Sky Island Adventure? No, I Came to Snatch a Devil Fruit

Bang—!

Accompanied by a dull boom, the little sailboat, after being violently jostled as if trapped inside a washing machine drum, finally burst through the thick, marshmallow-like clouds of the White-White Sea.

The hull slammed heavily onto a soft, snow-white sea surface that seemed condensed from clouds, splashing up great waves of milky foam.

"Bleurgh—"

Dadi clung desperately to the rail, his face as white as paper as acidic bile sprayed wildly from his stomach like a fountain.

He had weathered barrages of gunfire and hovered on the brink of death countless times in his life, but this skyward experience, like riding a roller coaster at several thousand times speed, completely shattered the tough-guy image of this former Marine lieutenant.

Little Carol had long since been shaken unconscious and was tightly held in Kuina's arms.

Kuina had not thrown up, but her little face was equally pale, and even the hand holding her sword trembled slightly. She had clearly been badly frightened as well.

"Enough, stop puking. Aren't you embarrassed? You're a grown man."

Lei En shot Dadi a disdainful glance and lightly hopped onto the deck railing as if nothing had happened.

He took a deep breath of the noticeably thinner air of the sky island, his sharp gaze sweeping across the surroundings.

This was a dreamlike kingdom of clouds.

But to Lei En, no matter how beautiful the scenery was, it was all nonsense. He had not come here to sightsee.

Sea Circle Calendar, Year 1503.

There were still nearly ten years before Luffy set sail in the original story.

That self-proclaimed god, the "Lightning Dharma King" Enel, was probably just a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old edgy delinquent now. He might not even have eaten the Devil Fruit that would change his fate.

"This is the greatest cheat I've got my eye on. No one's taking it from me."

Lei En did not waste a single moment and immediately closed his eyes.

An invisible yet immensely powerful wave of Observation Haki erupted from him, crazily spreading in every direction like radar pulses.

It crossed the sea of clouds and pierced through the islands.

Very soon, his Observation Haki locked onto a dense primeval forest covered in gigantic trees—God's Island, Upper Yard.

Deep within that forest, an exceptionally unique energy pulse, violent yet restrained, throbbed faintly like a heartbeat.

"Found it."

Lei En abruptly opened his eyes, a wild, triumphant grin curling across his lips.

He turned toward Dadi, who was still dry-heaving, and Kuina, whose face remained pale.

"You stay on the ship and rest. Don't run around. This damn place has too many rules. Wait until I bring back the 'spoils.'"

"L-Lei En, sir, it's too dangerous for you to go alone, bleurgh..."

Dadi raised his head with difficulty, only to break into another bout of violent vomiting before he could finish.

Although Kuina wanted to follow him, she looked at the unconscious Carol in her arms and could only grit her teeth and nod. "Sir, please be careful!"

"Don't worry. There's no one up here who can hurt me."

Before Lei En had even finished speaking, his entire body became a black afterimage as he leaped off the ship.

His feet kicked off the air in rapid succession, using Sky Walk from the Six Powers. Like a phantom, he raced across the surface of the cloud sea toward God's Island.

More than ten minutes later.

Lei En plunged headfirst into that gloomy, sinister primeval forest, where towering trees reached into the clouds.

The ecosystem here was exceptionally strange. Enormous vines coiled like giant pythons, while bizarre beasts growled from the shadows.

A sky-island tiger as tall as a three-story building, with enormous fangs, suddenly burst from the bushes and opened its bloody maw to bite Lei En.

"Get lost. Don't block my way!"

Lei En did not even spare it a glance, merely letting out a trace of Conqueror's Haki.

The giant tiger, which had been so ferocious moments ago, instantly reacted as if it had encountered its natural predator. It let out a mournful cry, foamed at the mouth, and collapsed limply to the ground.

Following the guidance of his Observation Haki, Lei En moved through the complicated forest as though walking on level ground, growing faster and faster.

He could feel that unique energy pulse getting closer and closer!

Fifteen minutes later.

Lei En finally stopped before an ancient giant tree so massive that it would take dozens of people joining hands to encircle it.

Its tangled roots formed a naturally enormous tree hollow.

The hollow was dimly lit, yet an eerie blue radiance flickered deep within, brightening and fading intermittently.

Lei En held his breath and carefully walked inside.

As he ventured deeper, the sensation of that violent energy became increasingly clear.

Finally, on a natural stone platform at the deepest point of the tree hollow.

Lei En's eyes suddenly lit up!

It was a fruit shaped like a pineapple.

Its surface was covered in strange, jagged patterns like lightning bolts, and the entire fruit seemed alive as it emitted faint, ghostly blue sparks.

It was right here!

One of the strongest Logia-type Devil Fruits universally recognized in the pirate world!

An invincible cheat that could turn its user into lightning, granting godlike destructive power and speed!

The Rumble-Rumble Fruit!

"Ha ha ha ha! Just as I thought, no one's found it yet. This interception was absolutely perfect!"

Lei En's heart pounded madly with excitement as he reached out and grabbed the fruit, which radiated deadly temptation, without hesitation.

The instant it touched his hand, he could even feel a faint current dancing across his fingertips.

"With this, combined with my Roger's Swordsmanship, who on these seas can stop me?!"

Lei En impatiently raised the fruit to his mouth, about to take a bite.

Just then.

"Hey, hairless monkey from the Blue Sea, put down that god-given fruit in your hand!"

An exceedingly arrogant, insolent young voice, thick with edgy bravado, suddenly rang out from outside the tree hollow.