The Choice

In his youth, Kozuki Oden traveled far and wide, first joining the Whitebeard Pirates and later being recruited by Roger. He experienced many strange and unusual things, so he didn't show much surprise at the Onmyoji who called himself Tamamo-no-Mae.

Wano Country is known as the land of monsters, with countless folk tales passed down since ancient times. Tamamo-no-Mae is one of the great monsters in these tales. However, the beautiful woman in front of you, with her hair in a bun, wearing a kimono, and exposing her shoulders, is not a real monster.

The Onmyoji of the Izumo Society are highly skilled and have extraordinary abilities. To distinguish themselves, they would give themselves titles of demons and monsters. Among them, there are four demons at the top. The one in front of us, Tamamo-no- Tamamo-no-Mae, is one of the four leaders of the Four Demons and Monsters. Of course, she herself is a Mythical Zoan of Devil Fruit, which is extremely rare.

During the banquet, Tamamo-no-Mae smiled and explained her purpose: she had come to seek Peace-War Pass the Kanto and Southeast regions, hoping that both sides would unite forever and avoid the outbreak of war.

Upon hearing Tamamo-no-Mae's words, Kozuki Oden felt something was very strange, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Amidst the clinking of glasses and lively conversation, the banquet soon drew to a close.

Tamamo-no-Mae politely declined Kozuki Oden's invitation and calmly left the banquet, then returned to Izumo.

Tamamo-no-Mae's sudden arrival and swift departure left Kozuki Oden confused about her true intentions.

Not long Tamamo-no-Mae left, Kin'emon rushed in, looking extremely flustered.

"Kozuki, Momonosuke has disappeared!"

Kozuki Oden was initially startled, but quickly composed himself and asked in a deep voice, "Kin'emon, what happened?"

"A maid noticed that after Momonosuke retired for the night, the light in his room was still on. She went in to turn it off, only to find that Momonosuke was not in the room. The maid also saw that there was a tear in the corner of the bed, the mattress was overturned on the floor, and the wooden clogs that the lord usually wore were overturned near the foot of the bed..."

Under such circumstances, no one would believe that Momonosuke ran away on his own.

"Dispatch everyone in the manor to search the surrounding area immediately!"

With his son kidnapped after thieves broke into his residence, even the usually composed Kozuki Oden was overcome with anxiety. Who could have done this so quietly and without anyone noticing?

As he pondered, he suddenly remembered what Tamamo-no-Mae had said at the banquet, and his expression changed in shock. He shouted at the empty rafters, "Raizo, you're quick! Go and stop Tamamo-no-Mae immediately! This matter is probably related to her!"

The ninja Raizo, who had been hiding on the roof beam, left silently. A moment later, someone ran in from outside. Upon closer inspection, it was Kozuki Momonosuke!

"Father, I'm back!"

Perhaps feeling ashamed, Momonosuke blushed and his throat tightened slightly.

Where did you go?

Kozuki Oden saw that it was Momonosuke run back on his own, he couldn't help but doubt his own guess, but the latter's expression told him that things were not so simple.

Before Momonosuke could speak, another person slowly walked into the dark room, holding someone's ankle in their hand. They then dragged in a dark, unconscious figure and threw him on the ground. The newcomer said calmly, "Excuse me."

Kozuki's heart sank as he looked at the figure on the ground dressed in a black feather robe.

In the Wano Country tales of a hundred demons, there is a yokai called the Ubume, which is formed from the lingering resentment of a deceased woman who gave birth. Because of this lingering resentment, it enjoys carrying away other people's children and wandering around at night.

This black figure is one of the demons codenamed "Ubume" in the Izumo Society, who is extremely skilled at abducting children at night and is said to be able to stop children from crying at night.

According to early intelligence, this Ubume is agile and light as a swallow, and possesses the endurance of a ninja. It can hide in the shadows and remain motionless for several days. It is a high-ranking member among the four tribes of demons and monsters.

Considering Tamamo-no-Mae's visit today, even though Kozuki Oden already understood the whole story, he looked at the unfamiliar blond man standing at the door and thought to himself, "Although this man's appearance isn't from Wano Country, his ability to defeat and capture the Ubume must mean he's quite powerful... But I have no connection with him, so why is he helping me?"

His gaze lingered briefly on the other person before Kozuki Oden bowed deeply in gratitude, saying, "This friend saved my son's life; I, Kozuki, thank you profusely."

"This is simply 100% destiny."

The blond man's face was as calm as still water. He pulled out a card. "If a man comes here, please give him this [World] card and tell him I'm waiting for him here."

"Who is that man...?"

After Kozuki Oden accepted the card.

The blond man turned and disappeared into the distance. "His name is Buggy."

Kozuki Oden paused slightly, "Then, please tell me your name so I can pass on the message."

"Basil Hawkins..." A faint voice, like a candle flickering in the wind, drifted from afar.

Kozuki Oden glanced at the tarot cards in his hand, then put them into his pocket. He remembered the name Buggy; the Red Nose brat who used to hang out with Shanks on Roger's ship was Buggy, wasn't he?

As the name was mentioned, a flood of memories surfaced in Kozuki Oden's mind, and a look of nostalgia crept across his face. He wondered how Inuarashi and Nekomamushi were doing...

After a while, he came to his senses, looked down at the unconscious Ubume, and ordered the samurai to take her to the dungeon for safekeeping.

Kanjuro was standing guard to the side, asked in a low voice, "Kozuki, why did the Izumo Society kidnap Momonosuke?"

A flicker of worry crossed Kozuki Oden's eyes. "It seems the Shogun and the Genji have allied with Izumo..."

The feud between the Kozuki and Genji stems from this very generation. After the death of the previous Admiral, the current Shogun took over. This Shogun is ambitious, domineering, and has been trying to use the Kozuki Clan's stonemasonry skills and their unique stone collection to create an immortal stone statue for himself, to be passed down for generations.

However, Kozuki Oden was unwilling to have his personal statue carved and polished using unique stone, and resolutely refused. In addition, Kozuki Oden also offered many suggestions on the reform of Wano Country's policies, but Genji ignored them and regarded them as Kozuki Oden's unwarranted provocation. Genji was vengeful by nature and harbored a grudge against Kozuki Oden. He also coveted the very prosperous Kuri under Kozuki's rule, but he was well aware of the power of the Kozuki Clan and dared not act rashly without certainty.

The fact that the Izumo Society has made a move in secret means that the Genji has promised enough benefits to win over the powerful Izumo Society east of the Peace-War Pass.

Kozuki sighed inwardly. Should he fight for the honor of the Kozuki Clan, or surrender to prevent war from ravaging his people...? What should he choose?