One piece: Dark Smoker

Two Days Later

On Zean's Ship

Zefa summoned Smoker and Hina to the command room. When the two entered, they found Zefa seated behind a massive desk piled high with documents.

Two days earlier, Zean's warship had picked them up, and the navy had thoroughly searched Doflamingo's pirate ship—down to the toilets and trash cans.

Apparently, Doflamingo had underestimated the cost of his recklessness. Without any safe hiding spots for his intelligence, all the data he had painstakingly gathered over the years ended up in Zefa's hands.

Over the past two days, Zefa had been burning the midnight oil, poring over the information until he'd finally finished a preliminary review.

Smoker noticed the dark circles under Zefa's eyes and the slightly hunched posture of Akainu, who arrived with Zean shortly after. His lips curled in disdain.

**Despicable. They couldn't even wait until they were off the ship. I always find someplace private.**

When everyone was seated, Zefa gestured to the sofa, indicating for them to sit.

"Zean, Smoker, Hina, you've done an incredible job this time!" Zefa exclaimed, patting the stack of documents on his desk and pointing to a nearby chest.

"These contain information about the underworld. The volume and quality far exceed anything the intelligence department at headquarters has!"

Zean's eyes lit up. "Really?!"

Zefa nodded gravely. "From what I've seen, the underworld has grown far beyond the navy's expectations. It's reached a scale that can no longer be ignored.

"But many allied nations have entangled interests with them, even going so far as to help them evade capture."

The so-called "underworld" referred to industries operating in the shadows between legality and crime—slavery, smuggling, funerary services, entertainment districts, and more.

Some of the major figures in these fields were as powerful and dangerous as the most infamous pirates. Unlike pirates, however, they relied more on cunning schemes and were shielded by influential backers, making it difficult for the navy to act against them.

The CP agents, with their expertise in espionage and disguise, had made progress, but even they hadn't managed to uncover the wealth of information now in Zefa's possession.

Doflamingo's intelligence was comprehensive: organizational divisions, black-market trades, key operatives, contacts, transaction records—everything was laid bare, putting the navy's intelligence department to shame.

Zefa leaned back, taking a deep breath and using a mist sprayer to refresh himself. "I never imagined that a lowly pirate could possess this level of ambition and strategy. Letting him go before was a grave mistake."

Zean slapped her leg. "Zefa-sensei, I told you so!"

"That bastard's danger isn't just in his strength—it's in his mind and his schemes! You should've dealt with him back then!"

Zefa glanced at her silently, but Akainu scowled. "Don't get ahead of yourself!"

Zean shrank back immediately, her earlier confidence replaced by an awkward grin.

Zefa waved dismissively. "Relax, Akainu. Zean's earned her praise this time."

"With this intelligence, handling the underworld will be far easier moving forward. Your accomplishments are as significant as opening a new battlefield!"

The three immediately stood up.

"Zefa-sensei, you overpraise us," Hina said humbly.

"This is just Hina's duty."

"All credit goes to your guidance, teacher," Zean chimed in.

Zefa sighed. "Alright, enough flattery. Sit down!"

As they complied, Zefa turned to Smoker and Hina. "You two, after eliminating Gavint, I promised you a Devil Fruit as a reward. But given that both of you already possess Logia abilities, and considering your recent achievements, I'm unsure how to reward you properly."

"For now, let's wait until we return to headquarters. Rest assured, I won't forget."

Smoker and Hina saluted sharply. "Understood!"

Zefa nodded. "Good. For now, you're dismissed."

Recognizing the unspoken signal, Smoker knew Zefa had private matters to discuss with Akainu and Zean. Without hesitation, he left the room with Hina.

As they exited, they faintly heard Zefa say something, followed by Zean's indignant protest. Not daring to linger, they headed straight back to their quarters.

**Thanks to their recent achievements, Smoker and Hina were assigned a private room, a privilege typically reserved for officers.**

Though the room's soundproofing wasn't great and didn't offer complete privacy, it was still far better than squeezing into a crowded bunkroom with a group of rowdy men.

