AN: Thank you's to : Enraem, Bogty632, Samuel Santillan, and Fox Boss for your reviews! More are always welcome.
To answer a few things: I likely won't pair Naruto with Yamato. This story is kind of focused on characters acting upon regrets and things like that, and the whole thing with Hinata freaking confessing to him before she "died" really annoyed me with how Naruto didn't even address it after the Pain fight.
Enraem, I actually didn't have plans for the Sand siblings, but now that you mention them I'll consider it. As for your guesses, this chapter should either confirm/prove wrong to a few of them.
As for the surprising amount of questions about Naruto's sword, it's just a normal katana. It was well-made, but nothing too special. He has a spare one in possession, but it's not any legendary blade either. Maybe that will change, but for now, it's just a sword.
I don't care for perfect canonity in my stories, but plot holes and logical errors are always eminent, so if you spot those do point them out.
Also, here's a little "poll" (not really since I have nowhere enough traffic or views but hey): How many think I should give Naruto a pairing? Or should I just not give one at all? I'd like to hear reasons for both sides, as this would be helpful insight into how I want to develop this story.
Thank you, and without any more talking, on with the chapter!
I do not own Naruto or One Piece.
Chapter 3: Assembly I
East Blue
Uchiha Sasuke tapped his foot impatiently.
Though he had read up plenty on the art of navigation, he was by no means a master at it. And without a Sharingan to rely on, he couldn't even learn it that fast, and was stuck to normal methods.
Thus, currently, he was stuck in a current, and was unable to escape.
Well, this is quite troublesome. But he could see a ship (or maybe a few) in the distance, and he could either seize or hitchhike with them.
From the obviously extravagant design that suggested an arrogant and vain captain, the former was more likely than the latter.
"Who dares approach the Don Krieg Fleet?"
A man equipped with posh gold armor and a fur lined cloak stood at the head of the large, luxurious boat, while a grand fleet of armed ships trailed behind the leading one.
It was a small army, it was.
Sasuke shouted, "Foul-Play Don Krieg, of the Don Krieg Pirates?"
Krieg smirked arrogantly. "Indeed. And who may you be?"
"A pirate!"
"Well, that's akin to a declaration of war, is it not?"
Krieg waved his combat commander over. "Gin," a headband sporting man armed with weighted iron tonfa stepped forward. "Take care of him."
Said man nodded and jumped towards Sasuke.
In a cloud of dust, he landed on the deck. Sasuke readied himself and unsheathed his cheap, albeit sturdy, blade.
In a smooth motion, Gin spun his tonfas into ready positions upon his arms, and beckoned.
Sasuke simply stood there, in a relaxed posture, waiting for his opponent to make the first move. Waiting puts him at an advantage, since he can "see" exactly what Gin's move will be...
And there it was. Sasuke easily lunged under the succession of strikes, and in a single blow, struck Gin's stomach with the handle of his sword. In a quick stroke, he had pinned the battle commander's throat under him with the flat of his blade.
"Do you yield?"
Gin's throat contracted ever so slightly. "You would spare me?"
Sasuke threw a fleeting glance at him. "You seem honorable, Gin-san. I'd rather not kill innocents."
Gin nodded. "I-I yield."
Sasuke sheathed his sword. "I advise you to leave. If you do, you can take as many ships as you want. However," he smirked. "I'll be taking on your captain and seizing his ship."
Gin's eyes widened. "No! Don't go! It's certain death... no one can beat him!"
Sasuke's eyes glimmered strangely. "Well, we'll just have to see, won't we? No one is invincible, after all."
Crouching down slightly, he pushed with his legs. The jump had created a light gust that blew Gin's hair into his eyes.
Krieg stood there, sneering. "It seems I'll have to replace my battle commander. Would you like to join my crew? You're strong."
Sasuke frowned. "Why? He's perfectly fine and capable."
"Well, he lost to a rookie, didn't he? I have no room for weaklings in my crew, especially in the position of right-hand man."
Sasuke's eyes sharpened, and the shine in his pupils froze over. "I see." His hand clutched his sword tightly, fingers curling tighter and tighter around the leather-braided hilt. "You would abandon a comrade over something as trivial as that?"
Don Krieg sneered at him. "What, is that wrong? I do what I want, because I'm powerful! Power is all that matters in the world! The strong dictate the lives of the weak, and since I'm the strongest, I can do whatever I want with my crew." He glared pointedly at his fleet, and then Gin. "And because they fear me, they will not rebel. This is what makes my pirate crew so orderly and powerful!"
He held out his arms, golden armor clinking, as if he owned the world. "What is a person but a tool for my usage? What is a life but a currency in an economy solely owned by me?"
Sasuke shook his head, anger beginning to accumulate. "No. A system built on fear and reverence... it will not last. You know nothing."
Krieg snarled. "What are you implying, insolent brat?" His cape swished, and his posture changed into a threatening one, ready for battle. "You're talking to Don Krieg, greatest pirate of the East Blue, and future Pirate King! You dare disrespect me?"
