Chapter 40: Shinobi Raid

"Hi there" Normal Speech

"Hi There" Thought

"Hi There" Biju and techniques | Summon Speech

"Hi There" Biju thoughts and techniques in head | Summon thoughts

Flashbacks

"Hi There" Normal speech

"Hi There"Thought

"Hi There" Biju and Techniques

"Hi There," Bijuu thought and techniques in head

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or One Piece or any other material taken from Anime, Manga, Books, Video Games and etc that may appear. Examples: Shirone and Kuroka from Highschool DxD. Nor do I claim possession over the weapons used in this fanfiction. I do however claim ownership to the theories and concepts I've come up with. I claim ownership over Original Character's I've created (such as Suzuka, Vladimir, Dominic and Alphonse etc) and the concept of the original techniques I've come up.

Author Note 1: Hi everyone, sorry for the long wait on this new update. Things have been pretty hectic for me. But I've finally managed to work on some new chapters. Unlike the previous ones for the War which were long, I've split back into multiple slightly smaller chapters between 6k and 10k. This has allowed me to do more work as it doesn't seem as daunting. Anyway, I am releasing 4 chapters tonight. originally I planned to release 3 last night, but I managed to complete the 4th chapter late at night, so decided to hold off until tonight to finish it.

Please note this first chapter may be a little boring or may not keep your focus, but please bear with it. The chapters after begin rounding up the war between Uzushiogakure and Big Mom but bring it to the next stage. There is a surprise at the end of chapter 43 (44 on fanfiction net)

Author Note 2: Thanks and shout out to Kuro (discord name), who helped proofread Chapter's 40 and 41, taking a glance at 42, but was unable to finish 42 and 43 because he is busy with exams. Shout out to the other members of the discord channel who pointed out mistakes for me.

Please be aware there may still be some errors in these four chapters, but I will be reviewing them throughout the week in an attempt to improve them as much as possible.

Author Note 3: As always the link to a discord channel ( h , t , t , p , s,/ / discord . gg / mX728eD ) remove all the commas and spacing. If you have trouble, remembering who is who please do join there is a channel that lists my characters. After the War Chapter's I will post a databook chapter of my characters. But please do join the discord channel; there are some features and rewards for being active, including access to exclusive story channels, and access to my unedited chapters when they are developed.

Please read and review.

Summary Chapter 39: (I will fill this in tomorrow. Tired after working on these chapters and Dialysis today. Ditto for the summaries for the other new chapters)

As always read and review.

Chapter 40: Shinobi Raid

Uzu no Kuni

"Everything appears to be going just as expected Naruto-kun. The bodies are certainly a nice touch though." A sensual voice sounded in the Kage's ears addressing the blood-stained battlefield, corpses littered everywhere. A portal opened up behind him and Whitebeard, long white legs in purple high-heeled Mary Janes touching the ground as a beautiful woman came into view. She was tall and slender with shoulder length black hair and dark wide pupils matched by a long, thin and defined nose. She wore a cleavage-revealing sleeveless shirt with a wide, yellow collar covered with black concentric circle motifs and matching shorts barely reaching her knees. The woman was Nico Robin, the Devil Child, a friend and ally to Uzu no Kuni.

In the woman's arms was a small four-year-old boy with shoulder length black hair tied in a ponytail, snow white skin, three faded whisker marks on each cheek and cerulean blue eyes. He was wearing a pair of black shorts and a navy blue short sleeve shirt with matching blue ninja sandals. The little boy was Uzumaki Itachi, Naruto's eldest child. He was kicking his feet with a beaming smile as he rested in Robin's arms; he was excited to see his father.

"Papa!" Itachi shouted out as Robin placed him on the ground, immediately running up to and jumping into his father's open arms.

"Ne, ne Papa have you won yet?!" Asked the young boy whose eyes gleamed with excitement. To Itachi, whenever he laid eyes on his father, he couldn't help but be excited. Like most young boys, his father was his hero.

"Not yet Ita-kun, but soon," Naruto responded, giving a smile and ruffling his son's hair before exchanging a glance with Robin.

"Did you have fun with Robin-chan?" Asked the Immortal, getting a quick nod from the boy.

