Chapter 78: Ba Sing Se
As the black-colored airship approached the massive walls of Ba Sing Se, the small group within could already see the sprawling city on the horizon.
"I can't believe people could build such a thing!" Shouted Xi in excitement, almost jumping from one side to the other while trying her best to memorize every single detail.
"This is absurd…." Yue also was gawking at the view, she lived in a capital and knew how large they were, but this… this is on another level.
"It is indeed something…" Said Madara nonchalantly while grinning, but to Nari who was observant… she could see a certain fierceness in his onyx-colored eyes.
"Mr. Uchiha…"
"We are piloting all the way in, i am sure that they already know the airship and our mansion is large enough to house and protect it, don't worry Nari," Madara said with a confident tone.
Nari on the other hand shook her head "It's not the airship that I am worried about…"
Madara stood in silence while observing the city below.
"Look at that! It must be the transport that Lord Madara talked about!" Xi continued with her fangirling while watching the stone rails that cut through the capital.
"Alright girls, get ready" Madara interrupted them as he walked towards Kaliya, who also was very nonchalant about the whole thing "After we land, we will eat and sleep earnly, in the morning you and Jackie are coming with me… we have a meeting to attend tomorrow."
"Ya, sure thing Boss!" Replied the waterbender while enjoying her expensive sake.
Although the crew was enjoying the view from above, they could clearly see the disparity of the three "Rings" that formed the massive capital.
The Lower Ring, being home to the poor classes of the society made up almost half of the size of the city, it obviously didn't house only the poor, but also newcomers and a multitude of refugees.
Ironically the Lower Ring is also where the biggest market in the Earth Kingdom was located, since it was not cheap to get permits to the other rings, most merchants decided to settle here, the profit wasn't bad and honestly… most merchants didn't have goods of enough quality to warrant the cost of going to the Middle ring.
The Middle Ring was considerably more well-put together than the lower one, houses here were made of bricks, with green and yellow colored roof tiles, and many man-made canals cut through this area of the city, adding a more refined upscale lifestyle feeling, with many bridges and greenery.
Here the businesses were located in shops and specialized houses, unlike the open outdoor market of the Lower Ring, everything here screamed slightly affluent middle-class life, from the clothes to the buildings, a comfortable place to live and the dream of MANY Lower Ring residents.
Then there's the Upper Ring, the richest area of the capital, consisting of a mere ten percent of the whole land.
Tall luxurious manors with massive yards, their own stables, and even extra housing for houseworkers since the upper echelon of the city didn't allow the rabble to cross to this area, it was impossible to enter here unless you were already someone.
As Madara already was one of the richest men in the world at this point, he obviously had his own "humble abode" located on the Upper Ring, on a tall hill that could overlook the whole district, his very own pond, and an empty space for his airship (considering that he already planned ahead of time for this situation).
Ironically his closest neighbor was the Beifong Manor, only thirty minutes away! It's totally a coincidence and no one can prove that Madara did it just to piss off Poppy Beifong… NO SIR!!
As for other people that lived here? Rich, Entitled, Pompous, Military and Government, and more often than not… all of the above…
As the airship finally landed and they could see the massive manor with a huge Uchiha Fan symbol etched on the gates, the group was received by an already prepared group of servants, members of Oniwaban of course.
""Welcome to Ba Sing Se, Lord Uchiha!"" All of them said simultaneously while being properly aligned before bowing in perfect coordination.
Madara simply nodded and signaled for his team to follow him. The first time this happened, he had a talk about it with Nari, it was years ago now and he was very uncomfortable about it… but that woman… she had in her mind that he was akin to royalty and refused to change the training of their personnel.
As the group walked towards the manor, Xi and Yue started squealing about a herd of Fox Antelopes that lived within Madara's lands, they couldn't hold back and started chasing and playing with them while Madara could only sigh and shake his head.
