'It's almost here,' Toji thought as he stood atop the foredeck of the war cruiser, ignoring the people talking behind him. His gaze was fixed on the waters in front of them as well as the small cliffsides he could see on the horizon.
Seventeen years. It's been seventeen years since he woke up in this body. Seventeen years since he was forced to grow up and become the monster he once loved being.
Now, here he was, standing atop a ship of rebellious fighters that wish to end the reign of a tyrannical man once and for all.
If anyone had asked Toji whether he would see himself saving the world instead of profiting from it in his past life, he would have asked for a double hit of whatever that person was smoking.
'Yet, here I am, about to fight in the biggest battle of my life,' he thought with a smirk, turning as he heard footsteps approaching.
"You're unusually calm and quiet," Toph spoke as she approached, Toji glancing at her before staring back forward.
"I am simply focusing on the battles to come."
"Focused on the battles to come? Are you sure you're even Toji?" she asked with a grin, stopping beside him. "It's not like you to worry about a fight."
"I know, but I now got something to lose during the fight," he replied and rolled his eyes at Wormy's gargles inside his cloak. "Aside from you and Iron, bud."
"Don't worry, Wormy. I'll make sure all of us get through just so I can be sure you're mine," she replied, making Toji smirk at her words.
"How goes everything with everyone else?" he asked and they turned to see most of the top deck of the ship busy with small meetings.
"Sokka is currently preparing something with his dad, Suki and June are training together, Aang is busy meditating and Katara is catching up with her dad," Toph replied with a shrug. "Although, that last one's a bit of a mess right now."
"Let me guess, repressed emotions for him leaving them when they were young?"
"Among other things, yeah," Toph nodded, making Toji hum.
"Those are not so fun to deal with."
"Don't gotta tell me about daddy issues," she replied, making him chuckle as he looked forward. He didn't say anything about her wrapping her arms around his waist, simply staring out at the waters.
"You feel scared?"
"About the fight? Kind of."
"How so? You have me with you."
"Exactly. I feel scared for the other people," she said jokingly, making Toji roll his eyes. "Seriously though, people are going to be targeting you from the moment they see you."
"I know. That's why I'm going to be the best at distracting him."
"You still think we can actually fend off a nation on our own before the eclipse?" Toph asked and Toji glanced at her to see her staring back as if looking at him.
"Toph."
"Yeah?"
"If you want to be on defence, you can be."
"You sure you can function without me?" she asked and Toji scoffed at her words.
"But of course. At the same time, though, I just know that calling you a helpless maiden pissed you off, didn't it?"
"I'm ready to throw a mountain at you. Be glad we're on the sea," she replied, though Toji smirked as he felt the metal prodding at the soles of his boot.
'Helpless, my ass.'
"Sure. Anyway, just keep that mentality and know that the two of us are definitely surviving this."
"What about everyone else?"
"Who's everyone else?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, hiding his smirk at the flat stare she gave him.
"Ha-ha. Now, come on. I want to go over the plan with everyone one more time."
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"You look stressed," Toji spoke up, approaching Sokka as everyone else were busy preparing for the war to come.
Sokka just sighed as he looked away from the maps he was scanning, staring out from the bay they were in towards the faint statues he could see in the distance.
"Just...worried that everything isn't going to go as planned."
"Eh, one thing you'll learn is that the first plan never survives enemy contact. That's why I like fighting without one."
"That and because you can't care to make up one, right?" Sokka added, to which Toji smirked as he sat down beside him.
"That, too," he agreed, looking at the maps the man had drawn. "Still, this is quite the strategy you've cooked up, Sokka. You should be proud."
"You know, I didn't expect praise from you."
"I know how to give people compliments and praise. I just prefer to not say anything and just nod."
"Sure. Anyway, I need your help on something else," Sokka spoke and Toji raised an eyebrow. "It's June and Suki."
"What about them?"
"They've been...quiet since we started our whole trip to the Fire Nation," Sokka replied, making Toji a bit confused. "Wait, that's wrong. They've not been quiet, but they've mostly been talking to each other and when I try to chime in for a discussion, the answers are swift and to-the-point."
"How was it before?"
"Long, drawn-out explanations on why every little thing I do is a bad and/ or stupid idea," he replied, making Toji hum as the man tapped his fingers on the ground.
"Have you tried to eavesdrop?"
"Yep, and all I got was 'share' and I think something along the lines of 'us two and him'. Not sure what that is," Sokka answered with a shrug, to which Toji paused and slowly turned to stare at him.
"You're joking, right?"
"Nope. I even confronted them on it, but June just giggles and walks away while Suki can't even look me in the eyes," he groaned before turning to Toji with a pleading stare. "Please, man! You're like the ladies man, right? You got any advice for a guy that doesn't have the skills?"
"Motherfucker, I should be asking you for advice."
"Wait, what?"
"I'm not going to spoil anything, but you are one lucky idiot," Toji replied, making Sokka blink as the man stood up and walked away.
