Alright so Chapter 8. Not much to say beforehand so like always, I DO NOT own RWBY, One Piece or anything from any material referenced or in this story and I never will. So with that said…

It was quiet in Rally's opinion as she and Jaune sat at the bar with the staff finishing up their night-shift duties, looking at her partner, she could see something in his eyes resembling something akin to regret, she wasn't wrong either as Jaune took a frustrated sigh. 'I can't believe this is happening of all times…' she thought as she noticed she wasn't the only one looking at him. Mismatched eyes glued onto his figure with a glare that the swordswoman could easily tell held enough contempt to blame him entirely.

Such a thing did not go unnoticed by the blonde swordsman as he turned to face the ice-creamed theme woman with a deadpanned gaze and rested his arms on the bar table. "You were responsible for this just as much as I was, Neo" he reminded as Neo glared at him from the small table she sat at with clear anger directed at him. Yet as much as she was angry at him, he was right.

The marines were looking for both of them and she was the one who started the fight, regardless she needed someone to blame for this and until she knew the plan and went to gut the marines like fish to the fryers then she was stuck silently glaring at the swordsman who sat before her. If it wasn't for the fact that they agreed to help them, she would be doing much more than just glaring however, she still wanted to settle that fight of theirs and was more than eager to make the first move.

Call her spiteful for all she cared, it was something she had to learn in order to survive.

Soon enough however, the three looked to see the staff begin to walk towards them and out of the kitchen, it was time to start their little meeting and the assistant manager took over. "Alright, look. I'll be frank with everyone here" Halley said with a serious expression as everyone listened. "Ryos is captured by the marines and was taken to the Cell. Tomorrow morning the Weasel will be taken over by Buso and his men to be used as a marine bar and I doubt anyone wants that" she said as everyone nodded.

"Mulling it over, we came up with three ideas" a cook said as he ran through them. "The first one is that we fight back… this is possible for the short term but that puts us in jeopardy as well as the Weasel. We are facing a large amount of men on Buso's side and not only that we are outgunned and outmanned" he said as Neo rolled her eyes at the reasons. She could probably solo them all, hell why hadn't she by this point. Buso and Sludge were typical targets in her eyes, the big fish that live in a small pond so-to-speak. She was sure that she could get the job done.

"While we do have two, maybe three good fighters with us, we're still outnumbered unless we can get the boss out of the Cell" he said as one of the waitresses smiled.

"So why not go after him, Neo could break him out-" she started as another cook spoke up.

"If we do then we'll have the marine base on us incredibly fast, and I don't just mean the people we send to the Cell" he said as the room went quiet. Neo frowned as she thought of it. That was true; the marines would probably go after the Weasel as well as the staff. "We don't know who is currently at the Cell or the marine base either but considering Sludge is the warden he would be there at the very least."

"Which leaves Buso at the marine base... if he's actually there at all" another cook said as Halley spoke up again.

"Which leads us to option two, we go strictly after the marine base, which might be more suicidal considering how strong Buso is if he's waiting there" she said as Rally spoke up for the first time.

"What do you mean. I mean I know he's a captain but why couldn't we take him on?" she asked as she noticed minor glares directed at her by a few of the staff as Halley spoke up.

"Buso is a skilled swordsman" she said as Jaune perked up at that. "He's also a captain and was also renowned for taking down a pirate worth Thirty-Million Beli. He is considered the Strong-Arm Swordsman of the marines and is eligible for a promotion. And this isn't even considering Sludge."

"Sludge ate a fruit that causes numbness or something. Not to mention he is considered decent by marines with swordsmanship and shooting" a cook informed as Neo gave him a flat look. Decent to marines maybe but if it was someone like that Goodwitch person it would be mediocre at best.

"The main issue is if we act then Sludge will probably go after or take it out on the boss. We all know he is strong and a pirate at one point but he isn't exactly in his prime. If he gets caught or in trouble he would have the marines after him constantly" another waitress said lamenting as Jaune was actually curious about the man's past. He knew Miles and the drunken asshole was a Ciper Pole agent.

"I don't know much about his past" he said as everyone turned and glared at him slightly but Rally and Halley, apparently blaming him for the whole incident like Neo did. "I mean I know he knows Miles but I don't know how strong he really is, can't he just break out himself if he wanted?" he asked curiously.

He expected them to insult him or something but their looks of anger returned to that of simple frustration as one of the cooks sighed.

"The thing is that he could and probably will but that could lead to more problems" she said as Rally was confused.

