Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or One Piece.
Chapter 3
Unlike when Drago and his men showed up on the island of Katabami when the Big Mom Pirates arrived on their Singing Ship there was no resistance from the townsfolk. Even people of the South Blue had heard stories of Big Mom and her infamous crew and knew better than to resist. So when members of the Yonko's crew demanded that they surrender their weapons to them they relented immediately.
It was only when he was able to see them up close did Naruto truly appreciate how strange Big Mom's crew was. Members ranged from Fishpeople, longlegs, longarms, and if he wasn't mistaken a talking lion wearing shades and a suit. When all of the weapons were confiscated the Big Mom pirates kneeled and urged them to do the same.
Then Naruto began to hear the sound of heavy footsteps coming closer and a strong pressure in the air that nearly took his breath away. When Naruto first laid eyes on the pirate captain Charlotte Linlin his first thought was how he had never seen someone so huge in his entire life. His own father who was 6 feet tall would have not even reached Big Mom's waist. Big Mom was a large, obese, and buxom woman with a very wide mouth and full lips covered in deep red lipstick. Unlike a stereotypical pirate Big Mom wore a pink dress with red polka dots, a black cape, and bicorne captain's hat.
"Pekoms, Tamago where are those traitors!" Yelled the large woman, her voice echoing with authority.
"Here they are Mama." Responded two of her crewman; one a man with long legs whose pants looked like an egg and the other being the talking lion.
They were dragging the chained Drago pirates behind them with each man looking like they were heading to the pits of hell.
"Please show us mercy we were only following our captain's orders." One of the men pleaded.
"And where is your captain now I wonder?" Asked the Yonko.
"He died during our raid of this island." Another chained pirate confessed.
"Well I guess that changes everything. As long as that bastard is dead I guess I can find it in my heart to forgive you lot." She said her personality doing a complete 180.
"You could?" The men asked hopefully.
"Of course you just need to answer this one question."
"Anything Big Mom!"
"Life or Treat?!"
"WHAT?"
"It's pretty simple I'll forgive you and spare your lifes if you give me a good enough treat to make up for it."
"We don't have any treats but we do have lots of gold on our ship." Stated one of the pirates hoping for some form of compromise.
The minute those words left the pirates mouth the unseen pressure from before returned but with even more force. It was so strong that weaker townsfolk and children began to pass out. The captured pirates also began to release a strange cloud-like substance from their bodies.
"Now that's unacceptable! I can't eat treasure and if you don't have any sweet candy I guess you all chose life." She told them before lifting one of her hands, grabbing the clouds, and ripping them from their bodies. After the clouds were severed the men dropped to the ground like puppets with their strings cut; the life completely drained from their eyes.
With the trash disposed of Charlotte Linlin turned to address the townspeople.
"Okay now that those pests are handled I want to know which of you killed El Drago?"
-X-X-X-
At this point Naruto was sweating bullets. If Big Mom's reputation as a Yonko wasn't enough to scare him then her recent display of power definitely was.
'Who in the world has the power to kill 15 men without even touching them?'
Not to mention how she did it so casually like she was swatting a fly.
'Now she wants me.' He thought while looking around at the equally scared faces of the townspeople. Innocent people who would face this monster of a woman's wrath if he didn't confess what he did.
'Oh well 13 years old is not a terrible age to die.' He thought, lying to himself.
"It was me I killed him." He confessed walking out of the crowd so that he could face Big Mom head on. The fact he had to tilt his neck upwards to look her in the face however was not helping.
"You, a child, killed El Drago I find that hard to believe."
"I tricked him with gold and was able to attack him when his guard was down. He didn't take me seriously until it was too late." Naruto told her knowing how crazy it sounded that a 13 year old boy could kill a grown man like Drago.
"Mamamama! Serves the fool right I tried to tell him his love of gold would get him killed one day."
"Listen kid I can't hate you for killing Drago he was attacking your town and you were defending it. However he wasn't yours to kill and doing so before I could properly punish him is an insult to my reputation." Big Mom explained to Naruto whose head was down waiting for the killing blow.
"However I am merciful so I'll extend to you the same deal I gave those other pirates, Life or Treat? The choice is yours."
...
...
"He chooses treat!" Yelled Granny Sansho running towards Naruto's side. Before Naruto could voice his complaints about Sansho getting involved she cut him off.
"Naruto here works for my restaurant where we have a dessert so delicious it'll make your head spin. So will that be proper compensation for his life?"
"Oh is that so? Okay, bring me this dessert and if it is as delicious as you say then I'll spare this boy's life and leave this island peacefully."
-X-X-X-
(Curry of Life Shop)
"What the hell is your problem Granny?!" Naruto screamed shaking the old woman like a rag doll.
"What do you mean what's my problem kid I just saved your life!" Sansho yelled back butting her forehead against Naruto's.
"How by lying to one of the strongest pirates in the world. You promised her an out of this world dessert when you and I both know all you know how to make is curry."
