Chapter 38: The Crew Converges

A/N: Been awhile for this story. Its not forgotten, just life comes first.

I do hope you enjoy and that it meets your expectations.

Arc - Captured Rain Genin Finale

Aburame, Nara and Rain Ninja all eating together, with the Hanzo Telesnail sipping on some sake.

Subtext: Fresh Beginnings

XXXXXXX - East Blue, Konomi Archipelago, Unknown

Naruto just felt himself floating, for lack of a better term. It was like time had slowed down, everything moving at a fraction of its normal pace, except for his mind. All he could think on was that fight he had with Iruka's kidnapper. And after all these years… he could finally put a name to that man.

Orochimaru.

And he was forced to admit that their 'fight' was nothing of the sort. The guy was just too strong.

In all honesty, that wasn't what was occupying the young blond's mind. It was something else entirely as a result of that fight. Specifically, the actions of Meadow Village's Mayor.

Naruto could still remember those years, despite his best efforts to not remember them. How the villagers constantly ridiculed and tormented him. He never understood why, no matter how much he asked, begged and pleaded. The Mayor had been the only one to stick up for him… but even his generosity had limits, which the Mayor had made abundantly clear.

Yet… if the snake spoke true… the Mayor had refused to sell Naruto out. The boy could only imagine what Orochimaru had done to make the man talk… but the Mayor never talked… he had kept quiet… and by extension… kept Naruto safe.

Didn't that warrant something?

During all of Naruto's years in Meadow Village, no one, not even the Mayor, told him what he had done wrong to warrant all that hatred toward him. But now… he thought he might finally have a piece of the puzzle.

"But it is true, isn't it? You really have no idea what you are. Who you are."

Who he was? More importantly, what he was? That was what the snake had taunted him on. And something about it seemed sincere. True, he didn't know his origins, but he never really thought they were anything important. Iruka had been enough. At least, until he met Luffy and the others…

And it was the other thing that was sending a chill down his spine. What he was.

That… he felt he had a sneaking suspicion on. Something that Orochimaru had said.

"Come now; if you truly want to challenge me, use your furry little friend already."

What that meant, Naruto had no idea… but there was something ringing in his mind.

DUMB SANNIN. THROWING THE FOOL BOY AWAY INTO THE POND WAS A DEATH SENTENCE. HE STILL HAS A SICK SENSE OF HUMOR, THINKING THIS WILL HELP BRING THINGS TOGETHER BETWEEN US.

There. There it was again. That voice. That same voice that had spoken right before Naruto went berserk on Haku. Those memories were vivid; he didn't recall a lot of the details after he snapped out of it. What he did remember were a lot of feelings: rage, anger, and most importantly POWER.

He was becoming more and more certain that whatever this big secret about him was, the reason Meadow Village hated him, the reason Orochimaru knew so much about him… was that voice.

OH, WHAT'S THIS? YOU CAN HEAR ME, CAN'T YOU?

A low laugh came echoing around, drawing all of Naruto's attention.

SO THAT'S THE SNAKE'S GAME. THE CLOSER YOU ARE TO DEATH, THE EASIER IT IS FOR YOU TO HEAR ME. HE MUST BE GAMBLING THAT IF YOU WANT TO LIVE, YOU'LL APPROACH ME, ASKING FOR POWER TO TEAR THROUGH THE SEAL HE IMPLANTED.

Things became clear right there. If earlier had just been a hazy grey fog that Naruto had been wandering endlessly… now it looked more like a sewer. Water dripping around everywhere, with a small stream of it under his feet. He could hear that voice echoing down the area.

COME.

Naruto began walking forward, almost in a dreamlike state. Answers… perhaps all the answers… were just a few more…

… and that's when Naruto jerked awake, gasping for air. Looking around, he saw he wasn't in that sewer area anymore… he looked more like he was in a closet. It was about as large as a small room, but it lacked any sort of windows, the only source of light being from the ceiling with a single bulb. There was a large tattered rug on the floor, on top of which was a worn-out futon that he was lying upon, complete with a thin but warm quilt. Decorating the walls were a series of scrolls written in that shinobi language he still didn't get. The leftmost wall included a series of shelves, which included a series of clothes around his size, most notablea cream-hooded jacket with a fire symbol on the upper right and left sleeves. One shelf had those weapon holsters and a number of other ninja gear.

