Aiden and Issho moved quickly across the roofs. In a few jumps, they passed over the panicked crowd and landed on a breakwater at the very edge of the outer city.
"Tsk, tsk. This wave... is a bit much."
Aiden stood at the edge of the breakwater. He looked up at the black wall of water large enough to swallow the outer city in one hit and raised an eyebrow.
Even with his current strength, he could probably use his electricity to force this part of the sea to evaporate. But if he did that, he would likely cook half the outer city along with the seawater.
To block this kind of natural disaster without hurting innocent people, they needed an ability that could control the force directly.
"Issho."
Aiden turned to look at Issho beside him and smiled.
"This is exactly your specialty. I'll leave it to you. No problem, right?"
Issho smiled simply. He took a step forward. His wooden sandals stepped on the hard stone breakwater, making a clear clack.
"Since my stomach is full, this little bit of work is naturally not a problem."
After he spoke, Issho stepped forward and gripped his cane sword.
"Gravity Blade!"
He did not fully draw his cane sword. He only turned his wrist and pushed the blade out an inch.
Vmm.
A purple wave spread from Issho and crashed straight into the huge wave.
Bang!
The black wave suddenly seemed to hit an invisible wall less than a hundred meters from the coastline.
The crest that should have crashed down stopped in midair.
Right after that, a heavy gravity field fell from above and pressed down on the rolling seawater.
The water wall, dozens of meters high, began to twist under the pressure. Its forward force was turned downward.
Rumble...
The sea surface sank as if a part of it had collapsed. White foam rushed up everywhere.
The giant wave that should have flooded the city was pressed firmly against the sea. No matter how hard the water pushed forward, it could not cross that purple line.
Even the splashing drops fell straight down under the pull of gravity. Not a single drop splashed into the city.
Seeing that the situation was under control, Aiden did not stay on the breakwater.
He turned into lightning and disappeared from his spot, hiding in the shadow at the top of a distant lighthouse.
He left the credit to Issho, who was holding back the wave alone.
On the other side, the crowd was still screaming and running away. People fell in the chaos. People cried and shouted. Most of them were too scared to look back.
But soon, someone noticed something was wrong.
"Wait... why is there no sound?"
A young man who had been pushed to the side of the road panted heavily. He turned back without thinking.
Then he froze and stared.
"Hey! Look! The wave... the wave stopped!"
"What?!"
"Stop joking! Run!"
"It's true! Look!"
As more and more people stopped, shouts of surprise rang out one after another. The chaotic crowd slowly quieted down. Everyone stared in that direction.
They saw the black giant wave less than a hundred meters from the coast.
The wave had stopped in place.
It hung there for a moment, then crashed straight back into the sea like a waterfall.
And at the very front of that purple gravity line, at the end of the breakwater, a few bold people climbed up to a high roof and saw the figure there.
"There's someone! Someone is there!"
"Who is that?! He blocked Aqua Laguna all by himself?!"
A man in a purple yukata stood at the end of the breakwater, facing the wave alone.
The strong wind blew his clothes around. The seawater wet his wooden sandals. But he did not move.
Crack.
A tiny cracking sound came from under his feet.
That section of the concrete breakwater cracked with web-like lines from the force it had taken.
But Issho still stood there.
"It's a good thing I brought Issho with me..."
Aiden stood at the top of the lighthouse not far away. Looking at Issho's back, he silently praised his own decision.
Even though he had beaten Issho during that battle in the Blacksteel Empire, that had been a one-on-one fight. Against this kind of huge, endless natural disaster, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was better at destruction. But if he wanted to control the disaster without destroying the city, the Gravity-Gravity Fruit was clearly better suited for the job.
"Professional work must be left to professionals."
Aiden smiled.
...
No one in Water 7 slept that night.
Tens of thousands of people gathered in high places or stood on safe streets holding lamps. They stared at the purple barrier and at the figure holding back the sea alone.
To them, he was the man who had saved them.
The tsunami hit wave after wave. Every crash made the crowd flinch. But no matter how fierce the waves were, the man in purple stayed in place.
Time passed minute by minute.
From late night to dawn.
An entire night.
Only when the east turned pale and the first light of morning fell on the sea did the tide finally withdraw.
"Haa..."
Issho slowly breathed out white mist in the cold morning wind.
Click.
The cane sword in his hand made a clear sound as it returned to its sheath.
As the purple light faded, the sea finally calmed down.
Issho opened his eyes and looked at the rising sun.
Then he smiled faintly.
