Father and daughter stared at each other, deadlocked.
Maria's arms grew tired from holding the sake jar. What is this, a staring contest? Yamato, aren't you here to apologize? Say something!
After ten more minutes, Yamato finally forced out, awkwardly, "Father, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so unruly these past years... I... I'm really sorry."
Maria wanted to retort—that face! You look so unwilling! But Kaido didn't notice Yamato's awkward expression. As soon as he heard "Father, I'm sorry," he felt deeply satisfied.
But, being Kaido, he kept a poker face, just nodding.
Seeing her father's lack of response, Yamato continued, "I... I hope we can reconcile and be a family again."
Saying this, her awkwardness faded a bit; maybe, deep down, she did want to make up and reclaim her lost family bond.
Hearing this, Kaido almost lost his composure. He gulped down his sake, then exhaled, "Yamato..."
To Maria's exasperation, Kaido also got stuck after just one word.
After a long pause, Kaido simply gestured for Yamato to come over.
When she did, he patted her head. "You're too scrawny—need to train more."
Yamato bowed her head. "Mm."
Maria thought, What is this, the most awkward family chat ever? She wanted to leave, but didn't dare move lest she spoil the atmosphere.
"But as a girl, you don't need to get too bulky—just don't fall behind in strength," Kaido added, contradicting himself.
Really, his mind was half-blank, and after the initial excitement, he had no idea what to say to his daughter.
"Mm," Yamato replied, even more lost. She'd thought apologizing would finish her mission.
But as her father patted her head, she recalled warm childhood memories. Her eyes stung, forgetting what came next.
So, father and daughter lapsed into silence again, but the mood softened.
Eventually, Kaido broke the silence. "I heard you made a new friend in Udon Prison?"
At this, Yamato perked up. "Gusion-dono is really a great person. He wants to—"
She caught herself, covering her mouth. Phew, almost blurted out our plan to overthrow father...
Kaido saw this, a bit exasperated. He'd seen everything on the livestream—he knew what his daughter was planning with Gusion.
But he didn't mind. As long as Yamato acknowledged him as her father and stopped declaring herself Kozuki Oden, he could let other things slide.
"Yeah, Gusion-dono is really smart. I want to work with him to make the Beasts Pirates even better."
Yamato switched to a safer line, then added one of Gusion's phrases: "We'll make it big and create new glory!"
"Fine, since you say so, I'll give you a chance," Kaido went along. "From today, you're again the Oni Princess of the Beasts Pirates. Pass down my order—no more 'Young Master Yamato.' Use her former title."
With this, Kaido officially reconciled with Yamato and restored her status.
From this day, Yamato was again Kaido's daughter, first heir of the Beasts Pirates, with authority equal to the three All-Stars.
"Thank you, Father. I know I was wrong. I'll do better from now on," Yamato said, still a bit awkward. She'd stopped calling herself Kozuki Oden, but still struggled with gender roles—at least she understood she was a daughter, not a son.
Kaido ignored her awkwardness, feeling delighted. If not for his stern father act, he'd probably be grinning.
"By the way, Father, my friend is still in Udon Prison. Can you let him out? I promise he won't cause trouble or attack you again."
On prisoners, only Queen, who directly oversaw Udon, or Kaido himself could authorize releases. Even as Oni Princess, Yamato couldn't overrule them, so she had to ask her father.
Kaido's expression turned strange—Yamato was a repeat offender for attacking him, and now she was vouching for someone else. Bizarre.
But he nodded. "Since he's your friend and you're vouching for him, let him out to stay with you. If he behaves, I might make him an officer."
Maria's mouth fell open. She wanted to warn Kaido—this Gusion was clearly a troublemaker. Giving him power could wreck the crew.
But seeing Kaido's good mood, and knowing his word was law, she stayed silent.
"Really? Thank you, Father," Yamato said, sincerely grateful. Without Gusion, she wouldn't know what to do next.
…
The next morning, Gusion sat up in his cell, stretching.
He figured Yamato would now do some good for Wano's people, and it was time for him to plan his escape.
Last night, after work, he'd scouted Udon's exits. Scaling the wall seemed easiest.
With his Sky Walk and Soru techniques, he could fly out at night without much trouble.
As he mused on his jailbreak plans, the cell door opened—not the usual guard, but Babanuki.
Babanuki's elephant trunk opened the door as he announced, "Kaido-sama ordered your release. Please proceed to Onigashima to meet him."
The moment Gusion saw Babanuki, he had a bad feeling—sure enough, Yamato had gotten him out.
As he followed Babanuki, Gusion thought, Now what? I have no idea how to run a country. All that talk before was just hot air.
Even after two sleepless nights, he had no good plan. If Yamato asked, he'd just wing it.
Because it was Kaido's order, they didn't dare delay; Gusion didn't even get breakfast, just got sent straight to Onigashima.
Also, maybe on Kaido's orders, his leg shackles were removed, but the seastone cuffs remained—probably to prevent escape.
Wano was a ways from Onigashima, requiring a boat trip. By noon, Gusion arrived on the island.
Led by a pirate, he quickly reached Kaido's residence.
There, he saw a massive figure, over seven meters tall, radiating the intimidating presence of an overlord.
Kaido's muscles were chiseled, and even Gusion's detection skill returned only question marks. But even by aura alone, Kaido was on another level entirely.
"Gusion-dono, you're here!" Yamato was inside, running over to introduce him. "Father, this is my friend Gusion."
"Mm," Kaido nodded, looking at Gusion. "Brat, I remember you tried to assassinate me, didn't you?"
As he spoke, a wave of killing intent swept over Gusion, nearly suffocating him.
"I was a Demon Slayer from my homeland. Hearing the Yonko Kaido ruled here as an Oni, I simply followed my heart to test myself," Gusion replied calmly. He knew Kaido didn't care about the attempt, and flattery would only annoy him.
"Pretty bold. What about now?" Kaido narrowed his eyes, unleashing his Conqueror's Haki.
Yamato stiffened—she knew her father was using his King's Haki.
The pressure hit Gusion like a mountain, threatening to crush his will. If he couldn't withstand it, he'd pass out, like a small fry in anime.
But as his spirit was battered, something deep in Gusion's soul roared, shattering the Haki's effect and clearing his mind.
He stood tall, sweat beading on his brow, locking eyes with Kaido.
Kaido seemed surprised. "Not bad, brat." He was puzzled—his Haki had collided with something strange. Did this brat have Conqueror's potential? He doubted it; Conqueror's was rare, after all.
"I still want to challenge you someday, but I know I'm not strong enough yet—so I'm training, hoping to fight with you in the future."
Gusion's answer was steady, setting the stage for a future match.
Kaido smiled, now looking at Gusion with some appreciation. "Then work hard with Yamato. Right now, you're both too weak."
Yamato was struck by this. Even after all her growth, in her father's eyes, she was still just a weakling.
"Exactly. I'll spar with Yamato, and we'll both improve," Gusion replied, secretly relieved—once he lost his prisoner status, it'd be much easier to leave.
But then Kaido's next words troubled him.
"By the way, I heard from Yamato you're good at governing. Why don't you tell me—what's wrong with the Beasts Pirates' rule over Wano?"
Kaido's eyes narrowed, clearly dissatisfied and wanting to hear Gusion's critique.