Marco PoV
Marco had a headache. And as he massaged his temples in the galley, he could just tell it was only going to get worse before the day was over. The cause of it could be traced back to the Moby Dick's newest guest, well guest for now. She wasn't even awake yet and was already causing him pain. What is it with redheads and their apparent NEED to torture him? First the drunk Yonko and now this brat! And yet, for some reason, Ace couldn't stay away from her. The charcoal-for-brains had made so many attempts to get into the infirmary, including trying to injure himself, that the nurses had made it HIS problem.
"Do something about it or you don't want to know what we'll do to you." The threat didn't seem like much at first glance, but considering what happened to the last poor bastard that crossed them Marco felt there was a good reason to be concerned. The idiot had been slipped a fair amount of laxatives and then ended up having to fight off Marines in his unfortunate state. Marco definitely didn't want to discover what else their creative minds could come up with. He already had enough problems with Thatch.
But when he had confronted the flaming brat, all he got was a dark glare and a "They called her a demon."
Yes, she was going to cause him problems. Looking around the mess hall, he ignored the quiet chatter and focused on Izo and Vista. Something had unsettled them. Izo kept twirling his fan around his fingers, completely lost in thought, while Vista stood away from the crowd in the center. The swordsman leaned against a wall and glared at the corner like it had personally offended him. The only two with current knowledge of the redhead were disturbed, and his little brother couldn't wait to get close to her.
Marco sighed when the room fell silent, watching his captain take a seat on his chair. Without preamble Whitebeard motioned for Vista to speak. The swordsman held up a small open book. A book of bounties Marco realized.
"This was the only thing I could find with any sort of specific reasoning for her 'execution'. I managed to find the name she mentioned, Mangetsu."
Vista flipped through the book, before holding it up once more. There was a large red X covering the picture but Marco could still make it out. A young male with white hair and purple eyes. "Hozuki Mangetsu, moniker Second Coming of the Demon. Member of The Seven Swordsmen, an organization within The Village Hidden in Mist. Master swordsmen and Master of the 'Silent Killing Technique'. Age is listed as 24, also lists height, weight and even blood type. Apparently had something called a Water Affinity, and preferring a sword called Hiramekarei. Missions completed: D 45 C 42 B 57 A 68 S 9. Then what appears to be some sort of statistics. Ninjutsu: 4.5 Taijutsu: 5.0 Genjutsu: 3.4. Finally, the Bounty is listed as 82 million, Kill On Sight. Hiramekarei return reward is listed as 22 million. Apprentice is one Uzumaki Tsubaki."
Vista turned the page to reveal a picture of the very girl in their infirmary. She looked a lot younger in the photograph though, he would place her age in the picture to be about 8 or 9 years. "Uzumaki Tsubaki, the Moby Dick's newest guest. Monikers are 'The Demon's Right Hand' and 'The Demon's Shadow'. It lists her as 14 years old and close range fighter, wielding the thunder swords called Kiba. A Water Affinity with a secondary Lightning Affinity, still don't know what those are. Missions completed are as follows: D 15 C 24 B 45 A 20 S 1. Statistics are Ninjutsu: 3.0 Taijutsu: 4.5 Genjutsu: 1.5. Bounty: 40 million, Kill On Sight. Kiba return reward: 22 million."
The words out of Vista's mouth just became more horrifying with each passing phrase. The silence in the room became noticeably heavier.
Izo's fan was spinning faster now and he practically growled "It might as well be a step-by-step page of how to kill her."
14 years old. The number bounced around in Marco's head. This world was truly a cruel place. She was practically a toddler in the pictures. The blasted book didn't even list her crimes. On their bounties, it at least said 'Enemies of the World Government'.
Marco remembered Izo's agitated state before the meeting even began and it had only increased with Vista's report. He wasn't sure he wanted to know what their 'spy master' had found out, but nonetheless he motioned for Izo to speak. The facts shot out of Izo's mouth like bullets from a gun and Marco's focus immediately sharpened with the realization that this girl was no helpless child. Multiple long needles hidden in her braided top knot, no perfume or scented shampoo, neutral colored clothing, making it easier to hide. A metal forehead protector with 4 wavy lines and a deliberate scratch through it. Multiple scars decorating her body. Izo paused in his rant and took a deep breath. "And teeth filed into points." The commanders stiffened and all eyes flicked to Namur, a shark fishman with very noticeable sharp pointed teeth.