"What do you mean by that?" she asked as Halley spoke up to inform them.

"A few decades ago, he was on a crew that traveled from the South Blue to the New World" she informed as Rally and Jaune looked at her shocked at the news. For Jaune it would explain well enough just how he and Miles knew one another if Ryos was capable of making it to the New World of all places. "After his crew disbanded though he settled back here. If the marines were to catch wind of a pirate worth his fair share we would have probable admirals facing down our door."

Jaune flinched at that. …Admirals? Was Ryos really that important? He meant no disrespect but how does an innkeeper warrant a freaking admiral like Aokiji or Kizaru coming to face him? Now the swordsman really wanted to know what his past was. Rally was confused as well, clearly not expecting that. At first she assumed they were joking or at the very least overestimating him a little bit.

Seeing the nods however quickly made her realize they weren't.

"Back to the subject at hand. We want to keep Ryos under the radar, something we know he won't do if we get involved at all" Halley said as Jaune realized why he and Rally were asked to deal with it. It wasn't that Ryos couldn't it was that they didn't want him to get caught. If an outsider came to the island and started shit like they were going to then that was that. The people would or could play dumb and be left mostly out of it. But if it was an innkeeper of said island or his staff then questions were asked, backgrounds were checked and if Ryos was truly that infamous…

'…Well, shit' was all Jaune could think as he was torn between helping an old friend of Miles or escaping the island with only Neo trying to gut him and a guilty feeling in his gut the rest of his life if something went wrong. He really didn't have too much of a choice here, did he? But to think that Ryos was a pirate in the New World, maybe that was how he accepted the whole other-dimension thing so fast.

Even if Neo showed him proof he would've been a little more skeptical over it. Speaking of which his mind turned to Rally, why wasn't she just as skeptical of it? Yeah he admitted it, had proof and all but he expected her to react differently. It was as if there was only anger at the lie and not mind-shattering disbelief. He would probably have to ask her once she cooled down a little. It was still a sensitive topic for the swordsman and one he wasn't really hoping to press.

"Which brings us back to our third option… we attack both at the same time" Halley said as everyone looked at her. "I'm not going to lie. If we can attack both at the same time we might have a chance. We know Neo can take them on but we're still outmanned and outgunned. However…" she said as she looked directly at Jaune, who caught onto what she was suggesting and sighed.

"You want me to fight either Buso or Sludge… right?" he asked as Halley nodded. Rally was a bit concerned at that until Jaune finally stood up. "Alright then, if I have to… I'll take on Buso and attack the marine base. " he said simply as he reached for his sword and resting his hand on the hilt, much to Rally's and several of the staff's shock.

"Y-you're just going to attack the marine base?"

"You want us to attack the marine base?" Rally asked dumbly as Jaune stayed a bit quieter than she liked. "…Jaune?"

"Yeah… well we're probably going to need to leave as soon as we can… and we still need to get our supplies" he started as Rally glared at him. "I was actually thinking, just this once, you focus on getting us ready to leave while I fought off the marines?" he more asked until he was grabbed by his shirt by the younger sword-using traveler, who had openly glared at him at what he had suggested.

"You expect me to just let you go off alone to attack a marine base?!" she shouted at him as Jaune and several others flinched back. To some this would be a thing to avoid, for someone like Neo however, this was interesting. "Did you forget that I still need you to get to Neo Panda Island and take responsibility for what you did to me and my island?!" she shouted as everyone was currently more interested in their dispute.

"Take responsibility… the hell?" one of the cooks mumbled as Jaune sighed.

"I know, I'm still going to settle the score with those guys for what they did to you-"

"You can't do that if you're in prison or worse, dead, as in buried ten feet under, with me covering the hole! I don't care if you want to piss of the marines. I want to be a pirate so I'm coming with regardless" she said as Jaune frowned but nodded.

"A-alright but I don't want you to get hurt, you know-" he said as she interrupted him with a dramatic sigh.

"I think you put me through enough pain as is, Jaune" she said as she crossed her arms "I'm going to be a pirate, I have to get used to being in danger and not having you help me out..." She would admit that the incident with Rein Zero was by far not her best moment but still she wanted to be a well-respected pirate of the seas. She was going to start somewhere. Meanwhile the staff looked at them with different looks, clearly misunderstanding what their relationship was.

'Huh, didn't know they were dating' one woman thought to herself.

'Lucky bastard' a cook thought to himself as he looked at the blond swordsman enviously.

