I'm Not Interested in Devil Fruits

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'Thud.' 

Liam landed beside the gaping hole in the deck. He surveyed the surrounding pirates, who instantly stiffened. 

"What in the blazes?!" they muttered. "We riddled him with bullets, and he's not even scratched?"

Suspicion flickered in their eyes. "Could he be a Devil Fruit user, like the Vice-Captain? But he doesn't look like one!"

Bang! 

A gunshot echoed, and a lead bullet sliced through the air, aimed squarely at Liam's forehead. As the bullet whizzed towards him, Liam casually raised his hand. With a nonchalant flick of his wrist, he caught the bullet mid-air.

The pirates gawked in disbelief as he examined the hot lead in his palm. Then, with a flick of his finger, he sent the bullet soaring back towards the shooter.

Puh! 

The pirate who fired the shot crumpled to the deck, a bloody hole blossoming on his forehead.

Clap clap! 

Liam clapped his hands before speaking. "Ladies, let's get to work!"

The Kuja warriors, poised for action, leaped into action. They unsheathed their snake-like bows and swords, and with a series of graceful movements, they swarmed onto the enemy pirate ship.

Robin, unable to jump the distance, activated her Hana Hana no Mi (Flower-Flower Fruit). Her powers, now capable of extending across vast distances, enveloped the entire Glacier Pirate ship. Blossoms erupted from the ship's floor, coalescing into her own image.

From within the ship's hold, she could hear the din of battle on deck.

"Do you know who you're messing with?" the pirates roared. "We're the Glacier Pirate crew!"

A sickening puh-ch sound followed, a grim testament to the Kuja warrior's swift and efficient dispatch of the braggart.

She could hear another pirate gritting his teeth. "Our Captain will never forgive this..."

A burst of laughter erupted from outside. 

"Oh? Is your Captain such a formidable foe?" Liam's voice boomed.

"He's a pirate with a bounty of 89 million Belly!!"

The Kuja girls erupted in boisterous laughter. Robin could almost picture their vibrant smiles, even from within the ship's hold.

As the sounds of falling bodies intensified, Robin shook her head, tuning out the clamor and delving deeper into the ship.

The Kuja warriors were well aware that Liam and Robin's combined bounties in the outside world approached 300 million Belly. Robin understood that her own 100 million Belly bounty was largely due to the immense strength she gained from Liam's Stand armor.

But upon closer reflection, a combined bounty of 300 million Belly seemed more fitting, considering Liam and the power of his Stand armor.

Soon, the Kuja girls joined Robin in the hold, their search for treasure commencing with practiced efficiency. They expertly located and moved crates of gold, silver, jewelry, and an abundance of food and drink from the kitchen and storage areas.

On deck, the Glacier Pirates lay sprawled, unconscious. The two ships were now connected by wooden planks, forming a makeshift bridge. Kuja pirates ferried boxes and bags of plunder, stepping over the fallen pirates as they returned to their own ship.

Suddenly, low growls rumbled from beneath the hole in the deck as a colossal figure emerged, clambering onto the deck.

"You bastard... how dare you ambush me..."

The Glacier Pirates' Vice-Captain, his elephant head smeared with blood, surveyed the scene, his fury escalating. With a thunderous roar, he charged towards Liam. To provoke a Zoan-type Devil Fruit user? This bastard would pay dearly for his folly!

Thud, thud, thud – 

The heavy footsteps echoed in the surroundings. Liam glanced at the charging elephant-man with a look of mild displeasure. 

He then proceeded to position a dazed pirate in front of him, the man swaying drunkenly as if his bones had turned to jelly. Hancock watched from the sidelines, arms crossed. She wondered what Liam was planning at.

The white elephant man lunged towards Liam and Hancock, but neither of them flinched. Sandersonia, with the speed of a striking snake, intercepted him. 

She braced herself, and golden snake scales materialized on her face. Her muscular arms bulged, hardening into solid gold. 

Bang! 

She met the elephant man's furious strike with her palm. 

Kā chā! 

The wooden deck splintered beneath her feet.

'How could this be?!' The Vice-Captain, his face a mask of blood, stared in shock. How could his full-force blow be so easily countered by this seemingly delicate and beautiful woman?

"When you hear the snap of my fingers," Liam intoned, "you will answer any question I ask and obey any command I give..."

Hancock and Liam remained motionless as Marigold, the golden-scaled "Serpent of Power," engaged the enraged elephant man in a fierce struggle. Liam fixed his gaze on the hypnotized pirate, who muttered these words in a trance-like state. 

A flicker of recognition crossed Hancock's face. Years ago... was this how he hypnotized her? She stepped aside, narrowly avoiding the flying form of the white elephant-man, hurled by Mari's powerful throw.

Snap!

Liam snapped his fingers.

The hypnotized pirate snapped to attention, his gaze vacant as he stared at Liam.

"Tell me about your... Glacier Pirate crew," Liam began. "Is your Captain nearby?"

As he spoke, he executed a graceful backflip, kicking the incoming elephant man away with a powerful kick.

"Follow me," Liam commanded, then strode towards the ship's hold, where the Kuja warriors continued to unload their plunder.

In mid-air, the green-scaled snake unfurled its wings, catching the elephant-man in its grasp. With a powerful spin, it hurled the dazed Vice-Captain towards the ship's stern. Marigold, exhilarated by the fight, joined the fray, pummeling the battered elephant-man with renewed vigor.

Hancock followed closely behind Liam. 

"I wasn't talking to you," Liam said, surprised by her presence.

Hancock maintained a serious expression, but a blush crept onto her cheeks as they passed the bustling Kuja pirates. She glared at him. "I wanted to go in myself!"

The hypnotized pirate, a puppet on strings, followed Liam and Hancock, obediently responding. "No, Captain is not here. This is not our flagship... Captain and the crew are currently at the Sorbet Kingdom... The Vice-Captain is a Devil Fruit user, and he secretly plans to go to Magnifique Island..."

The pirate poured out all the information he knew without hesitation.

'Magnifique Island…' Hancock thought to herself. She had heard that name before.

Sorbet Kingdom?

Liam vaguely recognized the names and decided to consult his trusted companion, B.I.B.

The Sorbet Kingdom... In B.I.B.'s narrow, jet-black eyes, a faint white glow flickered. It quickly accessed its vast database and walked beside Liam and Hancock, its voice tinged with uncertainty. "Tyrant" Kuma was the former king of the Sorbet Kingdom. Considering that Bonney, disguised as the Sorbet Queen, hailed from South Blue... this pirate crew must originate from Kuma's homeland.

"I see," Liam nodded.

Hancock, bewildered by B.I.B.'s words, stared blankly. Though her Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki) allowed her to hear Giorno's ghostly voice, she couldn't decipher a word.

Just as she was lost in confusion, Hancock looked up and saw Robin emerging from a room in the ship's hold, a Den Den Mushi clutched in her hand.

(End of Chapter)