One Piece: Control Fruit

Long blue hair draped over her shoulders, blue eyes full of sorrow. At only 1.5 meters tall, the girl looked petite and delicate, her mood downcast.

"Akshia, it's not your fault," said the red-haired boy gently.

Akshia shook her head. "No, it's all my fault. If I hadn't eaten that Devil Fruit... my parents wouldn't have died. My aunt and uncle wouldn't have died. And all those little animals that used to like me—they wouldn't hate me now…" Her voice trembled. Tears shimmered in her eyes. For a thirteen-year-old girl, what she had endured was simply too much.

Rono had heard about her story and felt deep sympathy for her. (Definitely not because she's a loli!) He let go of the News Coo bird that had just returned from the edge of hell and walked toward the girl.

"Please don't come any closer, Mr. Rono. I… I bring misfortune to people." Akshia panicked as Rono approached, stepping backward with flailing hands, trying to stop him from coming any closer.

She backed up to the wall beside her room and burst into tears. "Don't come near me, I'm begging you."

Rono ignored her warnings and stood in front of her, pulling her into a hug. "It's okay. I won't die."

"But… but even so, Mr. Rono, you'll still suffer misfortune," she stammered, her tense body slowly softening. She felt the warmth of his embrace, her small hands pushing lightly against his chest, trying half-heartedly to keep him away. How long had it been? Other than that one older man, no one had dared get close to her. Akshia quietly savored the feeling of being cared for.

"Would you be willing to tell me your story?" Rono released her and gently led her to sit down beside him.

Akshia scooted a bit away, still trying to keep some distance.

"Do you want to hear it, Mr. Rono?" Her long blue hair fell over her face, hiding her expression.

"Yeah," Rono said, not stopping her from pulling away. He sat cross-legged, supporting himself with his left hand. Suddenly, his face twitched—but he quickly recovered. Damn it! It's dislocated! Can you believe that?!

"I… I'd better not tell you. Your arm…" Akshia started crying again, standing up and backing away from Rono.

After years of bringing misfortune to those around her, Akshia had learned to notice the tiniest details.

"Look, see? It's fine already!" Rono waved his fully recovered arm in front of her. "Don't worry, I'm indestructible—like a cockroach!"

"R-Really?" The girl looked at his raised arm, inspecting it carefully. Once she confirmed it was truly fine, she let out a sigh of relief.

"Tell me your story, Akshia," Rono said with a grin as he lowered his arm.

"W-Well… alright." Akshia hesitated, then began:

When she was five years old, Akshia found a Devil Fruit while playing by the sea.

"Nom." She took a bite. "Ugh—" It tasted terrible. How can anything taste this bad? Furious, Akshia tossed the fruit back into the ocean.

She had no idea what she'd eaten. Happily, she ran home and told her parents about it. Their remote village had no idea what a Devil Fruit was. After checking her over and finding nothing wrong, they simply warned her not to eat unfamiliar fruit again.

"I won't! That fruit tasted awful anyway!"

Then, the misfortunes began.

That night, the moon was full and bathed everything in a gentle glow.

BOOM! Her house exploded. No one knew the cause—or perhaps there wasn't one. The little wooden home was blown apart, and her parents were killed instantly. Strangely, Akshia wasn't injured at all. Not even a splinter touched her.

By the time neighbors arrived and extinguished the fire, all that remained were two charred bodies.

Akshia passed out from crying. Her uncle arranged the funeral and took her in afterward.

But the good times didn't last. Her uncle choked while eating one day and collapsed right in front of her at the dinner table.

Despite Akshia and her aunt's desperate efforts, they couldn't save him.

Another funeral. Her aunt knelt before the grave, crying her heart out… and then died.

Yes—she just stopped breathing mid-cry and collapsed with a thud.

Everyone at the funeral was stunned into silence. The village's only doctor came forward, examined her, and could only shake his head in helplessness.

Akshia moved in with another relative—her aunt, a bitter and mean woman who made five-year-old Akshia do all the chores: cleaning, washing dishes, scrubbing the floors. After the first day, Akshia was so exhausted she skipped dinner and fell asleep.

Maybe because this aunt and uncle kept their distance and never interacted with her (not even sharing meals), they managed to survive a bit longer.

But a month later, disaster struck again.

While working in the fields, her aunt was bitten by a rare venomous snake…

Her uncle tripped on the way to work, fell face-first, and had a rusty nail piercing through his eye. Infection set in, and he died before he could be saved.

…

Funerals—nothing but funerals. The life of five-year-old Akshia was shrouded in misfortune and sorrow.

People in the village began to call her a witch. None of her relatives dared to take her in again.

Akshia lived alone in her late aunt's old house.

Before she turned five, animals were always drawn to her—butterflies, rabbits, dogs, even bears and tigers.

They had a natural affection for her. They never hurt her, and would even share their prey with the blue-haired girl.

But after Akshia ate the Devil Fruit, everything changed. Whenever she approached, animals would instinctively panic. They'd flee, scream, scatter—even mice avoided that house like the plague.

Loneliness and isolation became the defining themes of Akshia's childhood. If it weren't for a few kind-hearted villagers who brought her food and daily necessities, she wouldn't have survived at all.

Akshia stopped speaking for a moment and glanced secretly at Rono. She didn't see the fear or disgust she expected in his eyes. He hadn't moved away—if anything, he seemed a little closer. Three years minimum my ass— Ahem. No, seriously, how could anyone hate such an adorable little loli? Though to be fair… that Devil Fruit ability is kinda terrifying.

In just this short time, Rono had already been hit twice by bird poop and once by a falling lightbulb from the roof outside.

If he hadn't kept signaling that he was fine, Akshia wouldn't have been able to continue her story at all.

"Until last year—I still remember—it was a snowy winter day. So cold… even with two padded jackets, I was freezing." Akshia gestured with her hands for emphasis. "That's when I met Uncle Mo. He was lying in the snow, and the ice beneath him was stained red with blood. If I hadn't gone out to search for wild vegetables, I might never have found him! I was really lucky!" Her eyes crinkled with a smile.

Akshia had immediately rushed to the doctor's house, banging on the door with loud knocks.

"Who is it?" The doctor, though impatient, still got out of bed. If someone was sick or injured, there was no time to waste.

Akshia stepped back about four or five meters. "Doctor, someone is lying in the snow over there—he's bleeding a lot!" she shouted, pointing in the direction.

As soon as the doctor opened the door and saw it was Akshia, he quickly stepped back inside. After carefully measuring the distance between them, he finally stepped out of the clinic. "Where exactly is this person?" After all, saving lives was a doctor's duty.

After seven years of experience, the people in the village had a rough idea of Akshia's "range of effect." Beyond one meter, it was generally safe. Of course, that understanding came at the cost of blood and lives. If the village chief hadn't fought hard to protect her, and if her parents hadn't had such good relationships with the villagers, Akshia would've been driven out long ago—left homeless and alone.

Akshia pointed the way for the doctor, keeping her distance as she ran off toward Mo.