Sasuke's eyes, through either supernatural means or simply a trick of the light, flashed red, almost like a reminder of his former life. "Why would I not dare to disrespect a man unworthy of being the Pirate King, and one who is going to be deceased by the end of this battle?"
Krieg's face contorted in fury, then in sheer arrogance. "It's your funeral if you want to fight. Come, then, if you dare!"
Without waiting for any more words to be exchanged, Sasuke glided into action. His sword slid out of its sheath in a singular, fluid motion and whistled through the air towards Don Krieg.
Krieg was no weakling, as evident by the quick parry. With a clear *ching*, the sword rebounded off his arm harmlessly. Krieg smirked. His golden armor allowed him to fight essentially unarmed, since the gold was some sort of strong alloy that had the look of gold but strength of steel.
The bulky pirate smirked. Pulling out a shield from his thick cloak, he laughed maniacally. "I'm your worst enemy! Brat," he leered at Sasuke, and stuck a thumb towards his shield. "I'll stand here. Let's see what your puny little sword can do to my superior weaponry!"
Sasuke frowned. That was true. This was a bad matchup for him, a budding swordsman meeting an experienced armored blunt-force attacker. However...
"Don't think that this is over yet!"
His feet and legs were the saving grace here, allowing him to bound back and forth between Krieg's slow attacks. Even when the shield randomly burst open with dozens of gun barrels, with his peculiar foresight, Sasuke dodged each and every bullet that flew at him. Time passed by the same, but Sasuke had a premonition for what direction to move, at what time, at which specific velocity, and how to twist his body just right in order to avoid any hits. His consciousness could perceive many harmful entities, and subconsciously steered his body to avoid them perfectly.
It was a stalemate; one had no means of making any contact with the other, while the other had no means of harming the other.
That is, until the closed, calm game of waiting for the perfect opportunity took a turn, and a sharp opening was created.
Sasuke dashed forward, swinging his sword in a wide arc in what seemed to be an attack of desperation towards Krieg's abdomen, where a large chink in his armor rested.
Krieg took note and cackled. "You fool!" He swung his cape in front of him, and in a flash, he was shielded from any sort of laceration or cuts by a fur-backed cloak of steel spikes. He could stay as still as a statue, and it wouldn't even matter...
Sasuke finally allowed himself a smirk. "And you lose."
Krieg's face momentarily flashed of confusion, before he knew no more.
A loud crack could be heard across the ocean occupied by a fifty-ship pirate fleet. Krieg's body grew limp, and slowly, his knees bent, and the heavy golden armor clanged onto the deck.
Krieg, in all his arrogance and boasting of his superior weaponry and unpierceable armor, forgot one crucial detail.
His face was wide open. Sasuke was easily able to swing the sword around, adding a second vector of force to direct the blade's hilt into his skull, fracturing Krieg's head and ultimately killing him.
The pirates were silent. Then, chaos broke out.
"Captain's dead!"
"Good! That piece of trash had it coming, treating us like animals!"
"But that means we don't have a leader! That guy also beat Gin, so what do we do? He'll kill us all!"
"Run! Turn the ship and sail away, quick!"
The fleet of frankly divided and disorderly pirates turned tail and fled.
Sasuke shouted, loud enough for all the fleeing ships and pirates to hear, echoing across the blue ocean. "Remember this, the name of the man who defeated Krieg is Uchiha Sasuke!"
He thoroughly looted Krieg's main ship, taking all his gold and treasures, food and water supplies, as well as some weaponry (there was a funky-looking spear with gold plates at the head end, which Sasuke tossed into the ocean out of pure spite) and appliances.
Now with his ship decked out with new furniture, decorations (for all his glorious arrogance, Krieg had a good taste in quality and rugs), and supplies, Sasuke turned towards the glum Gin.
"Well? What are you going to do?"
Gin looked lost. "I don't know. Krieg wasn't a good person, but he was strong, so I followed him. I have no leader now, no one to follow, and not even a drive of my own."
He chuckled humorlessly. "From our youth, ever since he showed me power, I've followed him. I was his first mate, I was there to help form this pirate crew, and now that technically what amounts to my life's work is gone, I don't know what to do."
He looked up. "You're planning on forming a crew, no? Can you let me join?"
Sasuke hesitated. "I'm not sure. I'm not the captain."
Gin was confused. "Then who is? Why would you form a pirate crew without becoming the captain yourself?"
Sasuke's mouth twitched into a miniscule smile, so small that Gin wasn't even sure it was one. "Well, that idiot probably didn't even realize that he needs a crew, so I'll back him up on that."
Gin's mouth hung open. "You mean, you're trying to form a pirate crew for someone else?"
"Yep."
The former battle commander of the Krieg Pirates sat there in silence and mental resignation. "Could I at least accompany you until you reach civilization? I'd like to go somewhere with people and rethink my life."
The Uchiha shrugged. "Sure. Just don't eat all the food, and we'll be fine."
After dropping Gin off on an island (some town called Shimotsuki Village), Sasuke continued onwards.
...
...
Sailing further along the East Blue, he arrived at a group of islands. Conomi Islands, they were called.
