The golden dragon's body lengthened and thickened, stretching hundreds of meters across the sky.
Hiyori just stared.
"Stay in the boat and get some sleep," Jin's voice rumbled, echoing strangely through the dragon's maw.
"This will take a few hours at least.
"Rest while we travel."
"Y–yes, Musashi-sama!" Hiyori stammered.
A huge claw gently reached down and scooped the boat up.
Wind twisted around them, forming a translucent shell.
Then the dragon beat his wings once.
They shot forward.
Hiyori yelped at first, gripping the edge of the boat.
But after a few moments she realized…
They weren't sHaking.
They weren't freezing.
The boat floated as steady as if it were on a still pond.
An invisible barrier blocked the wind and cold.
Warm, almost cozy.
Jin's aura pressed against the sky, parting clouds as they went.
Hiyori's nerves slowly unwound.
She ducked into the tiny cabin.
Inside, she found a neatly Ryder-out futon. Beside it sat several large bags, carefully stacked.
Musashi-sama… really thought about everything, she realized.
He barely spoke to her.
He was blunt. Rude, even.
But he'd prepared all this.
From today onward, she was his person.
His responsibility.
His… something.
She wasn't sure what to call it.
Her eyelids grew heavy.
Bit by bit, the rocking of the dragon's flight lulled her to sleep.
She crawled under the blanket.
And drifted off.
Jin checked with his Observation Haki.
Sound asleep.
"Good," he muttered.
He flapped his wings harder and poured on the speed.
Time wasn't exactly on his side.
The Whitebeard incident should still be simmering, not boiling yet—but the clock was ticking.
Far away, deep under Wano, Queen tromped through a Haki–seastone mine, counting crates.
"What do you mean, some of it's missing?" he yelled. "When Kaido gets back and thinks I skimmed from his stock, I'll be the one getting skewered!
"No, no, no, gotta make this up fast… these are already refined…"
His complaining echoed down the tunnels.
In the New World's misty seas, a shadow rose from beneath the surface.
Zou.
A gigantic elephant, walking endlessly through the ocean.
High above, perched on its back, the Mokomo Dukedom slept under a cloudy sky.
Jin hovered over the great beast's head and looked down.
"…In his eyes, I'm basically a flying snack," he muttered.
He descended slowly.
On the forested slopes, Nekomamushi jerked awake from his nap, fur bristling.
High on a rampart, Inuarashi, in the middle of patrol, looked up sharply.
Both of them saw it.
A long, scaled body cutting through the clouds.
"Everyone, battle stations!" Inuarashi shouted. "Prepare to fight!"
"Meow… damn it, is that Kaido? What's that bastard want with Zou?" Nekomamushi growled.
"Everyone, ready to fight back with everything you've got!"
Alarm bells rang across the city.
Clang, clang, clang, clang—
The whole of the Mokomo Dukedom stirred.
"…Huh?" Jin blinked. "They think I'm Kaido?"
By the time Nekomamushi and Inuarashi had rallied at the main street, they'd gotten a clearer view.
"Gold?" Nekomamushi squinted. "That's not Kaido's color, nya…"
Inuarashi didn't relax.
"Don't let your guard down, cat," he said. "Golden or not, that's a dragon.
"And a very strong one."
"Shut up, old dog. You're the one who'll die first if we're not careful, nya."
Jin landed gently on the wide main road, then set the tiny boat down with surprising care.
His massive body shrank, scales receding, wings folding back into his shoulders.
With a soft thump, he was human again.
Behind him, inside the boat, Hiyori jolted awake at the impact.
She looked around in a daze.
Then remembered.
She wasn't in Wano anymore.
She stumbled out of the cabin and blinked at the strange furred figures surrounding them.
"Are we… here?" she asked quietly.
Her eyes landed on a tall dog mink in armor.
Then a huge, lion-maned cat.
Her face lit up.
"Dogstorm! Cat Viper!"
Inuarashi and Nekomamushi stared.
The more they looked, the more familiar that tiny face became.
Years had passed, but—
A mini version of Toki.
"Hiyori-sama," they breathed in unison.
Then both dropped to their knees.
"Lady Hiyori!" they cried.
The musketeers and guardians behind them blinked in confusion.
"That's—?"
"Is she—?"
"Dogstorm, Cat Viper! It really is you!" Hiyori jumped down from the boat and hurried over, skirts fluttering.
