Summary:
30 years ago, Whitebeard refused to let Kozuki Oden join his crew due to concerns about Oden’s character. However, when he tried to secretly set sail, Oden and Izou hid by riding the chain. Whitebeard decided to allow Oden to join if he could ride the chain for three days, but with only ten minutes left, Oden finally escaped. He washes ashore on an island and scares off a group of human traffickers who try to kidnap a woman named Amatsuki Toki by promising to take her to Wano. After treating Toki’s injuries, Oden defended her as the traders returned with their leader, Karma. However, Whitebeard then came and took Karma as he offered Oden to join him, impressed by his willingness to protect Toki.
Oden, Toki, Izou and the black passengers Inuarashi and Nekomamushi then set sail and had adventures with the Whitebeard Pirates, and one day Toki revealed that she was a time traveler born 800 years ago. Meanwhile, Gol D. Roger has read the news of Oden’s joining Whitebeard and expressed his desire to meet him.
After an encounter with Whitebeard, Oden and his charges ate oden with Whitebeard’s pirates. Oden asked to join the pirate crew, even though his servants advised against it. Whitebeard replied that Oden didn’t seem like the type of person to follow someone else and said it was his old crew’s problem and advised Oden to set sail alone. Oden revealed that he had tried many times but had no ability to sail. Kin’emon makes a deal with Whitebeard not to let Oden go with him, fearing that Oden would commit the great crime of leaving the land. Meanwhile, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi were talking to Marco and were shocked when he told them that there are far more than 20,000,000 islands in the world.
Two weeks later, Izou asked Oden where he was going as he headed out of Kuri Castle at night, and Oden said he was going to relieve himself. Meanwhile, the Whitebeard Pirates secretly set sail to avoid Oden, as Whitebeard did not want to be implicated in any alleged kidnapping. But then a chain wrapped around Moby Dick’s mast and Oden, anticipating this would happen, held on as the ship pulled him. Izou, suspecting Oden in turn, then lunged at Oden and jumped on him, intending to get him back to Wano. Marco was about to unwrap the chain, but Whitebeard ordered him to let it go and pulled Izou to Moby Dick.
In Wano, Oden’s minions panicked as they could not find him, Izou, Inuarashi, or Nekomamushi and ordered a search of the entire country. As Oden was left holding the chain and exposed to the dangers of the ocean, Izou asked Whitebeard to pull Oden out. Whitebeard wouldn’t let Oden join him so easily, but offered him a deal. If he could hold on to the chain for three days, he could join the crew. Oden immediately accepted the offer and successfully held on for nearly three days, facing obstacles such as storms, waves, carnivorous fish, and ice. Marco and the rest of the crew grew to like and cheer for Oden and his resilience, while Izou said that he would never forgive Whitebeard for treating Oden like that.
On a certain island, a gang of men assured a woman named Amatsuki Toki that they would take her to Wano as she requested, but she realized they were human traffickers. She was holding them at bay with her katana as she planned to escape via the path to the future when suddenly a massively swollen Oden came ashore after hearing Toki calling for help. Mistaking him for a sea demon, the gang fled in fear, and on Moby Dick, the Whitebeard Pirates were disappointed that Oden had let go of the chain.
The next day, despite his injuries, Oden awoke with exuberant energy and decided to begin his adventure here. He thanked Toki for taking care of him and she thanked him for saving her. Noticing Oden mentioning Wano, she tells him that she wants to go there and wonders if he could take her there, which to her surprise disgusts him. Suddenly, they were confronted again by the gang, who brought their captain Karma to capture them. Oden quickly stood up to confront Karma, but she was suddenly defeated by Whitebeard, who decided to let him join his crew after seeing him give up his ambitions to help Toki. Oden was welcomed aboard by Whitebeard’s crew and was shocked to find that Inuarashi and Nekomamushi had also gone into hiding. Whitebeard let Toki board as well, and Oden’s group went on many adventures with the crew showing Oden how big the world was. One day, Toki tells the crew that she is 26, but was born 800 years ago. Meanwhile, Shanks and Buggy read about the addition of Oden to the Whitebeard Pirates and Gol D. Roger was intrigued by the idea of a samurai escaping Wan, who expressed a desire to meet Oden.