"So you're finally awake."

Naruto jerked his head to the side. Sitting on her knees was a girl, just about his age. She wore a long-sleeved, light blue blouse with dark blue pants. But it was her eyes that really caught his attention. Nearly flawless white eyes. Was this girl blind?

"Um… thanks… and you are…?" Naruto asked, looking around. Those eyes were a tad freaky, in all honesty.

"… Hinata," she said simply. "I pulled you out of the water once Orochimaru defeated you."

The name snapped everything back to him. He quickly sat up, throwing off the quilt. He then saw he was in nothing but his underwear. "Hey, what happened - "

"I had to take them off," the girl interjected before he could finish his sentence. "They're drying over there." She pointed to a corner of the room where he did see his outfit laid out on the floor. "I was afraid I was too late when I got you out. You were barely breathing." Naruto noticed that she averted her gaze while saying all of that, her face reddening for some reason.

Naruto was about to offer his thanks when he remembered something. "Wait… you pulled me out of the water? Then… did you see Usopp…?" Maybe they could at least tend to the body…

Hinata shook her head. "No, his body wasn't there. I guess the current swept it out."

Naruto clenched his fists against the quilt hard. He wasn't mad at Hinata for not finding the body, or even at Nami at that moment. It was just himself. He should have done the same thing Hinata did, just dove into the pool and get Usopp rather than attacking the Fish-Men.

Then a sneaky little voice in the corner of his mind rebutted that idea; if he had, he wouldn't have finally found Iruka's kidnapper…

"So, Hinata, right?" Naruto asked, trying to get his mind off those consequences. "Where are we?"

"Arlong Park."

"Oh, I see. Arlong P - HUH?" ARLONG PARK!? "We're still… but you aren't - "

"I'm not a Fish-Man," she supplied for him. "I'm the only non-Fish-Man that lives here."

In order to compensate the no doubt startled expression Naruto was sporting, Hinata went into her explanation for the second time that day. About the exchange and working arrangements between Arlong's crew and her own clan, to which she gave him some insight into her own bloodline, the Byakugan. Naruto basically got that it made her see real good, not that she needed special eyes when she already saw him in his underwear.

As the girl talked, Naruto found himself listening intently. As with the Aburame clan, Hinata's clan had been chased, hounded and victimized by the world. Where the Aburame clan dug underground and hid themselves from the world and the Rain Village worked with the undesirables, the Hyuga made deals for their benefit at the expense of others. And given the girl here, even at the expense of their own clansmen. He could see the dejected look in Hinata's eyes as she began staring more at the floor during her tale than him.

He was about to open his mouth, do his best to console her when the door began opening without warning.

His heart skipping a beat, he bolted behind the door (and doing his best to keep quiet as it smashed against him), but he could still see and hear what was going on with this new 'visitor'.

Arlong himself.

"Girl." He gave her a sharp look, noting her attire and several wet spots on the ground. His eyes narrowed at that. "What have you been up to?"

"J-j-just getting myself…" she began saying. Naruto was surprised that she wasn't cowering into a ball, or flinching at the sight. In fact, she just seemed resigned, like she heard this every day. He did notice she wasn't bothering to look Arlong in the eyes, probably because she had helped him out of the pool.

Unfortunately for her, that was just making Arlong more suspicious. "Did you try to rescue those puny humans?" he demanded pointedly to the girl.

Uh oh…

In a swift motion, Arlong lashed out, smashing down the shelves (which, as luck would have it, collapsed over Naruto's clothes and buried them out of sight, much to the girl's relief). Frowning in annoyance, he turned around and slammed the door shut, Hinata herself having to fight down the urge to gulp…

… only to reveal nothing.

"… I don't exactly have much else for you to destroy," Hinata offered, trying not to show signs of relief. Fortunately, Arlong had his back to her, so he wouldn't have seen anything regardless.

The Fish-Man captain said nothing for a moment, though Naruto himself was trying to stop himself from breathing (which was admittedly easy in this situation). He was more concerned about what kind of lashing this girl would receive for helping him than the fact that he was facing Arlong and the wrath of her clan, so when Arlong looked at his hiding spot, Naruto had replicated the same trick he had used during the fight with Haku, using a version of the henge that, rather than forming an image of a person, formed an image of the immediate surroundings.

