"I never imagined we'd bump into a member of the Pirate King's crew here," says Franky, breaking the silence. "He's pretty intimidating for an old guy." Three days. That's what Rayleigh told them before seeing them off, Vivre Card in hand. It would take him three days to finish the coating if he were to go as fast as he felt comfortable. Honestly, it's going to be dangerous dodging the Marines for three days but it's a risk worth taking if it means they won't be crushed to death on their way to Fishman Island.
"Well, he's one of the most renowned members of Roger's crew, after all," reasons Usopp.
"Hmph. So that's what members of the Oro Jackson's crew were like. I'm glad to have met him!" Luffy stops in the middle of the path suddenly, and turns to face them.
"Anyone wanna go to the amusement park?" Luffy asks them.
"Quiet, you!" Franky and Usopp shout in unison. "Do you even understand the situation?!" After arguing with their Captain for several minutes he eventually admits defeat and they continue on...but he continues pitching his idea none-the-less. A sudden explosion directly in their path causes all of them to jump back quickly. To their utter astonishment, and from out of the resulting plume of smoke, Kuma steps out to stand across from them.
"Well, fancy meeting you here, Kuma," Run says, grinning up at the Shichibukai.
"Who are you?" Luffy asks, staring at the huge Shichibukai.
"Luffy! He's a Shichibukai!" calls Nami.
"Huh? Why do you guys know that?" Luffy turns to look at them while Kuma slips his glove off, holding his hand out in their direction.
"Don't let it hit you!" screams Sanji. "It's a shock wave!" A bright glow roars to life in the palm of his hand, and he fires off the attack at Luffy. Their Captain dodges the attack, avoiding the resulting explosion that pulverizes the ground.
"What was that?! You guys told me that it would be a shock wave but--" A blur moves through the resulting cloud of smoke, appearing right in front of the large Shichibukai in an instant. "Run!" He raises his cutlass, the weapon crackling wildly with energy.
"Crimson Tide," announces Run, bringing with weapon down and striking the Shichibukai at point blank range with the attack. Kuma sails backwards and smashes into the base of one of the many massive mangrove trees hard enough to nearly topple it. It shakes and groans as a cloud of dust and bubbles erupt out in all directions. "Aah, I thought we had an understanding back on Thriller Bark...but I guess in the end I misjudged your character. Never took you for a man who would renege on a deal."
"D-Did that do it?" Nami questions him. The large Shichibukai slowly walks out of the dust with a large gash splitting him from shoulder to hip. Wires and circuitry spark and crackle softly as he comes to a stop, staring in their direction. "What is...?"
"Second Gear!" announces Luffy, drawing their attention. "Oi...let's go all out from the start! This guy is strong, right?" Kuma raises his hand in their direction, and they scatter quickly to avoid the following beam of light. He chases them with attacks, firing them off in rapid succession as they dodge this way and that. Luffy, Sanji, Zoro and Run push towards him regardless, intending to put him down before things get out of hand.
"...Gum-Gum...Jet..."
"...Diable...Muton..."
"...Churning...Tide..."
"...Three Sword Style... Six-Hundred Pound..."
"...CANNON!!"
Kuma is struck in his chest by their combined attack, and goes flying to demolish a building on impact.
"The way he fights is completely different than before," Zoro mutters, breathing slightly heavy. The four men watch the building carefully, looking for any sign on the Shichibukai.
"Maybe he's a twin then?" offers Luffy.
"Maybe. The real one would have teleported and dodged the attack. He's not using the shock-waves, either...and he doesn't have the paw pads." Kuma suddenly emerges from the dust and rubble, more wires and circuitry sparking and crackling...and he's right back to attacking them with his lasers again. They scatter once more, dodging his attacks before he suddenly settles on Luffy as his target. Run appears beside Kuma in an instant, cutlass held at the ready.
"Sundering Tide," announces Run, bringing his weapon down on Kuma's outstretched arm...and cleaving the Shichibukai's arm off at the elbow. Kuma recoils immediately, staggering backwards as the served appendage strikes the ground between the two with sparks leaping in all directions. "Sorry, sorry, but that arm's just gotta go, Kuma. You-- aah?" The look alike stretches out it's left arm towards him, energy rapidly gathering.
"Look out, Red!" shouts Zoro, dashing by him in an instant. "108 Pound Phoenix!" The waves created by Zoro strike the look alike in the chest and arm, redirecting it's attack into the ground. Run leaps backwards out of the resulting cloud of dust and bubbles, sliding to a stop several meters away beside Zoro. "You alright?"
"I'll live." A bright spark of light begins to glow in the cloud of dust, rapidly growing in size. "Here he comes." Chopper rapidly sprints past the two men and leaps towards the look alike.
"Hoof Print Blizzard Rose!" calls Chopper, changing into his arm point and striking again and again. The look alike grabs him with his only hand, and turns his opened mouth towards him. Franky rushes forward now and leaps between them.
"Strong Hammer!" calls Franky, snapping out an uppercut that diverts the blast. "Now! Franky Boxing!" After a few punches, Franky is back-handed away only to be caught by Robin before he can bounce away. Brook quickly sprints up a tree.
