The Ultimate Worst Generation

by stringdog

The Straw Hats have arrived on their final stop before descending to Fish-man Island and onto the New World, the Sabaody Archipelago. However, they're not the only big name rookies present, they are just one of 14 rookie crews present and the other 13 all have big names as well. Mass deep crossover with Fairy Tail, My Hero Academia, Black Clover, Akame ga Kill, and RWBY.

25. Chapter 25: Help the Big Guy

Here is the twenty-fifth chapter in this story released in accordance with my upload schedule for this story. The War of the Best rages on and in the wake of Akainu's Great Eruption a new threat has emerged onto the battlefield, one of Whitebeard's subordinate Captains and the descendant of the Continent-Puller himself, Little Oars Jr. The abnormally large giant is a beast and set on saving Ace regardless of what Whitebeard might say so he needs help in achieving that. However, what will that help look like and what resistance will there be to it? Well let's find out as that I have for the administrative stuff that I have for y'all and as there are not guest reviews to respond to or questions that need answering/can be answered without spoilers, I will leave this note off here. Do keep them coming as your support is the best motivation for me to keep producing chapters at this kind of rate. That is it for this pre-chapter note so sit back and enjoy the twenty-fifth chapter in The Ultimate Worst Generation.

Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these great franchises.

Chapter 25: Help the Big Guy

Oars Jr. roared as he reached the ice and stepped onto it before walking forward showing that it was thick enough to bear his weight. Each step sent marines flying as he moved while the Whitebeard Pirates gave him a wide berth as their cheered his arrival.

"And I thought that that monster that Shirokami is in love with was repulsive but this is something else." Hancock said looking at the beast that was approaching. "At least that's a Mythical Zoan type so he's got a normal size to him and that's bothersome enough."

"There was a Mythical Zoan on the battlefield that wasn't Marco the Phoenix?" Sienna asked as she sat behind the wall next to Hancock, her back to it and head to the side while a pair of marine medics worked to patch up the deep cut on her left cheek and staunch the hole where her normal ear used to be so she couldn't see Oars Jr. approaching. "Damn, they're throwing everything at this. Not that that shouldn't be expected given who the Navy pissed off this time."

"He wasn't expected to be with Whitebeard if I read what Shirokami said about him correctly." Hancock said in response to the other female Warlord who'd returned in her full beast form missing an ear as Akainu's magma rained down in the battlefield. "You were busy getting shot so you missed it and the reveal that Shirokami is also a Mythical Zoan type though I think her other declaration will get all the headlines."

"Bitch ass sniper got the drop on me because I was about to rip a thief's throat out." Sienna spat her anger at the coward that had shot her overriding all else so she didn't hear the revelation about Shirokami's Devil Fruit. "Whoever that was, they're next on my list. Fucking cowardly bitch, I'll rip them limp from limp."

"Ah now that is a magnificent beast!" Moria cut in clearly admiring Oars Jr. as Hancock ignored Sienna's complaining about the sniper who'd almost gotten the drop on her because frankly a Warlord should have had enough awareness to not get hit by one. "Kishishishi, I must get my hands on his dead body. With it I'll have another giant zombie that should last longer than the first one did. I think I'll put the shadow of that dragon kid in it, that will make it perfect!"

"The corpse should go to whoever slays it." Ivan said, he'd arrived back unharmed and unlike Dante who had a few cuts on his face, as Doflamingo chuckled. "So if I land the killing blow then I'll sell it to you Moria."

"If that's the case then I shall kill it myself." Moria said. "He's mine, I'll murder him when I get the chance."

"Whover he is, he's not inspiring any new malice in me." Dante mused as he watched Oars Jr. make his way over the ice. "Not worth my time, he's all yours boys. If the marines don't get to him first that is."

Dante was right as just then the Giant Unit moved out as one to engage Oars Jr. and take him down though if they did Moria would still claim the corpse. They were one of the best units that the Navy had so while they were smaller than Oars Jr., if anyone could stand toe to toe with the descendant of the Continent-Puller it was them.

---

"Damn that guy is something else." Tatsumi said as he and Akame watched the giant known as Little Oars Jr. reach the ice and walk out onto it while the Giant Unit set off to engage him though it would be a few moments before they could reach him. "Whitebeard certainly knows how to make friends."

"And I doubt that the Navy expected someone like this to show up." Akame said as a battleship that had been frozen in Aokiji's ice unloaded cannonballs and bullets into Oars Jr. as he approached it but they had little to no effect on him. "Though they have powerful enough members to counter him so it's more the destruction he'll cause before then that's the issue."

"Yeah I can think of one who would love to face him." Tatsumi said as Oars Jr. reached the battleship and grabbed it, bracing as Ace shouted at him to turn back but clearly Oars Jr. wasn't listening to him. "This is just the kinda target Esdeath loves. If she wasn't being held back after facing us she'd be right on him."

"Agreed." Akame said. "And the other Admiral, some of the Vice Admiral, and most of the Warlords can handle him. Still, it's going to cost a lot to beat him."

"Hang on Ace!" Oars Jr. shouted before Tatsumi could say anything to Akame so he just watched as Oars Jr. braced himself and began to strain with the weight of the battleship showing that that was around the limit that he could lift. "I'm coming for you!"

With that, and a massive roar, Oars Jr. gave a mighty heave and lifted the battleship clean out of the ice, the hull still covered in, well, ice and held it high over his head. All Tatsumi and Akame could do was stare in amazement at the act as marines fell off the ship and the Giant Unit continued to plow on forward now fully intending to kill Oars Jr.

They never got the chance as Oars Jr. finished his roar and slammed the ship down right in front of 3 of the 7 Navy giants. There was a massive boom as the ship hit the ice before it was sheered in two with the stern going flying off and across the ice to slam into the three closing giants. They tried to stop it but even with their combined strength they couldn't as they, along with the back half of the battleship, skidded over the ice and into the other 4 giants before taking all 7 into the harbor wall where it was finally stopped.

"Well that's one way to handle them but I don't think that's enough, giants are tough bastards, they can handle being hit by a boat." Tatsumi mused as he looked at the billowing smoke from the impact. "They'll be back."

"True but that's not a concern for us, they can be handled." Akame said as the smoke cleared and revealed a hole in the wall. "And he's opened up a path for them. Come on, we need to push forward."

Tatsumi agreed and he and Akame turned to rush at the marines. The marines, however, had realized that things were turning against them now that Oars Jr. was on the battlefield and were falling back to tighten up their defensive line and prevent the pirates from reaching the plaza. It was a good idea but with Oars Jr.'s actions the Whitebeard Pirates had the momentum and the pressed into the marines once more.

Again the fighting turned into a standard affair as Akame and Tatsumi easily cut down any marine in their way pressing for the plaza. It was war, plain and simple, and the pair were showing no mercy to the lowly soldiers that the World Government and Navy used as meat shields as they pressed on. Their goals weren't the same as Whitebeard's but this war gave them an excuse to step up their conflict with the World Government so the Night Pirates would do their part to aid Whitebeard's goals as they carved through any resistance and in the case of Sheele, Bulat, and Leone, ignored their wounds.

Of course there was one big thing that kept Tatsumi's focus at least and that was, well, literally big as Oars Jr. continued to make his way over the battlefield to the plaza. He was the biggest force and the best bet in and Tatsumi had a feeling that that could be vital in the long run.

"Out of the way." Oars Jr. said his voice carrying and Tatsumi paused as the two halves of the Navy grunt he'd just bisected fell away which caused Akame to come up short after running past him a few paces and turning back to look at him confused, several blades shooting from her back to skewer three marines who thought they could go for her back when she turned. "Ace is my friend and needs my help. Don't get in my way!"

"That's it." Tatsumi said as he bent down to wipe his sword off on the back of one of the marines he'd just killed before raising and sheathing it, Akame may have said that they weren't a concern for them but now that Tatsumi saw it he realized that while they didn't have to be a concern he could still aid there. "I know what I need to do now."

"What is it?" Akame asked as Tatsumi sheathed Incursio and then took it off and held it out to Akame which alone told her his intentions. "Oh…"

"Yeah, what better way to speed this up then making sure that guy doesn't have to worry about the giants." Tatsumi said as his body rippled and his eyes turned red with crossed pupils while a giant in a green suit under his marine coat engaged Oars. Jr. in a sword fight with each block staggering him backwards thanks to Oars Jr.'s superior strength. "Well more than that one at least. Let's see how useful the adaption to Esdeath's ice ball is, I can feel that that change will remain for the moment, too soon after the last for me to adapt to anything else."

