These are the known top officers. Apart from them, there are low-ranking officers like Mandrell who are also powerful, as well as Elizabeth and Ferren* of different species. (*Ferren is the Millennial Dragon who consumed the Caveman Fruit.)
Babanuki, who rarely leaves Wano Country, doesn’t have a bounty in the outside world, but he’s an officer who defeated Kin’emon.
Add to that the terrifying strength of the Mountain God. He wasn’t sure if even an extra thousand people could restrain that monstrous pig. He didn’t think Kaido would care about the lives of Wano Country’s citizens when using this kind of strategic-level force.
There is also another problem, which is that their only top-notch fighter, Kozuki Oden, is becoming increasingly unstable. Based on his understanding of Kozuki Oden, Oden might actually decide to go and chat with Kaido one day.
By normal logic, they would never compromise. However, in the eyes of Kurozumi Orochi, both Kaido and Kozuki Oden were not normal. If these two reached an agreement, he was sure that the first one to die would be him.
The reason he had dragged it on for these past few years was to balance their forces. But the reality is that the Beasts Pirates had developed much faster than he had anticipated, and in his view, they were already on the verge of going out of control.
One of the reasons for this kind of thinking is the inherent thinking of Wano Country. Even if Kurozumi Orochi wants to persecute the people of Wano Country, he is still a man of Wano Country at heart. He has a mysterious confidence in the samurai of Wano Country.
Otherwise, he would have realized that it wasn’t about to get out of control; it had already gone out of control.
In any case, according to Kurozumi Orochi’s understanding, it was almost time to take action. If he delayed any further, he would be done for.
As long as Kozuki Oden can defeat Kaido and someone can hold off the other high-ranking officers, there is a possibility of defeating the opponent once Kozuki Oden is free.
Furthermore, Kozuki Oden would be left severely injured, and that would be his opportunity.
Shimotsuki Yasuie looked at the dozen or so World Government’s wanted posters in front of him, and some information about individuals who don’t have any bounties that Kurozumi Orochi provided, and he fell into contemplation.
“Yasuie-sama, I think the upcoming New Year’s Festival is a good opportunity. Kaido has lost interest in Oden-sama recently. They usually celebrate on Onigashima, but this time, I plan to invite him to the Flower Capital for the celebration.”
“At that time, his subordinates may not all be present, and that will be our chance. However, it’s not enough to rely solely on Oden-sama and his retainers; we need the support of other daimyos.”
Previously, there was concern about exposure, but now, with the operation approaching, the military strength of those daimyos is also the power that Kurozumi Orochi needs to rely on. The current situation was their only chance, as without them knowing when, Kaido had become such a monster.
“Yasuie-sama, I leave this matter to you, including communicating it to Oden-sama. I need to plan other things. I will inform you of the specifics later.”
Saying this, Kurozumi Orochi left. There were some things he hadn’t told Shimotsuki Yasuie, such as his plan to quietly add fuel to the fire in order to make Kozuki Oden go all out.
He remembered quite clearly that Kozuki Toki’s injury had put Kozuki Oden into that furious state. Now he had similar thoughts, such as activating the undercover agent he had placed next to Kozuki Oden.
However, it depends on the situation. If Kaido has the upper hand, then he needs to find a way to enrage Oden. If Oden is in a favorable position, he must figure out how to make him upset. As Old sixth* caught between two monsters, Kurozumi Orochi has a severe headache. [* A term used for players in CS Go who love to ambush the enemy.]
The remaining two months may seem ample, but in reality, the time is quite tight. It’s a good tactic to keep the operation a secret until just before the action, but some of the leaders need to be informed ahead of time.
While he was discreetly arranging things in the Flower Capital, Shimotsuki Yasuie also visited Kozuki Oden’s home and revealed the initial plan as well as the eviction plan to be implemented on New Year.
Raizo also chimed in from the side since he was the first person to be aware of the operation.
It’s uncertain how effective it was, but it was evident that his retainers were deeply moved by this, and they did not consider this operation foolish. They knelt before Kozuki Oden, sobbing in tears.
“I’m sorry, Oden-sama. It’s because of our weakness that you’ve endured so much pain for all these years.”
“No, it’s actually…”
“Don’t worry, even if it costs us our lives, we will help you achieve your goal, meow.”
Nekomamushi and Kin’emon left Oden at a loss for words. A peculiar form of rebellion was unfolding at this moment, one where Kozuki Oden doubts his ability to be a Shogun, but his loyal retainers did not.
In their eyes, no one but a member of the Kozuki family could sit in the Shogun’s position.
Originally, Kozuki Oden had other matters to discuss, but it quickly turned into an oath-taking ceremony. Shimotsuki Yasuie also began quietly contacting other daimyos, and, with the original documents and Oden’s name, they all expressed their approval of the plan.
Oden’s retainers were no longer depressed as before. They eagerly trained every day, and Ashura Doji also returned to Mt. Atama. The mountain bandits under his command weren’t a small force either.
On the rooftop of Onigashima, Kaido turned off the screen in front of him. While Rotom’s surveillance camera isn’t everywhere, it has been placed in key locations.
“What exactly are these guys getting so emotional about?”
“Who knows? Their thought processes are different from those outside. But it has its benefits. As long as you’re strong enough, these kinds of people will be more obedient.”
“True, war, huh! It seems that Wano Country truly needs a war, Worororo!”
Thinking about the impending war, Kaido couldn’t help but feel excited. While development was Arceus’ hobby, war was what excited him the most.
Afterwards, he raised the wine gourd which was hanging at his waist and disappeared, presumably to go and sleep off his hangover.
Meanwhile, at Paradise Farm, Setsuna found something and then went to Zeraora’s room. Even though they were in a relationship, they hadn’t moved in together yet, sticking to a more traditional way of life.
“Zeraora, take a look at this.”
It was a simple note with a few words written on it.
【Don’t wander around on New Year.】
“Such an ugly handwriting, but this writing style looks like Inuarashi’s. What does he want?”
“He probably just wants to warn you. After all, there is a big operation planned for New Year’s. That guy is quite interesting.”
Indeed, it was a message from Inuarashi, but it was rather vague. Without surveillance,ordinary people wouldn’t be able to understand it. The common people of Wano Country have great faith in Oden, not to mention his loyal retainers.
In Inuarashi’s eyes, the Beasts Pirates had no chance of winning, so he wanted to caution his fellow tribe member.
[TN: The devil fruit in the title is another fan made devil fruit of Kozuki Oden. For more information, you can read it here: https://m.hupu.com/bbs/53988882.html]
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