It was late at night, and all was quiet.
A bonfire burned brightly in the dungeon.
Yamato clutched her blood-stained backside with both hands, her body trembling slightly. Her gaze at Daichi was a mix of newly formed trust and uncontrollable fear.
The brutal encounter in the mountains had left her with severe psychological trauma.
Even her father had never hit her like that!
Daichi continuously added wood to the bonfire, his peripheral vision catching a glimpse of the young woman who dared not approach, finding it somewhat amusing.
This girl was a hundred, even a thousand times stronger than him. Was there really a need to be so terrified?
She didn't even dare to speak.
Feeling the atmosphere stiffen, Daichi had no choice but to speak first.
"Yamato."
"Here."
Yamato flinched in fright, quickly straightening her back.
Daichi looked at the young woman's stress response and gently reassured her. "Don't be so nervous, I'm not a demon."
"..."
No, you are!
Yamato's face was filled with anger.
She was clearly powerless to resist, yet he used such cruel methods against her. Not even demons were so fierce.
Her butt still hurt!
Daichi's forehead was covered in black lines as he changed the subject.
"Yamato, I've heard some things about you, but I don't understand why you're always going against Kaido. Can you tell me?"
"Because I am Oden!"
Yamato answered without thinking.
Daichi's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Kozuki Oden?"
"Yes!"
When Kozuki Oden was mentioned, Yamato's emotions visibly brightened. Her gaze toward Daichi was no longer fearful but filled with a desire to share.
"You know Oden too?"
"I know a little."
Daichi nodded.
He asked that question precisely to bring up the topic of Kozuki Oden, believing that to handle this obsessed girl, he needed to start with Oden.
Yamato's eyes sparkled, and she excitedly said. "I want to be a man like Kozuki Oden, living freely, but father won't allow me to become Oden. Instead, he beat me and imprisoned me on Onigashima."
Saying this, Yamato raised her hands, revealing the Sea-Prism Stone shackles on her wrists.
"..."
If I were your father, I wouldn't just beat you. I'd break your legs!
Daichi silently grumbled in his mind.
If one's well-behaved daughter suddenly started proclaiming she wanted to become her greatest enemy, no one could tolerate that. Not breaking her legs was already a sign of love.
Daichi asked softly. "Yamato, why do you want to become Kozuki Oden?"
"Because Kozuki Oden is the most outstanding samurai in the world! I witnessed his life and his end with my own eyes. I admire him!"
Yamato began to speak at length.
At the age of eight, she witnessed Kozuki Oden's heroic death, the legendary one-hour "Oden being boiled," and from then on, she admired Oden immensely.
Later, she learned of Kozuki Oden's other heroic deeds, such as bringing peace to the Kuri region, which further solidified her belief in becoming Oden.
The young woman grew more excited as she spoke, even revealing the secret of obtaining Oden's logbook and Oden's sea voyages.
She spoke for a full two and a half hours.
She had no friends, and for over a decade, she had never confided in outsiders. Now, the comfortable environment of the dungeon and the newly established trust in Daichi finally gave her an opportunity to pour out her heart.
Though not explicitly stated, the young woman had come to regard Daichi, who risked being killed to give her plain rice, as her only friend.
Daichi listened patiently, then asked. "So that's why you keep challenging Kaido?"
"Yes!"
Yamato nodded vigorously, saying with anger and unwillingness. "I am Kozuki Oden, so I must defeat my father and liberate Wano Country, but I don't have enough strength."
"Hmm, I understand."
Daichi nodded in understanding.
Yamato happily asked. "Daichi, do you like Oden too?"
"I don't."
Daichi waved his hand decisively.
As an excellent landlord, the first priority is to abandon conscience.
But even if he had to go against his conscience, he wouldn't say he liked Oden, which would cross his bottom line, just to cater to the young woman.
"Oh."
A direct hit.
The young woman drew circles on the ground in disappointment.
"Yamato."
Daichi narrowed his eyes, activating his persuasive mode.
"You are not Kozuki Oden."
"I am!"
Yamato immediately glared at Daichi in anger.
Daichi shook his head and said. "If you were truly Kozuki Oden, you wouldn't resist your father. Instead, you would obey his arrangements."
"Huh?"
Yamato was stunned, feeling her brain wasn't quite keeping up.
