Brook led the Hell Pirates' crew back to Shimotsuki Toramaru's domain in Ringo Province for a visit. The sword-obsessed daimyo was itching for a rematch with the Hell Pirates' officers—anything to sharpen his blade skills!
But Brook had his eyes on something else: a Devil Fruit tucked away in the Kozuki clan's vaults. The Mythical Zoan: Model Onyudo. In the original tale, that komainu fox barely scratched the surface of its power—smart, but underdeveloped.
As one of Wano's oldest families, the Shimotsuki estate oozed understated grandeur. Towering gates led to a raised entry hall, all polished wood and subtle opulence. Inside, the inner chamber brimmed with weapon displays—every piece a masterpiece, screaming quality.
These weren't just trinkets; they were treasures!
"Toramaru-sama has impeccable taste," Brook remarked, his bony fingers tracing a katana's edge.
"Untouched by gold or worldly distractions, lost only in the dance of steel."
Brook had a soft spot for sword maniacs like Shimotsuki Toramaru. He wouldn't target the man just for being a Kozuki retainer—no need to poke that bear.
"But alas, Toramaru, you're like a frog in a well here in Wano," Brook continued with a dramatic sigh.
"Cut off from the world's true titans!"
Shimotsuki Toramaru, his green hair tied in a towering topknot, chuckled self-deprecatingly. He'd sparred with Red Count Redfield before and come up short—humiliatingly so. It gnawed at him.
Who would've thought? Just two short years ago, that kid wandering Wano to learn Ryuo had lapped him already.
The outside world—that was where the real monsters lurked.
But Wano's isolationist edicts chained him here. To break free, he'd have to ditch the Shimotsuki honor, abandon his daimyo seat in Ringo.
Like Ashura Jakun, turn bandit or ronin, thumb his nose at Kozuki Sukiyaki's orders, and roam the seas as a free-wheeling warrior.
But that was a pipe dream.
The legacy weighed heavy: generations of dragon-slaying sword saints, starting with Shimotsuki Ryuma. He couldn't tarnish the family name on a whim, no matter how his blood sang for battle.
"Yohohoho! Redfield, Shiki, Newgate—they're rarities even on the Grand Line," Brook said, leaning in with a grin. "Sparring with them puts you among the elite already!"
Brook's mind raced. How to chip away at the Kozuki grip? Convince these daimyo to ditch their loyalty entirely?
"I'd give anything to see the outside world," Toramaru confessed, straightening up with a spark in his eye. "To clash with the seas' legends!"
Here in Wano, he was the top dog—yet Redfield and the others had toyed with him. Far from breaking him, it only stoked his fire.
"Yohohoho! If you set sail, Sukiyaki wouldn't hold it against you," Brook prodded slyly. "No one can cage a soul chasing the open sea!"
Keep fanning the flames. If Ringo's daimyo—the gold standard of Wano's warriors—defied the shogunate, it'd crack the Kozuki foundation wide open.
The other ambitious samurai, the glory-hungry ones—they'd flood the seas like a dam bursting.
"Brook-san, you're too kind," Toramaru replied, his gaze sharpening. "The general's isolation policy has its reasons. I won't defy him."
He shot Brook a knowing look and steered the conversation elsewhere. No sense tempting fate—he might just let this skeleton talk him into mutiny.
That'd make him the Shimotsuki black sheep, breaking the ancestral vow of eternal fealty to the Kozuki.
...
"Then let Redfield give you a proper tune-up!" Brook said, clapping his hands. "Oh, and Toramaru-sama—Lady Ametsuki mentioned your family has a fruit that never rots. Some etched thing. True?"
Brook's tail was out now. The real reason for this Ringo detour: snag that Mythical Zoan: Model Onyudo Devil Fruit.
"Ah, that," Toramaru said with a nod. "Yeah, we've got it. Tied to some yokai nonsense, from what I hear. If you want it, take it off my hands."
As a traditional Wano samurai, Toramaru had zero interest in sorcery. His days were for honing the blade, not fruit gimmicks.
"Then I owe you big time, Toramaru-sama," Brook replied. "I'll buy it fair and square."
No false modesty here. Brook snatched the deal, but paid up proper. He wasn't hurting for cash.
Toramaru's retainers soon presented a gourd-shaped fruit, etched with intricate patterns—like a ginseng root mimicking a baby's form. The Mythical Zoan: Model Onyudo?
Brook cradled the Devil Fruit, turning it over. Too easy. Where was the thrill, the edge-of-your-seat scheming?
He couldn't help but gloat inwardly.
"Yohohoho~ Thanks for the generosity, Toramaru-sama. Ever spot anything like it before?"
Strike while the iron's hot. These daimyo ruled their domains for years—worldly enough to have crossed paths with other Devil Fruits.
"Beats me," Toramaru admitted, pondering. "But the Oniwabanshu scour Wano for the shogun, collecting those yokai fruits. Sukiyaki's stash probably has a couple himself."
A beat. Toramaru realized he'd spilled a Kozuki secret—the general knew the link between yokai and Devil Fruits all too well.
...
"That's gold—thanks for the tip!"
Brook and Toramaru shared a few rounds of sake, easing into the feast. Mission in Ringo: all but wrapped. New blades? Check. Devil Fruit? Secured.
As for the northern graveyard's sword mounds... that'd need a slower burn.
...
"Brook-sensei, when do we set sail? I can't wait anymore!"
A bruised and battered Kozuki Oden burst in, trailed by a bleary-eyed Kaido with matching raccoon eyes. Lately, this new kid kept targeting him in spars—and Oden couldn't land a hit on the guy his age. Infuriating!
"Soon," Brook said coolly, like a sly fox mid-heist. "Grab a couple etched fruits, and we're gone. Your old man's got some—snag 'em, and we're out."
Even Toramaru, watching from the side, twitched. This skeleton was playing dirty—sending the young lord to pilfer from the shogun?
"You mean it? Alright, I'll grab 'em now! No backing out this time!"
Oden's eyes lit up. Two fruits? Piece of cake. He'd swipe 'em like candy from a baby.
"Brook always keeps his word," the skeleton replied with a wink.
As a bonus, Brook tossed Oden a pair of Wind Shell boots—for the fruits, sure, but really to hustle him back to the Flower Capital. Time to "borrow" from dear old Sukiyaki.
With greatgrades like Ame no Habakiri and Enma already gifted, a few Devil Fruits were small potatoes!
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+400 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg