Hey. I’m back. Soooo… I’m pleased to say that that I have received a few reviews. That makes me extremely happy. A concern I encountered was that Hitomi seemed quite weak for a former ANBU. One thing you should remember is that Hitomi had just been transported to a crazy new world, and like any sane person, she’d need time to adjust. If you’re still unsatisfied, I’ll give you quite a treat this chapter. This is where things start to pick up.
Oh, and I kinda stole and idea from Hunter X Hunter. Like, literally, just copied it. Oops. But you gotta admit, Killua’s too awesome for his own good. Killua fans UNITE!
And one more thing. I’m really sorry to any die-hard Naruto fans, but my main focus is gonna be on the One Piece universe. I’m probably going to be horrifyingly incorrect, so you’ll have to forgive me. Soooo… enjoy, I suppose.
XOXOXO
Disclaimer: I do not own neither Naruto nor One Piece. Leave that ish to Oda-sensei and Kishimoto-sensei.
Pairing: Law X OC
Ratings: M
Warnings: This story is rated ‘M’ for a reason. The following content contains vulgar language and graphic violence. Read at your own risk.
Notes:
Madara’s Massacre: Watch the same video as the previous chapter. Here’s the link again:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqjC6Se5ZG4
Godspeed mode: The same as Killua’s Godspeed, or Kanmuru mode in Hunter X Hunter. Here’s a clip if you wanna see what it looks like. It’s crazily epic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eulZFHSm0dw
Chapter 4
The next morning, Hitomi called Soma to have a serious conversation. Since Soma had decided to trust her and tell him about herself, she resolved to do the same. They determined to talk after they had their breakfast.
Hitomi was pleasantly surprised when she found out that Soma was quite the masterful chef. When he was staying with old man Nasha, he was the one in charge of the cooking. It wasn’t that Hitomi was unable to cook; she just knew a select number of dishes. And after the first month of repeatedly eating those dishes over and over, she got tired of it pretty quickly. That’s why she was ecstatic when she realized that she would finally have good food. After he served the both of them, they dug right in, and it was gone before they realized.
-o-
It was finally time to talk. Soma was on a high from the magnificent meal he had just cooked, but quickly sobered up when he saw Hitomi’s demeanor. Once she was sure that she had his complete attention, she began.
“I’m not of this world.”
Soma looked a little shocked, but there was something in his eyes that told her that he had known all along. She continued.
She explained the dynamics and system of her previous planet, recounted all the missions she had been assigned to, and described the horrors she had witnessed in the Great Shinobi War. She told him about herself and her now-extinct Clan, and how she was a mixed-blood.
She informed him that her skills were much higher than he had witnessed. She had never used her full capability because she did not know the dynamics of this world, and she did not wish to bring any unwanted attention onto herself. Soma had a response to that.
“Big sis, now that I’m here, you don’t need to worry about not being informed about this world. I’ve been keeping up with all the news that happens, and I could explain the system to you. You can go all-out now!” He beamed.
Soma explained that there are three major powers in this world: the Marine Admirals, the Shichibukai and the Yonkos. He proudly exclaimed that Shanks was one of the Four Kings, and honestly, Hitomi wasn’t the least bit surprised. She had felt his aura, and it was irrefutable that he had a lot of power.
-o-
Soma had been explaining to her the system of the Seven Warlords and how they were contracted to the World Government when they were interrupted. A large squawking bird was circling around the ship when it suddenly dropped something on Hitomi’s head. When she looked up to glare at it, she could swear that it was sniggering. It gave one last squawk towards Soma, then turned and flew away.
Hitomi turned back to Soma. “What was that?”
“Oh yeah! I forgot that I still had a subscription! That was a newspaper bird. If you subscribe, it’ll deliver the morning paper to you wherever you are in the world. Haven’t you ever seen one?”
Hitomi gave him a deadpan stare. If she knew what it was, she wouldn’t be asking him, would she? Soma embarrassedly cleared his throat and focused his attention on unwrapping the newspaper. As he worked, several loose papers slid out and landed on the deck floor. Hitomi bent down to examine them. Bounty posters. Most of the names were unrecognizable, but there were two that caught her eye.
On one them was picture of a close-up of the muzzle of a gun, as if the camera was about to be shot at close range. Attached to the gun was a scruffy-looking boy wearing a plaid-grey overshirt with the sleeves folded up to his elbows. On the boy’s face was a scowl, which emphasized his glowing amber eyes. They looked like liquid flames under the darkness of his flat cap. The text below read, ‘Wanted Dead or Alive: Point-Blank Sylva D. Soma. Reward: 20,000,000 Bellis.’
Soma snatched the paper out of her hands.
“Wow! Big sis, look! I’ve got a bounty! 20 million!”
He read his epithet.
“’Point-blank’? Uncle Shanks is right. Those Navy idiots have no originality when it comes to names. But… how do they know my full name? Well, I guess the stupid marines back on that base we attacked would have found out somehow.”
He looked contemplative for a second, but soon brightened up.
“Well, it doesn’t matter now, since I’m a pirate with you, big sis! Speaking of which, I can’t be the only one with a bounty raise.”
He shuffled through the scattered posters and pulled one out of the pile.
“See? ‘Quicksilver’ Gintamashi Hitomi is now wanted at 75 million Bellis.” He lowly whistled.
“Wow, that’s a big jump. But it’s not really surprising, regarding the fact that we just destroyed the largest Marine base on this part of the Grandline.”
Hitomi just stared at the boy while he excitedly ran excitedly across the ship, celebrating his newfound fame. She chuckled. No matter how mature he acted at times, he was still a kid.
-x-x-x-
Over the next few months, Hitomi’s and Soma’s bond strengthened. Hitomi found out that she was not too far from the mark on her estimation of his age. They celebrated his 12th birthday together, and she bought him a brand new pair of customized handguns as his birthday present. He gleefully trained with them until he could use them in his sleep. Literally. Hitomi found herself dodging bullets more often than not when she went to wake him up for their morning training.
They learned to work together as a perfect team, and were now a force to be reckoned with. Each was each able to hold their own in a battle, but they were unstoppable as a tag-team. Opponents would claim that they could read each other’s minds in battle. Hitomi would go on offense while Soma would hang back and make sure that she wouldn’t be blindsided with any dirty tricks their enemies thought up.
They came to be known as the ‘Silver Devils’. Soma thought it was ridiculous. Hitomi simply didn’t care.
-x-x-x-
After they had restocked all of their supplies, Hitomi and Soma were roaming around the island they were currently docked at. Though neither of them voiced it, they both thought the same thing: there was something very wrong with this island. They were in high-alert mode. The slightest trigger would cause them to attack.
They had just cautiously entered the plaza when they heard a piercing scream. Immediately the duo’s weapons were drawn and they ran towards the sound. They were met with the sight of a very young girl around the age of five. She had big, teary brown eyes and a collar around her neck. She was dressed in rags and was looking extremely confused. Everybody around her was trying to get as far from her as possible.
When Soma saw the collar around her neck, he stopped short with a terrorized expression. Hitomi didn’t notice his abrupt halt and ran up next to the girl. When she reached her, she kneeled down to her and spoke to her in a gentle voice.
“Are you alright?”
The girl’s eyes met Hitomi’s, then looked away, terrified. Hitomi was used to it. Just because Soma was comfortable with her eyes didn’t mean that everybody was. The girl spoke up in a trembling voice.
“M-Mommy told me t-to run. She said to get away from the bad man.”
She broke out into loud wails, but that wasn’t the most concerning thing. The metal collar on her neck started beeping. Hitomi looked at it, wondering what it signified.
“Big sis, LOOK OUT!”
Hitomi felt something pummel her roughly on her side, and both she and her assaulter were thrown away from the young girl.
And not a moment too soon. As soon as Hitomi had regained her bearings and turned back to the child, she witnessed a horrific sight. The girl’s beeping collar suddenly exploded.
Hitomi stared petrified. Who on earth would commit such a monstrosity, and to such a young child too? Her question was answered almost instantaneously. A lean, bony man appeared out of nowhere and strode up to the girl. With an eerie grin he lifted the girl’s lifeless body up by her hair.
It was established. The girl was undoubtedly dead. Her head and chest were blackened to a crisp, the blood had solidified from the heat of the blast. Her face was stuck in a permanent cry of agony, and her brown eyes still held the last vestiges of pain she had experienced.
The sinister man spoke up. “I’m sorry for any inconveniences that I’ve caused you. We had a little runaway, but not to worry. The rat’s been caught and dealt with. Good day to you all.”
The man left with a flourish, dragging the corpse of the girl behind him. He reached the end of the plaza and stopped. Within the minute, the thing that he was waiting for arrived. Almost like a procession, a long line of people shuffled by. But the abnormal thing about them was they all had chains around their necks. Their arms and feet were bound, and their chains linked to one another as if to prevent any from running away. They all had desolate expressions adorning their faces. Several men wielding whips walked alongside them, inflicting punishment on anybody that was slowing down.
Sprawled out next to her, Soma whispered.
“Sis. I know what’s bad about this island now. We’ve landed in the middle of a slavery chain.”
-x-x-x-
Hitomi and Soma sat together on a nearby bench in silence. Both were lost in their own thoughts. Hitomi was disgusted with what she had just witnessed. For her, whose dream was absolute freedom, this was the worst thing that could be inflicted on someone. She loathed oppression, and this primitive practice was the epitome of it.
Frustrated, she looked up. And met the eyes of a pink and white snake. Which was wearing a skull with blue hair.
Hitomi blinked. Then she blinked again. When she was sure that she wasn’t hallucinating, she nudged Soma and indicated to the serpent. When he saw it, his jaw dropped. He turned his curious amber orbs back to her.
“Can I?”
She gave a short nod. He bounced off the bench and jogged to the strange creature to get a closer look at it. Hitomi also raised herself off the bench and followed him, albeit much slower.
She watched as he reached out and touched it, and suddenly a hooded person stepped between them. Soma’s face took on a dazed expression as he stared into the face of the hooded figure, and a small blush appeared on his cheeks. He didn’t even react when the hooded figure raised one long, lean leg and positioned it, as if to kick him. Immediately, Hitomi moved.
