The samurai present stared intently at Ashura Dōji.
In their eyes, Orochi was indeed the shogun of Wano Country. But without Kaidō’s support, he was nothing more than a paper tiger.
Taking him down shouldn’t be difficult.
"No. You’re thinking about this too simply!" Ashura Dōji said in a deep voice.
"Orochi may be nothing more than a paper tiger, and opening Wano’s borders may indeed be easy."
"But once we open Wano’s borders, our greatest challenge will be defending the country."
"With Kaidō’s vengeful personality, he will never simply hand Wano Country over to us. He’ll definitely come back for revenge."
"And if he does return, do we have anyone in Wano capable of stopping him?"
"If we can’t even stop Kaidō, then after paying such a tremendous price to open Wano’s borders, everything will have been for nothing. We’d only be sacrificing more lives in vain!"
"What Wano lacks right now is a truly powerful fighter!"
The expressions of the samurai immediately became grim.
There was simply no way to refute Ashura’s words.
Over the years, they had come to understand just how terrifying Kaidō of the Beasts truly was.
If they fought desperately to open Wano’s borders but couldn’t withstand the Beasts Pirates’ retaliation afterward, then all their efforts would indeed be meaningless.
Sensing the atmosphere in the group suddenly change, Ashura Dōji said nothing more.
He took a gulp of strong liquor and was about to turn around and leave.
But the moment he turned his head, an unexpected figure immediately entered his field of vision.
"Who exactly are you?"
Ashura spoke in a low voice.
Looking at the uninvited young man before him, he was clearly caught off guard.
He knew perfectly well that he wasn’t Kaidō’s equal.
But he wasn’t so weak that someone could sneak up behind him without him noticing.
Yet this young man had somehow evaded his senses and appeared here without warning.
That was completely beyond his understanding.
The expressions of the samurai present changed as well, and they instinctively tightened their grips on their weapons.
The conversation they had just had was far too sensitive.
If word of it reached Orochi—or worse, Kaidō—the few samurai Wano had left could very well be subjected to a bloody purge.
For Wano Country, whose foundations were already so fragile, that would only make an already dire situation even worse.
"Don’t worry. I’m not one of Orochi’s or Kaidō’s men."
Lucas raised his wine gourd and took a gulp of Strong liquor .
"Someone told me you’re worth twenty million, so I came to take a look."
"But you’re right. Wano Country really is lacking truly powerful fighters right now."
"And you yourself are barely worth twenty million."
"I’m worth twenty million?"
Ashura’s expression darkened.
"Brat, what the hell are you talking about? Who sent you here to say something so ridiculous?"
"If you can’t give me a reasonable explanation, don’t blame me for being rude."
"That’s right! Our boss Ashura was personally chosen by Kaidō of the Beasts. He can hold his own even against Jack the Drought! Forget twenty million—on the sea, he’s worth at least seven or eight hundred million!"
One of the samurai could no longer restrain his anger.
"Are you deliberately insulting our boss by saying he’s only worth twenty million?"
The surrounding samurai drew their swords as well.
They knew that if this matter wasn’t cleared up, a battle was inevitable.
Ashura’s face became icy as he slowly tightened his grip around the hilt of his sword.
As one of the surviving members of the Nine Red Scabbards, Ashura had managed to remain in Wano after the great incident, continuing to operate as a bandit chief while Kaidō turned a blind eye to his activities.
His strength was unquestionably recognized.
Precisely because of that, there were very few people in Wano who dared provoke him.
Now, a mysterious young man of unknown origin had suddenly appeared before him.
Naturally, Ashura’s nerves were stretched taut.
Most importantly, from beginning to end, the young man before him gave him an unfathomable feeling.
"Ashura, stop!"
Nekomamushi and Inuarashi hurried over.
"This is Lucas, the newly appointed Marine Admiral. If he says you’re worth that much, then you’re worth that much!"
"We sold you—"
Nekomamushi abruptly corrected himself.
"I mean, we recommended you!"
"Don’t do anything reckless. Otherwise, you might not even be worth twenty million!"
"Not even worth twenty million?"
Ashura’s expression instantly turned cold.
"So it was you two! I was wondering who was behind this!"
"So you two sold me off—and for only twenty million?"
"Then I’ll see whether you two are even qualified to take away your twenty-million bounty!"
Boom!
Ashura Dōji took a single step forward.
His enormous body moved with astonishing agility.
The hundred-meter distance between them vanished in the blink of an eye.
Seeing that he was almost within striking distance, Ashura’s speed surged once again.
His entire figure seemed to vanish like a ghost.
When he reappeared, he was already behind Lucas.
The blade in his hand flashed with a cold gleam as he brought it crashing down with overwhelming force.
"Brat, Wano Country may indeed be lacking truly powerful fighters right now, but that doesn’t mean just anyone can come here and run wild!"
"I’ll see exactly what you’re capable of if you can make those two sell me off for twenty million!"
Boom!
A dull impact suddenly rang out.
Ashura Dōji stared at Lucas from point-blank range, his expression freezing slightly.
He had originally thought that this sudden strike would force Lucas to defend himself.
He never expected that his blade would be stopped just an inch away from Lucas by a layer of golden light.
Looking at the figure standing calmly beneath the golden radiance, Ashura Dōji’s expression became increasingly grim.
He hadn’t used his full strength in that slash.
But ordinarily, even if Jack the Drought had come looking for trouble, that strike would never have ended without accomplishing anything.
What Ashura Dōji found most unbelievable was that, despite his sudden attack, his opponent hadn’t moved even slightly from beginning to end.
He simply stood there, calmly drinking his alcohol.
That effortless composure made Ashura Dōji’s nerves tighten to their absolute limit.
He glanced back at Nekomamushi and Inuarashi in the distance and roared furiously.
"You two actually dared to sell me out!"
"If you want Lord Oden to die with his eyes closed, then hurry up and join me! Let’s take this bastard down together!"
"Otherwise, don’t blame me for turning on you two as well!"
Kaidō had only just left.
With Orochi now the only major force remaining in Wano, the arrival of Nekomamushi and Inuarashi gave Ashura Dōji a glimmer of hope.
He still remembered how badly Nekomamushi and Inuarashi had performed during the decisive battle back then.
But when it came to the greater cause of Wano Country, Ashura could only put aside his personal grievances.
"Join forces with you?"
Nekomamushi froze for a moment.
Then he immediately turned around and bolted.
"We sold you precisely because we don’t want Lord Oden to die with his eyes closed!"
"Inuarashi, run! Don’t let Ashura’s stupidity drag us into this!"
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