After soothing Otama, who was on the verge of tears, Charles took the two of them to collect on the deal.
Blasting open the gates of a Beasts Pirates farm, Stella leveled the Feilong Sin Sword across the neck of the pirates guarding it and forced him to contact Kaido through a Transponder Snail.
Following Kaido's instructions, that pirate took all his men and turned the farm over to Charles.
But Charles quickly realized he'd oversimplified things, and trouble soon came knocking.
Wano Country is isolated from the outside world under a policy of national seclusion, and while it's indeed a place where news doesn't flow in from beyond its shores, that doesn't mean information doesn't circulate within Wano itself.
Charles and Kaido had battled for three days and nights on Onigashima, and the commotion was noticeable even from Udon and Hakumai.
Before long, all the attentive parties knew someone had broken into Kaido's base and clashed with him.
They didn't know the result, but a farm managed by the Beasts had been seized afterward, and the Beasts Pirates didn't react at all.
Connecting the two events made it easy to draw a conclusion.
At the very least, that challenger had gotten away intact after fighting Kaido, and even made Kaido back down.
The first to get the word, of course, was the shogun who ruled this country, Kurozumi Orochi. With a squad of Oniwabanshu who really were ninja despite appearances, he was the earliest to receive more detailed intelligence.
Sitting in a lavish palace, the piggish, log-like body of Kurozumi Orochi shifted as his eyes rolled.
Twenty years ago, he brought in the great pirate Kaido; together they trapped Kozuki Oden and took this country in the end.
In that alliance, Orochi was the one most clueless about his place, actually imagining he and Kaido were equals.
Now he had an even more clueless idea.
If he could make someone like Charles—who stood on Kaido's level—serve under him, wouldn't he be able to seize more advantage within the alliance with Kaido?
He seemed never to consider what qualifications he had to make Charles his subordinate.
"Respecting talent" doesn't exist in Kurozumi Orochi's dictionary. Sending his most capable aide, the Oniwabanshu chief Fukurokuju, to meet Charles was, in his mind, already grand treatment.
Before Fukurokuju departed, Orochi specially instructed him, "If he refuses, eliminate him for me."
Nine-Headed Monster: "Go deal with Tang Monk and his disciples for me!" jpg
Question marks popped up over Fukurokuju's head. Eliminate someone on Kaido's level—who did he think he was?
Did their shogun misunderstand Kaido's strength or his? If he had that kind of ability, why bring Kaido into Wano in the first place?
Still, out of professional habit as a ninja, Fukurokuju had no choice but to obey.
Being a man with flexible scruples, though, Fukurokuju had his own approach. Worst case, he'd cook up something to string the shogun along—given orders like that, one shudders to guess at the shogun's IQ.
After Orochi got the news, Denjiro—undercover at his side under the alias Kyoshiro and one of the Akazaya Nine—received the same intel.
He hurried to the pleasure district to find the oiran Komurasaki and report it.
Who would have imagined that Kyoshiro, who succeeded Hyogoro as the kingpin of Wano's underworld, would be kneeling deferentially before an oiran?
Of course, Komurasaki's identity was not simple—she was Kozuki Hiyori, daughter of Denjiro's former lord Kozuki Oden, rightful princess of this country.
After hearing what Denjiro brought, Kozuki Hiyori said, "So if we can gain that lord's help, there's hope of defeating Kaido?"
"Exactly," Denjiro said, excited. "Then we can fulfill Lord Oden's wish and restore Your Ladyship's status!"
Kozuki Hiyori fell silent for a moment, then said, "If only it were that simple."
She was not so optimistic; on this matter she was calmer than Denjiro. After all, whether Charles could truly defeat Kaido—and whether he would be willing to help them—was unknown.
In truth, how confident was Denjiro himself? It was just that both he and Kozuki Hiyori needed something to hope for too badly.
Kaido was too strong—so strong as to inspire despair. But to take back Wano, they had to get past him.
They had pinned their hopes on Oden's prophecy, but now a new and tangible hope had appeared, and even Denjiro began to waver.
Whatever the case, Denjiro had to try; he didn't want to let any chance slip by.
Charles had no idea anyone had started eyeing him and already made moves; what was giving him a headache now was something else.
Although he had taken over the farm, Charles didn't care about what was on it.
Even after filling her own belly, Otama hadn't forgotten the villagers who were still hungry outside, and she'd distributed the food to them.
That, of course, brought trouble in its wake. Under Kurozumi Orochi's rule, the whole of Wano was impoverished.
It wasn't just Amigasa Village that couldn't get enough to eat. Once word spread that this farm had food to hand out, crowds of civilians jammed the gate.
What followed was a parade of ugly scenes.
There were wayward samurai grabbing for themselves as they ate, petty thugs robbing others' rations, and even shameless types who claimed the food was theirs by right and demanded more and better.
Some people even maliciously incited others to storm the farm and loot it.
Naive Otama was frightened by the ugliness of human nature on display.
Charles almost laughed in anger. They didn't dare make trouble when the Beasts Pirates were around, but with him they decided to push their luck?
That absurd "good people deserve to have guns pointed at them" moment had him about to go off on the spot!
The one who stopped it was Shimotsuki Yasuie, who came when he heard food was being distributed here. He stood up and denounced the troublemakers, and those villagers who had been incited out of ignorance realized what they'd done and backed away in shame.
As for the diehard ringleaders, Charles didn't bother being polite—he tossed them straight into the sea to feed the fish.
Shimotsuki Yasuie took it upon himself to maintain order, and the earlier problems were resolved. As the former daimyo of Hakumai, he was up to the task.
Charles couldn't remain in Wano long and had long planned to entrust the farm to someone reliable.
In fact, his preferred candidate was Hyogoro, currently imprisoned in the Udon mines. Hyogoro of the Flower, who rose to the top of Wano's underworld on chivalry, had more than enough ability, prestige, and character to manage the farm well.
But since Shimotsuki Yasuie had stepped forward himself, handing it to him wasn't bad either.
Just as Shimotsuki Yasuie was getting the farm running smoothly, Charles's good mood was ruined.
Fukurokuju arrived at the farm as Kurozumi Orochi's envoy.
Sensible to the situation, he conveyed Orochi's offer in very euphemistic terms. With a boss like that, Charles almost felt sorry for him.
When Charles set a hand on Fukurokuju's shoulder, the latter felt as if he were between the fangs of a predator—one bite, and he'd be torn to pieces.
When he first saw Charles, he'd truly doubted whether such a youth had really fought Kaido.
Now he knew. The other party was indeed a monster who could decide his life or death with ease! And thanks to his foolish superior's orders, that monster was not in a friendly mood.
Leaning close, Charles said quietly, "Since Kurozumi Orochi went to the trouble of sending you to amuse me, I'll let it slide this time. But there won't be a next time.
Whatever Kurozumi Orochi does in Wano is none of my business—but this farm is something I took from Kaido. If he dares lay a finger on it, I guarantee I'll have him begging me to kill him."
Fukurokuju's eyes were hidden under his glasses. He bowed respectfully. "I understand. I will certainly convey your words."
"Then I'll trouble you with that," Charles said with a smile. "Don't disappoint me."
Drenched in sweat, Fukurokuju didn't dare wipe his brow until he'd left and gone a good long way.
Watching the farm settle back into calm, Charles knew this place would become a pure land within Wano. He had no reason to remain.
Since he'd come to this world, how could he not head out to sea for an adventure?
______
(≧◡≦) ♡ Support me and read 20 chapters ahead – patreon.com/Mutter
Every 100 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.
Every 5 reviews = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.