Disclaimer : I own nothing.
Chapter 51 : Big Reveals?
- Shin –
The crowd gathered in the training grounds was amazing.
Issho And I sat on the front left side of the battlefield with Mihawk and Jinbei.
Blackbeard was magically absent from the scene.
I saw Doflamingo and Moriah keeping their distance from me since yesterday.
The video den den mushi were already set up and I looked around at my last night's arrangements. They were in place.
"The Marines are really going all out. I wonder If they would have dared to do the same if it was twenty years ago." I spoke the words in my mind.
"Whitebeard at his prime was a force no one would have dared to challenge except the likes of Gol D. Roger. Even now these people only dare to do this because they have Ace as a captive and the home field advantage. They just want to establish the name of the Marines without actually caring what the effects of the whole battle will be on the whole world. What would happen to the people of the territories that Whitebeard protects?" The one reply was surprisingly Jinbei.
"Sir Jinbei seems to have some opinions about this battle. Would you allow me to listen to those?" Issho has been observing everything since the very start.
"Whitebeard may be called a pirate but he is the savior of many countries that he guards including our Fishman Island but obviously any power that can threaten or rival the World Government becomes pirates automatically to the world." Jinbei spat out.
"I am actually surprised to see you in this fight in the first place. I didn't think that you with your character would come to this battle." Mihawk commented.
"I was asked by Pops himself to fight. He might not have wanted to endanger Fishman Island. Our entire island supports him but it was his own wish and order so I had to come here."
Mihawk looked at me and I merely shrugged.
The time of the execution was nearing and I was both slightly nervous and excited for my greatest play in the world. A play that will turn this world on its head.
The Marines blabbed about the situation. Sengoku went on about how they would take down one of the worst pirates in the world and cleanse the world.
The atmosphere was rising due to the speech given by Sengoku.
I smirked internally.
The higher you go, the harder you fall.
Time passed and the momentum that the soldiers had gained cooled off.
People even began to doubt if Whitebeard would come.
Sengoku must be in such a pinch just now.
But the old coot proved that there was a reason why he was called the resourceful general.
Although his inner state of mind was in total frustration, he still shouted with a cheerful face, "See. This is the power of the Marines. Even someone like Whitebeard, the strongest man in the world, doesn't dare to challenge us. But then again, he's a pirate. They only know how to run and hide."
I am pretty sure that Roger and Whitebeard would be laughing their asses off at this very moment.
The thing I had done was put the video den den mushi all across the world, including our own territories. Even Tesoro agreed to broadcast it and had made prior connections with the Marines to broadcast the battle. Sengoku had happily agreed to it. Free PR.
He would soon understand just who it is that was getting the PR.
It was when he said that Pirates wouldn't dare to face the Marines that Issho looked towards the clouds and I followed his gaze, my Observation Haki already way ahead.
A menacing roar shook the entire Marineford.
The atmosphere changed, black clouds covered the sky as lightning thundered from them and a whirlpool formed in the sky and from inside that whirlpool out came the biggest dragon I had seen, including the ones from the DxD world.
A blue eastern dragon covered the entire sky of Marineford and Sengoku's face paled.
Kaido of the Beasts had entered the battlefield.
- Whitebeard –
"Gurarararara, that bastard Sengoku hasn't changed at all. He can still spew crap with a dignified face." Whitebeard drank his beer as he looked at the screen. Roger, Rayleigh, Dragon and Shanks beside him.
If Sengoku had any idea what was actually going on, he would have kept his mouth shut but not everyone could see the future.
"Wahahahaha that Sengoku is going to be so mad."
"Dad…." Dragon on the other hand looked downcast at the sight of his father. This was probably the hardest on the old man.
Ace, Luffy and Sabo on the side also looked at the downcast face of Garp and felt a tinge of pain in their hearts.
No matter how much Garp might have tortured them, it was for their own good. So that they don't die easily in such a world. Now seeing the man showing his true emotions, they couldn't help but feel sad.
"Ace, Sabo."
"Hmm."
"Yes."
"Let's go and meet Gramps after this."
"Alright."
"Okay."
"He will be mad though. Will probably chase us to beat us again."
"Shishishishishi, I have been training very hard these days under Rayleigh. I am already stronger than I was a month ago. I bet I can kick the old man's butt now."
"Hahahahaha the old man is much stronger than he looks. He could probably kick all three of our butts alone."
"EHH Really!?"
"Yes. Mr. Garp is the strongest marine for a reason. Even leader says that he is very strong."
Everyone watched the video with their own thoughts.
There was a massive wave of murmurs when Kaido entered the scene.
"Bwahahahaha Kaido, that brat has really grown up."
"This is really going to be a great show. So does anyone have any idea about what Shin is going to do?" Shanks asked while gulping down his beer.
"No idea. Boss is planning something but when we asked what it was, he just said that he would rip off their masks in one fell swoop. Show the real face of the World Government and respond accordingly" Meredith replied watching the 'show'.
That made a serious look appear on Roger's face.
"Are you worried, old friend? Is your apprentice that troublesome?"
"Oh I am worried alright? This is the man who blew his name into the Redline because the World Government tried to lie about him. The worst part about it is not what he did but the fact that he did it all in less than seven hours and considered it a 'light' exercise. I am afraid of what he might do when he gets serious."
"T-that is a good reason."
