Chapter 286: We're All Buddies

“This kind of abstract combination is something I rarely see even on the sea, so I won’t comment on it.”

“You guys from Dressrosa have always been like this, and Kakashi, I think there’s something wrong with the Uchiha clan.”

A sleazy man in a yellow uniform glanced around, pointed to his head, and quietly leaned next to Kakashi to speak.

Such words were somewhat disrespectful, as the king of Dressrosa was from the Uchiha clan. If any of the Uchiha heard this, he would likely face challengers soon enough. Those guys are like madmen—injured or not, they laugh maniacally. It’s hard to find crazier people anywhere else on the sea.

“Hm, you’re right! They do have some issues! Their craziness comes from those eyes,” Kakashi agreed. “But when they’re not fighting, they behave pretty well, though their brains don’t always work properly.”

Kakashi gave a nod of approval to Borsalino, appreciating his sharp insight.

“Tsk tsk! I wonder if my son will end up turning into this kind of lunatic!” Borsalino shook his head and flipped a page in his newspaper, sneaking curious glances at the book in Kakashi’s hands. Though he didn’t know what it was, Kakashi had rushed to buy it as soon as he arrived in the ninja world. It must be something either very popular or containing secret intel from the ninja world.

“Speaking of which, what are you doing here? The navy shouldn’t be so idle that they’re giving admirals vacations, right? Or are you saying the navy has so much free time that admirals can just roam around the sea?” Kakashi sighed, confused why Borsalino was tagging along to the ninja world.

Zephr was off chasing the tailed beasts, yet Borsalino was just lazily sitting on the ship. It would make more sense for him to find an excuse to vacation in Dressrosa, which was much more comfortable than here. But for some reason, he chose to come along and wander aimlessly.

“Well, the navy has been pretty quiet lately, with no remarkable rookies setting sail,” Borsalino replied. “Even the Four Emperors are unusually peaceful, so I decided to tag along. Besides, Sengoku-san can’t be bothered with us right now.”

He stroked his chin, noticing his beard had grown quickly and thinking he’d need to shave soon. His son’s look of disdain every time they hugged reminded him of it. Borsalino sighed—it was a symbol of maturity, of course, but also of sloppiness at times.

“Oh? I thought Sengoku was always as busy as Shikamaru’s dad, stuck in the office.” Kakashi was surprised. Was something else going on with Sengoku? They hadn’t received any news, and the navy seemed calm, just as Borsalino described.

“Not exactly! Do you remember the kid Sengoku took from Dressrosa years ago?” Borsalino asked. “He’s quite talented, said to be putting in 200 times more effort than the average person. His current strength is on par with a standard vice admiral, and his swordsmanship is impressive. Sengoku has been looking for a suitable Devil Fruit for him recently.”

Borsalino gave a strange expression, continuing, “The people from Dressrosa are truly incredible. It’s wild to think that someone who couldn’t even beat a regular colonel back then is now a vice admiral. But when it comes to Dressrosa, nothing surprises me. That place is full of monsters, and the power we’ve seen is just the tip of the iceberg. Who knows what they’re really up to.”

“Ah! You mean Rengoku Kyojuro! I didn’t expect him to rise to the level of vice admiral so quickly,” Kakashi remarked. “To be honest, we haven’t been keeping up with navy intel lately, so we’re a bit out of the loop. But Borsalino, it’s not just that kid who works beyond ordinary limits. There are others like him.”

Kakashi smiled. “The resources Rengoku has access to? We in Dressrosa have plenty of those as well. In fact, we’ve got even more. Many technologies that Vegapunk won’t release for use are freely available to us, and we’ve used them to arm Dressrosa to the teeth.”

“So, does that mean I can take a look? I guess I count as one of you now, right? To be honest, the navy seems to be distancing itself from us admirals. The title still holds some weight, but it feels like they’re looking for replacements. I might get kicked out soon. Do you think Dressrosa can give me a place to call home?” Borsalino mused, stroking his beard.

There was a mix of truth and jest in his words. Recently, Sengoku had been keeping them at arm’s length, with Kuzan and himself spending most of their time in Dressrosa. It seemed like they weren’t expected to return to the navy anytime soon, and Borsalino was increasingly out of touch with naval affairs.

“Of course you’re one of us! If you weren’t, we wouldn’t have let you come along so easily,” Kakashi assured him. “But you should understand, our ninjas are mostly easy to control, so you haven’t been privy to all of Dressrosa’s central intel. Things are different now, though. You and I have both lost so much. And your son will have to attend ninja school soon! So, if you have any questions, just ask. I won’t keep anything from you.”

Kakashi threw an arm around Borsalino’s shoulder, patting his chest. The bond between them was strong, like brothers despite the age difference. They were close, though not quite sworn brothers.

“That’s good to hear!” Borsalino’s face lit up with interest. “You’re familiar with Vegapunk on the world government’s side, right? I’ve been wondering: does Dressrosa have anyone embedded with him?” He stared intently at Kakashi’s reaction.

This was what intrigued him most. He had long suspected something was off. The technology controlled by the world government seemed to also be in Dressrosa. There were traces of it across the sea, and some of Vegapunk’s former colleagues had ended up in Dressrosa. But many things Vegapunk hadn’t shared were being developed in Dressrosa, too.

