CHAPTER 30
Hey guys we're coming to the last hurdle of 2024 December! You have been amazing sticking with me and my stories and I'm so glad to be able to write for an amazing reader like you. I hope you'll continue to enjoy my works. I also wanted to thank you for all the kind messages of support and condolences. I've mentioned I recently lost a loved one and it's been hard. I'm afraid it's also affected my work and I've had to play catch up which is why I couldn't update Kunoichi amongst Heroes this time. However I will be updating through December. Thank you for understanding and I hope you enjoy these chapters.
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The smoke signal was still high in the air by the time Sakura arrived, Usopp and Vivi were both standing in the dust-filled streets. She landed in front of them, jumping off a building.
"Usopp Vivi! Did you find the canon?"
"Vivi has an idea of where it might be," Usopp said.
"You sure Vivi?"
There were less than five minutes left before the entire city square would be blown away to the sands, so Sakura hoped there was some sustenance to the theory at least.
"Just deductions, but I have a strong feeling the canon is in the clock tower!" The ClockTower had been a place Vivi used to play with her friends when she was a child, their secret hideout. So she knew how large that place was, and given the state of the terrain, she assumed the cannon would need to be fired from a perspective that was clear and still within their target range. Crocodile wanted to cause destruction to the square and wasn't afraid to take down the palace either. The clock tower was the only place that fit that criteria.
"Let's waste time then."
When they were ready to take off, more agents emerged through the dust. As much as Sakura wanted to give them a fight, she knew they were on a short fuse and so was that bomb.
She led the way, clearing out the agents that stood in their path with quick movements, ignoring the ones behind so that they could tread through.
"Let's go!"
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..
..
They ran of course as fast as they could, well as fast as Vivi and Usopp could, but their unchecked injuries were weighing them down and no one could stop. Wounds weren't worth worrying about when the stakes were painting the streets red.
"I think we're gonna have to take it to the air." Sakura moved to take Vivia and Usopp under her arms, vanishing like a blur from sight before appearing in the air. She jumped from the rooftops, giving little concern to Vivi and Usopp's screaming.
She was able to evade enemies and the chaos on the ground until they finally reached the clock tower.
"NAMI! CHOPPER!" Sakura called out to her friends when she caught them rushing to where Usopp had launched the signal.
"It's Sakura!"
"Go to the clock tower!"
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Two minutes remained. They weren't that far from the tower at least. The building stood over the city, several stories high, with towers. At the top, proudly in the middle of the building, a large clock face dominated the view, its hands slowly ticking towards an unknown fate. Vivi knew within this tower, the place that held her favorite childhood memories now likely held the bomb.
The four regrouped in front of the building, "Do you really think the canon is here?" asked Nami.
"We haven't confirmed it, but I'm sure," said Vivi. "But we need Pell to get up there."
"Can't we just climb the stairs?" asked Usopp.
"HEY! Sakura, Vivi, Nami!" There was only one person they knew who would call their names so swooningly. They saw Sanji running towards them, waving his arms through the dust. After Vivi figured out where the bomb may be, Usopp left a message at the location of the signal to go to the clock tower in case the others caught up.
"Where's the cannoneer?"
"On top of the tower!" exclaimed Usopp.
Sakura glanced over and squinted at the figure standing a little ways beneath the tower, she knew that spot of moss green anywhere. "ZORRO?!"
"No way moss head is already up there?" Sanji covered his forehead to block out the sun. "What the hell, how did that guy get here first?"
"What are you guys doing down there?" Zoro asked.
"What are you doing up there?" Sanji fired back.
"It was the navy, they kept saying go North, so I went North."
The vein on Sakura's forehead was throbbing, according to Nami the marines were suddenly here and helping them out, but Zoro had such a terrible sense of direction he thought that north meant to go up.
"Okay, that's it, we're going up because I am not dying this ticked," Sakura looked at the clock tower.
