A Peace-Loving Clan

Watching Uchiha Yoru's constantly blinking eyes, Shisui let out a helpless sigh.

He set down his teacup, his clear eyes turning to Hancock, his tone as gentle as ever but carrying rare seriousness: "Empress."

At the sound of Shisui's voice, Hancock's previously tilted neck snapped back to normal. She tilted her head slightly toward him, cheeks flushed. "Call me Hancock, that's fine."

"Alright, Hancock. Actually, I'd like to head out to sea too. Can we hitch a ride on your ship?"

"Of course, no problem. Forget just hitching a ride—even if you wanted the Kuja Pirates' ship as a betrothal gift, I wouldn't have any objections." The Empress cupped her chin blissfully, shyly averting her eyes from Shisui.

Shisui: Betrothal gift???

Both the Uchiha and the Kuja Tribe were decisive by nature. At the Empress and Yoru's command, their people immediately sprang into action.

In just a few hours, both sides had boarded the Kuja Pirates' vessel together.

For his first voyage, Yoru didn't bring too many clansmen. Apart from Fugaku, who volunteered to stay behind and look after the tribe, Yoru only took about a dozen clansmen who had awakened the Three Tomoe Sharingan aboard.

Plus six Sea Kings lurking in the deepest parts of the ocean.

Even if Sea Kings had little brain capacity, controlling them was no simple task given their sheer size. At the very least, the Three Tomoe Sharingan couldn't manage it at all.

Only Yoru, Shisui, and Fugaku—each possessing the Mangekyo—could control two apiece, while Itachi alone controlled four. Leaving four Sea Kings to guard the home base and bringing the other six along for protection was about right.

The key point was that Sea Kings had an overwhelming advantage against ordinary pirates, but against top-tier fighters, they'd likely be one-shotted.

Well, Shanks was the exception!

"Set sail!" Once everyone was aboard, the Empress sat on her high throne, swept her hand forward, and barked at her subordinates.

Before long, the Kuja Pirates' ship slowly approached a Marine battleship anchored ten kilometers out at sea.

On the battleship, Vice Admiral Momonga, still enduring the lingering pain from his injuries, gripped the railing and watched the approaching Kuja ship. He had to admit, the strong in the Pirate World were built tough.

After being hit with Tsukuyomi, Kakashi had spent half a month in the hospital recovering. Momonga, on the other hand, could barely stand again after just a few hours.

Of course, that also had to do with the Pirate World being full of miracle-working doctors. Every ship's doctor was absurdly skilled!

When he spotted the black-haired, black-clothed crowd with their distinct aura on the foredeck, Momonga's pupils sharply contracted. The Uchiha Itachi who had defeated him was clearly among them.

So he really was closely tied to Kuja Island.

"Boa Hancock!" Momonga's voice was hoarse from weakness but still carried a Vice Admiral's authority. "Who are these people? Why are they on your ship?"

The Empress didn't even give him a proper look. She just lounged lazily against her throne's armrest, twirling a strand of black hair with slender fingers. "That's none of your business. You have no right to order me around. Lead the way."

The Empress held her chin high, pointing imperiously at Momonga.

"Ah, you must be the famous Vice Admiral Momonga!" Uchiha Yoru stepped forward, a perfectly measured smile on his face. His Sharingan was currently ordinary black, making him look harmless.

"I heard my little brother had a minor misunderstanding with you. Please don't take it to heart—I've already scolded him!" Yoru gave a slight bow, his posture polite yet somehow sending a chill down Momonga's spine.

"We're new residents of Kuja Island, just planning to head out to sea with the Empress to see the world."

"New residents?" Momonga's gaze was sharp as a blade. "Kuja Island has never accepted men. That's an iron rule."

"Times change." Yoru shrugged, his smile unwavering. "Besides, that's a matter between us and Kuja Island. It doesn't have much to do with the Marines, does it?"

Just then, Rear Admiral Yuma hurried over and whispered a few words in Momonga's ear.

The vice admiral's expression grew even uglier. He stared fixedly at Yoru, then looked toward the Empress.

"Are you controlling Sea Kings to attack Navy warships? This is a provocation against the World Government!"

"Attack?"

Yoru raised an eyebrow, his face full of innocence. "We were just demonstrating our ability to defend ourselves. If we really wanted to attack..."

He paused, and his voice suddenly turned cold.

"Then you, Vice Admiral, wouldn't be standing here talking right now."

The moment the words fell, a low rumble came from beneath the sea surface, and a massive shadow glided slowly through the azure waters.

The sea fell into an eerie silence at that instant.

Even the sound of waves crashing against the hull vanished, as if the entire ocean was holding its breath.

Uchiha Yoru stood at the bow of the Kuja Pirates' ship, his black robes billowing without wind.

He had already put away his earlier smile, merely lifting his eyelids slowly—

In that moment, blood-red stained his pupils.

Three tomoe quietly emerged against the crimson backdrop, rotating slowly, like a gaze awakening from the abyss.

But this was only the beginning.

Behind Yoru, over a dozen Uchiha clansmen stepped forward in unison.

"Shh—"

Without a word of communication, pairs of eyes ignited with blood-red in the same instant.

Deep red, dark red, blazing red—each pupil bore a slightly different shade of crimson, yet all were set with those three eerie tomoe.

The air suddenly grew heavy.

Navy soldiers felt an inexplicable suffocation, as if invisible hands were gripping their throats.

Those eyes weren't looking directly at them, but the overwhelming pressure made even the most elite Marines instinctively step back half a pace.

Cold sweat beaded on Vice Admiral Momonga's forehead.

He had experienced countless battlefields and witnessed the intimidation of Conqueror's Haki, but none of it compared to this pressure before him.

It wasn't an overwhelming of presence, but a scrutiny of something fundamental.

As if all their secrets, weaknesses, and fears were laid bare under those eerie eyes.

"Of course, we Uchiha are a peace-loving clan. We don't go around shouting about killing and fighting!"

Seeing the situation on the verge of explosion, Uchiha Yoru suddenly reverted to his normal tone.

The Sharingan in his eyes also returned to ordinary black at the same time.

Seeing this, the clansmen behind him also withdrew their Sharingan in unison.

The air began to flow again, as if that suffocating pressure from before had been a collective hallucination.

But Vice Admiral Momonga's fingers, gripping the ship's railing, had turned white from the strain.

He had been threatened?!

As a dignified Navy Vice Admiral, a powerhouse of these seas, he had been threatened by a bunch of people who came out of nowhere?!

He wanted to draw his sword in fury, to make them understand that the Navy was not to be disrespected.

But his body...

"Now then, can you lead the way, Vice Admiral?"

Uchiha Yoru spoke as if he hadn't noticed Momonga's ugly expression, his tone warm and polite.

The Empress sat high on her throne, propping her chin on one hand, a playful curve lifting the corner of her lips.

She watched the deathly silence of the Navy fleet, then glanced at the arrogant Uchiha, and parted her red lips to add the final word:

"I do not have much patience for guests."