"Yooo, miss me?" Ren called out lightly as he stepped onto the familiar grounds of Onigashima.
Yamato stood a short distance away, her small frame stiff and unmoving. She did not run toward him this time. She simply looked at him, eyes searching his face for the answer she already feared.
"So… my father lost?" she asked quietly.
Ren's playful expression faded. He sighed and nodded. "Yes."
Yamato said nothing after that. Her face dipped into shadow, long bangs hiding her eyes. But Ren could see it—the silent tears slipping down her cheeks and falling to the stone floor.
"Hey," he said quickly, stepping closer. "I didn't kill him, you know. He's just unconscious. Once he wakes up, I'll have a chat with him. I promise I won't kill him."
He had faced emperors and tyrants without hesitation, yet seeing an eight-year-old girl cry made his chest tighten painfully. For the first time that day, he felt like the villain in someone's story.
Yamato wiped her tears roughly with her sleeve. "So… what about me?" she asked, her voice wavering despite her attempt to sound strong.
Ren smiled gently. "Well, I'd be bored alone in the castle. How about keeping me company and watching Pokémon?"
Yamato sniffed before letting out a small chuckle. "Fine. But can you leave my dad?"
Ren shook his head. "Nope. I want him to join me eventually. So I'm going to have a proper talk with him."
Yamato looked confused. "Join you?"
Ren's eyes sharpened slightly. While beating—no, teaching—Kaido, he had felt something. Beneath the drunken façade Kaido still had fire. He wasn't the hollow beast king who wanted death. He was a warrior craving purpose.
"If he stays in Wano," Ren continued thoughtfully, "he can protect it. And if one day you want to travel the seas… it'll be easier knowing someone strong is guarding home."
Yamato stared at him suspiciously. "You're thinking something weird again."
Ren laughed. "Maybe."
"So what are we doing now?" she asked, folding her arms.
Ren's smile widened. "Come with me."
He grabbed her gently and carried her outside. In a flash of light, he shifted into his Beast Form, adjusting his size so Yamato could comfortably sit on his back.
An orange-red and silver-white Kitsune stood before her, majestic and warm. "Hop on," Ren said, his voice echoing softly even in this form.
Yamato's eyes widened with awe. She climbed onto his back carefully, her fingers sinking into his smooth fur. It was unbelievably soft and radiated a comforting warmth. One of his tails wrapped around her waist protectively.
Ren leapt onto a flame cloud and soared into the sky.
Yamato gasped as the wind rushed past her face. This was her first time leaving Onigashima. Her world had always been confined to stone walls and iron chains. Now the entire expanse of Wano stretched beneath her.
They flew over villages and farmlands. Samurai and farmers worked tirelessly to restore what had been destroyed. As they passed overhead, Ren subtly used telekinesis to lift heavy debris, straighten irrigation channels, and move fallen timber.
Down below, people stopped and stared.
Dark clouds gathered at his command as he used weather manipulation to summon rain. Gentle showers fell over cracked earth, soaking into soil that had long forgotten moisture.
Yamato leaned forward excitedly. "You're helping everyone!"
Ren felt it then—a strange connection beneath his paws, as though the land itself was responding to him. Acting on instinct, he shifted again.
His form changed into the Solar Kitsune. His fur became blazing orange-red, flames dancing across his body like living sunlight. Yet Yamato felt no burn, only warmth.
"Wow! Your fur is on fire, but it doesn't burn me. It feels warm!" she exclaimed.
Ren laughed. "Good. I'd hate to explain that."
He ascended higher into the clouds. From below, villagers shielded their eyes as they looked up at the radiant figure in the sky.
Small sparks began to fall from his flaming fur, drifting like fireflies.
Wherever they touched the earth, green sprouted instantly. Grass spread in lush waves. Tiny saplings shot upward into young trees. Flowers bloomed in vibrant colors.
"It's a miracle!" someone shouted.
"The land is healing!"
"Our king is blessing Wano!"
People began kneeling in the streets. Some wept openly. Others laughed in disbelief. Children pointed upward excitedly.
Yamato's eyes sparkled as she watched it all. "They're cheering for you!"
Ren tilted slightly, allowing his voice to carry downward. "This is Yamato!" he called. "She's part of Wano's future too!"
Below, villagers waved.
"Princess Yamato!"
"Thank you!"
Yamato froze, overwhelmed. No one had ever cheered for her before. She waved shyly from Ren's back.
They flew across desolate regions, spreading greenery and summoning rain to nourish the newborn life. Laughter echoed through the valleys as hope returned to Wano not just as a promise—but as visible change.
After hours of flying, they began heading back toward the Shogun Castle.
Suddenly, Yamato tugged at his fur. "Ren, go down there. There's something."
Ren blinked. "I don't see anything."
"Please," she insisted. "I feel like something's calling me."
Ren descended into a quiet forest clearing. Yamato jumped down and began searching, moving instinctively toward a cluster of roots.
Ren extended his observation Haki and telekinesis, scanning the area carefully. Hidden beneath twisted roots lay a white Devil Fruit.
His eyes widened slightly.
He recognized it immediately. It was the same fruit Yamato had eaten in another timeline—the Okuchi no Makami, the guardian deity of Wano.
"Well, Yamato," Ren said calmly, lifting the fruit and holding it out to her. "It's a Devil Fruit. If you eat it, you'll lose the ability to swim. But you'll gain the power to transform into Okuchi no Makami—the Guardian of Wano."
Yamato stared at it.
"Devil Fruits choose their users," Ren continued softly. "If you want it, you can eat it. Your decision."
Yamato held the fruit carefully, staring at its swirling patterns. "Guardian… of Wano?" she whispered.
She looked back toward the distant capital where people had just cheered her name. She thought about her father. She thought about Oden. She thought about Ren's promise.
"If I eat this," she said slowly, "I can protect Wano too?"
Ren nodded. "Yes."
"And I won't be useless?"
"You were never useless," Ren said firmly. "But this would make you stronger."
Yamato hesitated only a moment longer. Then her expression hardened with resolve.
"I want to protect Wano," she declared. "And I want to stand beside you."
Without further doubt, she took a bite.
Her face scrunched instantly. "It tastes horrible!"
Ren burst out laughing. "That's normal."
A surge of energy exploded outward from her body. Wind spiraled around the clearing as white light enveloped her form. Ren stepped back slightly, watching carefully.
Yamato gasped as power coursed through her veins. Snow-like particles shimmered in the air around her. Slowly, ethereal wolf-like features manifested—horns gleaming brighter, white fur flowing like mist.
She stood taller, stronger, radiant.
Ren smiled proudly. "Welcome, Guardian of Wano."
Yamato looked at her paws in awe before breaking into a wide grin. "Ren… I feel amazing!"
The forest seemed to respond to her presence, the air calmer, purer.
For the first time in her life, Yamato did not feel like a prisoner.
She felt chosen.