Chapter 196: Planning the Devil Fruit
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Giant trees rise from the ground, forming a sprawling island as bubbles drift upward, casting a dreamy glow in the sunlight.
"Is this the Sabaody Archipelago?" Aoki asked, looking ahead.
"Yes, Mr. Aoki," the man next to him replied. "The Sabaody Archipelago is actually a forest of Yarukima mangroves, each marked with a number. For accommodations, head to Area 70-79. Sightseeing spots, like the soap bubble park, tourist shops, and specialty stores, are in Area 30-49. The shipyard and coating craftsmen are in Area 50-59, and the naval base is in Area 60-69. By the way, Areas 1-29 are illegal zones, full of pirates, wanted criminals, and a human trading market. Be careful if you pass through."
"Thank you," Aoki replied.
Since leaving Mary Geoise, he'd intended to find a place to rest, gather information, and make some plans. However, he soon realized it wasn't as easy as he'd imagined. Navigating at sea was far harder than traveling by land. With no fixed landmarks, it was easy to get off course. Moreover, unlike the familiar world, this pirate world was vast, with most of the area covered by ocean and very few islands.
He had flown for a long time, yet not only did he fail to find an island, he'd also lost his way. Just as he was getting frustrated, he came across this ship. After asking around, he realized, to his disappointment, that he hadn't actually traveled far—he'd simply been circling the Red Line.
"We'll be staying in Area 53 for a week. If you need a ride again, you can find us there," the man said with a warm smile.
Of course, Aoki knew the man's enthusiasm wasn't due to personal charm; it was because he had paid handsomely for the boat fare.
"I understand. See you later," Aoki said, waving as he stepped off the boat alone.
Outside the dock stood a massive tree with thick branches and lush foliage, its exposed roots like a dragon's back. The number "53" was boldly marked on the trunk.
As Aoki approached the tree, a large soap bubble rose from the ground and floated gently into the sky. Due to respiration, the mangrove trees secrete a special resin, which expands in the air to form bubbles. These bubbles are integral to life on the archipelago; they're used to make bubble cars, Ferris wheels, and even bubble houses. Bubble culture permeates every aspect of life on the Sabaody Archipelago.
However, these bubbles only survive within the specific climate of the mangrove area; once they drift outside it, they burst.
As he moved forward, he soon arrived at a bustling town. Bubbles of all sizes floated everywhere, and people traveled in bubble cars, creating a magical, fairy-tale atmosphere. Aoki strolled down the street slowly, taking in the sights.
His first priority was to purchase a Log Pose. With the Grand Line's chaotic magnetic fields and volatile weather, navigating without a Log Pose was impossible. As the end of the first half of the Grand Line and the entrance to the New World, Sabaody Archipelago surely had no shortage of Log Poses for sale.
Another matter weighed on his mind. Fish-Man Island lay here, 10,000 meters below the ocean's surface.
"Shirahoshi must have just been born around now," Aoki mused. The crew on his boat had informed him of the current date.
It was now the year 1506 in the Sea Calendar. This meant that Luffy was only three years old.
It had been less than ten years since Roger's death.
The Great Pirate Era was on the rise.
Edward Newgate reigned supreme, the undisputed king of the world. The Whitebeard Pirates were at their peak, unrivaled.
Charlotte Linlin and Kaido had claimed their places as Pirate Emperors.
Together, the three great Pirate Emperors dominated the New World.
And Shanks had only recently emerged as a prominent figure.
After confirming the timeline, Aoki realized his plan to trade therapeutic drugs had also fallen through.
Although he hadn't witnessed it firsthand, Whitebeard at this point was certainly not yet plagued by the terminal illness that would affect him in the future.
This meant healing potions couldn't be sold at a high price.
If he couldn't profit well, he would rather not sell them at all.
In any case, this endeavor was unlikely to yield much in the first place.
Aoki purchased his necessities at a grocery store in Area 28, then found a nearby bar, ordered a bottle of wine, and took a seat.
Bars, as everyone knows, are excellent places to gather intelligence.
However, most of what circulated in these places were either common knowledge or rumors that were hard to verify. Genuine, valuable information was scarce.
Fortunately, Aoki's goal was simply to gain a general understanding of the basic conditions of this time and world; he didn't need any classified information.
While he listened to the people around him boasting and chatting, Aoki considered his next move.
There were two key objectives.
The first was his mission; the second, acquiring a devil fruit.
