14 Itachi in the one piece world 1

"I will love you always" Itachi said softly to his younger brother as his consciousness dissolved and his soul left the shell that was sustaining it. Taking one last look at Sasuke and feeling nothing but pride and love for his brother Itachi closes his eyes as the darkness washes over him 'goodbye Sasuke'

Itachi felt nothing but calm, it was as if the place he had awoken in was tailor made for his preferences. The air wasn't too hot nor too cold, the perfect temperature. The light level wasn't too strong where it hurt his sensitive eyes but it wasn't too dim so as he struggled to see his surroundings. After blinking a few times Itachi realised he had vision in both of his eyes and not just one.

'I suppose wounds my body sustained are not mirrored on my soul...'

Sitting up he that found he was on a bed which looked like it was fit for royalty as the silk sheets were fresh and clean, the pillows were comfortable and the mattress was soft and yet just firm enough that he was comfortable. Deciding that he would be better off exploring his new surroundings Itachi stood up looked down at his body, gone was the red cloak which those who were brought back via Edo Tensei wore and instead was replaced by the outfit he usually wore under the Akatsuki cloak. 'Is this the Pure Lands?' Itachi thought as he continued to look around the room 'will I get to see my parents again? What about Shisui or Izumi...'

Guilt washed over Itachi as he remembered the girl who had loved him for years and had finally managed to force her way into his heart and finally get him to reciprocate her love only for him to murder her using Tsukiyomi to allow him to steel his resolve and proceed with the massacre of the entire Uchiha clan.

"She will be disgusted by me" Itachi whispered out loud giving voice to his thoughts.

"Izumi-san is actually very proud of you Itachi-san" said a soft regal sounding voice. Itachi spun on his heel, Shinobi reflexes combined with his naturally alert mind allowing him to react quickly to the new presence in the room.

Now it took a lot to get a look of any form of surprised or shock to cross the face of Itachi and so the slightly widening of his eyes as well as raised eyebrows was akin to a normal person gasping loudly and so when Itachi took in the beautiful woman in front of him he was honestly at a loss for words. Her face was beautiful with emerald green eyes which shone with nothing but kindness and her smile which was gorgeous yet motherly as if she was smiling at her own son. The woman's hair was long, reaching to her lower back and a warm brown which was not unlike Izumi's own. She was dressed in a simple red kimono with an ornate necklace with a purple gem which Itachi did not recognise. "Hello Itachi-san, how are you feeling?" the woman asked with slight but noticeable concern in her voice. "I am fine thank you" Itachi said an after a moment of thought he frowned "may I ask who you are? You seem familiar however I cannot seem to remember".

"Well Itachi-san I am who your people called 'Kami' and as for the familiarity I can assure you its normal as everyone who meets me feels the same way"

Itachi's usual calm and collected personality was temporarily shattered as his eyes widened "Kami-sama!" he says quickly eyes cast onto the floor as he bows low "please forgive my rudeness". Kami simply giggles and lifts his face up to look her in the eyes "there is nothing to forgive Itachi-san you brave selfless man. If anything I believe I should be thanking you freed all the dead who were being used like children's toys, you also avoided so much bloodshed by preventing the Coup d'état and ended up saving hundreds of thousands of lives" she states with pride and happiness in her voice while smiling at him

To say Itachi was shocked at the words leaving the deities mouth was like saying the ocean was damp or lava was warm. Kami, seeing the young man lost for words, decides to continue "You see Itachi-san, I've been slightly influencing events from the moment the dead were brought back, normally I'm content to simply watch from the sidelines and believe you will sort out your own messes and learn from your mistakes however I occasionally step in to push you in the right direction such as the fight between Hashirama and Madara". She decides to pause to allow him to process the information, "You see when one side will cause widespread suffering I will help the opposite side. Now this doesn't mean I take sides as the side I influence could be triumphant or could fall despite my help and should this happen it is simply meant to be and I will not interfere unless it is needed of me".

Itachi after processing the new revelations felt like he understood however his curiosity was piqued and he decided to ask "if I may Kami-sama, what was changed in my life?"

"I simply made sure Naruto Uzumaki crossed paths with you and Nagato Uzumaki" she said with a knowing smile and proceeded to sit at the table across the room.

Immediately Itachi understood what was implied she allowed him and Naruto to cross paths and this caused the crow with Shisui's eye to activate due to the preset orders to respond to his Sharingan and cast Kotoamatsukami upon him and implement him with the order to protect Konohagakure at all costs.

