Grand Jipang was a wreck. The Imperial Dragons destroyed the decorations the people of the royal city in their search for the Summoner, only to come up empty. In consolation, they took the children, mermaids, Rebecca and Vivi away. Swearing vengeance, Ash, Luffy, Sanji, Zoro, Franky, Brook, Usopp, Robin and Pikachu headed out to find the castle provided by Kabuki Buggy. They rode on a makeshift wagon with Tauros pulling. "I have serious doubts about Buggy's information," Sanji muttered.

"It's still better than nothing," Usopp shrugged.

"All we know is that the children and mermaids are imprisoned by those so-called nobles," Robin addressed. Ash and Pikachu nodded before they noticed antlers.

"Over there!" shouted Ash. Tauros slowed down before Ash and Pikachu approached the antlers. When they looked, it was the missing reindeer. "Blue-Nose Sensei!" Hearing who they found, everyone leaped out to see Blue-Nose, bruised but conscious.

"Am I so glad to see you guys!" he cheered. Everyone got out to look at Blue-Nose.

"Were you kidnapped along with the rest of the children?" wondered Luffy.

"Yeah… but I had to use my powers to break free…" admitted Blue-Nose. "I transformed into my reindeer form, but I injured myself. I threatened to use Heavy Point before they ran off."

"Smart thinking, Blue-Nose," Usopp praised. "At least we can patch you up before we storm the castle and rescue the kids."

"That's what we need to worry about, right now," Ash advised. "We'll take you along, but you might be better off staying back."

"Agreed," Blue-Nose groaned as he revealed a gold ball. "I don't want to use my Rumble Balls in these conditions." Zoro palmed Blue-Nose's head.

"Besides, this is our fight," he assured. "You can heal us when it's over." Blue-Nose nodded, hoping to make sure everyone returned to Grand Jipang alive.

Invasion! Imperial Dragons' Siege

After spending most of the afternoon traveling, they came across a castle that was like Nelson's old castle, except it was white. "Could they have chosen a less conspicuous structure?" nagged Zoro.

"Maybe this is a trap," Usopp warned.

"Like they planned to have Ash in there only to capture?" guessed Robin. Ash shook his head.

"That kind of trap would not work, especially with how much training we've done," he doubted. "What we do need to do is get pass their security. It looks heavily guarded, and I can only imagine what it's like inside. It's not like how I dealt with Nelson."

"Now, hold on!" voiced Brook. Everyone else turned to the skeletal man.

"What is it, Brook?" wondered Sanji.

"Let me do a little bit of reconnaissance," he offered. Ash and Pikachu blinked to the thought.

"Exactly how?" wondered Ash. Brook sat down and stopped moving.

"Time I have an… out-of-body experience," he mentioned as a cloud emerged with Brook's face on it. Ash and Pikachu gasped in shock.

"I see…" figured Sanji. "You're going to use your power to find out where the kids are."

"Exactly," the cloud agreed. "Now if you'll excuse me, it's off to find the kids." The cloud zoomed forward but vanished. Ash looked to Brook on the ground.

"Think we can bury the body while he goes on this reconnaissance?" he joked.

"Nah, let's wait," Luffy denied. A short time later, Brook began to move.

"I'm back!" he claimed as his body could move again.

"And did you find out where the hostages are?" asked Robin.

"Oh, no question," Brook confirmed. "They're shivering in the level beneath the earth. They have a small flame, but they won't stay warm for long. I also found the princesses in the upper levels."

"So, we need to work fast," Robin urged.

"Then, we need a plan to break in," Ash pondered.

"It doesn't help that we're here instead of you going solo," Usopp muttered. Ash shrugged his shoulders.

"Maybe we can bombard the front lines," Franky offered. Everyone turned to the large man.

"Bombard?" repeated Zoro. Franky lifted a steel ball.

"I'm talking about this," he revealed. "This is my large bomb. See, there are flint rocks in this, along with metal shrapnel and gunpowder. When this hits the ground, the flint will ignite the gunpowder and explode." The others awed the idea, but Blue-Nose found a problem.

"We're more than 350 meters from the front door!" he spoke. "No one has the arm strength to reach that on the fly!"

"And even if I could reach with my weapons, that bomb's way too heavy to shoot," Usopp added. To Luffy, they had all the equipment needed.

"Looks like this is where I come in," he sneered. Everyone turned to Luffy.

"Didn't you hear a word I just said!?" snapped Usopp. Luffy stretched his arm to one tree and wrapped it around. He did the same thing with another tree.

"Of course!" realized Robin. "Boss can become a human slingshot!" The idea made everyone help. They fixed Luffy's positions where his arms were wrapped on one tree and his legs were on another.

"How are you feeling, partner?" asked Ash.

"Good," Luffy replied. "I did need a good stretch." Ash palmed his face.

"I had to ask…" he mulled. Using a rope and Tauros, everyone stretched Luffy's body as far as they needed. Usopp saw the distance of the castle and how far back Luffy stretched.

"Little more…" he instructed. They took a few more steps back. "Stop! That's good!" Everyone stopped, but Franky placed the bomb on Luffy's body. Zoro got between Luffy and Tauros.

