I don't own Naruto or One Piece. Whoever told you this is a damn liar, or a diluted fan. Either was I still don't own a thing.
"Talk" Character talking.
'Think' Character thinking.
Arlong Park...I can safely say that it is not a place I would recommend to anyone. I'm ashamed to admit that I fully thought it was a park with rides and stuff like that, but it turned out to be nothing but a base of operations. It was there I met Arlong for the first time and felt nothing but revulsion.
Hody Jones adored and looked up to Arlong like he was some sort of God. I remember when he got drunk of many occasions about how he ranted and raved how wonderful the man was. Seeing him up close...I did not see the big deal, the man was arrogant and truthfully gave my species a bad name.
But I had my orders, it was to get rid of him and I figured I could try the nonviolent approach by getting him to join Hody's crew. That did not go well, I was laughed at, I didn't care about that at all. However he insulted Queen Otohime, that was something I could never forgive. No matter how mad I was at the Royal Family, I could never find myself to stay mad at someone who was long dead by now. After all, the dead cannot fight back.
I killed my first person that day. His name was Chew. He fired his Water Gun technique at me, I fired my Water Shot in retaliation. I overpowered his technique and my technique struck him right in the forehead. I remember it clearly, there was a hole in his forehead, watery blood spilled down his surprised face, he blinked twice before falling over dead.
They say that killing a person is a big deal, a big impact in their life. But for me I didn't see the big deal, during a fight sometimes people die. That's just the way it goes, I lived he didn't. That's what Iruka-sensei taught me when I was in the dojo after all.
After that all hell broke loose, I was assaulted by five members of his crew. I was shot at, but Saibannin Kayiouumi; my fucking anchor axe deflected each bullet and using my weapon that was intended to bring down ships killed two of them. The chain did most of the work, the iron ball shattered one right in the ribs, another was cut in half.
That was when Arlong ordered Hatchan, or Hachi for short to call in their dangerous weapon. Their "pet" that apparently caused a lot of damage to the island named Mohmoo...it turned out to be a freaking sea cow, the most useless creature of the sea. Hell my dad hunted them with only a harpoon. The thing tried to crush me with its massive weight, and that was when I tapped into Sea King Mode for the first time during a life or death fight.
Have I ever mentioned what it was like? Well it's like a fugue state where I'm on autopilot, I feel much stronger, faster, invincible, my connection with water increased by what feels like a thousand percent and I remember everything. I threw Mohmoo out of Arlong Park, I used my Water Fang Bullet technique to impale four members of his crew, three were reduced to nothing more than scraps of meat by my Land Shark and Shredding Shark techniques. I hurled my anchor axe in mid-air, killing two with the blades, crushed anothers head with the iron ball, took out the last one (I later learned his name was Kaneshiro) with my Double Spiral Axe Kick that turned him into nothing but goop in a ten foot crater.
Kuroobi was my next opponent, unlike the others he fought with pure Fishman Karate. He got me in the back of the neck with his Arm Blade Slash technique that honestly hurt like a sumbitch, but I didn't allow him or Arlong to see how much pain I was in. I got punched a few times, pissing him off with many insults before he tried to end the fight with the One-thousand Tile Punch, a one-hit instant kill technique. I took his fingers with my Wrath of Jaws...it was my desperation move, I am ashamed to admit it, but that is the one move I use as a last resort. It worked, and I destroyed his kneecaps, then his shoulders, and finally I caved in his sternum with my final punch, completing my Five-hundred Tile Break technique.
Let it be known that he was a level forty in the Fishman Karate Dojo, I was level sixty. It was a good fight, but I won, he died, I didn't. And I like to think he died knowing he was bested by a better opponent.
...Then I backhanded Monkey D. Luffy after he entered my territory, daring to interrupt my fight. I don't regret doing that, still don't actually.
In fifteen minutes I killed all but two members of the Arlong Pirates. Eleven of them were dead, their pet was somewhere on the island or in the sea, I dunno I didn't check afterwards. Only Hachi and Arlong were left.