The fishman took a deep, centering breath. "It is very unlikely. The tensions between fishman and humans is very high. But it is not impossible. Are you sure they are filed and not natural?"
Izo just shook his head. "The nurses say based on their structure it is more likely that they are filed. But they are very smooth, with no grooves from a file at all, so they won't be 100% sure until she wakes up and tells us."
"When will that be?"
"They do not know. She is currently with a high fever. Apparently, the wound on her arm was poisoned."
Pops' voice rumbled across the room. "Is this all we know of the girl?"
Vista stepped forward. "No. When I was looking through the bodies I noticed something. All the cuts were incredibly clean, mostly horizontal. And one of those strange knives had been cut clean through. She's no amateur when it comes to those swords. And those masks… they all had the same 4 wavy lines you described, Izo."
The silence in the room became oppressive as they all pieced together the painting the information painted. Some kind of child soldier, hunted by her own people.
Marco sensed two presences approaching the door and he turns his head to watch it, absently noting everyone else copy him. Soon they could hear Ace behind it.
"You can't go in there."
"You mean shouldn't, not can't." Marco didn't recognize this new voice. It was a clipped soprano, his zoan senses picking up a light, almost undetectable lisp. The door opened and a flash of red slipped through it with Ace on its heels. It was the girl, Tsubaki, he recalled.
Where is her shirt?! The question echoed in the back of his mind as his eyes focused on what its lack revealed. An impressive amount of muscle tone and an assortment of scars of varying sizes littered her arms, hands, and one stretched from her navel to her hip. The metal headband that once rested on her forehead now siting against her collarbones, encircling a scar on her neck like some sort of macabre photo frame. Her hair was unbound, wavy from its previous braid, and now reached her waist. Its color sent an uncomfortable memory of the drunk-shouldn't-be-a-Yonko-brat. However, Marco pushed all those details aside to think about later. Instead he took in how she walked with a steady pace, her eyes flitted around the room before taking in each of its occupants one at a time. Though, when those eyes reached him he felt his insides freeze. Something wasn't right about them. Then her scent reached him and felt himself become even more off balance.
Finally, her gaze focused on Whitebeard and he felt like he could move again. She came to a stop just outside anyone's reach. Namur was the closest and even he would have to take another two steps before he could touch her. Tsubaki crossed her arms underneath her bound chest and her golden eyes seemed to be trying to bore into the giant captain like a drill. Then her crisp high-pitched voice reached his ears.
"I dislike politicking and round-about speech. So, I'll speak plainly. What do you want?"
That... was not what Marco had expected, and apparently Pops felt similar judging by his climbing eyebrows.
"What do you mean, girl?" his question echoed around the room, demanding an answer.
"I am not a naive fool. I know that ninja are weapons. Tools to be picked up and discarded at will. I see the Bingo Book in the swordsman's hand. You know I have a bounty. You neither killed me nor left me. You do not plan to turn me into my village for hope of a higher reward or you would not have attempted to heal and bandage my wounds, as unnecessary as it was. No one does something without hope for gain. So, what do you want?"
"For now answers will do." The golden eyes focused on him at the sound of his voice, and he felt ice run through his veins.
"What do you want to know?"
"Let's start with the easy questions first. How old are you?"
"What's the date?"
"February 21st"
"Then I am still 14."
Marco held back a sigh. He had hoped the book had been inaccurate for some stupid reason. "Are you a pirate?"
"No."
"Why did you try to protect us?" The question had been bothering him for a while. Why had this complete stranger attempted to help them when she was capable of the massacre he had seen.
"It was my fight. I didn't need random civilians getting in my way."
Marco held back a chuckle at her answer. The little chit obviously had no idea who the pirates were. His brothers and sisters were anything but random civilians.
She was answering the questions with a cold detachment like they were about someone else, years ago, not just yesterday. It was starting to piss him off. But he pushed it down. Ignored everything else in the room except her. They needed to know what they had stumbled on.
"Are others looking for you? Are you in danger?" He locked his gaze with hers. Searching for any sign of life behind that cold gaze.
"Actively hunting me? Just Kirigakure, the Village Hidden in Mist. The other ninja villages can't be bothered with me unless I threaten them first. Of course, that doesn't mean they won't turn in my head and swords for their bounty if they come across me. I'll probably be dead within the month. Especially since Mist will know my general location sometime within the next two weeks."
