Ch. 16

On a small island, in the middle of a labyrinthine set of canyons.

They landed in a grotto with high sandstone walls, a pathway extending from the west side, curving sharply to the south after about twenty of yards. In the very center there was a large dirt mound. Negi immediately began looking around for the portal; despite the fact that he knew he couldn't see it. Turning to Watanuki, he said, "Watanuki-san, where's the portal? Can you see it?"

Watanuki turned in a slow circle, and then nodded in satisfaction. "Yes, Negi-kun, it's right behind you, on top of the dirt mound. And it looks like this one is benevolent. Or at least I don't get sick just by being near it." he added.

"Oh, thanks. And I'm glad. Yuuko-san said that these portals are one-way, so this one must be an 'out' portal. You won't get any bad feelings from it, and nothing can come through towards us. I'll start preparing to seal it. What are the rest of you going to do?"

"Ah." said Shikamaru. "Watanuki-san is going to stay here as lookout for Negi-kun, since he has to devote all of his attention to his magic."

"That sounds good. I'll be taking a bit longer this time, because I want to be careful not to overtax myself again."

"Okay. The rest of us will scout the area, get a handle on the terrain, and prepare for the arrival of those people. When they arrive, we'll hold them off for as long as we can, giving you the time you need to seal the portal. I'll make changes to my basic strategy depending on the circumstances of their arrival, but it should work out the way I planned."

"Yosha! Let's get going!" Naruto exclaimed, and started charging off down the path. When the rest didn't immediately follow him, he jerked to a stop. "Oi! Why are you taking so long? C'mon already!"

"Naruto." said Shino, who stood, hands in his pockets. "There is no need to rush. Shikamaru is the Team Leader. When he says to go, we will go."

"Oh. Uh, right." Naruto still felt uncomfortable around the shades-wearing shinobi and his attitude, or lack thereof. He shifted his attention to something he was better at dealing with. "Oi, Shikamaru, say we can get going already!"

Shikamaru shook his head in resignation. "Sigh… one more thing. We're heading in the general direction of the ocean from here. If anyone sees someone not from our group, report back immediately, and don't let them see you. Got it?"

They all nodded.

"Alright, let's go, everyone."

The ninjas took off down the path, leaping to the top of the canyon's wall as soon as they rounded the corner, so as to get a better view. Ed and Al followed more slowly on the ground, keeping track of them with difficulty. As they left, Al called back, "See you soon, Negi, Watanuki! We're off!"

"See you soon!" Watanuki called, as Negi began muttering in his seeming gibberish, preparing the magic he needed for the seal.

Neji used his byakugan to quickly get an idea of the maze's layout. Like most mazes, there was only one route which went directly to the center, although it had offshoots which came back to meet it later, detour-fashion. So long as they guarded that route, they should have no problems. When he reported to Shikamaru, the lazy ninja determined that they should guard the main route, far enough from the sea so that their opponents wouldn't be able to see them until they were in the maze proper, but close enough that they would meet relatively quickly. He didn't want to chance missing them on a detour.

Shino's bugs were at the coast, keeping watch for those they waited for. When they came ashore, the bugs buzzed around them, checking to see who they were. Those people swatted at them like flies, and the kikai mushi quickly fled. When they returned to Shino, he alerted his comrades, and they prepared for the immanent meeting.

A kunai buried itself in the ground a few feet ahead of the newcomers as they reached the third bend. "What?" said the redhead, "Who's there?" The ninja revealed themselves, dropping down from the tops of the canyon walls as Ed and Al walked up around the corner. "Hello." said Shikamaru, "Pleased to meet you, Mugiwara no Kaizoku."

"Who the hell are you?" asked Sanji, "And how do you know who we are?"

"Idiot, we have wanted posters." Said Zoro.

"Shut up, moss-head, I don't want to hear that from you."

"What'd you say?!"

"Moss-head."

"Ero-cook."

"Moss-head!"

"Ero-cook!"

"Will you two shut up already?" interjected Nami. Turning back to Shikamaru, she said "I can understand how you know who we are. As Zoro said, we have wanted posters. But Sanji-kun brought up a good question. Who are you?"

"Ah. My name is Shikamaru. I'm the leader of this group. We consist of five ninjas, two alchemists, a wizard, and a guy that can see dead people."

Awkward Silence

"…what?"

"Exactly."

"Really?! WOOOOW!!" said Luffy, all exited-like.

"Yes really. The wizard and the guy that can see dead people are at the center of this maze though. So you're facing five ninjas and two alchemists."

"Awww… Oh, well! Ninjas are still cool!"

"Hey! What about alchemists?!" said Ed, affronted by not being mentioned.

"What's an alchemist?"

"Someone who can turn one thing into something else." supplied Nami.

"Really?" Luffy turned to Ed. "Can you make meat out of a rock? Can you? That's so cool!"

"Don't be stupid!" said Ed. "That's impossible."

"What the hell? That's so lame."

