It was a unanimous vote, so any objection was overruled.
Zoro was ordered to stay behind and guard the place. After all, there were still many resistance fighters recuperating at their hideout. If the enemy discovered them, someone had to make sure they could escape.
Chopper and the other wounded were also left behind, along with Nami. Considering there might be combat ahead, anyone whose strength was insufficient could not go.
It was cruel, but safe.
Following a crooked passageway, the group came to an upward tunnel. The elderly kunoichi went first, agilely pushing aside the cover. After confirming no one was outside, she gestured for the others to climb up.
"From here, if you head east and cross that mountain, you'll see the ruins of Oden City, Admiral Soryu (Azure Dragon)… huh? Why are you in front of us?"
Kanjuro had been about to explain the route when he suddenly noticed something strange. Only Luffy and Sanji were behind him. Rowen, who should've been at the rear, had disappeared at some point.
Looking back again, Kanjuro saw him standing atop a tree trunk, shading his eyes as he looked out.
"So that's Oden City? Even the ruins alone carry such grandeur… I can't imagine how magnificent it must have been before its destruction."
His gaze swept past the mountain blocking the way. In front of him lay a vast ruin. The towering city walls, though worn down by time, still looked imposing and majestic.
And the battleship-sized breach in the wall was even more shocking.
"Oden City before it was destroyed… huh?" Kanjuro couldn't help but recall the past. For him, it was only a few months ago. He shook his head, then said:
"Admiral Soryu (Azure Dragon), please be careful. To prevent intrusions, Kaido's forces planted large numbers of sentries throughout the land--"
"It's fine. From here, the nearest scout is 1,500 meters west. And he's asleep."
Before Kanjuro could finish, Rowen waved his hand to cut him off.
"Leave navigation to me. You just keep an eye on the surroundings so no one slips through."
"This is… the legendary 'Heavenly Network'?" Sanji lit another cigarette and exhaled.
"Admiral Soryu (Azure Dragon)'s unique form of Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki). It can monitor a radius of several kilometers around him."
"Several kilometers?!" Kanjuro sucked in a breath. In his time at sea, he had learned about Haki. But wasn't Kenbunshoku Haki supposed to only work at close range?
"To be precise, a normal diameter of fifty-three kilometers." Rowen glanced at Sanji in mild surprise. It seemed they'd done their homework on him, preparing countermeasures.
"Linear distance over one hundred kilometers. As long as I wish, I can strike an enemy over a hundred kilometers away before they even realize we're there. Of course, the farther the distance, the greater the stamina cost. Monitoring is one thing, attacking at that range isn't so easy." Rowen then lightly stepped down to the ground, pointing southeast.
"Found Lirisk. This way."
'He found him just like that?!'
Kanjuro and Sanji exchanged glances, unable to hide the shock in their eyes.
"Tch. Why can't pirates and Marines just get along?" Rubbing his blond hair with a bitter smile, Sanji muttered: "The thought of facing monsters like him as enemies… it's pure despair."
At a hundred kilometers, even with the Sunny's special propulsion system, they'd need seven or eight full bursts to cross the distance, and that was assuming enough supplies and no risk of the ship breaking apart. For Rowen, it was merely "consuming more stamina."
"Well, we'll figure something out when the time comes!" Luffy's carefree laugh left the two of them speechless.
…
Oden City loomed close. Suddenly, Lirisk stopped and said: "That's far enough. Here will do."
"..." Komurasaki gave no reply, standing silently.
But in her heart, she had a sinking premonition. If nothing else, Lirisk must be suspicious of her.
"We've been out here for three hours. In three hours, if those people aren't complete trash, they'll have already tracked us down easily."
Boom!!
Komurasaki's heart thundered as the ominous premonition came true. But her face remained composed, forcing down the fear within.
"So that's your reason for doing all this?"
Hearing that, Lirisk turned back curiously. "That's right. Is there a problem?"
'A problem?' Komurasaki sneered.
"I see now… you suspect I'm colluding with the rebels, and you want to use me to draw them out. But what makes you so sure I have any connection to them? I'm Wano's number one courtesan, the oiran respected even by General Kurozumi Orochi himself. Why would I ever be connected to them?!"
