Ravenbone

"Finally you are here," stated Victoria waving her hand through the air. With some kind of power she pushed a thick fog that was surrounding her and her sides aside. She smiled as Mikoto walked in alongside John, whose hand hadn't left his blade all this time. The two of them obviously didn't get along, which made sense they were like oil and water those two.

Mikoto was all drive and energy, a callous nature, which seemed to repel John's seemingly cautious approach to things. Mikoto was full of energy and potential while John was pure, flowing, and nearly perfect. There was nothing out of place in John any more. His many, many years of training had brought a nearly perfect form. Mikoto still had a ways to go. He was training hard, but that didn't mean anything. He can train hard, but it may be awhile until he saw the fruits of such training.

"What's the meaning of this," Mikoto barked, stepping forward and jabbing a finger up at Victoria, who raised an eyebrow at Mikoto's seemingly harsh tone towards her, despite her being nothing but nice to him.

"What do you mean?" she asked, holding up a hand to signal John not to attack as his sword had slid a few inches out of its sheath as if he was about to mow Mikoto's head off of his shoulder with one clean sweep of his blade. He probably would've too, if it was necessary.

"You know what I mean," Mikoto stated as he felt another slight bolt of electricity race through his mind. He felt it straight into his body. A slightly heightened sense, something was up. He could hear it, somebody else in here. "Somebody else is here!" Mikoto barked loudly at Victoria and immediately turned around.

"Hmm,"smirked Victoria for a second before smiling broadly, "Haki, I see. I am impressed. I should've figured you would've obtained such a power. The Colors of Observation Haki is an invaluable power, which amazes me. I have it as does Jackson and the Shichibukais and the Marine Admirals. Few obtain this power, but those that do have the ability to go on something greater."

"Cut the crap!" Mikoto shouted as he looked around, the room looked mostly empty. He knew there was something else around him. Somebody with some kind of hatred towards him, he didn't know who it could be, but somebody was definitely here. "Who is it?"

"When Haki was first explained to me it was described as the real-life effect of someone's will on the physical will. Colors of Observation Haki is the reading of another's will, Colors of Armaments is the condensing of the will over something to create a force, and Conqueror's Haki is the force of your will to knock someone out. That is the child's explanation."

"I didn't ask for an explanation of what Haki is I asked why is somebody else here?" Mikoto barked as he looked left and right before turning back around to Victoria and taking another step forward, loosing another mad bark, "and where is he?"

"Are you sure you don't want to hear more," stated a vicious voice which instantly alerted Mikoto's instincts. His entire body blurred to the side, but it wasn't enough as his collar got caught by a massive hand and he was tossed to the ground. Immediately Mikoto was mounted, a large monster was now on top of him. "How are you, kid?"

Mikoto recoiled back and slammed his foot upwards and into his opponent's gut, prying him off of him. Mikoto then jumped right back up and onto his feet. Mikoto rushed at the new opponent, taking to the air with Geppou and becoming basically a lightning bolt right at his opponent. However, as he zoomed in both of his two partners moved into motion. John jumped in front of Mikoto, drawing his sword and Victoria did the same to his opponent.

"Relax, Ravenbone!" Victoria shouted, "this was not how this supposed to go down!" Victoria shoved Ravenbone aside and let him stumble a bit. He was obviously close to his Victoria's level of strength, but still a little bit lower than hers. She was a Yonkou though, of course. So it wasn't too surprising the difference in their power. "Stand down."

"Heh, no problem," Ravebone stated as his hands went into the pockets at his own sides. He smiled and looked over at Mikoto, "I can keep my urges in tact for a few more minutes. I just felt like he was bad mouthing me slightly. Besides I'm going to try and kill him eventually."

"You're the Shichibukai?" asked Mikoto as he pushed John aside, but he didn't rush towards Ravenbone, though if Mikoto wanted to he probably cover the ground and punch Ravenbone before John even had the chance to stop him. Even Victoria had to admit that Mikoto was faster than her.

However, Mikoto managed to keep his feet grounded and his head cool, "you're just another one of those damn Marine dogs, obeying their orders to try and kill me?"

"No," chuckled Ravenbone, "I had no interest in killing you because the Marines told me. I just want to kill you."

"How does that make this any better?" shouted Mikoto, slightly shocked not only at Ravenbone's forwardness with his honesty, but also his thought pattern behind all of it.

The smile that crossed Ravenbone's face at that moment made Mikoto recall one other horrible monster, which he had crossed paths with before, Trevor. The same madness afflicted them both. A thirst for blood, so powerful neither had the will to repel it...nor the desire.

