The news of Shinobis being defeated by Ben spread like a wildfire , While Ben had beaten Gato's thugs before ...beating Ninjas put his reputation on a whole new level. People were very excited to see how a seemingly 13 year old was able to defy Gato's Iron clad rule and beat the crap out of his thugs, Ninjas no less! Whenever he went to work on the bridge or to the market to buy some stuff, People would keep whispering behind his back, wondering how powerful he truly was! Ben was a celebrity himself backhome, Famous throughout the whole Galaxy or Galaxies to be precise so that was just another wednesday for him. One thing made Ben worried though, Despite everything he did People still couldn't openly defy Gato. Although some workers did rejoin them but overall the effect wasn't as inspiring as he hoped.
The most positive change he saw was in Inari, He no longer made funny faces to him or openly mocked him. Which was a good start as far as him was concerned. At least the little kid seemed a lot more welcoming to his presence then he was used to be.
To be honest, even though he was still a bit of brooder, it was good to see him smile for once in awhile.
So far, The construction work was going well. They had gotten a few volunteers and their numbers were slowly increasing. Gato didn't make a move so far which made Ben a bit surprised. Big bads of that category never gave up without a dirty fight. In Fact, They kept getting more dirty and determined each time they were brought down. That was Ben's personal experience. It was possible that Gato was collecting information on him or he already set some sort of play in motion. That was really hard to tell. While it did make him a bit frustrated Ben wasn't the one to lose his patience so early. So far one thing was made clear, Ninjas had the advantage in speed, Strength, Stealth and may be techniques. Ben was limited his transformations, It could have been much worse if Paradox didn't push Azmuth to give master control on his eighteenth birthday. By now, It was also ultimately clear that Magic wasn't his thing. He could probably conjure a mana shield or a glowing ball of light, Weaker than Gwen though but it was the only spells he managed to do so far. Not because he didn't want to, Magic really didn't come to him as easy as it came to Gwen.
It was pretty annoying though. Why does it have to be only females in his family that received Anodite powers? Damn! That seemed totally uncool. It wasn't like he minded having awesome magic tricks.
They were best friends and Ben was thankful to have Gwen on his side. However, A friendly rivalry was always there and it will probably remain so. Albeit, They were grown up and didn't rub those facts into each others face (At least for most of the times).
However, God help him if she discovered all of the charms of Bezel. Even worse she might soon have the Alpha rune in her hand and in addition may be Bezel will get cured from his magic phobia and teach her all of his skills. Ben face palmed at the thought of her turning into some sort of magical god that only the likes of Way Big or Alien X would be able to face. Ben wasn't the one to sulk, He always reminded himself that His Grandfather became a legendary plumber despite being a mere human. Gwen worked for years to learn better control and magic. He on the other hand was rather by the book about all the training. Self defence classes, Soccer practice, Plumber camps and spars with the members of his team. His scopes had always been rather limited. Not anymore though, Things had changed after he got master control.
Hands stuffed deep in his forest green shorts, Ben continued to walk along the lonely path that was life; His current destination being a nice secluded place which he found after hours of wandering. Ben looked up in the sky, Grinning towards the clouds and the setting sun. After splashing some water at his face for a while, Attempting to freshen up a bit. After dunking his feet in the river for a while Ben stood up. He pulled up his sleeve, Revealing the Ultimatrix. Not the one to waste time, He reached the desired one with a few flips and finally pressed the dial. A bright glow covered his body as DNA altering process began. When the glow ended a small creature stood in Ben's stead.
It was about the height of an average human child. It had white skin, a black and white head, white face, along with black shoulders. It's hands were large with 4 digits and his feet were merely stubs. It had three fin-like growths on its head. It also has had gem-like orbs on its arms and three button-like gems on its waist. That was none other than Ben's Splixsonian alter ego Ditto. He pressed the four pronged symbol on his chest, A bright glow covered his body as he became replaced with his hyper evolved transformation Ultimate Ditto. His body grew several inches taller and its skin changed color from white to maroon while several spikes appeared on his shoulder.
Ben took a long breath as his body started pulling and twitching in weird manner, Within a few moments a look a like of him jumped out from his body. Both looked at each other and gave a nod.
