But that was all ten years ago. The only reason Orochi has been able to rule Wano for so many years is because of his ally, the Beasts Pirates, and Kaido.
As long as he destroys the Beasts Pirates, the dark cloud hanging over the people of Wano will naturally disappear with them.
"How many people in the Flower Capital region are like you—forced into the mountains because the heavy taxes made life impossible?"
Nao suddenly asked the young bandit leader.
"R-reporting to you, sir," the youth stammered. "The number has increased a lot these past two years. Right now… there should be… three or four thousand…"
Three to four thousand.
Nao fell silent and set his teacup down.
The Flower Capital was the most prosperous and wealthy place in all of Wano. Even here, there were this many people driven to become bandits.
In poorer, more chaotic regions like Kuri, Udon, Ringo… the conditions were obviously far worse.
And this bandit problem was merely a small reflection of what Wano had become under the harsh rule of the Beasts Pirates.
Nao looked at Otsuru. Her palms were pressed together, eyes pleading. Nao sighed and finally nodded slightly.
Otsuru's face bloomed into a relieved smile. Nao shifted his gaze toward the bandits.
"Clean up all the tables and chairs you destroyed… then go."
The bandits, still kneeling anxiously on the ground, froze for a moment. Then they raised their heads in disbelief, joy flooding their faces.
"Hurry up, before I change my mind," Nao added lightly.
"Y-yes, sir!"
The group scrambled to their feet and hurriedly restored the tea stand to its original state.
Moments later, led by the young man, all the bandits knelt again, kowtowing respectfully three times to Nao and Otsuru before retreating carefully down the mountain path.
"…Eh?"
Otsuru suddenly spotted something under the corner of the table. She bent down to pick it up—only to realize, stunned, that it was the money pouch she had given those youths earlier.
"…Sigh."
She looked toward the fading figures disappearing into the forest. Saying nothing, she lowered her head and silently cleaned the table.
Nao watched her busy silhouette. Without speaking, he finished his last cup of tea, left some money on the table, and vanished in a flash of light.
Morning tea was over. Time to get to work.
…
Half an hour later
At Wano's northern coastline, a streak of lightning shot off the cliff, heading straight north.
Within the pale-blue thunderlight, Nao's expression was cold and unreadable.
On the way from the teahouse, he had already used Observation Haki to sweep across every inch of Wano—but not a single Beasts Pirates officer could be found.
He wasn't surprised.
Ever since he appeared at the Tea Party last month and killed Big Mom, the entire New World had been spreading rumors that he would soon target the Beasts Pirates next.
Even the distant Galio VI had heard this rumor—so the Beasts Pirates would definitely know. They had probably long since entered maximum alert.
In the original Wano territory, many of Kaido's officers should have been stationed in various regions; their disappearance meant Kaido had recalled them all.
Resting and waiting patiently, fully prepared, huh…
Gazing toward the far northern ocean, Nao smirked coldly. The Beasts Pirates' forces were clearly all concentrated on Onigashima now.
"Perfect. Saves me the trouble."
A sharp chill flickered in Nao's eyes. The Beasts Pirates might be trying to avoid repeating Charlotte's fate by pulling all their forces together and preparing thoroughly…
But to him, it made no difference at all.
…
Onigashima.
A medium-sized island about a hundred kilometers north of Wano, shaped like a giant oni horn. At its center stood a massive palace complex—the headquarters of the Beasts Pirates.
RUMBLE!
Thunder rolled across the sky. Lightning halted above the palace roofs. As it dissipated, Nao's figure appeared.
"Strange."
From above, Nao examined the palace complex below, his gaze sweeping back and forth as his brows tightened slightly in confusion.
The vast palace grounds were cold and deserted, deathly silent. Only the ghostly blue flames flickering in the hollow eyes of the giant oni skull gave any motion. The entire island felt almost completely devoid of living presence.
An ambush?
The thought crossed Nao's mind, but he dismissed it immediately.