Akame leapt clear as Tatsumi roared but it was drowned out by Oars Jr.'s roar as he shattered the sword of Vice Admiral Lacroix. He did, however, transform, his body growing and turning back into Tyrant just as he had been when he threw Esdeath's ice back only now he was probably more resistant to heat thanks to catching Akainu's magma.

Normally this would be noticed, and those in Tatsumi's immediate vicinity certainly did notice his transformation, but as Oars Jr. took that moment to slice the giant Vice Admiral from shoulder to hip so no one of importance noticed Tyrant's return. They would though as Tatsumi pushed off the ground and flew towards Oars as the female giant shouted and Oars pressed forward once more.

---

Whitebeard wasn't thrilled with the current situation. Not the battle itself, that was currently going as well as could be expected as they pushed forward, if not a little better given some of the additional allies that they had, but because Oars Jr. had decided to enter the fray rather than stay with the rest of the fleet and follow the plans for them. He was being as stubborn as ever and while he was immensely strong, they were up against the best of the best and Oars was an easy target for those with the power to kill him to do so.

To make matters worse, that rookie punk with the Night Pirates had just revealed that Admiral Shirokami's power was significantly greater than previously believed when he'd faced off with her so now they had to factor in another Mythical Zoan user into the battle. Even with that punk being a strong Mythical Zoan user himself, an added boon to Whitebeard's forces that he'd not expected from the rookie crew he'd allowed to tag along because of the intel their Captain provided, dealing with Shirokami being stronger than anticipated was not good.

The female Admiral had shown that with her final attack before Sengoku called her back, an attack that was only a taste of just how strong Shirokami truly was apparently, so Whitebeard knew that he had to try and stop Oars Jr. It wouldn't be easy but if there was anyone who could persuade him it would be Whitebeard.

"Getting killed saving Ace will not make you brave!" Whitebeard shouted at Oars Jr. as he walked past one of Whitebeard's ships in the harbor his head turning to look at the big guy. "Don't confuse suicide with bravery!"

"Don't stop me from saving Ace, Pops!" Oars Jr. called back looking over at Whitebeard. "I won't stop, I don't wanna stop, not 'till I've rescued my bro! I'll stop once Ace is safe! He's hurting, I don't want him to hurt no more so I'm going to save him! He needs me to free him!"

"I know the feeling." Whitebeard said softly as he felt the same as Oars Jr. before he raised his voice as he accepted the situation and decided to make the best use of it despite his worries for Oars Jr. "Alright you heard him, men. Help the big guy out! Cover Oars so that he can save Ace!"

Whitebeard's men cheered at that as Oars Jr. engaged another one of the Giant Unit giants who came at him with an axe. The exchange was brief and only involved one block from Oars Jr. before his strength overpowered the smaller giant and knocked him back though the giant did block the strike to avoid being sliced by Oars Jr.'s sword.

Oars Jr. didn't let that deter him, however, as he followed this up with a leap forward that slashed down, missing the giant but slamming into the ice with his sword sending chunks of ice and debris, and the giant himself, flying from the force of the blow. As he did, help arrived for Oars Jr. in a form that neither Whitebeard nor his men had expected.

---

"Don't worry, Vice Admiral, I'll…"

The cry came from the female giant in the Giant Unit as she ran, spear out, and leapt into the air ready the thrust it into Oars Jr. She didn't even come close to the massive giant before Tatsumi slammed into her in midair flying as fast as he could his momentum taking her with him and away from Oars Jr. before he could even notice her attack.

Tatsumi could do this because he was now in his full beast form and his size and bulk was still that of the slight change that he'd gone through when he'd caught Esdeath's ice ball which put him a good head taller than the tallest giant within normal giant height range so fighting them in this form wouldn't be a problem for him. Of course he was still only half as tall as Oars Jr. but that couldn't be helped.

What could be helped, though, was Oars Jr. and while Tatsumi hadn't heard what Whitebeard had ordered, not that he was bound by the old man's orders anyway, he was still helping the big guy out. Naturally, the big guy didn't need Tatsumi's help to take out this giantess but he'd be slowed down by dealing with her so Tatsumi did so himself allowing Oars Jr. to keep walking towards Ace without stopping to catch the spear and punch the woman back.

The giantess didn't stand a chance as Tatsumi's armored shoulder slammed into her right elbow with a bone breaking crash causing her to yell out in pain. That yell turned into a full scream as Tatsumi craned his neck and bit down on her right bicep and shoulder with his powerful jaws, warm blood bursting out and into his mouth as he did and he had to fight with the beast that was his Devil Fruit to not give into the bloodlust and savagery at the taste of the hot liquid.

To his surprise, Tatsumi managed that easier than usual as he got his right hand up and grabbed the haft of the wooden spear, shattering it with a squeeze. At the same time he got his left hand up and grabbed the woman's midriff, his claws sinking into her back and abdomen in the process thus adding to her wounds.

All this took only a few seconds from the point of contact and Tatsumi used the momentum from it to flip in the air right after grabbing her before tossing the woman way from him, ripping his teeth and claws out of her in the process. She was already out cold from pain and blood loss so she wasn't aware of it as she was thrown away with all of Tatsumi's strength and crashed into the harbor wall with a boom that kicked up a plume of dust.

When it settled, the blonde giantess was still in the cratered wall but her limp body, Tatsumi couldn't tell from this far out if she was alive or dead, pitched out of it and crashed to the ice at the base of the wall. By then, though, Tatsumi had confirmed that she was out of the fight and had turned around and begun to fly back to Oars Jr. as the Giant Unit looked on in stunned surprise at the beast form of the rookie who'd stood against Shirokami. They'd not expected to see his beast form so soon after he'd gotten rid of Shirokami's ice ball.

"This isn't good." One of the giants said as one of Whitebeard's men took the moment to go after Boa Hancock forcing her to engage in the battle for the first time with her Slave Arrow attack that took down several pirates and a few marines who were in the way of her arrows. "It's going to take all of us to deal with both of them."

"Hey big guy, leave the small fries to me." Tatsumi said as he flew towards Oars Jr. who was still walking towards the harbor wall either too focused on his task or simply oblivious to what Tatsumi had just done. "I'll take care of them; you focus on saving your bro. The Warlords are going to be a bigger issue, watch out for them but I'll handle the giants for you."

"Thanks talking bird." Oars Jr. said looking at Tatsumi as Tatsumi picked up speed and flew in front of him and towards the other giants not recognizing the creature but Oars Jr. just presuming that he was just another of Pops's boys from the fleet. "Pops has some great sons. I'm coming Ace! I'm going to save you!"

"Oh no you don't!" One of giants, a curly haired man with goggles in his forehead and holding a massive mortar in both arms, shouted as Tatsumi picked up speed as he flew in front of Oars Jr. who just continued to walk forward while Hancock leapt of the wall and engaged marines and pirates alike with her Perfume Femur attack nearby, kicking them indiscriminately. "Focus on the Adaptive Monster for now, he's the easier target! Die beast!"

At that the man fired his mortar at Tatsumi but Tatsumi ignored it as he picked up his speed and flew straight at the giant. Even a giant sized mortar ball wouldn't be an issue to him in his beast form, not after taking and adapting to three different Naval Admiral attacks, on in Sabaody and two here. That said, Tatsumi was still unsure if he'd finished adapting to the temperature of Akainu's magma ball as sometimes it could take a while for his body to fully process and adapt to a newly experienced danger.

Regardless of whether or not he'd adapted to that level of heat yet, Tatsumi knew that his beast form's skin and the armor plates that covered most of his body were so tough now that you'd need Armament or Conqueror's Haki infused weapons to cut him. Even then it might be a stretch with the former depending on who he was facing and their proficiency with Armament Haki, but a standard mortar ball was nothing to him.

Well, it might not be nothing to Tatsumi if he had been his human form as that might have been a different matter given the size of the mortar ball but Tatsumi wasn't so he just lowered his head and flew head first into the mortar ball, so that the armored plate on his skull could take the blow. Naturally, the mortar ball exploded the moment that it hit Tatsumi's head and he was slowed by the force of it while the smoke and fire of the explosion covered him entirely causing the giant to grin and lower the mortar as he looked.

"See, you're n…" The giant began but he didn't get to finish before Tatsumi flew out of the explosion with a roar and closed the rest of the distance to the giant and slammed his hot skull into the giant's chest with a boom while the giant was still grinning at his perceived victory.

