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Chapter 70: Kyle: Pfft, Talk About Tsundere!
🕑 Added 2025-10-08 08:31:20 +0000 UTCThe hearty, boisterous drinking mood that had surrounded Whitebeard vanished the instant Roger's request landed.
In its place came an oppressive silence, deep as the ocean floor.
Roger's words rang out with conviction, each syllable echoing clearly across the giant mushroom, yet they seemed to fall into a bottomless abyss without any response.
"Gu ha ha ha..."
A low laugh rolled from deep in Whitebeard's throat, carrying no trace of humor. Instead, it made the very air around them grow thick and heavy.
"Crash!"
The bottle in his hand shattered to pieces, glass shards and liquor spraying in all directions.
"Are you kidding me?!"
Whitebeard's roar struck like thunder on level ground. His hand slammed down to his side!
"CRACK!"
A violent shockwave erupted from his fist, and spiderweb cracks spread across the surface of the incredibly resilient giant mushroom. The entire mushroom cap shook violently.
The revelry from the feast below seemed swallowed by this fury. Even from his perch on the tree branch, Kyle could clearly see white arcs where the air itself seemed to shatter like glass.
A surge of Conqueror's Haki, wrapped in endless rage, shot skyward, tearing the evening glow to shreds.
"Roger!" Whitebeard slowly rose to his feet. His already mountain-like frame seemed to grow even taller, casting a shadow that completely engulfed both Roger and Oden. "Are you trying to take my family from me?!"
He bit down especially hard on the word "family," each syllable containing enough force to rip the seas apart.
Roger stood firm against this overwhelming pressure, his body not budging an inch.
He understood Whitebeard's rage, had even expected this reaction, but he couldn't back down.
Kozuki Oden, standing beside them, was in an entirely different state.
He remained lost in the magnificent world Roger's words had revealed, his mind racing like a lake into which a boulder had been thrown, stirring up tremendous waves.
The final island... the code passed down through generations of the Kozuki clan...
Why am I the one who can read these words? Why did I leave the isolated country of Wano, only to encounter them on these seas by chance?
Could this... be fate?
An unprecedented sense of destiny and purpose erupted from the depths of his heart like a volcano, making the blood in his veins burn hot.
He looked at Roger, then at the furious Whitebeard, and a powerful impulse made him nearly lose control.
"Whitebeard..."
Kozuki Oden couldn't help but speak, his voice trembling slightly with excitement.
"Let me go!" He whipped around to face Whitebeard, his eyes shining with an unprecedented light. "I want to see it! I want to see what that final island really looks like!"
Whitebeard's massive frame jerked to a halt. He slowly turned his head, looking down at his "little brother" with obvious reluctance. The fury in his golden pupils burned even brighter, yet the corners of his mouth turned down involuntarily, revealing a hint of hurt, as if he'd been betrayed.
"How can that work?!" His voice was low and strained. "Oden! You and I are brothers!"
Oden met his gaze without flinching. "Just one year, Whitebeard!"
"Not even one year!" Whitebeard clenched both fists and swung them to his sides. Two shockwaves tore through the air with dull explosions.
He turned his head away, as if unwilling to look at that face full of longing any longer. "On my ship, family doesn't jump ship halfway through!"
The atmosphere reached a breaking point.
Roger never interrupted. He simply watched quietly. This was now a family matter between Newgate and Oden, something outsiders had no right to interfere with.
All he could do was wait for an answer.
Oden looked at Whitebeard's mountain-solid back, took a deep breath, and dropped straight to his knees, his forehead striking the cracked mushroom cap hard.
"Thud!"
"Please, Whitebeard!"
This plea carried all of Oden's sincerity and yearning, along with his guilt and reluctance toward his older brother.
Whitebeard's towering back visibly trembled.
He didn't turn around.
Time crawled by, second by second. Atop the giant mushroom, only the wind made any sound.
The noise from the feast below gradually drifted up again, making the suffocating silence here even more pronounced.
For a long, long time.
The rage that had been powerful enough to change the color of heaven and earth slowly receded from Whitebeard like a retreating tide.
He didn't say a word. He neither agreed nor refused again. He simply took heavy steps and leaped from the other side of the giant mushroom, landing back at his own camp with a thunderous impact.
His actions had said everything.
Roger let out a long breath, a genuine smile spreading across his face.
He stepped forward and patted the still-kneeling Oden on the shoulder. "Let's go, Oden. Don't keep Newgate waiting too long."
Oden lifted his head, his eyes slightly red, and nodded firmly.
Kyle: Pfft, talk about tsundere!
...
Not long after, news that Kozuki Oden would sail with the Roger Pirates for one year caused a huge uproar within the Whitebeard Pirates.
The farewell scene wasn't as sad as expected. Instead, it felt more like a send-off party.
"Captain Oden! Don't you dare die out there!"
"You jerk! If you don't come back, we'll go to Roger's ship and drag you back ourselves!"
Marco, hands in his pockets, handed him a small package. "This is special medicine the ship's doctor made. It works great. Use it sparingly."
Jozu gave Oden's back a heavy pat with a rumbling voice. "Make sure you record everything you see so you can tell us about it later!"
Thatch practically forced a huge food box into his hands. "This is Sea King leg meat I just roasted. It'll last you two days!"
Oden laughed and joked around, bumping fists with every brother who embraced him, keeping all their well-wishes close to his heart.
Finally, carrying Ame no Habakiri and Enma, surrounded by everyone, he walked step by step toward the Oro Jackson.
He looked back, but among the crowd, he couldn't find that most familiar, most massive figure.
"Hey, where's Pops?" someone asked quietly.
"He's sitting over there."
Everyone followed the line of sight to see Whitebeard sitting alone in his special seat at the center of camp, his back turned to the direction of the farewell.
He said nothing, just kept pouring alcohol into his mouth, as if everything around him had nothing to do with him.
He was still sulking.
Oden's steps faltered, a flash of sadness crossing his face, but it was quickly replaced by a smile.
He bowed deeply toward that back, then resolutely turned and stepped onto the deck of the Oro Jackson.
Only after Oden's figure disappeared into the cabin did the Whitebeard Pirates' crew gather around their captain.
"Pops, aren't you going to see Captain Oden off?"
"Hmph." Whitebeard let out a cold snort through his nose and took another big swig of alcohol.
Just then, a crew member ran over excitedly, clutching a huge treasure chest in his arms.
"Pops! Pops! Look at this!" He opened the chest like he was presenting a treasure. Inside, gold gleamed, countless berries and jewels filling it to the brim. "That Roger guy said it's to thank us, so he gave us tons of incredible treasure! Plus loads and loads of food and liquor!"
The surrounding crew let out gasps of amazement and cheers.
Whitebeard's drinking motion came to an abrupt halt.
He suddenly roared at the crew member who'd brought the news, his voice so loud it made everyone's ears ring.
"What are you standing around for?!"
The crew member jumped, completely confused.
Whitebeard snatched a large wooden barrel filled with roasted meat and fruit from nearby and jabbed a finger toward the harbor, his mustache bristling as he bellowed:
"Get that food back to them right now! How would those idiots know how to take care of anyone?! What if Oden goes hungry?!"
"Yes sir!"
