"Shimotsuki Toshiya, from the moment you rebelled, you ceased to be a daimyo of Wano Country," Hyogoro said, looking at the panting Shimotsuki Toshiya before advancing to continue his assault. His movements were steady and powerful, each slash carrying the conviction of victory. As a yakuza boss, he understood the principle that the victor was king.
Beads of cold sweat glistened on Shimotsuki Toshiya's forehead in the moonlight. He gripped his katana until his knuckles turned white from the strain.
The nauseating stench of blood saturated the battlefield. His ears were filled with the piercing clang of metal and the wretched wails of the dying. Just as Hyogoro's blade was about to fall in a decisive strike, a figure shot forward like lightning.
"My lord!" Sato Yoshinobu, the Shimotsuki family's elderly, loyal retainer, threw his own body in front of Toshiya. His tachi slammed violently against Hyogoro's weapon, sending bright sparks flying. This vassal, who had served the Shimotsuki family for over thirty years, ultimately used his life to buy his lord a precious moment to catch his breath.
Hyogoro's blade mercilessly pierced his chest. Blood spurted forth like a spring.
"Sato!" Toshiya cried out in shock, but he was quickly seized by two other retainers who rushed to his side. They looked around anxiously, realizing the tide of battle had turned drastically and the situation was critical.
"My lord, the day is lost! We must retreat immediately!" the retainer Yamamoto urged desperately. His armor was covered in sword marks, and a wound on his left arm was still bleeding profusely.
Shimotsuki Toshiya forced himself to calm down, quickly analyzing the battlefield situation. Though they had the numerical advantage, they were clearly at a disadvantage in terms of both elite fighters and ordinary samurai.
Kazuki Hidehiro, distracted by his eldest son's death and injured by Fukurokuju's sneak attack, could now only barely defend himself. Kazuki Hideaki's fight with Denjiro remained deadlocked. And while the ordinary samurai fought bravely, they were steadily losing ground before the elite Oniwabanshu.
"Only ten minutes... just ten minutes..." Toshiya muttered to himself, disbelief in his voice. Looking at the corpses littering the ground, he realized he had made a fatal error—grossly underestimating the enemy's strength.
Blood soaked the earth, gleaming with an eerie dark red under the pale moonlight.
"Hidehiro! Retreat now!" Toshiya shouted to the still-struggling Kazuki Hidehiro, his voice carrying an unprecedented urgency.
It was at that moment a loud, mocking laugh rang out from behind the battlefield. "Mwahahaha! Retreat? And where do you think you're retreating to?"
Shimotsuki Toshiya whirled around, his pupils contracting sharply.
Queen, accompanied by a large force of elite Beasts Pirates officers—including those who had already set sail like Nour Morris, Cedric, and Nixon—had appeared at their rear. These pirates' eyes gleamed with bloodlust, like a pack of starving wolves spotting prey, ready to pounce on the exhausted samurai.
"So... this was all an elaborately set trap from the start..." Toshiya's face instantly turned ashen. He finally understood he had fallen into a meticulously crafted snare.
Queen, puffing on a cigar, waved his hand triumphantly and gave the order. "Get 'em, boys! Wipe out all these troublemakers!"
The pirates roared a deafening battle cry and surged forward like a tide toward the already weary samurai. The battle immediately turned into a one-sided slaughter. The samurai's defensive line crumbled instantly. Some threw down their weapons and knelt, begging for mercy, only to be cut down without hesitation.
"Argh!" Kazuki Hidehiro, after a long and grueling fight and severely wounded, was finally cut down by Fukurokuju's blade.
Simultaneously, Kazuki Hideaki was pierced through the heart by Denjiro's sword, dying on the spot.
Queen blew out a smoke ring, recalling the intelligence King had shared with him yesterday. It turned out Denjiro had long been secretly controlled by King, tasked with luring the rebels into the open. The plan had been so thorough that even a high-ranking officer like himself had been kept in the dark. Remembering how that bastard King had even frightened him earlier with talk of Seastone weapons made Queen grit his teeth in irritation.
The battle ended swiftly, leaving only a chaotic scattering of corpses across the field. Queen nodded in satisfaction and commanded Hyogoro, "The cleanup of these bodies is your responsibility."
"As you command," Hyogoro replied, bowing his head, a complex light flashing in his eyes.
Queen continued laying out the plan of action. "Morris, you're with me to the Kazuki family. Cedric, Nixon, you handle the Shimotsuki family. Remember, for any family involved in the rebellion, leave no one alive!"
"Understood!" The three officers answered in unison, immediately leading their subordinates to carry out their separate missions.
Hyogoro remained where he stood, watching Queen's departing back, his fists unconsciously clenching. He wanted to speak up, to stop this massacre, but in the end, he only lowered his head in silence. He knew this bloody purge was only just beginning, and Wano Country's resistance was likely facing its darkest night yet. The night wind swept across the battlefield, carrying with it the thick scent of blood. This carefully orchestrated slaughter would become yet another indelible dark chapter in Wano Country's history.
In the subsequent operations, the Beasts Pirates officers carried out Queen's orders to the letter. Morris led a team of elites straight to the Kazuki family estate, while Cedric and Nixon led their forces toward the Shimotsuki family. Holding torches aloft, they formed lines of fire dragons in the night. Wherever they went, the families of the rebels were completely massacred.
Meanwhile, Hyogoro remained behind to oversee the disposal of the corpses. Looking at the piled-up mountain of bodies, his heart was filled with conflict and anguish. As a native Wano Country samurai, he had to carry out these brutal orders, yet deep down, he felt profound sympathy for these fellow countrymen.
"Sir, all the bodies have been tallied," a subordinate reported.
Hyogoro nodded heavily. "Dispose of them according to custom." He turned to gaze into the distance, where faint cries and the glow of burning houses could be heard and seen. He knew that tonight, Wano Country was destined to undergo a baptism of blood and fire.
When Morris's team arrived at the Kazuki family estate, the entire mansion was in chaos. The women huddled together, trembling. Children hid in corners, terrified. Morris coldly gave the order: "Execute them all. Leave no one alive!" The pirates raised their bloody blades with cruel laughter, and screams echoed into the night sky.
The other team led by Cedric and Nixon reached the Shimotsuki residence. They smashed through the gates, killing anyone they saw. The Shimotsuki samurai resisted valiantly, but they were at an absolute disadvantage in both numbers and strength. Cedric swung a massive battle-axe, each swing sending a spray of blood through the air. Nixon moved rapidly through the crowd with his signature twin swords, leaving only fallen bodies in his wake.
This slaughter lasted the entire night. When the first rays of dawn sunlight fell upon the land of Wano Country, the once-prominent Kazuki and Shimotsuki families existed no more. Corpses lay haphazardly in the streets. The air was thick with the heavy smell of blood and char.
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