"Okay, here you go!" Xia Chen smiled and handed the Rumble-Rumble Fruit to Nami. Then he said:
"However, I must warn you, this might taste a bit awful, so you'd better be prepared!"
Nami stared blankly at the Rumble-Rumble Fruit in her hand, lost in thought.
Once she eats this fruit, she will gain immense power and will no longer be the one on the ship who needs the most care.
Nami's eyes were resolute as she picked up the Rumble-Rumble Fruit and took a bite.
The next second, Nami's face suddenly turned purplish-blue, and she covered her mouth tightly.
After a long while, she finally swallowed what was in her mouth and then gasped for breath.
"Is this really that bad? I've never eaten anything this awful in my entire life!"
Nami looked at the Rumble-Rumble Fruit lingering fear, then said with a grim expression, "There are still so many left, what are we going to do?"
"Hahaha... Devil Fruit only needs one bite to take effect, you don't need to eat the whole thing!" Xia Chen said with a laugh.
"Is that so?" Nami's face lit up with visible joy. She patted her chest, still feeling a little shaken.
"Thankfully, it only required one bite, otherwise I really wouldn't know how to continue eating!"
Xia Chen said, " Nami, try it now and see if you can use your ability!"
"Okay, I'll give it a try!" Nami nodded, then closed her eyes.
After a moment, Nami extended her finger. Everyone who saw this took a step back in unison.
Suddenly, Nami opened her eyes, and then... a small arc of electricity crackled in Nami's hand.
(⊙o⊙)...
Looking at the electric arc that was barely enough to Sanji Xia Chen suddenly felt a little bewildered.
this...
Is this Rumble-Rumble Fruit a inferior version?
The thought popped into Xia Chen's mind, and at the same time Xia Chen, the others reacted in a similar way.
They all looked at each other, bewildered.
Nami felt a little embarrassed looking at the electricity she had emitted; it seemed somewhat different from what she had imagined.
At that moment, a fearless person stepped forward.
"Hahaha... Nami, what is this? This isn't even enough to tickle me!" Zoro laughed loudly.
(•́へ•́╬)!
Nami's face darkened visibly, and she said with a forced smile, "Is that so?"
" Conqueror's Coating!"
"Bang!"
Zoro is defeated!
Xia Chen stood still, considered for a moment, and then said, " Nami, actually, your performance is already much better than many people who have just eaten Devil Fruit. Many people can't even use their abilities when they first eat one!"
"Really?"
(☆▽☆)!
"Of course it's true!" Xia Chen said seriously.
Xia Chen is actually not wrong. In the original work, CP9's Kaku and Kalifa couldn't use their Devil Fruit; it took them some time before they could use them.
However, to be honest, Xia Chen also felt that Nami's electric arc was indeed a bit...
Hmm... I don't know how to say it!
While it's possible that Nami isn't yet familiar with the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, Xia Chen thinks the more likely reason is that Nami's constitution is too weak.
Otherwise, it's impossible for it to be exaggerated to this extent.
But none of that matters anymore. I was just thinking of increasing Nami's self-defense capabilities. As for her physique, I can improve it gradually later.
Now that everything is settled, the next step is to retrieve the gold from the Lord of the Sky's belly and ring the Golden Bell to fulfill the promise made to Uncle Cricket.
" Xia Chen, I want to fight you!"
"Huh?" Luffy's sudden remark startled Xia Chen, who was about to speak, and then he chuckled.
"You want to fight me?"
"That's right!" Luffy nodded.
"I didn't have a good time fighting that guy with the Discharge; I didn't get to use many of my newly developed moves! I want to fight you and see how strong I am now!"
"A new move?" Xia Chen murmured, then said, "Good!"
It just so happens that he hasn't had a proper fight with Luffy in a long time, so he'll let him test Luffy's current level of strength!
"Wait, Xia Chen, I want to fight you too!" Zoro said calmly to Xia Chen.
"Me too!" Sanji jumped out and said.
Xia Chen looked at Zoro and asked, "Are you sure you can fight with those injuries on your body?"
"This injury is nothing at all, it won't affect anything!"
Xia Chen:...
If I hadn't seen you lying there like a dead dog, I would have believed it.
However, since Zoro had already said so, Xia Chen didn't care anymore.
After all, Zoro is indeed stronger when he's low on health than when he's at full health.
"Since that's the case, don't say I bullied the three of you later, come on!"
After some time, Xia Chen and Luffy stood facing each other, several dozen meters apart.
The others, however, were huddled more than a hundred meters away, inside the protective barrier Xia Chen had created, ready to watch the battle.
Usopp and Chopper's faces were full of excitement.
" Usopp, who among you can win?!" Chopper asked excitedly.
"It must be Xia Chen!" Usopp answered without hesitation.
"The outcome is already decided. The only question is how much of Xia Chen's strength Luffy and his crew can force out!"
"To be honest, I haven't seen them fight in a long time, and I'm really excited!" Usopp clenched his fists, his eyes fixed on the center of the battlefield.
At this moment, the three people standing opposite Xia Chen felt an inexplicable sense of pressure coming from him. Even though Xia Chen hadn't done anything, they were still a little flustered!
"What's wrong? Aren't you going to make a move?" Xia Chen said calmly, looking at them.
Luffy and his two companions exchanged a glance, then charged towards Xia Chen simultaneously.
Seeing the three approaching, Xia Chen made no move.
"Clang!"
The sound of metal clashing against metal rang out.
"Hiss!"
"It hurts! It hurts so much!"
Luffy and Sanji, one touching his hand and the other clutching his foot, said...
Zoro's face showed disbelief, and sweat dripped down his forehead.
When they attacked Xia Chen just now, he didn't make any move at all, and simply took their blows with his bare body.
However, the end result was that two of the three were now groaning in pain on the sidelines, while he himself was sore from the recoil.
Most importantly, the knife only managed to tear Xia Chen's clothes when it struck him; it didn't even leave a white mark on Xia Chen's body.
Zoro immediately took a few steps back, his eyes filled with seriousness as he looked at Xia Chen. It seemed that the gap between them was even greater than he had imagined.
"What's wrong? Is this all the weak and feeble attack you have? If that's all you've got, then you're completely uninteresting to me!" Xia Chen looked at the group and said, feigning disappointment.