Obviously, as a pirate, Sasuke did not exactly expect a grand reception or anything, but the fact that upon entering a village, he was immediately sent many wary glances of fear and apprehension.
Not friendly towards outsiders, eh? His gloomy appearance and withdrawn attitude probably didn't help with that.
This sense of foreboding only increased when he sent people running by quietly stating he was a pirate. Now, the looks not only were fearful but also angry, filled to the brim with silent fury.
He would know; he'd sported the look without change for nearly a decade in his previous life, after all.
Just what had happened?
After a quick walk around town, he had seen a few odd people here and there.
People that resembled fish and aquatic creatures. There was a man with eight arms, equipped with suckers like octopi. Many others bore similar features, either extra limbs or gill-like patterns on their necks, paired with blue or purple skin.
Are these the so-called fishmen from Fishman Island? Sasuke mused quietly, contemplating what to do. Judging from the fear the residents show them, they likely are part of pirate group that took over the town. If I remember correctly, there was only one pirate group made up of fishmen that was not located in the Grand Line. The Arlong Pirates, led by Arlong the Saw.
Sasuke smirked. This was beginning to feel like some of the missions that Team 7 had taken on in his last life, covert operations and such.
First, to find the captain.
Sasuke snorted at the epitaph of Arlong. "The Saw," really? What a name. From his pocket, Sasuke pulled out a folded piece of paper, the bounty poster for said pirate captain.
Thirty million berries, the highest bounty in the East Blue besides for himself. A cruel looking man, with blue skin, gill-like markings on his neck, and a serrated nose that was most definitely the origin of his moniker.
And so, Sasuke pulled on his hood, and melded into the shadows.
At the center of town was an extravagant area. The sign had read Arlong Park, and the park itself was filled to the brim with clean, cropped trees and bushes, clean pavement, as well as grand architecture.
It looked out of place for a town as backwater as this one. How much had Arlong and his goons siphoned off from the villagers to create this place?
Sasuke's anger grew silently. He'll never be a hero, not in the same way Naruto was. However, that doesn't mean that he would just pass by such injustice without a second thought.
After all, he wouldn't want anyone else to suffer at the hands of a greater, inescapable power like his new brothers had.
(One day, he promised himself. One day, he would storm the Red Line, tear it down, dismantle the World Government, and finally bring those so-called Celestial Dragons to their knees for their crimes against humanity.)
Finding Arlong was not difficult in the least. His majesty the Saw-Nosed fishman was lounging around in the center of Arlong Park.
The captain of the Arlong Pirates was pacing in and out of the central tower in the Park, as if waiting for someone. Upon further inspection, Sasuke realized that he was.
Each time he entered the tower, he would climb to the highest floor, where there was but a single room. Sasuke silently mounted the brick walls of Arlong Tower to reach the top floor.
Inside was, oddly enough, a human girl.
She had short, bright orange hair (the same shade that Naruto had donned each-and-every day for a decade). A blue-and-white striped shirt covered what appeared to be a tattoo, likely declaring her affiliation with the Arlong Pirates.
What really struck Sasuke was her eyes. Big, round, and full of pent-up hatred and anger.
The same as him, so many years ago.
She couldn't be any older than Luffy, barely looking fourteen. Her childish only poured oil upon Sasuke's silently burning fury, as he spotted bruises that looked like punches and kicks on the girl's legs, arms, and face. In fact, she looked as if she had just been beat up and pushed into the ground.
However, she was still tirelessly working on spectacularly detailed maps; maps that were more detailed and specific than any Sasuke had ever seen.
Was Arlong basically enslaving the girl to use her for her cartography skills?
Sasuke grits his teeth tightly, and he inches his way towards Arlong. The fishman was getting what he deserved, a good-old-fashioned beatdown.
So, how should he go about this?
In his mind, Sasuke ran through several scenarios and possibilities. Perhaps he could liberate the girl first, anger Arlong, and lead him away from the village?
Perhaps he could kill Arlong from the shadows first, and then pick off and round up his crew one by one?
Maybe he should actually confirm that this was all Arlong's doing, and that the Arlong Pirates weren't the new liberators of the village, who saved them from a different pirate crew.
Sasuke nodded to himself. The first plan will do.
The moment Arlong left the tower for the umpteenth time (likely checking in on the girl's progress on the map of the northeastern East Blue), Sasuke leapt in, and stifled any sound from the girl with his hand on her mouth.
"Quiet," he whispered. And with a burst of speed, he took off from the tower, landing in the trees and carrying the girl away.
As he sprinted into the nearby forest, Sasuke mentally noted how his line of thought has been greatly skewed by Luffy in this life. Really? Was capturing a teenage girl really his best plan?
Well, it was too late to back off now.
After he got far enough that he was sure they couldn't be heard, he released his hand from her mouth.
And a tidal wave of curses and screams came out.
"WHO ARE YOU? WHY DID YOU KIDNAP ME, YOU PERVERT? LET-"
She punches Sasuke on the arm, though it didn't really do much.
"ME-"
She kicked Sasuke's thigh. Still no effect.
"GO!"