'Kids…'
Kaliya was already in her own dimension and didn't pay much attention, but Jackie and Nari couldn't help but chuckle, they too owned a large house in Ba Sing Se, but on the Middle Ring, very close to the Upper Ring wall, it was quite luxurious for a Middle Ring house, but they rarely ever visited there, only when they went off on their own trip as a couple. If they came with Madara, they would always stay in the Upper Ring with him.
"How soft and cute!" Squealed Yue as she held a Fox Antelope fawn within her arms, petting it like it was some sort of house pet.
"Right?!" Replied Xi while petting the grown-up ones, which already had gotten used to humans at this point after so many years of living here and being fed by Madara's people.
If that wasn't annoying enough, they also freaked out about a colony of cats that lived in the manor, all fluffy and very chonky at this point, they didn't even react when the girls grabbed them and played with them for a whole hour!
With that Madara decided against telling them about the other animals that resided within his lands, Fire Ferrets, Llamapacas, Turtle Ducks, and even a couple of very friendly but a bit old Tigerdillos and their cubs.
Look… He is an animal lover, okay?!
It was already sunset when the group finally entered the dinner room, which was already properly set and displayed a massive feast with all the most delicious barbecue one could possibly want.
Animal lover isn't equal to vegetarian, okay?!
They don't butcher the animals that live in the land, they buy stuff from the market!
After an amazing feast, the group decided to go to sleep, only four rooms were prepared of course, one for Xi, one for Yue, one for Jackie and Nari and the master bedroom for Madara and Kaliya.
The dawn finally approached and Madara woke up in a great mood, it was legit the first time he and Kaliya actually had sex in this mansion, and there was no holding back!
"What a great day…" Madara said while looking out the window, the gentle breeze, the sun rising casting a shade of red on the horizon… "Today will be a great day…"
As he got dressed with his kimono and haori, he walked towards the entry room and was immediately caught off guard by the presence of one of his guards escorting a tall woman with black hair and a huge creepy smile.
"My lord, this is an envoy that was sent by the Earth King to welcome you to Ba Sing Se." The guard said while bowing.
The woman displayed an excited face and bowed as well. "Hello, my name is Joo Dee! I have been given the greatest honor of welcoming Lord Madara Uchiha to Ba Sing Se! On behalf of our King, I welcome you to our wonderful City!"
"…" Madara's eyebrows trembled a bit 'You gotta be fucking kidding me…'
…
On top of a hill, a duo of firebenders could be seen drinking tea while facing each other, one old and short, one young and tall, both wearing worn-out clothes with faded colors.
"Lightning is a pure expression of firebending, without aggression. It is not fueled by rage or emotion the way other firebending is. Some call lightning the cold-blooded fire. It is precise and deadly, like Azula. To perform the technique requires peace of mind." Said a short and "well-built" old man, eyeing a tall teenager with short black hair and one scorched eye who was sitting right across from him
"I see! That's why we are drinking tea, to calm the mind!" Said the teenager with a sagely nod while enjoying his own cup of tea.
Raising an eyebrow the old man replied "Oh yeah, good point! I mean… yes!" his face became sage-like and he even added a nod.
"There is energy all around us. The energy is both yin and yang. Positive energy and negative energy. Only a select few firebenders can separate these energies. This creates an imbalance since the energy will always seek to restore balance, and in the moment that positive and negative come crashing back together, you provide release and guidance, creating… lightning…"
The old general stood up and walked a few steps before extending two fingers from each hand, slowly doing circular movements, and the young prince could see lightning crackling on each hand. When they connected… he saw his uncle simply pointing forward and unleashing a loud forked lightning that traveled far.
"I'm ready to try it!" Said Zuko.
Iroh nodded and gave a few words of wisdom "Remember, once you separate the energy, you do not command it. You are simply its humble guide… Breathe first."
Zuko took a deep breath, slowly imitating Iroh's form and posture. Unfortunately, instead of lightning, a loud explosion launched him back and Iroh shook his head in disappointment.
