Outside the city, in the Red Wasteland.
Issho sat cross-legged among the piles of rocks. The bottle of liquor that Aiden had left behind was now empty. The empty bottle rolled to the side and hit the ground with a sharp clink.
"It is over..."
Issho tilted his head slightly. Although his eyes were tightly closed, his sharp Observation Haki could still capture everything happening on the palace square several kilometers away.
That young Marine Rear Admiral had ended the nightmare of this country quickly and decisively.
The tyrant was executed, the war stopped, and the nation survived.
It looked like the best possible ending.
For the countries surrounding the Blacksteel Empire, today was the start of a new life. But for Issho, this was the moment he judged himself.
"Heh—"
Issho stroked the blade-cane that had been his companion for many years. A bitter smile appeared on his face. It looked more painful than crying.
He admitted that the young man was right.
But what about himself?
Over the past few years, he had drawn his sword time and again. He had pushed back the agents who tried to assassinate the tyrant. He had clearly heard the wails of the neighboring people under the march of the Blacksteel Empire's army, yet he still chose to become an accomplice.
No matter how many hardships Friedrich faced, and even if it was all for the sake of survival, a sin was still a sin.
"These eyes of mine—"
Issho's voice trembled. His fingers slowly gripped the hilt of his sword. "They saw the wrong person and followed the wrong path. Now, although I am free from my promise, these eyes have already seen too much filth."
The helplessness of sacrificing innocent people for a "greater cause" and the torment of switching between right and wrong had all turned into heavy guilt.
"Since I am a sinner, how can I deserve to enjoy a peaceful world?"
Clang—
The blade-cane slowly left its scabbard.
The bright blade reflected a cold light in the sunset.
Issho held the hilt with a reverse grip. He slowly aimed the sharp tip of the blade at his own eyes.
With just a gentle push, this ugly world and everything in it would go dark forever.
"To see nothing is also a blessing," Issho murmured. His wrist suddenly applied force.
"Let this be... my apology to this land!"
The blade stabbed down!
However.
Just an instant before the cold tip was about to pierce his eyes.
Zzzt!
A very small but sharp electrical sound suddenly rang in the air.
There was no expected pain, nor the relief of everything going dark.
The blade-cane stopped.
It stopped less than a centimeter away from his eyes, unable to move forward at all.
Drip.
Drip.
Bright red blood flowed along the lines of a palm. It slid down the blade and dripped onto Issho's cheek.
It was warm.
It had a faint smell of rust.
Issho froze completely.
Even though he did not open his eyes, he could clearly sense that the owner of that hand had stopped the blade with his bare hand.
"Hey, old man."
A young, slightly annoyed voice rang out from directly above him. He sounded like he was gasping slightly from the pain. "I spent a lot of effort treating your wounds. I didn't do it just so you'd have the strength to hurt yourself like this."
Aiden?
Issho let go of the sword in disbelief, letting Aiden take the blade-cane.
"Rear Admiral..."
Issho's voice was dry. His throat felt like it was blocked by something. "Why... why did you stop me? I am a sinner who helped a tyrant. Only by apologizing this way can I—"
"Apologize? Did you get something wrong?"
Aiden scoffed. He casually shoved the blood-stained blade back into the scabbard at Issho's side. Then, he shook the blood droplets off his hand.
The wound stopped bleeding quickly under the stimulation of electricity, but the shocking bloodstain was still there.
"Just now, Friedrich was executed. I announced to the world that all the war crimes were committed by that tyrant alone."
"As for you, a sinner? Where is there a sinner?"
Issho was stunned. He did not expect Aiden to settle everything so cleanly.
But soon, he shook his head. The bitterness on his face became even stronger. "Even if the world does not know, the guilt in my heart cannot be erased. These eyes do not want to see this twisted world anymore."
"Twisted?"
Aiden looked at the stubborn middle-aged man and sighed helplessly. He knew that if he did not get through to him, someone with Issho's sense of justice would not let himself go.
"What if I told you that the king you fought to protect didn't actually die?"
Aiden's voice suddenly dropped. He spoke in a volume that only the two of them could hear.
Boom!
Those words hit Issho hard. He suddenly looked up at Aiden, his face full of shock.
"I know you had your reasons, and I know Friedrich had his," Aiden said.
Aiden explained right away. He sat cross-legged in front of Issho. His tone became more honest than ever. "If this country didn't invade others, it couldn't pay the Tribute. It would be removed from the World Government's member nations. If it did invade, it became the war machine it is now. It was a dead end."
"So, I gave him another choice."
Aiden pointed toward the palace. "The 'Tyrant Friedrich' is dead because the World Government needs an explanation. But the ordinary man Friedrich, who cares about his country, is alive and well. He is hiding in a basement, ready to work for the country from the shadows."
Issho opened his mouth as if to say something, but his throat was so dry that no sound came out.
He did not expect that this seemingly ruthless Marine Rear Admiral had secretly set up such a plan.
