Indeed, the emerging resistance forces are increasing, and Mitsurugi needs stronger power.
The master and apprentice of Himura Kenshin, the mysterious person who saved himself from death, more and more outsiders, and the remnants of the Kurozumi clan who have been lurking for decades, all of these are his enemies.
So he needs stronger power to deal with them.
That dark energy is already difficult to make him stronger. Although he can perceive that there are still some parts that have not been absorbed, it is no longer as easy to absorb as it was at the beginning.
He needs...
Faith?!
Yes, something similar!
He needs to make others admire or even worship him, to obtain that kind of spiritual imprint from them, so that he can stimulate the dark power in his body more.
However, how to make people worship him?
Rule with benevolence?
That's too troublesome, and he doesn't want to do that kind of thing at all.
It would be nice if there were simpler and more brutal methods.
"If people could see my words and deeds, they would surely be fascinated by my greatness."
Mitsurugi suddenly had an idea. He had been writing a diary before, and now he decided to infuse his dark power into it, turning his diary into a carrier of idol worship power.
As long as people read his diary, they would gradually worship him. When he became a general, he would spread this diary to the crowd, letting them watch one by one.
Although it's a bit troublesome, it's much simpler than infecting them one by one personally.
He decided to do it, and he returned to the general's mansion to prepare to modify his diary.
..........
On the other side, the seriously injured An was indeed rescued by someone.
However, she was not rescued by the people of the Kurozumi clan, and they didn't have that ability.
At present, there are only four people in the Kurozumi clan.
The first is Kurozumi Suzume, she is a user of the Mimicry Devil Fruit ability; there is also Kurozumi Choumaru, he is a user of the Barrier Devil Fruit ability, both of these people lean toward support.
The remaining one is Kurozumi Orochi, this person is considered the Iron FW, and the last one is Kurozumi Kanjuro, but he will soon become a servant of the Mitsurugi family.
These four people did not have the ability to take An away in that time, even with the powerful external aid brought by Kaido, who was brought by Kurozumi Suzume.
However, An was still very relieved because she heard someone calling her in that direction. This is the application of advanced Observation Haki, similar to what Fujitora can do. Like Fujitora, she can read the hearts of others.
Among those voices, there was a person who revealed his identity, and after An saw the person at the last moment, she fell asleep very relieved.
Because that person is her colleague...
It's...
Raiden!
Although she didn't see his face clearly, the blue iconic mask was indeed a symbol of Raiden, and there were lightning bolts emanating from his body.
So, it could only be the Raiden of the Black Cult!
Only Raiden's speed could take An away in that instant without being noticed by Mitsurugi Mitsurugi.
Representing their respective departments, they came to Wano, but they had only contacted each other through Den Den Mushi before. This was the first time they had met.
And this first meeting happened in this kind of situation, which was unexpected by anyone.
Raiden quickly took An to a hidden basement. This place was not far from where she fell down. In the basement were members of the Kurozumi clan.
Old lady Kurozumi Suzume, old man Kurozumi Choumaru, and the short Kurozumi Orochi, these three people were there.
"Mitsurugi Mitsurugi is becoming more and more crazy! They actually attacked a general of the World Government!" Seeing An unconscious, Kurozumi Suzume said angrily.
Of course, at least ninety-nine percent of this anger should be fake.
"We have confirmed that the Mitsurugi family is indeed demonic, and our World Government will naturally oppose demons." Raiden placed An on the bed that had been prepared long ago and said to the three members of the Kurozumi clan.
"As long as your Kurozumi clan cooperates well, when the time comes, Wano will be ruled by you, and you will be the new generals of Wano."
His words made the three of them happy. Kurozumi Suzume immediately said, "With your words, we can rest assured. When the time comes, Wano can join the World Government, becoming an indestructible barrier for the World Government!"
Raiden nodded, then said, "The most urgent task now is to relocate. Your spy should have been discovered. When he exposes our whereabouts, we will face their crazy retaliation."
