"The fruit's ability? Asura's Sacred Flame?"
When Ethan Sugawa heard the question, he fell silent in thought.
Right now, he had a temporary alliance with Kaido and Big Mom. Revealing some minor information wasn't a big deal.
After a brief pause, he looked at Kaido, who had reverted to his human form, and at Big Mom, who was now watching him with keen interest.
Finally, he nodded and openly admitted:
"The white flame is called Asura's Sacred Flame. It has one key trait it can never be extinguished. Once it latches onto something, it will keep burning until the target is completely reduced to ash."
Hiss…
"That's insane!"
Kaido and Big Mom both gasped, their faces filled with genuine shock.
Big Mom recalled Saturn's agonized struggle against the Sacred Flame and muttered to herself:
"Saturn's legendary regeneration was perfectly countered by the Sacred Flame."
She then glanced at Ethan with a rare, complex expression.
"If it weren't for Ethan, we would've had a hard time shaking Saturn off."
If the battle had dragged on any longer, the Navy and the Holy Knights would have likely closed in. At that point, she and Kaido might not have made it out alive.
"An eternal flame, huh…" Kaido's eyes flickered with envy.
Even though his Azure Dragon Fruit was incredibly powerful and could command the elements, it didn't grant him anything as uniquely terrifying as Ethan's flame.
What made Kaido even more uneasy was the fact that he had no counter to Asura's Sacred Flame. In the worst-case scenario, he could be burned alive.
Unwilling to accept this, Kaido pressed on, trying to dig deeper.
"Ethan, aside from the Sacred Flame, what other abilities does your Devil Fruit have? What's its name? Is it a Logia or a Mythical Zoan?"
Some people could infer parts of a Devil Fruit's abilities just from its name.
Kaido's questions clearly aimed to uncover Ethan's deepest secrets.
Ethan frowned, displeased.
He had shared the Sacred Flame's power only because they were allies for now. If it were anyone else, he never would have said a word.
But considering Kaido's potential future value, Ethan finally chose to reveal a bit more.
"My Devil Fruit is a Zoan-type Human-Human Fruit Mythical Model. As for the exact name and the rest of its abilities, I can't disclose that."
Seeing Kaido's insistence on digging deeper, Big Mom finally lost patience and snapped:
"That's enough, Kaido. A Devil Fruit's abilities are a user's deepest secret. If everything is exposed, it's easy to get targeted, which would be incredibly dangerous for Ethan."
She paused, then glanced around at the scattered pirates still fleeing the battlefield, her expression darkening.
"Rocks is dead. Things are not in our favor now. Our top priority is to figure out how to escape the Navy and the World Government's pursuit."
Ethan agreed.
"Linlin's right. If we want to make it out safely, we need to regroup with Whitebeard and the others. Only by combining our forces do we stand a chance of escaping God Valley."
"In that case, let's head back to the Rocks Pirates' ship." Big Mom gave the order to Zeus without hesitation, steering him toward the port.
"If Whitebeard and the others aren't fools, they'll definitely return to the ship."
As they traveled, the three replenished their stamina on Zeus's back, recovering from the grueling battle and preparing for whatever came next.
While restoring his strength, Ethan also multitasked by collecting the glowing orbs floating above the corpses scattered around the battlefield, hoping to find some rare traits.
Unfortunately, most of the orbs were trash.
He didn't fancy a single one, so he simply burned them all.
Instantly, he gained dozens of blank traits. Most were white or green, but he did manage to get a single purple blank trait.
"If only I'd gotten to Rocks' body… With his legendary status, he would have definitely dropped a gold trait."
Ethan sighed regretfully.
…
Zeus's speed was formidable. In just a few minutes, he carried Ethan and the others back to the port where the Rocks Pirates' ship was docked.
Golden Lion Shiki, sporting a thick beard and a cigarette dangling from his lips, sneered when he saw the trio returning in a hurry.
"Linlin, if you'd taken any longer, I would've assumed you died at God Valley like Rocks."
"You're still alive, Shiki. How could I possibly die?" Big Mom shot back without hesitation.
The two seemed ready to bicker endlessly, but Whitebeard, who had been watching quietly, finally spoke up, his deep voice cutting through their banter.
"The Navy is gathering, and the Holy Knights are closing in. If you two don't shut up, you'll be staying here to join Rocks in the grave."
Aside from Rocks himself, Whitebeard was the most senior member of the Rocks Pirates and widely recognized as the de facto vice-captain.
His words immediately silenced Big Mom and Shiki.
Taking on the role of captain, Whitebeard barked an order:
"Set sail!"
"We're leaving God Valley together!"
Under Whitebeard's command, the remaining Rocks Pirates quickly departed the port, steering the ship toward the New World.
…
A few days later.
Grand Line – Rocks Pirates' Temporary Base.
"A bounty of just one hundred berries?"
Ethan stared at his new wanted poster, lost in thought.
Given the value he had displayed, there was no way he should have a bounty as low as Chopper's.
Just being exposed as Big Mom's lover was enough to merit a far higher bounty.
Not to mention the fact that he was a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit user and a member of the Three-Eyed Tribe.
Either one of these revelations should have easily put his bounty in the tens of millions.
"There's only one explanation the World Government deliberately covered it up."
Ethan immediately grasped the key point.
As for the government's motives, he couldn't yet be certain.
Aside from the bounty, what pleased him the most was that his prestige had finally surpassed one hundred.
[Congratulations! Host's Prestige has reached 100.]
[Current trait slots: 4/5.]
"So prestige is closely tied to bounty," Ethan speculated.
He had already suspected that his prestige was linked to how widely his name spread. Now, with his bounty posted, his theory was confirmed.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to him.
"If I keep stirring up trouble and making waves, my name will spread faster, and my prestige will skyrocket."
More prestige meant more trait slots.
Previously, he had missed out on several valuable traits because he had no free slots and didn't want to discard his existing ones.
Now that he knew how to boost his prestige, all he needed to do was keep raising his bounty.
In just a few minutes, he had already thought of several ways to make his bounty explode.
Just as he was about to set his plan in motion, a familiar voice echoed in his ear.
"Ethan, did you miss me these past few days?"