-o-
Boa Hancock was anxiously watching the procession of slaves, looking to find her kidnapped nakama. She watched the long procession of slaves as they slowly ambled by, and anxiously chewed on her thumbnail as she looked for her kidnapped tribeswoman.
‘No sign of them. Where the hell are they?”
She was pulled out of her internal turmoil when she heard Salome hiss loudly. When she turned back to look at him, she saw that he was being petted by a scruffy little boy. He had remarkable eyes, fluorescent amber in color. The boy was cute, but he was overstepping his boundaries by touching her precious snake. She faced him.
“Boy. Unhand Salome.”
The boy stopped petting the snake and looked up to her face. Immediately, he looked dazed and sprouted a goofy expression on his face.
“Hey there, pretty lady.”
Really? This child thought that he could flirt with her, the Pirate Empress Boa Hancock, queen of Amazon Lily and member of the Shichibukai? She didn’t have time for dealing with this nonsense. She needed to search for her kin. She lifted up her leg and brought it down to kick him away. But to her surprise it didn’t hit him.
Instead, her blow was blocked by a woman with flowing silver hair, dark skin and piercing red eyes. She had appeared out of nowhere and placed herself in between her and the boy. Hancock’s kick met her raised arm, and she didn’t even flinch.
Impossible. Even Marigold and Sandersonia couldn’t take one of her hits unscathed, and they had enhanced physical endurance due to their Devil Fruits. This girl was special. Her physical prowess was unbelievable. But just in case it was a fluke, Hancock wanted to confirm it.
She retracted her leg and placed it down. Then, without any warning or prior indication, she raised her other leg and struck. But this too was easily blocked. She looked into the girl’s eyes. Her glimmering red orbs met black unhesitatingly.
So, it wasn’t a coincidence. This girl was the real deal. Hancock lowered her leg once more. The girl blankly stared at her, making sure that she wasn’t going to assault her again. When she determined that Hancock meant no more harm, she turned towards her young companion, who was still staring dreamily at her. The woman slapped him hard, bringing him out of his stupor.
“Please forgive Soma. He overstepped his boundaries.”
“Hey, babe. Are you free tonight?”
“Soma.”
“What? Uncle Shanks says it all the time!”
‘Uncle’ Shanks? Ah. This boy was acquainted with Red-Head Shanks. No wonder he was so disgustingly forward. She tuned back into the conversation.
“She’s too old for you.”
“So? She’s hot!”
Irritation flashed through the woman’s scarlet eyes. She grabbed the boy’s ear and dragged him forward. He yelped.
“Apologize.”
“Ahh, ok, ok! I’m sorry for touching your snake without asking. Now let me go, big sis!”
She released the boy’s ear and turned back to Hancock.
“Forgive us for the inconvenience. I will make it up in any way possible.”
Suddenly, the gears in Hancock’s head started turning. She smiled cunningly. Perfect.
“Actually, there is one thing you can help me with.”
-o-
Hitomi stared suspiciously at the woman. There was something off about her. She was undoubtedly powerful. She had felt it in their small exchange. She was abnormally beautiful, too. Almost too beautiful for words. If she had even an ounce less of mental strength, she knew for certain that she’d be fawning over her as well. With her looks and power, she could get anything she wanted. So why did she need them?
The black-haired beauty spoke up.
“My name is Boa Hancock. Surely you’ve heard of me.”
Hitomi blankly stared back, while Soma’s eyes widened in realization.
“So that’s why I was obsessed with her. I was under the spell of the love-love fruit. God, I’m so weak.” He cursed himself.
Hancock looked down at him. “Good job, little boy. Seems like you’re not completely brainless like all the other men are.”
When Hitomi still looked clueless, Soma informed her, “She’s one of the Warlords.”
Finally, Hitomi understood. “Hn.”
Hancock looked at her. Her eyes slightly narrowed. “You don’t know who I am?”
She intently observed Hitomi for a few seconds, and then her glare softened a bit.
“You’re not from this world. This explains so much, like why you have such unnatural eyes and how you can withstand my kicks. You must be a warrior back where you’re from, correct?”
“Hn.”
“Good. This will make things easier. I require your assistance. As you know, I am one of the seven Shichibukai. This means that I am an ally to the World Government. I cannot attack them or provoke them in any way, as that breaks our contract. But recently, slave traders kidnapped my kin and put them up for slavery. I cannot retaliate, as this whole slave chain is run by a Celestial Dragon.”
Hitomi looked to Soma, who got her cue. “Celestial Dragons are the highest rank of World Nobles. They’re said to be the direct descendants of the founders of the World Government, so they have their utmost protection. Attacking one will result in the immediate summoning of a Marine Admiral. Because they’re untouchable, the World Government lets them do whatever they want.”
Hitomi nodded and turned back to Hancock. She continued with her explanation.
“I wouldn’t mind taking them back by force, but I cannot do that as that will terminate the protection of the World Government for my kingdom. This is where you come in. I will publically draw their attention onto myself so that you and your male companion can free my nakama. In the process, we will demolish the entire slave chain. What say you?”
