Kozuki Sukiyaki

With the combined efforts of Vegapunk and Chopper, the side effect of the failed Artificial Devil Fruit, SMILE, causing excessive laughter, was eliminated.

The people of Wano Country, having rediscovered the full range of emotions on their faces, wept with joy.

At this moment, a person wearing Tengu Mask arrived at the banquet and stood in front of Cifer.

"Who are you? Don't bother me at a time like this while I'm drinking with that brat from the Cifer!"

Whitebeard was somewhat displeased and waved him away, for this was a long time since Marco had interfered with his own banquet!

"Thank you all for saving Wano Country!"

After removing his mask, the man revealed gray hair and an aged face. He slowly knelt on the ground and kowtowed in the direction of Cifer and his group.

"Sukiyaki Master!"

The Scabbard Nine, who had been hiding in a corner looking sullen, all stood up as if stimulated by something when they saw the person kneeling down.

Shimotsuki Yasui, who was sitting next to them, also stood up quickly, her eyes filled with tears.

"Gentlemen, I am now merely a swordsmith named Tenguyama Hitetsu. I have come here simply to express my gratitude to my savior."

Sukiyaki ignored their gazes, her eyes fixed on the two men at the main table.

"Sukiyaki... is that Oden's father...?"

Although Whitebeard had never met the real person, he had heard of his name, and for a moment he felt a little sentimental.

"It is indeed Sukiyaki- sama."

Izo, the Captain of the Sixteenth Division of the Whitebeard Pirates, felt a pang of pity seeing his haggard appearance.

"And then what? You came all the way to Onigashima, you couldn't have come just to say thank you, could you?"

Cifer rested his chin on his right fist, waiting for his opponent to continue.

"I know some secrets about Wano Country, and I wish to use this to ask you to allow this long-suffering nation to 'open its borders'!"

Sukiyaki has given this matter very serious thought over the past few days.

For so many years, he had been pretending to be dead and hiding, not daring to show his true face to anyone.

Now that Wano Country has been liberated by outsiders, he simply cannot bring himself to ask for even the slightest share of the spoils of victory.

He only wanted to make the most of his remaining value; he didn't want the secret that the Kozuki Clan had guarded for generations to be broken.

"Can."

Cifer knew what secret he was about to reveal, and he didn't mind letting him give off his last bit of energy.

As for opening the country, the Cifer had always intended to do so.

Buggy and Bater have received the news and are on their way. Kaido's business will be taken over entirely by their forces.

"I am extremely grateful!"

After kowtowing again, Robin and Lucci followed him away at Cifer's command to investigate the secret he had spoken of.

At this moment, the Scabbard Nine and the others finally saw the situation clearly, and their hopes for the revitalization of the Kozuki Clan were gradually put aside.

"Uncle, I remember now, Ace mentioned you! You're the one who wanted to be the Pirate King, right? Too bad, the one who's going to be the Pirate King is me!"

Luffy and Bonney kept fighting over the food, stuffing it into their mouths, while their eyes remained fixed on Ace and Whitebeard.

After pondering for several minutes, he finally remembered the conversation in Alabasta, and suddenly stood up, pointing at the Whitebeard who was drinking heartily.

Hey~ Luffy!

Ace covered his forehead in exasperation, never expecting that his words from back then would still be remembered.

"You must be Ace's younger brother? You're such a little brat, you haven't even grown all your feathers yet, kura ra ra~"

"Would you like to bear my name and become my son?"

The Whitebeard didn't seem to care, just gulping down his drink, his expression as if he'd found another son.

"I don't want to!"

Luffy, remembering Ace's constant calling him "Old Man," was so frightened that he backed away repeatedly.

"Unfortunately, the title of 'Pirate King' will soon cease to exist, and you've lost to me."

Cifer mercilessly poured cold water on Luffy's head.

"Huh?!"

"Well... well... I don't care, the freest person on this sea is the Pirate King! As for the Navy, you can talk about that after you've dealt with the World Government!"

Luffy pouted, but didn't know how to argue, so he could only stubbornly insist on his point.

In his mind, something as powerful as the World Government couldn't be easily defeated.

"Just wait."

Everyone raised their glasses and drank heartily. Luffy and Usopp, caught up in the moment, ran to the center of the hall and started acting silly, filling the banquet with laughter.

The next day.

Cifer, Whitebeard, and the others had arrived at the coast and were preparing to leave this land.

"Brother Ace! Take me to sea! I'm a great female ninja now!"

Tama is sitting on a lion's head, carrying a small bag on her back, raising her hands and shouting.

"That..."

Ace scratched his head, momentarily at a loss for what to do.

After all, Tama is still so young; she's not old enough to go on an adventure at sea.

"Ace! Take me with you! We promised to go to sea together!"

Yamato also shouldered her bag and stood on the shore, having been looking forward to this day for a very long time.

"Yamato..."

Ace glanced at his Old Man beside him.

"Kurararara~ Then come on up! Put them in the Second Division. The Whitebeard Pirates aren't so weak that they can't protect two brats!"

Whitebeard didn't know what Ace was hesitating about, but having seen the look in his eyes earlier, he decisively agreed on his behalf.

"Sail away!"

"Good!"

With Whitebeard's command, the Moby Dick, now with two more people and a pet, once again departed from this long-missed land.

"Shimotsuki Yasui, I entrust Wano Country to you. I hope you will not disappoint me."

Looking at the small figure below, Cifer on the Little Ul said in a deep voice.

"Please rest assured, Your Excellency, I will definitely make Wano Country a country where everyone can have enough to eat!"

After several days of internal struggle, the Kanjuro decided to stop caring about who Wano Country once belonged to.

He wants to make Wano Country belong to all its citizens!

"Let's go then."

As Cifer spoke, the Little Ul set sail and began its journey away from Wano Country.

"Speaking of which, shouldn't we pay attention to 'Pluton' buried beneath Wano Country? That's a weapon that can rival the World Government!"

On the way, Robin spoke up, revealing what Sukiyaki had told her yesterday, but Cifer didn't seem to care.

"Weapons that require the entire country to bury are not so easy to obtain, and besides, we may not even need them."

Cifer had no interest in such things; his own full power wouldn't be much different from theirs.

Besides, all he wants to know right now is the secret about Im and the Uranus; knowing just those two things is enough.

"What a magnificent spirit..."

Vegapunk, standing to the side, was completely dumbfounded.

Ancient Weapon are something that everyone fears, but the person in front of him doesn't seem to care at all.

That only proves that he has become so powerful that he doesn't need to rely on such things to strengthen himself.

"Um... Captain Cifer! Could you perhaps take a slightly different route? We have some business to attend to and don't want to return to Hachinosu yet..."