In hindsight I really wish I could smack myself for being so reckless. If I was a little more careful I wouldn't be going the long way home.
After promising Vivi to be the vanguard for her and her country, Naruto and the rest of his crew set out for Alubarna. However there was one small problem, the travel to the capital would take much longer on foot than any of them were comfortable with. And so with much reluctance they went to rent some camels.
"So...do any of you know how to ride one of these things?" Naruto plainly asked as they approached the stables.
"What's there to know? They are like horses with humps." A random camel farted nearby, causing Gin to cover his nose. "Stinking horses with humps."
"They seem very rude to me." Bashura remarked with some distaste.
Shizune only sighed in exasperation. It looked like she was going to have to be the adult of the group again. "Guys, insulting the animals is not going to help us. Lets just pick four of the fastest they got and get moving."
"Shizune is right." Naruto said before turning his attention towards a light brown camel with noticeable eyelashes on the bottom of his eyes wearing a bridle and saddle. "How about this one?"
"Definitely not." Both Gin and Bashura said in union.
"Huh? What's wrong with this one?"
"Zoro and Sanji saved this ungrateful bastard from a Sandora Lizard. It rewarded us by letting only Shizune ride him." Gin growled out.
"For the rest of us he either spat on or bit us." Bashura continued.
"Oh come on it's just a camel. He can't possibly be-" Naruto was interrupted when the camel spat on him. Giving the animal a death glare, he was rewarded with another loogie between his eyes. "Why you little!" Smashing through the fence the blonde fishman wrapped his hands around the camel's throat and began to comically strangle him.
"Naruto don't strangle the camel!" Shizune loudly protested.
"Naruto don't strangle Eyelashes!" Chopper shouted from the entrance of the stables.
"Eyelashes? That's his name?" Gin skeptically asked before turning towards his Captain, "Come on Uzumaki choke him to death!"
"What are you doing here little one?" Bashura asked the doctor of the Straw Hat Pirates, ignoring his Captain attempting to strangle an animal to death a few feet away from him.
"I came to give you a map! But I can't do it if you're strangling my friend!" The reindeer screamed before morphing into his Heavy Point form and desperately tried to pry the blonde off the camel.
"When the hell did you become friends? You guys just arrived last night." Gin pointed out.
"After treating Sanji for his head injury, I went for a walk and struck up a conversation with Eyelashes. He's my friend and I won't let you strangle him!" Chopper cried out.
"All right, all right, sheesh cry me a river don't you." Naruto groaned out before releasing the camel. Allowing him to collapse onto the floor, the blonde pried Chopper's hands off him. "Chopper, hand Bashura the map, I'll pay for the...shit." Turning towards his First Mate, he held out his right hand. "Gin, I need a stack of bills right now."
"Yea, yea. Money well earned Captain." Gin reached into his backpack and pulled out a single wad of money that had to have been worth one-hundred thousand beli per stack. "Just don't spend it all in one place."
"What are you my treasurer now?"
(Alabasta Desert – One Day Later)
After paying the camel merchant for the rent of their camels, and paying for the damage to his stables, Naruto and his crew rode all day and most of the night to get where they were now.
"According to this map we should be two hours away from the capital!" Bashura announced to his crew mates.
"That's great, but that still leaves two million pissed off people!" Gin shouted in return. With each village they passed the band of four overheard the people talking about the Rebel Army. It was half a million barely a day ago, when half a day passed they had over a million, the latest report was over two million and counting. What a fucking mess they were running into.
"It's not ideal, but if we get the information to Cobra we could possibly do something to-"
Gin cut Shizune off. "Information or not, it's still forty to one. The rebels outnumber the Royal Family, they have more men and more guns. We need a way to reduce the numbers, even it it is temporarily."
"Any bright ideas then?" Naruto asked his First Mate.
Gin was silent for a little while, that was either a good thing, or a bad thing. "Naruto, can you create a giant tsunami and lay waste to all of them?"
