Near Clock Tower Square, inside an ordinary yet incredibly bustling cheap tavern.
"You're a Warlord of the Sea, for crying out loud. No matter what, you shouldn't be this broke. Could we meet at a high-end restaurant next time?"
At the bar, Allen tilted his head back and downed a glass of rum as if it were mouthwash. With a look of mild disgust, he set the wooden mug down and pushed it back to the owner.
The owner was quite displeased to hear this, but he could only force an awkward smile and pour him another drink.
He had no choice. After all, the two men sitting across from him were Warlords of the Sea.
Beside Allen, Kuma's towering figure, which looked completely out of place, drew the attention of many patrons in the tavern. Sitting next to him, Allen looked like a mere child.
"The honey fruit pizza is quite good. It's this shop's signature dish; you should try it," Kuma said expressionlessly. He held a slice of honey-coated pizza, taking a slow bite and chewing.
Hearing this, the owner's eyes gleamed with appreciation, as if to say, *'You've got good taste, big guy.'*
Allen glanced at the owner and scoffed with utter disdain, "Honey fruit pizza? Tch, what kind of idiot came up with that? Something that sounds so sickeningly sweet doesn't even deserve to be served on a dining table."
"..."
The owner clenched his fists in anger, lowering his head and gnashing his teeth. He kept telling himself in his mind, *'I can't beat him. I absolutely can't beat him. Stay calm. Just endure it, and it will pass.'*
"Suit yourself."
Kuma replied casually. Ignoring the thoroughly dissatisfied Allen beside him, he continued to silently eat his pizza.
It wasn't until he swallowed the last slice of pizza that he slowly wiped his mouth and hands, then took out a briefcase and placed it on the bar.
"You are two days later than expected, but you finally made it. This is the weapon the doctor forged according to your request."
Kuma opened the briefcase. Inside lay three short, blue-and-white vertically striped rods, each with a small round ball at the end.
This was the weapon Allen had Vegapunk design for Nami, modeled after the Clima-Tact. The three short rods each had different functions, and the round balls at their ends were equipped with Dials.
These included the Impact Dial, Flame Dial, Flash Dial, Breath Dial, and more. It was even equipped with laser weapons.
This was the weapon infused with the Teru Teru Bozu model Devil Fruit. Allen named it—
—the Clima-Tact!!
That's right, he had copied the name completely unchanged.
Nami already used a long staff as her weapon. Although her combat power was low, she was used to wielding it, so there was no need to change it to anything else.
Allen picked up the three short rods from the briefcase and assembled them into a long staff nearly as tall as he was. He spun it in his hand a few times before stopping.
"So, how is this thing supposed to transform again?"
Allen asked in confusion as he examined the long staff in his hand, turning his head to look at a dining table in the tavern's main hall.
At Buchi's feet, the dachshund-gun Lasso was lying on its side, fast asleep, with a snot bubble rhythmically expanding and shrinking at the tip of its nose.
Because it was too weak, Allen had never paid any attention to it.
Thinking about it carefully, Spandam's Elephant Sword and Shamrock's Cerberus Sword usually maintained their weapon forms.
*How did this thing transform again?*
*Clang! Clang!*
"Hey, transform already."
Allen gripped the long staff and quickly tapped it against the floor twice, urging it on.
There was no reaction.
*Clang! Clang!*
Allen tapped it against the floor two more times and waited for two seconds, but there was still no reaction.
He was gradually losing his patience, but just then, the entire long staff in his hand suddenly began to expand and deform.
Under Allen's astonished gaze, the white round ball at the end of the staff gradually morphed into a smooth, snowman-like head, while the body of the staff bent upward and stood erect, expanding to form the snowman's body.
Noticing this scene, Nami and the others nearby all turned their heads to look. They were shocked to see a humanoid balloon, resembling both a snowman and a white ghost, floating in the air.
Its entire body was white, with its lower half tapering from thick to thin. The very end was connected to the short rod still gripped in Allen's hand, making it look exactly like a balloon being held by someone.
"So this is a Teru Teru Bozu..."
Allen's eyes were filled with curiosity. His gaze slowly moved up the humanoid balloon's body, finally landing on its smooth white head.
Its face had no nose or ears, and its mouth was curved downward like a black line. Two pitch-black, round eyes stared at Allen as it spoke in a dissatisfied tone:
"Let go of me right now."
"Pfft—! The balloon is talking!!" multiple voices shouted in unison.
Seeing this, the crew was so shocked they spat out their water on the spot, their eyes widening in disbelief as they stared at the entity.
Allen couldn't help but be stunned for a moment. He turned his head to look at Kuma.
"Wait, this thing can talk?"
"Of course."
Kuma nodded expressionlessly. Crossing his legs and intertwining his fingers over his knee, he said calmly,
"Just like how that dog-gun of your subordinate can bark, a weapon imbued with the Human-Human Fruit can naturally speak."
Although the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia did not record the appearance of this fruit, Vegapunk was still able to identify it from its abilities after completing the weapon.
Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Type, Model: Teru Teru Bozu!
Among the three major types of Devil Fruits—Logia, Paramecia, and Zoan—only Zoan types could be fused with objects. This was due to the unique characteristic that Zoan fruits housed a will of their own.
When a human or any other creature with a will ate a fruit, their own will would suppress the fruit's will and take dominance over the body. Under normal circumstances, the risk of one's will being consumed only arose if an Awakening failed.
Objects, however, were entirely different. They lacked any consciousness of their own. Once fused with a Devil Fruit, the will within the fruit would naturally take direct control of this new "body."
Kuma briefly explained this to Allen and the others in a flat tone.
They already knew that Zoan fruits housed a will, as they had recently witnessed Toruno, whose will was consumed due to a failed Awakening.
Although initially surprised, Allen quickly accepted it once he processed the information.
Judging from the behavior of the dachshund-gun Lasso, Devil Fruit weapons indeed possessed the ability to act autonomously. It was just that their consciousness—or rather, their intelligence—wasn't very high.
Take Lasso, for example. If one ignored its cannon exterior, it was no different from an ordinary dachshund. It wasn't that it couldn't speak; it was just that humans couldn't understand its barking.
But the Human-Human Fruit was a completely different story. He simply hadn't considered this issue beforehand.
"Doesn't this just make it like keeping a pet? Tch, feels like a hassle."
Allen looked at the Teru Teru Bozu with a look of disgust.
"What did you say?!"
These words instantly angered the Teru Teru Bozu. Its face flushed red as it glared at Allen, and the tail end held in his hand released several streaks of electricity.
*Bzzzt!*
"Heh, got a bit of a temper, do we?"
Despite being shocked, Allen didn't let go. Instead, he let out a cold laugh, raised his fist, and coated his wrist in Armament Haki.
*Whack!!*
*Whack!!*
...
One minute later.
"Yes... I'm sorry, boss... I know I was wrong..."
The Teru Teru Bozu floated off to the side, sporting several large lumps on its head. Tears welled up in its eyes as it pursed its lips and looked at Allen pitifully.
At the bar, Allen took a sip of his drink, minding his own business. After setting down his glass, he jerked his thumb toward Nami behind him and gestured to it.
"Seeing as you're pretty thick-headed, I'll let it slide this time. From now on, you're with that woman."
"Understood, boss."
The Teru Teru Bozu nodded tearfully, then floated over to Nami with a look of deep grievance to report for duty.
*Tch, trying to act tough with me. If I didn't beat you up, you wouldn't know who calls the shots on this ship.*
Allen scoffed inwardly.