"A miracle! This is a miracle!!"
"Was that person sent by God?!"
"We're saved! We're saved!!"
At that moment, the fear everyone had held back all night turned into cheers. Countless people cried in relief. Some even knelt toward the breakwater.
And on a clock tower far away, a few disheveled reporters kept pressing their camera shutters.
"I got the picture! I got it!"
"Big news! This is a front-page headline that will shock the world!"
Camera flashes lit up in the morning light. They captured the man in purple standing before the calm sea.
During the cheers, people in the crowd started whispering.
"Who exactly is that person in purple? Do we have someone like him in Water 7?"
"I've never seen him... but I think I saw him at the grilled fish stall last night!"
A sharp-eyed young man suddenly shouted.
"He was drinking with another man wearing a fox mask! I remember it clearly. That man in the fox mask looked very impressive!"
"A fox mask?"
"Ah! I saw him too! Before the tsunami came, that masked man seemed to know something. He even told us not to run around! Then he went to find this guy in purple!"
"I heard it! That fox mask seemed to call that guy... Issho?"
"And it looked like this strong man was following the masked man's orders!"
The rumor spread quickly through the crowd.
Even though they did not know the man in purple, everyone learned that he had come with the mysterious young Marine in the fox mask, and that the two had a close relationship.
After this night, Reaper Aiden and the mysterious man named Issho under his command became legends in this city.
...
One day later.
As Morgans' News Coos flew across the sea, the photo and the "miracle" that had happened in Water 7 quickly spread to every corner of the world.
The Grand Line, the New World, and even the Four Blues.
Countless people were shocked when they opened the newspaper in the morning and saw the front-page headlines and photo.
Shocking! A Mysterious Purple-Clothed Swordsman Appears Under Reaper's Command!
One Man Holds Back Aqua Laguna!
How Much Power Is Hidden in the G-17 Branch?
Even though the photo only caught Issho's back and side profile, it was enough to shock anyone who saw it.
Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral's office.
Crack!
Looking at the exaggerated headlines and the photo in the newspaper, Fleet Admiral Sengoku crushed his teacup on the spot.
Since the Ohara incident, former Fleet Admiral Kong had been promoted to Commander-in-Chief and had been looking for a successor. Recently, Sengoku, known as the Resourceful General, had finally become the new Fleet Admiral.
This also meant he not only had to lead the Marines, but also had to deal with the endless messes on this sea.
"That bastard kid..."
Sengoku looked at the broken teacup and groaned in pain.
"Where exactly did he find someone like this?!"
This level of gravity control, and the stamina to last all night, definitely did not belong to an ordinary person.
This was a fighter at a level that could change the outcome of a battle.
And now, this uncontrolled power was actually in the hands of an unpredictable "problematic Rear Admiral."
How could this not give Sengoku a headache?
Meanwhile, Aiden, the person in question, was relaxing in Tom's Workers.
He held a cup of coffee that Iceburg had brewed himself. He crossed his legs and watched the progress of the new ship's construction.
Puru puru puru...
The Den Den Mushi in his coat suddenly rang.
Almost the moment he answered, the plain-looking Den Den Mushi's face changed.
The corners of its eyes lowered slightly, and its look became sharp. It even formed a few faint wrinkles on its cheeks.
It looked exactly like Tsuru.
Just as expected.
It was Vice Admiral Tsuru calling.
"Hello, Vice Admiral Tsuru. Are you calling this early to promote me?" Aiden greeted the Den Den Mushi casually.
"Stop joking with me."
The Den Den Mushi's mouth opened and closed.
Tsuru did not sound amused.
"Aiden, did you read today's newspaper?"
"Newspaper? No, I didn't." Aiden acted like nothing had happened. "Did that bird Morgans write another clickbait title? I didn't even bother to read it."
"Stop playing dumb."
Tsuru sighed.
"Shouldn't you give me an explanation about the gravity swordsman in the newspaper who can suppress a tsunami?"
"Why is there no record of someone that strong in Headquarters' files? Why do you have someone like that with you? Do you know that the Five Elders have been calling Sengoku nonstop these past few days?"
Even though Aiden had been given autonomy early on, the sudden appearance of an Admiral-level fighter still made the higher-ups restless.
Uncontrolled power was always what people in charge feared the most. Furthermore, this power was in the hands of Aiden, someone the Five Elders were already wary of.
"Huh? What fighter?"
Aiden blinked and started playing dumb.
