Grab It!

"Oh? Tell me more."

Mercer perked up. Any kind of Devil Fruit could be extremely useful to him.

In all sorts of ways.

Seeing how pleased Mercer was, Karasu laughed and cawed:

"Just now, flying in the sky, saw a bunch of men in black, whispering. Crow got curious, so flew down."

A moment later,

Mercer rubbed his chin, piecing together the information from Karasu's story.

The Ishu Family, which controlled the island's merchant guilds, both inside and out, was making a big move. They'd secretly arranged to trade an unidentified Devil Fruit to the biggest mafia family in West Blue.

Their goal was to wipe out the island's law enforcement forces—the troops commanded by the Elizabeth Family—and openly unite the island's surface-level factions under their rule.

"Infighting, huh?"

Mercer smiled. "From what you're saying, they're about to make the trade?"

Karasu cawed and bobbed his head. "Want to go? Now?"

Mercer smiled. "Of course. It can't hurt to try our luck. If things go well, we might even get a Devil Fruit for free."

As he spoke, Mercer glanced at Perona, who was listening with her ears perked up. He smiled.

"If you don't want to come with me, then I guess it's time to say goodbye. I have something to take care of. Maybe we'll meet again someday."

With that, Mercer stood, brushed the grass off his clothes, and looked at Karasu. "Show us the way, Da Bao."

"Caw!"

Karasu soared into the sky and flew off into the distance.

Mercer followed right behind him.

He'd only taken two steps when Perona's agitated voice came from behind him. "You're really leaving?"

"Didn't you say you wanted me to come with you? You're not going to beg me a little more? Maybe I'll agree if I'm in a good mood."

Mercer turned and looked her up and down. She practically radiated tsundere energy. He curled his lip.

"Come if you want. If you've got the guts, stay here by yourself for the rest of your life. Stay until you're moldy and covered in moss."

Perona's lips trembled, her face full of anger. "You're really not cute at all. You're younger than me, so why are you acting like some mature adult?"

But when she saw Mercer turn and leave, her heart skipped a beat. She hurried after him and caught up at his side, then immediately explained:

"Just so we're clear, don't get a big head. It's not like I want to go with you.

"I just want to see your panda and get revenge on that foul-mouthed crow every day. Once I've seen them, I'll leave on my own.

"Yeah, that's it."

Mercer curled his lip and tugged on Perona's cheek.

"Could you at least keep your mouth straight when you talk? With your mouth crooked and your eyes askew, it's obvious you're lying. If you want to come with me, just say so. Why put on that tsundere act?"

"You're the tsundere! You're the one who's acting like a brat! Can you even talk properly? Want me to use Negi-negi Ghost to make you kneel and repent? And stop pulling my cheek. It hurts."

She slapped Mercer's hand away.

"Did you forget?" Mercer smiled, looking amused. "Your negative ability doesn't work on me. Besides, weren't you the one kneeling and begging me not to beat you up just now?"

"Looks like you're not only a tsundere, you're also pretty stupid."

"I'm starting to regret this. Maybe you should just go back and stay there by yourself until you're moldy."

"Y-you... So you really want me to leave? I'm really leaving, okay? I really am!"

Seeing that Mercer wasn't budging, Perona ground her teeth and plopped down on the ground. Her spirit's upper body emerged from her own, and she aimed her palm at Mercer.

"Negi-negi Ghost!"

Biu~

A transparent white ghost doll shot straight through Mercer, entering through his back and coming out of his chest.

Mercer's pupils shrank. A tide of negativity suddenly began to swell in his mind.

His legs went weak.

He dropped to one knee, his lips trembling. "I... I..."

He took a deep breath.

In an instant, he entered a state of Unity of Heaven and Man.

After a while, he came to and turned to look at Perona, his face dark.

"You attacked me by surprise?"

Perona's spirit looked utterly confused. "What's going on? Aren't you immune to my ability?"

Her eyes suddenly lit up. Another ghost doll shot from her palm and passed right through Mercer.

"Huh?" Perona looked even more bewildered. "Why didn't it work this time? What's wrong with you? Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't!"