After three years of training and honing his abilities, his Observation Haki had reached the pinnacle of the world. Not to mention King, Queen, the other officers—even Kaido himself could never hide from his senses.
If it doesn't make sense, no point worrying about it. Just grab someone and ask.
Swish!
With a flash, Nao dropped down, landing at the steps before the main palace. He peered through the gates.
There were only a handful of living beings detectable on all of Onigashima—and the only human among them was sitting right at the threshold of this very gate.
It was a tall figure wearing a Hannya mask, with two red oni horns protruding from her head. Her white cloak was filthy and tattered, and her body covered in bruises and wounds, as though she had been beaten savagely.
She had clearly been sitting there for a long time, seemingly waiting specifically for him. When she finally saw Nao appear, she suddenly rose to her feet.
"An Ogre?"
Nao's attention was first drawn to the red demon horns. Seeing her stand, he frowned slightly and spoke with a cold tone:
"Take off the mask. I have questions."
"Yes!"
The figure obeyed immediately—reaching up and ripping off the Hannya mask, tossing it aside. She shook her long, gradient-white hair, revealing a bright and strikingly beautiful face.
A girl?
Nao was momentarily stunned, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
The young woman before him had a tall, graceful figure and stunning curves, but they had been tightly hidden under the white cloak—he hadn't noticed earlier.
"You've finally arrived, Lord Nao!"
There was not the slightest fear or hesitation on her face. Instead, hands clasped behind her back, she stood on tiptoe, looking up at him with an eager, joyful smile.
"I've been waiting here for you for so long!"
Her aura was bold and spirited, her features carrying a heroic edge. But when she smiled, dimples formed against her bruised face, making her unexpectedly sweet and charming.
That expression strangely reminded Nao of when he first met Nojiko years ago. His heart softened, the killing intent fading from his body, and his voice became noticeably gentler:
"Who are you? Where's Kaido?"
"Yamato! My name is Natsuya Yamato!"
The girl answered briskly—and unexpectedly. "As for Kaido, that bastard already ran away!"
Natsuya Yamato?
Nao froze for a moment. But the second half of her sentence pulled his attention back immediately. His brows tightened.
"What did you say? Kaido ran away?"
"Yes, Lord Nao!"
The white-haired girl couldn't help bursting into loud laughter, as though merely recalling it made her giddy with delight.
"That cowardly man didn't dare fight you at all! After hearing what happened in Totto Land, he hesitated for days, and in the end he abandoned everything—took all his officers with him and fled out to sea!"
…Huh?
Hearing it confirmed from her own mouth, Nao could no longer hide the full look of shock spreading across his face.
What the hell?
He had come all this way—prepared for a one-man assault against tens of thousands, ready for a brutal, drawn-out battle.
And now you're telling me—
—Kaido grabbed a bucket and ran in the middle of the night?
...
One minute later.
The two of them now sat on opposite sides of the steps before the gate. Nao had one leg crossed, hand on his chin, chewing over the girl's words with a bewildered expression—still struggling to fully accept this absurd reality.
The mighty Emperor of the Sea, the so-called "Strongest Creature in the World," the unkillable Kaido—upon hearing Nao was coming—had actually gathered up all his subordinates and run away overnight. Even cleaned out the entire base, leaving nothing but an empty shell.
Great.
Now what—search the whole New World?
"I'm telling the truth! Believe me, Lord Nao!"
Her cheerful voice chimed beside him.
"I'm not saying you're lying. It's just… the news is too outrageous. Give me a moment to process it…"
Nao sighed. In his mind, Kaido—enemy or not—had at least been a formidable, larger-than-life figure. The kind who could storm Marineford looking for death, laugh in the face of every execution method, and remain defiant through it all.
Now?
The image had completely collapsed.
He looked at the white-haired girl across from him, curiosity rising.
"Oh, right. Yamato, what exactly are you to Kaido? Judging by your horns, you should be of the same race. Why are you the only one left on Onigashima?"
