Yamato and King exchanged a look, and King immediately turned his gaze to Jack. "Jack, how about you take a trip?"
Jack didn't hesitate. "No problem. As long as I can find them, I can take care of them all." He spoke with absolute certainty, a confidence born of his status as an All-Star of the Beasts Pirates.
"Don't be careless, Jack. Even Joker was defeated by them, and Straw Hat caused a huge scene in Big Mom's territory. Not only did he survive, but he also escaped, which shows they are no ordinary bunch. Remember, don't face too many of them at once. This is our territory; numbers should be our advantage," King reminded him.
"I understand, Big Brother. I won't be careless," Jack replied. He was much more composed now. If it were before, he would have definitely claimed with an arrogant face that a few rookie pirates would be easy pickings.
"Also, Jack, stretching your limbs is one thing, but don't forget our plan is to go fishing. Don't let it get to your head," Yamato cautioned him.
Jack snorted. "I don't need you to tell me. You're so talkative; are you an old nag?"
Yamato rolled her eyes at him. "I'd actually like to be your mother; would you even acknowledge it?"
"In your dreams, get lost," Jack said crossly. This Yamato was getting more and more outrageous, now wanting to be his mother and directly trying to jump a generation.
Seeing the two of them bantering and the topic veering off track, King quickly interrupted. "Jack, Kanjuro will coordinate with your actions. Everything follows the plan."
"Alright, Big Brother," Jack nodded.
Next, Yamato and the others discussed the details of the plan further before concluding.
"Let's go. Let me see what's so different about these two members of the Worst Generation compared to the others." Jack took Kanjuro and turned to leave.
Watching the two of them walk away, Yamato rubbed her chin.
"Young Master, is there any other problem?" Haruko asked.
"I'm wondering if this Kanjuro will continue his act when he meets those people," Yamato said.
"Even if he continues acting, it shouldn't matter, right? After all, his identity as a mole has been exposed. Although there's no direct evidence, it's enough for those people to believe it," Haruko thought for a moment. If an already exposed Kanjuro continued to act, it might even cause a backlash.
"Normally that would be the case, but their bonds are quite deep, so it might not be entirely ineffective. Anyway, I'm just curious; we'll see the results when the time comes," Yamato shrugged.
"Young Master, do you think it's possible for Kanjuro to see through our plan?" King spoke up.
Yamato thought about it. "He's very smart, but he definitely won't see it for a while. Only we know the contents of the plan; even Jack isn't clear on it. He likely believes we are helping them deal with the Nine Red Scabbards and hasn't realized our true intention is to make them clash with the Shogun. Of course, over time, he will eventually find out, but by then it will be too late."
King nodded. "That move of yours was quite clever, Young Master."
"Haha, definitely. Alright, let's continue pushing the plan forward," Yamato laughed.
On the other side, Jack led his men away from Onigashima and headed to Kuri to search for the targets.
"Kanjuro, where do you think they would be hiding in Kuri?" Jack asked directly.
"If they are no longer at the ruins of Oden Castle, they should be in a more remote location. Kasa Village is near the coast and very suitable for hiding," Kanjuro replied.
"Good, then to Kasa Village." Jack didn't hesitate and led his men straight there.
However, what they didn't know was that Kin'emon and the others had already anticipated that Kanjuro would lead the Beasts Pirates to search for them and had left beforehand. Now, Kin'emon had brought everyone to Ebisu Town outside the Flower Capital.
Right under their noses!
"That's a bold choice, Kin'emon, but it might be a very good decision. Even Kanjuro, who knows you well, probably wouldn't easily think we'd come here," Law said.
"It couldn't be helped. To be honest, I didn't want to take such a risk either. After all, this place is far too close to the capital, and it's hard to guarantee there aren't eyes and ears of Shogun Orochi here. But our priority is to shake off the pursuers brought by Kanjuro. He has spent so much time with us and knows us too well. If we don't take some radical measures, it will be hard to get rid of him," Kin'emon said helplessly.
Normally, at a time like this, it would be best for them not to get too close to the enemy's headquarters. But there was no choice now since a traitor had appeared. Because of this traitor, those who had infiltrated the Flower Capital to carry out missions were forced to withdraw.
"True, if we don't take some unexpected actions, Kanjuro really would guess our movements," the others agreed.
Now, Franky, Usopp, and Robin had all regrouped with the main group, and they needed to consider how to act next. They couldn't just have a bunch of people waiting around together doing nothing.
"Kin'emon, although it's not great to say this now, what must come will come. Regarding Kanjuro, what are your thoughts?" Law asked. With an enemy like Kanjuro who knew them so well, their future actions would be even more difficult. If possible, it would be best to take care of Kanjuro.
"Hey, Law, do you really want Kin'emon to deal with Kanjuro right now? Isn't that a bit too cruel?" Usopp said.
The others remained silent. Although what Law said was correct, they had to consider the feelings of Kin'emon and the others.
"Lord Law is right. Since Kanjuro is an enemy, his existence will inevitably threaten our next moves. We must come up with a countermeasure as soon as possible," Kin'emon said solemnly. At such a critical juncture, he knew better than anyone what was most important.
"Kin'emon—" Kiku and Shinobu beside him both opened their mouths but couldn't say anything. They both wanted to say that there was no clear evidence that Kanjuro was a spy, but in the end, they were just deceiving themselves. Because they had all seen Jack leading a large group of subordinates toward Kasa Village in Kuri. There was no doubt that this was Kanjuro's doing. No one besides Kanjuro would know they had been hiding in Kasa Village before.
"Kiku, Shinobu, I know what you're thinking. I also feel great sorrow regarding Kanjuro being a spy, but facts are facts. All of this was calculated, so we must also change our mindset and view Kanjuro as an enemy. Otherwise, if we keep this half-hearted attitude, how can we restore the Kozuki Clan?" Kin'emon took a deep breath and said to them.