"Wait, what?! You can't just say that and walk away."
"I can and I am. Good luck, you lucky bastard!"
"Toji! What does that mean?!"
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The seas around them were calm as Toji stood atop Wormy's head, the spirit letting out a low rumble as they stared forward
In front of them, a flaming net stretched from either side of the gigantic Azulon statue to the mouths of the two dragon statues that flanked it.
Further back, he could hear the war cruiser beginning to slow down, preparing for Toji's opening act.
Looking down at the Split Soul Katana in his grasp, Toji shifted his footing with a deep breath. Wormy slowly swam towards the statue as he gripped the sword tightly, moving his feet about to get it perfect.
Now, he could just cut the nets and be done with it. It was not as though the flames would actually bother him, but at the same time, oil burns didn't always look good with him.
Thus, he had to go with the good ol' reliable: Cutting the statue.
Breathing in deeply, he exhaled softly and repeated the process, feeling his muscles pump with chi before he lunged forward.
The air screamed as Toji rocketed towards the statue of Azulon and swung the Split Soul Katana, a wave of pure air pressure left in the blade's wake as he cut through the statue.
Not done, he continued with a flurry of swings, ending his sword swings with a horizontal slash before he ended his attack with a dropkick towards a segment of the statue.
Like a broken tower, the statue came crumbling down, bringing the net and the dragon statues with it. He could hear the surprise of the Fire Nation soldiers waiting for them, Wormy pushing forward with a low rumble as huge tufts of steam rose up.
As one, five submarines dropped into the water and were hidden behind the steam, Toji's gaze fixed on the towers as they all finally entered the Fire Nation's harbour.
He saw the royal plaza and narrowed his eyes when the ballistae were slowly turning towards him, Wormy already shrinking as Toji leapt into the air.
In the span of just a few seconds, Wormy grew to his original size before Toji landed, racing across the water while picking up the spirit at the same time.
"Kyoshi, Yangchen," he spoke, twisting Szeto's ring and feeling the confidence of the ring flowing through his body.
He could already see the effects of the ring activating, some of the people looking more hesitant than fearful as Toji sheathed his Split Soul Katana.
Those looks of hesitation cost them as he caught the chain connecting Kyoshi's fan, leaping into the air with a spin before kicking Yangchen's staff towards the first ballista tower.
It tore right into it with a burst of chaotic winds, leaving nothing but devastating cuts and crevices in its wake.
At the same time, he leapt over a ballista bolt fired at him, running along the length of it while wildly swinging feints with Kyoshi's fans.
He could feel the weight increasing with every feint, throwing them out to the sides as another bolt missed before swinging them back in.
The ballistae tower in front of him and everything inside of it was reduced to rubble in the blink of an eye, Toji landing on a wall with a spin before launching himself towards the first ballistae.
Picking out Yangchen's staff from it, he let Wormy eat it before leaping towards the bay, a dust cloud exploding outwards from the impact.
Yet, the dust didn't stay for more than a few seconds before he pushed it away with some wind, staring down the terrified army in front of him.
Without saying, he slowly spun Kyoshi's fans, grinning as the loud droning of five submarines rising to the surface echoed behind him.
The next moment, the doors opened and the army roared their arrival, Toji grinning as he twirled the fans and shot forward.
With a flurry, heads were separated from bodies as he cleared the path for the vanguard, glancing back to see the Team Avatar doing their best to keep the attention on them.
Iron and Nyla bellowed as Sokka and June rode them respectively, Toph skating across the ground with metal skates while Suki stuck close to her.
Aang and Katara on the other hand were in the air on Appa, Katara lifting gallons of water from the seas behind them while Aang unleashed streams of wind and fire to deflect any blasts coming at them.
The army themselves were doing very well, the non-benders marching as one with the tanks while the swampbenders and earthbenders provided covering fire.
Toji's gaze then moved to the sun, narrowing his eyes when he saw the dark shadow of the moon slowly drawing closer to fully covering it.
'Almost time,' he thought, spinning Kyoshi's fans before throwing them forward with a grunt.
Suki spun in surprise as Toji shouted at her, catching the chain connecting the fan right as the two fans pierced through the chests of a pair of firebenders trying to attack her from behind.
"I want them back after the fight!" he shouted and she looked at her before giving a smug smirk.
"Hell no!"
"Oi, I'm taking them back!"
"You'll have to take them from my dead body!"
"I'd do that with a smile!"
"Enough! Toph exclaimed, stomping on the ground and creating a stone barrier that protected them from three streams of fire. "Stop arguing and let's get this shit over with!"
"Sure thing! I still want them back!" Toji shouted, racing away before Suki could shout anything back.
Raising a hand in the air, the water erupted as Kuruk's spear shot from the underside of one of the submarines, piercing through a firebender as Toji leapt and caught it with a spin.
At the same time, he threw it to the side before calling it back, leaping and grabbing onto the spear as it aimed for a ballista tower.