The plan was straightforward: complete more tasks and level up as quickly as possible.
Among these, "The End of the World Government" took top priority.
The good news was he had fourteen years before Luffy set sail, so there was ample time.
"I need allies," Aoki muttered, tapping his fingers on the table.
Unlike his previous smaller-scale fights, this time he aimed to dismantle a superpower that had ruled the world for eight hundred years.
The mission required him to defeat Imu and the Five Elders.
Their strength alone was formidable, and they commanded additional forces like the Knights of God, CP0, and the Navy.
Even if he maxed out the "Infinite Dragon Beast," it would be difficult to face such overwhelming opposition by himself.
A single drop doesn't form an ocean; a single tree doesn't make a forest.
He needed others to help bear some of the burden.
However, finding allies wouldn't be easy.
Although the Celestial Dragons' brutality was widely recognized, few dared to stand against them.
The first names that came to Aoki's mind were the four Pirate Emperors.
Whitebeard Edward Newgate, Kaido of the Beasts, Big Mom Charlotte Linlin, and Red-Haired Shanks.
But after careful consideration, he realized that despite their strength, they weren't suitable allies.
Whitebeard Edward Newgate was renowned as the world's strongest man, and the Whitebeard Pirates held unmatched power.
Yet, Whitebeard had no ambition.
His dream was simply to have a "family" and live with them. He wasn't even interested in becoming the Pirate King, let alone challenging the Celestial Dragons with his entire crew, risking the destruction of the entire group.
The BIG MOM Pirates, led by Charlotte Linlin, were primarily focused on the pursuit of the Pirate King title, and they'd likely be unwilling to rally under a banner of resistance against the Celestial Dragons.
Moreover, Charlotte Linlin was exceptionally ruthless.
If given the opportunity, Aoki would rather eliminate her and take her resources than form an alliance with her.
Shanks was still a rookie, and even the Red-Haired Pirates had not yet fully taken shape.
Moreover, there was the possibility that Shanks might be a Celestial Dragon.
However, there was some room for cooperation with Kaido.
Kaido's dream was to ignite the world's greatest war, dragging all nobles and power-brokers onto the battlefield.
Yet Kaido was unpredictable, not an easy partner. He was also violent and self-centered, making it extremely challenging to work with him. To engage him in any meaningful way, one would need enough strength to command his respect.
As for Captain John, Crocodile, and the others, they each seemed to have their own agendas and were not suitable allies.
The Revolutionary Army, led by Dragon, could be a natural ally.
But at this point, the Revolutionary Army had only been around for six years and was still far from strong.
It was worth a try, but he tempered his expectations.
Beyond finding allies, Aoki knew he needed to build his own team. Fighting alone would make him no more than another "Hawk eyes," but with a team, he had the potential to become one of the Four Emperors.
This, however, would not be an easy feat.
The second focus was the Devil Fruit.
One's strength was the ultimate foundation.
The purpose of completing tasks was to gain power, and the essence of leveling up was to grow stronger.
In the world of pirates, two key powers reigned supreme.
Haki and Devil Fruits.
Judging from the abilities displayed by Kizaru and the Supreme Commander of the Knights of God, both Haki and Devil Fruits had reached four-star levels of power.
If Aoki could secure another four-star class, he would possess two four-star abilities, potentially breaking the limits of this world's power.
Absolute strength could conquer anything; the real question was how to acquire that power.
Haki, however, was out of the question.
According to the system's rules, obtaining an extraordinary class required having a corresponding physical foundation.
Haki was an innate ability of humans in the pirate world.
But since Aoki was from another world, he lacked this potential entirely.
If he wanted to acquire an extraordinary class, the simplest method was first to obtain the necessary supernatural power.
In his previous world, he had gone to great lengths to obtain the bloodline of the "Infinite Dragon Beast."
But here, in the world of pirates, it was much simpler.
All he had to do was consume a Devil Fruit.
Aoki was confident that, given his strength, obtaining a Devil Fruit would not be difficult.
There was an auction for Devil Fruits in the Sabaody Archipelago.
However, finding one with sufficient power wouldn't be easy.
Though all Devil Fruits held power, there were clear distinctions among them.
It was much like the variation in strength among imperial weapons.
If he was going to eat one, it needed to be the best.
The most powerful type currently was undoubtedly the Zoan-type Devil Fruit.
The most famous examples were Kaido's Fish-Fish Fruit: Model Azure Dragon and Admiral Sengoku's Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Daibutsu.
