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"Anyone interested in this Zoan-type fruit?" Kaito asked as he glanced at Minato and the others after his mother returned.
"Nope!"
"I'll pass!"
"Absolutely not!"
The trio, including Minato, all shook their heads decisively.
The main reason was that this Devil Fruit's ability wasn't particularly impressive—it could only enhance physical strength and speed up taijutsu training.
Also… it was ugly.
Yeah, that was the key issue.
"Haha!"
Kaito and Uchiha Jiri couldn't help but laugh at their reactions.
Kushina, Mikoto and Minato, influenced by their laughter, chuckled along.
"By the way, the energy from the extracted Devil Fruit needs a compatible fruit as a medium to solidify. Otherwise, it'll disperse on its own," Kaito explained.
At this moment, the Bear-Bear Fruit was still in an energy state within the space of the Dimensional Gate. It hadn't solidified into a proper Devil Fruit.
"Oh?"
Uchiha Jiri raised an eyebrow and asked, "Should I find you some fruit for that?"
"Yes, please!" Kaito nodded. "I don't have any stock here. Could you grab some for me, Mom? Thanks!"
"Wait here."
Jiri nodded and vanished in a flash, reappearing moments later in front of a fruit shop in a pirate town.
With a wave of her hand, she collected all the fruit in the store into her storage space. She tossed a handful of Berry at the stunned shopkeeper before disappearing again.
The shopkeeper: "…"
'What just happened?'
Still, he knew better than to complain. Someone like that was not worth provoking. At least she paid, right?
---
The next moment, Jiri was back with Kaito and said, "Many different fruits are in my storage space. You can take what you need from there—I'm not pulling them all out."
"Got it!"
Kaito retrieved one of each type of fruit from her storage and transferred them into the "main space."
He guided the energy of the Bear Bear Fruit toward one of the fruits, watching as it transformed into a peculiar Devil Fruit with unique patterns and shapes.
"Done!"
Satisfied, Kaito then pulled out the Thunder Fruit and turned to the group. "What about this one? Anyone interested in the Rumble-Rumble Fruit?"
"Nope! You've been eyeing it for a while, haven't you? You take it," Kushina said, shaking her head. "Besides, lightning powers don't really suit me. I'm more into something like a powerful Zoan or a physical enhancement Paramecia."
"Something that makes my punches stronger would be ideal."
As she spoke, Kushina raised her small fist proudly.
She had been learning superhuman strength techniques from Tsunade and Uzumaki Mito. Combined with the Uzumaki clan's natural advantages, she felt physical combat suited her best.
Sure, lightning powers could enhance the body, but she didn't want to turn into a muscle-bound Amazon.
"Got it," Kaito said, nodding in understanding. "You want a Zoan-type like the Nine-Tailed Fox or a Paramecia like the Quake-Quake Fruit."
"There should be plenty of options," he added. "The Devil Fruits shown in the memories you got, are just a fraction of what's out there. In this real world, there are many powerful ones."
"What about the Nine-Tailed Fox? Wouldn't that suit Grandma Mito better?" Kushina asked, resting her chin on her finger.
Clearly, she already knew Uzumaki Mito had the Nine-Tails sealed within her.
Well, that made sense. She'd been brought back as a potential Jinchūriki, so she'd already undergone the necessary education and preparation.
Unfortunately, Mito wouldn't die for decades, meaning there was no need—or possibility—to replace her as the Jinchūriki. Removing the beast would kill her.
"If it's for Mito-sama, her affection level for me would have to be high enough!" Kaito said with a wry smile. "You know I can't risk exposing information about other worlds unless someone is fully bound to me."
"Yeah, I understand!" Kushina replied with a grin. "I was just saying! Grandma Mito adores you anyway. It's only a matter of time!"
"As for the Quake-Quake Fruit, we can rule that out for now," she continued. "Whitebeard is in his prime, so don't even think about it!"
Currently, Luffy had probably just been born, meaning the Paramount War was at least 17 years away. Whitebeard was at the peak of his power right now.
"You're overthinking it!" Kaito rolled his eyes. "I'm not stupid enough to provoke Whitebeard now."
"With his current strength, he's likely on par with the First Hokage at his peak—if not even stronger when considering his sheer destructive power. While he hasn't reached Six Paths level, he could still hold his own for a while against someone like Kaguya or others of that level."
"Beating Six Paths level like Six Paths Madara, though? That's a mystery."
