Ash Thalos stopped watching Kirk vent his fury and turned his attention to Saff beside him.
Her eyes were still slightly red, but she had already composed herself. The tears had stopped. She was stronger than most would ever realize.
After a brief pause, Ash spoke thoughtfully.
"Saff, I understand using a kitchen knife. It is a tool, and if it gets dirty, you can replace it. But should chefs not cherish their hands? Why did your brother use his fists directly?"
"Huh?"
Saff blinked at him, clearly caught off guard.
Ash continued, "Would he not risk injuring his hands by punching like that? I thought chefs preferred kicking during combat."
"Who told you that?" Saff shot back immediately. "If you avoid punching and only kick, what happens if your legs get injured? You would need crutches, maybe even a wheelchair. Then you cannot cook either."
Ash paused, momentarily speechless.
She crossed her arms. "Besides, after eating the Devil Fruit you gave him, my brother's Physique Amplification increased tremendously. He has already awakened Armament Haki, so he can protect his hands."
"That is true," Ash admitted.
"And this was only to vent his anger," Saff added more calmly. "In future battles, he will focus on using his abilities. Do not worry."
Ash laughed softly. "Actually, our Pirate Hunter crew has plenty of fighters. You and your brother are my valuable chefs. I will do my best to keep you away from frontline combat."
That finally drew a faint smile from her.
"So I just need to focus on cooking delicious food for you, right? You glutton."
Ash grinned. "Saff is sharp as ever."
She glanced past him. "Let us head back."
"Hm?"
Kirk had already walked over, wiping blood from his hands with a cloth.
"It is finished. Let us return."
Only then did Ash notice that while he had been speaking to Saff, Kirk had reduced Hodge to an unrecognizable state.
Ash glanced at the remains. "Should I burn it clean?"
He was accustomed to incinerating evidence, reducing everything to ash.
"Leave it for the wild dogs," Kirk replied flatly.
Ash nodded. "Efficient."
Kirk's mood shifted slightly. "Come on. Let us go back, dig up the wine we buried, and drink everything tonight."
Ash raised a brow. "You hid good wine from me?"
"We had important business today," Kirk replied. "We could not drink last night."
"Exactly," Saff added. "Otherwise you would have emptied every jar."
Ash feigned outrage. "You two do not trust me at all."
Then he burst into laughter. "But your judgment is accurate."
Laughter echoed as they walked back toward Captain Markel's farm.
That night, under the quiet sky of the southern suburbs, Ash, Kirk, and Saff each held a jar of fine wine, drinking until warmth blurred the edges of their vision.
Suddenly Ash slapped his forehead.
"I almost forgot."
He extended his hand toward Saff.
The siblings immediately recognized the gesture. He had done the same for Kirk before, and a Devil Fruit had materialized out of nowhere.
Sure enough, a fruit appeared in Ash's palm. It was shaped like a banana, half black and half white, covered in serpentine swirl patterns.
Earlier, when the explosion treasure chest had been revealed as empty, the siblings had been puzzled about the disappearance of the Mera Mera no Mi. However, their trust in Ash and their hatred for Hodge had prevented them from questioning him.
Now, witnessing another Devil Fruit materialize, they could not suppress their curiosity.
"Ash, how did you make the fruit disappear and reappear?" Kirk asked seriously. "You did not store it in a ring. I could sense that much."
"And the fruit Hodge wanted looked completely different," Saff added, staring at him with fascination. "Did you eat some kind of Devil Fruit Tree fruit?"
"Devil Fruit Tree fruit?" Ash muttered under his breath.
If he allowed them to speculate endlessly, they might accidentally expose the truth of his system ability. Since they had officially joined his crew, he repeated the same explanation he had once given Sali and the others.
After briefly describing the background of their respective Devil Fruits, he refused to elaborate further.
"When we encounter someone knowledgeable like Pini in the future, you can ask him for more historical details."
If he started recounting every mythological origin in depth, the entire night would be wasted. He had better uses for his time, namely eating and drinking.
The siblings were still stunned.
The abilities they had received were not ordinary. Kirk's power originated from Voidborn Chaos. Saff's came from the Mythical Zoan, the Human Human Fruit, Model Eclipse Wyrm. According to the legend Ash shared, these powers stemmed from ancient divine beings.
Gods and demons. Space and time.
Such concepts far exceeded anything they had heard of in the Grand Line.
"Hurry up and eat it," Kirk urged.
Saff nodded and carefully bit into the fruit. Despite its unpleasant taste, she swallowed it with determination.
Ash watched with satisfaction.
Once she gained basic mastery over her time-based abilities, she would be able to suspend time inside his Storage Ring and Wine Gourd. Food and wine would never spoil again.
I truly am farsighted, Ash thought with quiet pride.
He resumed drinking with Kirk while waiting for Saff to experiment with her new power.
"Open personal panel."
His status appeared before him.
Name: Ash Thalos
Age: 13
Physique: 303
Spirit: 64
Abilities: Iron Body LV2, Armament Haki, Observation Haki
Energy: 98
Devil Fruit Ability: Zoan Type, Human Human Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Model Voidborn Chaos
Sub Devil Fruit Abilities: Wind Control 180%, Lightning Control 120%, Ice Control 60%, Water Control 120%, Fire Control 120%, Toxin Control 120%, Space Control 60%, Time Control 60%, Physique Amplification
Status: Stellar Containment, Physique Enhancement, Tipsy
After a month of steady growth, his Physique had surpassed 300. Iron Body remained at LV2, unchanged. His Spirit had only increased slightly, a modest gain.
Space Control and Time Control appearing in the sub ability list were expected developments.
The remaining 98 Energy points were largely thanks to the unnamed pirate captain from earlier. As someone who had survived the New World, he had provided nearly 80 Energy points upon defeat.
"Activate Physique Amplification."
The enhancements displayed clearly.
Mythical Beast Fruit: Physique +30, Spirit +30
Doom Serpent Fruit: Physique +30, Spirit +30
White Sage Beast Fruit: Physique +30, Spirit +30
Storm Sovereign Fruit: Physique +30, Spirit +30
Ninefold Inferno Hydra Fruit: Physique +30, Spirit +30
Emberwing Fruit: Physique +30, Spirit +30
Night Howler Fruit: Physique +45, Spirit +45
Voidborn Chaos Fruit: Physique +50, Spirit +18
Eclipse Wyrm Fruit: Physique +50, Spirit +18
Ash narrowed his eyes.
Only eighteen Spirit points from the last two?
So that was the balance. Increased physical dominance in exchange for restrained spiritual growth.
He scoffed inwardly.
Even if he could not compare to mythical deities in legend, within this world his current parameters were more than sufficient. He could overwhelm most opponents effortlessly.
Contentment was a form of strength.
Just as he and Kirk silently competed to outdrink one another, Saff's voice rang out.
"It is done. Ash, hand me the Wine Gourd and Storage Ring."
She smiled triumphantly. "You gave me this fruit so your food would never spoil, did you not? You glutton."
Ash laughed.
"I knew you would understand perfectly."
----
I decided to change the names to English, though the meaning might be different from their Chinese counterpart if you search it