There was no denying it—when it came to business, the Donquixote Family was as professional as it got.
During the time Enel was being treated, Doflamingo had already informed Jack that he had tracked down the Devil Fruit he was looking for. It was only a matter of time before it would be delivered to Onigashima.
Overjoyed, Jack immediately promised Doflamingo that if the fruit turned out to be what he wanted, then if Kaido ever came after him, he'd personally step in to take the hit.
Doflamingo assured him on the spot—it was indeed an Ancient Zoan-type fruit, and it would greatly enhance the user's perception.
Jack was more than satisfied. Devil Fruits were already rare as it was, and Ancient Zoans were even harder to come by.
Right now, his priority was to push his perception to the limit, to see if there was still a chance to break through to the UR level. If there wasn't, then he needed to accelerate the growth of his immortality and spend more time strengthening himself. Training on the ship more frequently would be a good start.
After returning to Onigashima, and finishing his usual training with Black Maria and Ulti, Jack hurried to report to Kaido before the latter got drunk and lost his temper.
"Tch... tch... tch..."
"Hic..."
Letting out a satisfied belch, Kaido, still reeking of booze, eyed Jack with bleary eyes.
"You ran into one of Shiki's men?"
"Any survivors?"
"Nope."
"What did they say?"
"Nothing."
"Where's Shiki?"
"Didn't say."
"Hmph..."
...
Meanwhile, in Dressrosa,
Trebol stared at the two Devil Fruits in front of him, confusion written all over his face.
"Doffy, what is this one?"
"Fufufufu..."
Doflamingo chuckled as he adjusted his sunglasses.
"This one? I got it from Caesar."
"It's actually the very first artificial Devil Fruit ever created by Vegapunk. Caesar claims it was a failure..."
"But I think there's more to it than that."
"Besides, in a way, it's similar to Kaido's fruit."
"I'll send it along with the Zoan fruit as a little bonus for Jack. Even if he doesn't want it, this fruit still holds special significance for Kaido."
Jack had been frustrated lately. Kaido had dumped Ulti and Page One on him, along with a few other promising brats, forcing him to take up the role of a glorified babysitter once again.
To make matters worse, in an attempt to get Yamato off his back, he had once told her a few tragic, tearjerking romance stories about terminal illnesses.
That backfired spectacularly.
Now, she was running around shouting that if Jack ever got sick, he should at least leave her a child first! She had been chasing him nonstop, insisting that they should have a baby together.
Absolutely ridiculous!
Him? Get sick? What a joke! And even if he did, wasn't that what Master was for?
Fortunately, the new year had arrived, and with it, another Fire Festival. Yamato had finally calmed down—mostly because Sasaki had returned. The guy was practically Jack's biggest fanboy and had been dragging him to drink all the time. Jack was more than happy to use that as an excuse to dodge Yamato's antics.
Just two days before the festival, a Donquixote trading ship arrived at Onigashima.
What Jack didn't expect was for Doflamingo to show up in person.
He found it odd—after getting beaten up by a drunken Kaido a few times, Doflamingo had been avoiding Onigashima like the plague. He hadn't dared to visit in a long time, let alone attend the Fire Festival.
Wait... could it be that his Devil Fruit had arrived?
"Hey!"
Jack eyed Doflamingo with excitement.
"You mean to tell me you found it?"
"Fufufufu..."
Doflamingo adjusted his sunglasses again and grinned.
"Jack, I got the fruit you wanted."
"And as a little surprise—this is the world's very first artificial Devil Fruit."
Jack frowned and immediately asked, "The first artificial Devil Fruit? What does that mean?"
"Hm..."
Doflamingo stroked his chin in exaggerated thought before answering with a serious expression.
"It means it's an artificial Devil Fruit."
"You're messing with me, aren't you?"
"No, Jack! Listen, I'll explain everything once we see Kaido."
Seeing how confident Doflamingo was, Jack had no choice but to take him to meet Kaido.
Before heading out, Doflamingo handed over a small chest to Jack.
"Zoan-type, Cat-Cat Fruit, Ancient Model: Sabertooth Cat?"
"Significantly enhances reaction speed and perception?"
After listening to Doflamingo's explanation, Jack was relieved. His other attributes were already maxed out—only his perception still needed work. This fruit's enhancements aligned perfectly with what he was aiming for.
All he needed was some time to eat it and test whether the system could help him break through his physical limits.
Still, what about that artificial Devil Fruit?
What made Doflamingo so confident that he personally came to deliver it to Kaido?
Just as Jack was pondering this, the two of them arrived at Kaido's hall.
As they stepped into the massive courtyard, Doflamingo, who had been following Jack through the labyrinthine paths of Onigashima, was beginning to feel dizzy when Jack suddenly stopped in his tracks.
Kaido stood up, his gaze falling on Doflamingo with a questioning look.
"Kaido-saama, I came to deliver the Devil Fruit Jack requested."
"It's an Ancient Zoan—Cat Model: Sabertooth Cat."
"And I also brought another Devil Fruit."
"Kaido-sama, please take a look."
Doflamingo opened the chest in his hands. Kaido stepped forward, picked up the fruit, and examined it closely before asking,
"What kind of fruit is this?"
"It's the world's first artificial Devil Fruit."
"The first artificial Devil Fruit?"
"And what does that mean?"
"It means... it's still an artificial Devil Fruit."
Seeing Kaido's grip tighten around his massive kanabo, Doflamingo quickly blurted out,
"Kaido-sama! This fruit was created using your Lineage Factor! It's the first artificial Devil Fruit ever made by Vegapunk himself!"
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The fanfic is Finished on p@treon/tambeerg