Starting with the Uchiha clan, they began cultivating demonic arts.

Chapter 262 Reunion with Garp at Marine Headquarters

"Colonel, this is another... such a horrific scene!"

"Everyone in the slave market is dead. These slaves say they only saw a swarm of blood-red bats..."

Just a few hours ago, a terrible thing happened in the lawless zone of the Sabaody Archipelago: almost all the slave traders, merchant guards, bounty hunters, and others in the entire lawless zone were wiped out.

Apart from slaves who were treated as commodities and a few neutral forces that rarely caused trouble, all forces associated with slaves were wiped out.

What's even more terrifying is that the time interval between the deaths of these tens of thousands of people was no more than ten minutes. In other words, someone directly slaughtered tens of thousands of slave traders and their subordinates within ten minutes.

The navy stationed here naturally dispatched troops immediately, but by the time they arrived, all they found were dried corpses. As for the slaves, some had already escaped, while others were a step too slow and were stopped by the navy.

"Tsk... Blood-red bats? Could it be that Blood Demon?"

"Blood Demon, isn't he only supposed to kill pirates?"

"Slave traders aren't necessarily any better than pirates... In any case, this is beyond our control now. Let's report the situation directly to Marine Headquarters!"

The naval captain shook his head, his eyes still showing a hint of fear. Anyone assigned to the Sabaody Archipelago was definitely not a proper navy officer; even a proper navy officer couldn't stand being in this godforsaken place.

So this naval captain's own record wasn't exactly clean either; he was genuinely afraid that the Blood Demon would get addicted to killing and chop him up too.

As for the message sent to the Navy Headquarters, it disappeared without a trace. In the end, the headquarters simply covered up the matter, citing the lack of evidence and the inability to confirm that it was Blood Demon Qian.

Anyway, the slave traders and guards in the lawless zone aren't good people. Most of them have criminal records, and the Navy has no interest in avenging them. In fact, if it weren't for the Celestial Dragons, the Navy would have sent all those slave traders to Impel Down immediately.

Furthermore, Uchiha Touyu is very powerful, and the upcoming Marineford War will require his help. The World Government does not want to turn against Uchiha Touyu for some lackeys that can be found everywhere.

Aren't they just slave traders? If you're willing, there are plenty of substitutes. On the contrary, there are very few top-tier combat experts on the high seas.

Even if the World Government wanted to settle scores, it would wait until after the Marineford War. Moreover, as long as Uchiha Touyu promised not to do such things again, the World Government would not actually do anything to Uchiha Touyu.

On a small boat not far from the Sabaody Archipelago, Uchiha Hiyu sat cross-legged, his face calm, but his skin was flushed red, and wisps of white smoke rose from his forehead.

A trickle of dark red blood seeped from his pores. The blood looked murky but had a sweet fragrance. After falling into the seawater, it was frantically fought over and sucked up by a large number of sea fish.

A moment later, he opened his eyes, his blood-red pupils flashing with a cold light.

He clenched his fist slightly and felt that his body had been almost reborn. His strength, stamina and resilience were far beyond what they used to be. With just a casual squeeze, a loud air explosion was heard in the air.

He drew the Third Generation Kitetsu and held it against his palm. Uchiha Touyu applied a little force, and although it was only a little force, with the terrifying sharpness of this sword, even steel should have been able to cut a mark by now. However, no marks were left on Uchiha Touyu's hand.

Then, Uchiha Hiyu slowly increased the force until he reached about 50% of his strength. Only then did he feel a slight stinging pain in his palm. He removed the Third Generation Kitetsu and saw a tiny red dot in his palm. Uchiha Hiyu gently rubbed it, and the red dot disappeared without a trace.

"I wonder if this level is stronger or weaker than the Iron Balloon of the old lady? The Sandai Kitetsu is probably the sharpest in the entire ocean. Being able to withstand the Sandai Kitetsu is probably even better than the Iron Balloon."

"Furthermore... the physical enhancement of the Asura after transformation into an iron-like body is only a part of the Asura's talent, after all, the Asura are a race known for their terrifying combat power, not their defensive power."