That declaration seemed to hit home with Sansho who turned crestfallen and began looking at the floor.
"What was I supposed to do let you die for helping save this town. Your like a grandson to me." She said tearing up at the end.
'Nice going Naruto you just spit in the face of the closest person you have to family left. All she wanted to do was stop someone she cares about from throwing their life away and I yell at her for it.' He thought hating himself for being so dumb.
"I'm sorry Granny Sansho. I appreciate what you did for me I just didn't want you or anyone else getting involved. Don't worry we'll find a way to get out of this. You are one of the greatest chefs in the world and if you can make a dessert half as amazing as your curry then we'll be fine." Naruto said wrapping the old women in a hug in order to calm both of their worries.
"Thank you Naruto-chan I needed that. Now let's get cooking!" She exclaimed putting on her chef's hat in preparation. They had a dessert of a lifetime to make and they couldn't afford to fail.
(4 Hours Later)
It took the help of five of Big Mom's men in order to carry the giant bowl of dessert from the Curry of Life Shop to town square where the impatient Yonko was waiting.
Naruto approached her with as much courage as he could muster.
"Thank you for waiting. Now I present to you Granny Sansho's signature dessert The Sundae of Life Special!" He exclaimed as he pointed to the bowl containing the monster of a sundae.
The mountain of ice cream that got Big Mom drooling was a mixture of light green and dark red covered in chocolate sauce, whip cream, and a gigantic spoon to top it off.
"It looks promising." She told them before grabbing the big spoon and taking her first bite of sundae. Sansho was watching her facial expressions, praying she would like the dish. Naruto however was charging a Voice Missile attack in case she didn't like it and he could at least get in a cheap shot before he was killed.
"It's so, so Ahhhhhhh!" Big Mom yelled as her mouth alternated between releasing streams of fire and cold wind almost as if she was some form of elemental dragon.
"Mama!" Yelled her crew in concern readying their weapons to kill the brat and old bag they believed had poisoned their leader while Naruto was seconds away from releasing his sound attack before Big Mom's face morphed from one of pain and agony to extreme pleasure.
"It's so, so, so AMAZING!" she finished with a yell, a big smile nearly splitting her face in two. In the blink of an eye she continued to shovel mouthfuls of Sansho's special sundae until not a drop was left.
"Why thank you Yonko-sama." Granny Sansho said blushing happy her dish was so positively received, and just like that the tense nearly murderous atmosphere from before was gone and replaced with a friendly one.
"I haven't had a dessert that good in years. The hot and cool flavor was delicious, you must tell me the recipe." She demanded while rubbing her full stomach in contentment.
"It's pretty simple me and Naruto-chan decided to mix ice cream with my signature Curry of Life powder and balance it out with super cool mint ice cream." Explained the chef, beaming with pride that their act of desperation was able to pay off so spectacularly.
"Genius, an offering this great deserves a celebration. Men release the civilians it's time for a Tea Party!"
-X-X-X-
The Big Mom pirates and the Katabami villagers partied into the late night.
The villagers and pirates sang and drank as if they were old friends with Big Mom in the center of it drinking sake and having seconds, thirds, and even fourths of Sansho's new dessert creation.
Members of Big Mom's crew even volunteered to rebuild the businesses that were burned down in El Drago's raid.
'The looks on the shopkeepers' faces when they laid eyes on their new shops made entirely of candy was priceless.' Naruto thought finishing his fourth plate of candy given to him by one of Big Mom's sons. He was a tall and slim man with a long tongue and a strange devil fruit power that let him turn anything into candy.
"Boy Big Mom wants to talk to you." Another pirate told Naruto as he lead him towards the town square where the Yonko was sitting on her candy throne.
"Naruto-boy I want you to join my crew." She said not seeing the point of beating around the bush. This declaration froze Naruto with those words being the last thing he would expect to come out of her mouth.
"Excuse me."
"You heard me right boy my crew and I are leaving this island in the morning and I want you to come with us." Speaking to the blonde as if he was a complete idiot.
"Why?"
"Well for one you have Drago's devil fruit ability which I've been interested in acquiring for some time now."
"Wait how did you know that?" He asked, wondering if she could read his mind. He had been careful to avoid the topic of the devil fruit when describing Drago's death in order to have some form of a trump card in case things turned bad.
'She knew the whole time. How?' He was racking his brain for any mistakes he made in his story.
"Don't worry about it kid I can't read your mind or anything. I didn't know you'd acquired his powers until you thought of attacking me when I was trying your boss's lovely dessert." She said casually like she was talking about the weather and not a possible threat on her life.
"Wait how did you.."
"Intuition my boy you don't get to be a pirate for as long as I have without being able to detect attacks a mile away." Explained Linlin, telling him a half truth since she didn't expect a 13 year old to understand the complexities of Haki.
"Oh Okay."