Hitomi pondered the woman’s proposition. She did hate slavery, and now she had an opportunity to get rid of it handed to her on a silver platter. But still… it was going to be undoubtedly dangerous. She looked to Soma. He solemnly nodded. Well, if he didn’t have any problems, then there was no specific reason not to comply. Besides, even if Soma did get himself stuck in a sticky situation, she was certain she’d be able to help him. After all, she had years of combat experience under her belt.
“...Agreed.”
A snakish smile crept onto Hancock’s face. Hitomi immediately regretted her decision.
“Excellent. Quicksilver Hitomi, correct? I’m looking forward to working with you.”
Soma looked a little panicked. “How do you know big sis?”
“The Kuja tribe is a tribe of women. Naturally, we’d keep an eye out for powerful female pirates. I remember reading about how you razed that annoying Marine base to the ground, and I must thank you for breaking that slimy greaseball’s sanity. He remained oily no matter how many times I had turned him to stone. Annoying.”
She smirked. “You two are known as the ‘Silver Devils’, correct? I’m curious to learn the extent of Quicksilver and Point-Blank’s skills.”
Hitomi couldn’t help but wonder about the range of the female Shichibukai’s powers as well. She had a feeling that she would find out sooner than expected.
-x-x-x-
The first course of action was to find the bony old man who had dragged away the corpse of the little girl. Hancock had speculated that her tribeswomen would be the personal slaves of the Celestial Dragon himself, and the way to find him was through this man. They needed to force the location of the Noble out of him. Wherever he was, that was the location of the headquarters of the slave chain.
They agreed to split up. If they found the man, they would signal the others to join them. All three went their separate ways.
-x-x-x-
Hitomi was walking though the town. More than a few men were watching her with lecherous gazes, but she ignored them all. Some even approached her, but all were soon leaving after a glance at her hostile Sharingans. Men. All were such wusses.
She was just planning to go deeper into the crowds when she heard the distinctive sound of Soma’s gun going off. After training with him for months, she had learned to distinguish his gun’s sound from others. Without a second thought, she jumped onto the nearest roof and bolted towards the source of the gunfire.
-o-
Hitomi arrived by Soma’s side within seconds, and almost immediately Hancock appeared as well. They found Soma next to their target, with a gun pressed up against his temple. His free hand held his second gun, which was pointed upwards, smoke rising from the muzzle.
The man had his hands raised, but was amusedly smirking.
“Wow, you ladies rushed over here quickly. That eager to see me, are you? Now now, you don’t have to fight, there’s enough of me to go around. Maybe even with both you beauties at the same time, hmm?”
The man parted his lips to reveal brown, rotting teeth as he madly cackled. Hitomi could feel Hancock’s anger rise, and sensed her furiously move towards the man. Hitomi stepped in front of her, blocking her way.
“Stop. You’ll kill him. I’ll handle it.”
Hancock reluctantly backed down. Hitomi turned her attention back to the grinning man.
“Oh, you’re talking about Lord Celestial Dragon? Sure, I know his location. What’s the use in denying it? But that doesn’t mean that I’m gonna tell you, gorgeous. I’ve been specially handpicked by him because of my special genetic condition. Here’s a little secret: I can’t feel pain. I can perceive touch, but it shuts down after a certain sensitivity. So there’s no use in torturing me. I won’t spill anything.”
Hitomi contemplated the man’s words. “You say that you can sense anything touching you?”
He bared his teeth at her once again. “That’s right baby doll. Makes it perfect for fucking you and blackie over there, ain’t it?”
Hearing his response, Hancock hissed in anger and Soma growled, pressing his gun harder against his head.
“Talk about them like that one more time and you’ll be spitting out bullets.”
Hitomi kept her composure, but felt bile rise in her throat. Frankly, which woman wouldn’t be disgusted after hearing this repulsive man’s remarks? But it didn’t matter. He wouldn’t be smiling for much longer.
Hitomi ruthlessly sneered. “Perfect. That’s all I need.”
And she pulled him into a genjutsu.
-x-x-x-
The man opened eyes to find that he had been strapped onto a table, with his arms, legs and head firmly bound to the surface. He tried pulling them loose, but to no avail. He was stuck on there good. He looked around, seeing if he could find any signs that gave away where he was being held captive. The ceiling was dark and made of wood, and it looked like it was slightly rotting. The walls were made of cement, and had patches of mildew all over it. He reckoned he must be in somebody’s basement.
He looked up, and saw that there was some kind of mechanical gadget. It must be a torture device of some kind. She’ll find out that he was telling the truth about not being able to feel pain. And she can’t kill him, because he held vital information. He smirked. He was completely confident that he was going to be alright.
Reassured with that thought in mind, he continued to look around. He turned his eyes left. Just a lone stool. Nothing too special. He looked right, and saw a cabinet. He squinted, and when he saw the contents it possessed, he gasped. There were numerous glass jars, and within them were severed heads. But they all had one thing in common. No matter which one he looked at, each had a clean hole in the center of the forehead, as if a bullet passed cleanly through. He shuddered. This beauty sure had some weird tastes.
A loud creaking snapped his gaze towards the lone door of the room. The dark-skinned belle entered carrying a bucket, and upon closer inspection, he saw that it was filled with water. He almost burst into laughter. What was she going to do with it, make him drink it? He doubted that this exotic woman had even tortured anyone before. This is going to be fun, taunting an amateur.
