Natsu: Go Tell Marco That Newgate Is Sneaking Drinks at My Place!
A moment later, Natsu arrived at the front yard.
Newgate, led by the Night Owl Guard, entered the living room and sat in the guest seat, holding a cup of tea, a polite smile on his weathered face.
But Natsu immediately discerned the truth from his rough fingers constantly rubbing the rim of the cup and his slightly furrowed brow—the old man's disdain for tea was practically overflowing from his eyes.
"Don't force yourself if you don't like it. There's some wine your uncle sent in the cabinet behind you." Natsu glanced speechlessly at the old drunkard who couldn't live without wine, then sat down in the main seat and took a sip of tea.
"Glug glug glug, then this old man will not be polite!" Newgate's eyes lit up, and without hesitation he put down his teacup, got up and precisely picked out a bottle of Binks' Sake from the liquor cabinet, unscrewed the cap and took a big gulp, feeling much more comfortable.
Marco has been keeping a close eye on him on Guardian Hill Island lately, Tenten nagging him to drink less. The thought of facing Marco's deadpan face again when he gets back makes this bottle of wine feel especially precious.
After taking another swig, he smacked his lips, then suddenly seemed to remember something, giving Natsu a teasing look from head to toe. "But you, kid, you don't even drink alcohol, are you even a man?"
Upon hearing this, Natsu's face showed a hint of speechlessness.
Natsu paused, holding her teacup, and looked up at the old pirate with a matter-of-fact expression. "Grandpa, I'm only fifteen."
"So what if he's fifteen? That brat Kaido was drinking like water when he was twelve!" Newgate took another swig with a smug look on his face, clearly quite pleased with the example he'd given.
Natsu was too lazy to argue with him, and simply shrugged. "Maybe. But I really don't have much interest in alcohol." He put his teacup on the table and got to the point, "So, tell me, why did you suddenly come to see me today?"
Newgate put down the bottle, and his face, which had just been somewhat teasing, returned to a serious expression.
He was silent for a moment before slowly speaking, "Gurgle la la la, speaking of which, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you again this time, Natsu. You should know about Fish-Man Island, right?"
Natsu nodded slightly. "Yes, I know. It's located 10,000 meters below Mary Geoise in the deep sea, the homeland of the Fish-Men and Merfolk, one of the essential routes to the New World, and also known as the 'Underwater Paradise '."
Looking at Newgate's solemn expression, he paused, his brow furrowing slightly. "What's wrong?"
Newgate placed the bottle on the table, a rare hint of gloom in his eyes. "Fish-Man Island originally belonged to the Whitebeard Pirates and was protected by Whitebeard Pirates. I am very good friends with the current Fishman King Neptune."
Fish-Man Island enjoyed a long period of peace with Whitebeard's flag flying overhead. But things changed after the Whitebeard Pirates left the New World.
Just the day before yesterday, Neptune sent a Fish-Man all the way to Guardian Hill Island to ask me for help—lately, more and more pirates have been passing by Fish-Man Island, recklessly capturing mermaids and Fish-Man."
Natsu lowered his eyes, his fingers gently stroking the rim of the teacup. He recalled fragments of memories about Fish-Man Island from his past life.
In the original story, after Whitebeard's death, this deep-sea Paradise was completely exposed to the fangs of raiders, and mermaids and Fish-Man became the most expensive commodities on the black market.
With him by his side in this life, the Whitebeard Pirates were not destroyed, but they eventually withdrew from the New World.
Those pirate crews that were initially intimidated by the name "Whitebeard" sensed a power vacuum and began to act recklessly.
Unlike the original story, Blackbeard did not obtain the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. Instead, he lost several crew members he had brought from Impel Down in the aftermath of Natsu and Imu's attack, and he no longer had the courage to seize Whitebeard's former territory.
This, in turn, gave small and medium-sized pirate crews an opportunity—with no new overlord to fill the void, the old territories were left only in chaos, surrounded by wolves.
After a moment's hesitation, Natsu calmly asked, "So, you want me to make the trip?"
"Yeah. I'm retired now, there's no need for me to make the trip myself. Marco's strength isn't enough to intimidate those ambitious bastards. After thinking it over, I had no choice but to swallow my pride and ask you for help." Newgate didn't mince words and nodded in agreement directly.
Natsu did not answer immediately. Her fingertips gently caressed the rim of the teacup, but her thoughts had already drifted elsewhere.
Come to think of it, it seems like he hasn't left Origin Island for more than half a year.
He spends his Tenten shuttling between the Naka Shrine and the Training Ground, either watching Sasuke's studies, observing the clansmen with their Mangekyo Sharingan locked in a fierce battle with Sage Mode, or reviewing clan documents submitted by the Elder.
I've been in this sea for almost three years. For the first two years, all I could think about was how to keep the Uchiha alive, stand up, and gain a foothold. For the next six months, I devoted myself to reforming the West Blue and training my clan members. I've been working non-stop ever since, and it seems like I haven't had a single day off.
Fish-Man Island, the underwater Paradise, the Coral Palace of the Ryugu Palace, the dual sunlight of Mermaid Bay —I thought that place was quite beautiful when I read comics in my past life.
That idiot Quan has been stuck in Sage Mode for almost half a year, and he's practically obsessed with it these past few days. Every time he comes out of the underground training room, his eyes are covered in dark circles.
It's a good opportunity to take her out for a walk and let her see the underwater scenery; Susanoo in the training room.
In any case, they are just a few opportunistic fish taking advantage of the chaos. As far as he is now, unless Imu leads the Five Elders and the God's Knights to surround and kill him, there is really nothing on this sea that can threaten him.
The reason they weren't in a hurry to expand outwards was simply because they wanted to use this world as a whetstone for the Uchiha Clan.
Since there's no rush to sharpen the knife, taking a vacation now and then is a good idea.
"That's fine too." He put down his teacup, his tone unusually relaxed.
"It's a good opportunity to take Quan out for a walk. We've been living by this sea for almost three years, and I haven't taken her out to play yet."
Newgate nearly spat out the mouthful of wine he had just gulped down, and a subtle, knowing smile appeared on his weathered face.
"Ha! You brat, when I mention drinking you you say you're underage, but when it comes to girls you won't say you're underage—"
Natsu interrupted him expressionlessly, "You bastard, I went there to help you with your work. If you dare to tease me again, believe me, I'll beat you up right now!"
"Gurgle la la la la!" Newgate laughed even louder, completely ignoring the threat.
Natsu's face darkened. Too lazy to argue with him, she simply turned her head and ordered the Night Owl Guard waiting at the door, "Go to Guardian Hill Island and tell Marco Newgate that he's secretly drinking on Origin Island."