Kin'emon sat hunched over a pile of paperwork, illuminated by the dim light of a flickering lantern. Outside, the winds whispered through the trees, casting eerie shadows across the room. The weight of responsibility pressed heavily on his shoulders as he meticulously recorded details of village affairs. He sighed, thinking of their leader, and his absence on the seas. The burden of governance now rested squarely on the shoulders of the nine Scabbards, a duty they bore with solemn determination