"This is Mr. Issho friend, known to the outside world as the 'Hunter,' Mr. Sherwin."
Kawamatsu, worried that the samurai on his side might cause more trouble, hurriedly took the initiative to introduce him.
To his surprise, the few who had been so defiant toward Sherwin earlier suddenly became quiet.
Although he didn't understand what had happened, Kawamatsu breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "The reason Mr. Issho wanted to return was because Mr. Sherwin told him about the situation here."
"I see, I am most grateful!"
Denjiro had been staying by Kurozumi Orochi side, so he didn't know much about the situation here, but he had heard of the man who rescued the samurai and lured Kaido away.
Furthermore...
"Did you learn about us from Zou? So many years have passed, and it seems many excellent juniors have appeared among the Minks."
Denjiro looked at the Felynes beside Sherwin and sighed with relief and gratification.
He could sense that aside from Klee Meow, who had just used that Susanoo, the strength of the other Felynes was not lacking either.
It was just...
Why were they all Cat Minks?
"Klee is a Felyne! Not some Mink!"
(=`н=)
Previously, her ninjutsu had been mistaken for sorcery by Fukurokuju, and now she was being called a Mink. The little ragdoll cat, who hadn't cared much before, couldn't help but retort.
"That right, that right! And our hometown isn't some place called Zou meow! We wouldn't even want a country ruled by those two idiot uncles, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi meow!"
(=`へ=)
Jinx chimed in as well, taking the opportunity to complain about Inuarashi and Nekomamushi.
"Uh..."
The reaction from the Felynes was somewhat beyond Denjiro expectations.
However, he could also tell that there must have been some sort of friction or misunderstanding between Sherwin group and Inuarashi and Nekomamushi, though it didn't seem particularly serious.
Just as Denjiro was pondering to himself, Jinx intentionally provoked him further: "Speaking of which... since you know those two idiots Inuarashi and Nekomamushi, are you also one of those 'Nine Scabbard Idiot meow?"
"It the Nine Red Scabbards!" Yamato, who had been keeping silent until now, finally couldn't help herself and protested with a flushed face: "Just like Oden, they are all magnificent samurai!"
"Only an idiot like you would think that meow."
Jinx curled her lip in disdain and mocked, "But an idiot with an idiot is a perfect match meow."
On the other side, Kawamatsu quietly informed Denjiro and Hiyori of Sherwin evaluation of Kozuki Oden, as well as the reactions of some of the samurai.
"Sigh..."
After his expression shifted several times, Denjiro let out a helpless sigh. "Actually, there is nothing wrong with what he said. The actions of Lord Oden and ourselves back then were indeed very problematic."
As the sharpest mind among the Nine Red Scabbards, Denjiro had replayed the events of those years in his head many times.
Although his perspective was somewhat biased due to his devotion to Oden, his overall conclusion was not much different from Sherwin.
In Denjiro eyes, however, the ones who had done wrong were primarily the retainers like themselves, who had failed to provide proper counsel and failed to detect Kurozumi Orochi ambitions and conspiracies in time.
Hearing Denjiro proactively take responsibility for those years, just as Inuarashi and Nekomamushi had done before, Sherwin couldn't help but roll his eyes hard.
It had to be said that while these guys varied in intelligence, their way of thinking was remarkably consistent.
They were indeed loyal to a fault to preserve the reputation of their incompetent lord, every single one of them scrambled to shoulder the blame themselves.
What more, doing this actually seemed to work.
Sherwin noticed that among Hantaro group, several samurai who had initially been cold observers were gradually becoming thoughtful, or even appearing ashamed...
It was absolutely ridiculous!
"You don't need to say any more, Denjiro." Kozuki Hiyori suddenly interrupted Denjiro attempt to take the blame.
"Father was not a perfect man a mistake is a mistake. The Kozuki family indeed bears an undeniable responsibility for Wano Country falling into its current state!"
Unlike the Scabbard attempt to cover things up, Kozuki Hiyori straightforward admission of her father errors caused Sherwin to look at her in a new light.
Even Klee Meow whispered into his ear, "This big sister isn't as annoying as those old men, meow."
"Lord Sherwin."
After admitting Kozuki Oden mistakes, Kozuki Hiyori stepped forward, stood before Sherwin, and knelt directly into a formal dogeza bow.
"Father mistakes have already been made, and I, along with the Kozuki family, will do our best to make amends in the future. But Wano Country is currently in the depths of misery. For the sake of the poor citizens of Wano, please take action to help us defeat Kaido and Kurozumi Orochi!"
"Princess! What are you doing?!"
Without even waiting for Sherwin to speak, those samurai were already howling and stepping forward to help Hiyori up.
However, Hiyori remained unmoved, continuing to press her head firmly against the snowy ground.
Impressive...
Watching Hantaro and the others, who had now completely let go of their prejudices, Sherwin couldn't help but feel moved.
Denjiro slightly intentional act of taking the blame had only shifted the attitudes of a few samurai, but Hiyori sincere gesture, coming straight from the heart, had instantly won over all the samurai who previously harbored resentment toward the Kozuki clan.
Furthermore, Sherwin and the Felynes also greatly admired Hiyori actions...
Wasn't this a thousand, ten thousand times better than that Momonosuke fellow? It was a pity that the social climate and concepts of Wano Country were too feudal rather than hoping for Hiyori to become a female Shogun, it would be more realistic to expect a samurai to overthrow their superiors.
"Stand up."
Under the murderous glares of Denjiro and the other samurai, Sherwin finally snapped out of his contemplation. He stepped forward to help Hiyori up and then spoke the honest truth:
"To be frank, I don't have absolute certainty about defeating Kaido. Even among the Four Emperors, he is the most troublesome one. Originally, I only intended to come here, have a fight with him to settle a grudge, and then slip away. I didn't plan on risking my life against him."
Originally, Sherwin had planned to fool Hiyori, getting his hands on Enma before putting up a token effort against Kaido just to call it a day. However, Hiyori performance just now made Sherwin feel a bit embarrassed about tricking her...
Well, it certainly wasn't because Hiyori appearance could rival that of the Pirate Empress.
"That enough!"
Just as the light in Hiyori eyes began to fade, Denjiro, who was standing by her side, spoke up excitedly.
"As long as you can stall Kaido for a period of time, we will gather our strength. Together with Mr. Issho, we will eliminate as many members of the Beast Pirates as possible. Once the majority of his subordinates are dealt with, Kaido will naturally be unable to continue his reign over Wano!"
It was only then that Sherwin realized Kaido had originally occupied Wano to extract the location of the Great Treasure and the translation of the Poneglyphs from Kozuki Oden. After killing Oden, he had used Wano as a sweatshop to build up his military power.
But if occupying Wano yielded no profit and instead required a massive amount of energy to deal with the constant uprisings of samurai, then Kaido would very likely abandon this base of operations.
Of course, before leaving, Kaido would most likely retaliate against Wano. However, as long as they prepared in advance and preserved the majority of the population and strength, even if areas including the Flower Capital were completely destroyed, such losses would be acceptable to the people of Wano.
In that case...
It seemed like Klee Meow and the others didn't need to have any more reservations!
Sherwin rubbed his chin, suddenly thinking of the "big treasures" that the little Felynes had specially prepared for Kaido.
Since they were going to be destroyed anyway, then being destroyed by Kaido, or being destroyed because they were used against Kaido...
There shouldn't be much of a difference, right?
Just as Sherwin was pondering how to give Hiyori Kozuki and the others a heads-up, a roar suddenly erupted from the distant sky—
"Hunter brat! Get the hell out here!!!"
Kaido had returned!