Belial, Tregear, new members of the Straw Hat Pirates

"Let's go to Huadu."

Asakura Ryuya handed over the things Kirisaki had left behind to them and told them something.

"Yes, that's the plan for the next step. Hide yourself and don't get discovered."

After finishing his speech, Asakura Ryuya took his things and parted ways with the others, heading towards the heart of Wano Country, the Flower Capital.

……

Rabbit rice bowl, quarry prison...

In the labor camp, countless exhausted and suffering people toiled under the whips of the prison guards.

"Have you heard? It seems like two new prisoners are coming."

"And they're two very famous guys."

As he spoke, the gate to the quarry opened, and a crew member rode in on a tall horse, accompanied by two men.

It was Luffy and Kirisaki, both of whom were injured.

At this moment, Luffy was covered in bandages, which were soaked with blood, and his eyes were filled with anger.

Kirisaki's expression was quite normal, as if he were a tourist looking around.

"Huh? The famous Straw Hat Boy is such a short guy?"

"It doesn't look very good."

Upon seeing the two, Deputy Warden Davego and Solitia asked, "Are those Straw Hat Boy and Belial?"

“No, there was a mistake,” Davego said. “I later found out it was Torregia, a different one.”

"Yeah."

Solitia walked up to Kirisaki and teased, "Hey there, handsome young man."

"Hello."

Kirisaki followed the crew with a blank expression.

"You brat, how dare you ignore Lady Solitia."

A man was about to beat up Kirisaki when Solitia stopped him, saying, "Don't rush, there's plenty of time."

"Yeah, yeah, when the time comes, we'll see how badly that guy's eyes will turn to glaze over."

At that moment, one of the guards, who disliked Luffy, was about to attack him when a fishbone flew out of a cell and struck the guard.

Everyone was stunned for a moment as they watched the guard struggling in pain.

Kirisaki looked at the cell and said, "There's been an unexpected bonus."

Then, the jailer threw Luffy into a cell, said a few harsh words, and left.

As for Kirisaki, Solitia specially found him a private room and said, "Starting tomorrow, there won't be any good times."

After everyone left, Kirisaki asked, "Luffy, how are you?"

Luffy lay on the ground, panting, and said, "I'm fine."

At that moment, Kirisaki saw a one-armed red-haired man next to Luffy and exclaimed in surprise, "Oh? He has a companion."

"You two are..."

"I am Kirisaki, you can call me Tregear, that's my captain, Straw Hat Luffy."

"Hello, Eustace 'Captain' Kid."

……

Huadu...

A tavern...

"What is this thing?!" Franky shouted, slamming his fist on the table.

"Frankie, no, Franky, keep your voice down!" Usopp shouted.

"How can we stay calm? Luffy and Belial have both been captured," Franky said.

Robin, standing to the side, had a solemn expression and said nothing.

"You guys have been a real pain to find," a man said as he walked in.

"You are... Belial!"

"Shh, keep your voice down." Asakura Ryūya gestured. "Call me Asakura Ryūya."

“Pele… Asakura Ryuya, you weren’t…”

Asakura Ryuya sat down and said, "It wasn't me who got arrested, it was that kid Kirisaki."

Upon hearing this, Robin was shocked. "What? You mean, Tore... Kirisaki, he..."

Asakura Ryūya covered his head and explained the situation to the three of them.

"That's how it is. Because of Nami and the others, Luffy and I got into a fight with Kaido."

"And then... we were defeated. I was supposed to be captured, but Kirisaki replaced me."

"Is that so... Is he alright?"

"He should be fine, and he probably has some plans to do in prison."

Asakura Ryuya said, "However, because of our fooling around, the original plan has been disrupted, so we want to modify our next steps."

"Just continue with your work and don't reveal your identities."

Then Asakura Ryūya handed them several items, saying, "They'll be useful later."

"Oh, right, besides that, there's one more thing I need you to do."

"what?"

"There's an undercover agent among us."

"What!" the three exclaimed in shock.