The giant gasped and blood spewed from his mouth as his chest was crushed and lightly burned from the impact before he was thrown back, his mortar dropping from his limp hand as he did. Tatsumi caught it in his claws as he turned from the unconscious giant and tucked his wings in for the sharp midair turn though he made sure to lash his tail out and strike the giant in the chest with it as turned and gripped the mortar.

The tail lash cut a deep line into the giant's chest but Tatsumi didn't see that as he was turning, his sense of smell picking up another giant running at him even as the mortar giant was still flying back through the air behind him. Marines were scrambling to get out the defeated giant's way but he was no longer a concern to Tatsumi as the next threat approached him.

"Damned monster!" The giant yelled, this one a man with sharp teeth in a standard marine hat with a mass of shaggy gray hair under it wielding a massive katana which he swung at Tatsumi as he turned to the giant. "I don't care that the Admiral likes you, you're a pirate and must die. I'll kill you and end the shame you've caused the Navy!"

"Tut, tut, now what would Esdeath say to that." Tatsumi said with a grin as he got the mortar canon he'd stolen around and up to intercept the slash with its long barrel, his wings moving up and back at full extension to bring him up short in the air so that he could block the attack and ensuring that he was now face to face with the giant as the katana slammed into the mortar with a clang the rang out over the battlefield. "Oh right, she'd just say that if you were able to kill me then I was weak in the end but she wouldn't expect you to manage that, after all I did make her fall in love with me. You on the other hand, well, learn to face an unusual foe."

With that and before the giant could react as he was still pushing down on the mortar with his katana, Tatsumi's tail lashed up from between his legs and stabbed out as he beat his wings to hold his position. The giant didn't stand a chance as the spiked tip of Tatsumi's tail buried itself several inches into the giant's gut before it burst out of his back causing him to gasp out and look down at the surprise attack appendage that had just run him through.

"I'm a fucking Danger Beast who's form changes to fit my situation, I don't just use claws, teeth and brute force when I fight!" Tatsumi roared as he yanked his tail out of the man's gut spraying blood over the ice and pivoting down with the move, bringing the mortar around in a two handed swing as the giant slumped forward a hand going to his gut while the other one still held the katana though it was no longer a threat. "My whole being is a weapon!"

At that Tatsumi slammed the end of the mortar into the side of the giant's head with enough force to crack it and send the giant flying to the side with a spray of blood and teeth that at least knocked out the giant and caused him to drop his giant sized katana. As he did Tatsumi moved with the blow so as to swing through the hit and heard another mortar explosion.

He didn't have time to notice it before the ball, which Tatsumi idly noted was smaller than the one he'd flown into but still larger than a standard cannon ball, slammed into his left side under his arm and blew up. There was no damage to him thanks to his armor plates but he was still sent cartwheeling in the air by the force of the blast and the own momentum of his recent attack.

It was annoying because it only worked like this due to Tatsumi being unprepared and he cursed himself as he got his wings around to get himself under control. However the blast, which had come from a giant with a cannon replacement over his lower right arm and sporting a black mohawk with a distinctive two tooth overbite, was merely meant to distract him and create an opening to ground Tatsumi and take away his aerial advantage.

"Canyon Cannon!"

The cry came out from above Tatsumi and right as he was about steadied himself in the air a flying kick from a large foot the size of, well, a giant's slammed into the side of his head with a crash. The blow was strong and aided by gravity so it knocked him out of the air and shoulder first into the ice with a boom that kicked up a lot of ice debris and dust as he slid over it creating a furrow in it.

To add to it, the kick had hit Tatsumi in a place with minimal armor only his enhanced physique and skin so it stung but that was it. As such Tatsumi just ignored the hit as he grunted and used his wing and arm to flip out of the ice, spin in the air and land on it which caused him to slide further back in the ice dust.

Whoever this newcomer was she, and Tatsumi could tell both by the voice that had called out and the smell of the attacker, pressed on and into the ice cloud. Tatsumi just smirked as he got his wings up and beat them forward in a fast, hard, motion which generated a massive gust of wind that blew away the ice dust, and a few hapless marines who were in the way, and revealed the attacker. She was slowed by the wind and had put up her right arm to brace against it while lowering her head a bit at the same time but the wind had not been enough to stop her charge.

The attacker was another giantess that Tatsumi hadn't seen in the battle so far, which was saying something as she was easily one of the tallest giants around standing over 20 and a half meters tall putting her in the upper echelons for giant height based on what Tatsumi knew about giants. Interestingly, she didn't wear a coat but a standard Navy uniform that was tailored to her large size and hat over her waist length light blonde hair indicating that she was either an enlisted or junior officer. Whoever she was, Tatsumi didn't recognize her at all, and that meant that she was fair game.

Unbeknownst to Tatsumi, and the reason why he'd not seen her until now, the woman wasn't actually a giant but rather a human who'd eaten the Giant-Giant Fruit which allowed her to grow to this specific height and gave her all the strength of a giant. Due to this she trained with the Giant Unit and was a provisional member but as she was only a Lieutenant at the moment she wasn't a full member yet as you had to be a Captain to be part of the Unit and she still had a lot to learn before she could be promoted to that rank.

However, she couldn't stand idly by and let her superiors fight this monster alone. She had to act and she did so the moment that she could by using her superior's mortar blast to make her move and leaping off the harbor wall where she'd been stationed due to her Devil Fruit and activating it so as to land her flying kick to Tatsumi's head, her officer's coat falling off in the process.

This was one of the strategies that the unit had come up with to get her involved in the battle in her giant form but she was to fall back from such an attack and let one of her superiors who would be backing her up come in and finish things off if the foe was deemed to be too strong, which Tatsumi clearly was. However, she was young, headstrong, and trying to prove herself and stand out so she ignored that part of her orders as she rushed the Mythical Zoan user determined to show her might and earn her way into the unit. She'd landed this blow after all; she could do it.

"Lieutenant Yu, stop!" One of the few giants still standing, the one with the axe who'd been knocked back by Oars Jr., shouted out at the woman as she closed on Tatsumi who stopped his wind generation though he continued to slide back over the ice which made him look like he was on the back foot. "He's too strong for you to handle! Fall back!"

"Don't worry, I got this Vice Admiral!" Yu shouted back as her speed picked up and she closed the gap her right arm moving away from her face and cocking back for a punch that Tatsumi could see coming from a mile away. "Focus on the others, this one's mine!"

"You should listen to your superiors." Tatsumi said as he suddenly lashed his tail into the ice while digging the claws on his feet into it at the same time to stop him and got his left hand up as Yu punched him. "They do know what they're talking about. Too late though."

At that Tatsumi caught her right hand in his left with a boom that rang out over the battlefield and which was followed up by a yell of pain as he closed his hand over the woman's fist causing the claws on his left hand to sink into her wrist. A second later he clenched his hand breaking all of the woman's fingers and raised his right hand high above his head, fingers splayed and claws gleaming in the sunlight.

"If you survive this, let these scars will be a reminder to always be aware of your limitations in battle." Tatsumi said as he tossed the woman's right arm to the side and brought his right hand down at the same time. "Learn and perhaps you can make the list of marines that we're not supposed to kill."

Yu barely hear what Tatsumi said as his claws raked across her face and she let out a howl of pain and blood burst from the wound. All four claws slashed her diagonally across her face with Tatsumi's index finger slicing her from forehead to temple and taking a chunk out of her ear, his ring finger slicing from her left temple, over her cheek and lips to her chin while narrowly missing her left eye, and his pinkie cutting her along the left side of her jaw bone and neck though not deep enough to hit anything vital there.

However, the worst was Tatsumi's middle finger which sliced from her hairline, through the center of her forehead and into her right eye before going down her right cheek to the jaw. This was the worst because Tatsumi cleanly took out Yu's right eye in the process and she was lucky that he'd missed her left eye.

Not that Yu could do anything as she yelled in pain because her yell was muffled a second later when Tatsumi stepped forward and grabbed her head in his right hand while making sure that his claws didn't pierce into her skull. He pushed through the grab as he continued forward, pulling her off her feet and slamming her head first into the ice as he crouched down.

There was a boom from the impact the ice cracked as Yu went limp in Tatsumi's hand, her legs flopping down but he didn't stop there. Tatsumi needed her height, and so unaware of her Devil Fruit, he picked her up from the impact still holding her head and spun with her in his hand before he threw her back to the plaza with all his might.

Yu's limbs flopped in the air and blood streamed from her wounds as she was thrown clean over the plaza wall and towards the scaffolding. However, the angle was off so she flew past the scaffolding to crash, still in giant form, into a building past it and in the town around Marineford, collapsing it on top of her.

