On the other hand, after resolving Zoro's crisis in an instant, Gawain transformed into lightning and returned to the front of the Castle Keep.
He had sensed Zoro's impending death from this very spot.
Like Zoro, Gawain's gaze was also fixed on all young and promising individuals.
Of course, not everyone needs Gawain's personal rescue, such as Luffy.
Although Gawain saw that he had been shot, he knew he wouldn't die, so Gawain let Ace and the others carry out a rescue operation on him.
Zoro is really unlucky. He ran into Yamato right after his debut. Although Yamato is young now, he is still a typical Yonko commander-type strongman who can withstand Kaido's Raimei Hakke after removing his Seastone Handcuffs and transforming.
With this level of strength, isn't he much stronger than Luffy when he first arrived in Wano Country?
Katakuri and gained the ability to Future Sight, couldn't even withstand a single Luffy from Kaido.
Of course, Luffy's progress was much faster than Yamato's. In less than a week, he Awakening his Devil Fruit powers Devil Fruit easily defeated Teacher Kaido, even using Teacher Kaido's body as a jump rope to humiliate him...
In conclusion
Unless someone else encounters a crisis like Zoro's, where they are lifted up and forced to fight the Great Flame Commandment head-on.
Otherwise, Gawain didn't want to delay his speed in seizing control of the power center in Wano Country at a crucial moment.
Seeing Gawain return in an instant, Hancock put her hands on her hips and asked casually.
"What was that just now...?"
"Zoro, that kid's either not very lucky, or he's too lucky."
Gawain gave a brief reply, then strolled forward. In front of him, the gates of Wano Country's Castle Keep were just a stone's throw away.
Seeing Gawain's movements, Hancock nodded, crossed her arms, and smiled.
"No wonder, it turns out the problem lies with the young people."
I thought one of us was in danger; I doubted that rabbit would be so easily defeated by Kaido.
As soon as she finished speaking, Hancock lifted her right leg and then gently flicked her shapely calf.
Thump...
Boom!
The gate to Wano Country's Castle Keep was kicked open by Hancock.
Through the dust kicked up by the collapsing gate, Gawain looked toward the Castle Keep.
At this very moment, the enormous Kurozumi Orochi with its unusually large head was sitting in the very spot where the general should have been.
Beside Kurozumi Orochi, Kyoshiro, who had been bowing his head and asking something, suddenly stopped talking the moment the door burst open.
Afterwards, he shook his head and said softly.
"It's too late, General! The owner of the Black Ship has already stormed into Kyoto!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Kyoshiro raised his head and glanced at Gawain, who was sitting opposite him in the dust.
In Kyoshiro's eyes, Gawain's sharp gaze, like thunder and a drawn sword, made Kyoshiro's body tremble violently.
He's not like those other ignorant samurai in Wano Country.
As one of the Nine Red Scabbards, he was deeply trusted by Kozuki Oden and voluntarily stayed in the past, determined to take care of Oden's daughter. He had been secretly gathering all the news worth paying attention to.
Although he has not found any news of Kozuki Toki and the young master's appearance, Gawain has stirred up countless waves at sea over the past year and a half.
He was already a household name.
That's why he trembled slightly when he saw Gawain at this moment!
This trembling was not due to the power of Gawain's subordinates, nor was it due to Gawain's own strength.
It's because of Gawain's identity!
Indeed, Wano Country is, in some respects, stubbornly clinging to the past.
The key point is that within their country, everyone has a very clear class, and they themselves highly value class differences.
In society, there are commoners, samurai, daimyo, and shoguns.
Within a family, there are the main family, branch families, head family, and head of the family.
Their diverse social classes and identities make them highly sensitive to differences in status among themselves.
As for Gawain...
Those are Celestial Dragon, who are countless times more noble than the Shogun of Wano Country. Even among the Celestial Dragon, Gawain's status is among the highest.
This identity did indeed give Kyoshiro a bit of a shock.
