I do not own any ideas taken from One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, Dragon Ball, HunterXHunter, or Yu Yu Hakusho. Eiichiro Oda, Masashi Kishimoto, Tite Kubo, Akira Toriyama, and Yoshihiro Togashi are the brilliant minds behind those manga, and I'm simply using them to set the stage for my story! It's all for fun, so please enjoy!
Chapter 13: Encounter
"You people don't appreciate my generosity!" Gato screamed at the crowd of villagers, "We protect you, and you spit in my face?"
Two muscular men dragged Kaiza out and tied him to an X-shaped cross. His arms and legs were strapped to the wooden beams, and the villagers murmured and gasped.
"Daddy, no!" Rinku screamed, Tazuna holding him tightly.
The two men grabbed large hammers and smashed Kaiza's arms and legs with savage strikes. Sickening cracks sounded out, and Kaiza screamed as his limbs were slowly demolished.
Rinku, Rem, and Tazuna all cried as they watched the torture take place. Rem tried to pull Rinku away, but he wanted to stay… The two men then poured kerosene on Kaiza and set him ablaze! Kaiza screamed horribly as he burned alive.
Rinku sat up in his bed and began crying. He wiped away his tears and saw the sun rising through his window. Rinku got out of bed and stretched, dressed, and grabbed his satchel.
He walked down the stairs and saw his mom and Bulma preparing breakfast. His grandpa, Asuka, Mugen, Yasui, and Shuhei grabbed breakfast to go and left the house.
"Where are they going?" Rinku asked.
"Your grandpa is going to work at the bridge, and the boys are guarding him." His mom said with a smile.
Bulma handed him a plate with potatoes, eggs, and bacon, "Here you go."
"Thank you," Rinku said and began eating.
Zika, Bulma, and Rem also ate and washed their dishes. Bulma opened her bag on the table and began tinkering with her baton. Zika and Rinku sat with her.
"What are you working on?" Rinku asked her.
"I'm upgrading my baton. I can make it do even cooler things." She said with a smile.
Zika pulled out his bag and pulled out his supplies, "I can take the time to make your flash bombs and smoke pellets."
Rinku grinned and reached into his satchel; he pulled out a slingshot and a handful of ammunition. "I make all of these myself." Rinku said proudly, "Flash bombs, chili powder bombs, and plain gunpowder bombs."
"Wow, those are cool!" Zika examined Rinku's bombs.
"I use my power to make them even better," Rinku stated.
"Asuka said you ate the More-More Fruit? What does that do?" Bulma asked.
"I can make things bigger, stronger, and faster," Rinku explained.
"Oh! Can you make my baton bigger?" Bulma asked and handed it to Rinku.
"How much bigger?"
"Twice the size if you can."
Rinku smiled, "More-More Size." The baton expanded to twice the size, and he returned it to Bulma.
"Thank you!" Bulma said and began working on the baton again.
"What's the word?" Gato grumbled into his Transponder Snail.
"I told you I'd be there in five days, so I'll be there tomorrow." A voice said through the snail, "I had four lackeys closer than I was and had hoped they could handle the bridge builder. But I haven't heard from them, so they either died or ran away."
"I lost contact with two of my guys, Big Ben, and Calico Jack. Those damned peasants are trying to fight back and must be taught a lesson!" Gato spat.
"Don't worry; the job is as good as done as soon as we get there." The voice responded after a moment.
Gato grumbled, "Fine, but you better hurry!" The line was disconnected, and Gato slammed his fist on his desk. He stormed out from his quarters and stepped onto the deck, "Set course for Onda!"
Tazuna and his crew had already started constructing a bridge that would span west to Vague. Asuka, Mugen, Yasui, and Shuhei stood guard and walked around as the bridge builders worked. The shift was very uneventful, and Tazuna called it a day a few hours after noon.
The four of them walked Tazuna back toward the house, and he popped a bottle of whiskey open. He drank happily from it and said, "We've got fifteen meters of bridge done so far."
They walked back through the village and to the house. They walked inside and found Bulma, Rinku, and Zika working on things together at the table. Rem stood in the kitchen making tea.
"How was work, Grandpa?" Rinku asked.
"Long and easy." Tazuna nodded and smiled.
"I'm gonna start dinner soon," Rem called from the kitchen.
