The recent chapter with Sanji vs. Queen and all of Sanji's plotlines being resolved pretty concisely has me thinking about several Zoro plotlines that still have yet to receive closure.
To start with the obvious:
1. Is there actually a Kaido/Zoro plotline that will play out?
I'm not saying I subscribe to the ZKK theory, but it's hard to deny that there are several connections between Zoro and Kaido that have yet to be concluded. First, Kaido famously exclaimed that "there will never be a samurai as great as Oden." As soon as I read that line, I immediately thought that we were gonna have to get a scene where Kaido recognizes Zoro as a samurai greater than Oden. However, as great as Zoro's rooftop feats were, he still fell short of getting those words out of Kaido.
Whether or not this has to be something explicitly acknowledged by Kaido is debatable, as most people logically feel that Zoro forging Enma into a black blade would signal that he surpassed Oden. I don't disagree with that. However, I feel like this would have the most impact if it happened during Wano and in the presence of Kaido. Kaido seems to be so obsessed with Oden to the point that even being in front of Enma spooked him. I feel like it would be a missed opportunity if Oda didn't have Kaido seeing the emergence of a swordsman even mightier than the one who haunted him for 20 years.
Furthermore, the dialogue between Zoro and Queen at the start of the raid presents an interesting case. As we all have experienced, Oda tends to not forget about predictions and exclamations that characters make. It's even more strange when you examine the nature of Zoro's statement that he "came here to cut down Kaido." Not WE came here to cut down Kaido. Not LUFFY came here to cut down Kaido, BUT "I" came here to cut down Kaido. I don't remember Zoro ever being so intense about wanting to defeat a main villain. Sure, he showed interest in Crocodile and Lucci and even Enel to an extent, but not to the point that he said he would be the one defeating them. Is there some hidden connection between Zoro and Kaido that has yet to be revealed? This leads directly into the second plotline:
2. What's up with Zoro's backstory?
After chapter 1033, we finally had Oda drop all the info from that one SBS question into the actual manga. However, the recent SBS that came out indicated that Oda plans to keep at least some parts of the Shimotsuki lore stuff away from the manga. Despite that, I still expect Oda to give us at least something more regarding Zoro's backstory/lineage because if I'm being honest it would feel pretty lame to leave Wano with the same info that was already explained in an SBS. My main question to you is: will Oda use Yamato as a plot device through which we will gain additional info on Zoro's backstory/lineage?
I have a lot more to say but this thread is already turning into an essay, so I'm just gonna ask for your thoughts and opinions and add onto them. How do you see Oda handling these elements? Is there a way for Zoro to face Kaido again, and will Zoro's lineage be made clear by the end of Wano? If so, does Yamato play a role in executing that?
