Author's Note:
And here we are—welcome to the grand finale of Little Garden! If you're even half as excited as I am, I'll be a happy camper.
For those who might have missed it: I've started working on a second fanfiction alongside this one. It's a Bleach/Naruto crossover called Enough is Enough: Reincarnation is a Scam. In it, Naruto and Sasuke meet their end in the final battle at the Valley of the End (right after the canon Naruto storyline), and the two reincarnation cycles—Indra and Ashura—decide they've had enough. They're fed up with the endless cycle their father set in motion. So, unable to enter their world's afterlife, they toss Naruto and Sasuke into a completely different afterlife—one with looser restrictions.
If that piques your interest, give it a look. But for those worried that Fish Cake will suffer from my new project, fear not. I came up with EiE:RiaS to fuel my motivation while waiting for Fish Cake to finish beta. Fish Cake will always take precedence in my writing, and once I wrap up the current chapter of EiE:RiaS, it'll go on hold until chapter 16 of Fish Cake enters beta.
That's all I wanted to mention before jumping into this chapter. I'll be sure to reply to comments and share my thoughts in another Author's Note at the end of this one.
Enjoy the ride, have fun, do a flip, and let's dive in!
Disclaimer
I do not own Naruto and I do not own One Piece. That honour lies with their creators:
Masashi Kishimoto and Eiichiro Oda
Many thanks again to Lapin de Lune for beta reading my very first own fanfiction!
"talking"
"Giant-sized creatures talking"
'thoughts'
*sounds*
*extremely loud sounds*
***scene break***
[techniques]
Chapter Fifteen: Sake no Jutsu
Her speed was astonishing to be sure. It seemed as if the paint had flown from Miss Goldenweek's brush, to end in a specific circular pattern on the giant's calloused fingers. For one marvellous moment, tranquillity allowed Kakashi to believe that something didn't just go horribly wrong. That moment however was just the universe's way of further enforcing the gigantic 'fuck you' that was to follow when the two giants looked at the crimson-coloured markings Miss Goldenweek had painted on the tip of their fingers.
"GrrrrrRRRRRR… I HAD IT WITH YOU ANNOYING LITTLE SHRIMPS!" Dorry was the first to crack. The blue ogre had jumped to his feet, fists held aloft while screaming his displeasure to the heavens, and his friend was soon to follow.
"FIRST YOU PROMISE US RUM, AND THEN YOU MAKE US SKIP ONE OF OUR SACRED DUELS!" Brogy added his anger before the raised voices joined together into a last set of words before devolving into incomprehensible grunts and shouts: "WE WILL KILL YOU AAAAAALLLLL, GRAAAAAA!" Somehow causing strong gusts of wind. Kakashi was only one of two people not completely paralysed by the latest events. The other one was the instigator of this disaster, using the distraction to her full advantage as she darted for the trees.
The jonin wasn't willing to allow their captive to get away, but other things took precedence if he wanted to prevent the deaths of the still-bound straw hats, which only started regaining their wits when Brogy's fist came barrelling down towards them. In an intense burst of speed, Kakashi managed to throw a cursing Zoro into his captain's arms while grabbing Usopp by the scruff of his dungaree and throwing Nami over his shoulder. Both were screaming in fear while copious amounts of snot were exploding out of their noses. Putting even more strain on his body, he succeeded in escaping the deathly appendage by a hair, the tip of Usopp's nose brushing against the giant's skin before it buried itself in the ground. The resulting shock wave painfully threw Mr. 3's unconscious form against a boulder.
The copy ninja came to a stop at a relatively safe distance, Naruto, Luffy and Vivi atop of Karoo quickly catching up to them. Before Kakashi had to say anything, Naruto had already summoned a bunch of clones to gather the former captives, one of them even taking Zoro off Luffy's hands.
"Naruto, summon enough clones to get these three safely back to the ship, then follow the girl and capture her while I distract the giants. We cannot let her escape!"
"What? Are you nuts?! I suck at tracking, sensei, dattebayo! And Sakura is gonna have my hide when she hears that I left you fighting giants on your own!" the genin disagreed, delivering his own suggestion instead. "Let me take care of Dorry and Brogy instead. Please, sensei, I can do this!"
"ARE YOU COMPLETELY OUT OF YOUR MIND?!" Nami screamed from the clone's back, trying to hit the original blonde with the rigid bar of wax still encasing her hands.
"GRAAAAAA, THERE YOU ARRRRRRRE! DIEEEEEEE!" Brogy started running towards the group, his big strides causing him to tower above them rather quickly, but it was enough time for Kakashi to take stock of his student. His proposal was more than just the usual bravado. For the second time in a day, Kakashi witnessed an insurmountable level of determination in the eyes of one of his students.
"KYAAAAAAA!" This time, it was a humongous boot coming down on them. Usopp's soul seemed to leave his body through his mouth, Zoro fletched his teeth, pupils shrunk to needles, Luffy was preparing to punch upwards while Nami and Vivi decided to take the classical route of screaming their throats bloody. With just enough time left, Kakashi gave his student a single nod, followed by the orange menace biting down on his thumb and blurring through a certain sequence of hand seals: "[Summoning Jutsu]!"
Nami had somehow found her way out of her clone's grip and into Vivi's embrace as they shut their eyes in time to miss the huge cloud of smoke blasting the surrounding area. With the original Naruto in its epicentre, they waited for their unquestionable demise. It took them two heavily laboured breaths to become aware of their very much not squished bodies, leaving them with no other option than to look up and see the rusty red underbelly of a gigantic toad.
*CRASH*
A distance away, Brogy landed on his back. Going by his deadly foot still hanging in the air, the giant had been thrown completely off balance.
"BERTHA, THIS WAY!" the clone that had been carrying Nami before shouted into the duck's face, forcing him out of his shock and his ass into gear. As ordered by their sensei, the clones took to the trees with Karoo below them making their way back to the Merry. Usopp was still completely out of it, but up there in the trees, Zoro got a very good look at what had saved them.
There between their retreating group and the rampaging giants, easily rivalling the warriors in size, sat a humongous toad, wearing a blue happi vest with the kanji for 'ebi' (shrimp) on its back and a massive dosu blade strapped to its hip. The creature was a dull rusty red with brighter red markings around its eyes and mouth. An old vicious looking scar marred its left eye, and deep red lips held an adequately sized kiseru pipe between them when its deep rumbling voice was heard.
***with Miss Goldenweek***
"The hell is this?! Naruto! What did you summon me into this time?!" The Baroque Works agent couldn't help but check her head for any possible bumps or wounds. Miss Goldenweek was making great strides in the face of the wild local flora, but she could still make out the humongous pipe-smoking, talking toad that had appeared out of fucking nowhere.
According to the reports from Whisky Peak they received through the No. five team and the Unluckies, that blonde brat was capable of creating corporal copies of himself, and the captain had a body made of rubber. Then there's that kid with the black hair who could shoot fireballs from his mouth, so that's three paramecia fruits accounted for, which is quite an impressive number for a rookie crew like that to begin with. But now she found out that there are at least two other paramecia powers hidden in the crew, and combined with that clone ability, these people could be classified as veritable army killers. Take squads upon squads of clones, freely change their appearance, and voila, you have an infiltration force that could bury themselves within ANY organisation, and if that's not enough, well, how about throwing an armed toad as big as a giant at your enemies?!
The boss needed to know! Somehow, she needed to get word out about these monsters, or Baroque Works would be caught completely flat-footed. She had sacrificed far too much to let it end like that. She only needed to make it back to the hideout and get her hands on the transponder snail, but there was still a long stretch of deadly prehistoric jungle between herself and their wax hovel. She had her brush ready and 'loaded' with [Tranquil Green] to hopefully get past any predators, but so far it wasn't needed.
*CRASH – CRASH – CRASH*
Of course, the lack of dangerous meat eaters could have something to do with the huge toad duking it out with the latest victims of her [Berserker Crimson], but it was better to stay vigilant. Last thing she needed was for her ankle to get caught in a vine-
"Hihihihi, oh Himeko, what a naughty naughty maid you are, hihihihi."
-or run into a perversely mumbling and giggling guy with silver hair, leaning against a tree while reading a booklet… "KYAAAAAAAA!"
"Hm? Oh, hello." The man who had taken out Mr. 3 with a single chop to the neck greeted her nonchalantly as if she hadn't just screamed her head off. He even took the time to carefully stow that booklet away in one of his pant pockets before addressing her again: "Got to say, you left me waiting here for quite some time. Has no one ever taught you that it is rude to keep people waiting?"
Something felt terribly wrong with this particular individual accusing her of tardiness, but she had more important things to worry about right now. Like being faced with a dude that moved as fast as a government agent (and let's not ask how she knew those), and could potentially call upon a giant toad to crush her. With a few flicks of her wrist and astonishing proficiency, the paint from her brush flew through the air, forming a similar circle on the ground in front of her pursuer as the crimson one that sent the giants into a frenzy: "[Colours Trap: Tranquil Green]!"
For a moment, Miss Goldenweek was certain of her technique's success. His shoulders dropped, his head bobbed a little to the side and an audible sigh was released from beneath that face mask. All the signs of absolute relaxation were visibly spreading through her opponent's body. With the addition of further colours, she might very well be able to end this man without even getting her hands dirty, which was the reason for the cocksure smirk her lips had formed. That hope quickly died a very painful death, however, when the guy put his right hand in front of his face, middle and index finger pointing to the sky and accompanied the strange hand gesture with the word: "Kai!".
Kakashi never would have expected a kid who wasn't even capable of using the most elemental of chakra-based techniques to show such proficiency with visual hypnosis. Any lesser man would have been completely at her mercy, with no chance of defeating her without outside intervention. The jonin still felt the effect that symbol had on him. From the second he saw the finished circular picture, pure tranquillity had started to spread throughout his entire body, of such nature that he would have happily used a T-Rex's mouth as a recliner.
Too bad for this girl that the most elemental technique for breaking out of gen-jutsu, was particularly effective on nonchakra-based hypnotic techniques. Normally, by momentarily stopping any and all chakra flow within the own body, weaker gen-jutsu could be broken by forcibly stopping the manipulations caused by foreign chakra and allowing the own system to purge itself of the intruding energy. Additionally, the very same method delivered a level of shock to one's nervous system that hypnosis like that could be easily broken.
"What? No! [Colours Trap: Laughter Yellow]!" Again, her brush swished through the air, this time gathering paint from her palette beforehand, and another more or less circular symbol was painted on the ground. "Pfffhehehe… Kai!" But again, its effects were immediately countered.
"Grr… WHAT KINDA FREAK OF NATURE ARE YOU! KAI MY ASS, HOW ARE YOU GETTING OUT OF MY COLOURS TRAP?!" the No. 3 agent made allowed herself the fatal mistake of letting her emotions wreak havoc on her rational thinking, by screaming at her opponent instead of coming up with another escape plan.
"I have to admit, your competence in the field of visual hypnosis is admirable. With the proper training, you might one day become a force to be reckoned with. For now, however, there are some questions I would very much like to be answered."
