Chapter 963

Thirty-three years ago, drawn by an old pact between their tribe and the Kouzuki, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi left Zou to see Wano for themselves. Washing up alongside Kawamatsu, the three were lashed to stakes by cruel locals preparing to burn them, until Oden emerged from the sea with a giant fish and thrashed the tormentors for abusing those who looked different. Oddly, he walked off without untying them, though the trio soon freed themselves and trailed him home for a meal.

Kawamatsu reveals he is a fish-man who posed as a kappa to escape the persecution that killed his mother. With his band growing and his coffers thinning, partly from repeated loans to Orochi, Oden's retainers tried to rob Yasuie. Caught in the act, they were instead handed the money plus extra, with Yasuie urging them to dress well, learn manners, and become the finest samurai in Wano to serve Oden when he became shogun. Three years later they escorted Oden into the Flower Capital in a procession so dignified that onlookers knelt.

Oden reunited with his ailing father Sukiyaki, who was glad to see his son grown into a fine man, a meeting that proved to be their last. That same year the Whitebeard Pirates' ship ran aground at Port Itachi and was trapped a week for repairs. Hearing of a pirate vessel, Oden raced to the shore and threw himself into a thunderous clash with Whitebeard, then announced his wish to join the crew. The chapter confirms the centuries-old mink-Kouzuki pact and shows a young Marco serving as an apprentice.