Neo however continued to listen, having got up to make herself a drink as she watched the tension with a glint in her eye. She didn't expect the kid to find a love life here but hey, whatever made him happy she supposed. It wasn't her duty to tell him what to do but seeing him get yelled at by his girlfriend was rather fun to watch.

"…Alright. So I take it that me and Rally are going to-why are you looking at us like that?" he asked as he noticed the looks he was being given. Neo returned to her spot with a grin while Halley spoke up with a small smile on her face.

"Oh, nothing. Just didn't expect you two to have a… touching moment there" she said, trying to find the right words for what that was. Jaune and Rally were confused but shrugged it off, figuring it wasn't that important. "But if you two want to hold off Buso then we'd appreciate it. Neo can handle Sludge and break Ryos and some of the others out" she said as Neo nodded, sipping her drink as Jaune nodded.

"Alright then, when do we begin?" Jaune asked as Halley smiled.

"Tomorrow, we still have guests and if we can get some of the marines in here then we can buy you guys some time to take them down. If we take down Buso and Sludge the rest will fall" she said as Jaune and Rally nodded. Alright, tomorrow it was then. He was tired and wanted to get some sleep. With a nod he headed to his room with Rally right behind him.

As they left the bar, Neo finished her drink and got up herself. Looking at the assistant manager she nodded and made her way to her own room with a smile.

'Guess that guy is useful after all… hopefully the old fart will be alright in jail for a little while longer' she thought as she prepared herself for tomorrow morning.

It was time to exterminate some pests…

To Ryos the place was a bit darker and damper than he expected but to be honest he didn't know what to expect when he was lead into the hallway lined up with other cells. His eyes narrowed as he saw several other prisoners sitting on the floor with anger on their faces all directed at the marines.

Behind him he heard the sinister laughing of the lieutenant mocking him. "My, you seem rather angry today. Almost like you think you're worth the fresh air outside. If you guys want to leave, then by all means I have the key right here" he said as he held up the gun, the inmates all flinching while Ryos caught onto the threat.

Sludge, a lieutenant known for his extremes and distaste for commoners… 'Oh look at me and my noble status. I was recruited to join the marines because my father was an important part of it. I am of noble birth because my mom married a marine vice admiral and all' Ryos thought to himself. The only thing noble about him was his family and even then it was spoiled rotten.

"Well then, old man. Welcome to your new home" he said as two marines opened the cell door with Ryos stepping in annoyed. It was cramped and smelled like shit. Looking around it was literally a concrete rectangle with iron bars. No bed, no furniture, not even a freaking toilet.

…Sadly it would explain the smell…

With a slam, the bars of the door slammed tightly in place as his cuffs chafed his wrists. Seeing the fat-ass marine grin, he merely gave him a deadpanned look. "Huh, what's wrong, you don't seem happy with our accommodations" Sludge said as Ryos grew a small smile.

"Trust me, this make my hotel a mansion in comparison. But it's probably still better than whatever backwatered home you came from" he said smugly, already knowing what was going to happen. Sludge was a prideful man, a prideful and arrogant man. He took great pleasure in his heritage and great insult to anyone who dared to-

A gunshot rang out in the area as Sludge held his pistol out and aimed it at the innkeeper's head with a glare. This plebian dared insult him and his family like that. He expected the man to fall dead but was confused when he stood standing. The idiot however continued.

"I mean I guess you could rework this place, add in some furniture, some carpeting, better lighting and get an actual toilet in here" he said, ignoring the bullets that ripped through him. Sludge and the other marines looked on in disbelief as the bullets had no effect. How was this happening, what was going on?

"What the hell are you, you should be dead on the spot. I shot you five times!" the lieutenant shouted as the inmates looked at the man in disbelief. What was going on, how was the man still standing? Ryos merely chuckled.

"I have my secrets, you have yours, let's just leave it at that, alright?" he asked as he sat down cross-legged and started to sing to himself. "Bum-bum-bum bum-bum-bum-bum-bum…" he trailed off as Sludge glared and turned away.

"Fine, if I won't get them from you I'll see to it that your staff will be punished in your stead-" he started before suddenly he felt something crush him. An overwhelming pressure suffocated him as he felt his world begin to blacken until all that was left was darkness and fear. Meanwhile Ryos glared at the man with a frown. Next to the unconscious man were the guards as Ryos ignored the chattering of the other prisoners.

