Flower Capital, the shogun's residence.
Night had just fallen, yet the residence blazed with light, the languid music of strings and flutes playing without end. Kurozumi Orochi sat uneasily in the seat of honor, his favorite tall geisha in his arms. Her features were exquisite, her skin fairer than snow, but all she could feel now was the heart pounding erratically inside the shogun's chest.
On the viewing platform, dancers in elaborate kimonos performed a classic folding-fan dance, their sleeves fluttering like butterflies, yet they did nothing to dispel the gloom gathered between Orochi's brows. He anxiously raised his black lacquer sake cup. Amber sake slid down his throat, but he could taste nothing.
The terrifying surge of Haki from the direction of Onigashima was like an icy needle driven deep into his sense of security.
Kyoshiro, the Kurozumi Shogunate's most capable "loyal hound," lay respectfully prostrate below the steps. His lowered face showed no expression, but bone-deep hatred and pleasure on the verge of eruption churned inside him. Damn usurper... has your master finally decided to abandon you, his useless pawn?
What left his mouth, however, was concern steeped in flattery. "Shogun Orochi, you must have overworked yourself on affairs of state lately." He rose, approached with proper short steps, and bowed deeply at ninety degrees, lifting a freshly filled cup above his head. "Please take care of your noble health. Wano Country... cannot do without your wise leadership."
Kurozumi Orochi forced a smile uglier than tears and took the cup. "If everyone were as considerate and loyal as Lord Kyoshiro, why would I have so many troubles?" His gaze swept over the Oniwabanshu ninja standing solemnly in the courtyard, summoned here on his urgent orders. Their silent, statue-like figures offered him some small, false sense of security. He