"Not in this type of weather, even if I am able to at all. I'm good with manipulating water, very good. But a tsunami? That is beyond me." Naruto said in the dullest voice imaginable. Not even Jinbe could do what his First Mate was asking him to do.
"Shizune could you mix up some poison to knock them all out?" Bashura asked.
"If I had all the right ingredients and a month I could." Shizune dryly said.
"Dammit, unless we can dig some sort of trench or make quick sand in the direction they are coming from...then we're more screwed than Don Krieg when he first tried coming to the Grand Line." Gin cursed out.
"Trench and quicksand...hmm." That actually gave Naruto an idea. "Gin you magnificent bastard! Listen you all continue going to Alubarna, I will meet you all there!" Without another word he jumped from his camel and dived into the sand using his Land Shark technique.
"Where the hell does he think he's going?" Gin demanded.
"Mmm looks like the Cap'n has a plan." Bashura wiry said.
"Plan? What sort of plan?" Shizune wondered.
By now Naruto had mastered his Land Shark technique, he didn't need to see here he was going thanks to the electromagnetic waves produced by his species to to find his way around the earth. Thank God too because he didn't want to get sand in his eyes, his gills were nightmarish enough, but his eyes? That sounded like torture.
He felt a great deal of movement from the west, like millions of footsteps, that had to be where the Rebel Army was located. His plan was to do something quite drastic to stop them, but the problem was he did not have enough time to create a gigantic trench to hold them up to stall for time.
So he did something completely unconventional, normally this technique was used as a combination for his Piercing Water Spear to attack unsuspecting enemies from underground. But today he was writing in the sand, spelling out big bold letters to try and message a certain sand-user.
His message seemed to have gotten through when he felt his a pressure on his legs and was dragged backwards through the sand. He screamed of course, he would never admit it to anyone that he did. He was dragged through the sand for what seemed like miles before he was spat out and harshly impacted on a sand dune.
"Ow..."
"Don't whine Uzumaki, you're lucky I don't crush you for your terrible spelling." A familiar monotonic voice answered several feet from him.
Pushing himself out of the sand dune and brushing off the offensive substance from his clothing, Naruto gave Gaara a deadpan look. "Well excuse me for being in a hurry and not checking my spelling while literally cutting through sand!"
Gaara didn't even bat an eyelash. "What do you want? More importantly how were you able to contact me?"
Crossing his arms across his chest, Naruto lightly glared at the red-head. "Before we left the camp Hack said to me that nothing happens in the desert without you knowing about it. He did not go into specifics, but I bet it has something to do with your devil fruit powers. And that is something I find a little hard to believe."
Crossing his own arms, Gaara raised a non-existent eyebrow. "What do you mean by that Uzumaki? Enlighten me."
"I do not know much about devil fruits except the main three, Paramecia, Logia, and Zoan with some of their sub-classes being discussed." Raising his right index finger, Naruto also said, "However there is one thing I do know. There is never more than one of the same type, Crocodile has his stupid Logia Sand-Sand Fruit, and it should be impossible for you to have it as well."
"Hmph, you're smarter than you look." Gaara lowly said, much to the blonde's aggravation. "You're right though, Crocodile is the only one who has the powers of the Sand-Sand Fruit, I however have a watered down version of it."
"A watered down version? How is that even possible?"
"Tell me something Uzumaki, have you heard of a scientist by the name of Doctor Vegapunk?"
"Can't say that I have, is he responsible for your powers?"
"Yes..." Gaara grew very silent, as if he was pondering what to say next. "He is a Marine scientist, and is possibly the smartest man in the entire world. What people know about devil fruits is because of his research."
'So Kotetsu knows all this stuff because of this Vegapunk guy?' Naruto thought to himself. "Where does he come in regarding you?"