He grinned up at her. “Hey there cutie. I didn’t know that you were into bondage. Why don’t we take this off so that we could get to the good stuff?”
The girl’s face held no expression as she turned her blood-red eyes towards him. Yeesh. What a turn-off. Those eyes of hers could make any man lose his boner in the middle of doing the deed. He could almost feel the very breath being sucked out of him, and not in a positive way. Definitely a downer. If only she had better eyes. It was really such a waste. With that kind of body, she would have been a good fuck.
She ignored his pass at her and walked by him, making no indication that she had even heard him. He smirked. So, she wanted to play hard to get, did she? He loved a good chase.
He watched as she took the bucket of water and poured it into the mechanical device he had seen earlier. He was right. It was some kind of torture device. He spoke up while she worked.
“I’ve told you before, haven’t I? I can’t feel pain. If you’re thinking of pouring boiling water on me or something, it won’t work. I won’t tell you no matter what you do. The Celestial Dragon may be a sunnava bitch, but he sure pays well. I sure as hell ain’t gonna betray him and have the government on my tail after he squeals.”
The girl made no response, and continued working. When she finished, he saw her take the device and wheel it towards him. She positioned it so that something hovered over his head. As he wondered what kinds of unspeakable horrors she was going to inflict on him, he felt a drop. Then another. And another.
The man burst out into laughter. Seriously? This was her idea of torture? Dripping water on his forehead? She was even stupider than he originally thought, and he made sure to vocalize it.
After he had finished his chain of slurs and insults, she spoke.
“I will ask you a question every hour. If you fail to answer it, the torture will continue. I will deem the answer acceptable only if you answer it when I ask you. Anything you say in between will not be regarded.”
She peered at him blankly.
“Where is he?”
The man simply laughed. “You hurt me, darling. Asking for another man when you already have me? Such a heartbreaker.”
Seeing that her question remained unanswered, she turned and walked to the stool in the corner. She sat. And waited.
-o-
By his count of the number of times she had asked him the same question, three hours had now passed. He realized that no matter whatever he had said, she wouldn’t react. He even went as far as telling her how he would fuck both her and the black-haired beauty, and how he would slowly kill the kid by taking him apart piece by piece.
He pouted. This girl had a heart of stone. What kind of person wouldn’t show any reaction when they were graphically described how they were going to be violated? This insane female, apparently. He sighed and finally decided to give up.
He looked to his left and met the discerning eyes of the female next to him. Nope. Not a good place to look. He looked to his right and met the stares of the floating heads. And not there either. He looked up, and saw the drop of water that was falling towards his forehead. He watched as the drop grew closer and closer. He blinked and flinched a little when it had finally hit him. He observed the next few drops that came down on his forehead.
After a while, he had a small realization. The drop was hitting the same place on his forehead every time. Ugg. How annoying. He tried to lift his hands up to wipe the water away, but soon remembered that they were bound. Tch. Fine then. He tried to shake his head to get rid of the excess liquid, but found that he couldn’t even move a centimeter. A spark of irritation flashed through his eyes.
-o-
Hitomi watched as the man began to struggle against his restraints. It wouldn’t be much longer now.
-o-
The man grew more and more irritated as he became hyper-aware that the drops were hitting the same point over and over. To take his mind off of the stupid droplets, he thought about other things. He recalled all sorts of stuff; from various chicks he fucked to how he was going to demand a pay raise from that stupid noble for making him go through this ‘torture’. But nothing could completely block the feeling of the droplets plopping onto his forehead.
He had a niggling feeling at the back of his mind. Suddenly, an ancient conversation he had once had with an old friend of his in a bar popped into his mind. They were talking about the decreasing quality of soil on their island, and how it was going to affect business. The man’s eyes flew open. One word that had been used in their conversation stood out clearly.
Erosion.
It couldn’t be… It wasn’t possible… then, the purpose of this ‘torture’ is to… he didn’t finish the thought as his eyes wandered to his right.
Many heads stuffed in jars. Perfectly formed holes. Right in the middle of the forehead.
The man’s breathing became frantic. It wasn’t true, right? He couldn’t convince himself. He needed to check to make sure. But when he tried to raise his arm, it was still firmly attached to his side.
He was sweating heavily now. This is a lie, right? He looked to his left and met the scarlet orbs of his torturer. Slowly, she looked away from his eyes and focused them straight ahead to look at the cabinet. The man knew what she was looking at. His heartbeat grew louder and louder as she turned back towards him and gazed at a specific point on his forehead.
He screamed.
-o-
After the man had the idea that there was a growing hole in his forehead, he had cracked pretty quickly. He was soon shouting out the location of the Celestial Dragon, and begging Hitomi to spare him. But Hitomi kept her word. She would only accept the answer from him when she asked the question. The man had to wait 40 more minutes to wait. Hitomi hoped he wouldn’t go insane by then.
The man was on the cusp of no return when Hitomi had finally asked the question once more. The recited the same mantra he had been chanting for half an hour.
“In the warehouse near the beach. In the warehouse near the beach. In the warehouse near the beach.”
