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"I can't believe this…" Obadiah Stane murmured, his voice tight with disbelief. His eyes burned with barely contained excitement as he stared at Rosh. "Shopkeeper… are you saying the Munch-Munch Fruit can even swallow guns?"
His breathing had grown noticeably faster, each breath heavier than the last. This wasn't idle curiosity. This question mattered far too much.
If the Munch-Munch Fruit could consume firearms, then logically, it shouldn't stop there. Guns were only one type of weapon. If they counted, then so would others.
And Rosh had already explained that once a weapon was eaten, the user could transform part of their body into that very weapon. Following that logic to its natural conclusion, a terrifying thought took shape.
Wouldn't the user of the Munch-Munch Fruit become a living arsenal? A walking, humanoid embodiment of war itself?
"Of course it can," Rosh replied without hesitation, nodding decisively. His tone was steady, almost matter-of-fact, as if this were the most natural thing in the world. "The catalog is very clear. The Munch-Munch Fruit can consume anything. Firearms are no exception."
He paused briefly before adding, just as calmly, "And it doesn't stop at guns. Artillery, tanks, even fighter jets can be consumed as well."
*Huff!*
The air rushed out of Obadiah's lungs as if he'd been struck. His chest rose and fell sharply, his breath coming in heavy waves. This wasn't panic or weakness. It was pure, unfiltered exhilaration.
He hadn't just found gold.
He'd uncovered a treasure beyond imagination.
At first, Obadiah had only wanted a stronger body. A steel form to ensure his personal safety, something to protect him in a dangerous world. He had never dreamed that the Munch-Munch Fruit would be this absurdly powerful.
If he truly devoured tanks, aircraft, and heavy weapons… then what would he become?
A man?
No.
He would become the most terrifying weapon on the planet.
At that point, who could possibly rein him in?
Stark Industries, a company that should have been his from the beginning, would be taken back with his own hands. And that so-called Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division that dared to manipulate him like a pawn?
They, too, would learn their place.
When the time came, Obadiah Stane would show the world exactly what kind of power he now possessed. When that day arrived, who would still dare to stand in his way?
Just imagining it made his heart thunder violently in his chest. He couldn't calm himself down, nor did he want to.
From this moment on, his fate had shifted. A new path had opened before him.
And Obadiah Stane was ready to walk it.
"So this is the Munch-Munch Fruit…" Obadiah murmured, his voice quivering with barely restrained excitement. His eyes gleamed as if he were gazing upon a holy relic. "This isn't just powerful… It's a miracle. Something forged by God Himself."
What Obadiah Stane couldn't possibly have known was that, impressive as the Munch-Munch Fruit already sounded, its true capabilities ran far deeper than he imagined. What he'd heard so far was only the surface.
"And there's more," Rosh continued once Obadiah finally managed to steady his breathing. His tone remained calm, almost casual, as if he weren't about to drop another bombshell. "Everything we've discussed until now applies to non-living objects. But the Munch-Munch Fruit isn't limited to that."
Obadiah blinked. "Living beings?" he echoed, one eyebrow lifting in mild surprise.
It was unexpected, certainly. Interesting, even. But compared to devouring weapons of war and turning himself into a walking arsenal, it didn't immediately spark the same level of excitement. What Obadiah failed to realize was that this reaction came from a simple lack of understanding.
The ability to consume living beings opened up entirely different, and equally terrifying possibilities.
"For instance," Rosh explained evenly, "the user can swallow themselves, restructure their body from the inside, and then expel themselves afterward."
"This technique can be used to gain or lose weight at will."
"…What?" Obadiah froze, utterly dumbfounded.
'Swallow… himself? What kind of deranged ability was that supposed to be?' The image made no sense, no matter how he tried to picture it. It sounded as absurd as pulling yourself into the air by your own hair.
And swallowing your entire body just to lose weight? That was ridiculous.
Yes, Obadiah carried a few extra pounds, but at his age, that was hardly unusual. Dieting had never been high on his list of concerns.
Yet before he could dismiss the idea entirely, Rosh continued. "If the fruit is developed to an extremely advanced level," he said calmly, "the user can even consume other Devil Fruit users… and take their abilities for themselves."
"However, reaching that level is extraordinarily difficult. It requires pushing the fruit's power to its absolute limit."
The world seemed to stop.
"C-consume other Devil Fruit users… and gain their powers?" Obadiah stammered.
His entire body began to tremble. Heat rushed to his face, flushing his aged features crimson. For a brief moment, his mind went completely blank, overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of what he'd just heard.
He was too excited to even speak.
The rules of Devil Fruits were absolute. The catalog had stated it clearly: one person could only eat a single Devil Fruit. Attempting to consume a second would cause the body to explode, resulting in instant death. Every ability user in the world was bound by that ironclad limitation.
And yet...
The Munch-Munch Fruit shattered that rule entirely. It allowed one individual to claim multiple Devil Fruit abilities.
Even if nothing else were taken into account, that alone made it monstrous. Broken. Unreasonable.
A power that preyed on other powers.
Of course, Obadiah Stane wasn't a fool. As intoxicating as the Munch-Munch Fruit sounded, he understood one undeniable truth: anything capable of breaking fundamental rules would never come easily. Power that defied natural limits was always rare, and mastering it would demand effort beyond imagination.
The Shopkeeper had already made that much clear. Reaching the stage where the fruit could devour other Devil Fruit users required pushing its abilities to the absolute extreme. It wouldn't be quick, and it certainly wouldn't be simple.
But none of that mattered.
Even without reaching that terrifying peak, the future potential of the Munch-Munch Fruit was effectively limitless.
"Shopkeeper," Obadiah declared suddenly, his voice sharp and burning with excitement, "I want this fruit."
Rosh hadn't even finished laying out every detail, yet Obadiah had already reached his decision. There was no hesitation, no second-guessing. He looked like a man afraid that if he waited even a second longer, the opportunity might vanish.
To Obadiah Stane, this Devil Fruit felt as though it had been created specifically for him.
The Munch-Munch Fruit grew stronger by consuming weapons. The more advanced and destructive the weapons, the more terrifying the user became. And Obadiah's entire life had revolved around weapons manufacturing.
With Tony Stark already forced out of the boardroom, Obadiah now stood at the very top of Stark Industries. Its factories, its research divisions, its military contracts, all of it was within his reach.
What weapons couldn't he obtain?
This wasn't just compatibility. It was destiny.
"Not interested in looking at any other fruits?" Rosh asked lightly, a faint, knowing smile touching his lips as he studied Obadiah.
"No need," Obadiah replied without missing a beat, his tone firm and decisive. "I've made up my mind. This is the one."
Rosh nodded calmly. "Very well. As for the Munch-Munch Fruit…" He paused briefly before delivering the price. "That will be 1500 kilograms of gold."
"One thousand five hundred kilograms?" Obadiah repeated. Then he nodded, utterly unfazed. "Fine."
Without another word, he turned and strode toward the shop entrance. Standing just outside were William and several other men, waiting attentively.
Obadiah lifted a hand and gestured casually, as if ordering lunch, "Bring in fifteen hundred kilograms of gold.
For him, this wasn't a purchase.
It was an investment in a future where no one would ever be able to stand above Obadiah Stane again.
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Next Chapter: Swallowing Steel
Next Next Chapter: Without Tony Stark, It Just Won't Work
Next Next Next Chapter: The Bald Man Is Stunned
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