I, Uchiha Hikaru, have joined the chat group.

Chapter 192 Want to learn? I'll teach you.

In the bathroom.

Uchiha Hikaru took off his clothes, which were covered in blood and sweat, and threw them aside. Then he stood under the shower and rinsed himself thoroughly.

to be honest……

This was the first time she had ever felt so physically exhausted.

The strength of the East Blue Cloud Dragon is actually above that of her and Esdeath. Under normal circumstances, it would take three or four Esdeaths to defeat him. Now, although she managed to do so by relying on the Senzu Bean's sustain, the mental fatigue caused by the prolonged overload of battle is something that even the Senzu Bean cannot eliminate.

"yawn--"

As you relax your mindset.

Uchiha Hikaru felt waves of drowsiness washing over him.

After finally managing to clean herself up, she quickly dried herself off, wrapped herself in a towel, went outside barefoot, greeted Esdeath, and then lay down on the bed, falling into a deep, baby-like sleep.

the other side.

Esdeath also went into the bathroom to shower, and about twenty minutes later, she came out wearing a moon-white nightgown, drying her wet hair.

"Um?"

It seems they've sensed something.

Esdeath suddenly turned her head and looked towards the side of the room.

On the bed.

Uchiha Hikaru lay quietly on his side, his body slightly curled up, his hands wrapped around his shoulders, fast asleep.

She went straight to bed after taking a shower, wearing only a bath towel and no other clothes.

now.

Because he was already asleep, Uchiha Hikaru unconsciously kicked off the blanket, and his bath towel became loose, revealing most of his body.

From Esdeath's perspective, the outlines of two slightly raised white rabbits could be clearly seen peeking out from above the bath towel—compared to when she first broke out of the coffin last year, Uchiha Hikaru's body had developed somewhat.

Below was a smooth, flat abdomen, well-proportioned legs, and delicate pink toes glistening with water droplets. Her snow-white, delicate skin, illuminated by sunlight filtering through the curtains, possessed an ivory-like luster.

Judging from this scene alone, she looks almost no different from an ordinary little girl.

It's hard to imagine from her appearance that she is actually the strongest person in the current empire, and that she has just subdued a super dangerous species that is like a natural disaster.

"..."

Esdeath was silent for a moment, then put down the towel and slowly walked to the bedside.

During this process, a sharp ice blade condensed in the air, which she casually grasped and gently pressed against Uchiha Hikaru's throat.

"...Still not waking up?"

"To sleep so soundly in such an unfamiliar place, are you really too tired, or are you certain I won't take this opportunity to kill you?"

The ice blade had already reached his throat.

With just a gentle push forward, the life of this girl in front of him could be ended, and the "subordinate" contract would be terminated.

But Esdeath stopped moving, and her expression became somewhat complicated.

To be honest, before meeting this girl, she had never thought she would lose, and she had never lost before.

For over twenty years, she has maintained her strongest form. Apart from a girl named Mela who once fought her to a draw in a martial arts tournament, almost all her other opponents were either killed by her or fled in disarray. Incidentally, this Mela once pushed her onto the bed and tried to do something lewd, which greatly shocked the young girl.

In recent years, after obtaining the "Demon's Essence", Esdeath's already top-tier strength has improved even further, and there are very few people who can even fight her.

To enjoy the thrill of battle, she would often deliberately let her opponents off the hook, only to seek revenge later when they became stronger.

Unfortunately, even so, there were very few battles that allowed her to fully enjoy herself.

And this time...

She was spared.

At first, Esdeath thought that Uchiha Hikaru, like herself, had spared her life in order to find a worthy opponent.

But this period of contact made her realize that the reality was not so simple.

This girl...

They don't seem to be enthusiastic about fighting, but rather treat it as a means to achieve their goals, rather than the goals themselves.

This puzzled Esdeath:

"If they have no desire for battle, why do they possess such immense power?"

"besides……"

What about those eyes that can unleash black flames, the ability to pull others into one's mental world, and the mysterious Senzu Beans? Are these unfathomable things and abilities really something that can be produced in this world?

"...What an enigmatic guy."

Esdeath looked down at the girl's petite and delicate body, her gaze lingering on her peaceful sleeping face for a moment. Suddenly, she sighed with a touch of regret, "It's a pity, it would be so much better if she were a boy..."

—Powerful, possessing the courage to hunt extremely dangerous species bare-handed, not raised in a big city like the capital, younger than me, with an innocent smile…

It can be said that, apart from gender, almost every characteristic of Uchiha Hikaru was tailor-made according to Esdeath's ideal criteria for choosing a partner.

She had originally planned to have the young emperor organize a martial arts tournament for her after returning from this northern expedition, and to choose a suitable lover from among the winners. Unfortunately... due to the fall of the empire and her own defeat, this somewhat girlish wish could only be buried deep in her heart forever.

"Why……"

Esdeath shook her head, decisively extinguishing the somewhat absurd idea.

Then he melted the ice blade, turned around and walked to a table not far away, sat down, hugged his arms and closed his eyes to rest.

This battle with Donghai Yunlong made her realize the limitations of her own strength, and also gave her some new ideas and insights into the development of "Demon Essence".

Once I've fully digested all of this, I can try to launch my first challenge against Uchiha Hikaru...

……

Time slips away unnoticed.

The sun sets, and dusk falls.

As night deepened, a knock suddenly sounded on the door of the guest room.

"Um?"

Esdeath snapped out of her meditation, frowning slightly in annoyance. "Who would come this late?"

When the knocking sounded a second time, she impatiently got up from her desk, took a few steps towards the door, thought for a moment, then went back to cover Uchiha Hikaru with the blanket, concealing her exposed body, before opening the door again and coldly looking outside:

"What's up?"