"Papa, Onee-sama gave me lots and lots of treats, then guess what, guess what, she told me all about these things called Poregryphs!" Exclaimed the little boy. Naruto chuckled at his son's mispronunciation of the word Poneglyphs but didn't correct him. Itachi was attached to his new 'big sister', as Robin spoiled him rotten, pampering and cuddling Itachi while giving him all the treats he desired.

"Did she now, I hope you listened carefully. Robin knows all about the Poregryphs." Naruto mimicked his son's pronunciation of the word and continued to ruffle the little boy's hair which made him giggle in response.

"Robin-chan I appreciate you looking after my son." Naruto thanked the young woman who smiled and took a seat beside him and Whitebeard, sitting dogeza style on her knees.

"It was a pleasure Naruto-kun, I enjoyed it. Itachi-kun is a bright and well-mannered boy with a thirst for knowledge. I was happy to do it." Robin smiled as she reached over and pinched little Itachi's left cheek. Naruto had asked her to look after Itachi while he and Suzuka headed out. Meanwhile, Kushina was being babysat by her Aunt Kokuou. Robin found both children to be adorable and enjoyed spending time with them whenever she was visiting Uzushiogakure.

"Nico Robin, good to see you. I enjoyed yesterday; please don't hesitate to swing by in the future." Roared the ever-present Whitebeard, tipping his sake saucer politely towards the young woman. Whitebeard and Robin had interacted on multiple occasions during their stay together on Uzushiogakure no Sato, discussing the Poneglyphs and history of the world that each was aware of. Newgate found Robin to be a bright young woman who stimulated his intellectual mind. At the same time, Robin was fascinated to hear Whitebeard recount events of the past, and as someone who was naturally curious about the past, she hung onto every word. Whitebeard was one of the oldest Pirates in the world and was a wealth of historical information.

"Then I will take you up on your offer Whitebeard-san. There are many questions that still linger at the back of my mind that need answering, only to be replaced by others that take their place." Robin spoke softly as she accepted a saucer of sake from Naruto. Robin was by nature a curious individual, always looking for answers to the thousands of questions she had about the world.

The young woman raised the sake saucer to her full lips and took a dainty sip. Eyes sprung open from the impact of that one sip as a blush appeared on Robin's smooth cheeks. The alcohol was strong, stronger than anything she had ever tasted before. Robin was by no means an amateur when it came to the art of drinking, but this alcohol was incredibly potent, and just that sip was already giving her a slight buzz.

"I heard you had a run in with my new charge?" Piped up the Uzukage getting a pause from the archaeologist.

"He's an interesting one. I came across him at your favourite ramen stand, trying to beat your record." Robin gave a cute giggle while reminiscing about her meeting with a certain straw hat wearing boy; the youth certainly had a voracious appetite.

"GURARARA! An ambitious gaki (brat)! He has big shoes to fill if he wants to become the next Pirate King! But you know what? I like him!" Whitebeard roared with laughter, then downed the large saucer of sake with ease, and burped. The old man's speech was a little slurred, but it was to be expected, he had, after all, downed five large bottles of the overbearing rice wine. Whitebeard had only heard about the rubber brat from Naruto, but the Yonko already had a good impression of the brat.

"Who in their right mind asks a mermaid if they poop the first time they meet one?" Whitebeard released another bellowing laugh remembering the story Naruto had told him of Luffy's arrival to Uzushio. Robin placed a hand over her lips giving a small giggle. Meanwhile, Itachi was just sitting in his father's lap, happily biting into a rice cake his father had summoned. Itachi was still young, and the conversations of adults tended to bore him.

"Luffy has no filter, but it's part of his charm, combined with his strong will to never give up. He is a resilient one, that's for sure. The training regime Houjin is putting him through; your average person would have quit after the first day." Naruto stroked his chin reflecting on one of the training sessions he had spied on. Houjin had tied one hundred kilograms of weight to Luffy's back and attacked the youth mercilessly, forcing him to dodge every blow. Not just any attacks, but those infused with Busoshoku Haki. Luffy hadn't been able to avoid any of the attacks, becoming battered, bruised and bloodied after every session, yet the boy refused to give up, constantly climbing to his feet.

