In the World of One Piece: I Can Copy Any Talent

Aisa kicked her legs wildly. Tears welled in her eyes as she said, "I can help..."

Wyper dropped the little girl on the ground and kicked aside her backpack, which was full of dirt. His voice was ice-cold. "Help how? By stealing this Vearth and getting yourself killed by a priest?"

Aisa stared hard at Wyper, then scrambled to her feet and ran off, wiping her tears.

Langi glanced at Aisa, then at her comrade Wyper. She sighed helplessly and hurried after the girl.

Wyper waved his hand irritably and ordered his fighters, "Go get some rest. I'll give you orders later."

Once the others had dispersed, Robin's sultry voice sounded behind him. "That was harsh..."

Noil nodded. "She's just a kid. Even if she did something wrong, you didn't have to be so fierce."

With his back to them, Wyper said, "Shut up."

He used his body to block his fighters' view, then picked up Aisa's backpack.

After that, he put the dirt back in, handful by handful.

Noil raised an eyebrow. He heard Wyper say firmly, "We'll take back the Shandia's homeland with our own blood and lives. If anyone has to die, let it be us."

"That little brat Aisa can stay alive and grow mold for all I care!"

Noil chuckled and rubbed his nose. Robin shook her head. "You really can't be honest, can you?"

Wyper looked toward the horizon, where the enormous beanstalk coiled into the sky. His fierce face was filled with resolve. "Once we beat Enel, will Aisa still treasure one little bag of Vearth?"

He turned to Noil, his expression solemn. "Thank you for protecting Aisa and my fighters..."

"No, it was—"

Noil was about to brush off the thanks, but Wyper abruptly changed tack. "But this island is our home. You've helped us, and the Shandia won't give you any trouble. Still, please leave as soon as you can."

"We're going to fight Enel to the death here. I don't want you caught in it."

Noil stared at him. "Do you always have to be so blunt?"

"Besides, you can't beat Enel on your own."

Robin put a hand to her forehead and sighed. "You're hardly one to talk."

Surprisingly, Wyper did not lose his temper at Noil's words. "All four priests are dead. This is our best chance."

"We have nowhere left to retreat."

Noil thought for a moment. "Actually, we could work together."

"No need," Wyper refused at once. "You've already done plenty for us."

Noil waved a hand. "Don't turn me down yet. I'm not offering charity. I want payment."

"You're willing to sacrifice yourselves to reclaim your home. So if sacrificing yourself could get you a powerful ally like me, would you do it?"

That kind of blunt, brutal proposal suited Wyper perfectly.

He looked at Noil. "What do you mean? You want my life?"

Noil patted his shoulder. "I'll help you beat Enel. If you can't beat him but I do, your life is mine."

"You'll come with me to the Blue Sea and fight for me."

Wyper met Noil's gaze, apparently weighing the terms.

"You want this operation to succeed without a hitch, don't you?"

That last sentence broke through Wyper's resistance.

For the future of the Shandia, what happened to him did not matter.

Wyper did not want to trust an outsider, but after seeing Enel's earlier attack, which had looked like divine punishment, he was afraid.

He was not afraid of dying. He was afraid his comrades would die before him.

Wyper held out his hand. "Deal."

Noil was used to his sour expression by now. He reached out and bumped fists with him.

That settled it. Conis and Wyper were more or less taken care of. That just left Enel.

Recruiting him would be easiest of all: beat him down and drag him away. I can't be bothered to reason with him.

With their agreement in place, Noil naturally joined Wyper's guerrilla force.

Robin soon hit it off with Langi and the other women fighters. She even managed to cheer Aisa up.

Still, after the way Wyper had snapped at her, the little girl would probably hold a grudge for days.

Noil and Wyper walked at the head of the group. Whatever else Wyper thought of him, they had fought once, and Wyper respected his strength.

Wyper asked Noil plenty of questions, including what he knew about Devil Fruits—his own and Enel's—and about Haki.

Wyper had little interest in Mantra, or Observation Haki, but Armament Haki seemed to fascinate him.

His eyes lit up when he heard that Armament Haki could strike Devil Fruit Users.

With that power, wouldn't I finally have a way to fight Enel?

Noil did not hold anything back when Wyper asked for advice. He gave him a few pointers.

After all, Wyper was a future member of his crew. He was hardly an outsider anymore.

As for Wyper going back on his word, that was unlikely.

Wyper had proudly said that he had inherited the blood of his ancestor, the great warrior Calgara, and that he would honor every promise he made.

Noil could not remember who Calgara was, but Wyper did not seem like the type to break his word.

The self-styled God appeared determined to keep up appearances. He stayed put in his palace above, waiting for them to come to him.

The guerrillas encountered quite a few of his soldiers along the way, but every last one was swiftly taken out.

After a long march, Noil and the others finally reached the ruined ancient city beneath the giant beanstalk.

"So this is Shandora?" Noil gazed at the vast ruins in wonder.

Wyper nodded. A faint smile appeared on his resolute face. "This was our ancestors' home..."

Noil looked around Shandora. The weathered stonework and writing reminded him of Robin. She would be interested in this, wouldn't she?