"Why you…"

"So if they're at the center of the maze, why are you here?" asked Nami, trying to get back to the original subject.

"We're here to stop you from reaching them. There's something at the center of the maze that we can't let you reach, so Yuuko-san sent us to stop you."

He must mean the treasure! thought Nami. There's no way I'm letting a bunch of kids stop me from getting that treasure! "Oh, really?" she said aloud. "Well this Yuuko-san is very much mistaken if she thinks we'll stop because you said so."

"I know. But our orders were to keep you from reaching the center of the Maze, without killing or seriously injuring you. And that is exactly what we're going to do."

"Ah." said Robin, "So I take that if we were to try to pass you, you may get… violent?"

"Precisely. But I have a perfect track record for having no casualties on the missions I lead. I would like to keep it that way. So I have a proposition for you."

"What kind of proposition?" asked Usopp, hoping it would be something that would be relatively safe.

"Instead of having a melee-type fight, we have it tournament-style. One-on-one battles. There are an equal number of people on both sides, so it would work out nicely."

"One-on-one? That sounds good." said Nami. At least, it'll keep the confusion to a minimum. And people are less likely to die on either side this way.

"Since we know who you are, it only seems fair that you choose which one of you will go first. Then I'll designate one of us to fight that one of yours. If even one of you gets past us, we'll let all of you go through." Shikamaru stated, clarifying his idea.

"What?" said Naruto. "Shikamaru, that's crazy! I mean…"

"Naruto." interrupted Shino, his face suddenly very close to Naruto's, practically looming over him. "Shikamaru is Team Leader..."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Naruto said. "Geez, I won't complain anymore. Seriously…"

"As I said." Shikamaru repeated. "Pick one of your members. We'll allow you to pass if even one of you can beat one of us in a fight."

"Heh." said Zoro, "I like the sound of that. I'll go first."

"Very well. Ed will be your opponent."

"Oh, no. Oh, hell no. I hate fighting swordsmen. Not gonna happen." Ed turned around and started walking away.

"What's the matter?" Zoro grinned at his retreating back. "Afraid to fight someone taller than you? In that case, you must be afraid to fight everybody."

Ed froze, as did everyone on his team, who shrank away from him, waiting for the explosion. "Heh." he said. "You'll regret saying that." Ed grinned demonically as he strode back towards Zoro. When they faced off, he placed his palms together, head bowed as though in prayer.

"Praying for your life?" asked Zoro, drawing the sword he'd gotten from Kuina's father. One-sword style should be enough for him.

"No." replied Ed, eyes opening as he grinned demonically. "Praying for yours." He gripped his right wrist with his left hand as his signature blade popped out. Then he attacked.

Steel rang against steel as the blades clashed. Ed blocked Zoro's attacks with his own, dodging when he could, shoving them aside when he couldn't. He used his superior agility to avoid clashing directly; knowing that Zoro's greater height and weight would give him the advantage in a power-struggle. Eventually though, he met him head-on. Blocking one of the swordsman's attacks, he held his ground, pushing back as hard as he could. He braced his right arm with his left hand, holding his ground for a full second as his arms shook with the effort. Then he grinned up into Zoro's face.

Spinning clockwise, Ed dodged left and swung his left leg up and around, using his right leg as a pivot. His boot dug into Zoro's side, driving him back, half-winded. Before he had a chance to recover completely, Ed charged him. Jumping, he kicked out at Zoro's head, only to be blocked by two swords, as Zoro had drawn another one. Ed used his momentum and pushed off, back hand-springing away. They grinned at each other, panting slightly.

"Sorry." said Zoro, putting the hilt of Kuina's old sword between his teeth and drawing his remaining sword. "I underestimated you." When he kicked me, that didn't feel like a normal kick. There was something different about his foot.

"No problem." Ed replied. He doesn't have a normal human's strength. It's more like that of a monster. "I underestimated you too. I guess I'll have to keep my distance." So saying, he clapped his hands together and then slammed his palms into the earth. Standing back up, he slowly drew his right hand up from the ground, a long shaft following it. When he finished, a spear had been pulled from the earth, its butt capped in iron, its blade having two short guards at the sides.

"Now I'm ready. Bring it, 'Moss-head.'"

"You got it, 'Shorty.'"

They collided once again. This time they picked up the pace. Ed went on the offensive, jabbing with the spear, and changing directions constantly, shifting from one angle of attack to another. Zoro parried his attacks and countered with attacks of his own. Ed blocked one attack with the shaft of the spear, only to have it nearly cut in two as Zoro's swords bit into it. Shoving it to his right, he released the spear and charged for the canyon wall, clapping his hands together as he went. Reaching the wall, he slammed his hands into it, and hand-shaped shelves jutted out of it. Jumping up them, he flipped off the last one and aimed a left-legged heel-drop at Zoro's head. Reacting instinctively, Zoro held his swords up to block it.

To his and everyone else's horror, the edges of his swords, keen as a midwinter gale, sliced though Ed's leg at mid-calf and sheared it clean off. The severed part of Ed's leg fell to the ground with a thunk as he landed on his good leg and, off-balance from the lost weight, fell flat on his tuchas.

