I'm Not Interested in Devil Fruits

This guy...

Liam lowered his head, carefully observing the actions of the green Den Den Mushi in his palm.

Not only him but even the nearby 'B.I.B.' also leaned over. The main body and Stand put their heads together, watching the snail-like creature in Liam's hand, moving around erratically.

Liam and 'B.I.B.' exchanged a glance.

If they weren't mistaken, this little fellow... wasn't rubbing against Liam's palm.

It was rubbing against the Stand armguard on his hand!

This little creature could not only see 'B.I.B.' but also physically touch the Stand!

"Is it really that extraordinary?" Liam murmured, looking thoughtful.

Communication between Den Den Mushi was achieved through their unique electromagnetic waves, helping humans with their communication needs.

This suggested that Den Den Mushi, as a species, had some inherent ability to sense or interact with energy.

Electromagnetic waves? Or some other form of energy wave?

Stands, fundamentally, were a special form of energy.

Some said it was spiritual energy, while others claimed it was Life Energy.

To Liam, they were essentially the same— spiritual energy originated from the brain, and the brain was just the structure of the physical body.

However, the ordinary Den Den Mushi found on pirates previously didn't exhibit the ability to see 'B.I.B.'.

In other words, this wild green Den Den Mushi was peculiar... or perhaps gifted?

"OraOra..." The green Den Den Mushi in Liam's palm mumbled.

Liam raised an eyebrow. Den Den Mushi had strong imitation capabilities, accurately mimicking the tone, expressions, and even tears of the communicator during calls by reading the special waves between Den Den Mushi.

Now, the wild green Den Den Mushi, after rubbing Liam's Stand armguard for a while, began imitating the words Liam had just spoken to it.

"It seems you quite like 'B,' huh? Come with me from now on." Liam poked the green snail-like creature with his finger.

"OraOra!" It struggled and resisted a few times, swiftly crawling away from Liam's palm.

Just like before on the tree, its movements were swift.

"MudaMuda," Liam chuckled. "Do you also know Rokushiki's Soru? Speed is useless against the Flower-Flower Fruit (Hana Hana no Mi)."

He raised his hand slightly, and the swiftly crawling green Den Den Mushi was once again pinned down by the hands growing from the ground.

"Bobo Bobo!" The green Den Den Mushi struggled.

Liam felt that the feedback force from the Flower-Flower Fruit (Hana Hana no Mi) created hands pressing the Den Den Mushi was increasing, and even... the Den Den Mushi itself was becoming harder!

"You don't really know Rokushiki, do you?" Liam found it incredulous.

A Den Den Mushi that could perform Tekkai from Rokushiki? Moving so swiftly, was it really Soru?

"Here, have something to eat." Liam took out some feed from his pocket and poured it out.

The green Den Den Mushi came over and took a few bites, then a few more, and soon enough, it devoured all the feed Liam had poured out.

Liam took the opportunity to attach the earpiece to its back again.

Pādā, 

As the Den Den Mushi ate and wriggled, it shook off the earpiece once again.

"Bobo Bobo!" The candy-like eyes glanced at Liam as if saying, "Feeding is fine, but no messing around."

"Saying you're fat and still panting." Liam laughed, gesturing to 'B.I.B.,' which directly scooped up the green Den Den Mushi.

The green Den Den Mushi struggled in 'B.I.B.' hands, but its resistance gradually diminished. Finally, it curled up in the hands of the Stand armor, rubbing contentedly and showing an expression of enjoyment.

To Robin, who was watching from the side, it looked like a Den Den Mushi curling up in mid-air, doing something strange...

...

A tall figure in a wide coat, accompanied by a silver-haired tomboy with only inky green eyes that looked somewhat appealing, walked the streets of King City.

Approaching noon, Liam took Robin to eat in the city.

Walking down the streets, they still occasionally saw Marines patrolling with guns, dressed in short-sleeved white uniforms and wearing duck-billed caps with seagull-shaped Marine logos.

Entering their usual restaurant, the two found a place to sit, and soon a waiter came over with the menu.

"Same as usual?" The waiter smiled as he asked.

"Yeah, with a bit more quantity," Liam nodded.

"Is there another kid?" The waiter asked casually.

"He is playing at home," Liam replied nonchalantly.

His cloak, sometimes worn by 'B.I.B.,' and sometimes by Liam himself, who disguised himself using the Flower-Flower Fruit (Hana Hana no Mi).

The star-shaped mask is sometimes worn, sometimes not. In the eccentric world of pirate kings, oddities were commonplace— wearing cloaks and masks was nothing to be curious about.

Before long, steaming dishes were brought to the table one after another.

Liam hadn't exercised much this morning, but accustomed to substantial meals, his stomach immediately grumbled at the enticing aroma of the food.

He enjoyed his meal so much that Robin, sitting beside him, couldn't help but feel hungry too, digging into the food immediately.

Liam took out the green Den Den Mushi from his pocket, teasing it with some feed. The little creature, once stubborn in the forest, eagerly pounced on the feed after its journey on the road.

Simultaneously, as usual, Liam used the Flower-Flower Fruit (Hana Hana no Mi) to sprout ears in various blind spots on many walls, listening to what people at other tables were talking about.

Being confined to their house all day, Liam and Robin had limited sources to understand the island's situation, mainly relying on places like fish-dragon-infested restaurants and bars.

"I heard powerful guys from the 'Gunpowder' recently came to the island..."

"Oh? Is it someone from their headquarters?"

"Why would the guys from the criminal organization send someone? Are they teaming up with the Marines to guard against pirates?"

"Impossible!"

"Tsk, pirates again? I heard early in the morning that the Gale Pirates were going to attack. Where are they?"

"It's even better if they don't come. Fool!"

Liam listened while eating. When he got a rough idea of the situation, he paid the bill and left the restaurant with Robin.

After a short break at noon, Liam dismissed any distractions and continued his focus on training.

After a set of exercises to aid digestion, Liam stretched his muscles and started practicing with the pitch-black battle armor.

Training intermittently, the evening arrived in the blink of an eye. The dim sunlight spilled onto the grass. Liam had 'B.I.B.' fetch a bucket of water from the house, and he poured it over himself, shaking off the refreshing water droplets.

"Liam, I don't know where that Den Den Mushi went," Robin said as she approached.

Liam took a dry towel to wipe his body casually, gesturing to 'B.I.B.' with a chin lift. "Go, take a stroll around."

The dark battle armor followed the command, wandering ghost-like inside and outside the house. In no time, the Den Den Mushi, blending with the colors of the stairs, crawled out attentively, following 'B.I.B.' while rubbing against the back of the armor's heels.

Taking advantage of its proximity, Liam picked up the earpiece and pressed it onto the Den Den Mushi's back.

Pādā, 

The green Den Den Mushi shivered, shaking the earpiece off again.

...

The Gale Pirate Crew still hadn't shown up, and after patrolling for a few days, the Marines gradually withdrew, returning to their base.

Another night fell, and a massive pirate ship quietly docked at a secluded coast.

(End of this chapter)

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