"Yeah, Boss going crazy is no good. His normal is already a bit round the twist. Mad Boss is….I have only seen that once." Meridith shivered as she recalled something but kept it to herself.
"That was a special case. If the World Government is as stupid as Kokabiel, then they will meet the same end." Rias said as she was watching the scene. Rindo had made a lot of snacks for the show.
"Kokabiel?"
"Was he any strong?" Shion asked. She was not in the peerage back then.
"Not that strong. He had used something to become stronger. He had gained twelve wings." Jibril said nonchalantly.
"But twelve wings are strong, right?" Ingvild joined in the conversation.
"Normally yes. Serafall is strong. Kokabiel however had used some kind of power to increase his strength so he was not a proper twelve winged Fallen Angel. He could at best destroy a small country at once."
Those casual words were like bombs to the ears of the pirates around her. Even Whitebeard was a bit taken aback.
"Who's Kokabiel, again?" Crocus asked this time, a hint of fear in his voice.
"Kokabiel was one of the Fallen Angel Leaders. He wanted to cause a war between the different races to prove that the Fallen Angels were the strongest. He was planning to do that by killing Rias and a friend of ours along with Shin who are the relatives of the leaders of our race. The worst part is that he had gotten dangerously close to it. It had even involved most of us here and that's when Shin snapped." Akeno explained.
"And what happened to him?"
"Boss tore off his wings, blew his fingers and then limbs off and finally trapped him in an endless nightmare where he will be killed by anyone he trusts or loves, over and over again. He wanted war and death so Boss gave him the same for all eternity." Meredith explained something that sent a shiver down Whitebeard's spine. It was hard to imagine the happy go lucky kid who defended his new daughter's dignity in front of his crew and was always laughing and partying around to have such a side. Whitebeard didn't despise it. He might have killed that Kokabiel person too but….even he might not have gone so far.
And now the World Government was being targeted by this same person.
Whitebeard along with every other leader present there watched the scenes with a renewed understanding of the choreographer of the scenes.
- Shin –
The scene in front of me was so funny.
The different looks on each person's face.
The marine soldiers were shivering in fear.
The Marine higher ups had cold sweat on their heads.
Kaido….Kaido looked confused as fuck.
Well as confused as a several hundred meters long eastern dragon can look.
Doflamingo looked like he had eaten a sour lemon.
Moriah looked as if he would explode with anger.
"Where is Whitebeard? Did he die already? Worororororo Whitebeard, oh Whitebeard, why are you so weak?"
"What are you doing here, Kaido?" Sengoku shouted.
"Hah? What's it to you? I came to give Whitebeard a funeral but it seems that he died too early. Now I am sad. Maybe these Marines will help me with my sadness, wororororo."
"Do you think we are afraid of you?" One of the still high in the atmosphere Rear Admiral shouted loudly.
I saw Sengoku's face scrunch up a bit.
He was worried that Kaido might start a fight and then Whitebeard might arrive on the scene too.
Oh, times like this. I sniggered in my head.
"Yeah, we are not afraid of you. We….?" another shouted.
"Boro Breath." A humongous blast of fire was blasted towards the next speaker.
Did they really think Kaido….Kaido would care about their adrenaline filled speeches?
The blast was so sudden that most of the Marines didn't have any way to defend and it was Aokiji who jumped in at the last moment to create a huge ice wall to stop the attack.
It was however useless as the attack bore a hole through the ice wall as a hot knife through butter.
"I'll go and test my swordsmanship. I haven't gotten a chance to fight properly in a while." I pulled out my Arondight.
If all the Admirals came out, Kaido would be suppressed and my fight wouldn't make much waves so I had to take action faster. Time was of essence.
Arondight gained a blackish tinge as my Haki flowed through it.
And then I swung.
A massive crescent black wave of compressed air slashed its way through the air and met Kaido's Boro Breath headon, stopping it in and cutting through it. It would have probably ended in a draw as I was not using active Touki buffs but that attack was already weakened by Aokiji's ice and stood no chance.
The Marine soldiers stilled, the pirates and civilians watching the battle stilled and then they erupted in a cacophony of roars.
I looked towards Sengoku and spoke softly but my voice still echoed in the now silent battlefield. "If you want to save your strength for Whitebeard, it's fine. I came here to fight a Pirate Emperor anyways. This one will do just fine. I just don't want you to interfere in the fight. I mean in such a high intensity fight, I might not be able to control myself and if someone interferes, I might accidentally injure them. "
I saw Akainu bristle at the comment.
He had been staring at me from the time I entered the battlefield along with the other two Admirals. I didn't need observe to know of his annoyance towards me.
Well fuck you too.
Sengoku hurried up and stopped Akainu before he could say anything.
"Shichibukai, attack Kaido." Sengoku commanded.
Oh, that powerplay.
Too bad.
He was playing with the wrong people.
Mihawk didn't even bother to turn around towards him. He was still staring at me with a glint in his eyes.
Doflamingo didn't move.
Moriah was too scared.
Blackbeard was not here.
Kuma and Jinebi could move but they wouldn't stand a chance so they hesitated a little.
An interesting fact about Kuma is that the so-called Marineford War happened before schedule and thus Kuma was not a mindless robot right now.
"Gehehehehe Fleet Admiral Sengoku, I agreed to fight with Whitebeard, not Kaido." Doflamingo chuckled and stepped back, completely ignoring the bulging veins of the heads of the Marines.
I didn't care and walked forward.
