Ryuma watched the three of them leave and finally let out a sigh.
What they said was true.
Now that the black charcoal serpent was dead, Kaido—the bastard—would surely notice soon enough. If tonight passed, the secret would inevitably leak.
No...
Maybe Kaido already knew.
Ryuma thought to himself that Kaido might be waiting for him even now.
Taking a deep breath, he wondered... what would happen if he fused two S-Class Zoan Devil Fruits?
He combined the Icefield Wolf Fruit and the Eight-Headed Serpent Fruit!
"System, fuse the fruits!"
Ding dong, the system replied, System has automatically fused the fruits for the host.
Ding dong, it continued, Congratulations, host! You have obtained an SS-Class Zoan Devil Fruit: the Impatiens Fruit!
Ryuma froze for a moment.
Impatiens Fruit?
"Host, as the name suggests, the Impatiens Fruit is an Animal-type Mythical Zoan. It has three forms: the first transforms into a phoenix, the second into an impatiens, and the third grows wings imbued with phoenix power."
Hearing this, Ryuma's eyes widened.
This Impatiens Fruit was a rare treasure!
If even the Impatiens Fruit was this powerful, then just how strong must the SSS-Class fruits be?
That, however, was unknown.
What Ryuma did know was that fusing an SSS-Class fruit might take a very long time.
Devil Fruits were very selective, after all.
Take Kaido's Dragon-Dragon Fruit, for example: an Eastern Dragon form with tremendous defense. If someone else ate it, could they unlock its full power?
So, when it comes to Devil Fruits, the grade doesn't matter as much as compatibility. The key is to find one that suits you.
"System, consume the Impatiens Fruit," Ryuma ordered decisively.
One good thing about this system was that he didn't have to taste the Devil Fruit itself.
Devil Fruits were notoriously awful-tasting. He had heard most people couldn't stomach the disgusting flavor.
Ding dong, the system chimed again, Congratulations, host! You have acquired the Impatiens Fruit!
A faint smile lifted Ryuma's lips. Now, defeating Kaido felt even more achievable.
After all, dragons and phoenixes were creatures of the same legendary tier.
Aside from the fused fruit, he still had three lottery draws left unused.
Ryuma thought to himself, System, help me draw the three prizes.
Ding dong, the system responded, Please wait patiently, drawing in progress...
Ding dong,Please wait patiently...
Ding dong,The draw is complete!
Ding dong,Congratulations, host! You have gained Armament Haki: Intermediate Level.
Ding dong,Congratulations, host! You have acquired the skill: Mind Reading.
Ding dong,Congratulations, host! You have acquired the skill: Crescent Moon Slash!
Hearing these three rewards, Ryuma's heart skipped a beat.
Not to mention the rest, just hearing the names sounded immensely powerful!
Armament Haki—even at intermediate level—was already enough for him. Mind Reading was the icing on the cake, a strong skill that would help him sway hearts and instantly identify traitors.
What Ryuma needed most right now were combat skills.
And Crescent Moon Slash was exactly the kind of skill he wanted!
At that moment, the training methods for all three skills flooded into Ryuma's memory. Although he had never practiced them before, the knowledge was already ingrained in him as if second nature.
Ryuma thought, There's no point in delaying any longer. Better to get Kaido out of Wano as soon as possible.
With determination, he nodded firmly.
As Ryuma stepped outside, he saw the three waiting at the door, their eyes fixed on him.
"Boss, are we going now?" Jack asked impatiently, his face full of frustration.
Ryuma said nothing but used Mind Reading to peer into Jack's thoughts:
This Ryuma is such a drag. How long is he going to keep dawdling?
Ryuma used Mind Reading to delve into Jack's thoughts and shook his head.
This guy really was impatient.
Quin said, "Brother Ryuma, you promised to rescue us from Kaido's grasp. I think dragging this out for another day or two won't help. We might as well rally the prisoners from Rabbit Prison and our own men to charge right in!"
Hearing this, Ryuma said nothing, closing his eyes as he continued probing Jack's mind.
Sigh… crossing Kaido—was it the right choice? I truly hate Ryuma for this, Jack's thoughts revealed.
king stood silently beside them, saying nothing.
Ryuma snorted coldly and said calmly, "That's only natural… Might as well take a look. I've wanted to meet Kaido for a long time."
With that, Ryuma strode ahead, suddenly glancing back at Jack and spoke deliberately, "Jack, your temper is far too rash. If you could control your foul mood and analyze things calmly, your potential would be much greater."
Jack was momentarily stunned, then nodded slowly.
Indeed.
He had eaten the Mammoth Fruit—it was notoriously difficult to awaken fully.
Any Zoan-type Devil Fruit was hard to awaken, even Sengoku the Buddha was no exception.
Once your fighting power reached its peak, that was essentially the limit.
If you wanted to thrive in this world, staying calm and thinking clearly was just as important as strength.
Ryuma glanced at Quin and King. "You two don't need to rush either. I promise you, joining me is the right choice. At the very least, I won't do the kind of heartless things Kaido does… If you follow me and work hard, the future is limitless. But now isn't the time for that talk. What we need to do is defeat Kaido. If we can't kill or drive him out, everything else is meaningless."
Hearing Ryuma's words, the three exchanged looks, their expressions dark. They could only nod slowly in agreement.
Indeed.
There was no right or wrong in the path they had chosen—only survival or death.
At first, they hadn't sensed anything unusual, but now it was becoming increasingly terrifying.
This man looked ordinary, yet he could read the thoughts buried deep inside one's mind.
In this world, to truly read another's thoughts, one had to either eat a Devil Fruit or have no other way. Even using Observation Haki could only briefly predict the future, never the inner thoughts of a person.
But Ryuma had already eaten the Shadow-Shadow Fruit—they believed he couldn't have eaten another.
In this world, a person could only consume one Devil Fruit.
That left only one conclusion:
Ryuma's mind was terrifyingly powerful—like a god who had lived for tens of thousands of years.