"Now, fresh blood," whispered Ravenbone, the world seemed to slow down for Mikoto for a second as a slight wind picked up in the room. "Do you see what a true pirate is like?" Ravenbon stepped forward and suddenly the slight wind which had been whipping itself through the room intensified. It was obvious that Ravenbone had some kind of Devil Fruit power, maybe not wind related, but some kind of indirect force which he was applying to Mikoto.

"Not just yet Ravenbone," Victoria stated as she picked up her sword and took a few steps separating them. "I wanted to test something out for myself. Let's see which one of you is truly of the stronger will." The wind that was present just moments ago vanished, not because it died down, more like it had been disappated with a much stronger wind and a much stronger will.

Mikoto collapsed before her, a harsh breathing overcoming him as his chest seemed to clench at the force put behind Victoria's words, but more importantly it just felt like there was this immense pressure of will weighing down on him all of a sudden.

"This," Victoria interjected, "is Conqueror's Haki. The Haki all Kings possess. Forcing their will onto those around them and bringing them down if they are of lesser will than them." Victoria rolled her head over to Mikoto, "I am deeply disappointed in this outcome. I didn't expect either one of you to falter before me."

Mikoto was breathing heavily, he had remained conscience which he took as a victory in and of itself and indeed it would've been. At least had Ravenbone not withstood it without batting an eye.

Victoria's Haki was indeed strong. Not the strongest of the pirates in the modern age, but definitely amongst the top five and now it was weighing down on Mikoto almost crushing him. But Ravenbone seemed to not even notice it.

"Ravenbone, you are free to leave," Victoria stated as she swept herself around and sat down in her chair. "Or should I perhaps say you should leave."

"Even if I can withstand your Haki, I know better than to try and cross swords with you right now," Ravenbone stated with a chuckle, "I'm a bit out-manned at the time. But don't worry a time will come when we fight. If you want to place your bets now."

"Leave," she repeated. Ravenbone nodded before his entire body just fizzled out, as if disappearing into the air around him.

Victoria sighed, "I am thoroughly disappointed with you." Her eyes remained fixated solely on Mikoto. "Conqueror's Haki is not a perfect technique. It is mostly just imposing your will on someone else. A temporary break in focus could've caused you to falter to me like if you were already injured, but I see no battle wounds decorating your body. So that leaves me with the second results. You're will is weak."

"I got this far," barked Mikoto as he struggled to his feet, the blasting will power was still all over the room, Victoria hadn't retracted it just because she had knocked him down once, she wanted to keep him on his knees. "And its not because I'm some weak-willed pirate. I'm here for my own reasons."

"And I'm saying those reasons, those convictions you hold dear are weak. If you can be blown down for such childish reasons than you must not be strong enough," Victoria stated with a smirk. Although she was being harsh, being able to stay conscious after a direct assault of her Haki was still a remarkable achievement. "I'm saying this cause I did truly have high hopes for you," Victoria's voice seemed to carry such immense weight within these halls, "you have truly disappointed me. I have met many pirates who have not bent a knee to just my will, but you...you have. Why gave you become a pirate?"

"I'm a pirate because of my father," Mikoto grunted, "I want to recover my family's lost honor."

The Shogun stifled a laugh as she looked away from Mikoto, "is that it? After all, these years you have spent in this world you really believe your conviction, your wish, is really that strong? Pirates sail these seas for many, many reasons. And you simply want to restore your family's honor. An offer to join the Shichibukai would've been enough, but you turned that down! What's the real reason behind you raising that flag? The flag that symbolizes hope and freedom? The flag of honor could be anything, even a Marine flag if that was what you wished, so why become a pirate!?"

"My father was a pirate. He held the ideals of its life so hard. He would've died a thousand times for it! And he still gave such a life up for me and my mother. Despite his love of the seas, he was willing to throw it away. I picked up his baton and ran with it!" Mikoto shouted as he bolted forward, apparently finally managing to focus enough of his will-power to stand.

His attack was indeed fast enough, faster than that of something that John could've kept up with. He was already a few feet away and once Mikoto got going a few inches could result in the end. But that didn't mean Mikoto would get away with such an attack.

Quickly unsheathing his sword Victoria strode forward. Their clash lasted only a split second as Mikoto's straight drive of his punch had driven him right to her sword, which slashed straight through his chest, carving out a fresh spray of blood from his waist to his shoulder.

"Your father's conviction may have been strong. And let me say this, if what you say about your father is true," Victoria stated sadly as her sword slid back into its sheath, "your father was a million times of a better pirate than you are. You're a disgrace to the title of D. as well as of Azgard. Repent while your wounds are healed and perhaps you will see the true reason you picked up the flag you hold so high above your head."

Mikoto grabbed his chest, the pressure of her Haki had finally lifted, but it didn't make it any easier for Mikoto to stand. While her Haki may no longer be suppressing that of his own, his own had been shattered.

The Passing and Fumbling of the Baton