"But what if young master Yamato listens to Luke and really starts pushing some kind of administrative reform in Wano later?"
Black Maria said worriedly, "That would affect the Beasts Pirates’ revenue."
Kaido frowned at that. "Probably not. That kid doesn’t look like someone who knows much about management, and Yamato doesn’t know anything about it either. The two of them probably won’t come up with anything too bizarre together."
If Yamato gained a clear understanding of herself and was willing to return to her father’s embrace, then naturally, she would once again become the Beasts Pirates’ Oni Princess.
At that point, she would have the authority to do certain things.
And if Kaido wanted to cultivate his daughter’s abilities, he could not exactly stop Yamato from doing everything. That would only crush her enthusiasm.
"Let’s hope so."
Maria turned back toward the screen, preparing to continue watching the broadcast.
…………
"...The Supreme Lord Laozi took his green ox back to Heaven, and that trial was considered over."
Having reached that point in the story, Luke stretched. "That’s enough for today. Yamato, you really do have endless energy."
Once the daytime lessons were done, Luke naturally had to give Yamato a little reward. So, while telling her stories, he kept up his physical training without stopping until nightfall.
Yamato was like a child addicted to storybooks. She listened chapter after chapter without getting tired of it, constantly urging Luke to continue.
Moreover, Yamato had mined even more ore than Luke and did not seem tired in the slightest. That was why Luke remarked on her boundless energy.
That was the gap created by physical attributes. With 60 points in Constitution, Yamato could mine in Udon Prison as though she were playing a game. She simply would not get tired.
"Ah, just one more chapter."
Yamato said disappointedly. She still wanted to hear what happened next.
Luke could only sigh helplessly and change the subject. "Since you like this story so much, how about I test you? Let’s see whether you were really paying attention."
Yamato perked up. It was not more storytelling, but it was still related to the story—and it was not the kind of question that would leave her depressed. Naturally, she was willing to hear it. "Go ahead."
A smile appeared on Luke’s face. "Yamato, I’ve told quite a few chapters already. Have you noticed how the Great Sage differs on his journey to retrieve the scriptures from when he caused havoc in Heaven?"
Yamato pondered for a moment before reaching a conclusion. "It feels like the Great Sage isn’t as wild as he used to be. He’s become much more humble and doesn’t act so recklessly anymore. Honestly, it feels a little stifling."
"Haha, I thought that too when I was little. But perhaps that is the price of growing up."
Luke smiled. "When it comes to how he deals with demons, have you noticed that the Great Sage treats them differently depending on who they are?"
Yamato frowned and thought for a while. "What difference?"
"Think back to the One-Horned Rhinoceros King I just told you about. Then think again."
Luke prompted her.
After thinking for a moment, Yamato’s eyes lit up. She raised her hand. "I get it. The green ox wasn’t killed by the Great Sage, but some of the other demons were."
"Right. Why do you think that is?"
Luke guided her patiently.
This time, Yamato answered quickly. "Because the green ox had an owner. Its owner was the Supreme Lord Laozi, a powerful immortal god."
Luke nodded. "To sum it up, when the Monkey King faces a demon with connections, he does not kill it. But if some nobody without any backing provokes him, he kills them all."
Once Yamato realized it, a chill suddenly ran down her spine. She had originally thought Luke was telling her a pure adventure story, but now that she thought about it, that journey to retrieve the scriptures was filled with so many unspoken rules and social maneuverings.
All at once, the story no longer felt so “pure.”
"That’s why connections are important when you’re out in the world. If someone has neither strength nor backing but still acts arrogant, they usually die horribly."
Seeing Yamato fall silent, Luke summed it up, then looked at her with a smile. "So, Yamato, why do you think you’ve been running wild on Onigashima and throughout Wano all this time, yet you still haven’t died?"
Yamato froze, then gave a bitter smile. "Luke, so this was where you were leading me. I knew your question wouldn’t be that simple."
After several straight days of relentless questions, she was genuinely beginning to doubt whether Kozuki Oden had truly been right. This afternoon, while mining, she had not called herself Kozuki Oden even once.
How could she not know the answer to Luke’s question? Thinking carefully, she seemed unable to defeat the Flying Six, the All-Stars, or even some of the Headliners in the Beasts Pirates.
Yet she had escaped prison time and again, wreaked havoc across Onigashima, and charged headlong into battle even when she encountered Beasts Pirates officers. She had certainly been defeated before, but she had never died—nor had she ever suffered any serious injuries.
No matter how she looked at it, it was not Oden protecting her. Those officers had held back, just as Sun Wukong held back against demons, because she had “connections.”
What connections could she possibly have? Kozuki Oden?
Of course not. No one in the Beasts Pirates besides her admired Kozuki Oden, and besides, Kozuki Oden was already dead.
Her only backing could be her father, one of the Four Emperors—Kaido.
Because her father was those officers’ direct superior, even when facing her attacks, they could not kill her.
"Looks like you have been thinking. Then I won’t say any more."
Luke could tell from Yamato’s expression that she understood what he meant. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes for a brief rest.
