Kyoto - Souta's Home
- Mamoru -
Getting back after a long business trip, the first thing I see when walking into the living room is Souta hunched over what looks like a couple of large barrels of clay.
"So, have you decided to take up sculpting while I was gone?" I said, while knowing it's probably for his fruit creation ability. And wasn't that a shock? I've never heard of our nature manipulation mutating before, but if the clan's ancestor can create the ability to travel to new worlds, I suppose anything is possible.
Chuckling as Souta jumps and spins around to face me, too concentrated on staring at clay to hear me step into the room.
"Dad, you scared the hell out of me, and no, I haven't. You know this is to make Mystic Fruits; I already told you about it over the phone." He says, crossing his arms.
Laughing out loud, I say, "I know, I know, I'm just messing with you so you can stop pouting now; it's not the look for you. So, what's got you concentrating so much you can't even hear me come in?"
Sulking, he replies, "I do not pout." Shaking his head, he continues, "Well, the reason I was concentrating so much was I was wondering whether the Clay-Clay Fruit would be a Logia type of fruit or a Paramecia, but I suppose we won't really know until I make it, so back to business."
As he finishes his sentence, he spins back around to face the clay while hovering his hands over the tubs of clay, and next to them is a pear
"I guess I'm about to see the process of you making a Mystic Fruit then?"
"Yeah, it's pretty quick, to be honest." He says without looking back.
Staying silent as I watch him begin, without a word, a glass-like dome suddenly appears, surrounding the objects inside. It pulses gently until it picks up pace, and the objects inside glow before merging with the fruit, and once the fruit stops glowing, I can see the pear change physically before my eyes. The fruit looks like it's dripping wet clay with black wavy lines, but seeing Souta pick up the fruit, the clay-like appearance isn't wet at all.
"That was weird." I blurt out, unable to think of anything else to say after what I've just seen.
"You're right, it's pretty weird." He says while laughing out loud, "Also, it turns out the Clay-Clay Fruit is a Logia."
"That's cool, I guess?" He just rolls his eyes like I don't get it. "Why do the fruits have weird double-layered names?"
"I don't know, it just feels right to name them like that." Now it was my turn to roll my eyes, kids, I think while shaking my head.
"Well, once you're finished ogling your dirt fruit, we'll head out for tea. There's a new Korean BBQ that just opened down the street; I thought we could check it out while celebrating everything that's happened recently." I say as I walk past him while ruffling his hair, much to his dismay.
Looking back, I say, "Also, I got a letter sent to Lady Yasaka asking for a meeting; we should hear back from them soon. I'm sure they'll be interested in meeting us."
- Souta -
Damn old man, messing with the hair like that. I let out a small laugh as I push my hair back out of my face. Also, that last part about the meeting is not ominous at all.
Unlock Quest Completed: 5 Mystic Fruits created [Active: Extract and Store] Unlocked.
[Active: Extract and Store]
Allows the user to extract a singular property, energy, or element and store it inside a hand-sized see-through cylinder. This can only be used on inanimate objects or unconscious beings. Once extracted, this ability can't be used on the same target again, and the target will not lose use of what was extracted.
Now this, this is going to let me make so many more Mystic Fruits. While the one extract per target sucks, it's still a damn good ability to have. The only other issue is where am I going to store all the cylinders I start gathering? Sigh, what a pain.
Unlock Quest:Trade 10 Mystic Fruits to unlock[Mouth, What Mouth].
Nice, a new unlock quest.
I spent most of the day creating Mystic Fruits until I got the quest done; the 5 Mystic Fruits I currently have are.
[Brush-Brush Fruit]
The user of the fruit can generate any colour of ink from their body and, using a brush, is able to turn images they create with that ink into three-dimensional, lifelike objects. The user can also provide properties to the images they have created, such as conscience to animals, the ability to shoot with weapons, and sharpness to swords. The user is also able to speak and sense through the images created as well as turn their own body into a two-dimensional image, thus providing them with the ability to hide.
Fruit Type: Paramecia
Fruit shape:Pear
Weakness: The strength and abilities of the drawings are highly reliant on the artistic skill of the user; poor drawings are much weaker, and lifelike constructs are prone to exhaustion.
[Clay-Clay Fruit]
The user of the fruit can generate clay from their body and mould it as they wish, akin to clay modelling. The user can create "golems", human-like animated constructs that can be used to fight on the user's behalf; they are also invulnerable to physical damage like the user in their logia form. The user may also freely alter the hardness of their clay from creating large amounts of soft and mushy clay to trap people to clay that can be shaped into weapons that are as hard as steel.
Fruit Type: Logia
Fruit used:Pear
Weakness: Extremely high temperatures can harden wet clay created by the user making it brittle compared to clay hardened by the user.
[String-String Fruit]
The user is granted the ability to generate and control wafer-thin, razor-sharp strings that can be attached to seemingly every surface from any part of their body, including clouds, to travel. The powers granted by the fruit are extremely versatile, from being able to fire bullets of compressed string and creating whips of string to puppeteering others by attaching strings to them and even stitching their own organs if they are injured. The user has full control over the size and tensile strength of the strings produced.
