Chapter 22: Sovereign Nation
'So this is a Skill Fruit?' Eric took the Skill Fruit from his inventory and examined it. It looked like a regular apple, except it was blue. 'Maybe it's colored like this so people don't confuse it with normal fruit?' Akame and Chiron came over, curious.
"Is that an apple?" Akame asked.
"No, it's a Skill Fruit. Eating it lets you learn a specific move—Sovereign Nation," Eric answered honestly, then asked, "You want a bite?"
Akame shook her head. "You eat it, Eric . You're too weak."
Her words pierced Eric like Cupid's arrow—straight through the heart. He internally coughed up blood.
"Haha! Akame, that was a little harsh. Try being more tactful," Chiron chuckled, playing along. He knew Eric 's personality well and joined in on the teasing.
'Shouldn't someone with emotional intelligence at least deny it politely?!' Eric clutched his chest in mock agony, then took a bite out of the Skill Fruit. The taste was hard to describe—it felt like chewing sand, with a flavor like rubber. Not pleasant, but not as awful as the legendary Devil Fruits either.
As soon as he swallowed, a surge of knowledge flooded Eric 's brain like data being uploaded. He now understood exactly how to use Sovereign Nation: how to channel Haki, how to strike, how to unleash the move—everything.
"How was it? Taste bad?" Akame asked, only concerned with the flavor.
Eric handed the half-eaten fruit to her. Realizing he meant for her to try it too, Akame didn't hesitate. She bit off a piece, chewed, then promptly spat it out.
"Even if it's bad, don't spit it out! Swallow a little and see if you can learn Sovereign Nation," Eric said.
Akame winced, took a small bite, and forced it down.
"Do you feel any knowledge in your mind? Like you just learned something?" Eric asked curiously.
Akame silently shook her head. That fruit had been nauseating. She needed grilled meat to cleanse her palate.
'Looks like, just like Devil Fruits, Skill Fruits only work on the first bite,' Eric thought. Another piece of valuable intel.
...
"You're leaving already? Your Log Pose hasn't stored enough magnetism—it's only been a few days," Brogy said. He was clearly reluctant to see them go. It had only been him and Dorry here, and they only ever talked during battle. It was lonely.
"Yeah, we stocked up on food and water yesterday. We're headed to Drum Island—we've got a permanent Log Pose to it. Waiting a year is just too long," Eric said, choosing not to mention his special compass.
"I see. Then safe travels. But be careful—there's a Giant Island-Eating Fish around here," Dorry warned.
The Island-Eater—a giant goldfish that swallows entire islands. Its poop even looks like islands. In the original story, Brogy and Dorry helped the Straw Hats escape by using Sovereign Nation to blast a hole through it.
But Eric didn't have the same kind of plot armor as Luffy. Luffy had saved their lives, and his cheat-like ability to turn every stranger into a crewmate.
"I believe in my crewmates' strength. Until next time!" Eric waved goodbye. Akame and Chiron waved too.
Barely a thousand meters from Little Garden, a massive bubble rose from the sea. As the water drained off, a giant goldfish appeared in front of the ship.
It looked like a goldfish… but with a mouth full of very real, very sharp teeth.
"Chiron, this one's yours!"
Akame's Murasame had a one-hit kill effect, but it took time for the poison to reach the heart. They could easily be eaten before that happened.
"Understood." Chiron struck a pose. "Sting of Scorpius!"
A yellow beam shot down from the sky so fast it looked like it had appeared out of nowhere. It pierced the fish's head and exited through its lower body—an instant kill. Not even a death cry was heard.
"Wait." Akame stopped the two from sailing off.
To their surprise, she grabbed a boning knife, jumped into the water, and started carving chunks of meat off the giant corpse.
Dripping wet, Akame climbed back aboard with fresh meat in hand. "Done."
…
The scene was quite something—though young, Akame's body was well-developed. Her wet clothes clung tightly to her form, giving off a dangerous kind of allure. Ahem...
"Next time, wear a swimsuit," Eric said, turning his gaze away with effort, summoning all his willpower.
"We don't have swimsuits on the ship," Akame replied flatly.
"…That's my oversight. I'll prepare some at the next island. For now, go change so you don't catch a cold… I'll put away the meat. You go shower and get dressed!" Eric rushed to take over her chores—he couldn't handle this much temptation.
They had already left Little Garden far behind. Time to test the new move: Sovereign Nation.
The other two were curious to see how Eric 's Skill Fruit version compared to the giants' original version, so they watched closely.
Eric gripped his sword in both hands, positioning it to the right side of his body. Unlike Brogy's downward chop, his was a horizontal slash—he'd learned the technique's mechanics in full, and a horizontal strike suited his form better.
"HA!" With a powerful shout, he swung at the sea. The resulting blade of energy flew forward… only about two meters. It dispersed before completing even one rotation.
"The move's the same, but the power isn't. The captain needs to keep training to draw out the full strength of Sovereign Nation," Chiron commented. His words were honest—Eric just didn't have the raw power yet.
But Eric didn't respond. He collapsed.
Akame caught him instantly.
Chiron, with his medical knowledge, rushed over to examine him.
"Haki overuse, complete exhaustion. He's in a state of physical collapse. When he wakes up, he'll have a nasty headache too," Chiron concluded.
"Ha…" Akame let out a breath of relief. She had been really worried.
"Where are you going?" Chiron asked.
"To make food. He'll be starving when he wakes up." Akame planned to heal him with a hearty meal.
...
"Ow! It hurts!" Eric yelled as he stirred awake. His body had shut down from the pain—only now was it bearable enough to regain consciousness.
"How do you feel?" Akame asked with concern.
"My head hurts, my body's weak. How long was I out?"
"About half a day. Headache's from overusing Haki. Fatigue's from energy depletion. Here, ah~" Akame, now playing nurse, held a big piece of meat in front of his mouth.
'Shouldn't it be something easy to digest in a case like this?' Chiron wisely stayed silent.
"Mm."
Eric blushed. It was his first time being fed by a girl—his mouth froze.
"You're not strong enough yet to handle such a powerful move. You need to keep training your strength and Haki. Please don't use it again for now. Overexertion can be fatal," Chiron warned, ever the strategist.
"Mhm," Eric mumbled with his mouth full—mostly because Akame was still feeding him.
(END CHAPTER)
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