"Right now the General should have the whole Capital searching for me. If you've guessed wrong, then what position do you think that puts you in?"
Orrick was Orochi's ally. If his son had done something like this to her, even if it didn't completely shatter their alliance, it would certainly leave a crack.
To gamble on something so serious based only on suspicion…
"You really live up to the name of a spoiled Celestial Dragon!"
At that, Lirisk narrowed his eyes slightly.
"You have quite the sharp tongue, little lady… Should I play along, put on a show of regret and fear to match your words?"
Komurasaki's expression darkened.
"What do you mean?"
"It's true, I don't have direct proof that you're connected to the rebels. But what I'm far more certain of is this: your approach to Kurozumi Orochi was never so pure."
Lirisk walked closer, his cold gaze shifting into reptilian vertical pupils without her noticing, like a hunting viper, calm and merciless. Komurasaki couldn't help stepping back. Her heel struck a stone and she stumbled onto the ground.
"In recent years, a legend has been spreading in Wano. I wonder if you've heard of it, the phantom thief."
"The Phantom Thief Ushimitsu Kozo, he only appears at the third hour of the Ox. He scatters gold coins of unknown origin into the slums, distributing them to the poor. That made him famous throughout the common folk."
"A-and so what? You're saying I'm connected to that thief?"
"Yes… and no."
Standing over her, Lirisk looked down and said, "When that tale of the phantom thief first began circulating in the Flower Capital, it was right around the same time your fame in Wano began to rise. The gap between the two events was no more than three months."
"And in those three months, something interesting happened."
"W-what?"
Komurasaki's face paled. She realized she'd left far too many traces.
"General Kurozumi Orochi took a fancy to a certain geisha. He spent a fortune to make her the oiran, and thanks to his favor, she became the most famous courtesan in all of Wano."
"And that geisha… was you."
Looking at Komurasaki's bloodless lips, Lirisk shook his head, suddenly uninterested.
"You're full of holes, Miss Komurasaki. Only someone blinded by lust, like Orochi, could have missed them. But that's not why I came for you. I don't care if you swindle him out of his fortune… what matters is one question I've never been able to answer."
His icy breath hung in the air as he stared at her.
"Your personal expenses are minimal. You rarely even have the chance to spend your own money, everywhere you go, people handle things for you. So even if you added in what you handed out to the poor, the total wouldn't amount to much. But whether it's the money you scammed or the rewards Orochi gave you, none of it matches the scale of the funds you've been moving."
"So what?! A courtesan will one day grow old and lose her beauty, why shouldn't I save up a little for my coffin?"
Komurasaki clung to her final excuse.
But Lirisk shattered it with an icy remark: "You should know that before Orochi allied with us, his biggest arms-trading partner was the World Government, right?"
"Then how do you think their funds moved? Cash? Belly? But Belly isn't widely circulated in Wano, is it?"
Wano was isolated and independent, with its own currency system. Belly could be exchanged there, but that was only because their own national currency could convert into it.
And that currency was…
Lirisk sneered down at her.
"That's right, gold."
"They use gold as currency, the only form accepted by Wano's ruling class. And the middleman handling that trade… was none other than the so-called Gold Emperor, Gild Tesoro!"
Komurasaki's breath caught. She had grasped the key point.
The man before her was once a Celestial Dragon, and Tesoro's deep connections with the Celestial Dragons were common knowledge. Beyond simple ties, the profits he brought were enough for the Celestial Dragons to tolerate him.
Profits of what kind? The kind sucked up by the Celestial Dragons' parasitic ways, bleeding dry the trade route.
"So, you understand now? Otherwise, where do you think my father's rebellion funds came from?"
Lirisk shrugged and smiled.
"Every bank in Wano belongs to the Nibel Dragon household. Whatever's stored inside, we know it all."
"You… do you have anything left to explain?"
(End of Chapter)
This novel is finished and I have posted all the advanced chapters on my Patreon https://www.patreon.com/darkshadow6395
Hey Guys I have picked up 2 new Fanfiction
New Novels- 1. One Piece- Maxed Out Conqueror's Haki!
2. One Piece- Master Of Devil Fruits
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