Zoro rushed toward the source of the voice without even giving it time to speak. He grabbed it by the neck and hurled it against a wall.
Thud!
He also unsheathed Shusui from his waist and drove both swords into the wall so as to surround the neck of his victim.
Thick!
"You have exactly ten seconds to explain yourself before I separate your head from your neck," he said.
He was letting his killing intent leak out freely, though it was impossible to tell whether it was intentional or not.
The source of the voice did not react to the threat and merely said calmly, "I have nothing to do with this. I myself don't understand what's happening to her."
"Don't mess with me Tengen. You're going to tell me this is the first time this has happened?" said Zoro, already convinced of the identity of the one standing before him.
The one—or rather the woman—standing before him was a mature woman with long and thick disheveled hair.
Zoro remembered that before deciding to stop the assimilations this was what Tengen looked like and not a thumb with four eyes.
"I didn't think you would recognize me so easily. But I repeat, I myself don't know what's happening to her," Tengen insisted in a monotone voice.
Zoro stared at her for a long moment and used the highest level of Observation Haki he possessed to see whether she was lying, but he found not the slightest trace of deception.
He eventually left her alone and pulled his swords out of the wall.
Tching!
He sheathed them and rushed toward Yuki.
She was still lying on the ground but this time instead of holding her head she was curled up on herself unable to move.
Zoro knelt down and picked her up in his arms, "Yuki are you okay? Answer me!"
No response came from her, only groans and trembling reached Zoro.
Zoro couldn't help clicking his tongue, "Tch, damn it."
He placed one hand beneath her legs, another around her torso and positioned Yuki so that her head was supported against his chest.
"Hey! Senile old hag, do you have a bed here?" asked Zoro.
Tengen, who had meanwhile approached, said, "I don't understand why you're insulting me but yes I have a bed. It's at the back of the room."
"Perfect," said Zoro as he stood up. "I'm going to lay her down. Be careful not to come near if you don't want to turn into immortal sashimi."
He walked past Tengen and headed toward the back of the room.
There he found a straw bed and laid Yuki down on it. However, just as he was about to stand back up he felt her grab onto his sleeve.
When he turned his head to look at her face he realized she wasn't doing it consciously, "Well if you insist," said Zoro, giving up on moving away. "What the he—?!"
"Have I ever told you that I find your way of speaking extremely rude?" he heard from Tengen.
Yet something was wrong. He had heard her speak as though she were only one meter away from him. Even though she was on the other side of the room.
"How did you do that?" he asked, perplexed.
"I use a barrier to transmit sound directly into the ears of everyone present," answered Tengen while sitting directly on the floor.
That made Zoro frown, "If that's the case it still doesn't make sense. In case you haven't noticed I don't possess any cursed energy."
"I noticed, don't worry. That's why I modified the barrier so it would even take inanimate objects into account. It's the first time I've done that and it's a little counterintuitive but I didn't do too badly," Tengen told him with a smile.
There was a bit of arrogance in her tone which only confirmed something Zoro already suspected, "She's nothing like the future Tengen. Neither physically nor mentally," thought Zoro.
"So, while she recovers, can you tell me why she wanted to see me? And by the way, who are you and why didn't she warn me she was coming with you?" asked Tengen.
Zoro didn't answer immediately. Instead he looked at Yuki and moved one of her strands of hair behind her ear.
Then he focused back on Tengen, "Yuki has a goal. She wants to find a way to stop cursed spirits from appearing."
At Zoro's words all of Tengen's lightheartedness vanished, replaced by a millennium of wisdom, "That's impossible," she said with all the seriousness in the world. "And naive. It's an enormous waste of time."
Zoro chuckled a little when he heard that, "I told her you'd say that."
"And I have good reasons for saying it. I've lived for more than a thousand years, I've crossed eras, and I can assure you that no one has ever even come close to accomplishing what you're trying to achieve," she remained completely firm in her position.
It was simply impossible for her to conceive that such a thing could ever happen.
"Okay okay I get it. No need to look so serious. Besides I wasn't expecting anything from you anyway," said Zoro while waving his free arm.
"That still doesn't answer the other question. Who are you and why didn't she tell me you were coming?" repeated Tengen.
"Do you want my real name or is a pseudonym enough? Either way you already know the important part. That's actually why you've been manipulating your barriers this whole time," said Zoro with amusement.
