Chapter 524: Information From Inside The Island, Adam Gets Bitten
Ace had fought Moria before.
In that earlier battle, Moria had been on the back foot.
But now, the clash between Moria and Atostana was on a completely different level.
"That is true."
Jozu stood to the side, arms crossed, watching the sky light up in the distance.
"And this fight has already gone on for several hours."
"If you had not come out when you did, we were ready to charge in and drag you back ourselves."
Ace's heart was quietly moved by those words.
Even his old man would be in danger in a battle of this magnitude.
Yet they had stayed, waiting for him, with no intention of leaving him behind.
This was more than sharing the same ship.
This was family.
"Oh, so you finally decided to come out."
The moment Ace stepped out, Ryuunosuke sensed his aura and immediately moved over.
"So, did you find anything fun in there?"
"Big brother!"
Ace's face lit up the instant he saw him, then dimmed just as quickly as he remembered what he had seen.
Some things weighed on the heart no matter how you tried to shrug them off.
"Hey, why are you looking at me like you owe me money?"
Ryuunosuke flicked his forehead.
"Come on, out with it."
"So, after stepping onto Laugh Tale, did you feel the charm of One Piece?"
He grinned as he asked.
"Big brother, do not joke like that. What One Piece?"
Ace shook his head.
"It is just a place. A special place, sure, but still just a place."
"I do not care about One Piece at all."
"On the contrary, big brother, do you want to be Pirate King?"
He lifted his head and looked straight at Ryuunosuke.
If Ryuunosuke wanted that throne, then Ace would raise his fist against him here and now.
Not to defeat him.
Ace knew he was no match for Ryuunosuke.
But if Ryuunosuke beat him here, then that title of Pirate King tied to reaching Laugh Tale would shatter on its own.
"You think I am Luffy?"
Ryuunosuke rolled his eyes.
"Only that guy runs around yelling about becoming Pirate King every day."
"Stop changing the subject and tell me what you found."
Hearing that, Ace quietly let out a breath of relief.
At least this Ryuunosuke did not make his heart feel even heavier.
"Honestly, there was nothing that special."
"Following the clues my biological father left behind, I found a dried up tree root."
"There were traces he left carved into it, and a few lines of words."
"So this so called Pirate King…"
Ace shrugged.
"…is nothing special at all."
As he spoke, he took a photograph from his coat.
In it was the withered tree root he had seen down there.
"This is… Adam."
Ryuunosuke's eyes narrowed.
Next to the root in the photograph was a block of ancient text carved in stone.
He could not read most of the characters.
But the words "Adam" stood out clearly.
He had seen those characters on other Poneglyphs before.
"Big brother, you can read this?"
Ace stared at him in surprise.
"I cannot read all of it, but I recognize these two characters."
Ryuunosuke scratched his cheek.
"This is a root segment that belonged to Adam."
"But it is only a withered piece of root. It probably does not have any life left in it."
"And, Captain Ryuunosuke, your little brother…"
Roy walked over and spoke up at this moment, pointing at the things in the photo.
At the same time, his gaze fell on Ace.
As Roy appeared, the aura around Ace stirred.
"Is that Adam's influence?"
"Ace, did your body feel any changes?"
Ryuunosuke asked bluntly.
He had noticed something off the moment he arrived, but had chosen not to say it out loud.
Now that Roy had laid the groundwork, there was no need to hold back.
"Nothing much changed."
"Well… I do feel a bit stronger."
"And Mr Roy's aura makes me want to punch him in the face."
Ace answered honestly.
Roy reflexively touched his nose.
Some things really were…
"It seems you have been touched by Adam's power."
He sighed.
"Alright, Ace, what are you planning to do next?"
Ryuunosuke turned the topic.
From Ace's words and actions, Ryuunosuke could tell that going to Laugh Tale had not been Ace's own idea.
The old man Whitebeard, who had been silently standing to the side, had already told Ryuunosuke that this journey had been his wish.
Ryuunosuke did not press the issue.
He cared more about what came after.
"We will probably head back to our own territory and rest for a while."
"I am getting tired of running around the sea like this."
"Now I want to spend more time with everyone and take good care of Pops."
Ace glanced at Whitebeard as he spoke.
Whitebeard was old now.
Even with the essence of life Ryuunosuke had provided, his body could no longer suppress everything that had accumulated inside it.
Years of brutal battles, on top of the backlash from his Devil Fruit, had carved deep wounds into him.
It would not be long before that body started breaking down for real.
During that time, Ace wanted to fulfill Whitebeard's wish.
A family that stayed together.
As for what would happen a hundred years after Whitebeard was gone, that was not something they needed to consider now.
"Fine."
Ryuunosuke nodded.
"But since you are already tainted with Adam's aura…"
"It is very likely your peaceful little plan will stay nothing more than wishful thinking."
"We…"
"Beru beru beru…"
Just as Ryuunosuke was about to keep talking, the Den Den Mushi in his arms rang.
It was the one Morgans' newsbird had delivered earlier.
Must be something important.
"You guys keep talking. I will take this call."
Ryuunosuke vanished from where he stood and reappeared on a patch of black sand a bit away from the others.
He set up a barrier around himself, shutting out both sound and observation.
"What is it?"
He asked as he opened the line.
"Captain Ryuunosuke, those giants really might be heading for you."
Morgans' anxious voice came through at once.
"Charlotte Linlin took a bite out of the giants' sacred treasure, the Treasure Tree Adam, and then left."
"Took a bite?"
Ryuunosuke blinked.
"That does not sound right."
"Charlotte Linlin may lose control when it comes to food, but she is not the type to chew on random things."
"She is picky. She wants delicious food."
"Even she should not be gnawing on a tree."
"Linlin did not eat it in the usual way."
Morgans took a breath, then continued.
"She used her ability to take a portion of Adam's soul."
"Now there is a huge withered patch on the trunk of the Treasure Tree Adam."
"I am sending you a photo."
As soon as the words left his beak, a photograph popped out of the Den Den Mushi's mouth.
The new breed of Den Den Mushi that Morgans had cultivated really was something else.
"…This…"
Looking at the massive wound in the photo, Ryuunosuke drew in a sharp breath.
It was not just the size of the wound.
It was the size of Adam itself.
That tree towered beyond anything he had imagined.
Could something like this really be cut apart to build ships?
And this was Adam.
Adam, the one Roy said was no ordinary existence.
For a long moment Ryuunosuke could only stare at the photo.
How had Charlotte Linlin managed to take a bite out of that?
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