"We can't go up the stairs, even Zoro won't be able to get to the clock tower from where he is. You have to take the back stairs on the first floor, or the sky. That's why we need Pel,"
Sakura calmly cracked her knuckles, "No we don't, you just need me. Come on Vivi."
Kneeling in front of Vivi with her back turned, Sakura waited for the princess to climb on her back. Everyone watched her questioningly. There was a minute left, and she wasn't going to waste it explaining anymore.
The princess climbed on Sakura's back, "Hold on tight."
"What are you going to do?" asked Nami.
She sprinted towards the wall, and they all called out thinking she was about to run straight through it. Vivi discouraged them from trying to break down the walls since it could disrupt the bomb and set it off earlier. However, Vivi was surprised to feel her stomach flip as gravity shifted and she was now lifted into the air.
"WHAT THE HELL?" She heard her friends exclaim.
"She can jump that high!?" exclaimed Usopp.
"She's like a kangaroo!" said Chopper.
Zoro fell over his feet when she appeared on the plateau of the building where he stood, but she rushed past towards the clock tower. And once again Vivi's stomach did a flip as she had to tighten her grip when she felt herself hanging off of Sakura's back. She realized that the girl was now running up the wall, defying gravity.
"The heck?" Zoro's jaw dropped as he watched them.
Vivi was frantically looking around from her new perspective, "Sakura, you're running on the wall!"
"I know, I know,"
The face of the clock tower had started to open, and Sakura warned Vivi to get ready because they knew there had to be someone who would set off the cannon inside. The clock tower was now fully open and Vivi's prediction had been correct. There was a cannon inside, and there were also two of Baroque Work's agents ready to set it off.
A man and a woman, Mr. 7 and Ms. Father's Day. The pair stood defiantly, blocking the path to the bomb.
"Well, if it isn't Ms. Wendsday," Mr. 7 sneered, his sharp features twisted in a mocking grin. He brandished a sleek, deadly-looking rifle, its barrel gleaming in the dim light.
"You're too late," Ms. Father's Day added, her voice dripping with malice. As she too pointed a gun at them.
Sakura glared at the pair, "Out of our way. We don't have time for this!"
As the bullets were shot towards them, the pair mocked how their bullets were aimed to collide and explode. Despite Vivi's protests, Sakura didn't stop charging forward, only telling Vivi to hold on tight. The bullets hit each other and on impact, they did explode, but Sakura had captured them with her bare fist.
"SAKURA!"
"I'm fine!" She had coated her hand with chakra to shield herself and it worked, the bullets were now merely smoke in her hand.
The two agents were trembling when the girls got to the edge of the tower, "I-Impossible!"
Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, Nami, and Chopper watched anxiously as the girls entered into the clock tower, followed by two people falling out of it.
"Did they stop it?" asked Chopper.
"I don't know." Usopp gulped.
The cannonball bomb set to fire had been on a fuse, which was now thankfully out.
"We did it," Vivi gasped, her eyes wide with relief, but when she tried to share that expression with Sakura, she found a concerned expression etched on her face.
"I still hear ticking,"
Vivi rushed to the front of the canon, looking deeper into it where the bomb resides. And was quick to see a timing device attached to it.
"Big Problem!" Vivi shouted back down to the other pirates. "The cannonball has a timing device! If we don't do something it'll explode!"
"WHAT!"
'Damn that Crocodile!' Of course, he would be stupidly thorough. If nothing else he was a damn good tactician! And from the hands, she could see there was only a handful of minutes in difference to spare! And even from where it lay, there would still be significant damage.
Vivi was blubbering in despair about Crocodile's cruel antics, but Sakura's mind had begun to grow numb. Wondering if, were they going to fail to save this country, dying wasn't the least bit weighing on her mind, not as much as the thought of reliving the destruction of someone's homeland.
'Just like Konoha….'
If Naruto or Sasuke had been here, things never would've gotten this far. They would've been able to put a stop to Crocodile before he could start anything! The destruction happening below, wouldn't be taking place….
The two girls were so engrossed in their dark thoughts the veil didn't allow them to see or feel Pell fly in at the entrance to the tower head.