He noticed? thought Tengen, slightly panicked.
"Don't worry, I have no intention of interfering with your destiny, the Star Plasma Vessel's destiny, the Six Eyes' destiny, or Kenjaku's destiny. At least not unless Yuki directly asks me to," he said distractedly.
"The fact that you know about that doesn't inspire confidence," replied Tengen.
"Don't worry, I'm not an ally of Kenjaku," Zoro tried to reassure her.
"Just knowing that you know him inspires even less confidence," insisted Tengen.
"Okay I get it, let's change the subject," conceded Zoro.
"You know what I said earlier about not touching your destiny? Well, I lied a little," Zoro's smile disappeared as he finished his sentence.
And just like that the temperature in the room suddenly dropped.
At that moment, not satisfied with merely letting his killing intent leak out, Zoro also released a bit of his Conqueror's Haki.
Tengen jumped in panic and immediately went on guard.
"Listen carefully because your answer to my question will determine whether you survive or not," he said with predatory eyes.
His Conqueror's Haki grew more violent with every passing second.
The barriers surrounding the room trembled and were on the verge of shattering. The only reason they hadn't broken yet was because Zoro didn't want to alert the sorcerers and create an unnecessary bloodbath.
Tengen was on her knees, her breathing uneven.
"Are you involved in Tsukumo Hyo's death?" he finally asked.
Tengen remained silent for a long moment, refusing to open her mouth.
But just as Zoro was beginning to lose patience and was about to speak again, Tengen answered.
"Yes."
Zoro's anger exploded at that moment.
"But—" Tengen tried to continue before being interrupted by a Haki-coated bullet striking the wall behind her.
Boom!
Tengen's heart skipped a beat. Proof that even after a thousand years one can still feel fear.
"Choose your next words very carefully," warned Zoro.
Tengen took a deep breath and continued.
"I won't say that I'm not indirectly involved, but I did not in any way act to cause her death."
Zoro stared at her for a moment before lowering the Glock.
"Explain."
"As you already know, I, the Star Plasma Vessel, the Six Eyes and Kenjaku are connected by destiny. Unless someone like you, someone without any cursed energy, intervenes, I am destined to assimilate the Star Plasma Vessel and the Six Eyes are destined to prevent Kenjaku from achieving his objective," said Tengen.
"I know all that. Stop beating around the bush and get to the point. The more impatient I become the lower your chances of survival," pressed Zoro.
"But that's not the only way destiny manifests itself. Especially for Star Plasma Vessels. It's possible to have several Star Plasma Vessels in the same era but they all have one thing in common," said Tengen quickly. "They are all destined to lose their parents while young."
That marked the end of Tengen's explanation and, as one might expect, Zoro did not like it at all.
"You're kidding me," said Zoro incredulously. "You're really going to blame destiny. Like destiny did it and you had nothing to do with it? You expect me to believe that?"
More and more killing intent poured out of Zoro.
From Tengen's point of view he was no longer even human.
He had taken on the appearance of a being with three heads and six arms.
'Ashura,' Tengen recognized inwardly. I know it's difficult to believe but I'm telling the truth. I've never done anything to the families of the Star Plasma Vessels.
"Ha! Admit that it works out pretty well for you. No family means nobody to oppose the assimilation," Zoro threw back at her.
"Listen..." said Tengen. "I can understand why you don't trust me but I assure you I have never done anything to them. I'm even willing to make a binding vow to prove it."
That last sentence calmed Zoro somewhat and pulled him out of his state of extreme fury.
'If she's willing to go that far then she's really telling the truth,' Zoro admitted inwardly.
For Tengen it felt as though a weight had been lifted from her very soul and Zoro had finally regained a human appearance.
"Fine. I believe you," said Zoro while putting away his Glock.
After that he turned around, picked Yuki up in his arms again and stood up.
He began walking toward the entrance, "We're leaving. If the sorcerers ask, just tell them that you entrusted the Star Plasma Vessel to someone reliable."
As he was about to walk past Tengen she asked him, "Are you sure you'll be able to handle this alone? This is an unprecedented case in history."
Now that the tense situation was over they could finally pay attention to something they had both ignored until now.
"I'll manage," replied Zoro before leaving.
Yuki was awakening her cursed energy.