Raijin Island was far away now, yet its shadow lingered.
"Didn't expect Kaido to actually come here in person…" Nekomamushi muttered to himself with a dark expression.
"Kaido? Kaido of the Beasts!?" The Mink warriors of the Guardians were instantly dumbfounded.
"That's not right, Nekomamushi! All we saw was a huge bird-man with white wings!"
"Huh? White wings? Since when did Kaido have an ability like that?"
Just as Nekomamushi's one-track mind was tying itself into knots, Pedro woke up.
"C-Captain Nekomamushi!"
"Pedro! How are you feeling?"
"I'm okay! But… right! That guy! He took away the small Poneglyph!" Pedro grabbed Nekomamushi by the shoulder. "And he said he had obtained… Duke Inuarashi's permission!"
"He got permission from that guy Inuarashi? Then it definitely wasn't Kaido… but why was Kaido's presence so strong?" Nekomamushi shook his head hard, then hoisted Pedro onto his shoulder and headed out of the tree hollow.
"Forget it! Come with me to the Musketeer Squad! What on earth did that Inuarashi fellow do!?"
From the Whale Forest to the Musketeer Squad didn't take long.
When Nekomamushi charged into the Musketeer Squad's camp, he happened to see Inuarashi counting their numbers.
"Hey! Inuarashi! You actually dared to let an outsider into the Whale Forest and even allowed him to take a Poneglyph!"
"What do you know… the one who went to the Whale Forest had permission higher than mine…"
"Higher than yours? Don't be ridiculous! Isn't the Mokomo Dukedom ruled by the two of us together?"
"But Michael… received permission from Zunesha."
"Zu-Zunesha? He can communicate with Zunesha? Isn't that a power only the Lord and the Young Lord possess?"
"Unfortunately, he's another man who can wield the Voice of All Things." Inuarashi looked at the Guardians behind Nekomamushi and nodded. "Perfect timing—your people are here too… let's go to Wano Country together."
"What happened in Wano?"
"You were asleep during the day, so you don't know… Wano was attacked by Kaido, but it seems the battle ended in victory. The man who came to take the Poneglyph just now… was holding Lady Toki's token."
Nekomamushi froze, cold sweat instantly dripping down.
Wano was attacked!?
And he, a retainer, was asleep!?
"A crime deserving death! A crime deserving death! I'll commit seppuku right now!"
"What's wrong with him?" Inuarashi looked toward Pedro. "He's usually crazy, but not this crazy, right?"
"Probably got forcibly woken up during his usual sleeping hours—his waking rage scrambled his brain a bit, I guess?" Pedro shrugged.
"ε=(′ο｀*))) Sigh…" Inuarashi pawed at Nekomamushi a couple of times, scratching under his chin until he gradually began to purr. "Cats… are such a hassle."
...
When Inuarashi and Nekomamushi led the Guardians and the Musketeer Squad away from Zou and arrived in Wano Country, the scenery near the coastline alone was enough to show how fierce the great battle had been.
Although the clash between the top-tier combatants ended in an overwhelming victory,
the samurai of Wano still suffered casualties when fighting the Beasts Pirates up close.
Even so, compared to the Beasts Pirates' losses, it could almost be called negligible.
Aside from a small number who fled in the heat of battle, and the Numbers deliberately left behind at Yamato's request, the Beasts Pirates were almost entirely buried beneath the sea and the blade.
As for the Beasts Pirates' officers, aside from Who's-Who—who failed to withstand the joint assault of Sandersonia and Marigold—the rest barely clung to life.
It could only be said that the vitality of Ancient Zoan fruits was no joke.
However, for the Marines, capturing enemies alive actually carried greater merit than killing them.
The members of the SWORD Secret Special Force, in order to carry out Michael's will, were quite particular about military achievements.
Several among them hadn't yet been promoted to Vice Admiral.
But with the confirmed credit of eliminating the Beasts Pirates, the SWORD Secret Special Force would, in all likelihood, become Vice Admirals across the board.
That would allow them to more reasonably reach into the various centers of Marine authority…
Of course, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi knew nothing about any of this. So when, on the way to the Flower Capital, they discovered Kozuki Oden and Lady Toki, both cat and dog burst into tears.
"My lord! Are you unharmed!?"
"Why didn't you tell us Kaido was going to invade Wano!? We are your retainers!"
"Failing to fight alongside my lord—this is an unforgivable sin! I'll commit seppuku at once!"
"Are you sick or something!?"
Inuarashi slammed a hand down on the deranged Nekomamushi, then finally let out a breath of relief as he looked at Oden and Lady Toki.
"To see you so full of life… that's wonderful."
"Ahahahaha! Inuarashi! Nekomamushi! Just knowing you two were worried about me is more than enough!" Kozuki Oden loudly patted the cat and dog on the shoulders. "This time looked dangerous, but in truth, it was a narrow escape without real peril!"
"That's good… that's good…" Inuarashi let out a long breath, then turned to Lady Toki. "Lady Toki, there's something I'd like to ask…"
"I know what it is. Father went to Zou and took that small Poneglyph." Lady Toki smiled gently and nodded. "I know all of that."
"So it really was your father…" Inuarashi's eyes widened sharply. "But you're… from over eight hundred years ago! And that man seemed far too young, didn't he?"
"I know it's hard to explain… but I could never mistake my own father." Lady Toki pointed into the distance. "Father said we would reunite in the future… and he didn't lie."
Following the direction of her finger, Inuarashi saw Michael folding his wings as he stood before the Poneglyph.
Beside him stood a tall, black-haired woman, speaking eloquently toward the Poneglyph, as if interpreting it.
"So, Robin—what exactly is written on this Poneglyph?"
Hearing that, Robin showed an expression as though she didn't quite know what to say.
"Huh? What is it, is the interpretation difficult?"
"No… it's just a bit difficult to say out loud." Robin sighed and pointed out a section of the Poneglyph. "From here to here, the first ninety-five percent is Joy Boy cursing a bird-man named Michael for being outrageously underhanded…"
"The truly meaningful part is only the final sentence…"
"Joy Boy says…"
"Michael, beware of the Nefertari."