During dinner, he felt Yamato’s stomach again. He had basically figured out how Life Return worked; he just needed another couple of days of practice to adapt to it.
Once he mastered that skill, he could work out every day and gorge himself on food in Udon Prison. His attributes would surely improve by quite a bit.
After a while, Yamato snapped out of her thoughts, sat beside Luke, and spoke. "Luke, I’ve been feeling conflicted lately."
"About what?"
Luke asked, though he already knew.
Yamato’s delicate brows drew together. "I’ve been wondering whether I really am Kozuki Oden, whether Kozuki Oden’s actions were truly right, and what I should do for it to be right."
"That’s a pretty philosophical question. It’s difficult for me to answer too."
Luke said, "But I think the root of your confusion is that you do not know who you are."
"Yeah... who exactly am I?"
Yamato said blankly.
"Although I’d like to tell you outright that you are Yamato, I don’t think that would be entirely right either."
Luke’s words left Yamato even more confused.
"What do you mean? Haven’t you always called me by my real name?"
Yamato asked in confusion.
Luke looked up at her. "You know that it is your real name. But what I mean is that neither your name nor other people’s words and opinions determine who you are."
"Then what does determine who I am? And who gets to decide it?"
Yamato asked, seeking guidance.
Luke sat up a little straighter and met Yamato’s eyes, his expression solemn. "Only you can decide who you are. Your heart is what determines who you are."
"My heart..."
Yamato murmured. She raised a hand to her chest. "Will it tell me who I am?"
"Let’s return to the original question. If you believe you are Kozuki Oden, then I will not say anything more about it, because that is your own decision. But if you believe you are Yamato, perhaps you still have not found the truth either."
Luke spoke seriously. He felt that Yamato was nearing enlightenment, so he gave her one final push.
Yamato seemed deeply troubled and conflicted. She clutched her head in both hands. "I should be Oden, but now I think some of Oden’s actions were not quite right. Yet if I say that I am Yamato, that does not feel right either."
"Why does it not feel right?"
Luke asked.
"Because I think Yamato is Kaido’s daughter. She should be the Beasts Pirates’ Oni Princess, one of the villains harming Wano. That conflicts with the justice I am gradually coming to understand."
As Yamato spoke, her eyes gradually cleared. "Yes. So I am not ‘Yamato’ either."
"So you still believe that liberating Wano and resisting Kaido’s tyranny are the right things to do, correct?"
Luke asked with a smile.
Yamato nodded firmly. "I have seen the spirit and character of true samurai. They once saw me as Wano’s hope, and I do believe that what Kaido has done is wrong. I want to set it right."
Luke nodded. "Isn’t that a good thing?"
Yamato looked at Luke in confusion. "You don’t oppose me, Luke? Even though this still counts as inheriting Kozuki Oden’s will?"
"Why would I oppose you?"
Luke spread his hands. "When did I ever say that Kozuki Oden’s will was completely wrong? And I never told you not to liberate Wano, did I?"
"But... but what I want to do next will go against the prophecy in Kozuki Oden’s journal. It will also go against the principles Kozuki Oden lived by. Then I will no longer be Kozuki Oden..."
Yamato’s face was filled with pain and conflict. "And at the same time, because I am opposing Kaido, I am no longer ‘Yamato’ either. So who exactly am I?"
Facing Yamato’s question, Luke clapped his hands. "Congratulations, Yamato. You have found yourself."
Yamato was at a loss in the face of Luke’s congratulations. She met his gaze, her eyes still carrying a trace of confusion. "I... am ‘Yamato’?"
"A name is only a label. Once you understand where you stand and know what you want to do, you have a self. Whether you call yourself Kozuki Oden or Yamato, you are simply you—the friend Luke acknowledges."
Luke said with a smile.
Yamato seemed to understand a little, yet not entirely. "So... should I call myself Yamato?"
Luke nodded. "That would be best. At least it is the name your parents gave you. And in time, you will discover that the bond between father and daughter is not something so easily severed."
At this point, he had basically completed the first stage of reshaping Yamato’s thinking. Yamato had finally realized that she was neither Kozuki Oden nor the Oni Princess “Yamato” she had once been within the Beasts Pirates.
Her life was only setting sail now. In this new life, she would face plenty more confusion and uncertainty, but at least she now had a chance to walk the right path.
By this stage, Yamato could basically be considered a normal person. Though after years of calling herself Oden and fighting the Beasts Pirates, there would naturally be some lingering aftereffects. She would need time to smooth them away.
She was like a sheet of paper that was half white and half gray, waiting to gradually be painted with a life that belonged to her.
As for whether that sheet would ultimately lean toward black or white, that would depend on what came next.
"If everything Luke says is true... no..."
Yamato shook her head midway through her sentence. "Thinking about it logically, most of your reasoning is probably true. Father really has indulged me all these years. He must have cared about me in his heart, which is why he let me grow up..."
Luke did not interrupt. He merely watched Yamato and waited for her conclusion.
After a pause, Yamato’s gaze became clear. "Even though I feel a little sorry toward Father, and some of my actions have been excessive for a daughter, I do not believe my desire to resist is wrong. I want to correct the wrongs in this country."
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