What did he mean?
Completely incomprehensible!
How could Kozuki Oden ever obey his father!
"Yamato, let me ask you."
Daichi said in a deep voice. "Can you defeat Kaido?"
"Of course, I can't beat my father!"
Yamato answered confidently.
If she could beat him, she wouldn't have been locked in the dungeon again and again.
Daichi sneered. "Since you clearly know you can't win, what's the point of repeatedly challenging Kaido? To get beaten?"
"I..."
Yamato was speechless.
She felt something was wrong, but she couldn't pinpoint it.
Daichi offered a way out.
"To become stronger?"
"Yes!"
The young woman's spirit lifted.
Yes, to become stronger!
Daichi scoffed.
"Will becoming stronger allow you to beat Kaido?"
"..."
She couldn't beat him!
Yamato gritted her teeth. She had become hundreds of times stronger than when she was a child, but the gap with her father still seemed endless.
Her father was too powerful!
Daichi sighed. "Yamato, in my opinion, your repeated challenges to Kaido are merely to satisfy your fantasy of becoming Kozuki Oden. You actually don't understand Kozuki Oden at all."
"I... I..."
Yamato stammered.
She wanted to say that she understood Oden very well, better than anyone, but she didn't know how to organize her words to refute him.
Darn it, she hadn't read much!
Racking her brain, the young woman still couldn't come up with a clear explanation, and she couldn't help but get angry.
"Damn it, you're lying to me! Kozuki Oden died because he resisted his father. How could he possibly obey his father!"
"I have no interest in lying to you."
Daichi sneered. "Before his decisive battle with Kaido, do you know what Kozuki Oden was doing?"
"Oden he—"
Before Yamato could finish, Daichi forcefully interrupted her, saying coldly. "Kozuki Oden danced naked for five years under Orochi's castle!"
"..."
Yamato's face flushed red, and she argued. "That's because father threatened Oden with hostages! Oden had no choice but to do that!"
"You're right, he had no choice. To protect Wano Country and the hostages, he could only sacrifice himself by dancing naked."
Daichi wasn't interested in judging the matter or debating right and wrong. He brought it up only to make Yamato understand one thing.
"Oden had no choice, so he could only dance naked like a clown, enduring humiliation and temporarily obeying Orochi and Kaido."
"Yamato, what about you?"
"Do you have a way to fight Kaido?"
"You don't either!"
"Think back seriously, what have you done since becoming Kozuki Oden all these years? You claim to want to save Wano Country, but what have you done for Wano Country?"
A soul-searching question.
Yamato was at a loss.
Aside from challenging her father, she seemed to have accomplished nothing.
Daichi said in a deep voice. "As Kaido's only child, you, like Kozuki Oden, possess great strength and a solid background."
"If you were truly Kozuki Oden, what you should be doing now is enduring, and resisting your father when you are strong enough!"
"Your current reckless behavior is not only meaningless but also puts you in a difficult situation and wastes the resources you have as an Ogre."
If Yamato hadn't gone astray, her position in the Beast Pirates would at least be at the All-Star level, and it would be easier to cultivate trusted subordinates than the All-Stars.
If she were smarter, Yamato could have extended her influence into Wano Country and secretly built her own power.
Unfortunately, this girl had no brains.
Like Kozuki Oden, she had a strong hand but played it terribly.
Daichi said earnestly. "Yamato, you have ample conditions to become Kozuki Oden, to become the hope in the hearts of Wano Country's people like Kozuki Oden, but your current actions are precisely contrary to Kozuki Oden's path!"
"..."
Yamato's pupils lost their light. Her brain was in a crashed state, and she completely lost the ability to think.
She and Oden, going in opposite directions?
Seeing that the timing was right, Daichi asked with a solemn expression. "Yamato, I'll ask you one more time, do you want to become Kozuki Oden?"
"Yes!"
The young woman nodded vigorously.
Only on this point was she unwavering.
"Good, I will help you!"
Daichi smiled.
I, Gudraton Daichi, love helping others the most!
Yamato grabbed onto him like a lifeline, asking tearfully. "Daichi, what exactly should I do?"
"It's simple."
Daichi smiled, like a seasoned old fox.
"After you get out of prison, go bow to Kaido and apologize!"