When Fukaboshi Koyuki regained consciousness, she found herself lying in the snow in an awkward posture. The cold snow had soaked through her clothes and settled on her body, making her shudder involuntarily as she hurriedly stood up.
As she rose, she saw Kakashi with a dejected expression, his body tightly bound by steel wires. These wires had been scavenged from Kakashi's own Ninja tool pouch.
As for the remaining Snow Ninja pursuers, they still remained in their stone-like state, a sight that filled Fukaboshi Koyuki's heart with dread.
"You're awake, little girl!"
A gentle voice called out. Fukaboshi Koyuki turned her head and saw a handsome Blond Youth who looked only a few years older than herself.
"W-what's going on here? What happened to them?"
Hearing Fukaboshi Koyuki's timid question, Vegapunk shrugged. "Don't worry, it was just a small conflict. They can still change back. If you want, I can restore them to their original state right now."
"No, there's no need!" Fukaboshi Koyuki shook her head violently. She gritted her teeth, looked at Vegapunk's group of three, and pleaded, "Big brother, can you and those two big sisters help me take back the Land of Snow?"
It must be said that humans are visual creatures. Although Fukaboshi Koyuki knew by looking at the scene that Vegapunk and his companions were definitely not simple people, the trio's appearance and temperament far exceeded that of ordinary people. This made it impossible for her to feel any sense of wariness; she even asked them for help directly.
Bound to the side, Kakashi rolled his eyes, feeling that Fukaboshi Koyuki was naively absurd. The Land of Snow was remote and impoverished, and these individuals were truly powerful and dangerous people, how could they possibly... "Sure! To see injustice on the road and draw one's sword to help—this is the chivalrous spirit passed down since ancient times!"
Uh... chivalrous spirit? Kakashi looked at his bound state and complained inwardly, yet he wisely kept his mouth shut.
Vegapunk agreed to Fukaboshi Koyuki's request without hesitation. Having arrived here mysteriously, Vegapunk was also in a state of confusion. Most importantly, it wasn't just the three of them who came here; there was also the master control quantum brain of the Dream Star—which was Vegapunk's original brain casing.
The key was that although the quantum brain had also crossed over, it lacked the power supply from the Dream Star's internal nuclear fusion solar chamber. This so-called quantum brain was currently nothing more than a fragile, breakable object. Now, Vegapunk wanted to find a faction to provide some energy for the quantum brain so he could understand exactly what had happened.
How had he mysteriously crossed over into the Naruto World? Nico Robin and Hancock were also completely in the dark, only knowing that a burst of silver light erupted during the final soul transfer, and then everyone ended up in this frozen hellhole.
Regarding this, Vegapunk had some guesses. For instance, how did he mysteriously cross over to the One Piece World in the first place? Since it was a soul transmigration, the answer likely lay within his own soul. It was possible that the soul transfer process had stimulated this power, causing him to cross over once again.
But this was just a guess; he had no way to observe his own soul. However, since the soul transfer was managed by the quantum brain, this power would surely have been observed by it. Once he had enough energy to start the quantum brain, he could research exactly what was going on.
(The Land of Snow... it's quite impoverished, but the technological level here doesn't seem low. I recall that geothermal generator device has already been developed by now, hasn't it?)
"That's wonderful!" Fukaboshi Koyuki said excitedly. "With your help, we can definitely defeat that guy Fukabuki Dotou!"
The strength of the Snow Ninja in the Land of Snow wasn't actually that great. Those sent to hunt down Fukaboshi Koyuki represented at least a third of their total strength. This was exactly why Fukaboshi Koyuki was so full of confidence in the three of them.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's set off immediately!" the consistently low-key Nico Robin spoke up. "This damn weather is far too cold!"
Compared to the constitutions of the other two, Nico Robin's was much weaker. She hadn't reached the level of being impervious to heat and cold. Wearing a tropical vest in this frozen land, Robin was already reaching her limit with the cold.
"Alright then, let's head out now! Little girl, you lead the way!"
...In the capital palace of the Land of Snow, Fukabuki Dotou sat in the central seat, his face flushed with an unnatural redness.
Below him were a few scattered ministers. The palace, smelling of blood, seemed to tell a tale of what had recently transpired.
"My elder brother passed away unexpectedly, and before his death, he entrusted the Land of Snow to my hands. I wonder if any of you have any objections?"
The ministers in the palace looked at each other, and not one stood up to offer an objection. One must know that while the Land of Snow was remote and poor, its area was not small. It had at least several hundred thousand residents. With such a population base, the Land of Snow originally had twenty or thirty ministers.
The reason there were now fewer than ten ministers left was because those with objections had already been sent by Fukabuki Dotou to see the previous Daimyo, Fukabuki Sosetsu!
The remaining ministers, having not gone to see the previous Daimyo, were naturally the spineless ones—in fact, even those who went to see the late king weren't necessarily that tough; it was just that Fukabuki Dotou didn't really play by the rules.
Those ministers had originally thought they could bargain with Fukabuki Dotou, but they didn't expect that Fukabuki Dotou didn't understand their rules at all and truly took them for his brother's loyalists.
After all, Fukabuki Dotou adhered more to a Ninja's mindset. He wasn't good at the art of compromise that is politics. Therefore, he chose a crude, one-size-fits-all approach. And surprisingly, the results were quite good! See, the remaining ministers were now much more well-behaved.
A moment later, one minister stepped forward. "As a member of the royal family, for the Lord to take on the responsibility of the nation in such a time of crisis is truly the great fortune of the Land of Snow!"
As soon as this minister spoke, the remaining ministers followed suit. "Indeed, indeed! The Land of Snow cannot be without the Lord!"
"The Lord is simply the savior of the Land of Snow!"
After a few bouts of flattery, Fukabuki Dotou's expression softened slightly. He was just about to say something when a loud boom echoed as the palace gates were smashed open.
A straight, slender, and beautiful leg stepped in first. Then, the proud Snake Princess walked into the palace with her head held high.
"Which one is Fukabuki Dotou? Come here and meet your death at once! Do not waste this concubine's time!"
Hancock's words were blunt and rude. Fukabuki Dotou should have been furious and struck out to kill this person who dared to offend his majesty. However, the hall fell into a dead silence. Fukabuki Dotou and his ministers stared blankly at Hancock, momentarily captivated by her beauty, unable to speak a word.