Momo.... Dead?

"Stay away from me!" Momonosuke shouted, his face full of terror as he looked at the vengeful spirits surrounding them.

It made sense. These spirits, filled with intense resentment and unwilling to move on, had all suffered greatly before their deaths. There's a natural fear of death ingrained in the living, not just of the ghosts but of dying itself.

"What exactly do you want!?" Kozuki Sukiyaki demanded, eyeing Brook, who stood among the spirits encircling them.

"You shouldn't be asking me; you should ask them," Brook replied. As he spoke, the greenish spirits drew closer to Sukiyaki and Momonosuke.

Sukiyaki frowned deeper, seeing the spectral forms missing limbs, with guts spilling out, or weapons still embedded in their bodies. Most of them looked like they had starved to death.

"Though I don't know why you blame the Kozuki family for their deaths, I won't let you harm Momonosuke!" Sukiyaki drew a strange, long blade from his waist. As soon as the sword was unsheathed, Brook's eye sockets flickered with soul fire, sensing the weapon's hellish aura.

Sukiyaki's right arm withered visibly upon gripping the sword, drying up to the bone within seconds, as if something unseen was draining it. He seemed unfazed and swung the eerie sword at the advancing spirits.

With a sound like tearing fabric, the ghosts, which should have been intangible, vanished instantly. More accurately, they were devoured by the blade.

"Quite the dangerous cursed sword you have there. Mine's similar, yohohoho~" Brook remarked, watching the wary Sukiyaki.

Brook couldn't understand why swordsmiths insisted on creating cursed blades instead of legendary weapons. These dangerous creations often demanded sacrifices from their wielders before causing harm to enemies.

But clearly, Sukiyaki could only fend off the spirits for so long. He wouldn't withstand three, five, or ten waves of them.

After repelling another wave, Sukiyaki finally collapsed, falling to one knee, looking as withered as an old man, his cheeks sunken and body gaunt.

Sensing Momonosuke's fear, Zunesha moved to attack Nicholas again, determined to protect Momonosuke before dawn.

In a critical moment, Toki, injured but resolute, stood up and wobbled before placing herself between Momonosuke and the danger.

"Though I don't know why you resent the Kozuki family, don't ask what the Kozuki can do for you, but what you can do for the Kozuki! Zunesha responded to Momonosuke's call, proving he is the chosen one, destined to bring dawn to the world! Your sacrifices are not in vain!" Lady Toki said, her hands outstretched as if cradling the most precious treasure.

Suddenly, a sword emerged from the ground, slashing through Momonosuke's body, cutting him in half. Blood poured onto the ground as everyone froze in shock.

Toki was too stunned to react. Momonosuke's frail body lay in two bloody pieces on the ground.

Sukiyaki, barely alive, stared in disbelief at Momonosuke's severed form, his eyes wide.

Brook was also taken aback by the suddenness of it all.

Toki's mind went blank, seeing Momonosuke's lifeless body. He was supposed to be the prophesied one. Why...?

The unexpected strike left everyone in shock.

"Momonosuke-sama!" Denjiro, Kiku, and the others, struggling nearby, were horrified, their hearts sinking at the sight of Momonosuke's remains.

The injury was clearly fatal.

"Guhahaha, Lord Orochi! I've fulfilled your final wish! The Kozuki heir is dead!"

A ninja dressed in a traditional outfit, bearing the Kurozumi clan emblem, laughed maniacally, still holding the blood-dripping sword.

The remaining members of the Nine Red Scabbards snapped back to reality, their eyes full of rage as they glared at the ninja. Their silent fury seemed to burst forth like an inferno.

They couldn't believe it—Momonosuke hadn't died at the hands of Nicholas, Kaido, or Orochi, but at the hands of a no-name underling of the long-dead Orochi!

"I'll kill you...!" Denjiro snarled, veins bulging on his forehead. His voice was filled with such hatred that it seemed he wanted to tear the ninja apart piece by piece.

With Momonosuke's death, everything they had fought for was shattered.

The ninja, understanding his fate, showed no fear. He had already accepted his end when he made his move.

"Hahaha!" The ninja laughed wildly. "The Kozuki clan deserves to die! I managed to kill the last heir of the Kozuki family. Even if I die here today, it was worth it!"

"Die!" Denjiro, nearly losing control of his emotions, was the first to attack. His sword slashed through the air, creating a crescent-shaped arc aimed at the ninja's head.

Kiku, Izou, Inuarashi, and even the heavily injured Raizo followed suit, launching their own attacks.

Feeling the suffocating pressure of the combined assault from the Nine Red Scabbards, the ninja sensed death approaching. Yet, a smile appeared on his face, satisfied with his revenge.

"Father, Mother, Kurozumi Higurashi, I'm coming..."

Just then, a chilling slash cut across the incoming attacks, blocking the fatal blows aimed at the ninja.

As the dust settled, the ninja was unharmed, standing before a frost-covered trench.

"What?!" The Scabbards looked in the direction of the slash and saw Brook, who had just sheathed his sword. The slash had evidently come from him.

Brook calmly guided the spirits to the afterlife, ignoring the Scabbards' furious glares. "This man is for the captain."

"You...!" Denjiro's expression fluctuated with rage. They wanted to attack, but a terrifying presence had them locked in place with Haki. Any move could mean instant death.

Denjiro gritted his teeth. "That man killed Lord Momonosuke..."

"Yohohoho, I saw," Brook replied nonchalantly. He then added, "Why should that matter to me? Your lord means nothing to me."

Denjiro, stunned by Brook's reaction, attempted to speak again, but a mournful roar from Zou interrupted him. The great elephant's cry was filled with infinite sorrow and rage, clearly feeling the death of Momonosuke.