The surrounding area was filled with the cries of children, partly an emotional release after escaping death, and partly... the scene before them was indeed too bloody for the children.
With Yamato's all-out effort, only the child furthest away from the hostages suffered a cut on the arm; the others were all killed instantly before the children could be harmed, at most getting splattered with blood.
Of course, part of the reason is that the other party recognized Yamato's identity, and the panic in his heart was amplified by Psychological Suggestion...
Otherwise, no matter what, there shouldn't have been so many "kidnappers" and not a single one had time to kill the hostage!
The other pirates and lackeys who had just committed arson, murder, and looting were also chased down Yamato killed by Yamato.
At this moment, Yamato's fair face was filled with ferocity and splattered blood...
Sig had emerged from the shadows and looked at the scene before him with a smug expression.
"If you do that, you can't really be considered Oden, can you?" Sig reminded Yamato in the moonlight.
However, seeing Yamato still glaring at him fiercely, Sig quickly toned it down and said soothingly, "Of course, if you prepare dinner and do laundry for your loyal retainer tonight, I might consider you Oden..."
Eat me, thunder, roar, eight trigrams!
Yamato hesitation, Yamato swung his club at the "Vampire"—a blow that had been accumulating for a month!
Duang--
Amidst a crashing sound, two enormous arms emerged from Sig's own shadow, forcefully blocking Yamato's Yamato attack.
Sig grinned slightly—it couldn't be his imagination... Yamato strike was significantly stronger than it was a month ago, mainly due to the increased Haki!
After all...
Haki is the power of the fusion of mind and body; the "Token of Appreciation" behind that strike is the culmination of a month's worth of effort.
Not to mention, spiritually, Yamato has also shed a layer of shackles...
As Sig the attack, a cloud of dust rose from his position.
"You bastard... don't mention Oden to me! Right now, get me some food, and then you'll do the laundry tonight!" Yamato's face was full of a shrewish expression, completely different from her righteous "Oden form."
Seeing that he had stimulated them enough, Sig agreed and turned to retrieve the food that the Beasts had taken. As for the innocent villagers... he naturally left them to Yamato to appease, but Sig made things easier for her, leaving a string of "appeasement" words behind as he left.
When I came to find Yamato again, she was sitting silently by the campfire, hugging her knees. To avoid implicating the villagers, Yamato had come to the outskirts of the village on her own, ignoring their attempts to persuade her to stay.
Seeing that Sig was clearly grilling meat and fish according to his own taste, showing no interest in oden, Yamato pursed his lips, but didn't correct him.
"I'm not Oden, I can't do anything at all." Yamato suddenly buried his face behind his knees.
Yes, even at sixteen, Yamato can still bury his face behind his knees when he's hugging them.
"No, it was Oden did nothing," Sig said truthfully.
Yamato hearing this, Yamato raised her head, her eyes red, and glared at Sig.
Although he didn't become Oden, and even Yamato was no longer planning to become Oden, he still respected Oden.
"From the perspective of being 'admirable', he did gain a lot of goodwill, especially when his good intentions were exposed during his execution, which was truly touching... But it was only touching; from a practical point of view, he really had no awareness of taking responsibility whatsoever."
Sig always felt that it was a waste to put such a pure and innocent character as a supporting role in a shonen anime; she should be the female lead in a more intense one.
Ignoring Yamato's Yamato gaze, Sig continued, "But today... you've come to the realization that 'if any children are killed, I will bear this blood debt and save more people.'"
Looking at Sig's smiling face and recalling the events of the past month, Yamato could easily understand—all of this was done on purpose by the guy in front of him!
"You can't hypnotize someone with Conqueror's Haki," Yamato said, seemingly out of the blue.
"That's right."
"But... what about the other people around her? You might be able to influence them with your own thoughts, right?" Yamato stared at Sig, clearly suspicious.
Oden Yamato, Yamato's intelligence immediately took over.
"Of course, but it's just Psychological Suggestion, not something that changes one's will, just a push." Sig shrugged.
"You're an idiot!" Yamato said angrily.
"There are many kinds of bastards. To be more precise, I'm a pirate," Sig corrected without any shame.
"Heh, didn't you say you were my retainer just an hour ago?"
"I'm a pirate, isn't it normal for me to lie?" Sig retorted.
Yamato took a big bite of the bone-in grilled meat in his hand, then said while chewing, "So... you lied to that old man too, right? I don't believe that bracelet really restricted you! I don't care if you're a real retainer or a fake one, now think of a way!"
"What method?" Sig tilted his head, feigning confusion.
"Stop pretending! Of course it's... saving Wano Country!" Yamato's learning goal has changed, not the whole person he is.
She still couldn't stand Kaido's enslavement of Wano Country and still wanted to save it. In a sense, she still inherited Oden's will, but she was no longer fixated on Oden.
After all, Yamato's connection to Wano Country goes beyond just being moved by Oden's execution and Oden diary...
It was also forged by his yearning for the samurai of Wano Country, and by every little thing he did in Wano Country.
"Save Wano Country ... Come to think of it, the Okuchi no Makami Fruit is Wano Country's National Treasure, isn't it? I think you should become the shogun of Wano Country!" Sig said, having already planned ahead.
"Huh? What nonsense are you talking about? Isn't the Shogun of Wano Country currently being held hostage by that Kurozumi Orochi?" Yamato looked at Sig in bewilderment.
"I previously partnered with a Big Fool pirate who wanted to become Shichibukai ... and even someone not very bright like him knew that if he wanted to become Shichibukai, he had to eliminate one of the Shichibukai first!" Sig said with great logic.
"You mean... we need to get rid of Kurozumi Orochi first? No, no, no... that wicked Old Man isn't a big deal, but behind him is that old guy! Wait... why did you emphasize 'Big Fool' just now? What do you mean?" Yamato said angrily.
"No, I think... if we can kill Kurozumi Orochi by surprise, and you can guarantee Wano Country's production afterwards, that old guy won't refuse to let you become the shogun."