Last time: During a rainy night Jasmine wakes up thinking something is off. At the base of the stairs heading up to the upper levels and deck she hears:

"Come on—we ain't got all night! Someone's bound to wake up soon."

Event: Casanova under attack!

It was perhaps a few hour till dawn and since there was a special for no one dying, odds were someone was going to die! Not if I can help it, I thought as I crept to the stairs and looked up it. On the landing of stairs leading to the next level I saw two sets of feet.

"This level ain't got that merchant we was told was here. Nor the gold vault of that Oceanic Bank operative." An owner of one of the feet muttered.

"Think it's further down?"

"Nah, that's brig levels. They have rooms for rent down there and regular storage space. Too likely we'll wake someone looking around down there. It's probably above deck near the captain."

They began to leave, grumbling under their breath. Apparently they were after that rich guy who'd bought almost all the alcohol as well as the bank operative on board. Sounds like a good target; potentially easier than robbing an actual bank too since it was out at sea and the crew looked like they had minimal training. Except most of the passengers I'd seen had weapons of some sort and looked like they could use them. They picked the wrong ship to raid tonight, I thought as I shook my head.

I crouched before quietly trying to sneak up the stairs and follow them.

"You hear that?" One of stopped and began to turn around when one of my foot falls caused the stair to creak. I swallowed a curse and used soru to cover the last distance; my fist meeting his stomach as I jabbed my bo staff at the back of the other man's head. As the smaller man fell I brought my staff down on the doubled over pirates head, knocking him out as well.

+20 exp for taking out two pirates.

Only 10 each? No ambush experience either; maybe if they even remotely notice I'm here I don't get it? Pity.

I needed to wake up the crew if I could, I might be able to take a pirate gang out by myself but what if there was more? That special under the event had me worried: if they specifically mentioned death, then this ought to be a hard fight. There's a warning bell by the steering wheel; I can go ring that if I really need to. Or just yell really loudly since I do have a voice that can carry.

I peeked over the deck floor boards and spotted a group of people on deck. There were about eight pirates gathered around some of the Casanova crew who were tied bout the main mast.

"The doors to the vault and merchant's quarters are locked." I ducked back down as I heard a voice nearby and the sound of an opening door. "We'll have to pick the locks or find the keys since those doors are solid steel."

I peeked back over once the voice moved away and I saw a figure walk out of the rain towards the group.

"It's always the good loot that's behind doors like those! Any sign of our allies?" The approaching figure's voice was deep with a slight rasp to it.

"They're approaching right now, Captain. Should be here in a few minutes."

"Mmm… well let's wait till they get here before we start a real ruckus. This is a big ship and who knows how many fighters are on board. I was hoping for an easy grab but ah well."

The Captain was a tall broad man… but then so were many of the strong people I'd began to notice. Size apparently had something to do with power here. Which meant, my eyes caught sight of a tall lean figure standing near the tied up Casanova crew, he was probably the other strong man aboard the crew. The crew all had dog shaped hats on them. How cute, I thought as I took a deep breath and prepared for battle. The darkness kept me from seeing too many details and the rain was covering a lot of sounds so I had to hope there wasn't any extra pirates somewhere I couldn't see.

I slowly took the stairs and approached the group, all of whom were looking towards something off to the side. Must be their allies. I took the chance and soru-ed behind the tall thin man; if he was strong I wanted him gone first! I hooked my foot about his ankles and kicked his feet out from under him.

"Oi-!" His call was cut off with a sudden thud as I slammed my staff at the back of his head with enough force his face dented the deck and stayed there.

"I would prefer that no one died tonight—can I persuade you to leave quietly?" I asked politely, ignoring the fallen body at my feet as I smiled brightly at the crew who was staring at me with slackened jaws.

First Mate Hornblower Pete defeated: 30 exp

Huh, he was apparently weaker than Iron Morty and Foul Rogue. The captain began laughing a barking laugh that turned into an… is that an actual bark?! I stared at him as his body began to change, thickening and warping until a werewolf stood before me. Except that was not a wolf. Wolves had far more pointed faces and ears; this was a hound of some sort, one with cute floppy ears and a round button nose. It might have been scary but the sheer adorable puppy-ness overwhelmed any fear I might have had.

