Saint Green's Conditions

There was a long silence on the other end of the Den Den Mushi.

When Saint Green spoke again, the anger in his voice had been completely suppressed, replaced by a cold, hard, almost frozen calm.

He will send people, but on two conditions: first, the people he chooses must be tasked with surveillance, not combat, and must retreat immediately should the target make any unusual movements;

Secondly, if anyone is killed this time, the God's Knights will refuse to accept any future missions involving the Uchiha.

The Five Elders exchanged a glance, and the Five Elders holding the knife nodded slightly.

The Five Elders with long beards spoke only one word into the Den Den Mushi: "Okay."

The Den Den Mushi closes its eyes, and communication is interrupted.

A silence fell over the Room of Authority once more, and none of the Five Elders spoke again.

They sat in their respective places, each with a different expression, but the same solemnity swirled in their eyes.

Last time they sent out Gunko, and Marineford sank.

This time they sent the God's Knights again, and no one dared to think about what the outcome would be.

For the next three or four days, the weather in the Sabaody Archipelago was exceptionally good.

Sunlight filtered through the leaves of the Yarukiman Mangrove, and bubbles floated slowly in the air above the street. The sweet aroma of roasted almonds and caramel popcorn mingled with the sea breeze, making the whole street smell like a freshly opened jar of candied fruit.

Natsu simply accompanied Quan, wandering aimlessly.

When you get tired of walking around, just find a teahouse to sit in, watch the bubbles burst above your head, and listen to the street performer playing that out-of-tune, broken wooden guitar.

He even accompanied Izumi to ride the Ferris wheel at Sabaody Paradise twice, once during the day and once at sunset.

Quan leaned against the window of the sedan chair, watching the lights of the coated shipyard light up one by one in the distance, and suddenly turned around and said that he wished it could always be like this.

Natsu leaned back in her seat, crossed her legs, glanced at her, and said that she would take one day off every week after returning home, without working overtime or cultivating, and accompany her shopping until her feet ached.

Quan paused for a moment, then smiled, his eyes crinkling, and said, "It's rarer for you to say that than the sun rising in the west."

Natsu didn't refute, but simply reached out and tucked her stray hairs, which had been ruffled by the sea breeze, behind her ear.

Meanwhile, a silent storm is brewing around the Sabaody Archipelago as the young couple enjoys a leisurely vacation.

Each CP squad strictly followed Sengoku's order to "maintain the existing guard distance, not to approach proactively, and not to provoke in any way," pushing the blockade line back again and again.

Several newly transferred agents initially dismissed the matter, thinking their superiors were making a mountain out of a molehill. However, all their doubts vanished when a veteran who had served on the ship during the Summit War coldly threw a copy of the battle report on Steel Bone Kong's death in front of them.

The Celestial Dragons on the island had already been evacuated, the slave auction house was closed for the first time ever, and even the petty thugs who usually collected protection money at the port had been warned in the harshest tone by their boss.

"Anyone who dares to cause trouble on the island these days, I'll personally twist their head off." As for the merchant ship captains and bounty hunters who recognized Natsu, most of them just watched from afar, drinking and shopping as usual.

More than six months of peace allowed people to gradually understand the Uchiha's temperament—they weren't mad dogs and wouldn't bite randomly, as long as you didn't provoke them.

The captains who had previously registered in the West Blue calmly clinked glasses in the same tavern, remarking that this lord was much easier to get along with than rumored; at least when he went shopping, he genuinely didn't meddle in other people's business.

In the shadows, several observers from the God's Knights lurked in the shadows of buildings far from the shopping street.

They did not wear the distinctive white robes, nor did they carry any weapons that could reveal their identities. They simply used visual observation and portable monitoring equipment to report the target's coordinates periodically.

That's all.

Saint Green's words before they set off were like nails stuck in their hearts: the mission was to monitor, not to engage in combat; if the target made any unusual movements, they should retreat immediately.

The lesson of the Gunko was on the Knights' roster, and no one dared to cross that line.

On the evening of the fourth day, Natsu Yinbangquan walked out of the last store carrying large and small shopping bags.

Izumi counted on her fingers—the coral paperweight she bought for Sasuke, the deep-sea pearl powder she brought for Aunt Mikoto, and the jar of bubble fish oil that was said to cure rheumatism for Elder Setsuna.

Natsu patiently listened to her finish counting, then gathered all the shopping bags into her left hand and took her wrist with her right. "The coated boat should be ready by now, let's go."

Quan was pulled forward by him, the paper string from the shopping bag leaving two shallow marks on her palm. She looked down at the hand holding hers, then looked up at his back, and suddenly felt that this vacation was probably the best gift she had ever received in her life.

Although this guy acted like he was just doing the old man with the Whitebeard a favor, she clearly saw him picking out two hairbands for her at the next counter while she was trying on hair clips at the jewelry store—

One strip is dark blue, the other is dark gold; they're neatly folded and stuffed in my pocket. I haven't told her yet.

The lights of the coated dock shone brightly in the Dusk.

A medium-sized submarine has completed the entire coating process, with double-layered bubbles emitting a pale purple fluorescence on the hull surface.

Natsu handed her luggage to the Night Owl Guard who was accompanying her, and pulled Quan onto the deck. The hatch closed, and the submarine slowly submerged.

The last rays of the setting sun were swallowed by the deep blue sea, and schools of small sea fish began to appear outside the bubbles, their scales shimmering with tiny silver light in the submarine's lights.

Quan stood in front of the observation window, his face almost pressed against the glass.

Natsu walked to her side and, as if by magic, pulled the two hair ribbons out of her pocket and handed them to her.

Quan looked down at the headband, remaining silent for a long time. He turned his head away somewhat awkwardly and said, "I just bought it on a whim; if you don't like it, you can return it."

Quan clutched the hairband tightly in her hand, causing fine wrinkles to appear on the deep blue and dark gold satin.

She didn't look up, but simply leaned gently against his shoulder, her voice so soft it was almost drowned out by the murmur of the flowing water.

I like them all.

The port of Fish-Man Island was exceptionally cleaned today.

The coral reefs have been meticulously trimmed, and colorful schools of fish are arranged in orderly formations around the port. Even the cargo containers that are usually scattered throughout the port area have been mostly emptied, replaced by a deep blue carpet that stretches from the dock all the way to the Ryugu Palace.

Neptune had been waiting there all morning.

Today, the Mermaid King had shed his usual casual robes and donned the formal attire he only wore for grand ceremonies in the Ryugu Palace. The golden crown on his head gleamed heavily under the dual sunlight reflecting off the seabed.

I was just one yuan short, so I sent it right away. I was afraid I'd forget while playing games later.