Strength comparisons between worlds were always tricky to figure out. Kaito figured he'd have to wait until his own power grew enough to test it himself.
Maybe all his assumptions were wrong.
"I'll pass too," Minato said, shaking his head. "You should take it, Kaito. I've already taken so much from you—I can't keep asking for more."
"Same here," Mikoto added. "It's better if you eat it. You're missing a lightning attribute, right? This might help you get it."
"Good point," Jiri agreed. "From the information you've given me, breaking into Six Paths-level strength will require more than just eating a God Tree fruit or becoming the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki."
"You'll need to master your bloodline limits, refine Yin-Yang Release, and create Truth-Seeking Orbs on your own."
"This Thunder Fruit could help you fill in the gap for the lightning attribute. Don't waste the opportunity."
"You should eat it. The sooner your strength improves, the sooner I'll feel comfortable letting you explore the outside world," she added.
"As for me, I'll decide on a Devil Fruit later. The Thunder Fruit doesn't suit me anyway."
"Alright then! I won't hold back. When we find more Devil Fruits, we can distribute them then!"
Kaito had secretly wanted the fruit, but he had been hesitant. Since everyone was encouraging him, he felt justified in taking it now.
Kaito knew that this Devil Fruit would suit Minato well, but he needed it for himself. Besides, he could always find Minato a more fitting fruit, like the Door-Door Fruit or another space-related one.
So without hesitation, he bit into the fruit.
As he swallowed, he felt a surge of lightning energy flow into his body, settling in his heart and spreading throughout his entire being, reshaping him.
"Strange… Since this is a product of spiritual energy, shouldn't it fuse directly with my soul?"
He couldn't help but wonder. He saw how the power of the bear Fruit had partially fused with its user's spirit.
"Maybe it's something I have to integrate step by step?"
While Kaito was deep in thought, Kushina couldn't resist her curiosity.
"Kaito, is it true? Does the fruit really taste as bad as they say? Like eating poop?" she teased, her eyes gleaming with mischief.
Mikoto and the others also cast curious, amused glances at him.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Kaito gave them an exasperated look. "That's nonsense. I wouldn't know what the original Devil Fruits taste like—I've never had one before."
"And as for the taste of poop… I have no idea what it's like!" he added, rolling his eyes. "Kushina, if you're curious—"
"Stop right there!" Kushina interrupted, raising her hand. "I get it! Don't say another word!"
"Not interested at all!"
"Ugh, so disgusting!"
She definitely wasn't curious anymore. That was way too disgusting!
"Heh heh!"
Seeing this, Kaito chuckled cheerfully. "Alright, I'll let it slide this time!"
Then, he continued, "You know, the purified and improved Devil Fruit actually tastes pretty good! Kind of like a regular pineapple. I think it has something to do with the purification process—maybe even a connection to mental resonance."
"I suspect the reason the original Devil Fruits taste so awful is because they carry a will or presence that pollutes the human spirit."
"The human spirit naturally rejects this kind of pollution, which makes them taste horribly unpleasant."
"Of course, that's just my theory, so I can't say for sure."
But honestly, Kaito thought his reasoning made a lot of sense.
Saying this, he casually took another bite of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit in his hand and quickly finished it. He then began to carefully sense the abilities of the fruit.
Sure enough, his chakra attributes now showed an additional Lightning element.
He also glanced at his status panel, noticing a new skill in the list: [Rumble-Rumble Fruit (1/1000, Beginner)]
"Zzzzt!"
In the next moment, blue lightning arcs flickered across Kaito's body.
Raising his hand, he aimed at a nearby open space.
"Zzraaack!"
A bolt of blue lightning, as thick as a finger, shot out from his palm, streaking across the sky before striking the ground.
The blast left a small pit about ten centimeters deep, with faint traces of vitrified sand around its edges.
[You have cultivated the Rumble-Rumble Fruit ability. Proficiency +20.]
"This level of lightning power is already on par with a C-rank Lightning Release jutsu! What about the energy cost?"
Uchiha Jiri's eyes lit up as she observed, posing her question.
Kaito did a quick mental calculation and replied, "This doesn't consume chakra. It only drains physical stamina. Based on my current physique, it took about 1% of my total stamina."
"Oh?"
Hearing this, Uchiha Jiri's eyes shone even brighter. "That's pretty good! The cost-effectiveness is amazing!"
