Chapter 310: Clash on the Sea: Time’s Arrival and Old Grudges

Teto burst out from below deck, carrying a medical kit.

He first checked the woman’s eyes, then pulled out a stethoscope and got to work.

With Kozuki Oden watching anxiously, Teto removed the stethoscope. “Relax, she’s going to be fine.”

“She just swallowed some seawater. Give her a moment and she’ll come around.”

After a few quick chest compressions, the woman coughed up a good deal of seawater and slowly opened her eyes.

“Where am I?”

“Who are you people?”

By now, everyone could tell from the look of her and from the title—it was Toki herself, the wielder of the Time-Time Fruit.

Whether it was a problem with her mastery or a limitation of the fruit itself, no one knew, but she could only travel forward in time, not back.

Karl’s greatest desire was to get his hands on that Devil Fruit. He didn’t believe its power was limited to just moving time forward.

Time reigns supreme, space is king—there’s real truth in that saying.

Logically speaking, it seemed that Toki simply hadn’t fully unlocked the fruit’s potential.

After all, maybe she was caught up in family troubles or forced into missions right after discovering her power.

That’s why she had no choice but to jump forward each time. She was still so young, after all.

If you want to completely awaken a Devil Fruit, you probably need to be in your thirties or forties at least.

But in reality, Toki might only be between twenty and twenty-five years old.

“Don’t worry, miss. You’re safe now.”

“Would you mind telling us your name?”

Seeing that Kozuki Oden didn’t seem like a bad person, Toki steadied herself and answered.

“I’m Toki.”

“What?”

“Your name is Toki?”

“Yes, is there a problem?”

Now there was a real problem. If Oden remembered correctly, Toki was supposed to be from Wano.

But the major families in Wano were either enslaved or already wiped out.

So how could a gentle young woman end up deep in the New World?

Marco, flames flickering blue, turned to glance at the horizon. “Everyone, get ready. There’s a battle coming.”

“Gurararara!”

“Sons, don’t hold back—charge!”

“Yeah!”

“Roar!”

Little Oz, who’d been lying at the bottom of the sea, stood up and ran first toward the distant pirate ships.

This time, the ones setting out were Perospero and the rest of the family pirate crew.

Word had it that the Whitebeard Pirates had been hanging around the border between their two territories lately.

Looked like another fight was brewing.

Perospero immediately accepted the mission and led Katakuri, Daifuku, Oven, Compote, and a dozen or so siblings who were already over sixteen years old.

“You can see Whitebeard’s ship up ahead. Stay sharp, everyone—let’s move in.”

“Wind-Qimen: Shifting Mirage!”

With plenty of stamina to spare, even skills from fantasy worlds could be pulled out and used in unexpected ways.

In the blink of an eye, Perospero and the others’ ships appeared encircling the Whitebeard Pirates.

“Left and right guardians!”

“Let us take the lead!”

Katakuri had inherited the abilities of the Corpse King from that other world.

Those left and right guardians were the two subordinates who died taking over territory.

Katakuri had now revived them with the powers of the Corpse King.

Not only did they retain their memories, but they were even stronger in battle than before.

The pirate ships sped closer, and soon the chaos of battle exploded.

From the deck to below, every single crew member sprung into action.

Seeing the mess unfolding, Kozuki Oden guided Toki to Whitebeard Newgate’s side.

“Whitey, keep an eye on her for me.”

“Gurararara, don’t worry, brother.”

“Go all out. I’ve got her.”

Oden looked down at the slight and fragile Toki. “Bet you didn’t know? I’m Kozuki Oden.”

“We can talk when I’m back. Don’t worry, you’re safe here.”

Watching Oden draw his twin blades, Toki stayed silent this time.

She only murmured quietly, “Kozuki family… So you’re from Wano, too.”

Normally, Oden wouldn’t take part in fights like this—he was simply too powerful.

But come on, with a delicate girl suddenly around, even a man like him wanted to show off.

Seeing Oden charge in, Katakuri immediately set his sights on him.

Clang!

“So you’re Kozuki Oden.”

“I remember you. If it hadn’t been for your father, we’d probably be side by side right now as allies.”

That hit a nerve—Oden’s anger flared up.

But this wasn’t the time to sort out blame.

Yes, his father had plotted rebellion, but that didn’t mean they had the right to kill him at will.

Oden glared at Katakuri, venom in his eyes.

“It’s because of you people my father died.”

“Oden Two-Sword Style: Peach Blossom Torrent!”

These two were enemies to the bone—sparks flew at their very meeting.

Oden wanted nothing more than to cut down Katakuri then and there, to settle the hatred in his heart.

A murdered father and a slaughtered family—this was a grudge that could never be forgiven.

Katakuri was furious now, too. What was wrong with accepting their rule? Hadn’t they brought everyone prosperity?

“You really don’t know what’s good for you. Looks like I need to teach you a lesson.”

Strange red markings started to swirl over Katakuri’s right arm.

With speed like lightning, he landed a punch squarely on Oden.

A heavy thud echoed out. Oden felt as if his insides had been churned into a mess.

He looked up, stunned and disbelieving, straight at Katakuri.

Back then, they’d grown up side by side.

At the time, Oden had been leagues ahead of everyone else in the crew.

How had he gotten surpassed like this? Was it really because he’d slacked off lately?

His eyes hardened, anger boiling over.

With a roar, he slashed upward with his right-hand blade.

But all that came out was a metallic ring.

With those mysterious markings, Katakuri’s defense was even tougher than Armament Haki.

Both of Oden’s swords were coated in Armament Haki, yet they couldn’t even scratch the surface.

“That kind of attack is only good for a tickle.”

Katakuri talked big, but he’d actually taken a hit too.

Oden was one of the strongest, not a legend but still a powerhouse.

His Armament Haki was strong enough to destroy from within—the so-called Ryuo technique.

That last strike might’ve left no wound, but deep down, Katakuri’s bones were hurting.

Luckily, when he’d taken on the template, he’d inherited some power from Corps King Long Right. In a blink, Katakuri could heal that much damage.

With another heavy punch coming his way, Oden wasn’t about to take it head-on.

He leapt back, unleashing two arcs of sword energy from his blades.

Thud, thud, thud…

As those footsteps sounded, the whole sea seemed to fall silent.

A surge of Conqueror’s Haki erupted from Whitebeard Newgate, knocking out any pirate who couldn’t withstand it.

“Pops, are you joining the fight too?”

Marco, in his phoenix form, saw the old man rise and quickly flew over to ask.

In fights like this, Whitebeard Newgate almost never took the stage himself.

Was something unexpected about to happen?