Hearing this, Kiku and Shinobu looked at the child beside them, their young lord, Kozuki Momonosuke, and their gazes gradually became firm. "We understand. For Lord Momonosuke, we will not waver," the two of them also made up their minds. From now on, Kanjuro was no longer their companion, but their enemy.
"There's one more thing. Who exactly is that underworld boss Kyoshiro? Kin'emon, do you know his identity?" everyone brought up another matter.
Speaking of this, the expressions of Kin'emon, Kiku, and Shinobu clearly improved a lot.
"Of the three who haven't been found, only Ashura Doji, Kawamatsu, and Denjiro remain. Based on my guess, that Kyoshiro is very likely Denjiro. Only he could pull off something like this," Kin'emon said. Because Ashura Doji was tall and had a peculiar skin color, and Kawamatsu was even more obvious as a Fishman; it would be impossible for them to remain hidden under Orochi's nose for so long. Therefore, there was only one answer: Denjiro.
"That's great, it's truly wonderful that Denjiro is still alive. But now that he's also exposed, I wonder where he is?" Kiku and Shinobu were both very happy.
"Orochi will definitely have the Oniwabanshu hunt down Denjiro, so he will surely hide. But it's okay, he definitely won't be in trouble. We'll meet sooner or later," Kin'emon said.
"Now that Denjiro has appeared, there are two people left, right? We should find them as quickly as possible," Franky said.
"Yes, let's leave this to Shinobu. Shinobu, we'll have to trouble you to gather information next," Kin'emon said to her.
Shinobu nodded. "Leave it to me." She was, after all, a ninja and was very good at gathering intelligence.
On the other side, Jack brought his men to Kasa Village and, as expected, found nothing.
"They really have moved already," Kanjuro was surprised, not expecting Kin'emon and the others to react so quickly. He had originally thought Kin'emon and the others would agonize over it for a while; it seemed he had overthought it.
"Do you know where they'll go next?" Jack wasn't surprised and asked Kanjuro.
Kanjuro thought for a moment. "Based on my understanding of them, they might break into smaller groups next, scattering people to reduce the target and distract our attention. So, they likely appear in various towns across Wano Country and shouldn't be found that easily."
Hearing Kanjuro's words, Jack snorted. "Always playing such petty tricks. In that case, I'll consult Big Brother and proceed to the next stage of the plan."
"Next stage?" Kanjuro was stunned for a moment.
Jack looked at him with a strange smile. "Kanjuro, you should be very familiar with Ashura Doji and Kawamatsu, right?"
"Ashura Doji and Kawamatsu?! Lord Jack, how do you know about those two? I do know them, as they are also Vassals of Kozuki Oden," Kanjuro was shocked.
"Naturally, it's because those two are in our hands," Jack laughed.
Kanjuro was even more shocked, not expecting that Ashura Doji and Kawamatsu had already been captured. Then, he started laughing. "This is truly good news. Even Kin'emon and the others don't know about them and are still searching for them."
"Next, we plan to use these two as bait to see if we can lure them out," Jack continued.
"That's a good idea, but Lord Jack, where are those two now?" Kanjuro was curious.
Jack didn't hide it. "They're locked in cages in Udon."
"Udon— I see. However, if Kin'emon and the others know that they are locked in Udon, they probably won't easily go to rescue them, as it's a fortress that's easy to defend but hard to attack," Kanjuro said.
"Of course, we are aware of that, so this time we're just using these two for fishing. As for whether we can catch anything, we'll see," Jack said calmly.
Kanjuro was somewhat confused; such a trap wouldn't be very meaningful then. Jack knew what Kanjuro was thinking, so he continued, "Two of the Nine Red Scabbards—your master, Shogun Orochi, should really want them, right?"
"Of course, the Shogun hates these people the most. If that Denjiro hadn't run so fast, there would be a lively execution in the Flower Capital right now," Kanjuro nodded.
"If the trap is useless and they don't fall for it, these two can be handed over to you. It would also fulfill your master's wish, how about it?" Jack said.
Hearing Jack's words, Kanjuro was immediately overjoyed. "That would be for the best. The Shogun has wanted to kill these Nine Red Scabbards for a long time, but unfortunately, they weren't easy to catch. Capturing two at once, the Shogun will definitely be very happy. Then an execution can be held in front of everyone in the capital."
"Good, then let's do that. Spread the news first. If they don't fall for it, we'll hand the people over to you," Jack nodded.
Afterward, Jack contacted King and told him the news that Kin'emon and the others had already moved.
"I see. Then let's follow the plan. Go to Udon now and secretly transport one of the Nine Red Scabbards out," King began to arrange.
"Just one?" Jack was stunned for a moment.
"Since it's bait, it can't be empty, but we also can't put all our eggs in one basket. So you take one person out first as a dual preparation," King explained.
Jack immediately understood King's thinking. "So that's it. As expected of Big Brother."
"This wasn't my idea, but the Young Master's," King smiled.
"She really has a lot of schemes," Jack immediately changed his tune.
King didn't mind. "After taking the person out, you can hand them directly to Kanjuro, but tell him to keep it a secret for a while. Wait until our trap is confirmed to be useless before continuing with the next arrangement."
"Alright, I understand. I'll head to Udon now," Jack nodded.
Subsequently, Jack took Kanjuro to Udon. Queen had also received King's contact long ago. "The Young Master's plan is truly impressive, one link after another. I'm really impressed. Those guys will definitely act according to our plan; basically, no accidents will occur."
"Exactly, everything is under our control. When Jack arrives, hand one person over to him," King said.
"No problem, there'll be a good show to watch next," Queen laughed.