Fire Festival: Killing to Raise the Banner
As night fell, Wano Country was ablaze with lights.
Even after being exploited and tormented by the Kurozumi Orochi for twenty years, when the annual 'Fire Festival' arrives, people still put on their cleanest clothes, take out their last bit of food, and then find wood to light a bonfire to guide the souls of the deceased and seek refuge.
In Kuri, which was once Oden's territory and was severely ravaged by Kurozumi Orochi, it was a rare sight to find a place that was brightly lit!
"The thousand warriors imprisoned in 'Rasetsu Town' are all here, and the twelve hundred warriors I secretly contacted have also assembled!"
Denjiro, having regained his true identity, knelt on one knee;
"Two hundred Mink Tribe warriors have come for the century-old alliance between Zou and Wano Country. Let us fight for the blood feud of the Kozuki Family!"
Inuarashi and Nekomamushi also swore an oath to the person before them;
"I... I am so grateful that Princess Hiyori and sound..."
Wearing a pale yellow chrysanthemum-patterned armor and with Hannya mask Kikunojo covering his face, Kikunojo wept uncontrollably.
"The Mt. Atama Bandits 200 members. Although we are twenty years late, please allow us to fight to the death this time!"
Tall and stout, with a head of fluffy pink curly hair, Ashura Doji, once the strongest of the Nine Red Scabbards, had indeed arrived.
"Please give the order, Your Highness!"
The towering Kawamatsu also knelt on one knee. And what could command such treatment from the six 'Nine Red Scabbards' was, of course, that:
"Please rise, everyone,"
Princess Hiyori of the Kozuki Family, adorned in magnificent worldly armor and wielding the 'Enma' Hiyori Kozuki!
Although Wano Country is patriarchal, with only one member of the Kozuki Family remaining in Wano Country for twenty years, the vast majority of samurai have chosen to pledge their allegiance to him. Even the three thousand prisoner samurai from the quarry have silently joined his side.
"You may not know,"
Facing nearly six thousand samurai, Hiyori Kozuki, without flinching, pointed to the side and introduced them:
"Those are not outsiders; they are the Whitebeard Pirates! One of the Great Pirates crews on par with Kaido in the Outer Seas. My father once served as the Second Division Commander. Unfortunately, due to Wano Country's policy of 'closed-door policy,' they have remained unaware of our plight..."
There's no other way; you can't explain why Oden didn't ask the Whitebeard Pirates for help unless you say it this way.
"And then there's the Straw Hat Pirates, known as the 'Yonko' in the outer seas! Their captain Straw Hat Luffy, is a chivalrous and righteous man, the sworn brother of the Whitebeard Pirates' captain, and he swears to stand against demons like Kaido!"
"Now that they have heard of our plight, they have resolutely decided to lend a helping hand to help my father avenge his humiliation! We must not lag behind, everyone—"
As she spoke, she raised the 'Enma' in her hand. Although she was a woman, she was no less capable than any man!
"I stand with you all—"
"Victory is assured!!"
Victory is certain!
Victory is certain!
······
Wow, so many samurai!
If the samurai of Wano Country are the largest group, followed by the Whitebeard Pirates, then the smallest group is the Straw Hat Pirates: besides the dozen or so Straw Hat crew, there are also a dozen or so members of the Bad People, plus Law's Heart Pirates with 40 members, totaling less than a hundred. Compared to the two enormous groups beside them, they are utterly insignificant. However:
Battles in this world are never about numbers; to a large extent, the outcome of a battle depends on whose leader can hold out until the end. Therefore:
"Luffy,"
Hiyori Kozuki, now dressed in military uniform, walked over and nodded slightly to Luffy.
"I am wearing armor, please forgive my rudeness,"
"The more than 6,000 people of Wano Country have assembled. Please give the order!"
?
"Luffy, this time I'll follow your orders."
Ace, on the other side, smiled and nodded. Although he had once shouted that he wanted to become the 'King of the Pirates,' after so many years on the Whitebeard Pirates' ship, his dream had subtly changed. If Luffy were to become the King of the Pirates—
He showed no dissatisfaction whatsoever.