Hearing Kyoshiro's words, Kurozumi Orochi remained silent for a moment.
Just a moment later, he looked up and grinned.
"Hehehehe, even Kaido couldn't stop you from getting here?"
It seems that not only me, but the dragon that has been roaming the skies above Wano Country has also encountered considerable trouble!
After speaking, Kurozumi Orochi shook his head and then waved to Kyoshiro.
"Shiro, step back. Standing before you is an enemy that even Kaido would find troublesome. Moreover, he doesn't look as easily fooled as that fool Oden from the Kozuki Family!"
Stand aside and see how he deals with me, the general.
If I were to die right here, and you were to survive...
So... to fulfill your loyalty, you risked everything to plead with him, begging him to allow you to collect my body..."
Warehouse!!!
Before Kurozumi Orochi could finish speaking, Gawain suddenly drew his sword, Shusui, and slashed Kurozumi Orochi across the neck.
In the next instant, Gawain stood behind Kurozumi Orochi with his sword, letting Kurozumi Orochi's head fall to the ground.
Beside him, Kyoshiro stared wide-eyed at the dazzling blade of light.
"Shusui?!"
"Oh?"
Hearing Kyoshiro's instinctive cry, Gawain smiled slightly and said.
"Your lord just died by my hand, yet you're more interested in the knife in my hand?"
As expected, this Kurozumi Orochi is indeed a stand-in, isn't he?
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain looked down at the floor diagonally below. In his Mantra perception, the real Kurozumi Orochi was being carried away by servants as they desperately fled.
Meanwhile, beside Gawain.
Upon hearing Gawain's assessment, Kyoshiro his spine.
How could she make such a correct judgment without even needing my prompting, or rather, just by hearing my brief hint about Shusui?
I was worried that Gawain would be deceived by Kurozumi Orochi, but now that's the case, wouldn't Kurozumi Orochi not die as predicted?!
On the other hand, Gawain's quick thinking truly makes him exceptionally perceptive.
As expected of a hero who stirred up the sea for a whole year, this Gawain is probably comparable to Oden!
If Gawain knew what Kyoshiro was thinking, he would definitely feel disgusted. Why did he have to compare himself to a mental patient?
But now, Gawain, who still couldn't read minds, ignored Kyoshiro and casually raised his sword.
At the doorway, Hancock squinted in surprise as she walked toward Gawain.
For some reason, in the last three months, Gawain Wen's sword aura has become increasingly sharp, even approaching that of that cold, Mihawk man who is just as disgusting as all other men.
As expected of my own Gawain- chan, her progress is so rapid!
It won't be long before Gawain masters the Seimei Kikan, and then she can have a baby with herself!
Thinking of this, Hancock's legs went weak, and she quickly covered her face with her hands.
Waaah, I've been getting more and more horny lately. Even when I'm lying next to Gawain- chan at night, the sweat I produce is getting stickier and stickier.
Would Gawain like this version of himself? He definitely would, after all, he's mentioned before that he likes women who are dignified in public and wild and alluring in private...
In the distance, the tense Kyoshiro felt the air freeze. He turned around in confusion and looked at Hancock was covering her face in embarrassment.
With just one glance, Kyoshiro quickly turned his head away.
As expected of the most beautiful woman on the sea, this Snake Princess's appearance and temperament are truly comparable to those of the young master Hiyori!
However, this Snake Princess seems a bit dim-witted.
What is she blushing about?
Do you faint at the sight of blood?
Thinking of this, Kyoshiro quickly banished his reverie and turned to look at Gawain.
Gawain simply raised his Shusui and gently swept it across his face.
Instantly, the entire Castle Keep was sliced in two diagonally!
Right where the cut surface swept across, after the suspended Castle Keep gradually slid down.
A truly panicked and terrified Kurozumi Orochi appeared before Kyoshiro's eyes.
"Oh no! We were discovered so quickly!"