"You can rest assured." Kurozumi Orochi said somewhat flatteringly, "Kanjuro will never betray us, because this is his way of survival."
"No, I have noticed that Mitsurugi Mitsurugi's demonic power seems to be able to bewitch people's hearts, so the so-called personality and way of survival are unreliable." Raiden shook his head.
?!
His words surprised Kurozumi Orochi. Orochi did not expect Mitsurugi Mitsurugi to still have this ability. No wonder Kanjuro said it was the last time when he passed on the message to him before.
He trembled all over, as if he would be caught and executed the next moment.
"Lord Raiden is right. We do need to relocate ourselves." Kurozumi Suzume said calmly. She smiled and said, "Our clan has been preparing for this moment for decades. How can we be easily discovered?"
"Let them block Flower Capital. We can leave this city through the underground passage. By then, let them run around in the city."
Kurozumi Suzume walked to a position and seemed to press something, and suddenly a door appeared in this dark basement.
Raiden nodded, took a look at An lying on the bed, and said slowly, "Just wait for a while, and when An wakes up, we will leave."
Kurozumi Orochi was somewhat excited at this moment. "We have already discovered the true face of the Mitsurugi family. As long as it is exposed, it should be easy to take down the Mitsurugi family under our leadership!"
Just a moment ago, he was trembling with fear, and now he was daydreaming. Kurozumi Orochi showed human cowardice and greed to the fullest.
After more than two hours, An finally woke up slowly, but she could only move a little at first.
To recover from her injuries, as Toguro had judged before, it would take at least a week.
But it's okay to move a little. The five of them hurriedly walked towards the narrow passage, ready to leave Flower Capital.
During the action, An also heard from Raiden about what happened here.
"It's also thanks to Wano's proficiency in Busoshoku Haki but ordinary in Kenbunshoku Haki. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so easy to take you away."
An nodded. She whispered to Raiden beside her, "But, how did you end up with the people of the Kurozumi clan?" An had already realized what Raiden said.
The warriors of Wano are proficient in Busoshoku Haki, and many of them can even achieve the advanced technique of wrapping their Busoshoku Haki around them. This is already considered a high-level skill on the open sea.
But compared to powerful Busoshoku Haki, their mastery of Kenbunshoku Haki is very average.
In fact, Toguro was almost the same. When he fought with Roger in the past, he also noticed that although Toguro's senses were extremely sharp, that sharpness was not in Kenbunshoku Haki, but purely relied on his overly powerful body to perceive external information.
So that's why Raiden was able to easily take her away with the smoke.
But more than these, she was more curious about how Raiden ended up with the Kurozumi clan.
When she was with Hyogoro before, she learned about the history of Wano through him, so she was very clear about the information of the Kurozumi clan, knowing that they were a group of people who intended to rebel decades ago but were exterminated at the last moment.
It felt somewhat wrong to cooperate with such a clan.
She and Raiden had not always been in communication, they only exchanged information after having some intelligence about each other, so she didn't know before that Raiden had allied with the Kurozumi clan.
"I thought about finding a force familiar with Wano after cooperating with Hyogoro, and the Kurozumi family is very suitable for this role." Raiden said softly, "Actually, they found me. Kurozumi Suzume is a member of the Kurozumi clan operating outside Wano, so she was able to survive."
"And it was precisely because she was overseas that she knew our identity. After seeing me, she recognized me and proposed an alliance after a bit of probing."
"For me, there is no downside to this. I have no reason to disagree."
An nodded, feeling a bit dizzy again. Toguro's punch was indeed ruthless enough. She couldn't recover in a short time relying solely on her self-healing ability.
But their current situation was awkward as well. After all, the wanted posters would soon be issued, and they couldn't go to see a doctor.
As for cooperating with the Kurozumi clan next, she had no objections either.
Regardless of what they had done in the past, at least on the stance of opposing the Mitsurugi family, they were absolutely firm.
After all, it was the Mitsurugi family who had ruthlessly slaughtered them at the beginning, and now that they had the opportunity for revenge, they would definitely exert great effort.