Still he wondered what the next course of action should be. Tomorrow his bar would be taken and his staff under marine control. He highly doubted that Neo or the others would allow that. Not to mention there were those two brats that came along earlier. Closing his eyes he thought back to his time setting sail with his crew. He and his partner, working together, the thought made him shake his head with a soft chuckle escaping his lips.

"Oh, it's you… don't you have somewhere else to be?" a young man playing with a small dagger muttered annoyed as he looked at an even younger man, the two of them sitting at a bar. The other man shrugged before grabbing his drink.

"Not really, I'm still looking for some more people to join us" he said as he took a sip of his drink with a smile that the dagger user wanted to smack right off of him, but the younger man was stating what was true as Ryos just deiced to roll his eyes. Besides he knew there was a catch and he knew what it was.

"For the last time I'm not interested, just because Barry is doesn't mean I am, why do you want me anyways?" he asked more annoyed while he stabbed his dagger in the table, the other man seemed unfazed by it however and merely smiled.

"Eh, you seem like you're decent enough, Ryos. Why not join us, we're going to the Grand Line and you seem like a capable fighter. Besides I want to see if it's true… you know that story about that witch and sailor, right?" he asked as he held up some kind of compass while Ryos rolled his eyes at the other man. They fought each-other to a tie, no shit he was capable.

"I don't believe in silly stories or fairy tales. Besides I'm a hired blade for the Martix Family, you really think I'll just leave them like that?" he asked with a deadpanned expression as the other man simply chuckled. "The hell is so funny?"

"Didn't you say you were bored being their blade? Barry said you both wanted to leave-" the other man asked as Ryos twitched.

"Barry doesn't know shit! Even if that was the case, why would I go with you, you think I'm some kind of saint or something?" he asked irritably, just wanting to be left alone.

"The only saint here is my sword," he said as he gestured to his broad sword attached to his waits with a smile. "Plus I've probably done worse… so anyways, you sure you don't want to go?"

"...Fine if it gets you to shut up about it. Just don't expect us to be buddy-buddy, you want my respect then you earn it, you understand…?" he threatened as he held up a knife as the other swordsman laughed.

"Alright, then… Sora, Grundy, Tubbs, Barry, Ryos… let's party! Riahahahaha~" the younger man called out with a strange laugh as the memory faded, Ryos letting a small tear form. It was strange to see Saints be with someone else, yet somehow it fitted well. He was sure his captain would probably agree if he was still here to see it.

'Maybe there is such a thing as fate… is that why you sent him here first, Miles?' he thought as he drifted into sleep, recalling old memories on a familiar ship with familiar idiots and reminiscing times long-since gone.

Tomorrow he should try to escape though, maybe get a little group together while he was at it.

...now there was an idea

Jaune sighed as he walked out of the inn an hour early before the marines would arrive to take it over. in front of him was Rally and Neo, both who were waiting for him to arrive. "Guess we're ready to go then?" he asked as he earned a nod from Neo and Rally rested a hand on her sword.

"Yep, I also talked to the staff earlier today" she said as Jaune and Neo looked at her. "According to Halley there are three people in control, Buso, Sludge and some woman named Janice. Buso and Janice are swordsmen with no fruit abilities while Sludge still has his fruit ability to worry about. You sure you won't need backup"

Neo crossed her arms while Jaune smiled. "Don't worry about her. Neo is skilled in espionage. She'll be fine so long as they don't get the drop on her" he said as it was strange working with the woman who was his enemy even back at Beacon, despite them not meeting in person until Atlas. Neo however nodded her head and placed her hands in her coat pockets with a smirk. When she looked at Jaune, he smiled. "We should be fine. I'm handling most of the work with Rally as my backup. So we'll keep their attention."

Seeing Rally nod her head with her hand on her blade, Neo nodded before heading out. Jaune however stopped her with one last thing to say. "Neo" he said as the woman turned back with a quirked eyebrow. Jaune seemed nervous as Rally was curious on what he wanted to say. "When this is over, I need to talk to you something. I made a promise to Ryos that I decided to follow" he said as Rally looked at him not expecting him to come up with an answer that quickly. "So… for now… partners?" he asked with a hand extended as Neo looked at hit a little hesitantly.

It reminded her of Roman and Cinder, both being the best and worst things about her life. For Roman it was her first taste of freedom and heartbreak, for Cinder it was a temporary alliance. Looking at Jaune with an untrusting look, she saw him a little nervous but determined to have her understand something. For now they were on the same side, allies, and partners.