"Hello, miss."

Standing outside the door were several men dressed in Imperial Navy uniforms.

One of the men, a dark-haired man in his early twenties, bowed slightly and then spoke politely: "We are from the East Sea County Navy. My name is Will... I have something I'd like to ask you. It won't take up too much of your time."

This morning, a natural disaster struck the eastern sea, leveling several mountain peaks and triggering a tsunami that breached flood control dikes… Someone said, “You came from that direction, so I’d like to ask if you saw or heard anything along the way?”

"...No comment."

"Forehead……"

Will hesitated for a moment, as if he wanted to ask another question.

But another sergeant beside her suddenly recognized Esdeath, his eyes widening in surprise: "Wait...aren't you General Esdeath?!"

Do you know me?

"I had the honor of seeing you once three years ago at the military parade in the capital!"

As the naval officer finished speaking, the soldiers next to him also showed expressions of surprise.

The title of "Strongest in the Empire" was something they had all heard of, even in the remote East Sea County.

Although there were rumors recently that this female general lost to another expert from the revolutionary army on her way back to the capital, this does not diminish her legendary status. Some even suspect that those rumors were deliberately fabricated by the revolutionary army to undermine morale.

"General Esdeath, have you come to lead us in a counterattack against the Revolutionary Army and rescue His Majesty?"

"Oh."

When questioned by the naval officer, Esdeath's response was unusually calm: "I am no longer a general, and this empire has been destroyed, so there's no need to bring up these old stories. Also, what happened in the East Blue was related to a super dangerous species, but the situation has now calmed down. If you need help reinforcing the seawalls, I can lend a hand as appropriate."

Repairing a breached dam is a massive undertaking.

For other Imperial Arms users, this might not be of much help, but for Esdeath, who possesses "Demon Essence," it's just a matter of course. For example, temporarily constructing a protective wall tens of kilometers long with ice, capable of withstanding ocean waves, would only take a short while.

Although she loved war, she didn't mind providing some shelter to these frail ordinary people.

"A super dangerous species..."

The naval officer's eyes widened: "Could it be the legendary dragon god that dwells high in the heavens? Did you subdue it?"

"Ha, I don't have that ability."

Esdeath gave a cold laugh, not wanting to say more on the topic: "I've told you everything I can. If there's nothing else, please leave."

After a pause, Esdeath glanced at Will again and suddenly asked, "Are you also a Teigu user?"

"...Reporting to Your Excellency, I am the user of the 'Noble Chariot'."

"Okay, I understand."

Esdeath nodded and then closed the door.

Outside.

The naval soldiers exchanged glances, looking puzzled. "Something seemed off about Lady Esdeath's tone just now..."

"That old man said that two people returned from the east, one was General Esdeath, and the other was... Could it be that the other person is now...?"

"Shh, are you trying to get yourself killed by gossiping about your superiors? Let's go. Now that things are clear, let's think about disaster relief first. The survival of the empire isn't something we people can worry about. Let's just let things take their course."

Several sailors turned and left.

……

Will's visit was just a minor incident.

Uchiha Hikaru slept until the morning of the third day before finally regaining his energy. He stretched and woke up from his sleep, fully recharged.

"You're awake?"

Esdeath's voice came from the side.

The woman has now changed into military uniform, except that the imperial insignia on her shoulders and the brim of her hat has been torn off.

With a "thud," she threw another set of clothes onto the bed and raised her chin.

"I bought this outfit last night, please change into it."

"...Do you know my height and measurements?"

"While you were asleep, I measured you with a ruler."

Esdeath coughed, her hand pressed to her lips, and then changed the subject: "Get dressed and let's fight... if you have time now. I have some new insights that I want to test."

Uchiha Hikaru: "Huh?"

At last.

Uchiha Hikaru still granted Esdeath's wish.

The outcome of this battle was not much different from the last one—

Uchiha Hikaru still couldn't overcome "Mahapadma".

Esdeath was also helpless against her complete Susanoo.

but……

Compared to their last encounter, Esdeath's attacks have become significantly more ferocious, and she has become much more adept at controlling ice and snow. She has even developed a "Zero-Degree Ice Blade" that can absorb heat.

According to Uchiha Hikaru's estimation, the surface temperature of this ice blade may be close to absolute zero.

With a single slash, the flames of "Great Fire Extinction" will instantly wane, making even Susanoo extremely vulnerable and easier to break through by external forces. Only by using the fourth form, or even the complete form of Susanoo, can this situation be avoided.

"...Was this technique recently developed?"

After the battle, Uchiha Hikaru asked with some curiosity.

I guess so.

Esdeath casually replied, "But it seems I still can't break your 'eye technique'... It's truly an incredible ability."

"..."

Uchiha Mitsuko thought, "You're the one who's unbelievable. You're already this strong, and you're still thinking about how to develop new abilities every day... If it weren't for the fact that she recently awakened the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan and obtained the Complete Body Susanoo and 'Fire and Thunder God,' which greatly improved her strength, she might not have been able to suppress this woman."

(It seems I'll have to make a few more trips to Miko's place to further refine and purify my eye power... and it's about time I also made my move on Dr. Gro's side.)

She wasn't particularly obsessed with being the "strongest".

However, having just subdued Esdeath, it would be rather embarrassing if she were to overtake them so quickly.

So, considering how hard the other person was trying, she had to compromise a little.

While Uchiha Hikaru was thinking this.

Esdeath was also secretly pondering, "I've always wanted to ask... your ability to breathe fire with a single breath, and your ability to fly without any external aids, couldn't possibly come from an Imperial Arm, could it?"

"Of course not."

Uchiha Hikaru raised his head, revealing a clean and pure smile: "Want to learn? I'll teach you."

"?"

(End of this chapter)