CHAPTER 43 - New Tidings
"I can't believe we did it." shivered Zenitsu, finding Zoro clean up the scavengers.
"That man is amazing." Inosuke commented, having observed Zoro take down three-fourths of all the Demons by himself.
"Alright, we are done here." Zoro sheathed his blades.
"The expedition's not over. Looks like an Upper Demon Moon is nearby." He mentioned.
"Come on! That's overwork!" Zenitsu complained.
"We are going." Zoro replied without hesitation.
"This is getting interesting." Inosuke nodded, understanding the graveness of their situation.
"Kid, lead us to this location." Zoro beckoned Zenitsu, handing him the letter.
"You are going to get us killed." the latter replied.
The band marched along the road through the dead night.
"The letter doesn't seem right. Lady Shinobu says here that the information came from someone named Kanae Kocho. That shouldn't be possible." Zenitsu mentioned.
"And why's that?" Zoro asked.
"Kanae Kocho is Lady Shinobu's deceased sister. There must be a mistake."
"We'll soon see."
The open path led way to a forest with a shadowy figure awaiting.
"You have arrived." mentioned a woman's voice.
Inosuke and Zenitsu drew their blades as a precaution. They could not feel any Demonic presence.
"Alright, what's the deal?" Zoro asked.
"We have located an Upper Moon." mentioned the woman. It was Kanae Kocho.
Zenitsu was baffled to find the pale look on the woman's face, with all the stitches.
"Who is she?" he trembled, yet couldn't disapprove her beauty despite her pale looks.
"Oh my, these must be the kids Shinobu mentioned." Kanae said, observing the kids with a smile.
"They are. But let's get to business." Zoro said.
"Right. The one we have found is the Upper Demon Moon, Ranked Third... named Akaza." Kanae revealed.
"Wait, what?" Zenitsu bellowed.
"I heard the boys fought the Upper Moon with Kyojuro Rengoku, the Flame Hashira. You do know what had happened?" Kanae asked.
"Yeah." Zoro replied.
"That Demon bastard killed Bug-eye! He's going to pay!" Inosuke bellowed.
Zenitsu though trembling, began to feel a rage grow inside of him.
Kanae felt sorry for the kids, who had suffered during the train incident.
"Come on. Sentiments won't do justice to the deceased." Zoro replied. "Let's find this Demon."
Unlike before, neither Zenitsu nor Inosuke complained to the dangerous objective. An Upper Moon was able to wound Law, an experienced pirate Captain.
Despite the Heart Pirate Captain's decision to stay around and solve their situation, Zoro knew that their staying longer had proved nothing but disadvantageous. The Demons were able to inflict damage upon the Straw Hat-Heart Pirates Alliance, wounding Law. Zoro couldn't have left the situation unchecked. Kibutsuji was adamant for payback. Jack was on the mainland. And then, the Marines. Without further word, he led the team through the forest to get things done.
A glade awaited.
"I sense some strong presence." Zoro remarked, deploying his Shusui. The others followed suit drawing their blades.
"Who the hell is that?" Inosuke observed ahead. Two silhouettes representing sturdy figures stood by the crest of the glade.
"I can't believe we are fighting all these monsters tonight." Zenitsu mumbled.
"Hush!" hissed Kanae, much to Zenitsu's turmoil.
"That guy with the jagged hair. How did he get out here?*"
"Well, well, can you believe who shows up?" Kid mentioned, observing below the small glade hill.
"Wait, is that the Pirate Hunter?" Kid observed surprised.
"Never thought I'd run into that guy again. Just like his Captain, this one's equally insane."
Zoro, aware, led his group along the slope of the glade hill.
"Is he an enemy?" Kanae enquired.
"Can't say. Maybe he is, maybe he isn't."
Zoro's reply gave no necessary insight, much to Kanae's curiosity unanswered.
The two groups faced off each other atop the hill.
"So, you found your way around, eh?" Kid began the conversation.
"The same goes for you. Didn't think you'd wanna stick around after that mess with Doflamingo*." Zoro said.
"As a matter of fact, that bastard was in my radar of murder. Devil's luck was on his side back then. I believe you had no luck in finding him?"
"As a matter of fact, I did find him."
Kid and Killer were taken by surprise.
"Where?" Kid's smile had withdrawn to a serious grimace.
"I forgot that place's name. Some dead-silent town with that old castle." Zoro tried to recall.
"Shi-niju." Kanae reminded.
Kid and Killer's attention turned towards the lady and then followed ahead to the kids.
"Never seen them in the wanted posters. Thought every Straw Hat was crazy enough to be wanted by the World Government." Kid remarked, observing Law's companions.
"They aren't part of the Straw Hats as far as I know." Killer said.
"So, you made some friends out here? Doesn't seem they'd be much use in the New World." Kid mocked.
"You might not like it but they are capable in a fight, more than it meets the eye." Zoro replied.
"Heh, is that so?" Kid observed the companions for a while.
"So, why are you here?" Killer enquired. He had a feeling that the answer would be within familiar terms.
"I could ask you the same thing." Zoro replied.
