"Hello, I'm Kurokami." Kurokami walked over to Shirakawa and extended a hand toward him.
"I'm Shirakawa, their captain. You can call me Captain Shirakawa." Shirakawa reached out as well, and the two clasped hands.
"Ah, nice to meet you, Captain Shirakawa."
"Nice to meet you, Kurokami." The two shared a smile, then sat down together.
Kurokami was intensely curious about the outside world. Like everyone else in the village, he asked a mountain of questions, and Shirakawa answered every one with great patience.
Shirakawa had taken a strong liking to this man. He had to get him on the ship. That was Shirakawa's one and only thought right now.
It wasn't just because the man could forge blades on par with the Great Grade Twenty-One Works. His own combat strength was also formidable. If he could come aboard, the high-end fighting power on their ship wouldn't be limited to Shirakawa alone.
"Kurokami, would you like to go see the outside world?" Once the questions were exhausted, Shirakawa finally asked him.
"Of course I would." Kurokami agreed the moment he heard the words, without even thinking. After all, everyone in this village wanted to leave. But once they left, they could never return.
"Only..." Kurokami left the second half of his sentence unspoken, but Shirakawa understood what he meant to express.
"I know what your concern is. But we were able to come here, so naturally you would be able to come back after you leave. We now have a method specifically for reaching your island."
"Truly?" Kurokami's eyes brightened, then dimmed again as if another thought had struck him.
"It won't work. Even so, I still cannot leave with you."
"Why?" Shirakawa was puzzled. The ability to leave and still return should be the greatest temptation of all for them.
"Because my family has always held a directive to guard a sacred sword. It is an inherited duty, generation after generation, world without end."
"A sacred sword? What sacred sword?" It wouldn't be some cursed blade like the Seven Star Sword, would it?
"I don't know either. I have never seen its true form. I only know that it is sealed within that volcano."
Kurokami pointed behind them. There, a volcano stood.
"Is that so?" Shirakawa's interest was piqued by that sacred sword. The Skillful Grade blade he currently used was no longer sufficient for him. He needed a more powerful weapon, one that could match his current strength and status.
"I advise you not to set your sights on that sacred sword." Kurokami seemed to read Shirakawa's thoughts and spoke to him.
"Why?"
"I already told you. That is the sacred sword my family has guarded for generations. No one will be permitted to lay a hand on it."
"Oh, I see."
Shirakawa had thought it might be some sort of cursed sword or demonic blade, the kind that could seize control of a person's mind.
The banquet ended quickly. Their group was arranged to rest in the village chief's home. Lying in bed, Shirakawa could not stop thinking about the sacred sword Kurokami had mentioned.
While the night was deep and everyone else had sunk into deep slumber, Shirakawa quietly rose. He slipped out through the window and dashed swiftly in the direction of the volcano.
At Shirakawa's top speed, he soon reached the base of the volcano.
"The volcano is this enormous. Where would the sacred sword be sealed?" Gazing at the massive volcano, Shirakawa sank into thought. He couldn't exactly split the volcano in half to search for it.
Shirakawa activated his Kenbunshoku Haki and advanced step by step toward the top of the volcano. But to his disappointment, he discovered no hidden doors or secret passages whatsoever.
It was nothing more than an utterly ordinary volcano, devoid of any special features.
"It couldn't be inside the volcanic crater, could it?" Shirakawa thought of a possibility that was all but impossible.
Although the maximum temperature of magma still couldn't reach the melting point of iron, if someone truly had placed a sacred sword into the magma, then how desperately that person must have wanted the sword never to see the light of day again.
Once he had a target, Shirakawa swiftly made his way to the mouth of the volcano. Feeling the immense heat radiating from the magma below, he still couldn't bring himself to believe that a sacred sword was here.
Just then, Shirakawa suddenly sensed a trace of danger. He drew his sword and spun around sharply. With a resounding clang, a hammer slammed viciously into Shirakawa's blade. Instantly, he felt a colossal force surging through his arm.
"You came after all." The one who had attacked Shirakawa was none other than Kurokami.
After the banquet had ended, he had seen from the look in Shirakawa's eyes that the man's scheming heart had not died. So he had long been waiting at the volcano's mouth. He hadn't expected that Shirakawa would actually come.
"I get the feeling you were bluffing me." Shirakawa didn't answer his statement but instead voiced what was on his mind.
"How do you mean?" Kurokami was puzzled. When had he ever bluffed him?
"You told me there was a sacred sword on this volcano. I've searched all over. Never mind a sacred sword, there isn't even a scrap of iron slag."
"Haven't you already guessed it? The sacred sword is right within this magma."
Watching the magma as it churned and bubbled, Kurokami spoke expressionlessly.
"How do you know? Haven't you never seen it either?"
"It is a legend passed down from my ancestors."
"A legend? Just for some vague legend, you're willing to stand guard on this island your entire life?"
Shirakawa was somewhat disappointed. The sacred sword turned out to be a legend. Who knew if it was even true.
"That's right. If there is no evidence proving this legend is false, then I will remain here all my life."
"Stubborn and blind. Don't you want to see the wider world? Are you truly willing to confine yourself to this tiny island? This island can never bring out your true worth."
Shirakawa's objective had shifted from finding the sacred sword to recruiting Kurokami. Since the sacred sword was an unverified legend, Shirakawa already considered Kurokami far more important than the sacred sword.
Hearing Shirakawa's words, Kurokami hesitated. Right at that moment, another voice rang out beside them both.
"Kam, if you want to go, then go. Our family has guarded this sacred sword for over a hundred years. That is enough. There is no need for you to guard it any longer."
The one who spoke was none other than the chief of this village, Kurokami's father.
"Father, but I..."
"My child, do you not wish to see the outside world? I remember you used to tell me you wanted to go and see the outside world."
Seeing Kurokami still hesitating, Shirakawa could only take it upon himself to help the man make up his mind.
"Since you still can't decide, let me help you then."
Shirakawa walked over to the edge of the volcanic crater.
"What are you trying to do?"
"I'll help you verify whether that legend is true or false."
Finishing his words, Shirakawa leapt forward and jumped directly into the magma.
/-\
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