Pirate: I am Kozuki's nemesis and Nika's enemy!

On the outskirts of the Flower Capital, Kaido today is still training and getting stronger as usual.

A centaur-like Devil Fruit user trotted all the way and conveyed the good news that Zero defeated and subdued Moria to Kaido.

"This kid is always unexpected."

"Let others never understand the limit of his strength!"

Kaido put down his stick, smiled with joy, and after expressing his emotion, he looked at the pirate who had delivered the message.

"Where are our Scourge of Beasts now?"

"It just so happens that the two talented guys from the Beasts Pirates have returned. Maybe Zero will be interested in them."

The messenger pirate heard this and replied respectfully, "Lord Tianzai is still behind the bell."

"Now that Zero has defeated Moria, doesn't he plan to come back to accept the reward from the Beasts Pirates?"

"What is he doing there?"

Kaido asked with a frown, if Zero didn't come back, he wouldn't know who to give the priceless treasures he had looted from Wano Country to.

"Reporting to the Governor, Lord Natural Disaster said that he saw that the residents in the Suzuho area who were wearing kimonos were living a good life, but this year there was a sudden snowstorm and everyone was freezing."

"Perhaps Lord Scourge couldn't bear to see them continue to suffer in the human world, so he wanted them to experience the enthusiasm and warmth from the dragons even in winter."

...............

This year, the heavy snow lasted longer than usual after the bell.

The deep snow on the ground was even deep enough to reach a person's chest, and even the lakes under the street bridges were covered with a thick layer of ice.

Ordinary people in Linghou are complaining bitterly about this extremely bad weather and are all looking forward to this cold winter ending soon.

Inside the residence of the Lord Suzugo, the fire flickered in the fireplace. Shimotsuki Ushimaru and the others were so hot that they took off their heavy cotton coats, leaving only thin samurai uniforms on their bodies.

In addition to these members of the Shimotsuki family, there is also a "Hakuko" named Onimaru whose body is made of precious fur material.

Each of them had a frown on their face, looking as if they had lost their parents.

"That Gekko Moriah who dug up our ancestors' graves actually allied with the Scourge of the Beasts Pirates."

A warrior from the Shimotsuki family with a crescent-shaped bun broke the deathly silence with a trembling voice.

"No, it's more like conquering than forming an alliance."

"That beast scourge actually subdued Moria, who used zombies to defeat us."

"His next target is us. He has even sent someone to spread harsh words. If we don't surrender, all the people in the Shimotsuki family will die."

"If I don't surrender, the innocent people behind the bell will not be able to escape this catastrophe."

Another warrior corrected it in time and told the real situation in a dull voice.

When the other warriors heard the news, they clenched their fists red, but no one was willing to stand up and say a word. The scene became dead silent for a while, and even the sound of sweat dripping on the ground could be heard.

Sitting on the main seat, Ushimaru Shimotsuki glanced at the expressions on the faces of the retainers around him, and a feeling of helplessness quickly spread in his heart.

After a long while, he spoke slowly.

“…You and I fought for the glory of the Shimotsuki family. If we die, we die.”

"But the people of the small families behind the bell are forced to be cannon fodder for the internal decision of our Shimotsuki family..."

As the daimyo of the bell queen, Shimotsuki Ushimaru looked up at the ceiling, and for a moment he didn't know what choice he should make.

If he surrendered, he, Shimotsuki Niuwan, would feel sorry for his ancestors who had been harmed by Moria, sorry for the Shimotsuki family, and sorry for his own passion.

If he resisted, he, Shimotsuki Ushimaru, would be sorry for the innocent people behind the bell, and for the small caste families who were willing to be stepping stones to bring him to this position.

Being surrounded by people, he felt very embarrassed sitting in this position.

"It is their honor to die protecting their homeland, Lord Ushimaru, do not hesitate any longer!"

A ferocious-faced warrior from the Shimotsuki family stood up and spoke anxiously.

He owns dozens of fields in the Suzuko area and has hundreds of servants at home. If the Beasts Pirates really let them take over the Suzuko area, none of these things will belong to him anymore!

"Oh? Their homes?"

Shimotsuki Ushimaru's distracted gaze was fixed outside the window, and he happened to see a ragged vagrant from a small caste who had frozen to death outside the warm daimyo's mansion.

"Are we really qualified to drive them to fight?"

...............

Near the Tomb of Ten Thousand Ages, the flags of the Beasts Pirates fluttered in the wind, and hundreds of tents were set up nearby to withstand the cold winter.

In these tents, in addition to the pirates from the Thriller Barque Pirates who had just been captured, there were more reinforcements from the Beasts Pirates that Zero had transferred from the Flower Capital.

With his battle record as the support of his reputation, Zero has considerable say in the Beasts Pirates, and many Beasts members actively join him.

In a world of white snow, Jello, wearing a black and white wool shirt, quietly looked at the campfire in front of the tent, tapping rhythmically with the fingers of his right hand.

"Lord Jero, the Bell Queen Daimyo Shimotsuki Ushimaru has rejected our offer of surrender."

Moria, wearing a black jacket and with a thick bandage on his chest, leaned over and spoke to him respectfully.

Even though he was several meters taller than Zero, from the perspective of others, Moria, who was nearly seven meters tall, seemed to be shorter than Zero, who was about three meters tall.

"Now, it doesn't matter whether you believe that we still can't let go of the little power we have."

"I always keep my word..."

"Tonight, release your long-suppressed bloodthirsty nature and hunt to your heart's content!"

Jello stood on tiptoe and gently brushed off the thick layer of snow covering Moria's shoulders.

"If you make the wrong choice, you must pay a heavy price. Otherwise... I won't be able to discipline them in the future."

Jello's tone was quite harsh, and his words and actions had a hint of killing a chicken to scare the monkeys.

"Okay, Moria understands!"

Moonlight Moria suddenly felt flattered when Jello helped her pack her luggage, and quickly gave a respectful reply.

Just as he turned around and was about to leave, he suddenly thought of something. After taking a look at Jello's thin clothes, he dived into the tent.

When he appeared again, he was holding the sable fur that Jello had covered him with, which was stained with his own blood.

"I'm sorry, Master Jello."

"These blood apes are really hard to wash off, so I haven't returned them to you yet."

Moriah said with an apologetic look on his face.

"How can we take back what we have given away?"

Facing Moria's action, Jello waved his hand and smiled at him.

"If you can't wash it clean and still accept it honestly, just keep it as a souvenir."

"If you really feel bad about it, just give me a similar dress next time."

…………