Hitomi sighed. Well, this man was one of the luckier victims. Most went insane within the fourth hour. She was impressed. He had lasted a whole six hours. But now was not the time to be awestruck. She needed to release him before he ended up like one of her more unfortunate victims.
-x-x-x-
Boa Hancock was furious at the filthy man for speaking to her in such a demeaning mannor. He should know his place, he’s a man. But when she was stopped from attacking him by Quicksilver, she knew that she had to comply now that her nakama’s lives were in the balance.
She glanced over at the girl. Hancock knew that she was truly lucky to attain such a level-headed ally. Since she didn’t allow Sandersonia and Marigold to come with her, there was no one to put a cap on her anger. She was ashamed to admit that before she had encountered the Silver Pirates, she had left a trail of statues in her wake, even though she was trying not to draw attention to herself.
She watched as Hitomi gazed into the man’s eyes. He remained stationary for a few seconds, then he burst out into screams and clutched his forehead.
“Monster! Demon! You should rot in Hell!”
Then he turned tail and ran, all the while clutching his forehead and shouting something about hating water drops.
Hancock was intrigued. What kind of ability did she possess to make someone so confident one second run away in terror the next with just a glance? She must have used this same ability on the oily Rear-Admiral, except he didn’t get off as luckily as the most recent victim had.
Soma looked at Hitomi.
“What was it this time?”
“Chinese water torture.”
“Hmmm. So that’s why he was holding his forehead as he ran.”
“Hn.”
“Did you get the location?”
“Hn. ‘In a warehouse near a beach.’”
“Kinda vague, isn’t it?”
“Hn.”
-o-
Hancock watched the exchange between the two rookie pirates. It was obvious to anyone that they cared deeply for each other and trusted the other with their life unconditionally. She smiled. It reminded her of the bond she shared with her sisters. Maybe all males weren’t as completely worthless as she had thought.
She watched as Soma analyzed all the data that Hitomi had collected in her interrogation and processes it. He really was mature for someone his age, but he too had his moments of childishness. He was abnormally sharp and well informed, and his gun-wielding was top class. He was quite the interesting specimen.
And as for Hitomi… she was the one who had found the boy and was now caring for him. That in itself warrants recognition. But Hancock knew for certain that her specialties spanned much further. She had only witnessed her utilizing one of her powers so far, and she was actually excited to see the others.
She gently smiled. Maybe it was a work of fate that brought these two in front of her path. Whatever it was, she wasn’t going to question it, but rather get to know them.
-x-x-x-
The trio was now making their way through a forest. Since they didn’t know specifically where the warehouse was located, they decided to follow the beach around the island until they encountered it. While they walked, well, while Hitomi and Soma walked and Hancock rode on Salome, they talked about themselves to get to know each other better.
Soma spoke up for the both of them and explained that he was trained by the same man that taught the infamous Benn Beckman, and that was why he was so proficient at marksmanship. He told Hancock that Hitomi was a high-ranking shinobi in her previous world, which was, in his opinion, almost as dangerous as this one.
Hancock listened raptly while the boy explained Hitomi’s current situation. So that’s how it was, huh? Some sort of unknown teleportation power. When she heard about all the notable people that she’s met, Hancock’s eyes narrowed. This was no mere coincidence. She ended up on this planet and successively encountered some of their world’s most powerful names. There were some external forces at work here. Hancock didn’t have any clue as to what they were, though. The only way to find out was to let the events all unfold.
Hancock spoke about herself as well. She reluctantly informed them that she used to be a former slave, but swore them to secrecy. If that information got out, it could spell catastrophe for her entire tribe. She described the horrors that she and her sisters had gone through. Hitomi said nothing, but Hancock could see a compassionate look in her eyes.
Hancock swallowed a rising lump in her throat. Hitomi understood. She didn’t pity her like all the other people who had found out about her situation. She simply accepted it and respected Hancock for going through it, allowing her to grow stronger. Hancock felt a wave of affection for the young woman. She reached towards her and pulled her into a tight embrace.
“Thank you.” She whispered.
Soma watched the scene with fond eyes. Yup, big sis was special alright. Even with her cold exterior, she could worm her way into just anybody’s heart. She knew just what to do to make them adore her. After all, that was how he had opened his locked-up heart to her.
After Hancock had composed herself once more, she spoke about how she was rescued by Fisher Tiger.
Soma’s eyes widened and he immediately grew excited.
“Fisher Tiger? The Fisher Tiger? The founder of the Sun Pirates and the most famous Fishman pirate to have ever lived? You’re so lucky to have met him!”
Soma continued to prance around in enthusiasm. Without waiting for a cue, he began explaining what Fishmen and Mermaids were to the clueless Hitomi.
And that is when the trio encountered the warehouse.
-x-x-x-
It was unmistakable. This was the headquarters. Why? Large, cursive font in the front spelled out ‘Celestial Slavers’. The three collectively snorted. He couldn’t be more obvious, could he? He might as well have put it on a neon sign.
The trio hid in some bushes and peered at the spectacle taking place. Numerous Navy warships were docked at the port and hundreds of soldiers were pouring out, stationing themselves in front of the warehouse. At the head of the first ship stood a stern looking man with a sharp mustache and Mohawk, both colored dark purple.