This time, her kicks and fighting finally paid off. Perhaps it was the fact that Sasuke would like to retain his ability to reproduce, but either way, he finally let her go entirely when she bit his arm with the force of a lion and aimed a fast kick at his groin that was barely avoided.
Sasuke growled from his annoyance. "Could you calm down, girl?"
But she refused to listen. "Why should I? You literally kidnapped me and brought me to a random place in the forest! Why the hell should I trust you? How do I know that you aren't go do something u-unsavory?"
Sasuke's palm met his face in a most intimate manner. "I only have a few questions. And you will listen and answer appropriately. Or else," he let out the tiniest tinge of bloodlust from his being, dying the air a light vermillion that spoke to his authority and power.
The orange-haired girl gulped, and nodded.
"First, would you call Arlong a friend of yours?"
Her face immediately twisted from the transparency of the sentence. "No! He killed my mother, and is slowly choking the life out of the village! Why would I call him a friend?"
"Could you elaborate?"
The girl slowly began. "Well, when I was nine, Arlong arrived in town. He demanded a fifty thousand berry fee for the lives of each child and hundred thousand for each adult. Whoever didn't pay would be killed. My, mother, Bell-mère, only had a hundred thousand, and she saved me and my sister. And Arlong, he..."
She broke down a bit, tears streaming down her face, clearing the grime and dirt in lines as the liquid rolled down to her chin.
Sasuke hummed, nodding his head along in contemplation as the girl recounted her, the fires of his anger being stoked more and more. Just who did Arlong think he was, playing with lives so casually, as if he was of a higher being entirely?
Ah. Sasuke suddenly realized. So that's why. Interesting. Since he experienced racial discrimination as a fishman before, he's taking out his anger and frustration out on the humans of this village, to make them feel the same way he did.
The girl continued, unknowing of his revelation. Her tears had mostly dried up at this point, leaving her face a mosaic of tearstains and mud. "He saw my navigations skills, and decided that for some reason, I alone was different from other humans." She spat out that word with such acrimony that Sasuke physically recoiled at the sound. "And so, I was marked with their brand, thrusted into a crew of people who hated me, and there's no escape. The only way I can leave is if I gather up a hundred million berry."
Her eyes lit up with the tiniest spark of hope. "Arlong said that if I gather a hundred million berry, I can buy this village from him. Then, maybe everyone can be freed from that monster!"
Sasuke sighed. "I don't think it'll be that easy, girl. What makes you think he's going to keep his word? What's stopping him from taking your money before you get there, hmm?"
The girl froze, as if her blood had turned cold. "Then, what do I do?"
Sasuke could see the despair, and he hated it. "You do nothing. Live. I'm going to kill him." He stood up, and turned to look at her one last time, before his departure. "I only took you to confirm his deeds. Now that I know what kind of person I'm up against, I can go in without any hesitation.
"I never did ask you your name. What is it?"
The girl stopped her unabating tears for just a moment. "Nami. Sorry for not being to tell you anything on Arlong's powers, Mister"
"Think nothing of it. My name... Uchiha Sasuke."
And then he was gone.
...
...
Arlong was in a frenzy.
"Where is she? Bring her to me, the little traitor!"
One moment, his cartographer/navigator was on the top floor, making maps, and the next she was gone.
The fishman seethed, the veins on his neck pulsing with anger. He didn't think that she would have enough bravery (or foolishness, in this case) to flee!
Perhaps she didn't? Maybe she was kidnapped? But there was no sign of a struggle. So, either she fled of her own will, or an enemy of a high caliber thefted her from him.
Either case, he thought, clenching his fist tightly and smiling at the brick that crumbled from his grip. I'll get her back.
"I'll make sure to toy with her sister a bit, as a form of punishment," he cackled lightly.
"No, you will not."
Arlong turned around. Who had snuck up on him?
And more importantly, how did he not notice?
The stranger, a man cloaked in black but holding a sword that shone as bright as the sun, glared at him. "I will kill you here."
Arlong laughed out loud, voice belting through the empty clearing, void of any people. The sound reverberated around, as if a crowd was mocking the man together.
"Will you now? I have the highest bounty in the East Blue, you know. Besides," he smirked. "I am of a superior race! How do you hope to defeat me?"
His opponent merely laughed back at him, confident with a nuanced craze woven into it. "Let's speak with actions, not words, Arlong the Saw."
The cloaked man's sword glinted under the cold sunlight. Arlong felt a shiver run up his spine, his muscles contracting and tensing slightly at the feeling.
Why was he scared? He came from the New World, after all. He used to be part of the feared Sun Pirates, led by the legendary Fisher Tiger.
So why was he shaking before this random man in black, who likely had never even been to the grand line.
Arlong forcefully quelled those thoughts in an instant. No, he would not fear an opponent. He will win.
After all, that's all he is worth. He is worth as much as he wins, and no more.
With a great cry, Arlong launched himself at the man. His fists, his trusty weapons that have never failed him before, that can easily bend metal and crush stone, missed.
Saving any hesitation for later, Arlong followed up the simple attack by reaching into his own mouth. With one clean stroke, he pulled off a set of teeth, and a few seconds later, he pulled another set out.
Grinning cruelly at the obvious shock of his opponent, Arlong charged. Using his own teeth as small, handheld serrated blades, he lunged into close-quarters combat.
And finally, from his incessant dodging, the man finally threw away his cloak. Arlong backed off, wary of any traps or hidden attacks, and took a good look at his opponent.
Hair, black as a raven, sat in neat, folded layers. His eyes, the same charcoal black, glinted with anger and malice that Arlong has seen so many times in Nami's eyes.
His opponent smiled, a very normal expression that somehow turned sinister on his face. "Arlong, you're weaker than I imagined. Weren't you a Sun Pirate?"
Arlong is now audibly crunching his teeth in anger. "You, human, don't deserve to even speak of the Sun Pirates!"
He rushed into a wall that was broken from their fight. There lay his Kiribachi, his trusty serrated blade.
Brandishing his weapon, Arlong shouted. "DIE!"
The man dodged backwards, easily flipping over the wide stroke of Arlong's blade.
"Too slow, Arlong!"
Arlong screamed in pain as a deep gash appeared on his back from the man's blade. He was too fast for the fishman, circling behind him and scoring the first hit of the battle before Arlong even knew what happened. One hit, that's all it took, for Arlong to be dropped to his knees.
A chuckle sounded from above him. "I suppose that's all you have, huh? Guess I'll end you now."
Arlong trembled from mixed nuances of anger, fear, and shock.
Should he be scared by the power this nobody just showed?
Should he be mad at the uncovered disrespect that was just shown?
Arlong finally settled on focusing on the anger. In a final attack of desperation, one that has ended many a pirate's life, he launched himself forward like a ballistic missile, equipped with a nigh unbreakable tip (his serrated nose, which was rumored to have broken a marine ship in half) and a deadly backup of sharp teeth.
Only, his eyes saw nothing but incarnadine when a sharp pain hit his prized saw nose.
And he knew no more.
Sasuke stood there, winded from all the dodging, but only barely.
Arlong was gone. That last sword strike split his nose, which had ironically impaled Arlong's head when his entire weight fell upon the sharp organ.
He died by his own pride and joy, fitting for a cruel man like him.
"C-captain?"
Sasuke looked around. There they were, the Arlong Pirates. They had heard the commotion, and came, only to find Arlong's corpse.
They slowly encircled Sasuke, though nobody made a move. On their faces, Sasuke saw a mixture of anger, sadness, pity, but all of those were uniformly tinged with fright.
"Your captain is dead."
Silence. They were afraid, afraid of the man who'd defeated their captain who was many times stronger than them. And they were right to be.
"Why would you do this?" asked Sasuke.
A tall, broad fishman sporting a black gi shouted venemously, "Because we hate humans! All they ever did was treat us like trash, spit on us, and enslave us! That's the whole goal of our pirate crew, to bring justice!"
Sasuke glared and replied in a monotonous voice. "And how exactly is your doing in this village any different from what you just described?"
The fishman opened his mouth, then closed it. "B-but they did it to us first!"
Sasuke barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Yes, because that makes all the difference in the world. You could've been out there, saving fellow fishmen from the fate you described, petitioning against inequality and fighting for world-wide recognition, but instead you decided to stay cooped up in a random backwater village in the East Blue, enjoying your illusory power over people, when all you really were doing was bullying people who couldn't fight for themselves."
His voice took on a deeper tone. "You don't bring justice, not for the humans, and certainly not for you. You bring revenge, unjust revenge."
The fishman, noting that all his comrades had lowered their weapons, and were really taking this man's words into heart, charged forward. "Get him! Stop his random spouting of lies-GAH!"
A sword now lay upon his neck, cold as the sweat on the fishman's back, glimmering with droplets of crimson blood.
"I wouldn't do something as foolish as that if I were you," Sasuke whispered to him. Withdrawing his blade, he pushed the fishman back into the ring of pirates.
"Now, listen up. You have two choices. The first, I kill your leaders, and send the rest of you packing to the marines and spend the rest of your lives incarcerated. Second, you all leave for Fishman Island, with promises of non-aggression unless provoked, and I may let you leave. If you do violate our promise, I will hunt each and every one of you down personally."
His eyes scanned the crowd, making each member flinch as their gaze met his. "What'll it be?"
A fishman that was likely half octopus (judging from his eight arms that had suckers plastered all over them) spoke up, albeit meekly. "If my crewmates agree, I would be glad to take us all back to Fishman Island. I know the route there, and..."
Sasuke's gaze sweeps around the clearing once more. "Well? Do you all agree to those terms?"
Everyone nodded, heads down in defeat, even the fishman that had rushed him before.
"They may agree, but I don't."
Sasuke's head snapped out, only for his tension to fall. "A marine captain?" The man looked sleazy, with a lazy, calculating gaze. This look clashed greatly with his whiskers that may or may not be an adornment, as well as his hood with little pink ears.
"What's your name? Uchiha Sasuke," he offered.