"This is way more efficient than ninjutsu!"
"It seems the Logia-type Devil Fruits really provide a significant boost!"
Maybe it was time for her to start looking for a strong Logia-type Devil Fruit for herself?
"Not quite."
Kaito shook his head and explained, "Don't forget, I've only just eaten this fruit. My spiritual energy is strong, and I've honed my chakra control through rigorous training. Plus, I already have expertise in several Lightning Release techniques before, trying to get the Lightning affinity."
"Although the abilities of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit are different from chakra control, they both involve manipulating energy—specifically the lightning element. My initial control over it is decent, and the development speed will likely be quite fast at the beginning."
"So, this level of power shouldn't be taken as the standard for what a Devil Fruit can do."
"Fair enough!"
Uchiha Jiri nodded thoughtfully. "As expected, certain principles overlap between different training systems!"
"Alright, keep testing!"
"Sure thing!"
Kaito was more than happy to comply. He turned to Uchiha Jiri and said, "Mom, try throwing a kunai at me!"
"Oh? Testing elemental intangibility, huh? Alright!"
Understanding his intention, Uchiha Jiri pulled a kunai from her storage space. With a swift flick of her wrist, she sent it flying toward Kaito's shoulder.
In the blink of an eye, the kunai pierced straight through Kaito's left shoulder without any resistance, embedding itself deep into the sand behind him.
"Whoa! That's incredible! Lightning Release can't replicate this!"
Both Uchiha Jiri and Kushina were astonished.
They quickly stepped forward to inspect Kaito's body, but their hands passed right through him without any resistance.
As they withdrew their hands, faint arcs of electricity flashed over the areas they touched before returning to normal.
"This intangibility ability is excellent against pure taijutsu specialists and even projectiles in the ninja world," Uchiha Jiri mused. "But I wonder—does it work against ninjutsu?"
"Also, is this effect always passive, or do you have to activate it yourself sometimes?"
Resting her chin on her hand, Uchiha Jiri directed her questions to Kaito.
If this ability could even block ninjutsu, its value would skyrocket.
Kaito's survivability in the ninja world would be maxed out.
"It's always passive, but I can deactivate and activate it if I want to," Kaito clarified.
"As for whether it works against ninjutsu, I'm not sure yet. We'll need to test it."
"Alright. Let's give it a try!"
Uchiha Jiri immediately raised her hand, summoning a small arc of electricity. "Let's start with Lightning Release!"
This wasn't a full-fledged jutsu—just a minor manipulation of lightning chakra.
While it wouldn't cause any real harm, it was enough for testing.
"Okay!"
Kaito stretched out his hand eagerly.
Uchiha Jiri guided the arc of electricity toward his outstretched hand.
"Zzzt!"
The tiny spark struck Kaito's finger, and she immediately stopped the flow of chakra.
"Well? How is it?" she asked, slightly nervous.
"No effect!"
Kaito laughed and shook his head. "It didn't do any damage at all. But I'm not sure if that's because of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit. Maybe I'm just naturally immune to pure lightning attacks."
"We should try other chakra natures next."
"Figured as much. Let's keep going!"
Unfazed, Uchiha Jiri continued her experiments, testing all five basic chakra natures against Kaito.
The results?
While Kaito wasn't completely immune to other chakra types, their effectiveness was noticeably reduced.
"What a pity!"
When the tests concluded, Uchiha Jiri sighed.
If only he were fully immune to ninjutsu, his intangibility would make him nearly invincible.
"That's strange. In the One Piece world, other Devil Fruit powers can't hurt Logia users in their intangible state. So why can ninjutsu?"
She muttered in confusion.
"Probably because of how chakra works," Kaito offered a theory.
"Chakra is a fusion of cellular energy and spiritual energy," he explained. "In the One Piece world, Logia intangibility can be bypassed by Armament Haki or Conqueror's Haki."
"According to Rayleigh's notes on Haki training, Armament Haki seems to involve a mix of willpower, vitality, and life force."
"It's as if users imbue their attacks with their own intent and life energy."
"Conqueror's Haki might go even deeper, tapping into the soul or spirit."
"Since chakra incorporates both physical and spiritual energy, it's no surprise that ninjutsu can interact with Logia intangibility."
Simply put, the willpower and spiritual energy of other living beings can affect Logia users.
"That makes sense."
Uchiha Jiri nodded in agreement, unable to think of a better explanation.
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