Mercer rose with a dark expression. He reached his left hand through Perona's spirit chest, pinched her physical cheek, and lifted her up.

He raised his right fist.

Duang~

He rapped her hard on the head. Watching a big bump rise, Mercer let out a deep breath.

Perona's spirit wore a pained expression. "Y-you actually hit me?"

She hurriedly pulled her upper body back into her physical body. The next moment, she clutched her head with both hands and cried out in pain.

She wriggled in Mercer's grip like a worm.

"Don't do that again. If you sneak up on me again, I'll hit you again."

Mercer let go of her cheek and glared at her.

Perona nodded miserably, looking chastened. "I'm sorry, okay?"

Mercer curled his lip. "Come on. Da Bao's going to get impatient."

He glanced at Karasu, who was circling overhead, and hurried after him.

Perona sniffed and glared at Mercer. Her eyes shifted as she thought of something, and she started giggling to herself.

Then she hurried after him.

"Are those the guys?"

Mercer crouched in a corner of the ruins, watching a group of mafiosi a hundred meters away. They wore suits, ties, and sunglasses, and carried guns.

He studied the group, then spotted a "familiar face" among them. Short and round.

Though he'd seen someone he "knew," Mercer wasn't focused on him. Instead, he watched another group approaching from the distance.

One of them looked like the leader. He was carrying a briefcase, which presumably held the Devil Fruit.

Before long, the two groups met up. Mercer couldn't hear what they were saying, but everyone was smiling.

Mercer turned to Perona, who looked just as surprised, and asked without hesitation:

"You heard what Karasu said about the Devil Fruit trade, right? Want to help me out?"

Perona shot Mercer a sidelong glance and muttered, "Have you no shame? You just hit me, and now you want me to help you."

Then her tone changed, and her eyes sparkled as she looked at Mercer.

"I'll help you, but only if you let me hit you back afterward."

Mercer smiled and rested a hand on Karasu's head. "Deal."

"Then, Pepe, you get out of your body, burrow underground, and use Negi-negi Ghost to knock them all down. Da Bao, swoop down from the sky, grab the briefcase, and fly off.

"Then, Pepe, keep using Negi-negi Ghost to keep them feeling negative. I'll carry your body away. Two minutes later, you can return to your body. That's the plan. Got it?

"Oh, right. Pepe, can your spirit burrow through the ground?"

Karasu nodded.

"I can, but..." Perona looked confused and pointed at herself. "...Pepe? Are you talking to me?"

Mercer rolled his eyes. "Who else would I be talking to? Is there anyone else here whose name has 'Pe' in it?"

Perona blinked, then covered her mouth and giggled. "When did we get so close that we're using pet names? Since when?"

Mercer's expression darkened. "All right, then. Perona."

"Don't." Perona reached out and covered Mercer's mouth, giggling softly. "It actually sounds pretty nice. Fine, I'll graciously allow you to call me that."

"Oh, and remember to protect my body while I'm out of it. I won't be able to move."

As she spoke, Mercer saw the men across the way begin their trade. The briefcase opened, revealing a strange-looking fruit inside.

Mercer patted Perona on the head. "Now's the time. Operation starts. Pepe, go!"

Perona shook her head helplessly, then toppled toward Mercer and smacked her face into the ground.

Perona, now out of her body, watched the scene with eyes blazing. She let out a shrill whisper. "Mercer, you jerk! This is how you take care of my body?"

Mercer gave an awkward smile. "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention. All right, all right, I know I was wrong. Hurry up and go."

As he spoke, he pinched Perona by the scruff of her neck and pulled her up, settling her against his chest. Perona watched him, huffed, then burrowed into the ground and disappeared.

Mercer looked at Karasu. Karasu looked back, then immediately turned into a ground-running chicken and dashed to the other side. A few seconds later, he shot into the sky from a different patch of ruins.

A hundred meters wouldn't take long to cross.

Twenty seconds later.

Mercer watched a head and a small hand emerge from a corner behind the two groups. Four ghost dolls then skimmed low over the ground and flew toward them.

One, two, three.

They dropped to their knees, one after another.

