Chapter 284: The Stinkiest Devil Fruit in History
On Terra, Louis stepped through the portal, materializing in the gardens within Avant Heim. The first thing he saw made him raise an eyebrow.
In the center of the garden, a Projection Transponder Snail was displaying a video of Uta and Shirahoshi's concert in Atlantis onto a large white screen.
On the massive screen, Uta and Shirahoshi were singing and dancing.
In front of it, a black-haired woman in full Uta and Shirahoshi fan-merch was waving a glow stick, completely immersed in the performance.
Louis recognized her: Baby-5, the partner he had assigned to Daz Bonez for... messier jobs.
He found this fascinating. Uta's dream-world interrogation had left Baby-5 deeply traumatized—so much so that Uta had become her second greatest fear. Driven by that terror, Baby-5, who famously could never refuse a request, would instinctively refuse anything Uta asked.
And yet, here she was, secretly watching the concert video in custom fan-gear. Louis never would have expected it.
He decided to give her some privacy and, after a brief look, turned and left the garden without a word.
He reappeared in the castle directly beneath Avant Heim. The grand hall was empty. He walked through the echoing silence, heading for his room to plan his next moves.
As he rounded a corner, a deep, male voice spoke from behind him. "Captain. There is something I must report."
Louis turned. Daz Bonez stood under the bright lights, his face as impassive as ever in his crisp, black suit.
"What is it, Daz?" Louis asked.
Daz Bonez's expression was flat, as if nothing in the world could stir him. He walked up to Louis and pulled a single sheet of paper from his breast pocket.
"I've heard things through the underworld intelligence network," he said, handing the paper over. "It's about Whitebeard."
"Whitebeard..." Louis took the paper and read the contents. After a long moment, he lowered the report, a strange look in his eyes.
"He's trying to hire underworld assassins and mercenaries... to attack Terra? To rescue the thousands of pirates we have imprisoned here?"
"The once great Whitebeard Pirates... have they really fallen so far that they need to hire mercenaries to save their own men?"
Daz Bonez looked up, seeing the complex emotion on Louis's face. He felt a flicker of irony. It was strange, hearing the man responsible for Whitebeard's fall from grace lamenting his current predicament.
Finally, Louis handed the report back. "Inform all officers and fleet captains. And keep a close eye on this."
With that, Louis turned and continued toward his room.
"Understood," Daz said, turning and vanishing around the corner.
Meanwhile, in the first half of the Grand Line, Sabaody Archipelago.
Inside a lavish, opulent auction house that faintly smelled of old blood.
The amphitheater was packed. Tycoons, underworld bosses, wealthy pirates, and famous figures from around the world filled every seat. They all sat in tense silence, their eyes fixed on a single treasure chest covered by a red cloth on the stage.
Their gazes were sharp, possessive. They glared at their competitors, the air thick with hostility.
"These bastards should all die!"
"That Devil Fruit is mine!"
"A pack of stray dogs, daring to compete with me!"
In the crowd, a somewhat bloated figure, completely hidden in a dark cloak, grinned, revealing a mouth with several missing teeth. "Zehahahaha..."
The auction, already near its end, was now a powder keg, ready to explode.
The host, oblivious to the tension, cleared his throat and smiled brightly into the microphone. "Everyone! We are approaching the end of tonight's auction, and I know you are all here for this final treasure!"
"In that case, let's begin the final auction!" The host ripped the red cloth away, revealing the Devil Fruit inside.
The moment it was revealed, the entire crowd's eyes turned bloodshot. Their breathing grew ragged.
"A Logia—"
The host threw his arms wide. "The most evil, most malicious Devil Fruit in history! The Logia-type—Dark-Dark Fruit! Bidding starts at 1 Berry!"
In a corner of the crowd, an old, white-haired man with glasses looked on in surprise. "A Logia fruit? And they're just... auctioning it? Starting at 1 Berry, even I'm tempted."
The room erupted.
"One hundred million Berries!" a notorious pirate roared.
But the price was instantly obliterated.
From a private box above, a deep voice called out, "One billion Berries."
The room fell silent, glaring at the box. "The 'Big-Time Undertaker'!"
Then, a sultry female voice came from another box. "I'll bid 1.5 billion, fufufu..."
The Undertaker snarled. "Stussy! What does someone in the pleasure business need a Devil Fruit for? To 'entertain' your clients?"
Stussy's laugh echoed back. "You just gave me an idea... Sounds like you have some interesting hobbies yourself, Undertaker~"
In the crowd, Teach (Blackbeard) ignored their trash talk. His eyes were fixed on the fruit he had coveted for so long, a dark, greedy smile on his face.
