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"Just as the catalog describes," Rosh said, voice steady and unhurried, "the Wash-Wash Fruit can wash away a person's power, and it can cleanse their heart."
He let the words land before continuing, watching Maya closely to make sure she understood he meant it literally.
"And when I say 'cleanse the heart,' I mean it in the most direct sense. It can wash away the evil within someone, purifying their mind and spirit." His tone remained calm, almost clinical. "To put it plainly… it can turn a bad person into a good one."
Maya Hansen's eyes sharpened, and then her expression lit up with sudden, barely contained excitement. 'Yes! This was it.'
This was the fruit she'd been wishing for without daring to believe it existed, something that didn't just rearrange memories or patch over damage, but struck at the root and corrected the source. Turning bad people into good people wasn't a shortcut; it was the cleanest solution imaginable. It was the difference between covering up a fire and putting it out completely.
"Then, Shopkeeper…" Maya asked, leaning in, voice quick with eagerness, "How exactly does the Wash-Wash Fruit work?"
"Very simple," Rosh replied, as if the answer should be obvious. "Once the user activates the ability, the target becomes soft, like clothing." He spoke without changing expression. "Then you just wash them. Like doing laundry."
"…Like doing laundry?" Maya stared at him, mouth parting as if her brain needed a second to catch up to the sentence. Washing a person like clothes sounded ridiculous on the surface, and yet she could tell from Rosh's delivery that he wasn't joking. Her worldview took a direct hit right there in the reception room.
"Oh, and one more thing," Rosh added casually, "After you finish washing them, you need to hang the target on a rack to dry."
Maya froze.
"…."
For a few seconds, she couldn't even form a response because her imagination was already doing her no favors. A human being turned into something like a garment, limp and wash-ready, then hung up like laundry. It sounded absurd, but it also sounded terrifyingly effective.
"But wait," she finally managed, blinking hard. "If I start washing someone like that, wouldn't they resist?"
She paused, and the answer clicked into place on its own. "Oh. Right. You said it can wash away a person's power. They wouldn't be able to fight back."
"Correct," Rosh said with a small nod. "The Wash-Wash Fruit removes both physical strength and moral corruption. That's the fundamental usage."
"Additionally," Rosh continued, still speaking with that calm, matter-of-fact tone, "the Wash-Wash Fruit isn't limited to washing people. It can wash objects as well."
"Objects?" Maya blinked, genuinely caught off guard. She'd unconsciously assumed the ability only applied to humans, because the "purification" part sounded so personal.
"Shopkeeper," she asked, leaning forward again, "what happens when the Wash-Wash Fruit is used on objects?"
"It can wash an object into clothing too," Rosh replied simply, as if that outcome were self-evident. "It makes the object lose its function completely."
Maya's eyes lit up immediately. The combat implications were obvious. If you could neutralize an object and reduce it into "clothing," then you could disarm people in an instant, shut down weapons, and end a fight before it truly began. At the right moment, that kind of control was decisive.
Before coming here, Maya had been torn between the Memo-Memo Fruit and the Wash-Wash Fruit. But hearing the explanation like this, with the practical details laid out, sealed her decision.
She wanted the Wash-Wash Fruit.
Yes, it was far more expensive, but it was worth it. It offered a proper solution for someone like Killian, not just a patch. And it also gave her something she had lacked for far too long, a real means of self-defense. Because if she could wash away someone's power and turn them into clothing, then even a dangerous opponent could be neutralized the moment they got close enough. No matter how strong they were, if they stepped into range, they would be caught in her hands.
The Memo-Memo Fruit did not offer that kind of immediate control. It was powerful, yes, but it came with a stricter requirement. It needed direct contact with the target's head. It could knock someone unconscious, but it was not nearly as convenient in a sudden, messy fight.
"Shopkeeper," Maya said after a moment's thought, "may I try the Wash-Wash Fruit?"
Her choice did not surprise Rosh at all. The two fruits served completely different purposes, so they were never a perfect comparison. Still, in terms of overall value, the Wash-Wash Fruit had broader utility. The Memo-Memo Fruit was terrifying, but narrow; it controlled memory and nothing else. The Wash-Wash Fruit had flexible applications and far more room to develop.
As Rosh took out a sample, a stray thought crossed his mind. 'If someone like Daredevil, the kind of hero with a soft heart and saintly tendencies, were standing here, he would probably choose this fruit too. A power that could turn villains into good people would be his dream, and if he could "launder" every thug in Hell's Kitchen into a better person, that neighborhood would become lively in a way it had never been before.'
'Realistically, though, Murdock could not afford it. Five hundred kilograms of gold were far beyond a struggling lawyer's means.'
Rosh pushed the stray thoughts aside and handed Maya the sample. "Ms. Hansen, this is a Wash-Wash Fruit sample. It will grant you the ability for five minutes, so take your time and really experience it."
"Thank you, Shopkeeper!" Maya accepted it with both hands, excitement and anticipation flickering in her eyes, and then she ate it.
''Hmm…?''
The moment the sample touched her tongue, her face tightened like she'd just taken a bite out of a science experiment gone wrong. The taste was vicious, a mix of extreme sourness and something so aggressively unpleasant it made her eyes water on the spot. Her expression scrunched so hard it looked like it might fold in on itself, and for a second she had to fight the instinct to spit it out immediately.
Rosh couldn't help the small smile that showed up every time. No matter how impressive the miracle was, every customer had to pay the same first price, and watching people realize that price never got old.
Maya forced herself to chew, swallowed with visible effort, and then almost instantly, her expression shifted from disgust into stunned delight.
"So this is it…" she whispered, voice softer now, as a strange, fluid sensation flowed through her body. It wasn't dramatic, but it was unmistakable, like something had changed at the level of instinct.
She breathed slowly, steadying herself while she took it in, and her eyes brightened as she began to understand what it meant to have an ability to respond to thought.
Once she adjusted, she reached into her handbag and pulled out a compact mirror, the kind that looked expensive and perfectly kept. She took a deep breath, then activated the power.
*Plop!*
The mirror softened almost immediately, turning limp and pliable, draping over her palm as if it had become cloth instead of metal and glass. Maya stared down at it, blinking hard, then flipped it over and prodded it again as if she expected it to snap back to normal.
"This… this is incredible," she breathed, unable to keep the awe out of her voice.
Rosh watched her reaction without interrupting, then asked calmly, "So, Ms. Hansen, have you decided on the Wash-Wash Fruit?"
"Yes," Maya answered immediately, eyes bright and steady now. "Shopkeeper, I want the Wash-Wash Fruit."
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Next Chapter: A Front Row Seat to My Execution
Next Next Chapter: Hydra's New Head
Next Next Next Chapter: The Blood That Won't Wash Out
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