Asakura Ryuya said, "First of all, although Luffy and I caused a big commotion near the village of Scavenger, it's still impossible for Kaido to come directly to the core area of ​​Kuri."

"Moreover, he later found our hiding place directly. How did he know that?"

“Someone told him,” Robin said.

“In other words, the undercover agent told him,” Asakura Ryūya said, “and the undercover agent is among those people.”

"I didn't tell Nami and the others because Kin'emon and the others were there. There was no chance the undercover agents would find out."

"What you need to do is find a time to tell Nami and the others, and then find that son of a bitch."

"Understood," the three said at the same time.

"Alright, I've said everything I needed to say. Now I'm going to Huadu to take a look. Goodbye."

"Take care of yourself."

After Asakura Ryuya left, the three of them went their separate ways. Robin walked down the street, looking heartbroken, and said, "I hope nothing happens to me."

……

Several people walked to the gate of a luxury residence.

Is Mr. Ishigai here?

A girl dressed in samurai attire with light blue hair in a single ponytail walked out.

"Miss Mizuhashi Ayaka, is Mr. Ishikari here?"

"Do you need to see him for something?" Linghua asked.

"It is like this, Lord Orochi wishes to invite Mr. Ishikari to a banquet."

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Shiji is not feeling well today and cannot attend the banquet."

"What? What happened to Mr. Ishikari?"

"Mr. Ishikari is not feeling well. He has already seen a doctor and is resting. Please convey this to Lord Orochi and ask for his understanding."

"Oh, that's a real pity. I hope Mr. Ishikari recovers soon."

"Thank you."

After the officials left, Linghua returned to her residence, where she heard the sound of things being smashed coming from inside.

At the doorway, a blue-haired girl stood with a worried expression.

Linghua patted the girl and said, "It's okay."

Inside the room, a man overturned a table, clutching a newspaper in his hand. "What is this? Kaido... how dare you..."

"Calm down, that person is alright."

"Shut up."

"What good will it do to get angry now? You can't beat Kaido anyway, and throwing a tantrum won't do any good." Ayaka righted the table. "It wouldn't be good if you disrupted the adults' plans."

Upon hearing this, the man calmed down, and Linghua said, "Calm down, I heard that the master seems to have gone to Huadu."

"Really? Wherever the adults go, arrange the best hospitality for me!"

"understood."

……

The Flower Capital is the most bustling place in the entire Wano Country, where a gentle breeze causes cherry blossoms to flutter in the air.

The streets were bustling with people, filled with the sounds of birds singing and dancing, and everyone was laughing and chatting happily.

The transactions, commerce, and development here have a distinct feel that's different from other places.

A man dressed in black walked down the street, a disdainful expression on his arrogant face.

The man arrived in front of a restaurant. "Is this the place? The most luxurious restaurant?"

At the entrance, an old woman looked at the man disdainfully and said, "Hey, kid, don't block the way. Do you even know where you are?"

"Ok?"

"This is not a place for a poor wretch like you."

After hearing this, Asakura Ryūya remained silent and tossed a small package to the old woman.

"what?"

The old woman opened it and was dazzled by a golden light. Upon closer inspection, she found it was filled with gold coins.

"Oh my god, it's gold coins, real gold coins!"

Before she could finish reading, Asakura Ryuya took back the small bag and looked at her coldly.

"Sir, is there anything you need?"

"Find me a private room, the best one."

"Alright, alright, please come with me!" The old woman led Asakura Ryuya into the restaurant, while the people around them beat their chests and stamped their feet, regretting that they had lost a wealthy man.

Asakura Ryuya followed the old woman to a top-tier room. The old woman respectfully said, "Sir, this is the most luxurious room in our restaurant."

"You're lucky, normally there's always more supply than demand here."

"Well done." Asakura Ryūya tossed a gold coin to the old woman. "Here's a reward for you."

"thanks, thanks."

"And this too, bring me all the best wine and food." Asakura Ryūya tossed a few gold coins to the old woman.

"Alright, alright, sir, please wait a moment."

Before long, a large table of delicacies and fine wines was served.