Kaido is still manageable.
I had a plan.
I heard some footsteps behind me and saw Issho walking behind me.
"Are you joining me too, Mr. Issho?"
"Hahahaha Young Sir's words are still echoing in this one's ears. 'If I pretend not to see, will my justice forgive me?' Let this one lend his strength to Young Sir."
"In that case, I thank you for your assistance."
"Wororororo a child and a blindman. Is this all the Marines can do? Even such kids can become Shichibukai, a force of the seas wororororo. This is so sad. Come come, both come at once. I will kill you too."
Conqueror's Haki fell down on both of us.
The Marine soldiers in the vicinity fell down.
This time however I could reply.
Although not as strong as Kaido's, my own Conqueror's Haki was not that weak either.
Red and black lightning started to appear around the area while more and more of the Marines collapsed.
I gripped my sword harder while Kaido changed his form and jumped from mid-air towards me. His mace was drawn as red and black lightning wrapped around it.
"Thunder Eight Trigrams."
Touki buff full, Haki Buffs full, Weapons Mastery, Swordsmanship Mastery. It more than made up for the difference in our stats.
The man and the giant clashed and a wonderful scene took place.
Kaido's mace was shot away from his hand.
….
….
….
….
Kaido of the hundred beasts had lost a contest of strength.
A slash appeared on his chest as blood splashed the ground around us.
The silence was deafening.
If I got a penny for every hung jaw, I'd be a millionaire.
Sengoku, Garp, Tsuru, the Admirals were openmouthed. Even Mihawk had wide eyes.
Kaido looked at his hand in astonishment and then at his chest.
I didn't know what was going on in his mind but soon found out.
He grinned.
Kaido actually touched his blood and grinned.
I am pretty sure Arondight's Dragonslayer attribute was working on him, inhibiting his healing and bypassing his defense for extra damage. "Wororororo a cut after so long. This is so much fun." He turned to look at me. " What is your name kid?"
"Shin."
"Come Shin. Make me feel more excited. Give me death." His voice grew more and the Conqueror's Haki grew heavier with each word.
Blue Scales grew on his arms and face as he changed into his hybrid form. His height increased even more.
"Pick up your weapon. I don't want people to say that I won against you by fluke."
I can match his stats with all my buffs….but buffs are not all my powers.
His grin widened as he didn't say a word in complaint but picked up his mace.
In all this time, no one interfered with the fight.
No words were said. Conqueror's Haki did all the talking.
*Crack*
The sound of ice cracking sounded in the area.
We crashed into each other once more.
Shockwaves passed through the center of the crash and Conqueror's wailed. This time I was at a disadvantage and was pushed back slightly.
Kaido didn't stop and charged once more.
Boom.
BOOM.
BOOOOOOM.
BOOOOOOOOOOM.
The clashes tore the ground around the area.
The Marine soldiers had moved far away from the center of the collisions.
Some had tried to interfere but they weren't even able to come close. They lost their consciousness and were blasted into pieces from the shockwaves.
- Garp –
"What the fuck did you mean he is as strong as a Reserve Admiral, Garp? If Reserve Admirals were….were this strong, the Marines would have established world peace long ago." Sengoku shouted at his friend.
The said friend was gawking at the scene in front of him with his mouth wide open, his worries about Ace temporarily suppressed by the unreal scene in front of him.
"The kids nowadays are so scary nee~" Kizaru's lazy voice reached his ears but if someone saw Kizaru's face right now, they would know that the laidback Admiral was not feeling so lazy at this instant.
The clash between the two had shaken him as much as it had done to others.
Akainu's magma was bubbling around him. "Are you going to ignore that a two bit pirate hunter was ordering us in the middle of the battlefield? He is not with the Marines. He is a danger…."
"SHUT UP. YOU….YOU BETTER KEEP YOUR DAMN MOUTH SHUT, AKAINU. THE REASON WHY SUCH A TALENT IS NOT IN THE MARINES IS ONLY BECAUSE OF YOU. I WILL NOT HAVE YOU MESSING UP EVEN MORE." Sengoku snapped at the magma admiral. His outburst taking everyone by shock.
"Sengoku, regain your calm. This is being broadcasted live. A Shichibukai, a non-pirate Shichibukai taking on an Emperor would be a great source of publicity for the Marines. Shin doesn't plunder and has the highest popularity among all the Shichibukai. He is more towards our Marines side from the people's perspective. It's better to not show any difference in front of the whole world. It would affect morale negatively." Tsuru calmed her old time friend but her glare towards Akainu told him that his suggestion was not appreciated by her either.
Aokiji seemed to be in his own thoughts, recalling Zephyr's and Garp's words about the said man. His history had reminded him of Ohara and the deaths of the people there. That incident had always been a source of disharmony between him and Akainu and now this new case had only reopened those old wounds.
"That swordsmanship….it's beautiful." Gion said in awe and then recalled that she wanted to spar with him. The realization that he denied her so she could keep her dignity made her bow her head in shame.
Garp on the other hand was looking at something else entirely.
In the entire fight, Shin was giving him a feeling of Déjà Vu.
It was like something was there right in front of him and he couldn't recognize it.
Like the feeling when a tune is stuck inside your head and you can't seem to remember the song at all.
Garp saw the two of them clash once more but this time Shin was pushed back.
Kaido took this opportunity to change into his dragon form and blasted a Boro Breath towards Shin.
