Chapter 636 - 878 – One Bite, One Devil Fruit [BONUS]

"If you want the Devil Fruit, then just say you want it. What are you trying to do by holding my weapon while licking ice cream at the same time?"

Holding the Bubble-Bubble Fruit, Arton looked at Kalifa in front of him with an exasperated expression.

Slurp.

Kalifa took a long breath before answering, "Isn't it because this is just too tempting? I couldn't help myself. Besides, you know Devil Fruits taste horrible, so wanting to enjoy something good before eating one is perfectly understandable, right?"

"Sorry, but I really don't know just how awful Devil Fruits taste."

Arton shook his head. After all, he had never eaten a Devil Fruit before, and he probably never would.

"I understand what you're thinking, but if you keep provoking me like this, Kalifa, I'm going to have to properly spar with you again."

"Mm…"

Kalifa pouted.

It wasn't that she couldn't understand Arton. At such close range, she had already noticed that Arton's weapon was gradually becoming ready for battle.

Clearly, if she kept this up, she might really end up having to spar with him again.

Kalifa certainly wasn't unwilling to have a proper match with Arton. The problem was that she genuinely did not have enough strength left.

In her current condition, she felt she had no way to give Arton enough enjoyment.

Although Kalifa felt that even if she did nothing and merely watched Arton's weapon rise, he could still enjoy the thrill brought by battle, she knew very well that Arton did not actually like doing things that left the person involved feeling uncomfortable.

That gentleness was also one of the reasons Kalifa had gradually come to like him.

"All right, then. I'll eat the Devil Fruit. At worst, if it tastes so disgusting that I feel sick afterward, you can just give me something sweet again."

Arton tore off a small piece of the Bubble-Bubble Fruit and handed it to Kalifa.

Since Kalifa already disliked Devil Fruits and cared so much about their horrible taste, Arton naturally did not want to force her to eat the entire thing when a single bite was enough to gain its ability.

If eating too much ended up making her vomit up what she had already eaten earlier, that would be a terrible waste.

If possible, Arton would rather not see that happen.

"Then it's settled. If I feel sick after eating the Devil Fruit, you have to let me have something sweet."

"Don't worry." Arton patted his chest confidently. "We've known each other for a while now. Don't you trust me?"

"All right, I believe you."

Kalifa gave Arton a broad smile and accepted the Devil Fruit from his hand.

She took a deep breath, raised the piece of fruit, and tossed it into her mouth. Immediately afterward, she stuffed the lollipop into her mouth without the slightest hesitation.

"Aren't you a little too fast? The Devil Fruit barely reached your mouth and you're already going after something sweet."

Arton lowered his head toward Kalifa, who was clinging tightly to his thigh, and could not help breaking into a sweat.

Kalifa said nothing. Her body trembled uncontrollably, as though the disgusting taste of the Devil Fruit were making her nauseous.

…

"Kalifa, are you okay?"

Arton patted Kalifa's head worriedly.

There was no helping it. Her body was trembling so violently that Arton was genuinely afraid something might have gone wrong.

At the same time, however, he could not help feeling somewhat puzzled.

Devil Fruits certainly tasted terrible, but surely they were not so disgusting that they could make Kalifa's entire body shake like this.

Arton himself had never eaten one, but several of his companions had. Late at night, he had once asked Ain, Hina, Uta, and the other Devil Fruit users what it had been like to eat one.

Every single one of them had answered without hesitation that the taste was absolutely awful.

Even so, they had all said that no matter how disgusting a Devil Fruit was, it was not so bad that someone would be completely unable to swallow it.

There was even Conis aboard the ship. Arton had personally seen her miserable expression after eating the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, yet even she had not reacted as strongly as Kalifa was now.

Just as Arton was about to have Kalifa spit out the lollipop so he could ask what was wrong, a strange sensation suddenly washed over him.

It was difficult to describe, but Arton found it unexpectedly pleasant—almost as if his body had been wrapped in soft soap bubbles.

Soap bubbles?

Arton paused, then immediately lowered his head toward Kalifa.

"Kalifa, can you already use your Devil Fruit ability?"

Kalifa's eyes curved into a smile as she pulled her head back and released Arton's weapon.

"That's right. Just as you can see, I'm already an ability user. I tried activating the power inside my mouth and throat just now, and I didn't expect it to actually work. I'm still not used to the feeling of creating soap bubbles inside my mouth, but I think I'll get accustomed to it soon enough."

Kalifa nodded with obvious satisfaction, then looked up at him eagerly.

"What about you, Captain? How does it feel? Do you like the sensation of soap bubbles?"

"Soap bubbles are useful. They can help us clean a lot of things." Arton nodded slightly, then stared at her suspiciously. "But weren't you trembling all over just a moment ago? How did you suddenly become completely fine?"

"Um…"

Kalifa rubbed her cheek, her face turning red with embarrassment.

"To be honest, I overdid it a little earlier and ended up choking myself."

She cast Arton a faintly resentful look as she spoke.

Arton understood Kalifa well enough to know that she was annoyed with herself for having pushed too hard.

It certainly was not as though he had forced her to keep the candy in her mouth.

Kalifa had been the one who hated the taste of the Devil Fruit and insisted on having something sweet afterward.

"In any case, you've successfully eaten the Devil Fruit now. I'll head out, and you can spend some time getting familiar with your ability."

Arton stretched lazily as he spoke, already preparing to leave.

Just then, however, he once again felt himself being enveloped by soap bubbles.

"Hm? Why are you doing that again?"

Arton lowered his head and looked at Kalifa, who had moved extremely close to him once more.

...

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