"Are you a… were-puppy?" I asked curiously and he scowled at the comment.

"I am Captain Barton Hound! I am a devil!"

"Devils have horns and hooves not cute floppy ears and fluffy faces." I corrected him and he growled at me. "Aww, how cute!"

"I am not cute! I am a pirate! Sea hounds don't interfere, this wench needs a lesson and I'mma gonna give it!" The group surrounded us and began cat calling and cheering on their captain. Can't believe he called them sea hounds… was his ship called the sea dog or something similar to keep the theme up?

"Well, that makes it easier." I smirked as he charged at me snarling. If he was some were-dog or devil dog then his jaws were probably super strong, I side stepped and swung my bo staff between his legs to tangle him up. I couldn't help but feel my eyes widen as his paw hands hit the deck and gouged it. Claws are nasty too!

He jumped up before I could move to take advantage of his sprawled state, far faster than I expected. Though it might have something to do with the odd shape of his legs now, more dog like than human. I frowned before a thought occurred to me.

"Look—a squirrel!" I pointed to the left and his head swung around and his large puppy eyes lit up.

"Squirrel!"

As he was distracted I took a quick step towards him and spun my spirit into my staff as I jammed it upwards into his jaw. A resounding crack occurred and he stumbled back, a whine emitting from his throat as blood from his bitten tongue leaked down his chin. I did a series of quick jabs to keep him off balance as I set up for a critical strike, gathering my spirit and waiting for the opportune moment to knock him out. I got my chance as he kicked out; leaving himself open to a crotch shot.

His howl was high pitched and I saw the men surrounding us wince and cover themselves.

"Low blow sis... low blow." I heard someone mutter behind me.

"It could be worse. This could be a blade." I muttered as I saw the system announcement flash my win. Apparently a critical strike to the balls was enough to knock the were-woof-woof out of combat. Some days I am glad I am a woman and do not have that huge weak spot. Now I had the rest of the crew to take out before these 'allies' showed up!

Captain Barton Hound defeated: +40 exp.

"She took out the Captain!" I heard someone mutter but no one really made a move to strike. I looked at them and shook my head, even the tied up Casanova crew members looked a bit disturbed.

"Oh come on... it's not that bad!" I protested as I glared at them.

"Crotch shot at full strength..."

"The same strength that dented Hornblower's head..."

"Poor Captain's never gonna have kids now..."

"You can take your captain and first mate and leave now or;" I glared at them and took up a fighting stance. "I can finish this fight fast."

"Just kill them all! Filthy pirates!" One of the tied up crew members yelled out as he struggled in his bonds.

"They tied you up and didn't kill you when they had the chance so I am offering them the same courtesy." I responded as I saw hands creep towards blades and the Sea hound's faces darken. It was silent for a moment before one of the men behind me grumbled.

"This ship ain't worth it. Sure the gold might be nice but since our Captain's down I doubt the other crews will give us our share." With that the fight went out of the sea hounds and they gathered up their fallen companions, including the two on the stairs, and slunk off with their tails between their legs. I watched them leave before untying the Casanova crew members.

"Someone needs to sound an alarm or something." I ordered as I released them. "They said allies so there will be fighting yet."

"Should have just killed those bastards… weak emotional woman." The surly one who'd yelled out first grumbled at me as he stalked away.

I rolled my eyes. "Mercy is not weakness." I said to the empty deck before sighing and heading off to prepare for the other fights. Sure I could have taken out the crew for 80 experience but it would take valuable stamina to do so and the fight was not yet over.

As the alarm bell rang out into the rainy night I could vaguely make out another ship approaching from the starboard side. I looked around and saw that the crew was beginning to gather on the port side where another ship loomed out of the darkness. The rain and night kept me from seeing too many details but I could make out the shadow of its tall dual masts and the long bowsprit easily enough. The bowsprit was carved into the shape of a long swan head. Observation told me this was a brigantine and could hold over 100 men. Bet they're the swan pirates or something since the last one was themed, I thought as I turned back to view the other approaching ship. It was a sloop, much smaller than the brigantine and appeared to be unnoticed by the scampering crew of the Casanova right now. it could hold anywhere from 20 to 70 men depending on how much they packed it, but something told me it wasn't a big crew. If they had higher numbers they wouldn't need this alliance after all!