Marco couldn't detect any sign of lying. Again, she spoke with that damned cold detachment. It was getting harder to keep his temper in check.
"The people after you. They wore that symbol, the one around your neck. I doubt they were normal bounty hunters. What does it mean, and what were they?"
"This is the symbol of Kirigakure. All ninja from there wear this symbol. The cut through mine shows I am a missing-nin, a ninja who was deserted their village, and have cut all ties with my village. They were Hunter-nin, they hunt down missing-nin and destroy the bodies immediately so that village secrets can't be revealed."
'This is what they want to do to you, not take you out drinking! Show some fucking emotion damnit!'
Apparently, his father sensed the looming snap of his self-control and quickly interjected with a subject change. "Are you a fishman?"
It looked like Pops was able to crack that annoying mask of hers even if it was only a bit of confusion.
"A what?" Maybe her heritage was hidden from her, though she should still know what a fishman was.
Whitebeard was able to patiently explain, like he was answering a toddler's question. Of course, to old captain, she might as well be a toddler. "One of the humanoid species that live in and rule the ocean. Namur is a fishman and you have teeth similar to his. Fishman Island is under my protection. I can take you there."
Tsubaki glanced at the 8th commander before refocusing her gaze on the Yonko. "No. My teeth were filed when I was accepted as Mangetsu's apprentice. All of the 7 Swordsmen if Mist Village, as well as those intending to join them, have their teeth filed. I became an official member when I achieved Jounin ranking. But I am easily the weakest when compared to the other members."
Ace broke. "What about the power you used. The barrier and the mist didn't look like nay devil fruit I've seen." Marco had been wondering how long Ace would be able to stay quiet. Any longer and he would have gone to get a nurse.
"I do not know what this 'Devil Fruit' is. I used jutsu."
"What the fuck is a jutsu?"
"A technique utilizing chakra. I suppose you want to know what chakra is too?" she drawled.
Oh, so the dead eyed girl had some bite in her after all. But Marco wasn't having it. "Yes, we would like to know what that is."
"Chakra is the combination of spiritual and physical energy within a person. However, like blood, each person has a finite amount. Use too much and you will die."
"Why are you telling us all this, honestly too. Pops would know if you were lying. I doubt you trust us already." That stupid brat just had to open his mouth. Marco had been wondering the same, but hadn't been stupid enough to risk changing the situation when it was beneficial to them.
"Because I have yet to tell you anything that my hunters do not already know themselves. The majority of people where I am from know this. The information is overall useless to you." Marco was willing to admit that the girl was smarter than he had originally given her credit for after hearing that.
"You have given us much to think about. We will ask you more questions at a later time." Whitebeard had ended the conversation before she could regain control of it with a clear dismissal. Marco had expected at least a slight protest, but she just nodded and left the room. He thought that had gone much easier than he had originally expected and said as such.
"We have her swords hostage. I doubt she would willingly leave without them." Jozu made a good point, as usual. At least somethings are still normal, well, as normal as the Moby Dick could be.
"It's not that. Did you see her eyes?" The fire brat was strangely subdued.
"They are rather pretty, but I don't think that's what you're getting at." Jozu was obviously curious now.
"They were empty. They might have been glass for all the emotion they showed." Marco was glad to finally be able to let a little of his frustration show.
"I saw eyes like hers a couple of times in the Trash Heap by the forest I grew up in," Ace nodded. "People with those eyes don't care whether they live or die."
Marco decided now was as good of a time as any to share what he had noticed when the redhead had first walked in. "That's not the only thing that's off about her. She smells like blood. And she doesn't make any sound when she moves. Not her steps or even the rustle of her clothes."
"Is... Is she a ghost?" Leave it to Thatch to change the mood.
"Idiot!" Izo smacked Thatch with his fan. Maybe he was hoping to finally knock some sense into the man. Marco wished him luck, he had been trying that same tactic and failing for years. "I carried her on board. Remember?"
"But still," the idiot was still arguing. "If Marco, a zoan with his magical-birdy-enhanced-senses can't hear her…" Marco tuned out the rest of Thatch's rambling with practiced ease. Instead he focused on his captain's face. He knew that look. Seemed like he was going to get a new sister. This one was going to be even more troublesome than Ace; he just knew it. With a groan, he let his head fall onto the table. He could feel the future headaches she would cause already.
Special thanks to UnderneathXtheXUnderneath for being a wonderful beta. I do not own One Piece or Naruto. However I do own Tsubaki.