Among all the Devil Fruits known in the pirate world, this fruit ranked among the very top. It was the natural enemy of all Devil Fruits!
The Dark-Dark Fruit!
"Ah…!"
Wayne opened his mouth wide and, without hesitation, devoured the dark fruit in two bites!
As expected, the taste was absolutely disgusting!
But just as Wayne felt like vomiting after finishing the entire fruit, he suddenly remembered that a single bite of a Devil Fruit was enough to gain its power.
"Well…!"
This is what happens when happiness overwhelms you all of a sudden.
Good grief!
With a tremor in his heart, he raised his right hand. A mass of black flames suddenly appeared in his palm.
"Hahaha!! This is truly incredible!!"
With an excited shout, Wayne raised his left hand again. The aurora shimmered, and in an instant a tremendous power formed between black and white.
Carrying Ace on his back, Wayne walked toward the town.
"Let's put Ace somewhere safe first."
Boom!
Suddenly, a bullet pierced Wayne's forehead in an instant!
Pff!
A small hole suddenly appeared between his eyebrows, glowing faintly.
Wayne laughed coldly.
"Otoku… Van Augur?"
Of course Wayne knew those people were nearby, but he hadn't expected them to have the courage to seek revenge.
In reality, Wayne had secretly turned his body into the element of light while walking.
So although the shot was fast and powerful, it had only struck light!
After placing Ace behind him and using instantaneous movement, Wayne appeared in front of Van Augur in the blink of an eye!
"This is bad! I've been discovered!!"
In truth, Van Augur had only been testing whether a surprise attack might succeed.
If it failed, he would immediately turn and flee.
After all, it wasn't wise to fight someone who had killed Blackbeard!
"Trying to leave?"
"Planning to run?"
A demonic voice sounded from behind, and Van Augur regretted his action more and more.
But as a sniper, he was not only skilled at shooting—he was also extremely fast.
After only a few jumps, he had already covered a great distance.
"Heh! Comparing your speed with mine?"
With a strange voice, Wayne turned into a spot of light and disappeared!
Suddenly—
Van Augur's feet stopped as he heard a buzzing sound in the air.
When he saw the ball of light in front of him, despair filled his heart!
Bang! Bang! Bang!!
Countless bullets pierced through the light mass, but the dense light holes only made Van Augur's heart beat faster.
Run… I have to run…
A monster like this is not something I can fight!
Suddenly—
"Dark Gravity!!!"
Black flames wrapped around Wayne's right hand as he aimed directly at Van Augur!
Whoosh!
Van Augur stared at Wayne's right hand in disbelief.
"This… how is this possible?!"
He shouted in shock:
"Isn't that the captain's fruit… the Dark-Dark Fruit?!"
When Van Augur arrived here earlier, he had only seen Blackbeard's corpse.
He had not seen Wayne devour the dark fruit!
Boom!
In the next moment, Wayne grabbed Van Augur firmly!
"You… you monster!"
Van Augur was completely stunned as he spoke in terror.
"Heh… monster?"
Wayne chuckled softly, then pointed his glowing fingertips between Van Augur's eyebrows.
"Laser!!"
Boom!
A beam of light pierced straight through his head.
His body collapsed onto the ground.
Van Augur… died.
Wayne looked around but didn't see any other members of the Blackbeard Pirates.
"Looks like they ran away."
Unlucky for you that you met me.
Otherwise, with Blackbeard's strength, you might have become a future Yonko commander.
Wayne carried Ace on his back and entered the deserted town.
But in the next moment—
Boom!
A powerful punch shot toward Wayne!
Wayne frowned, instantly stepped aside, and lowered his waist quickly.
At the same time, he raised his right leg and kicked Ace's lower abdomen!
Thud!
Ace immediately lifted his left leg to block, grabbed Wayne's right leg in an instant, and pulled it into his arms.
Then he slammed his right knee down fiercely.
"Tekkai! Iron Body!!"
Boom!
Ace trembled slightly and stepped back.
But Wayne didn't move at all!
Ace charged again.
As he rushed toward Wayne, he laughed loudly.
"Hahaha~ Aren't you really going to spend some time with me, Brother Wayne?"
"With skills like yours, you could definitely become a commander!"
Boom!
Their fists collided, sending a wave of white air bursting from their bodies!
"No!"
Wayne said firmly.
"I promised someone… so I can't join the pirates!"
Wayne rejected Ace's offer.
"Then you can form your own pirate crew!"
Ace leaped high and kicked downward with force.
But Wayne smiled bitterly.
"Impossible…"
"Even that… is part of the promise."
Wayne raised his leg and blocked the attack.
Then he said with a smile:
"Alright… take a rest."
He waved his hand, and Ace stopped fighting.
Ace said curiously:
"But I wonder… who is that person?"
"Could a strong pirate like you really be trapped in such a dilemma?"
A week passed in this small town.
During that time, Ace's injuries gradually healed.
Although the two often fought using only physical strength, there was genuine competition between them.
Ace lost slightly.
And the reason was…
The extraordinary power of the Dark-Dark Fruit.
Of course, Ace kept Wayne's abilities extremely secret—especially the fact that he possessed two Devil Fruits.
Suddenly Wayne spoke in a deep voice:
"Borsalino."
Boom!
Ace looked at Wayne in extreme shock.
"Admiral Kizaru?!"
Wayne nodded.
"Yes… him."
He sighed slightly.
"After I escaped from Marineford, he had the chance to kill me… or bring me back."
"But he let me go."
Wayne laughed at himself slightly.
"But he made me promise something."
He looked up at the sky.
"Even though I'm a pirate now, the words I said back then… might have just been a temporary measure."
"But I said them with my own mouth."
He clenched his fist slightly.
"When a man speaks… he must keep his word."
"I, Wayne… do what I say."
Then he looked at Ace.
"So Ace, stop trying to persuade me."
"It seems I'm destined to be… a lone knight."
Ace fell silent for a moment.
Then he smiled.
"Alright!"
"Since that's your decision, I won't try to convince you anymore."
He dusted off his body and looked toward the horizon.
"I have a younger brother."
"And he's in the Kingdom of Alabasta right now."
He laughed lightly.
"After surviving this disaster, I want to go see him."
"Then I'll return to the Whitebeard Pirates."
Then he looked at Wayne.
"What do you think? Want to come with me?"
Wayne spread his hands casually.
"Of course I'll go."
"Anyway, I'm still a wandering drifter."
"Traveling around a bit isn't a bad idea."
Wayne waved his hand with a smile.
"Let's go then."
Ace laughed and said:
"Right!"
"My brother's name is… Monkey D. Luffy!"
Wayne smiled slightly.
"Oh… I've admired that name for a long time."
Ace stopped.
"Huh?"
Wayne quickly shook his head.
"Nothing."
"You must have heard wrong."