"And don't worry about the future," Aiden continued. His voice carried firm confidence. "I've already arranged it. The G-17 Branch will take over the trade routes here. I will help them turn their industrial output into goods to sell to the whole world."
"With money, they won't need to plunder their neighbors. With stable trade, the people can live in peace."
"Issho, listen clearly."
Aiden reached out and patted Issho's broad shoulder. "From today on, this country doesn't need to survive by taking from others. The filth and killing you don't want to see will become history."
"This is the future I'm offering this country. And it is also... my answer to you."
The wind blew gently.
Issho sat there in a daze. Two lines of tears fell from the corners of his eyes.
The weight on his heart that had made it hard to breathe was finally lifted.
The king wasn't dead, the country was saved, and even the future path was laid out.
Everything he had been conflicted about, and all the pain he felt, had found a way forward under this young man's plan.
"Rear Admiral..." Issho's voice choked. "Why... why tell me these things? If this leaks out—"
Aiden interrupted him, speaking as if it were obvious. "You're too stubborn. If I didn't show you the truth, you wouldn't be satisfied."
"Now, you know the truth, and I've shown you the future."
Aiden stood up and brushed the dust off his pants. He didn't rush to the next step. Instead, he looked down at the man who looked relieved but also more lost.
"What's wrong? Now that you don't need to atone, you don't know what to do?"
Aiden pointed out the problem directly. "The country doesn't need you to protect it anymore. The tyrant doesn't need you to block blades for him. Do you feel like your sword has nowhere to go now?"
Issho was stunned for a moment, then he nodded with a bitter smile.
Indeed, once the burden of responsibility was lifted, he suddenly found he had nowhere to go. Should he keep wandering? Or find a place to live in seclusion?
"If I'm not mistaken, you like gambling, right?" Aiden suddenly asked an unrelated question.
"Hmm?" Issho nodded instinctively. That was indeed one of his few hobbies.
"Since you have no goal now and you're a gambler."
Aiden pulled a gold coin from his pocket. He flicked it with his thumb, making a crisp ting sound. "Then why don't we make a bet?"
"Bet... on what?" Issho asked. His urge to hurt himself had faded, replaced by a faint curiosity.
"Bet on your future."
Aiden gently rubbed the edge of the coin with his thumb. "Come under my command. Stop thinking about hurting yourself. Just stand by my side and use those eyes of yours to watch me closely."
"Watch how I change this world. Watch how I clean up the things you find disgusting, bit by bit."
"If one day you feel I've become a disgusting lapdog of the Celestial Dragons, or that I've abandoned the justice in your heart—"
Aiden pointed at the blade-cane at Issho's waist. "You can draw your sword anytime and cut off my head. Or, it won't be too late to blind yourself then."
"But if I succeed—"
Aiden leaned down. Ambition showed in his dark eyes. "Then your life belongs to me."
"That is the bet."
"So, Mr. Issho, do you dare to take this gamble with me?"
Issho looked up, staring blankly at the young man.
He had heard countless recruitment speeches. But no one had ever dared to put their own life on the table as the stake.
Even more, no one would reveal a secret that could destroy them before even recruiting him.
That trust and boldness...
The heart he thought had gone still suddenly began to beat again.
Cling!
Aiden flicked his thumb.
The gold coin flew high. It spun and tumbled in the sunset's glow, making a sharp sound.
"Heads, you come with me. Tails, I'll give you the sword, and I won't stop you."
Aiden looked at the coin in the air with confident eyes.
However.
Before the coin even landed.
Click.
A crisp sound of a sword being sheathed rang out.
Issho did not look at whether the coin was heads or tails. He directly pushed the blade-cane all the way back into the scabbard and patted it with his palm.
Then, a simple, fearless smile appeared on his weathered face.
"No need to look."
"Since the Rear Admiral dares to bet his own life, it would be too petty of me to worry about the result of a coin toss."
Issho slowly stood up and brushed the dust off his clothes. His voice carried new resolve. "Since it is a high-stakes gamble, I will bet this broken body and join you in this madness!"
Tap.
The coin landed. It bounced a few times among the rocks and finally lay quietly on the ground.
Aiden did not even look at the coin. Only the smile he could not hide showed his current mood.
Issho, the man who would one day be known as Fujitora, was now with him!
He had won him over in one try, cutting twenty years off the path.
"A wise choice."
Aiden turned around. He tightened the handkerchief on his hand and walked toward Stahlburg in a great mood. "Let's go, Issho."
"By the way, do you know how to teach recruits swordsmanship? I have a group of kids with too much energy who need someone to handle them."
Issho leaned on his blade-cane and followed half a step behind Aiden. Their shadows stretched long in the sunset.
"Swordsmanship? Besides gambling and eating noodles, I only know how to swing a sword a few times. If you don't mind me being a bad teacher, I can try."
"That's great. Just don't teach them to gamble. Especially that one named Smoker; he learns bad habits very quickly."
"Hohoho... I am really looking forward to that."
The two figures moved further away. Their voices gradually faded into the wind.