"Brook, Brook, put me down!" Hearing Brook's voice, Barn was instantly filled with curiosity and struggled to get down. After setting Barn down, Brook began filling bags with gold.
Barn ran off to play on his own, too, though a pile of gold vanished wherever he went. He was clearly stuffing it into his backpack. A little while later, Barn came back holding a sword and shouting Brook's name.
"I'm over here," Brook said, his hands never slowing as he continued stuffing gold into a bag. Barn rushed toward him, only to trip over a chest.
"Ow! That hurt!"
Brook stopped gathering gold and walked over to help Barn up. Still clutching the sword, Barn kicked aside the chest that had tripped him. Brook glanced inside and sucked in a breath. Barn hurriedly asked what was in it, and Brook pointed at the chest and swallowed.
"Two... two Devil Fruits!" Brook said in a trembling voice.
Brook pointed at the chest and swallowed. "Two... Devil Fruits."
When Barn heard that the chest he had just tripped over contained two Devil Fruits, he was overjoyed. That fall was well worth it! He nudged Brook.
"Hey, hey, Brook! There are exactly two Devil Fruits, and we found them together. Let's take one each!" Barn said excitedly.
Brook hooked an arm around Barn's neck. "You little rascal, we really hit the jackpot! Judging by their shapes, I think both of these Devil Fruits are Paramecia types. One each! Haha!" Brook was clearly excited, too. In this world, even eating the worst Zoan Devil Fruit granted extraordinary power, let alone these two Paramecia fruits, which ranked above Zoan fruits. Devil Fruits meant power, and power meant everything! They really were incredibly lucky.
"Barn, this one's yours." Barn reached out and took the Devil Fruit he had always dreamed of. But his eyes could not see, so he had no way of knowing what it looked like. He could only keep gently tracing the patterns on its surface. Barn gave it a sniff. "It actually smells pretty good. It's not as stinky as the manga made it sound!"
Brook put his Devil Fruit away and glanced at Barn. Barn was busy fantasizing about how impressive he would be in the future, holding his Devil Fruit with a goofy, lovestruck grin. Brook noticed the sword Barn had been clutching all along. The moment he glanced at it, a bone-chilling aura pierced the space between his brows, jolting his mind!
"Barn, where did you get that sword?" Brook's question brought Barn back to reality. "I kicked it earlier. This sword felt different somehow. It even made my left hand itch to move, so I picked it up," Barn answered honestly.
"Let me see it," Brook said coldly. "Okay." Barn was baffled, but he still handed the sword to Brook. Brook gripped the hilt, and that icy sensation struck again. "This is..." Brook drew the sword, looking at the eerie red, flame-like pattern along its blade. "A Demon Blade..." he murmured.
"What?" Barn could not see the eerie pattern on the blade, but he could still tell this sword was no ordinary weapon. The restless sensation in his left hand alone told him that. Brook's words made his heart beat even faster.
Brook drew the sword all the way out and examined it carefully. Then he gave it a light swing at the chest that had held the Devil Fruits. The solid copper chest split in two in an instant. Brook swallowed.
"Brook! Brook! Is that sword really powerful?" Barn asked eagerly.
"Nidai Kitetsu," Brook said coldly, slowly sliding the sword back into its sheath.
"Huh?" Barn's mind froze on the spot. Of course he had heard of the famed Kitetsu, the legendary Demon Blades. The Supreme Grade Sword Muramasa had been cut into three pieces by a great swordsman wielding the Wado Ichimonji. Those pieces later came into the possession of the Kitetsu clan, who forged them into the Supreme Grade Sword Shodai Kitetsu, the Great Grade Sword Nidai Kitetsu, and the Skillful Grade Sword Sandai Kitetsu. Shodai Kitetsu was supposedly in the hands of the Five Elders, while Sandai Kitetsu should still be in Loguetown. Rumor had it that Nidai Kitetsu had broken. Apparently, he had found it before that happened.
"Barn!" Barn turned his head to "look" at Brook. Brook crouched down, placed his hands on Barn's shoulders, and said earnestly, "Barn, you can't use this sword!"
"Why not?" Barn bristled immediately. Damn it, I got insanely lucky and found this Great Grade Sword! There are only a handful in the whole world, and you won't let me use it?
"Barn! This is a Demon Blade! An ill-omened blade! Many famous swordsmen met untimely deaths because they carried it. This sword kills its own master!" Brook had never spoken in such a grave voice before.
Hearing Brook say that, Barn knew he was only worried about him, and warmth filled his heart. He was grateful, but he had his pride, too. In his previous life, that refusal to lose had been precisely what made him the top Berserker player on the Chinese servers. He still had that backbone. He remembered a scene from One Piece he had watched on his computer in his previous life: Zoro had tossed Sandai Kitetsu high into the air and wagered his sword hand to conquer it. In the end, he had succeeded. Barn still remembered how fired up that scene had made him, and his heart began racing. He steeled himself and made a decision.
"Brook! Give me the sword!" Taken aback by Barn's unusually forceful attitude, Brook handed it over. Barn took the sword and slowly drew it from its sheath. Watching him, Brook swallowed.
"I changed your fate of being forgotten. Now I'm going to conquer you and use your blade to make both our names known throughout the world! Nidai Kitetsu! Let's see which is stronger-your curse or my luck!" Barn slowly drew the sword completely from its sheath. Then, without warning, he tossed it into the air! At the same time, he stretched out his cursed left arm, holding it straight across the path of the falling blade!