Chapter 334: I Don't Understand Shoguns, and You Don't Understand Pirates
Eight folding screens painted with ocean waves separated the main gate from the banquet hall. Attendants continuously served fine food and wine.
After playing a piece, "Tsukihime," Komurasaki came down to serve. Several geishas then went up to dance.
The establishment opened by Kyoshiro was second to none in Wano Country. These performing oiran weren't exactly chaste, but they weren't as flaunting as those in the chaotic Momoiro district.
Reiner's group ate, drank, and chatted idly.
And at this moment, the main gate behind the screen was forcefully pulled open with a bang. Several simply dressed attendants rushed in frantically.
"This is bad, Lady Komurasaki!"
"The Shogun is here!"
The several attendants fell to their knees the moment they entered, their expressions anxious as they cried out:
"Your Excellencies, we are terribly sorry!"
"For your safety, please escape through the back door now!"
"Shogun Orochi?" Komurasaki's eyes were filled with surprise.
The group was puzzled, and their faces also showed some dissatisfaction with this buzzkill of a situation.
"Who is it? Why should we run? We're having a good time eating."
Luffy, sitting near the door, scratched his head, stood up with his hands on his hips, and shook his head.
"I don't want to."
"Don't want to?!" ×N
The attendants and all the oiran had looks of disbelief. They were stunned for a moment, then hurriedly reminded him again.
"Th-this guest, I said Shogun Orochi is here."
For a place of business, they naturally had to avoid conflicts on their turf as much as possible. They didn't dare to resist Orochi, but they also didn't want to see him act recklessly.
"So what if he's here? At worst, we'll just share some food with him. That should be fine, right?"
Luffy sat back down, grabbed food with both hands, and continued to stuff it into his mouth. He looked at the few of them with a reassuring expression and said muffledly:
"Don't worry, we have money, we can pay."
The attendants were completely dumbfounded. Wait, did you not understand what I was saying at all?!
Seeing them unmoved, the attendants' expressions grew more and more anxious. They then cast a pleading look at Komurasaki.
From their manner of speaking, Komurasaki could see that Reiner and the others were not residents of Wano Country. After a short time together, they weren't annoying, so she also decided to help them avoid a conflict with Orochi.
"In that case, you all stay here. I'll go and send him away—"
"No need."
Just as Komurasaki was about to pull away, she was pressed down by Reiner's hand on her shoulder. He turned his head to face the several attendants.
"Didn't I just say? Let him come over. It's not like we won't give him a bite to eat. You guys add a seat. Just let him sit opposite me."
Run?
Is there anyone on this sea who can make them run?
Reiner was intrigued. Likes to look at Komurasaki? Later, I'll let you sit opposite her and look your fill.
"It seems something interesting is about to happen."
A corner of Zoro's mouth lifted slightly. He poured himself a full cup of wine, looking like he was waiting for a show.
The shogun of Wano Country... he must be a powerful samurai.
There's wine to drink and a fight to be had. Tonight is really a good night.
It was at this moment.
A noisy commotion could be vaguely heard from the entrance, as if someone were pushing through a crowd of people trying to stop them.
"Oh no, it's too late," Komurasaki's eyes trembled slightly.
"Komurasaki!"
Bang!
Finally, with a shout that carried a hint of anger and anxiety, the screen at the entrance was violently kicked down.
The crowd's gaze followed. A middle-aged man with the figure of a winter melon was revealed. His face was large and square, and his two-pronged purple mustache was curled upwards.
"Komurasaki! Where is my Komurasaki? Did someone bully you!"
Kurozumi Orochi came in shouting and yelling. Behind him were several guards, and also a tall man with long blue hair tied up in a pompadour.
The yakuza boss of the Flower Capital, Kyoshiro, the man behind this establishment, and also the captain of Kurozumi Orochi's guard.
"Shogun."
"Greetings, Shogun."
All the attendants and oiran bowed.
"Huh? This is the Shogun of Wano Country?"
Zoro frowned, finding it a bit hard to believe. Do I have some misunderstanding of the word 'shogun'?
Hearing this, Kurozumi Orochi immediately glared at Zoro.