Fruit Type: Paramecia
Fruit used:Orange
Weakness: Strong enough opponents can overpower the effect of puppeteering and even the strings themselves if they are able to deal with the cutting power.
[Milk-Milk Fruit]
The user is granted the ability to produce and become any type of milk the user has consumed before; the user becomes invulnerable to physical damage unless Haki is used. The user has full control of the consistency of the milk produced, allowing the user to trap others in a highly viscous milk akin to condensed milk. The milk produced offers the correct nutritional value for each milk the user can create.
Fruit Type: Special Paramecia
Fruit used:Peach
Weakness: The milk produced is prone to spoilage like all milk. It is also highly recommended that the consumer of the fruit is not lactose intolerant.
[Rodent-Rodent Fruit Model: Mole]
As a Zoan type of fruit, the user can switch between 3 forms: Base Form, Animal Form, and Hybrid Form. In base form, the user has increased base strength and senses; they can also turn their nails on their hands and feet into extremely sharp claws. In animal form they can become a mole about the size of the user, making them extremely fast and proficient at digging using their long sharp claws. And like all Zoan fruits, the hybrid form tends to be the strongest, allowing for a human form with animalistic features as well as powers from their animal form.
Fruit Type: Zoan
Fruit used:Peach
Weakness: In animal form the user gains significantly reduced vision in exchange for an increase in their other senses for better digging; hybrid form does not gain this weakness.
Surprisingly the milk fruit wasn't a logia and instead ended up being a special paramecia like Katakuri's mochi fruit which makes sense with it not being a naturally produced element, but even with it being a special paramecia it still very much acts like a logia.
The ideas I had for the string fruit ended up working out. The Zoan, on the other hand, I felt a bit bad about using a living animal, but I needed to test to see if it worked. I ended up finding the mole in the garden trashing up the flowerbed with all the holes it had been making. It did make me feel a bit less guilty after seeing what was done to the poor flowers.
I was surprised I only needed one mole for the Mystic Fruit to be formed, unlike with the other Mystic Fruits that required either a large amount of the same material or various similar materials to even form a Mystic Fruit, though I was thinking that could be because it was an animal, thus having a 'soul' to be used as a sort of fuel. In the show, it did say Zoan-type fruits tend to have a 'will of their own', which is probably a residue left behind by the 'soul' used in the fruits.
Carrying the Clay-Clay Fruit, I bring it over to the cupboard I have been storing them in for now until I can find a better way to carry them about. Thinking about it, I'll need to check out some of the gift shops for some silk-lined wooden boxes like they use for those ridiculously priced crown melons so I can have the fruits look better presented when meeting with Lady Yasaka.
Heading upstairs, I go change before we head out for a meal while also letting Dad know about the boxes so we can look about while we are out.
[Split]
Urakyoto - Main Building, Yasaka's Office
- Yasaka -
Sighing, I look towards the pile of paperwork still yet to be completed. Does it ever end? I bet that stupid old man doesn't deal with any of this; he probably hides away while making someone else do it. I know I'd much rather be teasing Kunou right about now.
*Knock Knock*
A knockpulls me out of my thoughts as I look away from the paperwork.
"Enter." I say, and soon after my secretary, Himari, walks into the room.
"My lady, there is a letter for you."
Pouting, "I told you to call me Yasaka, Himari." I raise an eyebrow at the letter in her hand. "Also, isn't old man Kenzo responsible for sifting through the letters? Why has he sent this one to me?"
I see a slight tug at her lips as she says, "I couldn't, my lady; it is unbecoming of my station. Sir Kenzo has already checked the letter for any dangers, but he said he would leave opening it to you and that you would understand once you saw who the letter was from. He also said, and I quote, 'If this isn't a hoax, the young princess can practice her make-up on me.'"
Chittering a soft laugh at the idea of Kunou having free rein over Kenzo's face as a canvas, it's safe to say my intrigue in the letter has risen. My hand makes a grabbing motion towards the letter in Himari's hand as she quickly passes it over to me.
"Thank you, dear; that will be all."
Bowing, she says, "By your leave, my lady," turning around to exit the room.
Before she leaves, "And Himari, it would never be unbecoming of you to use my name; you are all but family."
Turning around, she gives a wide smile as she bows again. "I understand, Yasaka," before finally closing the door.
That girl, honestly, is so rigid; I might have to look at finding her a man to loosen her up a bit, chittering again at the idea of seeing her flustered face if I were to bring up the subject to her.
Looking down at the letter, my eyes widen as I take in what it says.
To Lady Yasaka, Queen of the Western Yokai Faction.
From Mamoru Takao, current clan head of the Koropokkuru Clan.
