If we're captured, it will mean certain death.
Toki's mind raced as the Oniwabanshū closed in, blades flashing in the moonlight. The only way to survive… is to use my power. If I send us to the future, at least the bloodline will endure.
But her ability wasn't instantaneous. She needed precious seconds to weave it, and she knew their enemies wouldn't grant them that time.
She turned to Inuarashi, eyes fierce but pleading. "I need time. When I call for you, go to Momonosuke and Hiyori immediately. Protect them at all costs—understand?"
Inuarashi's jaw clenched. He didn't fully understand, but he nodded regardless. "Don't worry, my lady. I'll give everything I have."
Toki's gaze softened for a moment. "…Please."
"Get them!"
The Oniwabanshū surged forward. Three of them engaged Inuarashi head-on, while the rest swept around, charging straight for Momonosuke.
Everyone there knew it—capturing the boy was the true prize. The heir of the Kozuki clan was worth more than all their lives combined.
Even if the others escaped, with Momonosuke in Orochi's hands, they would eventually be forced to return.
"So… it's really Momo they're after."
Toki's heart lurched. She could see it clearly, but she was already beginning to summon her power—she couldn't move, couldn't intervene.
"Inuarashi… I'm entrusting him to you."
Her eyes closed briefly as she prayed.
"DON'T YOU DARE LAY A HAND ON LORD MOMONOSUKE!!!"
Inuarashi's roar shook the night as he lunged, his blade flashing with desperation. His fangs bared, his eyes bloodshot—he didn't care what happened to his body, as long as Momo was safe.
But the Oniwabanshū weren't ordinary foes. These were Orochi's personal guards, the finest assassins Wano could muster. They slipped through his strikes, their coordination flawless.
And then—
"Ahhh!"
A cry pierced the chaos.
Inuarashi's heart sank as he whipped his head around.
Momonosuke had been seized.
The boy struggled wildly, kicking and thrashing, but the enemy's grip was iron.
"Let go of Lord Momonosuke!!!"
Inuarashi's roar tore through the night as he hurled himself at the Oniwabanshū, fangs bared, blade flashing with desperation.
"Momonosuke!"
Kozuki Toki's eyes widened as her son was dragged away. Then, with a trembling breath, her gaze hardened. A mother's hesitation vanished, replaced with steel.
There's no choice left.
"Go to the future, Momonosuke…" Toki whispered, her hands glowing as the power of time surged violently through her body. "…and may you one day realize your father Oden's dream."
Her ability—one that normally required time and preparation—was forcefully invoked at the cost of her own life force. Time rippled from her body, distorting the air.
"Inuarashi!!!"
"Yes!"
The Dog Duke didn't hesitate. Wounds opened across his body as he carved through the enemy with reckless abandon, pushing toward the boy he had sworn to protect.
"It's now!"
Toki's voice cracked with strain. She released her power, the time-space rift opening beneath them.
Light enveloped Momonosuke and Inuarashi—
"Don't even think of escaping!!!"
Kanjuro lunged, his blade flashing in a desperate slash.
SHNK!
The sword tore across Momonosuke's small frame—yet before blood could even spill, he and Inuarashi were swallowed by the stream of time, vanishing into the future.
"Sorry, Hiyori…"
Exhausted, Toki sagged to her knees. Relief flickered in her eyes—Momo was safe. At least the Kozuki name would endure.
But when her gaze shifted to her daughter, sorrow twisted in her chest.
She had wanted to send Hiyori too. She had wanted both her children to live. But her power only allowed one destination, one path. And Hiyori had not been by Momo's side when the rift opened.
In Wano… a son's life weighs heavier than a daughter's. Even I… can't deny that truth.
Although she was my daughter, in Wano the fate of a girl could never compare to that of a boy.
Even Kozuki Toki knew this. In the end, she could only choose to send Momonosuke.
As a woman herself, she understood the cruel truth...women held no power to shape the future.
The thought gnawed at her.
"Hiyori…"
Her daughter stood silently, her young face expressionless. The spark in her eyes had dimmed into something hollow.
"They didn't even think of me, did they?" Hiyori's voice was quiet, almost numb.
Her small hands balled into fists, but her gaze never wavered. Those once-bright eyes now looked dull, detached—yet in that emptiness, a seed of something else was born.
Weak. Powerless. Forgotten.
That was what the world saw when it looked at her.
"Sorry, Hiyori…" Toki's voice broke as tears welled. But her apology hung hollow in the air, unanswered.
For all Toki saw was her daughter staring back—eyes empty, silent, yet carrying the first stirrings of a different strength.
The strength that grows when one is abandoned.
Hiyori didn't realize… in her mother's heart, the truth was already decided. As a girl, she could never be the future of the clan.
So they chose her brother instead.
"Hiyori…?"
Toki's eyes lingered on her daughter, wide with something between realization and regret.
But whatever words she might have spoken...whatever truth she had finally accepted were swallowed as her strength left her.
"...I'm sorry, Hiyori."
Those were her last words, her gaze apologetic and filled with sorrow.
And then Kozuki Toki's body slumped, her life ending quietly.
"..."
Hiyori stared at her mother's still form. A pang of sadness pressed against her chest, but to her surprise… no tears came.
Not even one.
Perhaps, in that moment, she thought distantly—this is what it means to grow up.
"What now?"
The Oniwabanshū shifted uneasily. Orochi's orders had been clear: Kozuki Momonosuke was the target. But he had vanished into the future. Only the girl remained.
"Do we even bother? She's just a girl. The Kozuki already have a son—she's worthless to the clan."
The words hung cold in the air.
"Take her back," Kanjuro snapped at last, forcing the decision.
"…Yes."
Reluctantly, the Oniwabanshū advanced on the lone girl.
BOOM!!!
A torrent of dark magic surged out of nowhere, wrapping around Hiyori like a shield.
The air itself cracked as the blast hurled the Oniwabanshū backwards, scattering them like leaves in a storm.
"What—?!"
The guards staggered, stunned, their eyes snapping toward the source of the attack.
"Who's there?!"
The night was silent for only a heartbeat.
Then a figure stepped from the shadows.
Kanjuro's eyes widened. His face drained of color, panic seizing him before he even realized it.
"...No. Not here."
His instincts screamed at him to retreat.
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