"I think I'm gonna go train in the woods," Asuka said to nobody in particular.
"Sounds like a good idea." Mugen yawned, "I'm gonna take a nap and meet you out there." He said as he slumped into the corner.
"I'll come with you," Shuhei said, and they left the house together.
Tazuna stumbled up the stairs, and Yasui sat at the table with the others. They had piles of makeshift ammunition and bombs between them, and Bulma's baton now matched the blue of her hair.
"Think we should do some training too?" Yasui asked.
"Couldn't hurt," Zika answered.
"Hey, Rinku." Bulma said with a smile, "Wanna come train with me?"
Rinku nodded and grinned, "Sure, let's go!" They quickly grabbed their things and ran out of the house.
"Looks like Mugen is out; you wanna spar with Hama and me?" Zika asked.
Yasui smiled and looked over at Hama lying down beside Mugen, "They both may be down." Yasui chuckled.
"Hama, come on." Zika whistled, and Hama stood up and walked over to the table.
Yasui, Zika, and Hama walked outside and stretched to warm up. They both did various exercises and took stances, facing each other down.
"Ready?" Zika asked with a grin.
"Let's go," Yasui said and sped forward, sending a powerful kick at Zika. He blocked the kick with his left arm and struck Yasui in the chest with his right fist. Hama bounded up and launched at Yasui; he spun around quickly and knocked Hama into Zika. They clashed wickedly as they continued to spar.
Asuka and Shuhei Shaved around in the woods and exchanged rapid blows as they sparred. Shuhei struck Asuka in the chest and kicked him back hard. Asuka launched a Chop-Chop Rocket that struck Shuhei in the forehead, and he Shaved up and hit him in the gut with his other fist. They exchanged rapid blows and jumped away from each other.
Shuhei dashed forward and quickly kicked at Asuka, he caught his leg, and Shuhei plunged his index finger into Asuka's chest. Asuka smiled and punched Shuhei in the jaw, and pushed him back.
"So you can't be cut or pierced," Shuhei said as he regained his balance and took a stance.
"What did you just do?" Asuka asked and grinned.
"One of the six powers, like Shave." Shuhei explained, "It's called Finger Pistol."
"Cool!" Asuka exclaimed, "Can you teach me?"
Shuhei smiled, "Learn as we fight."
The two of them skipped at each other and exchanged heavy blows. Asuka used Iron Body and swung a quick punch that Shuhei dodged; he threw an uppercut into Asuka's chin. Asuka stumbled back and blacked a punch, he punched Shuhei in the chest, and they exchanged blows again.
After several hours everyone returned to the house and washed up for dinner. They sat together at the dinner table and ate seafood ramen. Asuka chugged a glass of orange juice and burped, earning him a slap to the head from Bulma.
Asuka and Shuhei passed out on the living room floor after eating and snored loudly as Bulma, Rem, and Rinku did the dishes in the kitchen. Tazuna popped open a bottle of booze and stumbled upstairs.
"You wanna go on watch with us?" Zika asked Yasui, and Hama barked quietly.
"Yeah, sure. Sounds good." Yasui said as he stretched.
Yasui, Zika, and Hama walked out of the house and around the perimeter a few times before climbing up the house and up to the roof. They perched up there and looked over the village.
Yasui looked down and saw Mugen walking away from the house, "Yo, where are you off to?" He called down to him.
Mugen turned around and looked up at them, "I slept most of the day while everyone trained; I'm gonna head into the woods for some solo training."
"Be safe!" Zika called after Mugen as he walked off through the village.
Mugen walked through the village; all the shops and stalls were closed at this time of night. He passed through the town and into the woods. He had snatched a bottle of booze from Tazuna and popped it open, drinking from it as he walked.
After a long while, he stopped walking and chugged the rest of the booze. He dropped the bottle and pulled out his sword. With a few swings of his sword, he cut down the surrounding trees and created a clearing. He did some stretches and warm-up exercises before he began training.
As the next day began, the house started stirring. Asuka and Shuhei were both still asleep, dead to the world. Tazuna began getting ready for work, and Zika noticed that Mugen had never returned. Yasui, Bulma, Zika, and Hama grabbed breakfast and left with Tazuna toward the worksite as Rem and Rinku ate in the kitchen.
