After drawing a dozen vials of blood from Kurozumi Orochi, Sherwin removed the Seastone chains from his body.
Though Orochi was confused, he once again transformed into his Yamata-no-Orochi form. While keeping a wary eye on the Seastone chains Sherwin had tossed aside, he lunged at Sherwin once more.
He was promptly beaten senselessly by Sherwin bare hands. Along the way, Sherwin collected various body tissues from him, including scales, flesh, and horns from the Yamata-no-Orochi form.
Once he had gathered enough materials to support Haibara Meow research, Sherwin finally wrapped the Seastone chains back around Orochi, satisfied.
"Do you want to take your revenge personally?"
Sherwin turned his head to look at Kozuki Hiyori, who had been watching silently from the side.
"May... may I?"
A look of pleasant surprise instantly appeared on Hiyori face.
"Wait a minute! Just wait a minute!"
Seeing that Sherwin hadn't killed him and had only taken some materials and blood, Orochi had thought he might survive.
He quickly began to beg loudly for mercy: "Komurasaki! It me! Didn't you always love me deeply?! I was indeed wrong about that maid before, but I already regret it!"
Shermie Meow, who had returned to Sherwin shoulder, covered her mouth with a small paw and mocked, "Puh-puh-puh... Sherwin-honey~ is this guy an idiot meow?"
"Evidently." Sherwin spread his hands. "And a fool with absolutely no self-awareness."
Despite his secret hatred for the mockery from Sherwin and the cat, Orochi didn't dare to offer any rebuttal. He only looked urgently at "Komurasaki," placing all his hopes for survival on her.
"To say that I love you... how laughable..."
Hiyori stood beside Sherwin with a cold sneer, her eyes fixed intently on Orochi as she spoke through gritted teeth, "I don't have the slightest bit of affection for you!"
"Eh—?!!"
Orochi face filled with shock, as if he had suffered a massive blow.
Sherwin: "..."
"So where exactly do you get that kind of confidence, hey?!"
"My father kept his promise..." Tears streamed down Hiyori cheeks, but her expression grew increasingly calm.
"He believed in the 'release Wano' pact you and Kaido made he believed that if he endured an hour in the boiling oil, you would let everyone go... That naive idea is something even outsiders mock to this day."
Feeling called out, Sherwin rubbed his nose awkwardly.
"Fa... Father?" Kurozumi Orochi finally realized what was happening. "Could it be... you... you are?!"
"That is right! My name is Kozuki Hiyori! I am the daughter of that 'Foolish Lord,' Kozuki Oden!"
With a stern and fierce voice, Hiyori pulled a dagger from her sleeve and pointed it at Kurozumi Orochi.
"I have come today specifically to take your life! To avenge my father!"
"I... I was very fond of Oden too! I was just... being used by Kaido!"
Kurozumi Orochi continued to make excuses, but such words—which even a resurrected Kozuki Oden wouldn't believe—naturally couldn't stop Hiyori advancing steps.
But Sherwin could...
"Wait," Sherwin pulled a katana from his waist bag and handed it to Hiyori. "Use this Sandai Kitetsu. This is a blade forged by your grandfather, Kozuki Sukiyaki."
Hiyori only froze for a brief moment before obediently taking the Sandai Kitetsu. She then strode quickly to stand before Kurozumi Orochi and leveled the tip of the blade at his heart.
"Waaaaah! No! Stop!" Restrained by the Sea Stone chains, Orochi could only lie on the ground in a panic, begging loudly for mercy.
"Stop it! Revenge isn't in fashion these days! Even if you kill me, you won't be able to defeat Kai—"
Puchi!
The blade pierced deep into Kurozumi Orochi heart, cutting off his pleas for mercy and ending his life.
Kozuki Hiyori silently withdrew Sandai Kitetsu, turned, and knelt before Sherwin. She held the sheathed Kitetsu high with both hands, returning it to him.
"Lord Sherwin, this young lady has no way to repay the kindness you have shown the Kozuki clan."
"..."
"???"
What about the next sentence?
After taking back the Kitetsu, Sherwin waited and waited, but Hiyori did not say another word, making him feel a bit frustrated.
Couldn't she at least say "I will serve you like an ox or a horse in the next life"?
Sherwin, who had a slight case of obsessive-compulsive disorder, complained inwardly.
Hiyori had no idea what Sherwin was thinking. After returning Sandai Kitetsu, she performed a formal kowtow before slowly standing up.
"Wait a moment."
Sherwin obviously couldn't force her to "serve like an ox" or "offer herself in marriage." He stepped around Hiyori and, using his body as a shield, pulled out his Hunter knife and stabbed Orochi body once more.
As expected, the Yamata no Orochi fruit—which Klee Meow had looked upon with disgust—did not appear, and at the same time...
Nothing else appeared either.
"Oh?"
Sherwin raised an eyebrow.
In the manga, Kurozumi Orochi had indeed come back to life after Kaido cut off his head, the price being one less head for his Yamata no Orochi form.
So, it wasn't just decapitation no matter how he died, could he resurrect by consuming one of his heads?
Sherwin used his Observation Haki to sense the surroundings, but he could not detect Orochi voice or presence at all. Even after removing the Sea Prism Stone chains, the other party remained unresponsive.
He wasn't sure if Orochi was playing dead again or if the resurrection required time, but he didn't plan on waiting for him to revive just to cut off the remaining heads one by one...
Regardless, there was a substitute for the Yamata no Orochi fruit, and the original manga had already shown Sherwin the method to deal with Kurozumi Orochi once and for all—
"Klee Meow, lend me a spark."
Sherwin tilted his head and rubbed against the small ragdoll on his shoulder.
"Oh—!"
(=`=)
Klee Meow raised her little paw and flicked a tiny, golden flame from her finger.
The spark drifted lightly onto Orochi Kurozumi body, spreading across his entire frame in the blink of an eye.
As the flames descended, the lifeless Orochi Kurozumi lying on the ground initially showed no reaction, appearing truly as a corpse.
Strangely, however, Klee Meow golden flames—which could easily burn through solid stone—failed to even singe a single strand of Orochi hair...
"Aaaaahhhhh—!!!"
After burning for a few more moments, the motionless Orochi suddenly screamed in agony.
He wailed as he rolled through the snow, but he could not extinguish the fire instead, the flames only grew more intense.
Soon after, he transformed back into the form of the Yamata no Orochi. However, this time, only two heads remained.
One of them was barely moving, drooping beside the main head as it gradually turned to charcoal.
With the disappearance of the seventh head, the beast-form Orochi collapsed to the ground again, losing all signs of life.
His body, which the fire had previously been unable to consume, rapidly carbonized until it was burnt away completely, leaving nothing but a patch of scorched earth radiating heat.
"Kurozumi" finally died in a great fire, which could be seen as fitting the original author design and "destiny," as well as the convergence of the world timeline.
Just as Orochi Kurozumi was destined to die by fire, Kozuki Oden name actually refers to oden, a type of nabemono dish, which is why he died in a boiling pot.
Additionally, Oden father, Sukiyaki, is also named after a Japanese beef hotpot.