Chapter 21: Answer

Chapter 21: Answer



Don Chinjao considered the words of the young woman in front of him.

She claimed she could do something that so many who were older and more experienced than her failed to do. Something he would have dismissed immediately under normal

circumstances.

Mentioning a devil fruit had added some merit to the claim. He himself had long searched for a devil fruit with bone related abilities.

Most of all, this concerned his once proud and pointed skull. And by extension, the treasure his family had accumulated for generations, sitting under the Jewel Ice Sheet, unreachable. Could he afford to pass up the possibility? He had some hope of Sai one day surpassing him and being able to open the Jewel Ice Sheet instead, but there were no guarantees that day will

come.

Could he take the risk? She wasn't strong by any means, but he would have to give her unrestricted access to his head. If she's being honest that she can damage his skull, that also means she could get lucky and kill him too if she's quick enough.

What price would she ask for this service? Would he still be able to refuse after seeing good results?

He discarded the many questions floating around his brain. First he needed to know if it was even feasible.

"Show me your devil fruit ability, little girl. I will see if it is possible to do what you say." He commanded.

Cherry smirked. 'I've got you!'

"My devil fruit is the Fuse Fuse Fruit, I am a Fusion Woman. I can 'un-fuse' the bone, manipulate it into a new position with my special technique, then fuse it back together. I will demonstrate." Cherry said.

She rolled up the sleeve of her left arm and grasped her forearm in the middle with her right hand. Slowly but surely, her left arm seemed to bend in the middle to a roughly 45 degree angle.

"My arm is easy, because my bones are basically just normal bones." She elaborated, as she returned her arm to the original shape. "Your skull is different, I suspect. I'll need to see for myself to be sure. At the very least it's hardness is legendary and I would bet that isn't the only thing special about it."

Sai posed a question. "You said it would be painful, but you didn't seem to be in much pain?" "That's because I have a near perfect understanding of my own body, Vice-Leader Sai. Your grandfather is another story. Trust me when I say you don't want me to understand his body more than absolutely necessary, either. There are many secrets to be learned by

understanding the body. Secrets that can be exploited, if one has bad intentions." Cherry lectured.

Sai and Chinjao were shocked at this revelation and more shocked that Cherry so casually revealed such a thing.

A moment passed in utter silence.

"Hiyahohohoho! This little girl has guts! Alright then, let's go ahead with it." Chinjao made up his mind.

nonchalantly.

Chinjao cursed her in his mind while Sai worriedly watched for any signal to stop her from his grandfather.

The session lasted only 10 minutes, but it felt much longer to the two men.

"I think you'll be able to see results in about half the time I mentioned before. I'll see you tomorrow at the same time, Don Chinjao." Cherry said as she clambered down her makeshift

tower.

Chinjao let out a long sigh of relief. He was surprised that there was not even the slight ache, or some other indicator of that pain he felt only moments before. The stark comparison to then and now made him feel almost blissful.

"Alright, I will see you tomorrow, Miss Harpin. I hope all is as you say it is." Chinjao stated, feeling his head. He wasn't sure if it was any different.

...

Two weeks later, after the session for the day Chinjao studied himself in the mirror in his

room.

He had refused to look at himself or feel his head since the first day. He wanted to see and feel the changes with the greatest impact.

He almost started to cry gazing at his reflection. It was not the caved-in, misshapen skull he was used to seeing, but a rounder more ordinary shape. Sai and his other grandson, Boo, were also nearly in tears seeing their grandfather's former glory returning to him. "What do you want, Miss Harpin. Just name it, if it's something of mine you will have it."

Chinjao stated resolutely. He didn't promise he'd give her anything, he couldn't give her his family's treasure after all. Retrieving that treasure was the primary purpose for restoring his skull to begin with.

"I want to learn your family's martial art." Cherry stated honestly. She had learned these people didn't like dancing around with words.

"Hmmm..." Chinjao pondered seriously. "That's a difficult request. This is my family's secret

art."

To be honest, he wanted to just say yes. He was very grateful to Cherry, but his responsibility to his family was of the utmost importance.

"Perhaps..." Chinjao looked at Cherry, then to his grandsons. "Perhaps there is a way to teach

you, but there is a condition."

"What would that be?" Cherry asked, with a bad feeling in her gut.