"Reminds me of his father, that Dragon-gaki (brat). The older gaki is just as stubborn; they get it both from Garp; he's a stubborn old goat that won't give up." Whitebeard stroked his glorious moustache showing a big shit-eating grin. The three members of the Monkey family were incredibly stubborn and strong-willed, something partially inherited from their own heritage but also from possessing the Will of D.

"I hope he holds onto that strong determination and never allows anyone to take it away from him." Naruto could see a strong fire burning inside of the rubber-boy and hoped it would never be extinguished. As long as Luffy continued to hold strong, following his dream and never giving up, Naruto could foresee him becoming someone to watch out for in the future.

"However you appear to have more pressing manners, that brat Houjin isn't doing so hot against Linlin's strongest son." Whitebeard couldn't help but chime in as he pointed a large finger towards the battle between Houjin and Katakuri. The Jounin appeared to be on the losing end of the battle, as he spewed blood.

Katakuri VS Houjin

A loud clang sounded as a shockwave tore through the air, a three-pronged trident colliding with a large hammer connected to the top of a polearm with an axe on the other side. The wielder of the trident was a man with a tall and muscular appearance who released a frightening aura. On the other end wielding the hammer like polearm was a tall youth with golden brown skin and black hair with a pair of fiery red eyes.

Katakuri, the wielder of the trident, showed no signs of buckling as he gripped the long trident with one hand. Mogura (Mole) was a weapon the pirate had absolute confidence in. Houjin, the owner of the hammer polearm pushed back, wind pouring out from the axe half, pushing the hammer into the trident. Katakuri held strong, showing off his remarkable strength as the ground tore apart beneath them. Ripples of Haki poured out from their bodies as the two wielders of Haoshoku Haki clashed in a battle of supremacy.

"Yaki Mochi (Grilled Mochi)!"

Using his free arm, Katakuri's left forearm began to rapidly inflate, his fist becoming coated with Busoshoku haki. The Mochi user punched towards Houjin, his arm exploding from the force of the inflation, the fist launching forward with such speed that the friction caused it burst into flames as it sailed towards Houjin's chest. The wind user's entire lower half turned into a tornado, launching him up into the air, narrowly avoiding the mochi fist as it flew past, hitting the ground with a loud bang and spewing flames everywhere. Katakuri swung the trident, steam pouring out of his left forearm as mochi bubbled into existence from the wound restoring his arm.

"That's new." Commented Houjin as he hovered in mid-air, the hammer-axe weapon clutched with one hand. The Logia user started to twirl the polearm above his head, his arm transforming into wind as it began to twist, spinning the weapon rapidly. The polearm spun with such force it created gale force winds around the logia user. Without hesitation, Houjin, dive bombed towards Katakuri, bringing the spinning weapon down, using the momentum of the spin and the wind summoned by the polearm to enhance the power and speed. The weapon broke forward with a loud bang as fire engulfed it.

"Futile!"

Katakuri spread his legs, settling into a spear thrusting stance, his right arm transforming into mochi before it was twisted. The twisting mochi spun as Katakuri maximised the ability of his Mochi powers. Once finished he untwisted the mochi arm and thrust Mogura forward, aiming it up into the sky, towards the incoming hammer. The trident users arm spun as Mogura turned into a powerful drill that stabbed the air. The eyes of the Mochi user glowed bright red, and with one clear motion, he struck the middle of the incoming weapon with a loud clang.

Tremors shook the earth as it caved in and exploded outwards, throwing cube shaped debris everywhere. Houjin's hammer had been struck in its centre, throwing the force of the hammer off balance, causing it to lose most of its power as it was expelled outwards thanks to the single trident strike. The wind user gritted his teeth and moved through the air, circling around Katakuri, moving faster than the ordinary eye could track. Getting behind the pirate, the Jounin twirled his polearm, bringing the axe side around and swinging it down overhead, intending to bisect Katakuri and split him down the middle. Wind wrapped around the razor-sharp blade, increasing its' cutting power tenfold.

