Early morning.
After showing the Shihoin family crest to the guards under his watch, Kenma stepped out of the boundaries of the Seireitei.
The black cat in his arms opened its eyes, a flash of confusion passing through them—it was clear she had only just woken up.
"So, you're finally awake."
Feeling the movement against his chest, Kenma looked down at Yoruichi curled up in his robes. Just a moment ago, she had been deep in her dreams, but she woke up the instant they left the Hidden Seireitei.
The black cat let out a yawn and stretched her body, her eyes gradually regaining their clarity.
Kenma couldn't help but tease her. "Yoruichi, well? Is it comfortable in my arms?"
"Hmm, it's passable."
The black cat waved a front paw, her tone matter-of-fact, as if she hadn't noticed the sarcasm in Kenma's voice. Or perhaps she did notice and simply chose to ignore it.
"If you could prepare a silk cushion for me, it would be perfect."
"Give you an inch and you take a mile... Is that really what I meant?" Kenma said exasperatedly.
When dawn had first broken, Kenma had tried to wake Yoruichi, but she refused to get up no matter what. Even after she finally forced her eyes open, she had immediately drifted back to sleep.
Kenma had tried several times to drag her out of bed to no avail. Yoruichi wanted to sleep in, yet she also wanted to see what Kenma was up to. Ultimately, she transformed into her cat form and insisted that Kenma carry her.
It wasn't until Kenma had carried her out of the Hidden Seireitei that Yoruichi finally felt well-rested enough to wake up.
Amidst their banter, Yoruichi looked at the familiar streets of the Rukongai and quickly realized where they were.
"Kenma, where are we going? Looking at the path, are we heading to the Junrinan District?"
"Yes, my stronghold is located there."
Kenma reached out to scratch the cat's chin and belly.
A purring sound immediately erupted from the cat. Her amber-colored eyes narrowed slightly, looking quite content.
This gave Kenma a subtle, strange feeling. After Yoruichi transformed into a cat, even her habits seemed to become identical to those of a feline.
"Yoruichi, back when we were engaged, Vice-Captain Omaeda gave me some land and property."
"I turned that land into my stronghold and arranged for some people to be stationed there."
Yoruichi's tone revealed a hint of understanding. "Is it the Uchihas?"
"That's right." Kenma nodded and added, "But it's not just the Uchihas. There are also some... well, very hot-blooded people there."
Thinking of the pirates under Whitebeard's command, Kenma found it difficult to describe them for a moment.
As everyone knew, in the world of pirates, aside from a few exceptions, most people seemed to lack a certain amount of common sense. If Kenma hadn't already been familiar with them, he probably wouldn't have been able to adapt to their way of thinking.
Seeing Kenma's expression, Yoruichi's curiosity was piqued.
Kenma's Shunpo was excellent. In the middle of their conversation, they arrived at the Uchiha residence in the blink of an eye.
Kakkaku was already waiting in front of the residence with three or four clansmen. Upon seeing Kenma, he immediately stepped forward to greet him.
"Lord Kenma."
Kenma nodded slightly. Before he could speak, Yoruichi, looking at the people in their uniform high-collared robes from his arms, spoke first. "Looking at your appearance, are you also a clansman of Shisui and the others?"
Kakkaku froze for a moment as he looked at the talking black cat, then looked back at Kenma.
Kenma shifted Yoruichi slightly and said to Kakkaku, "This is Yoruichi, my wife."
"Greetings, Lady Yoruichi."
Kakkaku immediately showed a respectful expression and bowed to the black cat in Kenma's arms.
"Lady Yoruichi is correct. I am indeed a member of the Uchiha clan and serve as an elder within the clan."
Seeing his calm reaction, a look of surprise appeared on Yoruichi's cute cat face. "Your reaction isn't right. Aren't you supposed to find my current appearance strange?"
"Why would we find Lady Yoruichi's appearance strange?" Kakkaku asked back, puzzled.
"A cat is talking! You don't think that's abnormal?" Yoruichi said impatiently. "Your master's wife is actually a cat, and you don't find it odd at all?"
Kakkaku took it as a matter of course. "A cat talking—isn't that perfectly normal?"
"Your reaction is exactly the same as Mikoto's..."
Yoruichi was quite disappointed that the reaction she expected didn't happen.
Kenma gently tapped Yoruichi's small head. "There are so many Uchihas living in our home; isn't it normal for them to know about your situation?"
"Oh, right." Yoruichi suddenly realized.
Ignoring Yoruichi, Kenma said to Kakkaku, "I'm going to find Whitebeard. You don't need to follow, just go about your business."
"Yes, sir."
With a flash, Kenma entered the interior of the stronghold.
Yoruichi asked curiously, "Who is this Whitebeard you mentioned?"
"You'll see in a moment. Don't be too shocked when you do."
Hearing Kenma say this made Yoruichi even more curious.
"Does he know about me?"
"Of course he does."
Kenma glanced at Yoruichi, easily reading her thoughts.
"However, not many people know about the fact that you can transform into a cat."
"Even within the Uchiha clan, only a few people are aware."
At those words, a strange smile appeared on Yoruichi's small face.
As Kenma walked toward the courtyard where Whitebeard was located, the usual boisterous noise drifted out.
Pushing the door open, he saw a high earthen mound built in the middle of the yard. Two people were grappling and wrestling on top of it, while fifty or sixty others surrounded them, cheering loudly.
"This is?" Yoruichi looked confused.
"You'll know once we're inside."
Kenma didn't answer and continued walking in.
On the other side of the wrestling mound, an incredibly massive man was sitting cross-legged on a straw mat. He had wavy golden hair and a white mustache shaped like a crescent moon under his nose.
It was Edward Newgate, also known as Whitebeard.
At that moment, Whitebeard held a bowl in his hand, pouring liquor into his mouth from time to time while watching the match on the mound with a warm smile.
Because of the earthen mound, Yoruichi hadn't seen him initially. As Kenma walked closer, she finally saw the man's figure clearly, and her amber pupils couldn't help but widen.
"What a huge human!"
"No wonder the houses and walls here are so tall!"
Whitebeard also sensed someone approaching. Turning his head, Kenma's figure came into view.
He immediately signaled for his sons to quiet down.
"Sons, the big boss Kenma is back."
Hearing this, the many pirates in the yard turned their heads one after another, and a burst of cheering erupted instantly.
"King Enma is here!"
"Let's have a banquet! Go prepare the drinks!"
"Idiot, Lord Kenma definitely has serious business to discuss with Pops."
The cheers of the crowd rose and fell, even louder than before.
Looking at the rowdy atmosphere, Yoruichi extended a front claw and scratched Kenma's palm.
"So much for being serious... what a noisy bunch of people."
"You're right about that."
Kenma nodded in total agreement.
Passing through the pirates, Kenma stood before Whitebeard, his brow relaxing slightly.
"Newgate, it's been a while."
"It has been a bit." Whitebeard smiled.
He had heard from the Uchihas that an elder of the Shihoin family had passed away. Since Kenma was here now, he assumed the funeral matters had been handled and he had moved on.
"Want a drink?"
"No, I'm here on business today."
Before Kenma could finish his sentence, Yoruichi suddenly broke free from his arms and took a few quick leaps onto the table in front of Whitebeard.
The table was oversized for a normal person, but for someone of Whitebeard's stature, it was just a appropriately sized low table.
The black cat landed lightly on the red tabletop and tilted her head up, her vertical pupils reflecting Whitebeard's image.
"So you're the Whitebeard Kenma mentioned."
"Looking at you up close, you really are huge."
"You're almost as big as the guards at the gates of the Seireitei—you're like a giant!"
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]