A few hours went by and after seeing that he had made no progress, Zuko couldn't help but ask;
"Why can't I do it? Instead of lightning, it keeps exploding in my face … like everything always does…"
"I was afraid this might happen," said the old wise General "You will not be able to master lightning until you have dealt with the turmoil inside yourself."
"What turmoil?"
"Zuko, you must let go of your feelings of shame if you want your anger to go away."
"But I don't feel any shame at all! I am as proud as ever!"
"Prince Zuko, pride is not the opposite of shame, but its source. True humility is the only antidote to shame…"
That made the prince stop "Source of shame and humility, huh?"
Zuko kept staring at the skies remembering a few words from his teacher, once upon a time… he wasn't very… friendly… and decided to show Madara that he was good enough to learn more than just physical exercises from him…
He still has nightmares about that day… but that day Madara gave him a piece of his mind and he still remembers the words…
-"Feeling proud, aren't ya? A firebending kid that believes himself to be tough… let me help you erase that pride from your soul, you wanna be treated like a big man? fine, I will treat you like a big man… and then you will cry like a little baby."-
That day he was humbled so hard that he would never dare to ignite a flame in front of Madara ever again!
He still remembers that feeling, that feeling that he was nothing, that his journey didn't matter, that his own talents and strengths were irrelevant, that day he learned a very important lesson, according to his uncle and teacher of course.
That feeling of being nothing…
Taking a deep breath and doing his best to reenact said feeling he repeated the moments of lightning generation one more time.
But this time, to Iroh's shock and surprise, sparks of lightning could be seen on the tips of Zuko's fingers.
It was faint, it was weak, it was nowhere near enough to be used...
But he somehow did it... Zuko managed to generate lightning.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
KojiSan
KojiSan Just stealthy posting a chapter here...
Nothing big going on i just had a surge of inspiration for this arc and now i started writing it again, can't promise daily chapters but i can at least try to not disappear again...
Life have been tough... no more sad stuff tho, only harsh real life reality that is a pain in the ass!
Our new kitty Ace is growing up to be quite chubby just like his siblings, he already went through his.. "Procedures" ... and lemme tell ya... they lied to me! they said he would calm down, get lazier...
CALM DOWN MY ASS! i can't even go to the restroom without this little shit demanding to come with me! its been rough!!!!!!!
Regardless... sorry for disappearing guys... no excuses, and no i was not "writing chapters to pile up" or any stupid excuse like that... i was simply not feelin' it... simple as that...
Have a wonderful days guys... and have the greatest of days!
Chapter 79: Madara's Politics
Today was not a good day, and if things were left unchecked… it wouldn't be a good week, month, year, or even over that!
Last night, Ba Sing Se had the 'pleasure' of receiving the pest called Madara Uchiha within its walls, and to Long Feng's dismay, they couldn't even kick him out lawfully considering that the pest owned a large plot of land in the Upper Ring of the city.
ANYWHERE ELSE and there wouldn't be an issue… but no… it HAD TO BE in the Upper Ring, it was almost like that damned human-skinned monstrosity knew how to play this game well.
Oh yes, the Dai Li did a long and detailed investigation about the "Ghost", even to this day, Long Feng dreads picking up any reports piled up in the code-named "Ghost Files" within the Dai Li headquarters.
They knew that Madara wasn't normal, they knew that Madara was beyond powerful, they knew that Madara wasn't pro-Fire Nation, they knew where he lived, they knew his close circle, of course they knew…
That's why after such a long, painstaking, and shrewd deal with the Fire Nation, both of them decided to turn a blind eye to the raid on the Uchiha Resort.
Were they expecting it to work? Of course not, they knew that Madara survived elite troops of firebenders when he was fucking eleven years old!
Their goal? Keep him there, afraid to leave for the safety of his people and interrupt their plans, on both Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom sides.
It's fine to be an anomaly as long as he didn't interact with the rest of the world…
But now they knew something more dreadful than any other knowledge they had about the guy…
They knew that Madara knew…
And not only that… Madara left anyway! He is now in this very capital, and Long Feng wasn't fully prepared to deal with him.
