Chapter 18 — Test
With that said, he reached a hand into the empty air. A great number of tadpole-like contract markings appeared in the space before him. Smoke burst forth, and in Madara's hand appeared a massive ninja scythe, which he pointed at Gion.
"I won't hold back. Show me the killing intent you would use against an enemy. Otherwise, you may die by my hand."
The moment his words fell, he vanished and reappeared behind Gion, bringing the scythe down in a single slash.
Feeling the fierce wind from behind her, Gion broke out in a cold sweat, one hand gripping her sword.
Killing intent! Killing intent!! He really wants to kill me!!!
Move! Move already!!!
Clang!
A crisp metallic collision rang out.
The tip of the great war scythe stopped directly in front of Gion's brow. She could even feel the cold edge pricking her skin.
Just as Gion was about to cry out, Madara kicked her away without hesitation and charged after her again.
The exact same attack.
Still from behind.
Still a single downward slash.
This time, Gion split into two and burst into a puff of smoke, leaving only a broken log behind on the ground. Madara's lips curled slightly.
"Not bad hand seal speed."
His ear twitched. He swung the scythe behind him, splitting a massive Great Fireball cleanly in two.
Madara opened his free hand and shoved the scythe upright before himself. The moment the fireball was broken apart, a small figure burst out from behind it.
Uchiha Style: Flame Leap!
Golden flames burned along the blade as Gion's sword struck the shaft of the war scythe—exactly where Madara had been gripping it moments before. The flames on the blade erupted forward, thrusting straight toward his eyes.
Madara tilted his head slightly and avoided the flames. In the next instant, Gion disappeared from his sight again.
Soru…?
Gion split into four, each sword wrapped in golden flames, attacking Uchiha Madara from four different directions at once.
Madara spun the scythe in his hand, unleashing a circular shockwave in front of him that forced back all four Gions rushing at him. Then, with his left hand, he suddenly grabbed backward and caught the Gion trying to sneak attack him from behind.
Interesting. Not fast enough… a fifth body formed through the combination of Body Flicker and Soru?
He seized Gion and slammed her into the ground. Her head struck the earth, which cracked like a spiderweb on impact—
But the solid sensation in his hand abruptly disappeared.
The fifth one was a clone? No… a fake physical body created by combining the Clone Technique, Substitution Technique, and Transformation Technique.
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!!!"
There was no time to think further.
Madara swung the ninja scythe in his hand and split apart the orange-red fireball descending overhead. But unlike before, this fireball did not simply break in two—
The moment it was cut, it exploded violently.
Even Madara had to retreat.
And on the path of his retreat, Gion had already finished charging in.
Like a little leopard, she lunged at Uchiha Madara.
Peach
Within the brilliant white sword-light flickered a faint trace of pale pink, drawing a gentle line through the air as it arrived before Madara's face in the blink of an eye.
His ninja scythe was still within the explosion radius of Dragon Flame Bomb. At this moment, if he tried to block her strike with only his body in haste, it might not hold.
Left with no choice, Uchiha Madara wrapped chakra around his hand and caught the blade between his fingers.
"That's enough. Well done."
Uchiha Madara revealed what he considered a smile—though in truth, it still looked mostly expressionless.
Gion stared blankly at the Madara before her.
Then, under his baffled gaze, her eyes gradually turned red. She let go of her sword, threw herself into his arms, and burst into tears.
That completely paralyzed Uchiha Madara.
He genuinely had no idea how to deal with a situation like this.
After a clumsy moment of helplessness, he silently placed his hand on Gion's head and gently stroked it.
A long while later...
"Uuu… you scared me to death. I… I thought you were really going to kill me."
Gion sniffled against Madara's chest as she spoke in broken sobs. Then she pulled her face away from his chest, looked up at Uchiha Madara, and pointed at the red mark on her forehead as she tearfully complained:
"Look… you really scared me. I thought my face was going to be ruined. Idiot Master… I hate you so much…"
After saying that, she didn't even wait for his reaction. She buried her head back into his chest, saying nothing, only trembling in little shudders, clearly not fully recovered yet.
Madara gently patted her head and, in a voice that could perhaps be called gentle, coaxed her:
"It's over. I told you—it was only a test."
