Rocks, I've Always Been Optimistic About You!

Often, the upper limit of a Fruit depends on its user.

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There are no useless Fruits, only useless people.

To some extent, this statement isn't wrong.

But is there a possibility...

That if an outstanding person possesses an outstanding Fruit...

They will become even more outstanding?

In many cases, a Fruit can compensate for the user's innate deficiencies and enhance their potential, and this isn't limited to Zoan Fruits.

The Mini Fruit might not be a powerful Fruit, but it's one of the most suitable for Giants, as it can effectively address the drawbacks brought about by their massive bodies.

Although the Mini Fruit shrinks the user's body, it retains their original strength while doing so.

Imagine, when the strength of the Giant Tribe is condensed onto an arm as small as a needle, no defense in this world could withstand the destructive power it brings.

And with a shrunken body, the total amount of Haki trained as a Giant remains unchanged.

This is equivalent to Lipri's Haki being tens or even hundreds of times that of an ordinary person. Even if the quality is slightly inferior, the sheer volume alone is enough to drive others to despair.

Therefore, Mongge wasn't worried about the upcoming operation at all.

What concerned him was another young crew member on his ship.

"Rocks, do you know why I sent Lipri on this mission instead of you?"

"Because this is an internal matter for Elbaf."

"Wrong. Because your strength is too weak. I was afraid you'd get yourself killed by those guys by accident."

Mongge's words made Rocks' face flush red. He wanted to retort but couldn't find a reason.

Because, he really couldn't compare to Lipri right now.

"Do you know why I gave the Mini Fruit to Lipri and not you?"

"Because her strength is greater..."

"Wrong again!"

Mongge shook his head, looking at Rocks with a sense of disappointment, as if he couldn't understand why he wasn't progressing faster.

"Because her potential isn't enough!"

"(⊙o⊙)..."

Rocks' eyes widened. It was the first time he had heard Mongge critically comment on Lipri.

"Rocks, let me ask you, have you mastered the Six Powers?"

"I've basically mastered them all."

"And Haki?"

"Not yet... but soon!"

As if wanting to prove something, Rocks said loudly, "Just give me two more months, and I'll definitely master Haki!"

"Alright, two months. I'll consider it half a year. Rocks, do you think it will take you more than a year to learn Haki?"

Rocks shook his head.

"Then what if I told you that Lipri has been practicing how to use Haki since the first time I met her ten years ago?"

"Uh."

"Lipri spent ten years just to preliminarily grasp the method of using Haki, while you'll only need at most a year."

"Do you understand the gap between Lipri and you now?"

Rocks nodded silently.

All along, he had been surrounded by old pirates like Mongge or Giants like Lipri, and Rocks had always felt anxious about his own strength.

The more he improved himself, the more he realized the gap between him, Mongge, and Lipri.

But after Mongge explained it like this, Rocks felt a sense of enlightenment.

It wasn't that he was incapable.

It was just that Mongge and Lipri had been training for much longer than him.

"Rocks, what do you think has the biggest impact on strength?"

"Swordsmanship? Combat skills? Or Devil Fruit abilities?"

"None of those!"

Mongge's eyes gleamed with fanaticism.

"In this world, the biggest impact on strength is Haki!"

"Only Haki reigns supreme above all else!"

In the past, Moger also believed that powerful Devil Fruit abilities were no match for powerful talent, and that luckily finding a powerful Devil Fruit was a form of strength.

Until one day, he learned that sufficiently powerful Haki could even nullify the abilities of a Devil Fruit user.

Then he understood.

In this world, Devil Fruit abilities and swordsmanship were all bullshit.

Haki was the strongest!

That's why, after learning he didn't possess Conqueror's Haki, Moger felt immense bitterness and helplessness, because the most top-tier Haki came from users of Conqueror's Haki.

"As long as you have Haki, any Paramecia, Zoan, or Logia Devil Fruit abilities will be rendered useless!"

"As long as you have Haki, even if you don't know any swordsmanship, you can possess the supreme great swords that only a Great Swordsman can forge."

"As long as you have Haki, no matter how powerful the enemy, they will kneel before you!"

Moger heavily patted Rocks' shoulder.

"Rocks, you know I've always thought highly of you. The moment I first saw you, I knew you had the potential to reach the absolute peak!"

"Devil Fruits are not important at all. They are things only the weak use. Even I, if it weren't for my lack of talent, wouldn't eat this Phantom Beast Fruit even if it were given to me."

"Rocks, do you want to become an Overlord of the Sea in the future, only to be told that you became an Overlord of the Sea by relying on a powerful Devil Fruit ability?"

"No!"

Rocks quickly shook his head.

"That's right. After we set sail in the future, we might obtain many Devil Fruits, but remember, only the weak eat Devil Fruits."

"The strong only rely on themselves!"

Seeing Rocks looking solemn, finally emerging from his dejection, and no longer dwelling on giving his Devil Fruit to Lipri, Moger breathed a sigh of relief.

It's said that one doesn't worry about scarcity but inequality. With Rocks' talent, he didn't need a Devil Fruit at all, but he couldn't stop Rocks from overthinking things!

So, while Rocks was still young and inexperienced, he had to nip the bud in the bud. If he were to obtain a Devil Fruit again in the future, there wouldn't be too much explaining to do.

Explaining is covering up.

Heaven and earth as witness, Moger had no intention of suppressing Rocks at all.

But letting Rocks eat a Devil Fruit now would only distract him, with no other benefits.

After all, most Devil Fruit abilities require day-after-day training to become effective. Lipri, who had just eaten the Mini Fruit, could only currently make herself bigger and smaller; she was still far from mastering the Devil Fruit's abilities.

On the sea.

After sailing nearly a hundred kilometers away from Elbaf, the CP0 agents on the sailing ship finally couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"This mission was too dangerous."

"I didn't expect White Wolf Moger to be in Elbaf."

"Fortunately, Scarlet Snake was here."

"..."

The three who had escaped Elbaf were not worried about whether Rona could retreat safely after fighting Moger; that wasn't a problem at all.

Hah, if Moger could defeat a Marine Admiral, he would have been an Overlord among pirates long ago.

Why would he be chased around by the Marines?

After relaxing, the three did not notice the giant eagle that had been following them from a distance under the cover of night.

Nor did they see Lipri, only five millimeters in size, struggling to adjust her direction in the air and finally landing on their ship using Elbaf's specialty, Sunstone.

As soon as the three CP0 agents stood together, Lipri didn't hesitate to restore her original size and, facing the three CP0 agents, brought down her giant fist.

One strike to decide the victor!