There was no doubt that she was out of the fight but Tatsumi didn't care about that as he roared and charged forward the moment he finished throwing her. He had to seeing as there was giant, this one wearing clawed gloves and a cat eared hood thing over his head, rushed at him having been following in Yu's wake to deal with Tatsumi after she downed him but being too far away to save her.

However, rather than fly at the giant, Tatsumi tucked his wings in close and ran over the ice at the charging giant. He did this to rattle the man because so far Tatsumi had only fought in the air or standing still, he'd not shown that he didn't need his wings to engage an opponent while moving.

Of course anyone who truly understood his Devil Fruit, which admittedly wasn't many, would know that having wings were not always part of Tatsumi's change but situational with the adaptive nature of Tyrant. For the last few changes they'd been there due to the need for wings when on a ship or small island but that could change so Tatsumi had to be able to fight on land and in the sky when he was in his beast form, which he could do just fine as he closed on the fourth full giant that he'd faced.

The giant may have been taken aback by Tatsumi's run but he didn't show it or let it stop him as he met Tatsumi ready to slash him with his hand. Clearly the gloves were more than what they seemed, likely some kind of metal claws that were specially made for combat, but they were of no concern to Tatsumi. That was because Tatsumi could tell that there was no Haki coating the claws so they weren't a threat which meant that he could end this quickly and keep taking out the last few final giants as Oars Jr. continued to walk towards the plaza wall shrugging off attacks and helping clear the way to it.

As such, Tatsumi just swung his left forearm up as hard as he could right as the giant slashed down with his hand. The limbs clashed and sparked for a moment as they fought each other but Tatsumi's raw strength, which had recently been enhanced in this form thanks to catching and throwing the ice ball Esdeath had sent at him, was greater than this giant's natural strength and he won out after a few seconds causing the giant's arm to fly back and staggering him.

The giant didn't have time to recover as Tatsumi clenched his right fist and lashed out with a quick, hard, punch that slammed into the giant's face with a nasty crunch as he was staggering. Blood and teeth spewed from the man's mouth as Tatsumi pushed through the punch and blasted the man back off his feet while barely slowing his run, a great showing of strength given that he was fighting a giant. Tatsumi ran a few more paces after the punch before pushing off the ground and extending his wings to take to the sky once again as the giant landed on his back and slid over the ice creating a furrow in it.

Tatsumi didn't see the giant come to a stop on the ice where he didn't get up having been knocked out by the punch as he was already flying low and glided over the sliding giant as a mortar blast from the arm cannon giant rang out. Tatsumi knew that there were three more giants left on the battlefield and that one was starting to bug him as he was the only one of the three that Tatsumi noted was a ranged fighter.

Of course the mortar balls themselves weren't an issue to Tatsumi in his beast form but they were a nuisance and could easily distract or slow him down which would allow the other two to land Haki infused blows. That could be an issue for Tatsumi as was certain that one of them was a Vice Admiral so he at least could use one form of Haki as you had to be able to do so to reach that rank.

That meant that the mortar arm giant was his next target and firing a shot at him had keyed Tatsumi to his location as he rolled in the air avoiding it the ball and showing surprising grace for his size as he flew over the ice just above the heads of an average human. Tatsumi had seen what he needed and he stayed low as he rolled the other way to avoid a second shot before closing in on his target as it glinted on the ice where it had fallen earlier. Said target was the katana that the second male giant that he'd taken down had been wielding and it was perfect for what Tatsumi needed.

With a grin Tatsumi reached the dropped weapon as another mortar shot was fired at him and he banked to the right, his wings fully extended so that the tip of his right wing cut a deep furrow into the ice and sent chunks flying and marines scurrying, and ensuring that the mortar ball flew under him as he did. At the same time he reached down and grabbed the handle of the katana in his right claw, picking it up and bringing the long sword to his body as he straightened and flapped his wings once to increase his speed and tear through the air and at the mortar arm giant as fast as he could.

The mortar arm giant was now directly in front of Tatsumi and had the shot lined up but Tatsumi was flying faster than the giant could fire so he was on the giant in a second. However, rather than crash into him, Tatsumi angled his wings and suddenly shot upwards and over the giant as he fired the shot that he'd been lining up thus causing the mortar ball to sail harmlessly under Tatsumi.

At the same time as the shot was fired, Tatsumi swung the stolen katana in a hard and fast upward arc as he flew over the giant. Tatsumi was pleased to finally have a sword large enough to wield in his beast mode and was planning to try and keep it after the fight if possible but for now he'd use it to take out this giant.

The sound of the katana slicing through the air was followed by a roar of pain and a spray of blood as Tatsumi passed the giant who turned left as Tatsumi flew over him while his right arm went right and fell away to crash down to the ice. Tatsumi had cut it off at the shoulder and the giant staggered his eyes wide in pain and shock while Tatsumi banked ready to come back and take off the giant's head this time.

However, before he could manage that, a barrage of cannon fire erupted as Tatsumi was targeted by no less than four of the harbor wall's cannon emplacements that had been tracking him at the same time. Not all the cannon balls hit but several did blowing up on Tatsumi's arm, side, thigh, and head and throwing him back and away in a fiery cloud that allowing the giant to stumble off to get medical attention while one of the two remaining giants, a shirtless one with his hat on backwards, helped him.

In addition to all of this, two of the cannon balls had hit the flat of the katana that Tatsumi was holding and shattered it. That pissed Tatsumi off more than the balls that hit him as he wanted to keep it and he roared as he was blasted out of the cloud created by the cannon balls exploding.

Unable to use the weapon anymore, Tatsumi twisted in the air and angrily tossed the handle and shattered blade at the nearest cannon emplacement to get some payback for it being destroyed. Thankfully, his aim was try as the broken katana slammed into the emplacement with enough force to knock it out of alignment thus taking it out of commission while causing the marines manning it to scatter and but that was a small consolation.

Still, Tatsumi knew that he couldn't let something as petty as this get to him and focus on the positives of the latest engagement which had taken two more giants away from the battlefield. To top it off, without them harassing him, Oars Jr. was now almost at the harbor wall and the Warlords standing on it so Tatsumi had succeeded and he could turn all his attention to dealing with the final giant as he steadied himself in the air, his wings beating slowly and looked around for said final giant.

Tatsumi knew that taking him out would help overall as the giants were one of the Navy's strongest weapons below the Admirals so removing them all from the battlefield was a no brainer. However, because he was looking for the giant, Tatsumi didn't notice that the Warlord Bartholomew Kuma was preparing his Ursa Shock attack as Oars Jr. continued to steadily approach him.

"Bastard! You'll pay for what you did to my comrades!"

The voice got Tatsumi's attention and he turned to the final giant still in the fight, there was one other one that could fight but he was seeing to the one he'd just dismembered so he was out for the moment, and grinned at the giant, which given his draconic appearance and the blood from the giantess still staining his teeth was a chilling sight. The giant seemed unfazed though and Tatsumi noted that he wore had an iron mask with a T shaped opening over his face and a mane of messy black hair that ran down his back. He also carried an axe and had metal shoulder plates instead of epaulets on his officer's coat.

Tatsumi was sure that Oars Jr. had already beaten him back when he was flying over to help the big guy out but clearly it hadn't been more than a knockback. That was fine with Tatsumi though, he'd handle him instead and increase his threat level with the Navy in the process.

"Stand back Vice Admiral Lonz, allow me to handle this. I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner; I'll make up for that by taking out this pirate trash."

The new voice was female and by its cadence human, or at least not giant, and Tatsumi had to look down to see who was talking. The speaker was a lone marine officer who had called out to the giant, Vice Admiral Lonz apparently, from nearby and was walking towards where Tatsumi was hovering while being given a wide berth by her fellow marines. That was strange and Tatsumi was instantly on edge, there was no way that she wasn't a threat to him given the situation, the wide berth her fellow marines were giving her, and the fact that the giant actually listened. As such Tatsumi took in the woman at a glance.

She was clearly an officer because of the coat and a decently high ranked one because under it she wore normal, albeit formal, clothes like most officers did. In her case it was a dark red qipao dress with pale green scale trim around her shoulders and a slit on the left side and yellow claw patterns and the bottom and around her neck. The lack of a cut to show off cleavage and the slit making it looser differentiated it from Sheele's, along with the color and stylings of course, but that was just an idle note Tatsumi made as he studied the woman.

It was as he studied her that he noted that for some reason she was barefoot and legged despite the ice she was walking on so she was either naturally immune to cold or she had some form of resistance to it as clearly the ice didn't bother her. This was in contrast with her arms as she had detached white sleeves that ran from her wrists to her biceps and she completed the look with a green headband around her head that held back her blonde hair.

