Chapter 140: The Awakening Form of Heavy Fruit

"This old man overstepped," Fujitora said humbly. "Naturally, such secrets are not for the likes of me to know." He turned to Chiba and added, "This time, I lost. My life is in your hands."

Chiba responded without hesitation, "Bring him to my laboratory."

Fujitora's gravity manipulation abilities were fascinating, and Chiba was determined to study them thoroughly. If he could produce an artificial Devil Fruit with similar abilities, the effort would be well worth it.

Over the following weeks, Chiba conducted an exhaustive study of Fujitora's body and his Devil Fruit powers. Given the complexity of Fujitora's abilities, Chiba had to proceed with extreme caution. It took a full two weeks before he finally achieved a breakthrough.

[You have conducted detailed research on Fujitora's physical form. You have gained an in-depth understanding of Fujitora's gravity manipulation abilities. You have studied the activation of his bloodline factors in relation to his fruit power and have successfully created the artificial Devil Fruit: Heavy-Heavy Fruit Awakened Form.]

[Artificial Devil Fruit: Heavy-Heavy Fruit Awakened Form – Stage One: Allows the user to freely control their own gravitational force. Stage Two: Grants control over the gravitational force of objects in contact with the user. Stage Three: Allows manipulation of gravitational fields within a certain range. The range and intensity of this control are directly correlated with the user's energy and physical strength.]

Chiba felt a strong temptation to consume the Heavy-Heavy Fruit himself, but ultimately decided against it.

In the meantime, he continued his research, pushing the limits of Fujitora's Devil Fruit ability even further. Another two weeks passed.

[You have conducted further research on Fujitora's gravity manipulation powers. Drawing on knowledge from your previous life, you have developed a new technique: Universal Pull.]

[Universal Pull – All things in the world possess gravitational force. At the first level, this technique allows you to alter your own gravitational influence on surrounding objects. At the second level, it allows you to manipulate the gravitational effect of objects you come in contact with. At the third level, you can influence the gravitational forces between distant objects. The strength of this influence depends on the refinement and power of your internal energy.]

Satisfied with his discoveries, Chiba proceeded to extract Fujitora's bloodline factor, using it to create a synthetic Heavy-Heavy Fruit in its awakened form.

The result was a Devil Fruit with blood-red skin marked by white swirls. Chiba held it up for everyone to see.

"Hancock played a crucial role in capturing Fujitora, so I believe she deserves this artificial Heavy-Heavy Fruit in its awakened form. Does anyone object?"

The crew exchanged glances, but nobody voiced any objections. Everyone acknowledged Hancock's role in securing Fujitora, so there were no complaints.

Hancock, fully aware of the power of this fruit, especially when combined with her Perfume Femur technique, knew it would make her even more formidable. She could already imagine her enhanced ability to bring any opponent to their knees.

However, Hancock hesitated. "My two younger sisters contributed a lot as well. I cannot accept this alone."

Hina, speaking on behalf of the others, reassured her. "Sister Hancock, Peacock and I didn't contribute nearly as much as you did. You should accept the fruit."

Though she was tempted, Hancock still felt reluctant. She didn't want to absorb the bloodline factor of a "rough man," as she put it, and so declined. "No, I think it's best to keep this fruit as a reward for future accomplishments, just like the String-String Fruit."

Without giving anyone a chance to argue, Hancock stood firm in her decision. Chiba, aware of her reluctance, nodded in agreement but felt it was unfair to her. He added, "In that case, Hancock, I've recently developed a technique that allows one to manipulate gravity. It's not as immediate as the fruit's power, but it's quite effective. Would you like to learn it?"

"Yes!" Hancock immediately agreed, envisioning the possibilities. If she could control gravity without the need for a Devil Fruit, it would be an incredible addition to her strength. She could picture herself forcing Marine Admirals to their knees with a single kick.

"Come with me," Chiba said, leading Hancock aside to a more private area. The crew watched them go, some with mixed feelings.

Peacock huffed. "Chiba always gives Hancock the good stuff. He doesn't care about us anymore."

Hina shot Peacock a look. "If you can catch Fujitora, Chiba will teach you as well. Focus on improving your strength."

Peacock, still fuming, thought to herself, Once my fruit powers awaken, Hina's the first person I'll take down, just to get even for all the times she's shown me up.

Remembering how Hina had tied her up and paraded her around Marineford as a joke, Peacock resolved to get her revenge someday.

Meanwhile, Chiba began teaching Hancock the technique for Universal Pull.

To help her master the technique quickly, Chiba used his own internal energy to open Hancock's meridians, allowing her to cultivate the skill with ease.

As his energy coursed through her, Hancock felt herself becoming stronger, her power rising like a tidal wave within her.

Three days passed.

On the third day, Chiba had finally helped Hancock reach the level where she could control her own gravitational force at will.

With this new ability, Hancock no longer needed to rely on techniques like Moonwalk to move through the air. By simply adjusting her gravity, she could fly at will.

In addition, by emitting a powerful repulsive force around herself, she could make it nearly impossible for anyone to get close to her.

[•———•——•———•]

𝙥𝗮𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙤𝙣(.)𝙘𝙤𝙢/𝙂𝙤𝙙𝙊𝙛𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧

✨ • 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝙂𝙚𝙩 𝟲𝟬+ 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚.