Chapter 11: Reality Zero: Part 2
Unknown Location
The two noticed the storm was almost upon them and knew it was time. Smiling at Naruto, the doppelganger walks calmly into the storm and turns back to give Naruto a thumbs up. Once his doppelganger disappeared, it was Naruto's turn. He too calmly walks into the heart of the storm and allows it to take him.
It was at the next moment; Naruto found himself located in new surroundings. The weather was normal, and the scenery looked quiet. However, Naruto's combat instincts told him not to drop his guard, no matter what. Surprises can be a bitch.
"Naruto!" a female voice spoke to him. "Is that you?"
Naruto quickly turned around to where the voice came from. He sees a girl staring at him. She has light blue hair and tanned skin, tied in a ponytail hairstyle with a red ribbon. Her right arm and chest are heavily tattooed. She has an hourglass figure; she also appears well-toned and athletic. Her outfit looks battle-worn, something out post-apocalyptic setting; black, leather, and hard.
She wasn't alone, for there was someone else there as well. She was a tall, mature, fair-skinned woman with brown eyes and straight blonde hair that parted above her forehead. Her hair has shoulder-length bangs that frame her face, and the rest reaches her lower back. She has a perfect full-figured and curvaceous physique, red nail polish on her fingernails and toenails, soft pink lipstick, and on her forehead was a violet diamond shape.
"I knew you'd escape," the girl says happily. "I knew despite the odds you'd escape the Loop."
"Who are you?" Naruto demanded. He was in a neutral stance, not in a threatening pose, but in a defensive pose in case she proved hostile. It was when Naruto noticed he could speak for the first time. In the Loop, he was unable to speak. Plus, he remembers his battle alongside his doppelganger against the monster opponent, they fought.
"Don't you recognize me?" she says, looking confused.
"Have your forgotten Nojiko?" says the tall buxom blonde woman. "He'd still is suffering amnesia from the Loop. But don't worry, it will go away once he recovered all his memories."
"The Loop?" Naruto finally acknowledges what she was saying before facing the blue-haired girl and speaking. "Then...You're the one who sent me the letter right?"
It was without warning, Naruto was struck by a vast flood of memories in his head, causing him to cry out in pain. It was so fast and brutal, it felt like someone hit him with a sledgehammer.
"What's happening to me?" Naruto cried out, holding his pain, while falling on his knees.
"Don't try to fight it," says the tall buxom blonde woman. "Those are all the memories you had in the Loop. Just let it all in."
"She's right Naruto," a new voice spoke. "It took a bit longer to happen to us. Those are all the memories you experienced when you were in the Loop."
Naruto turns to where the new voice comes from the moment he recovers from the flood of memories in his head. He sees a large group of people. Yet his full focus on eight people and a dog. Yet while they look different, the memories in his head help him recognize them in an instant.
"Kiba...Akamaru...Tenten," Naruto says their names in recognition. "Chōji... Shikamaru...Igaram...Shino...Kosuke...Neji...and Lee? You're all here?"
"Yeah, we're all here," says Kosuke. "You finally made it Naruto.
"We thought we had to wait for you forever?" says Kiba.
Akamaru barked happily when he saw Naruto, wagging his tail around.
Looking around, Naruto says "So, what is this place? This is not...the Loop?"
"No, it's not," says the tall buxom blonde woman. "If this is the Loop again then we all me mute with amnesia, trying to kill each other again. This is part of Reality Zero."
"I know some of my crew here," Naruto says to the tall buxom blonde woman. "But who are you?"
The tall buxom blonde woman looks at him for a moment before she says, "Vice Admiral Tsunade Senju of the Marines."
"Tsunade Senju?" Naruto repeated the name in recognition. "Vice Admiral Tsunade Senju the Legendary Sucker?"
"Don't you mean the Legendary Miracle Doctor? Tsunade retorts, getting annoyed.
"I heard about you," says Naruto. "You disappeared many years ago. Everyone thought you died after getting lost in sea."
"It turns out..."Mi~mi~mi~"... It turns out she didn't die in the sea at all," says Igaram. "She stranded in this dimension like the rest of us."
0o0o0
Unknown Location
It took a while for the group to make their way back to their base of operations. It was when they met a fair-skinned woman of average height and slender build with onyx eyes and jet-black hair; her hair was straight and shoulder-length with bangs that covered her ears and framed her face. Naruto noticed gills and fins across her body.
"Naruto this is Lieutenant Shizune, my subordinate and student," Tsunade introduced. "Alongside me, she is also caught in the rift and is stranded in this dimension."
"You're a...Fish-woman," Naruto says.
"That I am," says Shizune. "I know it is very rare to see a Dolphin Fish-woman wearing a marine officer uniform."
"Yeah, rare," Naruto replies, before he says "The two of you had been trap in this dimension for five years. Well, if the two of you been here that long, can you tell what Igaram means by us beginning stranded in this dimension?"
"From what Vice Admiral Tsunade has told us," Shikamaru explained to Naruto. "This is a world, unlike anything we imagined back in our world. We are standing on an Island called Apollo that is part of Reality Zero, a nexus link to infinite realities, where countless individuals from different worlds and universes gathered."
"I don't understand," Naruto says, looking confused. "What do you mean a nexus link to infinite realities, where countless individuals from different worlds and universes gathered?"
"Shikamaru thinks that we have entered another dimension that is linked to various worlds, dimensions, universes, multiverses, omniverses, or beyond," Neji explained. "This different plane of existence is connected."
"It sounded so unbelievable," Kiba says with disbelief in his tone." Like something out of a science fiction book."
"I know," Kosuke agreed," I thought the Grand Line could be unbelievable, but here in this dimension, it holds the crown. All those individuals that you encounter back in the Loop, from a variety of worlds are the standard proof that some things existed extraordinary and unexplained beyond our world."
"I take that rift in our world was the reason we came here?" Naruto recalls.
"Yes, it is," says Tsunade. "Me and Shizune had been trap here for God knows how long. It's a fortune that we get to meet people from our world which means we're this close to getting home."
"Is there a way to escape this place?" Naruto says, looking nervous of the conclusion.
"Oh, there is a way we can escape here," says Kosuke. "We should ask our prisoner on how to get back home."
"Prisoner?" Naruto repeated. "What Prisoner?"
"Forget about it Kosuke," says Tenten. "That woman is too dangerous and too insane to be trusted."
"I agreed," Kiba agreed with Tenten. "That woman looks like she a former stripper that escapes from a mad house meant to run amok, creating havoc and disaster wherever she goes."
"Excuse, me," Naruto says in a tone to gain their attention." But who are you all talking about?"
"Perhaps we should introduce you to our guest," says Tsunade.
They all lead Naruto into another room within the ship. In that room, they found a woman extremely tied up. She has duct tape on her mouth as if to keep her from talking. Naruto took a moment to study the woman.
She was above average height and possessed a physique perfect for athleticism and agility. While her skin tone was deathly white and pale, she was still attractive with an hourglass figure and appealing curves. Her outfit looks gothic and insane, but also appealing and sensual. She was wearing a short black and red strapped crop top with a star and a diamond on it, a black choker around her neck, black and red fingerless leather gloves, black and red tight latex briefs, and black and red sneakers with pompoms as well as thigh high socks with the same color. She is also wearing a black and red jacket over her outfit to keep herself warm. She looks like a stripper clown who escaped a lunatic asylum. And from the looks of her eyes...she is completely insane.
It was when a memory hit him the moment, he saw her.
(Beginning of the flashback)
While the ship remains of course Arabasta, Naruto, Tenten, and Nojiko were training in Rokushiki. Since they departed from G-5 Base several days ago, their primary lessons were focus in Soru.
Naruto felt a sudden burst of speed as he was practicing his Soru on the deck. It was almost as if he'd gotten a second wind or something. His speed training must be paying off, but it still was odd to have a noticeable performance jump in the middle of training. Maybe it had just been his imagination. Looking at his clones, Naruto was happy to see the girls were making some progress with their Soru training. Kiba and Akamaru were making progress with their training, especially with the clones he loans to them.
Still, Naruto wish that they have enough time to be ready for Arabasta. After his fight back on Gunsmith Island and Rabbit Island, Naruto felt they were not ready to take on pirates like Orochimaru and Crocodile. He was unable to defeat Luffy, and he was almost killed By Kabuto. The last thing he wanted was...
"Hey everyone!" Lee shouted from the crow's nest. "Look over there!"
Lee's tone startled Naruto. Whatever he spots from the crow's nest, it must be very serious. He sent a clone to grab a telescope for him while he went to have a look at himself. But the moment he begins tale look what Lee seen, he was surprised of what it is.
He doesn't know what the hell it is, but from his point of view, it looks like a rift or something. Similar to a crack in the glass, yet it is almost as if it was a crack in reality itself. It was heavily irradiated with violet electrical energy of unknown origin.
It seems to not expanse, yet it almost as if the rift was trying to consume anything within its reach.
"What is it?" Nojiko asked, looking at the strange phenomenal.
"I don't know," says Naruto, who also looks confused. "The Grand Line is known to had strange occurrences, but I never heard of anything like this before."
"Neither do I," Kosuke agreed. "I have a bad feeling about that rift. I have been to many places across the Grand Line, but this something I never seen before."
"He's right," Kiba agreed. "Look at all the derbies of those ships in the water."
Naruto noticed it too. He could see several pieces of ships across the water. It looks as if some of these vessels must have gotten close to the rift.
"I can't tell if they are pirate ships or marine ships," Naruto says.
"Pirate or Marine ship, it doesn't matter," Kiba stated. "That rift could be very dangerous if we get too close."
"You got that right," says Shikamaru speaks up. "There is something wrong with the Eternal Log Pose. It's going crazy."