In other words, if Arlong so much as sneezed, he would have realized Naruto was right in front of him.

But it seemed the God of Irony was on holiday that day because Arlong relaxed, looking back towards the Hyuga girl. "Seems you know your place well," he congratulated. He nudged his head to the door. "It's time. Hachi is waiting for you."

'What does that mean?' Waiting for her… waiting for what? He wished he had the chance to ask but at that point, Hinata merely grabbed her jacket and sandals, walking out with Arlong. Though the Shark Fish-Man didn't see it, he could see Hinata's forlorn glance in his direction. Was she afraid he had just run off, or regret that they didn't have more time to talk?

It took a large amount of self-control to remain still, or else risk being detected by Arlong as the two left. Once he was sure they were gone, he un-henged himself.

His first impulse was to follow along, see what would happen, or at the very least reassure her… but then he recalled how he had run into Arlong Park despite Johnny's pleas not to and how that ended up; he hadn't saved Usopp, got his butt kicked and nearly got this girl in deep trouble.

'Got to find Luffy and the others. Regroup,' was Naruto's reluctant conclusion. Just one small problem remained…

… where was he anyway?

XXXXXXX - Outskirts of Cocoyashi Village

Nojiko listened to her sister's tale in silence. The Pirate Captain Buggy when she first met with these Straw Hats. The misadventure with her caging the Straw Hat Captain himself, to meeting Naruto and the others. As she talked, Nojiko noticed a very key difference in the story. Namely, that this 'Luffy' did not match the 'captain' that had first come by.

But no need to say that to Nami, who was just covering her face with her hands, as if exhausted. Nojiko knew better.

After the fight with Buggy, Nami insisted that was all. That she swiped the treasure and came all the way here. This portion of the tale, while expertly told as before, was more brief and to the point. Resting her head on a hand, Nojiko had to force herself not to smirk. 'You're lying, Nami. This other guy is nowhere in your story, and your ending is too abrupt. Don't want me to know all these adventures you've had with this crew, do you?'

"It's done. I've done it, Nojiko. Today, seven years of hard work pay off. Today I break the chains, everything I've worked for." She had stated all of this already, but it was more like a chant now.

"So… why? Why can't I smile?" Unbeknownst to her, a single tear started to form in the corner of her eye. It slid down down her cheek past her hand, allowing the elder to see a quick glimpse of it.

Shifting her position in her chair. "Maybe because you regret ditching the Straw Hat Pirates," she suggested, pouring herself a new drink.

"That's NOT it!" Nami roared, thought not moving her hands from her face.

Her sister decided to play her ace. "So then helping Usopp save his village has absolutely nothing to do with it?"

Nami felt her heart skip a few beats. She finally looked up past her hands, realizing she had been played. "I may be a witch, but you're the bitch of the family."

"Could hardly believe the words that came out of his mouth," Nojiko continued, ignoring the jab. "Traveling along with these newbie pirates for so long. Singing, laughing." That grin became a smile. "So completely unlike your previous thefts."

Nami had nothing to say to that.

"And given the word spreading around the village right now, it sounds like the rest of the crew has already arrived. For you."

That was the last straw that woke Nami back to reality as she slammed a fist on the table. Nojiko didn't even flinch. "You make it look like you're an escaped slave who just learned her captors found her, Nami."

The orange-haired navigator just started walking back out. "I'm going to settle this."

"Do you need to?" Nojiko asked without looking as Nami stormed towards the door. "I thought the job was done."

Nami stopped at the door. "I have an associate coming. Thick coat. Sunglasses. Take the delivery and put it with the rest."

"Suit yourself," Nojiko supplied, as if not hearing the latest comment. As her sister departed the house, Nojiko just let her imagination wander. Seems today her sister's burdens would finally be lifted… and a place for her was waltzing right up to her to offer something her village couldn't.