"Wow, this place brings back so many memories. The Sand Sand Clan's secret base." Pell spoke fondly of Vivi's past as if he wasn't staring dead first into the bomb.
"I feel proud that I was able to serve you, The Nefetari family."
Pell resumed his falcon form, moving to grasp the bomb in his talons.
"Hold on," Sakura interjected. "I know what you're trying to do, let me help so that you can continue to serve Vivi's family."
"What do you have in mind?"
Vivi glanced between the two worriedly, "Sakura?"
There wasn't a chance for her to explain, instead, she moved, grabbing the bomb that was standing taller than herself. Sakura reached a free hand out. "Think you can get me up high enough?"
"I must," Pell lifted his wings and took them into the air, holding Sakura by her shoulder's like a bird would its prey. And flying them out of the clock tower, away from the city square. Vivi was mortified when she realized what the two were attempting.
"WAIT NO, DON'T DO IT"
But they had already taken to the skies and were overhead from the city, reaching up above the sands.
"Not to offend, but the extra weight is slowing me," said Pell.
"Don't worry, and just keep heading straight up until I give the word." Sakura had taken notice of the timing device and was meticulously listening, their window of opportunity was open, but she had to pay attention before it shut.
High above Alubarna, the wind whipped around Sakura and Pell as they soared over the city. The chaos below seemed a world away from their vantage point, but Sakura knew the stakes were higher than ever. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to calm down. Her heart was racing, adrenaline coursing through her veins. She closed her eyes for a moment, focusing on the rhythmic beat of Pell's wings. The steady, powerful strokes helped to ground her, allowing her to gather her thoughts and concentrate.
As a ninja, she has faced and endured many crucial moments, and this would be just another to add to the list. She would not allow Crocodile to have his way, that's what they were all there for, it was a mission. One she wouldn't fail.
Pell adjusted his course, climbing higher into the sky. Sakura watched as the city grew smaller beneath them, the fires and chaos shrinking to specks. She tightened her grip on the bomb, feeling the weight of the moment pressing down on her.
"Let me go and fly away from here,"
Pell looked at her one last time. "Are you sure about this?"
Sakura met his gaze, her resolve unwavering. "Now!"
With a final, mighty flap, he released Sakura into the air. Time seemed to slow as she focused all her energy on the bomb in her hands. Drawing her chakra to strengthen her body, she lifted the bomb like an overgrown ball and tossed it with all her strength until it was soaring upwards on its own.
For a moment, there was silence. The world seemed to hold its breath. Then, the bomb exploded in a brilliant flash of light, far above the city. The shockwave rippled outwards, harmlessly dispersing in the open air.
Not as harmless for Sakuar and Pell though, as the impact of the force knocked them back through the air at an alarming speed, that neither could control.
Well, she thought she would be able to grasp her momentum before smashing into the ground, but turns out she didn't need to.
As she passed the tower, Zoro, who was still in the building jumped out and grabbed her. Both ended up landing hard in front of their friends.
"You idiot!" Zoro muttered under his breath as she moved off of him.
"I didn't say I needed saving," Sakura hissed.
"How about thank you for saving your ass!" But he was kicked to the side, by their cook, who moved in to swoon.
"Sakura-chan, you're safe!"
"Thank goodness," sighed Nami.
Although the bomb had made a spectacle, the dust still hadn't settled as Alubarna continued to break out into civil war, the soldiers who were momentarily stunned resumed battle with the rebel army who returned the energy. Vivi attempted to scream over from the tower, but her voice still wouldn't reach her people.
A slight rumbling in the distances that managed to overpower the noise before them, turned heads as buildings fell near the square. And projectile that caused this was none other than Crocodile, his body was in the air after breaking through the bedrock and the city floors with Luffy's assistance.
"HE WON!"
Even though Luffy had kept to his promise, and managed to defeat the warlord, they were still standing before a civil war. Their instigator may have been taken out of the picture, but that did not reverse the damage.
