"Really gotta burn it all?"
At the lab's entrance, Dr. Indigo conjured a chemical magic bomb, glancing reluctantly at his workspace.
"Of course," Sora said, arms crossed, smirking. "What, leave it for the World Government?"
"Or do you wanna keep tinkering with this stuff?"
"No, no, no, Captain, don't pin that on me!" Indigo waved his hands frantically. "Just feels like a waste. I've been studying 'IQ' for nearly 20 years. All those notes…"
"Hurry up. We've got a treasury to check. If the Navy shows, I can slip away—you? Not so much."
The mention of the Navy jolted Indigo. He hurled the bomb into the lab.
He had no bounty, but as Shiki's doctor, he was on the World Government's list. Impel Down wasn't his idea of fun.
The bomb hit a culture tube, exploding instantly. Flames engulfed the lab.
Indigo's eyes flickered with regret, but as Sora strode off, he buried it, his gaze sparking with hope.
"Following this captain should be fun, right?"
He's so young, after all.
Boom!
Sora stood before a massive iron door, eyes gleaming with anticipation.
"With a door this thick, there's gotta be tons of good stuff inside!"
But when the door swung open, his jaw dropped.
The treasury was packed with weapons.
Swords, spears, guns, cannons—everything but gold, jewels, or Belly. Barely a coin in sight.
Sora's neck creaked as he turned to Indigo, his face darkening.
"Indigo, you're telling me 20 years got you this?"
Oblivious to Sora's mood, Indigo grinned proudly. "Karle-karle! Yup! We were planning to destroy the world. Needed enough weapons, right?"
"What about gold and jewels?"
"Swapped for weapons."
"Belly?"
Sora's voice grew heavier.
"Weapons, obviously," Indigo said, puzzled. "Captain, Belly's useless! Aren't weapons better, or—"
"Urk!"
Indigo froze, spotting Sora's stormy expression.
He forced a nervous laugh. "Karle… haha! What's wrong, Captain? All these weapons not good?"
"Good? Oh, real good," Sora said, eyeing the mountains of cannons and ammo, on the verge of tears.
Good, my ass.
This arsenal could arm a nation for a massive war.
But for him? Utterly useless.
He craved gold, jewels, Belly—not cold, hard iron!
A thought struck him, his eyes lighting up. He turned to Indigo, hopeful. "Wait, Indigo, you've roamed the world for 20 years. You must've found plenty of Devil Fruits, right?"
Indigo hesitated, dreading Sora's reaction.
He now knew Sora wanted treasure, but everything had been traded for weapons.
Under Sora's increasingly dangerous glare, he spoke cautiously. "Uh… um…"
Sora cut him off. "Quit stalling. Spill."
Indigo flinched, mumbling, "Captain, don't yell! I'll tell you!"
"We found a few Devil Fruits, but… they were sold. To buy weapons."
"Sold?" Sora's heart sank.
Is Shiki's brain broken?
Why not feed them to his crew? What use are these metal junks?
"But…" Indigo added.
Sora's eyes lit up. "But what?"
"There're two left. Animal-type Devil Fruits. Pretty useless ones."
Sora exhaled. Two was better than none. He'd feared this trip was a bust.
He'd dreamed of piles of gold, Belly, and Fruits. Shiki was out to destroy the world—how could he be broke?
Yet, here was an armory instead.
"Hm. This many weapons… if the Revolutionary Army got 'em, they'd soar," Sora mused, stroking his chin.
He shook his head. No way. The Navy was coming, and the Revolutionaries couldn't haul this off.
He'd have to destroy it. No leaving it for the World Government, even if they didn't need it.
Indigo stole a glance at Sora, relieved to see his mood lift. Still wary, he didn't know Sora's temperament yet.
Sora shot him a grumpy look. "Well? Get those Fruits."
"Yessir!" Indigo scurried into the treasury, digging through a pile of scrap behind the door. He emerged with two pineapple-sized Fruits.
To Shiki, these were less valuable than weapons, tossed in a corner like trash.
Sora's mouth twitched as Indigo handed over the Fruits, fished from what looked like a junk heap.
He had to see what made these so despised.
Inspecting them, he couldn't tell what they were.
He looked at Indigo.
Sensing his gaze, Indigo explained, "The black one's the 'Zoan: Ant Fruit.' No clue what form. From experience, it's a standard Zoan. Turns you into an ant-man. Ants' strength boost is too weak, so it wouldn't sell. Been sitting here."
"Ants, looked down on?" Sora stared at the grape-like black Fruit, puzzled. "Aren't ants strong? Armor, huge strength?"
"Ants seem strong among bugs, but on humans, it's different. Boosts strength maybe double at first."
"And?"
"And… the price. Too steep for small-time pirates, too low to sell high. Can't give it away, so it's here."
"Fair. Compared to Fruits that boost strength tenfold, this is trash," Sora nodded, eyeing the black Fruit.
Ants, huh?
He didn't buy that ants were weak. Maybe no one developed it properly. Ants weren't bottom-tier bugs.
"And this one?" Sora held up the white Fruit.
"Same deal. 'Zoan: Rabbit Fruit.' Low strength boost, unsellable."
"Rabbit?" Sora's eyes sparked with curiosity.
What if a beauty ate it?
He shook off the wild thought. No rabbit ears or bunny girls for him!
Rabbits were cute, sure, but only their hind-leg jumps stood out.
Unlike ants, which he could imagine training into monstrous strength, rabbits stumped him.
Wait, don't rabbits go berserk?
Red eyes, maybe a rage mode?
Sora's eyes gleamed at the white Fruit. "If it's got that, it's no trash."
But it was a gamble. No rage or extra powers, and it'd be junk.
Imagining Ahua or Ata eating it, he shuddered. No bunny girl—just a fat rabbit.
"Let's go. Navy's almost here."
He tossed the Fruits to Indigo to box up.
Once packed, Sora swung Zankuu twice at the treasury.
With all that ammo, it'd blow sky-high.
Unfurling his spatial domain, he grabbed a door panel, carrying Indigo away.
(End of Chapter)