Chapter 22

As they continued to watch the chaos of war ensue, Devon turned to Ronin to ask the question they all had on their mind.

"So, what do you want to do about this, Ro? I've known you long enough that you always seem to come up with some crazy idea for every situation." Devon asked as the others nodded their heads in agreement.

At this, not even Ronin could deny it honestly. He did literally just destroy a whole island a few hours after stealing from a Navy base by himself, but he vehemently believed that he made the right decision as those people were nothing but a blight on the world.

"Well, we do what we do best in any situation, we find a way to profit! We aren't pirates who rape and steal, nor are we the dogs of the World Nobles who pay them, so we have to get money any way we can without getting labeled as criminals." Ronin said as he crossed his chest.

"You said so we without getting labeled as criminals instead of 'doing it legally'. Does that mean you don't care about us doing crime as long as we aren't labeled as criminals?" asked Rory, which made everyone except Devon look at Ronin in surprise.

"You all literally just watched me destroy a whole island without a single survivor. I never claimed to be a saint, but I do have a bottom-line. I don't condone raping or slavery, which the people of Ivory Island did as much as they drank water. I have big plans for us in the future, and it ends with us being one of the most powerful organizations in the world. I don't know about you all, but I refuse to live on the bottom of society just waiting for the crumbs they hand me." Ronin said as some of the crew looked shocked while the rest looked intrigued.

Most of these people have never lived outside of Filthy Forest, so their world view is kind of limited. But, because of how they lived, they weren't naive enough to think that the world was a happy-go-lucky place. There were those on top and those on the bottom, and like Ronin said, they were tired of being stepped on.

"So, what will we be doing in the future then?" asked one of the new crew members who just got his brand. If Ronin remembers correctly, his name was Kory. Unlike Rory who had cream-like skin and blonde hair, Kory was like the rest of those in Filthy Forest, tan to dark skin, a little rough around the edges, but at the end a decent person.

"Well, I guess watching a war is a good time to detail our future plans." Ronin said with a chuckle as the Sea King let out a deafening roar. "Once we have a Doctor, a Blacksmith, and a Shipwright along with a new ship, we will make our move to grab power in this world. The biggest priority behind finding these crew members is the find a decently sized island that is largely uninhabited by other people. From what I understand, exploration on the Grandline is difficult, so finding such an island isn't impossible. For now, that is our priority."

"As for this situation, this looks like another great chance to get our name out there. From what it looks like, things are slowing down, which gives us plenty of time to act. In the meantime, all of those who have already gotten their Tattoo, I willing be unlocking a power within you that will make you far more powerful. As stated before, if you reveal the secrets of unlocking this power called, Chakra, then as punishment for betraying your people, your life will be forfeit. Now, everyone head to the cargo hold so that we can have privacy and you can get your new gear." Ronin said as he watched everyone leave, excited for the chance to get new gear and become more powerful.

With most of the crew now gone, Devon turned to Ronin again. "Calling it a Tattoo instead of a brand, smart. And the way you painted it made it seem like more of a privilege to receive one and be loyal to you. I've got to say, I admire your talent for turning any situation in your favor." Devon said jokingly, as the others laughed.

"That's our captain for you. Even when we were kids and I would get caught eating the sweets from the kitchen, this bastard always turned it around to make it seem as though it was a good thing, and that they should be honored a member of royalty loved their sweets so much!" Bonney said as she clung to Ronin's arms as they followed the crew to the cargo hold.

"So, me and the others are going to get our chakra unlocked just like you, Devon and Meli?" asked Rory, trying to keep the excitement from their voice. Rory saw how powerful these three were, and believed if only he had this power before, his grandmother and his people would still be alive.

"Only the actual members of the crew. We will still need villagers for when we settle down on an island and make our Hidden Village. But, it will take time and hard work to reach the level Devon and Meli are at, especially since they are both trained as warriors already." Ronin said as he opened the door to the cargo hold.

"Okay, you guys already know the drill, so let's speed through this so we can go whoop some pirate ass!" Ronin exclaimed and received a mighty cheer from the crew.

Now that he has more experience in it, Ronin got to work on unlocking all of their chakras. He even unlocked the chakra of all of the pregnant women, as he wanted to see if he can see if his guess was right, as if it is, he could have a whole new generation of natural-born ninjas with possible bloodlines!

After unlocking their chakra, they all looked visibly healthy and full of power, as the chakra flowed through their bodies, even the children looked to be more powerful than your normal child should be in this world.