"Hehehe, then I won't be polite!"
With his Straw Hat pinned down, Luffy leaped onto the lion figurehead of the Sunny Merry amidst the gazes of nearly ten thousand people, looking down at everyone present:
"I am Luffy!"
"He's going to be the King of the Pirates!!"
Amidst countless expectant, scrutinizing, and puzzled gazes, Luffy spreads his arms and shouts to the sky.
"I will definitely beat Kaido! So—" He adjusted his Straw Hat, a confident grin spreading across his face. "Let's make a scene!!"
"Oh oh oh!!"
"Destroy the Beasts Pirates!!"
"Luffy, Kaido!!"
······
"Set off!"
Amidst deafening cheers, roars, and shouts, Roman, Ace, Hiyori Kozuki, and the leader led their followers toward the ships anchored along the shore. The battle horn had sounded; what followed was:
It's a real, bloody battle!
Onigashima
The main body of this island is a gigantic head, as large as a mountain, with two enormous horns. Even the legendary Oars appears dwarfed by this head, let alone ordinary giants. Meanwhile, in what should now be a bustling base of the Beasts Pirates:
The hall was filled with the True Striker of the Beasts Pirates, Wano Country. And on the high platform sat their respective leaders, except:
"Impossible... impossible...!!"
Poor Kurozumi Orochi only feels a little safe when he's with Kaido.
"Kikunojo... Raizo... Ashura Doji Kawamatsu... Inuarashi... Inuarashi... Nekomamushi, all of them are here!"
"Why are there still so many samurai? I've already killed so many... And those overseas pirates leading them... are they the Whitebeard Pirates and the Straw Hat Pirates? Why, why are they leading those samurai to attack...?"
Terrified by Roman's Heaven-Shattering Sword, the Kurozumi Orochi looked at the images transmitted from the reconnaissance ship outside and trembled like a leaf!
"20 years... Today is the final 20-year deadline! So they really are here to take my head?"
Faced with their general's incompetent and disgraceful state, this time his samurai and ninjas no longer had the heart to laugh, because the "curse"... no, the "prophecy" that they had once considered a joke had now clearly appeared before them.
The samurai army, led by the seafarers, surged towards Onigashima! They stretched out densely across the sea, a vast expanse as far as the eye could see:
"Oh my, there must be tens of thousands of people here?"
With a cigar dangling from his lips, the chubby "Plague" Queen glanced at the trembling Kurozumi Orochi beside him, and his mocking words echoed in the hall.
"Twenty years have passed, and there are still so many samurai who want to take your head. You've really failed as a 'general'."
"Kaido... Kaido, you must protect me!"
Kurozumi Orochi turned to the towering Kaido in a panic, seeking protection. He knew his own limitations; his samurai and ninjas could barely hold off the Nine Red Scabbards, but the enemy also included the Whitebeard Pirates and the rapidly rising Straw Hat Pirates. Kurozumi Orochi wasn't some ignorant fool from Wano Country, who had been kept in seclusion. He was well aware of the strength of these two pirate crews!
These are two of the most Great Pirates groups, closest to becoming the 'Four Emperors,' and now they've quietly infiltrated the Wano Country Sea! With the strength of Kurozumi Orochi's forces, there's simply no chance of resistance. Right! Their objective—
"Kaido, their target is definitely you!"
"They're here to replace you! Kill them quickly, or none of us will be happy!!"
It must be said that Kurozumi Orochi's intelligence is not lacking; he figured out the key point in an instant and tried to tie Kaido to himself, but:
"The gears of the world have finally begun to turn,"
The refined words coming from Kaido, who looked like an ultimate brute, left Kurozumi Orochi completely bewildered.
"The Navy abolished the Shichibukai not because they've lost their minds, but because they've gained enough power to suppress the entire sea! The Celestial Dragons ' 'gods' have finally broken free of their shackles of eight hundred years and have begun to cast their gaze out of the prison called Holy Land Mary Geoise!"
