"Yes, Imu-sama. According to the travel records, that is indeed the case. The farthest he had ever gone before was only as far as the Sabaody Archipelago."
"And based on reports from the World Government personnel who accompanied him at the time, he had no contact with anyone else."
"So what you're saying is… the more you explain, the less sense it makes?"
Imu's cold gaze swept across the five elders. It felt as if his very words carried weight, making their hair stand on end.
"It does sound increasingly unreasonable, but… that is the truth. It's almost as if they appeared out of thin air," the sword-wielding elder explained as best he could.
"Out of thin air? You've lived this long, and that's the explanation you give?"
Faced with Imu's words, the Five Elders chose not to argue.
It wasn't that they couldn't explain themselves properly—
it was simply that Is's situation was too strange.
To be honest, even they wouldn't believe it if the roles were reversed.
Seeing them lower their heads in silence, Imu spoke again:
"The impression you give me is that you're trying too hard to gain my approval for that child."
"I don't oppose cultivating him… but know your limits."
"Yes, Imu-sama!"
The Five Elders answered in unison. At this point, they didn't dare contradict anything. If Imu became displeased, they would be the ones to suffer.
"You may leave. There's no need to report every step of the process to me in the future. What I want… is the result."
"Next time you speak to me about that child, I expect it to be because he is already capable of taking over your responsibilities."
"Yes!"
The Five Elders rose together and slowly withdrew.
…
After leaving the grand hall, their expressions were grim.
"Don't you think… things are progressing too fast?" the sword-wielding elder said suddenly.
That single sentence made everyone's faces grow even more serious.
"You've noticed it too…?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
"It's developing far too quickly. I'm afraid one day… it might spiral out of control."
"The biggest problem is… Imu-sama has decided not to interfere."
…
At this moment, the Five Elders had realized a serious issue.
At first, they believed they could control Is.
But after discovering that the people around him were all top-tier powerhouses—
they began to worry.
What if they couldn't control him?
What if he grew too fast—
and one day, things slipped beyond their grasp?
And now—
Imu had chosen not to intervene.
…
"Fortunately… that boy doesn't seem to have much ambition."
"He may not right now… but we still need to be cautious, just in case."
…
Some time later—
on a small, uninhabited island—
Is and Madara had arrived.
Although it was just a sparring match between the two—
aside from Unohana, all the others had come to watch.
After all—
staying in the castle was boring.
This was far more entertaining.
…
"Is, are you ready?"
Madara asked, his eyes filled with excitement.
"Come, Madara!"
Madara leapt back, creating distance.
His hands formed seals—
"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"
He took a deep breath, chakra gathering in his throat—
then unleashed a massive sea-like wave of flames that surged forward, covering an enormous area.
Facing such overwhelming firepower—
Is only smiled faintly.
"Playing with fire?"
"I can do that too."
Flames burst across his body—
golden fire blazing intensely.
He drew back his fist—
"Fire Fist!"
A massive blast of fire shot forward, matching Madara's attack in scale.
"Boom!"
The two torrents of flame collided violently.
The aftermath surged outward at incredible speed, scorching everything around them.
The temperature skyrocketed—
dry grass across the island ignited spontaneously.
…
"Oh? Not only has your combat ability improved…"
"Even your control over your powers has advanced compared to our first fight."
Madara stared at the flames, visibly impressed.
After a brief clash—
both waves dissipated.
Madara gripped his scythe and charged forward, Armament Haki visibly coating the blade.
Is spread fiery wings from his back, ascending into the air.
From his wings—
countless feather-like burning paper blades shot downward.
Madara's eyes narrowed slightly as he swung his scythe rapidly.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
He deflected nearly all of them.
Seizing an opening—
he swung his weapon.
"Slash!"
A massive blue sword wave tore through the air, roaring toward Is.
…
In the distance—
on a floating boat held up by Tatsumaki's psychic power—
Acnologia looked on with envy.
"Why is it that when Is spars with me, he only uses pure physical combat…"
"But when he fights Madara, he's showing off all kinds of abilities?"
"If you really want a proper fight, I can spar with you," Yoriichi said calmly.
"Really?"
Acnologia's face lit up instantly.
"Yes."
"Then let's do it now!"
"Not now."
"…Why?"
"I'm watching them."
"…"
"Yoriichi… you might as well not have said anything."
Acnologia sighed deeply.
…
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Is and Madara's clash grew increasingly intense.
Physical combat intertwined with abilities—
and Is found himself becoming more and more fluent in using his Devil Fruit powers.
Explosions echoed continuously across the island.
…
After fighting for some time—
a sudden notification rang in Is's mind.
"Ding. The Flame-Flame Fruit compatibility has reached the requirement for advancement."
Is froze for a brief moment.
Then—
after one final clash—
he leapt back.
"Madara, wait a moment!"
Madara was about to pursue, but stopped when he heard him.
"…What is it?"
"Pause for a second. Something came up."
As he spoke—
Is opened his system panel.
Host: Aurelius D. Virel Is
Excavation Level: 1 (130/200)
Excavation Attempts: 0 (4/7)
Physique: Advanced Body (80%)
Characters: Madara (40%), Tatsumaki (20%), Acnologia (20%), Unohana (20%), Yoriichi (20%)
Abilities: Paper Fruit (Awakened, Burning Attribute) (1020/5000), Flame-Flame Fruit (1000/1000), Conqueror's Haki (701/1000), Armament Haki (860/1000), Observation Haki (796/1000)
Storage: None
Just as the system had indicated—
the Flame-Flame Fruit compatibility had reached 1000.
Without hesitation—
Is thought to himself:
"Advance."
"Ding. Advancing…"
"Ding. Quality increased. All abilities enhanced."
"Ding. Devil Fruit effect: immunity to Seastone weakening increased to 100%."
"Ding. Additional Devil Fruit consumption +1."
…
The moment that immunity reached 100%—
it meant one thing.
Is could now swim—
just like a normal person.
His Devil Fruit no longer had any weakness.
…
Although this advancement didn't grant flashy attributes like the Paper Fruit—
the overall quality increase alone was enough to surpass them.
At this point—
the Flame-Flame Fruit was no longer the same as before.
It had completely broken free from its original hierarchy.
…
In the original setting—
the Magma-Magma Fruit was superior to the Flame-Flame Fruit.
But now—
that rule no longer applied.
…
And on top of that—
Is could now consume another Devil Fruit.
Though for now—
he had no intention of doing so.
…
He slowly raised his hand.
A flame ignited—
but this time—
it was no longer golden.
It was red.
"…Because of the advancement… even the color has changed?"
He murmured to himself.
…
Not far away—
Madara frowned slightly.
"What's going on…?"
"Why does it feel like something about him has changed…?"
"But I can't tell what exactly…"
…
Is looked up—
a smile forming.
"Alright, Madara—"
"Let's continue."
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