Soon, Both of them stepped away from each other and tapped onto the dials on their chest. Bright green glows engulfed their body and when it died both of them transformed into something else. On Ben's stead stood a crystalline humanoid. His body is overall purple, with several dark lines and spots. His hands and face are magenta, and he also sports six magenta shards on his back, two on his chest, and one on the top of his head that resembles a horn. His face consists of a mouth and one large green eye at the center. That was none other than Ben's Crystalsapien alter ego Chromastone. While the duplicate who was facing him turned into a creature which seemed to be taken straight out of a Volcano. His body was composed of a bright yellow inner magma body covered by red rocks. His feet were a slight oval-like design with only two toes, While the Ultimatrix symbol was placed on his neck. That was one of the very first forms Ben had even turned into, Heatblast
Both aliens grinned at each other while cracking their knuckles, Pyronite was the first one to react. He used his pyrokinetic abilities to propel himself in the air and lunged at the crystalsapien like an eagle. His fists burning with fire. The crystalsapien narrowed his eyes and took a few steps back and spun around, Countering the former's superman punch with an elbow. Being the reflection of the same person Pyronite was half expecting this, He dashed in the air with a fire wielding roundhouse kick. Crystalsapien stumbled backwards as the feet made contact with his chest. Quickly sliding to his right, He grabbed the very burning foot in his knuckles Ben threw his duplicate over his head, Using its own motion against the Pyronite. Skidding across the grass, the duplicate gritted his teeth and lunged again, starting off with a fiery hook. The attack hit straight through the Crystalsapien's midsection, The strength behind it was rather incredible and Ben was sent spiralling backwards.
The duplicate rubbed his hands, The attack affecting him too due to hitting the hard skin of Crystalsapien. . Albeit, It was not more than getting hurt during a soccer match or your regular self defense classes. Besides despite being at just 45% of their original powers, Both alien transformations were remarkably durable. Even they went all Gung ho at each other, It won't be anything further a black eye or Bruises and scratches.
The crystalsapien clasped the dust from his hands and glared at his adversary, "You are one nasty bugger, Aren't you? "
The Pyronite responded with a toothy grin, " Dude! I am you, Don't cha remember? "
Ben huffed in annoyance, A ballsy duplicate. Just what he needed to practice with! He pushed himself forward using energy and sprung with a superman punch. Pyronite covered himself in a blazing hurricane made of flames, Using his ability to levitate in the air Ben took a sharp turn. Filling himself with Ultraviolet energy, He brandished his glowing palms and fired multiple bursts of energy towards the Pyronite. Said few managed hit him on chest forcing the pyronite to skid backwards. Growling in anger he lunged at the Crystalsapien, The pair clashed with one another at the center, sparks flying when the aliens slammed into the battle instrument, with both of them grappling each other before grabbing the other's wrist.
The pair kicked, kneed and parried each other as they forcefully circled on the spot. While engaged, the Crystalsapien growled as he attempted to push his opponent away, who seemingly held a clear physical advantage over him. The Pyronite smirked as he locked his jaw, delivering a devastating blow at larger alien's leg and getting him to stagger backwards even faster, pushing them out of the center. Eventually, after several feet of travel, Crystalsapien managed to bury his heels into the ground and, through melting it underneath his feet, stopped himself. Pyronite blinked in surprise as the crystalsapien's fist glowed with dangerous aura.
"Crap! Don't tell me... "
"Stone Cutter! " Crystalsapien yelled as he lunged onto the Pyronite. Performing several backflips into the air, Pyronite smashed his feet on the ground. A massive boulder emerged from underneath in a timely fashion and shielded the Pyronite from the worse. The moment Ben's fist made contact with the human sized boulder and emitted the shockwave that cracked the ground and caused both of them to wince under the pain. Both alien combatants dangerously closed into each other, Holding out their fists as if to attack each other but settling with a fistbump
"That was kinda overkill back there!" Pyronite chuckled , He added with a sigh "You nearly broke my ribs ."
"Well, I could have beaten you to pulp if I wasn't holding back. I am Ben Tennyson afterall" Crystalsapien grinned as he turned back into hyper evolved Splixson form.
"So am I!" His duplicate smiled, Already transformed into his original form. With an emerald glow, He dispersed back into his creator. An emerald glow engulfed his body once again as Ben turned back into his human form. The Ultimatrix bearer let out a groan as the aftereffects of the previous battle kicked into his human body. He was painfully exhausted and one of his eyes were swollen shut. Several bruises were evident on his shoulders and knees. A few cuts were clearly visible on his abdomen, Even his wrists were filled with scratches of all sorts. He took a long breath as he sat down under a tree, Flinching a bit due to back ache. He probably needed to catch a breath for a few moments before getting a run in as Xlr8 or Wildvine to heal his injuries.