"So how about it Naruto do you want to travel the seas free under my banner or not?" She asked while extending her large hand to the blonde 13 year old.
He stared at her hand for what felt like hours. Was this really happening to him? In one day he had killed a man, eaten a Devil Fruit, met a Yonko, and now that same Yonko was asking him to join her crew. He knew this wasn't a decision he could make lightly. If he agreed and joined Big Mom he knew he'd likely never see Katabami island again and that would mean no more Granny Sansho.
'I could always ask her to come with me.' He thought lamely knowing that would never happen. Sansho had been born on this island and he knew better than anyone how heartbroken she'd be if she had to leave it and her shop behind.
Naruto however couldn't relate. While he did carry a certain fondness for the island of his birth but other than his pseudo-grandmother he had nothing keeping him here. His father, God rest his soul, was long dead and he never really connected with any of the kids his own age. While they dreamed of taking over their parents' shops or becoming poets he'd always dreamed of a life of excitement and travel on the open sea somewhere.
'I'll never get a chance like this again. I can't pass this up.' Naruto thought as he grabbed Charlotte Linlin's huge hand and shook it while giving her his signature Uzumaki smile.
"Yes I'd love to sail under you Capta... I mean Mom."
-X-X-X-
(4 Years Later Location: Seducing Woods On Whole Cake Island)
"Come on Naru why don't you want to play hide-n-seek with me?" Asked a 9 year old girl with light hair and pigtails who was giving a cute glare to the older blonde.
"We've been over this Pudding my job is to be your guardian not your playmate." Exclaimed the blonde for what felt like the umpteenth time.
The 4 years spent under Big Mom proved good to Naruto who now at the age of 17 stood at 6'2 with a good amount of muscle on him. Much to his displeasure he was forced by Tamago to wear a black suit highlighted with Big Mom's favorite color pink. It was only through kicking and screaming on his part that he wasn't required to wear that damn tie to go with it.
"Come on just one game won't kill you would it? I promise not to tell Mama." She begged while giving him her best puppy dog eyes.
"Yea one game won't kill me but if I take my eyes off you for one second and you get hurt your mom definitely will. Remember what happened last time?" Naruto said pointing to the 3 horizontal scars on both his cheeks. He got those last year when Pudding wandered off and decided to try and make friends with a wild tiger that wanted to make her its lunch.
"It was an accident I thought it was friendly." She said lamely looking at her feet in shame.
Naruto affectionately rubbed her head not wanting to make the younger girl sad.
"I know you did I just need you to understand that it's my job to look after you and I really don't want you to get hurt Pudding." He said in order to try and lighten her spirits.
Charlotte Pudding still looked down sadly hating that memory and the fact her foolishness had gotten Naruto hurt. Even though he said differently Naruto for years now had been a constant playmate and companion for her and a lot of the younger Charlotte children close to his age.
"Come on Pudding enough moping how about we have a race to see who can make it to the end of the forest faster." He suggested as he gave himself an early start while keeping Pudding within looking distance.
"Hey that's cheating!" The 9 year old whined, running at top speed in order to catch up, which Naruto easily let her do.
He made sure the race was neck and neck until they passed one of the many Seducing Wood bridges and a large creature bursts through the water with a roar.
"Eeekkk!" Screamed Pudding as she hid behind Naruto for protection who for some reason had a blank expression on his face.
"Hello Praline what is it?" Asked the blonde in a monotone voice to the creature that revealed itself to be a female mermaid.
"Oh Naruto your no fun." Pouted the now named Praline. Charlotte Praline was Big Mom's 29th daughter and a hammerhead shark mermaid.
"Big Sis why can't you ever say hello like a normal person?" Pudding whined sick of her older sister's explosive entrances always scaring her half to death.
"It's in my nature little sister and I have to make sure your little bodyguard is on his toes. I would hate for you to get hurt because blondie over here was getting lazy." She teased, hoping to get a rise out of her or Naruto.
"Naruto isn't lazy! He's a great guardian and would never let me get hurt!" Pudding said hotly. If there was one thing Pudding was sure enough to bet her life on it was Naruto's willingness to put his own wellbeing on the line to protect any member of the Charlotte family.
"Calm down Pudding I was only playing." Praline joked always loving being able to get underneath her baby sister's skin.
"Anyway Praline is there a reason your here?" Naruto asked interrupting their sisterly banter.
"Oh yea I almost forgot Pekkoms, Tamago, and Brûlée are preparing for an Ingredient Hunt and they asked for you personally.
Ingredient Hunting was a common activity for the Big Mom pirates created in response to the Charlotte matriarch's unique eating disorder. In random intervals Mom would become obsessed with a particular food or dish and would throw a tantrum if she didn't get it. What really made this disorder so scary was that the amount of time between when she'd request her food and go nuts was completely random. Sometimes she could wait days while others waiting anything more than five minutes would result in a small town being completely leveled.
