly!" Eddy said. "As far as these guys know, we just wanna eat the soup."
Double D made to respond…then shut his mouth. "...By Newton's Three Laws, Eddy just won a debate with me by making sense." Double D said. "Well, I can't stop you two from dealing justice. After all, I myself as well can't stand for these acts. Very well, fellows! I'm not sure who Luffy's referring to, but if these rapscallions are hoarding all the food in the country to themselves and leaving nothing for the citizens of Wano, then we must put an end to it! Charge forth, and together we shall-!"
Double D's speech was interrupted when they heard the slash of a sword as one of the towers nearby got cut in half.
"Aaaah! We're tippin over!" one waiter called as the pillar crashed to the ground.
"Well, way to go." a familiar voice said. "I saw you three trying to calm Luffy down, but what do I find instead? You three helped him make a mess!" Zoro said, appearing on the other half of the pillar. "Why can't you sneak around quietly?!"
"Look who's talking, Mr. Tower Cutter!" Eddy said. "Besides, we got a reason to get loud!"
"They spilled the Oshiruko on purpose!" Luffy said.
"The Oshiruko…that settles it. They gotta get sliced." Zoro said.
"What is with everyone and this Oshiruko?!" some of the hidden ones said.
"Hey, come to think of it, why does this make you mad?" Eddy asked Luffy. "Besides the obvious reason, I mean."
"I visited Wano when the groups were split after the Tower thing. I met someone, a young girl, who barely got all they could eat each day. A lot of stuff happened. I wanna make this a world…where everyone can eat all they want and never go hungry." Luffy said.
"Ah yes, I believe that would do it." Double D nodded.
"Who are these guys?!" one of the pirates asked.
"They're not one of us! They must be causing trouble!" another said.
"Looks like we blew our covers. So much for quiet." Eddy said. "Dang it."
"Luffy, hope you're satisfied…now…" Zoro said as they took off. "Let's scram!"
"At this point, I'd even take your directions!" Eddy agreed as the five of them took off, beating down any Beast Pirates that got in their way.
Up on the DJ booth, Apoo saw the ruckus. "What's he doing here? Wasn't Straw Hat in Udon? I gotta get a handle on this!" Apoo said. "Appapa! Queen! I gotta check in with ya!"
"Yo, what's up Brother Apoo?" Queen replied from above.
"You know how you're in charge of Udon and you trapped some rats? Well don't want them wriggling loose. Cause…that looks like Straw Hat Luffy and Pirate Hunter Zoro down there. So…what are we gonna do about it?" Apoo said.
"Okay folks! We got one fun Golden Festival going on tonight! As it happens, I got someone I wanna erase right now. I'll get rid of one of the Tobi Roppo and create an open seat!" Queen announced.
The Beasts Pirates were in an uproar about it as they turned their attention to the five fleeing.
"Looks like we just kicked up the hornet's nest!" Eddy said, seeing the Beast Pirates bear down on them, lots of them with assorted animal bodies. "Sockhead, are these guys..?"
"Indeed! They match the profiles the Ultimate Imposter gave! They're Gifters!" Double D said.
"Kaido's castle is in the back. These guys are the minimum we gotta get through." Zoro said.
As they fought, the room was filled with the sound of music as they saw Apoo standing there and playing his teeth as piano keys before hitting his head like a cymbal and banging his chest like a drum.
"Listen up, you all. This…is Fighting Music!" Apoo announced. "Scratch! And…Bop!" he said as Luffy was suddenly hit in the face.
"The heck was that? Did I get punched?" Luffy said.
"Look there, friends!" Ed said, directing their attention to Apoo.
"Hey, I bet that's one of the guys Kidd got double crossed by!" Eddy said.
"You're right, Eddy! That's Scratchmen Apoo, one of the Supernovas!" Double D said. "Of course, I forgot! He was in Anima City while the Fatebreakers were there, alongside Queen!"
"Slash!" Apoo called out as Zoro got cut right across the chest.
"Zoro!" the Eds called out in alarm.
"Apapapapa!" Apoo laughed. "Gotta admit, I was hoping for those losers who crashed my party back then…but you guys will be a warm up. No avoiding my powers for you! My Sound-Sound Fruit powers…can't be blocked."
"You think we'll just keel over?!" Eddy yelled.
"Apapap! Sorry brats, but you're in my range! Bop!" Apoo called out as the Eds were sent flying back. "Mmm! Check it out!"
"Here comes another one!" Zoro said.
"Boom!" Apoo cried out as Luffy was hit with an explosion.
"Explosions too?!" Eddy asked. "How many sound effects can this guy make!?"
"How many are there?" Double D responded, neither sounding like a question nor hopeful. "His powers are too esoteric for physical fighters. Ki might affect him, but if we don't conserve our energy, the fights will only get harder as the night drags on."
"As long as you hear him, his attacks will keep hitting, cover your ears!" Simon said.
"Good thinking, Simon!" Ed said.
"There's just one problem. We need hands to use Ki. We can't fight this guy and cover our ears at the same time." Eddy pointed out. "I hate to say it, but at this point…we need a miracle."
"Let us retreat for now, and try to avoid him. His power might only reach so far." Double D said as the five retreated. Simon harmonized his voice from within Purgatorio as it drowned out Apoo's own sounds.
"You're still in my range, let's see how you like my subwoofer. Apapapap!" Apoo laughed as some metal was being pulled into the air.
"Stop it, Kidd! Fafaffa!" Killer called from afar. "They'll spot you too!"
"I don't care. That traitor over there…is what started this mess!" Kidd said, coagulating all the metal into a giant hand. "Eat this, Apoo!"
"Kidd?!" Apoo exclaimed in shock.
While Apoo had his attention towards Kidd, the musical pirate suddenly felt himself being kicked from behind, as he was sent staggering forward, and almost face-planting on the ground.
"Huh!?" Apoo exclaimed, before Kidd's attack struck him, thanks to being unbalanced.
"So you're that instrument-toting bastard that's considered trouble…" Velouria remarked, as she stepped out with a sly smirk on her lips."At least now I see why, with that little quirk of yours… But you aren't going to find it easy to beat me with just that."
"What the?!" Apoo said as he was pushed into the wall.
"Punk Gibson!" Kidd called out, smashing him straight into it.
"It's Captain Kidd! I thought he was in Udon!" a Beast Pirate called.
"Well, there's our miracle." Eddy said in somewhat of a shock as they watched Kidd laugh maniacally, while Velouria noticed the five and walked over to them.
"So, you all fine?" Velouria remarked, scratching her ear with her hand. "I heard the commotion, so I came to give some assistance."
"You have our thanks, fellow hero!" Ed declared.
"Yeah, that guy was a pain…for ears and bodies alike." Eddy said. "So, you're, uh…Vel-something, I think?"
"She is Keaton's daughter, from the same world as I." Azura said. "Her name is Velouria."
"Oh, okay." Eddy nodded.
Meanwhile, Kidd approached Apoo as he was cornered.
"You were real proactive in joining our alliance, weren't you?" Kidd said as he grabbed Apoo and hoisted him up. "I should've known you were working for that scaly bastard!"
"Oh come on. You thought the three of us could take one of the Four Emperors? Wake up to the real world! What kind of alliance between pirates has a happy ending? Apapapa! I thought you were dead already." Apoo said before hitting his head. "Slash!" he said as Kidd was slashed. "Right, Kidd?"
"Trash…" Kidd said.
"Hey, queen? These guys are gonna be trouble to take in alive!" a pirate said.
"Fine then…you have permission to kill every last one of them." Queen said in anger.