"Sit down Itachi-san as you and I must discuss your future and what you wish to do".

Itachi now that his curiosity was sated was happy to obliged and sat across from the Goddess as she was pouring them both some black tea. "Itachi-san I will be blunt you cannot stay in the Pure Lands as the Edo Tensei leaves a mark on your soul which forces you to be treated like someone who does not belong here and therefore you are pushed out and towards the Mortal Plane. However since nothing is there to anchor your soul you push back against the Pure Land and cause a flux and eventually like anything under enough pressure you will warp and the stress will fracture your soul forcing you to become a shell of your former self" she says with sympathy in her voice. Itachi was distraught and his face showed it "so I will never see my parents and be able to apologise and ask for forgiveness" he whispered as a single tear ran down his face. "I won't be able to see Shisui and tell him that his eye saved countless lives" he continued on as more cracks appeared in his emotional armour. While this was happening Kami simply watched feeling nothing but sadness for him, yet she knew would that this needed to happen as his feelings that were bottled up would hinder and hold him back from moving on properly.

'I won't be able to show Izumi how much I truly cared about her and make things right between us'

That thought broke him. The emotional armour he put on when he slaughtered his clan and refused to take off for eight long years shattered to show a twenty one year old man who was sporting wounds which hadn't been treated since he was fourteen, he simply sobbed without any reservation. "I'm so sorry Itachi-san" Kami said as she grasped his hand across the table, she decided she would let him release his pent up sorrow and that help him heal. A short while later Itachi was sitting in silence and so Kami decided to begin explaining to him what she can do "Itachi-san?" she asked carefully, after seeing him look at her she continued "as I said Itachi-san you cannot stay here but you are one of the few people in history that I have influenced and watched over, therefore I have decided to do what I have done for the other souls brought back by Kabuto Yakushi and Orochimaru over the years. I will send you to a different dimension"

Itachi sighs as he feels emotionally exhausted and straightens up "by dimension do you mean like Kakashi's Kamui or something different?"

"No I mean on a much wider scale as the Gods didn't just create one world we created hundreds however many were so different they couldn't exist near each other as many abilities could tear through thin walls and that would cause a war or genocide of a weaker race due to differences in technology and abilities. An example of this is your dimension and one a short distance away which contains a race capable of gaining strength every time they lose a battle as well as destroying planets and galaxies with their powers" Kami stated with a hint of mirth in her voice as she watched Itachi pale ever so slightly at the thought of this race.

"Therefore they are very far apart even Kamui is only entering a pocket dimension one billionth the size of the gap between the Elemental Nations and its neighbour dimension where I wish to send you" Kami continued " The dimension doesn't have a specific name however the world itself is very interesting and I believe you will be able to live your life as you see fit there, but I'm not going to ruin the surprise by giving away all the worlds secrets" she finished with a slight grin that reminded him of an endearing fox he knew once. Itachi thought about this new world and after some time had passed he sighed "Kami-sama while I appreciate the offer I'm struggling to see the point" Itachi stated with a hint of sadness "as once I awake in the world my body will begin its descent into sickness again and as much as I may want to I simply refuse to accept a gift knowing I will die before I can truly make the most of-" Itachi continued until he was interrupted by Kami gripping his hand "That will not be a concern Itachi because as I said earlier you were one of the few mortals I've ever truly bent the rules and helped and now I don't see the issue as you are already dead. Therefore I will be making a few adjustments to your body and abilities".

"First I will remove your terminal illness and raise your immune system to a special level so it will completely protect you from all terminal or severe diseases, such as the one you suffered in the Elemental Nations. However you will still be susceptible to common illnesses such as colds and deficiency based illnesses such as scurvy as you can easily take steps to prevent it." Kami says and seeing nothing but benefits from this Itachi simply bows his head in gratitude. "Due to this your body will change and this links into your second change. Your chakra reserves have drastically risen due to the amount of training you did during your time in the Akatsuki and now with no disease sapping your stamina you have received the stamina you would have had anyway. Now in this new world there are many different abilities but I will change your body so that should you learn or gain any of these new abilities there will be no hindering mutations to your Chakra Network or your Sharingan, you will also gain the potential to gain these abilities as you are not being born you are simply being sent there" Itachi once again seeing no issues gave his gratitude but decided to ask a question "will I speak their language?"