I'll just take care of it then come back and help with the other one! I pulled my googles on and took a deep breath before diving over the edge of the railing. The water was shockingly cold as it closed around me, the darkness becoming greater as what little light was cast by our ship barely pierced the water. The ringing bell took on an otherworldly tone as the water dampened and warped its deep voice.

As I swam over towards the sloop I noticed it'd stopped moving and smaller shapes were cutting through the water. They must be using long boats to try and sneak up while the other ship distracts them! I paused in my swimming and couldn't help the feral grin stretching my lips as a thought occurred to me. I swam down a bit and waited till the closest one began to pass over me before I began to kick and sped up towards it.

I led staff point first so all my speed and force would be concentrated on one spot; hopefully being strong enough to put a hole in the long boat and keep it away from the Casanova. The staff hit with a crunching thud, penetrating the wood easily. My arm vibrated with the force of the blow and I heard the muffled cries of surprise above me. My lungs burned for a breath of air and I surfaced to quickly gasp for air before twisting my staff and using it as a lever to tip the boat over. Once they were in the water they were quickly dealt with as the ocean hampered their movements and not mine.

+48 experience for taking out 4 Pirates

+10 for a well-executed ambush.

They were apparently slightly stronger than the Sea Hounds as they were 12 instead of 10 exp. The other boats had stopped heading towards the Casanova and were not headed towards me I noticed. I dove down once more to prepare for another torpedo attack upon the nearest one. This time I didn't attack the boat; instead as I surfaced I grabbed the sides and pushed downwards to capsize them. The sounds of gunshots rang out and I felt a bullet wiz by my head as I fell back into the ocean.

"— ster or mermaid?" I heard someone shout nearby. I saw that only three of the occupants had fallen into the water and they were a bit more prepared than the last boat. They actually managed to pull out their blades: not that it did them much good. Their movements were sluggish and slow, weighted down by the water, leaving me with many openings to strike through and still be able to dodge.

+36 experience for taking out 3 Pirates.

I noticed as I surfaced to gasp at the air and try to find the other member of this boat that they were all wearing very similar outfits. They all had these snazzy black shoes and slacks with either a tuxedo like coat over a white shirt or a white vest over a black shirt. It made them a bit difficult to find in the dark waters! Fancy pirates these ones… Wonder what their theme is?

I dove back under as the last man standing in the boat spotted me and fired his pistol. The area around me was suddenly full of bullets streaming bubbles behind them as they hit the water and slowed down.

"Not a monster: it's a person!" I heard a voice shout. I snuck underneath one of the unconscious bodies and used it as a shield to hide myself as I slowly approached the boat.

"Where'd they go?"

"Pull the men out of the water! They ain't dead yet and we need a clear shot at this person!"

I quickly glanced down and around to make sure there weren't. As I was in the water and moving I was probably a shark's first target after all! As the body above me knocked into the boat, I reached around him to grab the boat's side and tugged it down, upsetting the boat once more. As the man above me fell, I pushed his fallen comrade away and grabbed his flailing arm and pulled him under. His other hand punched my stomach, causing me to lose most of my oxygen. I slammed his head against the boat to knock him unconscious before surfacing and gasping for air once more.

+12 experience for taking out 1 Pirate

I saw that the other boat had grabbed the last of the fallen except for the two by me and were now heading my way, angry expressions upon their faces. As I dove down once more I smiled: they'd grabbed the fallen which meant no one was going to drown! Good.

I swam towards the ship, leaving the longboat behind. I'd come back for them later: I had a ship to clear out! Besides: once they heard the sounds of fighting on their ship they'd ignore the Casanova right? I surfaced on the opposite side of the ship and climbed up the side slowly, taking care to not slip or fall. Which was a rather difficult task considering that it was raining and I was soaking wet and had no rope to aid my climb. I need better pants, I thought as I felt the water tugging them downwards; that or a belt.

"Captain, someone's in the water taking out the men." I stopped when I heard a voice cut through the rain. "The last boat's coming back here before it sinks. They managed to grab everyone."

