Carhelo quickly pulled out the relevant bounty poster from his stack.
[Mushroom Tyrant Morris]
Bounty: 43,000,000 Berries
Devil Fruit: Paramecia-type — Fungus-Fungus Fruit
Abilities: Specializes in using and accelerating the growth of various fungi for combat.
Danger Level: Extremely dangerous. Dead or alive.
Carhelo's expression grew serious.
"This island is basically paradise for Morris. No wonder he fled here even while being chased by the Marines."
Sami took the poster, scanned it briefly, and nodded.
"True. His bounty is only forty-three million, but with the properties of the Fungus-Fungus Fruit and an environment like Drumcap Island…"
"…his actual combat strength is probably far above that number."
He paused before adding,
"For some Devil Fruit users, the environment multiplies their power."
Sami lifted his head and looked through the forest canopy toward the island's center.
The colossal mushroom towered like a mountain.
The words of Chief Old Mushroom Head echoed in his mind.
"Those pirates who landed in the west headed straight for the island center…"
"But there's nothing there…"
"…Tch. This feels wrong."
Sami muttered under his breath.
"Captain?"
He turned back toward his officers.
"Ardo, Marcus, Carhelo—you three come with me."
He then looked at Isaac and the remaining crew.
"Guard the ship. Maximum alert."
"Hans, keep watching the Log Pose."
"The moment the magnetic field finishes recording, notify us immediately."
"We'll go and come back quickly."
"Understood!"
Ardo hoisted his spiked club onto his shoulder.
"But boss… what are we going for?"
"The Marines are already chasing that pirate crew. Why should we get involved?"
Sami answered calmly.
"I've got a bad feeling."
"That Morris…"
"We'll go take a look."
"If the Marines deal with him smoothly, that's fine."
"But if…"
He didn't finish the sentence.
Yet the cold look in his eyes made the meaning obvious.
Without another word, the four-man team left the ship and slipped back into the colorful yet dangerous mushroom forest, moving quickly toward the gigantic mushroom at the island's center.
Deep in the Mushroom Forest – Morris's Group
Unlike Sami's cautious advance, Morris's group moved with heavy, exhausted steps.
Ever since their unpleasant encounter with Marcus's team, the mood among them had grown increasingly bleak.
The forest was dim.
Spores floated in the humid air, mixed with the smell of rotting vegetation.
Days of hunger and exhaustion had worn down what little morale the pirates had left.
"Captain… I… I can't go any further…"
One pirate with a pale, sickly face collapsed onto the muddy ground.
His stomach growled loudly as he clutched it weakly.
"Useless trash! Get up!"
Morris snapped, eyes bloodshot.
"Captain… I… I need to… relieve myself…"
"Worthless bunch!"
Morris looked around irritably and tore a chunk from a gray umbrella-shaped mushroom nearby.
He tossed it to the collapsed pirate.
"Eat!"
"Eat it and you'll have strength!"
"The island is full of food!"
The pirate stared at the mushroom in despair.
"…Raw mushrooms again?"
"Captain… we've been eating nothing but raw mushrooms for almost ten days…"
"Just smelling them makes me want to—"
"Ugh…"
Another officer groaned nearby.
"Captain… even if they're not poisonous…"
"Eating them raw all the time… they're cold and slimy."
"My stomach's been hurting for days. I've had diarrhea so bad I can barely walk."
"Can we at least find somewhere to light a fire?"
"Even roasted mushrooms would be better…"
"Can't eat them?"
Morris snorted.
"You've only eaten raw mushrooms for a couple days and you're whining already?"
He grabbed the mushroom from the pirate's hand and shoved it into his own mouth.
He chewed fiercely.
"Urgh—!"
His stomach spasmed instantly.
Morris wiped his mouth, hiding his momentary embarrassment.
"…Forget it."
"Just endure a little longer!"
"We're almost there!"
"Once we reach our destination and deal with those Marine flies chasing us…"
"Everything on this island will belong to us!"
"Then you can eat whatever you want!"
"Roast whole pigs? Stewed venison? Anything!"
"But right now—pull yourselves together!"
His speech was met with nothing but weak groans.
Promises meant little to men who were starving, sick, and exhausted.
Morris's patience finally snapped.
He glared at the trembling group.
"If you can't walk—stay here!"
"The rest of you who can still move—come with me!"
"You lot stay put!"
"Don't move!"
"We'll come back for you after we finish our business!"
"Captain! The Marines are chasing us!"
"Captain! Don't abandon us!"
Their pleas were ignored.
Morris led about a dozen relatively healthy pirates forward toward the towering shadow of the giant mushroom.
Along the way, the same scene repeated again and again.
Every few hundred meters, another pirate collapsed from hunger, diarrhea, or sheer exhaustion.
Each time, Morris simply left them behind.
Not Long After
A Marine pursuit unit from G10 Base, led by Major Fox, soon discovered the first group of abandoned pirates.
"Don't move!"
"Marines!"
"Drop your weapons!"
The pirates were too weak to even run.
They lay groaning on the ground.
The well-trained Marines quickly restrained them.
Interrogation was barely necessary.
After a few questions, the abandoned pirates spilled everything they knew.
"Captain Morris… is in terrible condition…"
"But he abandoned the weak ones…"
"He's heading straight for the giant mushroom at the island center with a small group…"
Major Fox frowned.
A bad feeling rose in his chest.
"Speed up!"
"We must stop him before he causes irreversible damage!"
Everything happening ahead was being silently observed.
Hidden in the forest shadows behind the Marines—
Sami's team followed quietly.
"The Marines caught up quickly."
Marcus whispered.
"Not bad."
Carhelo added,
"Morris abandoned the slow ones. That means his remaining group will move faster."
"According to the Marines' interrogation…"
"He came to this island desperately for one reason."
"The giant mushroom."
"A Fungus-Fungus Fruit user…"
"…trying to control the largest and oldest mushroom on the island…"
Sami said nothing.
He simply stared at the enormous shadow of the mushroom ahead.
His expression grew increasingly grave.
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