Gorilla-Gorilla Fruit

No matter how the world defines pirates.

Pirates are first and foremost thieves—thieves who set sail for wealth and stop at nothing to achieve their ambitions.

If he could freely choose his identity.

Seven wouldn't mind being a Celestial Dragon living in Mary Geoise, surrounded by maids, escorted by Marines, enjoying endless wealth without lifting a finger.

But there was no "if." Crossing into the Pirate World and surviving was already hard enough. If he had to be a thief, so be it.

"Mr. Mihawk, I'll be back in a bit."

Mihawk, gripping a chilled Iced Black Tea, gave a silent nod as his reply.

Over the past month, though Seven's height hadn't changed much, his physique had grown considerably stronger.

Even without using his Devil Fruit ability, the current Seven could take on at least two and a half of his former self. This was Innate Divine Strength. This was the Big Eater constitution.

No wonder everyone loved cheating.

The first half of the Grand Line was called Paradise.

But compared to the Four Seas, Paradise's climate was still extremely harsh—one moment sunny and calm, the next crackling with thunder and lightning.

On the turbulent sea, the captain of the Gorilla Pirates—the fat, dark-skinned man codenamed Gorilla, Gout—stood proudly at the bow.

"Lads, pull the ship closer! Let's make a name for the Gorilla Pirates!"

"Oooh!!!"

"Gorilla! Gorilla!"

"The One Piece! The One Piece!"

The Gorilla Pirates were a perfect example of the countless pirates, mountain bandits, and refugees flooding into the Grand Line from the Four Seas since the start of the Great Pirate Era.

In this world where everyone was practically illiterate, the allure of the One Piece outweighed even life itself.

Between the two pirate ships, hundreds of meters apart, a bolt of lightning arrived in an instant—the most basic application of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit: Flash Step.

In terms of speed, only the pervert who ate the Glint-Glint Fruit in this Pirate World was faster than the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.

Seven de-materialized and sat atop the Gorilla Pirates' sail: "Oi, over here."

Hearing the noise, the pirates led by Gorilla nearly popped their eyes out of their sockets.

"What?!"

"Who are you? When did you get here?"

As a veteran pirate of the old era, Seven decided to teach these rookie pirates a lesson.

"Thunder Dragon!"

A dragon-shaped creature made entirely of lightning charged straight at the pirates on the deck. In a single clash, only the fat man at the bow remained standing, fists clenched tight, chest heaving.

"This old man is a Gorilla Man who ate the Gorilla-Gorilla Fruit! Die!"

The fat man transformed into a four-meter-tall black-backed gorilla, pounding his chest wildly with his fists before charging forward with bizarre, stomping steps.

"As expected of a Zoan." Seven remarked. "Their vitality is just that strong."

The gorilla punched through the mast with one blow. Seven floated lightly in the air, shaping the lightning crackling between his hands into a blue-glowing longsword: Plasma Sword.

Finally encountering a Devil Fruit user, Seven intended to use this to gauge his own combat strength.

He had no choice. In the month since leaving Loguetown, Seven had challenged Mihawk multiple times, but the completely one-sided battles offered no reference value.

The gorilla kicked off the ship, leaping into the air with a roar: "Eight-Step Gorilla Fist!"

Pshh~

Seven held the Plasma Sword with one hand, mimicking Captain Roger's swinging posture, and struck with full force. The gorilla was sent flying, crashing heavily into the deck.

Looking at the unconscious gorilla, Seven clicked his tongue and shook his head. "This is Innate Divine Strength."

[Innate Divine Strength: Your strength is somewhat large.]

This thing seemed to be a conceptual passive.

If Mihawk didn't use Armament Haki and fought purely with strength, Seven was already stronger than Mihawk.

And now, he had one-shot the gorilla.

"No wonder everyone loves cheating in games."

Dismissing the Plasma Sword, Seven landed steadily on the deck and kicked each unconscious pirate awake.

"Men on the left, women on the right, line up! This is a robbery!"

The rookie pirates lined up trembling in fear, because their strongest, their captain Gorilla—whom they believed rivaled the King of the Pirates—lay unconscious on the deck, his fate unknown.

The scorched wound on Gorilla's chest was still steaming.

"Anyone who can sail, step forward."

Finding no one responding, Seven kicked one of the pirates into the sea: "None of you can sail? Then what are you doing on the Grand Line?"

Steering a ship—isn't that a basic skill every crew member should master?

"Sir, our captain can steer the ship."

Hearing this, Seven was even more speechless: "So you're telling me your captain's been steering the whole way?"

"Yes." The group of pirates hurriedly nodded.

"Can't even steer, what use are you?" Seven grumbled. "Next life, don't bother going to sea."

The first rule of going out into the world: eliminate the root. Because you never know if one of the people you let go might turn out to be a child of destiny, who, after training, comes back yapping about bonds and friendship to take revenge on you.

After finishing off all the pirates and tossing them into the sea, Seven looted the ship of its valuables, then picked up an apple and placed it beside the black chimpanzee.

With a single sword stroke, he beheaded the chimpanzee, then crouched by the apple and waited quietly. He did this mainly to test his luck, and in these nearby waters, only the black chimpanzee's pirate ship had fruit on board.

About ten minutes later, the smooth surface of the apple began to show the distinctive spiral pattern of a Devil Fruit.

"Oh? Lucky me."

Seven quickly stashed the freshly produced Zoan Fruit and sold it directly through the system. The Trading Platform had offered a measly 1000 points for Devil Fruits, but the direct-sale system gave 1200 points.

Good thing Seven had been cautious. Otherwise, he'd have lost 200 points for nothing, equivalent to 2000 crates of Iced Black Tea!

"Ding, congratulations on earning 1200 points. Current balance: 1266..."

Shattering the black chimpanzee's pirate ship with lightning, Seven transformed into a bolt and caught up with Mihawk.

"Mi-san, let's find a nearby island to resupply. We should reach Jaya Island soon."

The legendary Shandora and the Sky Island were the main reasons Mihawk had stayed. If not for that, he'd have been off searching the world for opponents long ago.

For the sake of Seven's free Iced Black Tea, Mihawk offered a reminder: "If you're thinking of forming your own pirate crew, at least get a decent ship. This one won't hold up to the storms of the New World."

"True." Seven nodded.

The most suitable ship would be the Oro Jackson, built by Mr. Tom using Treasure Tree Adam. But the Oro Jackson was the King of the Pirates' ship—too flashy for Seven. With his current strength, keeping a low profile was the way to go.

Besides, Seven was already planning to turn the Sky Island into his base and develop steadily for a while.

Mihawk took the helm while Seven sat on the deck, staring at the system's direct-sale interface, deep in thought.

[Swordsman Training Experience: 1000 points]

To be precise, Seven's swordsmanship wasn't bad. A chef and a swordsman were essentially similar in some ways: one cuts ingredients, the other cuts people.

"Mi-san, would I count as a swordsman now?"