"Dammit!" he swore. Scrambling to his feet he began hopping up and down angrily on his remaining leg. "Dammit, dammit, dammit! This is why I hate fighting swordsmen!" He hopped over and picked up his detached limb, sitting down again once he had it. Zoro, confused, had decided to back off until he knew what was going on.

"What the…" said Sanji. "Why isn't his leg bleeding?" The rest of the crew was still just staring.

"Ed has an artificial leg." said Shikamaru simply, having been the first to recover from his shock. (Shino didn't count, as he never showed shock in the first place.) "He won't bleed to death from that, though it's obviously a problem."

"You bet it is!" grumped Ed. "Good thing nothing's broken. This cut's clean enough that I can probably fix it myself…" Still grumbling, he wrapped his hands around his calf, holding the two separated pieces together while his alchemy reconnected them seamlessly. He even fixed the cloth where his slacks had been cut along with his leg.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" the Mugiwara no Kaizoku exclaimed collectively.

"Heh." smirked Ed as he stood, his repairs completed. "I told you I was an alchemist. So long as you don't damage my flesh, I can fix any damage you do with alchemy."

That's not exactly true, thought Al. If Big Brother can't put his hands together, he can't use alchemy. But they don't know that.

"Let's go, swordsman." Ed said to Zoro. "And this time, I'll end it for sure." I bet I can beat him this way, if what the witch told us is true.

Zoro looked at him evenly. He didn't want to hurt the kid too badly, but it didn't look like he'd have much of a choice. To his surprise, Ed proceeded to put his arm-blade away, and faced him bare-handed, dropping into a martial-arts stance. He noticed that Ed's right glove had been torn, revealing metal.

"Looks like your leg isn't the only prosthetic you have." he said, preparing for battle, putting the white-hilted sword back in his mouth.

"Heh. You got that right. My right arm's just as dangerous." Ed flexed the limb. "But that's not important. Let's go." He attacked, using all of his agility to try and get a blow in. Unfortunately, Zoro was on the watch for it now, and kept up his own attacks as well as his defense. At last he saw his opportunity, and swung the sword he held in his mouth around for a blow that, if it had connected, would have decapitated Ed as cleanly as he had earlier severed his leg. Luckily, it never connected. Ed had been expecting the move, even hoping for it, and had caught the blade in his right hand. Grinning, he placed his other hand on it as well; forming the circle he needed for a transmutation. Blue light crackled around his hands as he grinned maliciously. "I win." he said, as the blade shattered, dissolving into hundreds of tiny steel beads, which dribbled between his hands and fell to the ground in a shining pile. Zoro just stared, utterly flabbergasted, the hilt of the former sword falling out of his mouth as his jaw dropped.

"Heehee! I win!" Ed was still grinning maliciously, and a more than a bit smugly.

Zoro's shock shifted suddenly to rage, and he bulled forward, slamming Ed into the canyon wall and pinning him there with one arm. "Change it back." he growled. "You ruined it, change it back."

"I will if you surrender." Ed still had that smug look on his face, and Zoro was dying to wipe it off.

"Like hell. Change it back or I will kill you."

"Then you won't have anyone to change it back at all, will you?"

"You aren't the only alchemist in your group. I'll make the other one fix it."

"Um… excuse me…" Al said.

"What?" Zoro practically snarled.

"I'm the other alchemist. That's my big brother you're threatening."

"Big brother?"

"Uh, yes. And I just wanted you to know that he's the only one who can fix your sword."

"What?" Zoro glared at him. "Explain why. Now."

"For an ordinary sword, I might be able to do it. I've never been as good at alchemy as my brother, so I don't know. But for a special sword like yours, only the person who originally transmuted it can change it back, because he's the only one who knows exactly what its original make-up was."

Zoro continued glaring at him for a minute, and then turned back to Ed, who he still had pinned. "Is that so?"

"Yep." he replied. "I told you, I win. Now surrender."

Zoro glowered at him fiercely, pressing him even harder into the canyon wall. Then he relented and dropped him, backing off. "Fine, I give up. Now fix it."

Ed sat down hard, rubbing his right leg. "Hang on a minute, I can't feel my leg. It fell asleep while you pinned me there." After a second he stood up and walked over to the pile of beads that used to be Zoro's sword. Luckily, they had fallen in a small dip, so that all of them were there. "Gimme the hilt." When Zoro hesitated he rolled his eyes. "I won't ruin it. I need it to put the sword back together. Give me the hilt. Please."

Zoro handed it over. Folding his hands with the hilt in between them, Ed plunged the guard-end into the pile of beads. The blue light of alchemy crackled over the mound, and as he drew the sword hilt back up, the beads re-formed into the blade below. When he finished, he handed it back to Zoro.

"There you go. Good as new."

"Thanks." Zoro said roughly, and then walked back to their side, where he sat down and began looking the sword over for any flaws.