"Alright, my turn! Yohohoho~!" laughs Brook, jumping off and dropping down. "Swallow Bon en Avant!" Rather than spearing through, he ends up struck in his shoulder. "Eh?" The look alike turns up, and charges a laser shot in his mouth. "H-Hold on! That'll kill me! Although, I'm already dead...aah! This is no time to be saying that!"
"Special Attack: Atlas Comet!" shouts Usopp, firing off an attack that dislodges Brook. It strong enough that it actually knocks the look alike to his knees, and he collapses face down moments later. When he finally pushes himself up, he acts as if he's gone crazy, firing attacks in all directions. Sanji and Zoro step up to take him on.
"Oi, knock him to me," Zoro tells Sanji. The cook snorts in response but rushes forwards regardless.
"Diable Jambe!" announces Sanji. "Flambe Shot!" The kick briefly ignites the front of the look alike and he stumbles backwards towards Zoro.
"Demon Aura Kyutoryu!" growls Zoro, suddenly having grown two more heads and four more arms. "Ashura! Nine Lightning Strikes!" In an instant, he's cut through the look alike like a hot knife through butter. Run actually smirks as he watches him. So, that's his answer to some of the red head's techniques. When he'd developed it is beyond him but...it's interesting none-the-less. Luffy drops out of the sky towards the reeling look alike.
"Third Gear!" screams Luffy, inflating his fist. "Gum-Gum...Giant Rifle!" Luffy fist drives the look alike into the ground, pulverizing him almost completely. When Luffy's arm inflates he comes crashing down, landing with the rest of them shrunken to half his size again.
"Man, what the hell?" complains Run, raising his cutlass to rest on his shoulder. "He looks more like a machine than he was on Thriller Bark."
"He's undoubtedly a cyborg," Franky tells him. "But given the way he fought it's more likely that he's just someone who looks like Bartholomew Kuma. He probably had a twin brother, or a super look-alike who was also modified. There's definitely no way to create a living person from scratch."
"We need to rest," Luffy says, panting. "I didn't expect it to turn into an all out fight so suddenly."
"Sounds like a plan," agrees Run. "But...we need to find somewhere to hide out first."
"You guys have got some nerve!" complains a voice out of nowhere. All of them look around quickly, trying to find the person, who Chopper eventually spots above them. The axe wielding person jumps out of the mangrove and lands several meters away, flanked by another cyborg. "You're a real disgrace, PX-4. It costs as much as a warship to build one of you Pacifista's. What am I gonna tell that punk in my report now?"
"Who the hell are you, axe guy?" Franky questions.
"How dare you call someone by their weapons name? I ain't gonna tell you anything! I got the toughest defense in the world! My lips are sealed just as tightly! I'm Sentomaru, the most tight-lipped guy in the world!" He seems to catch his mistake seconds later. "Just so ya know, I told you that voluntarily! Let's begin, PX-1!" The cyborg fires off two beams, forcing them all to dodge quickly. Luffy, Zoro, Sanji and Run land close to each other, staring at the resulting cloud of smoke.
"C'mon, pal!" Run complains, grinning at Sentomaru. "How about ya just cut us some slack?"
"One more fight like that and we're gonna be in trouble," Zoro says, staring at the two. "That's before we even run into that admiral."
"Yeah," agrees Luffy. "Let's get out of here! But not all together! We'll split up into groups!" They all turn and flee in three opposite directions. Zoro, Usopp and Brook go one way. Nami, Sanji and Franky go another and Run accompanies Luffy, Robin and Chopper. "Oi! We'll all meet up at the Sunny in three days!" They've barely left behind the others when Sentomaru lands in their path, proceeded by his axe. "Move! Gum-Gum...!" The man thrusts his palms out, and sends Luffy flying to their surprise. He chases after Luffy immediately after.
"Ashigara Dokkoi Shove!" shouts Sentomaru, smashing Luffy into a near-by building. "Your attacking power isn't bad, but I have the greatest defense in the world! Just so you know, I don't have powers!" There's a resounding explosion behind him and Run looks back quickly. "Geez, took him look enough. It's about time you got here, Uncle Kizaru!"
"Run!" screams Robin, surprising him with the urgency in her voice. "That man is an admiral! He's a Logia!" The smoke finally clears to reveal Kizaru holding one of his legs over the downed swordsman. It's glowing brightly as if ready to discharge another beam. Usopp raises his sling shot and fires at the man but his pellets pass through harmlessly. Run's eyes widen and he moves towards them quickly, closing in on the two in an instant. He appears before the man, and reaches out to grasp his ankle to yank it skywards. His attack fires off, sailing off into the distance and striking one of the massive mangroves before detonating in the largest explosion they've seen yet.
"Now! Usopp! Brook!" demands Run, glancing back at them. "Take Zoro and--" There's a brief flash and a beam of light pierces Run's stomach. He spits out a mouthful of blood, releasing his hold on the admiral's ankle as he takes a single step back.
