The Courtesan Komurasaki Takes the Stage

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In Wano Country's Udon region, rumors spread even inside the prison: "Don't slack off!!!" a guard barks, while prisoners whisper, "Man... that was so satisfying to watch yesterday..." and "No matter where we go in the prison, those two are being talked about!!" Another warns, "Shhhh! They'll hear you!" In the quarry, men are still stunned by Luffy and Kid. Someone asks, "Hey! Straw Hat-guy! You're amazing! Which family are you a part of?" and another says, "Man... you guys sure are annoying..." Luffy notices the old prisoner he saved, and Grandpa Hyou, introduced as a senior prisoner, can barely contain his gratitude: "Sir Straw Hat!! My words cannot express... how thankful I am to you... for saving my life yesterday." Luffy brushes it off with rough kindness: "Good for you, Grandpa Hyou!! But you'll be kicking the bucket soon enough, though!! Gya ha ha ha ha!!"

Luffy quietly gives Hyougoro his meal tickets, saying, "Here, take these." Hyougoro protests, "Ah... You just happened to be there, that's all. Don't worry about it." Luffy insists because survival in the prison depends on food: "If you don't eat, you won't have enough strength to keep working. Your meal exchange tickets!! They'll notice if you give me this many!!" Hyougoro refuses to waste them: "I won't let these go to waste...!" As Luffy is called away, "Luffy-dono...!!" he laughs, "You have my utmost thanks. Shi shi shi!" The scene turns to Raizo, who answers Luffy's urgent question: "Raizo!! How'd it go?" Raizo apologizes, "My apologies for making you wait. I managed to find the key to your cuffs, however... it's being heavily guarded!! In addition to the actual guards, the key itself is being stored in a seastone box." He promises, "In any case... I will definitely retrieve it for you, so please hold out for just a little while longer."

Caribou appears in Udon, slithering toward Luffy and begging, "Sliirrrr... Kehhih!! Let me have some too... Give some kibidango... to me, too...!!" Luffy rejects him immediately: "Caribou!! You're not getting any. Go work for it yourself!" Caribou explains that their seastone cuffs have been weakened: "Our seastone cuffs have been modified to be somewhat weaker... so that we can work while wearing them... but I still can't move well in these..." He tries to bargain with information and servility: "If you gimme some kibidango, I'll be your subordinate! I've been in this prison longer than you... so I know quite a bit about this place. Let me come, too!! I'll do anything you ask of me! You're planning a prison-breakie, aren't ya!?" Luffy dismisses him: "Just go and team up with spiky-guy!!" Caribou insists, "If we team up, we'll have nothing to fear..." and the page reminds readers that Caribou once plotted to take Luffy's head, though that plan ended in failure.

Caribou talks about rumors while chaos breaks out nearby with a cry of "Gyaaahhh!!" He tells Luffy, "After that, he tucked his tail and ran away..." and adds, "Rumour has it that he challenged Big Mom and got his arm cut off by one of her subordinates..." Kid cuts the story down coldly: "No way. His record isn't exactly good, you know!" then says, "...A rumour? You're so hopeless." He reveals the truth himself: "I lost this arm before that... during a battle with the Red Hair Pirates." When asked, "Do you have anything else that you want to know about me?" Kid answers, "Nope, nothing!" He turns to the other rumor: "...Regarding that story about aiming for Big Mom's head... all I did was injure one of her sweet commanders to get what I wanted." Kid laughs bitterly as the tension rises between him and Luffy. When Luffy declares, "I will take down Kaidou myself, and gain all the notoriety for it!!" Kid snaps, "No way. It'll be me!!"

The scene returns to the Flower Capital, where the procession is passing through. The crowd cries, "The dayu, Komurasaki... is passing through!!" and "Lady Komurasaki is coming!!" People push forward in excitement: "It's a courtesan procession...!!" "That's quite the gathering." "I wonder what sort of beauty will be passing through..." In the distance, two suspicious figures notice the commotion. One says, "Komurasaki..." and the other calls, "Komurasaki...!!" Their presence cuts against the festive mood, hinting that the procession is being watched by more than ordinary admirers.

A group of armed men blocks the procession, one of them snarling, "This is the end of the line...!! Forces from the capital are chasing us... If we're going to die either way, then we're going to take you down with us...!!" Another shouts, "I'm gonna kill that woman...!!" and a passerby warns, "There are some troublesome looking guys over there." The crowd still calls, "Komurasaki!!!" and "Lady Komurasaki~" as the attackers dash in. But a guard cuts them down before they can reach her, and the street explodes with motion. Someone exclaims, "A courtesan~" while the procession keeps moving and the threat is crushed in an instant.

The defenders warn the crowd, "Stay away from the courtesan!!" One attacker collapses and groans, "Komurasaki..." The chapter then reveals why the old men hate and desire her so desperately. One remembers saying, "I want... to be with you forever..." and Komurasaki answering with impossible sweetness, "Huh... With an old guy like me...? If... if I'm going to end up belonging to Master Orochi... then I'd rather you be the one to free me instead..." A note explains that buying a courtesan releases her from her services and that the courtesan normally becomes the buyer's wife or mistress. The old man thinks that even if she is lying, he is still happy: "Really? Even if you are lying to me, I am still so happy in this moment..." Komurasaki urges him, "...Don't lose hope!! If that is what you desire... then I, Bingou, will make sure it happens!!" The supposed dream is framed as romance, but the price attached to it is ruinous.