"Hmpf… yea sure, ask away. I'll tell you anything if you just let me go." But Miss Goldenweek didn't put much energy into the lie, already certain this guy wouldn't believe a word she said.
"Maa, maa, we both know that you won't give me what I want without some further incentive. So how about after having had the pleasure of experiencing your skills, I'll show you a technique of my own?" Kakashi's hands blurred through a couple of hand seals before intoning: "[Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Jutsu]".
A couple of leaves swirled towards her from the forest floor, and her eyes grew slightly heavy. Simultaneously her opponent broke down to one knee, heavy sweat appearing over his one visible brow.
'What's going on… did he take himself out? No way, he must be bluffing.'
"H-Hey, if you think I'll fall for that, then you are messing with the wrong bounty hunter, Mister!" She had to rub her eyes at the end of that sentence. Somehow, the green flag jacket the guy was wearing had become slightly duller in colour. "So what, you sicko! Waiting for me to make a run and…" This time, she also shook her head for good measure. It wasn't just the flag jacket anymore. Breath for breath, even the vibrant prehistoric greenery surrounding them was becoming less and less… intense? "… and then plunge a knife into my… what's going on…?"
There was an underlying light-headedness accompanying the continuous eye rubbing, but it wasn't getting any better. "The colours… what is happening to the colours… WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME!?" The gen-jutsu was in full effect. In this artist's case, the technique realised itself in a world with no colour. With every exhale, her view grew more monochrome until, finally, it had turned completely black and white. A heart-shattering, soul-ripping state the artist never imagined to be possible.
"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"
**sometime later**
Miss Goldenweek was a crying mess, but that was still better in Kakashi's opinion than employing his more physical methods of interrogation. He really got lucky when her worst fear realised itself in a purely visual manner. His first plan was to take her out of the illusion, ask his questions and repeat the process until he extracted all the information the agent could provide, but his first and only attempt at casting the technique almost took him out completely.
Among the chakra-based arts, gen-jutsu is widely recognised as the least chakra-intensive category. The effects almost exclusively depended on the shinobi's skill and chakra control while keeping chakra consumption at an absolute minimum compared to nin- or tai-jutsu of the same rank. [Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Jutsu] was a D-Rank gen-jutsu that confronted the victim with their greatest fear, no matter their awareness of said fear. It was among the most basic illusions and one of the very first jutsu taught to genin who show promise for the field because most of the work is done by your opponent's own brain. Of course, that is also why most ninja have an easy time breaking out of it. Shinobi who are not capable of facing their fears without overcoming the accompanying paralysis will have little chance of survival.
So much for the theory of the matter. What Kakashi was confronted with, however, was rather different from what should have happened. Normally, when casting a gen-jutsu on a civilian with no basic chakra training, the invading energy would be easily absorbed through their chakra nodes, allowing a gen-jutsu user to turn the victim into their personal puppet. The process was akin to a sponge sucking up the water surrounding it until it reached its maximum capacity. What happened instead, however, was comparable to trying to push water into a fired brick of clay. The material's structure allows some absorption, while most of it will flow past the target.
To make this D-Rank gen-jutsu stick, took about as much chakra out of Kakashi as a B-Rank ninjutsu would. Repeatedly releasing Miss Goldenweek from the technique and recasting it would have been completely out of the question in his current condition. But as already mentioned, he got lucky. He wouldn't pretend to understand the rather extreme reaction to becoming colour-blind, and he didn't much care. It allowed him to ask his questions without the necessity to reapply the jutsu.
By the time he was done, Kakashi had far less information than he would have wished for. Descriptions of the abilities of some of her fellow agents, observed when the No. 3 team was paired with other single-digit teams and absolutely no clue about the greater picture beyond the promise of riches. At least he now knew that most of Baroque Works was motivated by greed and not idealism. Far easier to fight off money grabbers than fanatical zealots.
Now, Kakashi was left with a crying girl and two options. Either he quickly broke her neck and gave her a painless end (which left the taste of sewage water in his mouth), or he did something that a certain pink-haired medic might not forgive him so easily. It honestly didn't take much to say goodbye to option number one. The jonin was quite aware of the inevitability of death in this harsh world, but that didn't mean he wouldn't bat an eye at murdering children. For the first few months after Team 7's mission in Wave, Rin's face blurred together with that of Haku, the young ninja who fought by Zabusa's side, as he punched his lightning-encased hand into their chests.
No, Kakashi was not a child killer. So that left him with the wrath of Sakura. Miss Goldenweek's sobs grew weaker as she started looking around again. Another frustratingly interesting titbit right there. Without anybody breaking her out of the illusion, it should have held for at least another thirty minutes. The slight but hopeful smile the agent's lips were forming told him that the effects were wearing off much faster than they should. Either that or Miss Goldenweek was a secret gen-jutsu protege, capable of teaching herself how to break out of them on her first encounter with one.
The jonin-sensei crouched down to the scared girl's eye level, causing her to crawl backwards until she was blocked by her back encountering a tree. If he wanted this to work, he needed to put a severe boost to his gen-jutsu. Success had to be guaranteed, or some of his team's trump cards would be leaked to the enemy. Kakashi's 'friendly chat' with Miss Goldenweek (or Marianne, as he learned her real name was) convinced him that she would use that information to buy herself into Mr. Zero's good graces.
"What *sniff*… are you gonna kill me now? Please make *sniff* it quick. Just don't let me *sniff* see that horrible world again." These tears were real. Not like the fake one's Kakashi observed from her before.
"Sigh, I guess I took it a little far there. Don't worry, ok? I won't kill you, and I won't hurt you."
"Y-Y-You won't?" The little hope growing inside of her since the colours returned, allowed itself to grow the slightest bit.
"No, I won't. But I'll need you to do something for me in return." Kakashi compromised, keeping his voice to a calm and relaxing timber.
"An- *sniff* Anything!"
"Very well. All I need you to do is…" his hand rose to the headband covering his left eye and slowly started pushing it upwards until Marianne was confronted with three black tomoe on red ground, starting to slowly spin around a pin prick-like pupil that seemed to drill itself into her very soul. "… to look deep into my eye."
One blink
…
a second blink
…
and a third
…
"Hmm… I tripped." The scared little girl had disappeared, replaced by the accomplished bounty hunter. "Got to watch out for those damn vines." She muttered, continuing her track through the jungle. She should have expected Mr. 3's plan to fail spectacularly, but this was just a total disaster.
First, those giants started their duel in perfect health, not a splotch on their perfectly healthy physiques, and then the Straw Hat smashed into them, giving Mr. 3 a real run for his money. First, he fell for her colour traps, making it appear as if he was easy picking, but Mr. 3, that colossal idiot, had loosened the gags on their captives, which allowed them to shout instructions to him with which the rubber brain was able to circumvent her techniques. Then, instead of simply suffocating him, as any sane person with Mr. 3's powers would do, he tried putting shackles on the pirate instead, subsequently arming him with steel-like hammers that he used to bash through Mr. 3's creations! From that point on, even his [Candle Champion] painted by her [Colours Trap] didn't have a chance.
Damn it all to Davy Jones' locker, the mission was a bust. They had no giants, no Straw Hat and most importantly, no princess. Agents had been killed off for less. She herself had assisted in having agents killed for less. But there was still a small chance to save her neck. Baroque Works wouldn't spare the resources to thoroughly confirm their death on a prehistoric island full of human-eating dinosaurs, which meant that M.I.A. would be just as good as K.I.A.! Now all she needed to do was get her ass back to Mr. 3's ship, but she couldn't operate the thing alone. It was far too big for that.
But luckily, there might still be two people left that were in the same boat as her. Ou, screw that, their boat was far worse off than hers! The No. 3 team only failed in successfully assisting two other agents in their mission. What that meant was that she might be able to argue her way out of the sling around her neck while Miss Valentine and Mr. 5 had a guillotine blade already descending towards theirs.
They were supposed to capture the princess by the Blue Ogre's camp once he turned against the Straw Hat. With said pirate captain assaulting them right around the time they were expecting the return of their fellow agents, suggested that he left them by the giant's camp. With just a little luck, they were still alive, and from there, it would be an easy task to convince them to set sail towards freedom.
While all this was happening in Miss Goldenweek's head, a certain silver-haired shinobi was readjusting his headband while hiding behind a tree close by. His knees felt weak, his view was blurry, and going by the sensation in his chest, somebody might have exchanged his heart for a sack filled with a cat and a dog trying to kill each other. Better to take it slow on his way back… not that he had a choice in the matter.
*CRASH*
At least, with how the toad boss and the giants were going at each other, he could be sure that there wouldn't be any predators nearby.
***earlier on Gamabunta's head***
"The hell is this?! Naruto! What did you summon me into this time?!" went the toad Boss' powerful shout, as less than a second after his summoning he was forced to save the twerp on his head from leaving a bloody splotch on his rusty red skin. With quick reflexes Gamabunta had caught the foot trying to descend on his head, pushed further upwards and threw the giant out of balance. The guy's massive body flew through the air, -
*CRASH*
and landed on his back with a deep grunt, his foot still in the air. There on the ground, the amphibian had just enough time to properly observe the man with the axe-shaped, dirty blonde beard when:
"WHOOOOOA, this is so awesome! Can all of you make giant frogs?!" a straw hat-wearing man catapulted himself onto Gamabunta's head, while simultaneously:
"GRAAAAAAA!" another giant with a long black beard came running at him with raised fists. In an astounding display of agility, Gamabunta's huge tongue pistoled out of his mouth and took a turn for the top of his own head, where it coiled around the perceived threat of a rubbery feeling individual- "Wha? Whoa, hey hey HEY HEY!" -and threw him with so much force against the charging assailant's helmet that the guy was also forced to his back.
Strangely enough, the straw hat was far quicker in his recovery than the sword wielder. While the giant was still shaking his head, the normal-sized person shot an arm out to a treetop near the toad boss' face and pulled himself to a branch.
"HEY ASSHOLE, WHAT GIVES!? I'M ON YOUR SIDE!" Taking a deep puff on his pipe, Gamabunta allowed himself to gaze down at the little rubber monkey, who still stood quite a bit below his eye level.
"Hmmm? Oh, I figured as much from Naruto's lack of reaction to you." a wave of smoke blew out of his toad nostrils, making Luffy cough as the jungle floor grew foggy. "That was your punishment for daring to step on me. You should count yourself lucky. That little stunt is nothing compared to the hell I will deliver on the guy who tried to step on me!"
"Sorry Luffy! The boss doesn't like people standing on his head… actually… he doesn't like people in general, dattebayo!" Naruto tried to placate the rubber man while the giants were groggily rising in a plethora of grunts.
"But that's not fair! He lets you ride on his head, why not me?!" the Straw Hat, newly identified as Luffy pouted, the name drawing a little of the toad's interest towards him. From Kakashi's report, Luffy was the name of the crew captain that his summoner was travelling with.
"Now you listen here, you little shit stain. Naruto has earned the honour of standing atop me without the threat of imminent death by passing my test AND being my summoner. Plus, I'm a toad, not a frog!"
