Without sparing another glance at the all-but-dead Uchiha Madara, Vegapunk stepped closer to inspect the corpse, only to be yanked back by Hancock.
"Come out here!!" Hancock snapped, her delicate brows knit tight. She barked at Madara's body; when it stayed motionless, she sneered, thrust out her hand, and shaped a Truth-Seeking Orb into a black longsword that she drove straight through the corpse.
A soft swish—and the shadow beneath Madara's body sprang to life, trying to flee, but the blade skewered its tail. A shrill scream tore through the air.
"Shut up! Behave yourself!" Hancock snarled. She wrenched the Truth-Seeking sword free; skewered on its tip was a ropy mass of black sludge.
With a thought she reshaped the weapon into a sphere that sealed the sludge inside. "darling, this must be that Black Zetsu!"
"Well done," Vegapunk nodded. He glanced at Madara's corpse, stored it away, then looked up at the Gedo Statue above.
"Let's seal this thing first."
As he spoke he formed a string of hand seals; the entire Gedo Statue dissolved into a vast torrent of Chakra that he drew into his palm.
Turning, he pressed his hand against Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's abdomen. Her body shuddered as an identical wellspring of Chakra flooded into her, merging endlessly with her own.
The sensation was bizarre: the statue seemed to complete something within her. Kaguya clearly felt her Chakra change—only a slight increase in quantity, but a tangible leap in quality.
Ōtsutsuki Chakra is virtually all Kekkei Mōra. To ordinary Ninja it is overwhelming, but against fellow Ōtsutsuki the gap is modest. A qualitative leap like this would normally require devouring three or four Divine Tree fruits.
A thrilled smile flashed across her face. Lowering her head, she told herself: Once I absorb more of this world's Chakra—even this world's version of myself—I might defeat that Hancock and win my freedom!
Then I can force Vegapunk to hand over the Parallel World development tech. By endlessly absorbing my alternate selves, I can grow incomparably strong!
Eventually I won't just repel any Ōtsutsuki pursuers—I could even launch a counter-invasion!
Vegapunk watched her, faintly smiling. After so many experiments he had mapped Kaguya from head to toe; countless hidden failsafes riddled her body. Her every thought was an open book to him.
(Looks like… this lab rat is quite useful—surprisingly proactive, changing her tune and volunteering for the experiment so quickly!)
As for her breaking free after a power spike—nonsense. Did she think all those backdoors were decorative? Even if she surpassed her prime by dozens of times, Vegapunk could drop her in an instant.
…Konohagakure.
"Seriously, that decrepit Third Hokage! With the war so tense, why won't he let me fight?!"
A red-haired Uzumaki Kushina sat in a tavern, grumbling.
"W-well… with your special status, I'm sure Hokage-sama has his reasons," said the cute, short-haired girl across from her, purple rectangular markings on her cheeks, forcing a gentle smile.
"Hmph!! Excuses! The old man just doesn't trust me!"
"I heard Kumogakure's Eight-Tails Jinchuriki is always on the front lines with the Fourth Raikage—shameless, the two of them ganging up on Minato! If I'd been there, those two wouldn't have made it home alive!"
Kushina slammed her cup down and gulped another drink.
Rin's smile grew even stiffer. The Eight-Tails host is a perfect Jinchuriki, Kushina-nee, and you've never once used the Nine-Tails in battle—never mind stepping onto a battlefield!
Besides, you don't want to fight; you just want to find Minato-sensei!
In truth, Team Minato had long since scattered: Kakashi had been promoted to Jonin; Rin had awakened Wood Release; even formerly hopeless little Obito—boosted by time-traveling Uchiha Obito—had advanced enough to pass the Special Jonin exam.
Obito might be dense, but he had talent, and who better than his future self to tutor him? Tailoring the training let him reach Special Jonin without trouble.
After Uchiha Obito secretly helped Rin awaken the Wood Release Bloodline Limit, she too became a Jonin—and Kushina's teammate.
Across the Ninja World only Wood Release and the Sharingan can truly restrain a Tailed Beast. To prevent a Jinchuriki rampage, a restraining Ninja must stay close.
Relations between Konoha and the Uchiha weren't hostile, yet trust was thin; naturally no Uchiha would be assigned to guard the Nine-Tails host. The obvious choice was Wood-wielding Rin.
Compared with the fiery Kushina, Rin was gentle. A medical Ninja at heart, even with Wood Release she felt no eagerness for battle, and certainly wouldn't egg Kushina on.
"The battlefield is no place to rush. Konoha isn't desperate enough to need you, Kushina-nee. Just wait here for word from Minato-sensei."
"Minato-sensei is the famous Yellow Flash. If anyone's safe, it's him—no need to worry."
Kushina's cheeks flushed. "Who's worried? I just want to serve the village!"
"That's right! Big Sis just loves Konoha and wants to do her part for the village!" Rin Nohara stifled a giggle, though her teasing only made Kushina's face burn even hotter.