Did my stand-in betray me, or did that Kyoshiro betray me?!
If I had known this would happen, I should have framed the Stand and Kyoshiro as the Nine Red Scabbards beforehand, and then skinned them alive!!!
While shouting wildly, Kurozumi Orochi jumped off the seat that the guards were carrying.
The moment he landed, his body swelled up, instantly crushing the remaining half of the Castle Keep into a shattered mess!
As the Kurozumi Orochi's body swelled further, Gawain frowned and waved to Hancock.
"This guy's size is really big. Let's change the battlefield."
"Received, darling~."
Hancock instantly snapped out of her daze, then dashed down from the main hall and rushed straight toward the secret passage.
Before Kurozumi Orochi could complete his transformation, she suddenly launched a flying kick, sending Kurozumi Orochi from the remaining ruins of the Castle Keep into the streets of Wano Country!
The enormous Kurozumi Orochi crushed countless houses along its way, but Hancock didn't care about the lives of the civilians in Wano Country. Wano Country wasn't even Affiliated Nation; such non- Affiliated Nation, independent of the World Government, never had human rights.
Even Gawain didn't take a stance to protect these civilians. As one of the representatives of the Celestial Dragon and the World Government, if he were to extend goodwill to the people of non- Affiliated Nation without restraint, where would that leave the support of the people of the Affiliated Nation for the World Government?
In short, amidst the wails of the people of Wano Country's capital, Kurozumi Orochi finally completed his transformation, revealing the full form of Yamata no Orochi!
Beside Gawain, Kyoshiro stared intently at the transformed Yamata no Orochi.
He hadn't seen Kurozumi Orochi in his current form for far too long, and this form only intensified the hatred burning within him!
As for the deaths of civilians in Wano Country...
Well, even Kyoshiro, a native of Wano Country, doesn't seem to care much.
If there's anything about Oden that truly deserves respect, it's his concern and care for the lives of those of lower classes, despite his position of power.
As for everyone else besides Oden...
Denjiro, in particular, though he didn't say it, was always indignant about the Oden's first surrender.
Even though the Oden had already won back then, Kurozumi Orochi used the lives of a mere hundred children to threaten them into giving up resistance, and forced them to perform those foolish dances in the streets every day for a full six years!
Of course, Denjiro firmly believed that he would always follow the Oden's orders.
But...
Your Oden, don't you know that if you had ignored the lives of those one hundred children back then, then for the past twenty-one years, those who died unjustly would not have had to die under the chaotic rule of Kurozumi Orochi!
Can the lives of one hundred people truly be equated with the lives of hundreds of thousands or even millions?
He shook his head, quickly dispelling the disrespectful thoughts from his mind.
Kyoshiro into the air and instantly appeared before Yamata no Orochi, opening his arms to Gawain.
"Lord Gawain!!!"
He gritted his teeth and shouted at Gawain.
"Please, Your Excellency, stop wielding the knife!"
The Wano Country is bathed in your noble radiance upon your arrival.
Neither I nor Your Excellency have disobeyed your wishes!
At this point, Kyoshiro quickly turned around and kept giving Kurozumi Orochi a wink.
Behind Kyoshiro, after seeing Kyoshiro's flying eye.
Kurozumi Orochi, whose will to survive was exceptionally strong, seemed to have just realized something!
His eight heads nodded rapidly, and then the Yamata no Orochi lay down on the ground and slammed its head into the soil to pay homage to Gawain.
"Yes, thankfully Kyoshiro reminded me of my foolishness, otherwise, I, in my lowly position, would have even forgotten my respect for you, Celestial Dragon!"
I, Kurozumi Orochi, have always been a dog kept by you, Celestial Dragon! I am the enemy of the Kozuki Family, and I exist in this world with the mission of destroying Wano Country!
At this point, Kurozumi Orochi was deep in thought, the prophecy left by Oden and Kozuki Toki flashing through his mind.