A letter clearly from a clan very much seen as a myth to all yokai; nothing much is known about them other than rumours of what they look like or what their abilities are. Some say they are so ugly they stay hidden and that all who have seen their face end up dead; others believe they have the ability to wear the face and use the memories of the people they kill, thus taking over their life instead; and others believe they can't move at all, that they are just yokai in the form of plants forever stuck in one spot while pretending to just be a regular flower.
Whatever the reason, they've sent a letter to me which is either someone pretending to be a part of a clan thought to be a myth because they want something or the real deal, and Kunou can have a playdate with Kenzo.
Flipping the letter over to unseal it, I see a classic wax seal in the shape of a rounded heart-shaped leaf dangling from a long stem; this obviously means something to the clan for it to be used as a stamp.
Opening the letter, I read through its contents.
Dear Lady Yasaka,
I am writing this letter to you on behalf of my son Souta Takao to set up a meeting to discuss a business proposition between yourself and our clan. The products we are offering will be brought along with us on the day should you agree to this meeting.
I know the rumours about our clan leave less to be desired, but I can assure you we are very much not a myth and that we don't wear the skins of others. My son and I are, as we currently know, the last of our clan in the world.
While I do not mind others knowing about us, I would like to keep what is discussed in the meeting between ourselves and only those you trust. The products we will show are truly one of a kind.
Respectfully, Mamoru Takao.
Interesting, it looks like they are wanting to set up some sort of trade agreement, maybe their products for rarer materials, and this was on behalf of his son, so maybe he's the one creating the products or sourcing them from elsewhere. Also, getting his father to set up the meeting shows he might not know how to get in touch with people from Urakyoto, so he's either a yokai sheltered in the clan since birth or someone who has just recently become aware of the supernatural. In any case, the meeting should prove to be exciting should it not end up being a lie.
The letter has a very floral scent to it; maybe the rumours about them being plant yokai were true. I've seen yokai in the shape of wheels; anything is possible with our race.
Putting the letter in my drawer, I pull my attention back to the stack of paperwork I have left, and the thought to bring my foxfire out appears just as quickly as it goes.
I mean, with such an important meeting coming up, surely, I should go prepare the correct yukata to show the importance of such a meeting, especially with a clan of such mythical status. Getting up, I ignore the stack of papers and make my way towards my bedchamber; even with a tactical retreat, the letters will unfortunately be there later.
[Split]
Kyoto - Dreamleaf Trader
Walking into the store, I look around at all the changes that have been made over the past 2 days since Dad got back. During our meal at the restaurant, he said he would call a cleaning company to fix up the store, and then all I had to do was pick out any plants and furniture I wanted to add to the store, and he would have them delivered.
Which leads us to today, the store was completely restored. Everything is pretty much the same, just clean, I did add a few chairs and a table with some for now empty catalogues. The plants were easy to set up since even though controlling plants isn't our strongest trait, we can still move them, so for things like positioning the plants and hanging ivy, it was a bit tricky at first, but I slowly got used to it. Dad mentioned it was good practice for getting used to using Yoki.
He also taught me to do some earth-based Youjutsu that can be used in our human form, such as earth bullet and earth wall. Apparently, earth is one of the easier elements for us to use, as our race is so in tune with plants. He said it was like Kitsune with fire and Kappa with water, both being their natural elements.
Not going to lie, I felt like a kid on Christmas being able to cast my first 'spell'. I was basically grinning all day, and nothing could have ruined it.
All the crystal lights are working again, or the proper name I was told was 'Lightcrystals'. They just took recharging with some Yoki to start. They don't have an off switch, but if they ever run out of energy, I just need to recharge them again. Dad said they were something his parents picked up during one of their trips. He said the people who used them tended to use them in crafting armours and weapons since it was an extremely hard material, but they didn't want any for that and just liked the way they looked, so they bought some to use for the lights.
After hearing the story about the Lightcrystals, I tried my hand at extracting for the first time. It was a weird feeling at first using the ability, but all I had to do was focus on the object and imagine extracting something from it, which gave me the feeling about what could be taken, and once I selected what I wanted, I just imagined storing it, and then a cylinder with the extracted part would appear in my hand.
Doing this on the Lightcrystal got me the crystal property, and the thunder element. Extracting from all 8 Lightcrystals in the store gave me 4 of each and that wasn't enough to make a Mystic Fruit, which goes to show not even a material from another world is given any leeway when it comes to making a superpowered fruit.
I suppose Zoan fruits will always be the easiest to make but at the cost of a life, because I imagine a corpse isn't going to be enough for the fruit to form, and if it is, it's going to need more than one.
Well enough with the morbid thoughts; with the shop finished and the emergency backpack stocked up, it'll be time for my first world jump soon. It's got me nervous and excited; on one hand, I can't wait to explore; on the other, what if I get eaten by a massive dragon on the first day? Surely not, right?
Anyway, once the meeting with Yasaka is done tomorrow, then it'll be time.
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Let me know how you feel about seeing the Fruit information, I don't want to just vomit words at you all and for simpler fruits that seem obvious I'll probably just give a name, same for when selling a bunch but if you like reading more about them let me know.