Chapter 106: Hebi Hebi Fruit, Model: Medusa
Sakura Matou: ...
For some reason, those words felt incredibly light to her, as if swapping out a body were as simple as changing clothes. Was such a thing even possible?
"What exactly are you trying to do?" This time, it wasn't Sakura Matou who spoke, but Medusa.
"What else? I'm helping her, of course. You must know better than anyone just how terrible the condition of her body is right now, don't you?"
Yumesaki spoke while gesturing toward Sakura Matou.
Medusa fell silent. After a few moments, she finally asked, "Is it really that bad?"
She knew Sakura Matou's condition was dire, but she didn't realize the full extent of the severity.
Yumesaki explained, "Sakura Matou's body hasn't just been modified by insects since she was a child and planted with Crest Worms. During the Fourth Holy Grail War, Zouken Matou used shards of the Holy Grail as a medium to plant Crest Worms into her, turning her into an imperfect Lesser Grail."
"To put it bluntly, her body is in a truly, truly horrific state."
"Even though it could be forcibly repaired, it's far too much trouble. It's better to just replace it with a clean, new body."
"This is also a good thing for her. Isn't that right, Sakura Matou?"
Sakura Matou didn't understand. She asked, "Why help me? We don't even seem to know each other."
"Is one not allowed to help people if they aren't acquaintances? When an Ally of Justice wants to do a good deed, does he have to ask the victim whether he knows them first?" Yumesaki asked in return.
Sakura Matou didn't know how to argue against that. She began to feel a mix of hesitation and belief. "Are you really an Ally of Justice?"
"I am not just an Ally of Justice, but also a Savior."
Before long, Yumesaki would be heading off to save the world of One Piece. Regardless of the underlying cause, he was indeed walking the path of world salvation.
Thus, Yumesaki felt that calling himself a Savior wasn't an error.
"Savior?" Medusa stared at Yumesaki with deep suspicion several times, thinking to herself that this man was certainly good at boasting. To claim to be a Savior—he truly had no fear of being mocked by others.
Did people these days really have such thick skin?
Yumesaki noticed Medusa's gaze, but he didn't care, keeping his eyes on Sakura Matou with a smile on his face.
"Have you decided? Do you want to change your body?"
Sakura Matou looked at Medusa. Medusa said in a soft voice, "Even though I don't know if this man's words are truth or lies, I can guarantee you that these people harbor no ill intent."
In another world, Medusa might have been nothing more than a Gorgon.
But in this world, before falling into the state of a Gorgon, Medusa was an actual goddess.
She could still sense whether a person held malice or not.
Furthermore, in Medusa's perception, Yumesaki wasn't human at all, but a genuine god.
Perhaps even a Grim Reaper.
A Grim Reaper had no need to deceive humans, nor would he stoop so low as to trick one.
Hearing Medusa's words, Sakura Matou decided to give it a try. Compared to Yumesaki, whose origins were a mystery, she preferred to trust Medusa.
"Can I really change my body?"
"Of course."
Yumesaki opened an Air Door, bringing Medusa and Sakura Matou to Egghead Island in the world of One Piece.
He pulled Vegapunk, Orochimaru, and the others out of the laboratory, asking them to clone a clean body for Sakura Matou.
After the two of them performed a thorough examination of Sakura, they declared that it would be very easy. They requested one month to clone a complete, new body for her.
Sakura Matou didn't doubt the words of those two. Setting aside Orochimaru, Vegapunk had an appearance that looked remarkably like Einstein. Such a look screamed intelligence and top-tier scientific expertise.
If he wasn't a genius, that face would have been a waste.
At the same time, Medusa noticed the difference in this place. Ever since arriving at Egghead Island, she found that this location held absolutely no trace of the existence of gods.
Even though they had only passed through a door, why did it feel as though they had crossed between worlds?
"What exactly is this place?"
Medusa took a few steps forward, grabbing Yumesaki by the collar and demanding an answer.
"You've already felt it." Yumesaki didn't mind Medusa's disrespectful action, saying with a smile, "If I told you this was another world, what would you think?"
Medusa let go of Yumesaki's clothes, stepped back, and narrowed her eyes as if sensing something.
"Even though it feels nonsensical, this place is indeed very strange."
"If you say this is another world, it doesn't seem impossible."
After that, she opened her eyes and looked at Yumesaki seriously. "So everything you said earlier was true? You are a Savior, and you have saved this world?"
Yumesaki said, "To be precise, I am in the process of saving this world. If nothing is done, this world will be submerged by seawater in a few years. The people who rule this world know this, but they are hiding it."
"Because of that, I am recruiting comrades who share the same vision, planning to overthrow the rulers of this world and then save the world."
"What do you say? Do you want to join us and save this world together?"
Hearing that, Medusa couldn't help but sneer. "Do I look like the kind of person who would save the world to you?"
In myths and legends, Medusa appeared as a monster.
Until finally, her head was severed by Perseus.