He first decided to send Joo Dee, Madara can't possibly know that she is a Dai Li agent, right? It would be impossible considering that Joo Dee 'training' just finished a few days ago.
He was hoping that Joo Dee would take them on endless tours around the city, considering that Madara himself had never come here before… it felt like a suitable excuse to keep him busy…
However…
"Nice Palace."
The pest was now RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIM! And Joo Dee could be seen behind him, sweating and worried, trying her best to keep the smile that she was conditioned to always have.
She had ONE JOB, and it didn't even last for an HOUR!
Not only that, the bastard didn't come alone, Kaliya the waterbender from the Northern Water Tribe and Lei from Gao Ling, a former Beifong attendant, were with him!
With narrowed eyes and a respectable stance, Long Feng decided to maintain pretenses.
"I am well aware that Joo Dee already welcomed you to our beloved city, but I wish to once again welcome you to the Earth Kingdom's capital, Madara Uchiha."
He did a slight bow but made sure that Madara understood that this wasn't a simple city, but the capital of the Earth Kingdom.
Poor bastard believed that it would make a difference…
He could see Madara nodding with his little posse, and nonchalantly looking around like this was some sort of zoo, or exhibition of sorts.
'This is the Royal Palace, show some respect!'
Of course, he wouldn't say such words, he didn't care if Madara started a war really… as long as the ground zero of said war wasn't at Ba Sing Se or even worse… the Royal Palace…
'We can deal with that later, first… we need to make sure he leaves this city as soon as possible'
"I came here to have a chat with your King," said the young man in front of him.
"I'm afraid that isn't possible, the Earth King is dealing with many issues lately and you can probably understand the reason why, considering the state of the world right now..." Said Long Feng with a poker face.
"And I'm afraid that I can't take that as an answer" Replied Madara with a polite smile that made Long Feng grind his teeth.
Before the Dai Li leader could say a word, Madara walked past him straight towards the throne room.
'It seems that we will have to improvise…' Long Feng could only sigh and make a subtle sign with his fingers.
In a few seconds, the whole hall was filled with Dai Li agents surrounding the trio of "Tourists"
"Hoooo…" Madara's smile grew "You sure you want to start this here?"
Long Feng's heart skipped a beat, he could swear that he felt happiness and satisfaction from Madara's words alone!
"I am the one that should be asking that with you barging into the Royal Palace… aren't you afraid of being labeled as a terrorist and attracting the resentment of the whole Earth Kingdom due to some impulsive choice?" Asked Long Feng while turning towards Madara, doing his best to keep his poker face.
"What's the worst that can happen?" Madara shrugged and smirked "Worst case scenario I join the Fire Nation's side after I escape… or if I manage to take over... I can use it as a gift and proof of allegiance."
They both knew that it was bullshit, it was impossible for Madara to join any side of this war after the Resort incident… but it didn't diminish the threat one bit, and made Long Feng gulp nervously.
"Remarkable that you don't even consider the possibility of getting caught and eliminated" Said Long Feng doing his best with his facial expression to not look scared.
"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA"
A loud laugh echoed through the palace;
"That was a good one…" Madara said after laughing, before turning to Lei who was shaking his head wryly, and Kaliya who also laughed with him "Yup… that was a good one…"
…
…
Silence remained for some long awkward seconds before Long Feng decided to use the one trump card that they had.
'Since subtlety doesn't work...'
"I am well aware that you could escape the city with little to no issues" the Leader of the Dai Li gave an accepting nod "But you are forgetting something very important…"
That seemed to pique Madara's interest.
With a grin, Long Feng continued "Even if we cannot stop you here… you still have your people working within your manor in the Upper Ring, not only that… you would bring disaster to your people back at "your" lands as consequence."
