The Gum-Gum Fruit!
He was actually after this Devil Fruit!
In that instant, Shanks felt his heart sink.
However, it wasn't strange that Roa wanted this fruit. After all, he had reached Laugh Tale with them and also learned the complete truth of the world. He naturally knew what the Gum-Gum Fruit represented. This fruit was one of the few Devil Fruits in the world that could be given the name of a god!
What truly shocked Shanks was: how did Roa know he had obtained that fruit? Only they and the World Government should know about this. Moreover, it was an absolute secret within the World Government. Given Roa's relationship with the World Government, how could he possibly know? Even if his intelligence network was extremely resourceful, even if Morgans was his subordinate, it still didn't make sense!
But dwelling on these matters was useless now. The important thing now was: what should they do next!
"You stole that fruit, didn't you, Shanks?"
Roa said with interest, "It should have been a development like destiny that you, who inherited Roger's straw hat, obtained that fruit."
"But you didn't eat it. Did you reject it, or did it reject you? Where is that fruit, which has been searching for Joy Boy for eight hundred years, now?"
"..."
Shanks was speechless.
Yes, did he reject the fruit, or did the fruit reject him?
Robin, too, was lost in thought. Was everything truly a matter of fate? Fate allowed her to receive that fruit from Shanks' hands, but was her inner apprehension and hesitation also destined? And now, was Roa's appearance here also the manipulation of fate in the shadows?
"Is it stored somewhere, or has someone eaten it? Come on, Shanks," Roa's smile widened, "Answer me."
It didn't matter who ate it. He could just capture them and toss them to Judge to try and replicate it. Even if it couldn't be replicated, didn't he still have the Dark-Dark Fruit? If everything truly was fate, then perhaps Teach would eventually find the Dark-Dark Fruit.
"..."
Shanks was silent for a moment, then looked up and calmly asked, "Is this a trade, Roa?"
"Is that how you see it? Seriously, didn't I tell you during our call before? What 'face' do you people have?"
Roa smiled helplessly, "However, strictly speaking, it is, because if you refuse..."
Snap.
He raised his hand and lightly snapped his fingers.
Rumble!
Immediately, the ground beneath their feet began to shake. Strictly speaking, the entire Amazon Lily started to tremble violently. A sudden earthquake struck the island.
"See, if you refuse, this country will suffer."
"Roa!"
Black and crimson lightning instantly sparked on Shanks' body, and his hand was already resting on the hilt of his beloved sword at his waist.
"Are you sure?"
Roa raised the corner of his mouth, "If you draw your sword, it won't be easy to put it back."
Shanks' hand gripping the sword suddenly stiffened. Whether he could defeat this bastard was uncertain, but with his terrifying ability, destroying this island shouldn't take more than a few seconds.
"Roa!"
At this moment, Gloriosa pleaded faintly, "Please spare this country, just for the sake of how I looked after you back then!"
Tears even streamed down her aged face. This country had committed no wrong and had never offended the Calamity Company. There was no need to "spare" them. But in the world of pirates, there wasn't much room for reason. When the strong raise their butcher's knife, the weak can only beg for mercy.
"Sigh."
Roa looked at his dear aunt and couldn't help but sigh softly. It had to be said that Aunt Gloriosa had treated him quite well back on Hachinosu Island. Even Roa's heart couldn't help but soften a little at this moment. "Aunt Gloriosa, since you put it that way, I'm not an actual devil,"
"How about this: even if they don't hand the fruit over to me, I'll only destroy three-quarters of Amazon Lily?"
Now, wasn't that generous? One rarely found a 25% discount when buying groceries. Oh well, today was Benevolent Roa Day.
Gloriosa's small body visibly stiffened, and then an expression that was neither a cry nor a laugh appeared on her face.
Roa...
Hancock's body instantly tensed up, and her fists were clenched. She wanted nothing more than to rush forward and kick this scum's head off right now! How far was this bastard going to mock them? She almost lunged out, but thankfully Shakky quickly grabbed her hand. Now was not the time for impulse! Otherwise, Amazon Lily would truly be doomed.
"Roa, am I to understand," Rayleigh spoke in a deep voice, "that as long as you get that fruit, you won't make a move on this country again?"
"Hmm, is that so?"
Roa tilted his head, feigning confusion. It must be said that for someone who could clearly see the emotions of others, the constantly changing psychology of these people was truly amusing.
"Roa,"
Robin, Roger's daughter and the current captain of the Kuja Pirates, spoke solemnly, "We must have a definitive answer!"
"Really,"
Roa looked at Robin and shook his head helplessly, "People who are too serious are often disliked, but that's a different story when they have a face like yours, Robin."
"Hmm, it's a good thing you didn't inherit Roger's looks."
"Who I look like is none of your business!"
Robin said indifferently, "Also, I need your definite answer."