Yes, Uchiha Tou has now completely completed the Ashura incarnation. Although it is only a pirate world version of Ashura, and is far inferior to the real Ashura, the enhancement he has given himself is in no way inferior to the evolved Vampire Fruit.

The reason he was able to achieve this effect was because after eating the Vampire Fruit, Uchiha Touyu's imitation of Ashura had reached a higher level of perfection, which led to such a high degree of enhancement.

"These slave traders from Sabaody Archipelago really deserved to die; they've just helped me gather the last of my resources for Asura transformation..."

"I feel like I'm frighteningly strong right now!"

Gripping the Third Generation Kitetsu tightly in his hand, Uchiha Tou felt a sense of utter despair. Although they had never truly fought, he felt that the current Marine Admirals and the Four Emperors were no match for him.

Even though he hadn't mastered Conqueror's Haki, to be precise, he didn't know if the bloody aura he produced from killing too many people counted as Conqueror's Haki. In any case, he couldn't really control his killing intent from attacking.

But as long as your basic physical abilities are high enough, even without the so-called Conqueror's Haki, does that mean you can't kill someone?

If you call Saitama from One-Punch Man over, even if Kaido could transform into a super pirate, let alone have Conqueror's Haki, he would still be knocked down with one punch.

After calming his bloodlust slightly, Uchiha Touyu looked in the direction of the Marine Headquarters and transformed into a streak of blood-red light, flying towards it.

"Let's wait a little longer! Once we reach Naval Headquarters, we'll immediately see just how powerful the top-tier naval forces truly are!"

Naval Headquarters, Marineford.

A crimson beam of light, like a scarlet ominous star, fell from the sky and crashed directly onto the ground plaza. The immense force caused the navy personnel present to turn serious as they surrounded the spot where the "star" had landed.

"Cough cough cough, so much smoke! Is this what it feels like for Kaido, who's been bungee jumping to commit suicide every day?"

As the smoke gradually dissipated, Uchiha Tou's figure was revealed, along with the enormous humanoid crater he had created behind him. Many Marines stared at him, their faces pale. Just from the crater behind him, they knew that this guy was definitely not an ordinary person.

At least the person in front of them was someone that ordinary navy personnel could not handle.

Although the Marines recalled before the Marineford War were all elites, and even a small squad leader was a strongman who had mastered one or two of the Six Powers of the Navy, it was precisely because they had some strength that they were able to truly realize the gap between themselves and the people in front of them.

"Who are you?! How dare you trespass on Naval Headquarters?!"

Among the Marines surrounding Uchiha Tou, one of the highest-ranking junior officers stepped forward with a stiff upper lip and shouted a reprimand.

"Hey, is this how the Navy welcomes friendly forces? What do you mean by trespassing at Navy Headquarters? It was clearly your high command who invited me here!"

Uchiha Touyu glanced at the Marines surrounding him and said something unhurriedly. The junior Marine officer was immediately embarrassed. He didn't know any of this information and didn't know whether he should lift the encirclement.

"Alright, go and do your own tasks! Leave this to me."

An aged voice rang out, and a kind-looking old woman approached. Although she appeared amiable, the sailors all showed respect upon seeing this senior figure.

"Understood, Lieutenant General Tsuru!"

Naval staff officer, Tsuru? Uchiha Touyu glanced at the old lady. Although she was also a vice admiral, this old lady was much higher in status than an ordinary vice admiral. In fact, apart from Fleet Admiral Sengoku, the person with the most influence in the entire navy was none other than the old lady in front of him.

Although the current three admirals hold high positions, they are ultimately only in charge of one army, not in overall command of the entire navy. The real decision-makers for the navy's development are still the three veterans: Sengoku, Garp, and Tsuru.

Garp goes without saying. Although this old man can be wise in his foolishness, just like Zhang Fei is described as rough but meticulous, no one would want him to be the strategist to formulate the overall development strategy of the navy. Therefore, the development direction of the entire navy is actually in the hands of Sengoku and Tsuru, which shows how important this old lady is.