Hancock cursed. They had been careless. The bony man must have informed the Celestial Dragon about their perusal, making him call the Navy for reinforcements. And now they had around a thousand soldiers and one very powerful Vice-Admiral Momonga standing between them and the warehouse.
Immediately they came up with a plan of action. Hancock would engage Momonga in battle, keeping him from assisting his soldiers. After all, she was infamously known to attack men, even Navy officers unprovoked. Soma would enter the warehouse to free the slaves, which left Hitomi to deal with the soldiers.
When Hitomi was met with Soma’s and Hancock’s worried gazes, she just smiled darkly.
“I’ll be just fine. This situation reminds me of the one my ancestor was in very recently. I expect the outcomes to be similar.”
Hancock had absolutely no idea what she was talking about, but Soma smiled evilly as well.
“You mean like you told me how Uchiha Madara took out the majority of the ‘Allied Shinobi Forces’ singlehandedly?”
Hitomi turned her sharkish grin towards Soma.
“Hn.”
“Excellent. Maybe I can finally see big sis’ true power now.”
He turned back to Hancock, still wearing his sadistic smile.
“Don’t worry about us, big sis Hancock. Just focus on preoccupying the Vice-Admiral, and sis and I will take care of the rest. You’ll soon see exactly why it was a good idea to make us your allies.”
He faced the Marines, his amber eyes looking like molten flames with the intensity running through them.
“Now, let the games begin.”
-x-x-x-
Immediately, Hancock leaped up and gave a powerful kick to Momonga’s chest. His eyes widened as he flew backwards with a crash into the wall. When he pulled himself out of the rubble and gazed at his assaulter, a look of recognition filled his eyes. Hitomi and Soma could see him trying to placate an aggressive Hancock. That was their cue.
Hitomi took Soma onto her back and raced through the marines. It was quite a simple task, as all of them were too preoccupied with their commander’s battle with an infamous Shichibukai. By the time someone had sounded the alarm, Hitomi had already released Soma and he had raced inside the warehouse.
Hitomi turned to face the now vigilant soldiers. Her role was to make sure that Soma wasn’t disturbed while he released all the captive slaves. In order to do that, she couldn’t allow anyone to pass. She smiled. It had been a while since she had gotten a workout as good as this one was going to be.
‘Let’s see how rusty I’ve become, shall we?’
-o-
Hitomi stretched a little, closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She let her chakra flow through her body until it was continuously circulating through every inch. She opened her eyes.
“Lightning release: Godspeed.”
Immediately her chakra turned into electricity and her body took on a luminescent glow. Her long hair stiffened up and bent jaggedly, resembling silver lightning bolts. Her scarlet orbs glowed brightly, as if they were shining red spotlights. Sparks crackled around her body. The only word that could be used to describe her was electric.
Since Hitomi didn’t have very large chakra reserves, ninjutsu wasn’t her preferred mode of battle. When it came to one on one fights, she used genjutsus, and when she was required to combat a large number of people, she utilized her taijutsu skills.
In order to heighten her physical prowess when using taijutsu, she came up with her original ninjutsu, which she named ‘Godspeed’. Its concept was laughably simple, but nobody other than people with extremely high electrical tolerance could use it. She simply changed her chakra into electricity and circulated it through her body. It lasted a very long time, and increased her speed, reaction time and endurance. It was the perfect fit for a taijutsu oriented kunoichi like herself.
When Hitomi was certain that her Godspeed mode had been completely activated, she drew Shippou Kireimei, and ran her current through it. The blade glowed brightly. Anything that came in contact with either her or her blade would be severely, if not fatally shocked. Hitomi smirked.
As Soma had so eloquently put it, let the games begin.
She charged.
-x-x-x-
The next few events that transcribed aren’t able to be coherently described, not even by Hitomi herself. She was on complete autopilot, moving like a whirlwind of destruction. Anything that stood in her path would be effortlessly decimated. She leaped and kicked and slashed until even she was unable to discern her individual movements anymore.
Very soon the Marines had realized that they were completely helpless against this devil. No matter what they did, they weren’t able to put even a single scratch on her. Even when they fired volleys of bullets at her, she would skillfully cut each bullet in half with a single versatile slash of her Wakizashi. If anyone even touched her, they would fall away, screaming and holding the affected area in pain.
And her speed… They could only see glimpses of her before she vanished and appeared in a different location, almost as if she was teleporting. The scariest part was her scarlet eyes… they flitted continuously, as if trying to take in everything at one. Just one look into them rendered you immobile.
She was absolute.
She was unstoppable.
She was more terrifying than death itself.
-o-
There were several words to describe the battle that took place. One was massacre. Another was extermination. But whichever word was used, it perfectly summed up the shit storm that was concluded in a mere five minutes.
Not a single one out of the thousand soldiers was left standing.
Both Momonga and Hancock gaped astounded at Hitomi, their duel long forgotten. Once Hitomi had realized that there were no more targets, she halted. She looked over to Hancock, as if to make sure that she was alright. Once she had confirmed it, she nodded once and disappeared in the direction of the warehouse.
The only reason Hancock and Momonga could track her whereabouts is because both had activated their Observation Haki and had given their full attention to her. They both came to an unspoken consensus.
