Marine Academy
Part 3
Chapter 21
"This is the first time in decades that it happened." Vice Admiral Tsuru explained as she picked at some petits fours on the coffee table, a glass in her hand.
Murphy rarely met the Vice Admiral, who was very busy with her work but also with her two tireless colleagues. But she appreciated every moment spent together and never missed an opportunity to spend time in her company. She was a strong woman, very cultured and wise, capable of establishing great military strategies in a few hours.
Female soldiers were rare, the doctor respected each of them because she knew full well that she would never have had the strength to do this job.
"And what's that tie like?" the future admiral asked the two women sitting on the couch enjoying toast.
"Perfect." The woman of a certain age simply replied, apparently not very interested in the soldier in front of her.
"With all due respect, Vice Admiral... You're still a bit... that's... well..., Murphy, what do you think?" The man seemed to get lost in his speech, as usual.
But the blonde could detect a certain anxiety on his face, a rare occurrence when you knew this man who didn't seem to be shaken by anything.
"Put on the dark blue one, Kuzan." The doctor advised him, handing him another tie. The Vice Admiral took it from him without asking any questions and struggled for a few moments to remove the old tie and put the new one.
"This is the first time we've had two Admiral induction ceremonies in the same year. By the way, where's Admiral Akainu?" The Vice Admiral Tsuru asked, looking for him.
"The Admiral-in-Chief asked him to join him in his office a quarter of an hour ago." Murphy replied simply as she opened a new bottle of wine.
Kuzan grumbled to himself, trying to adjust his tie properly. He wasn't a big fan of formal ceremonies either, and he didn't like being the center of attention at all. But as he often said, he "wanted to look classy in front of everyone" so seemed to lose his composure a little a few minutes before the ceremony began.
Vice Admiral Tsuru left the room to join the meeting of the two high-ranking officers.
"Kuzan, if you wear this tie you also have to change your jacket, otherwise it won't go together." The blonde explained, a thin smile on her lips.
He was charming when he lost his composure, when he was no longer "Vice Admiral Kuzan future Admiral Aokiji" but simply "Kuzan".
He threw his jacket on the ground, his annoyance increasing little by little, while he still couldn't tie this damn tie properly.
As she felt that the soldier was ready to freeze the entire base so as not to have to attend this damn ceremony in the end, she put down her glass and approached him discreetly.
She grabbed a navy blue jacket, put it in his hands and began to delicately remove the old chick yellow tie. She opened his shirt several centimeters so she could adjust the collar properly and closed the shirt.
As her fingers wandered over the future admiral's neck, she felt a shiver invade her. Different from the one she felt every time Sakazuki delicately caressed her, that his natural warmth enveloped her skin.
There, the natural cold of Kuzan's skin made her shiver. She quickly closed the shirt and slid the new tie around the man's neck who remained silent. A heavy, abnormal silence. She knotted it skillfully, used to help her husband get ready. Neither of them seemed to know how to tie a tie properly. She took the jacket from his hands and made it fall on his shoulders so that he could put it on. Finally, she grabbed his new admiral's stripes and tied them with precision on his shoulders.
She turned instantly to stand next to him and observe her reflection in the mirror. "There you are, you are perfect Kuzan!" As she was about to help him put on his long white Justice coat, she felt the future admiral's hands creep into the back of her neck and under her jaw. In an instant, she felt the man's lips on hers. It was a simple kiss, not passionate, more of a question than a statement. She had remained frozen in place, not expecting this. Kuzan then pulled back slowly, regaining his lost idiot look.
"Ah, excuse me Murphy, I don't know why..." The man couldn't finish his sentence before he received a monumental slap from the doctor, making him regain his seriousness in a fraction of a second.
"I don't know what you're playing at Kuzan, but stop it immediately."
Ordered the blonde, her face painted with anger. She quickly turned her back on him and stormed out of the room, leaving the silent future admiral behind her.
In her fury, she didn't even notice that another person had entered the room at the very moment she left it.
"The ceremony begins. You are expected Kuzan." Said Vice-Admiral Tsuru in a deep voice. The authoritative tone of the high-ranking officer helped him regain his senses. He quickly put on his Justice coat and went out following the old woman.
"I don't know what you're up to, Kuzan, but you're playing a very dangerous game. And you're likely to get burned if you keep doing this." The vice admiral finished in a serious voice as the soldier walked through the large door, his face closed.
The crowd shouted his name as they saw the new admiral Aokiji enter the stage to begin his introduction ceremony.
He scanned the crowd. Of course, she wasn't there. She wouldn't be attending his ceremony. She must have been with the red dog.