"The Dark-Dark Fruit... is mine!"
He launched himself from his seat, bounding over the heads and shoulders of the crowd toward the stage.
Pay for it? That wasn't Teach's style. He hadn't brought a single Berry.
"What real pirate pays for things?!" he sneered, laughing his signature laugh. "Zehahahaha!"
The crowd was stunned by his audacity. But in the next second, dozens of others surged forward, deciding to take it by force. The underworld bosses in the booths sent their bodyguards leaping into the fray. The auction instantly devolved into a chaotic brawl.
The host wisely raised his hands and backed far away.
At the edge of the room, Rayleigh sighed. "This world is changing so fast..." He stood up to leave, then paused, glancing at the auction house's back rooms. "With all this chaos... I'm sure no one would mind if I 'borrowed' a little..." He casually strolled through the battlefield, heading for the vault.
In the back, Rayleigh saw a strange sight. The auctioneer was in a room, standing over a corpse... a perfect body double of himself. The auctioneer frantically stabbed the double several more times, then wiped the sweat from his brow.
He turned to leave and froze, finding himself face-to-face with Rayleigh.
The host's (imposter's) hand twitched, but he recognized the Dark King and knew he stood no chance. He nervously wiped the blood on his suit. "L-Lord Rayleigh... can I—"
Rayleigh just smiled, pushing up his glasses. "The safe?"
The man understood immediately. "This way." He pulled out a ring of keys, pointed to the wall, then quickly tore off his disguise and fled.
Back in the main hall, Teach stood on the stage, covered in blood, panting. "Sss... that hurt!" At his feet lay two dead CP0 agents. Several other wounded agents surrounded him.
"Blackbeard Teach?!"
"Why is Whitebeard's 2nd Division Commander here?!"
"Is the Dark-Dark Fruit going to the Whitebeard Pirates?!"
Teach ignored them. Seeing the prize he'd dreamed of was finally his, he grinned.
"The Dark-Dark Fruit! It's mine! Old Man, just wait! Wait for me to bring this back before we attack Terra! We made a promise!"
Just as his rough hands reached for the fruit, several figures in white suits and masks appeared in a flash, snatching the fruit before he could.
"Blackbeard Teach," one of them said, "I'd advise you not to touch this. A great personage has already claimed it."
"CP0!!" Teach saw the fruit in their hands, and his eyes turned crimson, his teeth grinding. "A 'great personage'? The God's Knights? They're almost all dead and still this arrogant! Why don't they come get it themselves!"
Enraged, Teach unleashed his full, terrifying Haki. The CP0 agents froze, cold sweat pouring down their backs. "What is this?! How can a mere Division Commander have such terrifying Haki!"
Teach, no longer holding back, lunged at them.
In the back room, Rayleigh felt the powerful Haki wash over him. "That little apprentice from Whitebeard's crew... has Haki that strong?"
On the stage, Teach stood victorious, panting, surrounded by bodies.
"Zehahaha! The most evil Devil Fruit in history... the Logia-type Dark-Dark Fruit... is MINE!"
He lifted the fruit to his mouth, not caring about the blood, and took a massive bite.
"Next... the Tremor-Tremor Fruit—"
A bizarre, horrific stench—like rotten corpses and feces—exploded in his mouth.
In the next second, Teach's smile froze. His eyes filled with absolute, bottomless despair. Tears welled up.
"This... this isn't right..."
Just then, a lazy, drawling voice came from the entrance.
"Ooooh, how scary~ My, my, so many infamous criminals gathered here today..."
A golden laser shot from the doorway and struck Teach square in the chest.
PFFT—
The laser passed straight through him... but instead of darkness, a spray of yellow, stinking matter splattered across the stage.
The crowd gasped. "It's elementalization! He's a Logia!"
"Dammit, we missed out on a Logia!"
But then... the smell hit them.
"What... what is that stench?"
They quickly traced the odor to the yellow substance splattered everywhere.
"..."
A wave of strange, disgusted looks fell upon Teach.
"Is that the power of the Dark-Dark Fruit?"
"The Dark-Dark Fruit stinks?"
"Is that why it's the 'most evil fruit'? Because it smells so bad no one can get near it?"
The murmurs, the repulsed looks, the pity... it was too much. Blackbeard's face crumpled, a look more painful than crying.
At the entrance, Admiral Kizaru's expression was priceless. He slowly, disgustedly, lowered his leg.
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