Slowly she grabbed his hand and shook it, they could call themselves whatever they wanted. At the end of the day she trusted him to hold off Buso while she dealt with Sludge and broke out Ryos. That was their alliance to her and when she finished shaking his hand she jumped back and tipped her hate before a second or two passed and the Neo they saw shattered into glass-like pieces.

"…Guess she's gone to get Ryos then" Rally muttered as Jaune nodded.

"Yep, alright then, you ready to earn a bounty?" He asked a little unenthusiastic at what he was about to do. On one hand he didn't want a bounty, he didn't want to become a pirate, he just wanted to become a sailor and see the world and figure out some connection to Remnant and wherever they were if it actually existed.

On the other hand, this was probably going to happen at some point, might as well get it kicked off early. Besides he knew that if he was going to go with that deal he made Ryos he was probably going to be a pirate sooner or later. And if this kept an eye on someone like Neo then hopefully she wouldn't kill him over it.

"So are you really sure it's a good idea to take her with us?" Rally asked as they made their way to the marine base as Jaune shrugged unsure.

"Well if we're going to face the Panda Family it might be best to have someone who was actually in a crime syndicate, not only that it helps me keep an eye on her, the last thing we need is a psychopath like her running around when she decides to leave Palma Island."

"She wants to be a pirate too, I know" Rally asked as she wouldn't mind having someone like Neo on board her own ship if she wasn't a probably stab-happy and bipolar super alien or something. Speaking of which she gave Jaune a look of her own, still not happy he lied to her about that. Not like she wouldn't blame him for the lie in hindsight.

It was wild to think of, that Jaune and Neo weren't from this world or something, hell if it wasn't for her family on her dad's side of things she might have called it completely unbelievable-

"By the way… uh, sorry I guess for lying" he said as Rally looked at him confused. "A sky island was a lot more believable. I didn't want you to think I was crazy or anything" he said as Rally frowned.

"Yeah, I know… it's just a lot to take in. I mean I thought that kind of stuff was only in fairy tales like that story" she said as she was deep in thought. 'Guess gramps was right after all' she thought as Jaune voiced something up.

"Yeah… wait, what story?" he asked as he began to think about it until her realized something. "You mean that witch and sailor story, right?" he asked as Rally nodded. "Yeah… Miles told me and said I was onto something, not really sure what the full story is though" he said as Rally looked at him confused.

"…Wait, you're telling me you don't even know the story? And you're just going along and looking for it?" she asked dumbly, not sure what his thought process was. That was like looking for a buried treasure without a map or information, just being told it's in the sand on an island somewhere in the Grand Line.

"He skimmed over it but I know the main parts, shipwrecked man meets possible maiden and they escape from an island and form a pirate crew until she finds a way back to Remnant somehow or something" he said as Rally gave him a deadpanned look. Or something, he says. She pinched the bridge of her nose and knew she was probably going to have to fill in the holes, all while cursing whatever version this Miles person gave him. It was bare bones at most and missing a lot of context here.

"Alright, so since you only know the basics I'll fill you in on the actual story, alright?" she asked as Jaune didn't know she knew it. "My grandfather use to tell me this story as a kid before he died, alright. So now long ago in the South Blue there was a sailor known as Shad D. Archer, he was a sailor who wanted to see the world… during a voyage of a ship he hopped aboard on he found himself shipwrecked on an island in the New World. Its waters were rough and the wind was wild, anyone stranded there had no escape from the shores."

"Yeah, that sounds about what Miles said" Jaune muttered to himself as he allowed Rally to continue.

"One day, the man in an attempt to escape, landed on a different part of the island, having nearly drowned. However he was saved by a mysterious woman. The woman left as quickly as she had appeared and fled into the deeper parts of the island. There the sailor looked around and found her. The woman was said to be a little younger than him, having lived there for a few years alone and scared. She claimed that she left from her home. Over time the man and the woman would talk and eventually grew close to one another."

"Then she told him that she was from a world of magic and monsters, right?" he asked as Rally nodded.

"I come from the world of magic and nightmares, a world where I was supposed to make a choice, to be a guardian and protect. But in my fear and haste I woken up here, alone and scared" she recited from the tale as Jaune nodded. It would make sense if she was a maiden if the nightmares were Grimm and the choice was the Relic of Choice.

"Eventually they escaped together, the woman using her magical abilities and the sailor using his ship-skills to navigate. There they escaped and landed to a new island. So full of happiness they were that they stayed together. The young man wanted to see the world, and the young woman wanted to have a life no longer alone or worth being afraid. There they sailed together and formed a crew."

