Night falls.
On the northern slope of Asakura Island, there is a cemetery by the sea.
Shano effortlessly carries Sakuraba Itsuki's corpse over his shoulder, stepping into the cemetery gate, while Junichi follows silently, biting his lip.
"Where?"
"This way, boss." Junichi leads Shano to an old grave.
The tombstone on this grave has Sakuraba Itsuki's name engraved on it.
As they dug open the grave, it was indeed empty inside.
The desolate late wind blows into the cemetery, cherry blossoms wither beside the grave, falling on the shoulder of the frail boy.
Junichi squats on the ground and suddenly bursts into tears.
He wishes it were all just a nightmare, that the monstrous figure beyond description wasn't his father, that the real Sakuraba Itsuki had already closed his eyes peacefully, lying in this grave.
Shano watches quietly from the side.
No need for much comfort at this moment, just a little time for emotions to be vented.
He understands Junichi's feelings; a person he once admired and respected suddenly turned into a mad demon, not everyone can endure such a blow.
Turning his head back towards the city direction, Shano ponders.
Just now in the dojo, after defeating the real "Carpenter," the puppets that hadn't fully turned into marionettes began to slowly regain consciousness.
Outside, a large number of Navy Branch soldiers arrived, along with reporters rushing to shoot.
If they don't leave now, they'll become the center of public opinion, a trouble Shano feared most. So, he carried Sakuraba Itsuki's corpse and left the city with Junichi heading north, arriving at this cemetery.
Anyway, there are witnesses and evidence, so he's not afraid of the truth being buried.
In the future, the legend of Sakuraba Itsuki on Asakura Island probably will transform from a great swordsman who founded the Sword Dao Conference to a lunatic killing demon.
Junichi's wish to revive Asakura Dojo may also...
Who knows how long after.
Junichi's emotions eventually slowly recover.
With Shano's help, he places the corpse into the grave, silently sprinkling a few crumpled cherry blossom candies from his pocket on the corpse, and then they bury the soil again.
He bows several times deeply, glances at the tombstone, and finally follows Shano out of the cemetery gate.
Heavenly Celestial Dragon, Navy Vice Admiral Siteres... the frail boy's fists silently clench tightly.
...
After walking for a while.
"Did your former dojo or house have any underground chambers or anything like that?" Shano suddenly asks.
Junichi hesitates: "Boss, why ask about this suddenly?"
"Found something inside your father's body."
Shano pulls out a box with a dark yellow wooden surface, surprisingly shaped like a heart.
"This is his heart. Who knows if it was the Puppet Fruit causing his heart to turn into a cold wooden block, or if it was that already cold heart that turned him into a real puppet."
Who can say?
Junichi's gaze is complex, not knowing how to respond, then watches Shano open the box, revealing a key with a simple and archaic design.
"A key hidden in the heart, it must lead to something important." Shano pats his shoulder, "Come on, let's find out."
...
Half an hour later.
Following Junichi's childhood memories, they discover beneath the old house of the Sakuraba Dojo, an extremely concealed underground passage.
Reaching the end, they are met by a seemingly ordinary wooden door.
Shano pounds with his fist and immediately senses something: "There is a thick layer of steel behind this, without a key, not many in the East Sea could open it."
Undoubtedly, this is the most important and secret place for Sakuraba Itsuki.
Using the key to unlock the door, the two step inside, and after turning on the light, instinctively raise their hands to shield their eyes.
Because the small room is lined with cabinets on all sides, filled with various glittering treasures of gold and silver, almost blinding them.
"Is this... my father's vault?" Junichi looks around in daze, "All the billions of Belly he earned are here?"
"Doesn't seem like that much." Shano roughly estimates, shakes his head, and his gaze shifts to the items on the table.
Stacked on it are ledgers, letters, and various map materials...
He pulls out a chair, sits down, patiently reviews them, and after a simple analysis, a complete revenge plan instantly becomes clear.
"I must say, your father's revenge plan does have a certain chance of success."
Shano was somewhat surprised.
The upper limit of the number of people controlled by the Puppeteer fruit is far more than Sakuraba Itsuki claimed before, and the effective control distance is also far beyond what Shano imagined.
It even radiated to within hundreds of nautical miles of Asakura Island, to the territory of the Rajkot Kingdom.
About three years ago, taking advantage of the Sword Dao tournament's appeal, Sakuraba Itsuki invited some local officials from the Rajkot Kingdom to visit Asakura Island.
Among them, he selected a dozen who seemed promising and planted puppet strings.
