Yamato’s Identification as Oden Explained!

• Encounter with Ulti: Luffy has now freed Yamato, reinforcing their belief that they are the free man that will aid the pirates against Kaido. Yamato says “today is the day when I become Oden”. Ulti is confused by this, as this is the first she’s hearing about Yamato’s “identity crisis”.

• Meeting Momonosuke: Yamato is surprised to be entrusted with Momonosuke by Luffy; why would Luffy trust Kaido’s child, who he met 5 minutes ago, with the leader of the Samurai? However, Yamato remembers that they fit the role “Oden” from the prophecy, and Luffy’s trust follows as a natural consequence.

• Protecting Momonosuke: When Yamato finally catches up to Momonosuke, they say “I used your father’s name earlier, but my other name is Yamato!” From here on, Yamato uses Oden’s name only in the context of opposing Kaido, because they want to fulfill the prophecy. Yamato patiently explains: “Kaido is my father… But don’t worry, I hate him! I told you, I’m Oden, right?” This is also when Yamato realizes that Luffy, the one that Momonosuke brought to Wano, must be the one Oden was waiting for.

• Challenging Kaido: Armed with the knowledge of Luffy’s role in the prophecy, Yamato accepts the role of “Oden”, or the one who helps the pirates take down Kaido. “How can I call myself Oden if I don’t fight for Wano?”… Oden abandoned Wano, but “Oden” is the one who will fight for it. Again, Yamato doesn’t claim to literally be Oden, but is instead using the name.

Yamato is a character that has said many seemingly contradictory things. I feel that people who write them off as being a poorly written, shoehorned character are underestimating Oda, and that it’s worth looking for a way to reconcile these contradictions.

What I’ve presented here is the best I’ve been able to come up with yet, but I’m still missing some critical details, which I’m sure will be fleshed out once we learn more.

*by Roosta