Crazy was an overstatement. It was incredibly boring. Between the paperwork for internal investigation and being stuck to an Outer Blue, Naia was bored and so was her crew.
"Think they're punishing us for looking into these incidents?" Weisman inquired.
"I wouldn't put it past them," Naia sighed. She shuffled the last bit of paperwork for the last commanding officer citation she had investigated. Another high ranking official using his title to make money. Where was the creativity these days?
"Luffy's wanted poster is out and Ace's was just updated. Sabo is still flying under the radar although there is talk of giving him a bounty."
"They're doing so well!" Naia smiled joyously as she took in Luffy's smiling face and Ace's smirking one. A pang shot through her chest. She missed them. Missed them terribly.
"The boys are wondering when our next shore leave is and we have finally been granted permission to enter the Red Line." Annoyance coated her second in command's tone. "Maybe we should start looking into those pirates you know so well?"
"If we get them interested enough, they might even give chase, but first I want to pay the 72nd division a visit. Those weapons are now being sold and trafficked by Doflamingo. Which means they will subsequently end up in Kaido's hands." Naia's lip curled at the thought of the beast man. He liked to think himself on par with her and her family. One day she would teach him what it truly meant to live for as long as she has. "I want to start snipping away."
Weisman gave a bloodthirsty grin and they tore through everything. Their crew was known all throughout the Red Line. Shanks had even mentioned her in one of his letters. Saying there seemed to finally be a crew worth looking at and they seemed to be doing some good in this world. Naia felt her heart swell at the indirect compliment which made accepting her promotion that much sweeter. Garp had always said they gave promotions before something big and never when someone deserved it, so when they handed her the file on the Red Haired Pirates, she was practically beaming. Shanks and his crew had been acquiring more territories and with his never ending wanderlust, it wasn't stopping anytime soon. Too much power meant the Warlord system was useless. More useless than it was.
"Are you sure about this?" Damien, her sharpshooter, asked. "Isn't this a conflict of interest?"
"Only if I deem it so," Naia smirked, but her eyes softened at his insistence. "I appreciate your concern, Damien, but you all and those on Dawn Island are the only ones who know what truly occurred during my forced leave. Not even Garp knows the whole truth and if I start making inklings of familiarity, the admirals will rain down on us." Naia glared out at the water. "We will set what is wrong in this world straight and come out on top."
"I'm merely worried about you, Vice Admiral," Damian said. "I don't wish to see you hurt."
"None of us do, but sometimes the best thing we can do is save others from experiencing the same pain as us."
"If you say so, Captain." Damien gained a cheesy grin before walking away. "Let's go after that pirate of yours. You need to congratulate him on becoming an emperor."
"And congratulate him we will," Naia chuckled.
Naia pressed her lips in a straight line as the pirate ship in front of them slowly began to get closer and closer. There would be no turning back now. Akainu had been rather forceful with his command, and her back still stung from the confrontation. While the meeting had been intended to give her a new title, it had been derailed with Akainu's own agenda.
Her eyes narrowed in remembrance of why she was now under his control. Sengoku believed his lies of her going off on her own. Well, maybe they weren't lies, but he didn't have any proof, and yet nobody believed her. Again. Naia would've preferred to reunite with said crew on her terms, but alas, it just wasn't meant to be. The Red Force was hell-bent on not having any conflict, and Naia had been content with keeping her distance to watch, but they had no choice but to act.
"Admiral! They started to turn their ship around. They'll be facing us head-on!" Weisman shouted from the crow's nest.
"Alright, men! To your battle stations!" Naia rolled her shoulders back as the waves crashed harshly against their vessel. The sea was not happy with this. "Neither am I. Neither am I."
The air was tense as her crewmates prepared for what was surely going to be a bloody battle. While all of them were specifically chosen for this task, taking on a Yonko was never easy, even if you had the will to do so. Something Naia did not possess. Not against him anyway. Naia kept her face neutral as men and women swarmed around, gearing up for the inevitable boarding of the pirate crew. Naia took a deep breath before fixing her veil in place. It was a cliche and irritating part of her uniform the Elders had deemed necessary. The whole thing was irritating! Still, it now seemed to have its purpose. It hid her most defining features after all.
"Well, well, well, finally got a Marine crew with some guts. I have to say I'm impressed," a husky, low voice snickered, "Most crews have a hard enough time finding us, let alone keeping on our trail."
"We could smell your booze from miles away," one of her men hollered out.
"You don't exactly hide," another piped up. Naia rolled her eyes as a few more marines shouted out how easy it was to track the ever-moving pirate crew. Insulting the very man who could take them down without even moving.