"He tried to create Artificial Devil Fruit, he got hold of several before they went back into circulation and tried replicating them. The Flame-Flame Fruit, Snow-Snow Fruit, Gum-Gum Fruit and Sand-Sand Fruit were many examples that he tried to replicate. Many were failures, he scrapped the project, but I was illegally fed after the project ended. I was fortunate enough for mine to be one of the few successful ones." Gaara said.
"So that is how you got the power to control sand."
"It's more of a Paramecia class devil fruit. Now what do you want?"
"I need your help." Naruto bluntly said. "We got two-million pissed off rebels heading to Alubarna, I can't do a thing to stop them. Is there anyway you can slow them down by making quicksand?"
"Now why would I do something like that?" Gaara inquired.
"Because it's the right thing to do?" He got no response from Gaara. "...Because of loyalty to your country?" Again nothing. "To protect the Royal Family?" Yea that didn't even phase him. "Dammit what are you doing here for it you're just gonna stand around and do nothing!?"
"Our orders from Dragon himself were to watch and observe. We were only to take action if Crocodile succeeded. Anything else is of no concern." Gaara coldly said.
"Fuck that! You're from Alabasta, this is your home as much as it is Vivi's or Cobra's or even the most common citizen! Are you actually willing to stand there and let innocent people get butchered?" Naruto angrily spat out.
"Why do you care Uzumaki?" The red-haired teen finally asked.
"What do you mean?"
"Your reputation is not exactly a shining beacon for your species. Two Marine Captains, roughly sixty other Marines ranging from Seamen to at least one Lieutenant. Not to mention the Baroque Works members you recently killed."
"They were fights, people sometimes die in them." Naruto calmly stated. "What's your point in all of this?"
"Fishmen have a reputation for disliking humans. Arlong being the prime example, and your reputation of disliking them is somewhat known in the Revolutionary Army despite you traveling with them. So I ask you again, why do you care about a race that has shown nothing but hostility and the will to enslave your people?" Gaara plainly said.
"Because..." Naruto paused. Why did he care? He didn't know the people of Alabasta, minus the small handful that he came across he was needlessly risking his neck for complete and total strangers. Why did he care?
An image of Vivi, weeping in his room came to mind. She was so grateful that he brought Igaram back to her, one of the people in her life that meant the world to her. Another image came to mind, it was Queen Otohime giving lessons about human culture and how their species weren't so different from one another. Then he thought of the people on his ship, about how they met and what they actually meant to him.
He had his answer.
"Because I do not enjoy watching innocent people senselessly die when it could easily be prevented. And because if I did not do this then I would not be able to ever face Otohime in the afterlife." Uncrossing his arms, Naruto stared down the impassive redhead. "That is my answer Gaara, if you could protect someone, wouldn't you do everything in your power to do so?"
Gaara glared blankly looked at the fishman in front of him. He struck a nerve, he still remembered his family from so long ago, all of them smiling before the dark times came. They still lived in Alabasta, the capital even.
The answer almost brought a smile to his face. Almost.
"You owe me one Uzumaki, and I intend to collect when the time is right." He finally said.
"That is fine by me, I don't want anyone killed, I just want them slowed." Naruto replied.
"Don't push your luck." With that said Gaara sank into the desert and disappeared.
(Meanwhile with the Rebel Army)
"Have you eaten enough Kotetsu?" Carmen worryingly asked.
"I have, thank you Carmen. I feel like I'm my normal self again." Kotetsu replied after patting his stomach. It took nearly two days of constantly eating, but he could move on his own again.
"After eating more than ten people eat in a week." The pink-haired chef remarked with a frown. "Kotetsu, your devil fruit, what do you know about it?"
"What brought this on?" The sandy-haired teen asked.
"I may not claim to know everything about devil fruits other than their obvious weaknesses to seastone and being submerged in water. But after seeing you becoming so weak after pushing yourself to your limits using it, I'm beginning to think that there might be more to yours." She said giving him a look over. "You should eat more every day if you plan on using your powers."
