One Piece: Lord of Calamity

"Is that... a young boy?" Against the light of the blood-red sunset, Shimotsuki Ushimaru clearly saw the person on the snail's head, and his eyes widened. So young? Had he made some mistake? A strange feeling arose in his heart.

"You damned brat! You're behind this, aren't you! I won't forgive you!" Without any of Shimotsuki Ushimaru's hesitation, the strongest samurai of Wano Country instantly launched himself forward the moment he saw Roa. "Die! Oden Two-Sword Style: Spear - Mimic Demon!!"

No martial ethics! Roa was genuinely stunned for a moment. How can this be? Don't you know to exchange pleasantries before fighting? Isn't that the rule of the jianghu (martial world)?

Behind him, King, his bodyguard, felt his pupils contract. So fast! There's no time to block this attack for Lord Roa! So, Roa had to act himself. Facing a monster like Kozuki Oden, there was naturally no room for holding back.

Black fur instantly grew all over his body, and his beloved sword simultaneously unsheathed.

Not overly powerful Haki was injected into the blade, and crimson airflow erupted, but in the next instant, the surging airflow suddenly constricted, forcibly suppressed onto the blade's surface by an invisible power.

The overly condensed bloodlust had almost turned into flowing blood, making the entire sword appear even more eerie.

This sword! The furious Kozuki Oden's heart instantly chilled. Not a simple sword! And the person who can wield such a sword is definitely not simple either!

"Tiger Roar!" Roa shot out like a crimson comet, meeting Kozuki Oden head-on. Then, he swung his sword.

The crimson blade clashed with Kozuki Oden's crossed swords. Like a roaring tiger, the power accumulated on the blade instantly erupted, and crimson lightning exploded. Boom! The terrifying explosion unleashed a blinding flash far exceeding the sunset, and the earth-shattering sound drowned out all other noises.

The ground, already turned into a wasteland by the bombardment, was violently shattered, and the Daimyo behind them were almost blown away by the force of the collision.

The leaping lightning suddenly dissipated, and the two colliding figures flew backward like cannonballs. Kozuki Oden landed heavily back beside the Daimyo, while Roa, after landing on the snail's head, staggered back a few steps.

"Quite exhilarating!" Roa was not surprised. Kozuki Oden was a Kaido-level powerhouse.

The shock Roa brought to the samurai, however, was even greater.

"Am I really not dreaming?" Kin'emon was drenched in sweat. "That boy, he blocked Lord Oden's attack!"

"It's fake, right?" The young Denjiro, who would become Kyoshiro in the future, stammered, "He clearly looks younger than me!"

The Daimyo's expressions had already turned extremely grim. Their forces had already suffered heavy losses in the previous bombardment. And if the opponent, who already possessed powerful forces, also had a powerhouse capable of matching Oden...

"Don't panic!" At the critical moment, Shimotsuki Ushimaru still stepped forward to stabilize morale. "He's just a boy after all! Oden is stronger!"

Yes, in that last clash, Oden clearly had the upper hand. Only then did everyone feel a sense of reassurance.

Meanwhile, Roa complained a little, "You're too rude, Kozuki Oden. I specifically stopped the cannon fire, and you won't even give me a chance to talk?"

Kozuki Oden froze, as did the other Daimyo. This guy knows Oden? How would he know Oden?

"Honestly, what if we had agreed, and then didn't have to fight? How awkward would that be for everyone then?" Roa lamented.

"There's probably nothing to discuss between us!" Shimotsuki Ushimaru's gaze was cold. "With invaders, there's only life or death!"

"Locals are truly cold-hearted. It makes me, a pacifist, quite helpless." Roa sighed, then looked up at the sky. "Big Brother Kaido, it's your turn to make an appearance. Did Kozuki Oden satisfy you?"

All the samurai were stunned. Then, they watched in horror as a colossal creature slowly lowered its head from the clouds in the sky.

"Ugororororo! There are indeed such strong individuals among samurai!" The massive azure dragon, gripping its flame clouds, slowly lowered its altitude, letting out a thunderous laugh. "Kozuki Oden, is it! Your opponent is me!!"

His mere appearance left the samurai dumbfounded. Even a strong individual like Kozuki Oden now had his brow tightly furrowed, his expression incredibly solemn.

"You're... you're kidding! There's another one?" The corpulent Kozuki retainer, Ashura Doji, his voice trembling. "A dragon? What kind of monster is this?! Is it also sorcery like Kin'emon's?" Wano Country, having been isolated for so long, didn't even have the concept of Devil Fruits, referring to them as sorcery.

"And," the retainer Izo, a man dressed in women's clothing, gritted his teeth, "that brat called him 'Big Brother'!" Logically, a 'Big Brother' should definitely be stronger than his 'little brother', right? This is bad! This is very bad! One brat was already terrifying enough, and now if an even stronger monster appears, how can they possibly defeat them?

"Calm down!" Again, it was Shimotsuki Ushimaru who stepped forward. He roared, "If we all become afraid, who else will protect this country?!" Many samurai seemed to awaken from a dream. Yes, only them! They were the last line of defense for this country!

"It has come to this, only battle remains!" Shimotsuki Ushimaru gripped his sword tightly, his eyes resolute.

"Shimotsuki Ushimaru is an admirable man," Roa praised sincerely. It's just a pity that he was terribly harmed by that scoundrel, Kozuki Oden. Don't worry, this time we'll help you get revenge.

"That's right! At this point, there's no turning back!" The Daimyo of Udon, Uzuki Tempura, shouted loudly, "Fight! Samurai!"

"Fight!" The samurai cheered loudly.

