Return to the Free Great Sea

"After Roger turned himself in, the location where he was imprisoned was top secret. 'Golden Lion' Shiki had no idea where Roger was being held, and..."

Vice Admiral Tsuru speculated.

"The reason Shiki caused such havoc at Marineford, even destroying half of Marineford, might not have been purely an impulsive act of venting anger. Perhaps he wanted to confirm whether Roger was being held at Marineford."

"Afterward, Shiki, who possessed the ability to fly, could clearly have retreated with ease. Yet when faced with the joint assault of Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Garp, he fought to the death until he was captured."

"Following that line of reasoning, perhaps Shiki believed that Impel Down was the only remaining place where Roger could be imprisoned, which was why he acted as he did."

Upon hearing this, Fleet Admiral Sengoku's eyes widened considerably as he murmured.

"So Shiki allowed himself to be captured because he wanted to use the Marines to send him into Impel Down, then seize the opportunity to rescue Roger?"

Vice Admiral Tsuru nodded and said thoughtfully.

"That possibility cannot be ruled out. After all, Shiki, a Fruit User, actually had the ability to escape from Impel Down. That sufficiently proves that Shiki had long prepared himself for being imprisoned in Impel Down."

"Hiss..."

Sengoku could not help drawing in a slight breath, saying with relief.

"Indeed, that is something Shiki, who has always been cautious and skilled in strategy and planning, could have done. Fortunately, the place where Roger was imprisoned was neither Marineford nor Impel Down. Otherwise, it would have been troublesome."

"As expected of the man known as the 'Golden Lion.' If not for Yaen, we might have remained deceived by Shiki all along," Vice Admiral Tsuru said.

On the other end of the Den Den Mushi, Yaen listened to the conversation and wore a baffled expression. Even Yaen himself began to wonder whether Shiki had truly harbored such intentions back then.

However, in the brief span of their conversation, "Golden Lion" Shiki had already gone completely cold. Even if Yaen wanted to verify it, there was no way to do so.

Afterward, once Fleet Admiral Sengoku confirmed that Yaen and the other Marines aboard the warship had suffered no casualties, he hurriedly hung up the Den Den Mushi.

"They actually believed it..."

Even Yaen found it somewhat unreal, but it was ultimately a good thing for him.

No matter what, Yaen could not allow the fact that he had defeated "Golden Lion" Shiki to be exposed.

Leaving aside the huge problem of being promoted in rank, merely drawing the World Government's attention made Yaen feel a deep sense of danger.

Deliberately provoking the World Government while his own strength was insufficient—

Yaen would not do such a dangerous, foolish thing.

Then, while rapidly descending toward the sea surface below, Yaen dismissed "Shikai: Senbonzakura" and "Bankai: Black Rope Heavenly Punishment Myo-o," retaining only "Shikai: Heavenly Punishment" to carry "Golden Lion" Shiki's corpse.

"Since you were a pirate, then return to the Great Sea!"

Under normal circumstances, in order to avoid "Golden Lion" Shiki's corpse being discovered later, Yaen would definitely have burned him to ashes and scattered them cleanly to the wind.

However, in his battle with "Golden Lion" Shiki, while Yaen might not have agreed with his so-called dream, he still admired Shiki's will to fight until his very last drop of blood.

Thus, Yaen took two iron weights from inside Xiao Jin and firmly bound them to "Golden Lion" Shiki's body with chains.

"Return to the free Great Sea."

Splash!

Watching the enormous spray of water rise, Yaen saw "Golden Lion" Shiki's corpse rapidly sink beneath the sea surface under the weight of the iron blocks, soon disappearing completely.

"Farewell, 'Golden Lion' Shiki. You were an opponent worthy of respect."

Afterward, Yaen tossed the "Famous Sword - Cherry Ten" and "Famous Sword: Withered Wood" left behind by "Golden Lion" Shiki into the Castle inside Xiao Jin.

The value of these two famous swords far exceeded that of ordinary Devil Fruits. As far as Yaen knew, any genuine famous sword would fetch at least three hundred million Belly on the Black Market, and a value of one billion Belly was not impossible.

In terms of sheer weight, the two iron blocks Yaen had given "Golden Lion" Shiki were far heavier than the "Famous Sword - Cherry Ten" and "Famous Sword: Withered Wood"; they simply were not as valuable.

Of course, for "Golden Lion" Shiki as he was now, money was merely an external possession. Whether they were valuable or not, Shiki presumably would not have cared all that much.

"A gift deserves a return. That's how the world works..."

After a pause, Yaen said to Xiao Jin, "Let the warship out."

"Chirp chirp."

Xiao Jin responded, then flew away from Yaen. Opening his mouth, he flung it forward, and a warship rapidly expanded before landing steadily on the sea surface.

Yaen then entered the cabin and made a brief inspection. After confirming that, aside from a handful of unlucky men who had suffered a few bumps and minor injuries, the Marine Soldiers were basically fine, he stopped paying attention to them.

The Marine Soldiers had fallen unconscious under the oppression of Reiatsu. By Yaen's estimate, they would need to remain unconscious for at least one night before their spirits recovered enough for them to awaken.

Immediately afterward, Yaen returned to his own room and closed the door before entering Xiao Jin's body.

A ship cabin?

Ever since his last trip to Ohara with Kuzan, Yaen had become thoroughly sick of staying in one.

The Castle inside Xiao Jin, on the other hand, had been carefully renovated by Yaen.

Designed in the style of an old European castle, it exuded luxury and elegance. Entertainment facilities, daily necessities, food, and stored water were all available in abundance.

At the same time, this also counted as one of the escape routes Yaen had left for himself.

If anything truly happened, Yaen planned to hide directly inside Xiao Jin, then have Xiao Jin find any Deserted Island and burrow into it. No one would be able to find Yaen's trace.

"The only regret is that I'm the only one here. Otherwise, with a few more partners, it wouldn't be a problem to shut myself away and cultivate diligently for a few decades."

Yaen lay down on a broad sofa in the center of the Castle and quickly fell asleep.

"Yaen, are we starting today's training?"

As Yaen's spiritual body opened his eyes, the Purple Armor Samurai, wearing a fearsome mask and a cherry blossom petal ornament on his head, had already appeared before him.

"Yeah..."

Yaen answered, then said to the Purple Armor Samurai, "Senbonzakura, thanks. If not for the Shunpo and Bakudo you taught me, I might really have died at the hands of 'Golden Lion' Shiki this time."

As the manifestation of the Soul Reaper Blade: Senbonzakura, Senbonzakura replied calmly, "Yaen, you are now my master. These techniques passed down from my previous master are my duty to impart to you, as the blade in your hand."