"What did you—!"
"Komurasaki?!"
As his gaze passed over Reiner, he caught a glimpse of a certain figure, and Kurozumi Orochi hurriedly shifted his line of sight.
The moment he saw the charming eyes of Komurasaki, who was being held in an embrace, Kurozumi Orochi immediately imagined a scene of Reiner forcefully possessing Komurasaki, and his two-pronged mustache trembled with anger.
"You bastard! How dare you do such a shameless thing to my beloved Komurasaki! Let her go!"
"???"
These words even made Reiner stunned.
"Still playing dumb! Komurasaki said she likes me the most! If she wasn't forced, how could she possibly be in another man's arms!"
Kurozumi Orochi's angry voice was powerful and resonant, as if every word came from the bottom of his heart.
Even Luffy believed him after hearing it. He was shocked, his eyes wide, and he pointed at Reiner and shouted angrily:
"Hey, Reiner! Did you really do such a thing!"
"That's right! Let Komurasaki go—let me... let go!!"
Sanji followed by stomping on the table, his expression fierce as he berated him.
"Stop fooling around, you two idiots."
Bang! Bang!
Franky irritably walked up behind them, and with his thick arms, he smashed their two heads together.
Kurozumi Orochi's words were sonorous and sounded real, but as someone who had been a gangster, how could he not understand the tricks of these women?
Kyoshiro secretly gave Komurasaki a look, but suddenly heard Reiner speak.
"You're the owner of this establishment, right?"
Reiner watched him and asked faintly:
"We are spending money here. You brought people in without permission. Is this the way of business for a samurai or a yakuza?"
"My dear guests, I am terribly sorry for tonight. But Lord Shogun is determined to have Komurasaki accompany him, and I cannot disobey."
Kyoshiro squinted his eyes, a邪魅 smile on his lips.
Orochi crossed his arms and grinned with satisfaction, saying with a sneer:
"Kyoshiro is my most loyal subordinate. In this country, my word is the law. No one can help you today."
The soldiers behind him were restless, and the serving oiran shrank back. The atmosphere in the banquet hall instantly became tense.
Kyoshiro stared intently at Reiner's group, but seeing their nonchalant appearance, he couldn't help but be puzzled.
What is the background of these people?
He knew all the famous people in Wano Country, and he was very sure he had never seen this group of people before.
Are they that confident they can handle this?
He couldn't help but look at Zoro, who was sitting by the window. The sharp aura on his body was extremely piercing in his eyes.
An extremely powerful samurai, Kyoshiro was certain in his heart.
His eyes narrowed and spun slightly. After a thought, Kyoshiro leaned in close to Kurozumi Orochi's ear.
"This place is crowded with eyes and ears. The Shogun is the ruler of the country. To casually attack common people for a geisha would tarnish your reputation. It is better to leave it to me to handle."
"Hmph!"
A hint of dissatisfaction flashed across Kurozumi Orochi's face, but he did not deny it.
Kyoshiro then turned to face Reiner and the others, a somewhat cold smile on his face.
"This matter is my breach of etiquette. Please leave. Tonight's expenses will be on the house."
On the house?!
Hearing these words, Komurasaki's heart tightened, and she immediately looked at Kyoshiro.
So much food and wine, and so many geishas were ordered... it must be several million Berries.
And the other party had also promised him an extra one hundred million Berries for his company.
With that, how much food could be bought for the common people? How many weapons could be bought for the samurai who were secretly preparing to rebel?
Komurasaki pursed her lips, a little unwilling. But this scene, in Kurozumi Orochi's eyes, was instantly different.
Komurasaki is really being wronged!
Kurozumi Orochi clenched his fists and was about to get angry, but Reiner spoke first.
"Luffy, are you full?"
"Nope."
"Have you had enough to drink, Zoro?"
"Hah? Of course, it's far from enough."
Zoro looked at the group of people who had broken in with great interest.
A corner of Reiner's mouth lifted coldly. "Then should we leave?"
The room was completely silent.
Chopper: I want to leave.
Usopp: Me too.
The two looked at each other and read each other's minds.