"Change of plans boys. We go in with the Raging Penguin instead! Koji, keep an eye out for this person in the ocean. Marcy, get the unconscious into the medbay once they get here. Shiro, haul the anchor up and let's get into canon range."

'Raging Penguin'? I bit back a chuckle: how was that name supposed to inspire fear? And were the crew all wearing fancy clothes to be… penguin like?

"Captain, our allies will be on the ship. You sure we ought to fire canons at it?"

"Half our crew just got taken out, Koji, we need to even the odds a bit more. Besides the Swan's on the other side of the ship, odds are we'll only hurt the Casanova crew."

Not good! Canon fire meant deaths! I quickly climbed the last few feet and peeked over the side. A short tubby man in a very expensive suit was talking to a bland average looking man in a worn suit with a wicked set of scars crossing his face. About the ship I could see about 10 more men, all armed with either pistols or cutlasses. Pistols were going to be far more dangerous; I made sure to mark were they were so I could keep their own crew between me and them. I pulled myself up over the side of the ship and dashed towards the nearest man.

"Intruder!" One of the more alert crew members spotted me and lifted his pistol to fire. I ducked behind my target and did a double strike to his head to knock him out before I soru-ed towards the next closest pistol user. I was at about half stamina right now and my spirit bar was at about 20%. Using so many soru's and critical strikes were starting to wear upon me. I grabbed this guy and pulled him with me behind the corner of the cabin walls before knocking him out. I glanced quickly at my experience bar to see if I was close enough to a level up or not. 471/500 huh? I need to take out one of the big guys or three of the little ones. I peeked around the corner to get a glance at where they were and grinned. Six goons with pistols: that would get me my level up, status bars refilled, and take out the nasty guns! I tapped the ground quickly with my foot, feeling the spirit energy thrumming in my veins as I prepared for one fast run out there. I took a moment to calm down, clear my mind, and prepare.

I could hear the orders and voices of the pirates but I ignored what they were saying, everything was focused on the fight, where were the sounds coming from, how fast were they moving? My heartbeat pounded in my ears, and everything became focused and narrowed down to just me, my staff and moving targets.

Step, soru dash, fist to the face.

Duck, roll, dash, staff to the jaw.

Soru to the side, leap, smash the staff into another skull.

Searing pain across the bicep as a bullet came close to hitting. Knee to the face of the next goon.

Pain vanishing as words flash across my vision but are ignored as I soru to the next man.

The world feels off, like I'm seeing it from a distance: darkness all around except for the guttering of torches, the flashes as pistols go off. Distant sounds that should be louder but sound like they are so far away. I feel only the wind and rain as I dash at impossible speeds around the ship.

My zone, trance- battle mode I suppose it might be called was suddenly interrupted by a target that fought back. My dance was interrupted and I felt the world snap back into place.

Leaping back I shook my head to try and refocus on the world as sound came rushing back.

+120 exp for defeating 10 Pirates

Level up! 95/600 exp

Status bars refilled

+50 to one status, +1 Feat, +1 Stat point. Available to assign at next rest.

The sounds of the pouring rain and howls of anger from the rotund Penguin captain cut through what was left of my trance. That was… interesting. I wonder if I can do it again. My eyes darted to the side where the angry captain was pulling out his two sabers and then back to the man in a worn dress outfit who'd stopped my assault. Koji if I recall the earlier conversation correctly.

"Just a single woman managed to take them all out. We'll have to up the men's training." He said softly as he began to circle me, his cutlass held confidently. "What's a civilian doing using marine techniques?"

I backed up, keeping both him and his circling captain in my vision. "Marine techniques?" Was rokushiki a marine style of combat? Interesting.. and potentially a bad thing considering I was not a marine.

"Capture her Koji. We'll get that technique from her. Take a limb off to make sure she can't fight back." The rotund captain glared at me and I shrugged.

"Not like I could teach you how to do this…" I muttered to myself because honestly I cheated! I had a spirit bar and found using my spirit easier than others might. I decided to leave Koji for last as he seemed far more dangerous. Plus he'd pissed me off.