Garp clenched his fist as he prepared to jump but stopped when he saw the faint smile on Shin's face.
Even the blind man behind Shin didn't make a move so he didn't either.
The blast connected to the spot Shin had crashed into and caused a massive explosion
"Worororororo ah, were you weak too, Shin?"
Suddenly the Conqueror's Haki coming from the explosion area increased and it seemed as if a heavy weight was pressed on everyone's shoulders.
The Shadows in the area flickered and the fire around the explosion shook before suddenly changing into a whirlpool and flowing into the center where a man stood with his….mouth wide open…. swallowing all the flames.
"Mmh those flames were nice? You have some more of that?" the madman grinned as Shadows started wrapping around him.
- Ace –
Ace looked at the stunned looks of the people around him and felt a sense of satisfaction in his heart.
He was not the only one who was shocked by that ability.
"Wow awesome. Hey Ace, does fire taste good? Can we eat it too?" Luffy was jumping around like a kid on a sugar high….or normal Luffy.
"I don't think we can, Luffy." Sabo smiled, shaking his head.
Ace looked at everyone laughing and partying while watching the video and remembered that he owed a major part of all this to the man in the video otherwise the one in chains would have been the real him while his brothers and father might have been risking their lives trying to save him.
He mentally remembered to thank Shin when he met him next time.
"It must be his Devil Fruit ability. Look, he can manipulate Shadows too." Zoro spoke as they looked at the battle.
Zoro had been paying attention since the moment he saw Mihawk on the screen. Although Ace wouldn't doubt for a single moment if Shin matched Mihawk matched Shin with swordsmanship now.
"That is Boss's favourite power." Meridith explained. "It's called Umbramancy."
"Hmm I wouldn't be so sure. I know that Shin-kun has a new favourite magic. Isn't that right, Rias, Rindo?" Akeno….something about that admittedly gorgeous girl scared the crap out of Ace since the first time they met.
It wasn't as if she would kill him or anything but there was a sense of chill whenever she joked about anything.
It was only after he had heard about what had happened in the Onigashima battle did he realize that this girl is a scary monster who toyed and broke the strongest subordinate of Kaido without even moving from her spot.
Seeing King's condition only served to solidify that feeling of his.
The two girls who were mentioned however were much different. They blushed beet red on her words.
"Eh, is it a new type of magic? Which one is it?" Meridith asked the two who reddened even more.
Ace concentrated more on the fight on the screen in front of him.
The shadows wrapped around Shin and formed a cloak of sorts with a hood on his head. His face was covered by shadows until nothing was visible.
Suddenly wings made up of bones popped out of his back as his shadows weaved into the bones making a thin coating of sorts, making those wings usable.
The black showed face looked above towards Kaido and suddenly opened its eyes and Ace felt a massive chill run down his spine.
Those rainbow coloured eyes….they meant death. He didn't need to ask anyone. He didn't need to confirm it. The information somehow came from some primal instinct hidden inside his very being.
Anyone standing in the way of those eyes….will die.
- Shin –
Kaido's flames were a great boost to my fighting power.
I had changed my form to resemble a reaper so that I can pass off my abilities as a Devil Fruit, more specifically Mythical Zoan Type Devil Fruits, which have been known to have more than one power very convenient. It will help me hide my true abilities.
I Shadow Walked directly to Kaido and slashed at him. He blocked it with his mace but this time he was on a back foot.
I Shadow Walked while mid clash and reached just below Kaido and swung my sword once more, slashing towards Kaido's torso.
Another cut was made and blood was spilled onto the battlefield.
Round three has begun.
I tried to increase my attack speed by Shadow Walking all around him while attacking and found out a very interesting fact – Kaido has future sight.
Well, who knew?
Kaido's gigantic body was becoming a hurdle against my speed. His wide area attacks were easily avoided by me using Shadow Walk and my own Legendary Rank Observation Haki while his defense was of no use against me.
The only thing that I was lacking in was my stamina and that was compensated by the Boro Breath through my Fire God Slayer Magic.
Kaido still had stamina in spades and could have kept the battle up for days on end while I would need potions to do the same.
I noticed something else – Kaido was somehow becoming stronger as he fought. It was not as if his stats were increasing. It took me a second to realize that his Conqueror's Haki was becoming heavier and enhancing his blows.
This man was really worthy of the title of a Beast.
Almost half an hour later another crash and I got another hit in. Kaido was thrown into the ground.
That's when we both noticed something.
Gekko Moriah had jumped in trying to steal Kaido's shadow.
"KAIDOOOO!"
The guy however was not able to come even close. A heavy force came down on the guy and buried him in a crater with almost no end visible.
Issho stood behind me with his cane sword drawn.
"Young Sir desires a fair duel so this one will impose himself to provide it. My apologies." The white pupil-less eyes stared at the entire crowd of people as the man stood like a mountain between the army and the place where we were fighting.
I smirked on seeing Doflamingo's wide-eyed, slack jawed look as he clenched his fingers in terror.
The others were the same. The Marine soldiers were looking at the man in complete awe.
Then again when a kind blind man turns into a mountain and crushes a warlord with one hit, those kinds of looks are visible.
Kaido took this opportunity to rise into the sky in his dragon form to get ready to attack once more, laughing like a lunatic.
I also decided that I have had enough of playing around. The world has already seen that I could fight an Emperor without losing and even held an advantage as evident from the number of cuts on Kaido's body which were still bleeding. I still needed something monumental and I had just the idea for that.
