Outside the door came a very faint knocking sound.
Kane unhurriedly undid his cufflinks and reached out to pull open the wooden door.
Outside stood Kozuki Toki, silent and still.
Her thin, plain undergarments were soaked through with dampness, the fabric clinging tightly to her delicate and shapely figure.
The cold rain made her body tremble, yet her cheeks were flushed with an unnatural rosy hue.
She hung her head low, her fine, disheveled long hair covering most of her face. Raindrops trickled down her slender, pale nape, one by one, disappearing into the collar of her garment.
[Kane's inner monologue: Oh ho, coming to knock on the door dressed like this in the middle of the night, quite the elaborate prelude.]
Mentally calculating, his face betrayed no flaw as he adopted an expression mingling astonishment and concern.
"Madam? The night is so late, has something happened to Hiyori?" He propped one hand against the doorframe, his voice deliberately lowered to create a considerate tone, as if afraid of disturbing others.
Kozuki Toki did not speak, only stepped wordlessly into the dimly lit room.
Before Kane, her knees gave way, and she knelt straight down.
"Navy Admiral..." Her voice was hoarse, each word trembling with despair, "I beg you... save Wano Country!"
Kane did not move an inch.
He looked down upon this woman who had humbled herself to the dust, his eyes as calm and unfathomable as an ancient well.
"What does Madam mean by this?"
Kane's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, his expression instantly turning grave.
He crouched down, meeting Kozuki Toki's tear-filled eyes at eye level, his tone low and earnest.
"I beseech you, Admiral! Slay Kurozumi Orochi! Slay Kaido of the Beasts!"
Kozuki Toki suddenly lifted her head, her eyes filled with a plea on the verge of collapse. She clung tightly to Kane's gaze as if it were her last lifeline.
"They have destroyed Wano Country, killed my son, ruined everything I had! Admiral! If you can accomplish this, Kozuki Toki... is willing to pay any price!"
Her voice was full of tremors.
She was acutely aware of her own wretchedness and ugliness at this moment, but she could no longer care about such things.
Kane's expression turned heavy. He let out a long sigh and shook his head.
"Madam, you think too highly of me."
He stood up, paced to the center of the room, and turned his back to Kozuki Toki. His voice carried a note of helplessness.
"Kaido of the Beasts... that man hailed as the 'Strongest Creature,' commands a vast force with numerous Devil Fruit users. To wage war against him, even I would need to mobilize the most elite forces from Marine Headquarters and seek the highest authorization from the World Government. Madam, though I hold the rank of Admiral, to recklessly engage in a full-scale war with a pirate of such magnitude violates military regulations and carries immense risks. It is by no means a decision I can make lightly on my own."
He paused, his tone becoming extremely subtle, yet tinged with a hint of helpless bitterness.
"Moreover, we also need a 'reason,' one that can silence the mouths of those stubborn factions within the World Government. Otherwise, even if I were to override all opposition and mobilize forces, I would face severe punishment afterward, even... be held accountable."
Kane's words were reasonable, justified, and righteous.
All strength seemed to drain from Kozuki Toki's body in an instant.
She knew the Navy's rules and understood the World Government's stance.
Wano Country, to the World Government, was a closed-off "Non-Affiliated Country," a lawless land. The Navy had no obligation to deal with the mess here.
And now, what "reason" could she offer?
Her Kozuki Clan was already a name without substance. Her husband had gone mad, her son had died tragically, and her retainers had all sacrificed themselves.
She, an abandoned widow, had nothing left but sorrow and hatred.
Tears silently fell.
She abruptly raised her head, looking at Kane's back. That figure appeared exceptionally tall under the dim candlelight, but at this moment, it seemed like an insurmountable iceberg, blocking her path to revenge.
Suddenly, Kozuki Toki laughed.
The laughter was desolate, yet filled with resolve.
She slowly straightened her back. Standing before Kane.
"A widow... indeed has no bargaining chips left to buy the head of her enemy." Her voice no longer trembled, stripped of all emotional fluctuations, leaving only the calm of one who had nothing left to lose.
Her slender, pale fingers rested on the sash at her waist.
"The entire Kozuki family now consists only of me, this ill-fated woman."
The silk sash slipped off.
The thin kimono first slid off one shoulder, revealing a patch of fair, smooth skin.
Then, trembling, it completely fell, pooling at her feet.
Large swathes of dazzling white were exposed to the cool air.