Unfortunately for me, Koji was too good at keeping up and I never managed to get the captain alone. Every strike I sent was blocked by his blade and I'd have to jump quickly away to avoid the captains blades.

"Can't you let him fight his own battles?" I growled in annoyance as this occurred yet again.

"To fight the captain you'll have to go through the whole crew first." Koji growled back.

"Be that way…" I turned my focus to the annoying Koji and gathered my spirit once more, pouring it into the staff for a critical strike. As I dashed forward I quickly soru-ed to the side then behind him, letting loose my critical strike at the back of his legs. He gave a quick cry of pain and collapsed. I almost fell as well as I felt a blade slide into my lower back.

"Fu—" I quickly turned and slammed my staff as hard as I could into the sneak who'd gotten behind me. As he crumpled I gave him a few extra blows just in case. The jerk! That sneaky too smart fiend! He'd predicted I'd get behind Koji and just waited for me! Never underestimate pirates, Jasmine. I told myself, they'll always do something to surprise you in the worse way.

Captain Aozora "Gentleman Sadist" Sadao defeated +30 Exp

Koji tried to attack from where he'd fallen but I slammed my staff into his skull, planting the face into the ground.

First Mate, Ogura "Bloody Wall" Koji defeated +40 exp.

"Pause." I said and felt the world stop. All sound ceased, all movement stopped, and a strange grey film covered everything, making it seem mist filled. I carefully grabbed the sword sticking out of my back and pulled it out as gently as I could. The pain, it seemed, was not stopped by the pause. When I let go of the blade it simple floated in midair; the pause affecting it as it left my hand.

Biting my lip to keep from crying out, I quickly pulled out some bandages and wrapped them about my upper bicep where a bullet had grazed me to stop the bleeding as well as about the newest and most painful wound. I sighed and simply rested for a bit, taking advantage of the pause to recover a bit. As nice as leveling up was in refilling my status bars, it didn't quite get rid of all the exhaustion building up in my muscles. I stared up at the frozen raindrops, admiring the view for a bit before wondering if I could level up during a pause… I seemed to recall something like that in the guide.

I grinned when I pulled up my character sheet and saw I could in fact do so. Yes! So 50 to my health since I was hurting right now and had an entire crew to go fight. Stat point to my body since I really needed more stamina and endurance. I could not, I noticed, choose a feat. Ah well.

[[Jasmine Bio 1 ]]

"Right… There's one longboat left but I should get back to the Casanova and help out there." I mutter to myself and tried to step towards the edge of the ship. Try being the key word here. I had barely moved a few inches forward when pin pricks stopped me. Solid, immovable pin pricks at that.

…

…

…

Was the rain stopping me from moving? I tried to squeeze between some of the drops, but the pouring rain made it very hard to find a large enough space to fit my tall body.

"Really world? Really?" Apparently being unable to affect the world meant even rain drops couldn't be moved! "Be that way- unpause."

I glared at the four men that were even now climbing over the side of the boat and charging me. I had just used up my once a month pause only to be blocked by rain drops! I charged to meet them, shoving aside the pain that lanced through my back.

TWACK, THUNK, THUD. CLANG! Four quick heavy strikes later- make that five as one had metal reinforcement in his hat; I was alone once more on the boat. Normally I would try to loot them before heading back, but I was on a timer here.

+48 exp for defeating 4 Pirates

I leapt from the boat and dove under the water, feeling the pain decrease as soon as the water hit. Time to finish event off, I thought as I swam back.

As I was swimming a strange force? Feeling? Something anyways hit. It was invisible to the eye but I could feel an almost physical force upon my brain. It was there and then gone, leaving me staggered but aware. As I climbed up the side of the Casanova, I noticed I was one of the few awake. The deck was covered in people simply lying down upon the deck, unconscious. What happened here?

POV: Shanks

The ringing of the alarm bell pulled him from his slumber and the young man fell out of his hammock, hand reaching for his sword even before he was fully awake. The sound of pounding feet outside and above him told him something was going on. It couldn't have been the storm getting worse as the wood beneath his feet was only moving in the slow gentle rolls a calm sea normally caused.

An attack? As a pirate himself, he knew this ship was a tempting target with the vault of gold from the Oceanic Bank and the rich traveler on board. The risk was, for a Blue Sea, fairly high as the crew was all trained to fight. For someone from the Grand Line they were nothing but not so for others.