However, the strangest thing was that she had four large, pale purple claws attached to her headband that fell over her right eye while a set of black bat-like wings were attached to the back of it. The wings were clearly decorative but the claw was not, Tatsumi was certain that it was a weapon of some sort.

"Rear Admiral Ryuko, shouldn't you be in the plaza?" Lonz asked looking at her as she came to a stop and Tatsumi instantly recognized the name even though he'd never seen a picture to put a face to it. "We need you there in case they break through the wall."

"I should be but Kizaru ordered me to come out here the moment that the giants started falling to this bastard." Ryuko said and Tatsumi was now fully alert to the woman as she was a contemporary of the boss and had served with her before Najenda defected, though she'd been a Commodore back then, and the boss knew that she was a true marine so she was on the 'Do Not Kill' list. "I can handle him; we need your strength against Whitebeard and his men Vice Admiral. Plus this is personal to me, I used to serve under his Captain back when she was a Vice Admiral before she betrayed the Navy so let me deal with him then I can go and bring that traitor to justice."

"If you're sure then so be it." Lonz said as he turned and that was the last thing for Tatsumi to be certain that Ryuko was a Devil Fruit user with a power able to match his own or else the giant Vice Admiral wouldn't have so readily left this to her. "Best of luck."

"Oh I know I can, Admiral Shirokami showed what is needed to truly deal with this monster." Ryuko said as she raised her right hand to the claws over her eye and smiled up at Tatsumi as her body began to swell. "After all, what better to fight a Mythical Zoan than with another Mythical Zoan."

At that Ryuko let out a roar and her body grew as she pulled the claws off her face and over her right hand. However, her hand had turned to a claw as she changed and turned gray, as did her other hand while cracked gray scales formed over her shoulders and thighs. At the same time gray wings burst from her back, likely through slits in her dress, causing her coat to fly off her back while a gray tail erupted from behind her. Lastly her face elongated a bit into a beaked snout as her teeth became fangs and her hair became mussed up though it still covered her right eye.

Oddly, the skin on her face, front of her neck, and under her arms remained white though Tatsumi didn't doubt that it was hard as steel. After all, he was now staring down at a dragon slightly smaller than his own size and he knew just how tough Mythical Zoans of this kind could be given how similar he was to a dragon in this form.

"I see, the boss never mentioned that you were a Mythical Zoan user but then again you're on the don't kill list so unless it's a situation like this I wouldn't be engaging you." Tatsumi said as Ryuko glared up at him and extended her wings just as Kuma finished preparing his attack and sent it out at Oars Jr. "And anyway, I've always wanted to face a Fish-Fish user and see just how much a standard dragon stacks up to me though I doubt you have anything on Kaido."

"Then today's your lucky day for I'll show you the true power of a dragon, you're nothing more than a fake imitation." Ryuko said as she pushed off the ice with enough force to crack it and flapped her wings hard boosting her speed as she tore up and at Tatsumi. "For I ate the Fish-Fish Fruit, model: Gray Dragon!"

The speed the woman had was more than Tatsumi had anticipated and he didn't have time to react to it before she was on him, her jaws opening and closing around his throat as she clamped down hard while slamming into him. However, her fangs could not pierce the plates or even the skin under the hair where there were no plates.

That didn't matter though because she was still able to get a firm grip on him as she hit Tatsumi and forced both of them upwards. At the same time she grabbed him with both claws, her left grabbing his right bicep while her right where she had her weapon made a grab for his left side and coating it with Armament Haki as she did.

Ryuko had done this because she knew the moment that her teeth bit down on Tatsumi that only Armament Haki would pierce his plates or even his skin where there were no plates. Ryuko wasn't surprised by this, though, because such was the nature of a Mythical Zoan that were based on creatures like dragons as it was the same with her own body.

As such she'd coated her claws, both the natural one and the specially made metal one on her right hand, in Armament Haki right before she grabbed Tatsumi's side. She couldn't fully grab him, he was too bulky for that, but she did manage to sink the metal claws into the plate there and the skin beneath to get a firm grip and draw blood from the rookie pirate.

Tatsumi felt this and grunted in pain at the blow, the first one he'd truly felt all day beyond the heat from Akainu's magma, as he tried to get his wings around to stabilize himself. However, the raw power of the Gray Dragon model was almost on par with his own current strength levels so she had the control at the moment as she pushed him upwards in the air her wings flapping as she did so as to keep her advantage.

What Tatsumi needed was something that changed the surroundings in a way that overrode Ryuko's advantage and that he could use to at least get her off him. That change came all lot sooner that Tatsumi expected because Ryuko had hit him only moments before the Ursa Shock that Kuma had sent at Oars Jr. landed in his gut and exploded sending a shockwave in all directions around the giant and over the battlefield.

Those nearest it were blown away while chunks of ice around Oars Jr. were thrown across the battlefield. Many more had to hunker down and try and ride it out with Akame being one though she had the advantage of being able to send blades from the soles of her feet into the ice to get support while spinning Murasame in her hand and slamming it point down into the ice to add friction so as to stay on her feet. Others weren't as lucky but Tatsumi didn't see any of this as he was high in the sky by this point though he did feel the shockwave as it hit him and Ryuko.

That was precisely what Tatsumi needed and as the wave hit Ryuko in the ass and then washed over him the pair were thrown by the force of it and spun in the air still entwined only now neither of them were in control. That spilt second's distraction allowed Tatsumi to get his wings out and wide and catch the still going shockwave with the underside of his wings and ride it to gain even more height while taking the still attached Ryuko with him as they soared even higher into the sky.

However, now Tatsumi was the one in more control of the situation and he used that to his own advantage as he brought his chin down and slammed it into Ryuko's cheek as hard as he could manage though all that did was bother her. At the same time he twisted his elbow and slashed his right claw along Ryuko's side but as with is plates against her teeth, her scales held against his claws and all he did was cut her dress. However, the slash wasn't for nought as it told him that he'd need Haki to pierce her body.

Additionally, the two blows had the desired effect of forcing Ryuko's mouth to open enough that she wasn't clamping down on his throat as hard which Tatsumi capitalized on by thrusting his right arm up fast enough to break Ryuko's hold on his right bicep before grabbing her throat and squeezing as hard as he could though he was only using raw strength and no Haki. That was still enough caused her to gasp and her jaws opened allowing Tatsumi to push her back as he extended his arm with all his strength.

As he did, his left hand went to her right forearm and grabbed it as hard as he could. Then, with a grunt of effort, he pulled her right claw from his side with a slight plop and saw his blood smeared on the metal tips of the claws.

It wasn't anything serious though so Tatsumi just ignored it as he used the last of the shockwave to spin with it, one hand squeezing Ryuko's throat and the other on her forearm, and then threw her away from him with a roar. Ryuko spun in the air as she rolled with the throw, her momentum carrying her higher and putting her well above the tops of frozen waves and Marineford itself, before she was able to extend her gray wings and catch the air with them and steady herself.

However, that was just what Tatsumi needed as he used the throw and the final gust of the shockwave to fully regain control a second or two before Ryuko did and with a mighty flap shot forward and up at the woman as fast as he could manage. Ryuko only had time to steady herself and look down before Tatsumi lowered his head and slammed it into her chest, her decently sized assets which were still present even transformed taking the brunt of the blow.

Still, the hit did cause Ryuko to gasp from the force of the it and she arched her neck back, her eyes looking down and a scowl on her draconic lips as she avoided the horned protrusions on the back of Tatsumi's head. As she did that, she also brought her claws around, Armament Haki coating them, as she tried to rake his wings and destroy their membranes as Tatsumi forced her further upwards.

Tatsumi noticed this, however, and pivoted his wings upwards to protect them exposing his sides but he'd take the blows there where he had more protection even with Ryuko using Armament Haki then risk losing his flight control if his membranes were shredded as that would be worse. Besides, he had his own plan as well.

That plan was to bring his own claws up and coat them with Armament Haki just as Ryuko brought her claws in as well and grab her thighs with them. Given their positions, Tatsumi was the faster of the two and his claws grabbed Ryuko's scaly thighs and sank in causing her to gasp in pain and blood to run down from the puncture holes. As soon as Tatsumi knew that he had a good grip he flapped his wings down and spun to throw Ryuko further away and get her clear, his claws coming out with a wet plopping sound as he did.

