The dark mist gradually dissipated. At this moment, the ominous clouds in the sky and the black haze covering the sea were absorbed, revealing the figure of Shin within. In his hand, he held a black and red Devil Fruit adorned with strange patterns. The two leaves on top of the fruit resembled wings, gently drifting downward.
Shin glanced around. His actions had drawn too much attention, and now, every living person aboard the ghostly ship had gathered, gazing up at him as he descended from the sky.
"Captain, have you awakened your Devil Fruit?" Pudding asked excitedly.
"Yes, it's finally a success." Shin smiled as he looked at her. "I can now fuse and strengthen compatible Devil Fruits!"
After he finished speaking, Shin extended his hand. From the black mist, he extracted Pudding's Memory-Memory Fruit and activated the transformation ability of the Munch-Munch Fruit, merging it with the enhanced Shadow-Vampire Fruit in his grasp. Within moments, the fusion was complete.
"This Devil Fruit is a combination of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit, the Mythical Vampire Fruit, the Zoan-type Bat-Bat Fruit, and your Memory-Memory Fruit.
"There may still be some risks," someone hesitated. "Maybe we should test it first—"
"No need!" Pudding interrupted, her face brimming with excitement. "Let me be the test subject."
Without hesitation, she took a bite.
Immediately, an overwhelming force erupted around her. Red and black energy surged into the sky, coalescing into a wild storm before condensing once more. Pudding's eyes gleamed as she clenched her fists.
"So strong! I feel unbelievably powerful now!"
She turned toward Ulti and smirked.
"Is it too late for me to apologize?" Ulti asked.
Apparently, it was.
After testing her abilities on Ulti, Pudding quickly grasped the scope of her newfound strength. In addition to the abilities of the original four Devil Fruits, she now possessed the shadow avatar creation, shadow movement, and mental hypnosis.
Her body could transform into a swarm of flying bats, allowing her to evade physical attacks—an ability clearly inherited from one of the fruits. She could also drain blood to heal injuries. Shadow movement enabled her to hide within another's shadow, an ability resulting from the synergy between the Shadow-Shadow Fruit and Mythical Vampire Fruits.
Unlike Moria's Shadow-Shadow Fruit, which could manipulate shadows but not inhabit them, this fusion granted her direct infiltration.
As for mental hypnosis, that was undoubtedly a product of the Memory-Memory Fruit's enhancement. Direct eye contact could now place weak opponents into a trance. Combined with her power to erase memories, she had become incredibly dangerous.
Her physical prowess had also risen to a level comparable to the Azure Dragon Fruit. Evidently, stacking Zoan abilities enhanced one's physical growth immensely.
Even without activating her Mangekyō Sharingan, Pudding still overwhelmed Ulti, leaving her with a bruised and swollen face. The sheer variety of abilities at her disposal made her a fearsome opponent. Shadow techniques, mental attacks, and vampiric powers—any one of these abilities would have been formidable on its own. Now, she could drain life energy, accelerate aging, and disrupt an enemy's Haki, before finishing them off with a sneak attack from the shadows.
Even someone as strong as Ulti would struggle against her, and a single misstep could result in an instant defeat. On top of all that, Pudding still had access to the Uchiha clan's Susanoo, making her offensive power unparalleled.
The entire ship fell into stunned silence. Even the members of the Thriller Bark Pirates wore expressions of disbelief.
Moria, in particular, was at a loss for words. He had just watched his own Shadow-Shadow Fruit abilities be fully integrated into another Devil Fruit. Seeing his former powers turned into nourishment for an opponent was an indescribable feeling.
Yet, a new thought took root in his mind. His Shadow-Shadow Fruit was lost, but if he aligned himself with Shin, could he obtain a fused Devil Fruit of his own?
Powerful Devil Fruits were rare, but common Zoan-type fruits were relatively easy to find. If multiple Zoan Fruits were combined, could their abilities rival those of a Mythical Zoan?
This idea wasn't exclusive to Moria—almost everyone aboard the ship was thinking the same thing.
Especially Ulti, who was still nursing her injuries. She had long accepted Shin's power, knowing she could rely on him to replace her Devil Fruit when necessary. While her Ancient Zoan ability was already formidable, there were stronger options. If she could find multiple compatible fruits to fuse, the potential would be limitless.
For a moment, the entire crew's gazes burned with ambition.
Shin, noticing their expressions, shook his head.
"Devil Fruit fusion isn't as simple as mixing any two fruits. At the very least, the abilities need to be compatible. Otherwise, I won't be able to merge them."
He pointed to Ulti and Page One. "For example, they can only fuse Dragon-Dragon Fruits or certain Paramecia types that enhance physical prowess."
Then he turned to another crewmate. "And Violet, your fusions would need to involve perception-type abilities. Devil Fruits need some level of synergy to produce the best effects. Forcing incompatible abilities together won't create something stronger—it could even weaken the result."
Shin's words were true. Now that his Devil Fruit abilities had fully awakened, he could merge almost any two fruits. However, the real challenge lay in ensuring the fusion produced a powerful and practical ability, rather than something useless.