Caelan walked over to Yamato and sat on her midsection.

Yamato tried to struggle, but the earlier blow had left her powerless. She could only glare up at him.

"Instead of worshipping Kozuki Oden, you might as well look to me. I can even show you a diary."

Caelan's tone was teasing.

Yamato's expression stiffened.

What did "I can show you a diary" even mean? Did he take her for a fool who would believe anything?

She believed Oden's diary because she saw him die with resolve and was moved by his warrior spirit.

"You devil, you executioner! Even if Kozuki Oden is unworthy of worship, I will not look up to you!"

Yamato shouted.

It was impossible for her to revere the man who had defeated the samurai and taken so many captive.

"Haha. Seems your belief has wavered," Caelan said calmly.

In Yamato's words, Oden was no longer a flawless idol, but someone who could be weighed against others.

Deep down, she already accepted that Oden might have been foolish.

It was just that eighteen years of admiration made her resist that conclusion.

"I have not wavered. I am Kozuki Oden!"

Yamato turned her head away.

"Alright, alright, you are Kozuki Oden," Caelan replied without arguing. "Do you remember why you came to see me?"

"I came to save those six thousand people. Let them go!"

Yamato paused, then answered.

"But you have been defeated by me. How will you save them?"

Caelan smiled.

"How to save them…" Yamato faltered.

She had been knocked down in a few moves. How could she convince Caelan to release six thousand captives?

"If you do not know, then come to my room and perform a dance," Caelan said lightly. "Dance for a year, and I will release them."

He meant what he said. If Yamato performed for a full year, he would let them go.

As for whether they could hold on, that depended on fate.

It had only been two days, and he had already heard from Gecko Moria that a third had died.

The people of Wano, weakened by unknown toxins, were more fragile than he expected.

A year later, there would only be graves.

"No!"

Yamato refused immediately.

He had just called Oden foolish. Now he was trying the same ploy. Did he think she could not see it?

Her instincts screamed that something was wrong.

"You say you are Kozuki Oden, yet you will not make a sacrifice for those six thousand. That is too self-centered," Caelan said, chiding her.

"I am not. I am not!" Yamato protested anxiously. "I am just afraid you will deceive me the way Orochi and Kaido did Oden!"

"Hah. Seems you are sharper than that idiot Oden," Caelan said, a bit surprised.

He had thought Yamato would agree right away.

He had not expected such a clear reaction. So the points he made earlier had been effective.

"Of course. I am not as foolish as he…" Yamato began proudly, then stopped and hurriedly corrected herself. "Kozuki Oden is not foolish. He is a great man, a true pillar!"

Though she had denied him inwardly, she could not say it aloud.

Eighteen years of admiration could not be discarded so easily.

"That is amusing," Caelan said, smiling.

He had taken her for quite clever, yet her reactions lagged.

She could still be misled.

Caelan's expression turned serious. "I was indeed lying just now. Even if you danced a full year, I had no intention of truly releasing them."

"But now, I am moved by your sincerity. Dance in my room for one month, and I will let them go."

"I have reduced it from a year to a month. That is sincere enough, is it not?"

It was still a deception.

Because the promise hinged not on whether he released them, but on when.

If he released them in a week, some might still survive.

In a month, it would be too late.

"Really?" Yamato's eyes brightened with naïve relief. "Good thing I did not agree to the year!"

If she had accepted the first offer, it would have been pointless.

A month sounded more reasonable, yet something still felt off.

"Of course it is true," Caelan said, gaze steady.

"But…" Yamato hesitated.

Performing like that would be mortifying.

Oden's dancing… how foolish.

Only now, faced with the same choice, did she feel how wrong Oden's idea had been.

She wanted to fight, consequences be damned.

But eighteen years of thinking held her back.

"What are you hesitating for?" Caelan pressed, voice firm. "Stop thinking only of yourself. It is just a month of dignity, versus six thousand lives."

He planted himself on the moral high ground and pointed out the stakes.

"I am not selfish!" Yamato said, aggrieved. "I agree. I will perform for a month!"

"Good."

Caelan clapped once, satisfied.

Watching Yamato being led by his words, he felt a momentary twinge of guilt.

Not for wrongdoing, but for taking advantage of someone unworldly.

He cast that aside and led Yamato inside.

After Yamato washed up, Caelan began the so-called appreciation.

"Set aside your gear. Prepare yourself," Caelan instructed.

"…"

Yamato removed her battle attire piece by piece, standing before him.

Her figure was athletic and flawless, her bearing proud.

As expected of Yamato, outstanding in all but the way Oden's legend had clouded her mind.

Caelan observed and occasionally offered curt praise.

Yamato felt uneasy.

Not because her body was being seen. She did not think of herself in those terms.

It was the indignity of obeying an enemy's order. A true warrior would hate this.

"Hurry and begin. Standing there is pointless," Caelan said.

"I will begin," Yamato answered, bracing herself.

Then she performed the "Kozuki Dance."

It was the same dance Oden had done years ago.

She had read the diary and once practiced it with reverence, fully clothed, thinking how great Oden was and how meaningful the dance felt.

Now, performing that dance here, she felt only discomfort. There was no honor in it.

"Your movements are not correct. I will show you," Caelan said, frowning.

Under Yamato's puzzled gaze, Caelan stepped forward and adjusted her form, correcting each position with clinical precision.

In the blink of an eye, night passed.

Caelan not only taught the dance, he lectured her at length, tearing down each of Oden's so-called strategies and pointing out their flaws.

(To be continued.)