Yes you will and with the third and last change you will gain the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan-

"No! I will not take Sasuke's eyes from him". Itachi stated with a serious look on his face. Kami gave him look of humour mixed with slight disappointment "Oh dear me! Not you as well Itachi-san I thought you were a special case of Uchiha" she sighs, Kami lets out a giggle "I guess it's an Uchiha thing. You do realise when Sasuke took your eyes he replaced his own, which are the ones you need for you to gain your Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan so by that logic I don't 't understand why you Uchiha didn't just trade eyes with each other once both had the Mangekyo Sharingan"

Itachi felt like hitting his head off the table. 'STUPID, STUPID, STUPID, STUPID' he thought while an involuntary twitch developed in his eye.

'Dear me I've broken him' Kami thought as she reached across and gave Itachi a firm slap.

"Thank you" he said quietly slightly ashamed at his behaviour "You're welcome" she replied thoroughly amused "now you know the deal with the Eternal Mangekyo but a few things that are not on the Uchiha Tablet which over time have been proven to be facts of the transformation. First all of your abilities will require less Chakra to use and maintain as well as putting a lot less stress on your body, next your eyes will not degrade into blindness this I'm sure you knew and lastly your Sharingan abilities will be much stronger especially your Susano'o and you will have a new ability but even I don't know when and how it will manifest."

Kami proceeded to finish and that raised her left hand and sent out a stream of purple energy which left him feeling truly rejuvenated and strong both in body and mind but he knew his new changes would be complete once he was back in his body. Now all that was left to do was prepare for his new start.

Two Hours Later

Itachi checked himself over and felt his Sealing Scroll which contained a few clothes which were kept at his and Kisame's main base of operation in the Land of Grass. Covering his usual clothing was his Akatsuki cloak which he had grown fond of during his time, around his neck was his usual silver necklace and his vermillion ring was around his right ring finger. The only difference between his normal outfit while he was alive and now was that he had an ANBU issued Tanto across his lower back similar to the one when he was an ANBU Captain and he had decided against the painted nails as that was more trouble to do then it was worth. "Are you ready Itachi-san?" asked a soft voice Turning to look at Kami who was smiling at him and he nodded "yes Kami-sama I am and thank you for everything" Itachi said with bow and a small but genuine smile, "Do not thank me Itachi-san you earned this, Now good luck and live your life to the fullest" she replied while raising her hand, the familiar purple energy gathered in her palm and suddenly shot out engulfing Itachi and he felt a sharp tug at his consciousness.

_Rusukaina, Calm Belt,

Eyes opened slowly, his head was throbbing and his eyes were struggling to focus, the first thing Itachi noticed was that he was in a jungle of some kind,

'I wonder where I am' Itachi wondered as his vision became crisp and he found he could see even minute details on the plants and rocks surrounding him. This was something Itachi was happy to see as his eyesight had deteriorated over the years, this was especially true when his Mangekyo manifested Amaterasu when he was fighting the three tailed Jinchuuriki Yagura the Mizukage.

After taking enough time to appreciate his surroundings he decided to explore the area he was in and after scaling a large tree he realised he was on an island in the middle of a calm ocean, Itachi quickly noticed that there was no waves on the sea or wind.

'This could be a problem' Itachi mused while sitting on a branch about fifty feet above the ground ' I may not be as knowledgeable of the sea as Kisame but I know that the sea is never completely calm, I may not be able to sail when I want to leave this island. Looks like I may be able to walk across the water but as I'm unsure of the remoteness of this island it could be dangerous'. Itachi's thoughts were cut off by the sound of yelling and sensing the possibility of civilisation or at least a way off the island he decides to investigate.

A few minutes later...

"What gives you the right to decide things like that Rayleigh!"

Itachi arrived on a tree branch and crouched down to watch the scene in front of him. A old man with long white hair and glasses was being pulled by his nose towards the face of a beautiful woman, taking the time to inspect the scene further he saw an old lady trying to split them up while a group of women watched and cheered for their 'Snake Princess'. The group of women in questions were for a lack of better word... odd, their clothing was similar and they all carried bows with a quiver of arrows but it was their bodies which Itachi found strange. They were different to any females he had seen in his time in the Elemental Nations, while most were normal sized and quite attractive if Itachi was honest but there were a few who were disproportionate with giant heads and long legs appearing more like snakes then humans.