Finally, back to their feet, the giants took a little longer than expected to understand that they were facing an opponent of their own size, truly nothing but berserkers remaining from the skilled warriors. But once they did, both of them started their charge again. "Grrr… give me a second," Gamabunta grumbled, left hand closing around the handle of his dosu blade, ready to turn the first giant to reach him into sashimi. "BOSS NO!" Naruto stopped him from drawing his weapon against the unarmed assailants. "Please don't hurt them, Boss! Dorry and Brogy are good guys, dattebayo! There was this girl that did something to them to make them go wild!"
"Oh, you got to be sh…" there was no time left to finish his curse. On the last few passes, Brogy, who was closer to him after having tried to step on him, leapt into the air, closing both his fists into one giant meteor-like mass, descending on them. The toad used his anatomical predisposition of perpetually coiled legs to engage through his own powerful jump. He targeted the giants wide open centre mass with his warts-covered fist before the horned man had the opportunity to make contact himself.
While all air evacuated from the berserker's lungs, Gamabunta swiftly used the rest of his momentum mid-air, to reposition his webbed feet on the giant's chest and add a powerful kick that made both of them fly in opposite directions. While the giant wracked havoc where he landed, the toad flew towards Dorry, whose instincts were sharp enough to try and use the amphibian's momentum against it in a counter punch.
The move would have been devastatingly effective if Gamabunta's physique was far closer to a human's. Instead, right before he crashed face-first into the blue ogre's fist, one of his powerful toad legs shot downwards, extending much farther than would have been possible until it smashed into the ground and allowed him to avoid Dorry's fist by catapulting himself above it. Mid-flight the toad boss turned around, gripped the extended arm by the wrist and forced it with him. By further utilizing any remaining propulsive force, Gamabunta executed a shoulder throw that made another giant fly.
All of this took place within the span of a few seconds, which was explanation enough for the nature of the 'test' Gamabunta had Naruto suffer through. Back then, the genin had to remain an entire day on the toad's head, while said summon tried his best to throw the kid off without actually grabbing him. You can't manage that, you wouldn't survive summoning Gamabunta in the first place, so the test was rather prudent in his opinion. Of course, there was quite a bit of sadistic glee mixed in there, but there was no reason to talk about that now.
*Now Naruto, tell me what's going on and make it quick! Why am I not supposed to hurt these bastards?" Luffy's bad mood was already forgotten after seeing the frog… no… the toad go to town on Dorry and Brogy. 'Damn, the giants are gonna love him once they wake up', he thought while slinging himself around the jungle, escaping powerful shock waves and falling trees, until he could catch his breath on a branch close enough to be seen by the 'boss' as Naruto called him. He arrived just in time to hear Naruto explaining the situation:
"Yea, sure! You see, there was this girl that looked completely harmless, and we all though so, but she's actually an agent in this secret organisation that wants to kill Vivi and they are-"
"Naruto!" Gamabunta interrupted the blonde's tangent before it got rolling.
"Oh yea, sorry, dattebayo! Well, you see, this girl painted these strange markings on the tips of Dorry and Brogy's fingers, and when they looked at them, they started screaming and tried to squish us dead!"
"Hmmm… sounds like a gen-jutsu that drives its victim into uncontrollable rage… was the brat who did this an Uchiha?"
"Na uh! She wasn't even a ninja! Why do you ask?"
"Tse, then that's no genjutsu. No way a kid without the sharingan would be able to cast a gen-jutsu on somebody so big. The chakra necessary would shoot anybody's chakra control to kingdom come, without it. That makes this harder to solve."
"Why, dattebayo? We just need to get rid of these markings on their fingers!"
"Oh, really. And what makes you so sure of that, brat?"
"My gut tells me so, duh!" Naruto said with crossed arms and far too much certainty to take him seriously.
"Oh, your gut huh? Doesn't that fill me with all the warmth and fuzzies! Well, whatever. It's just as good a plan as anything else for now." Again, the giants had found their way back to their feet far slower than was to be expected from their previous duels. They were now looking around them with hands formed into fists and saliva running from their fletched teeth. "Hey, Straw Hat brat! Kakashi's report named you as the captain of the crew that Naruto is sailing with, correct?"
"SHISHISHI, THAT'S RIGHT! FISH CAKE IS PART OF MY CREW!"
"Hah! Fish Cake! That's kinda fitting!"
"Awww, not you too, Boss!"
"Shut it! I call anybody as I damn well please. Now listen here, Straw Hat twerp! Your test starts now. Let's see if you are worth shit."
An unnaturally wide grin had spread over Luffy's face: "TEST?! SO, WHEN I PASS, I GET TO RIDE YOU?!"
"You come anywhere close to my head, and I'll end you, understood!? No, you will have to prove to me that you are capable of protecting the people sailing under your flag! So, listen here: Anybody with a slip of fighting experience could tell you that these guys aren't even close to full strength. Their bodies are moving on pure instinct and muscle memory, but they still perform basic battle manoeuvres. Normally that would make them easy picking for me, but with you two not wanting me to cause any serious damage, the fight is a little more balanced than I'd like."
Gamabunta had believed the warriors rummaging around was due to their highly debilitated cognitive functions, but it seemed that he underestimated them, considering what both of them just picked up from the ground.
"So, get ready! Your job will be to distract the guy with the sword, until Naruto and I are done with the axe guy. Got it?"
"YOU BET BOSS! LEAVE IT TO ME! Wait… sword?" Luffy turned, wondering what the toad was talking about, when he saw Dorry charging them with that tree-sized slap of deathly metal back in his hand.
"Great! Last bit of advice," the toad boss' deep voice rumbled while picking up Luffy with his powerful tongue again before he could catapult himself towards the blue ogre. "Try making yourself small. Seems like you can take it." And, for the second time, he found himself slung with extreme force towards Dorry, bringing enough concussive force with him to divert all of the blue ogre's attention to the pirate captain. Simultaneously, Gamabunta's dosu had finally left its sheath, and was now held in a reverse grip in his left hand,-
*CHINK*
-deflecting Brogy's axe past his side. Utilizing the giant's momentarily crouched form, the toad hopped onto his back and used it for a double jump to gain some distance, adding the extra benefit of pushing his face into the ground. "Get ready Naruto. The game has changed! From the second they got their hands on their weapons, their movements grew far more fluent, as if a part of their arms had been missing until now. If we aren't quick about this, your little stretchy friend there is gonna die!"
"Ou, yea! Whatever you need Boss!" Naruto agreed, understanding the severity of the situation.
"Great, which hand has the mark on it?!"
"The left one!"
"Grr… so the hand holding that damn axe. Ok, listen closely. We need him to let go of his weapon and then keep him from making a fist. Can your clones make a [Rasengan]?"
The apparent change in topic took the blonde a second to adjust his mind to, but when it did, he grew a little concerned about whatever the Boss' plan was. "Ehm, yeah, they can. But why are you asking? You don't want me to use [Rasengan] against, Brogy, right?! I told you; we can't harm them!"
"With all due respect twerp, which is basically less than none. I fought at the side of the guy who invented the [Rasengan]. I know enough about that jutsu to be certain that delivered from you, it won't hurt them any more than an ant bite would hurt you. And I'm not talking fire ants here. Now shut up and listen! I'm gonna get you as close as possible, and when I tell you to, you will summon as many shadow clones as you can. Prepare to really swarm the guy and try to smash as many Rasengans as possible right into the guy's face! Think bee swarm. Ready or not…"
The toad had re-sheathed his sword but still kept a firm grip on its handle. Naruto immediately recognised the pose as the introduction to a rather debilitating quick draw attack, he had seen the Boss perform two times now. Instead of the more intricate ram seal used to gather and concentrate his chakra, he clapped his hands together in a prayer position and gathered as much of the ethereal energy as he could muster.
When Gamabunta shot forward, his body rushed in a perfectly straight line towards the horned adversary, the extreme force generated from his uncoiling legs seemingly turning him into a high-velocity projectile. The very last second before reaching his target, the dosu was drawn again and smashed into Brogy's axe, actually causing the giant's weapon to chip in the process. Still supported by the force of his attack, the toad positioned his blade in such a manner that he was able to push down on the axe and open the way for his summoner:
"NOW!"
"[Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu]!" Gamabunta's entire head was immediately covered in a cloud of quickly extending smoke, only stopping a few meters from the giant's face. Though rage befuddled as his brain was, for a second there the Elbafian seemed perplexed from the smoke. Especially with the cacophony of swirling sounds growing louder and louder within, causing the cloud to dissipate through dozens upon dozens of blue little epicentres held by blonde bullets shooting right for his face.
"[Shadow Formation: Bee Hive]!" the clones shouted as one after another their [Rasengan] smashed into the unprotected parts of Brogy's face. "BWAAAAAAAAGRRRAAAAAAA" he shouted while allowing his weapon to fall to the ground in favour of smacking the stinging beings away from his face, as any animal with hands would do when confronted with a beehive. Gamabunta's own blade quickly joined the giant's axe, freeing his hands to form a tiger seal, his cheek pouches filling with a small lake's worth of water, until he caught a glimpse of the crimson marking on the tip of the giant's index finger: "[Water Release: Water Bullet]!" flew the chakra enhanced liquid, washing away any remnants of paint and simultaneously carrying the giant a few hundred meters away, crashing him on his ginormous ass.
"DID IT WORK?!" Naruto's excited enquiry filled the air.
"GRRR… huh? Hey, why am I all wet? Did I take a bath? Has it been another year already?"
***with Luffy***
"[Gum Gum Baz-] WHOA!"
*CRASH*
Luffy interrupted his attack in lieu of quickly avoiding the huge slap of metal cleaving another trench into the earth. The situation had changed drastically since Dorry got his sword back. The rubber man had seen the way the giants behaved since they got marked, and he really wasn't expecting the strikes to be as targeted as they were. Instead of wildly swinging his sword around, there were actually pronounced hints of technique hidden behind Dorry's angry assault.
Over and over again the warrior switched between pointed downward thrusts through the foliage, wide swings that mowed down entire rows of trees and downward smashes that left the ground scarred by deep trenches. Each time, Luffy managed to avoid his imminent death by the skin of his teeth, either by leaping wide over the weapon or slinging himself to safety, before attempting another attack. It was after a thrust that the giant's attention was diverted towards the toad, which would deliver a more exciting opponent. "Oh oh, the Boss said to keep Dorry away! NO WAY AM I LETTING YOU GO!"
With the sword's tip still below the canopy, Luffy seized his chance. Both his arms flew out, each one grabbing a branch on opposing trees from where the sword tipped into the jungle-"[Gum Gum Rocket]!" -and then he shot along the metal until he landed right below the handle.
If it had been a newer blade or one of better quality, there would have been no way for him to hold on, the smooth surface not giving any traction. This weapon, however, had seen daily battle for the last hundred years, on an island that provided little in terms of sword care. Smaller and larger chips allowed Luffy to gain a foothold and continue his track in a tumbling sprint. Soon he had reached the giant's fists and was ascending his muscled arms. It was somewhere by the elbow that Luffy threw both his arms backwards while still running as fast as he could.
