Golden Lion Shiki lit a cigar and laughed heartily, taking a glance at Newgate, who was busy asking questions. Did that guy seriously not notice the grand way he just crushed his enemies?
"Oi, Newgate! It’s just Ryuo Haki, nothing complicated! Come over here and ask me—I’ll teach ya!"
Shiki struck a smug pose. But Newgate merely shot him a disinterested look, leaving Shiki’s overflowing pride with nowhere to go.
"Shiki-san, I’ll learn! Teach me!!"
Kozuki Oden immediately leapt in front of Shiki, shouting eagerly. He was desperate to master Shiki’s skills and become a samurai strong enough to completely break free from the Shogunate’s grasp.
"You better awaken Haki first, kid!"
Cigar clenched between his teeth, Shiki brushed past Oden and strode over to the fallen Ashura Jakun, who lay injured on the ground. Ashura Pengan glared at him with blazing eyes.
"Oi, you got two choices—submit and join us, or get dragged off to work the mines. Don’t worry, we ain’t gonna kill you. A guy like you swinging a pickaxe? I bet you’d be pretty efficient!"
Shiki grinned. He’d learned a thing or two from Brook about cutting deeper with words than with blades. Many samurai weren’t afraid of death—but threaten their family honor and pride? That struck a nerve.
This wasn’t about killing you. This was about turning a clan leader into a lowly miner. So—what’s your move?
"Relax, we’ll raise your kid for you. And your wife? Don’t worry, we’ll find her another man!"
Shiki’s taunts continued, grinding into them like a slow knife, stoking even more fury in Jakun and Pengan’s glares.
"So? What’s your choice?"
With a smirk, Shiki drew his twin blades, spinning them in a flashy display. Both brothers felt a cold chill crawl across their necks.
"I’ll join you... but I want my brother to stay on as Mt. Atama’s overseer."
Ashura Jakun coughed up blood as he spoke, slumped and exhausted. Serving a stronger force wasn’t unthinkable—but the Ashura family had ruled Mt. Atama for generations. He couldn’t just hand it away.
"Tch. We don’t even care about Mt. Atama. We’ve got plenty of territory. All we want are the strong. The rest? They can go dig in the mines~"
Shiki, speaking for Brook, temporarily accepted the Ashura family’s submission. He’d leave the final loyalty test to Redfield when he arrived. For now, Shiki had the rubble cleared from the bandit council hall—but the building itself would need a full rebuild.
Shiki and Newgate then got to work subduing the remaining rebels in the Mt. Atama region. With Ashura Jakun’s help, they planted the flag of the Hell Pirates atop the mountain, marking it under new rule.
Elsewhere, Shiki sat in a hideout, reviewing the roster of Mt. Atama’s so-called "elites"—and the situation was grim. Aside from the Ashura brothers, the rest were mostly small fry.
No helping it. The slightly stronger samurai had all thrown their lot in with Kuri Castle. It was more prosperous, packed with entertainment and amenities. Mt. Atama’s only real asset was a mid-sized silver mine that had been worked for decades. Wano’s silver mines were still abundant, keeping silver prices low and making it the most common everyday currency for Wano’s people.
But out at sea? Silver coins weren’t worth much. The seas ran on gold and hard currencies like Belly—things that actually held weight. Silver wasn’t in demand on the seas... otherwise, it might’ve been a real goldmine.
Thanks to the World Government’s iron grip, Belly—its printed currency—was the most stable and widely used money in the world. Even nations that weren’t allied still traded in Belly.
It seemed like no country had the right to print its own currency—except for a few islands with niche coins, though even those were interchangeable with Belly.
When you thought about it, the World Government had already economically colonized the entire world through Belly dominance. Now you understood why the Celestial Dragons couldn’t care less about money—because they controlled the printing press.
Just wave around a few bills, and you could buy rare slaves, priceless treasures, even a Devil Fruit. That’s the luxury of currency supremacy.
Golden Lion Shiki and Newgate studied the map Ashura Jakun laid before them. North of Kuri Castle was the slum town of Okobore and Scavenger Village, bordering the Shimotsuki territory, where trash from all over Wano got dumped. That place had already fallen into Redfield’s hands.
South of Kuri Castle lay the Mt. Atama region, while to the west was Bakura Town—Kuri’s main grain hub and its most vital land.
Farthest to the east was Bamboo Hat Village, the Hell Pirates’ home base.
"Redfield’s attacking Kuri Castle right now. Should we head over and back him up, or take Bakura Town while we’re at it?"
Shiki’s ambition and cunning outstripped even Whitebeard Newgate. Newgate had maxed out strength and honor, but when it came to strategy and management... not so much.
"If we crush Kuri Castle, Bakura Town will surrender on its own. No need to waste time fighting for it."
Newgate favored hitting Kuri Castle head-on, finishing the job quickly and bringing order to Kuri.
"Yeah, but think about it—our numbers are thin, and Kuri Castle’s backed by several families. If we wreck the place in battle, we’ll be the ones stuck rebuilding it later. That’s a pain."
Shiki was already thinking of the whole Kuri region as Hell Pirates property—currently just held by some underworld clans.
"If we take Bakura Town first, we’ll cut off their grain supply. Then, we surround Kuri Castle from three sides. With food running low and tensions high, the clan leaders will turn on each other. Some’ll surrender, and we won’t even have to trash the place. We get their loyalty and keep the city intact!"
Shiki had it all planned. Kuri Castle had pulled back its forces to defend itself, leaving Bakura Town lightly guarded. It’d be an easy target—and thanks to his flying powers, Shiki could strike fast.
Newgate, who preferred to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, agreed. If it meant fewer deaths, he was all for it.
With the plan set, Shiki ordered Ashura Jakun to take half the bandits and join him in the assault on Bakura Town. Meanwhile, Newgate stayed at Mt. Atama, leading Ashura Pengan and the remaining bandits to tighten the noose around Kuri Castle.
Kozuki Oden, eager for battle, stayed on this front too—following Newgate to get a firsthand look at Kuri Castle’s most infamous villains.
With Mt. Atama and Kuri’s forces combined, they could easily fend off an attack from both Shimotsuki and Udon. Only when all four daimyo united did Kuri Castle ever retreat—and that game had been played for decades.
But now, something new was happening. Not only was a fearsome lightning user tearing through the north, but even the south—Mt. Atama—had fallen.
Meaning someone even stronger than the Ashura family had arrived.
This shift in power threw Kuri Castle into sudden panic.
"Lord Kishoten! Bakura Town has been invaded by Ashura Jakun—and a flying demon controlling the very earth itself!!!"
A panicked messenger burst into the conference hall, where Kuri’s crime families had gathered, clutching a Wano Den Den Mushi and trembling as he delivered the dire news.
+122 Chapters on p@treon/tambeerg