"That's enough," Naia boomed, her voice cold, "Unless you all wish to be taken out before you even get the chance to fight."
"Ah, you must be the commander of this dear marine vessel." Shanks grinned cockily as he leaped from his ship to her's. His commanders followed not far behind him. "So, tell me. What can we do for the Marines today?"
"We have been ordered to take you in!" Weisman stated, "If you do not come-"
"If we do not come in quietly, you'll make us come. Blah blah blah," Shanks recited as he waved them off. "You and every other navy vessel we've come across."
"I would like to believe you find us a little different," Weisman smirked, sending an inquiring look at her. To which Naia nodded her head in approval, letting Weisman lead this attack. With a battle cry, the two crews launched at each other. Naia was content to keep watch as she sat upon the roof of the ship's main cabin. It gave her the best view of the entire fight but let her have the option to jump in should she choose to. As much as she wanted to watch over her fellow marines, she couldn't keep her eyes away from the red-haired captain. He practically danced across the ship. Shanks was captivating when he fought.
"Going to let your crew do all the work for you?" Naia tilted her head up to see Benn Beckman standing behind her, his gun cocked.
"They wished to see how they would fare against you all. I would've interfered should I deem it necessary," Naia said, rising slowly from her position. To her understanding, Benn wasn't one to use his gun in a traditional sense, but all that did was raise how dangerous he was.
"Have we met before?" Benn asked, lowering his gun just slightly.
"Not to my knowledge," Naia replied, relaxing her stance. She coiled like a snake ready to spring, but she couldn't bring herself to retaliate.
"Tch," Benn clicked his tongue, and Naia flipped back to avoid being hit by the butt of his gun. Naia sighed, and she let herself dissolve into mist. She twisted through the air, briefly pausing before landing in front of the cabin entrance.
"It's the Sea Witch!" Pirates gasped around her as she began to take form, allowing her veil to settle over her once more. "We're on the Sea Witch's ship!"
The pirates that had surrounded her and her crewmates had slowly started to back away. Their expressions were twisting with their fear.
"She'll drown us all!"
"She'll destroy the ship!"
"Lure us to our deaths!" Hysteria descended upon the pirate crew, and tried as he might, Shanks couldn't bring anyone back under his control. They all ran back to the ship, leaving behind their captain and commanders.
"You fools! Get back here!" Yasopp shouted. Naia dusted her shoulders off as her men came to gather behind her, pulling away from any fighter that remained.
"To go against the sea would surely mean our downfall!"
"I didn't know you had such a reputation," Weisman mused, the rest of the marines chuckling at the sight.
"Neither did I, Weisman," Naia hummed, her eyes rolling as the pirates continued to shout in fear of what she might do to them.
"Who are you to cause such a reaction from my crew!" Shanks demanded, his eyes flaring with anger.
"How dare you speak to her in such a manner! She is our commanding officer and a-"
"That's enough!" Naia interrupted, "I believe I can speak for myself."
"Right, sorry, ma'am," the marine muttered, bowing his head.
"I believe you already have a theory of who I am," Naia stated. "I am the Sea Witch."
"Your name, marine!" Shanks demanded.
"I have no name, only a moniker."
"Everyone has a name," Shanks snorted, "Do I not deserve to know the name of the one who has been following us for so long?"
"I have no name." Naia pressed her lips together, the only indication of her annoyance at the comment. Shanks looked like he wanted to argue the point further, but a quick look at Benn made him pause.
"Enough talk!" Shanks sprang forward, sword at the ready.
"Scatter, everyone!" Naia guarded her body as his attack made to land. Shanks raised an eyebrow at her but followed through with his swing. With a grunt, she let herself fly into the water.
"Admiral!" Naia sighed as she sank lower and lower into the water. Well, this wasn't how she imagined things going, but the cool water swirling around her was a welcome relief. Maybe, she'd stay here for a moment. Fighting was tiresome.
"Not much of a fighter, was she?" Shanks chuckled. "We take the ship, men!"
"So quick to judge, Red Hair," Weisman sneered, "She's not an admiral for nothing."
"She has a devil fruit ability, and I don't see any of you jumping in to save her." Shanks raised an eyebrow at the marine crew. They looked angry, but no one seemed to be willing to go and save their commanding officer. What a strange group of marines.
"We truly have stayed off your radar," Weisman scoffed, a smirk spreading over his face. "Looks like we got lucky."