Wondering through his angry haze what that crawly feeling on his arm was, Dorry's helmed head slowly turned around- "Huuuuh?" -just in time to observe Luffy reaching his shoulder and: [Gum Gum Bazooka]!" smashing one of his most powerful attacks right into the giant's chin. Dorry's noggin flew backwards, followed by the rest of his massive upper body. "TAKE THAT!" the pirate captain celebrated but was quickly disabused of his perceived notion of success when the giant caught himself from falling over by extending his left foot backwards. So now it wasn't an unbalanced giant he was confronted with, but a severely pissed-off Blue Ogre slapping his hand down on his shoulder while Luffy's arms were still in the process of retracting themselves towards him: "OH SHIT!"
"Hold it right there, old friend!" Brogy held his companion's wrist in an iron grip, Dorry's calloused hand so close to Luffy's bugging eyes, that he could easily make out the lines in the giant's skin. The horned warrior pulled hard on his friend's wrist, in such a way that he could position himself behind Dorry's body, from where he also took hold of the other wrist, twisting it until he let his sword fall, moaning in pain. "I'm sorry brother, but I can't let you hurt our new friends. It's time to wake up. GAMABUNTA, NOW!" Brogy commanded while stretching the hand with Miss Goldenweek's mark towards the toad, whose cheeks were already filling with water.
"[Water Release: Water Bullet]!" Following the instincts shared by any more or less sane devil fruit user, Luffy started to run as soon as he caught a glimpse of the giant body of water blasting his way. Hopefully, for the last time that day, he avoided a colossal attack at the last second, when he leapt from Dorry's shoulder, seeing the two co-captains being blasted away and a shower of raindrops descending upon the jungle.
***with Sanji***
*puru-puru-puru-puru*
*puru-puru-puru-puru*
*puru-puru-puru-puru*
*click*
"Hello and welcome to the Baratié, this is Mr. Prince speaking. How may I be of service today?" Sanji talked into the microphone connected to a transponder snail while reclining in a plush extravagant chair with crossed legs. He came across this particular creature situated on a coffee table in a wax-hut that was likely the hidden base of the Baroque Works agents responsible FOR THE GRIEVOUS SIN OF KIDNAPPING HIS DEAREST NAMI-SWAN… and Usopp.
"This is Mr. Zero speaking, so you better stop messing around immediately Mr. 3, or the repercussions will be dire." The snail's visage had become extremely serious, its teeth gnawing on its side as if there should be a cigar in its mouth. Additionally, a horizontal scar now adorned its face. The ship cook quickly adjusted his demeanour to the situation:
"Oh, yes of course… what I meant was: this is Mr. 3 speaking."
"Better… make sure that it won't happen again. I'm calling for a progress report. Was the mission a success?" There was no way to be certain about what exactly the boss of Baroque Works was referring to but luckily it was Sanji taking the call, and not one of the more simple-minded straw hat pirates. An educated guess, combined with years of practice in terms of customer service bullshitting, should do the trick: "The mission? Well yes of course! Everything went down without a hitch. The princess and her entire entourage are dead."
"Hm…" Sir Crocodile's grunt seemed appreciative. "That's good. I knew I could count on you. Now listen here: Mr. 2 was ordered to rendezvous with the both of you and the No. 5 team on Little Garden. They have an eternal pose to Alabasta with them, but to guarantee your arrival, the Unluckies will deliver another Alabasta eternal pose to your location."
The ship's cook / impromptu secret agent looked to the side of the room. Beneath the two circular windows, his gaze came upon a tenderised pair of unlikely companions in the form of a purple-dotted jumpsuit-wearing otter and a vulture with a pair of broken sunglasses on its beak and a yellow flyer's cap on its head. Both were unnecessarily bound by ninja wire and gagged, even though they were completely out of it while lying in a heap. On top of them sat a pink-haired genin with crossed legs, observing said eternal pose in her hands as her raven-haired teammate stood by her side-
"Hm… hmpf? HMPF!" *GLONK*
- delivering a quick kick to the otter's head when it had to audacity to wake up. Sakura threw Sasuke a small frown, to which he replied by shrugging his shoulders. With his blue top destroyed, Sasuke now wore an unbuttoned, short sleeved, yellow button up shirt with a particularly ugly floral design that Sanji gifted him with absolutely no ill Intention. Underneath, the Uchiha added a long sleeved, skintight mesh shirt he had stowed away, that forced his team mate to enable every ounce of professionalism to stop the fan girl in her from squealing like a loon, still leaving her with a slight blush on her cheeks.
Sanji only nodded at the picture in approval.
"Once you met up with Mr. 2, you all are to take sail for Alabasta, where you will convene at Spiders Cafe with your fellow agents. Further instructions will be issued after your arrival. Everything understood?"
"Understood, Mr. Zero. We'll be on the lookout for the Unluckies and will be on our way the moment Mr. 2 arrives in Little Garden."
With a resounding *click* the transponder snail's eyes lidded over as if about to fall asleep and the scar on its face disappeared. With the call now finished, Sanji hung up before addressing his adolescent companions:
"No Nami-swan, but your idea still worked pretty well. I'm sure Vivi-dearest will be over the moon when we bring her that." he gesticulated with his lit cigarette towards the navigational device in the medic's hand.
*flashback**
"Hey! Anybody here?!" The ship's cook just deposited the carcass of a T-Rex by the Merry's side, when he grew eerily aware of the silence reigning aboard. "Nami-swan?! Vivi dearest?! Anybody but the moss head?!"
"Sanji-san, please keep it down. Sasuke-kun is still resting." Sakura stepped on deck through the door leading to the lower levels.
"Oh, hello Little Miss. What do you mean he's resting?" A mischievous smile spread over Sanji's lips. "Did the duck butt give up? Not up to the challenge, huh? Well, I don't blame him. That should teach him to try and play with the big boys."
"Sigh," she couldn't help but recognise how well most of her peers would fit with these people. "Not quite. You see, after you left…" and so the suit-wearing blonde was brought up to speed on the plethora of happenings he wasn't aware of. By the time the pinkette was done, that swirly eyebrow was twitching like you wouldn't believe while he bit through one of his cigarettes.
"THEY KIDNAPPED NAMI-SWAN?! I'LL KILL THEM ALL!"
"Pretty sure you're too late for that." Sasuke groggily scratched his head, adding a huge yawn at the end. "Sasuke-kun, what are you doing up?! Get back to bed right… wait… how are you awake?" the young medic tried to intervene before growing perplexed. Not asking for permission, she marched up to the Uchiha, grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him down into a seated position before growing aware that he was still wearing nothing but his pants and ninja sandals. There was a marked difference between her sick patient lying in a bed and her long-time crush standing bare chested in the sun.
"Whoa, hey Sakura, I'm fine!" Sasuke invoked the petulant wails of numbnuts in need of medical attention. A slight dusting of red spread over Sakura's cheeks but she soldiered on, holding her green shining hands over the Uchiha's back.
Everything was as expected: the new seal was still in the process of filtering Sasuke's chakra, the toxic elements slowly leaving his system. His chakra levels were still on the low side. Combined with the remaining toxicity, Sasuke should feel rather exhausted, and there were still no signs of extraordinary healing factors as she 'witnessed' in Naruto's system. It was when she got a better feel of the mystical energy circulating through his body that Sakura figured out what woke him up.
The curse mark had been invading the genin's network for months, gradually harming him. Now, however, for the first time since Orochimaru bit him, Sasuke's cells had the pleasure of receiving energy without simultaneously fighting off its corrosive effects. He must feel like somebody who was bathing in a warm sludge of waste for months, finally being allowed to jump into a well of fresh spring water. Good for him, but dangerous if not tempered. He was still recuperating and wouldn't be at 100% for at least another few days. He just felt like he was.
"Ok, you can walk around," the medic declared. "… but no strenuous activities. You still need to rest. Are we clear… what was that? What did you do just now?" There was a slight spike in Sasuke's chakra consumption. Not much, but noticeable. Kind of comparable to a slight body enhancement.
"Hm? I was just looking at the forest. From what you said, they must have been here on the ship. I doubt these guys have any proficiency when it comes to covering their tracks in nature." Sasuke turned back while still seated, crimson pupils meeting her gaze. "Oh, you activated your sharingan!"
"Huh? I did?" This was fascinating. The only activated do-jutsu Sakura had ever observed through the [Mystical Palm Technique] was Kakashi's, and there was absolutely no comparison. Firstly, her Sensei's eye was perpetually activated. Secondly, the chakra consumption was through the roof. But for Sasuke, the strain wasn't much worse than flexing his muscles to lift some rather reasonable weights. She must have been one of only a handful of non-Uchihas allowed to observe the activation of their sacred Kekkei Genkai in such an intimate manner. But what was more important right now, was that Sasuke seemed perplexed by having activated his eyes.
"Well, yes. Didn't you mean to?" She moved her hands up to his temples to take a closer 'look', while the Uchiha's eyes turned pitch black again.
"Ehm… I mean… kinda? It was just… much easier than normal?" and the reason for that was also readily apparent.
"I'm not surprised. The network around your eyes seems severely strengthened. I can't be certain if that's normal for an awakened Uchiha, I'm really out of my depth here. But I think your curse mark actually made it harder to use your sharingan, further forcing you to use its power and strengthening your dependency. Now with the new seal, any resistance is slowly getting cleared. It's basically like Lee discarding his leg weights in the chunin exams but for your eyes."
Sasuke blinked a few times before uttering: "New seal?"
"DAMN IT DUCK BUT, sorry for the interruption Little Miss, IF YOU ARE FINISHED BEING PROBED, WE HAVE A BEAUTIFUL ANGEL TO SAVE, if it isn't too much of an inconvenience for you Little Miss!" Sanji's patience came to an end, switching between rage for Sasuke and a humbler demeanour for Sakura.
"Ah, yeah, right. Sorry." the Uchiha didn't see the absolutely flabbergasted reaction of his teammate at hearing him apologise for something. Instead, he just stood up again, assuming she was finished with her examination and deciding to push that tidbit about a 'new seal' to the back of his mind.
"What I was saying was, we might be too late to involve ourselves in Kakashi's trap. We might even compromise the operation, putting their hostages in danger. Instead, I propose attacking from another front. There is no guarantee that they are going to expose all their hostages. It would actually be quite arrogant of them to expose their entire leverage in such a manner. I wouldn't expect top agents of a secret organisation of bounty hunters to be that stupid."
At the same time, an unconscious Mr. 3 sneezed, without rousing from his debilitated state.
Luckily, where Sanji's fellow front-line fighters would throw themselves into the fray, the rescue of a pretty girl was far more important for the self-proclaimed knight in shining armour. "Yeah, that makes sense. But how are we gonna find them?"
A cocky smirk adorned the Uchiha's lips while the three tomoe sharingan flared back to life. "If they left a single hair behind, I'm gonna find it… but I need some clothes…" he realized at the end. This caused Sanji to mirror the boy's previous expression, replying with joking condescension:
"Oh… I have just the thing!"
