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"Eh?"
"Aunt Jiri already found it? Wait, would this count as stealing?"
Kushina blinked in surprise, her expression a mix of confusion and amusement as she looked at Uchiha Jiri and whispered.
"Heh, yeah, it's definitely stealing," Jiri replied with a smirk. "But leaving it there is such a waste."
She continued, her tone becoming more serious, "If we don't take it, Enel will get it in the future, eat it, and use it to destroy Birka Island to take revenge. I'm actually saving them by taking it."
"To be honest, they owe me a huge favor!"
Kushina and the others stared at Jiri, dumbfounded by her audacious rationalization. Their gazes clearly said, "We're just now realizing how shameless you can be."
"Alright, enough chit-chat! Let's move! They'll be here soon," Jiri urged.
Though she had already stashed the Rumble-Rumble Fruit away, it was clear their pursuers weren't fools—they had locked onto the area.
"Let's go!" Kaito also prompted.
Without hesitation, Kushina and the others activated their teleportation abilities, vanishing instantly. Kaito followed close behind, with Jiri taking up the rear.
By the time the temple's guards arrived, they were long gone.
The guards thoroughly searched the area, practically turning over every stone, but found nothing. Frustrated, they eventually left to search elsewhere.
Their method of tracking the Rumble-Rumble Fruit only worked while it hadn't been eaten. Once consumed, it would become impossible to trace.
After returning to Drum Island via teleportation, the group took the opportunity to examine the Devil Fruit more closely.
Unbeknownst to Kaito, Jiri had already stored the fruit in her private space within the Time-Space Gate.
If Kaito had checked, he would've noticed it much earlier, but he generally avoided prying into the storage spaces bound to others as a sign of respect for their privacy.
"So, Kaito, are you going to eat it?" Jiri asked playfully, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
The others turned their attention to him, equally curious.
"Hmm…" Kaito hesitated, frowning slightly. "Honestly, I don't want to eat it outright. It'd give me an obvious weakness."
"With my talent and access to resources from both worlds, I'm confident I can become strong enough without relying on a Devil Fruit."
"The Rumble-Rumble Fruit isn't essential for me."
"However…" His gaze sharpened, "I do have an experiment I'd like to try. If it works, we might be able to remove the flaws of Devil Fruits entirely."
Everyone perked up at that. If successful, it would mean they could all eat Devil Fruits without worrying about the associated drawbacks. Their power levels would soar, accelerating their growth significantly.
"Really? How do you plan to do that?" Jiri's curiosity deepened, and the others leaned in closer, eager to hear his explanation.
"It's simple," Kaito said confidently. "I'll use the Time-Space Gate to analyze it. I have absolute control over that space—I can manipulate both time and space within it at will."
"So, I'll attempt to isolate the flaw from the fruit."
"Of course, this assumes the flaw isn't an inseparable part of the fruit itself."
He grinned. This was something he had been itching to test for a while now.
"Oh? Then get on with it!" Jiri urged, and the rest of the group chimed in excitedly.
"Alright, here we go."
With a thought, Kaito sent the Rumble-Rumble Fruit into the Time-Space Gate's storage dimension. He began analyzing the fruit using his control over the space.
"Hmm… This is interesting," he muttered.
"What's up?" Jiri asked, seeing the serious look on his face.
"This fruit… It's fascinating. Its form of existence is unique. It's not a fragment of some natural law or anything like that."
"Instead, it feels like it's directly tied to human emotions and willpower. Inside the fruit, there's a chaotic mix of wills."
"So, what exactly are Devil Fruits?"
"Could they be special manifestations of the human spirit? A product of our desires and creativity?"
Kaito's mind raced with possibilities.
"Maybe Devil Fruits are a result of ancient human experimentation—some sort of advanced technological creation tied to the human spirit."
"Could they be the product of collective human will?
The more he analyzed, the more shocked he became.
Determined, Kaito began extracting the chaotic wills from the fruit.
The process was surprisingly easy. Although the wills were deeply rooted and struggled fiercely, they were powerless against Kaito's absolute control.
One by one, he stripped them away, leaving the fruit purified.
As the chaotic wills were removed, they writhed violently, letting out unearthly screams. But soon, they began to weaken and dissipate, as if losing their anchor to existence.
Intrigued, Kaito decided to release the extracted wills into the air.
The moment they were exposed, they vanished, merging into the surrounding space.
Kaito, using his sensory abilities, noticed faint spatial ripples and an immense, chaotic psychic presence.
"As I thought… Devil Fruits are a manifestation of human willpower from centuries ago, shaped by their desires for transcendence."
"The fruit itself contains the accumulated spirit of its original creator and every user that followed."
"No wonder Devil Fruits can subtly influence their users over time. It's a form of spiritual pollution."
At this, Kaito frowned.
"What's wrong?" Jiri asked, noticing his expression.
"Did it fail?" another chimed in.
"No, it worked!" Kaito reassured them.
He then explained his findings, leaving everyone shocked.
"So… does that mean we can't eat Devil Fruits anymore?" Jiri asked, stunned.
"Not necessarily." Kaito smiled, taking out the now-purified Rumble-Rumble Fruit. "I've removed the chaotic wills and spiritual pollution from it."
"Now, whoever eats this fruit won't have to worry about their mind being affected. In fact, as they grow stronger and use the fruit's abilities, they'll gradually absorb its spiritual energy, making it entirely their own."
"Not only will they gain the fruit's power, but their own spiritual strength will skyrocket."
"Plus, without the chaotic wills, there's a high chance they won't even be rejected by seawater anymore."
Kaito's explanation left everyone stunned.
He hypothesized that Devil Fruit users were rejected by the sea because the fruits represented a distorted form of human spirituality, disconnected from nature.
"The sea, as the mother of all life, rejects this artificial creation and cursing the wills inside."
"But with the chaotic wills removed, the fruit becomes more harmonious with nature."
Still, Kaito cautioned, "These are just my guesses for now. I'll need to test this further to make sure."
"That's why I plan to get a few more Devil Fruits to test on other creatures. Once we have concrete results, I'll let everyone know."
"Then, we can each choose the Devil Fruit that suits us best, optimize and refine it, and then consume it. What do you think?"
Jiri nodded thoughtfully. "It's best to proceed cautiously. Let's see how it goes with more experiments."
Minato, deep in thought, asked, "Kaito, if you can purify a Devil Fruit, can you also extract a Devil Fruit from someone who's already eaten it?"
"Would it hurt the user if you did?"
If this were possible, it would open up a new world of possibilities.
They could eat Devil fruits without fear of being permanently bound to them. If a fruit didn't suit someone, they could simply extract it and try another.
If that's possible, it would be incredibly useful.
They could consume purified Devil Fruits themselves and test whether or not they'd still be rejected by the sea.
If they were rejected, they could just extract the fruit again and return to normal.
Moreover, this method could be a game-changer. If a desired Devil Fruit was already eaten by someone else, they wouldn't need to gamble on finding the fruit again after killing that person.
They could simply extract it directly without unnecessary bloodshed.
Kaito smiled. "That's something I plan to explore too. But we'll have to wait and see."
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