"Sis, what do you think Mom would do if she hears this?"
"Telling Mom wouldn't be much effective, we should sell it to Sister Yamato instead. She'll definitely like this news more. She's got tons of stuff in her hands, there's bound to be something fun."
"Why not just sell it a few more times? Aunt Shayna might want one too."
Meowna and Wolff didn't answer Queen. Instead, they started loudly plotting right in front of him.
"Where the hell did you brats learn this kind of thing?"
No one would whisper in such a loud voice unless they were doing it on purpose.
To Queen, this was a blatant threat: if he didn't do something, they would do something. It was very much like how Yamato used to act a few years ago.
"Alright, out with it. What do you two want?"
"Nothing for now."
"We'll tell you when we do want something."
"Great. Just don't let me find out who taught you this. You've even learned how to demand blank checks. Can't you learn something good instead!"
Faced with the overbearing terms, Queen's cheeks began twitching. Life as an officer was getting harder and harder. At first, it was the second generation who learned how to trick him, but now, even the third generation has learned to do it.
"It's fine, it was Sister Yamato who taught us. She said if we catch hold of your weakness, we have to take full advantage, otherwise she won't feel satisfied."
In response to Queen's question, Meowna bluntly gave him the answer, leaving Queen swallowing down the words he was about to say.
"Yeah, and Sister Yamato also said it's only allowed with you, not with anyone else."
Wolff's follow-up was perfectly on target. Queen was a bit lost, why would the usually carefree Yamato hold such a grudge?
"Oh young miss… when did she teach you that?"
"Hmm, that time when you all went out to fight."
"The time we all went out to fight… Summit War."
Queen weakly slapped his own face. The case was solved. There was only one reason Yamato had suddenly started holding a grudge: back then, he had wanted to drag Yamato down and got both of them beaten up by Kaido.
As it turned out, he had underestimated Yamato's resentment toward Kaido.
"Forget it… but I have to teach you something. Even pirates must uphold honor and loyalty. So once we reach an agreement, you're not allowed to tell anyone else about this, understood?"
They were just two twelve-year-old kids. At worst, they'd want a mecha. Building a small one wasn't difficult. Queen was only worried they'd copy Yamato halfway—demanding benefits in front, and then betraying him behind his back.
"Don't worry, Uncle Queen. Sister Yamato also said keeping promises is a must. Otherwise, it'll be hard to trick you in the future."
This time Queen didn't react much. In fact, he even felt he had gained quite a lot. At least now he was certain Yamato must be plotting something again. It seemed he'd have to make Hawkins do a few more divinations in the future.
But because of Arceus, anything related to Yamato would end up being obscured. So the question of how to predict the risks became a new problem.
Having settled the issue of his personal safety, Queen pulled out a Smart Tanishi from his pocket.
He had quite a collection of communication devices: a Rotom to contact the Beasts Pirates' officers, a Den Den Mushi to reach external members and certain organizations, and a Smart Tanishi for contacting the local forces in Wano Country. Each of the three communication devices worked fairly well, serving their own distinct purposes.
"Hello? Hotei? Some troublesome people have shown up in Wano Country. It's Kozuki Oden's son and his retainers from twenty years ago."
"I'm not sure exactly who they are, but take some people and find them. Also, let your Shogun know. After all, it's her brother. Just thinking about it is amusing. Muhahaha!"
After sending the message back, Queen planned to leave with this group here. After all, this was Kozuki Oden's son. He couldn't just let him silently die here.
"As for these people, forget it. I'll bring them myself."
Out of habit, Queen wanted to summon a few underlings, but discovered that only Mandrell had followed him. Aside from him, there were just the three little kids and Bewear.
The little kids were hard to order around, and Bewear wasn't very convenient either. In front of Maylo, he also didn't plan to order Mandrell around, so he simply dragged Inuarashi and Nekomamushi away himself.
As for Momonosuke, he didn't want to take him. Since Mandrell already had him in hand, he could just keep holding on.
"Mandrell, speaking of which, your daughter's pretty lucky. That signal flare she fired was right on time. You've also accumulated quite a lot of contributions for her over the years, that should be enough."
"With an opportunity like this, it's easier for you to speak up. Having Lord Arceus personally bestow her with an ability is much better than leaving it to chance."
"Actually, I was just about to bring this up, but I didn't expect Lord Arceus not to be around."
"Where Lord Arceus is, that's not for us to worry about. By the way, since you haven't been back for a while, let me remind you: be careful of Boss Kaido. These days he might just drop in out of nowhere."
"Uh, Brother Queen, with all due respect, lately Boss Kaido only seems particularly dangerous to you and the young miss."
"Mandrell, I'm starting to not like you."
While Queen was already on his way back, on the other side Hotei had convened a meeting of the Shinsengumi.
"Everyone! Lord Queen has sent a message. This is a crucial moment for us."
The people at Hotei's side were all around middle age, and there were even some ninjas present. Though the leader of ninjas was Greninja, most of the time Greninja only managed a few captains. He didn't interfere with what the rest were doing.
In fact, even the authority over ordinary members was in Hotei's hands. Anyway, with no particularly strong people among them, they couldn't cause any big trouble.
"Here is the intelligence I found in the warehouse. Kin'emon, Kanjuro, Raizo; their appearances are extremely similar to the fraudsters reported earlier from Kuri Castle!
Together with Lord Queen's message, I suspect it's very likely to be them!"
With the spread of modern communication facilities, even while in the Flower Capital, Hotei could receive intelligence from other regions in the shortest possible time.
They didn't recognize Kaido or Arceus, their behavior was strange, and they were very fast.
That was the information reported from below, and the reason Hotei had called this meeting.
"Everyone, you all chose to join me back then. Now twenty years have passed since that day. Surely no one is dissatisfied with life as it is now?"
Hotei heard no objections, so he immediately continued.
"Very well, I won't waste time on meaningless talk, I'll just lay out the facts. These people are followers of Kozuki Oden, and they support Kozuki Momonosuke.
Even if the chance is slim, if they somehow succeed in regaining their authority, we'll be the ones who'll suffer! You haven't forgotten the lesson of the Kurozumi family, have you?
I don't need to remind you of the fate of those traitors decades ago. Today's Shogun is Lady Hiyori, but in the eyes of other Kozuki family members, we are traitors!"
It was a matter of stance. In the eyes of Wano Country's people now, the Shinsengumi were just well-treated civil officials.
Compared to the disorganization in the original timeline, this Shinsengumi had gone through detailed assessments—written tests, interviews, and combat assessments. Only those who passed all three could successfully join.
But no matter how nicely it was put, in the hearts of those loyal to Momonosuke, they were still traitors.
"You all know what Wano Country is like these days. It's mostly petty thieves. It's not easy to catch a serious criminal anymore."
"Fraudsters can only make up the numbers, but these men… they are walking contributions! Waiting for another opportunity like this would be almost impossible. There are only three enemies. Take them down at any cost, and I will see to it that you are rewarded!"
"Yes, sir!"
Whether for their own safety, for profit, or simply from the perspective of the current Wano Country, they all had reasons to capture them. Large numbers of Shinsengumi advanced toward Kuri, beginning a large-scale search for Kin'emon and the others.
Meanwhile, Kozuki Hiyori also received the news.
"Lady Shogun, news from Lord Queen. Your elder brother, Kozuki Momonosuke, has reappeared."
"Oh? Is that so? And where is my dear brother now?"
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