Her well-maintained skin, despite days of hardship, had not lost its luster. Instead, against the backdrop of this dilapidated hut, it presented a heart-wrenching, tragic beauty.
This was the last thing she could offer.
This once-noble shogun's wife, Kozuki Toki, had now completely abandoned all her dignity.
"If the Admiral does not disdain..." Kozuki Toki tightly shut her eyes, two clear tears tracing her cheeks, her chin slightly raised, assuming a sacrificial posture of offering herself.
The red glow of the hearth fire illuminated the woman's unclothed body.
Kane's gaze did indeed linger for half a second on the towering chest and the undulating waistline.
He whistled wildly in his heart.
He had to admit, that fool Kozuki Oden had been quite fortunate. This figure was no less impressive than Stussy's. Under normal circumstances, he would have definitely taken this midnight feast.
However, the most elite hunters always appear in the guise of prey.
Kozuki Toki kept her head raised, eyes closed, tear stains and flushed cheeks interwoven, awaiting the verdict of fate.
Yet.
The expected rough handling did not come.
Kane's face was now filled with "shock and dismay." His eyes were wide open, as if he had seen something filthy that tarnished his belief in "Justice."
He even took two steps back, his tone carrying insulted anger and an indescribable heartache.
"Madam! You... what are you doing?!"
Kane's voice was firm and resonant, carrying the anguish of one whose faith had been betrayed.
His gaze did not fall on Kozuki Toki's exquisite body in the slightest. Instead, it was fixed directly, painfully, on her eyes, which were filled with shame.
"You... what kind of person do you take me, Kane, for?!"
His voice was full of incredulous anger and disappointment.
"As a Navy Admiral, I am here upholding Justice! If I were to take advantage of someone in distress, exploiting your family's ruin to commit such vile and disgraceful acts, how would I be any different from those pirates who plundered your Wano Country and poisoned its people?!"
Kozuki Toki was startled by this sudden thunderous fury, her body trembling as she stood frozen in place.
Kane gave her no time to react.
He stepped forward, bent down, and picked up the kimono from the floor.
With gentle yet unwavering force, he draped the thin garment securely over her shoulders.
"Madam! Do not demean yourself like this again!" Kane's voice was now stern and low, carrying an undeniable authority.
She was stunned.
Utterly stunned.
Since crossing time and space to arrive in this turbulent era, she had witnessed Whitebeard's unrestrained boldness, Roger's rule-defying recklessness, and personally experienced Oden's absurd and laughable antics.
But men were still men—this was a world ruled by the law of the jungle, violence, and pure desire.
Deep down, she had long accepted the rule: men who wield supreme power inevitably demand corresponding beauty or benefits in return.
Yet this Navy man before her, faced with a temptation of unparalleled beauty within easy reach, was furious that his integrity and beliefs had been trampled upon!
His principles, his pride, the pure and unblemished light of "Justice" he embodied—it was so blinding it made Kozuki Toki feel utterly ashamed.
What foolish thing had she done?
She had used such lowly, brothel-like tactics to tarnish a truly compassionate hero?
The overwhelming shame was instantly replaced by a more complex, almost reverent emotion.
She thought she had offered everything she had, only to realize that what this man pursued was far beyond her imagination.
His character, his spirit, the "Justice" he upheld—all of it soared to heights she could never hope to reach in her lifetime.
This man was a true hero.
A sacred existence that she, a mere mortal woman, could never taint.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry, sir..." Kozuki Toki buried her face deep into the wide collar of the garment, sobbing uncontrollably. "It was me... I was despicable, I measured a gentleman's heart with my own petty standards..."
She wept bitterly.
Only this time, her tears were no longer forced by hatred, but sprang from extreme guilt, remorse, and awe.
Kane remained with his back to her, hands clasped behind him, standing as straight as a spear ready to pierce the heavens.
The act had reached this point; the timing was perfect.
As Kozuki Toki's sobs gradually subsided, a deeper despair once again flooded her heart.
If even her body, her only bargaining chip, was seen as an insult, how could this noble Admiral possibly violate rigid military regulations and take on the entire Beast Pirates alone for the sake of a nameless, stateless widow?
There was no hope left.
Every path was thoroughly blocked.
Kozuki Toki released her tight grip on the edge of the coat, turned away in despair, and prepared to retreat. She truly shouldn't remain here any longer, tainting this room and this man's sight.
Just as she was utterly hopeless, feeling even her breath was superfluous—
The man who had kept his back to her for so long, turned around.
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