But the problem facing them now was...
Could the World Government send troops now?
They already knew that the devil was in the Mitsurugi family, so they should be able to strike against them.
This should be the most efficient way to deal with it, but An felt that things were definitely not as simple as they seemed to end.
It was not clear how Mitsurugi Mitsurugi had come into contact with the devil.
According to Hyogoro, Mitsurugi Mitsurugi began to show abnormal behavior after meeting Himura Kenshin. When he came back, he was covered in blood and seemed a bit crazy. Hyogoro felt a little unfamiliar with him and quickly fled Flower Capital.
So...
What happened during the time Mitsurugi Mitsurugi met Himura Kenshin?
Was there really only Mitsurugi Mitsurugi possessed by the devil?
She voiced her doubts, and Raiden also said, "Hmm, I also think we shouldn't act rashly for the time being. Let's wait until all the players on the stage come out. There are quite a few people in Wano now who are secretly watching."
With that, they left Flower Capital and quickly arrived at the safe house established by the Kurozumi clan.
After arriving at this safe house, the three members of the Kurozumi clan were also discussing.
They had initially cooperated with Kaido and the Tontatta Child, but when they arrived in Wano, the Tontatta disappeared, and Kaido often went out. They gradually felt uneasy.
Kurozumi Suzume found Raiden at this time. She felt that it would be better to cooperate with the World Government than with Kaido and the others, and who said they couldn't find helpers while cooperating with Kaido and the others?
As long as they could overthrow the Mitsurugi family!
So, the next thing happened, but Orochi was very afraid of cooperating with the World Government.
After understanding what the World Government was, he felt that it was impossible for them to gain any advantage by cooperating with an organization that almost ruled the world.
"No way, the Mitsurugi family is now getting stronger, especially Mitsurugi Mitsurugi. Didn't Tontatta say that he wanted the Mitsurugi family to become an evil that everyone shouts to kill? Then it will be up to us to overthrow them."
Kurozumi Suzume said with concern, "He wants us to fight to the death. Even if we really win against the Mitsurugi family, we will suffer heavy losses. It's better to pull in more forces now to help reduce our losses."
However...
They couldn't move now.
During this period of time, the Mitsurugi family did indeed go against the tide, but two months of time couldn't affect much. They still had great influence and appeal throughout Wano.
The loyalty of the people to the Mitsurugi family for hundreds of years was not so easily destroyed. It still needed to be ignited further.
And the turning point...
Depended on the daimyos of other regions entering Flower Capital.
Once Mitsurugi Mitsurugi controlled the daimyos of other regions, they would have no scruples anymore. If they acted more recklessly, the probability of success for the Kurozumi clan would be greater.
And just as they expected, shortly afterward, the daimyos had all arrived in Flower Capital.
An actually wanted to stop this, but she was seriously injured and couldn't move at all for the time being.
And with just Raiden alone, it would be too dangerous.
Mitsurugi Mitsurugi and his subordinates, and Toguro, were the ones who had harmed her before. If Raiden went, the outcome would be the same.
So, they could only watch as the daimyos entered Flower Capital, and then...
The situation in Wano quickly changed.
First, the general of Wano, Mitsurugi Shukisho, fell seriously ill and died. The daimyos of various regions witnessed Mitsurugi Mitsurugi becoming the new general amidst their grief. At this time, Mitsurugi Mitsurugi made a shocking declaration.
He said that Mitsurugi Shukisho didn't actually die from illness. The true cause of Shukisho's death was because the criminal Kurozumi clan had poisoned him. Some members of this evil clan remained overseas, and those overseas members brought reinforcements back to Wano with the intention of destroying the country.
And he ordered the capture of the whereabouts of the Kurozumi clan within Wano's borders. As long as anyone was related to the Kurozumi clan, they would be killed without mercy!
Even outsiders, as long as they were seen in Wano, could be killed without guilt. The Kurozumi clan and outsiders were to be exterminated by everyone!