Zunesha’s long legs strode across the sea, each step covering an immense distance.
Compared to its usual leisurely pace, its steps were even slightly faster this time. After all, some of the recipients were currently on Zunesha’s back. They needed to arrive earlier to familiarize themselves with the process in advance.
“I feel like I forgot something… Where did Senior Hitsugisukan go? It feels like I haven’t seen him in a long time.”
Due to environmental limitations, communication between different islands wasn’t very close, but the sea itself was a whole. In the face of an era sweeping across the seas, no island could remain unaffected.
However, islands that receive news in advance can prepare earlier, while those that do not are simply more likely to run into trouble.
With the sea growing more volatile like an expanding powder keg, Zou Island could not stay out of it either, and the Duchess’s work had become increasingly busy.
As she grew more proficient in handling government matters, Hitsugisukan’s time as a substitute became rarer. Meanwhile, the recently busy Setsuna had even ignored Hitsugisukan’s whereabouts.
“Hitsugisukan? Before I left, he was still in Wano Country. Even the sheen of his fur looked better. He’s probably been living quite well lately and has fully adapted to retirement life.”
“Well… that’s… nice…”
Rubbing her forehead, Setsuna picked up the documents on her desk again. If she hurried, she should be able to finish everything before Zunesha returned to Wano Country.
Boom! Boom!
On the sea’s surface, cannon fire roared as a fleet of pirates attacked the island ahead. Unlike the peace within the territories of the Emperors of the Sea, warfare was the norm in the New World.
Pirates flooding into the New World were like endless weeds. Just as one group of annoying pests was driven away, a new group would arrive.
Especially recently, the number of pirates had surged dramatically.
Traveling from Paradise to the New World didn’t necessarily require passing through Fishman Island. Ships could choose to bypass it from above, making it one of the few islands in the Grand Line that could be avoided.
After all, once in the New World, the Log Pose becomes ineffective due to the chaotic magnetic fields, so recording Fishman Island’s magnetic field was meaningless.
In the past, some pirates stopped at Fishman Island because they were attracted by the beauty of the Merfolk and wanted to see the island’s scenery, while others, driven by greed, attempted to do unlawful things there.
But now Fishman Island has entered a state of lockdown. Since they couldn’t determine the intentions of incoming visitors, they adopted a blanket policy for the safety of their citizens. No ships were allowed to enter the island at all.
With the help of the Sea Kings, wreckage floating up to the surface became the best deterrent. To avoid being destroyed in the deep sea, these pirates could only obediently choose to take a detour.
At first, the number of pirates dropped sharply, as most had been sunk by the Sea Kings.
But once pirates understood the dangers of the deep sea, and with Fishman Island no longer serving as a transit point, countless pirates began charging directly into the New World, bringing even more trouble with them.
Several pirate ships gradually approached the island’s shallows, but enormous dark figures were already rushing toward them from afar.
Slash!
A giant axe cut through the air, its sharp blade splitting a ship’s bow into pieces. Amid the smoke, several giant figures gradually revealed themselves.
“Over there, over there! Hajrudin, there are several people hiding behind the reef on your left!”
“Gerd! Watch your back, there are still people in the wreckage of the ship!”
In a position further back, Delia held a loudspeaker, using her X-ray vision ability to inform the members of the New Giant Warrior Pirates of the enemies’ positions.
“Stansen, go easy, there are treasures on that ship. If they fall into the sea, are you going to dive down and retrieve them?”
While she was carrying out the mission, she was also slacking off. Aside from using her X-ray vision ability to relay information, she had no intention of taking action at all. Under the siege of five Giants, the pirates ahead were quickly wiped out.
Hajrudin also brought back the gathered treasures.
“You provide us with an opportunity for combat training, and we split the treasures fifty-fifty; that was our agreement. This is your share.”
“Thanks, let me see… hmm, this amount should be enough to repay the debt. With the mission reward added in, this year’s debt should be almost cleared.”
The Giant Warrior Pirates led by Hajrudin were considered part of the Beasts Pirates, but they didn’t have the authority to take on missions independently. They usually assisted other officers in dealing with opponents.
Their purpose for going out to sea was combat training. Although each of them was already seventy or eighty years old, compared to a Giant’s lifespan of three hundred years, they were merely youngsters in their early twenties.
They needed a large amount of combat experience.
What Delia needed was money. However, her desire to fight hadn’t been very strong lately, so after calculating the amount she owed, she brought in the New Giant Warrior Pirates and reached this deal.
Just as they were cleaning up the battlefield, Delia’s Den Den Mushi rang.
“Hello, Boss, what’s up?”
“Get your ass back here right now. Why are you out at a time like this? Do you want to miss Lord Sacred Beast’s ceremony?”
“Well, I’m short on money…”
“Couldn’t you borrow it from me?”
“No, I haven’t even finished paying off my current debt. Besides, Boss, it’s your turn three months from now.”
“I’m giving you one day. Bring those Giants next to you back with you, they’re guests invited to observe the ceremony. You can bring them along.”
Feeling his blood pressure rising, King quickly gave all his instructions and hung up. He was afraid that if he kept talking, he wouldn’t be able to hold back.
Knowing that the Giant Warrior Pirates were with Delia wasn’t an issue. After all, as the first Calamity, he had access to that level of information.