"Wait Naruto you can't go now you promised to take me to Cacao Island and try my new chocolate recipe." Complained the teen, hating the idea of time with her best friend being cut short.
"I'm sorry Pudding but this must be important if they asked for me. Anyway look at the bright side if I find an ingredient that's super delicious I can bring it back here and you could add it to your chocolate recipes." He told her knowing that would entice the young chocolatier.
"Really you mean it?" She asked hopefully.
"Of course you know Naruto Uzumaki never breaks his promises."
-X-X-X-
"So what ingredient are we looking for this time Captain Humpty Dumpty?" Naruto joked using his personal nickname for the long-legged, egg wearing pirate currently steering the ship.
"It's a high class ingredient said to have gone extinct, the legendary Rainbow Fruit-bon." Tamago explained.
"Wait but if it's extinct then what makes you think we can find it?"
"Said to be and actually extinct are two completely different things Naruto remember that. Through our black market contacts we've heard rumors that the Rainbow Fruits are native to a particular island in the Isle of Biotopes where they're being coveted by wild beasts called Troll Kongs." He explained to the 17 year old.
The Isle was a natural phenomenon in the New World where over thirty seasonal islands of various sizes where drawn together in one electromagnetic-rich region where they shifted around one another randomly.
"See that's where you come in Naruto as our crews' human radar its gonna be your job to guide us through this island maze and detect which island those loud apes are on." Said a new voice that belonged to a tall female that was affectionately rubbing Naruto's scarred face with her long nails. Big Mom's 8th daughter Charlotte Brûlée was a woman that towered over Naruto and had a dark nose, light hair, and a prominent scar that stretched across her face.
'Figures sometimes I feel like just an overgrown metal detector.' Naruto thought bitterly since aside from being the occasional guardian/playmate to the Charlotte children this was his main role on the crew.
You see ever since he stepped foot on her ship Big Mom had been pushing Naruto to unlock the hidden potential of his fruit. The process was slow going seeing how the first year of having it all he could do was vaguely hear things yards away and launch sound beams that tended to hurt his vocal cords when used too often. Now he could detect enemies over 200 miles away and get a rough number of how many there were, putting all Observation Haki user under Big Mom's banner to shame.
He learned to do this by training himself to be able to release continuous harmless sound waves that bounced sonigraphic images in his head. It was a technique he liked to call...
"Echolocation: Echo Map!," he yelled as he released several bursts of sound that reflected off the sea and formed a grid-like mental map of the ocean around him.
Following his directions to the letter Naruto and the rest of the Rainbow Fruit search party landed onto a summer forest covered island that they were positive had the Rainbow Fruit they were seeking.
-X-X-X-
The small retrieval party of Naruto, Tamago, Brûlée, Pekkoms, and about 10 other Big Mom pirates had disembarked and were tredding through the islands forest when Naruto stopped midstep.
"What is it Naruto Gaohh?" Pekoms asked with his signature verbal quirk.
...
...
"Everyone scatter!" Yelled the blonde causing the group of just over a dozen pirates to immediately jump away from their current spot. Their trust in the Uzumaki's words of warning proved justified when the forest path they were just taking erupted in a fiery explosion that would have blown them sky high.
It only took a minute for the small party to find themselves surrounded by their would be killers; a large number of men wearing black suits that were armed to the teeth.
"Big Mom Pirates that was a warning shot this is your last chance to leave this place peacefully. This island has just been discovered by Cipher Pol 8 and by extinction is property of the Celestial Dragons and World Government!" Yelled the leader of the division; a tall man with dark black hair wearing a fancy all white business suit that seemed to scream the fact he was a cocky asshole.
'Bullshit.' Naruto thought knowing that without his devil fruit enhanced hearing that attack would have killed them.
"Cipher Pol 8 I've heard of you bunch. Your cell in particular is known for being the personal servants to the Celestial Dragons, how sad. Is that the reason you fools are hear to take the rainbow fruit to your owners?" Brûlée asked in a condescending voice just having to look into the cipher commanders eyes to see she was right on the money.
"How dare you the 8th Cipher Pol are the respected personal guards to the World Nobles. Not like I expect filthy pirates like yourselves to understand. Men kill them all!" Ordered the now red faced captain confidently, thinking his large force of 100 trained CP8 agents would be enough to take on the inferior pirate force.
-X-X-X-
"Voice Missile!" Naruto screamed blasting away another five CP8 agents that were replaced with another 6.
"This is such a waste of time they keep on coming." Complained Charlotte Brûlée who was as untouched as she was when the battle started. Her mirror powers reflected all attacks against her back towards their users.
"Agreed-bon." Added Tamago as he used his enormous legs to kick away agents like soccerballs and anyone of them who got too close met the end of his cane.
"These guys are just fodder they're trying to stall us in order to swipe the fruit from under us Gaohh!" Pekoms growled sending another CP8 agent flying with a powerful blow to the ribs.