Shadow Servants started rising from my shadows as Kaido prepared to dive.
These were the shadows of the pirates I had picked up from the sixth floor of Impel Down.
An army of shadows gathered behind me. I had made sure that they didn't have their normal shapes but looked exactly like my own shadow.
Kaido was bombarded by dozens of attacks from the most dangerous pirates in the world and while all of them were severely weakened, I was still at full power. This turned the tide of the fight in my favour.
The dozen or so Shadow Servants all had Conqueror's Haki and a bombardment from such a force could overwhelm even someone like Kaido.
Dust covered the area, completely blocking everything from view. I took this opportunity to quickly steal Kaido's Devil Fruit.
He could still use his powers due to Zoan Devil fruits being slightly different from others but he would still be slightly weakened.
I swung my Arondight and the dust wave dispersed and the result of the battle was visible for all to see.
Kaido had lost consciousness.
I stood straight with no visible wounds on me and my clothes only slightly tattered.
I did get one strange notification before Kaido lost consciousness though.
+50 Reputation with Kaido(50/100) for giving him a good fight.
Perk Gained [Kaido – 50]
[Horny Love]
Perk already obtained.
Randomizing.
Conqueror's Haki level +1.
….
Kaido is an odd man. I wonder if he would feel the same if he found out what had happened in Onigashima.
That said, the result of the fight remained the same.
I won.
- Rias –
Shin stood there over the defeated Kaido and there was silence which was reminiscent of the calm before the storm.
Rias was quickly broken from her daze and remembered the second part of the plan and instructed quickly.
"Jibril, Shion, Sakuya, Lavinia, Akeno, Ingvild and Merlin, quickly get ready for the next part. You need to go near Marineford and wait as Shin's backup in case he is attacked."
"Finally. I hope we get to fight too. I was too bored." Jibril got up excitedly.
They left through the rift in space created by Jibril.
"He really did it. He defeated the shitty old man." Yamato beside her looked at the screen in awe and Rias let a smile come over her face.
The other people were also stunned at the beginning but then they started cheering. Kaido had been a synonym for terror and oppression for the people of Wano and seeing him being defeated like this was extremely cathartic for the citizens of the country.
- Shin –
I watched as Kaido was arrested and carried out while unconscious. Sengoku was looking at me in awe but still trying to maintain a dignified pose in front of the people because of the live broadcast.
The fact that Kaido was defeated by a Shichibukai and not the Marines was still a fact. I wonder when he will realize that after my Mind Haze curse is lifted from their heads. I had used it today in the morning, right before the battle or they would have definitely put a stop to it.
I didn't want Garp calling me out on Roger's swordsmanship either.
Sengoku was currently too pleased with the results without realizing what was to come. He gave a rousing speech about Pirates being nothing in front of the Marines and all and then came the final scene.
"Portgas D. Ace, who is your father?" [AN: Who's your daddy?]
The puppet I had put in place didn't answer.
Garp looked down clenching his fists as Sengoku questioned again.
"WHAT IS YOUR FATHER'S NAME? ANSWER ME."
….
It was at this moment that shit got real.
Ace turned.
Or rather only his head turned.
All the while his body remained still.
The head turned 180 degrees backwards and then another 180 degrees sideways until it was upside down at an impossible angle.
"ACE DE WA NAI, KONO…. DIO DA."
Sengoku might or might not have yelped like a little girl as he fell on his back in shock.
The Ace puppet burst into a blast and fireworks shot into the sky, showing the exact words 'Dio' spoke.
The whole place broke down in chaos.
Marines shouting. Soldiers running around from one place to another.
I had walked to Issho and Mihawk by then.
Jinbei looked towards the sky in shock. He seemed to have understood why Whitebeard didn't come here at all.
The whole Marineford was slowly covered by a thin layer of mist.
Sengoku seemed to have regained his facilities a bit and shouted commands one after another, "Cut the den den mushi."
"Find Dio."
The Den Den Mushi were cut but I still had my new ones covering the whole area. Sengoku would never find a thing till everything was over.
They didn't need to look around much because Dio appeared in the middle of the sky floating with a cloud of dust around him.
"Kizaru, Akainu, Aokiji."
"Oya oya Dio Brando, so scary." Kizaru spoke in his usual lazy voice but was quick to act.
All three Admirals acted at a moment's notice.
Aokiji and Akainu raced towards the sky with Moonwalk while Kizaru directly flashed away.
"Speed is power. Have you been kicked at the speed of light?" appearing behind Dio, he said his famous line.
Suddenly the light concentrated on his leg dimmed before disappearing.
"Ah performance issues? Not uncommon. In Fact every one in five….you know what….never mind." Dio snapped his fingers as shackles made of solid sea stone wrapped around Kizaru, almost making him look like a mummy. The stunned Admiral didn't recover from his sudden loss in power and was captured in an instant.
Aokiji and Akainu met similar ends as the chains made of Sea Stone tied them completely and they dropped like rice bags on the ground.
Vice Admiral Tsuru seemed to have realized what Dio was doing and shouted a warning. "Devil Fruit users, back down. The dust storm is made from Sea Stone dust. You will lose all your powers if you enter that."
"Are we going to interfere, Young Sir?" Issho asked me.
