Fools Are Contagious

As time ticked by and the hands of the clock continued to advance, Kurozumi Orochi's expression darkened, and he angrily slammed the wine glass in his hand to the ground.

"Isn't this guy hot enough to kill him? Add more firewood, keep adding firewood!"

Even as his men kept adding firewood and the red oil in the cauldron boiled like boiling water, Kozuki Oden, already covered in wounds, remained unmoved.

"That guy is amazing, he can withstand being in such a hot oil pan."

Huayue raised an eyebrow, glanced at the clock hand pointing to the last moment, and her smile grew even brighter.

"The last 10 seconds, the last 10 seconds! Oden is about to survive the boiling punishment!"

"So that's how it is. It's always been Oden silently protecting Wano Country all along! I see!"

"As expected, the Kozuki Family is the true hope of Wano Country..."

On the viewing platform, Kurozumi Orochi could no longer maintain his composure. He gestured with his eyes, and the members of the Beast Pirates chuckled and surrounded the execution platform with their muskets.

"It's over!"

"The execution is over! Oden has survived the boiling punishment!"

"Great, now we can set Oden free..."

Bang!

Smoke billowed from the gun barrel, and the man who had been jumping the loudest among the Wano Country citizens who had been cheering earlier fell to the ground, blood gushing out.

"What a joke! When did I ever say I would spare Kozuki Oden? This execution was changed to execution by firing squad a minute ago, hahahaha!"

At that moment, Kozuki Oden was holding up the bridge plank, seemed to have expected this. He threw the plank outwards with force and shouted.

"Let Wano Country open its borders!"

"Let's go, without looking back. We must ensure that Wano Country, under Oden Oden's watchful gaze, welcomes its own dawn!"

Many of the retainers burst into tears and turned to scatter outside the execution platform. The onlookers watched the man standing in the oil cauldron, weeping bitterly.

"Chase them! Don't let a single one escape!"

Many members of the Beast Pirates and Orochi's ninja forces rushed forward to give chase. On the viewing platform, Kaido sneered repeatedly, took out a repeating gun from his pocket, and aimed it at the idiot in front of him.

"Woo-la-la-la, now that things have come to this, your body is already on the verge of death. Consider this my final act of mercy; I'll send you on your way!"

"The Kozuki Toki of Wano Country ends here, and you will all die!"

The oil in the pot was boiling and bubbling, Kozuki Oden, his eyes full of determination.

"But... but don't underestimate my family's samurai."

Gazing at this samurai who refused to submit even in the face of death, Kaido's expression turned solemn as he spoke words of praise.

"No matter how wretched your life was before, or how stupid you were, the heroic spirit you displayed when you died will still be passed down from generation to generation."

Kurozumi Orochi gritted his teeth and couldn't help but urge him on.

"Hurry up and deal with this bastard, I get angry just looking at him!"

Just then, Kozuki Oden, who was in the oil pan, burst into laughter and struck his signature pose.

"It doesn't matter whether my story is passed down or not, but my soul will live on in the land of Wano Country!"

Kaido, looking serious, said something that Kozuki Oden.

"I've already killed the old woman who interfered with our battle. I'm sorry about that. I still really wanted to fight with all my might, but she ruined my fun."

"Huff... huff... huff... I didn't expect you to be so serious. Then get stronger as soon as possible, and I'll become a legend in Wano Country, a place for people to drink and make merry!"

"My warriors, Toki, I'm going now..."

The next moment, he raised his palm high and extended it peacefully.

"I am... the more I cook, the more flavorful I become..."

Kaido pulled the trigger. Two flashes of Huo Guang struck Kozuki Oden squarely in the face.

"Yes Oden!"

The citizens of Wano Country who were watching were all heartbroken and cried loudly. Kurozumi Orochi snorted coldly and stood up and jumped up in anger.

In the distance, Uchiha Huayue, who had been silently watching the whole thing, lowered his hand. The little girl beside him turned her head and asked a question.

"Brother, why are you covering my eyes?"

"If you see too many fools, you'll become a fool yourself. By the way, what's your name?"

A strange smile appeared on her lips, Huayue turned her head to ask.

"Yamato, my name is Yamato. Where is that incredibly powerful guy in the frying pan?"

Yamato turned his head and saw that people not far away were wailing and crying. Oden, who was in the oil cauldron, was nowhere to be seen. He couldn't help but ask.

"I don't know, he probably went to heaven. You still haven't answered my question, Yamato. Do you believe in fate?"

Yamato looked completely bewildered, with countless question marks appearing above his head.

"Destiny? What's that? Is it tasty?"

"Hahaha, so-called destiny, huh? It's just that nobles are born nobles, mortals are born mortals, and saviors are born saviors. Everything is decided long before it even begins..."

"Even with effort, the outcome cannot be changed; everything is attributed to fate. Do you like this world?"

Hearing this, Yamato nodded as if he understood, then shook his head.

"Have no idea."

"It's okay, you'll understand when you grow up. Come with me, I'll take you to find some interesting guys."

"Waaah!"

With a cheer, Yamato followed closely behind Huayue. No one noticed that the two had been there, nor did anyone realize when they had left.

Wano Country, Ringo.

Amidst the heavy snowfall, within the desolate Sword Tomb, a snow-white Komainu Fox lay listlessly on the ground, its fate held in the throat by a large hand.

"What a beautiful fox!"

Yamato's eyes lit up, and after Huayue silently finished the extraction, he nodded in satisfaction.

"Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Onyudo Form. How many types of Human-Human Fruit are there? First Buddha Form, and then the Great Descent. It seems that even within the same type of Devil Fruit, there are completely opposite varieties."

The Komainu Fox struggled to turn its gaze away, a sense of powerlessness already permeating its entire body. This unprecedented feeling caused it to whimper involuntarily.

"Let me see, I found it!"

After a while, an orange-yellow fruit appeared in her hand, and Huayue handed it over with a smile.

"Dog-Dog Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Okuchi no Makami Form. This is the fruit of your destiny, and it is also the choice it made itself. This world is truly lifeless."

"Is this for me? Can I really eat it?"

With eyes shining Yamato mouth watering, Huayue nodded slightly, but his gaze was fixed on Kuri in the distance.

"It's over, you boring brute. But whatever, let's see if Vegapunk's theory of transfer is true or false."