"It's good to see you haven't lost your edge! " An elderly voice said. Ben blinked and turned around so quickly that it almost snapped his neck. Not even bothering to reach out to his Gauntlet, Ben yelled
"Xlr8"
A bright emerald glow covered his body and he became replaced by something other than human. The creature resembled a semi-armored Velociraptor. He had black wheels on his feet and wears a helmet, leaving the other features of his head unknown. He had a blue face with green eyes, black lips, and stripes above and on the right side of his eyes. He also had two spikes on his back. That was none other than his kineceleran alter ego Xlr8
A man walked behind the bushes, He was tall and muscular. There was no detail to his face since he purposely stood in the darkness of a huge oak tree.
"Who are you? " Ben clenched his fists, Ready to take on the Unknown threat within a millisecond.
"You don't know me but I know you, Ben Tennyson " The man stepped forward. Ben's eyes glowed with menacing pink aura as he brandished his claw
"Take one more step and it will be the last step of your life! " Ben threatened
"My name is Hamura Otsutsuki and this world is in danger! " The man spoke as he stood out in light. Ben's eyes widened as he glanced at the human's unusual features. He was a tall and pale-skinned man with hairless brow ridges and white hair, which grew to waist-length. His bangs were short hung to left side of his face with a chin-length lock which hung from the right side of his face. He also had small, horn-like protrusions on his forehead, The most notable feature was his eyes... Which were characterised by blue pupils and irides which contained a white, floral pattern.
"Please allow me to explain, I mean you no harm! " The man pleaded, He took out something out of his sleeves. It was some sort of pocket watch. However once Ben took a close look, His eyes widened in shock. It was the Chrono navigator. It was a powerful technology that allowed the user to travel through space-time including the past, present and future without getting lost. It could also allow a being to access alternate timelines, alternate realities and dimensions. Its one and only owner was Professor Paradox, Who used to call it GPS for Multiverse.
"Alright, Mr Stranger! I am pretty sure you know what this is." Ben threatened, pointing at the glowing image of his To'kustar alter ego Waybig emerging behind his back " So the explaining part needs to start, Now! "
"It's broken and doesn't work anymore. A friend of mine gave that to me, The one you call Paradox! " Hamura explained stoically
"That's impossible! He had been murdered, I saw it with my own eyes" Ben snapped in outrage, Feeling anger bursting up inside of him.
"There are Universes where the rules of space and time are too complicated , Which make them out of anyone's reach. The one you call Maltruant managed to banish Paradox in one of those Universes. Rest assured he is still very much breathing and soon he will be able to break out from there! " Hamura let out a chuckle as he handed over the broken Chrono navigator to Ben, Ben sighed in relief.
At least, Paradox was still out there and as long as the time walker was alive, Ben can find a way back home.
"So Did you come here to send me back home? I really need to take care of a little problem before I even think about returning to my place! " Ben raised an eyebrow.
"I don't possess the power to send you back, I may be able to transcend through the wall of time but accessing the Multiverse are beyond my reach! " Hamura responded in a monotonous voice
"Alright, Mr Otsutsuki! What can I do for you? I don't think you stopped by to say hello, Do you? " Ben asked in a casual tone.
"You have a very long way to go before you can even think about that, Benjamin! The greatest battle of your life awaits you. Prepare yourself, The legendary Ben 10, Darkness is coming to take over this world. If you were to fail, Your home will be next! " Hamura spoke cryptically
"You mean to say I am about to face someone worse than all those people I faced in my entire life." Ben dumbfounded, adding with an raised eyebrow, "Including that douchebag Maltruant?"
"That's something you have to figure out yourself but considering the path you might end up taking in the future, your ideals will most likely compel you to become a great obstacle to that being's schemes ."
"What schemes to be exact? What is this new villain planning?"
"That much you have to figure out yourself. I can't help you with that but I can give you something, a mere tool which may help you with your future endeavors." Hamura spoke out with a mysterious smile as an glowing orb of energy shot forth from his palms and entered inside the four pronged symbol situated on his chest. Before Ben could figure out what was going on, The symbol popped up. Letting out a magnificent glow, bathing in a dazzling display of cerulean lights, forcing Ben to bring up an arm in order to shield his eyes.
"DNA scan complete. New transformation is available for use."
A robotic voice echoed inside his ears and once the glow receded, he could clearly make out a silhouette of a muscular pale humanoid before it faded into the background. He looked in front of him, hoping to ask Hamura what exactly he meant to give him, The strange man had already vanished into thin air, leaving no trace of him behind.
