 Hello, my Nakamitachi, this is Joygirl, and I want to discuss the legend of Kintaro, and why I think closely examining this legend will give us hints surrounding Kaito's backstory. Kaito's backstory, personally, for me, is one of the most highly anticipated backstories, not just as a villain, but as a character in general. One of the reasons for this is because, if you guys know, my experience reading One Piece only started less than two years ago, and I caught up on the manga just as the worst-generation trio made an appearance at the beginning of the Onigashima raid. So for me, Kaito's backstory will be the first backstory of a major character that I will be reading as it gets revealed for everyone else, which makes it fun for me to speculate along with everyone else as to what Kaito's backstory might entail. So in this video, we'll be discussing exactly that Kaito's backstory, and I'll be speculating on the topic using an existing legendary tale, and that is the tale of Kintaro, who is a Japanese folklore hero known for his superhuman strength. And the legend of Kintaro is something that I brought up during the recent stream with Randy Troy, where he suggested that this might make for a fun and interesting video discussion. And if you didn't get a chance to watch us live, then the VOD is up on the channel, so you can check that out to see our discussion on Kaito as well as some other Wano-related topics. But as for this video, I think that looking into the legend of Kintaro will really shed some light as to what we could be seeing from Kaito's backstory. Because it really seems like there are a lot of elements to Kintaro's tale, which seems to have inspired Oda in the development of Kaito's character. Starting with the most obvious one, which is his name, Kintaro during the Edo period was also commonly referred to as Kaito Maru. And in the depictions of Kintaro or Kaito Maru, he's often portrayed to be wrestling with a koi fish, and so we can easily draw connections there to Kaito's Uwa Uwa no Mi, due to the other Chinese legend of the koi fish being able to transform into a dragon after swimming upstream and being able to pass over the waterfall of the Yellow Sea. And so the koi fish is actually one of the varieties of the koi fish family, so there seems to be another connection there between Kaito and Kintaro there too. If we look at the birth of Kintaro, there are a few different versions regarding his parents. Some say that he was the son of a princess or the daughter of a wealthy man. Some say that he was brought up by his mother alone, who had to flee after his samurai father had a fight with his uncle. Some say that his mother abandoned him in the wild and as a result he was brought up by a mountain witch. And one version, which is the interpretation which I think is most pertinent to our discussion, is that Kintaro was born to a mountain witch who was impregnated by a red dragon who lives in the sky, and that the dragon actually impregnated the witch through a thunderclap. Which is another link we can make to Kaito because his attack is named the Thunderclap or according to some English translations, the thunderclap. Moving on from his birth, Kintaro is known to have grown up in the wild, befriending animals as well as taming them with his strength. And this seems to have some connections to Kaito in the sense that the beast pirates are made up of Zawa and Devil Fruit holders, but for me it also makes me wonder whether this is something that we'll get to see from Kaito's backstory and his childhood. I believe that Kaito will be revealed to have grown up in the wild, wrestling, defeating, and taming the wild animals, almost similar to Luffy's childhood as part of Garb's tough training, but in Kaito's case, to the extent that he could even understand and communicate with the animals, which is something that Kintaro is said to have been able to do. For Kaito, this could be how he gained his epithet. The world's strongest creature might not solely relate to his race. I know there are still speculations about Kaito not being human, hence being the strongest creature, but looking at these comparisons, I think that this epithet could have been given to him because it's something that he has earned and proven. Kaito is acknowledged as the world's strongest creature as a result of fighting and taming actual wild creatures, hundreds and hundreds of creatures, hence Kaito of a hundred beasts. And this could be why we have the beast pirates today. Kaito is amassing an army full of zoan devil fruit users. Is Kaito trying to recreate his childhood? It makes sense that Kaito is surrounding himself with beasts because this is the only life he's ever known. First, quite literally, having grown up in the wild surrounded by animals, and then metaphorically, when he became a part of the Rocks Pirates, a group of overwhelming and notoriously strong pirates. Kaito's time with the Rocks Pirates is something that we can link back to the Kintaro legend again. Kintaro later went to serve as a retainer for the samurai Minamoto no Yori Mitsu and became the youngest member of the samurai Shinteno, which translates to the Four Braves. This period of Kintaro's life as a retainer and as a member of the Four Braves could be reflected in Kaito as a member of the Rocks Pirates. Like Kintaro, Kaito became the youngest member of the crew, serving as an apprentice. And if the Rocks Pirates had their own version of the Four Braves, then Kaito could have been a commanding officer along with a combination of the other Rocks Pirates members, the most