Understanding it didn't make it better though; as a passenger he would either be killed or robbed. Not that I have anything of value to them, he smirked at that thought as he joined the rest of the people heading towards the top deck. Or the ship would be taken as a prize and he and the others would be left stranded in small longboats; something he definitely did not want. A heavy downpour soaked him instantly as he stepped out. To the left a huge ship loomed out of the darkness and he opened his mind to focus upon his Kenbunshoku no Haki and feel the aura's of each person's soul. To his left was a mass of light and color, each aura marginally stronger than the Casanova's crew's auras. Five blazed even brighter and he knew if he wanted a good fight he needed to go after them. But what startled him most was what lay to his right, off in the darkness behind the rain. Jasmine and her very odd soul was in the water and- was she assaulting a ship on her own? Crazy lady! Most souls were bright and vivid; hers wasn't. Instead of a solid aura hers had only a shell of light with a core of something in it, something that reminded him of a dying person's aura. It'd weirded him out at first and he'd wondered if she was dying; except she showed no sign of old age, disease, or life threatening wounds. Hers was not the first soul like this he'd sensed either; a dying soul covered in a shell of light. He'd sensed a few others while he was sailing upon his Captain's ship, but even the Dark King Rayleigh who'd taught him had no idea what it meant.

He looked over as another shining aura, stronger than his, approached. It was Phil.

"What's happening over there lad?"

"Jasmine's fighting a ship out there."

"Alone?"

"Yeah…" Shanks looked over at the much larger ship as orders from both Captains were being shouted and grappling hooks were being thrown to connect the two ships. "Though we might need to stay here instead of helping. I don't think anyone else on the Casanova can take on some of the people I'm sensing." He glanced back at the darkness where he knew the older woman was. It sounded wrong to just leave her alone out there but what else could he do? She was strong; strong enough that he'd lost when he wasn't using his haki.

"Useful thing Haki. I ought to learn it." Phil muttered as he shrugged. "Lass can take care of herself for now. And if not well we can finish this up fast then go help her."

"Person with the least amount of kills has to pay for breakfast." Boulra said with a smug smirk as he joined them.

"Defeats not kills." Phil remarked absently. "Killing should be your last option not your first."

"Be that way." Boulra muttered but didn't argue as he ran to meet the charging pirates.

"Well in that case;" Shanks grinned as his competitive spirit woke up. "I think I got this in the bag."

Battle was joined as Shanks took a deep breath and focused, his face hardening as his amber eyes gleamed as he looked up and released his hao-shoku haki. He imposed his will upon the world around him, releasing what some called the disposition of a king, in an unseen wave that could knock out the weak. He'd once seen his Captain even damage the world around him with his haoshoku haki but he was still young and had awoken it only recently.

He sighed in disappointment as he only managed to knock out most of the people around him instead of all. Pity. But at least this way there'd be less death.

All around him people fell as his will overcame there's. Phil and Boulra staggered and looked around in astonishment at the fallen bodies. They were not the only ones who did so.

"Well I'll be damned…" Boulra whispered in astonishment.

AN: End of Chapter! :D Dear lord long fights are hard to write! XD And no I don't do the whole "yell out my special attacks" thing. Mostly cause I have no clue on how to write Japanese attacks/translating or even naming attacks. I prefer to try and write the actions out. Also yes, Jasmine does realize there are devil fruits out there: however it's not the first thing on her mind when she see's someone transforming into a dog. If you saw it wouldn't you think maybe it's a werewolf too? XD She's gonna be disappointed it's not lycanthrope when she talks it out with her new friends later on. (that's also the whole "I'm a devil!" thing the captain declared. He is a devil fruit user: therefor a devil in the minds of poor superstitious villagers)

You notice Jasmine thinks of the haki in English while others will use different versions (either color of x or the Japanese name). This is based on how they learned it; different people use different words or dialects across the world.

Thanks to all who have reviewed, faved, and followed~ :3

I do happen to have hte next chapter done but still doing some minor edits to help it flow better. I feel like I've been writing this ship fight for months ^^;