The main reason they fought was because Nekomamushi always tries to stand on a moral high ground to condemn her, yet he does the same thing that he is condemning Setsuna for.
Doing it for Oden is right, but it’s wrong when others do the same; this is the very source of their conflict.
Now that she has beaten him up, as long as Nekomamushi can appease her verbally, she can salvage her pride.
The matter should have ended here, but some people, even if they are completely beaten up and reduced to ashes, still remain obstinate.
And Nekomamushi is one of them. Not only does he believe he was not wrong in the previous incidents, but he also refuses to accept his defeat at the hands of Setsuna. He was also shocked that Setsuna was able to beat him to this state.
After all, Setsuna wasn’t that strong in the past.
“Don’t get too proud. If I hadn’t been injured by those strange cows, you wouldn’t stand a chance against me, meow… wuwu.”
But Nekomamushi’s mouth was blocked by Inuarashi before he could finish. Things would not end well if he continued like this.
“It seems you’re not convinced, huh?”
“That’s right, I refuse to accept it. You just took advantage of my condition! Inuarashi, let go of me and let me fight her again.”
“You stupid cat, can’t you see that she is not the same as a few years ago? You can’t defeat her!”
“You’re actually siding with that violent wolf against me? Don’t forget where we are. Shouldn’t you be helping me instead?”
Setsuna looked at Inuarashi and Nekomamushi in front of her. If she didn’t know them so well, she would have thought they were acting. After all, they looked like they were about to start arguing.
“Nekomamushi, you said I took advantage of your condition, right?”
“Meow…isn’t that so? We consumed too much of our strength against those strange cows, and we didn’t even bring weapons. Otherwise, you wouldn’t stand a chance against me.”
“Fine, I’ll give you a chance. Tomorrow night, on the beach that we met during the day, let’s fight again. You can face me alone, or you and Inuarashi can come together. Or maybe you can bring some more people, like your so-called friends.”
“But if you lose to me again, you have to sincerely apologize to me and never come to our place to cause trouble again! You’ll also have to compensate for the damages you caused today!”
Setsuna didn’t expect Nekomamushi to be so stubborn. Being a Mink with a beast’s mindset, physical persuasion was the only option at this point. Whoever wins will be in the right.
“What if you lose?”
“What do you want?”
“Continue to provide fresh food to Oden Castle.”
“Fine, but now please go far away. I don’t want to see you any longer.”
In the end, the matter temporarily concluded with Nekomamushi receiving a thorough beating. With her intervention, the two of them managed to leave Paradise Farm intact. As for Setsuna, she remained behind to assess the damage to the farm.
Someone had to take responsibility for the losses, and since she let them go, she had to take responsibility herself. It was a rule within the Beasts Pirates, and it applied to everyone.
So, for now, she would have to pay for the damages out of her own pocket.
【Even though I gave Nekomamushi a beating, it didn’t vent the anger in my heart. If I can’t defeat him tomorrow, then I will change my surname to his.】She took out her diary and wrote two more sentences.
Then she went back, but saw Zeraora sitting at the door waiting for her.
“They said you let them go.”
Setsuna’s actions couldn’t be ignored by the pirates beneath her. That’s why they informed Zeraora since he was in charge here.
“I’m sorry. Those two are my former friends, so please forgive them this time. I’ll take responsibility for the damages caused.”
She withheld some information from Zeraora. Most of the rules were established by Arceus and Acier, and due to Arceus’s involvement, Shayna and Zeraora treated those rules as absolute.
Without a proper reason, they couldn’t turn a blind eye to it.
“But someone said you people fought.”
“That guy can be annoying, but he’s still a good person. Please, Zeraora, Garchu~” It was her go-to method for the past few years—acting cute. It usually had a significant effect.
“….Just this once.”
Those two people were essentially merely petty thieves, unlike Kin’emon, who intruded the Udon mining site, which was much more serious. Seeing that Setsuna was pleading for them, Zeraora chose not to pursue the matter further.
“Thank you, Zeraora. You are the best.”
“Go back to sleep, can’t you see what time it is.”
Meanwhile, on the other side, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi returned to Oden Castle, with Inuarashi supporting Nekomamushi along the way.
“Inuarashi, why didn’t you help me?!”
“It’s because you went too far. Ever since we came back, you’ve been targeting Setsuna. Don’t you think there’s something wrong with you?”
“Have you forgotten what has become of Kin’emon? Who allowed her to join those so-called Beasts Pirates!”
“It wasn’t Setsuna’s doing. Moreover, she was going to give us something with good intentions, but you messed it up!”
The two of them argued along the way, but neither could convince the other. In the end, they quietly returned to the house. Setsuna hadn’t held back her punches at the beginning, and the injuries left by Miltank were also quite obvious.
When it came to dealing with these fellow retainers, Nekomamushi’s attitude and patience were considerably better than before.
“Inuarashi, what should we do tomorrow?”
“What should we do? Just go and fight, since you caused this trouble.” When Nekomamushi brought it up, Inuarashi didn’t want to pay attention to him. In his view, if it weren’t for Nekomamushi’s big mouth, things wouldn’t have become so complicated.
“No, what I mean is, I might not be able to defeat that girl anymore. She has become so strong in these years.” In front of Inuarashi, he didn’t continue to be stubborn.
“Then just apologize directly. It’s not right for you to target her like this. She is she, and the Beasts Pirates are the Beasts Pirates.”
“That’s not what I meant! Think about Lady Toki and Lord Momonosuke and Lady Hiyori. As long as we win, we can get fresh food.”
“You mean…” Inuarashi seemed to understand what Nekomamushi meant, but he felt a bit ashamed. Facing a girl two years younger than him, even if they won, it wouldn’t be something to be proud of.
If this were to be known on Zou Island, it would be highly embarrassing. But Nekomamushi was also right. It is indeed the best way for them to acquire fresh food.
Although Denjiro was working hard to earn money, it only barely paid some of their debts. The patches on their clothes were the most direct proof of that.
“She said we could fight together. This is all for the Kozuki Family. We can sacrifice a bit of our pride for now.”
“Let me think about it.”
Nekomamushi didn’t say anything more. Based on his understanding of Inuarashi, if he didn’t outright refuse, it meant he had already agreed. In his view, they might not be able to defeat Setsuna alone, but there wouldn’t be a problem with the two of them fighting together.
However, he overlooked one thing. Tomorrow night would be the night of the full moon.
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