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"I was wrong! I was wrong!" he shrieked, his scalp tingling with fear. "I can tell you where they were taken!"
Kuma's hand paused.
"It was the World Government!" Bekori blurted out. "They took the slaves! They said they were taking them to a place called the Tequila Wolf!"
Kuma's expression changed. The World Government was involved. No wonder Bekori had been so bold. And that's why there had been nothing about it in the newspapers. A complete media blackout.
Luckily, Jin had his own sources.
'Tequila Wolf?' Kuma thought.
"That's right!" Bekori threatened. "If you kill me, the World Government will know! And those people... they'll all die! They'll pay the price for what you've done!"
He knew Kuma was a good man, an honest man. He was easy to manipulate.
Behind them, Jin remained silent. Whether Kuma could break through his own limitations... it all came down to this moment.
The hand hesitated.
A look of triumph flashed across Bekori's face. He laughed to himself. 'This idiot! All that size, and for what? He's even damaged my castle. I'll have to come up with some new laws to squeeze the money for repairs out of those peasants.'
Just as he was reveling in his own cleverness, Kuma's hand descended.
"Ursus Shock!"
A massive shockwave, in the shape of a bear's paw, expanded in a hemisphere, radiating out in all directions.
First, there was absolute silence, as if all sound in the world had ceased.
Then, as the white light expanded, the thunderous roar of a massive explosion.
King Bekori was instantly vaporized. Not even a speck of bone remained.
The high walls and buildings of the castle, unable to withstand the shockwave, crumbled and collapsed.
A single, full-power attack, capable of destroying an island.
When the tremors stopped and the dust settled, Kuma was kneeling on the ground, his face stained with blood. The entire castle had been leveled.
King Bekori was dead.
Kuma's emotions were a tangled mess.
He had killed a king.
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"You did the right thing," Jin said, pleased. So Kuma did have some fight in him after all.
"Violence is not inherently evil, and peace is not inherently good. Violence in the service of peace—is justice and freedom... To kneel for peace, to be enslaved for peace... that kind of peace is a lie... Did King Bekori know he was wrong? No... He just knew he was about to die—If you had let him go, he would have just brought more suffering, more oppression to the people of Sorbet... Some people are better off dead. And you... you killed their oppressor. Even if you have to bear the weight of that sin, don't you think it was worth it?"
Jin knew that Kuma wasn't happy.
He had just shattered his own "pacifist" beliefs. His worldview, his very will, had been shaken to the core.
But this was the moment to break and then rebuild.
"To bear sin... for the sake of justice and peace," Kuma murmured.
He was a pastor.
He had read the holy texts.
In a way, he was a bit of an extremist.
He had often used his Devil Fruit to heal others, taking their pain into himself, like an ascetic. And later, he had sacrificed himself to save Bonney. It was all part of the same self-sacrificial mindset.
To put it bluntly, Kuma was a masochist. He took on the suffering of the world, and in doing so, he found a twisted kind of joy.
"That's right," Jin said, pressing his advantage. "Think of the tragedy King Bekori caused. All those people who died... were they not innocent? But now... can you hear their cheers? You have avenged them. Even if your hands are now stained with blood... If you do not descend into hell, who will? Is that not also a form of salvation?"
Kuma, on the verge of a complete breakdown, saw a single ray of light pierce the darkness.
"If I do not descend into hell... who will?"
His eyes refocused. He had found a justification for his actions. As long as it was to save everyone, what did a little sin matter?
He felt as if his spirit, his soul, had been cleansed. His understanding of the world had undergone a massive shift.
A sense of calm washed over him.
Kuma stood up easily and looked at Jin. He bowed deeply. "Thank you. If it's possible... I would like you to rule the Sorbet Kingdom. It would be a great fortune for our country."
In Kuma's eyes, there was no better king than Jin.
And really, it was all thanks to the comparison with his peers.
In an era when the world was a mess, a king like Cobra was considered a saint. A king like Jin, who didn't exploit his people, who even started industries to bring them wealth... he was a god.
He had to be a god, descended to earth to save humanity.
Kuma was convinced.
Jin had ruled his kingdom wisely.
Jin had come to the North Blue to save Bonney.
Jin had come to the South Blue for him, to help him awaken, to achieve salvation.
Wasn't this exactly what the holy texts described? The sun god, the warrior of liberation, Nika?
If he wasn't a "God," then what was he?
Jin saw the faith, the adoration, and even a hint of fanaticism in Kuma's eyes. 'Holy crap. Did I... Did I overdo it??'
Rule the Sorbet Kingdom? Jin had no time for that.
"King Bekori's death will draw the attention of the World Government," Jin said. "But as long as you're not caught, his successor will be much more subdued. He'll be afraid you'll come back and kill him, too. As long as you're alive, you're a threat to every king in the world."
Kuma wasn't an idiot. He understood. His eyes lit up. "So I should go kill a few more evil kings?"
Jin was speechless.
Kuma wanted to become a king-killer?
Killing one was a warning.
Killing two or three... that would send a shockwave through the entire world. The Three Admirals, the God's Knights... they'd all have to get involved.
"Let's not be hasty," Jin said. "This is a long fight."
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At the port of Sorbet, two ships slowly docked.
A fierce wind, carrying a torrential downpour, had blotted out the last rays of the setting sun.
A hurricane-force gust swept past, whipping Jin's clothes around him.
"Kuma," a deep voice said, "it's been a long time."
The voice was clearly audible over the howling wind.
Jin looked over.
On the shattered outer wall of the castle stood a tall, hooded figure, the hurricane swirling behind him.
A bolt of lightning flashed.
Beneath the hood, a face with a square, red tattoo was revealed, its expression grim and serious.
"Dragon!" Kuma said, overjoyed. "You're here!"
"Yes," the father of Monkey D. Luffy, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, said with a slight nod. "I heard there was trouble. I came to see what was going on."
"And who is this?" he asked, his gaze shifting from the ruins to Jin.
"He..." Kuma said, "...is my mentor. The King of the Winter Blossom Kingdom, Jin."
Jin cringed.
Mentor??
Dragon was also a little confused. He's so young. Isn't Kuma a wanted man? Where did he find a mentor?
But the second part of the sentence clarified things.
"It's you?" Dragon said, his initial confusion giving way to understanding. "The king who defeated the Warlord Hanafuda?"
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"Achoo!"
In a tavern in Wano, Hanafuda, now with a prosthetic limb, drunkenly sneezed. 'Who's badmouthing me now?'
"Hanafuda! I heard you got beat! Tell me all about it!"
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