The others exchanged glances, yet no one voiced any objection, standing there in silence.
Before Yamato could say anything, Kin'emon added with a bitter smile, "Rather than calling it 'joining'... it's more like... clinging to survival."
That smile was filled with bitterness and helplessness.
"What did you say?!"
Yamato's voice suddenly rose sharply, startling everyone present.
Her roar exploded like thunder, spreading through the somewhat oppressive air, vibrating painfully in people's eardrums.
The kanabō in her hand slammed into the ground, sending a circle of dust swirling upward, spreading across the mottled ground.
Her eyes widened, burning with furious flames that danced fiercely, almost seeming to devour everything before her.
"Was the freedom Lord Oden pursued obtained through groveling?!"
Her voice trembled with emotion, the quivering tones echoing through the air, carrying a sense of finality and bitter indignation.
"The Land of Wano should stand up by its own strength! What kind of opening the country is it if we depend on others? How is that any different from continuing to be ruled by Kaido! How can we be so cowardly, forgetting the dignity our ancestors pursued with their blood and lives, so easily bowing our heads to beg for others' protection?"
Kin'emon's face darkened like stormy waters, resembling the oppressive dark clouds before a storm, weighing heavily on everyone's hearts.
He slowly stood up, every movement exuding heaviness and helplessness.
His right hand unconsciously rested on his sword hilt, the slight pressure seeming to reveal his inner struggle.
"Yamato, please come to your senses."
His voice was low and restrained, yet carried an undeniable force, like a cold boulder crashing into a calm lake, sending out ripples of solemnity.
"Reality cannot be changed by mere passion. We couldn't even defeat Kaido, and now we're facing the Eternal Divine Kingdom that can effortlessly annihilate the entire Beasts Pirates! Do you know what kind of power that is? They're like a merciless hurricane, obliterating everything in their path. What do we possibly have to confront them with?"
The surrounding air seemed to freeze, as if time itself had come to a standstill.
Tama anxiously twisted the hem of her clothes, her slender fingers turning white from the force.
She silently lowered her head, long eyelashes drooping, not daring to watch the tense confrontation before her.
All she could do was silently pray in her heart for this conflict to end as soon as possible.
"Do you know how powerful the Eternal Divine Kingdom is?"
Kin'emon pointed toward the distant smoke and flames of battle, his finger trembling slightly—whether from fear or from the extreme anger he was venting.
"They're the ones destroying the Beasts Pirates! You must've witnessed the horrific scenes yourself. They're like messengers from hell, leaving rivers of blood and fields of corpses wherever they go."
"If they wish, they could wipe the entire Land of Wano off the map at any moment! Everything we hold dear will vanish, and the people will sink into even deeper suffering."
Yamato clenched her jaw tightly, her cheeks puffed out with stubborn determination that made her whole body taut like a drawn bowstring.
Her kanabō creaked in her grip, as if the weapon itself could feel her inner fury and resentment, emitting low groans in the tense atmosphere.
"Then we fight to the end!" she roared, her voice tinged with madness. "Lord Oden chose to be boiled alive rather than submit—that's the spirit of a warrior! How can we dishonor that spirit by clinging to life through cowardice?"
"Spirit?" Kin'emon suddenly raised his voice, a flash of grief in his eyes that made others' hearts ache.
"Yamato, do you think we don't want to fight? But look at the Land of Wano now!"
He threw his arms wide, gesturing at the charred ruins around them.
The once-prosperous city had been reduced to desolation, with broken walls and debris looking particularly bleak amid the smoke.
"Twenty years of oppression, and our people can't even get enough to eat! Children are emaciated from hunger, elders can only sigh in despair. What do we have to fight those monsters with? Pile up corpses as walls? That would only cause more casualties and shatter our last remaining hope."
Yamato fell silent, her gaze slowly sweeping over the battered group.
The exhausted faces, the eyes bearing pain yet forcing themselves to endure—all spoke of the suffering and struggles they had endured.
Her eyes then shifted to the ragged commoners in the distance, watching them shiver in the cold wind while desperately clutching what little warmth they could preserve.
A sour ache welled up in her heart.
Her grip on the weapon unconsciously loosened, the previously tight hold relaxing slightly.
The kanabō wobbled in her hand, as if revealing her inner turmoil through this motion.
"I..." Her voice dropped, the low tone carrying confusion and self-reproach. "I just don't want to betray Oden's will... I can't bear to see his dream shattered like this. I feel that if we retreat now, we'll never be able to face the ancestors who sacrificed themselves for freedom."
Kin'emon let out a long sigh—a deep, heavy exhalation that carried the weight of the entire Land of Wano's destiny and hardships.
His tone softened slightly. "Yamato, sometimes living requires more courage than dying. Temporary compromise is for the sake of true freedom in the future. We must preserve our strength and wait for the right opportunity, not blindly charge to our deaths when there's no chance of victory. Only by staying alive can we hope to see that day—to see the Land of Wano truly rise again and restore its former glory."
Yamato lifted her head to gaze at the sky obscured by smoke, the once azuresky now stained a murky gray, mirroring her current state of mind.
The fury in her eyes gradually transformed into profound sorrow, which spread through her heart like a meandering stream.
She understood Kin'emon's reasoning, but the heart beating in her chest still burned with Oden's dream—a dream like an undying flame roaring deep within her, making her unwilling to surrender so easily.
"..."
Seeing this, Kin'emon seized the moment to press further, his Adam's apple bobbing with difficulty as fine beads of cold sweat formed on his forehead.
The sweat trickled slowly down his cheeks, his eyes betraying a hint of barely concealed panic and urgency, his lips trembling faintly.
"These past few days... from what I've learned... for instance, the Yonko Whitebeard Pirates, they are..."
"They are what?" Yamato pressed, her voice unconsciously rising a notch.
"They are the Eternal Divine Kingdom!" Kin'emon nearly shouted the words, then immediately covered his mouth in terror, his hands clamping tightly over his lips, his eyes flashing with fright.
He thought to himself that his acting wasn't half bad either.
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