Someone noticed something was wrong and cried out, but immediately fell to his knees.

Within seconds, all thirty-odd men had collapsed to their knees, making unintelligible noises one after another.

The leader holding the briefcase fell to his knees too. The briefcase hit the ground, and the Devil Fruit rolled out.

Mercer watched the ghost dolls keep passing through their bodies.

"Tch, ability mechanics sure don't play fair. I wonder if Armament Haki can defend against this.

"Maybe I should get Grandpa to try it sometime. His Haki must be impressive."

He shook his head and focused on the scene. Mercer watched Karasu swoop down, snatch the Devil Fruit in his claws, and soar back into the sky.

Seeing this,

Mercer's lips curled into a smile.

He lifted Perona by the arm, slung her over his shoulder, then hooked his other arm under her legs and quickly ran off.

Two minutes later.

Perona looked at the men in suits and thought for a moment. "Is it time? It should be about time. I've already counted 128 seconds. Mm, I'll hit them with one more."

The ghost dolls, their laughter chilling, passed through the men again before fading away. Only whispers of utter despair remained in the air.

Anyone who didn't know better might have thought they were holding some kind of cult ritual.

A few minutes later.

The first man got back up, followed by the rest of the black-suited men. They looked at one another, embarrassed.

An awkward atmosphere hung in the air.

After a brief silence,

a short, pudgy man in a striped black suit gazed at the empty briefcase on the ground and spoke calmly:

"Well? Can this deal still go through today? Someone snatched the Devil Fruit. How does the Ishu Family intend to compensate us?"

The Ishu Family's leader spoke awkwardly. "You don't think we leaked the news, do you, Capone Bege?"

"I didn't say anything. But it was lost before it ever reached me, so it's not my responsibility. You're the ones who'll have to deal with it," Capone Bege said flatly.

The leader looked aggrieved. "Let's leave it at that for now. We'll contact you again in a day. And just to be clear, this was an accident. You know the Ishu Family's reputation. We'd never do something like this."

Capone Bege raised an eyebrow but only said, "Fine. I hope you'll make this right. Otherwise..."

The leader looked aggrieved. "Don't worry. You'll have an answer in a day."

"AAAAAAAH!!!"

Perona screamed in a frenzy. "You jerk! Is this how you protect me? Couldn't you carry me in your arms?

"Were you carrying a sack of sand or something?"

They were already far from the scene, in another ruin. Perona's spirit caught up, furious as she watched what Mercer had done.

Mercer blinked and looked at her in confusion. "Carry you?"

"There are bricks and rubble all over the ground, and it's so uneven. Carrying you in my arms would've been a pain. It was easier to sling you over my shoulder."

"Besides, I took good care of your body. Why are you hung up on little things?"

Perona's spirit twitched with anger. She scowled and dove into her body. The next moment, Mercer felt her wrap her arms around him from behind. Then a fierce pain shot through his side.

His eye twitched. He turned on instinct and bit her on the waist. Perona let out a pig-like squeal of pain and let go. Mercer quickly set her down.

Mercer rubbed his waist and touched the spot. It felt a little sticky. He brought his fingers up to look, then glanced at Perona, crouched on the ground clutching her waist, tears streaming from the corners of her eyes.

"You can bite me if you want, but did you have to drool too?"

Perona looked up at Mercer, her eyes blazing with anger as she ground her teeth.

"You jerk! You actually bit me? Are you a dog?"

"You're the dog. You're the one who bites people over every little thing."

Mercer curled his lip.

Perona grew even angrier. She lunged at him, claws bared. Mercer simply held out his right hand and pressed it against her head.

He subdued her with ease.

That only made Perona angrier. She reached for his arm, still trying to bite him.

Mercer let go and stepped back. Perona let out a cry as she pitched toward the ground. "Help!"

Mercer quickly bent down and caught her by the collar, saving her.

Perona looked at the ground, less than three centimeters below her, and breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks!" she blurted out on instinct.

Then her eye twitched, and she cursed at him. "You jerk! Pull me back up already!"

Mercer glanced at her and said calmly, "Oh!"

Then he let go.

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