Next, Ronin and the main crew distributed out the gear, which looked just like the shinobi outfits from Konoha village, only the color scheme was black with white, and gold accents. He even had them wearing Anbu masks, and planned to add the appropriate seals to them when he had the chance. He didn't give them headbands, as there was no need, given there was no one in this world who resembled them, unlike in the Naruto world.

On the back of their armor was the three swirling tomoe that was the new symbol for the Shinigami, and seeing them all in their shinobi gear, all loyal to him, made Ronin feel giddy inside.

Next came the weapons, and this time, even the main crew got something. Thanks to her chests from her parents, Meli has two new pistols which she revealed is capable of channeling energy through as ammunition, which means, she can use not only her chakra, but her new Devil Fruit powers with it as well. A pure deadly combination with her abilities.

Bonney received a deadly looking metal, spiked club. Ronin figured that would be perfect for her and others who preferred blunt weapons as opposed to swords. Ronin imagined Bonney running around the battlefield like a banshee, tearing through their enemies with no mercy.

Next was Rory, who opted randomly to choose one of the new Butchers knives and a cleaver as their weapons. They claimed that the kitchen blades just felt more natural to them. Ronin found it to be rather odd, but allowed it as long as Rory swore to never cook any meals with bloody blades.

After that was Devon who received a brand new scythe with a dark wood handle reinforced with metal. Devon also chose to wear a katana, claiming it will help in situations where his scythe was too long to swing in an area, as well as broaden his experience as a swordsman.

Ronin hadn't thought about it, but the members of his crew did naturally fit into different roles. Devon was their Swordsman, Meli was the Gunner, Bonney felt more like a Beserker type, and Rory definitely felt like they could be the Assassin of the crew with their quick, agile movements, and deadly knife skills.

Ronin wondered what role he would fit into, but realized he was more of Jack Of All Trades, as he was a Fighter, used blades, had a Devil Fruit, and due to his ridiculous defense, he could easily be a Tank. But it was thanks to his new weapon which is what Ronin decide to classify himself as a Bruiser. His new weapon was a large, two-handed hammer that had spiked ridges on both sides. Hefting it on his shoulder with just one hand, Ronin made this giant, heavy looking hammer look weightless, and he couldn't weight to tear through his enemies with it.

"Okay, now that everyone is outfitted, it's time to do what we need to do. We're going to go save those Marines from those filthy pirates. We're doing this to claim the bounty on those pirates, but also to help spread the Shinigami name through the Grandline by earning us some clout. Most importantly, don't be stupid. Those pirates and Marines aren't worth losing your lives over, neither is your pride. From this moment on, we are all Shinobi! We don't fight fair or with honor, we do anything to get the job done. That means if you need to team up or use underhanded tactics to finish your opponent, don't never hesitate to do so. Now, Shinigami, fetch me their souls!" Ronin commanded to the cheer of the whole crew.

Thanks to them just unlocking their chakra, they can't use any Jutsu at the moment, but thanks to the chakra now running through their bodies, they are all now way more powerful than they were before. The Shinobi ran to the top deck far faster than they were before, as they felt faster, stronger, and felt that even their perception had greatly improved.

When Ronin reached the top deck, the crew had already set course of the ship to sail towards the waning war. The Marines and the Pirates at this point we're completely exhausted from the constant battles, but the morale with the Marines were nearly non-existent due to them losing so many of their ships to the pirates. They had called for reinforcements hours before, but due to the location of the island, they all knew that they would be long dead before the reinforcements arrived.

On one of the Navy ships a Marine ran to the Captain of the ship to report an urgent development. With a grimace from losing so many of his men, the Captain turned to address his subordinate. "Speak, we need to get rest before the next wave of the war begins!" the Captain said Ina hard time.

"Sir! We have spotted another ship approaching at a rapid pace, but they don't look to be pirates. If our information is correct, they look to be the rookie bounty hunting team that was making waves in the South Blue recently. Their Captain, Ronin was seen at the bow of their ship and their heading towards the pirates as we speak! Could we be saved?" the Marine asked with a somewhat hopeful voice. The other Marines listening in, praying for any sort of good news.

"The rookie bounty hunter, Ronin? Headquarters have been spreading a lot of chatter about this kid. If even a crumb of what the reports say about the kid are true, we just might live through this!" the Captain said, suddenly feeling hopeful himself after he had already resigned himself to his death.

