The group followed the two little ones to Kozuki Oden's residence—a shabby wooden hut.
At first, the two little ones were unwilling to lead the way. Helpless, Rhett had to wake Oden up with a loving pat, and only then did the two reluctantly bring everyone home.
Toki, seeing Oden's "minor" injuries, covered her mouth with both hands, tears welling in her eyes: "Uncle Whitebeard, what happened to Oden??"
Rhett quickly stepped forward: "Ah, Lady Toki, don't be alarmed. I'm Rhett, captain of the Blood Dawn Pirates. The one next to me is someone you should be familiar with. Oden and the nine drunkards behind him just took a little tumble. Nothing serious."
Toki looked at the ten men behind Rhett—some with electric burns, others with blunt force trauma. The most horrifying was Oden, covered in various wounds that looked like... stab wounds???
Inside the hut, Rhett's blood mist coiled around Oden's wounds—neither fully healing them nor letting him die. The blood transformed into fine threads, stitching together torn blood vessels and muscles, but deliberately preserving the pain to keep Oden conscious.
"Rhett, that fall earlier... really hurt," Oden said through gritted teeth, his tone cautious. In truth, Oden was just checking if Rhett was still angry. After all, he had indeed brought shame to the Roger Pirates and the Whitebeard Pirates.
"Right. If not for Uncle Whitebeard catching you, you'd probably be knocked out by now," Rhett replied as he watched Oden's wounds heal.
Oden gritted his teeth, sweat dripping down his face, but his eyes were clearer than before. He looked at Rhett and whispered, "...Thanks, brother."
Rhett scoffed, standing up as the blood mist retracted into his palm. "Don't get the wrong idea. I just didn't want you to die too easily."
Whitebeard sat nearby, his naginata planted on the floor, his gaze deep and heavy as he watched Oden. Marco and Izo stood behind him, expressions complicated. Marco wanted to ask something but held back—since Pop hadn't spoken, that was answer enough. The others could only look at Oden with worry.
Then, Lady Toki stepped into the room. Her posture was dignified, but exhaustion weighed heavily between her brows.
"Everyone, please allow me to explain... why Oden made such a choice."
She knelt gracefully beside Oden, her fingers brushing his bloodied temple, her eyes filled with heartache and helplessness.
"Oden isn't foolish. He was just... bound."
Rhett raised an eyebrow. "Bound???"
Toki nodded slowly. "Kurozumi Orochi took many hostages. If Oden fought Kaido here, those people would inevitably die in the crossfire. They promised Oden that for every dance he performed, they'd release 100 people."
Toki sighed. "Orochi also claimed he didn't intend to stay in Wano forever. In five years, he and Kaido would leave by ship—he needed time to build it. Moreover, Orochi sent men to Kuri, using me to threaten my husband. Oden couldn't bear to let his people perish because of his actions, so..."
Whitebeard frowned. "So he chose to endure?"
"Yes," Toki confirmed.
Rhett sneered. "So he danced naked? Let his people live in poisoned water? Let Kaido run wild?"
Toki closed her eyes and said nothing more.
Rhett turned to Oden, his tone dripping with disdain. "Oh, how noble of you—so concerned for your people! You thought dancing naked would slowly save Wano's citizens, clinging to Orochi's empty promises to numb yourself. Idiot."
"Do you even realize you're a daimyo of Wano? Every time you dance, your authority crumbles further. No one wants a clown ruling them. How can you not grasp something so basic???"
The room fell silent.
Oden struggled to sit up, his voice hoarse. "I... was wrong."
All eyes turned to him.
"I thought I could shoulder everything alone, that enduring humiliation would lead to the best outcome..."
Rhett cut him off. "If you're just going to spout nonsense, save it."
Oden then performed a formal prostration, his wounds bleeding anew as he ignored the pain. His forehead struck the floor with a loud thud.
"Big Brother Newgate, Brother Rhett... I beg you, help Wano..."
Rhett stopped Whitebeard from stepping forward. He was waiting for Oden's next words.
"Help me... Please, everyone. I want to remain Wano's daimyo."
Rhett stared at Oden before suddenly grinning.
"Should've said that from the start."
If Oden hadn't spoken those words, Rhett would have walked away. Self-righteous martyrs disgusted him. But wanting to remain daimyo? That meant ambition—and where there was ambition, there was still hope.
Oden lifted his head, the fire of Kozuki Oden's pride finally reigniting in his eyes.
Whitebeard hefted his naginata, Conqueror's Haki surging around him.
"Gurarara! I'll rip that dragon's head off right now! Let's go, Rhett!"
He strode toward Onigashima without hesitation.
But just as he took his first steps—
"Hold up, Uncle Whitebeard."
Rhett's voice rang out. He didn't seem in any hurry, leisurely eating the snacks Toki had prepared.
Whitebeard turned. "What is it, brat?"
Rhett handed treats to Perona and Laboon before answering.
"Kaido... fled. Right when Oden took his tumble."
The group froze.
"What?" Oden snapped his head up. "Wasn't he on Onigashima?"
Rhett's mist had already enveloped all of Wano the moment he saw Oden's naked dance. Wasn't this just scaring the snake out of the grass???
Truthfully, Rhett never considered Kaido a threat—as long as that damn snake didn't escape. Waking Oden up was more important than knocking Kaido out. The moment Rhett's group made a move, Kaido would have gotten word. Fighting Kaido first without knowing Oden's current state? Rhett would have felt cheated. Sometimes, the most efficient path wasn't the best.
Rhett scoffed. "Just now, my mist barrier was forcibly broken through—that little worm never had any intention of fighting us head-on."
Tesoro frowned. "According to the information I've gathered, Kaido is suicidal. He often drops himself from high altitudes and has crashed into Navy warships multiple times."
Rhett replied lazily, "But when it comes down to actually dying, he's not so keen on it. Not to mention I've already given him two lessons out of love, and look who showed up this time—me and Whitebeard."
"He likes fighting, sure, and he's really concerned about my health. But charging straight at us now? To put it bluntly, that's not being battle-hungry—that's just being plain stupid."