"Hey guys I got a plan why don't we play some games." Naruto offered while dodging a clumsy punch from another CP agent and knocking him unconscious with a strong right hook.
The three veteran pirates seemed to understand what he meant if the smiles on their face were any indication.
With no words needing to be spoken between them Pekoms ran towards Tamago while shifting into his closed shell turtle form.
Tamago threw back one of his long legs and kicked Pekoms shell like a soccer ball, aiming him at the unsuspecting CP8 agents.
Tortue tir de football (French Translation: Turtle Soccer Shot)
While Pekoms' body was clearing a path of fallen bodies Naruto ran into the mirror Brûlée created in her outstretched hands.
Taking a stance she flung the hand sized mirror containing the Uzumaki with all her might sending the blonde through the previously cleared path of agents and deeper into the island's forest.
Mirror-Mirror Flying Disk
-X-X-X-
Naruto flew through the forest for what felt like minutes until the mirror he was inside of shattered setting him free but also making him fall to the ground face first.
"Ugghh I'll never get used to that move." He complained rubbing the dirt off his face and using a quick Echo Map to find out which part of the forest Brûlée threw him into.
'Okay I'm in the northwest section of the biotope and to the east of here there is a large pack of creatures surrounded a tree of some kind. That must be the Troll Kong colony and the tree their guarding must be the one that grows the Ranibow Fruits.' Thought Naruto as he made his way towards the eastern part of the island where his price waited.
'Just get in and out and this mission is over.'
Naruto was confident that with his powers guiding him he could avoid the Kongs all together.
'What could possible go wrong?'
(30 Minutes Later)
"Okay everything, everything could go wrong!" Naruto screamed dodging another boulder thrown at him by a Troll Kong; a four armed gorilla like beasts 15 feet tall with green fur and pink skin.
'Note to self a Troll Kongs sense of smell beats out super hearing everyday of the week.' Mentally he was kicking himself for overestimated his own abilities and getting himself in this mess in the first place.
Naruto jumped putting himself right into the one of the Troll Kongs faces before delivering his counterattack.
"Voice Burst!" Screamed the young pirate as he realeased a sonic blast similar to Voice Missile but with a much wider diameter that covered the Troll Kings entire body with red sonic energy.
Not even having to look at the fried corpse of the beast he had just slain Naruto continued running further up the large cliff where he could see the tree that held the multicolored fruit he wanted.
'I've got to get these guys off my back otherwise they'll have me surrounded.'
"I got it Weak Point Voice!" He screamed, releasing a high pitched wail that seemed to agitated the pursuing Troll Kongs enough to force them to hold their ears and flee.
"Yes you better run you overgrown chimps Naruto Uzumaki is always prepared." Naruto gloated, making faces at the retreating Troll Kongs and approaching the Rainbow Fruit tree.
"Now all I have to do is cut down a few of these bad boys and bring them back to the gang and get off this shitty island. They should be finished handling those CP8 goons by now."
...
'Oh come on.' Naruto thought before jumping back to avoid the attack that he knew was coming.
"Rankyaku! (Storm Leg)!" Yelled an unknown voice before a blue blade of air carved a groove into the ground where Naruto once stood.
"That's far enough brat I can't deny that Devil fruit power was useful for getting rid of all those apes but those fruits still belong to CP8." Said a man who through closer inspection Naruto realized was the white suit wearing commander of CP8 along with four of his other men. With the numerous cuts and bruises they had covering their bodies and the bloodstains visible on all their clothes Naruto could safely assume the battle between them and his nakama didn't end in their favor.
"Let me guess your guys were getting crushed by my friends and you being the brave leader and loyal lapdogs you are abandoned your other comrades and followed me so you guys could steal the fruit and sail away like cowards."
"It was a tactical retreat you little shit!" Yelled one of the CP8 agents angrily not being able to stand being talked down to by a boy not even in his twenties.
"I don't expect a snot nosed kid like you to understand cipher pol tactics. Call us whatever you want it still won't change the fact you're going to die here and we're taking the Rainbow Fruit for ourselves." Threatened the Cipher commander who drew an ornate cutlass from his hip while his underlings drew their own weapons. They then used Soru to surround Naruto and kill him with a group attack.
'If there is one thing in this world I can't stand its overconfident people like these guys.' Naruto thought taking in a humongous breath that made his chest swell to epic proportions.
"Don't ever get cocky!" He yelled, releasing an unbelievably loud scream that blasted in all directions.
"Voice Bazooka!"
-X-X-X-
"Three cheers for Naruto for acquiring the Rainbow Fruit! Gaohh!" Said Pekoms raising his mug of liquor in celebration followed by the cheering of the pirate partygoers.
The blonde himself was the center of the celebrations despite the fact his once clean suit was now in shreds and he had light bruises covering his body.
'That CP8 commander threw a hell of a right hook.' Naruto thought sipping his mug of alcohol to dull the slight pain in his jaw from his fight against men from the 8th Cipher Pol.