Ryuko did manage to slice her own claws along Tatsumi's side and chest as she was thrown away but while they cut through the plates and left deep gouges in them, they weren't deep enough to reach his skin. Tatsumi just ignored that as he turned in the air to see Ryuko spin in the air before she got her wings under her and banked around and back to him as a volley of cannon shots rang out far bellow from the wall emplacements and hit a still standing Oars Jr. as he powered on through the Ursa Shock to save Ace.

Tatsumi wasn't aware that that was precisely what was happening down below despite hearing the cannon fire as he watched Ryuko bank in the air and come towards him because, well, his focus was on the other Mythical Zoan user he was facing. What Tatsumi did notice, however, was that Ryuko was banking and gaining speed but she wasn't using a ranged attack, rather she was charging him again showing speed, strength, and agility in the air that Tatsumi wasn't sure he could match. It was in that moment that he realized something about the Gray Dragon model, it was a pure close combat model.

That was interesting to say the least and Tatsumi flapped down and flew upwards to keep the distance between them as Oars Jr. staggered below from the firepower. He needed two thing, the first was a better plan for dealing with Ryuko, and the second was time to figure said plan out so Tatsumi decided to test just how fast she was and maybe frustrate her in the process as he soared upwards higher and higher into the sky.

Ryuko didn't mind this, however, as she knew that she had the speed and power for it. All Fish-Fish line Devil Fruits had their strengths and weaknesses compared to each other and for her it was the combination of speed, power, and above all else, durability that set the Gray Dragon model aside from the other models despite being the smallest of the dragons in the line when the user was fully grown.

Plus, as far as Ryuko was aware, only the Grandine model was faster as that was the Wind Dragon according to mythology, while only raw strength wise she was certain that only the Azure Dragon model could top her. However, where she really excelled was durability as theoretically there were no Fish-Fish models more resistant to damage than hers but the catch was that the resistance only came after she took damage that overcame her current level of resistance so she got stronger when she healed up.

Seeing as she'd already been pierced by his Armament Haki coated claws it was clear that Tatsumi's ability to hurt her was greater than her current durability it could break through and hurt her. The flip side of this was that if she survived this fight, no matter what happened to her, Ryuko would be significantly more durable going forward.

Therefore, while Ryuko may lack the offensive firepower of models like Kaido's or the Igneel model, she more than made up for it with speed, strength, durability, and of course experience. As such, a non-dragon Devil Fruit couldn't compare to her even if it had the power to damage her and Ryuko used that as she angled sharply and tore upwards at Tatsumi more than willing to play his little game.

What followed next was a few minutes of chaotic dog fighting high in the air above Marineford, so high that they were just dots to those below. However, seeing as Oars Jr. was currently powering through the hits and determined to at least take out two Warlords if he couldn't reach Ace, said Warlords being Doflamingo and Ivan, no one noticed as Ryuko and Tatsumi flashed past each other in the air above.

Of course the two Mythical Zoan users noticed as Tatsumi tried to evade Ryuko as he led her higher and higher a plan coming to mind that would end this fight but it was getting harder and harder to keep rising as Ryuko pressed and passed him her speed making her a near gray blur. It was in this moment that Tatsumi's bulk up thanks to Esdeath's ice ball actually worked against him as the smaller Gray Dragon model also made Ryuko nippier than Tatsumi enabling her to make sharper cuts through the air as she pursued and passed him.

To add to it all, each pass was accompanied by a slash of Haki coated claws that drew blood for Tatsumi if they hit a part of him not covered by plates, and gouges to his plates were they did. Of course he returned the slashes in kind but only managed to land on glancing blow to Ryuko's left side that did draw blood at least but was clearly nothing more than a graze to her, and if Tatsumi wasn't careful he'd be in serious trouble soon.

As such, and right after Oars Jr. had punched down at Doflamingo and Ivan with the pair leaping away or over Oars Jr., Ivan turning into paper to do so, Tatsumi turned came to a halt in midair after barely avoiding a slash from another pass. He then held out his arms and wings wide as a speed Ryuko flew passed him, banked harshly, and flew at him once more.

It wasn't what she was expecting and she was going so fast that she didn't have time to get her claws to bear before she slammed headfirst into his chest with a boom that wasn't enough to bother her durability and couldn't be heard down below where Doflamingo had just cut off Oars Jr.'s right leg just below the knee. Of course they heard the blow and it forced Tatsumi up and he grunted as he brought his arms around Ryuko in a grapple pinning her arms and wings to her sides.

"You're good and I can see why the boss has you on the don't kill list, you're a true marine who does her duty fairly and justly, facing me is more than enough to prove that." Tatsumi said the wind causing his words to be whipped away long before the reached the ice below but Ryuko could hear him easily. "But in this war I need to beat you and carry on with my mission. I will do my best not to kill you so if you survive, remember this after today."

"You've got no chance pirate scum!" Ryuko shouted as she tried to break free but couldn't as his raw strength was noticeably greater than hers. "And then I'll come for your traitorous Captain. She will pay for what she did to the Navy! I may have once looked up to Najenda but I can't forgive her for what she's done since defecting."

"We know the choices that we've made and what we are, we accept them, and so long as good marines like you live to rebuild when we're done then we are at peace with everything." Tatsumi said as he brought his legs down and slammed his feet into Ryuko's thighs right where he'd grabbed them a few moments earlier and kicking her down as he let go of here. "But here is where we differ, and why you won't beat me today. Unlike you, I have range abilities."

Tatsumi didn't close his mouth when he was done speaking, he kept it open as the fire rose in his throat. He'd not planned on using this aspect of his power this early in the battle, the drawback of using it meant that it would be several minutes before he could fully transform again as his body wasn't strong enough to maintain his beast form for long after using this ability, but right now he had no choice. He was fighting a fellow Mythical Zoan user and one who'd proven as sturdy as her line suggested so it was time to turn up the heat, literally.

Ryuko's eyes went wide as she saw the fire rising in Tatsumi's gullet. She'd read the reports on the Adaptive Monster, as a former crewmate of Najenda she was one of several marines who wanted to take her down for her actions so she made sure to keep abreast of Najenda and her crew, and that included the recent report from Sabaody regarding Tatsumi's power. However, to see the power was something else. To make matters worse she didn't have time to react before Tatsumi blasted out the fire from his mouth in a tight spiral of intense flames.

A second later the fire slammed into Ryuko's chest with a boom that could be heard down on the battlefield and which blasted her down hard, the durability afforded her in her beast form saving her from being incinerated or the fire punching through her. It still scorched her chest and burning away her dress as she let out a howl of pain from Tatsumi's strongest attack that was lost over the roar of the flames that were searing her chest.

Tatsumi only kept the attack up for a few seconds, nowhere near as long as he'd done on Sabaody, and then closed his mouth before he dove down at full speed after Ryuko as she fell down to the ice below, wings close her and smoke rising from her chest. Tatsumi's dive wasn't to try and save her or anything like that, far from it in fact as he could tell that despite taking his fire she was still conscious and he needed to add power and force to the sequence to defeat her.

It was a testament to just how durable the Gray Dragon model was and as such, he dove hard and fast at Ryuko as she fell left clawed hand out while at the same putting all his fingers together on his right hand and coating it with Armament Haki. This was going to be extreme but that was how far Tatsumi was going to have to go to defeat the Rear Admiral.

Ryuko groaned as she looked up, her body racked with pain from the blow but knowing that she was still conscious and able to fight. She knew that she didn't have time to get her wings out and correct her fall, she could see Tatsumi diving down left claw outstretched and the pain in her chest was hindering her movements, so her best bet was to intercept him and then flip to make sure he crashed into the ice before she did and use gravity and her weight against him.

As such she fought through the pain and waited until the last moment. Then, right before he reached her and grabbed her face with his left hand, she opened her mouth wide and bit down on Tatsumi's hand a second after coating her teeth with Armament Haki.

The result was as expected, the Haki bypassed Tatsumi's Devil Fruit defenses and sank deep into his palm and the back of his hand causing blood to burst out into her mouth but Ryuko ignored the blood as she latched onto his hand. She'd not managed to bite any fingers off but she still managed to get a good hold and that was all she needed to flip over and drive Tatsumi into the ice. At least that was the plan until Tatsumi suddenly thrust his right arm out and into her gut, his claws punching through her scales thanks to the Armament Haki that was coating it and burying his hand almost to his wrist in her.

That had been Tatsumi's plan all along, a decisive blow that would incapacitate Ryuko no matter what happened and he'd landed it only a second after she bit down on his hand. To her credit, Ryuko didn't let go of his hand, she kept her jaws on it despite the pain as they hurtled down as the ice rapidly rose to great them, doing all that she could to ensure that she took Tatsumi with her at least.