Clapping his hands behind his back, with a victorious gaze towards Madara and his team;
"So, I recommend that you avoid such dreadful scenarios to your people, they are innocents after all…"
His action prompted all the Dai Li agents to assume their stances, ready to launch their "stone gauntlets" towards them.
Madara just stared at him, and then at every single Dai Li agent around… as his eyes started glowing red.
'So, the intel was right, he has some weird eyes…'
He saw the intruder taking slow steps toward him but didn't mind, they had a checkmate in this situation… if they couldn't destroy Madara, they would destroy everything Madara has…
'Obediently get out of here, or we will make sure you regret...'
"Threatening me with my people and my lands huh? That's smart..."
For some reason, Madara didn't sound affected at all, and Long Feng's brain started running on overdrive trying to understand what Madara could possibly have to maintain his calm here.
"It's not a threat, we simply recogni- ugh!"
In less than a second he felt a strong grip around his neck, his feet dangling above the ground and his throat squeezed so hard that he couldn't even breathe!
Looking around he saw all Dai Li agents standing like statues, with glazed eyes and empty facial expressions;
"!!!" saliva started leaking from his lips and Madara kept staring at him.
"Then go ahead and do it"
For a few seconds there was only the sound of chocking echoing through the Palace Halls.
Long Feng kept trying to free himself, both of his hands gripping Madara's arm trying to push himself away, but the monster didn't even bulge!
"You won't do it… you wanna know why?... because If I get a whiff of a single worker or family member of mine… suffering ANY injury... no matter how minor, could even be a strand of hair missing for all I care… I will come back, and there won't be any words to be said anymore."
Long Feng's eyes widened as his skin started to turn purple from the lack of air.
"So, if you value your little city and the little bit of power that you have… you should go out of your fucking way to keep them safe… because if there's ANYTHING out of place… I won't even care if you are the ones who did it or not… you will come to understand that I am way scarier when I have nothing more to lose… understood?"
Madara's voice grew lower pitched and somber, and Long Feng could feel the tips of Madara's hand starting to burn through the skin of his neck.
"Don't mistake me for the Avatar, I don't care about balance, and I don't care about your people… If I get a single hint… a whiff… or if I even have a bad dream about it happening… I will annihilate Ba Sing Se with all its inhabitants, erasing you all from the fucking map, nod if you understand."
Long Feng could only nod and hope that the fingers burning through his flesh would not leave permanent damage at this point.
"Good" Madara concluded as he let go of the middle-aged man's neck.
"COUGH COUGH COUGH" Long Feng fell on his knees doing his best to fill his lungs again, but couldn't stop from casting a furious gaze towards his assailant;
"You would… cough… destroy the lives of millions… cough… of innocent people?!"
"Yes, I would," Madara said without skipping a beat, and then continued "A single strand of hair from my people is worth more to me than all the lives in this world… so keep that in mind the next time you decide to act against me Long Feng" Concluded Madara as he signaled for his team to follow him towards the exit of the Palace;
Outraged Long Feng shouted "YOU CAN ESCAPE US, YOU MAY EVEN OUTMATCH US, BUT YOU ARE BUT ONE MAN! EVEN IF WE CAN'T DEAL WITH YOU… OLD AGE WILL!"
His frustration, anger and rage growing more and more as Madara didn't even stop on his steps
"THE EARTH KINGDOM HAS BEEN HERE FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS! YOU MAY BE ABLE TO OUTMATCH US BUT YOU CAN'T OUTLAST US!" Long Feng gave final shot before his eyes started getting blurred.
Madara stopped walking and turned his head to look over his shoulder, staring at Long Feng "You really think so? Say one more word and we shall see if you are right…"
GULP
Long Feng gulped hard at that and remained in silence.
"That's what I thought."
The last thing Long Feng saw before passing out was the silhouette of Madara, Kaliya, and Lei walking through the Palace doors.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS
KojiSan
KojiSan
I have no idea what to post here today D:
I just hope that yall have a great day!
— New chapter is coming soon — Write a review
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