"Cough, cough... Let go, you idiot! Cough, cough!"
Gyukimaru choked a few times, pushing away Perona's hands that were grabbing his collar. He caught his breath and then explained, "I only heard about what happened back then after I gained human consciousness. As for this Warlord of the Sea Moria you're talking about, I know absolutely nothing about him."
"The story I heard was that when Moria was young, he drifted to Wano Country and was taken in by the people of the Ringo region. Later, because of his outstanding strength and the high regard the people had for him, he was bestowed the name Kozuki."
"After coming of age, Moria set sail to become a pirate. When he later learned that Kaido had invaded Wano Country, he resolutely returned to duel Kaido, fighting until all of his crewmates were dead."
Gyukimaru's eyes revealed a hint of heaviness as he spoke. "Although the battle ended in a crushing defeat, he was still regarded as a hero by the people, so they built this hero's tomb for him."
"That's all the information I know. After all, I only heard it from the people of Wano Country who occasionally passed by here. As for the Warlord of the Sea Moria you mentioned..."
"I am not familiar with matters overseas, so I haven't heard of him. But it sounds like he and Kozuki Moria are the same person. To think that hero is actually still alive," Gyukimaru said with a sigh.
After hearing this story, Perona and the pirates were bawling their eyes out, unable to stop the streams of moved tears from flowing down their faces.
"To think he fought to the death against an Emperor just to repay the debt of being taken in!"
"Waaah! That's just too great!"
"You have to find Moria, Perona!"
"Waaah! Of course I will!"
"Moria! Moria! Moria...!"
The pirates raised their swords in one hand and covered their tear-and-snot-streaked faces with the other, chanting Moria's name in unison.
Robin carefully recalled Gyukimaru's words. After a moment of silence, she asked in confusion, "You just said that you only heard about these things after gaining human consciousness. What does that mean?"
"I am an ability user of the Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Type, Model: Onyudo. My original identity was a Komafox," Gyukimaru explained calmly. After speaking, he revealed his true form to everyone.
Poof!
A puff of smoke appeared, and Gyukimaru transformed on the spot into a white-furred fox with red paws, leaving everyone in shock.
Poof!
Gyukimaru then transformed from his full beast form back into a human and asked Perona, "You mentioned Ryuma earlier. Could you tell me what that is about?"
Hearing this, Perona spoke without any hesitation, "You mean Ryuma? That's a Zombie General created by Lord Moria."
"Zombie General..."
Gyukimaru froze on the spot, and then saw Perona say proudly, "That's right. Lord Moria's ability is to grant life to corpses by inserting shadows into them, which is how he creates so-called zombies."
"..."
Hearing this, Gyukimaru's expression gradually turned ugly, and he said in a deep voice, "Are you saying that the incident back then, when the tomb of Wano's hero Ryuma was robbed and his corpse disappeared along with the national treasure Shusui, was actually Moria's doing?"
"..."
Perona's expression stiffened, her mouth twitching a few times, unsure of how to answer.
'Why is there another Wano hero?'
'If we're talking about tombs Lord Moria has robbed, there are way too many. He's collected the corpses of many famous powerhouses throughout history. Honestly, he'd offend people no matter where he went.'
Similarly, Gyukimaru was also feeling a complex mix of emotions. Aside from anger, he was somewhat at a loss, unsure if he should unleash the fury in his heart.
The robbing of a Wano hero's tomb was certainly infuriating, but the grave robber was another hero who had fought to the death to liberate Wano. This put him in a rather awkward position.
"Alright, there's no point in discussing past grudges in front of two graves. We should get going."
Allen suddenly spoke up, turning around and walking toward the Flower Capital.
Perona gave Gyukimaru an awkward smile and hurriedly followed Allen's footsteps, leaving the area.
Seeing this, Gyukimaru quickly chased after them. "Wait a minute! What about Wano's national treasure, Ryuma's sword from when he was alive, Shusui?!"
The group set off together once again. Just then, the sound of a Transponder Snail rang out from Allen.
*Puru puru puru...*
*Kacha.*
Allen took the snail out from under his cloak and answered, "Nami? What's the situation on your end?"
"Allen, we just ran into Kaido's subordinates. It was a patrol squad led by a Headliner."
"Has your location been exposed?" Allen asked.
"Probably not yet. We took them down immediately, but I expect they'll realize something is wrong soon. We're almost at the border of the Flower Capital now," Nami reported from the other end of the Transponder Snail.
Allen thought for a moment and said, "Don't rush into the Flower Capital just yet. We should arrive before evening. Wait for us to regroup."
"Understood."
*Kacha.*
After hanging up the Transponder Snail, Allen and his group gradually picked up their pace.
Although Kaido's main base was on Onigashima, a significant amount of military force was also deployed within Wano Country to manage the factories and stabilize their control over the Shogun's castle.
If the patrol squad didn't return for a long time, they would definitely soon realize that someone was rebelling or that enemies had invaded.
Nami's side only had the Third and Fourth Divisions, making their combat lineup slightly weaker. If they encountered an elite unit led by an All-Star, a bitter battle would be unavoidable.
After thinking it over, Allen dialed Sanji's Transponder Snail.
Outside Okobore Village in Kibi, amidst the endless desolate yellow wasteland, two groups were engaged in a frenzied slaughter.
Sanji, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, sat on a thick rock pillar, watching the battle below.
*Puru puru puru...*
The Transponder Snail suddenly rang. Sanji glanced down, took the snail out of his suit, and answered, "Hello."
"What's the situation over there, Sanji? Why do I hear the sounds of battle?"
"Ah, it's nothing. We just ran into a group of mountain bandits." Sanji turned his head to look at the battle below and said, "It's a pretty large group, but we're already dealing with it."
"Mountain bandits? Never mind. Nami just clashed with Kaido's subordinates, so her location will probably be exposed soon. After you finish off the bandits, head into the Flower Capital and make some noise."
Hearing this, Sanji's brow furrowed. He nodded and replied, "Draw enemy fire for Nami-san? Understood."
*Kacha.*
After hanging up and putting the Transponder Snail away, Sanji quickly stood up and shouted down, "Hey, Gin! Get ready to move out, we have a mission."
Gin turned to look at Sanji and gave a nod. He then turned back to stare at Shutenmaru, tightening his grip on his pitch-black tonfas as his eyes darkened.
"Fiftyfold Multiply: Godspeed Shave!!"
Bang!!
A deep crater exploded out of thin air on the ground. Amidst the flying rubble, Gin's figure instantly vanished from his spot!
Shutenmaru's pupils shrank in shock. Before his brain could even react, dozens of pitch-black iron spheres had already appeared right in front of him!
"Demon Tonfa: Chaotic Waves!!"
Gin shouted in a deep voice, his two tonfas swinging continuously to create countless afterimages, smashing heavily into Shutenmaru's massive body!
Bang!! Bang!! Bang!!
"Puh-wah—!!"
Shutenmaru spat out a mouthful of blood. The flesh on the surface of his body rippled from the impacts, turning into a bloody, mangled mess in an instant. The scene was incredibly gruesome.