Lucky for him the men weren't too much for the Uzumaki to handle and when the last of the men were defeated Brûlée, Pekoms, Tamago, and the rest of the search party were able to make it to the Rainbow Fruit tree and help him load them onto the ship.
Which leads us to now on Whole Cake island where Big Mom threw a Celebration Tea Party in honor of the search party's successful Ingrediant Hunt and of course to make a feast of her new dessert.
It turns out the Rainbow Fruit got its name not from its colorful appearance but from its juices that when evaporated formed a little rainbow.
The female Yonko's high class chefs were not only able to turn the famous fruits into a humongous gelatin the size of a house that Big Mom was currently devouring but also make a strong fruit cocktail that Naruto and the majority of the other crewman were currently guzzling down.
Knowing that now was as good a time as any given the good mood she was in Naruto finished chugging the rest of his cocktail and approached the large cluster of dinning tables where the Charlotte family was eating.
"Excuse me for interrupting your meal Mama but there is something I must talk to you about." Naruto said respectfully giving the Yonko a serious look that unnerved Pudding who was trying to attract the blonde's attention.
"What is it Naru-boy?" Asked Big Mom half listening more concerned with the delicious gelatin in front of her.
"Mom I've been apart of your crew for 4 years now and..."
"Has it been that long? It just seems like yesterday that you were a 13 year old kid in the South Blue." She said cutting him off reminiscing fondly while still eating her dessert.
"I know and I never would have gotten this far without you. Which is why it pains me to ask you this but I want to..."
"Stop right there I know where this is going. You've done much for not only this crew but my family Naruto so my answer is yes."
"Yes?" Questioned the blonde not knowing that Big Mom would be so understanding with his request.
"Of course you and Pudding's wedding can take place next month." Stated the Yonko, causing surprised looks to appear on everyone within hearing distance faces and making Pudding blush with embarrassment.
"What! I don't want to marry Pudding!" He protested; slightly disgusted at the thought of marrying someone half his age.
"Oh so would you rather marry Praline. I never would have guessed you had a thing for mermaids Naruto." Big Mom said with a laugh.
"No! I don't want to marry any of your daughters captain!" He told her with his face burning red.
"Oh so what do you want treasure because you can talk to Pekkoms and Tamago about increasing your cut." She said nonchalantly pointing towards the two pirates general direction while still eating her gelatin.
"No Big Mom I don't want women or treasure or any of that stuff!" He yelled, getting sick of the Yonko's nonchalant attitude.
"Then what is it Naru-boy, speak up, heaven knows I'm not a mindreader." She responded, her voice raising in irritation.
"I'M TRYING TO ASK YOU IF I CAN HAVE YOUR PERMISSION TO LEAVE YOUR CREW!" Naruto yelled much louder than he intended to causing every person on the island to hear his outburst.
When those words left his mouth everyone seemed to freeze in place with and look towards Big Mom to see how she would respond.
"What was that Naruto? I think I may have heard you wrong." She said with a blank expression. All the previous joy in her face gone her spoon left abandoned on the dinning table, food for once being the last thing on her mind.
"No you didn't I said I want your blessing to leave the Big Mom pirates." He repeated staring Charlotte Linlin straight in the eye fearlessly.
"Why you ungrateful bastard I ought to kill you right now." Threatened a large brutish-looking man with a pointed beard and thin arms; Charlotte Cracker, Big Mom's 10th son.
Before the Sweet Commander could carry out his threat Big Mom released a blast of Conqueror's Haki in his direction that made him sit down and his biscuit armor crack slightly under the pressure.
"Now Naruto why would you want to do that?" She asked no longer using her affectionate suffix for him.
"I just feel it's time Big Mom. I mean no disrespect by it the time I've spent sailing under you has been the best years of my life. I just want to go out on my own and achieve my own dreams. I've been looking up to you for years now which is why I want to start my own crew and create my own reputation. I WANT TO SURPASS YOU ONE DAY AND BECOME AN EMPEROR OF THE SEA!" He bellowed sharing the dream he has been keeping to himself for years now with all the conviction he had.
The once joyful party was now so silent and the tension so thick Dracule Mihawk could cut it with his Great Black Sword. Nobody moved or talked they just looked at Naruto Uzumaki both impressed by the balls he must have had to say those words to Big Mom's face but also in sadness knowing the cheerful blonde pirate would soon be a bloody smear on the ground.
Big Mom stood from her throne and walked towards Naruto, both pirates refusing to avoid eye contact.
"If you were anyone else I'd already have killed you for even making me think you were planning to leave the crew you know that right?"
"Yes I do." He stated matter of factly causing Big Mom's eyes to soften ever so slightly.
"Its only due to your years of service to the Big Mom pirates and my family personally that I'm giving you an alternative to the Roulette of Punishment." She stated causing the Uzumaki to breath an internal sigh of relief.