**flashback end**
"Not finding any hostages should be a good thing. That means they took Nami-san and Usopp-san with them, and it also means we didn't have to fight any potential guards. After all, Sasuke-kun isn't cleared for battle yet, isn't that right, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura was smiling at the Uchiha, but it wasn't a normal smile. It was a 'disagreement will severely hurt' smile that he wasn't used to receiving. So, he answered in the only manner a sane brain would allow: "Ehm… yeah… of course, Sakura." with a, for him, seemingly enthusiastic little nod at the end.
"Welp, our business here is done. Let's head back to the Merry and hope that Kakashi got back with the girls. Otherwise, I might try a new recipe: ninja kebab." the lovesick cook stood up and marched out of the wax door, both ninja sweat-dropping at his declaration.
***at the Merry***
"And there I was, the fourth Hokage on my head, staring down the mighty Kyubi no Yoko itself. A walking natural disaster, capable of flattening mountains with nothing but a swish of its tails!" The toad Boss' boastful voice filled the jungle when the Going Merry came into view.
"Gegyagyagyagya! That sounds like a fearsome foe indeed! I would have loved to stand by your side." Dorry commented on Gamabunta's story, his cheeks clearly holding a blush-like colour to them.
"Death might have been upon us, but what a way to go. Still no comparison to this brew of yours Bunta. What did you call it again?" Brogy raised a wooden cup, filled with several barrels worth of a clear liquid, before downing it in one go.
"Gamagamagama, the name is Gamabunta you bull-nosed bastard!" the big grin and rumbling toad laugh defused any possible aggression in his words. "Continue shortening my name and we'll have a re-match, and this time you won't have the excuse of being hypnotised. What you are drinking there is grade-A Mount Myoboku sake. Best booze you will ever drink, or there are no warts on my skin!"
"Gababababababa! For the pleasure of sharing this sake of yours, I'll happily call you Nika if you wish! But I might still take you up on that re-match my amphibian friend."
The trio of two genin and a chef were rooted in their place at the picture in front of them. Sasuke had seen the toad boss before, but it was the first time he had the pleasure of observing two giants. Sakura was familiar with Brogy, but never did she come face to face with the boss of one of the three most famous summoning clans. And Sanji, never having met a summon or a giant was dealing with a slight out-of-body experience.
"Looks like I arrived just in time," Kakashi muttered when he stepped out of the jungle himself, also gazing at the three huge entities crowding their ship while getting themselves hammered.
"Sensei!" Sakura ran up to the teacher's side, Sanji and Sasuke close behind her. "Sensei, that toad, is that… "
"Hmm…ah yes, indeed. Gamabunta, boss-summon of Mount Myoboku and reigning chief of the toad clan. Things got a little hairy and Naruto was forced to call upon him. It has been quite some time since I met him myself. Summons such as him normally don't linger…" the jonin further observed the scene, both hands buried in his pockets.
As was his right, Naruto was still sitting on the toad's head, excitedly listening to the story of its encounter with the Kyubi. When hearing about that day, most people concentrated on the lives that were lost, allowing their grief to flow through the story. It must be nice for the jinchuriki to hear a version of those events that didn't make him feel like shit.
Luffy had found his way onto Dorry's left shoulder with Vivi on his right, between the gigantic trio a big yellow duck staggered in circles with red cheeks and an empty bucket before it. Kakashi wouldn't be surprised if the pirate captain had attempted to also sit on the boss summon's head, but there was no way the proud warrior toad would allow any human but his summoner to take that position.
It seemed the giants and duck weren't the only ones partaking in Gamabunta's sake. Sitting on the Going Merry's railing, Nami and Zoro had their own cups in hand, wide grins spreading across their rosy cheeks. Usopp was standing beside them, eyes sparkling like Kakashi's pink-haired student's as he listened to tales of bravery and honour.
"… amazing… we learned about him in the academy! Gamabunta-sama and Lady Katsuyu have been symbols of Konoha's military might in the war. Their very presence was enough to banish all fear from our forces' hearts." Sakura repeated a particular academy lesson verbatim. It was at moments like these that Kakashi remembered that they lived in a military dictatorship. A benevolent military dictatorship, but still. Anybody who was actually there would feel bile rising in their throat when forced to hear such a romanticised version of the third shinobi world war. Plus, there were actually three boss summons with that reputation, but it didn't surprise him that any mention of Manda-sama had been struck from the curriculum.
By then, Sanji had already left the shinobi behind and gotten his hands on a cup of sake himself. Other than his crew mates, however, he didn't down the booze as if it was water, going through a proper tasting process instead. A slight glance to Sasuke brought the biggest surprise to the silver-haired ninja.
The Uchiha's envy had been completely out of control lately, to the point that he lost any semblance of restraint when he challenged Naruto to a fight, earlier that day. So naturally, he expected another flash of greed and hate to be seen on Sasuke's face, leaving Kakashi thoroughly surprised when he witnessed an indulgent little smirk, his gaze firmly on his blonde teammate. "Say Sakura, how about meeting one of Konoha's heroes? You should introduce yourself." the jonin-sensei asked his student.
"W-what?! Me?! But sensei... am I even allowed to do that? I'm just a genin after all." He couldn't help but chuckle at that, but before he was able to assuage her fears, he was addressed by said toad chief: "Ah, Kakashi, there you are! Took your sweet time. Get over here! I need you for a talk with the Straw Hat. Naruto, get off me for a sec and join your sensei."
Though they weren't explicitly invited, Sakura and Sasuke trotted along, coming to a hold close to the spot where Naruto had dismounted. Considering that the entire crew would be privy to their conversation, everybody already watching on in interest, Gamabunta wasn't likely to take issue with that. In a rare show of social awareness, Luffy understood that he should also join the blonde's side, and jumped down from Dorry's shoulder, with Vivi starting her own slow descent before the giant took pity on her and helped her to the ground.
"Very well. I hate politics, just as much as any toad, so let's get this behind us. Naruto, summon Gamakichi."
"Hm? Oookey?" the summoner bit down on his thumb until blood surfaced from a little wound, following it up with the necessary sequence of mudras and slamming his flat hand on the mossy earth: "[Summoning Jutsu]!" *puff*
Gamakichi appeared in a familiar small cloud of smoke, wearing some unfamiliar apparel. The most eye-catching accessory must have been the horned metal headband with the kanji for oil on it, looking like a smaller version of the hitai-ate Jiraiya wore. On the back of his hip, or where one would expect a toad's hip to be, an appropriately sized dosu blade was fastened with a black sash, similar in style to his father's but it had a black sheath with red swirls on it. To round up the new get-up, he wore a pair of black hand guards with red swirly designs on them which slightly extended over his wrists. The kid obviously had a favourite colour, because he had also exchanged his vest for a black version with red trimming.
"Whoa, Kichi! You look totally awesome, dattebayo!" the Uzumaki congratulated the young toad. Said amphibian smirked when he replied: "Awesome? Screw that aniki, I look badass!"
"Yeah yeah, there is time for complementing your own farts later. Let's get down to business: Straw Hat, Monkey D. Luffy. You have still a long way to go but for now you passed my test and proofed the bare minimum required to lead a crew. As such my son and heir Gamakichi will henceforth sail under your flag as an official representative of the Toad Clan." Though not in actual size, the little amphibian sure seemed to grow in presence as he proudly puffed his chest.
"Huh? You wanna join my crew?" Luffy enquired curiously. Gamakichi didn't expect to be addressed directly with his larger-than-life father doing all that fancy talking, but at the moment the pirate didn't seem to care much for Gamabunta (a circumstance the little toad wasn't used to at all). The young summon's heart started to beat a little faster, recognising the importance hiding behind the seemingly benign question. So naturally he encountered the pirate captain's question with enough false bravado to make Usopp proud: "You should count yourself lucky. The privilege of having a warrior toad as badass as me with you? All other pirates are gonna be mega jealous!"
Gamabunta observed his oldest son running his mouth with a great deal of worry. The kid wasn't ready yet. Never in the history of Mount Myoboku has a toad been permitted to participate in combat, before they were deemed capable of handling it, and now his own progeny would be the first to do so? But if there was one rule his kind abided by, it was that when Gamamaru talked, you listened.
"YAHOOOO, I GOT A SPEAKING TOAD ON MY CREW!" Luffy was already swinging Gamakichi around until the little toad started repeatedly smashing his tongue into the captain's face, forcing him to let go, while Naruto was laughing his ass off.
"Ok, now to the next step, Naruto. I need you to summon a specific toad. His name is Gerotora. He is the keeper of scrolls and the chief scribe of Mount Myoboku. Have you ever tried summoning a specific toad?"
The summoner got himself under control and confidently smiled at Gamabunta: "Sure did! I use just a little chakra when I want to summon Kichi, and lots of chakra when I want to summon you, right?!"
"No, wrong you numb nut. What you just described is the most basic form of summoning and it's pretty much useless outside direct confrontations with giant enemies." Judging from his slouched posture and hanging head, Naruto wasn't happy to hear that. But his demeanour brightened up when the giant toad continued. "Stop with the moping. To help you meet the various members of our clan will be one of Gamakichi's main tasks." He explained while Gamakichi jumped onto Naruto's head. "Now, what I want you to do is: think of scrolls, specifically like the contract scroll Jiraiya had you sign while forming your hand signs. When you form the very last mudra, the contract will give you a feel for exactly how much chakra is required to summon him. Use too little or too much and you are more likely to call upon a tadpole than Gerotora, while still expanding a shitload of chakra. But that's where Gamakichi comes in."
"Yea, I got ya aniki! I'm gonna check how much chakra you are using, and if it's too much, I'll kick you in the head!" He declared proudly.
"Gee… that makes me feel special… well, here goes nothing." Waves of chakra surrounded the Uzumaki, invisible to everybody but the lone Uchiha who, without meaning to, had his sharingan flare up again, memorising the sequence of hand seals identical to every contractual summoning. The toad on his head concentrated on the energy below until he felt it was enough and delivered the promised kick. "[Summoning Jutsu]!"
A puff of smoke and an orange toad with black markings appeared. From what the Straw hats came to expect, it seemed almost… average? Except for a pair of parallel metal rings around its stomach with no space between them, there wasn't anything special about it. Well, it was sitting there in a kind of pouting manner, with crossed legs and crossed arms, and it still reached about thigh high, but other than that… boring. That was however not all that appeared from the smoke cloud. Behind the scroll toad, four big sealed ceramic jars were summoned with it.
"So, it seems the proposal was accepted. Great." Gerotora's words oozed with sarcasm. "Still think this is gonna go well and truly pear-shaped, but not like anybody ever asked me. Well, here you go tadpole, time to sign your death sentence." And there was the peculiarity everybody was waiting for. Where previously there was no space between the two rings across the toad's stomach, it now seemed as if its form got stretched out by these very same rings, until Gerotora had grown taller than Kakashi. And there, where an unhealthily stretched stomach should be, the toad's body had turned into a big scroll. Without any further command by the scroll toad, the paper unravelled horizontally until it started rolling up again a few paces away from the main body, staying suspended in the air while doing so.
The scroll continued to roll itself up at extreme speed, not allowing the spectators to read a single letter, until it reached the last three columns, holding three familiar names. "Hey… wait a minute, I know that scroll. That's the toad contract, dattebayo!" Naruto shouted in excitement which quickly turned into confusion. "But… isn't the pervy sage supposed to have that thing?"
