Onigashima, castle's west tower.
Dinosaur amusement park.
This is Ulti and her brother's exclusive territory.
Daichi returned to the amusement park and quickly found Ulti, slumped on a carousel, looking utterly deflated.
"Ulti-sama, I'm back."
"Daichi?"
Seeing Daichi, Ulti pounced and leaped onto him, wrapping her arms around his neck like a hanging ornament.
The young girl was crying.
"Daichi, I missed you so much!"
"Oh."
Daichi's face was full of disdain.
Missing him was one thing, but couldn't she stop clinging to him?
Whenever this girl got clingy, it never boded well.
Ulti felt unappreciated and immediately flared up, wanting to choke Daichi, but her fingers weren't long enough.
She grew even angrier!
"You scoundrel, what kind of attitude is that? I'm a beautiful girl!"
"Yes, yes, Ulti-sama's beauty rivals that of the legendary beauties!"
Daichi responded without much care.
Now that he had a new backer, did he still need to humor this girl?
Heh heh heh heh, just wait, it won't be long before their relationship changes to him protecting her!
"Alright, I forgive you."
Although Ulti felt Daichi was faking, she decided to let him off the hook because she had something more important for him to do.
"Daichi!"
Ulti tugged on Daichi's sleeve, large tears welling up in her eyes, looking like she could burst into tears at any moment.
"Pay-Pay is gone!"
"Oh."
"Wuwuwu, I haven't seen Pay-Pay for five whole days!"
"Oh."
"Could it be that Pay-Pay ran into bad people and got taken out?"
"..."
Don't curse your brother.
The young girl slumped to the ground, as if her soul had left her body.
"Pay-Pay, wuwu, without Pay-Pay, what's the point of me living!"
"..."
Daichi's forehead was covered in black lines.
You're a leg-beauty, not a drama queen!
Ulti remained upset for a long time, then secretly glanced at Daichi from the corner of her eye, seeing that he had no intention of comforting her, and grew furious again.
The girl angrily stood up and forcefully kicked Daichi's shin.
"You scoundrel, say something!"
"Hiss—!"
Daichi's mouth twitched.
It hurt!
This drama queen not only had long legs, but her strength was also incredibly fierce.
Ulti put her hands on her hips and glared angrily at Daichi. "Stupid Daichi, I want you to find Pay-Pay immediately!"
"Ulti-sama."
Daichi shook his head helplessly, steeling himself to explain his purpose.
"I'm here to ask for leave."
"Huh?"
Ulti was stunned for three seconds.
Leave?
This guy wouldn't be trying to go mess around, would he!
"What do you need leave for?"
"Kaido ordered Yamato-sama to put down the Kozuki remnants' rebellion, and I was chosen to assist Yamato-sama."
Daichi told the truth.
Heh, a perfectly legitimate reason for leave.
It was a good chance for him to stay in Wano Country for a while longer, scout out some land, and rent out his hot spring inn for money.
"Assist Yamato?!"
Ulti's voice suddenly rose.
Oh no, this guy is trying to switch sides!
No way!
Although Daichi had a lot of flaws, he was indeed very capable, handling everything for her in an orderly manner. She only needed to focus on taking care of her brother.
When her brother wasn't around, she mostly felt bored, but when Daichi wasn't around, she truly couldn't live. Even self-care was difficult.
Did he know how she'd survived the past half-month? No one even covered her up when she kicked off her blanket at night!
"Wah~~"
Ulti burst into tears with a wail, wiping her eyes with her hand.
"Daichi, you don't want me anymore?"
"..."
Daichi opened his mouth.
No, girl, please, can you act a little more convincingly? Don't secretly observe my reaction through your eyelids!
You should have been born in my world. Even Oscar winners don't do this much.
"This is Kaido's order!"
"Kaido?"
Ulti was enraged upon hearing that.
"Damn Kaido! How dare he order my person around!"
"..."
Daichi fell silent again.
He felt like he couldn't keep up with this girl's thought process.
He was tired, time to use his trump card.
Daichi pulled out a piece of paper.
"Ulti-sama, this is for you."
"What is this?"
Ulti took the paper and glanced at it. It was a simple map of Onigashima, with many X's marked along the coastline around the island.
Daichi's lips curled into a slight smirk, with a hint of schadenfreude. "The marked locations are where your brother often stays."
"Really?!"
Ulti's eyes lit up.
Daichi smiled without speaking.
Sorry, Pay-Pay.
As the saying goes, 'a dead fellow Daoist is better than a dead poor Daoist.' To get away, oh no, to preserve the bond between you and your sister, you'll just have to make a small sacrifice.
(The quote "A dead fellow Daoist is better than a dead poor Daoist" suggests that it's better to be with fellow Daoists, even if it means death, than to be poor and alone, potentially leading to an even more difficult death. This quote emphasizes the importance of community and support within the Daoist tradition, highlighting how shared beliefs and practices can provide solace and guidance during life's challenges, including death.)
Next time, your brother will treat you to skewers!
"Ulti-sama, I have other matters."
"Go on, go on!"
Ulti waved her hand as if shooing away flies, her eyes fixed solely on the map.
"Hehe~ Hehehehe~~"
Meanwhile, on Onigashima's west coast.
Page One squatted among a cluster of windless rocks, patiently staring at the sea until his fishing rod violently shook.
Hey, he got a bite!
The fishing rod was taut and bent, clearly indicating a big catch.
Page One didn't violently pull up the rod, but skillfully played the fish.
Perhaps due to his Spinosaurus instincts, he loved fishing, but since Devil Fruit users couldn't swim, he could only opt for fishing as a substitute.
When he had nothing to do, he could fish all day long!
The stalemate lasted for about ten minutes.
"Snap!"
The fishing rod suddenly broke into two pieces.
"It would be great if Daichi were here."
Page One was a bit annoyed.
If Daichi were here, he could use a net to help him scoop up the fish. That guy wasn't great at fishing, but his netting skills were pretty good.
"Daichi should be back by now."
The young man missed Daichi a little.
By his calculations, Daichi's dungeon-guarding duty should have ended.
Because of his sister, he and Daichi often interacted, and over time, they became good friends.
Daichi often used the excuse of looking for him to slack off and fish with him, and he always brought alcohol and cooking utensils, cooking small meals while fishing.
It was much more comfortable than fishing alone.
"That scoundrel didn't even save me, and I considered him a brother!"
Thinking of the experience from half a month ago, Page One was so angry he felt sick, secretly vowing to have a fight with him when they met.
Although he might not be able to beat Daichi without using his abilities.
Mainly, Daichi had gotten much stronger in recent months, and he couldn't very well use his abilities, as that would be too much like bullying.
He had his pride too.
"Achoo!"
Page One rubbed his nose, then suddenly stood up and vigilantly scanned his surroundings.
"Something's not right!"
Years of hiding had honed his terrifying intuition, which was even more effective than Observation Haki.
Observation Haki could have issues, but intuition wouldn't be wrong.
Danger was approaching!
"Time to move!"
The young man decisively packed up his fishing gear, preparing to head to the next fishing spot. He had put a lot of effort into avoiding his sister's pursuit.
Like this time, he had five whole days of peace and quiet.
Although it felt like something was missing without Daichi's company, he was already very satisfied just being able to fish quietly.
After all, his sister was truly terrifying!
Just as the young man was running away with his bucket, a slender figure descended from the sky!
"Pay-Pay, I found you!"
"Sister!"
The young man's pupils contracted violently!
Why could his sister find him here?!
Could it be!
"Daichi! You %*$ Ahhh!"