To this, the Marines morale immediately boosted as the let out a mighty cheer, ready to join Ronin in finishing off the pirates, but suddenly, everyone paused, on both the Marines, the Pirates, and even the Sea King were looking to the sky with their mouths nearly to the ground.

A few minutes earlier, on the Static, Ronin stood at the front of the ship with the main crew as a crazy idea popped in his head. "Oh, by the way, I found a Devil Fruit in the treasures we took from the Marines and ate it." Ronin said casually, still looking towards the pirates ahead of him.

"I'm sorry, you did what?!" Bonney asked as they all turned to look at Ronin in complete shock, wondering where he even found the time to eat a Devil Fruit without them knowing.

"You're already so powerful, you could've at least shared it with some of use, greedy!" Rory said, as they crossed their arms with cute pouty lips.

"It just kinda happened. Anyway, it turned out to be a Cloud logia fruit, so I am a cloud man now. And I think these Pirates are a little too beefy at the moment for the rest of the crew to test their new capabilities against. I recommend me and Meli test our new powers against them so that we can soften their numbers first." Ronin said, as he looked at them with a smirk under his mask.

"So you literally control clouds and your main affinity is lightning. It's like you're the reincarnation of the god, Raijin. Now that I think about it, The new brand and your mask resemble him as well." Devon said as he suddenly realized something that now seemed so obvious to him.

When Ronin heard that, he didn't even realize that his mask also resembled Raijin as well. Now, he realized that the Raikage's whole character was likely inspired by the Raijin, as the similarities between the two were too much to be ignored.

"Hmm, Raijin, I kind of like the sound of that. Anyway, how about I deliver a little bit of godly judgment on these pirates? Meli, be ready to clean up with your explosions after I'm done." Ronin said as he leaped into the air and allowed himself to become nearly weightless. In the air, Ronin thought back on the Raijin and with a childish smile, he form a nimbus under his feet. The nimbus felt as though he was stepping on a pile of fluffy, moist cottenballs, yet Ronin didn't feel unsteady in the slightest.

Very carefully, Ronin used what felt like second nature to float the nimbus higher and higher until he had a clear look over the battle and the island they were by. From that height, Ronin could also see the Red Line in the distance as a seriously crazy ideas flashed in his mind, but he put it in the back of his mind for now. But if his experiment later on worked, he would have to drastically change his future plans.

Refocusing on the pirates, Ronin reached one hand out casually as streams of clouds flew into the air over the fleet of Pirates. The clouds turned quickly from small white clouds, into dark cloud storms that had lightning arching throughout it threateningly. At this moment, Ronin stopped feeding clouds into the massive storm, as he didn't want to risk killing the Marines too.

Excited to see the power of his new Devil Fruit, Ronin couldn't wait any longer. "Pirates, you have had the misfortune of crossing paths with the Shinigami, and so, your souls are needed as payment!" Ronin said as he used his connection to the storm cloud to begin raining down on the pirate fleet as arcs of lightning traveled down all at once, causing massive damage all over the fleet as most of the ships were either completely destroyed of currently set ablaze with it's crew burning alive or jumping into the sea.

After the first strike, Ronin cleared the storm cloud away and finally came to a conclusion, he was strong, like really strong now. Wanting to leave some pirates for Meli, Ronin flew lower on his nimbus as he signaled to Meli that it was her turn.

Taking a deep breath, Meli grew incredibly focused, as she wanted to prove herself to everyone to make up for her being dishonest. Pulling her new pistols out, Meli channeled her Devil Fruit through the gun as she aimed towards the pirate fleet and pulled the triggers. The was a few seconds of silence before bursts of explosions rocked the rest of the pirate fleet, leaving only a handful of pirate ships left, and even those ships were barely hanging on.

The whole sea was silent, as everyone was completely stunned by the display of power, even Meli who fired the guns, as she didn't expect the attack to be that strong.

During the lull, the Sea King was completely shocked, as it slowly began descending back into the sea. It definitely didn't want to anger the new powerful people that showed up, as it quickly swam away after it was in the water.

On the Navy ships, one Marine broke out of his stunned state and immediately did as he was trained and called headquarters and began relaying what just transpired. That to their being spies throughout the the Navy, not only did the Marines get the report, but so did the Underworld, the Revolutionaries, and even the Yonko.

Ronin didn't realize it yet, but he had just flipped the power scale of the Grandline on it's head, at the same time, putting a target on him and his crews back.