"Well Hancock if you truly want Luffy to become strong you cannot pamper him, it's unbecoming of a man who wishes to become the Pirate King" Rayleigh said in a stern tone. Just as he went to continue he noticed a new presence watching them, turning to face Itachi he yelled out "Why don't you come out of the tree young man!" Itachi jumped into the clearing much to the shock of the gathered Kuja pirates as well as Luffy and Hancock who simply hadn't been paying attention to her surroundings

The Kuja Pirates quickly drew their bows and aimed arrows covered in Busoshoku Haki while Luffy settled into a stance prepared for a fight. Hancock on the other hand was livid that someone was on Rusakaina without her permission and was preparing to turn him to stone.

"How dare you trespass on this island!" Hancock growled with fury in her eyes "now you worthless man now I hope you are prepared to be turned to stone!"

Itachi sighed softly, he really hated yelling and this woman seemed to enjoy it. Now normally Itachi is a peaceful person and will rarely make the first move but since he was in a new world and unsure of his surroundings he decided to make an exception, vanishing in a body flicker he appears before Hancock his Sharingan glaring into her eyes. Hancock, much to the shock of those present collapses onto the ground, seeing their empress knocked out the Kuja let their arrows fire at the stranger who was standing over Hancock. Quickly drawing a kunai Itachi promptly deflects the first arrow fired but to his surprise the kunai is knocked out of his hand and he is forced to substitute with a log at the edge of the clearing.

'They seem to be able imbue their weapons to make them stronger' Itachi deduced after watching the Haki spread over the tips of the arrows 'I believe the crows are still responding to my summons, I will need to deal with the group of women before I do anything else. Luckily the old man isn't getting involved I get an uneasy feeling from him and I believe I would have to go all out should he attack'.

Itachi deciding to try out his new body dashed at the Kuja, when the arrows were let fly at him he leaps and corkscrews between the first volley and continues onwards. 'I'm quicker and more nimble it seems', once Itachi was within twenty feet of the pirates he bursts into crows all sporting the same eyes as him.

"What! Where is he?" yells out the snake like woman with green hair, the crows fly throughout the group and group back together to form Itachi. "What is happening?" screams the green haired snake woman as she watches the rest of her crew fall down, blood covering their bodies "you damn bastard! I'll kill you, I'll make you suffer!" yelled the woman as she slithered towards Itachi only to feel her muscles stiffen and darkness over take her... 'Sleep' she hears in her head as she blacks out

Reality

Itachi walks away from the group of women who were passing out one by one, "I apologise for my actions sir" said Itachi looking towards Rayleigh "I'm afraid I just woke up here and I didn't feel like a drawn out conflict would have helped the matter".

Rayleigh looks at the man in front of him and after a short moment lets out a loud laugh "well young man you certainly are in for an ear full once she wakes up" he says gesturing to the well endowed woman lay out on the floor, "My name is Rayleigh and the young man behind me is Luffy" he says gesturing to the teenager behind him in a straw hat, "so who are you? I've never seen you before either as a marine or on bounty poster and you're clearly strong enough seeing as you just took out a Shichibukai, her sisters and her crew in a matter of second. Just how did you do that? I've never seen a devil fruit which allows you to knock out people by simple eye contact" He asked

"My name is Itachi Uchiha, I am unsure of where I am. I'm not from these parts" said Itachi sincerely

"Hey!" Luffy yells out interrupting Rayleigh from responding "are you a pirate? Where's your crew?" this question makes Itachi narrow his eyes as in the Elemental Nations pirates were simply bandits with better means of transport, filthy murderers and rapists who would kill a person as quickly as look at them. "No I'm not a pirate, are you both?" Itachi questions coolly while subtly unsealing a kunai under his sleeve.

"Luffy!" Rayleigh says loudly catching straw hat wearing teen's attention "go check on Hancock and the Kuja I want to have a talk with our new friend". Sulking, Luffy picks up Hancock and walks to check on the Kuja.

"He's a good kid you know so I'd appreciate you putting the blade away" Rayleigh says in a kind tone but heavy with authority which reminded Itachi of the Third Hokage, Itachi deciding to accept Rayleigh's request and have a civil conversation without the threat of violence from either sides.

"Now I'm going to presume that due to your hostility towards Luffy when he asked if you're a pirate that you've had some bad experiences towards them but while a lot are naturally violent and evil... even more of them are normal people who are considerate of people as long as they don't have ill intentions towards their crew or themselves, Luffy is a prime example of this as he would never hurt an innocent on purpose" Rayleigh explained as he looked towards the boy waving his hand in front of Hancock's face.

