One Piece: Lord of Calamity

Flower Capital.

The Daimyos who had rushed from various regions, and the ronin leaders who had spontaneously gathered to resist the foreign invaders, all assembled in the keep of the capital.

"According to reports from Ringo, the enemy's numbers are astonishing!" Wano Country's Shogun, Kozuki Sukiyaki, spoke with an unusually grave expression and tone. "They arrived on giant snails, and on the snails' backs are city-like structures! Conservatively estimated, their total military strength is probably in the tens of thousands."

The Daimyos and ronin leaders present all looked grim. Although Wano Country was vast and populous, it had not experienced warfare for centuries.

Even the Kurozumi family's plot decades ago was resolved without bloodshed. As a result, the country did not possess much military force.

The most samurai any Daimyo commanded was a mere few thousand, and places like Kuri, ruled by Kozuki Oden, barely had any proper samurai. The total military strength of the entire country combined was only around ten to twenty thousand.

Again, Wano Country had been too long without war. The Daimyos, facing an unknown powerful enemy for the first time, were filled with apprehension.

"Why are you all so dejected!" At this moment, the man with the blue explosive hair, the Daimyo of Hakumai, Shimotsuki Yasuie, angrily slammed the table and stood up. "To be afraid before even fighting, can you call yourselves samurai?" Yasuie held great prestige in Wano Country, and all the Daimyos respected him greatly.

"Hahahaha! Old Man Yasuie is right!" The main gate was violently kicked open, and the belated Kozuki Oden strode in with a loud laugh. Behind him were his retainers, who were by now famous throughout Wano Country.

"No matter who they are, leave them to me!" The chaotic troublemaker who had once plagued all of Wano Country, now the much-praised Daimyo of Kuri, Kozuki Oden, confidently pointed his right thumb at himself. "Today's me is Super Oden!" He was already impatient to fight enemies from overseas!

"You're finally here, Oden!" Shimotsuki Yasuie nodded in satisfaction. With the invincible Kozuki Oden and Wano Country's powerful samurai, no enemy was to be feared.

Kozuki Sukiyaki also nodded slightly, looking at his son. He had become reliable.

"Indeed, with Oden here, there's nothing to fear," Hyogoro of the Flowers, the ronin leader of Wano Country, who was still quite robust, also said with a chuckle.

"Then let's discuss the specific strategy," Kozuki Sukiyaki said. "The message from Ringo says the enemy possesses very strong destructive power, leaving huge marks on the battlefield where they clashed with Ushimaru! Therefore, we absolutely cannot engage them near the Flower Capital."

"Then let's ambush them in the mountains and forests on the outskirts of the Flower Capital," Shimotsuki Yasuie suggested. "Catch them by surprise!"

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded slightly.

"What are we waiting for!" Kozuki Oden was even more impatient. "Let's go!"

The army, composed of samurai from various regions' Daimyos, along with samurai and ninjas directly under the Shogun, and spontaneously gathered ronin, set out in a mighty procession. Shogun Kozuki Sukiyaki personally saw them off. Although he also wanted to be on the battlefield, as the supreme commander of Wano Country, such an act would be too dangerous. So, he could only remain in the rear.

However, not long after the army departed, Shimotsuki Yasuie returned hastily with a few unfamiliar attendants, saying he had important matters to report to Kozuki Sukiyaki. Kozuki Sukiyaki received him with some surprise. "Yasuie, has something unexpected happened?" Then the Shogun saw that the most respected Daimyo of Wano Country now had a strange smile on his face.

In a mountain forest on the outskirts of the Flower Capital region, the samurai who had traveled from the Flower Capital were hidden. Several Daimyos and ronin leaders stood on a hilltop, overlooking the mountain pass below.

"They haven't made any effort to conceal their movements; this is their only path," Shimotsuki Yasuie intentionally lowered his voice.

"Do we need to go through so much trouble?" Kozuki Oden asked, his arms crossed, sounding bored. "Why don't we just charge in and slice them all up?"

"Quiet, Oden!" Shimotsuki Yasuie glared at him. "This is a critical moment concerning the safety of the entire nation! You only need to strike at the appropriate time." He understood Oden well; despite being a Daimyo for a few years, his mind was still too simple. However, this time, he didn't need to use his brain; he only needed to unleash his invincible martial power.

Kozuki Oden pouted.

"Don't take it lightly," Shimotsuki Yasuie said gravely. "The enemy is by no means simple. Everyone must be on high alert!"

"Understood!"

Just then.

"Please, gentlemen, have something to eat first," a man with a drooping head and a timid expression cautiously approached. "The food is ready."

"Oh, it's Orochi?" Kozuki Oden remembered this servant who often helped Yasuie borrow money from him. He wondered why Yasuie was always so short on money.

"Lord Oden," Orochi, Kurozumi Orochi, repeatedly bowed to Oden.

"Thank you for your hard work, Orochi," Yasuie nodded slightly. "Why don't you head back first? You're not a samurai; there's no reason for you to be on the battlefield."

"No! Lord Yasuie!" Orochi, however, said righteously, "Although I am not a samurai, I am still a member of Wano Country, and I also want to contribute to this nation!"

"Good," Yasuie patted his shoulder with satisfaction. Although he was usually timid and cowardly, he was indeed reliable in critical moments; it wasn't in vain that he had taken him in.

"Then let's rest for now," Shimotsuki Yasuie said. "Prepare for the coming battle!"

"Alright!"

However, the satisfied Yasuie did not see the sinister expression that Orochi, whom he had praised, revealed after he turned away.

Time slowly passed. The sun had set, and dusk had arrived. The weak light of the setting sun could not penetrate the dense forest, leaving it dim. The samurai hidden in the forest remained motionless, trying to make no sound, waiting for the enemy to attack.

Boom!

A dull explosion suddenly echoed from the other side of the mountain forest. Then, soon, it became a cacophony.

Shimotsuki Yasuie, hiding behind a large tree, froze, then his face changed drastically. "It's cannon fire!! Take cover!!"

A circle of black dots suddenly appeared in the sky from all directions, surrounding them. Accompanied by whistling winds, these black dots plummeted towards the mountain forest.

Boom boom boom boom boom!

Terrifying explosions instantly turned the entire mountain forest into a sea of fire. Violent explosions tore apart trees, blasted open rocks, and destroyed everything on this land.

"Waaaaah!" The unprepared samurai, ninjas, and ronin were instantly sent flying. And the bombardment didn't stop! More cannonballs rained down from the sky, mercilessly filling every corner of the mountain forest with destruction.

"What in the world is happening!!" Shimotsuki Yasuie roared, waving his blade to continuously deflect the cannonballs falling from the sky. How was their position exposed?

"Look at the surrounding mountains!!" Hyogoro of the Flowers leaped up, raising his hand to blast a volley of cannonballs with a Haki shockwave, while cold sweat poured down his forehead.

On the surrounding mountains, massive snails appeared from all directions, encircling them. On the buildings on the back of each snail, heavy cannons were mounted!

"Have we been surrounded instead?" Kozuki Oden exclaimed. "Old Man Yasuie! Your plan has completely failed!"

"This is not the time to talk about that!" Shimotsuki Yasuie roared. "Quickly stop—"

Before he finished speaking, the bombardment ceased. As the Daimyos were stunned, they saw a large snail slowly climbing up from the other side of the mountain peak in front of them. Someone stood on the snail's head, looking down at them from above.

"Yo, samurai, thank you for the welcoming gift!" The handsome young man took a deep breath. "It's truly delicious."

The setting sun fell behind him, bringing darkness to this place.