The man smirked. "Captain Nezumi, of the 16th Branch here in the East Blue. As a marine, I can't let you just release these pirates out there. They are pirates, after all."
This struck an alarm within Sasuke's consciousness. "Then... why wait until now? If this was reported, it was inevitable that the higher ups would send someone with enough power to take him out."
Then it dawned on him. Nezumi smirked, and Sasuke slowly spoke, as if reading, "Unless, the marine captain was in cohorts with the Arlong Pirates, and now is ready to discard them since they're not very useful without a leader."
Nezumi sneered. "Got it in one. Men! Surround him!"
As leering marines surrounded Sasuke and the former Arlong Pirates.
The octopus fishman spoke up quietly. "Mister, what is your name?"
It took a few minutes for Sasuke to realize that he was the one being addressed. "Uchiha Sasuke."
"I see. Sasuke-san, my name is Hachtan, but you can call me Hachi. Do you mind if I took care of him?"
Sasuke shook his head, curious as well to the combat ability of Hachi. If he was anywhere close to Arlong, Nezumi would have a tough fight.
But that wasn't the case. He had no fight at all.
Hachi's eight arms, each sporting a blade, whirled together in a peculair eight-armed sword style that was highly reminiscent of Killer B's from his past life (that was one tough fight that he would likely never forget, both due to the strength of the opponent as well eccentricity).
The eight blades whirled together and took down Nezumi in a flash with zero opposition. Said marine captain simply laid on the ground, shouting, "Men! Get him!"
His men are now running for the hills.
The octopus fish looked at Nezumi. "Leave. Your prescence is not welcome here."
As Nezumi ran for his life, Hachi sheathed his multitude of swords. "I don't think they'll be a bother anymore."
Turning to his former and future comrades, he asked, "Do you mind me as a leader?"
A chorus of no's rang; it was clear that his display of strength had earned respect.
"Then, will you follow me?"
This time, it was a collection of "Yes!" from the numerous pirates.
Sasuke finally let out a breath. This matter was finally settled.
...
...
By sunset, the former Arlong Pirates had all set out, and Sasuke could rest. Turning around after watching their departure, he was greeted with a heavy tackle from Nami and a girl with blue hair that looked very much like her.
"Thank you, Uchiha-san!"
"Thank you!"
The two girls hugged him, and Sasuke quickly grew uncomfortable. "Get off! You're ladies, you can't just hang off of a man like that!"
Nami giggled. "How old are you, Sasuke-san?"
Sasuke was sure his face was at least a little red now, but he quickly brushed the embarrassment and replied, "Seventeen."
"Oh, then we're only 3 years apart!"
Nami's sister scowled and lightly punched her on the head. "Don't go getting' those ideas, little sister! You're only 14, too young to be dating."
They looked up, only to see Sasuke tens of feet away. "Wait, where're are you going?"
"Away. I have a captain to find."
"But, can't you wait for a single day? We're going to celebrate you getting rid of those bastards!"
Sasuke's voice rang out as he boarded his ship. "That's exactly what I don't want to see. You can celebrate, leave me out of it."
He turned his head back one last time, facing the sisters standing on the dock. "You can thank me by living, by thriving. I'm aiming to be a pirate, perhaps we'll meet one day in the Grand Line, eh, navigator?"
Nami could only grin. "I'll become the best navigator in the world, map out the world, and thank you then, Sasuke-san!"
And so he departed Cocoyasi with yet another deed of kindness under his name.
Uchiha Sasuke was still an avenger, but one that was not as foolish as before.
...
...
Finally, after days of traversing the East Blue, Sasuke reached the town of the beginning and the end.
Loguetown, metaphorical gate to the Grand Line.
Here, Sasuke stopped for a bit. He had to buy supplies, which he did so sneakily, since his name had grown quite large. After defeating Arlong, Nezumi had sent his name to the marine corps, and coupled with his victory over Don Krieg, he had earned himself a neat little bounty of forty million.
It was nowhere near Naruto's, but it was something.
It is his third day here, gathering supplies such as a log pose, extra weapons, food and other things, when he encounters a familiar face.
One that he hadn't been expecting to see, and one that he wasn't sure if he'd ever see again.
His former mentor, once friend, and person who he'd abandoned along with the rest of Team 7 in pursuit of vengeance.
Hatake Kakashi. The man actually smiles, slings an arm around Sasuke, and all Sasuke could do was lean into his former teacher's hold, let out a few tears, and listen.
"How have you been, Sasuke?"
Kakashi smiled his signature eye-smile, with two eyes now, and took the silence and tears as a response.
"... I see. Well, I'm glad you're here."
They were now in a quiet, dark alley. Sasuke grits his teeth, "I abandoned you. I betrayed Konoha, why are you glad I'm here?"
Kakashi frowned at him, and poked his forehead. "The day I was assigned to be Team 7's sensei, I tried incredibly hard to back out, you know. Let a mentally stable shinobi and competent teacher do it, you know."
He patted Sasuke's hair. "But when I saw that you all were just as emotionally stunted as me, I decided that no, I will do this. Despite my questionable methods and capacity as a mentor, you all pulled through, and although I can't claim the credit for anything any of you achieved, I can confidently say that I care, and I will never give up on you."
