Chapter 13 — Arriving at Marine Headquarters
The little brat hugged the scroll in her arms and hurried back to her cabin room.
'Master said I absolutely can't let Vice Admiral Garp and the others see it, or they'll be dead for sure.'
She locked the door, drew the curtains, hid under the blanket, and carefully opened the scroll in her hands, as if golden light might burst out from inside.
......
Looking at the dense writing covering the scroll, the principles behind every hand seal, the precautions for each one, and the large number of additional notes that branched off from them, little Gion went completely numb.
What was all this?!
Why were there so many words?!
Gion stared blankly at the scroll in her hands, looking exactly like a melon-seeking raccoon dog lost in a melon patch.
"Waaah~! It's so hard! Admiral Gion has made a grave miscalculation!"
......
Ever since Gion had begun to grasp the basics of ninjutsu, Madara had only gone to observe her a few times at the start. After confirming that there were no problems, he no longer paid much attention to it. As for taijutsu, Garp's trio was already there, so there was no need for him to teach that.
Standing on the balcony of the second floor as the sea breeze swept past him, Madara could not help but sigh.
Days without Garp were truly wonderful.
"We will soon arrive at Marineford! All personnel, prepare yourselves and disembark in order!"
The gangway was slowly lowered.
Standing at Uchiha Madara's side, Gion secretly tugged at his sleeve, carefully observing his expression. After confirming that he was not angry, she gathered her courage and reached for his hand.
A small chubby hand stealthily slipped into Madara's broad palm.
Madara's body stiffened. He lowered his head and looked at the little brat beside him. Unexpectedly, he did not shake her off. He merely gave a cold snort and continued waiting for the gangway to descend.
"Hey, hey~ Master, Master, should I take you to my favorite drink shop? We can also sneak into Sister Tsuru's tea room and steal some tea leaves. They taste bitter and not very good, but Sister Tsuru treasures them a lot. I think Master would probably like them. Hehe, Vice Admiral Garp has never managed to steal any successfully."
"And there's the weapon shop on the shopping street! There are so many famous swords there, even several of the Fifty Skillful Grade Blades! But the owner is really stingy. He won't even let me touch them. I can only look from far away. Hmph~ I hate him the most. How could a person like that possibly own so many famous swords?"
"And, and, do you want to visit my school? I've got lots of little followers there! There's also this really annoying guy called Chaton, but every time he sees me, he starts saying all kinds of weird things to bother me…"
The little brat at his side was unusually excited, chirping away without pause, as if the instincts she had suppressed for so long had finally been released the moment she returned to Marine Headquarters.
Madara simply listened in silence as she introduced everything about herself to him.
Although he possessed the little brat's memories, he still preferred hearing her tell him all of it herself—like a delighted little creature that had finally found its melon.
Once they walked down the gangway, there was a figure among the welcoming crowd who stood out completely from the rest.
A tall woman with a cold, stern face.
Dangerous hostility radiated from her as she stared fixedly at him.
Madara was puzzled.
This was his first time ever arriving at Marine Headquarters. Why was someone glaring at him like this?
But Madara was Uchiha Madara.
When someone stared at him in open provocation like that, there was no way he would lower himself to ask about the situation.
In the next instant, a vast and overwhelming pressure erupted from him without restraint.
Marines and civilians gathered in the square to welcome them were affected one after another. The stronger ones barely managed to remain standing, trembling violently in place. The weaker ones collapsed onto the ground, struggling desperately to hold onto their sanity.
The stern woman whom Madara had specifically targeted also turned pale. Her body bent slightly as she released her own pressure to resist him.
And not just her.
Within the area enveloped by Madara's aura, more and more powerful presences began releasing their own pressure in resistance.
A smile curved across Madara's lips.
A welcoming ceremony?
Somewhat childish—but at least it had a little creativity.
'Then…'
If Madara's aura at first had been like a savage beast ready to devour people—
And the gathered Marine auras were like an elite army resisting that giant beast, barely maintaining balance—
Then what came next was…
The sky collapsing!!!
Chakra and killing intent, accompanied by an overwhelming force of will that seemed to stretch beyond the horizon, along with an arrogant contempt for all living things, began raging wildly.