Clouds veiled the sky. A gust of wind had begun to blow during the tenure Zoro and his group began ascending the hill. With time, the wind moved the clouds off the waning crescent moon which showered a layer of minimal light over the terrain of the conversation. The plateau atop was a sight of a big mess. Nothing resembling a natural terrain remained in place. The folks that had arrived were shocked to observe the damage on the land.
"What happened here?" Zenitsu shrieked, meeting eyes with Kid, who glared back at him with intensity. Zenitsu realised the person in front of him was bashed in his own way. There were marks of dried blood on his face and hands, and yet, Kid seemed perturbed in the least.
There was a large hole in one corner of the upturned field. Inosuke observed the same realising a great battle might have happened not too long back. The damage in the surroundings was fresh, so were Kid's wounds.
"I guess they beat us to it." Kanae mentioned, looking upon Kid and Killer with an unfriendly look.
"So, you came after him?" Kid asked.
"That's right." Zoro replied. "Is he dead?"
"Dead?" Kid asked with a chuckle.
"Wait, what's going on here? We came looking for a dangerous Demon." Zenitsu mentioned.
"That's what he was, eh?" Kid asked, looking upon Zenitsu. He returned his gaze between Zoro and Kanae.
"That thing packed a wallop, but I could handle him." Kid added.
"Is he dead?" Kanae demanded reiterating Zoro's query and with emphasis.
Kid observed the stitched woman, glaring back with intensity.
"The coward fled. A bloody disappointment. Especially since the fight went pretty intense. Would have loved to dig that regenerating freak into the ground as many times over."
Zenitsu couldn't believe the man's words. Eustass Kid expressed the joy of fighting against an Upper Demon Moon, despite the danger of facing one, and not to mention, the lethal ability of an Upper Moon's calibre to annihilate populations of humanity.
"Who are you?" Inosuke demanded.
Kanae had the same curiosity. Zoro hadn't answered her previous question whilst the uphill jaunt.
"He's a pirate." Zoro answered. "Last checked, his bounty was 470 million."
"What?" Kanae turned baffled. Whilst the boys couldn't find significance of the numbers, Kanae had knowledge of the bounty system set by the World Government and the Marines. She remembered Zoro explaining Shinobu the list of bounty posters he had back during the east coast expedition.
"470 million... That means his bounty is more than yours." Kanae mentioned recalling Zoro's 320 Million Berry Bounty.
"She keeps an eye on the news, eh?" Kid asked. "Thought she was not from the New World."
"She is not." Zoro clarified, getting back to the point, "So, where did that Demon rush off to?"
"Somewhere south. But I have no interest in chasing after him. I have bigger priorities. That Demon's all yours for the taking." Kid mentioned.
"It seems you are after these 'Demons' for a reason?" asked Killer. "There were more of them, but they are taken care of."
"In that case, I believe you all know that they cannot regenerate if they are beheaded?" Kanae asked.
"They cannot?" Kid asked surprised. Killer was in the same boat.
"Would have done good if we had known it sooner?" Killer asked Kid.
"Doesn't matter. We sent those small timers to kingdom come nonetheless. Wouldn't have made a difference either way. It's none of our business anymore since our crew's all been freed." Kid replied.
"Right."
"So, you all ready to return back to the New World?" Zoro asked.
"Our concerns are our own. There are some scores to settle if we can get the chance." Kid said.
Killer and Kid prepared to leave.
"Tides are changing in the New World. Better to get back in the game. See you around, Roronoa." Kid bid farewell.
The silhouette of the two men disappeared beyond the plateau.
"They really had no idea where the Demon went." Kanae said.
"I guess not. The jagged-haired one doesn't care of the consequences on this land." Zoro said.
"We won't find the Upper Moon out here. Rest assured, he must have had a compelling reason to retreat, as per that pirate's story."
"I'd say Kibutsuji will try to find the pirates on the Mainland since his top minions are getting their ass kicked by us outsiders."
"Agreed. He will plan to get rid of us. Better to find a new course."
"Yeah. Let's get the hell out of here." Zoro declared.
"Alright, so that's the story." Law got up from his crouch, observing a dismembered Moria from above. Dr. Hogback, who was devoid of a heart, explained the details that Law needed to hear.
"We have a deal." Hogback mentioned, "For the exchange of the information."
"You think so, huh?" Law retorted.
Hogback shivered to Law's reply. Moria was mortified and couldn't make a word out of his mouth.
Despite the unpleasantness back in the damp room (the one where Moria had been kept previously), Law finally began to connect the dots. He remembered the research he had done in the archives; the stories that led him through the medieval voyages of the Portuguese and the Dutch, and the countless shipwrecks throughout the Pacific Ocean. In the end, story relating to the rumoured cluster of disappearances north of Mariana Islands** gave him confidence to plan a voyage as soon as his new ship at Tokyo was ready to disembark.
Law walked out of the room with confidence. Shinobu and Tomioka awaited outside.
"Revelations?" Shinobu asked.
"Big ones." Law replied.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Footnotes:
*Refer my Fanfic Nightmares: Gaiden that takes place between Chapter 14 to 17of Kaizoku: Kimetsu no Yaiba.
**Refer Chapter 21 of Kaizoku: Kimetsu no Yaiba.