He eye-smiled once more, this time more humourous than the last. "After all, it's our nindō. To never give up, hm?"
Sasuke finally let out a loose laugh, conceding. "Fair enough. As for your question, I've been well. I was reborn as an orphan, but was later adopted into a family."
He snorted. "Our family consisted of a vice-admiral grandfather who'd show up sporadically, spanning from every few months to every few years. Our parental figures were literal mountain bandits, and my three – well, two now – brothers and I grew up mostly hunting for ourselves and living in the woods."
Kakashi's eyes widened. "What a family. And what do you mean two now?"
Sasuke's eyes darkened. "Sabo was born as a noble, but his parents treated him like garbage, so he fled. He actually decided to leave early, as to not be a burden to us since his parents would use us as leverage, but a Celestial Dragon met his boat and blasted it to pieces because he was 'in the way'."
He let out a breath. "I'm going to oppose the world government. Sensei, are you going to join?"
The silver-haired man, who somehow miraculously kept his older age even in this life, laughed. "Well, now that two of my three cute little students are rebels, I can't help but follow, right?"
Sasuke smiled. "As long as I get the first mate title."
They laughed, and Sasuke let out a sigh of relief, but Kakashi didn't allow any sense of relaxation.
"We have to still be on guard. There's a Captain in town with a devil fruit power, and he's quite the powerhouse."
Sasuke hummed. "What fruit?"
"Moku Moku no Mi. It's a logia, turns the user into smoke. Like all logia types, you can't hit him without haki, and they are really annoying to deal with."
Sasuke blinked at the foreign term. "Haki?"
Kakashi nodded sagely. "Right, you wouldn't know. Haki is essentially a manifestation of one's will, or at least that's what they describe it as. In many ways it's similar to chakra, but not as flushed out and detailed. It's much more elusive, and something that's almost exclusively found in the New World."
Sasuke had to interject again. "New World?"
"Second half of the Grand Line. I only know because I was technically born here, in Loguetown, and I've snagged, coaxed, and pleaded for information from many Grand Line travelers. I've been able to piece together a generation web of info that'll likely come in handy later, and that's how I learnt about haki."
Kakashi raised three fingers, pointing at Sasuke. "There are three types, or colors, of haki. Color of Observation (Kenbunshoku), color of Armament (Busoshoku), and color of the Supreme King (Haoshoku). The first is used for, as its name suggests, observation. You can observe the presence and strength of others, foresee intentions of others, and even sense their emotions. Armament haki is-"
Sasuke held a hand up. "Wait, you can foresee intentions with observation haki? I always thought it was like the Sharingan, foreseeing movement."
Kakashi cocked an eyebrow, clearly surprised. "You mean you've already used observation haki?"
Sasuke nodded. "I was wondering what it was. At some point, I'd unlocked an ability that felt similar to using the Sharingan. I knew what direction attacks were coming from, at what angle and speed, and I could just move nearly autonomously to dodge them. Is that observation haki?"
Kakashi clapped, and ruffled the hair of a Sasuke who grimaced lightly at this treatment. "Yep! That is exactly what it is. Now you don't have to go through the pain of activating observation haki, since awakening haki usually requires a stressful or traumatic experience, unless you were born with it."
Sasuke nodded absentmindedly, focusing on the words "stressful" and "traumatic."
Yeah, seeing his younger brother in all but blood get blown to bits would certainly fulfill those requirements.
"I see," he murmured. "Why observation haki then, instead of the other two?"
"The color of the Supreme King is a rare haki that's only able to awaken in certain people, people that as the name suggests, were born to be rulers of some sort. And between Kenbunshoku and Busoshoku, it has been postulated that your inner desires give way to whichever one fits you more and awakens first."
"I see. So, because I felt like I should have foreseen Sabo's dilemma, and if I had, I would've been able to prevent his death. Thus, this will to be able to better predict events and people manifested in observation haki?"
Kakashi nodded. "That's probably what happened. I've yet to unlock my haki yet, since I've had a mostly peaceful life here in Loguetown, so no haki for me yet."
He pushed off the wall they were leaning against, patting dust off his clothes. "Let's go now. We can talk more later, let's gather supplies and leave quickly."
Sasuke nodded, and the duo went back to town in pursuit of more provisions and survival essentials.
It was the next morning, and trouble had finally found them.
"Uchiha Sasuke!"
Sasuke cursed, as he ripped off the cloak that was hindering his movement. His identity was revealed, anyway.
The man chasing him was broad shouldered, muscular, and not afraid to show it off. His marine captain jacket hung loosely off his body, baring a large portion of his chest to the world as he chased Sasuke through the bustling streets of downtown Loguetown.
Sasuke felt an attack, and ducked his head just in time to avoid a smoky white appendage that flies over his head and dissipates, like it was never even there.
Yep, this was Smoker, alright.
Sasuke silently cursed again. Without a physical manifestation of haki to use, he couldn't defeat this logia user, so all he could do was run and hope to shake him off. Unless...