"Oh, you mean Issho? He's just an old man I met on the road who likes to gamble. I felt bad for him, so I took him in as an advisor. What tsunami suppression? The newspaper made that up! You actually believe Morgans' words? That was magic! An illusion!"
The other end of the phone went silent for a few seconds.
Tsuru was clearly amused and annoyed by Aiden's shameless lie.
"Magic? Then have that magician come to Headquarters to perform. I also want to see what kind of illusion can suppress a tsunami and last a whole night."
Tsuru rubbed her temples.
She knew Aiden too well. Since this kid dared to show this person so openly, it meant he had already thought of a plan, and it was a plan that no one could easily pick apart.
"Vice Admiral Tsuru, that is not fair."
Aiden finally stopped joking.
"When we talked last time, you said it yourself. The Base Commander of G-17 has a high degree of autonomy. Aside from promotions for officers at the commander rank and above needing approval from Headquarters, recruiting a few soldiers, or even directly appointing my adjutant, is all up to me."
"Your exact words were something like... 'As long as you think he has no problems, then there are no problems. You don't need to report to me specifically, just decide for yourself.' I am strictly following my superior's orders here."
The phone went quiet for a short moment.
Far away in Marineford, Vice Admiral Tsuru suddenly remembered that phone call back in the Blacksteel Empire.
At that time, Aiden had suddenly become very well-behaved. He had called specifically to ask for permission regarding appointment rights. Back then, Tsuru thought this kid had finally learned the rules, so she generously gave him a high degree of autonomy.
Thinking back on it now...
"So you were already digging a trap for me back then?"
Tsuru looked at the figure in the newspaper who had held back a natural disaster. Her temples throbbed.
So his so-called recruiting people back then meant someone like this?
"Fine. I will count that as you making sense."
Even though she had already scolded Aiden in her mind, as the Great Staff Officer, Tsuru quickly calmed down.
She knew very well that the man was already in Aiden's hands. Taking him away by force was impossible. Anyway, they were all Marines. The power stayed within the family. As long as Aiden was still a Marine, this strength belonged to the Marines.
"Since I promised you before, Headquarters will not look into it. You can keep him. I can approve an official external advisor status for him. He will receive the same treatment as you, but he won't need to follow orders from Headquarters."
Tsuru paused before continuing.
"But Aiden, you also know this. With someone that strong suddenly appearing, the Five Elders are paying close attention. To completely smooth this over, my words alone are not enough."
Hearing this, Aiden was about to laugh, but Tsuru changed the subject first.
"As a trade, you have to do something in return."
"I knew it wouldn't be that simple," Aiden curled his lip. "Tell me, who do I have to kill this time?"
"The mission this time is not to kill. It's an escort."
Tsuru did not give him room to refuse.
"The Reverie, held every four years, has been moved up because the Great Pirate Era is getting more and more out of control."
"There is a very important country that needs to be escorted by a strong person from Headquarters to make sure nothing goes wrong."
"Why is it such a troublesome task? I am a Marine Rear Admiral, and I have to be a bodyguard for someone else?"
Aiden raised an eyebrow and complained.
"Because the target of this escort is very special."
Tsuru paused, then slowly said the name.
"The major nation on the Grand Line: the Alabasta Kingdom."
"King Nefertari Cobra needs to travel to the meeting point near the Holy Land of Mary Geoise."
"Alabasta?"
Aiden paused.
That was an important country with the bloodline of the First 20 Kings. Its status was very special.
"The sea has been unstable recently. The higher-ups are worried that someone might target World Government member nations. Especially a country the size of Alabasta. Nothing can go wrong."
Tsuru explained.
"Originally, we wanted to send Vice Admiral Momonga, but he's busy in the New World. It just so happens that you are in the first half, and... humph, since you don't want Issho's matter to be looked into, this task has to be yours."
"Alright."
Aiden did not really want to go. After all, the new ship was not finished yet. He still wanted to stay here and watch over it.
But since Tsuru had said this much, not only were they not pursuing Issho's matter, they were also giving him official backing. If he pushed it away again, it would be ungrateful.
This was an unspoken trade between both sides.
"For your sake, I will take this job."
Aiden agreed readily.
"Anyway, it will still take a while for the new ship to be built. I'm free. I'll just treat it as a vacation."
"Then it's decided. The appointment letter will be faxed over right away."
After Tsuru finished speaking, she hung up the phone. She seemed afraid that Aiden would change his mind and make another unreasonable demand.
"Alabasta..."
Aiden put away the Den Den Mushi and looked out the window.
The desert kingdom was an interesting place.
To Be Continued
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