Red eyes shimmered as Katakuri's body transformed into mochi allowing the blade to cut through air. Mochi separated on both sides of the polearm reforming at the top. With a twist of his body, Katakuri's upper half spun around as the middle of his torso turned into mochi. His trident came around, arm twisting again before it untwisted with another, Mochi Tsuki. The trident hardened with Busoshoku Haki slammed into the wind users chest and pierced through flesh. The force of the blow lifted Houjin up off his feet; the youth vomited up blood that splattered against Katakuri's face, eyes set in a cold dead stare. The wind user went flying and smashed into the earth, his body carving a deep fissure in the ground.

Grandline - Marine Base 180th Branch

Fire spread across the Marine Base belonging to 180th Branch. Flames spread across the sky, turning clouds black as embers spread from building to building engulfing everything in their path. Marines scurried about in a panic, carrying buckets of water in an attempt to douse the flames and stop them from spreading any further. A thick plume of smoke wafted into the sky as the piercing smell of ozone descended on the base. The fire had started at the west end of the building before spreading at a rapid pace toward the east. No one even knew what had started the fire; the entire base was set into confusion. The fire quickly spread to the ships by the base, setting them alight. A loud explosion tore through them, blowing them apart and creating a towering column of flames.

"Get water on those sails now! Sink the surrounding ships, stop the fire from spreading!" Yelled a powerful voice that carried throughout the base. If they could sink a few of the surrounding ships, they could prevent the fire from spreading to the rest of the fleet. "God damn it! Someone hurry up and contact Headquarters!"

The owner of the voice was a large man with a spiky black beard, sideburns, and a scruffy moustache who wore a marine hat with flaps on both sides. The man wore armour that covered his back, and a black double-breasted suit with a yellow shirt that had a holster for a sword on his side, all matched by a red tie.

"Yes, Commodore Daigin!" Shouted the marines as they carried buckets back and forth attempting to put the ever-growing flames out. Others soon ran out of the base with long hoses and turned them on in an attempt to quell the jets of water shot out from the nozzles, hitting the flames and pushing them back. Daigin watched all of this, his teeth grinding together.

"How could this have happened?" A whizzing sound drew Daigin's attention as something flew towards him, forcing him to draw his sword and swing it into the item's path to deflect it. The loud ringing of metal hit the Commander's eardrums, making them ache as a metal shuriken bounced off the edge of his sword.

"Who goes there!" Daigin held his sword with two hands, his eyes scanning the surroundings in search for the attacker. A shadow loomed over the Commodore from above, a fist coming down intending to smash open his skull. Daigin jumped back as the fist hit the cement beneath his feet, smashing it apart on impact, blowing debris outwards and dust upwards. As the dust began to settle, Daigin was greeted to the sight of a crouched Tiger Shark Fishman, Alphonse the student of Gyuki.

"A Fishman? Here?" Daigin's eyes were drawn to the headband wrapped around Alphonse's left bicep, a metal plate proudly displaying a whirlpool-like symbol, the marking of a Shinobi from Uzushigakure no Sato,

"An Uzu Shinobi!" Daigin was visibly startled, and why wouldn't he be. Uzushiogakure was in the middle of a War against Charlotte Linlin, one of the Yonko. Why would the Uzukage willingly sacrifice manpower just to attack a marine base? Was he that confident in his ability to defeat the Charlotte Family and their forces that he could divide his attention elsewhere?

Alphonse climbed to his full height, gave his neck a crack and revealed a menacing grin. With a raise of his right hand, the revolver that he carried came to light, having unsealed it before arriving. Squeezing the trigger, Alphonse fired without hesitation. Daigin's teeth ground together as he hardened his flesh with the assistance of the Rokushiki technique known as Tekkai. The bullet struck flesh and with surprising force pierced the first layer of skin drawing a tiny amount of blood.

"Armour piercing should do," Alphonse muttered as a seal lit up on the barrel, changing out the magazine and ammunition type, swapping it for something a lot more powerful. Without a second though the revolver was raised and fired once more. The shot flew towards Daigin who had prepared to defend with Tekkai once more. Blood sprayed through the air as the bullet pierced through the Commodore's right shoulder and out the back leaving a large hole.

"Ahh!" Daigin cried out in pain, stumbling back as a hand clamped itself onto the wound, blood dripping to the ground. Sweat dripped down the Commodore's forehead as he felt blood sliding down his back. The bullet had gone straight through carving a tunnel through his body.