"Why? As far as I know, Dio Brando has never once hurt an innocent civilian. He has stolen from the World Nobles and blasted his name in the Redline, the second of which is not even a crime and I honestly don't consider the first one a crime either. I am not interfering at all. This time it is the Marines trying to clean the World Government's mess. It has nothing to do with me." I explained as Issho looked at me for a moment and then at Dio. "Are you disappointed in me, Mr. Issho?"
He shook his head. "Everyone has a different way of doing things. I will watch how Young Sir intends to do things. Since I have decided to follow you, I will not be a traitor."
"I never once thought that Mr. Issho would be a traitor. For now, let's enjoy the show. I have a feeling that we might see something interesting today."
Sengoku backed away from the dust storm a little and changed into his Giant Buddha form as he blasted shockwave fists towards the dust storm trying to blow it away.
The key word here being 'trying'.
The dust storm seemed to have a mind of its own and shifted easily, and then flowed towards Sengoku who dodged but the place he landed into, turned to a swamp of loose sea stone dust and chains of sea stone shot out of them, binding the man and dragging him into the place till only his head was left outside.
In less than a minute, three Admirals and the Fleet Admiral had been captured.
"Hahahaha man, kids nowadays are so weak. Relying so much on Devil Fruits is a no no." Dio waved his finger as all four were lifted from the ground and towards the sky.
Garp seemed to have regained his senses. Ace not being there filled him with more strength and Dio posing as Ace filled him with anger.
He shot towards the air to help his friend but was met with a gigantic wall of sea stone. Garp was however not really affected by it, that said sea stone was still incredibly hard. The wall shifted into a cage, boxing him up.
Garp kept hitting the walls of the cage as cracks appeared in the walls but were instantly mended.
I saw my clone(Dio) casting several unbreakable charms to keep the man trapped for a while.
It had more than half of my stamina and that was one of the reasons why I had to use Kaido's Boro Breath to boost my stamina.
It could still regain his powers through potions.
Then he put a hand on Kizaru's chest and pulled out his Devil Fruit spirit and did the same with others.
Four top quality Devil Fruits.
Dio threw the four of them away and released them from sea stones.
As expected, Akainu tried to use his powers first and didn't even get enough fire to light up a candle.
He tried harder till his face became red.
"Constipation? That was bound to happen with that enormous stick up your ass. You should know your place, kid. Then again knowing who your father was, it was still understandable."
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?" Akainu roared while the other three tried to use their powers as well but failed.
"Hah? I am the Devil of the Seas. If I can make Devil Fruits, what makes you think I cannot take them away? You idiots are not worthy. Piss off."
And just like that another monumental bomb was dropped that sent the entire crowd into chaos.
Sengoku staggered while Tsuru looked pale.
"Don't' listen to him. He is lying trying to lower our morale. Take him out. We are a hundred thousand against him alone. We will win."
"Hahahahaha, oh poor little lambs. That's the funniest thing I have heard in a century. The kids nowadays don't know left from right. Then again you idiots follow the instructions of those five dogs that the pointy headed bastard, what's he called nowadays….ah yes, Im keeps. What else would I expect of you?"
Most of the people looked confused at the names used.
There was a look of realization on Doflamingo's face that had been pale since the fight between me and Kaido started.
"Ah there, you look like you know what I am talking about. Would you like to explain?"
"Who are you? Why do you know that?"
"Hah? I am the one asking questions here, brat or do you want to end up like these four here?"
"What are you talking about Doflamingo? Are you rebelling?" Tsuru shouted threatening the man but it was of no use.
I had already used Mind Haze on him.
Dio snapped his fingers and ground changed into metallic spikes one of which pierced Doflamingo's legs while the others pointed to his vitals, threatening to do the same at a moment's notice.
"Answer brat."
"Im….is the boss of the five elders, the one who sits on the Empty Throne, the leader of the World Nobles."
The world fell into chaos while the spikes moved back.
Dio clicked his tongue. "No good sports in the World Government nowadays. Im must also be fed up by the incompetence of these idiots. Like these morons couldn't find and capture a simple Devil Fruit in eight fucking hundred years. Renaming the Human Human Fruit, Model: Sun God Nika, one of only a handful of fruits with the GOD title to Gomu Gomu No Mi, good job, smart move…. but not being able to acquire it even using all the power of the World Government in eight hundred years. Why do you even feed these wastes of space?" Dio went on a rant while the people all over the world were trying to survive the bombs he was dropping one after the other.
"Are you saying that you are eight hundred years old?" Someone from the crowd asked.
"Eight Hundred? Me? Please. That Im jackass is eight hundred years old. Through the Ope Ope No Mi's immortal surgery. I am much….much older. I am one of those who can create Devil Fruits. Did you think I wouldn't use everything for myself first?"
The World Government must be losing their shit.
I had blocked their communication to Marineford right before the drama started.
They must be sending someone to take care of the clone.
Dio continued. "Then again, things will be exciting now that the fruit containing Joy Boy's will can awaken. The Sun God Nika, liberator of slaves hahahaha. I wonder how these jackasses will fare if they knew that another GOD Fruit has been found and is on the verge of awakening and this one is not as joyful as Nika." Here Dio looked at me. "Human Human Fruit, Model: Death God Pluton, the power after which the Ancient Weapon was named. Good Job controlling that power, brat. I always liked the Death God better. He was more to my tastes."
Now the entire world had fixed their stares at me.
Bait successfully thrown.
