"Oden!" Yasuie roared out as he heard the familiar words uttered by the rebellious Samurai.
"Wahaha! I'm kidding, Uncle, don't slash at me!" the exiled boy yelled as the blade shot at him.
"I get it now, I'm not ready to go and leave Wano defenceless… that rat Orochi was a wake-up call."
Oden, who had a brash and bold nature, also had enough smarts to put two and two together.
After all, Orochi must have had a lot of outside help to grow under Yasuie for over a year while completely escaping the eyes of the Samurai and Ninja who were known for their stealth and surveilling nature.
A budding threat at the root of one of the major regions of Wano and no one knew about it.
.
Oden then looked at Damien with some thought, "Why are you helping me so much, have you decided to take me from here? Very good!"
The pirate rolled his eyes, slowly becoming immune to Oden's minuscule brain cell count.
"Didn't you hear me, Wano is a pot of gold everyone will chase after. Naturally, I will too."
"..." The frank words drew the eyes of everyone.
The pirate returned a grin and had little desire to hide his intentions.
"A turbulent event will happen soon and it will unleash the beasts onto the world in no time, even Wano won't be spared. I need my cards prepared and this land will be one of them."
Though his tone shifted to a slightly unimpressed one.
"That aside, I suggest you fix yourself up. Wano is weak right now. The Samurai are clustered; the experienced ones are getting older and the younger ones have no contact with outside threats."
"On top of that, your Ninja failed to spot a grave threat like the Kurozumi while allowing chaos to thrive in Kuri."
The pirate's face grew more and more disapproving as he finished his critique, "All in all, Wano is a mess with their only heir apparent running around like a spoiled brat."
Oden backed up, taking in invisible arrows to his chest, flopping on the floor under the volley of the stray bullets.
Kin'emon and Denjiro grumbled at the words of their homes being referred to as trash.
.
Damien glared at the dramatic Oden and thought to himself, 'I guess Kaido's arrival is what sharpened Wano to a decent force, but right now they're too used to peace.'
"Do yourself a favour and mend your bond with your father. Fix up your country and realign its forces," Damien advised. "Only then do you have a chance of changing the isolation policy for the betterment of Wano."
The exiled son remained quiet for a while, swamped on the floor, rethinking his life.
"Hmm, Lord Shogun won't take me back; I'm not the type to live under all those tiresome rules and traditions!"
Damien returned a shrug, "You don't have to, just mend your ties and, well, rein in your unruliness a little. If anything, you can bring the country together and take over under your father's guidance."
"Oden," Yasuie nodded from the side," if you tell the Shogun about the Kurozumi survivors, I'm sure he will favour you."
Toki clapped her hands, pleased with the way things were going.
.
Oden slowly stood up, "Okay, okay! Stop! I need some air to absorb all that information!"
*Whizz!* He dashed out of the room and into the busy streets of Hakumai.
His two retainers tailed him down, leaving three people at the estate.
"That boy," Yasuie muttered with a thin smile, "he's a little slow but it seems there's a budding flame in his eyes that wasn't there before."
…
[A Week Later]
Days went by as the time for the appointment with Katsuyoshi had come.
He had arrived at the decrepit house.
*Knock* *Knock*
"..."
"Oi, old man, if you're gonna croak, do it after my weapon is forged!"
*Creak*
The door slid open with a loud thwack and the hinges tore open from the force as the door frame fell apart.
"You brat! Look what you did! Now I'll have to get some lumber and fix it all, you damn kid!"
He doubled in anger once more as his very beard seemed to rise in fury.
Damien cleared his throat, "Alright, my bad. Don't burden your heart with all that blood pressure."
Katsuyoshi snorted, "I can't die till my ambition is fulfilled; death can wait like the brat he is!"
Damien found the grumpy man funny, unable to hold in his chuckle.
.
"Well, are you ready?" the senior swordsmith questioned the pirate.
The pirate hummed as he looked at the worn-out bin outside the house, "Say, old man, are you gonna use those swords over there?"
Katsuyoshi trailed his eyes over and saw the bin and replied with a look of distaste, "Hell no, the only thing they're useful for is scratching my back."
Damien smirked and walked over to the bin.
He opened it and was met with the shine of the masterfully crafted weapons. The pirate's hands went through the stash of dozens of weapons, choosing the best of them.
…
A few moments later, five swords lay on the cracked soil below. Each had also been Deprived of any minuscule dust and rust and brought to perfection.
.
Katsuyoshi waddled over, "The hell you up to, you unruly squirt?"
Damien didn't answer, he simply extended a palm to the five swords.
'Complete the exchange,' he ordered Sibyl.
*Vvooo~*
The {Equal Exchange} ability fired up as the blades soon hovered in the air with an ominous shiver.
A light brown hue fell on the barren lawn as the blades were freed from the handle and guard of the katana.
They began to spaz in the air, uncontrollably trembling.
*Poof* And they were gone.
"..."
Katsuyoshi blinked at the display, wiping his tired eyes as if thinking he was in an illusion. The light brown light shined once more as a purple brick of ore appeared.
Boom!
It slammed into the ground, leaving a crater behind.
A bright gleam glistened from the heap of metal, shining dully in the autumn sun.
"Boy… this!"
Damien walked up and traced his fingers on the chunk of metal.