"When I move down, that's when you cut the rope," Franky planned. Zoro nodded.

"Let's see this invention at work," Ash whispered. Everyone made a path for the bomb's launch. That's when Franky moved down. In a flash, Zoro sliced the rope. Luffy's body sprung forward and his limbs held the trees firm as the bomb catapulted at a great velocity. Two of the guards looked to the steel ball.

"What's that!?" one man gasped.

"It's heading for the door!" the other man shouted. "Quick, guard!" The bomb slammed into the two as the flint was jostled inside. They struck the door where the bomb exploded. Steel and shrapnel flew in many directions, some piercing through the guards' bodies. Blood sprayed out as did the fire. The door was destroyed.

"Now's our chance!" urged Robin. "Zoro, stay by us!"

"Yeah, yeah…" dismissed Zoro. They charged from the hiding spot and made their way to the door where they eyed more Dragons gathering.

"You'll go no further!" one soldier denied. "Breaking into the Dragon's Castle is a sin!" Ash didn't want the children or the mermaids to suffer. Images of Orika, Aisa and Vivi being stripped of her clothes made Ash reach for his katana. However, he grabbed his jitte instead.

"That's not going to help!" growled Franky. Brook unsheathed his sword.

"Bring them all, you can't hurt any of us!" he advised. Usopp used his jitte on Brook's head.

"You numbskull!" he snapped. "You're the only one who can't be hurt with normal weapons!"

"Well, you didn't need to be that violent," Brook irked. Robin crossed her arms as cherry blossoms scattered from out of nowhere.

"Viente Fleur!" she commanded. Many arms came out of the soldiers who gasped. "SMASH!" The arms flung down and hammered the soldiers in the crotch. They dropped their swords in pain. Ash brought out an orange and a blue scroll.

"Come forth, Lucario!" he chanted. "Come forth, Greninja!" From the scrolls, Lucario and Greninja appeared. "Double Team!" In a flash, Greninja and Lucario made duplicates of themselves. "Lucario, Bullet Punch! Greninja, Aerial Ace!" The squad of ninja frogs flew to the air while the pack of Lucario swarmed and delivered a flurry of punches in rapid succession. The Greninja pack stomped the Dragons' heads, smashing their faces to the ground.

"Nice!" awed Franky.

"Let's get in!" Robin urged. Ash nodded to Greninja and Lucario before they vanished. Pikachu joined on Ash's shoulder before going inside. Blue-Nose watched from afar, their entry complete.

"Good luck…" he wished. Inside, everyone had gone in different directions.

"The basement, right?" recalled Sanji.

"Yes," Brook confirmed. "Find the stairs, find the kids." They split up, Zoro and Sanji going in one direction while the others headed elsewhere. The castle was full of Dragons.

"Maybe it's time I go Diable Jambe on their chests," Sanji pondered. Zoro unsheathed three katanas.

"Aim for their groins," he suggested as he put a sword's hilt in his teeth. "They won't stand if hit there."

"Don't tell me where to strike, you moss-haired monk!" snapped Sanji. The Dragons charged in. Sanji struck with kicks while Zoro slashed with his swords. Each slash and kick found their marks as the Dragons were sent flying. Blood splattered the walls. Bodies strewn through the halls. Luffy and Usopp journeyed through the halls. They parried with their jitte before punching them out.

"I think they expected us," Luffy joked.

"After what we did to get in, what did you expect?" shrugged Usopp. They moved on to where they found a staircase. "Boss, here!" Luffy looked to see the staircase as well.

"This must be where Brook found the children!"

"Let's check it out!" They scampered downstairs. There, they found the children in bamboo cages.

"Boss!" cried Aisa. Luffy and Usopp came to the kids.

"Is everyone okay?" asked Usopp.

"We are, though Orika was nearly raped after they stripped her clothing," Pepper pointed out. In the corner, Orika curled herself up, shivering without a piece of cloth to cover herself.

"Poor girl," Usopp whispered.

"I thought this would come in handy," Luffy shrugged as he pulled out a robe. Usopp was aghast.

"What the hell are you doing with a spare robe!?" he snapped.

"Oririka gave it to me, thinking that the Dragons might do something inhumane," Luffy briefed. Onion took the robe and rushed over to Orika.

"Here, Boss got you some new clothes," he offered. Orika turned to see the robe before taking it.

"Thanks…" she quietly replied. As she dressed herself, elsewhere, Franky and Brook dealt with more of the Dragons. They were scattered with faces contorted after getting heavy punches from Franky.

"How are you holding up, Brook?" he asked.

"Well, I'm used to being a human pin cushion," Brook joked. "Though, don't celebrate that you got more of them than I did."

"No, we celebrate when we get the hostages freed," Franky irked. He slid a wall back, finding mermaids on the floor and in iron chains. "Here they are!" The mermaids awed the rescue effort. "Everyone okay?"

"For now," a tanned mermaid with frizzy hair confirmed. Her red tail flopped as she wore a leopard-print bikini. "But that fat Dragon will come back for us!"

"Not to mention that we can't move much without our bubble rings!" a pink-haired mermaid whined. She wore a lavender robe and a yellow scaly tail.