"…And then she had to leave, right?" he asked as Rally nodded.

"One day the woman fell in love with the man she met on that island. She knew her time would come where she would have to return. She could feel the beckoning of her own world calling out to her, leading her somewhere. With a heavy heart, both the man and woman left with their crew to find out where she was being beckoned to. As they did, the crew took notes and made it to an island, one called Nokori Island… but it was actually called the Phantom Island of the Nokori Tribe" she said as Jaune was confused.

"Nokori Tribe?" he asked her as she frowned.

"They were people who lived on that island, not much is known about what happened to them. There was one who was said to have left the island but they soon vanished off the face of the world. If memory serves my grandpa said his name was Mako of the Nokori Tribe" she said as Jaune nodded, so apparently Miles did leave some of the stuff out. "Back to the story, the young woman had a child and the child and father saw their mother go. "But do not fear, my love. I am sure we will meet again, though not in this life our wills will live on as our love will as well" she said again reciting some of the tale as Jaune nodded.

"You mean like reincarnation?" he asked, wondering if this was something like Ozpin. A very fearful thought ran through him. If it was reincarnation then did that mean there was some kind of reincarnating woman in Remnant?

They already had Ozpin and Salem they didn't need a third one…

"It's just a figure of speech. It probably meant that their descendants would meet again or something. I'm not sure" she said as Jaune visibly relaxed at that. That was good to hear.

"Guess your grandpa knows a lot more than Miles did" he said as Rally nodded. As they approached the base Jaune and Rally noticed the large wooden doors and a stone gate that protected the base on all sides. The marine insignia etched on the building before them. It was time to get to work and he looked at his partner who nodded, holding her blade at the ready. "You ready?" he asked as she nodded.

"Y-yeah… look, Jaune. I know you said you didn't want to be a pirate, I'll handle this as well as I can and you can cover me. I mean I'm not that skilled but I can still fight and-" she started while Jaune smiled at her.

"…No, I got it" he said as he looked at the door and walked towards it. "I gave it some thought and know… somewhere down the line I'll probably be seen as a criminal or something if I want to set sail properly. As much as I hate to say it, I might as well be a pirate myself" he said with a nervous chuckle. Miles said it would probably happen and looking back on his life it wasn't like this would be his first offense.

Forging his transcripts to infiltrate an academy to train warriors without even the basics of knowing what he was getting into, stealing a bullhead from Atlas as well as being a criminal of the kingdom after Ironwood went to his extremes. Closing his eyes he channeled some aura to his now clenched fist and took a calming breath.

Because he knew there was no turning back from this. He could follow Rally's advice and just let them start it all, he couldn't be blamed for defending himself, but he knew better. If someone like this Buso person was in control, nothing he said or did would change the fact he took down a marine captain.

That just left the Yang method. Go in, start a fight, ruin their shit and take down the boss. He gave his word to the staff and he knew that this was the right thing to do, even if it was on the wrong side of the law. Oh well, if he was going to become a pirate then he might as well get a good head start, right?

That was the thought he chose to focus on as he cocked his fist back and delivered a strong punch into the wooden door. The loud sounds of wood snapping echoed in the area by the base as Jaune managed to break through. Behind him was Rally, hand on her blade and falling into a fighting stance.

As Jaune stepped in he noticed three things. The first one was that he was not alone. Several marines stood in the courtyard and openly looked at him with varying of expressions, from shock, horror, confusion, disbelief? There were many that then quickly turned to anger as the second thing he noticed were their hands, weapons held tightly as he saw them now pointed at him.

Which lead to the third thing he noticed, they were all pointed at him…?

"Who the hell are you, punk?!" one man demanded as Jaune said nothing. He knew he might have just messed up, messed up bad considering he already picked a fight with a family of the underground, now with the government? He was worried what his parents would think of him but focused on the task at hand.

The best way to do that however…

"…So is that Captain Buso guy up yet? I want to voice a complaint" he said simply as the marines stayed quiet for a second, looking at one another as a few seconds later they opened fired on him. Rally just looked on and sighed as she went in to help as he drew their fire away from the gate and in return away from her.

"Catch him, arrest him!" one man shouted as Jaune leaped in the air and delivered a Rankyaku down at some of the men, earning some more shock from the men.

"Alert the captain, hurry up!"