She threw her arms around Nekomamushi's fluffy neck.
The cat king practically vibrated.
Inuarashi lowered his head, ears trembling.
"We bid you welcome, Lady Hiyori," they said together.
"Please forgive us for not greeting you sooner."
"Please, rise, rise!" Hiyori fussed, patting Nekomamushi's fur. "You mustn't kneel to me like that—"
Jin, now back in his usual black pants and white shirt, stepped away from the boat and lit a cigarette.
Minks all around them watched warily.
Some growled.
Some blushed.
"Wanda," a squirrel mink whispered. "That human is so handsome. I kind of… feel something."
"Get a grip, Ella,"Wanda muttered. "Don't let a pretty face fool you."
She risked a glance herself.
Then looked down quickly when her heart did a funny little hop.
Jin exhaled smoke.
Good, he thought, watching Hiyori hugging the giant fluffballs. She can do the explaining.
He turned and stepped back into the boat to change, leaving them to it.
Outside, Nekomamushi snuck a glance over his shoulder.
"So it was Lord Sukiyaki who had you travel with that man?" he asked Hiyori.
"Yes," Hiyori nodded. "Grandfather said… once we reached Zou, I had to explain things quickly so there wouldn't be a misunderstanding."
Nekomamushi's tail puffed.
"Che. That guy doesn't look like a good person at all," he muttered. "Just stay here, Hiyori-sama. With me and that flea-bitten mutt, we'll protect you."
"That's right," Inuarashi said firmly. "You'll be safe here."
Hiyori shook her head.
"It's alright," she said. "I know you mean well, but Grandfather told me to follow him.
"He… said it would be good for us."
"Good for us how?" Nekomamushi demanded.
He eyed Jin, who had just reappeared in clean clothes.
The dragon had become a tall human once more.
Relaxed stance, cigarette between his fingers.
And yet…
Every mink warrior on the street had gone tense.
"This has to be him," Ella whispered. "Look at those eyes…"
"Stop drooling," Wanda hissed.
Jin took another drag.
"You done explaining?" he asked. "I'm on a schedule.
"Once I'm finished here, I've got other stops to make."
"Listen, human," Nekomamushi said, stepping forward. "I don't care what you said to Lord Sukiyaki.
"From now on, Lady Hiyori is the future of Wano. Watch your tone when you talk to her."
Jin stared at him.
"Are you finished?" he asked. "If so, take me to your red stone so I can make a rubbing.
"Once that's done, I walk. You can keep the girl if you want. That saves me trouble."
A sharp gleam flashed in Inuarashi's eyes.
"Who told you about that, human?" he said softly. "Who told you of the Road Poneglyph?"
Jin smiled slightly.
"What do you think?"
Around them, musketeers and guardians tightened their grips on weapons.
Spears. Swords. Muskets.
A ring of steel and fur closed in.
He ignored them.
"Are you going to think this through?" he asked calmly. "Or should I go get it myself?
"I know exactly where it is."
He flicked ash away.
"And if this turns into a fight," he added, "don't forget—I can fly.
"I hit you in the day, then fly off. When there's no full moon, I come back and hit you again.
"That's your best-case scenario."
His eyes went flat.
"And you really think the Mink Tribe can stop me?"
Ella's ears flattened.
"I can't believe I thought he was a good guy just because he was handsome," she muttered. "What a jerk!"
Wanda side-eyed her.
"You were the one squealing a second ago."
"Don't get too cocky, human," Inuarashi said, drawing his sword. "You may be strong, but this is Zou.
"Be a little more humble."
Jin's Haki surged.
"Oh?" he said softly. "So we're doing this?"
He glanced around at the drawn weapons.
At the dog with a blade.
At the cat with a trident.
Then he laughed.
"I almost forgot," he said. "This is a world where only the strong get to talk."
He pressed a hand over his face and chuckled.
"It's been a while since I really fought," he murmured. "I almost missed this feeling."
"Musashi-sama, please don't!" Hiyori cried. "I'll tell Dogstorm and Cat Viper to help you. They'll take you to the stone!"
Every mink on the street felt it.
The air changed.
Killing intent rolled out like a storm tide.
Swords and spears raised as one.
Inuarashi and Nekomamushi both stepped forward, weapons ready.
They'd only meant to scare him.
To test his attitude.
Now, somehow, they'd backed themselves into a corner.
And getting out of this without a fight—
Wasn't going to be easy.
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