Wano Country! To the Land of Samurai where Cherry Blossoms Flutter

Across Wano, the scattered crew have folded themselves into ordinary life. Going by Franosuke, Franky earns a living at carpentry; Usohachi is Usopp's cover as he hawks toad oil; and as O-Robi, Robin studies the geisha craft, dreaming of one day dancing before the shogun. Once darkness settles, Zoro steps out as the masterless swordsman Zoro-juurou. A short way off a hooded figure cuts a man down, and the smell of fresh blood pulls Zoro over to challenge him, only for the arriving watch to brand him the killer and drag him off. He nearly fights, then remembers Kin'emon's instruction to hold his cover. Their leader had warned that Kaidou stands behind Orochi, so raising a hand against the shogun's people would invite an Emperor's wrath, leaving them no choice but to blend in.

A magistrate slices apart a straw figure, musing that a blade sharpens only by drinking human blood, and the bound Zoro is hauled before him to answer for crimes he never committed. By morning a crier announces the slasher's capture and a seppuku sentence, news that disheartens Usopp without truly surprising him. Handed the blade in the plaza, Zoro catches the magistrate's scent and recognizes the genuine murderer. He wraps his sword in Armament Haki, looses a flying cut that drops the official, begs Kin'emon's pardon, and carves through the retainers to recover his weapons. Elsewhere a crab pinches Luffy awake on a shore beside the Thousand Sunny, and a komainu comes tumbling out of the forest toward him.

Among the inserted scenes are Zoro roaming the Flower Capital before his arrest, his brush with the true killer, Usopp catching the arrest news, and Zoro fighting the magistrate's men once his slash lands. Luffy's descent into the whirlpool is drawn out. This installment debuts OVER THE TOP as the opening, and from now the preview music carries that song after a long run that had used We Go! since the 517th episode, where the latter half of the series began. It also introduces the fifth eyecatcher set, including new ones for Luffy and Zoro, and is the first arc presented in a thicker art style.