"Not so impenetrable after all." Lightning sparked inside the black iris of Alphonse's eyes before it flowed down into the barrel of the revolver. Blue electricity spun around the barrel as it's colour darkened, soon turning it black.

"Kuroi Raidan (Black Lightning Shot)!" Like before, Alphonse fired a single shot, however unlike the previous bullet. This one was encased in black lightning.

"Soru (Shave)!" Daigin kicked off the ground using the movement technique to quickly evade the incoming projectile, moving to the right and quickly covering a distance of five metres. The projectile hit the ground and carved a deep trench down through the cement and into the ocean below. Five more shots rang out filling the Commodore's ears with a fierce ringing, as Alphonse fired the gun consecutively, not giving Daigin any time to retaliate. Each bullet was covered in a thick layer of black lightning. Daigin repeated his use of Soru, combining it with the Geppou (Moon Step), allowing him to dodge in mid-air as a bullet came close to dealing a fatal wound. As Daigin dodged the final round, Alphonse appeared in front of him, his right palm moving through the air.

"Gohyakumaigawara Seiken (Five Hundred Tile True Punch)!" Daigin kicked off mid-air, as if there was physical footing beneath him, using the air to jump up and over Alphonse, avoiding the incoming palm. The palm strike carried on, releasing a shockwave that smashed into the cement making a handprint.

"Raiton: Raisaiji (Lightning release: Lightning Surge)!" Electricity poured out of the Fishman's body, releasing hundreds of bolts of lightning and creating an electrical storm around the Shinobi that lashed out, seeking Daigin. Lightning flooded into the Commodore's body, forcing him to bite down on the inside of his cheek, holding back a cry of pain. Alphonse hit the ground turning as Daigin landed on his knees, steam rising from his body hair, the top layer of his skin flaking off as parts were charred black.

"You're tough; I'll give you that." Alphonse spun the revolver, and in a puff of smoke, it vanished, while in another puff a giant Kanabo appeared. Grabbing the spiked club, Alphonse kicked off the ground, breaking the cement and shooting towards Daigin. He swung the massive weapon into the Commodore's body sending him flying back, the sound of bones breaking music to the Fishman's ears.

"Commodore!" The surrounding Marine's shouted, unable to interfere as they had to keep the fire under control. If they slipped for just a moment to lend assistance to their commanding officer, the fire would spread across the entire base. Half the fleet had already been caught up in the blaze, and another quarter had to be sunk to stop the remaining ships from going up in flames.

"Thanks for the goodies." Alphonse smiled sinisterly at the group before he vanished in a flash of white, a scroll safely tucked into his waist.

Grandline - Marine Base G2

Back inside Marine Base G2, dozens of marines were strewn throughout the hallways, having been knocked perpetrators of the act were two young adults, a female mermaid and a male human, eighteen and fifteen years old respectively. The two were Vera and Dean the Students of Isobu and Kurama of the Bijuu. Vera was situated in front of a vault door, floating in mid-air thanks to a bubble tube around her waist. Her hands were pressed to the metal as coral slowly grew from her palms.

"I don't mean to rush you, but reinforcements will be here soon." Said Dean as he stepped back to avoid being cut in half from a Marine's sword. Bone grew out from beneath the youth's skin and coiled around his right arm, creating a fist double the size. The bone covered fist slammed into the Marine's head knocking him face first into the floor with enough force to make a face shaped dent.

Vera paid little attention to Dean's actions, focusing instead on the lock. She took out a kunai and, while channelling lightning chakra through it, plunged it into the lock's mechanism. Lightning flowed through the vault door frying the gears before the mermaid removed the knife and put a finger in the newly created hole. Coral sprouted from the tip of her finger and began to grow inside of the vault door, reproducing at a tremendous pace. Metal began to groan as the door slowly expanded from the inside out. Before long the vault door was torn apart and a large wall of coral was created. With a click of her fingers, the coral shattered and soon dissolving into nothing.

"Stop!"

A tall man with dark skin, a bald head, a moustache, and blonde spiky hair flowing down his back shouted as he came running. He was a marine, dressed in a red double-breasted suit with a dark-green shirt, plain green tie and a Marine coat draped over his shoulders. He was Vice-Admiral Comil, a high ranking Marine and the man in charge of the G2 base.

