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"Hiyori... why is this happening?! We are clearly brother and sister! Why have we become enemies?"
At this moment, Momonosuke, struggling more than anyone else to accept Hiyori's declaration of enmity, fell into Kikunojo's arms awash with tears. He kept recounting the good memories they had shared in the past.
Unfortunately, the target of his words was no longer present. Instead, the nine Red Scabbards hung their heads in deep shame.
They blamed their own lack of strength.
Even though the negative energy had dissipated from their bodies, they now carried the burden of shame for failing to save the princess.
Kinemon sat on the deck with his head bowed dejectedly as the ship carried them away from this familiar yet unfamiliar land.
"So... what should we do next, Kinemon-san?" asked Denjiro, feeling an unspeakable grief in his heart as he watched the port gradually recede into the distance.
"I... I don't know!!" Kinemon opened his mouth, but finally gritted his teeth as he gave this answer.
After all, whether it was Princess Hiyori abandoning the Kozuki name, refusing to recognize them as retainers, or declaring them as enemies—it was truly an unbearable blow to those who remained loyal to Lord Oden.
Their current distress made it impossible for anyone to think clearly.
Moreover, there were too many concerns weighing on their minds:
The reason for the changes in both the young lord and the princess.
The current situation regarding Lady Toki and Lord Oden.
The incident in Kuri and everything that had happened in the past twenty years.
For them, these were all puzzles they desperately needed to solve but had no idea where to begin.
"To Zou?" suggested Inuarashi.
As soon as he spoke, Nekomamushi immediately turned his head away in disagreement. "Zou is in the same environment as Wano Country, so we may not be able to gather the information we need."
"Maybe, but now, there's no Wano Country."
At that moment, a female voice suddenly interrupted their conversation.
"What does that mean?"
Raizo and the others who hadn't yet processed this information all looked toward Kawamatsu's position together, causing him to wave his hands and quickly explain: "I didn't say that!"
"Could it be that after twenty years, everyone can't even distinguish between men's and women's voices?"
The voice came again, but this time from a more precise location, making Kinemon and the others look toward the second floor above Kawamatsu.
The familiar figure that appeared in their field of vision immediately stirred emotions in Kinemon and the others.
"You... you're Shinobu?!"
Even in this unfamiliar era, since her appearance remained almost unchanged from twenty years ago, and since the days when they fought together as comrades were only "yesterday" to the Red Scabbards, all nine of them instantly recognized this striking figure in a kunoichi outfit.
Shinobu nodded, looking down at the nine samurai and Momonosuke, saying emotionally: "Twenty years... I thought everyone was dead, but I never expected we would meet again under such circumstances."
"So, it's been twenty years since we last met, and you haven't changed at all from when you were young. Your maintenance is really impressive. Logically speaking, you should also be close to—"
"It's a major taboo to casually ask about a beautiful woman's age!! Take my Spatial Rupture Technique!"
Raizo's words were angrily interrupted as Shinobu threw a stone directly downward. With a burst of spatial movement, the stone suddenly appeared right under Kinemon's groin and was propelled upward.
With a cracking sound, Kinemon covered his crotch with whitened eyes, collapsed onto the deck, and howled in pain.
Seeing this, Momonosuke, who had been about to use Shinobu's appearance as an opportunity to reminisce about old times, couldn't help but tremble and retreat back into Kikunojo's arms.
"What a strange attack. Have you become a Devil Fruit user too?" Ashura Doji looked at Shinobu in surprise.
"A person with magical abilities... something like that," Shinobu responded ambiguously, then sighed again. "It's been a long time since I saw you all. Rather than discussing this, shouldn't you be more concerned about the changes that have occurred over the past twenty years?"
At these words, the expressions of the Red Scabbards brightened, and even Kinemon, who had been howling in pain, slowly sat up while enduring his discomfort.
"Do you know everything?"
"Did you see the continent in the sky, the port, and Princess Hiyori's transformation just now? What happened in the past twenty years?!"
"By the way, what did you mean when you said there's no Wano Country?"
"Stop!" Shinobu halted the barrage of questions from the Nine Red Scabbards.
"I'll try my best to answer all your questions as far as I know them. Let me tell you about the most important changes of the past twenty years. Of course, I'll try to keep it brief."
Hearing this, the Nine Red Scabbards immediately fell silent, eager to hear more.
"First of all, probably the most important news for you... Oden is dead."
With those words from Shinobu, the Scabbards and Momonosuke immediately raised their heads in shock.
In the next second, the nine warriors and Momonosuke embraced each other, tears streaming down their faces.
Seeing this, Shinobu felt somewhat nervous and couldn't help but wonder why Lord Alex had assigned her such a task.
But as the captain of the Shadow Guard, she had to fulfill her lord's orders, so Shinobu continued with her explanation.
"Actually, just after our crusade failed and we escaped while Oden held back the enemy, within a day, Wano Country announced that Oden had been killed by Kaido."
Hearing this, Kinemon and the others burst into tears. In truth, when Oden had let them escape and shared his long-cherished dream with them, the Nine Scabbards had suspected such an outcome in their hearts. Not to mention, if Oden were still alive, it would have been impossible for Hiyori and the princess to be in their current situation.
But suspecting something and confronting the confirmed fact were still two very different things!
"Damn that Kaido! Sooner or later, I will definitely defeat that evil dragon!!" Kinemon cried out loudly.
"Then what happened to Wano Country?! Are all the changes in Kuri because of those two bastards, Kaido and Orochi?" Kanjuro asked through his grief.
"No, Kaido was driven away, and Orochi is dead."
The sad expression on Kanjuro's face froze instantly, and he was left stunned.
"What... what's going on here?!"
Kinemon and the others couldn't help but stop crying.
After all, Kaido's strength was genuine and fearsome.
"This brings us to the supreme lord who now rules the Sky Kingdom."