Before the surprised eyes of Kurozumi Orochi and the others, Luffy's voice was flat and brief.
"I'm not leaving."
"You!"
"Alright. I don't want to cause trouble. I'll get scolded when I get back."
Sanji interrupted Kurozumi Orochi, calmly lit a cigarette, and as the smoke swirled and rose, he said faintly:
"If you don't mind, you can sit down and join us. Consider it our treat."
"How! Dare! You!"
The blood vessels on Kurozumi Orochi's forehead bulged, and the veins on the back of his hands popped. He pointed at Luffy, and his suppressed anger instantly erupted!
"Do you think I'm a beggar! Kill them for me!!"
"Yes, sir!!"
"Take them down!!"
With a roar, several guards behind him erupted and charged!
Luffy's gaze focused. As if a fierce wind had arisen from the flat ground, an invisible pressure burst out from his body!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The few guards who had just charged out rolled their eyes and, losing their balance, fell heavily, sliding several meters!
"Wh-what's going on!"
"Did they just do something?"
The panicked gazes of the entire audience turned to bewilderment and shock.
"U-u... useless!"
Kurozumi Orochi's heart palpitated. He staggered back two steps. Coming back to his senses, he immediately pointed at Reiner and the others and roared:
"Kyoshiro! Quick, kill them!"
"I will do so, Shogun."
Kyoshiro gripped the hilt of his sword and took a step forward. He recognized that it was Conqueror's Haki, because the head of the house he had once served, Kozuki Oden, had also possessed this quality.
His squinting eyes looked a little cold. Kyoshiro's gaze was fixed on Luffy.
"Who exactly are you?"
"My name is Luffy. I'm the man who will become the Pirate King."
Luffy stepped forward, raised his hand and pressed down on the straw hat on his head, his face hidden in shadow.
"It's very rude to disturb people's meals. If you continue to cause trouble, don't blame me for sending you flying."
"A pirate?!"
Kurozumi Orochi cried out in surprise. He looked around at Reiner and the others, and then, as if feeling he had been played for a fool, he became angry.
"A mere pirate! I am the Shogun of Wano Country! Do you know who is backing me? The Beast, Kaido!!"
Thinking of this, Kurozumi Orochi's confidence surged, and he stared at Luffy with a sinister grin.
"If you're a pirate, you should have heard this name."
The moment Kaido's name was mentioned, a gloom flashed in the depths of both Kyoshiro's and Komurasaki's eyes.
That evil dragon that coiled in the darkness above Wano Country, a single spiked club had pressed down the backbone of this samurai until it could no longer stand up...
Komurasaki lowered her head and buried her face in shadow, gritting her teeth.
After lurking for 20 years, the two of them had become the Shogun's most trusted guard and his favorite oiran. Taking Kurozumi Orochi's life would be easy.
But for Kaido, it didn't matter what the name of the shogun of this country was. The other was just a pawn.
If they couldn't cut off the head of that evil dragon, Wano Country would never see true liberation!
Including all the attendants and oiran, a complex look of terror and disgust flashed in the depths of their eyes.
Only Reiner and the others remained calm and composed.
Wano Country had been closed for too long and had forgotten the vastness of this sea. Even its ruler didn't pay much attention to the situation overseas.
"Kaido... he's the guy who made O-Tama and the others unable to eat their fill, right?"
Luffy clenched his fist and swung it in the air, creating a turbulent flow that blew out. Before the shocked eyes of everyone, he said with a powerful voice:
"That bastard... we'll beat him up too!"
The banquet hall instantly fell silent. Luffy's echo seemed to still be reverberating. Everyone stared blankly at him with their mouths agape.
Kaido... a name that was like a taboo in this country, a name that made people's faces change color when they talked about it... was actually spoken so arrogantly from this man's mouth!
In this silence that filled the entire room, a piercing laugh suddenly broke out.
"Gyohohohoho! Beat up Kaido?!"
Kurozumi Orochi, instead of getting angry, laughed, only seeing the group before him as arrogant and ignorant pirates.
"Lord Shogun!"
"Are you alright, Shogun!"