Kotetsu winced a little bit from that proclamation. As much as he hated to admit it, he was still experimenting with his devil fruit powers. He could go fast, fast as the speed of sound if he really pushed himself and make afterimages, but that was it. He failed to learn the strengths and weaknesses of his devil fruit. After everything was said and done he was going to experiment the hell out of it until he collapsed if necessary.
Both him and Carmen heard a shout before it disappeared. Then another, followed by another. They weren't screams of pain or agony, more like yelps of surprise. Hell they nearly jumped off the wagon in surprise when Farafra who was no more than five feet away from them disappeared along with his camel.
"Whoa baby, whoa!" Kotetsu pulled the reigns to their wagon, stopping their camels in their tracks. Just in time too when another rebel disappeared in front of them, her scream alarming those around her.
"Ambush! Ambush!" Came the cry of many men and women before they too fell prey to whatever was happening.
Both Carmen and Kotetsu felt the sand cave under their feet, the sandy-haired swordsman quickly grabbed the chef of their crew and jumped on top of their wagon. The both of them were surprised to see a sandy hand that would have dragged them down to their doom.
"Kotetsu...did you just see what I saw?" Carmen asked.
"I think so, I dunno what that is...you think it's you know who?" Kotetsu replied in a hushed whisper.
"I don't think so. The Rebel Army is at full force, why would he try cutting them down before reaching Alubarna?"
"I don't think that's his style, I've heard about Crocodile and the way he fights from the Marines...there is no way he would do something like this."
"You two!" A voice alerted the duo. It was Kohza riding a beautiful brown mare, he began barking orders to those who could listen. "Enough standing around, get some rope so we can pull these people out!"
"That's gonna take a lot of rope Kohza." Erik said.
"And it will cost us far too much time." Okame seconded.
"No one will be left behind!" Kohza roared, putting a stop to any thoughts of leaving the trapped people behind. "We will breach Alubaran's gates together or not at all." Getting off his horse he took some rope from his saddle and went to the hole Farafra disappeared into. "Farafra, you okay down there!?"
"I'm fine! My camel and I aren't injured. The walls are pretty smooth and hard, I don't think it will cave in anytime soon!"
That was another oddity, a trap that wasn't fatal? Definitely not up Crocodile's alley, he would have crushed them. Both Kotetsu and Carmen didn't how or why it happened but it bought Alubarna some time.
It took a total of six hours to get everyone out of their respective hole, man and animal suffered no injuries, but they did have to leave behind some of their wagons that were stuck in the ground. The Rebel Army did not suffer a single casualty that day, Gaara was irritated that he had to waste his time delaying the fools, but Uzumaki was just so damn stubborn.
It didn't hurt that having a favor from the "Sword of the Sea" could prove useful down the road.
(Alubarna)
"Where did I go wrong Rasa?" Cobra tiredly asked his adviser.
Rasa the Royal Adviser of Alabasta turned to regard his King. The man had auburn hair, dark eyes and had a permanent stern look on his face. He was dressed in a green robe with white edging, a white and green sash around his waist, along with simple sandals. "You did not go wrong your Majesty. If the sheep cannot pull the cloth away from their eyes, then they will be lead astray."
"Perhaps you're right, I am just glad Carue brought us the information regarding Crocodile." Cobra replied, recalling a few days prior the loyal duck collapsing into his throne room with vital information around his neck.
"Too little too late though. The men saw the dust cloud, we will be lucky enough if we can mount a siege. That is if there aren't people who'll simply open the gate to end this faster."
"There is that cynicism again, honestly Rasa I do not understand how you can believe that about your own people."
"I've seen how people behave your majesty. If Crocodile is really behind this drought, and this unrest, then we'll need concrete proof that he is behind all this. Your daughter did a good job, but I fear it may not be enough for the angry masses." Rasa replied as the doors to the palace opened.
The person who entered wore brown metal dragon-pattern armor, a metal helmet, sandals and was dressed in a tunic cape combination. In his right hand was a long rod with a blade at the end. Though oddly enough he wore purple face paint. It started from one cheek to the lips and to the end of the other cheek, and another line started from the top of the upper lip to the bottom of his chin forming the letter "T".
