"Why? Why is it that even knowing you're bound to fail, you can still stay this calm?", Kozuki Toki stared hard at Rosse, once again repeating the question, shouting out what she most wanted to know.
'Since Saint Rosse knows so much, then he should also know. Fate cannot be changed, the World Government is destined to be destroyed.'
'So why, when faced with the unavoidable, can Saint Rosse be so composed, instead of showing all kinds of disgrace like us?'
"What kind of expression should I wear? Because I know the prophecy, should I arrogantly believe I can kill the Child of Destiny ahead of time? Or hide in the shadows like a rat, waiting until the storm passes? Or should I give up and drown myself in fleeting pleasures?", Rosse looked at Toki with amusement. He knew very well why Toki had broken down.
"Kozuki Oden chose to escape, Roger chose to escape, but not everyone will choose to escape."
"You know, two months ago, I actually admired Oden a little."
"At least during the Holy Land incident, he didn't choose to be a coward. He went there himself, and took part in the ambush against the Five Elders. In the end, they succeeded."
"Though the price was steep, they achieved something that hadn't been done in 800 years. For the first time, those of us standing high above were pulled down from the clouds."
"And for that, Rayleigh, Gaban, Bullet, Oden's former companions, chose to die, and they died by my hand."
"Of course, it wasn't as if they truly went gallantly to their deaths. Before going to the Holy Land, they didn't think they would die either. They tried their best to run, but couldn't escape."
"Oh right, Oden himself ran pretty fast back then, fleeing with Nekomamushi, not even bothering to collect Inuarashi's corpse."
Rosse paused, the corners of his lips slightly curving, "I thought once I reached Wano, it would be an interesting fight. I was even ready to grant Oden a glorious death."
"If he had died in battle, all his sins would have been written off. Wano would not be implicated, the Kozuki clan would not be implicated."
"But who would have thought he'd choose to run. A fake death? How stupid must you be to think up such a plan? Not die earlier, not die later, just so happens to die right after coming back to Wano?", Rosse let out a scornful laugh.
"That was a plan brought by Kurozumi Orochi," Toki protested in a small, unwilling voice.
Though even she felt the plan was full of holes. But that plan wasn't theirs to begin with, and they were never good at playing these schemes anyway.
"Then you were even dumber," Rosse said bluntly, "What kind of bait did he feed you? Did he say it was for the people of Wano? Or for the future of Wano?"
"For the future of the people of Wano…", Toki twisted her body, covered her face with her hands, feeling like she was dying of shame.
Back then she hadn't thought much about it, and Raizo's group had been shouting every day until her head spun, so she simply followed Orochi's logic.
'But thinking about it now, wasn't it just nonsense?'
'Orochi, caring about the people of Wano?'
'That kind of man, how could he possibly care about Wano?'
From the very start, they'd been led by the nose.
"A bunch of idiots," Rosse chuckled softly, giving his verdict outright.
In his eyes, Toki was already the smartest of the Kozuki clan, only because she had seen a bit more of the world.
As for the others, even calling them brutes was flattering them.
But this was simply the norm of this world. Wano had no education or culture; everyone grew up wild.
To grow up in such an environment, the first requirement was strength.
But to have both strength and brains, such people were too few.
Across the entire sea, there weren't even ten such people.
As for the Kozuki clan? They were just a gang of street thugs. What brains could you expect from them?
From beginning to end, they had only relied on Oden's power and status.
The moment that power failed, the Kozuki clan could only be toyed with.
"Ugh…", Meeting Rosse's gaze, Toki shamefully curled her toes.
After Rosse's analysis, a cruel fact was laid bare before her.
Maybe it wasn't that Rosse was too strong or too charismatic. It was that the Kozuki clan was just too pathetic.
No brains, no courage, stubborn to the core, hopeless.
"If they're all so stupid, then why do you still want me to act?", Toki let out a wail. After Rosse threw the bloody truth in her face, she only felt more despair.
How could such a Kozuki clan still catch Rosse's attention?
So what if they were fools? Did being fools mean they had to be made into a spectacle?
"Because I want to see just how low their stupidity can go," Rosse rested his chin on his hands, smiling faintly at her.
The past few times, though he had used open schemes to sow discord, he still played some little tricks to win women over. Hiding certain things, keeping back certain truths.
But this time, he was plainly telling Toki: what he was doing was sowing discord.
It was a different approach from before, but he really wanted to see; how would Toki try to break out of it?
As for those so-called trump cards she had just mentioned, he dismissed them as jokes.
Calling them trump cards, but he didn't see any true conviction or resolve in her.
That whole stance of hers was nothing more than putting herself on the bargaining table, to trade for Kozuki Hiyori's future.
He hadn't said it outright, but he knew Toki understood his meaning.
No matter what choice Toki made, Hiyori would be fine. But the Kozuki clan was finished.
As for what would happen to Toki herself in the future, that depended on what she chose.
"You figured it out!", Toki glared at Rosse like he was the ultimate pervert.
"How so?", Rosse asked with a smile.
"You're just living too well and looking for trouble," Toki said through gritted teeth, taking a deep breath, "Even if the Kozuki clan is still destined to be destroyed, I'll definitely make you suffer a huge shock. At the very least, I'll take a piece of flesh off you."
"A huge shock, I look forward to. Taking flesh, though, you can skip," Rosse chuckled, "If you really want to, I'll let you bite me right now, so long as you're willing to swallow afterward."
"Madman! Pervert!", Toki looked at him with disdain, not even glancing at the hand Rosse deliberately extended.
She meant it sincerely.
Rosse clearly had her figured out, sure that her resistance had no value.
Though she also knew the Kozuki clan were brainless, and no match for Rosse, she still wanted to fight for something.
Rosse had just displayed his grandeur.
If she kept acting weak like before, wouldn't that mean Wano had no one left to stand?
If the Kozuki clan couldn't shoulder the burden, then the Amatsuki clan would.
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