"Instead you will go through a trial by combat against a champion of my choosing. If you win you are free to leave."
-X-X-X-
"Naruto it's not to late for you to surrender. If you apologize maybe Mama could forgive you." Pudding begged Naruto who was doing stretches to prepare himself for the battle to come.
"I told you before Pudding I'm not backing down. I need to fight this fight."
"But what if Mama chooses Cracker he is already angry and you and I both know you can't beat him."
Naruto nodded at that, even he wasn't so cocky in his abilities to think he was anywhere close to beating someone on Cracker's level but that wouldn't get him to forfeit especially without even trying.
"It doesn't matter I'm not giving up no matter what I'll find a way to win."
"Do you really want to leave us that badly?" Pudding lamented not being able to look Naruto in the face. How was she supposed to root for her best friend to win a fight if winning it meant he wouldn't be a constant in her life anymore.
Sensing her sadness Naruto gave her a hug and lifted her head so he could look her in the eyes.
"Pudding it's not like that I don't want to leave because I hate you guys I need to so that I can accomplish my dream. I know it sounds selfish but I just know if I'd keep my dream to myself and let it die I'd regret it for the rest of my life. It's like your mom said pirates should never compromise for something they want and should take it with their own hands."
His monologue seemed to cheer up Pudding who shook her head with tears in her eyes not trusting her voice at the moment.
Seeing that she was okay Naruto turned his back on his female companion and made his way towards the circular clearing Mom had designated as the fighting arena, it was finally time.
The Emperor herself was standing in the center of the arena with the various Big Mom pirates surrounding the area waiting to watch the fight to come.
"So who am I going to fight?"
"That would be me Naruto." Said the Yonko who began cracking her knuckles.
"What?"
"You heard me boy if your so set on leaving my crew its me your going to have to fight. The rules are simple if you are able to leave a scratch on me then your free to go, deal?"
'That deal seemed almost too easy if I was fighting anyone besides a freaking Yonko' Naruto thought knowing that he'd have to pull out all the stops if he wanted to hurt Big Mom.
"Aaaaaahhhhhh!" Naruto yelled running towards the Yonko before unleashing his signature sonic blast directly at her face.
"Voice Missile!"
Unfortunately the blast proved nothing to the female captain who effortlessly swatted the blast away with the back of her hand before rushing towards the smaller boy with surprising speed and delivering a haymaker towards his direction.
Even though the blonde was able to dodge the wild haymaker that left a crater in the ground he once stood on he was still sent flying by Big Mom's attack.
'Just the wind pressure of her attack is this powerful.' He thought finally able to find his footing and release another sound attack. This time he released a series of smaller sound bullets from his mouth that peppered the Yonko in a series of smaller explosions.
"Machine Gun Voice!"
When the smoke cleared Big Mom was no worse for wear. His attack did little but get her clothes dirty from the dirt it kicked up.
"Is that the best you have boy, I'm almost disappointed." He taunted the Yonko who was immediately confused by the smirk that appeared on Naruto's face.
"No that wasn't my best that is." He said pointing to the cloud-like ball of energy that was hovering over Big Mom's head.
"When I first yelled at the start of this fight I was actually releasing a cloud of sound above you. My voice echoes inside the cloud reverberated and amplifying inside. Now my voice will strike down like lightning from the sky."
"Thunder Voice!"
The cloud of noise burst releasing thunderbolt-like blasts of sound that struck the female captain from above kicking up a tremendous amount of dust.
Naruto was breathing hard on all fours exhausted from the strain of using his most powerful sound attack showing on his sweat covered face.
"That was a good effort Naruto if I was anybody else that attack might have wounded me." Said the feminine voice of Big Mom who was standing in the exact same spot as before the only difference being her outstretched palm.
'She blocked it. She used her palm as a lightning rod and withstood the force of my Thunder Voice with just the palm of her hand.'
This realization almost broke Naruto's will to fight. Naruto could only smile at the absurdity of his captain; in the bizarre seas of the Grandline and New World she truly was a monster amongst monsters.
What could he do to hurt her now he'd just used up his ace in the hole technique and judging by the pain in his throat he knew he wouldn't be doing anymore voice attacks for awhile. Desperately Naruto reached into the waistband of his destroyed suit and pulled out his butterfly knife, a present from Pudding that he rarely used but now he couldn't be happier to have.
Drawing in whatever voice power he had left Naruto covered the blade of the butterfly knife in a bubble of high frequency sound waves that caused to blade to hum with power.
"Soprano Voice Cut!" He yelled, appearing in front of Big Mom in an impressive burst of speed and trying to cut her down.
Like the Thunder Voice before it Big Mom blocked the sound enhanced knife with the palm of her left hand, the grinding friction of her blade against her inhuman skin hurting his ears. Having enough of this farce of a fight Mom retaliated with an open palm slap with her right. This blow caused Naruto to fly from the center of the arena all the way to the outer edge with his body almost crashing into the spectators. He was unconscious before he hit the ground.