As Hina tidied up the space, she chatted casually.

"I wonder what Zefa-sensei is discussing with Rear Admiral Zean. Zean didn't seem too happy about it..."

After a while, when Smoker didn't reply, she glanced over curiously.

"Smoker?"

He was sitting in a daze, holding a box—the treasure chest they had taken from Trebol.

Hina walked over, her curiosity piqued.

"What's that?"

Smoker snapped out of his thoughts and opened the box, revealing a pristine white Devil Fruit. Its swirling patterns bore a slight resemblance to his own Smoke-Smoke Fruit.

"This is the Snow-Snow Fruit, a Logia-type Devil Fruit, but weaker than the Ice-Ice Fruit."

"While it's not the most powerful Logia fruit, it's still incredibly rare," Smoker added.

Hina reached out and gently touched the fruit.

"Logia fruits are never weak. Even if a regular marine ate this, they'd immediately become a priority for training. Still, relying too much on a fruit is dangerous."

She paused, her tone becoming more contemplative.

"Ultimately, it's not the fruit that's powerful—it's the person wielding it."

Smoker remained silent, though internally he was less convinced.

**"Who even came up with this nonsense? Sounds like textbook PUA tactics."**

**"If that's true, why do the Four Emperors, Admirals, and Warlords all have top-tier fruits?"**

**"Sure, we hear about strong fighters without fruits, but who's ever seen someone succeed with a trash-tier fruit?"**

**"And don't get me started on the Rubber Fruit—it turned out to be the disguise of Nika all along!"**

Unaware of Smoker's inner musings, Hina continued.

"Smoker, what do you plan to do with Doflamingo's officers? You're not going to lock them up for months again, are you?"

Even Hina found that approach excessive—though she reminded herself pirates didn't deserve humane treatment.

Smoker lit a cigar and exhaled a puff of smoke.

"I haven't decided yet..."

He frowned, genuinely troubled.

They had already interrogated Diamante and plundered Doflamingo's resources, squeezing every bit of valuable information out of them.

Now, the most valuable things left were the Devil Fruits. And he had to admit, their abilities were impressive.

- *Sticky-Sticky Fruit:* Similar to the Wax-Wax Fruit, it produced highly adhesive, flammable, and explosive substances. Excellent for control and capable of significant damage.

- Boom-Boom Fruit and Ton-Ton Fruit: One could detonate inorganic materials, and the other dramatically increased weight. Properly utilized, they could rival explosion-release techniques and heavy rock attacks.

Adding these to the Dust-Dust Fruit already in his possession would give him a collection of four high-quality fruits.

Jackpot!

However, Smoker knew better than to rely on luck alone. Though he had managed to claim the Dust-Dust Fruit before, it was mostly thanks to a fortunate sequence of events.

The mechanics of Devil Fruit transfer were still a mystery. The only confirmed instance was when the Axolotl Fruit transferred to an apple after Smiley's explosion.

But Smoker doubted it was that simple. The world of pirates had a long history, spanning centuries.

Countless Devil Fruit users must have died near fruit, yet the process remained an enigma. If it were so straightforward, Blackbeard wouldn't have become infamous as a "Devil Fruit hunter."

Smoker began considering the transfer patterns.

- Blackbeard acquired the Tremor-Tremor Fruit under unknown circumstances.

- Big Mom supposedly gained the Soul-Soul Fruit after consuming Mother Carmel.

- Alabasta housed two Zoan fruits passed down through generations.

- Jesus Burgess attempted to kill Luffy to steal the Rubber Fruit.

**What's the common thread here? And what role does the Dark-Dark Fruit play in all this?**

Lost in thought, Smoker's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Hina, can you fetch me some fruit from the kitchen? One of each type!"

"Uh… what?!"

Though baffled, Hina nodded without hesitation.

"Alright!"

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