Bingou piles money before Komurasaki and says in awe, "...That's such a large sum...!! I've never seen this much money before..." Komurasaki tells him, "This is part of the money that we will use to get you out of the red-light district." He says, "I know it's not nearly enough yet, but please hold onto it for now." When he offers, "Then... let's put this in writing!!" she replies, "That won't be necessary." He insists, "Only an idiot would doubt the woman they love!! Your word is all I need!!" Trusting her, he sells everything: "I sold my warehouse, Komurasaki!!" "This much money... amazing!!" "Now, take it!! It's your money now!!" He even says, "I sold my family!! Haha ha... cough cough..." and Komurasaki answers with staged tenderness, "Oh, my! You need to take care of yourself, too." Bingou believes he is the happiest person in the world, while Komurasaki says, "Fufu... Medicine is a waste of money."

Bingou keeps giving everything away for Komurasaki. Exhausted and coughing, he thinks, "I finally have enough...!! Let's venture out into the world and start from nothing... It'll be just the two of us!! I don't even have a home to return to anymore...!!" He arrives with hope and says, "With this... I've got the final payment of 500 gold...!! I'll be able to free you, Komurasaki!!" But inside, Komurasaki's attendants refuse him. They say, "My apologies. The courtesan is not feeling well today... I will make sure she receives your package." He asks, "Huh?" and pleads, "And please tell her to rest well! I will come back another time." They answer, "Oh no, that's not good!! Please make sure she gets it!!" Outside, Komurasaki laughs him off: "Komurasaki!! I've come to pick you up!!" he calls, but she says, "You can leave the red-light district now!! Let's live together!!!" while someone nearby snickers, "Pfft."

The truth is exposed publicly as Bingou returns, laughing and crying outside the building: "Aaaaaah!! Ha ha ha ha!! He really did it!!" The crowd mocks him: "This perverted geezer sure is something!" Someone shouts, "Ah... Hey, you guys, don't just laugh, call her out here! Cough." Bingou repeats, "Komurasaki is going to be with me..." but another person cuts him down: "Stop daydreaming, you moron!! Do you even have enough money to buy her!?" A voice from inside says, "Of course...!! She's holding on to it!! I left it in her care." When Bingou calls, "Oooooh!! Komurasaki!! Tell these guys. They don't know about us...!!" Komurasaki appears and says, "Oh, hello, Mr. Bingou." He asks about "...your money..." and she calmly replies, "You said that it was mine, right?"

Bingou's hope dies in one sentence. When he asks what happened to the fortune, Komurasaki answers, "I spent all of it. Thank you." He can only stare, "Huh?" while laughter rises around him: "Puhahahahaha hahahahaha!! That geezer really thought Komurasaki fell in love with him!!" Someone asks, "Who is that senile geezer..?" and another replies, "Ufufu..." Bingou whispers, "Komurasaki..." but the men around Kyoshiro understand the pattern. A subordinate gasps, "Boss... Boss Kyoshiro..." as the scene cuts toward the procession. The revelation is not a misunderstanding; Komurasaki has deliberately stripped Bingou of everything and discarded him.

Kyoshiro identifies the old man with contempt: "So you're the old geezer... that has been stalking Komurasaki..." Someone adds, "Hey, Komurasaki!! This is a joke, right!?" Bingou sobs, "I... I...!! I sacrificed everything for you!! I don't have a single thing left!!!" and screams, "For your sake... I lost it all!!!" Kyoshiro asks coldly, "Here we go again. How many times has this happened now? If you cry in front of the shop, Gramps, you'll make a scene... If you don't have any business here... then get lost, you perverted geezer!!" Bingou promises to leave: "Stop it! Cough!! I'll leave...!!" but cries out, "Komurasaki... cough... I'll leave, so please stop!!" The crowd laughs as his misery becomes entertainment.

The procession finally reveals Komurasaki in full. The crowd loses its senses: "Whoa...!!" "Oh... how beautiful." "Her beauty is blinding, I can't see!!" "How dazzling!!" and "Kyaaaaaaaah!! She's stunning!!" Toko walks beside her, beaming, as people call, "Komurasaki...!!" and "The dayu, Komurasaki... is passing through!!" The page introduces her formally as Wano Country's number one prostitute, the courtesan Komurasaki. But the reveal is paired with the ruin she caused. Bingou and others crawl and beg, "My house... my family... I exchanged all I had for money!! Give me back my money!! You thieving woman!!" Komurasaki does not flinch. She says, "To ask someone to return something that you have given them... how very disgraceful... To me, men are nothing more than dogs that bring me money...!! Without money, they are worthless to me."

Komurasaki states her creed with a beautiful smile: "...I despise... those who are poor." The men she ruined surge in rage, shouting, "We won't let you escape this time." They curse her and are immediately condemned by authority: "Those without wealth have no right to live in the capital!! In the name of Shogun Orochi, you are all exiled from this city!!" The guards add, "Those who live outside of the capital cannot even be called human!!" and "Damn it all!! Go burn in hell, Komurasaki!!" While violence and exile break out behind her, the procession continues toward the castle. At the gate, the announcement rings out: "The dayu, Komurasaki, has arrived!!" and the order follows, "Open the gates!!"

The chapter closes in Kuri's Amigasa Village, where Momonosuke trains while O-Tama watches. O-Tama asks, "Momo, did you say you had a sister?" then scolds him, "Hey, Tama! How rude! Do you know who I am?" Momonosuke answers, "Yes, I do have a sister... If she is still alive, then she should be 26 now." O-Tama asks, "Momo?" and he sighs, "Sigh... never mind...!!" Chopper remembers the danger: "Even though there are people who witnessed my mother's death... I haven't heard a thing about Hiyori's death." O-Tama says, "That is why I believe... that she is alive somewhere!!" and Chopper adds, "I see. It would be nice if you could meet her." But Momonosuke refuses hope too soon: "No, we cannot meet yet. If Orochi were to find out about Hiyori... then he would definitely target her!! Our meeting can only happen once we win this war!!" He grips his sword with resolve as the chapter ends.

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