"That guy…" Yamato pouted. "From a blood standpoint, I guess he's technically my father. If you hadn't asked, I wouldn't even want to admit that…"
The white-haired girl seemed to trust him deeply. Nao hardly had to ask—she spilled everything as easily as dumping beans from a bamboo tube.
Kozuki Oden.
That was her original name—or rather, her second name.
Ten years ago, when she was just a child, she personally witnessed Oden's execution by boiling. From that moment on, she idolized him, took on a male identity, and even changed her name—wanting to become a man like Oden.
As for her father's pirate crew—Kaido's Beast Pirates—because of her straightforward nature, hatred for evil, and fierce sense of justice, she loathed them. She had always wanted to defeat her father, liberate Wano, and end the tyranny of the Beasts Pirates and Orochi.
She had always thought so—and always acted on it.
But a girl's righteous dreams were fragile in the face of harsh reality.
Countless times she tried to stop atrocities. Countless times she challenged Kaido. The only things she received in return were mockery and beatings. Kaido had beaten her black and blue more times than she could count.
He even grew tired of her and locked her—along with several samurai—inside a cave for ten days, almost starving her to death.
He placed special explosive shackles on her wrists, threatening that if she ever left Wano's borders, they would detonate instantly.
Fear, cruelty, treachery—that was Kaido in Yamato's eyes.
Until, one year later—
After the battle on Hull Island, when Kaido failed to defeat Nao and returned in a rage, Yamato once again got caught in the storm and was beaten harshly.
But because of that, she developed an intense curiosity about Nao—the man who, at only twenty years old, could fight her father to a standstill. She began secretly gathering every piece of information she could about him.
She asked around everywhere, collected newspapers… The more she learned about Nao, the more she admired him. At the same time, she learned more about the world beyond Wano.
The samurai ideals she once clung to grew dim; she finally awakened to the truth—Oden's methods and path could never save Wano.
From that day on, Yamato changed her surname to Natsuya, and she dreamed of one day escaping to sea, joining the Marines, fighting alongside Nao, utterly destroying the Beast Pirates, and saving her hell-stricken homeland.
But unfortunately…
"I can't escape…"
Nao turned his head to look. At some point, Yamato—who had been sitting across from him—had scooted right in front of him, hugging her knees, her small face full of grievance.
"Lord Nao, do you know… I've wanted to go to Marineford to meet you for such a long time, but…"
She lifted her wrists dejectedly, shaking the explosive cuffs. "That horrible man never took these off. As long as I leave Wano's waters, they'll—"
Nao's eyes fell on the cuffs. Explosives that detonate automatically once leaving a designated zone? With such a long functional duration?
Even Marine Headquarters didn't have tech like this.
"Let me see."
He frowned, sensing something off. He extended a hand, and Yamato obediently lifted her arms.
Nao held her wrist, examining the device closely. After a moment, his Observation Haki swept through the internal structure—then he let out a helpless chuckle and shook his head.
"Wh-what's wrong?" Yamato stared at him nervously.
"You were tricked, Yamato." Nao sighed and released her wrist. "All those mechanisms are just for show. These cuffs are nothing but ordinary seastone restraints."
"Fake?"
Yamato's eyes went wide, her voice cracking. "How?! I even secretly asked Aunt Sena! She's always been so kind to me—she wouldn't…"
"She cares about you because you're Kaido's daughter—and the sole heir to the Beast Pirates."
Nao shook his head. "If you learned the truth about the cuffs, you would've escaped Wano long ago. Then what would she tell Kaido when he came back raging?"
"…That's true…"
Yamato's expression instantly dimmed. She fell silent for a long time, raising her arms and squinting at the cuffs that had imprisoned her for ten whole years, lost in thought.
Nao gently patted her head. Not knowing how to comfort her, he simply switched to another topic:
"You and Kaido may have a terrible relationship, but you're still his daughter. This time when he fled, he brought along every officer he could. So why didn't he bring you?"