Getting to one knee, the soldier bowed towards his King. "King Cobra, we have people at the gates."
"We know, there is an entire army coming towards us." Cobra replied.
"No Sire, I mean we have four people at the gates." The soldier clarified. "Three are humans, two males one female. The one leading them is a male fishman. They do not appear to be with the Rebel Army."
"Sire, this could be a trap." Rasa advised his King.
"The fishman said that Princess Vivi sent him, he was...very vocal that he was not part of the rebellion." The soldier deadpanned.
"Fetch them for me." Cobra commanded, much to Rasa's protests. "Escort them here, relieve them of any weaponry at the gates with twenty guards."
"Yes my Lord." The soldier bowed his head, rose to his feet and departed.
"Kankuro sure has grown, hasn't he?" Cobra turned his head to his adviser. "Quite the diligent young man."
"He makes both me and his mother proud." Rasa said before lightly sighing. "I only wish Temari would act more lady-like, instead she became another soldier."
Cobra only laughed in response to that. "You and I both knew she would never become a lady in waiting."
Several minutes later the soldiers returned with the people at the gates in tow. Naruto, Gin, Bashura and Shizune were unamused that they had to be marched into the palace like they were the enemy. They were also very irritated that they were stripped of their weaponry, except for Naruto who still had Saibannin Kayiouumi plastered to his back.
"Kankuro what is the meaning of this?" Rasa demanded his second child. "Why does that fishman carry a weapon with him?"
"No one can carry it." Kankuro deadpanned. It was embarrassing, they handed over their weapons with only a little fuss. But then the fishman smirked and dropped his anchor axe onto the ground and said 'lift it if you can'. All twenty of them tried lifting the weapon, they only hurt their backs for their troubles. He made the call to have him carry it, but they all had rifles trained on him.
"Listen if I wanted to fight you I would have done it without Saibannin Kayiouumi." Naruto said in an unamused voice. Turning towards Cobra, he politely bowed towards him, this was something no one expected him to do. "King Cobra, I am an acquaintance of your daughter who sent me and my crew as a vanguard to bring you some news regarding the situation of your country."
"If it is regarding Crocodile you are too late." Cobra said, causing the group to look at him dumbly. "My daughter sent Carue days earlier to inform us of the situation."
'Son of a bitch.' The foursome mentally thought. Vivi completely forgot about this? Why was she being so absentminded lately?
"Ahem...well if that is the case, we still want to offer our services to protect Alubarna." Gin said after clearing his throat. "You daughter went through a lot to get here and obtain the help of well trusted comrades."
"We do not even know who you are." Rasa abruptly said with a pronounced scowl on his face. "For all we know you could very well be Rebel spies seeking to assassinate our King."
"If we were going to kill King Cobra we would have done it by now." Naruto said before gesturing towards themselves. "But you would be correct, you do not know who we are. Introductions are in order I believe. I am "Sword of the Sea" Uzumaki Naruto. The Captain of the Ocean Sword Pirates."
Bashura stepped forward, and bowed deeply. "I am Bashura, former member of the Black Cat Pirates. Current Navigator of the Ocean Sword Pirates."
Shizune followed suit, politely bowing. "I am Shizune, apprentice to Senju Tsunade. I am the doctor of the Ocean Sword Pirates."
Gin came next, and curtly bowed, much to his extreme reluctance. "I am Gin the "Man-Demon", former Combat Commander of the Krieg Pirates, current First Mate of the Ocean Sword Pirates."
"Pirates...Uzumaki Naruto..." Rasa turned towards the ruler of Alabasta. "My Lord, he's..."
Cobra held his hand to silence his adviser. Now it was all coming back to him, this was the boy who saved his little girl, this was the same boy who became the apprentice to "Knight of the Sea" Jinbe. And this was the same boy who became the adopted son of the Royal Family on Fishman Island. He looked over the young man standing in front of him, the boy looked to be tired, annoyed, conflicted, and so far from him. But Cobra also saw the resolution in him, that he was already battle-tested, and that he was willing to put his life on the line for a country that wasn't his without anyone twisting his arm over it.
