Speculations A Look at Inherited Will in the Land of Wano (ZKK: Part 1)

(Poll questions are in the OP)

  • Q1: Yes

  • Q1: No

  • Q2: Yes

  • Q2: No

  • Q3: Yes

  • Q3: No


Results are only viewable after voting.
#25
My apologies, the tag wasn't intentional. I had no idea you were on my list.
You the leader of the crying six shouldn't be on that list. @Erkan12 you know he has no arguments
Post automatically merged:

Retainers already placed their burden on luffy
Anything else is headcanon

Nobody is placing their faith on Zoro
Sword has inherited Will too. Did you even read the thread
 
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#28
no- I dont think Oden's will was to slay Kaido per say, if i remenber correctly he says "get out of wano and never come back", his will drifts more towards opening wano, not on killing Kaido, wich "slaying" implyes, sure, for that to hapen kaido has to be beaten but not necessarely killed. Beating Kaido and driving him out of Wano dosent mean killing Kaido. But thats just my oppinion.
yes- Yes, by inheriting his sword Zoro has inherited his will of defeating Kaido(not necessarely Killing him per say) and helping his children.
yes- Totaly, theres no samurai on par with Zoro currently alive.
 

HA001

World's Strongest Swordsman
β€Ž
#29
no- I dont think Oden's will was to slay Kaido per say, if i remenber correctly he says "get out of wano and never come back", his will drifts more towards opening wano, not on killing Kaido, wich "slaying" implyes, sure, for that to hapen kaido has to be beaten but not necessarely killed. Openign Wano is the important part.
yes- Yes, by inheriting his sword Zoro has inherited his will of defeating Kaido(not necessarely Killing him per say) and helping his children.
yes- Totaly, theres no samurai on par with Zoro currently alive.
he literally talks multiple times about cutting his head off
 
#32
These dumb shit people like @Celestial D. Dragon , @Jo_Ndule thought that Oda made Kaidou only recognized Enma at first is a L to Zoro, wheras I see this as a MASSIVE W for Zoro. Because it made Zoro stand out from other Supernovas on the rooftop. If he only recognizes and praises Zoro now, it makes him no different than the rest of the Supernovas, as just some random strong person who challenge the Emperors, and actually lowers the chance of ZKK happening. By recognizing Enma, Kaidou literally confirmed that Zoro is holding Oden's will in his fucking hand, and will carry on Oden's wish by fucking decapitating Kaidou's fucking head. Zoro's own recognition will come, sooner or later. You guys know it, you guys are afraid of it. You guys making fun of Zoro now is just a defense mechanism for the inevitable that you guys fear. :zosleepy:
 
#33
These dumb shit people like @Celestial D. Dragon , @Jo_Ndule thought that Oda made Kaidou only recognized Enma at first is a L to Zoro, wheras I see this as a MASSIVE W for Zoro. Because it made Zoro stand out from other Supernovas on the rooftop. If he only recognizes and praises Zoro now, it makes him no different than the rest of the Supernovas, as just some random strong person who challenge the Emperors, and actually lowers the chance of ZKK happening. By recognizing Enma, Kaidou literally confirmed that Zoro is holding Oden's will in his fucking hand, and will carry on Oden's wish by fucking decapitating Kaidou's fucking head. Zoro's own recognition will come, sooner or later. You guys know it, you guys are afraid of it. You guys making fun of Zoro now is just a defense mechanism for the inevitable that you guys fear. :zosleepy:
Whatever you say, snowflake. Better not see you crying when your whole world comes crashing down when your overblown expectations aren't met. :kayneshrug:
 
#34
Whatever you say, snowflake. Better not see you crying when your whole world comes crashing down when your overblown expectations aren't met. :kayneshrug:
Nah it's called common fucking sense. Come up with better arguments next time, and i hope its not some dumb shit like Mondor trapping Kaidou in a book
 
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#35
Nah it's called common fucking sense. Come up with better arguments next time, and i hope its not some dumb shit like Mondor trapping Kaidou in a book
Common sense tells you Oda will never give the major spotlight to anyone but Luffy. Especially not the first fucking Yonko to fall in the series at the hands of the protagonist, when Oda has been building up to this for 20 years. :rolaugh:
 
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#36
Acknowledgements
@Zenos7 and @KiriNigiri have my gratitude for their direct assistance with the panels. I also want to than @Garp the Fist for his Grand Wano Death Compilation thread; several of my panels were directly lifted from them. Finally, @Light D Lamperouge has my gratitude for helping stitch the panels together and somehow stay within the 40 image limit.

