Chapter 5#
Seeing Garp quiet down, Cyborg addressed the room with a serious tone. "Our agents have sent news from Beehive Island. Another person has joined the Rocks Pirates, and he's taken a cadre position."
The faces of the vice admirals grew serious at the mention of a new cadre joining the Rocks Pirates.
"The new member is called Uchiha Madara," Cyborg continued.
"How strong is he?" Sengoku inquired with curiosity.
"He once remained immobile on a stone, using the blue energy in his body to form a bony hand, which, combined with armed Haki, was able to block Kaido's powerful attack!" Cyborg explained.
"Is he a mythical beast?" a vice admiral asked, intrigued.
Kong looked around the room and said, "At first, I thought he might be, but then he intimidated Kaido with just a glance. Charlotte Linlin stepped in to defend Kaido, and her fire attack was deflected by some kind of weapon-fan."
Fleet Admiral Kong continued, "The pirates present were shocked when Uchiha Madara bounced back Charlotte Linlin's flames. Guess what he said?"
The room was silent, waiting for the punchline.
"What did he say, Fleet Admiral?" someone asked cooperatively.
"He asked, 'Can this be considered a flame?'" Kong revealed.
"Then Uchiha Madara used real fire!"
"My staff reported that Uchiha Madara's flames spewed from his mouth, covering the sky and extending hundreds of meters."
"Fleet Admiral, are you telling a story? That sounds exaggerated!" Garp interjected skeptically. "How could he possibly produce such flames just by spitting them out?"
"This is what my staff reported," Kong insisted. "Also, his aloof and calm demeanor suggests he's quite confident in his abilities. Considering his intelligence and strength, what do you think would be an appropriate bounty?"
"That's no big deal to me. Just this?" Garp said dismissively. He glanced around and added, "You guys can discuss it among yourselves. I have to get back to the East Blue first. Goodbye!"
Garp turned and left, causing Kong to clench his fists in frustration.
"Forget it, Fleet Admiral. He's always like this. If it were Roger, he..." Before Sengoku could finish, Garp poked his head back through the door and asked, "Roger! What happened to Roger?"
Cyborg, irritated, shouted, "Roger dug up your ancestral graves, get out of here!"
Garp, taking it seriously, looked puzzled. "That's impossible. I'm close to him." He almost let slip something he shouldn't have, then quickly added, "What's that? You guys continue, I'm leaving first!"
Kong felt exhausted.
After Garp's departure, the remaining officers debated and decided on a bounty of 100 million. This amount was based on the new member's cadre status and strength, given that there was no historical record of him committing any crimes.
In the afternoon, after the Navy's newspaper was printed, Rocks received news from his informants.
"Captain! The bounty for Madara has been announced!" a pirate reported to Rocks in the open square of Beehive Island.
"Oh? How much is it?" Rocks asked with interest.
"One hundred million!" the subordinate answered.
"It's really too low. It seems he'll need to do something sensational. Even Kaido's bounty isn't this small!" Captain John said, sipping his wine with a hint of drunkenness.
Stussy commented excitedly, "The Navy underestimated Uchiha Madara this time. He should give them a big surprise."
"To be honest, the fact that he used that skeleton arm to block Kaido means he's already among the strong. Coupled with that fire that was like a natural disaster, he's practically a weapon of war, much like Whitebeard's Devil Fruit ability. If he joins the battlefield, a large number of people will die," Flame Flower remarked.
"The Navy has spies here, and Kong knows some of the details, but it's not enough. Let him showcase his abilities in the next battle!" Rocks said with a laugh. "Hahaha!"
Meanwhile, Uchiha Madara, the new recruit, was enjoying the breeze on the boat with Whitebeard.
"Hey, what's your dream?" Whitebeard asked out of curiosity.
"Dream?" Uchiha Madara replied, feigning puzzlement as he looked at Whitebeard.
"Yes, dream!" Whitebeard said seriously. "A person like you shouldn't have joined Rocks if you didn't have a big dream."
"Why do you ask?" Uchiha Madara inquired, his voice low. "Are you trying to gather information for Rocks?"
"Kulalala~ Don't get me wrong, I'm just curious!" Whitebeard laughed heartily. "Everyone has dreams. For example, Rocks's dream is to become the king of the world. I don't know what your dream is, but it must be significant. Otherwise, you wouldn't have joined the Rocks Pirates."
Uchiha Madara remained silent, unwilling to share his true intentions.
Whitebeard continued, "I hope your dream doesn't conflict with Rocks's. Otherwise, he won't hesitate to kill you."
"Hey, are you concerned about me?" Uchiha Madara asked with curiosity.
"I suppose so. After all, there are very few people as exceptional as you in the sea. From the first time I saw you, I thought you were impressive," Whitebeard said.
Uchiha Madara feared Whitebeard might say, "Be my son!" so he quickly responded, "We are not of the same kind!"
"As for your dream, is it family?" madara uchiha asked
Uchiha Madara's insight surprised Whitebeard.
"Of course, I don't mind if you want to be my little brother!" madara uchiha said
"Kulalala~ How arrogant!" Whitebeard laughed.
"If you want to be my big brother, you must have the strength of Rocks!" Uchiha Madara said. "I won't recognize anyone weaker than me. If you think you have the strength, you can try! I don't mind having a big brother who is stronger than me!"
Whitebeard smiled, appreciating Uchiha Madara's spirit.
"Forget it. This kind of family built on competition is meaningless!" Uchiha Madara said casually, showing no real intent to accept Whitebeard as his brother.
His path was destined to be fraught with challenges, and he didn't want Whitebeard, who valued friendship and loyalty, to become involved.
Whitebeard watched Uchiha Madara leave, reflecting on the words he had just heard. "My dream, you'll find out later!" Uchiha Madara had said before departing.