An Unexpected Choice

"Yo, Teach! Why had you suddenly become so hardworking?" Ace looked at Teach, who was training on the deck, and could not help asking. In Ace's impression, Teach had always been an easygoing old crewmate with no ambition.

"Zehahaha! Captain Ace! I was just bored and suddenly felt like working out for a while!" Teach said with a grin, lifting his head from his push-ups to glance at Ace. "Where's Captain Thatch? I haven't seen him all morning!"

"Thatch went out on a mission. He probably won't be back until tonight!" Ace's words made Teach fall silent.

When he returned from this mission, he would probably find the Dark-Dark Fruit! Teach was deeply conflicted. He now had two choices. The first was to eat the Swamp Fruit. Even though its abilities had not been particularly impressive in the original story, it was still a Logia Devil Fruit! It would definitely greatly improve his strength.

The second choice was to ask Thatch for the Dark-Dark Fruit. But Teach was not confident. A treasure like a Logia Devil Fruit was not something anyone would give up so easily.

What should I do?

Teach pondered for a moment. In the end, he decided to abandon the first choice. For some reason, a thought had taken root in his heart: he had to obtain the Dark-Dark Fruit! Its allure was simply too great.

"Zehahaha! What a pity! No fresh Cherry Pie for lunch today!" Teach stood up and wiped the sweat from his face.

"Haha, all you think about is Cherry Pie! Can't you have some other ambitions?" Ace scolded jokingly.

"I think life as it is now is pretty good," Teach said slowly.

"Forget it, forget it! Oh, right. In a while, our 2nd Division will be heading out on a mission! Get ready in advance! And this time, you're not allowed to refuse!" "Zehahaha, got it, Captain Ace!"

After Ace left, Teach resumed his training. "I'm still weak. I need to become stronger!"

Having read the original story, Teach kept thinking about the Six Powers. This body's original combat skills were already extremely formidable, but there was never any harm in learning more techniques.

"Shave!" Teach suddenly exerted strength through both legs, stomping on the deck dozens of times in rapid succession. His figure then appeared dozens of meters away.

"With the boost from this body, learning the Six Powers is fairly easy!" Teach looked at the results of his training and nodded in satisfaction.

He then slowly explored the remaining five techniques, only preparing to rest when evening approached.

"Captain Thatch is back!"

Having just finished bathing, Teach heard the crewmen shouting outside and could not help growing nervous.

"Hey, Teach!" At some point, Thatch had already come up behind him. He lightly patted Teach's arm, then handed him a bottle of liquor.

"Oh, Captain Thatch!" Teach accepted the liquor Thatch offered him. "Did the mission go smoothly?"

"Not bad. There were few crew casualties, and the treasure we got was quite considerable!" Thatch took a sip of liquor. "Oh, right. We also found something strange!"

As he spoke, Thatch took out a bizarre-looking fruit. It was an unusual purple, covered in snail-shell spiral patterns and shaped like a pineapple.

Teach's pupils abruptly contracted. There was no mistake! This was the Dark-Dark Fruit!

"This is a strange fruit! I've looked through so many Devil Fruit encyclopedias, but I couldn't find any information on it!" Thatch said calmly. "But one thing is certain: it should be a Logia Devil Fruit! After all, only Logia Devil Fruits grow in the shape of pineapples!"

Then Thatch laughed heartily. "So, Teach, are you tempted? If you beg me, I might just give it to you!"

What happened next was something Thatch had never expected.

"Captain Thatch, honestly, I really want this fruit! Because I know what it is! The Logia Dark-Dark Fruit! It's known as the most vicious Devil Fruit!" Teach looked seriously at Thatch. "And this Devil Fruit can also... Captain Thatch, what are you doing?"

Teach looked at the Dark-Dark Fruit before him, then raised his head to look at the smiling Thatch. "Captain Thatch, this is a very powerful Devil Fruit!"

"I know!" Thatch still wore a smile. "But don't you really want it?"

"This..." Teach had imagined many scenarios, but he had never imagined the current situation. "This is your spoils, Captain Thatch! I can't take it!" At that moment, Teach understood. A companion like this was far more important than a Devil Fruit!

"Why are you being so wishy-washy like a woman? I'm giving it to you, so take it! Even without a Devil Fruit, I'm still the strongest chef on this ship!" Thatch took it all in stride. "All right, I'm going back to sleep! I hope you can show me this fruit's abilities tomorrow!"

Teach watched Thatch's departing figure, then looked at the fruit in his hand. Complex emotions swirled within him before finally turning into a brilliant smile.

"Don't worry, Captain Thatch! Since I've taken the fruit that belonged to you, I'll definitely make it shine with its greatest brilliance! And why is the sea breeze so strong tonight? I can barely keep my eyes open..."

Teach rubbed his eyes as he put the Dark-Dark Fruit into his mouth. "No wonder they say it tastes like crap! This is the worst thing I've ever eaten in my life!"

After the Devil Fruit entered his stomach, a strange energy appeared within Teach's body. "This feeling of power..."

"Good morning, Teach!"

Teach had risen early. He smiled and greeted the crewmen who greeted him, then began his daily training!

"System, check in!" Teach said to the system while training.

"Congratulations, Host, on successfully checking in. Current location: Moby Dick! Obtained Logia Devil Fruit: Rumble-Rumble Fruit!"

The system's cold voice entered Teach's ears. He froze for a moment, then the corners of his mouth lifted slightly. Even the speed of his push-ups increased.

"Morning, Thatch!" Teach came to the dining hall and sat across from Thatch. He picked up a Cherry Pie and began eating.

"Yo, Teach! So, how was it? Was the Devil Fruit's taste beautiful?" Thatch looked at Teach with a wicked grin.

"Hey, hey! Is it really okay to make me remember those painful memories now?" Teach said with a laugh. "But you can taste that flavor too. It's truly beautiful!"

Then Teach took out a Devil Fruit that seemed to crackle with lightning.

"This is... a Logia Devil Fruit?" Thatch picked up the Rumble-Rumble Fruit and examined it carefully. "Th-this isn't the Rumble-Rumble Fruit that vanished long ago?" Thatch cried out in surprise.

"So? To get back at you for making me taste that beautiful flavor, I specially took out my treasured collection from many years ago! It's yours now! I can't wait to see your beautiful expression! Zehahaha!"

Thatch smiled at Teach. Who would not want a Logia Devil Fruit?

"All right, then I'll gladly accept!" Thatch said, picking up the Devil Fruit and taking a bite. His expression immediately became incredibly colorful.

"Disgusting!" "No, you have to eat the whole Devil Fruit!" "Really? All right then! Blech!"

"Huh, is that a Devil Fruit?" Ace looked at the small piece of Rumble-Rumble Fruit remaining in Thatch's hand and said in surprise. "But don't you only need to take one bite of these things?"

Then the smile on Teach's face froze.

A wave of killing intent made his back go cold.

"Teach!!!!"