"Hmm, the reward for this side mission is decent. So, next up is…"

Kenji called up the system's main mission, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"The mission to investigate Pluton… This really needs to be handled carefully."

It seemed to be just an intelligence-gathering mission, and given the excellent performance of Kuzan's Marine squad before, this mission didn't seem too difficult for them.

However, the situation was different this time. Information about Pluton might only be known by a very small number of people throughout Wano Country.

Previously, when Kuzan and his team collected intelligence on Wano Country, they could choose many targets. Even if they failed many times, it didn't matter. There were still many people in Flower Capital.

But if they were inquiring about Pluton's intelligence, failure was absolutely not an option. Failure would mean alerting the few people who possessed information about Pluton.

At that time, not only would subsequent intelligence gathering become very difficult, but these Marines might even be treated as hostile and ostracized by Wano Country's official forces.

"...Troublesome. I'll remind Kuzan again when he returns from observing the battle."

Kenji pondered for a while, finally deciding it was better to play it safe, especially since the mission reward was substantial.

If Kuzan were present now and knew Kenji's thoughts, he would undoubtedly grumble inwardly again.

If you care so much about the mission, and the risk of mission failure is so high, why don't you do it yourself? You thought about it for a long time and still sent me?

Of course, even if Kuzan really knew and even raised objections, Kenji could silence him with a single sentence, making him obediently carry out the order.

Don't want to gather intelligence? Then go kill Whitebeard/Golden Lion!

"At the coast, they must be about to start fighting, right?" Kenji subconsciously turned his head to look towards the distant coast.

"Two Legendary Pirates fighting, the commotion will definitely be huge… I need to go back quickly…"

As Kenji withdrew his gaze and prepared to turn around, his heart suddenly stirred, and he realized he seemed to have overlooked something.

"Speaking of which…"

He frowned slightly, his gaze sweeping across the entire battlefield.

As Whitebeard, Marco, and the Wano Country samurai departed, either passively or actively, the battlefield was now almost completely silent, without even the chirping of insects or birds. The nearby ground had been ruined, and the terrain had changed. For birds and insects to chirp, they first had to survive.

"Strange, where are the people?" Kenji scanned around and found the battlefield empty, inside and out. All observers had already left.

He looked around for a while, didn't find his target, and under Observation Haki's perception, the battlefield was even more desolate.

The principle of Observation Haki's perception is to detect the aura emitted by living beings.

All living beings near the battlefield had been cleared out in one wave, so Observation Haki naturally couldn't detect any life aura.

At this moment, this area was like a desolate dead land.

However, in the end, Kenji still found something.

He detected a strange aura. This aura had some semblance of life, yet it wasn't like a living person. It felt like a candle in the wind, about to be extinguished at any moment, its aura extremely faint.

If Kenji hadn't sensed it carefully, he would have overlooked it. In fact, he had subconsciously overlooked this faint aura before.

"It really is you, kid."

Kenji followed the aura detected by Observation Haki and turned to look.

Then, by a distant crack in the ground, he saw Oden, covered in mud and almost blended with the earth.

At this moment, Oden's condition could be said to be very poor.

Not only was the life aura he emitted faint, but his breathing was also shallow, making him look like he could expire at any moment.

"To think it would be like this…" Kenji was surprised.

"In a near-death state, one can make their aura extremely faint, so much so that even top experts find it hard to perceive?"

"Hmm, no, his state seems a bit different, it's not a normal near-death state…"

With a look of curious inquiry in his eyes, Kenji slowly walked towards Oden.

As he got closer, he noticed more details. Oden's body was twisted on the ground, his upper body facing the sky, and his lower body facing the ground.

Of course, this wasn't the crucial part. The crucial part was the reason for his body's spiral twist.

Oden's body seemed to have no bones. Kenji checked and found that Oden's bones were not shattered, but they were incredibly soft, literally soft bones.

"Was it caused by the vibration waves?"

Kenji had only heard of 'bones turning to jelly' before. This 'bones turning soft' from being shaken was the first time he had seen it.

Kenji continued to observe, noting that although Oden's bones were soft all over, and his aura was intermittent, his vitality remained stubbornly strong.

Life essence is different from aura. If one masters the appropriate method, one can hide the aura they emit, but life essence always remains there.

Oden's vitality at this moment did not at all resemble that of a dying person.

"Are you playing dead with me?" Kenji's investigation of Oden's state answered his doubts.

"No wonder he could hide his aura so well…"

Dying people also emit an aura, though it may be faint, it can still be clearly discerned by a master of Observation Haki.

Otherwise, how would strong individuals confirm their opponent's physical condition?

It was clear that Oden was utilizing his severely injured state and deliberately using means to conceal his aura.

"Hmm, this technique for hiding aura is quite good."

Kenji's eyes scanned Oden's body back and forth, while also observing with Observation Haki for comparison.

If it weren't for being able to see with his eyes, relying solely on Observation Haki, he would definitely have overlooked Oden's presence.

"Good, good." Kenji grew more satisfied the more he looked, nodding with a smile.

"I'll have to ask him for a copy later…"

Good things are naturally the more the merrier.

Even if Kenji would most likely not use this aura-hiding technique himself, he could teach it to other trusted individuals.

As for the severely injured Oden, Kenji naturally wanted to help him. After all, he wasn't a devil. It was just a small favor, helping others for pleasure.

"Hmm… I'll just send him to the pleasure district and have the courtesans take good care of him." Kenji mumbled to himself, smiling as he made his decision.

Oden, lying on the ground, heard him but didn't raise any objections.

Perhaps his injuries were too severe for him to speak? Kenji declared that this was absolutely impossible.

After all, Oden's bones were soft all over, but his tongue wasn't… Hmm, his tongue was already soft.

Kenji was very sure that Oden could speak at this moment.

"Alright, stop playing dead."

Kenji lifted his leg and kicked Oden flying into the air, sending him rapidly towards the distant Flower Capital while he himself walked unhurriedly.

Although he seemed to walk slowly, each step covered hundreds of meters.

By the time Oden's flight momentum ended, Kenji was already waiting ahead. He then kicked the falling Oden again, sending him flying once more.

Of course, he had decided to save him, so each kick used skillful force and would not worsen Oden's internal injuries.

In this way, Kenji repeatedly forced Oden to fly rapidly into the Flower Capital.

As for himself, he walked all the way into the town, still considering which courtesans to find to take care of Oden.

(End of Chapter)

New Story

Fairy Tail: Multiversal Travel

Ryoma mysteriously transmigrates to the world of Fairy Tail. But unfortunately, he remains a non-mage for seven years, becoming an ordinary person in the guild.

But one day, the dormant dimensional power in his body throws him into the Demon Slayer world. There, his Ice Breathing merges with his magic power, and finally, he gets an effective magic, Ice Magic.

And this was just the beginning. The dimensional power within him erupted from time to time, throwing him into various different worlds again and again.

Ice Magic from Demon Slayer's breathing style, Space-Time magic from Black Clover's Grimoire, Conqueror's Haki, Imperial tools, Zanpakuto...

Each time he returns, only a moment passes in the Fairy Tail world, but he rises with new powers.

With these newfound powers, Ryoma will eventually write the legend of the Dimensional Mage.