"Handle the Vice-Admiral." Vera flicked her tail and floated into the vault to complete the mission they had been given. Dean sighed before bone began to cover his entire body.

"Be quick, I don't know how long I can take on a Vice-Admiral." Despite being a Shinobi and the student of Kurama, Dean was only a Chunin and was thus lacking in terms of experience when compared to the Vice-Admiral.

Bone covered Kurama's student from head to toe, creating a thick armour with a demonic skull-like helmet. Spikes shot out from Dean's elbows as his fingers were coated in bone and formed long talon-like claws, each thirty centimetres in length and shaped like a curved blade. Crouching low to the floor like an animal, Dean launched towards Comil delivering a powerful slash with the right bone claw. Comil drew the two katana on his hip and swung the right blade into Dean's path. Metal clashed with bone as the force of the Marine's swing sent Dean sliding backwards, releasing a loud clang on impact. The force of the blow made Dean sweat; it was incredibly overpowering.

"Strong." Dean thought as he dug his claw into the floor bringing his body to an abrupt stop. The difference in strength between a normal marine and a Vice-Admiral was like night and day. Not even Saint-Marc left such an impact on him, especially from one blow.

Bone sprouted from the Chunin's left arm forming individual segments that formed into the shape of a bone whip. Dean swung his left arm sending the whip hurtling towards Comil, the segments extending as the bone grew rapidly, increasing the weapon's length. The tip of the whip transformed, taking the shape of a hooked spear. With a flick of his wrist, the segmented weapon moved, constantly changing its pattern of attack.

The left katana wielded by the Marine was swung into the bone whip's path, the metal glowing as it was coated in Busoshoku Haki. The bone spear cracked on impact before shattering and scattering pieces of bone debris across the hallway. Comil kicked off, moving at high speeds with the aid of Soru, and appeared right in front of Dean. The bone user quickly reinforced the armour coating his body, increasing its thickness. Metal struck bone with a loud clang as the katana struck, swinging from the right. Haki coated the blade increasing its power, smashing the bone armour apart. The force carried by the weapon launched Dean backwards, sending him crashing through multiple walls, only coming to a halt as the third wall fell upon him.

Dean pushed the rubble aside and climbed onto his feet, the youth's mismatched eyes locking onto the Vice-Admiral's form as he came charging towards Bone user spat out a large ball of blood mixed with saliva, as a tooth rolled across the floor. The impact had rattled his internal organs a little, but they had already begun to heal thanks to his Devil Fruit powers. The Hone Hone no Mi (Bone-Bone Fruit) didn't just speed up the regenerative abilities of the flesh and bones, but those of his entire body, allowing its consumer to recover quickly from most non-threatening wounds. Life-threatening injuries took slightly longer to heal, with the exception of certain organs, such as the heart and brain, which couldn't be restored.

Bone tore through flesh as it sprouted out of Dean's chest, melting into the armour and repairing the extensive damage. Dean released a guttural roar, bone spikes shooting out of his back to form two rows of long spines. The armour surrounding him began to grow lifting Dean upwards, the Shinobi growing to a height of seven foot as his legs gained a more canine-like appearance. Kicking off, Dean launched towards Comil, bone spikes shooting out from his chest plate, a dozen in total.

Comil slashed at the air with the twin katana, both coated in a layer of Busoshoku Haki, shattering the incoming bone spikes with ease. Comil didn't become a Vice Admiral because he was weak, the requirement to become a Vice Admiral was proficiency in all forms of the Rokushiki, with mastery in both Busoshoku and Kenbunshoku Haki. Kicking at the air with his right leg, Comil launched a sharp compressed projectile blade of air towards the bone user.

Dean manipulated the bone armour and his own skeletal structure, causing bone to rapidly grow around his right hand, creating a hammer like fist over ten times its' normal size. Dean threw a punch towards the incoming projectile with the giant hammer like fist, slamming into it. The blade dug into the bone fist, cutting halfway through it before running out of power. The bone automatically repaired itself as Dean placed his left hand on the floor.