This essay would not be possible without their enthusiastic support.


Disclaimer
I tag a lot of people from my posts. If you want to be removed from my tag lists, let me know. Likewise if you want to be added.


Introduction
There seems to have been a lot of confusion in regards to some recent events in the manga. I decided to make a thread to clear up some of that confusion.

Inherited will is a major theme in the world of One Piece. The Pirate King Gol D. Roger spoke of inherited will in a famous speech:

It's so important that it was featured as the cover of the landmark Chapter 100. It's played a role at other times in the story (Sabo inheriting Ace's will was a significant sub theme of Dressrosa's), but it has been very prominent in Wano.


The Unfulfilled Will of Oden
Most of the narrative around inherited will in the Land of Wano has to do with Oden (Ace's will to defeat Kaido, inherited by Luffy is another major narrative around inherited will, but it's not my main interest, so I'll leave it out for the sake of brevity).

The will of Oden was to Slay Kaido:

And to open the borders of Wanokuni:

This will was left unfulfilled at the time of Oden's death. However, Oden told us he will find a way to pass on his will:

As I show in the coming section, he was able to successfully pass on his will.


The Inherited Will of the Scabbards
The Scabbards inherited Oden's will to Slay Kaido:

And to Open Wano's Borders:


They resolved themselves to die so that they may fulfill Oden's will:

Alas, they were unable to fulfill Oden's will and could only lament their failure:

It seems the Scabbards were fated from the very beginning to fail in fulfilling Oden's will:

This notion of predestined failure would show up again later:


Interlude: Swords and Inherited Will
Swords also inherit the will of their previous wielders. They give strength to their comrades and enable them destroy their enemies:

The weapons of Wano inherited the will to continue the battle with the Beast Pirates:


The Inherited Will of Enma
Now that it has been established that swords also inherit the will of their wielders, it is time to ask what the inherited will of Enma might be. The very introduction of Enma provides us with an answer:

Enma's introduction emphasised that it gave Kaido his lone grievous scar. The editor's footnote of "Inherited Will...!!" helpfully pointed out that by receiving Enma Zoro was inheriting the will to fell Kaido.

At Yasuie's execution, that no one has been able to fulfill Oden's will to slay Kaido was mentioned with special focus given to Zoro:

This may have been highlighting how Zoro has taken up the mantle of that unfulfilled will of Oden's.

Since the raid began, Zoro has expressed the desire to fight Kaido on numerous occasions. The below collage contains all the occasions I'm aware of:


Even as the battle on the rooftop has progressed, Enma has been specially highlighted above all of Zoro's weapons:
  • After Zoro's Rengoku Onigiri failed to do as much damage as he wanted, Zoro commented that he needed to "unleash this Enma" more:
  • When Zoro deflected Kaido's demolition Gust, Enma was his weapon of choice:
  • When Zoro moved to strike Kaido down with his Hiryuu Kaen, he once again chose Enma as his weapon of choice:
  • Big Mom warned Kaido to dodge Zoro's attack, commenting that Enma was "no ordinary sword":

The special focus on Enma throughout this arc has been because of the will it inherited.


Zoro's use of Enma for Hiryuu Kaen in particular has very deep symbolic meaning. Hiryuu Kaen was the attack Zoro used to defeat Ryuuma:

Zoro's posture while executing Hiryuu Kaen was a perfect mirror of Ryuuma's when he slew a dragon:

Zoro mirrored β€” and was about to replicate if not for Mama's timely warning β€” Ryuma's feat of Dragon Slaying with the blade whose will it was to slay Kaido. It serves as foreshadowing for Zoro properly replicating the legend over the Flower Capital.


Inherited Will Made Manifest
Over the course of the Onigashima raid, there's been a theme of the visage of Oden made apparent in those who inherited his will.