I had put myself in a position where the World Government will attack me, giving me a legitimate reason to defend. The world will know the truth and why I am being pursued, that being the World Government's fear of me and not me being a Pirate, especially after I had just taken down Kaido of the beasts, an Emperor of the seas, in a single combat. PR is a very important tool. There was a reason why even though Roger didn't hurt any civilians, he was still deemed the worst pirate ever. This time, I would make the World Government face their own methods.
- Roger –
Roger looked at the screen of the video Den Den Mushi.
The brat was really not pulling any punches.
"Captain, is it alright?" Shanks asked, looking a little uneasy.
"I had a talk with him and he told me about his plan. I was uneasy too. We had been waiting for the return of Joy Boy for so long so why? His reply was….I bet Joy Boy won't mind if the people became free a few years before his arrival." Shanks became quiet. "Somehow I couldn't refute his argument. Let him do what he wants. He hasn't let us down yet. Also, isn't being a Pirate about being free? Why should we be bound by a prophecy?"
Shanks looked down for a while and then a smile came over his face.
Being free.
That was the essence of being a pirate. That's what every one of them ultimately pursued.
"WAIT MY DEVIL FRUIT IS NOT THE GUM GUM FRUIT!?" Roger and Shanks both looked at the Straw Hat wearing boy with hung jaws and shook their heads.
"Well if nothing else, the Luffy will become stronger faster this way. By the way, what is it about the other GodFruits? I didn't know anything about the Death God Pluton fruit? What's the story with that?" Shanks asked intrigued.
"That….was the brat bullshiting. He is just throwing random stuff at the Marines, probably a bait to come after Shin. It will cause some rift between people inside and outside the Marines when the one who defeated an Emperor is pushed to Piracy just because the World Government couldn't keep their fear of him to themselves."
"Wouldn't that cause too much chaos?"
Here the two Vice Captains joined the conversation. Rayleigh replied, "On the contrary, this would allow him a legitimate reason to take over Wano and take control over this territory without it seeming like he and Dio are working together."
"The marines have used this tactic mostly. Now it will be their turn to face the bad public opinion. It would really push them to pick up their slack because the different member nations of the World Government will be shaken and suspicious after the reveal. Despite the crap the World Nobles pulled, there was no one supposed to sit on the Empty Throne to represent that there were no rulers. Now that this fact has been challenged, people will be more on pins about the acts of the Marines and the World Government. They will have to work overtime to win over the public opinion and to do so they will keep the seas calmer. A brilliant move of using the Marines to contain the fallback of the disappearance of the Beast Pirates." Beckman continued after Rayleigh.
"So what's going to happen now?" Shanks asked, still looking at the screen.
"Who knows? The brat said he would turn the seas upside down and is doing the same. Let's enjoy it."
And they did just that. Sit back and enjoy.
- Shin -
Chaos was not enough to define what was happening at that moment.
Even Mihawk stared at me in shock.
The Marines had a horrified look on their faces and Akainu….well his look was priceless.
I would have loved to take a peek inside Sengoku's head at this moment. He was without his Devil Fruit so his power was reduced by a lot no doubt but he was still stronger than a normal Admiral.
I remember him holding down Garp after Akainu had killed Ace. Now I understand how he was able to do something like that.
These people didn't stand a chance against Garp at all.
I Did not stop however and continued, "Oh what an era this is. Gods are awakening, Ancient Weapons are being born even the chosen one of the seas has arrived. I haven't had this much fun in a long time. I wonder if the world will turn tables once more like 800 years ago. What will you do, World Government, Im? What will be the result of all this? I am looking forward to seeing all this. Will the so-called Gods win or will the will of the Natural enemy of the Gods prevail? Show me. Show me the biggest drama I have been waiting for the reaction of Za Warudooooooooo!"
Dio Brando laughed as his body slowly turned into mist and dissolved into the surroundings of the Marineford, leaving a crowd in more chaos than Whitebeard's attacks would have ever been.
Sengoku got up and instructed everyone to search for Dio but even after a whole hour, no one was found.
People often stared at me but no one was approaching me. Issho stood by my side while I was calmly chatting with Mihawk.
I also noticed a certain bunch of people looking at me with complex looks on their faces.
These were Tashigi, Smoker and Hina.
Tashigi looked like she wanted to rush to talk to me but was held back by Smoker due to the tension in the air. In a way he was correct to do so but I was a bit miffed at not being able to tease the straight laced, honour student type girl who reminded me a lot of Sona.
I did send her a wink which made the adorable girl blush red.
I also took this moment to check the Reputation Gains that I had gotten since the fight with Kaido.
The Marines, well some of them had their opinions of me lifted up immensely because of this which resulted in a lot of wonderful Perks.
I got a slight increase in my swordsmanship for Gion, a massive increase in my Armament Haki for Garp's +50 Reputation, same from Sengoku and a few other senior Marines pushing my Armament to Legendary Rank.
Overall it was a great haul. It became very difficult to increase my skill levels as I became stronger. Thank Oda for his insane creativity to have named so many characters.
The Marines soon got the situation under control….well as much as they could.
My turn came too.
It happened when men in white clothes entered Marineford and directly ran to Sengoku.
Issho caught sight of them and probably heard what they were saying as well.
"It is going to be troublesome, Mr Issho. Would you like to stay?" I asked relaxing. I had been informed about Sakuya and the others coming here.