"It's very relevant, though."
Roa shrugged, "My answer is: fine, as long as you give me that fruit, I won't destroy this country."
Hearing this, Robin genuinely breathed a sigh of relief. Even a scumbag like Roa shouldn't easily go back on his word.
"So, the deal is struck, right?"
Loki's impatient voice, accompanied by the gushing airflow from his mouth, instantly made the entire palace smoky and foul. "Then where is that fruit now? Hurry up and bring it out!"
Roa's mouth twitched slightly. This guy wasn't very hygienic. As evidence, Robin, who had made up her mind, originally wanted to take a deep breath. But in the next second, she gagged slightly with disgust.
Then, Robin turned back and looked at Shanks and Rayleigh. Although she had made her decision, she still needed their approval.
Shanks and Rayleigh both nodded at her simultaneously. Was there anything left to hesitate about now? After all, while the Gum-Gum Fruit was important, it only truly showed its power after awakening. And for eight hundred years, no one but Joy Boy had been able to awaken that fruit.
More importantly, Roa was already an ability user, so even if he got the fruit, he couldn't eat it himself. Looking at the current situation, Roa was likely going to give this fruit to Loki. Given that guy's strength and potential, it wasn't that he was unworthy of the Gum-Gum Fruit. However, Loki, who was subservient to Roa, probably wouldn't be able to awaken the Gum-Gum Fruit either.
Still, handing this fruit over to Roa was probably just the beginning!
Robin turned back, her beautiful, moving eyes fixed on Roa.
"That fruit is right here with me."
"Eh?"
Roa was genuinely startled. "It's actually in your possession?"
"Interesting. Roger entrusted his hat to Shanks, but Shanks decided to entrust this fruit to you."
"And the most interesting thing is that you still haven't eaten that fruit. Are you waiting for someone, Robin? Are you also thinking of entrusting everything to someone?"
Entrust it to whom? The captain of the Straw Hat Pirates in this world was Straw Hat Shanks.
"Of course, you should entrust it to me!"
Loki impatiently craned his neck forward, his head practically squeezing into the palace. "Hahaha! Hey, woman, hurry up and bring out that fruit!"
Robin paused slightly. In the next second, under Roa's surprised gaze, she walked towards a corner of the palace.
"Eh?"
Roa blinked in confusion, watching as Robin took a purple Devil Fruit from a storage cabinet in the corner of the palace.
"EH!!"
Bege, who had been standing quietly aside, couldn't help but gasp. "It was right here!!"
"Hahahaha!"
Roa couldn't help but burst into laughter. "There's actually such a thing?"
It was actually stored right here in this palace? Meaning it was near him all along? Was this also fate? Haha.
"I hope you keep your promise."
Robin directly tossed the fruit to Roa. Roa caught it with a raised hand and examined it briefly. It was incredibly plain. Compared to the cool exterior of other top-tier Devil Fruits, it could only be described as unremarkable. It was hard to imagine that this fruit was a divine-level Devil Fruit, one of the few in history.
That made sense. Before awakening, it was just the simple, unpretentious Gum-Gum Fruit.
"Boss!"
Loki was already urging impatiently.
"Hmph, you little glutton."
Roa smiled, tossing the fruit in his hand. "Open up."
"Ah!"
Loki opened his mouth as wide as he could, wider than he ever had in his life. Roa casually tossed the fruit. This fruit, which bore the name of the Sun God, which even the former captain Rocks sought, and was thus called a Divine Devil Fruit, traced a perfect parabola in the air and lightly landed in Loki's mouth.
"Gulp!"
Loki instantly closed his mouth, swallowing the fruit without chewing, as if afraid someone would snatch it from him.
Rayleigh sighed inwardly at the sight. Could it be that the one Joy Boy was waiting for was truly this man, Roa? The Sea King, Princess Shirahoshi, was already in his hands. Wano Country, where Pluton was buried, had been occupied by his ally Kaido decades ago, and Pluton would eventually fall into his hands. The Grand Treasure of Laugh Tale had long since been taken by him. And now, even the Gum-Gum Fruit, which hosted the power of the Sun God Nika, had been eaten by his subordinate.
Everything Joy Boy left behind had been obtained by him! If Roa wasn't Joy Boy's heir, who was?
And the most crucial thing was that Roa was truly capable of achieving what Joy Boy couldn't back then; he was genuinely capable of defeating Imu!
However, Roa didn't just inherit Joy Boy's legacy; he also inherited Imu's ruthlessness. No, Imu wasn't even as purely ruthless as he was. Roa seemed to have been born to bring disaster to this world.
While Rayleigh's mind was churning, Roa was simply watching Loki with interest. He, of course, could also have eaten the Gum-Gum Fruit, but there was no need; it was too "main character."
"Loki, how is it?"