Perseus became famous for that feat and became a great hero in Greek mythology.
In other words, in myths and legends, Medusa was an antagonist.
Now that Yumesaki was asking an antagonist to save the world, to Medusa, it felt like the man was insulting her.
However, Yumesaki remained calm and didn't get rattled by Medusa's anger.
"Whether you look like someone who saves the world or not isn't for me to decide, nor is it for others to decide. It's for you to decide yourself."
"Whether you want to be a hero or a monster, that is your own choice."
"I am merely extending an invitation to you. Whether you want to save this world with me or not, you decide for yourself."
As he spoke, Yumesaki slowly reached out his right hand.
Medusa stared at Yumesaki with an expressionless face, and Yumesaki met her gaze with a smile.
After a long silence, Medusa reached out her hand and shook Yumesaki's.
"Considering you saved Sakura, I can help you a little."
"That's excellent then." Yumesaki's smile widened. He had gained another significant piece of combat power.
Seeing the two reach an agreement, Sakura Matou felt relieved. "That's wonderful."
Medusa asked, "What will you do next?"
Yumesaki said, "Rest for one night first, and then tomorrow we look for another great hero."
"Who?"
"Heracles."
"Who? Heracles? He's participating in this Holy Grail War too?" Medusa was very surprised. She thought that this Holy Grail War was truly full of hidden, legendary figures.
Even Heracles had appeared.
"He won't be easy to deal with."
"Don't worry, I have confidence. After all, I'm not looking for him to pick a fight." Yumesaki patted his chest, declaring that there was no problem.
After that, he brought them back to Ryudou Temple.
The Matou residence was in shambles and uninhabitable, so for the night, they could only stay at Ryudou Temple.
Time passed, and the next morning arrived.
Yumesaki brought his group—consisting of Nico Robin, Senju Hashirama, Medea, Yamato, Sakura Matou, Medusa, King Hassan, Cu Chulainn, and others—to Wano Country to enjoy breakfast.
The breakfast was, of course, meticulously prepared by Cosette.
For the sake of this meal, Cosette had been up and busy since five in the morning to prepare breakfast dishes for everyone.
Yumesaki and the others ate heartily.
Medusa took a few bites, her eyes lighting up. This cooking skill was superb, even better than her own.
It was true; in the Fate world, Medusa was actually quite skilled at cooking.
And it tasted delicious too.
This was also one of the charm points of her character.
After breakfast, Cosette specifically washed some fresh fruit to serve as dessert.
But right at that moment, something strange happened.
As Cosette served the fruit, one of the fruits in front of everyone suddenly manifested patterns of circles upon circles, and even its stem twisted into the shape of a snake's head.
Indeed, in that very second, the fruit—which resembled a dragon fruit—suddenly transformed into a Devil Fruit.
Yumesaki was stunned.
Wait, what just happened? Why did a Devil Fruit appear right before their eyes?
And what fruit was this?
Nico Robin's eyes flashed. She glanced at Medusa and said, "I recognize this fruit. I've seen it in some books back in Ohara. This fruit should be the Hebi Hebi Fruit, Model: Medusa."
Model Medusa?
Everyone simultaneously turned to look at Medusa.
Medusa also felt a bit shocked. A Devil Fruit named after her?
Nico Robin said, "In legend, Devil Fruits seem to possess a consciousness of their own and will subconsciously seek out a suitable owner. Perhaps this Devil Fruit sensed Lady Medusa's presence, causing it to appear before us."
Yumesaki had also heard this legend.
The most typical example was the Hito Hito Fruit, Model: Nika.
Since the death of Joy Boy, the World Government had never stopped searching for that fruit for eight hundred years, yet they never managed to find it.
The closest the World Government ever came was through a member of the Tobiroppo from the Beasts Pirates, Who's-Who.
He was originally a CP9 agent under the World Government.
Over a decade ago, Who's-Who, as a CP9 agent, carried out the mission of escorting the Gomu Gomu Fruit.
However, during transport, the World Government ship he was guarding was attacked by the Red Hair Pirates led by Shanks, and the Gomu Gomu Fruit was stolen.
Since then, the World Government had lost the fruit once again.
Therefore, the World Government suspected that within the Devil Fruit resided its own consciousness that constantly evaded their search.
Right now, the appearance of the Hebi Hebi Fruit, Model: Medusa seemed to reinforce that theory.
Perhaps because it sensed Medusa's presence, the fruit appeared in this form before everyone's eyes.
Was it because the fruit realized that Medusa was the most suitable host for it?
But the problem was, did Medusa even need this Devil Fruit?
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
50 Power Stone = 1 Bonus Chapter (Up to 5 bonus chapters per week).
You can also check out my new translation project of a novel about a protagonist who can travel between the One Piece and Hunter x Hunter worlds. Please visit my profile. Thank you!
Join my Patreon to get access to more chapters from Webnovel here:
patreon.com/FaaanzKun