"Sir, would you like some female dancers to accompany you at drinks..."

"No need, get out!"

"Yes, I'm sorry, I offended you." The old woman left the room, and Asakura Ryūya drank and ate alone, enjoying himself immensely.

At this moment, gongs and drums resounded outside the restaurant, and people gathered on the street cheering and jumping for joy, their faces filled with excitement.

In the middle of the road, several people were escorting a car, inside which sat a green-haired woman wearing a mask, playing tricolor strings.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, the woman stepped out of the car, and the people at the door shouted, "Welcome back, Lady Xiao Zi!"

"Ah."

"Has anything unusual happened today?"

"Reporting to Lady Xiao Zi, a very important person has arrived today," the old woman said as she walked over.

"Big man?"

"You probably don't know, but that guy had a whole bag full of gold coins on him, and they were real gold!"

Upon hearing this, everyone around was quite surprised. They had seen many wealthy people, but this was the first time they had ever heard of someone carrying a bag full of gold.

"Really? Take me to see it."

A group of people arrived at the entrance of the Tianzi Hall. When the door opened, a handsome man with an arrogant and aloof expression and calm, cold eyes, dressed in black, was lying on his side drinking. Combined with the surrounding scenery, he looked like a black-clad emperor.

"Hello sir, I am..."

"No need." Before Xiao Zi could finish speaking, Asakura Ryuya said coldly, "Get out."

"How dare you speak to Lady Little Purple like that?" someone said indignantly.

Xiao Zi reached out to stop him, "Sir, I am the courtesan Xiao Zi, do you know me...?"

"Don't know me, get out."

Xiao Zi paused for a moment and said, "Sir, you have spent such a high price, and I see that you are lonely. I would like to accompany you with a song and dance to relieve your loneliness and boredom."

"boom."

Asakura Ryuya put down her wine glass and said irritably, "Can't you understand me? I said I don't need it, how many times do I have to repeat myself?"

"You..." The people around were about to lash out when Xiao Zi stopped them. "I'm sorry, sir, for disturbing you."

"However, may I ask your name?"

Asakura Ryūya drank his sake without saying a word.

Seeing this, Xiao Zi led her people away. Just then, a voice came from behind:

“My surname is Asakura, and my given name is Ryūya. My name is Asakura Ryūya.”

After hearing this, Xiao Zi nodded and said, "Welcome, Mr. Asakura."

Afterwards, Xiao Zi led her people away.

After a while, Asakura Ryuya tossed a gold coin to the waiter and said, "Watch the room for me for a bit, I'll be back in a bit."

"Okay, take care."

Just as he stepped out of the restaurant, several burly men surrounded Asakura Ryūya.

"Hey kid, I heard you're rich. How about we spend some of your money?"

Asakura Ryuya looked at these guys and cracked his neck.

In a room...

A sickly-looking, drunk man asked, "What do you think of that person? Hiccup, Xiao Zi."

“An unusual man,” Xiao Zi said, strumming her shamisen.

"Unusual? This is the first time I've heard you say that."

“I observed that he was unlike those guys. He didn’t have any feelings for me or any of the dancers here, and he was even a little annoyed.”

"And it wasn't an act."

"His temperament, eyes, and demeanor are extraordinary, far beyond what those thugs and nouveau riche can compare to. If you really want me to say it, he's like an emperor."

"Little Purple, watch your words. This is the City of Flowers. You can't let Lord Orochi hear these kinds of things."

"I understand, Mr. Kyoshiro."

"Do you think he's pretending to be weak while actually being strong?" Kyoshiro asked.

Hearing this, Xiao Zi smiled. "Pretending to be weak to eat the tiger? That's not it. I think he's a tiger that's easily mistaken for a sick cat. What do you think would happen if you angered the tiger?"

"what!"

A man flew into the air and hung on a window.

Asakura Ryuya shook his hand, glanced at the burly men lying on the ground around him, and left the place calmly.

Komurasaki watched Asakura Ryuya's retreating figure, "Asakura... Ryuya..."