Check out advanced chapters on P@treon: [email protected]/CosmicKaminari
----------
"We'll see how she performs," Ikki said. "If she ever becomes a true friend to us, giving her a Noble Phantasm wouldn't be out of the question."
Even as he said it, he understood what that actually required. Ain would need to reach a level where bestowing a Noble Phantasm was warranted, and she would need to earn the same degree of trust that the others on the crew had earned. That went well beyond friendship.
"Captain Ikki," Nojiko said, stepping forward with a curious look, "why did you ask Zephyr for a Devil Fruit? Are you planning to awaken one of your Zanpakuto?"
There was no one else present aside from the crew of the Explorer and Ikki. Nojiko had already confirmed that with her Observation Haki. She could speak freely.
"Not this time. I have another use for it." Ikki tossed the Devil Fruit lightly in his hand, then set it down on the floor.
Nami, Vivi, and Nojiko all stared at it, puzzled. Ikki smiled and opened his mouth to explain.
His Observation Haki flared. Someone was approaching quickly.
Knock knock knock.
"Ikki, it's me. May I come in?"
Hancock's voice carried through the door. Ikki nodded toward Vivi, who crossed the room and opened it. Hancock stepped inside.
Vivi had already known that Hancock was beautiful. Seeing her up close was another matter entirely. She found herself staring for a moment before catching herself. What struck her even more, though, was the way Hancock moved toward Ikki, the focused, unhesitating pull of someone who had somewhere very specific to be. Vivi thought about her own feelings and found she understood it completely.
"Hancock, what is it?" Ikki asked. She had parted from him not long ago. Seeing her at his door already was a surprise.
"I heard the Marines arranged a special lounge for you, so I came to see it. Is there anything you need? If something is missing, I can bring it from my own quarters."
Hancock walked past Nami, Vivi, and Nojiko without so much as a glance in their direction and went straight to Ikki, looping both hands around his arm. The contact lasted only a moment, but it was unmistakably soft.
"Nothing's missing," Ikki said, laughing. "The Marines put together a thorough setup. If anything does come up, I can ask them." His relationship with Gion meant one word from him would be enough.
"I see." Hancock nodded, then her eyes dropped to the Devil Fruit resting on the floor. "A Devil Fruit?"
"That's right." Ikki nodded. "Hancock, let go of me for a moment. I'm going to use it for something."
Hancock released his arm with visible reluctance.
"Do you remember when I gave you the Noble Phantasm, Aestus Estus?" Ikki asked. "That magnificent red emperor you met at the time?"
"The Magnificent Emperor?" Hancock's brow furrowed slightly. "You mean Nero?"
How could she forget. That emperor had possessed a beauty that rivaled her own, with a presence that commanded every room. Hancock was confident she herself was the more alluring of the two, but she could acknowledge, privately, that Nero had her in certain respects.
The Noble Phantasm she carried had come from Nero. That alone would have been enough to leave an impression. What she remembered more vividly, though, was what Nero had said about Ikki. Those words had not sat well with her. As far as Hancock was concerned, anyone who harbored feelings for Ikki was a rival. The magnificent Emperor Nero was no exception.
"Yes, Emperor Nero," Ikki said. "I bring her up because I'm about to summon a Heroic Spirit."
"A Heroic Spirit?" Hancock's eyes sharpened. "Is it Nero?"
Ikki shook his head. "Summoning Emperor Nero requires the holder of her Noble Phantasm to be truly proficient with it. You've come a long way, but you're not at that level yet, and you haven't earned her full approval. I can't summon her right now."
Hancock frowned. "Then who are you summoning?"
Her mind moved through the possibilities. She thought of Gion first, who had stood beside her against Mihawk. Gion's mastery of her Noble Phantasm was beyond question. Without both of their Noble Phantasms working in concert, that fight against Hawkeye would not have ended the way it did.
"It's Sadi-chan," Ikki said, smiling. "She's been doing remarkably well at Impel Down. She has already earned the approval of the original owner of the Noble Phantasm she carries. That means I can now summon that owner, Astolfo, to descend into this world."
Nami, Vivi, and Nojiko all went still for a moment, then broke into open delight. They had seen Astolfo's power firsthand. It was not as overwhelming as the presences bound to their own Zanpakuto, but Astolfo was formidable by any measure.
With Ikki able to summon her, the crew's overall strength would rise another step. Their future voyages would be that much safer.
Hancock said nothing at first.
"Sadi-chan has already progressed that far? We can summon Astolfo now?"
She murmured it to herself, and the words settled uneasily. She felt none of the uncomplicated joy that Nami and the others were showing. Ikki looked genuinely pleased. That meant Sadi-chan had accomplished something Hancock herself had not yet managed.
'Sadi-chan beat me to it?'
'What if Ikki starts to have feelings for her because of this?'
The thought tightened something in her chest. She thought of Sadi-chan's face, her figure, the particular kind of appeal she carried, and the tension wound tighter. Sadi-chan was not her equal, that much Hancock was certain of. But she was not someone who could be dismissed either. The possibility that Ikki might be drawn to her felt uncomfortably real.
Ikki had no idea what was running through Hancock's mind. He made his preparations quietly, then began.
He recited the summoning incantation, the words low and measured, carrying a weight that had nothing to do with volume. Beneath the spot where the Devil Fruit rested, a pale blue light began to rise from the floor, soft at first, then steady.
A pentagram magic circle materialized around it, glowing with a quiet, arcane light. Within that circle, the Devil Fruit Zephyr had brought dissolved, its form unraveling and flowing outward as pure energy that poured into the waiting pattern.