Their weapon slowly turned to him, but he just kicked the spear and kicked off of it, leaving it to shatter the ballista while he aimed for a second tower.
The Split Soul Katana sung as he swung it down, cutting a ballista bolt in two right as he landed on the side.
Reaching forward, he tore the front of the weapon away, tossing it to the side before hopping in the opposite direction when a firebender tried to hit him with a burst of fire.
Landing on the ground, the door to the tower opened as three firebenders rushed out, but with a sickening crack, Kuruk's spear shot from the side and impaled all three of them.
Cutting their heads clean off while pulling the spear out, Toji continued on his path, leaping down just as Aang unleashed a stream of powerful winds that pushed the Fire Nation army back.
At the same time, Toph punched the ground and Toji raised an eyebrow as the ships around them were torn apart. She then raised her fists, creating a stone wall while punching forward.
Toji grinned as he and Aang leapt into the air, each of them leaping between the fragments as Appa did a corkscrew in between them.
"Aang! You and Toji go on! We'll handle things here!" she shouted, raising her hands and creating a curtain of water that rained down onto the firebenders. "Toph! You go with them!"
"Of course!" she replied, leaping up as Toji caught her and threw her onto Appa's back. Katara dropped with a last kiss to Aang, creating a water bubble right as Sokka ran under and caught her.
"Let's go!" Aang shouted and Toji nodded, racing through the sky towards the palace with Aang and Appa right with him.
However, as they veered over the edge of the crater that held the capital city, Toji's eyes widened at the curtain of vibrant orange flames fired at them.
Immediately rushing forward, he sliced the wave in two, Aang creating an air current that pushed the flames to the side.
'Well, I guess we know why the Fire Nation armies had moved from the mainland,' Toji thought with a frown, staring at the thousands upon thousands of firebenders that filled the streets of the capital city.
With a feral grin, the air erupted behind him as Toji shot towards the ground, spinning with a corkscrew motion to deflect the torrents of flames fired at him.
He crashed into the ground with a loud grunt, right in the centre of the masses.
"Toji! You gonna be okay?!" Aang asked, creating a funnel of wind around him, Appa and a frowning Toph that kept the flames at bay.
"Just making sure they don't get you guys! Go on! I'll catch up!" Toji shouted as he vanished, reappearing at the edge of a nearby rooftop while staring at the army swarming at him from every corner.
"All right! One chance to surrender! Any takers?!" he exclaimed, twirling Kuruk's spear with a grin while sheathing the Split Soul Katana.
As he expected, all just glanced at each other before punching towards him, but he was already gone.
Reappearing in the centre of their formation, he twirled the spear before slamming it butt first onto the ground. A shockwave rippled outwards from the impact, cracking tiles and tossing firebenders through the air.
Toji lunged forward through the dust, snapping ribs and necks with brutal efficiency.
A torrent of flames washed over him from several directions, but he rolled through them, letting his cloak burn away while Wormy uncoiled into his full size.
The flames of the firebenders did little more than singe his scales as the spirit roared in anger, and Toji cackled as he shot forward.
As one, the two moved, Toji leaping over and sliding under Wormy's form while the spirit bit down on everything that he could fit in his mouth.
Szeto's ring pulsed and a wave of calmness washed over the group only to be replaced by fear as Toji cut through a man like a hot knife through butter.
"Wormy! Thunder!" Toji exclaimed, tossing Kuruk's spear high into the air before catching the spirit's tail as Wormy swung it at him.
The spirit shrunk down its size considerably at the same time and the army paused for a moment out of bewilderment.
That was their mistake as Toji heaved and slammed the spirit down, who grew out to a gigantic size again.
With a deafening boom, the city blocks around them were reduced to ashes, Toji leaping up to Wormy's head while catching Kuruk's spear.
His gaze moved down to the ground where firebenders were running around, grinning wildly as he heard the sounds of the invading army drawing closer.
'Almost there,' he thought, but his eyes widened when a pillar of reddish-orange flames erupted from the palace, watching as Appa and Toph were flying back.
Moments later, a tornado spawned around the flames, snuffing them out before every drop of water in the city rose up high.
"Uh, what do we do in this situation, Wormy?" Toji asked, smiling at Toph's cackles as the woman fired down stone bullets that cracked metal with every impact.
The spirit just let out a low rumble before turning and Toji grinned as he nodded.
"Right. In times like this, there's only one thing to do. RUN, WORMY! RUN! HAHAHAHAHA!"
A/N: And we end it off here~! Honestly, I was going to end it here, but then I wouldn't be able to write a cool epilogue.
Anyway, the invasion has started and it's gonna end soon, but we'll leave it at that for a later time.
Next chapter: Eight Minutes? Give me One.
Like always, you can go to my Pat-reon-.-com-/-KingCrimsonNova to read ahead on this as well as many other stories & even some that haven't been released out to this site yet. If you want to, you are free to, but if you don't want, all's good as I will still be uploading here. This is just me trying to get some extra cash.
Anyway, as always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one…
Ba-Bye~!