This would allow them to greatly enhance their strength.
Ryuuto observed their reactions and nodded to himself in satisfaction. He believed that after today, the Buggy Pirates would make the same choice as Foxy, saving him a lot of trouble.
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji watched Ryuuto's display in silence, clearly a little stunned.
Fortunately, Ryuuto didn't leave them hanging for long. After arranging everything, he walked over to Luffy.
"Luffy, I ran into Ace a while ago!" Ryuuto said, pulling out an intact piece of a Vivre Card. "He was looking for you, but something came up. He left this Vivre Card with me for you."
"What? Ace! Is... is he okay?" Hearing this, a look of joyful surprise spread across Luffy's face. He looked at Ryuuto and asked earnestly.
"Ace is doing just fine," Ryuuto replied after a moment's thought. "He should be back in the New World by now."
"Here, you can have half of this Vivre Card." With that, Ryuuto tore the card in half and tossed a piece to Luffy, fulfilling one of Ace's small wishes.
Zoro and Sanji's minds were filled with questions, but they knew this wasn't the right time to ask. They decided to ask Luffy about it later.
Luffy first learned about Vivre Cards on Thriller Bark. Lola had given him a piece of Big Mom's card, and he'd thought the things were amazing.
They are made from a person's fingernails mixed with other materials. Any piece torn from the original will point to its owner's location and reflect their life force. So with this card, Luffy could know Ace's condition and general whereabouts.
Luffy held the piece of the Vivre Card, his mind filled with images of Ace. A wave of nostalgia washed over him.
After a brief chat with Luffy, Ryuuto left.
By now, Porche had already eaten the Elephant-Elephant Fruit.
"What a strange feeling!" Porche forced herself to swallow the horribly tasting Devil Fruit. After just one bite, she could feel a strange transformation beginning inside her.
First, she felt a powerful will from the fruit rush into her mind. It was a wild, primal consciousness, like that of a great, solitary beast roaming the plains.
Porche's mind was overloaded for a few seconds.
When she came to her senses, she found her body changing uncontrollably...
Porche let out a sudden sneeze, and in that instant, her nose began to rapidly elongate into a trunk, and two long tusks sprouted from either side of it.
Before Foxy's eyes, Porche had transformed into her Human-Beast form. While she still had a humanoid body, she now possessed animalistic features. Her head had taken on the shape of an elephant's, complete with a long trunk and sharp tusks, and her skin had turned a coarse gray.
Porche casually swung her new trunk, wrapping it around a sun parasol and lifting it with ease.
"Porche, how do you feel?" Foxy asked impatiently.
Nami and Vivi watched on with curiosity.
"I... I feel like I have limitless power inside me!" Porche couldn't quite describe it, so she just stated her most direct impression.
Zoan-type Devil Fruits provide a powerful boost to the user's base physical abilities, granting them animal-like strength, speed, and explosiveness. They also grant enhanced recovery rates and heightened senses. This meant Porche could now fight using an elephant's natural instincts, like swinging her trunk or stomping.
Furthermore, Zoan users can transform between three forms: their Human Form, a Human-Beast Form, and a full Beast Form. All three forms benefit from the physical boost. However, the Human-Beast Form—the state Porche was in now—is typically the strongest for combat, as it combines the offensive capabilities of the animal with the user's human martial arts and skills.
Porche, now aware of her new abilities, clenched her fists. The long trunk and tusks vanished, and she reverted to her usual appearance as the blue-haired, dazed-looking cheerleader.
"Porche, let's see your full elephant form!" Ryuuto called out as he walked over. He was quite eager to see the great white elephant.
"Okay, Captain Ryuuto, I'll try!" Porche nodded to Ryuuto. She focused her strength, and her body began to expand, quickly transforming into a massive white elephant.
BOOM!!
The great white elephant stood five or six meters long, swinging its trunk energetically. Despite its still-dazed expression, its power was astounding. With a single stomp, Porche left a deep crater in the ground.
"So cool!" Nami and Vivi exclaimed in unison.
Foxy watched Porche's transformation with delight. With this Devil Fruit, her strength had truly been enhanced.
'Thank you again, Captain Ryuuto!' Foxy shouted inwardly.
Meanwhile, in a heavily guarded meeting room at Marine Headquarters in the distant Mary Geoise, Vice Admiral Momonga looked on with a headache at the six figures seated around a massive conference table. They were the current six Warlords of the Sea. There were supposed to be seven.
They were: Donquixote Doflamingo, lounging with his legs crossed and a signature smirk on his face; Dracule 'Hawkeye' Mihawk, cradling his great sword Yoru with his eyes closed; Bartholomew Kuma, quietly holding a book; Boa Hancock, her expression a mixture of arrogance and impatience; the solemn Jinbe; and the massive Gecko Moria, letting out his distinct 'Kishishishi' laugh.
Vice Admiral Momonga glanced at the six of them and continued, "...In summary, the World Government requires all of you to cooperate more actively with the Marines during the upcoming power shifts in the New World, particularly in containing the expansion of the Four Emperors..."
"Furthermore, we are here to discuss who will be appointed as the new seventh Warlord."
"Fufufufu... Cooperate?" Doflamingo suddenly interrupted, tapping his fingers idly on the table. "Has the Navy forgotten something? We are not your subordinates to be ordered around. We are 'government-sanctioned pirates,' your 'partners.' Fufufu... As for who becomes the new Warlord? I couldn't care less, as long as it doesn't interfere with my business..."
Hancock spoke with extreme impatience, "Did you summon me just to listen to this nonsense? What a waste of my precious time!"
Moria let out his eerie laugh. "Kishishishi! Expansion? Power struggles? Who becomes a Warlord is irrelevant! Just give me more powerful shadows! More strong corpses!"
Jinbe said in a deep voice, "I became a Warlord for the safety of Fish-Man Island and my people. I care for little else."
Hawkeye slowly opened his eyes and stated flatly, "I have no interest in political games or territorial disputes. I am only here as a formality."
Kuma remained silent throughout, quietly reading the Bible in his hands.
Clearly, the meeting was not going well.