"I have heard word of you. Or at least word of your former crew, teacher, and deeds." Cobra said referencing Bashura, Shizune and Gin in order. "If you were anyone else I would not trust you. But because of my daughter...and for what you did for my family Uzumaki Naruto, I welcome you to Alubarna." Rising to his feet Cobra turned towards the guards and waved his hand towards them. "Lower your weapons and return the weapons of our guests to them. Kankuro I want you to show them to our guest quarters."
"Ah, um, yes King Cobra." Kankuro quickly bowed.
"As for you Uzumaki Naruto...I wish to talk to you alone."
Everyone took that que to leave. Rasa cast a doubtful look towards Cobra but excused himself from the throne room, the twenty guards dispersed, each going off to do their own duties while Kankuro lead their "honored guests" to their chambers. Gin raised an eyebrow to his Captain, who only got a shrug in return.
After everyone left, Naruto watched as the King stepped towards him with intent. There was no maliciousness in his steps, nor was there any haughtiness, false swagger, or anything that he could describe as foreboding.
Finally the two of them met face to face, or at least chin to eyebrows since Naruto was a little taller than the man.
"Uzumaki Naruto. I have heard a lot about you." Cobra finally said after a minute passed between them.
"Officially or unofficially?" Naruto asked.
"Take your pick. They say you have taken to murdering Marines with a smile on your face and have forced those in your pirate crew into servitude as slaves using fear as a tool." The King bluntly replied.
"Forgive my language, but that is absolute bullshit. I did not pick any fight with the Marines, they attacked me first...the second and third time." The blonde fully admitted regarding Captain Stark and Captain Smoker. "However Captain Nezumi was going to massacre an entire village to cover up his dirty dealings with Arlong and take all their money. I am not sorry for that." Naruto then gave the King of Alabasta his infamous shark-liked grin. "Just like I was not sorry for kicking Wapol in the face."
Cobra finally cracked a smiled and bowed towards him in gratitude. "I never had a chance to thank you for doing that. My daughter is the most important treasure in my life, I do not know what I would do if I ever lost her."
"The apple does not fall far from the tree." Naruto said before turning serious. "What do you plan on doing with the rebels?"
"We are going to have to fight them." Cobra somberly admitted. Running his hands through his hair he turned towards the direction his men saw their enemies gathering. "It pains me to say this, but unless they can see reason we cannot avoid bloodshed."
"Can't you send someone out for negotiations?"
"The entire country thinks I caused this drought with Dance Powder, and destroyed Nanohana as an act of war. I am not going to send a poor man to his death for a surrender that I know they do not want. This will only end in blood."
"So you're going to allow this to happen? You will be wiped out, you know that right?"
"Not if the truth comes out...it is the only way." Cobra said, not breaking his gaze. "Eat and rest up, the fight is coming any day now."
Naruto didn't say anything, he turned on his heel and left the King. His mind was jumbled in thought, in the next day or two he was going to be involved in a war that could have been prevented. He could lose his life, he would break his promise to Shirahoshi.
For the first time since he started his journey back home Naruto felt doubt in his heart.
(Rebel Army – That Evening)
"That is everyone Kohza. We had to leave some stuff in those holes, but every man, woman and beast are safe and sound." Erik said to his leader.
"This cost us an entire day." Kohza sighed out in slight frustration. He was glad no one died, honestly that was the best thing he heard in weeks. But with that giant sandstorm that buried a quarter of his army, and these strange pitfalls, these delays were becoming annoying.
"We'll be well rested at least." Kebi replied, trying to put a positive spin on things.
"Tell everyone to set up for the night, I want everyone to eat well, this ends tomorrow." Kohza ordered the two of them. After the two departed, and the leader of the rebellion retired to his tent, Kotetsu who was hiding behind one of the wagons, pretending to be busy frowned and turned away.