"It must have something to do with that rift Shikamaru?" Chōji asked.
"You right Chōji," Shikamaru remarked. "We need to keep our distance from that Rift as much as possible!"
"I couldn't agree more," Igaram also agreed. "We should..."Mi~mi~mi~"...We should avoid it at all cost. We can't afford any obstacles in out way when Arabasta is-"
"Hey everyone!" Tenten shouted. "Look over there!"
Everyone begin to look to where Tenten was pointing at. In the sea, they see a series of wrecked ships, floating on the surface of the waters. They can also see a pirate flag in the water.
"It looks like a pirate ship." says Tenten.
"What happen to them?" Kiba asked. "Do you think the Pirates encounter this Rift before us?"
"From the look of that ship, I think they did," says Nojiko. "It's almost as if...hey...I think I see somebody in the waters."
All on the deck of the ship check to see what is Nojiko pointing at. Among the ship debris that is floating on the surface of water, they see a woman trying to stay afloat, her arm holding one to one of the ship debris. They managed to sail the ship close enough to drift her out of the seas, yet she was still unconscious. Once they lift her from the sea and on the deck, they became state of her appearance.
She was above average height and possesses a physique perfect for athleticism and agility. While her skin tone was deathly white and pale, she was still attractive with an hourglass figure and appealing curves. Her outfit looks gothic and insane, but also appealing and sensual. She was wearing a short black and red strapped crop top with a star and a diamond on it, a black choker around her neck, black and red fingerless leather gloves, black and red tight latex briefs, and black and red sneakers with pompoms as well as thigh high socks with the same color. She is also wearing a black and red jacket over her outfit to keep herself warm.
"She looks like a stripper clown that escaped a lunatic asylum," Kiba stated. "Could she be a pirate?"
"I don't think so," says Shino. "I'm familiar with the wanted posters of the Heart Pirates, but she doesn't look like a member of them."
"Yeah," Tenten agreed. "She looks like someone out of Buggy the Clown's pirate crew. Look at her skin tone. It's not normal for a human being."
"Yeah," Igaram also agreed. "She must be from some different tribe that has pale—"
It was without warning, the pale woman they saved from the sea came to life, coughing up water from her throat. Confused and lost, she gets on her feet before looking at her saviors.
"Who are you clowns?" she asked in a puzzling manner.
"Look who's talking!" Kiba shot back. "We just saved you from drowning in the sea."
"Drowning?" the pale woman repeated before looking around and then the rift. "Oh crap...I'm out."
"I'm out?" Naruto repeated, looking confused. "What do you mean you're out?"
"Back off!" the pale woman snarl as she reaches for a gun everyone failed to check and begin fired wildly at them. "You idiots are not going to ruin my fun, like the other guys here."
"Other guys?" Igaram cried out he took cover to dodge her shots. "What are you talking about?"
"I think she must be talking about the Heart Pirates," says Lee.
While shooting, the crazy pale woman rushes to the steer of the ship and begins directing it towards the Rift. Seeing, Neji shouted "Stop her! She is trying to sails us into the Rift!"
Naruto uses Soru to appear next to the crazy pale woman, restraining her. She was stronger than she looks, but Naruto has no problem ripping her from the steer. However, the ship all already close to rift and its gravity has lock on it, making it impossible for anyone to escape. And before anyone realizes what happened, they all lost consciousness.
(End of the flashback)
Naruto finally remember who this woman is. She was the reason why they were here in this dimension.
"Who is she?" Naruto asked, curious of the crazy pale woman's name. "I think I remember her."
"She calls herself Harley Quinn," Shikamaru bitterly told him. "She's an insanely, extremely, and troublesome woman that is too dangerous and troublesome to trust. And above all...it's all her fault that we're in this troublesome crazy world in the first place."
"But why have a rag around her mouth, to keep her from talking?" Naruto asked.
"Because she talks too much," Shikamaru complains. "Which makes her a troublesome annoying woman."
It was without warning, the two of them felt a huge rumble. It was a small portion of an Earthquake that seemed to continue endlessly.
"That must be coming from outside," says Naruto.
"Let's go see what's going on," Shikamaru replied.
Naruto and Shikamaru left their prisoner to head outside. Soon they were joined by the other, who wants to see what was going on outside that was causing that rumble. When they did, they look up and finally see the source.
Up in the sky was a vast object. An object that seems to cover most of the entire island. An object that was approaching in tone that was causing the rumble. An object that looks like a spaceship.
It was not just one ship in the sky. There are lots of spaceships, covering the sky. A huge fleet of them. This looks as if this was an invasion from outer space.
Everyone was dumbstruck as they see the alien fleet hovering across the Island. It was in the next moment; the alien ships begin unleashed a rain of destruction on all of Apollo Island.
"What the hell is that?" Tenten cried out.
"Trouble," Tsunade with a worrying tone in her voice. "Big trouble."