"Take him down, he can't beat all of us!" one marine shouted, two seconds later Rally could see that said man being punched into a tree. Jaune moving with his semblance active, amplifying his aura so he could take the bullets without use of haki or Tekkai…

'Whelp, no turning back now' Jaune thought as he continued to fight while gripping Saints with a small grin, recalling some of his training with Miles. He prepared to counter one of the marines that ran at him with a sword. His end had begun and he could only hope Neo was making headway on her end.

Neo didn't hesitate as she made her way to the prison as her mismatched eyes scanned the area. 'Tch, heavily guarded?' she thought to herself as she noticed two men outside the main gate. Looking down at herself, she nodded before her form began to be coated with shards of glass, her form being altered under her disguise. Red hair and green eyes, albeit a little older and a fair bit taller than her real form and the person inspiring the illusion.

Checking her new appearance, she grinned as she formed a set of marine clothing over her body as she walked straight at the door. As she did, the two guards stopped her, one of them raising her gun at the aura-using hit-woman. "Freeze, who are you? State your business" she called as Neo merely smirked before pulling out an envelope with the marine insignia on it. Taking it, the two guards looked at it while the armed woman kept her sights on the red-haired woman. "An envelope?" the guard asked as he opened it.

There was nothing in it, nothing on it, his eyes narrowed as the woman nodded and opened fired. The sound of the bullet was heard as the red-haired woman shattered into pieces. "W-What the-" the woman said before she was kicked into the other man by Neo, now appearing as her true self. As the armed woman fell a few feet away, the man pulled out his sword and charged, Neo smirking at the challenge.

Pulling out her weapon, she caught the sword with the folded umbrella before pushing him back. Seeing her chance she stepped in and grabbed his wrist and moved behind him, having him in a hold. 'Nighty-night' she thought as she increased her grip and shattered what she held and caused the man to cry bloody murder. As he did though she pushed him to the ground and leaped back with an illusion hiding her.

As the doors opened she waited as several marines ran at the two injured guards. "H-hey, are you two alright? What the hell happened-?"

"That woman… that bitch we were looking for, she's here… find her!" the man shouted in agony as the sound of a thud echoed by a tree. "T-there, she's getting away!" he shouted as several of the marines gave chase to where they heard the sound, unaware of the grinning woman who ran into the prison with a second rock in her hand, throwing it further into the nearby foliage to lead them away.

She had improved of her semblance, a little bit of training in her spare time. But as the illusion shattered, she made a new one over herself, this one being that of a young boy with dark skin and wearing farm clothes. Keep them guessing and keep them confused. This was going to be fun.

Jaune delivered one last blow as Rally blocked a sword aimed at her, both finishing up their battles. "I think we lured them out, now we have to wait" Jaune said as he looked behind him and delivered a Rankyaku kick to take down the remaining three. Rally nodded before she pushed the swordsman back and swung up with her blade, the man let out a cry as he faltered back and gripped his wound as Rally grinned as Jaune saw the man go down injured.

"Yeah, you think Buso will be tough?" she asked before a new voice interrupted them.

"Captain Buso will not be coming to deal with you two today" a woman said as both turned to see a woman around five or so years older that Jaune with a sword in her hand and a pair of sunglasses hiding her eyes, wearing a standard marine outfit with high-heels, she pointed her sword at them both. "I will take you both down, he won't be bothered by your little riots" she said as Jaune narrowed his eyes. Before he could say anything, Rally moved in front of him with her own blade grasped tightly in her hand.

"You'll be dealing with me first" she challenged as the marine looked amused, Jaune unsure for a second. "Find Buso and deal with him, we don't know how far Neo will get without alarming others. So we have to act fast, if we can't wait for him to come out for us-"

"Yeah, we go in there and take him down ourselves… just be careful, alright?" he asked as Rally nodded. The blond stole her words as she needed him to be alive until they settled the score with the Panda Family.

"You think you can get passed me that-" the marine woman began only to see Jaune disappear from sight. She felt something behind her as she turned to see the swordsman's back running into the base. "…Easily" she finished lamely as Rally focused on her opponent. With a dejected sigh, the marine turned to her and grinned. "Oh well, I'll hunt him after dealing with you."

"No you won't…" she said as the marine woman took a stance.

"So bold… my name is Kalina, a direct subordinate of Captain Buso" she introduced herself as she prepared to fight. "And this is the end of the line for you" she finished as Rally grinned.