"Hatake?"
Smoker gawped at the man standing in opposition across from him. "Why would you help him?"
"Help who? I'm just looking for you for a chat, you know. How's your day been? And what did you mean by me helping someone?"
Smoker face-palmed and growled. "I'm normally all for that, Hatake, but you chose the worst possible time to intervene! A criminal just ran past you!"
Kakashi gasped in a secretly mocking fashion. "Really?" His eyes widening in 'surprise', "Well, I better go and stop disrupting your marine duties then, Captain Smoker!"
And in a flash, he was gone. All Smoker could do was sigh.
Sasuke finally let out a breath that he'd been holding and panted. Kakashi dropped down beside him.
"Tsk tsk, Sasuke-chan. Out of breath already? The fact that you even got spotted in the first place tells me that we'll need to have you go through basic recon training again, won't we?"
Sasuke groaned. "No, I was haggling prices with the sword seller, and my hood had fallen off. Smoker just got lucky and passed by at that exact moment."
Kakashi chuckled. "Well, off we go! Everything ready?"
"Yep."
The teacher and student duo entered their ship, and Kakashi hauled the anchor. The ship was now departing.
Just as Smoker arrived at the dock, face plastered with shock and betrayal at the sight of Hatake Kakashi standing beside Uchiha Sasuke
"Hatake-!?"
Said man gave the marine captain a smile that only those who knew him could perceive as one. "Sorry, Smoker-san. You see, with two of my students now on the run as pirates, I have no choice but to follow. Obligations of a teacher, you know? But we'll meet again. See you on the Grand Line!"
"Hatake you little-!"
Smoker didn't give chase, despite his capability of doing so. "I'll let you go this time, Hatake," he murmured. "This is a favor for all the times you've helped me with info and arresting criminals. But next time, you won't be so lucky."
And so, Sasuke's quest resumed with his teacher now on board.
He smiled in spite of his usual demeanor. This journey was really starting to get exciting, wasn't it?
Damn Luffy and his contagious love of adventure.
Land of Wano
Uzumaki Naruto slung a giant bag over his shoulder, stuffed to the brim with provisions and equipment necessary for sailing. Hoisting the bag aboard his new boat, he cheerfully clapped his hands of dust.
Done. Everything needed to set sail was assembled, so now all there's left to do is wait for sunrise, when he'll depart.
And so he waited. And waited.
After a torturous twenty minutes of waiting, he gave up, and went back into town to busy himself with something.
"Obaa-san!" He spotted an old woman tugging a cart of sweets to sell in the morning, and he volunteered to help carrying the cart.
"Thank you, Naruto-sama." The old lady smiled at him kindly once they arrived at her vendor spot. "Have one, will you?" She handed him a warm and soft manju bun, which he enthusiastically accepted.
He thanked her, and continued to go around the city, doing little things like that.
Perhaps it was the nostalgia behind such acts. It reminded him of his genin days, running pointless errands and screaming at his sensei for not going on an actual mission.
It only took several near-death experiences, an actual death, and then lots of time thinking that he finally learnt to appreciate things like this.
Naruto grinned. He originally shouted about becoming the Hokage for attention and recognition, but now, he realized that he doesn't need some fancy title in order to accomplish that.
"Naruto-san!"
Naruto turned around, looking for the person who's calling for him. In a quick turn of his head, he spotted Kawamatsu waving at him from a distance, and bounded over.
"What's up?"
"Naruto-san, Yamato-san is waiting for you at the docks. She says that you're late, and it's time to go."
Oh. Had he been doing this that long already?
Naruto gave a faux salute, and nodded. "Gotcha! I'll get going now!"
Kawamatsu could only shake his head as Naruto left in a hurry, leaving behind nothing but a light breeze and some dust drifting in the air.
"Hey, hey! Stop that!"
Yamato huffed and puffed. "NO! I will not unless I get the idea of patience into your thick skull! All you had to do was wait for half an hour, and now you've wasted over two hours, and it is nearly midday! Now get on the boat and go, you dumbass!"
Naruto laughed carelessly, and put a hand to his chest, gasping with mocking hurt. "Do you want me gone?"
Yamato growled, her breathe lifting up her bangs. "If you keep making trouble, then yes I do!"
"How could you?"
After they'd calmed down, Yamato hugged Naruto. This action managed to turn Naruto's face a bright red. "I'll miss you," she whispered. "Stay safe, okay?"
Naruto meekly nodded, acutely aware of their proximity. He could feel each breath in his ears, tickling his nerves like a feather. Finally, after what he deemed to be too short of a time, she let go, and patted his shoulder.
"Well, bye! Aren't you going to get going?"
His only response was a grin, which she lightly scoffed at, though playfully.
And without turning back again, he hoisted the anchor up from the sea floor, liberating his boat and himself from the Land of Wano. The waves crashed together, carrying the boat away from shore, aided only by the wind as it caught onto the boat's sails.
Uzumaki Naruto grinned a feral grin, one that nearly split his face in half with its width and would intimidate any that saw it.
He was free, and the storm was coming.