"Ooh...you really gave me a fright, red hair," drawls Kizaru. "I never imagined that--" Run suddenly grasps his ankle once more and then surges forward, planting his fist firmly into Kizaru's face. A soft 'crunch!' accompanies the blow, along with the sound of glass shattering as he takes a single step back, a hand raising to his face quickly. The admiral lowers his hand, gazing at the blood staining his fingers before raising his free hand and firing into the red head again, this time succeeding only in sending tumbling end over end before sliding to a stop several dozen meters away. "Hooh~! You didn't even hesitate to hit me back...how scary these kids are today~!" The red head slowly pushes himself to his feet, a hand pressed to his stomach.
"Aaah...ow."
"Aaah, now I recall...Aokiji did mention someone like you sailing with the Straw Hat crew...the son of 'Red Haired' Shanks." He reaches up towards his sunglasses, and removes them to stare at the mangled frame and shattered lenses before tossing them aside. He holds a hand out in Run's direction, and energy rapidly gathers. "Although, I'm not sure how the World Government will feel about provoking a Yonko by killing his son...we can't lose face with the Celestial Dragons, however. Aah, well. I guess we'll just see what happens." Kizaru's arm is suddenly diverted, the energy firing off into the distance once again as a familiar figure appears between them. "You're getting involved in this...'Dark King' Rayleigh?" Rayleigh chuckles softly in response.
"Can't have you picking on the young'un's, Kizaru," Rayleigh tells him. "Their era is just beginning."
"Way ta steal my spotlight," Run complains, grinning at the man. Rayleigh chuckles yet again and then very casually kicks the red head's discarded cutlass in his direction. "Aah, thanks."
"You should be more careful with that, Run. It belonged to an old friend of mine, and he'd hit the ceiling if he found out you were just leaving it lying around like that." Confusion briefly appears on the red head's face as he picks it up and shoves it back into his sheath.
"You know," begins Kizaru. "I'd heard that on occasion you could be found on these islands. I guess the reports were true after all. Are you defending these children because you were a pirate...even if you aren't what you used to be?"
"It'd be no problem to retire and live peacefully if you took down my wanted posters."
"The crimes of the Roger Pirates cannot easily be so forgiven."
"Well...be that as it may, I don't suppose you could over-look them, could you, Kizaru?"
"Cut me some slack here. If I don't capture them, how can I return to Navy Headquarters? Not only that, but that boy is the son of a Yonko...obviously he can't just simply be allow to go free. Now, can I ask you to step aside, Rayleigh?"
"Usopp! Brook!" screams Luffy. "Take those two and escape!" Usopp quickly scoops up Zoro and they quickly begin to flee from Kizaru and Rayleigh. "Everyone! Focus on escaping! We can't beat these guys!"
"Just hang on, Run!" Brook urges him, running in tandem with the red head. "We're going to get you help! I...I know what you did on Thriller Bark. I promise, I'm going to get you out of this!" Loud, rumbling footsteps sound behind them and Brook looks over his shoulder. "Aaaah! Go away! Why are you chasing US?!"
"Dahahahaha~! Looks like they're not going to let us go that easily!" laughs Run. The Pacifista raises one of it's hands and starts to fire a beam at them when it's struck in the back by Sanji. "Yeah! Good job, San-- huh?" Their cook holds his shin and goes crashing to the ground several meters ahead of his target. The Pacifista stands and aims at the cooks back, energy gathering in it's hand. "Sanji! Move! It's aiming at you!"
"Idiot!" growls Sanji. "What are you doing?! Run away!" Sanji dodges the attack at the last second but the attack knocks all of them to the ground. The smoke clears slowly, revealing Zoro lying face down several feet away. Usopp quickly crawls towards him, apologizing for letting them be dropped. "D-Damn you...stop!" Sanji holds tightly to the Pacifista's ankle as it pushes forward. Eventually, it seems to grow annoyed and reaches down to grab him by the front of his jacket. It raises out of it's massive hands, pressing it against his chest as a flicker of light slowly begins to grow in intensity.
"Red Line Strike!" There's a blur of motion and suddenly Run appears on the Pacifista's shoulders, his cutlass buried in it's skull nearly all the way to the hilt. There's a soft rumble and then a loud 'boom!' as the earth around them suddenly compresses as if struck by a massive weight. The light flickers and then disappears entirely before Run yanks his cutlass free and both men leap away from the Pacifista. They land beside Usopp and Zoro as it tumbles to the ground with a loud crash. "You alright, casanova?"
"Y-Yeah. We--" A loud explosion sounds behind the men and they slowly turn in it's direction, finding themselves confronted by another Pacifista.
"Oh, give us a fuckin' break! How many of you--"
"Wait, PX-3," speaks a now familiar voice. All of them immediately turn to find themselves staring up at...Kuma?
"Well...is it the real you this time?"
"So, you're still alive, Run."
"What can I say? I'm tougher than I look."
"Perhaps better than looking tougher than you are. Tell me...if you were to take a trip, where would you like to go?"
"Hmm...can I think about it...?"