The Scabbards
When the Scabbards first struck Kaido, the scar he recieved from Oden began to throb:

Kaido was astounded and questioned why the Scabbards could pierce him, wondering if they also used Oden's Ryuo:

Kaido further tells the Scabbards that in them he saw the visage of Kozuki Oden:

As such, he could have let them kill him (fulfilling Oden's will):

With each throb of his scar he remembers Oden:

He boldly declares that they are not Oden, that never again shall a "monster samurai" of his likes appear:

He laments that they don't even have enough power to open up his old scar, concluding that they cannot do it:

This ties into the earlier point about predestined failure. The Scabbards are simply not fated to be the ones to fulfill Oden's will. Only a "monster samurai" of the likes of Kozuki Oden can fulfill Oden's will.

Roronoa Zoro and Enma
When Zoro prepares his Hiryuu Kaen, Kaido immediately takes notice of Enma and we see a closeup of Kaido's face with fear evident:

Kaido then comments that he senses Oden's presence in Zoro's sword:

Might Zoro be the "monster samurai" that is fated to fulfill Oden's will? It seems plausible. Before and after, only one man in the land of Wano was able to tame Enma:

Zoro has now replicated that feat that only Oden could accomplish:
(He may have not yet fully mastered it, but he's capable of adequately using the blade without turning into a husk).

Accomplishing a task that only Oden was able to accomplish sets up Zoro to be that "monster Samurai" of the likes of Oden.

Aside from failing to slay Kaido, before his death, Oden was unable to turn Enma Black. Hitetsu suggested that Zoro might accomplish that task Oden left unfulfilled by forging Enma into a Kokuto:

The set up to blacken Enma when Oden was unable to foreshadows that Zoro will surpass Oden. If Zoro is to surpass Oden by making Enma Black, then he seems to be best positioned to fulfill Oden's will. A "monster samurai" even beyond the likes of Kozuki Oden.

Predictions
If I'm right that Zoro is the "monster samurai" that shall fulfill Oden's will, then I would expect the following to happen:
  • During the battle, Kaido would praise Zoro specifically (separately from praise given to the other Supernova)
  • During the battle, Kaido would explicitly acknowledge Zoro as a samurai on par with Oden
  • During the battle, Kaido would express joy in combat against Zoro and hope for him. That if it is Zoro, perhaps he could do it.

Interlude: P0ll
There are a few questions for the p0ll:
  1. Do you agree that Oden's Will is to Slay Kaido and Open Wano's Borders?
  2. Do you agree that Enma (& Zoro) inherited Oden's will to Slay Kaido?
  3. Do you agree that Zoro is the "monster samurai" that shall fulfill Oden's will?


Summary
A summary of my arguments above from all of the above are:
  • Oden's will is to Slay Kaido and Open Wano's Borders
  • The Scabbards and Enma (and by extension Zoro) inherited Oden's will
    • This is why Kaido saw the visage of Kozuki Oden when the Scabbards attacked him
    • This is why Kaido felt Oden's presence in Zoro's sword
  • The Scabbards were predestined for failure and were left unable to fulfill Oden's will
  • Only a "monster samurai" of the likes of Oden could fulfill his will
    • Zoro is that "monster samurai"


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Broo this was top tier thread, really enjoyed reading it 🐧
 
#38
Common sense tells you Oda will never give the major spotlight to anyone but Luffy. Especially not the first fucking Yonko to fall in the series at the hands of the protagonist, when Oda has been building up to this for 20 years. :rolaugh:
Oh god not this again. Which part of your brajn doesnt understand that killing Kaidou doesnt equal defeating him.
 
#39
Someone may want to tell oda that.
Oden's son himself asked Luffy to beat Kaido for him, Luffy agreed. Kinemon asked Luffy to carry Wano on his shoulders, and do what him and the Scabbards could not do. Luffy agreed. Kaido heralded Luffy as one of the few people in the World who can truly fight against him. Oden was in that panel. Ashura directly compared Luffy to Oden when he saw him use Conqueror's Haki. Chapter 1000 was an entire chapter dedicated to Yamato reminiscing about how she believed Ace was going to be the one to take her father down, but she was mistaken, and it was in fact Luffy who was going to accomplish that by carrying on the Promise Ace made to her. Fulfilling promises is a major theme of One Piece. The list is as long as my arm.

I'm pretty sure Oda knows.

Oh god not this again. Which part of your brajn doesnt understand that killing Kaidou doesnt equal defeating him.
Ah yes... Luffy is going to "beat Kaido", then Kaido is going to get back up (But somehow still be defeated), and then Zoro is going to kill him.
 
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