"I'm sorry for assuming Rayleigh-san, you see where I am from pirates are scum who pillage and raid helpless villages, they murder and rape as they please often selling their victims into slavery after they are finished with them; Now do you know of a way for me to leave this island?" Itachi asked. Rayleigh thought about this as the Kuja surely wouldn't give Itachi a lift off of the island and the young man doesn't look like he has the abilities needed to swim the calm belt safely.

"No I'm afraid as the Kuja are the only ones here with a ship capable of sailing the calm belt without wind or waves and can avoid being swarmed by Sea Kings, since you've made somewhat of a bad impression you're stuck here with me and Luffy so how about you join us as you seem like you are unsure of your surroundings and could use a helping hand" Rayleigh said after a moment of thought "I'm sure Luffy wouldn't mind extra company" he added

Certain parts stuck in Itachi's mind such as Sea Kings and Calm Belt but he decided he would ask later as he felt there were more pressing matters "why are you both staying behind Rayleigh-san?"

"Training that knuckle head so he doesn't die as soon as he lands on the first island in The New World, Tell me Itachi what do you know about Haki?"

"Haki?" I've never heard of it" Itachi replied clearly confused but also interested. Rayleigh looked at the young man with surprise; 'that's not a big shock, I mean he did attempt to block the Kuja's arrows with just that strange blade' he thought.

"Well Itachi I think you should stay especially since you claim to not be from here, for all you know you could be from the start of Paradise or the four Blues. That would mean you are way out of your depth and I honestly couldn't let you go off on your own in a strange place and die. Especially on this island" Rayleigh says with a smile which yet again reminded Itachi of Lord Third "You can learn Haki with Luffy and once we are finished you and Luffy can travel on the Kuja ship as I will be there and I strongly doubt they will argue especially after you knocked all of them out".

Itachi couldn't put his finger on it but he felt like he could trust Rayleigh. Maybe it was his similarity to the Third Hokage or it was how honest he had been up to this point; whatever it was Itachi knew Rayleigh had his best interest in heart and to go against that in a world he had just woken up in would be foolish and would almost definitely lead to his death. Seeing that Rayleigh was looking at him expectantly Itachi sighed and nodded.

"I accept your offer Rayleigh-san".

Now explaining to Luffy hadn't been too difficult as the young captain was always happy to meet new people and the idea of a potentially new crewmate excited him greatly. Boa Hancock on the other hand was a completely different ball game as she wanted the stoic young man's head for in her words "crimes against the Snake Empress and her people" but all that translated to was "so I can sooth my bruised ego". Naturally Rayleigh had put his foot down and told Hancock to stop being a brat and admit that she attacked Itachi first and all he did was defend himself which in Rayleigh's humble opinion was absolutely hilarious to watch; especially since the Shichibukai are based off of their power or influence, something the Snake Empress was supposed to have in spades.

In the end Hancock conceded that Itachi could stay but decided to threaten both Rayleigh and Itachi so as to have the final say in the matter

"if either of you mess up Luffy-kun's training or eat his food I'll make sure that you both suffer" Hancock says with a glare which would of made any lesser men crumble and wilt but it simply made the old man laugh and the intruder raise an eyebrow.

The Kuja all cheered for Luffy as they boarded their ship to depart but still sent glares at Itachi which of course were ignored as the raven haired man had just spotted a Sea King break the surface of the ocean a few hundred metres off the island.

'I'm going to just assume that is a Sea King...Kami how is the Kuja's ship going to make it past that creature' Itachi thought slightly worried for the crew of women in front of him. 'Rayleigh-san did say they can travel these waters without an issue so I suppose there isn't any danger unless one falls over board'.

After some more farewells. All of which were directed at Luffy. The Kuja departed leaving the three men alone on the island.

"Well come on you two, we're burning daylight" Rayleigh says as he turns and walks off into the jungle. Luffy turns and follows him after mumbling something about protecting his crew like Ace protected him, Itachi was going to ask him about this but Luffy ran into the jungle before he could but it didn't matter as there were two years to learn about this world and his companions.

Sighing and sparing one last look at the ocean, Itachi turns and walks after Rayleigh and Luffy

'I hope you are safe Sasuke...

A/N this idea is up for adoption