"Oh!"
Loki suddenly let out a strange laugh. "Hahaha! It's here, it's here! The feeling is surging!"
As he spoke, Loki's massive body began to retreat. The enormous head deeply embedded in the palace was also pulled back. Probably because it was so tightly fitted, the entire palace creaked as he pulled.
Then, his head began to deform. His head was being elongated, and his neck visibly became long and thin.
"Whoa."
Roa raised an eyebrow slightly. His body had completely turned into rubber. In fact, even unawakened, the Gum-Gum Fruit was quite special compared to other Paramecia Devil Fruits. Like Logia's elemental transformation, the user's body already maintained the properties of rubber without the need for the ability user to actively activate the power.
With a loud thud, Loki pulled his head out of the palace.
"Haha! What a strange feeling!"
Outside the palace, beneath the mountain wall, Loki was excitedly stretching his body. Any part of his body could be easily stretched and deformed with a light pull.
Roa released the two girls in his arms, stepped down from the throne, and slowly walked toward the gap that Loki had knocked open. He walked past Robin and the others as if nothing had happened. Just this action alone made Shanks, Robin, and the others tense up, their hands instinctively gripping the weapons they carried.
But Roa did nothing, completely ignoring them. He merely walked quietly to the edge of the huge gap, looking down at the incredibly excited Loki below.
"Boss! Look at this!"
Loki laughed loudly and suddenly punched forcefully towards the sky. His right fist suddenly stretched out like a whip, and the air immediately created shockwaves with each punch as his fist instantly reached several hundred meters into the sky.
"My body is super interesting, hey! Hahaha! This ability is so fun!"
Roa's mouth curved slightly. This boy was truly easily satisfied. Where was the strength in an unawakened, un-geared Gum-Gum Fruit?
"Is this the legendary Devil Fruit of Joy Boy?"
Bege, who had followed Roa's steps, was equally curious, watching Loki continuously mess with his body below. Bege raised an eyebrow slightly, "It doesn't look like much, does it?"
From its current performance, it was just turning the body into rubber.
"That's because it hasn't awakened yet."
Roa said calmly. Although it would still be rubber after awakening, at that time, rubber was just the surface; the true power was the almost arbitrary power he possessed.
"Roa!"
At that moment, Robin's voice came from behind. The woman looked at Roa's tall, lean back with a grave expression. "We've kept our promise and given you the fruit. Don't forget yours."
"Don't worry, I quite like this country,"
Roa said with a smile, without turning his head, "Besides, it's already my property, and I really hate waste."
Behind him, Robin grit her teeth. Sure enough, Roa was still unwilling to let this country go!
"Right,"
Roa turned his head, "Robin, why don't you and the Kuja Pirates come work for me? The same goes for Shanks and Rayleigh."
"Wasn't Roger's dream to completely change this world? Who else besides us can do that now?"
"Stop dreaming, you vile man!"
Hancock, the vice-captain of the Kuja Pirates, gritted her teeth and cursed furiously.
"Are you refusing?"
Roa smiled. "That's a shame."
"It would be a tragedy for the entire era if people like you were to perish here in obscurity."
"Perish? Aren't you being a bit too arrogant, Roa!"
Rayleigh's hand rested on the hilt of his sword at his waist, and black and crimson Haki lightning began to flicker. If Roa didn't use Amazon Lily as a threat, they could certainly fight.
"Arrogant?"
Roa tilted his head. "You're the arrogant one, Rayleigh."
Boom!!
The entire palace, no, the entire island, suddenly began to shake at that moment! A violently surging aura erupted from Roa, simultaneously beginning to shatter the palace and heavily pressing down on everyone. Pirates below the level of a Grand Fleet Commander instantly fainted. Even powerhouses like Beckman and Hancock trembled instantly, and cadres like Lucky Roux and Yasopp went weak in the knees.
"..."
Shanks' expression suddenly changed. This level of Conqueror's Haki! Sure enough, this man Roa had become ridiculously strong!
"Hahaha! Are we fighting?"
Loki's head peered over again. "Perfect time to test out my new ability!"
Shanks slowly exhaled, his eyes regaining their sharpness. "If that's the case, then let's go, Roa!"
"If we were to surrender just because of your strength, why would we have gone to sea in the first place!"
"Exactly!"
Robin's eyes were equally resolute.
"Is that so,"
Roa rubbed his chin, looking slightly troubled. "I'm a little bothered, hey. I really like you guys."
"But, at this point, words seem meaningless. Let's let strength speak."
"Roa!"
Robin said in a low voice, "Don't forget your promise!"
"Relax,"
Roa chuckled, "You guys probably won't be able to push me to that point."
Meaning, if necessary, he would still ruthlessly break his promise and use Amazon Lily to threaten them, right? What a despicable man!
"Alright, let the battle begin."
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