After a simple surface-level reconciliation, Sherwin and the others followed Hantaro and his group toward the place where these samurai were hiding—
A small town ruin built not far from the Northern Cemetery.
"Uwah... this place isn't much better than that big skull Meow."
(ω≡ω)
Klee Meow squatted on Sherwin shoulder, looking around restlessly.
"This is all the evil Kaido has wrought!"
Hantaro said resentfully, "Back then, Ringo and neighboring Hakumai were the two regions with the most intense resistance, so in a fit of rage, Kaido completely destroyed these two places!"
Beside them, Kaido Meow and Yamato both scratched their cheeks somewhat uncomfortably.
Then, Hantaro sighed again, "But other places aren't much better either only the Flower Capital where Kurozumi Orochi resides has remained undamaged."
"Speaking of which..." Sherwin asked curiously, "Fujitora actually didn't go and take care of Kurozumi Orochi?"
"Because the first thing Lord Fujitora did was come to rescue us."
When mentioning Fujitora, the benefactor who saved his life, Hantaro mood was clearly much more positive. He explained with a mix of gratitude and a hint of annoyance,
"That rat-bastard coward Orochi, upon learning we were rescued, immediately took his subordinates and went into hiding. Before Lord Fujitora could find him, Kaido arrived."
"In other words, Orochi isn't in the Flower Capital right now either?"
Sherwin raised an eyebrow. No wonder that little unlucky charm Touma Meow chose it if they actually went, it would just be a wasted trip.
As for the Poneglyph beneath the Flower Capital, that thing wasn't going to sprout legs and run away, so there was no need to rush.
"This is getting troublesome..."
Sherwin rubbed his chin, feeling a bit frustrated. If Orochi Kurozumi was hiding in some kind of safe house, even with Klee Meow luck, they might not necessarily find him. After all, the little Ragdoll was better at finding treasure than finding people.
Most importantly, Kaido had been lured away to who-knows-where by Issho, and he could return at any moment.
"As long as the Kaido problem is solved, a piece of trash like Orochi Kurozumi doesn't matter at all, right? Why is the Hunter so obsessed with him?"
Hantaro asked, puzzled.
Err...
I can't exactly tell you that I'm planning to go open his blind boxes, can I?
Sherwin scratched his head and made up a random excuse to brush him off. "Isn't it because Kaido isn't here? Anyway, I'm bored, so I might as well."
Hearing this obviously unreliable explanation, the expressions of Hantaro and the others became strained. They didn't know whether to play along and believe him or to stop right there and prevent Sherwin from learning the location of their hideout.
Sherwin reason was simply too flimsy he hadn't even put much effort into the brush-off.
On the contrary, Kawamatsu and the others believed it without a doubt...
After all, when they found Sherwin, he was having a snowball fight with those Felynes. He clearly looked like someone who was bored out of his mind.
"...Sorry."
After listening to the explanations from Kawamatsu and the others, Hanjuro mouth twitched incessantly, yet he remained upright enough to offer Sherwin a sincere apology.
Sherwin, who had only been making excuses offhandedly, naturally waved it off and continued to inquire about the current situation in Wano Country.
Hanjuro hid nothing, recounting Fujitora actions upon returning to Wano and the subsequent impact to Sherwin. He even included the fact that the samurai were divided because of Fujitora assessment...
"...Aside from those few samurai who no longer intend to fight for Lord Oden, the remaining samurai are divided into three groups. One part followed Lord Ashura Doji to hide in the mountains of Kuri, another part is hidden in Okobore Town next to the Flower Capital to monitor Orochi movements, and the rest are hidden here in Ringo with Lord Kawamatsu."
Then, he proactively stated his own stance.
"There is no point in discussing the past anymore. The most important thing now is to drive Kaido out of Wano. Until then, I believe everyone must cooperate sincerely."
These words were less for Sherwin and more for Kawamatsu and those die-hard Oden loyalists. He made no attempt to conceal his intent while speaking, his eyes were fixed straight on Kawamatsu.