"This must be Mr. Uchiha Touyu! It's a pleasure to meet you; I've heard so much about you."

"I've heard of Advisor He's reputation before. He used to terrify many great pirates, who would flee in panic."

Uchiha Touyu and the naval staff officer exchanged a few pleasantries, after which Vice Admiral Tsuru led Uchiha Touyu toward the naval headquarters. In terms of treatment, he was much better off than the other Shichibukai.

After all, no matter how legitimate the Seven Warlords of the Sea may be, they are still pirates. Any Marine with a bit of pride wouldn't give the Seven Warlords a friendly look.

However, Uchiha Hiu was purely a reinforcement from a member state, so the Navy was naturally closer to him.

As for what Uchiha Touyu did in the Sabaody Archipelago, although it had reached the Navy's high command, they didn't take it seriously. In the Navy, hating evil was never a flaw, and being ruthless was welcomed by the radicals.

Upon entering the Marine Headquarters building, before Uchiha Touyu could even take a look at the decorations, he heard a familiar burst of laughter. Turning around, he saw his old acquaintance, Vice Admiral Garp, who had taught him the two types of Haki.

"Long time no see, Vice Admiral Garp! You still look as robust and healthy as ever!"

Uchiha Touyu greeted him, praising his robust physique, but he could tell that Garp was not in good shape. On the surface, he seemed fine and could still laugh heartily, but in reality, his spirit and aura had declined.

This decline in strength is likely not solely due to age; it may also be caused by Ace's impending execution, leading to mental exhaustion and a weakening of the old man's will. After Ace's execution, the old man's strength may decline even further.

"Long time no see, kid. Your strength has truly surprised me. In less than a year, you've undergone a complete transformation!"

"I was just lucky to get a powerful Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit."

Uchiha Touyu chuckled and said that basically everyone who had seen the speed at which Uchiha Touyu's strength increased would probably have a feeling of doubting life, and the Illusionary Devil Fruit was a pretty good excuse.

"This isn't just about the power of a Devil Fruit; your own talent is absolutely top-notch."

Garp looked Uchiha Touyu up and down, and couldn't help but praise him:

"Judging from his demeanor, the old man feels he might not even be a match for you!"

Garp's Observation Haki, while not as monstrous as his other two types of Haki, is still absolutely among the world's best. He could completely feel the terrifying pressure that Uchiha Tou brought him. In fact, Garp even felt that facing Uchiha Tou was more stressful than facing Rocks!

It's important to remember that Rocks was killed when he was attacked by several powerful figures working together. If Garp were to fight Rocks one-on-one, Garp would definitely be the one to die.

(But how is that possible? Even if he has a Mystic-Seed Devil Fruit, that kid is already at his peak, with strength approaching that of a Marine Admiral candidate. Haki can be refined in hard battles, but physical training is not something that can be accomplished overnight... Looks like I'm getting old.)

Shaking his head inwardly, Garp still believed that he had been exhausted and his strength had declined recently, and that Uchiha Touyu's killing intent was too strong, which was why he made this misjudgment.

"Want to go fight again? Grandpa Garp, I remember back in the East Blue, you beat me up pretty badly."

Garp stared wide-eyed at Uchiha Touyu:

"You've got some nerve, kid! Trying to get revenge on me so soon?"

"Old man, you yourself said you might not be a match for me anymore. If you don't take this opportunity to get revenge, when will you?"

"Besides, Grandpa Garp, you're not young anymore. You're almost 80 now, aren't you? In a few years, even if I wanted to take action, I might not be able to find you anymore."

Garp picked his nose, showing no offense at Uchiha Tou's words, but instead spoke with a disdainful expression:

"Kid, since you're so eager to get beaten up, I'll grant your wish! Let me see just how much your strength has grown since we left the East Sea!"

Lieutenant General Tsuru looked helpless and said:

"You two, take it easy when you fight. This is Navy Headquarters."

"Don't worry, dealing with this brat shouldn't take too much effort!"

(End of this chapter)