On ordinary days, he frantically searched for the whereabouts of the Nine Red Scabbards and besieged every force of the Kozuki resistance.
He was terrified of the prophecy, but at this moment, it became his lifeline!
Meanwhile, Kyoshiro, kneeling on the ground and kowtowing to Gawain, also harbored the same feelings as Kurozumi Orochi.
"Although you, Gawain, seem to have suppressed Kaido in one fell swoop, the Oden is not wrong!"
Oden said that the person who would defeat Kaido would appear twenty years later!
The lady also left a prophecy. "The bright moon knows nothing, but if this wish is fulfilled, for twenty years the moon will shine, and nine layers of shadows will fall from the sky. Then you will know the dazzling dawn!"
However, both the Oden and the Lady predicted a time twenty years from that year!
But right now, it hasn't even been twenty years yet, so even if you are the great Gawain, you absolutely cannot defeat Kaido!
As for Kurozumi Orochi...
Even though I hate this guy terribly, I have to make him die at the prophetic moment!
Kurozumi Orochi, you damned bastard! Use what you're best at to stall for time and try to live until Gawain and his crew are defeated by Kaido. Then, die as promised at the moment that Oden and his wife prophesied!
With this thought in mind, Kyoshiro lay on the ground, extremely unwilling.
Even though he was unwilling, he still protected Kurozumi Orochi with all his might, just like before, trying to ensure that the bastard would live to see the prophesied day.
Only...
Just as Kyoshiro and Kurozumi Orochi were desperately trying to buy time by surrendering to Gawain, far away...
Crackle!
The sound of wooden clogs rose and fell, while Ace's shouts grew ever closer.
"Hahaha, finally found it!"
Yamato, who had come running, jumped up excitedly. Then she quickly picked up Komurasaki from her shoulder and handed her to Gawain as she ran.
"Captain, Captain, I, Kozuki Oden, have finally found you! My dearest captain, the one who fought a world-renowned battle against the Shiki!!!"
While shouting, Yamato suddenly slammed on the brakes, stopped in front of Gawain with Komurasaki in his arms, and then knelt down in front of Gawain with a thud.
In the distance, Ace, who was constantly chasing after them, looked at this scene in confusion, and then he rubbed his head in frustration.
"Damn it, the captain that guy was talking about was actually an old man!"
But isn't he Kaido's son?
Could it be that this old man had already infiltrated Kaido's sons into his own ranks?
How terrifying!
Thinking of this, Ace shrugged awkwardly and stood there with a wry smile.
At the same time, Yamato lifted Komurasaki by her bottom and placed Komurasaki high in front of Gawain.
"Captain, look! This is the most beautiful courtesan in Wano Country!"
"I've already kidnapped her and brought her to you. You must accept me, and then lead me to overthrow the World Government, smash Mary Geoise, defeat the Celestial Dragon, and successfully accomplish the great feat that I, Oden, wrote in my diary—the feat we were supposed to achieve after finding the Great Treasure!!!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Yamato laughed and shoved Komurasaki into Gawain's arms.
And Gawain...
He was silent for a moment, then rolled his Byakugan dramatically.
Everyone around, except for Gawain, fell silent.
Even Kyoshiro couldn't save his young master in time, and Kurozumi Orochi had no time to grieve over the fact that his beloved woman was being held in Gawain's arms!
Saying you want to overthrow the Celestial Dragon in front of them?
Kaido, has your son always been this brave?
This is truly... truly worthy of being the son of one of the Four Emperors!
Of course, Komurasaki wasn't as shocked as the others; Gawain Komurasaki.
At this moment, she lay in Gawain's arms, searching for ways to protect herself, as always.
Gently pressing her cheek against Gawain's chest, Komurasaki slowly peeked out, cautiously looking at Gawain, and murmured a plaintive sound.
"Hmm, even Kaido's child offered me to you."
So, you are my true home, my lord~.