The Flower Capital.
Every household had long since finished preparing for the Night of the Fire Festival. Lanterns, much like sky lanterns, drifted into the heavens, scattering pinpricks of light across the night sky.
The streets were packed with peddlers crying out their wares. Food, games, performances everywhere, people wore bright, happy smiles.
The city was bursting with life.
This was a festival celebrated by the entire nation.
Inside a tavern, quite a few samurai leaned close and whispered among themselves:
"Today's the day Ares and Sukiyaki's duel is supposed to happen. I heard Sukiyaki demanded that Ares himself not be allowed to participate. What a pity. Last time, I heard Kozuki Oden lost terribly!"
"Tch, that's nothing. Let me tell you something even bigger. I heard from someone in the shogun's palace that all the daimyo of Wano joined forces and still lost to Ares!"
"What?! Something like that really happened? No wonder Sukiyaki won't let Ares take part. If even that happened, who in Wano could possibly fight him?"
"What do you think will happen if he really becomes Wano's shogun and opens the country?"
"Wano's samurai are no frauds. I heard that for this duel, Lord Sukiyaki even brought out the national treasure from the shrine the black blade Shusui!"
"Not just that. I also heard that for the past month or two, the daimyo of every region, including Kozuki Oden, have been sparring every single day."
"..."
Inside the shogun's palace, however, the mood was grim and oppressive.
Shimotsuki Ushimaru kept wiping down the black blade Shusui with a white cloth, over and over, until the blade shone brilliantly.
Kozuki Oden sat cross-legged on the floor, eyes closed, quietly preparing himself.
Sukiyaki's palms were damp with sweat. The moment he heard the report that Ares and his group were already on their way, his nerves tightened even further.
He could only pray inwardly:
Let everything go according to plan... and drive Ares and his people out of Wano.
At that moment, the ninja captain Fukurokuju entered from outside and reported, "Lord Sukiyaki, Ares and the others have already arrived in the Flower Capital."
Sukiyaki immediately rose to his feet and looked at the gathered daimyo and Kozuki Oden. His expression was solemn as he said in a low voice:
"The future of Wano... rests in your hands."
Shimotsuki Ushimaru, Shimotsuki Yasuie, and the others all stood as well, their voices firm and righteous:
"For the honor of the samurai, we will win this duel!"
Outside the Flower Capital, on a vast stretch of open plain, Ares and his people had already gathered.
Marco looked around left and right, still munching on takoyaki he had bought from a nearby vendor.
"Woah, so many people! There are so many here just to watch this duel. It's as grand as some kind of arena."
The hills in every direction were packed solid with people, a sea of heads as far as the eye could see.
Acrobats, lantern-sellers, dancers, fire performers, snack vendors...
Everything imaginable was there.
Vista's eyes sparkled as he said excitedly, "Soon we'll get to see Wano's strongest samurai! Their swordsmanship is supposed to be the best on the seas!"
"I really want to become a swordsman like them and master powerful swordsmanship."
The legend that Wano produced samurai had been known for ages. Being so young, he still had no real understanding of what true swordsmanship meant.
These past few days, under Ashura Doji's instruction, he had only just begun to glimpse Wano's sword arts, and already it had left him stunned.
He also knew that while Ashura Doji was strong, he was not the strongest samurai in Wano.
That only made Vista even more eager to see stronger samurai and stronger swordsmanship.
Kaido grinned, arrogant and full of confidence.
"Worororo! Samurai may be strong, but compared to pirates like us, who've survived countless battles to the death, they're nothing!"
Chinjao laughed. "How could a bunch of frogs at the bottom of a well ever understand how vast the sea truly is?"
Whitebeard chuckled. "Gurarara... Samurai really are intriguing. It's been many years since I last saw the legendary samurai spoken of on the seas."
"..."
While they were talking, Sukiyaki arrived with the daimyo and the ninja, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
Ares curled his lips into a smile.
"They're finally here. Then let's skip the nonsense and begin the duel already."
Sukiyaki's face darkened. "Ares, are you truly that impatient to become Wano's shogun?"
Ares let out a scornful laugh. His manner was overbearing, radiating absolute dominance.
"That's right. I fully intend to open Wano. Since the duel agreement has already been signed, stop wasting time and get on with it."
"For the first match who's coming out?"
Sukiyaki replied coldly, "Both sides will write down their duel roster. The matches will proceed in the order listed."
"Fine."
Soon, both sides wrote down their rosters.
Then they revealed them.
On Wano's side, Kozuki Oden stepped forward first, facing Ares and the others directly.
"I've wanted to fight you for a long time, Oden!"
"If Big Brother Ares hadn't stopped me, you wouldn't even be qualified to challenge him!"
Kaido rolled his neck, his bones cracking loudly as he strode out. His massive kanabo rested on his shoulder. With his broad upper body bare, his dense, powerful muscles on full display, the seven-meter-tall giant made an overwhelming entrance.
The pressure he gave off was immense.
A chorus of shocked gasps immediately rose from the surrounding crowd.
Alber shouted, "Mr. Kaido, go! I know you'll beat Oden!"
Somehow, Ivankov had gotten hold of a flag and was waving it around wildly while shouting slogans he had apparently prepared in advance.
A whole group of Beast God Pirates members joined in, cheering Kaido on.
Kozuki Oden drew his two swords and took his stance, his gaze fixed seriously on Kaido.
"If you're ready..."
"I'm going to make this quick and defeat you."
"Worororo!" Light blazed in Kaido's tiger-like eyes. He slammed his kanabo into the ground and grinned. "If you think you can beat me, then come and try!"
Buzz!
The swords in Oden's hands instantly darkened, coated in Haki. His body shot forward like an arrow released from the string, crossing dozens of meters in a blink.
He appeared right in front of Kaido.
"Oden Two-Sword Style: Gun Modoki!"
His two swords crossed, their pitch-black blades gleaming with a chilling edge.
Facing Oden's attack, Kaido raised the spiked kanabo forged by Shimotsuki Kozaburo. It was instantly wrapped in a sinister black-purple aura.
Crackling currents of electricity danced across it.
The muscles in his thick, elephant-like arms swelled and hardened, erupting with monstrous force.
"Thunder Bagua!"
Clang!
The kanabo struck later but arrived first, blocking Oden's twin blades head-on. Sparks exploded violently from the collision.
The ringing metallic clang echoed through the field. Oden's forearm muscles bulged several times over. As a monster born with abnormal strength, his power had far surpassed ordinary men since childhood.
But in that clash with Kaido, he was shocked to realize that this man's raw power...
Was clearly greater than his own.
His arms trembled, and the tiger's mouths of his hands went numb from the impact.
Oden's heart sank.
One of Ares's subordinates is already this strong!?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh, you like the story? Wow, who knew. Go ahead, drop a review and throw some power stones maybe I'll be motivated to keep going.
The story's already ahead on Patron. Go there if you want to catch up faster!
[email protected]/_theon
Change @ to "a"