The exchange, well the fire and resulting boom from making contact with Ryuko, had been heard down below and that had gotten the attention of the combatants on the battlefield, in the plaza, and Sengoku and Ace on the scaffold. It helped that Tatsumi had hit Ryuko right after Oars Jr. had fallen in the plaza following Moria stabbing him with his shadow so he was no longer a focus for the Navy.

However, while Oars Jr. was down, he'd broken into the plaza and now his body, which all believed to be dead, lay half in the plaza and half out with the ruined wall under him thus creating an opening for the Whitebeard Pirates and their allies. The threat that he posed was over and in the brief lull that that had caused people heard Tatsumi's attack and looked up to see the two Mythical Zoans plunging towards the ice so fast that they were just a gray blur.

It was also in that moment of distraction that Oars Jr.'s defeat and Tatsumi's actions caused that Vice Admiral Lonz struck at Whitebeard understanding in part what Rear Admiral Ryuko was doing. Of course this was Whitebeard and he wasn't taken by surprise and easily blocked the axe strike with his Tremor-Tremor Fruit powers before pushing through it to shatter the axe and cause Lonz to fall at his feet.

Then, as Tatsumi and Ryuko continued to fall, he slammed his left palm down on Lonz's head and encircled it in his power before imparting it into the giant, shattering his mask and few teeth and knocking him out all while glaring directly at Sengoku. After that Whitebeard casually tossed the giant off his ship as he continued to watch the battle unfold as the gray blur neared the ice.

Tatsumi was unaware of all of this of course but he was aware of the ice rushing up to meet him so with his hands still in Ryuko's mouth and gut he shifted his wings slightly and angled her down so that she was falling head first right before they crashed into the ice. They had fallen from a height well above the top of Marineford and so by the time they reached the ice they hit it at full speed just as the fighting was about to resume in the wake of Oars Jr.'s failed attack and Whitebeard's easy defeat of Vice Admiral Lonz.

That would have to wait as Tatsumi and Ryuko hit the ice with so much force that the whole battlefield shook. Any pirate or marine nearby were thrown off their feet while ice chunks and wind blasted up from the impact site and ice dust billowed up into the air. Only Kuma's Ursa Shock had been more intense than this though it hadn't kicked up any ice dust like this one did, the dust rising well above the wall and to the height of the scaffold as everyone watched intently to see what had happened.

That and to see who had actually been fighting as everyone on the battlefield had been so distracted by Oars Jr.'s push for the plaza that they didn't realize that Tatsumi and Ryuko were going at it above them. Well most didn't realize, some like Lonz, Akame, Najenda, and Mine did realize and had been following it but the sudden end got all but Lonz's attention as he was unconscious on the ice next to the Moby Dick.

Finally the ice dust cleared and everyone stared at the results of the Mythical Zoan showdown in shock. This was doubled because it was the first time that many realized that there had been a Mythical Zoan showdown going down above them.

The results were clear though as Tatsumi stood in his full beast form in the ice crater he'd created, wings splayed and grinning as his left hand was no longer in Ryuko's mouth but pressing down on her draconic face where she lay on her side in a crater in the ice whole his blood covered right claw was out to his side and open, Ryuko's blood dripping from it. He'd slammed her head first into the ice and between that, the speed of the fall, the fire blast to her chest, and gut shot there was no way that the Rear Admiral was able to hold on.

This was clear to all as Ryuko's eyes were white and the ice was turning red around her midriff in the center of the crater showing who'd won the clash as well as that most of her dress had been burned off. Tatsumi punctuated this with a roar that he directed at the Navy as soon as it was clear what had happened and sending a direct challenge to them as if daring them to send more at him.

---

"Go Tatsumi!" Esdeath called out from where she was standing by her chair below the scaffold where she'd been called back and was now under direct orders from Sengoku to not move unless Whitebeard himself made it into the plaza as she watched the battle and Tatsumi in particular as he roared from over Ryuko's unconscious body. "You're only deepening my love for you! I am so turned on right now my love!"

"None of that is appropriate Shirokami." Akainu said from next to here where he'd resumed sitting following his own attack. "Hold your tongue."

"Those are our subordinates." Ironwood added. "You shouldn't be cheering their defeats."

"And? They lose so they were weak, and besides, my love took out 5 true giants, a fake giant, and a fellow Mythical Zoan who's line is the Fish-Fish one so how can I not be aroused by that." Esdeath said cooly, literally as frost began to emanate from her body though it did nothing to quell the fire in her loins at that moment after watching what Tatsumi had done and wishing she'd realized that he was fighting Ryuko so she could have watched that instead of Oars Jr.'s approach. "And anyway, they should be able to handle a rookie pirate but they can't so they deserved what they got. Not like you two wouldn't kill deserters or punish failures anyway."

Akainu and Ironwood just grunted at that as they couldn't argue. Both would of course kill deserters if they tried to leave this battle and Esdeath had a point, not about her whole being in love with a rookie pirate of course as that was inexcusable, but about the weakness they'd seen. Those giants should have been able to handle the Adaptive Monster and Oars Jr. but they'd failed, as had a rising Lieutenant and Rear Admiral who both possessed strong Devil Fruits. If they were alive then they would be in for a serious dressing down when this was over.

For now, though, the Admirals could only watch though Akainu did notice a marine trying to slip away from the battle and got up to deal with that while the others watched the battle. So far things were pretty even and the biggest threat to test them all day, and only to actually reach the plaza, Oars Jr., had been defeated by Gecko Moria. Things were holding firm but they all knew that a battle could change on a whim and that whim was about to come crashing down from the sky.

---

Sengoku growled as he looked down at the roaring pirate while Ace just stared wide eyed at everything that had just transpired from where he was kneel next to him and Garp reached the top of the scaffold and sat down next to Ace. They'd just managed to take down Oars Jr., though he'd never have reached Ace with three Admirals and himself in the way so that was never a threat, and now that damned rookie was back and in his beast form.

Of course Sengoku had watched the fight between Tatsumi and the other giants and noted how Tatsumi had taken them down which hadn't been good but he'd hoped that Ryuko could deal with him, she was a Mythical Zoan user as well and one with the strength and durability to match, so he'd approved of Kizaru sending her onto the ice to face him. However that wasn't the case and once again they were down a strong fighter and because it had been the Adaptive Monster to take them out Sengoku was going to have to deal with Shirokami's reaction as well.

However, despite all that, the battle was still well in hand and Sengoku had a plan up his sleeve that should sort things out. So long as nothing came to suddenly disrupt that plan all should be good and he was going to put that in motion in a moment. All was still good and the execution would go on as planned and then it was onto Whitebeard and ending the threat that he posed the world once and for all. With that in mind, Sengoku opened his mouth to address Garp and make sure he wasn't wavering in what had to be done.

---

"That's it, let's not let Oars's actions be in vain!" Whitebeard shouted as Tatsumi finished his roar, the whole battlefield silent thanks to what he'd just done and Whitebeard's own actions with Lonz. "Climb up his body and charge! The big man gave us an opening, use it!"

There was a roar from Whitebeard's crew and they charged forward at his words pressing the marines backwards and climbing up Oars's body to try and reach the plaza. Oars had led the way and now it was time to press on and follow in his path.

As they did, Whitebeard glanced over at the rookie punk who'd taken down 5 giants and two Navy Devil Fruit users in no small part to help Oars get this close. The kid was reckless, headstrong, and clearly raw but he was powerful and had great potential. Once this was over and they were clear with Ace, Whitebeard would have to try and get that crew as part of his fleet at least, providing that he survived of course. For now, though, he had to focus on the war at hand and getting his son back so he turned his focus back to the push as Atmos engaged Doflamingo and the battle picked up once again.

---

Tatsumi finished roaring and began to transform back to normal as Whitebeard gave his order to charge and use Oars Jr.'s sacrifice to rescue Ace. As Tatsumi transformed so too did Ryuko, she was unconscious now and couldn't hold her beast form either and shrank back to normal. As they did the fighting resumed but Tatsumi didn't pay attention to it, he just looked down and noticed for the first time that almost all of Rear Admiral Ryuko's dress had been burned away by his fire along with her bra due to where he'd hit her with his fire.

He flushed and looked up as he returned to normal and removed his jacket and then laid it over the unconscious Rear Admiral, tucking it around her without touching her chest and causing her blood staining it but protecting her modesty. When he was done, Tatsumi casually walked over her body and climbed out of the hole.

