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"I remember now—these people are from the Flameblade Pirates,"
"What?! The Flameblade Pirates? Then that man is Arton?!"
"No way… the one who floored Captain Bellamy was Nojiko?!"
"D-damn it, these folks all have bounties over a hundred million!"
"Run—run!"
Members of the Bellamy Pirates went wide-eyed and bolted.
"Trying to leave? Not that easy." Arton's snort was cold.
Carina lifted both hands. Bolts of lightning cracked down onto the Bellamy crew. In moments, only Bellamy was left standing. Everyone else in the bar—the patrons, the barkeep, the servers—scrambled out. In the blink of an eye, only Bellamy and Arton's group remained.
"M-my crew?!" Bellamy stared, dumbstruck.
"You're still thinking about your comrades?" Nojiko said. "No need to worry—I'll send them on their way right now." She began channeling magic into Bellamy's body to end him.
Bellamy: "Don't!!!"
Arton: "Hold it, Nojiko."
"Why?" She looked up, puzzled.
Seeing Arton stay her hand, Bellamy whipped his gaze to him. "Please don't kill me. As long as you spare me… I'll do anything."
Once he realized who they were, Bellamy felt nothing but regret—regret for taking a swing at Arton, and even more for not recognizing them sooner. Their bounties had just shaken the world; totaled up, the Flameblade crew surpassed even the Donquixote Family he idolized. In this situation, even name-dropping Doflamingo might not save him. All he could do was pray Arton would show mercy.
Arton ignored Bellamy and said to Nojiko. "Nojiko, try using Mirajane's Takeover Magic to receive the Devil Fruit in his body into yourself."
Nico Robin: "!!!"
Ain: "?!"
As ability users, both Robin and Ain traded shocked looks—then Ain quickly averted her eyes, refusing to meet Robin's.
Across the sea, every diary-holder reading along wore the same stunned expression.
Black Maria: "Using Takeover Magic to strip someone's Devil Fruit? So we're finally seeing it?"
Smoothie: "Mirajane-template Takeover Magic can already convert demonic power into one's own. It's possible Nojiko really can make Bellamy's ability hers."
Stussy: "Bellamy's power isn't strong, but if Nojiko succeeds, she could receive stronger abilities later."
Monet: "Whatever happens, he better not drag the Young Master into this…"
Baccarat: "Dream on, Monet. Arton knows too much about this world. Instead of hoping he doesn't know Bellamy ties back to your Young Master, maybe think about using your body on Arton."
Sugar: "Uuugh, this is really bad."
Doll: "Please—just don't let it work."
Gion: "..."
Everyone not on scene, eyes glued to the diary, didn't dare blink. Nobody wanted to miss a single frame.
…
"Wh-what Takeover Magic?" Bellamy said. "What do you mean take my ability? Did I mishear?"
"I understand, Captain," Nojiko said to Arton. Then she looked down at Bellamy pinned beneath her heel. "Sorry, you didn't mishear. Also, I've never done this before. It may hurt—try to endure."
A complex magic circle flared in her open right hand. She wasn't afraid Bellamy might die mid-process—she feared if he died, the Fruit's power would flee his corpse too quickly and cause the 'receive' to fail.
Chapter 404: Nojiko's Template Can Extract a Devil Fruit?!
"Ahhh!"
As the glow of Takeover Magic fell upon Bellamy, the tavern filled with his screams.
Arton opened the Transparent World; in an instant, his naked eyes saw through both Bellamy and Nojiko. Of course, most of his focus stayed on Nojiko—if anything went wrong during her Takeover, he would intervene at once and break it off.
It should be fine, he thought. Nojiko's Takeover already subdues magic beasts and demons. If her strength is high enough, she can fully command powerful demons. And Nojiko isn't a Devil Fruit user—so even if the Spring-Spring Fruit enters her body, there won't be clashes with any other power. Given Takeover's nature, multiple Fruit abilities might even coexist inside her.
Time ticked by. Under Arton's watch, Bellamy's cries grew fainter. Gradually, a ribbon of pitch-black vapor bled out of his body and streamed swiftly into Nojiko.
"Did it succeed?" Arton asked the moment the radiance of Nojiko's magic faded. Not only he, but Ain and the others present—and far away, Gion, Smoothie, and many more—stared hard at Nojiko.
"I think… it did." Nojiko raised both hands and, following the new knowledge blooming in her mind, triggered the new power within her. In the next instant, her outstretched forearms turned into springs.
This was unmistakably the Spring-Spring Fruit.
Yamato: "It really worked? Great—could Nojiko help take the Fruit power out of me too?"
Black Maria: "We just witnessed something shocking. Mirajane's Takeover really can receive Devil Fruits…"
Belo Betty: "That template is even trickier than we thought."
Koala: "The Marines must be fuming."
Kujaku: "So if you oppose Arton, besides worrying he'll cop a feel, now you also worry he'll take your Fruit?"
Doll: "We underestimated the Mirajane template. Nojiko's bounty needs to go up."
Gion: "She isn't a Fruit user. With one Spring-Spring already inside, can she receive others too?"
Even with some mental preparation, seeing Nojiko actually succeed left the diary holders stunned. Stripping a Devil Fruit from a living user—something unheard of, impossible—had just happened before their eyes.
…
"M-my ability—why is my ability in your hands? Give it back to me." Bellamy weakly reached toward Nojiko.
"He's not dead?" Arton's eyes lit with interest. Through the Transparent World he checked Bellamy's body. Though extremely weakened, there was no fatal damage.
In other words, using Takeover to remove a Devil Fruit might be even cleaner than the Dark-Dark Fruit's method.
"But there's no need for you to keep living." Arton flicked a ribbon of flame onto Bellamy. Soon, just like his first mate, he vanished from the world forever.
"Arton, I think I can do more," Nojiko said suddenly.
"More? What do you mean?" Arton looked over, puzzled.
"For example, this." Nojiko drew a deep breath. A magic circle bloomed over her right palm once more. Seconds later, a small, perfectly round orb of pure energy formed in her hand. Under everyone's gaze, she brought the orb to an apple on the table.
What happened next was shocking. The energy ball sank into the apple, and the fruit's surface warped and swirled—turning into a Devil Fruit with strange spiral patterns.
"Wait—don't tell me… a Devil Fruit?!" Arton blurted.
....
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