Kawamatsu, who was being stared at, had no reaction yet, but several samurai beside him couldn't hold back. However, just as they opened their mouths to argue with Hanjuro, they were timely stopped by Kawamatsu, who had already suffered a loss once before with Jinx.
"I am of the same opinion. Regardless, rescuing Wano from the hands of Kaido and Orochi is what matters most!"
Though Kawamatsu fish head was not particularly sharp, he was still better off than those samurai who had completely "discarded their wisdom."
At the very least, he knew that if they clashed with Sherwin now, they would not only drive away the Felyne Investigation Team—a powerful reinforcement—but also the group of samurai including Hanjuro.
The Akazaya Nine still held significant weight in the eyes of these confused samurai, so despite their defiant expressions, those samurai settled down.
Interesting, how very interesting!
Sherwin looked with amusement at the two groups of samurai, who clearly detested one another, as his inner prankster tendencies flared up.
Before coming to Wano Country, he had assumed that everyone here was a chronic victim of the Oden virus, so he initially hadn't intended to have any interaction with these people at all.
Furthermore, because he disliked Kozuki Oden and his brain-dead fans, he lacked the patience he usually showed when helping other nations.
Sherwin original plan was simply to come here, seize whatever benefits he could, and give Kaido a beating. As for what would happen to Wano Country afterward, he didn't particularly care.
But now...
He actually felt like helping the people of Wano Country "restore their nation," and he looked forward to seeing who would be made the Shogun, given that Kozuki Oden was dead and Kozuki Momonosuke had not yet been sent back.
After Hantaro forced Kawamatsu to take a stand, the atmosphere of the entire group became somewhat awkward. Sherwin, fully embracing his role as a spectator, had no intention of helping to ease the tension, contenting himself with playing with his Felynes.
It was in this atmosphere that they arrived in front of a completely collapsed "house" within the ruined town.
"This is where we are temporarily hiding and storing our weapons."
Hantaro spoke as he opened the fallen door of the house, revealing a passage leading underground.
Following the passage all the way down, Sherwin and the others arrived at a massive underground space. Aside from several heavily wounded samurai, the area was filled with various cold weapons like katanas, naginatas, and spears...
Eh? So the Ringo Northern Cemetery is actually here?!
Sherwin froze for a moment, scratching his head in confusion. In his memory, these blades were supposed to be planted next to the tombstones of the fallen samurai.
But as a very traditional Japanese-style Komakitsune with fur like flames appeared before him, Sherwin memories regarding the cemetery finally fully resurfaced...
To ensure there would be enough weapons to fight Kaido in the future, Kawamatsu and this Komakitsune named Onimaru had spent these years digging them up from the cemetery to hide them here.
Furthermore, Onimaru was a user of the Human-Human Fruit, Ancient Zoan, Model: Onyudo. After Kawamatsu was captured, he inherited the pseudonym "Gyukimaru" that Kawamatsu had come up with on a whim and had been guarding these swords here ever since.
"..."
While the fox loyalty was admirable, then again... weren't there a bit too many Mythical Zoan fruits in Wano? Weren't these things supposed to be rarer than Logias? How could even a fox have eaten a Mythical Zoan?!
Feeling slightly unbalanced, Sherwin fingers twitched with the urge to whip out his Hunter knife and give the Komakitsune in front of him a quick slash.
Suppressing that rather inhumane thought, Sherwin turned his attention back to the surrounding weapons.
Except...
He didn't seem to sense the presence of any famous blades.
While Sherwin didn't expect all these thousands of swords to be of the "Meito" grade, it felt a bit strange that there wasn't a single famous weapon among them.
Just as Sherwin was feeling surprised and dejected, a samurai responsible for keeping watch outside came rushing in.
"This is bad! Lord Kawamatsu! Kyoshiro, one of Kurozumi Orochi top henchmen, is heading this way with a woman whose face can't be seen!"
I knew Klee Meow luck couldn't be that bad!