"He better should be, or there's gonna be hell to pay." Gamabunta confirmed. "This, however, is not the original contract. It's a self-updating copy, with a certain extra function to it. See any difference?"
Luffy stepped up to the scroll, his chin caught between his thumb and index finger, attempting to use a thinker's pose: "Hmmm… it's words."
*GLONK*
"Sorry about that", Nami excused her captain, dragging him away with a steaming boil on his head. The Uzumaki allowed himself a small chuckle before focusing his attention on the scroll. There was the pervy sage's name, Ogata Jiraiya, followed by the fourth Hokage's, Namikaze Minato, whose name had faded due to his death. And last but not least, there was his own, Uzumaki Naruto. But that wasn't where it stopped. The original contract had the contractor's fingerprints added beneath the name. These markings were missing, another name taking their place. Gamabunta beneath Jiraiya, Gamaken beneath the fourth and nothing below Naruto's name.
"Hey Boss? What's up with the toad names?" the genin enquired, happily recognising that he had asked the right question when he saw Gamabunta smirking at him.
"That, Naruto, is the toad that entered into a personal contract with the summoner, also known as a personal summon. Such a bond can only be decided upon once, and only if said toad approves of its summoner. Once you bond with a member of the toad clan in such a way, summoning them will consume far less chakra. In addition, said toad becomes capable of summoning themselves to your location, wherever they are, and they will get a feeling for your life force, meaning that they will be able to point into your direction and they will feel if you die."
Following this explanation, Gamabunta was ready for a massive screw-up on Naruto's part, by loudly proclaiming that he wanted him to become his personal summon. It was the obvious choice to any boastful idiot, and it would break his son's heart. The second he did so, the boss' punishment would follow swiftly. Gamakichi might actually expect something similar behind his false bravado, going by the slightly dejected posture he just developed while still sitting on Naruto's head. But instead: "Wait, so that means- hey, Kichi! Wanna become partners? That would be so awesome! We could hang out whenever, and you could find me if you wanna play, dattebayo! Please say yes! Please, please, please, please!"
Naruto didn't know it, but Gamabunta was not the only one impressed with that reaction. Gerotora was also listening, his perpetual frown lessening a little bit, just as the young toad slapped his hand onto their summoner's blonde hair: "Of course, I will, aniki! Why do you think I'm here, huh?"
Instead of forcing him to jump off his blonde spiky throne, the scroll toad decided to adjust the scroll's height instead, allowing his younger clan mate to hide the wet sheen that was now covering his eyes. The second he could reach it Gamakichi bit into his finger and used his blood to write his name under Naruto's, and the two boys couldn't be any happier for it.
"Ehm… excuse me, Mr. Boss?" Vivi used the cheerful atmosphere to get involved. "If I may be so bold… this whole contract business seems rather bureaucratic for such a… well… almost ethereal exchange. May I enquire how all of this works?"
"Hm? Well, aren't you a polite one? You must be the princess Kakashi mentioned in his report. Wouldn't expect this bunch of pirates to talk like that. Gamakichi, be sure to learn from her about diplomacy and all that crap."
"-a report which was marked confidential and shouldn't have been read by anybody but Jiraiya-sama…" Said silver-haired jonin sighted at that rather severe breach in secrecy.
"Yeah, so? Sue me. Or better yet, sue Ma. Would be great fun to see them trying to stick something to a sage toad. And they better bring their A-game when doing so, cause Ma might actually go on a rampage when she hears that, gamagamagamagama!"
Kakshi wisely accepted his defeat on that front. Not that he ever expected his report to remain a secret from the toad clan.
"Back to you, princess. The answer to your question is, I haven't got the foggiest, and I don't really care. The toad contract was created by the founder of our clan, and only our scribes care enough to know about its secrets."
"Oh, does that mean…" Vivi remembered that the boss toad had called Gerotora the chief scribe. But before she was allowed to address said scroll toad, he rudely said: "None of your business. Leave me be, human. My job here is done, see you back home Gamabunta-sama." *puff* and he was gone, leaving the jugs he had brought with him.
"Lucky bastard. Ok, one last thing and then I can get back to drinking… "
"Wait!" the straw hats' navigator, and more importantly, treasurer intervened.
"Oh, what now damn it! I had my share of humans for one day, you know!" The gigantic toad rumbled angrily. However, the fear of getting squished was shoved into the back of Nami's mind when faced with her greed, pointing a finger at Gamabunta in an accusatory manner. "Not my problem! Now listen here, we have a standing agreement with Kakashi as a representative of his village. That deal does not involve babysitting your progeny. So, we want something from you that makes this worth our while. Isn't that right Luffy?!
"Hm? Nah, I'm good. Kishi belongs to us now." As was far too often the case, Luffy's finger was deep enough up his nose to scratch his brain. That might actually explain some of the rubber brain's behaviour.
"You see, my captain agrees. So, what do you have to offer?"
"Grrr… fine, what is it you want?"
"100 million berries!"
"Huh? Don't have many berries growing where we are from. By the time we gathered them, this bunch is either gonna be back home or dead. Lots of cicadas though. Might even get you one of Ma's recipes."
"What? NO, DAMN IT! BERIES AS IN MONEY!"
"Money? Oh, right. You humans like collecting coins and paper slips… don't have any of that either, missy. Anything else?"
"Ehm, Nami-swan? If I may?" Sanji stepped up, joining the conversation with a sake cup in hand. "This alcohol he brought with him, is some high-quality stuff. It has an amazing blend of refined taste, acidity and umami, combined with an oily note that caresses the tongue. The ageing-induced aroma is just breathtaking, and it's always good to have some alcohol on hand for medical reasons." (AN: for the sake of this story, Myoboku sake will have a similar alcohol percentage as hard liquor, so somewhere between 45% – 60% instead of the wine-like percentage that is normal for sake.)
That… was actually a great idea. "You heard what he said? You provide us with as much… what was this stuff called?"
"Sake"
"Right. You provide us with as much sake as we need, and in return, we look out for your spawn." Every shinobi present was dealing with heavy sweat drops while listening to the exchange. Meanwhile, Zoro was grinning from ear to ear at the prospect of having an unlimited supply of high-quality booze. The aforementioned spawn, on the other hand: "You don't have much control over your crew, do you?" asked Luffy a question of his own.
"Control? Where's the fun in that? Nami can do whatever she wants, shishishi!"
"Gamagagagaga, I think I'm gonna like it with your lot!"
"Fine! You can have all the sake you need, as long as it stays in moderation. Do not test our patience on this. You might have my favour for now, but you do not want to lose it." That declaration was accompanied by Gamabunta slightly unsheathing his sword, causing Nami's survival instinct to finally step into the light again in a flurry of nods and bows.
"Great. Now two final things and I'll be done. First: Those jugs over there contain Mount Myoboku spring water, mixed with a single drop of sage oil. A growing toad needs to live in an environment rich in natural energy. To have that, I need Naruto over here to regularly scrub every surface on your ship with this water. Once it's used up, send Gamakichi back home to fetch some more. Let me make myself clear on this, Naruto. No one but you and other toads are allowed to handle this water. This is your responsibility as a summoner."
"Yeah, you hear that Naruto!" Usopp shouted from his spot behind Zoro where he hid since Gamabunta's threat towards Nami. "It's your responsibility to scrub the deck from now on. Don't you go shirking your duties, hahaha!" The entire crew joined in on the laughter.
"Grrr… fine! I can create enough shadow clones to finish that in an hour anyway, dattebayo!" he grumbly agreed.
"And finally, Kakashi…" the silver-haired jonin was still smiling indulgently at his student's misery, missing the ability to call upon his own summons while doing so. "Yes, Gamabunta-sama?"
Having the jonin-sensei's attention, the toad continued: "You are not a summoner of my clan, but you were the student of one and are the sensei of another. Therefore, I would ask you to oversee Gamakichi's training. My son has potential, but he is still young and has much to learn. Will you accept the position as Gamakichi's sensei?"
Slightly humbled by the great honour this represented, Kakashi readily agreed. "Of course, Gamabunta-sama. He will be treated just as any other member of Team 7."
"Good. Finally got this crap behind me. Now then, that was far too much talking and too little drinking. Let's get plastered."
"Truer words have never been spoken, Gababababababa!"
The giants continued getting acquainted with their newest friend, and Nami and Usopp organised the storage of the couple of water jugs that would henceforth be used to scrub the Merry's decks. As to Gamabunta's instructions, they were brought on board by a couple of Naruto's clones. That stuff would come in handy, especially after Mr. 5 had turned all their rum into bombs. That bastard really could count himself lucky that Luffy and Naruto got their hands on him before Brogy did.
"So… toads huh? What's up with that?" She asked what was assumedly the original, considering that he wasn't helping the other blondes and had a loudmouth of an amphibian sitting on his head that might fit a little too well into their crew.
"Yea… I learned the jutsu from the pervy sage." It took all of Nami's control not to face fault at that particular nickname, but going by the boy's wistful expression, the guy might not be so bad. "That and the [Rasengan] are some of my strongest techniques."
"Sounds to me like the guy cares a lot about you." She threw in, causing a blush to appear on Naruto's cheeks. "Did he also teach you how to make these clones?" Usopp added his own question.
"Ehm… no?" the rosy colouring further intensified; this time accompanied by suspicious head scratching as if they caught him with his hand in a cookie jar. "I kinda learned that from a scroll… that I stole… from the Hokage's office…"
"Pfahahahaha! You might have more pirate in you than I thought, kid!" For many, or actually for most people, that would have been an insult. But Naruto was wearing a bashful smile as the three of them stepped back into the light, still hearing Dorry, Brogy and Gamabunta exchanging war stories.
"Oh, right, I almost forgot. HEY DORRY?!" the navigator gained the giant's attention. "Yes, Nami? How may I be of service?"
"I just wanted to ask; do you know how long it takes for the log pose to reset here?"
"Oh… yes right. Has been a while since we had to worry about that. It's not too long actually. Just about a year or so."
"WHAT?! No no no no!" Nami broke down in desperation as she stared at the device strapped to her wrist as if it had betrayed her.
"This can't be…" Vivi threw in, having listened to the exchange. "We can't stay here for an entire year! Alabasta will have already fallen by then! Would you have a log pose on you that's already set?!"
"Afraid not, sorry. All we got is an eternal pose that's set for Elbaf."
Of course, as was proper for any knight in shining armour worth their salt, Sanji would never allow such desperation to mess with a damsel in distress… that said distress was caused by the ship cook forgetting to inform their navigator about their loot and only remembering when the giant mentioned and eternal pose, was already forgotten.
"Oh, don't you worry Nami-swan, Vivi-dearest!" He approached them with a glowing cigarette in his mouth in an attempt to look cool. "I have successfully secured… "
"This is also an eternal pose, right? We got it from that otter/vulture team. They were supposed to deliver it to Mr. 3." Sakura stepped up to the two older girls, holding up the device, the inscription 'Alabasta' clearly seen across the bottom. A certain ship's cook broke down to his knees, forgotten by anybody but his fellow blonde and Usopp who started to pat him on the back. Meanwhile, Nami and Vivi's eyes sparkled in appreciation as they congratulated the pinkette on a job well done.
