"Uh…"
Usopp blinked, scratching his head. "Maybe it really is mysterious? So mysterious that no one can find it?"
"Hahahaha, Usopp, something like that doesn't exist…"
Red-Haired Shanks stood relaxed, his sword resting over one arm, his black cape swaying lightly behind him as he laughed with a wide grin.
"Even if the so-called Devil Fruit Mother Tree sounds mysterious to ordinary people, the World Government has ruled this world for centuries. If such a thing truly existed, they should have found it by now."
His expression grew slightly more serious.
"But the truth is, even the highest authorities of the World Government have never located the origin of Devil Fruits."
Usopp's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Huh? Even they can't find it? Then does that mean the Devil Fruit Mother Tree doesn't exist at all?"
Shanks nodded.
"From everything I know, that's likely the case. The idea of a Mother Tree is just a theory created by scholars. No one has ever seen it."
He paused, then turned his gaze toward Shirogai, his eyes sharpening with interest.
"But why bring it up now, Shirogai? Don't tell me…"
A faint smile formed on his lips.
"You actually found it? And that's where you got your Devil Fruit?"
Shirogai let out a light chuckle.
"I haven't found any so-called Mother Tree. But over the past year, I came across certain classified information within the Marines. Combined with what I've observed across the world, I arrived at an interesting conclusion."
Usopp leaned forward eagerly.
"The truth about Devil Fruits?"
"Come on, tell us! This feels like we're about to uncover something huge!"
Yasopp remained silent, but his gaze on Shirogai grew deeper, filled with quiet respect.
A rookie who had only been at sea for a year, yet he possessed knowledge even they lacked, and spoke of it so casually.
Shirogai smiled faintly, completely at ease under their attention.
"Think about it. If a Mother Tree exists, why has no one ever found it, yet Devil Fruits keep appearing all over the world?"
He paused briefly before continuing.
"The answer is simple. People have been looking at it the wrong way from the start."
A slight smirk appeared on his face.
"Who said the Mother Tree has to be a tree?"
"…Not a tree?"
Shanks, Usopp, and Yasopp all froze.
The idea sounded absurd.
Shirogai continued calmly.
"That's right. Devil Fruits are not born from any tree. They are born from this planet itself."
His eyes carried a quiet depth.
"The very world we live on is the source of Devil Fruits."
Silence fell.
"This planet nurtures them, and when a Devil Fruit user dies, their ability returns to the world."
He spoke slowly, each word landing with weight.
"After some time, that same power manifests again somewhere else. A new Devil Fruit appears, carrying the exact same ability."
Usopp's jaw dropped.
"So they… come back?"
"Yes," Shirogai replied. "But not always where they are needed."
Usopp clutched his head.
"This planet is the Mother Tree? That's insane!"
Yasopp stood stiffly, still processing.
"I've never heard anything like this…"
Shanks, however, had gone quiet.
His eyes narrowed slightly, as if connecting distant memories.
"…So that's how it is."
A faint breath escaped him.
Images from his time on the Oro Jackson surfaced in his mind.
During their voyages, they had encountered countless Devil Fruits.
Yet Gol D. Roger had never taken them.
Instead, he would laugh and say,
"Hahaha! We don't need these. Leave them for someone who does!"
Back then, it never made sense.
Only Buggy would throw a tantrum every time.
"My Berries! That fruit was worth a fortune!"
He would wail on the deck, completely heartbroken.
Shanks would try to console him, though it rarely worked.
Thinking back, Shanks let out a quiet laugh.
"So that's why…"
Roger had understood.
He had known.
Shanks' smile softened.
"You really were something else, Captain."
In his mind, Roger's voice echoed once more.
"What if the right person finds it?"
"What if someone who truly needs that power gets it?"
The thought lingered.
Shanks looked toward the distant battlefield, where chaos still raged.
His gaze seemed to pierce through everything, as if he could see a certain straw hat in the distance.
"Don't worry, Captain," he murmured. "That will of yours… it's still alive."
Shirogai watched him quietly, then spoke again.
"There's more."
Shanks and the others turned back to him.
"The name 'Devil Fruit' itself is wrong."
Usopp blinked.
"Wrong?"
Shirogai nodded.
"It was altered, twisted by someone in history to create fear and control. The name itself is meant to mislead."
His voice carried a subtle edge.
"These fruits grant incredible abilities, powers beyond human limits, even the strength of beasts."
He paused, letting the moment settle.
"Originally, they were called something else."
All three focused on him.
Shirogai's lips curved slightly.
"Fruits of Freedom"
The words lingered in the air.
A name far removed from fear.
A name that carried a completely different meaning.
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