Then, through massive monetary operations, he cast a wide net, cultivating these dozen officials into ministers relied upon by the Rajkot Royal Family.
Two of them were recommended by the Royal Family and passed the World Government's selection a month ago. They are soon to be employed in the Holy Land Mary Geoise as employees of the World Government.
Over time, they are bound to encounter those two female Heavenly Celestial Dragons.
Sakuraba Itsuki, therefore, felt that the timing was right, preparing to abandon the foundations on Asakura Island and head for the Shampodi Islands.
There, being the island closest to the Holy Land within the Grand Line, the distance is sufficient for him to control those two puppets that rose to the World Government at any time.
"After years of operations, he has probably invested six to seven hundred million Belly into it, and finally it has borne fruit."
Shano tossed the letters back to their original place, "The remaining funds amount to more than five hundred million, with over a hundred million here, while the remaining four hundred million Belly is stored in the bank vault in Log Town, and the vault key along with the proof of identity card is here."
"Which means, Junichi," Shano raised his head with a smile, "you're now a bona fide billionaire."
"Don't joke around, boss."
Junichi decisively shook his head, "His money is all ill-gotten, and I won't inherit it. That guy has nothing to do with me now! Truth be told, this money should rightfully be yours, boss!"
"Mine?"
Shano was slightly taken aback.
"Isn't that only natural?"
Junichi earnestly said, "That Evil Spirit that possessed my father's body was defeated solely thanks to you, and you found the key as well. Isn't it only natural that these should be your spoils of war?"
It seems it really is the case...
Shano didn't have Junichi's moral purity, but... could it be true, all this money is his?
Initially, he was only aiming for the five million reward of the Sword Dao tournament's championship, but the heads of the Seven Great Dojo's all croaked and he didn't know where to claim the prize.
Now it seems, the five million has multiplied more than a hundred times, turning into six hundred million Belly?
He's directly become a super rich man.
"Taking all six hundred million Belly would be a bit unsettling."
Shano still shook his head in the end, recalling the corpses in the dojo, "Moreover, the stuff in this house, cash is easy to carry, but the rest is too cumbersome, and the two of us can't carry it all."
"It can be left here temporarily and taken later, right?" Junichi was stunned, "After all, no one can break in here, can they?"
"No, I just need to take the four hundred million in the bank vault, that's enough. There's over a hundred million in cash here, I can take that too, the remaining over one hundred million Belly of treasures can be compensation to those victims."
Shano picked up a pen and paper, and began to write fervently.
"Later, clear out everything related to the revenge plan here, especially anything related to the Heavenly Celestial Dragons, and the remaining treasures..."
He turned to Junichi, "Among the island's upper circle, is there anyone reliable?"
"There is." Junichi seriously recalled, "The honorary president of the former Kendo Guild, Mr. Ah Zi was one, living his life cleanly, with a stubborn temper, very strong, most of his fortune used to support the children of the poor. Everyone respects him. Before my father changed, he treated him as a teacher for decades."
"Apart from Mr. Ah Zi, there are others, but they all lack the same prestige..."
"Then let Mr. Ah Zi supervise, and also make more copies at the magazine, informing the most reliable people about the bank vault treasure. Anyone with even a hint of doubt shouldn't be informed, ensuring as much of these treasures reach the victims' families."
"Alright, done! Let's begin clearing the letters."
After safekeeping the notification letter in his chest, Shano started clearing out this secret room filled with secrets with Junichi, ensuring nothing was overlooked.
In the midst of cleaning, Shano suddenly raised an eyebrow, his gaze landing on a specific compartment of the cabinet.
This compartment solely held an ordinary-looking sword sheath which seemed rather peculiar.
Beside it was pasted a photo, seemingly cut from a newspaper, showing a middle-aged man with a white Cloak of Justice smiling at the camera.
"Could this sword sheath be..."
Shano instantly realized something, glancing back to ensure Junichi wasn't watching before grabbing the sword sheath and initiating a sacrifice.
As expected.
The moment after, the sword sheath vanished without a trace, and the system panel appeared before him.
[Sacrifice: Siteres's favored sword sheath]
[Quality: Epic]
[Value: 600 points]
[Appraisal: One of the fifty Skillful Grade Blades, the original sheath for 'Winter Rain', was dropped into the sea along with the struggling Sakuraba Itsuki five years ago, disappearing without a trace after nearly twenty years of companionship. Navy Headquarters Vice Admiral Siteres often felt regret for its loss]