***some time laterrrr (with a heavy French accent)***
The time had come to depart. Their sails were set and filled with wind as if to shout to the world: Give me everything you got! They were following the river they used to sail deeper into Little Garden, until it led them back to the sea, from where they would follow the route of their newly acquired eternal pose. Soon the smell of salt water was filling their noses when the river's mouth came into view, together with the backs of their giant friends, capes and happi vest blowing in the wind. Neither of the three was looking the pirate crew, instead opting to stare out towards the horizon.
Dorry was the first to talk: "Farewell dear friends. Meeting you has been a treat."
"Yes, indeed. Adventure lies ahead and wonders you could never even dream of." Brogy continued. "So, listen here if you want to make it off the island. No matter what happens, you must sail straight ahead. Trust in your ship, trust in your comrades, and trust us. Just keep a straight course."
Usopp cried out with quivering legs. "Y-y-you heard them! S-s-traight ah-head!"
"YEA! FULL SPEED AHEAD! ALABASTA, HERE WE COME!" Luffy shouted from his spot on the Merry's sheep head, while Kakashi took note of Dorry, Brogy and Gamabunta having their hands on their respective weapons, the toad mumbling something to the giant sword fighter that he couldn't make out.
"Let's see if the beast is as bad as you say." Dorry heard the amphibian and wistfully kept an eye on the straw hat's jolly roger.
"Ay, you'll see, Gegyagyagyagya!"
"The island eater they call it, Gababababababa! I remember once finding an island, only to find out it was its poop swimming in the sea! Took me a whole month to get the stink out of my boots!"
The sea churned, tranquil waters disturbed from deep below, opening up the doors to Davy Jones' Locker. "What is that?" Nami asked, being the first to pick up on the growing shadow beneath the waves. "Oh… oh hell no! Hard starboard!" the navigator shouted her command, only to be vetoed for the first time in a matter of navigation since joining the crew: "No way!" Luffy screamed towards the sea, challenging whatever lay ahead. "They said to sail straight, no matter what happens! And that's what we'll do! All hands on deck! No matter what happens, we will not stray from our course!"
And there it was, the chains of the deep broken, a gobbling maw full of teeth ready to gulp down a ship several times their own size.
"IT'S A FREAKING GOLDFISH!" Sanji shouted.
"F-F-FULL SPEED AH-AHEAD!" Usopp had bound himself to the main mast.
"QUACK QUAAAAAA!" "WHAAAAAAA!" Karoo and Vivi clung to each other, a paralysed pinkette squished between them.
"Tse… full speed ahead it is," Sasuke muttered under his breath.
"YEA! FULL SPEED AHEAD!" unbeknownst to him, Naruto mirrored his grumpy teammate.
And then there was darkness. The voyages of Luffy and Naruto, taking an abrupt end…
NAAAAH, JUST FUCKING WITH YOU!
"Full s-s-s-peeed ah-h-h-head!" the long nose was still stuttering in the darkness.
"WOULD YOU SHUT THE HELL UP!" Nami went into harpy mode, teeth sharp enough to strip Usopp's flesh from his bones. "WE ARE INSIDE A FREAKING GOLDFISH! THERE IS NO GOING STRAIGHT!"
"Keep a straight course!" Luffy chanted.
"I'LL KILL YOU!"
From the shores of Little Garden, three mighty warriors swung their weapons. Broad sword, axe and dosu-blade released a throuple of flying slashes, carving crevices into the water until they reached the goldfish and punched a perfectly round hole into its titanic body, from which the Going Merry got catapulted into a wide arch that ended in the ship's splashing descend. On board, most of the crew were dealing rather poorly with being swallowed… again.
"Shishishi, told ya!" But Luffy was not amongst them, as he stood up from his throne and ran to the after deck with Naruto, Usopp (who regained his bearings remarkably well) hot on his heels. All three of them almost threw themselves over the railing, shouting their goodbyes, waving towards their friends, with Gamakichi jumping up and down on Naruto's head: "BYE DAD! I'LL MAKE YOU PROUD! I PROMISE!"
Said boss-toad almost didn't hear his son's declaration. But when he did, a deep chuckle escaped his boss-sized lungs as he murmured: "Little idiot… I'm already proud of you.", while remembering what brought this situation upon them.
**flashback**
"So, we are in agreement." Fukasaku stood in front of the gathered warrior toads of Mount Myoboku, Gamamaru the great toad sage seemingly asleep on his throne behind him, the professor's hat almost falling from his head. "Gamarai shall join Naruto as his personal summon, ensuring our summoner's safety and representing our people on their travels through the world."
A more or less human-sized toad with yellow colouring and blue lightning-like markings on its skin came forward. In his right hand, he held a golden spear with a leaf-shaped blade pointing to the sky. With a rather severe visage, the warrior kneeled before Gamabunta's parents: "It will be my honour, Fukasaku-sama."
Gamabunta's eyes swerved back to his sleeping ancestor. The elder sage was easily one of the bigger toads, which was a stark reminder of his dwindling life. To an outside observer, there wouldn't be much sense to be found in the size of the many toads that could be summoned. Gamabunta's own parents, Shima and Fukasaku were much smaller than the average human, equal in size to his own sons, while the boss toad himself could rival some Biju in terms of physical presence.
The reason for this was that, in their younger years, toad bodies naturally absorbed massive amounts of natural chakra, causing equally massive and unpredictable growth spurts, paced over several decades, until they reached a more or less comparable size to Gamabunta himself. By that time, their growth slowed down to a crawl, with only centimetres added over several years. Once that point was reached, a choice was to be made. Would they be satisfied with their development, or attempt to walk the path of the sage, which meant strenuous training and extensive meditation, in which they learned to compress the natural energy in their bodies, causing them to further grow in strength while shrinking in size.
The benefits of walking this path were obvious. After all, both Shima and Fukasaku were easily capable to whoop their sons and any equally sized toads' asses, without having to put much effort into it. The risks, however, were nothing to sneeze at. Though they were born and raised surrounded by vast amounts of natural energy, by compressing said energy within them, they risked causing an imbalance inside of them, which in turn would turn them to stone, leaving nothing but a pretty life-like statue in place of a corpse.
This brought him back to Gamamaru's rather massive appearance. It was the natural progression of things. With his advanced age, control was slowly slipping through the elder sage's fingers, which in turn could only be rectified by relinquishing his chakra's condensed state and resulting in him returning to his boss size. He wasn't able to do much more than sleep these days.
"Yo, Bunta. What's up with the gathering?"
"It's Gamabunta you little… oh Gamahi. What brings you here, sister?" A blue toad, about Gamabunta's size with skin littered with greyish swirls and several scared burns over her hands, had stepped to his side. As if representing his opposite, she wore an identical happi vest, which was rusty red instead of her brother's blue counterpiece.
"Just delivering a commission…" his sibling grumbled, raising a remarkably familiar dosu blade in her right hand. Almost a perfect copy of the one Gamabunta had strapped to his hip, except for its sheath being pitch black, with red decorative swirls.
By now Gamahi stood a little taller than her older brother. A sign that he had taken the first step toward becoming a sage himself. From here on out, Gamabunta would either continue to shrink or literally die trying, while his sister would remain her current size. She wouldn't go the path of the sage, for she saw no worth in such things as power or enlightenment. The only thing Gamahi cared about was her craft, just like many other toads which had no interest in being warriors themselves.
In no way did that mean that she was of lower standing, quite the opposite actually. The crafters of Mount Myoboku were held in high regard among their kin. Gamabunta's own blade came from his sister's forge. He remembered clearly the day she gave it to him, declaring its name to be 'Kizuna' ("bond," "deep emotional connection," or "ties that bind" — especially those forged through struggle, loyalty, or shared fate)"Even if I can't fight with you, I shall always be by your side." She had said, before threatening him with unimaginable pain and embarrassment if he didn't take proper care of the weapon.
All the best weapons and armour were forged by Gamahi, and now it seemed that some lucky bastard was about to receive a blade that could rival his own. But of course, Gamabunta wasn't jealous, no sir!
"Ah, there you are Gamahi. Come to me, my child. Have you brought what I asked of you?" Gamamaru's grave voice rasped through the air, making everybody's eyes grow wide as they witnessed the elder sage speak. "Great lord elder! You are awake?" Shima cried out, only to be further shocked when for the first time in years, the frail toad rose from his throne, to meet the aforementioned blacksmith.
Gamahi had stepped away from her brother and presented the gigantic dosu with a bow: "Here it is, Great Honourable Geezer. Easily one of my best works and thirsting for battle." She declared as if talking about a person.
Gamamaru didn't reach for it, knowing that he wouldn't be able to lift the blade. Instead, he bowed down himself, allowing one of his perpetually squinting eyes to open, so that he could judge the quality of his commission. Recognising her elder's intention, Gamahi unsheathed her work in a fluid motion before presenting it to him again: "Hmmm… yes… truly remarkable, child. You fill this old toad with pride. It will serve young Naruto's companion well."
Not quite certain how to react to that, Gamarai turned first to Shima and Fukasaku before daring to approach the great toad sage: "Honourable elder… though this is quite generous of you, my skills with the sword are mediocre at best. I am a master of the spear, after all."
Gamamaru's head swerved to the yellow toad, so slowly it made you wonder if he had forgotten where he wanted to look, an indulgent smile on his lips and his eyes squinted shut again. "Hmmm… you would have been a remarkable guardian, indeed. But it is no a guardian young Naruto needs… listen to me, my children, and listen well… for the great summoning will soon be upon us."
Gasps filled the clearing that was their version of a throne room, any possible insult to Gamarai's honour completely forgotten. "Great elder, are you certain?" Fukasaku asked. "Far be it for me to question your judgement but never was a contractor capable of utilising the great summoning!"
"Fufufufu… to think that I myself shall see it happen. I understand your doubt Fukasaku-kun. But the dream was clear, so hear my prophecy. Soon our clan might face extinction, and the supreme summoning shall be our only hope. And to achieve it, chains of brotherhood must be forged from oil, wind, freedom, fire and rebellion. Young Gamakichi-kun… please join us."
Gamabunta had no trouble making out his sons' positions. After all, both were hiding rather poorly behind the same bush, while the younger one tried to rouse his brother from his apparent shock. "Great geezer… my son has potential, no doubt about that. But he is far too young for a task like this. Give me another few years to train him, or at least a couple of months, I beg of you!" Sure, the toad boss often seemed rather rough around the edges, but nobody would ever accuse him of being callous towards his children. They were the apple of his eye, especially since his wife…
Again Gamamaru opened one of his squinted eyes, this time to take Gamabunta into focus and shut him up. Not to say that there was any anger conveyed through his gaze, but it served the purpose of reminding the reigning chief of the toad clan, to whom he was talking. This was the inventor of the gama-ken. Gamabunta had to risk his life to walk the path of the sage, but it was still a well-travelled path, with plenty of footsteps to walk in. Gamamaru on the other side had to play the entire process by ear, extrapolating it from what he had observed of the Sage of Six Paths himself.