"So," the elder woman uttered as she folded her hands. "How shall I take advantage of this situation? Heh heh heh…"

XXXXXXX - West Side coast shore, approximately 12 kilometers away

Shino made his way through the destroyed remains of Gosa Village. It wasn't his preferred choice, but Nami had stated it would be best if he remained undetected after his venture to Arlong Park. While traveling along the coast posed a certain amount of risk given his adversaries were Fish-Men, not only was the terrain familiar for Shino as this was where he first arrived, but few were likely to come across the remains of Gosa in the first place.

So he felt the risk was adequate.

He adjusted the bag containing the berries he had pilfered from Arlong's vault. Ten million in all. Nami had reported she only needed seven million, but since he was thieving anyway, he figured he'd take a bit more. The remainder would be sent back home with his next report on Betsy. His clan could certainly use the funds.

And perhaps they could come up with a solution to the Arlong Problem.

Portions of his swarm were out scouting about, forming a loose perimeter around the Aburame as he moved down the destroyed path. The memory of him being so easily duped by that character was still fresh in his mind. Of all the variables he expected to cause him to falter when he began this trip, a pretty face wasn't one of them.

Shino gave an involuntarily flinch. Did he really just phrase it that way? Naruto's influence, no doubt. Another unforeseen factor.

The thought of the blond made Shino wonder anew if the rest of the group had arrived at the archipelago. He had no doubt they would; it was merely a question of when.

He was deploying half of his insects to conduct more in-depth reconnaissance of the island when the closer Kikai alerted him.

Pausing, he held up a single finger and allowed the Kikai to land upon it. After a few moments, he got the message.

The girl, Isaribi, was nearby. According to the insect, she was in a small cave just a kilometer further down, just on the outskirts of Gosa. Sticking to the coastal rocks, Shino made his way as swiftly as he could, withdrawing most of his swarm within himself and keeping only a few rudimentary scouts. It did not take long to trek to the cave entrance, and Shino made sure to keep himself in the shadows as he moved in.

Inside was what could be called a small residence. There were about three wooden tables - all in poor, degraded condition - that held a number of items, from seashells to scattered tattered clothes, bandages, and a variety of tools. Judging from the cave structure, the occupant had been chiseling away, slowing extending it. A few oil lamps were on the walls, providing only a small amount of light. On the ground was a single mattress with no covers and to the far side was a fire pit, with some fish cooking over it.

Isaribi herself was there, preparing the fire for her meal.

So Shino decided to strike.

Within moments, over half of his swarm was unleashed upon the girl. Her instincts served her well, as her head whipped around. Remembering that power within her voice, Shino opened his hand, dropping a flash bomb.

As expected, the sudden illumination caught the girl off guard, giving her no time to sing. The swarm encompassed her within seconds as she strained to regain herself amongst the assault.

"Don't bother," Shino told her, the sound of his voice causing her to jerk in surprise. "You won't fool me a second time. This time, you are in my trap."

XXXXXXX - Another portion of the island, heavy forest area.

"Remind me how I got into this position again?"

The complaint came from a lion of all things. It leaped from tree branch to tree branch with a flair of grace about it.

Or at least as much grace as one could manage given the current situation.

"You nearly threw up on me," the lion's rider – yes, rider- Sasuke reminded him yet again. "So you owe me. Plus, you lost at Rock-Paper-Scissors."

After the remainder of the crew's abrupt… landing… Luffy had walked off completely unaware of whom he had landed on search for their navigator. On the other hand, Sasuke found one of their newest additions to the crew and figured the lion portion of the bus boy would be useful.

The lion's head whipped back at him again. "Just what do those Red Eyes of yours do again?" he asked suspiciously.

"Just let me see in the dark," Sasuke answered immediately. "Why, are you accusing me of cheating?"

This was the fifth time the two had done this little exchange, though mostly for something to do rather than any actual antagonism. Ever since that disastrous landing at the Idiot Duo's hands (yes, as far as Sasuke was concerned, everything was Luffy and Naruto's fault), the two had been trying to find the rest of the group. The fact that their own landing could have been… better… certainly hadn't helped matters.

Though neither boy was willing to talk on that anytime soon.

Choji's lion head gazed from side to side. "Okay, I think I've got something this time."

"Is that sense of smell of yours working now?"

"I told you! I'm a lion! Not a bloodhound! You want to be able to track things by smell, get a Dog Devil Fruit!"