>=-=----[]------[]---=-=
=-=----[]------[]---=-=
"Oden!" Yasuie roared out as he heard the familiar words uttered by the rebellious Samurai.
"Wahaha! I'm kidding, Uncle, don't slash at me!" the exiled boy yelled as the blade shot at him.
"I get it now, I'm not ready to go and leave Wano defenceless… that rat Orochi was a wake-up call."
Oden, who had a brash and bold nature, also had enough smarts to put two and two together.
After all, Orochi must have had a lot of outside help to grow under Yasuie for over a year while completely escaping the eyes of the Samurai and Ninja who were known for their stealth and surveilling nature.
A budding threat at the root of one of the major regions of Wano and no one knew about it.
.
Oden then looked at Damien with some thought, "Why are you helping me so much, have you decided to take me from here? Very good!"
The pirate rolled his eyes, slowly becoming immune to Oden's minuscule brain cell count.
"Didn't you hear me, Wano is a pot of gold everyone will chase after. Naturally, I will too."
"..." The frank words drew the eyes of everyone.
The pirate returned a grin and had little desire to hide his intentions.
"A turbulent event will happen soon and it will unleash the beasts onto the world in no time, even Wano won't be spared. I need my cards prepared and this land will be one of them."
Though his tone shifted to a slightly unimpressed one.
"That aside, I suggest you fix yourself up. Wano is weak right now. The Samurai are clustered; the experienced ones are getting older and the younger ones have no contact with outside threats."
"On top of that, your Ninja failed to spot a grave threat like the Kurozumi while allowing chaos to thrive in Kuri."
The pirate's face grew more and more disapproving as he finished his critique, "All in all, Wano is a mess with their only heir apparent running around like a spoiled brat."
Oden backed up, taking in invisible arrows to his chest, flopping on the floor under the volley of the stray bullets.
Kin'emon and Denjiro grumbled at the words of their homes being referred to as trash.
.
Damien glared at the dramatic Oden and thought to himself, 'I guess Kaido's arrival is what sharpened Wano to a decent force, but right now they're too used to peace.'
"Do yourself a favour and mend your bond with your father. Fix up your country and realign its forces," Damien advised. "Only then do you have a chance of changing the isolation policy for the betterment of Wano."
The exiled son remained quiet for a while, swamped on the floor, rethinking his life.
"Hmm, Lord Shogun won't take me back; I'm not the type to live under all those tiresome rules and traditions!"
Damien returned a shrug, "You don't have to, just mend your ties and, well, rein in your unruliness a little. If anything, you can bring the country together and take over under your father's guidance."
"Oden," Yasuie nodded from the side," if you tell the Shogun about the Kurozumi survivors, I'm sure he will favour you."
Toki clapped her hands, pleased with the way things were going.
.
Oden slowly stood up, "Okay, okay! Stop! I need some air to absorb all that information!"
*Whizz!* He dashed out of the room and into the busy streets of Hakumai.
His two retainers tailed him down, leaving three people at the estate.
"That boy," Yasuie muttered with a thin smile, "he's a little slow but it seems there's a budding flame in his eyes that wasn't there before."
…
[A Week Later]
Days went by as the time for the appointment with Katsuyoshi had come.
He had arrived at the decrepit house.
*Knock* *Knock*
"..."
"Oi, old man, if you're gonna croak, do it after my weapon is forged!"
*Creak*
The door slid open with a loud thwack and the hinges tore open from the force as the door frame fell apart.
"You brat! Look what you did! Now I'll have to get some lumber and fix it all, you damn kid!"
He doubled in anger once more as his very beard seemed to rise in fury.
Damien cleared his throat, "Alright, my bad. Don't burden your heart with all that blood pressure."
Katsuyoshi snorted, "I can't die till my ambition is fulfilled; death can wait like the brat he is!"
Damien found the grumpy man funny, unable to hold in his chuckle.
.
"Well, are you ready?" the senior swordsmith questioned the pirate.
The pirate hummed as he looked at the worn-out bin outside the house, "Say, old man, are you gonna use those swords over there?"
Katsuyoshi trailed his eyes over and saw the bin and replied with a look of distaste, "Hell no, the only thing they're useful for is scratching my back."
Damien smirked and walked over to the bin.
He opened it and was met with the shine of the masterfully crafted weapons. The pirate's hands went through the stash of dozens of weapons, choosing the best of them.
…
A few moments later, five swords lay on the cracked soil below. Each had also been Deprived of any minuscule dust and rust and brought to perfection.
.
Katsuyoshi waddled over, "The hell you up to, you unruly squirt?"
Damien didn't answer, he simply extended a palm to the five swords.
'Complete the exchange,' he ordered Sibyl.
*Vvooo~*
The {Equal Exchange} ability fired up as the blades soon hovered in the air with an ominous shiver.
A light brown hue fell on the barren lawn as the blades were freed from the handle and guard of the katana.
They began to spaz in the air, uncontrollably trembling.
*Poof* And they were gone.
"..."
Katsuyoshi blinked at the display, wiping his tired eyes as if thinking he was in an illusion. The light brown light shined once more as a purple brick of ore appeared.
Boom!
It slammed into the ground, leaving a crater behind.
A bright gleam glistened from the heap of metal, shining dully in the autumn sun.
"Boy… this!"
Damien walked up and traced his fingers on the chunk of metal.
>=-=----[]------[]---=-=
=-=----[]------[]---=-=