After being taught a lesson, Inuarashi and Cat Viper finally "calmed down." Although they no longer intended to fight, they still glared viciously at Xie Wen.
Of course, Xie Wen paid them no mind. He leisurely continued where he had left off. "Was I wrong? If Kozuki Oden hadn't so readily believed Kaido and Orochi's lies and given them five years to build up their strength, but had instead rallied Hyogoro and the samurai who still believed in him right from the start, Kaido would have been driven out of Wano Country long ago."
"I know you want to say Kozuki Oden did it to save the hostages, but..." Xie Wen raised a hand to stop Inuarashi and Cat Viper from arguing, then curled his lip. "Why was he so certain that Kurozumi Orochi, who had seized Wano Country through underhanded schemes, would keep his word? In all those five years, did he never once consider what to do if his enemies went back on their promises? He'd spent years as a pirate with Whitebeard and Roger, yet he was still that naive..."
Xie Wen's tone grew increasingly scornful. "Even if he was worried about the hostages' safety and didn't want to spread the truth in secret, why didn't he consider how to rescue them? At the very least, he could have sent trusted retainers like you out to sea in secret to ask Whitebeard for help, couldn't he? But he did nothing. Instead, he 'kept his promise' and performed that naked dance for five years, squandering every last bit of Wano Country's hope and its people's faith... I imagine that if Kurozumi Orochi hadn't broken his promise first, he would've kept on dancing, wouldn't he?"
Granted, even if Kozuki Oden had come up with some other plan back then,