"Aren't lions supposed to have heightened senses of smell?"

"I don't know!"

"What do you mean 'I don't know?'"

"It means what it means!"

"How does a lion not know what it can do?"

"I lived on Baratie! We dealt with creatures from the sea!"

"Pathetic."

"This coming from the Almighty Sharingan User not able to use his Telescope Eyes to find them?"

Sasuke's only reply was to kick his heels into Choji's side. Choji, in response, smacked him in the back of the head with his tail.

"Alright, alright," Sasuke relented, snapping his Sharingan on again. He began looking around. "So where are you smelling this time?"

"Um…" The lion took a few sniffs. "South… no, southeast."

"That's north."

"I KNEW THAT! What do you see?"

Sasuke didn't respond this time. So far, Choji had led them into three animal dens, an abandoned house, and a beehive, though Sasuke swore Choji did that one on purpose. Pouring more chakra into his eyes, he strained them, willing them to see farther. His eyes seemed to catch every bit of movement, amplifying it. He caught the glimpses of what looked like a road. And sure enough, amazingly, there was someone walking on it.

"I do see someone," Sasuke confirmed.

"Really?" Choji sounded just as surprised as the Uchiha boy did. He took another careful sniff. "Lots of… I think that's… meat. Seasonings. Lots of different varieties! Must be Sanji!"

"Luffy," Sasuke corrected. 'So Luffy smells like meat, huh? Why am I not surprised?'

"Close enough!"

XXXXXXX - Ten minutes prior

After the crash, Luffy, Yosaku and Sanji had landed in one of the other villages on the island: Rockcliff. There, after securing a bath for the bounty hunter, they heard rumors of the monster that roamed the islands, terrorizing and stealing. It was disputed as to whether it was one of Arlong's crew or someone (or thing) just taking advantage of the situation.

"So what do you think, Luffy?" Sanji asked, rubbing his chin as the three of them walked. "One of Arlong's 'protection rackets' or just - " He glanced to the side to see Luffy's opinion.

"Would that cow have been better rare or just well done?" Luffy asked out loud.

Sanji just facepalmed. 'What have I gotten myself into do? I'd do better with that moss-head swordsman.'

"What do you think, Zoro?" Luffy asked suddenly. Sanji gave the young rubberman a look when Zoro came sprinting out of the brush to the side, running right along behind the two.

Zoro's head jerked towards them. "You two?" He skidded to a stop, right there.

'Speak of the devil,' Sanji thought. He briefly wondered if Luffy had been aware Zoro was so close by. Nah, probably just luck.

"Do you know where Arlong Park is?" the swordsman demanded. "I just heard back in that village; Arlong's captured Usopp!"

"We've got to get there right now!" Yosaku shouted, already reaching for his sword.

"You're too late!"

All heads jerked to see Johnny. Tears were leaking through behind those sunglasses of his as he fell to his knees, slamming a hand on the ground. "Both him and Naruto… are dead!"

"WHAT?!"

Johnny couldn't bear to look at the group' faces. "It was Nami! The witch herself! She stabbed Usopp and kicked his body into the pool! Naruto tried to avenge him and he too -!" he couldn't finish as he just slammed his fist into the ground again. He had stayed up until the point that the boy had been caught by that long-haired shinobi, and then that… murderous intent. Johnny felt as if he had been gutted and tortured before he bolted out of pure fear.

Luffy's outstretched fist slamming into the bounty hunter was another reason for the cut off. "TAKE THAT BACK! OR I'll SEND YOU FLYING!"

Sanji and Zoro were already moving, using foot and sheathed sword to hold back an enraged Luffy as Yosaku helped Johnny to his feet.

"NAMI IS ONE OF US! THERE IS NO WAY THOSE TWO ARE DEAD! NAMI WOULD NEVER KILL USOPP AND NARUTO IS TOO STRONG!"

"Luffy, calm down!" Zoro and Sanji yelled together.

"If you don't want to believe me, fine, but I saw it with my own eyes!" Johnny insisted.

"Just who is your crewmate, Luffy?" came a voice that froze everyone in their tracks.

