The daimyo of Nishi-Ueno and head of the Shirasaki family, Hidakira, finally remembered there were outsiders present after cuddling affectionately with his daughter Naya for quite a while.

He then pretended to cough seriously twice, and with an unhappy expression, looked at Ian, Marco, and their group, saying, “So it’s you, the pirates from the outer seas that Naya mentioned in her letter?”

Before setting off, Naya naturally had to inform her father, so she had sent a samurai to deliver a letter early on. Hidakira, upon receiving the letter, suddenly learned that Naya had returned ahead of schedule, so he hurried to meet her.

All along the way, Hidakira had been worried that these pirates from the outside seas might have some improper intentions toward his daughter. That’s also why, when they saw him, he had so many troops behind him.

But now, seeing that Naya was fine, Hidakira was much relieved.

However, he still said unpleasantly, “It was you who bewitched my daughter into returning early, wasn’t it? Hmph, as expected, a group of uncouth barbarians who don’t understand etiquette! Men!!”

Hearing his call, the large number of soldiers behind him immediately raised their weapons and surrounded Ian and his companions, just waiting for Hidakira’s order to capture the three of them.

However, at this moment, Naya’s clear voice suddenly screamed out, “Father! Stop!”

In Hidakira’s puzzled gaze, Naya jumped down from the carriage, blocked in front of the soldiers, shielding Ian and the others behind her, and said loudly, “Father, do you want our capital to be destroyed like the Kozuki family’s!?”

“Wha… what do you mean?!” Hidakira was stunned.

Naya stepped forward, leaned close to Hidakira’s ear, and told him about Ian’s background.

After listening, Hidakira’s eyes almost popped out!

He had originally thought that Ian and the other two pirates were just some low-level pirates from outside, intending to deceive his daughter and swindle some money from him. So at first, Hidakira just wanted to capture the three of them.

But… Naya’s words left him greatly shocked!

Fortunately, earlier in the carriage, Bonney had told Naya about Ian’s identity…

He certainly knew what kind of figures the Four Emperors were, but he was still a bit skeptical, wondering if these pirates had made up lies to deceive Naya. But when Hidakira looked uncertainly at Ian and his two companions, he found that facing the thousands of soldiers around them who were eyeing them like tigers, Ian and his companions’ expressions hadn’t changed at all—a demeanor of complete calmness—which made him unsure.

At this time, Ian also stepped forward appropriately and said, “Alright, have your soldiers put away their weapons. Considering you’re Princess Naya’s father, I won’t hold this against you!”

“You… who exactly are you?” Hidakira asked in surprise and doubt.

“Hmph!” Bonney smugly pointed at Ian, then at Marco, and said, “Standing before you is the newly appointed Emperor who took down the Big Mom Pirates, Black Dragon Ian! And this is Marco the Phoenix, the first division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates! No matter how isolated your Wano Country is, as one of the daimyos, you can’t be completely unaware of the situation, right?”

Hidakira’s expression suddenly became serious, carefully sizing up Ian.

Just as Bonney said, no matter how closed-off Wano Country is, as a member of the ruling class, Hidakira couldn’t be completely ignorant of external affairs. Especially recently, after the shogun borrowed Kaido’s power to suppress the Kozuki family, the term “Four Emperors” had become sensitive in the ears of all the daimyos.

The renowned Whitebeard Pirates need no introduction, and Ian, this newly risen Emperor, had gradually become known to the upper echelons of Wano Country during this time. The Shirasaki family’s ninjas had already obtained newspapers from some pirates.

Therefore, after Hidakira observed Ian for a while, he finally matched him with the demonic figure on the newspaper…

Then, Hidakira gasped sharply!

Cold sweat immediately dripped down his face, feeling that this was troublesome!

One Emperor Kaido wasn’t enough; now another Emperor had come?! No, it should be said two, since Marco the Phoenix definitely represents the Whitebeard Pirates!

Fortunately, as a member of the ruling class, Hidakira had seen a bit of the world. After calming down, he took a deep breath, looked at the surrounding soldiers who were puzzled and uncertain, and solemnly said to Ian and Marco, “This is not the place to talk; please follow me!”

Some samurai brought three horses for Ian and his companions to ride. The convoy then set off again, but this time under the leadership of Hidakira, the daimyo, and escorted by thousands of troops.

Swaying gently, Ian and his two companions soon followed the convoy into the capital city of Nishi-Ueno, “Yang.” This city indeed seemed quite lively. Although the houses and shops were all low, the buildings were quite distinctive.

The streets were bustling with people, mostly men. You could often see samurai with long swords at their waists walking among them, their top-knotted hairstyles very conspicuous in the crowd.

There were also women in the crowd, but they mostly kept their heads down and hands folded, maintaining a respectful posture as they followed behind men, keeping in step. Their faces were either covered with veils or masks, half-concealing their faces, and their clothes were wrapped tightly…

Seeing the convoy, people on both sides of the street quickly moved aside. Commoners and women bowed humbly to the convoy, while only those dressed as samurai could look directly at it with heads held high.

“I don’t know why, but I feel super annoyed!” Bonney suddenly huffed angrily.

Marco, riding beside her, smiled and whispered, “It’s very different from the free and open atmosphere outside, isn’t it?”

Ian, however, remained silent. Since the customs of this country were like this, he couldn’t comment much.

However, he still felt that the sexy and fashionable styles of Robin and Reiju were better. The women of Wano Country didn’t interest him at all…

After passing through several streets, the convoy finally arrived in front of the Tenshukaku they had seen earlier. It was a tall, traditional Japanese castle. The lower part had thick walls, and the main body of the castle was built atop these walls. It seemed the castle also served as a fortress to resist enemies.

As the daimyo of Nishi-Ueno, the Shirasaki family naturally lived in this Tenshukaku. Ian saw the Shirasaki family crest on the tower—that was a nine-star-shaped pattern. The central circle was formed by three swirling magatama, with an outer circle of eight identical magatama forming the whole. (This pattern is taken from the crest of the Uesugi family during Japan’s Sengoku period.)

After leading Ian and his companions into the Tenshukaku, Hidakira brought them to a larger room inside the castle, where they finally sat down to meet.

Naya did not leave but accompanied her father. For security reasons, there were also many masked ninjas kneeling in the room, but Ian and the others didn’t mind.

Hidakira and Naya sat formally in seiza (kneeling), but Ian and his companions were not used to it, so they simply sat cross-legged. A maid with a veiled face served them tea and snacks, then carefully backed out. Only then did Hidakira sigh and say, “Our Wano Country is truly in tumultuous times now…”

“Your country’s shogun borrowed the power of the Beasts Pirates to suppress your own daimyos. Didn’t you other daimyos raise any objections?” Ian retorted.

“What use is it to have objections?” Hidakira smiled bitterly. “Do you think there are no daimyos supporting the shogun’s actions? Among the seven daimyos, four stand on the same side as the shogun. Plus the Beasts Pirates, the shogun’s forces already have the advantage…”

“Forget it; as outsiders, we shouldn’t meddle in your internal affairs!” Ian waved his hand and said, “Princess Naya should have told you in her letter, right? About our purpose…”

“Yes, she mentioned it!” Hidakira looked at Naya with a doting gaze, then turned and solemnly said to Ian and the others, “You intend to assist the Kozuki family, don’t you?”

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