Chapter 321: Hope and Upheaval in the New World

The sunlit skies of the New World should have filled everyone with hope.

A massive ship, the Moby Dick, lay anchored at the harbor while Kozuki Oden paced back and forth outside the main doors.

“Come on, push a little more—the head’s almost out!”

Inside the room, the midwife’s voice kept floating out, along with the faint sounds of muffled cries.

That’s right, Kozuki Momonosuke, the baby everyone’s been waiting for, was about to be born.

Although Karl had done plenty to change things and tried to prevent some events, the tides of the One Piece World were still rolling on just like before, setting everything back on track.

“Don’t worry, Oden. Your wife will come through this just fine.”

Whitebeard sat in a huge chair on the deck, watching the anxious Oden and offering a few words of comfort.

To be honest, for all the sons Whitebeard—Newgate—had taken in, not one of them had ever gotten properly married.

If you looked at it fairly, Marco, Jozu, and the rest were all talented. If any of them had kids, there’d be no way the Whitebeard Pirates would face a gap between generations.

The new generation was more than tough enough to hold up the pirate crew after Whitebeard fell.

Besides, if Whitebeard hadn’t sheltered them so well, Marco alone would have been more than a match for Blackbeard if he’d grown up completely.

Every Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit user who brought their fruit to the limit—

—might not match Kaido, but you wouldn’t take them down easily either.

Their strong bodies let them fight against rivals of the same level for ten days and nights without stopping.

Through all these years of battles against members of Karl’s Pirate Crew, they’d built up a lot of real combat experience.

That put their strength closer than ever to what it was at the start of the original story, but still, they hadn’t dug up all their potential.

For starters, they hadn’t trained as hard when they were young as the members of Karl’s Pirates did.

Back then, those guys worked their tails off every day, and even after growing up they still kept up a regular training routine.

Plus, a lot of folks had simply grown too comfortable under Whitebeard Newgate’s protection. There was no ambition, no vision for something greater.

You could say the entire Yonko-level Whitebeard Pirates were carried single-handedly by Newgate.

Once Newgate was gone, nobody could step up and take on the burden of leading the Whitebeard Pirates.

“I get it, but I just can’t help feeling nervous.”

Oden wiped the sweat from his brow.

For someone as powerful as Oden, who stood at Admiral level, nothing could usually shake him.

But right now, Toki’s delivery was the one thing that could make his heart race.

This wasn’t just about love—it was the continuation of his bloodline.

Even now, he still didn’t know exactly what was happening back in Wano or how many family members survived.

With all those worries piling up, he ached for even a few words of comfort from people like him.

“Oden!”

“Don’t get so worked up. The ship’s doctor is the best there is.”

“Nothing bad’s going to happen.”

“And if there really is a problem, well, that’s what I’m here for!”

Marco was perched on the rail, blue flames flickering in his palm.

After years of honing his gifts, Marco could now use his blue flames to heal injuries.

Unless it was something truly severe, the blue flames could mend just about any wound, inside or out.

All the more so for someone like Toki, an ordinary person.

“Either way, it’s time for us to get the celebratory wine ready, isn’t it?”

“Now, this is where I really shine!”

Thatch, Captain of the Fourth Division, waved his chef’s knife with excitement.

Eighty percent of the food on board was made by his own two hands—not much else needed to be said about his skills.

“Ah!”

Suddenly, a baby’s cry came from inside the room.

“It’s done! The baby’s here!”

Oden, bursting with excitement, dashed straight for the doorway.

*Creak!*

The midwife came out, cradling a baby wrapped in a little blanket.

“Congratulations, it’s a boy!”

Oden hurried to take the baby, gazing down at the sleeping child and feeling a rush of emotion deep in his blood.

There it was—the power of family ties.

Marco watched as the midwife smiled nearby. He walked up and handed her a pouch, payment for her hard work.

“Thank you, thank you!”

The midwife took her payment, stepped inside to gather her things, and then headed off the pirate ship.

“Gurararara!”

“Let me have a look!”

Whitebeard’s voice rang out. He might not have shown it much, but this was his brother’s son—there’s no way he wasn’t happy.

Oden handed the baby to Marco, then hurried back into the room.

Seeing Toki pale and exhausted, Oden spoke softly. “You did great.”

He picked up a towel to wipe the sweat from her face.

“It wasn’t hard. This is what I should be doing.”

“I just wish we knew when we’d finally get back to Wano.”

“Soon. It won’t be much longer. For now, just get some rest.”

After a year of change, the balance of power in the New World was already shifting.

Kaido of the Beasts had begun his full assault on Whitebeard’s territory.

A battle was about to break out at any moment.

As soon as the whole New World turned into chaos, that would be the time to return to Wano.

Over a year, with pressure from Golden Lion, Kaido was finally learning what it meant to struggle just to make progress.

Without enough resources, he couldn’t keep his massive pirate army running.

So the only way to grab supplies was to attack the islands in the surrounding seas.

Because Golden Lion led the charge, Kaido first struck out and captured a few of his islands.

But even those spoils weren’t nearly enough to cover the pirate crew’s daily needs.

He knew it was all part of Golden Lion’s trap, but still, he had no choice. He soon set his sights on Whitebeard’s territory.

Watching Kaido’s land grabs, Charlotte Linlin ordered her children to start a full-scale invasion on Whitebeard’s turf, too.

Their purpose was clear: force Whitebeard Newgate to make the ‘right’ decision through brute strength.

Now, with the Golden Lion’s land the only exception, the rest of the New World had dissolved into chaos.

Meanwhile, in Ohara in West Blue, a team of over thirty archaeologists finished packing their bags by the shore.

Olvia, holding her one-year-old daughter Nico Robin, bid a heartfelt farewell to the team’s leader at the harbor. “Stay safe out there, and come home soon.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be back before you know it!”

“Are we all packed up?”

“Everything’s ready. Time to get moving.”

“Everyone on board. We’re setting sail!”

With a shout to the others, the leader turned to Olvia. “Really, don’t worry. I’ll be back in no time.”

He hugged Olvia’s head and kissed her gently on the forehead.

Then, determined, he strode out to sea.

They were about to do something few dared: uncover what happened during that blank hundred years.

This time was a little different—apart from some of the archaeologists’ families, there were no real residents left on the island.

Out of fear the World Government would eventually discover them, they’d already moved the civilians away long ago.

That made it easier for them to carry out their investigations in secret.