In the bustling streets of the Flower Capital, hundreds of men and women dressed in kimonos marched shoulder to shoulder in unison, steadily advancing towards the Marine soldiers maintaining order.
A man standing at the center raised a flag high and shouted.
"Marine, get out! The Land of Wano belongs to the Kozuki Clan!"
As his voice echoed, the people around him joined in unison.
"The Land of Wano belongs to the Kozuki Clan! Marine, get out!"
"Marine, get out!"
"The Land of Wano doesn't need the Marine!"
The chants surged like a tidal wave, reverberating across the skies of the Land of Wano, drawing more and more citizens into the crowd.
However, while many adults joined the protest, the children standing at their doorsteps looked on in confusion.
From the moment they were born, they had been taught that the Kozuki Clan were rebels, especially that terrifying figure, Kozuki Oden.
Yet now, among the growing crowd of adults, some were shouting the name "Kozuki Oden."
"Stop!"
"Everyone, stop!"
Facing the swelling crowd, the dozen or so Marine soldiers tasked with maintaining order on the street watched with grave tension.
The leading sergeant had already loaded his rifle and aimed it at the man at the forefront, coldly warning.
"Take one more step and it will be considered rebellion. You will be executed without mercy!"
"We are not rebelling!"
"The Land of Wano has always belonged to the Kozuki Clan!"
"Our lord is the Kozuki Clan, not the Marine! Marine, get out!"
Despite facing the Marine soldiers, the overwhelming number of citizens showed no fear, shouting slogans as they pressed forward.
***
Meanwhile, at the temporary Marine office in the Flower Capital, in the office of the captain responsible for maintaining order, Morgan suddenly stood up, clutching a distorted Den Den Mushi, and said in a deep voice.
"What? The citizens of the Flower Capital are causing trouble?"
"Yes, I know what to do!"
With that, Morgan tossed the Den Den Mushi onto his desk and turned to Moria standing at the door.
"Soldier Moria, immediately relay my orders! Everyone, assemble at once!"
Without waiting for Moria's response, Morgan grabbed the axe hanging on the wall and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
When Morgan arrived at the temporary training ground, hundreds of Marine soldiers had already gathered.
"Move out!"
Without pausing, Morgan charged out of the training ground.
Seeing this, hundreds of soldiers followed without hesitation, rushing in a mighty wave toward the busiest street in the Flower Capital.
"Make way! Make way!"
"Everyone ahead, move aside!"
The soldiers, charging out of the training ground and into the streets like they were heading to war, sped up as if they could already see military honors beckoning to them.
They ran faster and faster, startling the unsuspecting citizens who scrambled to get out of their way.
Soon, the soldiers at the front reached the street where the large crowd had gathered.
Seeing the mass of people advancing and shouting slogans, the soldiers didn't slow down or wait for reinforcements despite being outnumbered.
Instead, as if fueled by adrenaline, they grabbed their guns and raised them high.
With the rifle butt, they decisively struck down the civilians blocking their path.
Immediately after, one of the soldiers resolutely raised his gun to the sky and shouted.
"Everyone, get down on your knees with your hands on your heads, or you will die!"
The crisp gunshot instantly drew the attention of the crowd ahead.
As they turned to look, the majority of the soldiers following closely behind surged forward like a tidal wave.
Under the terrified gazes of the civilians, they charged into the crowd, grabbing people and beating them mercilessly.
In an instant, chaos erupted.
Some fled in panic, others stood their ground and fought back against the Marine soldiers, but most dropped to their knees with their hands on their heads.
Morgan also rushed over at this moment.
Seeing someone in the crowd draw a knife and charge at the Marine soldiers, he didn't hesitate and immediately ordered.
"Kill all resisters on the spot!"
"Yes!"
At Morgan command, the Marine soldiers following him raised their guns.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
In an instant, the dense gunfire drowned out all other sounds.
Dozens of the knife-wielding civilians fell to the ground.
The crowd, shocked that the Marine had opened fire without hesitation, descended into chaos once more.
Many fled desperately toward other streets.
The Marine soldiers were not about to let these resisters escape.
After ordering those kneeling with their hands on their heads to stay put, they immediately gave chase.
Two soldiers, eager for military merit, pursued six men into an alley.
As soon as they entered the alley, the six men, who had been fleeing in disarray, suddenly stopped.
They drew their knives and turned to face the two pursuing soldiers.
"Huh?"
The Marine soldier at the front narrowed his eyes slightly, then decisively raised his gun and aimed at one of the men, saying in a deep voice.
"You're not ordinary civilians!"
"They have moon marks on their ankles!" The other soldier, undeterred by the numerical disadvantage, stepped forward with a fanatical expression, standing shoulder to shoulder with his comrade.
His eyes burned as he declared "You've incited the crowd to protest and riot. You're dead!"
Without another word, the two soldiers raised their guns and pulled the triggers.
However, after pulling the triggers, their expressions changed drastically.
Clearly, during the chase, they had already exhausted their ammunition.
"Two against six, we can win!"
"Kill them!"
Realizing their guns were empty, the two soldiers didn't retreat.
Instead, they fixed their bayonets and charged at the six men in the alley.
On the main street, after several volleys from the Marine soldiers, the street was littered with bodies.
Those who hadn't managed to escape lay in pools of blood, while those who had knelt with their hands on their heads remained unharmed.
"Report, Captain Morgan!"
A Marine commander quickly approached Morgan and reported.
"These people are not ordinary civilians. They are samurai! Additionally, I've discovered that each of them has a moon mark on their ankle!"
"Samurai?"
A cold glint flashed in Morgan eyes.
He turned to Moria, who was standing beside him, and ordered.
"Soldier Moria, immediately relay my command to lock down the entire city. Anyone with a moon mark on their ankle is to be killed on sight without interrogation!"
Moria, dressed in a Marine soldier's uniform (Seaman recruit), didn't hesitate.
He immediately unleashed the unique power of his Paramecia-type Shadow-Shadow Fruit.
In the next moment, a dense swarm of bat-shaped shadows flew out from his body, spreading in all directions like a plague of locusts.
Morgan did not stop there.
He casually took a long gun from a subordinate officer beside him and walked over to a samurai who was still breathing.
Without hesitation, he fired three shots into the samurai's head and chest.
Seeing this, the other Marine soldiers followed suit.
Regardless of whether the samurai before them were completely dead, they decisively raised their guns and pulled the triggers.
***
At the same time, in a courtyard in the Flower Capital, a samurai rushed frantically toward one of the rooms, shouting anxiously as he ran.
"Lady Hiyori! Lady Hiyori!"
When the ronin samurai reached the door of the room, the tightly shut door slid open in response.
Standing at the doorway was Kozuki Hiyori, dressed in a kimono with her hair tied in a ponytail, holding a black sword in her hand.
"Something terrible has happened, Lady Hiyori!"
The samurai knelt down with a thud before Kozuki Hiyori and urgently said.
"The samurai from the ruins of Oden Castle incited the people to protest against the Marine, demanding that the Marine return the authority of Wano Country to the Kozuki family. The Marine responded with a bloody crackdown, and the samurai... suffered heavy casualties."
"!!!"
Kozuki Hiyori's beautiful eyes widened in shock and a wave of helplessness swept over her, nearly causing her to collapse on the spot.
"Lady Hiyori!"
Seeing this, the samurai quickly rose to support her, but Kozuki Hiyori stopped him.
"Hurry" Kozuki Hiyori, having caught her breath, didn't waste time thinking and urgently said.
"Take me to see the admiral!"
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