Chapter 31: The Flame-Flame Fruit

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The high priest picked up a miniature version of the Flame Emperor and threw it down with a sinister smile, shouting, "Die, you bastard!"

The blazing fireball hovered over the two of them. Ace raised his eyebrows slightly.

Hmm... its speed is actually quite slow.

Ace, agile as ever, ran much faster than the fireball, dodging it with a few quick moves.

The high priest panted heavily when he saw how fast the boy was moving. He was furious, his eyes almost popping out of his head!

Is my skill really that easy to dodge?

But when he turned around, he saw the young man standing there with a sword at his waist, seemingly frozen in fear.

The high priest's smile returned, but it quickly froze on his face.

This scene... looks familiar?

The fireball crashed to the ground, causing a massive explosion and a heat wave that shot into the sky. The searing hot stream flowed everywhere. Ace and the others watched from the sidelines with their eyes wide open.

Noir... is he okay?

The fire licked the red leaves of the island, sending up thick black smoke. The small village was instantly transformed into a sea of fire.

A black silhouette slowly emerged from the towering flames. Ace and the others immediately recognized him as Noir!

Seeing Noir walk out of the fire unharmed, the high priest was stunned and stammered, "Why... do you also have... black fire..."

Amaterasu's black flames blazed wildly on Noir's body, and with black fire streaks on his face, his features looked even more sinister, like a devilish overlord emerging from hell.

"Ordinary flames can't possibly compare to my Sun Fire Amaterasu," Noir said, raising his burning arm with satisfaction.

"Impossible! How can this be?" The High Priest stared at Noir in disbelief.

The terrifying temperature of those black flames made his own flaming body feel the heat!

How many years had passed since he last felt "hot"?!

"Die! This is all a lie!" The High Priest swung his flaming whip at Noir, who calmly raised his Amaterasu-covered hand, easily dispersing the flames.

The orange-red flames seemed to hit their superior. The black Amaterasu flames devoured the ordinary flames like a ravenous beast, causing the High Priest's flames to scatter as if facing their father.

"What is happening?" The long revered High Priest fell to the ground in horror as he looked at Noir.

Noir walked toward the fallen shaman, draped in a black flame cloak, spreading a cloud of black fire with each step.

This scene was truly one for the books!

Noir placed his hand on the shaman's face. Under the combined grip of Armament Haki and the burning Amaterasu, the shaman's body shook violently, emitting a sound like roasting flesh.

"No! Please spare me!" The high priest wailed miserably, but Noir remained unmoved.

The black flames gradually engulfed his entire body. The burning pain drove the shaman mad, and he cursed venomously, "You will go to hell... you will die a horrible death!"

Noir looked coldly at the struggling shaman and said, "You can take those words to hell with you!"

With that, Noir drew his Pure Heart Sword and infused it with black flames and Haki. He stabbed the shaman, and the flames of Amaterasu erupted from within!

"No!!" The shaman's piercing scream echoed across the island until the voice faded. The Amaterasu flames had done their work, leaving nothing but ashes.

Noir withdrew his hand and looked coldly at the terrified villagers.

The villagers were horrified to see their God-Like shaman burned alive. Some cowards knelt and begged for mercy.

Ace, with a complex expression, walked over to Noir and sighed, "They can't be saved..."

Noir pulled back the flames, feeling a bit dejected.

Such a beautiful island, yet it held dangers and horrors greater than the outside world.

And these people... was the entire village's perverse habit cultivated by that one shaman?

It was only ignorance, hunger, and greed that had robbed them of their humanity and turned them into such walking corpses.

They could irresponsibly kill anyone who ventured into the mist because the beast within them had lost its restraint.

But Noir and Ace couldn't.

They couldn't kill everyone on the island to ensure safety; they didn't have that right.

Noir didn't think he had the right to pass a death sentence on an entire island, even if he thought they all deserved to die.

Maybe Noir still hadn't fully adjusted to this cruel world...

"I'll find a way to inform the Marine," Noir said, sheathing his sword with a sigh.

Ace nodded. It was better to leave them to the Marine than to deal with it as a pirate.

Noir glared at the villagers and threatened, "If you dare eat people again, you'll end up like that damn shaman!"

The villagers, pale as ghosts, nodded vigorously.

Ace said with a stern face, "Get us out of here!"

The villagers hurriedly fetched several red-striped dolphins and tied them to the boat.

These local red-striped dolphins knew the way. These sea creatures could easily guide Noir and the others out of this place.

None of them had any fondness for this place and wanted to leave immediately. Back on the ship, they finally set sail.

In the thick fog, Noir looked back in the direction of Red Leaf Island, wondering if his threat had any effect.

Maybe the island would become a cannibal island again after they left...

The red fog gradually turned white, indicating that they were returning to the familiar sea. The heavy mood of the five began to lighten.

"I'm starving... Noir," Ace groaned, lying on the deck and clutching his stomach.

Noir replied irritably, "So many demands, and you're on my ship!"

The thick-skinned Ace laughed, "We travel together for now! Once we find an island to build a ship on, everything will be fine!"

Noir had mentioned to Ace that he was also going to the Grand Line.

This made Ace incredibly happy, as he shamelessly insisted on hitching a ride.

Noir took a bag of apples from the cabin and pulled out a bright red apple.

He then drew his Pure Heart sword and began to carefully peel it.

After peeling several apples, Noir gave some to everyone to satisfy their hunger.

Then, Noir casually pulled another fruit out of the bag.

But before he could cut it, Noir noticed that the fruit looked familiar.

Its surface had spiral patterns, an orange-red color, and the skin was covered with small flame-shaped spiral patterns.

This was probably... possibly...

The Flame-Flame Fruit?!

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