XXXXXXX - East Blue, Salvation

Kokuei stood on deck with her grandfather, seeing the arrival of a small sailboat, Vespa Mandarinia, named for a particularly fierce species of wasps that inhabited the South Blue. The Vespa was one of three sailboats that consisted of the Aburame "navy". Able to carry up to ten passengers, it was in the best condition and the fastest of the three.

As the Vespa came on a parallel course with the Salvation, Kokuei saw her father and three uncles all jump off the sailboat right onto the deck of the marine vessel in perfect unison. Kokuei wasn't able to resist as she moved and embraced her father, who responded in kind, her uncles patting her on the head.

"I'm glad to see you are safe, Kokuei," Shibi spoke as they broke off their hug.

"Thank you, Father," she responded in kind. "Are you all ready?"

The man just gave a simple nod before turning to his own father, giving a respectful bow before looking back at his daughter. "We have completed our preparations. With the Marines and our own allies, we will bring down Orochimaru."

"I hope it's that simple." All the Aburame present looked over, seeing Commander Ripper heading over, escorted by two of his fellows, both of whom saluted the Aburame newcomers. Being professional, the four of them returned the gesture.

"Problems?" the Aburame Head inquired.

"Possibly," Ripper answered. "I was hoping to get into contact with the 16th Branch. They are the ones stationed closest to the Konomi Archipelago. Due to his proximity, I was hoping to get some updated intel we could use for our strike. It won't do to upset the locals in this operation."

A crude way of saying they couldn't afford to make the Arlong Pirates their enemy. As much as Kokuei wanted to protest, there was no denying it. They simply did not have the forces to confront Arlong and Orochimaru. Better to eliminate the bigger threat, and then maybe… they could do something about the Fish-Men. "Go on," her grandfather prompted.

"No one at his base is responding. And as far as we can tell, they are receiving our calls and the equipment seems to be functional. Just… no one's home," the Commander responded.

Shibi rubbed his chin. "Curious. Where could Nezumi and his men have gone off to?"

XXXXXXX - Cocoyashi Village Docks

"A Navy ship is here!"

"Branch 16!"

The residents of the village were gathering at the dock en masse. A fleeting hope of excitement was rushing through them, something they rarely dared allowed to happen. With the expansion of Arlong's operation and the destruction of the other Marine vessel, perhaps they had finally gained enough attention from the entirety of Marine Headquarters to divert critical resources here?

Sure, it had its hands full dealing with the terrors and horrors of the Grand Line, where the majority of its strength was required. They had always known that; the stories of the pirates and other criminals that harbored in the Grand Line, such as the Yonkou, were well known even to these parts of the world. And when facing the likes of Whitebeard, you needed the best of the best to constantly be ready.

But with this sight, maybe the Marines had finally decided they couldn't ignore the Arlong situation anymore? The crowd muttered excitedly as they read the name of the Order-class vessel.

Sly Rat.

Within moments, the Marine captain and about two dozen of his men disembarked, coming right to the crowd.

"Chichichi," the Marine Captain snickered loudly, much like a rat. Given how he resembled one, the villagers thought it was appropriate.

"I am Captain Nezumi, of Branch 16 of the Navy," the man (rat?) introduced himself. "Where's Genzo, Headman of Cocoyashi Village?"

Genzo made his way through the crowd up to the front. "I am Genzo."

"Good." A sly grin appeared on the Captain's face. "Now tell me… where can I find the woman, Nami?"

End of Chapter 38.

There you go, hope you all enjoyed. Those in the know know what's about to happen next; those that don't… well… you can probably guess.

Thanks for your patience with the chapter, and hope you enjoyed. And if you did notice any errors or discrepancies, I apologize. Rather out of practice with writing as of late, given the nature of both jobs. I was sure both myself and my beta got them, but I will strive to do the best I can. As I, and my pal here, always have.

That all aside, the first of my little mini-chapter series is over. I wonder which to focus on next? Back to Zabuza, perhaps? Or maybe a different angle? Hmm…

Until next time, peace out!

Nami's Ultimate Idiot Competition – Luffy: 49, Naruto: 58. Currently on hold due to Nami's departure.

May the Kage Bunshin and Gomu Gomu no Bazooka be with you!

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or Naruto. They belong to their respective owners: Eiichiro Oda and Masashi Kishimoto. Big thanks to Paintball-Gamer for beta-reading this!