"We have to stop them!" Nami exclaimed, pushing Sanji, Usopp, and Zoro towards the fray, telling them to find a way to stop this fighting and reduce the casualties.
"Don't." There was no logic in trying to manually separate the two armies from battle. They lost in terms of numbers.
"But we have to stop them somehow!" Nami shouted, tears pooling in her eyes. "We can't just let everyone die in front of Vivi like this!"
It was like a bullet had hit, that one piece of sweat-soaked skin that ran cold unnaturally so in the desert climate. A single drop, that could be dismissed as wishful thinking in the last throes of life, however when a second and third could be felt hitting the skin, it couldn't be described as anything other than water. Heads turned up to the sky that had cleared, where the sun had stopped shining now, and where clouds had formed almost too suddenly. But it's said you don't question a miracle, you just accept it.
As the rain started to grow heavier, so did the hesitation in the swing of people's swords. And the dust cleared, and the silence fell, giving way to Vivi's voice at last.
"STOP FIGHTING!"
She screamed with all her might, over the pouring rain that acted as the background of her call. "The rain falling right now will fall as it used to. Our Nightmare is over."
The crowd began to jee in protest, stating that what happened for the last few years was no nightmare but a horrid reality they had to endure and there were still injustices that needed to be addressed. Of course, these so-called injustices were the malicious plans of Crocodile, however from the palace someone called, ordering the royal army to drop arms.
And then another miracle happened, beraking through the crowd, the man they thought was lost at Whisky Peak, called for the ceasefire. Igaram. He carried a child that helped clear the truth for the people, explaining the ploy that had one of the Crocodile's men behind it. Who disguised themselves as the king to start this civil war. Another voice also rose from the crowd, and this was the leader of the rebel army, who had learned of Crocodile's treachery against the people of Alabasta.
Soon weapons were dropping before Vivi even made it to the bottom of the tower.
"That's our cue to leave," said Zoro, and no one argued. Sakura just sighed, deciding it was proving to be more troublesome to be a pirate than a shinobi.
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After three miracles, including a dead man coming back to life, Sakura hoped that another miracle would occur and they could find their captain before the marines did. Fortunately, it seemed after a barrage of unlucky occurrences, they were finally catching a break.
Following the direction where Crocodile had been launched, the crew found Luffy while coming down an empty street. He wasn't awake, or walking on his own and in desperate need of medical treatment but he was safe.
He was being carried by an older man, with dark hair and a wrinkled face, who also seemed worse for wear but his eyes were kind.
"Who are you?"
Everyone almost bulked at the question, but Sanji answered. "Just passing through. Um, the guy on your back is one of us as well so we'll take him off your hands. Thanks."
"Then you're the pirates who brought Vivi back right?"
"How did you know that old guy?"
"Daddy!" Vivi came running down the street with a teary smile.
"Vivi-chan's Dad!?"
"That makes this guy the king," said Zoro.
King Cobra introduced himself to the pirates with gratitude, explaining how Luffy had come to his aide and managed to save him from being buried in the catacombs where Luffy and Crocodile had their last confrontation. Even with his severe injuries and poisoning courtesy of Crocodile, Luffy saved Cobra.
"Thank goodness," Sakura examined Luffy, and he was indeed in a dire state. And yet still holding a smile even in his condition.
Since they were able to regroup, her friends were quick to send Vivi and her father back to the square to address the masses as the flames of war were snuffed out by the rain. Vivi wanted to share the truth of her experience, which included them, but everyone reminded her that a princess should not associate heroism and pirates.
Sakura waved Cobra and Vivi off with her friends, thinking they were finally going to enjoy their victory together, but as soon as Vivi was out of sight it was like everyone had lost the last bit of strength in them.
Dropping around Sakura, like wilted petals.
"Damn," Sakura looked around clicking her tongue and giggling.
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Kunoichi amongst Benders (Avatar x Naruto crossover) ( 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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-Kunoichi amongst Heroes WHAT IF SPIN OFF: Dorms and Exams
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