That sudden trace of gentleness in his voice left Gion slightly dazed. She even forgot to cry for a moment as she looked up at the eternal poker-faced man in front of her.
And then she noticed it.
There was the faintest trace of a smile at the corner of Uchiha Madara's mouth.
It was incredibly subtle, but Gion had lived with him for a month now. She sensed it keenly all the same.
So Master can smile after all… though wow, his smile looks really awkward.
The moment that thought occurred to her, Gion's emotions stopped flowing properly. The strange look in her eyes also made Madara feel a little uncomfortable, though he had no idea what she found so odd.
"Master… since you scared me this badly, can you give me some compensation?"
Now that the emotional wave had passed, Gion no longer tried to keep crying. Instead, she seemed far more interested in the smile Madara had shown just now.
Madara found it a little strange, but fearing that she might start crying again, he decided to steady her first and silently nodded.
"Then can you smile again? I didn't get a good look just now!"
Madara: ?
I smiled just now?
Thinking this, Madara stood up and pulled Gion out of his arms.
"Since you're fine, get up. Don't dwell on such boring things."
But after saying that, he realized Gion was still looking at him with an expectant expression. Madara suddenly felt his face getting a little hot, so he hurriedly turned away.
"Hurry back home and take a bath. You still have training later."
The moment Gion saw Uchiha Madara turn around and his tone start growing stiff, her bright eyes immediately narrowed.
Like a sly little fox.
"Hehehe, is Master embarrassed? Don't be shy, come on, smile once more. Just one smile, okay?"
As she kept talking, she suddenly realized her feet were no longer touching the ground.
She looked up.
Uchiha Madara was staring at her with a dark expression.
"Cough… cough, I'm just sad, Master~~~~"
Watching her pull that move, Uchiha Madara instantly felt a chill run through his heart. He tossed Gion aside and went home by himself.
Gion quickly scampered after him, and the two of them walked home one in front of the other.
On the road, seeing that the atmosphere had become a little heavy, Madara thought for a moment and spoke.
"You want compensation that badly?"
Gion's eyes lit up. She nodded so fast her head almost became a blur.
"Mhmhmhmhmhmhmhm!"
Madara also nodded and said:
"As compensation, I'll cook dinner tonight."
Gion: ? Do you hear yourself right now?
The two continued walking, and after that one sentence, Gion never mentioned compensation again.
Once they got home, seeing that Gion was no longer pestering him for compensation, Madara secretly let out a sigh of relief.
But then his body suddenly stiffened, as if he had thought of something.
He turned to Gion and asked:
"If the Marines were to lose a Vice Admiral, what would happen?"
Gion was sitting at the table, propping up her head with one hand, and replied carelessly:
"That would probably be troublesome. Or maybe a pretty big problem. Vice Admirals are one of the Marines' major high-level combat forces, after all."
Holding an apple in one hand and peeling it with the other, Uchiha Madara spoke in a shockingly calm tone.
"Then… what if it were Garp?"
"Vice Admiral Garp!?"
Gion cried out in surprise.
"Vice Admiral Garp is a hero of the Marines! Even though he's only a Vice Admiral by rank, his status is no less than an Admiral's. If something happened to Vice Admiral Garp, the Marines would probably be thrown into chaos."
Madara slowly let out a breath.
"What do you think of Garp as a person? Is he easy to talk to?"
Gion looked at Uchiha Madara strangely, clearly puzzled.
"He's fine, I think. Vice Admiral Garp is very kind. Most of my requests get granted by him."
Madara slowly nodded, then said something even more astonishing.
"In that case… I'll go ask him."
Gion: !!!
She stared at the expressionless Uchiha Madara in front of her, completely stunned.
What was wrong with Master today? Did he take the wrong medicine?
First he smiled, and now he was going to ask someone for help?
These were all things he would never normally do!
"Master… you're not joking, are you?"
Uchiha Madara took a deep breath, as though he had made some important decision, and slowly rose to his feet.
"Of course I'm not joking. It's only a small matter. I'm going to ask Garp if he can trouble himself to die for me. He knows a little too much."
Gion: ?
Ignoring the dumbfounded Gion, Madara pushed open the door and left at once.