"Hm… excellent…"
El nodded slowly.
He now knew exactly where the Donquixote Family's Artificial Devil Fruit research facility was hidden, and how they had managed to produce the fruits in the first place: they held control over a brilliant scientist—Caesar, the former assistant to Dr. Vegapunk himself.
While Caesar could not match Dr. Vegapunk's near‑perfect precision in synthesis, he had still mastered mass production.
Yet a significant gap remained: his fruits carried numerous flaws.
For one, there was no guarantee they would grant powers at all—some users were left mindless, capable only of bursting into laughter.
Even those who did gain abilities were far weaker than natural Devil Fruit users, and appeared unable to shift into full or hybrid forms, setting them sharply apart from ordinary Zoans.
Natural Zoans could hide their nature unless they chose otherwise, but the traits of artificial users were impossible to conceal.
The degree of animalistic features varied with how fully the power had manifested: greater awakening meant more prominent animal traits, while lesser awakening meant fewer.
In extreme cases, most of a person's body might transform into animal form; if an animal head took shape, two separate minds could even war within one body!
Yet for all these shortcomings, the Beasts Pirates hungered for Artificial Devil Fruits more than ever.
The Beasts Pirates' obsession with Artificial Zoan Devil Fruits was entirely understandable.
For years, no one had dared stand in their way, and the Donquixote Family had guarded the entire production chain closely.
But now that Doflamingo had joined El's crew, the arrangement that had once fed the Beasts Pirates had fallen apart.
That was what had pushed them to act directly—seizing control of the source themselves, starting with neutralizing Doflamingo.
After all, the Donquixote Family had built a fully operational chain that could be taken over and used immediately, and the Beasts Pirates coveted it fiercely.
They had struck fast: sending two All‑Stars to Dressrosa to capture Donquixote officers and extract intelligence, while launching a separate raid on the known parts of the production network.
"Caesar, the man who actually makes the fruits, is still at a hidden facility," Doflamingo revealed.
"But…" He hesitated.
"I fear the Beasts Pirates may already know its location."
The Beasts Pirates were no random threat—they would never act without solid information.
If they had moved on Dressrosa, they must have uncovered far more than they let on; the site Doflamingo had once thought secret was likely compromised.
"Oh? Such a place exists?" El smiled.
"How interesting. We've already broken with them completely—so why not strike first once more?"
His intent was clear: he had paid little mind before, but now that he knew what was at stake, he would not let the Beasts Pirates—or anyone else—stand in his way.
"You mean…" Doflamingo asked carefully, "we head there now and set an ambush?"
El glanced at him.
"Didn't you say there is a strong chance they already know exactly where it is? We might not be the ones laying the trap—we could be walking straight into theirs."
Doflamingo's unease deepened.
He had seen his captain brush aside the All‑Stars with ease, but Kaido himself was on an entirely different level—and the thought of facing the Emperor at the facility filled him with dread.
There was no going back now. Any future meeting between El's crew and the Beasts Pirates would mean total war.
Two of their three top commanders had been humbled and captured—a stain no Emperor's crew could ignore.
For El, however, making such an enemy was no loss. Great rivals drove a crew to grow; without pressure from without, there would be no reason to push forward.
Privately, he relished the thought of facing someone strong enough to test him.
If Kaido himself showed up at the facility, it would be nothing short of ideal.
Even if not, seizing the Artificial Devil Fruit technology would be a prize beyond measure—a way to create power that rivaled nature itself.
The only pity was that El's crew lacked a scientist of such caliber.
The Donquixote Family had been fortunate to secure Caesar's talents; powerful fighters were rare enough, but true innovators capable of leading research from the ground up were even scarcer.
After all, anyone could gain immense strength and comfort with a single Devil Fruit—few were willing to put in the grueling work of advancing science instead.
__________________
For more advance chapters visit patreon.com/bars45.
For 10$- All advance chapters.
"Schedule"
Monday - Friday - Update 3 Chapters a Day
Saturday - Sunday - Off