It was as though a god, enraged by the provocation of mere ants, had begun unleashing divine wrath without restraint!
Even Gion, who stood beside Madara and was deliberately being protected by him, turned deathly pale when she was accidentally brushed by that heaven-shaking, godlike fury.
She clung desperately to Madara's arm.
Madara, who had originally intended to continue venting his pressure, stopped when he saw her like this.
But even so, the ordinary Marines around them were still blasted away like plastic bags caught in a street gale, sent flying everywhere by the shockwave.
"Madara!!!"
Sengoku, Garp, and Zephyr also finally reacted. They hurriedly spread their own pressure, trying to block the tsunami-like force pouring from Madara.
Madara glanced at the three men standing before him, then silently withdrew his aura.
Holding Gion's hand, he walked step by step toward the woman who had released her pressure at him.
"Brat, didn't your family ever teach you not to casually release your aura at others?"
The stern woman quickly adjusted her posture and glared back at Uchiha Madara with an unyielding expression.
Seeing that she still refused to submit, Madara raised his hand in full view of Garp and the others, making the three of them pale in shock.
Just as they were about to rush forward—
The hand Madara had raised was suddenly locked in place by Gion, who threw herself onto it with all her strength.
"Master! Don't bully Sister Tsuru!!!"
Madara froze.
Sister?
This woman was the "Sister Tsuru" the little brat had been talking about—the one who liked tea leaves?
Judging purely by appearances, this tall and beautiful woman looked no older than thirty. No matter how one looked at her, she didn't resemble someone nearing forty.
And since Garp and the others always referred to her as "Little Tsuru" in front of him, Madara had unconsciously assumed Tsuru should be the same as them—a woman nearing forty.
He had never expected her to look this young.
Madara was still thinking when the others, unable to know what was going through his mind, hurried to intervene.
Sengoku quickly stepped forward to smooth things over, grabbing Madara while speaking.
"Mr. Madara, calm down, calm down. This is all just a misunderstanding."
"The situation is this: Gion has always been living at Vice Admiral Tsuru's home. During the mission to Loguetown, she secretly snuck aboard the ship. Since Vice Admiral Tsuru is her guardian, she's naturally been worried about Gion's safety. That's why she looked a little angry. She absolutely wasn't targeting you."
Garp also hurriedly came out to explain.
If Uchiha Madara went berserk at Marine Headquarters, he would be far more terrifying than the Golden Lion had ever been.
"Yeah, yeah, exactly. After going out, little Gion didn't even call Little Tsuru to let her know she was safe. When Little Tsuru called, she wouldn't pick up either. That's why she got so angry."
At this moment, Madara was also feeling a little awkward.
It seemed he really had misunderstood the situation.
But since things had already come to this, Uchiha Madara turned to Tsuru and said,
"This time, I misunderstood. So next time, be more careful."
Tsuru shot him an irritated look.
What kind of nonsense was that? He was clearly the one who had made the mistake, so why was she the one who had to be more careful next time?
But right now, her attention was not on Madara.
She grabbed Gion by the ear in one swift motion and dragged her home with an expressionless face.
As she left, she shot Garp and Sengoku an especially vicious glare.
Madara, meanwhile, said expressionlessly that he wanted Sengoku to take him to inspect the proposed site for Konoha Village.
After most people dispersed, the few still conscious began cleaning up the mess left behind.
"My, my, Mr. Garp, who was that man just now? That terrifying pressure felt just like a living hell."
A tall, thin young man walked over, scratching at his hair with one hand as he greeted Garp.
Garp rubbed his head helplessly and explained to the young man in front of him,
"Him? He's a man who upholds a justice that covers the heavens with a single hand. Hahahahahaha! You little brats had better be careful lately. Don't go provoking him, or you'll get beaten up really badly."
"Hey, hey, Kuzan! I'm talking to you, damn brat! Show some respect!"
Seeing Aokiji still staring blankly in the direction Madara had left, as though completely lost in thought, Garp felt thoroughly ignored and smashed a heavy punch into him.
"Ah! That hurts like hell, Mr. Garp!"
"Shut up, you damn brat!!!"