"…Laval D. Ralls. The daughter of Laval D. Sara… now let's get this started" she said as the marine woman nodded, both running towards each other as their blades clashed. Rally grunted as Kalina's katana held on much stronger than the marines she held off. Still she held her own with her sword and refused to budge.

Jaune however had long since passed the distance to hear them clash as he looked around. The place was huge but not that hard to navigate. Stairs and railings decorated the main hall as Jaune ran up the flight with Saints still in his hand. Soon enough he made his way into a new room and stopped running.

"Heh, I guess you made it in after-all. Got to say, I'm a little impressed" a man said as Jaune narrowed his eyes, aura channeling through his weapon.

"You're the captain? Buso, right?" he asked as the man laughed.

"Indeed I am. And I have been hoping to meet you in person. After what you and that woman did I wondered what kind of person you were. I didn't expect you to be an idiot however, coming straight to me and attacking my base with little-to-no backup. I'm disappointed in you" he said faking a tone of disappointment as he pulled out his sword.

Due to the man's size, the sword was longer than Jaune's, a heavier one too if he was to guess. Still he was confident as he fell into a stance. "In the name of Absolute Justice, you and that woman will be sentenced by me!" he said as he brought his sword up as it suddenly caught on fire. Jaune cursed as he blocked it with Saints, yet the flames he felts made it harder than normal to focus.

Still he managed to push the man back as Buso stumbled back. Jaune grinned despite the pain as he began his duel.

Sludge was having a horrible morning, waking up on the concrete floor and unable to make the old man break he retired to his quarters late into the night, only to be rudely awoken by word of an attack on his prison. Who in their right mind would attack a heavily armed prison? Low and behold it was none other than that woman they were looking for. She was here, and he knew why.

Ryos…

That old fool, she was going after him to break him out. With that in mind he made his way to his cell, hoping to take the man hostage and force the woman into surrender. His plan however was impossible as he realized something important. The old man was gone, his cell empty and the guards sent to watch him unconscious with their swords stolen.

Oh yes, Sludge was in a very piss-poor mood. But that would be tolerable if only one man escaped. He would send his men to that little bar of his round up the employees and maybe execute one of them to prove a point to the fool. But no, not only did that man escape but the other prisoners in that chamber did as well.

And the hard thing to answer was how they escaped. The doors were still locked, the guards only having their weapons taken, not the keys. Gripping his own sword and pistol he made his way towards the entryway. It that woman was really here then he would be ready. "Guards, respond, what is going on!" he shouted into a snail with some strange device on the shell. The snail was however deep asleep as Sludge glared at the creature before throwing it at a wall in frustration. Where were his men, what the hell was going on in his prison?

Meanwhile Ryos smiled, freed of both his cuffs and cell as he stood at the entryway with several men and women behind him. Before them were unconscious marines as several prisoners looked on in hope. Soon he spoke up with a laugh as he placed his hand on the brick wall while a tint of white spread over it. "Alright everyone, I'll be blunt. It's time for us to have a bit of a prison break. So take a weapon and fight for your freedom!" he shouted as the tint made its way to the cells.

The walls remained covered in the tint but soon some of the prisoners let out a gasp, the bars of the prison cells became fuzzy, no foggy, almost like it was water deluded with salt. No one knew what was happening until a few of the braver prisoners slowly touched them. They were unsure what to expect but when they did touch the bars, they touched only air, their hands phasing through harmlessly. Shock arose before some of the prisoners tried their arms next and then just walked out. In seconds the prisoners were free and the other men and women around Ryos threw swords and guns they had… well, borrowed from the marines.

Seeing the prisoners free, Ryos undid his ability and sighed. He was out of shape and passed his prime, his control with the Nuke-Nuke no Mi was not as well handled as it once was on the seas. Still it was something and something that brought a smile to his face. Holding up a pair of dagger in his hands, he noticed the prisoners run past him to escape, leaving him in the dark room alone.

Turning around, he made his way back to the upper stories of the prison, all while humming a nostalgic tune.

'Welcome to this mysterious bar, the Phantom Dagger's business… a place for pirates, civilians and more, welcome to the Weasel' he thought in a sing-song tone, twisting his knife and coating it in a black hue of Busoshoku Haki.

It was time to get to work...

Alright, a little shorter than normal but I digress, a lot is currently happening with both my working schedule and my normal schedule so updates are once again becoming rougher to get to. But anyways, Jaune, Rally and eventually Neo will begin their fights while Ryos is planning his own little prison break. I hope you enjoyed and have a good day or night.