"Not a problem!" assured Franky. "Your king provided all of us the coral bubble makers to get you to move." The mermaids became excited. Climbing up the castle and reaching outside, Robin, Ash and Pikachu ascended to see what else they could find.

"Brook said to look for the basement!" reminded Robin. "Why are we going upstairs!? Did you want to find the princesses!?"

"We went in different directions, Mom!" pointed out Ash. "If we didn't find it, the others can!" Dragons emerged and cut the path of the family while clouds moved, revealing a Full Moon.

"Dammit!" snapped Robin as Ash reached for his scrolls. More Dragons came from the rear, surrounding the family.

"Well, why did we have to go to Grand Jipang when he decided to come to us?" one Dragon teased.

"Who cares!" another Dragon scoffed. "The woman will be the most enjoyable! I bet what's under her yukata is some real forbidden fruit!" Robin crossed her arms as Ash and Pikachu studied the Dragons and their swords.

"No one touches my mom!" he snapped. Out of nowhere, a silhouette leaped in front of the moon. The sudden shadow had everyone turning to the silhouette.

"What's that!?" one more Dragon gasped. Like lightning, the silhouette slammed into the Dragons, blasting them out of the castle and plummeting to the ground. The dust soon cleared from the impact. Looking, Robin, Ash and Pikachu saw white: long white rabbit ears, massively long and flowing white hair, a white yukata… almost as if it was a ghost. It stood up and looked to the group, black eyes with red irises. Quickly, the Dragons became fearful.

"Sulong!" gasped Robin. "I should've known… Minks have a tendency to transform into their Sulong forms by looking to the Full Moon where they're more powerful." Ash gawked before having a guess.

"So then, is that… Ocarrot?" he wondered. The rabbit Mink smiled.

"It's time for revenge," she smiled. "Shall we, Ash?" The request made Ash smile. He pulled out Gengar's scroll.

"COME FORTH, GENGAR!" he chanted. The flash blinded some before Gengar appeared. "Dazzling Gleam!" Gengar's body became cocooned in a rainbow of light before it flashed, stunning the Dragons. Ocarrot flew past and bulldozed the rest off. The path clear, the group could press on.

"Thanks for your help, Ocarrot!" praised Robin.

"Youteia can save the thanks for after this is done," Ocarrot replied. "Let's go-" That's when her ears swayed. She turned to a new direction. "Over there!" They followed Ocarrot to another part where Ash slid open the door. Inside was Shirahoshi, Rebecca and Vivi.

"ASH!" they cried out.

"Is everyone okay?" asked Robin.

"We are," Vivi sighed. "They were about to rape the little girls and the mermaids and saving us for last." Ocarrot ripped the restraints off of the women.

"That feels better," Rebecca smiled. "And is that really you, Ocarrot?"

"It's my Sulong Form," Ocarrot briefed. "Right now, we need to get you out of here." Vivi nodded. Shirahoshi clasped Ash's hands.

"I'll wait for you back in Grand Jipang with the rest," she hoped. Ash nodded before giving the mermaid princess a coral.

"Your dad wanted to make sure all of the mermaids can get back with this," he briefed. Shirahoshi held his hands before she gave Ash a kiss to the lips. They broke after a couple of seconds with Ash's face blushing bright red.

"Come back to me," she wished. She took the coral and inflated a bubble around her before she left.

"You know, I told her that if you did rescue me, I'd fall for you, too," Rebecca admitted. "And look at what happened." Ash seemed confused before Rebecca locked lips with his. A couple of seconds later, she broke. Robin giggled at the love Ash got.

"That is love," she teased. Pikachu seemed as pleased to Ash's luck. That's when he heard sliding doors.

("Top floor!") he squeaked while looking up. Ash snapped out of his blushing freeze before looking up.

"Let's go!" he urged. He raced for the upper floor while Robin watched.

"Be careful, Ash!" she warned. Ash stopped before turning. "I'll watch over Princess Vivi! I don't want to lose you, so come back to us!" Ash smiled before nodding.

"I will, Mom!" he replied before taking off, Pikachu quickly following. Stepping outside, Shalria and Rosward saw the strewn bodies of their men.

"Damn, those bastards did a lot of damage down there!" growled Rosward. Charlos emerged to smile at the night.

"It would be nicer if the moon was bleeding," he dumbly awed.

"That's not how a Blood Moon works, brother," Shalria mulled. "Still, with these many men defending us, how is there still chaos going on downstairs?"

"Because the rebellion came full force," Rosward muttered. "If anything, they've brought the Summoner along… and it gives us the chance to finally kill him."

"Or it could be one of them that does it and we give him a hefty reward," Shalria pondered. "Besides, with hundreds of Imperial Dragons to protect us, what are the chances he finds us?" That's when she felt a presence. She froze before looking back.

"Don't answer that," Ash replied. The family looked to Ash and Pikachu, shocked to see him arriving.

"THE SUMMONER!" they gasped. Ash and Pikachu faced down the three head honchos, ready to free Grand Jipang of the tyranny the Imperial Dragons forced among the country.

TO BE CONTINUED...