On the shore of Warship Island, as he watched the warship and pirate ship gradually sail farther away,
Captain John lowered his gaze back to the white Devil Fruit in Yemu's hand and said,
"So, are you going to hand that Devil Fruit over to me yourself, or do I have to take it?"
Then, as if he felt no attachment to it at all, Yemu tossed the Devil Fruit straight to him.
Captain John looked at the fruit in his hand and was briefly stunned. It was almost hard to believe he'd gotten it that easily. Even so, he didn't hesitate in the slightest. After feeling it over and confirming there was no problem, he swallowed it in one bite.
The rarity listed in the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia only meant something to ordinary people. A great pirate like Captain John had long since read the encyclopedia, which was why he had recognized the fruit even from that distance.
Still, even a powerhouse like him couldn't stomach the taste of a Devil Fruit. He retched a few times before recovering, then eagerly began sensing the changes in his body.
Before the naked eye, his body began bubbling up with white clouds as soft-looking as cotton candy.
It was as if he had already thought through how to use this Devil Fruit.
Even though he had only just eaten it, John's control over the fruit had already reached an astonishing level. Under his command, the clouds began to transform.
Ice, snow, lightning, rain, fog.
Captain John played with those shifting clouds like a child with a new toy.
Seeing that, Yemu was reminded of how excited he had been when he first obtained the Mera Mera no Mi.
But...
"I thought someone like you, a man from the same era as Rocks and Whitebeard, would look down on Devil Fruit powers."
"Rocks... I haven't heard that name in a long time."
Yemu's voice pulled John back to himself. A flicker of surprise passed through his eyes as he looked at the clouds drifting around him.
"But you're wrong. In any era, Devil Fruits are highly sought after, let alone a Logia-type this rare."
It seemed eating the Kumo Kumo no Mi had put John in an especially good mood. As if suddenly thinking of something, he said,
"Have you ever heard this saying?"
"???"
"Every one of us, every living thing, has its future limits set from the moment we're born. That power is locked into our bloodline."
As he spoke, John glanced at his own body.
"At first I didn't believe it. But as I've grown older, I've started to feel that limit exists. Do you think I really wanted to ally myself with two idiots like Silver Axe and Ochoku? I had no choice. Compared to natural-born monsters like Shiki, Newgate, and Linlin, the three of us are practically ordinary people. If we hadn't joined forces, the Marines and the World Government would have wiped us out long ago."
"There are limits to being human, but the power of a Devil Fruit is one way to break through them. I've always wanted to find a Devil Fruit that suited me. Unfortunately, the powerful ones were either eaten already or had vanished without a trace. But I'm lucky. Today, I happened to run into the Kumo Kumo no Mi."
"The power of a Logia is truly incredible. I can already feel the strength surging up!"
John sighed in admiration. Then he looked at Yemu, then at the island in front of them, and said,
"Come to think of it, I really should thank you. I thought this would be more troublesome. Well then, I'll be on my way. Perhaps we'll meet again out at sea someday."
But as soon as he finished, Yemu said calmly,
"You're leaving already?"
"!"
John froze for a moment, then looked at Yemu with interest.
"Oh? Are you saying you want to keep me here?"
Yemu shook his head and looked at John with complete confidence.
"It's not that I want to keep you here. It's that you definitely won't be leaving."
John frowned.
"Why?"
"It's simple. You said it yourself just now. The power of a Devil Fruit is one way to break through your limits. So tell me, how many times do you think I've already broken mine..."
The moment those words fell, Yemu's body changed instantly.
For the first time, the ever-calm John was truly shocked, his eyes going wide.
Reflected in his pupils was a man whose body was engulfed in blazing fire on one side, while the other gave off a scorching red glow.
"So..."
With the powers of two Devil Fruits erupting from his body at the same time, Yemu looked at the stunned John and asked,
"Do you still want to leave now? The method to wield two Devil Fruit abilities is right in front of you..."
"You... what kind of monster are you?"
John could no longer suppress his shock. His voice was urgent, anxious, and excited all at once.
"Eating two Devil Fruits? I've never heard of anything like that. How did you do it? Tell me!"
"You want to know?"
Seeing that John had taken the bait, Yemu's own excitement rose as well. He drew the twin swords at his waist.
"Then beat me first. Let me see just how strong a powerhouse from the previous era really is!"
...
As the Twin Goddesses and the warship sped away at full speed, in just five minutes both ships had already put a great distance between themselves and Warship Island.
Seeing they were far enough away, Tiger, who was controlling the Twin Goddesses, brought the ship to a stop and shouted through the Den Den Mushi,
"That's enough. This distance should be safe! We'll wait here for the captain to come back!"
After stopping the ship, Tiger leaped over to the warship.
On the warship's deck, Ayala was treating the injuries of the wounded Lohart Tribe members, while everyone else watched Warship Island in the dark night with worried eyes.
Tiger lowered his head and looked at his watch.
Five minutes left!
"Teacher Tiger, Yemu-big brother will be okay, right?"
As Tiger came aboard, Erza looked up at him with an anxious little face and asked. Flare beside her looked just as worried. Marco's words before they left had clearly shaken her badly.
A Marine bounty couldn't fully represent someone's strength, but the gap between 2.38 billion Belly and 940 million Belly still said a great deal.
Truthfully, Tiger was tense himself at that moment, but he still reassured them,
"Don't worry. You know the captain. If he didn't have confidence, he wouldn't put himself in danger. Besides, he has a Logia-type Devil Fruit. Even if the island explodes, he can still get out."
But just as Tiger finished speaking, a deafening roar shook the air.
Visible to the naked eye, it was as though some force was surging up from beneath distant Warship Island. The whole land began to churn, followed by towering blasts of dust and magma shooting skyward.
Tiger checked his watch again, then turned to the tightly bound Vulture at his side.
"What's going on? Wasn't there still time left?"
"Well... the Power Rock is extremely unstable. The fight between those two may have damaged the protective layer around it, causing the explosion to happen early..."
Instantly, everyone tensed up.
At that moment, Enel, sensing the disturbance in the distance, said,
"Don't worry. Yemu's still fine for now..."
And at that very moment, with dust and magma raining down from the sky like a volcanic eruption, in a world swallowed by darkness, the figures of two men were weaving through it.