The Ultimatrix bearer let out a sigh, even Paradox's friends tended to be as much annoying as him
Ben glanced at the Chrono Navigator on his hand for a moment, A smile formed on his lips as felt the word "Gumballs " engraved on its lower part. He closed his eyes for a brief moment and tucked it inside his utility belt. He let out a groan, It won't surprise him even a little bit if all of this turned out to be a part of Paradox's large elaborate scheme. Well, Ben always had doubts about his "death". Meeting this horned guy just confirmed his suspicions.
And he got a riddle of the lifetime, Which could very well be his last one... Hallelujah!
He let out a sigh, Getting stuck in a dimension filled with mythical ninjas and a premonition about a brand new super baddie who was going to take over the world. Well for such Ben Tennyson, This happened to be just another wednesday!
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The overcast sky had cleared leaving them able to walk in the sunlight, but the humid conditions weren't much better.
It's so hot, and wet, and moist, and sticky! And I hate it!
Ben huffed in annoyance, He was not the one to be deterred by the weather of all things. At least not after everything he had faced in his life. Now Being a celebrity he was used to a certain lifestyle. A day starting with light jogging and Gym, Drills with Plumber Units , Modelling and Acting gigs, Promoting Soccer amongst global Alien community etc. It was rather painful to break away from his scheduled lifestyle. Working as a construction worker and sleeping on the ground inside a Futon were not on the top of his " to do" lists. He was used to glamour and style-ish sort of stuff. However, He had a lot more things to do other than feeling homesick.
It was honestly surprising just how bustling and crowded the place was with such obvious poverty, even while a rather robust man chanted over and over, seemingly completely oblivious to his surroundings, "Anything you need you can find it at the market!"
It tugged at his heart and he wished he could do something more, The only consolation he allowed himself was the fact that the vendors did not despise the little ones asking for food and he actually spotted a few caving to the younger children here and there. Ben thought about taking his frustration out on Gato's thugs, Unfortunately he didn't know their main Headquarters. They were ignoring their usual hangout places due to obvious fear of yours truly. Ben reminded himself that he wasn't sitting idle, He was helping the people tasked with building hope. He started walking towards his current base of residence, Tazuna's home. Ben was currently tasked with bringing lunches for workers and he didn't want to be late.
As he reached Tazuna's home, He realized the door was really open. Inari waved at him from the table while Tsunami rushed towards kitchen to prepare meals. As she was filling the containers, She asked all of a sudden with her back turned to him.
"How many? "
"How many people showed up today? " She elaborated further
Ben thought for a moment, To be honest he didn't pay that much attention towards the work going on. The number lodged on the tip of his tongue did not sound like the right one, yet it must be somewhat close.
"Excluding me and the old man, Around seventeen I guess! "
Her shoulders sagged and a soft sigh escaped her as she went about bagging the meals for him. "I was expecting worse but I guess that beatdown of ninjas had some effect! " When she turned and handed them to him there was a sad smile tugging at her lips. "Would you believe me if I said there was once over fifty people working on that bridge? The pay isn't much, so we try and feed some of the workers, too, when we can," she admitted with a swish of navy hair. "Some worked just for that meal what with the prices of food, but now that isn't even worth it to some – the risk is too high, they say."
"You know, I can number anywhere from one to a thousand, yeah? Even if everyone else stop working, I'll keep working till my hands are bloody, feet are blistered and the bridge is done" Ben spoke with a confident grin. The small kid brightened at hearing this. He walked over to the Ultimatrix bearer and poked his ribs.
"Yay! Ben can single-handedly finish the entire bridge if he has to"
Ben ruffed the little kid's hair and spoke out with a hearty laugh, "And if Gato doesn't die from heart attack after seeing your Grampa's bridge, I am going to kick his tiny arse over to the Moon's surface!"
Tsunami's eyes grew wide at that statement. If it was anyone else she would have yelled at them to get that idea out of his head, and never think anything along those lines ever again. After all, the last time she heard those words, she became a widow. Yet, When it came to Ben she couldn't bring herself to think along those lines, Especially after what he had done for them so far. Whenever she looked at the young plumber, Instead of seeing the eyes of a child -inexperience, cockiness, a headstrong gleam- she saw all the traits that belonged to her late husband –confidence, maturity, a hard shine that said "I will see this through". She dropped her head and gave a sigh.
"…Ben-kun?" She questioned softly.
Ben gulped and grew nervous, thinking that she might cry. "Dammit, you shouldn't have said anything Tennyson !- …Yes?"
She then looked up with a soft smile on her face, small pools of tears in her eyes "Be safe."