"Hey, Kaido! What are you saying?!"
However, Kaido simply opened his arms to everyone in the hall, without paying any attention to himself.
"Therefore, we will join forces with the BIG MOM Pirates and obtain the World's Strongest — the Ancient Weapon!"
"You may have all heard of the name 'Pluton,' but you probably don't know that at Pluton core is actually a book!"
Faced with Kaido's "revelation," the subordinates, samurai, and ninjas were all filled with interest, even forgetting to drink the sake in their hands.
"Hey! Kaido, are you insane? Such a secret—"
"Shut up!"
With just a slight glance, the panicked Kurozumi Orochi was instantly turned into a clay sculpture as if choked by an invisible hand! Kaido didn't bother to look at this piece of trash again and continued to roar at his subordinates below.
"That book is on this island, in this country, in the hands of those 'Bad People' who have resisted us for twenty years!!"
"If I weren't afraid of damaging that secret treasure, I would have razed Zhonghua Town to the ground long ago!!!"
I see,
The True Striker below nodded in agreement. Those Bad People were indeed tough, with more than twenty True Striker dying at their hands, and even two of the Six Sons had fallen to them! But after all, their strength was inferior to their own. The question of why the big brothers hadn't directly used a large-scale attack to wipe them out was now answered.
But today is different—
Boom!!
As the building next to her exploded, Big Mom, dressed as a courtesan, burst through the wall.
"Mmmmmmmmmm~~~"
"What we, who are always at odds, cannot obtain, becomes as easy as taking candy from a baby once we join forces!"
The towering Big Mom spread her arms wide, surrounded by a large group of her newly emerged Homies: Tu Bi, Lantern Ghost, Tang Paper Umbrella, Broom God, Tenma F4... and on her left and right, Zeus the Thundercloud and Prometheus, as if the Lord of Hundred Demons had descended!
To be honest, it's not an exaggeration to call Big Mom, who possesses the 'Soul-Soul Fruit' ability, the ruler of Hundred Demons.
"That's the World's Strongest old lady... cough cough cough, the courtesan!"
"Up close, it has a very strong sense of oppression."
Although everyone present was a high-ranking official with bounties of hundreds of millions, they still felt immense and terrifying pressure in the face of Big Mom, one of the Four Emperors.
"That's right, so—my men!"
Kaido glanced at the expectant officers below.
"It's time to pick up our pirate lifestyle again: burn, kill, and plunder! Seize the Ancient Weapon, then seize the Greatest Treasure in one fell swoop! And then conquer the entire world!!!"
"Woohoo!!!"
"Hahaha, that's more satisfying!!"
"Boss Kaido, just tell us who to kill, and we'll take care of the rest!!"
Amidst a chorus of bloodthirsty cheers, Kaido nodded in satisfaction, then looked at another group of people:
"Samurai of Wano Country, make your choice."
?
"With the cliffs protecting it, Wano Country is the most stable base. I want to turn the Capital of Flowers into a weapons factory, manufacturing more weapons and arming more people!! As a base to attack the Navy and the Celestial Dragons— "
"Wait! Kaido!!"
The Kurozumi Orochi standing nearby couldn't stand it anymore.
"The Capital of Flowers is mine—"
Puff!
With a flash of light, what countless Wano Country samurai had failed to achieve was easily accomplished: Kurozumi Orochi's head was casually cleaved in two! And the one who did it was, of course:
Kaido.
"Alright, Orochi's subordinates, you have five seconds to choose."
??!!
Given Kaido's strength, how could any of Kurozumi Orochi's subordinates possibly stop him? Besides, they never expected Kaido to turn on them so ruthlessly, after 20 years of cooperation...
"Will you join me as a pirate, or rebel against me and avenge Orochi?"
The so-called 'shogun' of Wano Country is nothing more than a pawn in Kaido's hands.
The promised day has arrived, and the decisive battle is imminent. Pieces are no longer important; what matters is gathering all our strength to challenge that guy who has dominated the world for eight hundred years!
"Choose!!"
To be, or not to be—