“Seriously, is Boss on his period or something? Why is he so irritable today? Hey! Hajrudin, there’s something good, come with me on a trip!”
Delia didn’t seem particularly anxious. This place wasn’t too far from Onigashima; if they hurried, a day would be enough.
The Giants rowed their oars, and the massive wooden ship cut through the waves.
Altaria burst out of the Sea Clouds, trailing ribbons of clouds behind it.
Lapras broke through the waves, moving forward head-on against the mighty waves.
Zunesha crossed the strait, Corviknight sliced through the fierce winds—whether in the sky or on the sea, different people were heading toward Wano Country in different ways.
Within Wano Country, Shanks and Kuzan had also arrived at their destination. Although Kuzan had only joined recently, he had already proven himself at Egghead, and with his excellent credentials from his previous organization, he quickly gained the status he deserved.
Although quite a few people still held hostility toward him, no one would stop him from entering the palace in the Flower Capital.
When they arrived, they just happened to see Hotei bowing as he sent off Greninja.
“Don’t worry, I’ll maintain order within the country. If anyone dares to cause trouble, I’ll be the first to deal with them!”
With a large number of foreign guests visiting, the Shinsengumi within the country had also mobilized, taking responsibility for maintaining order throughout Wano.
With senior officers gathered, Kaido and Yamato present, and Arceus personally hosting the Divine Blessing Ritual, causing trouble at such a time was undoubtedly courting death. But even so, if anything went wrong, it would still be a blow to their reputation.
After Greninja left, Hotei looked at the invitation in his hand with great hesitation.
He wanted to go, but he was afraid his subordinates wouldn’t handle things properly.
Judging by the current state of the country, no one in Wano should cause trouble, but just in case, there was always that one possibility.
If he wasn’t worried about running into some fool, Hotei would have staked his own head on it earlier.
While he was still hesitating, Kuzan and Shanks had already arrived in front of him.
“Is Shogun Hiyori here?”
“She is, Mr. Kuzan. Lord Greninja just went to see the Shogun. If you follow him, you’ll be able to find her.”
When Kuzan and Shanks followed Greninja’s path to the Shogun’s room, Greninja had just handed the invitation to Kozuki Hiyori.
She was also the nominal Shogun of this country and was qualified to receive an invitation.
However, when Hiyori saw Kuzan and Shanks visiting, her expression was filled with confusion. She had no impression of Shanks and no real interaction with Kuzan, so she couldn’t understand why they had come to see her.
“Lady Shogun, that man is Red-Haired Shanks, captain of the Red Hair Pirates, a former member of the Pirate King’s crew, and one of the Emperors of the Sea.”
Kawamatsu quietly introduced Shanks’s identity beside Hiyori’s ear. Over the years, they had also made up for their knowledge of the outside world and were no longer ignorant of the powerful figures on the seas, even able to advise Kozuki Hiyori.
“In that case, Mr. Shanks, as a pirate, why have you come to see me? Matters between pirates should be taken up with Mr. Kaido instead.”
“Well… didn’t that Fish-Man fellow mention it to you? I once sailed with Captain Roger, so I also sailed with your father, Oden. I wanted to come and see how you all are doing.”
“I see. My father’s grave is in Wano Country. If you want to pay your respects, you can go.”
Hearing Shanks’s words, Hiyori immediately lost interest in him, because that “you all” clearly referred to her useless brother.
So in her understanding, this was just another person who came to see her brother and only stopped by to see her along the way.
“I’m a bit tired today, so it’s inconvenient for me to receive you. Please forgive me.”
As she spoke, she walked behind the screen. This was also her privilege; while she had to give face to the officers of the Beasts Pirates, she could ignore everyone else.
Shanks, who had never interacted with the grown-up Kozuki Hiyori, had no idea that his words had unintentionally touched on something she disliked the most.
Shanks’s purpose was cut short before he could even ask where Momonosuke was. After all, no one in the entire Flower Capital would mention that name.
Moreover, Shanks couldn’t figure out in such a short time what exactly had happened in Wano Country.
That Kozuki Hiyori had become Shogun was clearly arranged by the Beasts Pirates; he could guess the intention behind supporting a regime, but without knowing the details, Shanks couldn’t understand what these people were thinking.
In the end, he only went to pay his respects to Kozuki Oden.
There were things he didn’t say, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t guess them. At the very least, he didn’t believe that Oden had died at the hands of Orochi.
He knew Oden’s strength. Even if Oden’s way of thinking was rather unconventional, he wasn’t someone who could be taken down so easily. But Oden was already dead, and given Shanks’s way of doing things, he wasn’t the type to dwell on it.
Moreover, the Beasts Pirates’ records of Kozuki Oden were so realistic that Shanks had nothing to argue about. At the root of it, it left people with no way to refute it; at least the “good man halo” hadn’t affected him.
Two days passed quickly, and soon it was the day of the Divine Blessing Ritual. The official start time was set at noon, but from early morning, all of Wano Country had already become busy.
Near Mogura Port in Hakumai, the Shinsengumi’s samurai formed a cordon, and in the distance, some citizens could be seen watching.
Notices had already been spread across the country two days earlier, and everyone knew that important guests would be arriving today.
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