"This one would like to see this through. It seems Young Sir has also called for help."
He sensed it too. Then again, he might be the only one who has sensed it apart from me. Then again, this is the man who can sense fucking meteorites in the sky and drag them down so sensing people like Jibril and Shion just twenty thousand meters above the place is something much easier.
"My crew must have been worried about the news. It does seem they were right."
"Is this what the Young Sir meant when you said that most Pirates are created by the World Government?"
"Yes. You would be surprised just how many such cases there are."
Mihawk looked at the scene already having some idea about what was going to happen. He then took a look at me and turned around and left.
"Would you not wait for me, Mihawk? I think you might get that spar before the promised time."
"I don't want to fight an exhausted you. Moreover I was called here to fight Whitebeard which is not happening. I have no business here."
Tsundere.
"In that case, I'll come over later with a bottle of my special wine."
He left with a nod.
Jinbei looked startled a bit but soon understood what was happening.
Doflamingo was looking at me with a disgusting grin and I was tempted ask Merlin to drop the barrier around Dressrosa so that Sugar's Fruit's effect can be cancelled all over the world and throw Doflamingo and the Marines in a more desperate situation but then I held back thinking of the original plan
I could see Sengoku shouting at the white suited men but to no avail.
It would have been better if Zephyr had been here as well.
Garp looked like he had eaten a bug and would have probably smashed their heads down the ground if Tsuru was not standing in front of them.
The argument went on for a while and the only one looking happy was Akainu.
Kizaru had been reduced to a Vice Admiral level without his Devil Fruit.
Aokiji's powers were also greatly reduced although he was much better than Kizaru.
Finally Akainu came with the plan of trying to use Sea Stone cuffs on me and Issho by surprise.
The idiot.
At least try to hide it.
The fucker didn't even account for the Observation Haki, then again no one in their sane minds would think about Observation Haki range being so big.
It was agreed albeit reluctantly. Garp wanted nothing to do with it. Aokiji looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here.
Tsuru was the one who came along with Gion and Akainu and I smiled.
"Shin."
"Vice Admiral Tsuru."
"Thank you for your assistance with Kaido."
"Hahahaha don't mind it. It was not a trouble at all."
"We could really use someone like you in the Marines, wouldn't you consider it?" she asked and I saw Akainu frown lightly.
I smiled at the man's thoughts.
"Sorry Vice Admiral. I have my own reservations. You asking this even with the situation you are in, is already a show of your faith but….I refuse." I saw her tense at the mention of her situation. "Don't worry. As a show of gratitude, I will allow you to put those cuffs on me…." Their eyes widened again, "But be warned, the moment you put me in cuffs, I will become a criminal and we will become enemies. All bars will be removed at that instant."
I didn't use any Conqueror's Haki in my statement but Gion still slightly stepped back in shock.
Akainu however thought that I was bluffing or whatever and hurried forward.
Issho stepped forward and everyone tensed as Gion put a hand on the hilt of her sword but I quickly stopped Issho with my raised palm and put forward my arms.
Akainu put the cuffs around me as quickly as he could as if think I would renege from my statement suddenly.
He heaved a sigh of relief as soon as it was done.
I looked back at Tsuru and smiled and used magic in my voice so that my voice was heard by everyone. "When this is over, remember that you people were the ones who started it."
The entire Marineford was covered by an eerie silence.
Akainu's face was covered by a frown and he raised an arm to punch me.
I didn't move.
His arm fell towards me.
…. But never reached its destination.
A loud shout echoed through the training grounds of Marineford as Akainu's arm flew into the air.
Between us, a figure had appeared out of nowhere.
Silver braided hair flowed as Sakuya appeared with a sword in her hand.
Jibril, Merlin, Shion, Ingvild, Lavinia, Akeno appeared the very next instant surrounding me.
Tsuru and Gion showed their experience and jumped back creating a gap between us. Akainu followed them with only a momentary delay.
"ATTACK. THEY ARE REBELLING." Akainu shouted.
I laughed at the statement. "Rebelling would mean I was working under you to begin with."
Tsuru grimaced and Akainu shouted again, "You are declaring a war against the whole world. Do you think just because you defeated Kaido, you stand a chance against the world?"
He is trying to use words to push the public opinion against me.
In these things Akainu is certainly more qualified than Aokiji as a Fleet Admiral.
"Hahahahaha it's funny to see you using words to turn others against me….but you are wrong in one part, it is not me who is declaring a war against the world…." Conqueror's Haki burst out with all its might. "It is the world declaring a war against ME!"
With those words said, all hell went loose.
_x_x_
Beta Reader: LuluViBritania(FF.N, SB and QQ)/-LuluViB|99th Britannian Emperor(Discord)
Author's Note :
Wow, I expected to complete this chapter two days ago but got stuck in some work.
Anyways, shit has officially hit the fan.
Shin has let loose the dogs of war.
The next part might have taken longer so I decided to post it first instead of making it a very long chapter.
I did change the chapter a bit due to the Sun God Nika reveal. Oda being typical Oda.
The World Government would be running around in circles considering the information (Dio)Shin revealed was half true half false.
The main devil fruits were stolen from the Marines while Shin also got his hands on Kaido's badass Devil Fruit.
We will complete the Marineford war and jump into the aftermath in the next chapter.
At the rate we are going, Shin might be back to DxD in four to five chapters.
Enjoy the new chapter.
Good Day, Peace Out.