Aoki carefully recalled the mythical Zoan fruits he knew of.
Many of the rare beast fruits in Wano Country likely had owners.
It was unknown if the The Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Okuchi no Makami and others, no one knew their locations.
The Fish-Fish Fruit: Model -Azure Dragon might still have an unproduced replica, but there was no certainty it wouldn't have defects. Aoki wasn't willing to settle for a flawed version.
After some thought, Aoki felt the most obtainable option might be the Bat-Bat Fruit, Model: Vampire.
He remembered that he needed Robin's help to decipher the documents in the ruins.
"Robin should still be in the West Blue now, right?" Aoki thought.
It had been six years since the Ohara incident, and Robin was now fourteen years old, so she likely hadn't entered the Grand Line yet.
"Wait, it seems there's another mythical zoan that is temporarily ownerless."
Aoki's expression turned contemplative.
The Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika,
It once had another name—Gomu Gomu no Mi
Aoki touched his chin, wondering what would happen if he took Luffy's fruit.
The Nika Fruit was undeniably powerful.
It possessed the combined characteristics of an animal-type mythical Zoan and a superhuman-type fruit, with the ability to make its user's wishes come true.
As for the fact that the Nika Fruit hadn't awakened in 800 years, he wasn't too concerned.
With the system, as long as he could obtain a certain power, he could push it to its peak.
However, obtaining the Nika Fruit would not be easy.
This fruit seemed bound by fate itself. Even with the World Government's power, they hadn't successfully recovered it over eight centuries.
As if it were destined to belong to Luffy.
The information he knew was that, in about four years, the Red-Haired Pirates would steal the Nika Fruit from a World Government CP9 ship.
Aoki's thoughts drifted away.
In fact, his target didn't necessarily have to be limited to mythical Zoan.
While mythical Zoans were powerful in this version, it didn't mean they were invincible.
Whitebeard relied on the Tremor-Tremor Fruit to become the world's strongest man.
The Ope Ope no Mi should still be unclaimed, with its remarkable spatial abilities being undeniable.
There was also the Logia class, which, despite its nerfs, remained very powerful—especially for him.
He already possessed the robust physique of a mythical zoan species.
Logia fruits focused on the power of nature, which might actually suit him better.
Of course, the power of Logia fruits varied widely.
For instance, the Moku Moku no Mi( Smoker's fruit) and the Numa Numa no Mi (Caribou's Fruit) were relatively unimpressive.
Even dogs wouldn't go for the Flame-Flame Fruit.
But now, there happened to be an ownerless, top-tier Logia Devil Fruit—the Goro Goro no Mi.
At this time, Enel probably hadn't obtained it yet.
There was also the Dark-Dark Fruit(Yami Yami no Mi).
It not only restrained special ability users but also allowed its user to steal Devil Fruit powers, which gave it great strategic significance.
Thinking of this, Aoki had an idea.
"The Dark-Dark Fruit can take away abilities, so can I use the Revenge Chest to make Devil Fruits drop?"
Some treasure chests he'd opened before had items directly from the system, like special lollipops and Wind Spirit Boots.
But other items raised questions about their origins.
Money, suits, daggers—and most intriguingly, a pair of worn women's underwear. He strongly suspected that some items in the treasure chests might be things from the bodies of those killed.
Defeat enemies, and you get treasure.
The key question was whether Devil Fruits were among the treasures that could drop.
If his speculation held true, his options would expand even further.
Actually, his favorite choice remained Kaido's Fish-Fish Fruit.
Aoki sorted through the information, and the plan in his mind gradually took shape.
First and foremost, he needed to keep leveling up and increasing his strength.
He would aim to upgrade "Spirit of Vengeance" to the maximum level as soon as possible.
Even if a Devil Fruit were to drop, a mythical zoan fruit definitely wouldn't be something found in a level 2 treasure chest.
Secondly, he would need to head to the West Blue to find Robin.
Now that he had information on the Bat-Bat Fruit, there was no reason not to go after it.
Besides, the vampire form's ability was tied to blood.
The root of demons also lay in blood.
This Devil Fruit might help him mitigate his demon-related flaws.
At the same time, he could keep an eye out for other Devil Fruits.
There were many Devil Fruits in this world he'd never encountered, and some of them could potentially suit him even better.
As for finding partners and building a team, there was no need to rush.
He already had a plan in mind.
Overthrowing the World Government wasn't something that could be done overnight; it required patience.
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