The First Step to Becoming an Eminence in Shadow!

Looking at the fruit in his hand, Akuta fell into deep thought.

He hadn't expected Moria to be so decisive, committing suicide without even trying to save himself.

Although Moria appears to be seriously injured, aren't most people in the pirate world practically invincible?

Why not persevere a little longer? Maybe eating some meat will help you recover.

After casting a glance of admiration at Moria's boldness, Akuta quickly climbed onto the driftwood Moria had left behind.

We've been wading in the sea for half a day now. Luckily, Akuta can swim, otherwise someone who can't swim would have drowned long ago.

At this point, Moriah, having lost the support of the driftwood, slowly sank to the bottom of the water.

Akuta did not choose to stop it.

For a pirate, resting in the waters near his homeland might be his best resting place.

After Moria disappeared, Akuta looked down at the completely transformed fruit in his arms.

The once ordinary red apple has now been completely transformed.

Its surface is covered with strange spiral patterns, which look eerie in the sunlight.

Just by looking at it, Akuta had no idea what kind of courage the first person to eat a Devil Fruit had to do it.

"Devil Fruits..."

Akuta muttered to himself.

As someone who has watched One Piece, he certainly knows what this thing means.

Although he hadn't compared it to the Devil Fruit encyclopedia, he was absolutely certain of it.

This fruit is the Paramecia-type Shadow-Shadow Fruit!

If he eats this fruit, he will gain the power to control shadows.

But what will be the cost?

That means he'll never be able to swim in the sea again in his lifetime.

In a world like One Piece where the ocean is everywhere, not being able to swim is quite a fatal flaw.

If you accidentally fall into the sea one day, you'll truly be left with no one to turn to for help.

But Akuta hesitated for only a second before opening its mouth and biting into the Devil Fruit.

Why worry so much? We've come all this way to the world of One Piece, wouldn't it be a waste not to try out the local specialty Devil Fruits?

Besides, the system's challenge required him to inherit the Shadow-Shadow Fruit.

How can you inherit the fruit if you don't eat it?

As for not being able to swim?

Although Akuta still really likes the One Piece series and is very fascinated by Luffy's adventures.

But I'd rather not actually let Akuta become a pirate.

As an ordinary person who grew up in modern civilization, he still has prejudices against the profession of pirate.

He never intended to become a Akuta; he only came to Wano Country to fight Kaido.

Once Kaido is defeated, his challenge will end. Since he's not going to sea, who cares if he can swim or not!

"Vomit!!!"

The moment the fruit entered his mouth, Akuta's expression changed visibly.

An indescribable, nauseating taste exploded in his mouth.

It's like mixing smelly socks, spoiled milk, rotten fish entrails, and some other unknown stuff together and then stewing them into a thick, gooey soup.

"Holy crap... this is absolutely awful!"

Akuta resisted the urge to spit out the fruit and forced it down.

Is this what a Devil Fruit tastes like?

It truly lives up to its reputation!

But Akuta suddenly became curious.

Is it the Devil Fruit that tastes bad, or the Cursed Spirit created by Suguru Geto 'Cursed Spirit Manipulation?

For Akuta, once he took one bite of the Devil Fruit, he didn't want to take a second.

However, Suguru Geto consumed more than one Cursed Spirit, which clearly indicates that Suguru Geto could tolerate the taste of the Cursed Spirit.

So, Devil Fruits are probably harder to eat, right?

While pondering, Akuta suddenly felt a strange power emerging within his body!

Without hesitation, he threw the remaining half of the fruit into the sea.

"Alright, let me see what's so special about this Shadow-Shadow Fruit."

Akuta took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and began to feel the newly emerging power within his body.

It was a very strange feeling.

If I had to describe it, it would be like a "living" thing suddenly appearing inside my body.

It's different from the Cursed Energy in Jujutsu.

The abilities of Devil Fruits are more abstract compared to Cursed Energy.

It doesn't possess the definite energy of Cursed Energy; it's more inclined towards a kind of instinct!

The next moment, Akuta opened his eyes.

Just as breathing is something that living beings are born with, Akuta simply raised his hand, and his shadow instantly "came to life"!

His shadow rose from the sea, like tentacles, swaying freely in the air.

"Interesting..."

Akuta's eyes lit up, as if he had discovered some kind of toy.

He focused his mind and began to try to give his shadow more specific instructions.

Under the control of the Akuta, his shadow began to change constantly.

Sometimes the shadows intertwine to form a net, sometimes they transform into small animals; the shadows in his hands constantly change.

Although Akuta a little rusty at first, thanks to his skill "Mirror Replication", he could replicate any action he performed with his shadow at any time!

In just over ten minutes, Akuta had completely taken control of his shadow!

He can control his shadow to become anything he wants, if he so desires!

"Hahaha! I'm such a genius!"

Watching the shadow transform into various objects in his hand, Akuta let out an excited laugh.

Perhaps it's because of the world of One Piece.

Unbeknownst to Akuta himself, his laughter suddenly took on a peculiar quality.

After experimenting for a while, Akuta finally stopped practicing with the Shadow-Shadow Fruit.

At this moment, there was a more urgent matter that required his immediate attention.

He needs to find the direction of Wano Country!

Akuta glanced around the sea with a somewhat bewildered expression.

As an outsider, he had absolutely no knowledge of navigation and had no clue how to determine direction.

He was currently floating on the sea and needed to find the direction of Wano Country as soon as possible.

Otherwise, with his dark-skinned physical education background, he would starve to death on the sea sooner or later!

Akuta slapped his thigh in regret.

"Damn it, we should have checked Moria for permanent pointers first!"

"Without a compass, I can't determine the direction of Wano Country!"

Akuta looked towards the sea, setting aside whether Moria possessed a permanent pointer.

By this time, Moriah's body had long been carried away by the ocean currents to who-knows-where, and even if he wanted to find it, he couldn't.

After scratching his head helplessly, Akuta raised his hand and pointed at the 'little roosters' in all directions.

"Whoever the little rooster points to, I'll choose..."

"Okay! This direction is the way!"

Akuta's finger randomly chose a direction.

Instead of getting caught up in this, let fate decide.

Akuta looked down at the driftwood beneath his feet.

Here's the problem.

How can he row without oars?

The driftwood could barely support his weight, but paddling by hand alone would probably be tiring.

Akuta frowned, his gaze falling on the shadow swaying with the waves at his feet.

Suddenly, an idea struck him.

"Yeah, don't I have a shadow?"

"Shadow Propeller!"

With a thought, Akuta's shadow swiftly coalesced into the shape of a propeller, hovering steadily behind the driftwood.

Under the control of the Akuta, the Shadow Propeller began to spin violently.

A powerful thrust came from behind, and the driftwood of the Akuta began to cleave through the waves and rush forward at high speed.

"Hahaha! Look at that perfect shadow swirling around!"

Akuta watched himself speeding across the sea, feeling the sea breeze and waves, a sense of maritime adventure welled up in his heart.

"Is this what the ocean feels like?!"

"Kaido! I'll fuck Reiner!"