Shanks blinked in surprise as the second in command sprang at him. The two crew clashed, each holding their own against their opponent. The marines were breathing hard, but they pushed forward, and they didn't have an ounce of hesitation even with their admiral gone, but it could only last for so long. It was becoming apparent the crew wasn't used to such prolonged fights.
"Now, let's end this!" Shanks swung his sword down upon the fallen second in command. KLANG! A black trident strained against his blade, blocking his path to the marine.
"Not so fast, Red Hair," a voice hissed. "You did well, Weisman. Go heal up."
"That's not possible! I threw you into the sea!" Shanks gasped.
"No one with a devil fruit power could have survived that on their own," Benn agreed, "We didn't see anyone jump in after you either!"
"I have never eaten a devil fruit," Naia droned, her veil dripped with water but hadn't moved an inch. "I just happen to be loved by the sea."
"Loved by the sea?" Shanks breathed. "I've heard that phrase before. Have we met?"
"I doubt our paths have crossed, but it is never impossible." Naia shook her head. "Shall we continue, or are you more concerned with my identity?"
"In your dreams." They clashed, resounding in a harsh clash of weapons as Naia brought down her black trident. They danced around each other, neither gaining an upper hand but neither falling back in any of their attacks. Naia swayed on her toes, giving all the grace of a dancer as she twirled around the Yonko. Her trident sailed through the air beside her blocking every attack he tried to land while jabbing one of her own. The sea roared beneath them as they clashed and the air cracked with the amount of energy and haki building up in the air. Naia could vaguely see a few of her men falling to the ground along with a few of his men as the Conqueror's Haki permeated through the air. Her feet slid across the lower deck as they pushed away from each other.
"You're good. I'll give you that," Shanks panted, "I've never seen anyone but a Fishman fight with trident before."
"It's a family heirloom," Naia said, brandishing the black staff in front of her.
"How interesting," Shanks smirked, lunging towards her. His attacks grew in power and speed with each step the man took. Naia stumbled as her foot slipped on the unconscious body of a pirate. Raising her trident, she fell to a knee as his blow landed. Her veil fluttered around her as the power of his attack rebounded through the air.
"You have a very interesting get-up," Shanks mused. "What is the point of having a piece of cloth cover your face, and your dress looks hard to move in."
"It wasn't my choice to make."
"Was anything?" Naia bit her lip to keep from replying. She spun on her knee, letting her staff catch the pirate captain's shoulder and her leg on the backside of his knee. Naia stood with ease as the tips of the spikes pressed into the back of his neck. She couldn't help but muse over the times on Dawn Island he had done that to her. Guess she finally learned.
"Give up, Red Hair," Naia said steely, "We have the upper hand."
Shanks' eyes widened as he took in his crew being cornered by marines. It was surreal. Weapons fell to the ground at the sight of their captain on the floor. When did this happen? He was so sure he had knocked most of them out with his haki, so how?
"Haki will only do so much for those of strong will," Naia answered, a Mona Lisa smile on her lips. Shanks glared up at her. "Put them in cha-"
"Ma'am! We've got incoming news! A nearby port is being attacked by a group of unknown assailants." Naia blinked as one of her spies raced towards her. "A crewmate from the Whitebeard Pirates' has been murdered by a fellow member!"
"Why is that a concern of ours?" Naia raised an eyebrow. "You do realize I have an emperor at my feet."
"A small pirate crew following an unknown man was just reported to have attacked a nearby island. We're being called to investigate what has happened to the marine crew that was stationed there."
"They think that is more important than this?" The man nodded, holding a letter out to her. "Well, orders are orders," Naia sighed heavily as she set her trident down, and with a breath, it dissolved into mist. "Looks like you get another day free, Red Hair." Naia took the paper from the reporting marine, glancing over the details.
"You're just going to walk away?" Shanks inquired, a rugged look in his eyes.
"I have more pressing issues than dealing with a Yonko I have defeated," Naia responded, not looking up from what she was reading.
"Tch," Shanks gritted his teeth. "That's not a good enough-"
Naia held her hand out, halting his irritation.
"Get off my ship." Naia flicked her hand, sending a wave of mist over the pirates. "You'll get a second chance soon enough."
"Admiral, shall we begin preparations?" Weisman asked.
"Yes, we have much to gain from this." Naia stared out at the ship in the distance. Maybe she threw them a little too far.
"You might've gone a little overboard," Weisman chuckled.
"Maybe, maybe not," Naia huffed. Weisman smirked at her. "I won, though! Can you believe that?"
"One for the Marines and zero for the pirates!" Her crew shouted in joy as they rejoiced at their win.