The floor trembled and cracked as large bone spikes as big as the Shinobi shot up out of the ground, covering a large area. Bone spikes protruded upwards at an astonishing rate, forcing Comil to retreat as pillars of bone shot up from beneath him. Comil swung a katana into the path of a bone spike shattering it, and before he knew it, a field of bone that grew up to the roof occupied the space between him and the Shinobi.

"Let's go." Vera floated out of the treasury with a scroll in hand. Dean removed his hand from the floorboards, pulling out a bone spike that was growing out from the centre of his palm. The spike retracted before the bone armour sank back into Dean's body, returning the youth to his normal appearance. Giving a wave to Comil, Dean channelled chakra into a seal on the back of his neck and vanished in a white flash, joined seconds later by Vera.

Grandline: G5

A black mist came into existence on the grandline, rolling in from nowhere and encompassing Marine base G5, a base located in the New World half of the Grandline, close to the Red Line. It was said that the Marines of this branch were insane, cruel, and merciless people who stuck needles into pirates, fed them to sharks, or used them for campfire kindling. The mist that came into existence engulfed everything in its path, causing the buildings to crumble away, decaying under its touch. Everything the mist touched rotted and aged away as the mist was released in droves from its wielder.

Standing before the G5 base was the Anbu Shi, known by his real name Taro, having undergone a complete Devil Fruit transformation. The teenager was surrounded by walls of thick black mist that were flowing freely from his sleeves, his entire body taking on the appearance of a walking skeleton in hooded black robe wielding a giant scythe. Crimson red eyes bore dead ahead, uncaring about the hundreds of marines that surrounded his person, as he took on the appearance of death personified. Black mist circulated around its' owner in a protective manner, blocking any attack. Bullets rusted and turned to dust on impact and swords rotted away, anyone who came in direct contact with the mist aged rapidly and turned into sand.

"Keep back!" The Marines shouted amongst each other, taking steps back as the cloud of black mist grew in size, threatening to engulf them in its substance. A number of sand piles lay within the mist, Marines who had been unlucky enough to be caught up in the terrifying gas. Watching their comrades shrivel up then dissolve into piles of dust had been disconcerting to say the least.

"Out of the way!" A gruff and serious sounding voice sounded out as a large plume of smoke came barrelling towards the mist. White smoke clashed with black mist as the two forces collided with a loud definite bang. The mist rippled as it coiled around the smoke causing it to disperse under the aging effects it carried. The smoke cut off and retreated reforming into an arm as a high ranking Marine landed ten metres from the black mist dome.

The Marine was a tall, muscular, white-haired man, who could be seen smoking two cigars at the same time. He wore a large thick white and blue specialist marine jacket which was kept open, with greenish fur lining the neck, wrists, and hem. The jacket bore the kanji for "justice" on the back, and one could see many cigars strapped to said jacket. He wore brown leather gloves, blue jeans with a brown belt, and large military-issue brown leather boots. A large Jitte rested on the man's back.

"Smoker-Taichou (Captain)!" The Marines seemed overjoyed to see the arrival of the white-haired man. The Marine known as Smoker narrowed his eyes, his face stuck in a permanent frown while examining the strange mist that wreaked of death.

"Clear the area. Evacuate all personal!" Smoker shouted giving orders to the surrounding Marine's; the mist was just too dangerous to keep them present. The decaying mist had already destroyed close to one-third of the base, and in order to save as many lives as possible, evacuating all occupants had become the main priority.

"I must stall for time."

"I don't know who or what you are, but come quietly or else." Smoker removed the jitte from his back and held it in his right hand, pointing the tip towards the strange skeletal being. Just looking at the being made Smoker shiver, it felt like he was looking at death itself.

Taro's crimson orbs glowed as a green flame engulfed his skull, and pointed a bony left index finger at Smoker. Mist leaked out from the skeletal finger, flowing into the air as the youth spoke.

"Death cannot be contained." A black haze surged violently out from Taro's sleeve, pouring through the air towards Smoker, like a tidal wave. Smoker blew out a cloud of smoke and swung the jitte into the path of the mist, as the tip of the weapon came in contact with the haze it seemed to disperse and even coiled backwards.