The swordsman of the Ocean Sword Pirates navigated his way through the tents, the camp fires, and even a few people who greeted him. Even with Shiin dead and buried in the desert with his partner, Kotetsu still could feel the bloodlust from many men and women in the giant camp. It made Magara cackle with glee to the point he always said he had a murder boner. Fucking deranged psychopath.
He found himself in front of Carmen's tent where everyone other than Igaram slept for the night. Making sure that no one was looking he entered the tent and was immediately greeted by a fat belly. "Carmen, why is one of the idiots blocking me?"
"A precaution Kotetsu." Carmen said, poking her head from Raijin's side. "What's going on?"
"We're going to attack tomorrow, there will be no more delays." He replied.
"I see." She looked downwards, not really knowing what to say.
"I don't know about you but I'm going to try and stop as many as I can." Kotetsu said, lightly grabbing the hilts of his swords. "Stop as many casualties as possible, hopefully Uzumaki will have something up his sleeve."
"You really think I am going to let you do this by yourself?" Carmen demanded. Stepping around Raijin, the pink-haired woman crossed her slender arms under her chest. "I am going with you. Ah, no protesting." She stopped him when he opened his mouth to do just that. "Someone needs to smack your head if you go crazy."
"You're never going to let that go, are you?" He dully asked her.
"Nope!" Ever so chipper, Carmen looked to where Miss Goldenweek was sleeping. "And you are going to help us."
"Why do I have to?" The younger girly bordly asked.
"Because this organization of yours has caused all this, it's your responsibility to clean it up." Carmen replied before adding. "But if that is not enough to convince you, then perhaps me never cooking for you or...making that tea Igaram made should be enough."
While Kotetsu was no longer on the receiving end of Miss Goldenweek's Color Trap techniques, nor was he responsible for seeing her hopped up on sugar. But he felt a cold shiver going down his spine. Those poor bastards, both the Rebel Army and the Royal Guard may have been fooled by Crocodile, but not even they deserved what Carmen unleashed upon them.
(Rainbase – Meanwhile)
Crocodile was beginning to grow annoyed. Barely twenty-four hours ago he wrecked his base of operations no thanks to the Straw Hats. He also learned from Ultraking that Rain Dinners was near bankrupt, and that Mr. 12 and Miss Saturday had gone AWOL. He could live with losing his base, he could also live with losing a lot of money; he'd just get more of it. But when the plan was in jeopardy, that was something he could never forgive.
He felt a fair of hands on his shoulders, the Head of the Baroque Works turned to see that they had emerged from the walls. "You know I hate it when you do that Miss All-Sunday."
"I'm sorry, but seeing you tense makes me worry. I know some plans have gone astray, but the end result remain the same." Miss All-Sunday replied after retracting her hands from her boss' shoulders and disappearing into the wall.
"Hmph, luckily I have a backup just in case Mr. 12 and Miss Saturday failed." Crocodile said. "Kohza will still die during the fighting, Alubarna will still be eradicated, and I will emerge as the victor with Pluton in hand."
"What of the Straw Hats?" She questioned him.
"They will be dealt with by the Officer Agents before their duties start." He said, trusting in the power of his subordinates. Or at the very least the deadly prowess of Mr. 1. "The battle will start tomorrow. I suggest you get some rest. It's not everyday one reads a Poneglyph."
Miss All-Sunday said nothing, all she did was put on a fake smile. Yes it wasn't everyday someone read a Poneglyph. It also wasn't every day a member of the Shichibukai fell from grace either.
Armageddon: Well this is quite possibly the shortest chapter I made to date, or it sure as heak feels like it. Not to worry folks the next chapter is gonna be filled to the brim with action and violence. It will also end the Alabasta Arc and start us on a whole new one in the epilogue of it. But for now I need to get my rest, work waits for no one. I hope you enjoy this chapter and what is to come.
Also I left some pop culture references in this chapter, try finding them all if you can!