Shutenmaru

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The strategy meeting at the ruins of Oden Castle turns toward the target. Kin'emon points to Onigashima and says, "The decisive battle will occur at the demon island, Onigashima." He identifies it as "the headquarters of Kaidou and his Beasts Pirates." Luffy is surprised that the target is "an island...!!" and asks whether they have to sail there even though they are already in Wano. Kin'emon answers that they do possess a ship for the mission, and Brook notes that the island is close enough to be seen from the country's shores, so they do not need a full-scale ship. O-Kiku explains the timing: the battle will happen during the Fire Festival, a yearly grand festival celebrated in the capital, because the people believe Kaidou is a wise king who protects the country.

O-Kiku continues explaining the Fire Festival's public face. "On the day of the festival, Orochi and his shogun procession... will go to Onigashima to 'pay their respects'," she says, but immediately adds that this is only a facade. The Beasts Pirates and government officials will hold a banquet that night. Sanji understands the opportunity at once: "I see! So we'll beat up those idiots while they're in a drunken stupor... and then we'll take down their commander!!!" Luffy, meanwhile, imagines impressing O-Kiku with a transformed form and says, "Maybe O-Kiku will fall in love with me once she sees my gallant form." Sanji snaps that O-Kiku is only an ally and he already has a proper wife. O-Tsuru is mentioned as doing well, and O-Kiku calmly confirms Sanji has misunderstood.

Kin'emon reveals the coded message for the rebellion. Holding up a paper marked with the symbols, he says, "All right now! I have depicted that decisive day and place on this paper." The Habu Port, when twilight comes on the night of the Fire Festival, is where the plan will commence. The two firebirds on top of the habu pit viper symbolize that port, and the crescent moon symbolizes "the will of rebellion, the waning crescent moon." Kin'emon says the cards must be spread as quickly as possible to those who have the crescent moon mark on their left ankle: "That mark is the will of rebellion! They are our allies!!" He adds that the citizens of Wano will understand, while foreigners only need to know that the two birds represent twilight, between 5:30 and 6:00 PM. He has also sent comrades around the country to distribute the cards, including Zorojuro-dono and Usoppachi-dono in the capital, though Sanji concludes, "Ah, then I guess Zoro hasn't been very useful."

Kin'emon assigns the rest of the infiltration work. Franky, now called Franosuke, has been sent to work as an apprentice under the man who built Kaidou's residence so he can obtain the building's blueprints. Kin'emon explains that once they land on Onigashima, they must make sure they do not get lost. Robin, as O-Robi-dono, is trying to get closer to Orochi by masquerading as a geisha and making him want her in his sitting room, while also learning the movements of Orochi's army. Sanji is visibly delighted at the thought of "Robin-chan as a geisha." Kin'emon says Sanji's cooking can draw crowds and help find the people they are searching for, while Nami's weather techniques are practically ninjutsu, and Brook's power will be useful in securing food supplies in the capital.

Kin'emon turns the remaining allies into proper Wano disguises. Carrot-dono and Chopper-dono will go with Kiku to Inuarashi's current location, and Chopper immediately says, "Kin'emon, I want to be a ninja, too!" Kin'emon tells everyone to put a leaf on their heads and performs "Clothes-Clothes Jutsu!" with a loud "Poof!!" Chopper celebrates, "I'm a ninja~" while Brook is dressed in a ghostly robe and Nami becomes a kunoichi. Sanji is overwhelmed by Nami's outfit and cries, "Ooooohh Nami-san~~" The transformation is comedic, but it also places each member into the role needed for operating inside Wano without drawing the wrong kind of attention.

Kin'emon insists that Nami's outfit is "the attire of a kunoichi," but Nami glares and asks, "You sure you're not lying to me?" She says the outfit looks completely different from what she expected. Kin'emon calls for the person who will guide them: "Shinobu!!" A small older woman appears with "At your service!" and he introduces her as a real kunoichi. Nami and Sanji are both thrown off by the contrast, with Nami saying there are two types of kunoichi and Sanji trembling in shock. Luffy casually asks, "What's up with your outfit?" and Brook admits he thought he would wear something with pants on his head, but was wrong. The page turns the ninja disguise assignment into comedy while introducing Shinobu as the veteran guide.

Shinobu introduces herself fully: "Fu fu fu. Isn't it fine, since you're so young? My name is Shinobu!!" She is labeled "Veteran Kunoichi Shinobu" and explains that in the past she was Kin'emon's protegee, though now she jokingly calls herself his bewitching little sister. Sanji, still dazed by Nami, says that if it were not for Nami-san being there, his heart would already be shattered. Shinobu responds that older women are lethal weapons after all. Kin'emon then moves back to the urgent objective: everyone must go to their assigned areas until the gathering time, but first they must discuss the three samurai they need to find. Their names are Kawamatsu, Denjiro, and Ashura Doji. In the past they served Lord Oden just as Kin'emon did, and if located, they would each be worth a hundred men.

