"Lord Sukiyaki! How can you do this?"
Hearing Kozuki Sukiyaki's words, the first one who couldn't stand it was actually Denjiro.
"We would rather die in battle than endure such an insult!" Denjiro roared in anger, his eyes bulging.
"It seems the lord you serve has abandoned you..." Hawkeye stopped and withdrew from the battlefield.
Kawamatsu and Kiku were also full of rage; Kin'emon could only comfort them, "Lord Sukiyaki is only doing this for Lord Momonosuke's safety."
"Shut up! What do you retainers know? If the bloodline of the Kozuki Clan is severed, what meaning is there for Wano Country to exist?"
Hearing Denjiro's words, Kozuki Sukiyaki jumped up and cursed as if his tail had been stepped on.
"If it weren't for you being so useless, things wouldn't have turned out like this!"
When facing Rett, Kozuki Sukiyaki immediately changed his attitude, saying submissively, "Your Excellency, what do you think of my proposal?"
"By the way, you haven't seen Hiyori's appearance yet, have you? I'll have the Oniwabanshu ninjas bring her here right away."
Rett looked at him coldly. This fellow, Sukiyak, I said he didn't want to reveal his identity, yet he had already subdued the Oniwabanshu ninjas.
"Damn it! Lord Momonosuke, say something! You are the Shogun of Wano Country now..." Denjiro looked at the dazed Momonosuke.
"I... I... I'm already about to surrender, what more do you want from me! First it was Kaido, and now it's this guy. Why do I have to do so much? I just want to live!"
"Also, isn't this guy Tenguyama Hitetsu? Since when did he become my grandfather?" Momonosuke finally reacted and pointed at Kozuki Sukiyaki, asking.
"He is the previous Shogun of Wano Country, Lord Kozuki Sukiyaki, and also your grandfather. Because Kaido's power was too great, he took the alias Tenguyama Hitetsu," Kin'emon introduced to him.
"He's actually alive, and he just watched us fight a life-and-death battle against Kaido?" Momonosuke looked incredulous. "You all knew, but didn't tell me?"
"We only found out recently as well," Denjiro said. "He is not qualified to be the Shogun of Wano Country at all. While the Daimyo and Samurai were avenging the late Lord Oden, he was just watching from the shadows..."
"If we hadn't defeated Kaido, I bet he would still be hiding in the shadows, not daring to come out," Denjiro said indignantly.
"You bastard, is this how you treat your lord? Where is your sense of loyalty and righteousness?" Kozuki Sukiyaki didn't expect Denjiro to dare criticize him.
The Daimyo and Samurai seeking revenge against Kaido were clearly going to their deaths; why should he go with them?
He hadn't done anything in these twenty years; he had... he had made quite a few beautiful girl Kokeshi dolls.
If not for his endurance, how could Wano Country have seen the dawn again?
"Even a child like Otama is fighting for her life on the line, but what about you? If you had even a tenth of Lord Shimotsuki Yasuie's courage, Wano Country wouldn't be in this state!"
"Lord Momonosuke, let us see your courage! Even in death, do not lose the dignity of the Shogun of Wano Country!" Denjiro said sternly.
"But... but I really can't do it!" Momonosuke broke down crying. "I'm just a child!"
Denjiro's eyes suddenly dimmed.
"Forget it. What exactly have I been loyal to? Is loyalty and righteousness really a mistake?"
"This so-called 'loyalty' is just used to imprison your thoughts. Those in power changed benevolence and righteousness into loyalty to make you serve them for generations."
Rett sneered, "The Kozuki Clan, which implements the policy of national isolation, is nothing more than the Celestial Dragons of Wano Country."
"King, bring that thing out," Rett said. "The people of the Kozuki Clan are nauseating to look at."
"Oh... alright." King pulled out a flintlock pistol from his person. "This is the one from back then."
"Wait, we can still discuss things..." Kozuki Sukiyaki suddenly felt a bad premonition. "Your Excellency, you wouldn't want Wano Country to turn into ruins, would you?"
A gunshot rang out, and a bullet entwined with Haoshoku Haki blew a hole in Kozuki Sukiyaki's head.
"Why are you using your country to threaten me? It's hilarious. Even if Wano Country turns into ruins, I'll just move somewhere else."
Rett blew away the smoke from the flintlock and said indifferently.
"Aaaaaah~"
Seeing his so-called grandfather die before his eyes, Momonosuke screamed in terror, "Zunesha, kill this guy!"
A voice rang in Momonosuke's mind, "I cannot reach there; the cliffs of Wano Country are blocking me..."
"Then destroy Wano Country! Come and save me, Zunesha!" Momonosuke shouted.
"Lord Momonosuke!" The Nine Red Scabbards were pale with shock. "That is our country."
"This violates the original agreement. Are you sure you want to do this?"
"I don't care about any agreement or any country! Just save me!"
"As you command."
Everyone on the bikudopu saw the giant elephant raise its trunk and lash out violently at the cliffs of Wano Country.
The massive trunk collided with the cliffs, erupting in an earth-shaking vibration.
"What's going on? Has this giant elephant gone mad?" Mochi was stunned. "The Captain and the others are still up there."
"Don't worry, the Captain and the others will be fine. But if this keeps up, Wano Country will be destroyed, won't it?" Mr. 3 said. "Isn't the Captain planning to occupy Wano Country?"
"Should we bring the ship closer and stop that guy?" Jack suggested, only to find everyone looking at him with strange expressions.
"Is this guy really one of the Three Disasters of the Beasts Pirates? Why do I feel like he's not very bright..."
"I heard he's a Fishman; maybe his brain is just small..."
Jack's veins popped in anger. "Can't you guys share some of the Captain's burdens?"
"Staying put and behaving ourselves is sharing Captain Buggy's burdens," Mr. 3 said seriously.
Wano Country, Flower Capital.
Rett and the others also felt the ground shaking.
"Stop it, Lord Momonosuke! If this continues, our country will be finished..." Denjiro hadn't expected Momonosuke to actually do it.
He wanted to step forward to stop Momonosuke but was blocked by Kin'emon.
"Since we're going to die anyway, let's all be destroyed together." A sickly light flashed in Kin'emon's eyes. "Just like falling cherry blossoms—this is the way a Samurai should die."
"I shouldn't have left Lord Momonosuke in your care in the first place!" Denjiro drew his sword and slashed at Kin'emon. "What on earth have you been teaching him?"
"I didn't teach him anything. He was born that way! Isn't it because the blood of Lord Oden flows through him?" Kin'emon laughed maniacally. "Let's all be destroyed together!"
"What kind of dream are you having?"
The flintlock rang out again, this time hitting Momonosuke in the chest.
However, his physique was much stronger than Kozuki Sukiyaki's; he actually didn't fall.
"Captain Buggy, this is just an ordinary flintlock; it's not very powerful," King said from the side. "Why do you insist on using this?"
This flintlock had nothing special about it other than having been used to execute Kozuki Oden. King had also put in a lot of effort to find it.
"You don't understand. Using a gun to deal with the Shogun of Wano Country is a kind of romance..."
Rett fired another shot, and the bullet entwined with Haoshoku Haki blew a large hole directly in Momonosuke's chest.
---
A/N: Advance Chapter Has Been Uploaded. Please Check It Out. It will really help me out and will keep me motivated to continue.
Support: patreon.com/Narrator_San