"Seastone?" The crimson orbs glowered at the tip of the jitte, and a thick killer intent began to flow outwards from the Zoan user forming an eerie purple fog around him. The reaper twirled his scythe and moved through the air with astounding speed, moving without hindrance, like a fish through water. The scythe was lifted up into the air and swung down, aimed at Smoker's neck, only to collide with the marine's jitte with a loud bang. Metal shook as vibrations travelled through both weapons making them ring. A black mist rolled out from the blade of the tool of death attempting to engulf the jitte but was unable to come in direct contact.

"A Devil Fruit user?" Smoker commented as his lower half transformed into thick clouds of smoke propelling him up into the air and hovering above the personification of death. Smoker plummeted towards his opponent, bringing the jitte down in an overhead swing. A green flame encased the blade of Taro's scythe before it was swung upwards meeting Smoker head on. Black fog rolled out from underneath Taro's feet lifting him up, the mist being used as flooring to move through the air. Smoker clashed with the incoming scythe, metal clashing with metal on multiple occasions, neither foe giving the other any leeway, each fighting for dominance.

Smoker was able to move freely through the air through the aid of his Devil Fruit powers, assisting him in the attempt to assault the zoan user from different angles. On numerous occasions the Marine thought he would catch the reaper by surprise, only to have his jitte blocked by Death's Weapon. Taro was keeping up with every one of Smoker's attacks, sensing where he was coming from, even from the blind spots Smoker would open up.

"Kenbunshoku Haki?" Smoker questioned as he flew back a few feet creating some distance from his opponent. The marine was panting, and sweat could be seen dripping down his forehead. A loud explosion drew Smoker's attention as an intense heat blew up in his face launching him backwards, crashing into the ground and carving a trench in the cement. Debris flew everywhere as a large hole appeared in the base's walls. Twelve red spheres floated in the air above the marines releasing an intense heat that caused the oceans to boil and distorted waves to appear in the air.

Marine's began to collapse onto their knees, sweat pouring from their bodies. Smoker felt himself beginning to sweat heavily, his eyes seeing triple as he stumbled, trying to climb back onto his feet. Though his body was made of smoke, the force of the explosive heat had been enough to launch him backwards thanks to the kinect force released.

A large red flame shot out of the marine base and landed beside Taro. The flame began to take on a humanoid shape until it resembled an attractive Blue Tailed Dolphin Mermaid. The mermaid had long orange hair and wore a dolphin mask as well as tight Anbu attire that showed off her enchanting figure, leaving nothing to the imagination as it outlined her breasts and hips. The lower half of the mermaid's tail had transformed into a strange red flame that kept her afloat.

"A logia?" Smoker managed out as he felt exhaustion overcoming him. Hands hit the ground as Smoker attempted to keep himself from collapsing. Climbing onto both feet the Marine Captain's body began to dissolve into smoke that rocketed towards the Mermaid, jitte pointed towards her. Taro's eyes glowed as he appeared in front of his comrade, swinging the scythe into the jittes path, knocking it on the tip with a loud clang.

"Your fight is with me." Taro gave a disembodied moan as black mist rolled off his body once more in droves, driving Smoker back.

"It's time we leave Shi," Yasmin spoke up in a sweet sultry tone from behind her comrade, her left hand rested on her hips, her right holding a small scroll. The black haze began to flow back to Taro and was absorbed into the Devil Fruit user's body, skin and muscle growing over bone and returning the youth to his human form. The skull-like features blended together as a shadow loomed in front of Taro's face hiding his appearance, allowing a skull-like mask to be put in place, keeping his identity safe.

Yasmin smiled behind her Dolphin mask before disappearing in a flash of white. Taro followed after his team-mate, not even sparring Smoker a glance.

Reports would come in across the globe to Marineford from Marine bases stationed on the Grandline of attacks similar to those on the 180th Branch, G2 and G5. Each led by the five remaining Commander's of the Martial Legions, and each launching simultaneous raids on five different bases with their soldiers. Treasuries were raided and bases were destroyed, no longer flying the banner of the World Government, but the flag of Uzushiogakure no Sato.

Hint: Since I was away for a while, I shall leave a hint as to who the big bad Villain Father is. It is not Orochimaru.

You can find link to my discord channel on my profile page.

Please read and review. Constructive criticism accepted, genuine constructive criticism. Trolls and spiteful comments will be ignored.