-X-X-X-
Naruto woke up with a killer headache alongside a terrible pain on his bandaged chest.
'What happened?' He thought groggy looking around noticing that he was in a room of a ship.
'Wait I remember now I was fighting Big Mom and I lost.' He remembered as he made his way towards the door leading to the main deck, wondering what was going on.
He had to squint when he opened the door, his eyes not yet adjusting to the sunlight.
"Feeling better Naruto-bon?" Tamago asked, gesturing towards the seat for the table on the deck while brewing Naruto a cup of tea.
"Not really Tamago can you please tell me what happened after I got knocked out? Big Mom beat me so what am I doing on this ship? Did she send you guys on a ship with me so you could kill me quietly without anybody knowing?" He rambled firing off question after question at the French long leg tribesman.
"Calm down Naruto-Bon if you take a breath I will explain everything." He told the blonde handing him the pink cup of tea which he drunk quickly.
"Okay I'm sorry please tell me."
"For starters your fight wasn't a loss Naruto-bon while Mama did knock you out your last attack was able to slightly cut her hand which made you a free man." Tamago explained holding up his hand to stop Naruto from interrupting.
"Mama seeing you had succeeded was angry at first but then laughed saying a deal was a deal and ordered me and some other men to heal you and take you from Whole Cake Island, she also wanted me to give you this." He finished handing Naruto a scroll with Big Mom's signature Jolly Roger seal.
Opening it Naruto read the contents of the letter.
Dear Naruto:
Don't for a second think I've forgiven you for leaving my crew! It's only due to my honor as a businesswoman that I decided not to go back on our agreement and let you go out on your own. From this moment on your no longer apart of the Big Mom pirates so don't come calling me with your tail between your legs if you get in trouble got it! Because of your stupid rebellious nature now it looks like I'm going to have to find another guardian for my younger children. A shame for some reason my idiot kids formed a liking to you, hell Pudding wouldn't stop blubbering when she thought my little love tap killed you. Anyway try to keep your nose clean on the Grandline kid not all the pirates out there are as forgiving when it comes to being slighted as I am. Good luck Brat!
Sincerely, Charlotte Linlin a.k.a Big Mom
P.S- I left you a special going away present on your chest just so you never forget where you came from.
Naruto teared up slightly removing the bandages around his chest and looking at his left pec muscle where Big Mom's signature lipstick skull Jolly Roger was placed.
'Right above the heart where it should be.' He lamented proud that he had a mark to remember his times under the Yonko that changed his life so much.
"So Naruto do you have anywhere special you want us to drop you off at? Gaohh!" Asked Pekoms.
"Yea I have an idea."
-X-X-X-
(South Blue: Karate Island)
"Are you sure you sure this is the right place Naruto-Bon?"
"Yea this island is famous in the South Blue for being a place where martial artists of all disciplines come to sharpen their skills. This place is perfect for me to train myself. As I am now I know I wouldn't last long in the Grand Line so I need to grow before I can think of starting off on my own."
"Whatever you say Naruto we'll be watching you when you make your deput on the Grandline. Gaohh!" Said Pekoms before him and Tamago sailed off leaving Naruto Uzumaki on the dock alone.
Naruto stared at the ship as it disappeared into the sunset while clenching his fists in motivation.
'Don't worry I'll start my journey one day and when I do I'll surpass all of you Tamago, Pekkoms, even you too Mom.'
Chapter 3 End
Yes 8k+ update is finally done. This one took a while because I wanted to finish Naruto's backstory in one big chapter. So next chapter will take place in the current timeline, Pre-Timeskip, and you'll see the results of Naruto's training.
Bonus Note: Is it just me or the scenes with Pudding came off as more romantic than I intended? Also I will use Yonko & Emperor interchangeably.
Update schedule I'm throwing it out the window I'll update Dark Type Master & 12th Supernova randomly but a chapter every one or two weeks will be my absolute minimum.
[Reviewer Responses]
Chuck Norris- Thanks for the review I got the idea of Naruto being friends with Pudding and Big Mom's other kids from reading your comment so thanks to you.
Guest- No Naruto will not be paired with Pudding they are friends and will meet in the future that's it. There relationship is more best friend/big brother & little sister relationship. (Yes there can actually be platonic female friends in fanfiction)
camdawg- Yes I will be taking characters from other anime/manga and put them in Naruto's crew.
b- Yes Naruto and Bonney will meet way later in the story.
[Question to Reviewers]
Did you guys know there was a podcast on YouTube about fanfiction?
(I discovered the Fandom Flux Podcast on YouTube where a bunch of writers talk fanfic and its pretty good. For those who read Naruto fanfic you'd probably know Kenchi618 who is a regular on the show. As a fan of his work I thought I'd at least recommend it to u guys)
Anyway Please Review I Read All of It. Thnx