Chapter 108: The Devil Fruit

Beneath the fading glow of the setting sun, Kidd’s lifeless body lay quietly, unmoving.

Looking at this once arrogant figure from the original story, now just lying at his feet, Luo Lan found himself at a loss for words.

Logically, he shouldn’t feel sympathy for this man; Kidd was a ruthless villain, deserving of death.

Yet, for some reason, gazing upon Kidd’s corpse, Luo Lan suddenly felt a twinge of pity.

On the deck, Penggeles, who had witnessed the scene, was equally bewildered.

He was certain Kidd would die when facing Luo Lan—there was no doubt about that.

But the manner of Kidd’s death puzzled Penggeles greatly. Why had he just stood there motionless, allowing Colonel Luo Lan to kill him?

What had they said to each other during their final conversation? Penggeles was curious.

With Kidd and Kira gone, the remaining pirates were like chickens with their heads cut off, barely able to resist.

If it weren’t for the desire to avoid unnecessary Marine casualties, Penggeles and Zoro wouldn’t have even needed to join the remaining battles; the Marines alone could have wiped out the rest of the pirates.

With Zoro and Penggeles joining the fight, the battle ended swiftly. The entire pirate ship was littered with corpses, blood seeping through the deckboards and into the hull.

Thus, the Kidd Pirate Crew was utterly annihilated.

While the Marines tidied the battlefield, Luo Lan honored his promise and hastily dug a shallow grave on the island to bury Kira’s body.

Don’t mistake Luo Lan’s quick burial of Kira for negligence—compared to the countless pirate grunts, keeping Kira’s body intact was already a kindness.

As for the pirate henchmen, Luo Lan didn’t even bother with them; after ordering the Marines to finish them off, he had their bodies thrown into the sea as fish bait.

Searching aboard Kira’s ship yielded few spoils. For a bounty nearing two hundred million, Kidd’s ship held less than half the wealth of a lesser pirate named Klick.

Luo Lan found this unsurprising, as Kidd’s true dream was to become Pirate King and find the legendary treasure One Piece—not to amass material wealth.

After consulting with Penggeles, Luo Lan decided to leave all the confiscated treasures to the survivors on Salon Island, neither turning them in to Navy Headquarters nor keeping any for himself.

With these matters settled, Luo Lan’s gaze shifted to the desolate island before him.

Though he found his own notion somewhat absurd, he gave the order: “Command the Marines who did not participate in the battle to conduct a thorough, carpet-like search of this island.”

“The Kidd Pirate Crew—when I say no one is to be left alive, then not a single one will escape,” Luo Lan declared.

“Yes, sir,” Penggeles replied.

Receiving the order, Penggeles led the remaining Marines ashore, torchlight clusters illuminating the island as the search stretched all the way across to the far side.

Only after night had fully fallen did the Marines begin returning in small groups.

What surprised Luo Lan most was that they found not a single pirate, yet Zoro—who had been part of the operation—had discovered a Devil Fruit.

Originally, Luo Lan hadn’t planned to let Zoro search the island, knowing his notorious poor sense of direction. If not for Penggeles insisting, Zoro would still be on the ship practicing swordsmanship.

“Luo Lan, this must be one of those Devil Fruits you mentioned. I don’t need it, so you can have it,” Zoro said casually, unfazed after his stroll around the island led to this find.

Had Luo Lan not previously explained the basic appearance of Devil Fruits, Zoro might have mistaken it for some unfamiliar fruit and eaten it outright.

Now reflecting, Zoro was grateful he had paid attention during Luo Lan’s explanation; otherwise, eating a Devil Fruit could have severed his connection to being the world’s greatest swordsman.

This is not to say the world’s greatest swordsman cannot be a Devil Fruit user, but the current “Hawk-Eye” Mihawk is not a user—he is a pure swordsman.

Many are stronger than Hawk-Eye in sheer power, but none hold his title, for his swordsmanship mastery is unfathomable.

In terms of pure swordsmanship, Hawk-Eye’s supremacy is indisputable.

If Zoro became a Devil Fruit user, even if he defeated Hawk-Eye with swordplay, others would simply see him as another top-tier fighter—not the new world’s greatest swordsman.

“Devil Fruit?”

Taking the fruit from Zoro’s hand, Luo Lan was genuinely surprised. He hadn’t expected Zoro to return from a casual stroll with a Devil Fruit in tow.

Though Devil Fruit users are not uncommon in the Grand Line, the fruits themselves remain extremely rare.

Otherwise, at one hundred million Beli apiece, they wouldn’t be scarce and overpriced on the black market.

Staring at the fruit in his hand, Luo Lan recalled its name from the Devil Fruit compendium: Barrier Barrier Fruit, a Paramecia-type.

This was no unknown Devil Fruit but one previously documented.

The compendium noted its most recent user as one of the subordinate officers to Black Kurozumi Orochi in Wano Country—someone named Kurozumi Senmaru.

For Luo Lan, who had traveled through time while Luffy was still battling Big Mom, both names were unfamiliar.

He didn’t dwell long on them, as his knowledge of the Barrier Fruit didn’t come from those individuals.

In the original story, during the Dressrosa arc, the Barrier Fruit’s owner was Bartolomeo, a gangster boss from Loguetown in the East Blue—an old foe Luo Lan had long since defeated.

Now that Bartolomeo was dead, Luo Lan was surprised the Barrier Fruit had fallen into his own hands.

However, Bartolomeo’s use of the fruit had been rather unimpressive, with some attacks clearly inspired by Luffy, such as the Barrier Pistol.

This kind of ability, rooted in mental constructs, would be far better developed if Luo Lan himself were to wield it.

Having already consumed another Devil Fruit, Luo Lan wasn’t particularly interested in the Barrier Fruit, as his own Devil Fruit form was likely far stronger.

He stored the fruit safely within his system space and awaited the Marines’ return.

He had already decided who would receive the fruit, and he was glad Zoro had found it—if Penggeles had, Luo Lan wouldn’t have dared to allocate it himself.

Zoro, for his part, didn’t need a Devil Fruit; he aspired to be a pure swordsman and to challenge and surpass Hawk-Eye with skill alone.

Nami, likewise, had no use for it.

On Luffy’s ship, Nami counted as a semi-combatant, but under Luo Lan’s command, they had no shortage of fighters. She could focus solely on her role as navigator without joining battles, making a Devil Fruit unnecessary.

Of the three, only Koby needed the Devil Fruit.

His dream was to become a Navy Admiral, requiring overall strength. Whether he was a Devil Fruit user was irrelevant; any power that enhanced his abilities would suffice.

If Bogart could correct Koby’s mindset, giving this Devil Fruit to Koby would surely add a valuable asset to Luo Lan’s forces.