The scene shifts to Okobore Town, where the people are suddenly under attack again. A warning rings out: "The Atamayama thieves are here!!!" Someone screams, "Run!! Escape from the town!!" Another pleads, "Give that back!! It was given to us by Luffytaro...!!" A thief strikes a townsman and snaps, "Shut up!!" while the victim cries that Luffytaro gave the food to them. The thieves haul away what little the town had just received: fruit, wine, rice, and other provisions. One of them says, "They've got some great stuff here," while another asks, "Who do they think they are?!" The raid brutally reverses Luffy's gift, turning the brief relief of Okobore Town back into fear and loss.

The leader of the Atamayama thieves appears: Shutenmaru. He lies across a bull, huge and armed, and asks, "Who in the world would do something like this...?" He mocks the idea of a hero giving food to the poor: "Is there some chump out there pretending to be a hero that gives people food?" To him, Luffy's gift means nothing once thieves arrive: "It was rendered moot as soon as we came to steal this food." Shutenmaru calls it "a short-lived act of heroism" and declares that there are no longer any samurai left to protect these pitiful weaklings. He tells an old woman that if she continues to live, she will witness only the cruel truth. His verdict on Wano is bleak: "This country no longer has any real men... That strong samurai can follow anymore!! The Wano country's days are numbered...!!"

The people of Okobore Town plead for the thieves to stop. One woman cries, "Please, wait!! Please stop this, you thieves!!" Another calls, "Run, grandma!!" while the old woman screams, "Grandmaaaa!!" and Shutenmaru coldly says, "I'm going to kill her now." The old woman does not back down. She says, "I believe in Lady O-Toki's final words." Shutenmaru rejects the hope as foolish because O-Toki is dead, yet the woman insists, "Nine samurai will definitely... carry out Lord Oden's wishes...!!" He snaps, "You fool! Without a general to lead them, it won't even be a fight!!!" The chaos is interrupted when someone spots a new arrival and shouts, "Master Shutenmaru!!! He's..." A massive boom follows as Jack enters the town.

Jack, one of the Beasts Pirates' All-Stars, arrives mounted on a huge animal and finally meets the leader of the thieves. He says, "...So, we finally meet... leader of the thieves." Then he wonders why a pirate named Straw Hat Luffy would be in this area. Shutenmaru stares him down, and Jack gives the reason he has kept him alive: "If I tell you I don't know him... will your attitude change? We've only left you alive this long... because Kaidou-san wants you to be his subordinate." The air tightens between them. Shutenmaru is not a trembling bandit being summoned by a superior; he is a powerful samurai being pressured by Kaidou's officer. Jack ends the page with a challenge: "Here's your answer."

Shutenmaru answers with steel. As Jack begins to move, Shutenmaru strikes first, and the blow cuts into Jack hard enough to make the All-Star grunt in pain. Jack warns, "Don't underestimate samurai...!!!" but Shutenmaru has already proved the warning by injuring him. Bystanders shout, "Master Jack...!?" and "What an incredibly high level duel!!" The clash is fast and violent, a direct counterpoint to Shutenmaru's despairing words about Wano no longer having real men. Whatever he claims about the country, his swordsmanship shows why Kin'emon considered Ashura Doji one of the three samurai worth a hundred men each.

The duel escalates and the people panic. Someone screams, "This is the end... Okobore Town is going to be destroyed!!" Another shouts, "Move away from them!! Shutenmaru and Jack have... started to fight...!!!" Shutenmaru and Jack trade heavy blows in the middle of the settlement, their weapons smashing together while the crowd scatters. Jack's men cry, "Master Jaaaaack!?" when their commander is struck, and someone yells, "O-over there!!! Look at the sky!!" Shutenmaru, still defiant, declares, "I didn't die back then...!! So there's no way a small fry like you... is taking me down...!!" The fight is interrupted not by either combatant winning, but by something ominous gathering overhead.

The sky twists into a dark spiral above Okobore Town. People look up and gasp, "...No way..." and "Why'd the sky change so suddenly?" One wonders whether it is about to rain. Shutenmaru notices it too and mutters, "Why..." Law immediately understands the danger, his face tightening as he says, "No!!" Luffy asks, "What's the matter, Tra-guy!?" but Law is already calling for him: "Hey, Straw Hat-ya! Get over here right now!!" The sudden change stops the duel's momentum and pulls every eye upward. The threat is not Jack, nor Shutenmaru, nor the thieves; something far larger is descending on the battlefield.

The source of the changed sky reveals itself: a gigantic dragon coils through the clouds above the town. People scream, "Huh!? The sky..." and "Something is up there..." then panic, "Ah!! This is bad, Straw Hat!" Luffy stares upward and asks, "Who the hell is that!?" and then, seeing the form, "...A dragon!!?" Jack's men call out, "Jack!! Sir!!" while someone says, "No way, why is he...!!" Law gives the answer with absolute dread: "That's Kaidou." From the dragon's mouth comes the command, "Bring those brats to me... right now..." The chapter ends on the sudden arrival of the boss himself, turning a local clash in Okobore Town into a direct confrontation with Kaidou.

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