This woman was extremely dangerous and not a force to be reckoned with.
-x-x-x-
Hitomi rushed into the warehouse, where she found Soma in seconds. He was just giving a set of keys to the last batch of slaves that were still chained. All the others had been released. The Celestial Dragon lay on the floor blubbering. He was extremely unattractive, with an enormous whale-like body and greasy swamp-green hair styled the strangest way, with it sticking straight up with a curl at the end. He wore white robes and a circular helmet like thing. When looking at him, Hitomi felt no pity at all.
When Soma noticed her, he faced her and grinned widely.
“Hey big sis! I saw you fighting down there! You were such a badass! Now I know for sure that you’re the strongest! As for me, I’ve got everything under control. As soon as I pointed a gun at the bastard’s head, he threw me the keys. Huh, not so cocky now, are you?” He aimed the last statement at the weeping noble.
“I’ve freed everyone. What should we do now?”
“Our work here is done. Just one more thing.”
Hitomi approached the sniveling man. She knelt down next to him and glared at him. He trembled even harder when he met her glowing red eyes. She raised a hand and brought it close to him.
“Slavery is bad.”
Then she placed it on his face. He screamed as shocks went through his body. He fell forward and landed in a heap on the floor. Spams passed through him from the last presences of electricity, and his carefully styled hair was now in a bushy green afro.
Everyone looked at the fallen noble then turned to look at the electrified warrior. Then, as one, they broke out into loud cheers.
-x-x-x-
Now under the threat of having an Admiral on their tail, Hitomi grabbed Soma and the two women she assumed to be the Kuja pirates and bolted. She suddenly arrived in front of the off-guard Momonga and Hancock and grabbed the Pirate Empress’s hand as well. The she disappeared off with the Shichibuki, leaving no indication that she had ever been there.
As the small group sped through the island, Hancock couldn’t help but smirk. The government must have had a rare moment of intuition when they dubbed her ‘Quicksilver’. She looked like a flashing bolt of silver when she entered this mode.
Within a minute, Hitomi had arrived at the central port. She let down all of her passengers, a few of which looked a little green from the unexpected high-speed ride. She finally deactivated her Godspeed mode.
They boarded their respective ships, which were coincidentally docked next to each other, and set sail immediately, not wanting to risk getting caught up in battle with an Admiral.
Hancock was extremely grateful to Hitomi and Soma and thanked both of them profusely, as did the Kuja women who had been rescued. Hancock graciously invited the both of them to her island whenever they pleased, and declared that they were now permanent allies.
After many farewells and tears from the previously enslaved women’s end, they finally parted ways. Hitomi was glad to have met someone like Boa Hancock. She was an interesting person to know, and she made for a reliable ally.
So now, the Silver Devils had two very devastating allies: the Kuja pirates and the Red-Head pirates. Even though they were only two in number, they were extremely powerful. A fact that the government had finally realized, and they rectified their mistake as soon as they could.
-x-x-x-
Beautiful Snakey Snob
Name: Boa Hancock
Appearance: Purple dress with slit up one leg, gold snake earrings, long black hair and is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Has a huge white snake with pink spots which wears a skull that follows her around.
Thoughts: The most arrogant and short-tempered woman I have ever met. Extremely powerful and dangerously beautiful. Has a terrible past which makes her hate men. Good to have her as an ally. Almost like a big sister I never had.
Hitomi has just finished profiling Hancock the next morning when the newspaper bird brought in a few very interesting developments. Both Hitomi and Soma had found that their bounties had increased, and much more than they had anticipated.
Point-Blank Sylva D. Soma was now wanted at 85,000,000 Bellis. He was, without a doubt, the most wanted child in the world.
Quicksilver Gintamashi Hitomi was now wanted at 175,000,000 Bellies. A full hundred million belli jump from her previous bounty. Guess that attacking a Celestial Dragon and bringing down his slave chain really irked the government.
-x-x-x-
Now that their bounties had such drastic raises, Hitomi and Soma had many more bounty hunters and Marines on their trail. They got the worst of it when they had to stop at their next island for an entire two months to wait for their Log Pose to set, but they only grew stronger due to the constant fighting. Because they had to be constantly vigilant, they both had somehow managed to unlock their Observation Haki, but were unable to control it at all. But that in itself was enough for them to keep their assaulters at bay.
Finally, after a brutal two months, the duo was finally able to set sail once more. They had only one more island to go until they entered the second part of the Grand Line, the New World.
Now, off to the Sabaody Archipelago.
XOXOXOXO
Wow. Soooo… yeah. Tell me what you guys think…
I-Dont-Like-I-Obsess: Ha, I told you that I could do it, senpai! I made her a supernova in one chapter and she’s all geared up to meet the other ones! And I guess that you finally know which famous personality she meets in this chapter, too. Really, your self-control is something else. And above all, I hope that you enjoyed the chapter!
The-Raving-Cheshire-Cat: I really must thank you. Your review meant so much to me, and it was probably the deciding factor for me to write faster. I really hope that you find this chapter interesting as well!
Guest: I hope that Hitomi’s a little more to your liking. If she’s still not, I have ideas for the next few chapters that might make her seem so.
So… peace out peoplez.
ns3.141.29.234da2