As he climbed, Tatsumi ignored the handful of cuts on his body and blood dripping from his left hand, the wounds were superficial at best and even the ones on his hand wouldn't scar, so he was still fighting fit and while it would be a bit before he could transform again he could still fight with his sword. That was more than fine given that the battle was once again picking up.

"W, what kind of monster are you?" A marine who'd been knocked over by Tatsumi and Ryuko's impact asked as he and his comrades backed away from Tatsumi as he clambered back onto the ice from the crater he'd created. "Rear Admiral Ryuko was one of the toughest officers and you killed her."

"She's not dead but I'd get the Rear Admiral off the battlefield and to a med center right away before that changes." Tatsumi said not answering the monster question as he walked. "The boss doesn't want her to die and I'd hate to see that but she's got a bad gut wound, a pretty serious burn, and won't be waking up anytime soon so best deal with her before she bleeds out."

"Huh?" Another marine asked. "Why are you telling us that? You're a pirate and notorious marine murderer, why would you let us know that the Rear Admiral is still alive and savable?"

"I don't deny that I am nothing more than a murderer and that I will continue to kill any and all marines who either deserve it or blindly follow the corrupt masters who command them but that's not all of you." Tatsumi said as he walked his tone cool as he spoke. "Some of you will be needed to rebuild if we win and Rear Admiral Ryuko is one of them so see to it that she doesn't die."

"Just who are you?" A third marine said as Akame came running up to Tatsumi having crossed the battlefield to reach him as soon as she saw that he was back safe and sound after clearly finishing with his task to help Oars Jr. out. "Who the hell does what you do?"

"I'm simply a man who will do what he can to make the world a better place even if I must spill so much blood and sacrifice my soul to achieve that." Tatsumi said as he stopped and looked at the marines his gaze intense and the reminders of his recently awakened Conqueror's Haki running through the marines' minds in that look. "You call me a monster and so I am, I will not deny that, but I am more than that, I am the King of Monsters."

At that the marines yelped and turned to help out the Rear Admiral and get her to safety and medical treatment while Tatsumi turned back as Akame reached him. Before she reached pulled Incursio off her back, she noticed his hands and reached into a pouch on her belt and pulled out a cloth that she handed to Tatsumi.

Tatsumi nodded his thanks and used it to wipe Ryuko's blood off his right hand though he'd feel the stickiness of it for a while even after it was gone but such was the life he'd chosen when he'd agreed to stay with the Night Pirates. It was distasteful what he had to do, and frankly one of the most disgusting acts he'd done, but it was necessary to take Ryuko out without killing her. Tatsumi may have so much blood on his hands that he didn't know if they'd ever be clean but at least he wouldn't have the death of a true marine on them.

"What's been going on while I was in the air?" Tatsumi asked focusing his attention back to the task at hand and looking over at Oars Jr.'s body as Whitey Bay drove her ship through the side harbor wall nearby adding another breach point in addition to the one that Oars Jr. had created so that more of Whitebeard's subordinate crews could storm the bay. "I see that Oars Jr. didn't make it."

"Unfortunately the Warlords were too much for him, which was to be expected." Akame said as Tatsumi discarded the ruined cloth while Akame sheathed Murasame and took out another cloth, a small bottle of disinfectant, and some bandages from her first aid pouch before taking Tatsumi's left hand in hers, flushing herself at the contact, and beginning to clean and dress the wound there as she spoke. "Kuma slowed him down with an attack but Oars. Jr still had some fight left in him and decided to try and take down two of the Warlords, Doflamingo and Ivan, but they got out of the way and the former cut off his foot."

"That explains that, the String-String Fruit is more than capable of severing a limb and Doflamingo is a sadistic bastard so he'd relish in doing that." Tatsumi said as he understood why Oars Jr. was missing part of his right leg. "I take it that that was what caused him to crash through the wall."

"Yup, no right foot caused Oars to fall forward and crash down through the wall and into the plaza but even that wasn't enough to stop him." Akame said as she discarded the cloth and used the disinfectant to sterilize the wounds though given Tatsumi's power that wouldn't be an issue, it was more habit after she'd seen a comrade die from an infected cut back in her slave assassin days. "He pressed on until Moria used his Devil Fruit to stab him. No way to know where the entry point was but the exit was the back of his neck and the black shadow mass made it clear which Warlord had landed the blow."

"I can't say that we know much about the Shadow-Shadow Fruit." Tatsumi said as Akame worked. "But clearly it can be used to stab people."

"Yeah, not sure what exactly it was though my best guess is that it was Moria's shadow." Akame said as she finished sterilizing the wounds and got the bandage ready "Even that was almost not enough to bring the big guy down as he almost reached Ace before he fell to the ground. After that, the only remaining giant attacked Whitebeard and failed and then you landed."

"Well at least there's a path now, shame the big guy had to go down, he's a loyal bastard who cares about his friend." Tatsumi said as Akame wrapped his hand with an expert and delicate touch while the battle raged on around them though after what Tatsumi had done none of the marine grunts were going to bother them. "We need to carry on though. I had to use my fire to get the upper hand, will be a good few minutes before I can transform again and even longer before I can use that ability. I really need to train up more so as to better handle that power."

"We can do that after this is over." Akame said as she stepped back from Tatsumi and nodded before she pulled his sword and its sheath off her shoulder and handed it back to him. "For now focus on reaching the plaza and killing as many marine officers on the priority kill list as possible."

"Agreed." Tatsumi said as he slung Incursio over his shoulder before he drew it again, Akame drawing Murasame at the same time and they turned to move out. "We need to…"

Before Tatsumi could finish he noticed it. It was hard to tell exactly what it was but as he'd been looking up when he was turning to head back to the front lines of the battle he saw something falling from the clouds. At the same time he could swear that he heard the sounds of what sounded like a several people yelling reached his ears though that could be from anywhere on the battlefield given his enhanced senses. Akame noticed Tatsumi's reaction and followed it to look up as well and she wasn't alone as several marines and pirates noticed that something was coming from the sky, again, including Sengoku.

"Er, Tatsumi, was something else up there with you a moment ago?" Akame asked as she looked up and saw a large dot in the sky falling down to the battlefield with several smaller ones around it though it was hard to tell if they were below it or not at this distance. "Or cause something to fall perhaps?"

"No but I was more focused on the large gray dragon I was fighting than checking to see if Whitebeard stashed any allies in the sky and I didn't miss when I used my fire blast." Tatsumi said as voices reached him and Tatsumi was sure that they were coming from the dots as he heard complaining about overdoing it and blaming someone's Death Wink for the situation that they were in though said Death Wink person complained about being blamed for it. "Come to think of it how did he stash allies in the sky?"

"Come to think of it, I don't think that he did." Akame said as she looked around at the frozen waves on either side of Marineford while more screams reached Tatsumi's ears but there were so many now that he couldn't make out more than a few words here and there. "I think they were stuck on top of the ice wave but how that happened, why they're here, and who they are I can't say."

"Well given the surprised looks of the Navy I don't think that they're on their side." Tatsumi said as silence fell over the battlefield once more now that the latest arrivals were almost here and Tatsumi was sure he heard two words that he didn't think he'd heard. "This, this is unexpected."

Akame just nodded as she looked up at the falling people and what they could now make out as the upside down Navy battleship that was above them. That just added to confusion to the situation as everyone stared at the newcomers, silence now fully over the battlefield and as such they all heard the next shout from one of the fallers that was louder than the rest. It was a voice that both Akame and Tatsumi had heard once before, a week prior on Sabaody.

"I'm here, Ace!"

I think that's a nice place to end the chapter on, don't you? A good little cliffhanger and we all know what it is and who's just arrived on the battlefield which means it's time to really kick this party off and see everyone's reactions to this arrival and those who are with him. For those wondering and might be a bit confused, Yu is the first name of Mt. Lady so yeah that was her who got beat by Tatsumi and scarred in this chapter before he also took down Ryuko and yes that is the first name of Ryukyu in MHA it is a bit confusing. As pro heroes being marines makes sense for them and they did they best but neither are able to stand against the might of Tyrant, at the moment, though Ryuko did do a good job until the end. There really isn't much more to say about this chapter, the focus was on helping Oars out but alas he fell just short and setting up what is about to come so stay tuned as we shift gears and Tatsumi and Akame have a new person to aid in this battle. If you liked this please favorite, follow, leave a review, or let me know in a PM (I will respond either via the website or app depending on where you PM me), and if there are any questions will posed in reviews and PMs I will try to answer them as best I can. Until next time.

Stringdog