He remembered that there was a Poneglyph near Shandora's Golden Bell, too.

Just as Noil expected, Robin stopped in the city and looked at him hopefully.

Noil nodded. "Stay here for a while. I'll come find you when I'm done."

Wyper quickly said, "I'll ask Langi to stay with you. Aisa can stay here too."

Noil knew Wyper was worried about the little girl's safety, so he agreed.

Once they were ready, the group climbed along the Sea Cloud beside the beanstalk and headed for Enel's palace.

Subduing Enel

Noil and the others were charging toward Enel's palace.

Inside, Enel was so furious he could barely contain himself, yet he insisted on keeping a smile on his face.

His wide-ranging Mantra sensed a swarm of ants coming for him. At first, he had intended to go down and kill them all.

But then the arrogant man remembered who he was. He forced himself to wait for them to come to him, like a great final boss.

The one Enel hated most was Noil, that outsider from the Blue Sea.

That man had Mantra too, and could even control fire.

One commanded fire, the other lightning. Enel could almost feel his throne as God beginning to shake.

He forced himself to calm down. Even if he could not hurt Noil, what could Noil possibly do to him?

Just a little longer...

Enel looked toward the huge room hidden deep within the palace. A massive ship was being built inside.

The Ark Maxim needed only a little more time to be completed.

Then he could board it, travel to Endless Vearth, and rule there.

That was where a God belonged!

Enel lifted the Golden Staff beside him and fixed his gaze on the palace doors facing the beanstalk.

As he had expected, a thunderous crash rang out. The sturdy doors were torn open as though they were made of paper.

Shandia warriors rushed in with weapons in hand and surrounded Enel, as if they had come to overthrow him.

The sight of his enemy set Wyper's blood boiling. He charged ahead of the others, Burn Bazooka in hand, racing across the clouds.

Enel looked with contempt at the mortal daring to challenge a God.

Lightning heated his Golden Staff until it glowed red. He reshaped it into a trident.

Wyper leaped into the air, and blue-white flames burst from the bazooka's muzzle.

Enel closed his eyes. Wearing a mocking smile, he stepped leisurely to one side.

He raised his golden trident and thrust it toward Wyper's neck like a striking snake.

Wyper narrowly dodged. Seeing that, the Shandia behind him charged all at once.

Lightning fell over the vast palace as Enel battled the Shandia warriors. Noil leaned against the doorway and watched.

His agreement with Wyper was to step in if Wyper could not beat Enel.

Wyper needs to take a few hits first.

Wyper had exceptional willpower and fighting instincts, but against a Rumble-Rumble Fruit User, almost all his attacks were useless.

At first, the rare Seastone Wyper had obtained from the Blue Sea caught Enel off guard.

But that advantage lasted only one strike. Enel was lightning incarnate. Wyper could not catch him at that speed.

Holding his golden trident, Enel sneered at the guerrillas sprawled across the floor. "How dare insects like you defy a God?"

"You went to so much trouble to come here. But... you can die now!"

The sharp trident plunged toward Wyper. Crackling arcs of electricity assaulted his senses, and the deadly points swelled in his vision!

At the last moment, Noil finally moved.

A dark-red blade swept in from the side and easily stopped Enel's trident.

Noil gripped Demon Moro and twisted the blade. The force ripped the trident from Enel's hands.

Enel stared at Noil in disbelief. Noil looked him over with open amusement.

System, show me Enel's talents, Noil commanded inwardly.

Name: Enel

Demon Possession · Rumble-Rumble Fruit: Red quality. Having eaten a Logia Devil Fruit, he can turn his body into electricity and command lightning.

Sea's Rejection: Purple Talent. Along with a demon's power, he received its curse. The sea rejects him; contact with seawater leaves him powerless and unable to use his ability voluntarily.

Electromagnetic Mantra: Red quality. By training his Observation Haki through his unique electrical physiology, he can develop it into surveillance over an enormous area.

Arrogant False God: Red quality. His arrogance grows as his knowledge of the world shrinks. In his first battle against an enemy, his intelligence automatically drops by 20%. If he wins, the penalty is 10% in their next battle, then 5% if he wins and fights them again, and so on.

If he loses, however, this talent disappears for a time. A severe blow will cause it to disappear permanently.

Enel's Rumble-Rumble Fruit was red quality too?

Noil thought it over. None of the Devil Fruit talents he had copied had been above red quality.

At this rate, golden-quality Devil Fruit talents are probably only found among the Marines' top fighters and the Four Emperors...

As for Arrogant False God, Noil had nothing to say. It seemed entirely fitting.

No wonder Enel seemed to get dumber the longer he fought Luffy. If those penalties kept stacking up, his intelligence might even fall below Luffy's...

What surprised Noil most was that Enel's Observation Haki—his Mantra—was only red quality too.

The strongest part of Enel's Mantra was its range. Almost no one could match his ability to sense an entire island.

Given Enel's personality, even if his Devil Fruit had helped him awaken Observation Haki, he was unlikely to have trained diligently.

And here I'd been looking forward to it.