As night fell, the five kids gathered around the dining table, while Bellemere and Genzo sat across from them.
All eyes were on Bellemere, while she and Genzo focused on the Devil Fruit on the table.
This was the first time the two adults had seen a Devil Fruit up close, and they felt both curious and amazed.
"So, you want me to eat this Devil Fruit?" Bellemere asked, her brow slightly furrowed.
"That's right, Bellemere. We all believe that the ability of this Devil Fruit would suit you perfectly," Nojiko said seriously, her small face reflecting her conviction.
Bellemere fell into deep thought.
Indeed, since she took off her Marine uniform, her desire for power had faded. However, as the kids grew up, she felt compelled to revisit that ambition.
Yet, it felt wrong to make her eat such a precious Devil Fruit. She glanced at Genzo, whose strength was still below hers. Shouldn't she let him have the fruit instead?
"Bellemere, you don't need to worry about Genzo. This Devil Fruit is not suitable for him."
The superhuman-type Devil Fruit requires a lot of physical strength to support it. Given Genzo's body, he might struggle to handle it. That's why we recommended it to you.
As for Genzo, we will definitely find an animal-type Devil Fruit in the future to strengthen his physique," Ryuen said sincerely.
"That's right, Bellemere, just listen to the kids. For me, it doesn't matter whether I eat a Devil Fruit or not," Genzo quickly added.
Hearing that the Devil Fruit needed physical support, Genzo felt it wasn't a treasure he could handle. He knew his body was indeed too weak.
"Okay, I'll trust you guys. But... at least 100 million berries? That's a bit hard for me to swallow," Bellemere said, holding the vegetable fruit with a conflicted expression.
Although their family had become wealthy because of the kids, she had been poor for so long. Eating 100 million berries all at once felt painful...
"Bellemere, don't worry! Our family isn't short on berries now; we have more than enough!" Nami said gently.
She understood Bellemere's feelings the best; when she ate the Door-Door Fruit, she felt the same way.
Encouraged by the six of them, Bellemere finally took her first bite of the Devil Fruit.
Although she was prepared, the taste of the Devil Fruit still made her feel sick. But she kept going and finished it all!
"Bellemere, drink the juice quickly!" Nojiko handed her a large bottle of orange juice that had been prepared earlier.
Seeing the orange juice was like seeing an antidote, and she gulped it all down in one go.
"Ugh... that was terrible! Did you all eat it too?" Bellemere said, still feeling uneasy.
"Of course! We didn't leave a single bite behind!" the three kids who had eaten the Devil Fruit said earnestly.
Genzo felt a wave of resistance toward the taste of the Devil Fruit. If Bellemere thought it was bad, how terrible must it be!
"Bellemere, try out your new power!" Nojiko said, a bit excited.
"Okay!" Bellemere replied with determination. She was also eager to see what her power could do and felt her excitement rising.
The seven of them walked over to the flowerbed by the door. Bellemere touched the flowerbed with her slightly trembling hands and activated the power of the vegetable fruit.
In just a moment, the entire flowerbed was filled with lush vegetables!
"Wow! Awesome! Bellemere, we won't run out of vegetables at home anymore!" Daisy exclaimed, clapping her hands.
The others also showed happy expressions.
"But it doesn't just stop there..." Bellemere said mysteriously.
Then, the vegetables in the flowerbed began to grow quickly, intertwining with each other.
As the other six watched in amazement, all the vegetables twisted together to form a huge vine that rapidly grew toward the rooftop!
Ryuen seemed to want to test something. He gently poked it with Nojiko's Sandai Kitetsu and found that it didn't go in at all!
Everyone was shocked when they saw this. Could vegetables and fruits be used this way? But, this vegetable is probably too old to eat now, right?
"Wow... Bellemere, this vegetable fruit ability really suits you!" Ryuen said with a bit of surprise. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ Novᴇ(l)Fɪre .ɴᴇt
This vegetable fruit's power seemed similar to the Flourish Fruit and the Forest Fruit. The Flourish, Forest, and Vegetable Fruits might all be part of the same series.
"I think so too. This ability feels super useful, haha!" Bellemere laughed happily.
"Um... Bellemere, can you absorb energy from the vegetables?" Ryuen looked at Bellemere, clearly hopeful.
The Forest Fruit could absorb energy from plants to recharge itself, and Ryuen wanted to know if the Vegetable Fruit could do something similar.
"No, Ryuen. I can only create various vegetables, make them grow quickly, and even combine them." Bellemere felt the power and answered honestly.
"Well, that's still pretty amazing. But if you can learn Armament Haki, your strength would be even better!" Ryuen said seriously.
"Ryuen, you just don't want me to slack off on training, right?" Bellemere teased him.
Bellemere knew what this little guy was thinking, though she was a bit past the age for serious training...
"Haha... you got me, Bellemere! You're sharp!" Ryuen said with an awkward laugh.
"Hehe, Bellemere, how about we have a vegetable feast tonight?" Daisy said with a grin.
A vegetable feast? At Daisy's suggestion, everyone's eyes lit up. They were used to barbecue feasts, but a vegetable feast would be something new!
"Then tonight, let's have a big vegetable feast! Vegetables for everyone!" Bellemere announced happily.
"The vegetable feast is starting!"
"Let's hold it in the yard! I'll bring out the drinks and wine!"
Without the adults lifting a finger, the five kids got to work, bringing out drinks. They prepared all the barbecue tools and ingredients they'd need. The vegetable barbecue feast was officially underway!
"To celebrate Bellemere becoming a Devil Fruit user, cheers!" Genzo raised his glass with a big smile.
"This feels amazing..."
"Tastes so good! Who knew grilled vegetables could be this delicious!"
"It's just too delicious!"
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