For instance, the robots Dressrosa was working on. Borsalino immediately recognized that they shared many components with Vegapunk’s pacifistas, including lasers and other systems. But the key difference? Dressrosa’s pacifistas were powered by chakra. They absorbed chakra from the tailed beasts, not only firing lasers but also launching Tailed Beast Bombs from their palms. Much of this tech clearly originated with Vegapunk.

"If all of this were exposed, Borsalino would probably think there’s a spy within the World Government."

But Borsalino knew very well that he wasn’t the one behind any of this.

Still, if things were revealed, he wouldn’t be able to explain it, no matter how innocent he was.

"That’s right. Someone has to be close to Vegapunk. After all, Vegapunk claims to have technology that’s 500 years ahead of the world."

"Our researchers aren’t bad either, but Vegapunk’s Brain-Brian Fruit has developed his brain to an extraordinary level!"

"We need to find a way to catch up. But, honestly, we’re not that far behind! Look, aren’t we almost on par with Vegapunk’s technology?"

Kakashi nodded calmly. There was no need to hide things any longer.

Since Borsalino had already realized what was going on, there was no point in keeping it a secret.

"Hmm, so my guess was right," Borsalino said, nodding, without disagreeing with the other side.

His thoughts kept circling around the person close to Vegapunk.

Eventually, his suspicions fell on Kabuto.

This kid seemed kind and approachable, and his research abilities were quite good with hardly any flaws.

But Borsalino sensed something familiar about him.

It had to be this kid.

Borsalino didn’t ask further; he just had a general idea in his mind.

But one thing was undeniable: Dressrosa’s research capabilities were impressive.

Their technological level was catching up with Vegapunk.

And they hadn’t wasted the fruits of Vegapunk’s research.

In fact, they were innovating and creating their own things.

"So, is there anything you’re still concerned about? Like, for instance, Dressrosa’s research on artificial Devil Fruits."

"They’ve perfected the creation of Mythical Zoan Fruits. It wouldn’t be a problem at all to prepare a Mythical Zoan for your son right now."

"They’ve even managed to produce Paramecia-type fruits, so what do you think? Any plans to get something ready for your son ahead of time?"

"Or maybe a side-effect-free potion to turn him into an Oni? As long as he sips a little blood each day, his strength will be maintained."

"Whatever is available on the market, Dressrosa can pretty much provide it."

Kakashi pondered for a moment, listing the items from Dressrosa.

Dressrosa had more to offer than anyone could count.

It all depended on what Borsalino wanted.

"Oh no, I think I’ll pass! I still want my son to stay human," Borsalino politely declined.

Dressrosa seemed to be moving further away from humanity with each passing day.

But they still valued their own people.

"You’re right. The Uchiha Clan doesn’t really need external powers like Devil Fruits."

"The Uchiha Clan themselves are incredibly powerful. Once they reach adulthood, it’s like they already possess a unique ability similar to a Devil Fruit."

"Their potential is boundless, depending on the strength of their hearts. Of course, to put it bluntly, it’s tied to their madness for love!"

Kakashi nodded and sighed slightly.

With the Uchiha Clan growing in numbers, some crazies were bound to emerge.

He knew all too well about the craziness of some Uchiha members.

After all, one of his teammates was one of them.

He had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan and killed their teacher and his wife.

But as long as Uchiha Raijin was alive, things wouldn’t get too out of hand.

"..."

Borsalino hesitated. He just wanted his son to live as a human.

No matter how you looked at it, the Uchiha Clan hardly seemed human.

Could his son even be considered normal?

Why did the Uchiha Clan have so many odd personalities?

Couldn’t they just control themselves a bit?

"Leader! Konoha is planning to declare war on the Hidden Cloud Village!"

In a hidden room in the Hidden Waterfall Village, a few people gathered in secret.

But the room was missing a certain stone tablet, leaving the atmosphere somewhat incomplete.

Still, Uchiha Fugaku didn’t dare return to Konoha to retrieve the Uchiha Clan’s stone tablet.

If all went according to plan, no one would likely touch it.

"Konoha declaring war on the Hidden Cloud? How could they be taking action at a time like this!"

"Konoha hasn’t recovered yet. They’ve lost most of their capable forces."

"If they had another ten or twenty years to recover, they might be able to fight the Hidden Cloud."

"But Konoha in its current state has no business declaring war on the Hidden Cloud!"

Uchiha Fugaku was shocked, immediately suspecting this was false information.

After all, no one knew Konoha’s situation better than people like him.

Why would Konoha suddenly declare war on the Hidden Cloud?

"There’s likely something going on behind the scenes, but our people haven’t been able to infiltrate deep enough!"

"Even if there’s an issue, we can’t investigate it."

One of the men said with frustration.

Of course, they knew something was up.

But they couldn’t access insider information right now.

"If that’s the case... have the current leader of the Hidden Waterfall Village visit Konoha! Let him probe Konoha’s intentions."

Uchiha Fugaku squinted, thought for a moment, and then spoke.

His years of wandering hadn’t been in vain.

At the very least, he’d grown more cunning compared to his days in the village.

Only now did Uchiha Fugaku realize how laughable he had once been in the village.

But even if he wanted to go back and change things, it was too late.

(End of Chapter)