Just then, a large number of soldiers who were guarding him outside rushed into the banquet hall after hearing the commotion.
Seeing the soldiers, Kurozumi Orochi, who had long been in a high position, had his arrogant posture swell up, a sinister grin on his lips.
His skin began to show green scales, his two palms twisted into sharp claws, and the neck hidden by his chin suddenly stretched. Several snake heads broke free from his shoulders and then stretched out, becoming snake bodies.
In the blink of an eye, a shadow spread to the entire banquet hall. Eight ferocious large snakes were coiled under the ceiling, their various snake heads staring at Reiner and the others with scarlet eyes and a sinister grin.
"You said you were going to beat Kaido?!"
"That's right. I'm going to beat Kaido."
Luffy crossed his arms, looked up at the snake's eyes, and nodded firmly.
A... a monster...!
Those oiran's faces were pale. They trembled and shrank back, about to flee.
Kurozumi Orochi immediately gave a loud order:
"Surround this place! Don't let a single one escape!"
"Yes, sir!"
The guards raised their swords and guns, the cold glint of the sharp blades blocking the geishas who wanted to run outside.
"Wait a minute, Lord Shogun!"
"We're innocent!"
"Hey, you! This has nothing to do with them, right!"
Luffy glared, clenching his fist.
"Shut up! Besides Komurasaki, I can have as many of this kind of thing as I want!"
Kurozumi Orochi let out an explosive roar. "You've angered me! No one will leave here alive today! The people who served you will all die too!"
"Lord Shogun."
Just then, Komurasaki, sitting upright, spoke faintly. Faced with Orochi's form, which made everyone fear and change color, she, on the contrary, seemed calm.
"They were just trying to make a living. Please do not kill the innocent."
"Oh? Does Komurasaki think this Shogun has done wrong?"
A massive snake head swam over to Komurasaki, the pressure of its high position staring down at her.
The two looked at each other. Komurasaki's gaze did not retreat in the slightest. After a moment, the large snake narrowed its eyes and said sheepishly:
"Fine, fine. Since Komurasaki has said so, this Shogun will let them go today."
"Alright, Komurasaki, come over here. When I take down these pirates, don't let them accidentally hurt you."
"Thank you for your pardon, Lord Shogun."
Komurasaki nodded slightly. It was good enough that she could save the geishas. As for Reiner and the others, she didn't want to get involved in pirates' affairs, nor would she anger Kurozumi Orochi for them.
She put away her paper fan and was about to get up when she was pressed down by a strong hand on her shoulder. Komurasaki was suddenly startled and turned her head to see Reiner staring at the large snake, his gaze so cold it was chilling.
Clang!
A fleeting blade of light streaked across the shadow. The light that had been blocked by the massive snake body shone down again. A splash of blood dotted Komurasaki's fair face, like a few殘梅 on white snow.
This instantaneous action was beyond anyone's reaction.
The warm touch on her face and the pungent smell of blood made Komurasaki realize something. Her dazed eyes trembled slightly as she slowly moved to the side.
A shocking scene played out in slow motion in Komurasaki's peripheral vision. The severed snake head, with a trail of blood, tumbled in the air. She could even clearly see Kurozumi Orochi's widened, disbelieving eyes.
"Everyone is so self-centered. You should respect my opinion a little too."
Thump—thump, thump.
With Reiner's faint words, the bloody snake head also fell. It rolled a few times on the ground and stopped. On the snake's head, the pair of shocked and angry eyes gradually dimmed.
Behind Reiner, Sukuna flicked the blood from his blade, sheathed it, and leaned against the wall, closing his eyes as if he had never moved.
"Sh-shogun!!"
"Lord Orochi!!"
A cry of alarm erupted in the banquet hall. The several massive snake bodies that had been coiled under the ceiling went limp and fell to the floor, motionless. Several pairs of colorless snake pupils stared at Reiner, their surprise not yet having faded.
D-dead?
Just like that... with a casual swing of his sword, he killed Orochi...?
Komurasaki had not yet recovered from her shock, and for a moment, she was at a loss.
This is... a pirate?
All these years I've been lurking... what was the point...?
(End of chapter)
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