likely other candidates being Whitebeard, Big Mom, and Shiki. Kaito isn't the only character we could apply the Kintaro legend to. It could also work well with Yamato having grown up with beasts as part of Kaito's crew and as Kaito's son. And if we think again to the Shinteno, Yamato could be part of this group of four along with Kaito's three calamities, as Yamato is arguably the strongest along with the lead performers within the Yonkers crew. And Sentomaru also has a clear connection through his design, which seems to have been very closely modelled after Kintaro. But for now, we'll leave it to speculations for Kaito and what we may see from his backstory, which brings us to the next part of Kaito's backstory, which is that of his time within the Rocks Pirates. I believe that much of Kaito's current personality and wishes was shaped during his time under Rocks Dizabek. His former captain was a figure whom Kaito looked up to and admired greatly. Randy Troy recently made a video about Kaito and Rocks' backstory that I largely agree with, a relationship almost like that of a surrogate father and son. And so Zabeck's death and the ensuing cover-up of Zabeck's entire existence was felt deeply by Kaito. And I believe that is what motivates Kaito now. If we examine Kaito's actions and dialogue, this is what we know about Kaito. Firstly, he wants to die. He says that he wants to start the greatest war the world has ever seen. For this purpose, he's amassing a great army and he's declared his intentions to find the ancient weapons and to go after the One Piece. But an interesting point is that Kaito doesn't necessarily say that he wants to become Pirate King. Big Mom has made her intentions to become Pirate King known, but Kaito has never expressed such an objective. So what does this suggest? Finding the One Piece, instigating the greatest war the planet has ever seen and attempting suicide by jumping off a sky island. Something that all of these have in common is that all of these lead to infamy. But even more so than that, these are all ways to guarantee that Kaito will be remembered. Kaito dying whilst fulfilling any of these will ensure that his name will be forever etched into history. Becoming a legendary and infamous figure isn't enough. Kaito wants to make sure that he won't be forgotten. Because Roxy Zabeck, whilst being a legendary and infamous figure during his time, is also an individual who has since been forgotten. Zabeck's place in history has essentially disappeared in the decades since his death, with many of the younger Marines now unaware of who this legendary figure was. No one outside of those who had personal connections with Zabeck are aware of this legend. And as time passes, the people who are aware of Zabeck's tale will grow old and will pass on one by one and soon his place in history will be completely forgotten. And when that time comes, not a single soul will remember the name Roxy Zabeck. I believe Kaito's motivation for all of his actions is to ensure that his name doesn't suffer the same fate as his late captain. Kaito wants to ensure that his existence will be remembered. And if we look at it from this angle, I think we can understand a lot of his previous actions in this light. Obtaining the One Piece ensures that the name Kaito will forever have a place in the history books. Looking at Roger as an example, the pirate king who conquered the seas and found the One Piece is a tale which will be forever passed on for generations to come. Kaito going to Marineford could have been to seek death in the greatest war we've seen in the series. A legendary unforgettable death that might be achieved, broadcasted to the whole world, leaving no room for his death to be overlooked or covered up. Kaito's badass but also somewhat strange introduction would also make sense. I personally found it strange that an antagonist as big as Kaito was introduced to us in the manner that he was. Despite his fearsome epithet and status as a Yonko, Kaito wasn't portrayed to be hostile towards those in attendance during his attempt at suicide by jumping from a sky island. And the explanation that I have for Kaito's lack of hostility or animosity towards them is that he actually wanted them there. He wanted an audience. It wouldn't be enough for Kaito to achieve death through rare legendary means. He needed people around to witness and then spread this legendary tale. Similarly, Kaito's words to Odin can be understood in the same light. When the Yonko said that they would be talking of Odin for years to come, that he died a spectacular death. Kaito is envious of Odin's timeless death, a legend which will continue to be told through time. So if we follow this line of reasoning, it also explains why Kaito is after the ancient weapons and instigating this great war. In his own words, the greatest war the planet has ever seen with emphasis on the word planet. Kaito has this in mind to ensure that this cannot be an event that can be covered up in history unlike the events at God Valley and unlike the name Rocks Deezerbeck. Kaito wants his story to be remembered much in the same way that Roger, Whitebeard and Odin have persevered. Figures whose legend will live on until the end of time. Because when does a man die? It's when he's forgotten. Let me know what you think by leaving a comment below. Please like and share the video to help the channel. And please don't forget to subscribe for more discussions like this. Thank you to our patrons, your support is always so immensely appreciated. This is Joygirl and I'll see you again soon.