"Quite spirited, aren't they?" Roa clicked his tongue. "Don't make us out to be some big villains, okay? Let's get this straight, after coming to this country, we were the ones attacked first. It was that guy named Shimotsuki Ushimaru who made the first move. And now, you're the ones trying to ambush us first."

"That guy in the sky is mine!" Kozuki Oden stared intently at the divine dragon in the sky. "You all try to delay that brat! After I deal with that long worm, I'll come to help!"

"Yes, Lord Oden!" His retainers stood behind him, and the man named Kanjuro seemingly unintentionally stood directly behind Kozuki Oden. With Kozuki Oden at the center, the samurai all drew their swords, preparing for this final battle!

But.

"Ugh!" The Daimyo of Kibi, Fugetsu Otoki, suddenly paled, clutching his stomach and groaning. "What's going on?" A sudden sharp pain shot through his stomach; even a samurai like him found it hard to bear. Not just him, the other Daimyo and ronin leaders also clutched their stomachs, their faces suddenly turning grim.

"Poison! Someone poisoned us!" Hyogoro of the Flower, the boss of Wano Country's underworld, immediately realized the cause, having seen all sorts of dirty tricks.

"Poison? A poison that could affect all of us—" Shimotsuki Ushimaru paused. Where would these outsiders have had the chance to poison them? The only possibility was that someone inside had colluded with them! That's why that young boy knew Oden! But when?

Ushimaru suddenly remembered, they had all eaten something earlier—

"Gwahahahaha! Now, it's over!!" Kurozumi Orochi, who had been following behind Shimotsuki Ushimaru, suddenly burst into maniacal laughter. His body swelled, his heads split, his neck elongated, and in the blink of an eye, he transformed into an eight-headed monster. One of his heads bit Shimotsuki Ushimaru, who was closest to him. As he tried to bite the others, the wary Daimyo and ronin, enduring the pain, quickly distanced themselves.

"Orochi!!!" Kozuki Oden's forehead was covered in cold sweat, partly from pain, partly from bewilderment. "What are you doing?"

"What am I doing?" The central Orochi head laughed maniacally. "Of course, I'm taking revenge! Kozuki Oden! This is the revenge of our Kurozumi family!!"

"Kurozumi—" The Daimyo's faces simultaneously became even uglier. Many years ago, before the current Shogun Kozuki Sukiyaki was born, the previous Shogun had difficulty having heirs and was once thought to be the last of his line.

At that time, the position of Shogun would have been inherited by several other Daimyo families. So, the Kurozumi family, who was then a Daimyo family, conceived a wicked scheme: they wanted to poison the other Daimyo to seize the position of Shogun.

But all their plans came to naught with the birth of Kozuki Sukiyaki. The Kurozumi family lost everything as a result, becoming homeless dogs, living in constant fear. Had the Kurozumi, who were thought to have vanished, actually made a comeback?

"This guy is actually a Mythical Zoan?" Kaido, who had already descended to a certain height, looked down at the attacking Orochi, sneering disdainfully. What a waste.

"Don't mind me!" Shimotsuki Ushimaru, bitten by Orochi, endured the excruciating pain and shouted desperately, "Fight! Oden! Fight!"

Kozuki Oden instinctively clenched the sword in his hand. "Old Man Kō!"

"Hahahaha! Kozuki Oden! If you can't abandon Ushimaru, can you abandon him?" A triumphant laugh came from afar. Kozuki Oden instinctively turned his head, and saw an emaciated old woman on a nearby ridge, holding a knife to the neck of a man tied up with ropes.

Kozuki Oden's already ugly expression turned ashen. "Father?" The Daimyo, too, were filled with despair. How was the Shogun captured?! Kozuki Sukiyaki, his mouth gagged to prevent him from biting his tongue and committing suicide, also had a bitter expression.

Who would have thought that there was a sorcery in the world that could change one's appearance into another's? Sorry, Oden, sorry, everyone, sorry, Wano Country.

"Heheheh, if you don't want Sukiyaki to be killed, Kozuki Oden!" Kurozumi Higurashi laughed triumphantly. "Commit seppuku!"

Kozuki Oden's pupils constricted.

"No! Lord Oden! Absolutely not!" Ashura Doji shouted, clutching his stomach. "I am a stray dog who crawled out of the gutters, so I know best the ways of these scumbags.

If you accept their threat, not only will Lord Sukiyaki die, but everyone will die! Wano Country will also be completely taken from them!"

"That's right! Oden!" The old cannon master, Hyogoro, also quickly urged, "Don't let them waver you!" Kozuki Oden, who had never encountered setbacks since childhood, who had always had everything go smoothly, was now caught in a tremendous internal struggle.

And it was at this very moment.

"What!!" Kaido in the sky couldn't help but exclaim. Kozuki's retainers were simultaneously stunned. And Kozuki Oden also looked down in confusion. He saw a crimson blade protruding from his chest.

Kozuki Oden turned his head blankly, looking at the person holding the sword.

"Kanjuro, what are you doing again?" Kozuki's retainer, the man nicknamed 'Torrential Rain' Kanjuro, held the sword, tears streaming down his face, even retreating in terror. "I'm sorry, Lord Oden, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to—" Even Kozuki Oden's other retainers unconsciously loosened their grip on their sword hilts, thinking he had some hidden reason, but in the next instant—

"Just kidding!" Kanjuro's face suddenly became viciously malicious. "Didn't Lord Orochi say it? This is the revenge of our Kurozumi family!" "But for me, this is an even more perfect curtain call!"

"Oh my," Roa remarked, watching the scene. "Hostages, sneak attacks, two top-tier opponents serving just you, Kozuki Oden. Dying like this is worth it."