Chapter 284

Then,

they, who sought to gain the Mysterious Cell to enhance their strength and take revenge on Blackbeard,

had only one option left!

That was to pledge allegiance to the Beasts Pirates and join the Beasts Pirates.

With their strength comparable to that of the criminals on the Sixth Floor of the City, Kaido of the Beasts and that Fifth Emperor, Luo Xing, would surely welcome their arrival with great enthusiasm.

The Mysterious Cell would certainly not be stingy in granting them the "Five Six Zero".

However.

However, the Whitebeard Pirates and the Beasts Pirates have always had a grudge!

Not to mention the friction between Old Man and Kaido back on the Rocks ship.

Just consider Oden of the Kozuki clan, whom Old Man regarded as a younger brother and whom Ma Erke and others regarded as a comrade; he was killed by Kaido. This is an obstacle that can never be crossed!

How could they pledge allegiance to the enemy who killed Oden?

The first to vehemently oppose this was Oden's retainer, Captain of the Sixteenth Division, Izou.

Izou shouted excitedly:

"No, absolutely not! How can we pledge allegiance to that bastard Kaido! The revenge for Lord Oden has not yet been taken!"

It was not only the grudge against Oden;

Izou also knew that many samurai hidden within Wano Country had been killed by the Beasts Pirates.

Like Ashura Doji, who was also one of his retainers.

Especially the Cat Viper and Inuarashi of Zou; it was heard that the detestable Fifth Emperor Luo Xing personally dealt the fatal blow!

Izou and the Beasts Pirates, and Luo Xing, undoubtedly bore an irreconcilable grudge.

There was no way he could possibly pledge allegiance to the Beasts Pirates!

Hearing Izou's vehement opposition, the other captains fell silent.

Vista sighed and said:

"Oden was also our comrade from the past, Old Man's most cherished brother; we indeed cannot pledge allegiance to his enemy."

Ma Erke and the other captains all silently expressed their agreement.

Seeing this, Jozu clenched his fists and shouted angrily:

"The Mysterious Cell is our only hope! If we must avenge Oden, does that mean we do not need to avenge Old Man, Ace, and Sachi?"

In Jozu's view,

Kozuki Oden was indeed a comrade, and they had once shared a happy and wonderful life of adventure.

But,

comparing Oden to Old Man is completely incomparable!

Old Man's importance far surpasses that of Kozuki Oden!

Not to mention,

we must also add Ace and Sachi!

Do Old Man, Ace, and Sachi, the three of them, not equal one Kozuki Oden?

Jozu's questioning left everyone speechless.

Even Izou, the most vehement opponent, could only flush red with anger, having no words to refute.

Jozu continued:

"Oden died fighting for his own country, and in the years before his death, he never once asked us for help."

"His defeat by Kaido was actually a fair duel between pirates, which is extremely common on this sea."

Kozuki Oden did not return to Wano Country and get killed by Kaido and Big Snake shortly after.

He actually lived for several more years.

However,

facing Kaido, this formidable enemy, Oden did not choose to ask Whitebeard for help, nor did he ask Luo Jie for help.

This shows that Oden wanted to confront Kaido alone.

To outsiders,

this was a fair, one-on-one duel between pirates.

Therefore, Oden's death in this manner was indeed very normal.

On the seas,

pirates die in such duels at every moment.

Izou could not help but say:

"But Lord Oden was killed by Kaido and Big Snake using despicable means; it was not a completely fair duel!"

Izou, as Oden's retainer,

had long learned the entire process of Kozuki Oden's death from Cat Viper and Inuarashi.

Including the years when Oden was deceived by Big Snake and danced the fruit dance.

The Whitebeard Pirates' captains had long known these things.

Jozu said:

"Indeed, Oden's defeat was due to distraction, but..."

Jozu paused, finally voicing the thoughts he had held back for over ten years.

"I will speak the truth: Oden's death was largely due to his own stupidity!"

"Why did he so naively believe Big Snake's lies?"

"Then why, when facing a desperate situation, did he not seek our help? Does he not consider us comrades?"

Izou instantly flew into a rage, glaring fiercely at Jozu:

"You... you dare say such things about Lord Oden! You actually call Lord Oden foolish?!"

Any normal person could see Oden's foolishness.

Since Jozu had spoken his mind, he stopped pretending and said directly:

"Izou, do not think my words are harsh; this is obvious..."

"If you don't believe me, ask Marco, Vista, and the other captains if they all think Lord Oden acted too foolishly."

Izou immediately looked at Marco, Vista, and the others.

"Do you all... do you all really think Lord Oden is foolish?"

The expressions on the captains' faces immediately became somewhat awkward.

They had secretly discussed Lord Oden's death behind Izou's back,

and reached a consensus.

It was exactly what Jozu had just said.

Lord Oden's tragic end was largely due to his own foolishness.

If only he had been a bit smarter and sent a message seeking help to the Whitebeard Pirates or the Roger Pirates,

Wano Country would not have become what it is now.

Though no one spoke, this was clearly a tacit agreement.

Izou was furious, gritting his teeth, wanting to say something vicious.

But in the end, he helplessly gave up.

In fact,

did he not also think that Lord Oden was truly, truly out of his mind?

Izou was, after all, a comrade he had spent decades with day and night, so Jozu could not bear to hurt him too much.

He said comfortingly:

"Regardless of the reason, Lord Oden ultimately died at Kaido's hands; this is a hurdle that cannot be crossed."

Izou was somewhat confused.

Didn't Jozu say all that just now to persuade him and persuade everyone to defect to the Beasts Pirates?

Why suddenly say that Lord Oden's death is an insurmountable hurdle?

"What I mean is—"

Jozu explained:

"We are not defecting to Kaido of the Beasts, but merely defecting to that Fifth Emperor, Luo Xing."