"Your concern is a testament to your heart, Gamabunta-kun, but fate is a fickle thing. Sometimes, we must allow it to play out, even when our hearts tell us otherwise. Now little tadpole, where are you? I'm not getting any younger, you know?" The short intermission was enough for Gamatatsu to rouse his brother, who nervously hopped towards his aunt and ancestor.
"Great geezer… what do you want?" Gamakichi saw his father visibly flinch, motivating him to change his tone: "I mean… how may I be of service?"
"Fufufu, don't you worry young Gamakichi. I would never reproach my children for a lack of etiquette towards me. We are family after all. Now receive your weapon. It will be a loyal companion on your travels." The heir of the toad clan switched looking between Gamamaru, Gamahi and the tree-sized sword his aunt was now holding out to him. A few seconds passed, and he turned to Shima: "Hey Ma? Don't know how to say it, but I think the geezer went nuts…"
Every toad around them started sweating from that insult. None of them was afraid of the great elder sage, but they were raised with a more than healthy respect for the guy. Said toad had his own take on things: "Fufufufu! Ah, yes of course. The fault lies with us, young one. Gamahi, would you please enlighten the next generation about the wonders of Myoboku blacksmithing?"
"Certainly, Great Honourable Geezer." she agreed, her 'crouching' down not doing much in terms of descending to Gamakichi's level. "You see Gamakichi, the ore used for this blade was brought up from the deepest caverns of Mount Myoboku and quenched in oil from the sage fountains. The wood was freely given from trees which have been absorbing natural energy for hundreds of years. Through the use of these materials and the methods of metal tempering invented here in our home, we are able to bestow a very special ability onto our weapons. Just push your chakra into the handle and you'll see."
Still not sure if he was the only sane one left among this bunch of relics, Gamakichi decided to follow his aunt's instructions. He reached out to put his hand on the handle and concentrated on pushing his chakra into it. And before he understood what exactly was happening, Gamakichi became a believer, as the dosu started to shrink until it fit comfortably into his hand. With the young toad's brain still computing, Gamahi continued her explanation: "The weapon imprinted on your chakra. It will henceforth grow to always fit your size perfectly. Never was a toad sent on such a… long-term assignment. In honour of these special circumstances, I named it 'Kiboumaru' (Hopeful Circle), for it shall safely guide you through a world of danger and unknowns until you return to our midst, a grown warrior toad."
**flashback end**
Already, Gamabunta saw his son getting back into some squabble with his new crew mates. His son the pirate-toad, now that was a new title.
"So Gamabunta. What about that rematch you were talking about?" Brogy asked while the ship disappeared behind the horizon.
"Hmpf… bring it on."
***Deep in the jungle***
Almost unnoticeably, the air began to move in a very specific clearing on Little Garden, that held patches of dead grass and a deep hole from which a giant had dug up a considerable amount of dirt in order to safely transport an unconscious young ninja. As if exiting from folds in the wind, purple glowing embers started to circulate. Grass, bushes and even trees were withering away, as similar lights were drawn from them, sucked into a vortex with the hole at its centre. Gradually the pit's walls began to liquefy, turning into a bubbling sludge and filling it up. The miasma released from the strange liquid rose to the canopy where it caused vibrant green to turn dead and dull.
Once the hole was filled, the swirling embers coalesced into the sludge, intensifying the release of gases as three humanoid figures seemingly formed from the viscous liquid. They ascended from its depth until they stood atop the quickly calming surface. In a last intense flare, the clearing was bathed in ominous light, and the sludge turned into stone. For a moment the figures existed as perfectly life-like sculptures. Then they crumbled, revealing skin, hair and cloth underneath.
There, on a prehistoric island on the Grand Line, three shinobi had appeared. The middle one had ash-grey hair and onyx eyes, hidden behind a pair of black-rimmed glasses. He wore a dark purple shirt with a high collar, a white under-shirt, and dark purple pants with a white cloth waistband, rounded up by a pair of dark purple fingerless gloves with armoured plates on the back of the hand and a blue forehead protector, with a musical note inscribed into the metal.
To his left stood a man with pale skin, shoulder-length white hair, vivid green eyes and two scarlet dots on his forehead. He wore a specialised version of the traditional Oto-nin ensemble, consisting of a light lavender, loose-fitting, long-sleeved, zip-up shirt, and a purple, rope-like belt tied in an inverted bow around his waist.
Last and preferably least, stood a tanned shinobi, a cruel smile on his lips, with black eyes and black, shaggy hair tied into a ponytail, together with a purple clothed forehead protector, also displaying the musical note of Otogakure. His sleeveless grey tunic appeared almost boring compared to his companions, but still, this man would have a tough time not drawing attention in a crowd. After all, six arms on a single human were kind of an eye-catcher.
With Kimimaro being easily the strongest member of Orochimaru's personal guard, and Kidomaru's proficiency with capture and restraining techniques, Kabuto would fulfil his master's wishes and bring Sasuke back under the snake sannin's influence.
***On the Going Merry***
"I guess that toad revealed a bit more than you would feel comfortable with, huh?" Nami approached the silver-haired ninja, who was absent-mindedly leaning over the railing, his gaze fixed on the waves below.
"Hm… I guess. Or maybe, he told you exactly what I wanted you to hear?" Kakashi suggested instead, meeting the navigator's smile with his own eye smile.
"Yea… maybe." She chuckled in return. "Ehm, it's kinda tough to say under that mask of yours… but you seem paler than usual. Everything all right? Maybe Sakura should take a look."
"Oh, don't worry. I'm quite all right." He assured her without success, his words sounding a little bit sluggish. He pushed himself from the railing and tried to walk away, but he came to an abrupt stop, his form leaning a little bit more to the left than seemed normal.
"On second thought… I might have screwed up…" he mumbled before crashing face-first into the wooden planks.
*** Chapter end***
Author's Note:
Alright, let's break it all down!
First off, I used the word mudra instead of "hand seals" or "hand signs." Technically, that's not entirely accurate, but since Naruto's hand signs are actually based on mudras—symbolic hand gestures used in Buddhism—it felt like a fitting choice. Plus, let's be real, "mudra" just sounds way cooler than "hand signs." Let me know what you think, but for now, I'm sticking with it!
Next up, the giants got themselves a new, equally massive friend! Pretty awesome, right? Now, I know some of you might question whether making boss summons the same size as One Piece giants makes sense. But honestly? The size of giants in One Piece is completely arbitrary. One moment, they're crouching under the jungle canopy, and the next, they're towering over the trees like they own the place. So, I decided to scale Little Garden's trees to be about the same size as Konoha's and made Gamabunta roughly the same height as One Piece giants. It feels just as logical as anything else in this universe, so I rolled with it. But hey, if you've got thoughts, I'd love to hear them!
Now, let's talk toad lore! In this chapter, I took a deep dive into Mount Myoboku, adding some non-canon elements—including two original characters, Gamarai and Gamahi—to flesh out the society of the toads. Oh, and Gamakichi officially joined the Straw Hat Pirates! I hinted before that summoning would play a major role in this story, and this is just the start. The whole "personal summons" concept is something I came up with, but as always, I try to add details that fit seamlessly into canon—ideas that aren't explicitly mentioned, but also aren't contradicted. I think this one fits the bill.
Now, on to something that might interest you: Jiraiya's last name. In canon, he doesn't have one. Not a single mention of it. But the three Sannin are based on an old Japanese folk tale, where The Gallant Jiraiya is the head of the Ogata Clan. Since it felt weird to leave him without a family name, I borrowed that one. Nice touch, right?
And then there's Myoboku sake—which, as you may have noticed, is strong. There's a reason for that! Alcohol was much more essential in ancient sea travel than we tend to think. Pirates drank so much rum because water would spoil quickly at sea. And high-proof liquor wasn't just for getting drunk—it had practical uses, like disinfecting wounds (not nearly as good as modern antiseptic, but still much better than weak alcohol). So, of course, Myoboku's sake had to pack a punch!
Oh, and speaking of big moments—three of Orochimaru's henchmen have officially entered the Grand Line! These characters were very carefully chosen, just like the ones who weren't sent on this mission. Kabuto's team has their own role to play later, and I can't wait to see what you all think when that part unfolds!
And finally… BAM! Kakashi went too far. If you've been wondering about this twist, well—this is what I've been planning since Chapter 1: flipping the script and making Kakashi the damsel in distress instead of Nami. Keeping this reveal under wraps was so hard, but I finally get to share it!
Alright, I think that's everything I wanted to say. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Drop your thoughts in a respectfully worded comment (I crave them. I need them.) and I'll see you in the review replies next time!
Replies:
Frankieu:
And there they landed! Three of Orochimaru's agents have entered the Grand Line. One's a genius spy, one's a powerhouse, and the other… well, they have six arms. xD Hope you enjoyed the reveal!
Samuel Santillan:
I love that you loved it, and I really hope you liked this chapter too!
As for Orochimaru dying—let's just say I am absolutely not a fan of his redemption in canon. I mean, the guy is as bad as the worst war criminals imaginable. What were they thinking?! That said, as a villain, Orochimaru is peak fiction. He and Aizen from Bleach are probably my all-time favorite villains! But yeah—no redemption arc for Orochimaru in my story. No sudden "good guy" moment.
Thor94:
Thanks! And don't worry about Naruto—he'll grow in time. While Naruto and Luffy start out with similar personality traits in their respective canons, they're inherently different. Naruto learned to act like an idiot, while Luffy is the actual king of idiots. That said, Naruto is still young and quite naive, so he's got some growing to do. He'll never lose his goofiness entirely, but he will get wiser over time.
Vongola Ninja:
Heyho! You were definitely missed! xD As always, thank you so much for your detailed comments—I love seeing how much you enjoy the story!
And yes, the unexpected yet very fitting friend has been revealed—a battle and drinking buddy!
As for Momo, I don't have any plans to involve her further. I just felt that giving her a name would make her slow, painful death hit harder.
Completely agree with you on Miss Goldenweek. Her ability should have been a Devil Fruit. It's honestly one of the biggest levels of bullshit in One Piece—right up there with Luffy and Bonney's abilities. Normally, something that overpowered screams "Devil Fruit," but nope, not for her.
Can't wait to hear your thoughts on the Little Garden finale!
Skullkingvon:
Sure thing! Here, have some more Fish Cake. 😉
Kharaki Takan:
Yeah, I agree—highly active shinobi, especially those who fought in wars, wouldn't experience any chakra control degradation. But a peacetime Kage? Someone who spends more time drowning in paperwork than training? I think some degradation is inevitable. Same goes for generally lazy peacetime shinobi.
As for Mr. 3… yeah, "survivor" fits—but so does rat. Not really a fan of the guy, especially since his Devil Fruit is so criminally underdeveloped. That being said, I totally get why he has a fanbase. He does have his redeeming qualities, and it'd be easy for a fanfic author to turn him into a total badass. I actually have some plans for him myself, and trust me—they're going to be pretty sick.
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!