The group of them walked through the village and came to the worksite after a short while. The other men were already there and at work when they arrived. Yasui, Bulma, Zika, and Hama walked around the worksite on guard.
A small ship dropped its anchor at the eastern shore of Onda, and five figures stood on the deck talking to each other as they looked at the ragged coast and twisted woods. A tall shark, Fishman, with short black hair and pale green skin, stood in the center of their group. On his back was a broadsword shaped like a butcher knife, the sword as long as his body.
"Bing, Ebisu, and Genma, you three go scope out the island. Two at the bridge and one at the bridge builder's house." The Fishman spoke roughly, and three of his lackeys dashed off quickly.
"I have a strange feeling, Kisame." The last figure, a Bengal tiger-Mink, said, and she looked up at the island.
"What's that, Lola?" Kisame asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I don't know how to explain it. I just feel weird." Lola said slowly.
"Don't be a dumbass. We'll finish this job and collect our money from Gato." Kisame laughed.
Lola sighed and looked at Kisame, "Whatever you say."
Mugen woke up suddenly on the ground in his self-made clearing. He stood up and stretched, yawning loudly. He looked around and walked off in the direction he believed the house to be in.
"Man, I really wore myself out last night," Mugen said to himself and yawned.
He suddenly turned around and stared off into the woods behind him. Something was there, coming at him fast. A tall, broad-shouldered man dressed all in black came at him, leaping from tree to tree. The man stopped on a thick branch and stared down at Mugen.
Mugen saw the four raindrops on the man's headband, "You one of them, Mist ninja?" He asked.
"Hm, you know about us?" The man asked, leaping down at Mugen and landing a few meters away. The man wore a large gauntlet on his left arm with claws on each finger.
Mugen pulled out his sword and grinned at the man, "You here to kill the bridge builder?"
The man dashed forward and clashed his claws against Mugen's blade as they clashed quickly. With his right hand, the man pulled a serrated chain from his belt and whipped at Mugen. Mugen skipped away from the chain and dashed at him, and slashed Mugen up the side with his claws. Mugen and the man clashed viciously again.
Yasui, Bulma, Zika, and Hama walked around the worksite as the men did their jobs. Yasui sped around the worksite and down the bridge length that was completed already.
"I smell something," Zika said, and Hama started growling.
"What is it?" Bulma asked him as she walked over to him.
"Someone's coming, two of them," Zika answered.
They scanned the nearby woods and looked around intently. A faint thung sounded out, and Bulma ducked beneath a crossbow bolt as it zipped at her. Two figures erupted from the trees and attacked them. Both wore black and moved quickly; one had a length of serrated chain, and the other had a small crossbow in one hand and a large gauntlet with claws in the other.
The man with the chain dashed at Zika and Hama and swung his chain around quickly. Zika was slashed in the side as he jumped between the strikes. He skipped at the man with the chain and barraged him with his Wolf Fang Fist. The man stumbled back and dodged out of the way as Hama pounced at him. Zika and Hama bounced around as the man swung his chain around; he slashed both of them up as they twisted and struck him with their Fang Over Fang.
The other man aimed and shot his crossbow at Bulma; she blasted it aside with a gust of wind and dashed at the man. He dropped his crossbow and raced at Bulma; he swung horizontally at her, and Bulma boosted herself over the swing by blasting wind at the ground. While in the air, Bulma struck her baton into the man's head and shocked him with her upgraded taser! The man growled angrily and hit her in the chest with a swift punch. Bulma grabbed her chest and said, "Ow! Right in the tit." She twirled her Climate Baton and blasted the man back with a gale of wind.
Yasui ushered the bridge builders to flee and stayed close to Tazuna as Bulma, Zika, and Hama fought with the assassins. Yasui watched his friends fighting and gritted his teeth.
"Go help your friends, boy," Tazuna said.
"They can handle themselves; I need to protect you," Yasui responded.
They watched the fights from the length of the bridge, standing away from combat. Yasui turned around suddenly to see two figures standing at the end of the bridge with their backs to the water. The shorter figure, a tiger-Mink, Shaved suddenly and lunged at Tazuna. Yasui spun fast and kicked her strike away with a swift kick. Yasui exchanged rapid blows with the girl as Tazuna backed away from their scuffle.
The tall Fishman cackled and shouted, "Lola, kill the boy and the bridge builder!"
To Be Continued