Ben was stunned for a moment, before he smiled in turn and gave a two finger salute, "Yes ma'am!" He then turned and started running to town.
Tsunami watched him leave, and then looked up towards the sky, "Watch over this boy Kaiza. Maybe he will be able to see your wish through."
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Ben made full use of the unbelievable strength of his transformations , Today he didn't shy away from using Four Arms and Humungousaur . Surprising everyone by moving thousand pound beams and multi-ton slabs of concrete, made the week or two before. Even though Ben had beaten Ninjas and Gato's thugs before, This was an entire new thing for the crew who just joined Tazuna. Everyone had been amazed at the boy's sheer muscle power and control when he'd lifted a three or four thousand pound slab and set it gently in its place, where the building crew had been forced to attack it like a hive of bees.
"What would I do without you , Boy? " Tazuna chuckled while staring mournfully at the incomplete structure. Thanks to the Ultimatrix bearer's help they were about about 60% done with this thing. And it just occurred to him that his dream could finally be fulfilled.
"You are not doing much with me around here, Either" Ben stretched his arms with a yawn
"What do you mean by that? " Tazuna dumbfounded
"Despite of what seemed like our victory back there, Gato still remains at large. I know that I could probably take on most if not all of Gato's thugs without so much as a scratch. What I do not know, however, is whether or not Gato had hired any psychotic ninja that were hiding until needed." Ben spoke out in a serious tone, "Its a complicated situation and it indicates that Gato has an advantage over me. " He added with fire in his eyes
"From the outside, Gato's business is completely legitimate, and he undoubtedly covers his tracks well. He also has an enormous amount of clout with many feudal lords due to his tried to get help from Kirigakure some years ago, but Gatou's company has enormous stake in the Mist's economy due to the environment and shipping. We were turned away pretty forcefully." Tazuna replied with disappointment in his voice, " I can go to Konoha but still we don't have the money to hire ninja for such an expensive job. We might have enough for armed escorts!"
"I could use some distraction!" Ben spoke in a casual tone, "You can always say you are the Village's most skilled carpenter and everyone knows that the forests are filled with dangerous animals and bandits! "
Tazuna's eyes widened
"…You want me to…lie to people that could easily kill me…with their pinkies."
"Look Old man! You gotta take some risk for Christ's sake. May be I am being paranoid and Gato doesn't have resources to hire some more powerful ninjas. But I can't protect the workers and your family at the same time. He can kidnap Tsunami or Inari and blackmail you into poisoning me or killing me in the sleep! "
"Don't you start blabbering things like that! " Tazuna chided, "Besides How can I lie to Ninjas? That's too risky! "
"Act like a drunk hermit, Make yourself reek with so much Alcohol that they don't bother you asking any questions. I can tell you from my very experience that No one bothers with a drunkard! " Ben explained with a casual smile.
"I wish more people believed in you, You know! Its so damn frustrating to see how far Gato's fear is deep rooted in people's mind" Tazuna spoke in morbid, He added with a sigh " It clearly shows how far people's spirits have broken. To give up now would tarnish Kaiza's memory and your efforts in helping us" He nodded with conviction in his voice, " I may not survive this, hell, as soon as those ninja find out I'm lying to them they might kill me on the spot. But I'd rather die doing something to make things better, to help my family, than hiding like a coward." He gave a short sigh followed by a sharp nod, "In a week I'll be heading to Konoha to get those ninja."
"Great, I'll pack my bags."
"…What?"
"What 'what'? I'm going with you."
Tazuna shook his head "No, you're staying here. The Workers' morale is increasing each and every day. Your absence will affect that and halt the Bridge's construction. Besides with you gone Inari and Tsunami's lives will be at risk. "
Ben was about to protest but soon realized that their plan wouldn't mean anything if Tazuna's family got killed in the crossfire or even worse Every worker working on the Bridge got slaughtered. Tazuna's eyes flashed with a rare show of determination , He spoke out with a soft smile " You know what Ben, and you're a good kid. If this goes south, I'm glad I met you."
The Ultimatrix bearer let out a chuckle, "Now now don't make me cry, Gramps! I have work to do and so do you. You also have to let Tsunami know about our plan, Good luck with it! " He added with a grin as he returned back to work.
Tazuna let out a sigh, His hope might have been restored but he still needed to prepare himself for a lecture of lifetime. Well anything for the freedom of the Wave.
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This is it. If you have any suggestions for Ben's first encounter with Team 7 and Zabuza then please let me know in the reviews. Ta da