But at that very moment Kushina's expression changed drastically; her body even trembled slightly. "Such powerful Chakra—who is that?!"
As the princess of the Uzumaki Clan, Kushina carried an exceptionally pure bloodline. Raised on the clan's true legacy, she had long since awakened its Bloodline Limits like the Mind's Eye of the Kagura and the Adamantine Sealing Chains.
Just now, however, her Mind's Eye had sensed several Chakra signatures so mighty they defied belief—terrifying reserves that dwarfed even the Nine-Tails sealed inside her.
Worse still, the Nine-Tails itself had grown restless, flooding her with waves of dread and cringing fear.
"What's wrong, Kushina-nee?" Rin asked in puzzlement, then followed Kushina's stare toward the entrance. A small group had just stepped into the tavern.
Those pale eyes must be from the Hyuga Clan… and that tall, gorgeous pair—wow, I've never seen a woman so beautiful!
There was also someone in a black robe embroidered with red clouds; he looked odd, even faintly familiar in his bearing.
Who are these people? Spies from another village?
As Vegapunk's party drew closer, Kushina's trembling worsened. "Rin—run!" she suddenly cried.
"Huh?" Rin froze. Before she could react, the blond youth lifted a hand. "Electromagnetic Shock Pulse!"
A tight magnetic beam struck Rin's brain; her vision blacked out and she slumped unconscious across the table.
Chairs scraped and dishes clattered as most patrons bolted. Only a handful—apparently Konoha Ninja—remained, surrounding Vegapunk's group with hostile glares.
Vegapunk paid them no mind. Present-day Konoha wasn't worth his concern. Had he wished, he could have marched straight through the main gate instead of slipping in with Space-Time Ninjutsu; no one could have stopped him anyway.
"Get out of here! You can't handle these people!"
Uzumaki Kushina was nearly in tears as she shouted at the shinobi.
A Jinchuriki's emotions feed back into their Tailed Beast. Already terrified by the newcomers' Chakra, Kushina felt Kurama recoil in panic at the signatures of Ōtsutsuki Kaguya and Boa Hancock. The mutual dread left her on the verge of collapse before a single blow was struck.
Most of the other Konoha Ninja in the bar were only Chunin or Genin, lacking Chakra perception. With Vegapunk's group deliberately suppressing their power, those shinobi were blissfully—and fatally—ignorant.
Without a word, they struck. Veterans fresh from the frontlines, they were men and women of action: Kunai and shuriken flashed first.
Vegapunk frowned slightly. Uchiha Obito stepped forward. "Doctor, leave these to me."
Without waiting, Obito formed hand seals. Wooden tables and stools sprouted branches and trunks that blocked the thrown weapons and snared the attacking Ninja.
Vegapunk gave Obito a silent glance.
Since arriving in this world Obito had awakened as if from a nightmare. His personality now mirrored the boy he once was; he acted to spare Konoha needless losses.
Obito aimed only to capture, but his companions showed no such restraint.
"Damn you! What do you want?!"
Kushina sucked in a breath, forced down her fear, and formed seals. Golden chains whipped out behind her.
As for the Nine-Tails—no matter how she pleaded, the mighty Tailed Beast played dead, answering only with a fresh surge of terror that left her stamping in frustration.
"Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, yes? Hand the beast over to me."
Hancock stepped forward, spoke calmly, and flicked her wrist. Kushina's world spun as crushing gravity slammed her to the floor.
"W-where… is this? C-can't… move… so heavy…"
Pinned to the ground, Kushina managed a rasping whisper. When she lifted her head she saw only desolation—they had shifted into another space.
It was the gravity dimension of Amenominaka. Under its immense pressure she could barely twitch.
No taijutsu specialist, bereft of Kurama's Chakra cloak and ignorant of Sage arts, she survived the gravity only by dint of her Uzumaki vitality.
Even Obito was flattened; Ōtsutsuki Kaguya staggered, Vegapunk's breathing grew heavy, while the mightier Hancock showed no strain at all.
Compared with Chakra-rich but physically fragile Ninja, the superhuman bodies of the One Piece World boasted far greater resistance to raw gravity.
Hancock hoisted the nearly unconscious Kushina, pressed a hand to her abdomen, and yanked. A vast torrent of Chakra was torn free and sealed away inside a black Tailed Beast Ball.
Kushina cried out, convulsed, and fainted. Thanks to Vegapunk's refinements, however, the extraction left the Jinchuriki unharmed; the shock alone had knocked her out.
Hancock studied Kushina and remarked, "darling, this redhead's a cut above the usual plain girls. Shall we keep her as a maid?"
Vegapunk rolled his eyes. "Stop fooling around—she's getting married soon."
With a sigh of regret, Hancock flicked her wrist and hurled Uzumaki Kushina out of the Amenominaka Space.
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