Marvel: I Trade Devil Fruits for Power

"As expected… it still came to this."

Natasha let out a helpless sigh.

At the moment, SHIELD had only confirmed two people capable of matching with Devil Fruits—Director Fury and herself.

In fact, even her own compatibility hadn't truly been verified yet.

It was only because Qin Xiao claimed she had compatible fruits that they chose to believe him.

As a spy, Natasha had long prepared herself to sacrifice everything for SHIELD.

Because SHIELD had given her something she once never had—a home.

And this mission…

was anything but simple.

Just hearing the words "Devil Fruit" already sounded ominous enough.

What worried her most was whether she would gradually be influenced by these so-called demons.

If she were outright controlled, that would at least be obvious.

But what if the influence subtly changed her thoughts until everything became "her own choice"?

That would be truly terrifying.

Still, she knew Fury had already made preparations.

SHIELD had contingency plans in place for these possibilities.

So now, all she had to do was meet Qin Xiao and officially agree to the trade.

A few days earlier, Tony had finally defeated Ivan.

Since then, he had been obsessively repairing and upgrading his armor.

More importantly, Pepper's Flutter-Flutter Fruit had given him countless new ideas.

Things he previously didn't dare attempt—materials he previously couldn't work with—were now suddenly possible.

Especially anti-magnetic armor.

Before, many materials were too difficult to shape and process.

But now?

If he needed something, Pepper could simply soften the material, reshape it, and restore it afterward.

Because of this, Tony and Pepper had practically locked themselves inside the lab.

Meanwhile, Natasha had basically become a glorified assistant.

Tony ordered her around nonstop.

At this point, she practically looked like hired staff.

As for Qin Xiao—after saving everyone at Stark Expo, he disappeared again.

SHIELD had repeatedly tried tracing his residence.

Every attempt failed.

So this time, Natasha had no choice but to call him personally and arrange a meeting regarding the Devil Fruit deal.

They met once again at Tony's mansion.

The moment Qin Xiao saw Natasha, he smiled.

"So? SHIELD finally made up its mind?"

"Yes."

"This time, SHIELD has decided to establish a dedicated department for Fruit Ability Users."

"This department will specifically recruit Devil Fruit users created by your powers."

"And right now, that department is officially inviting you to become an advisor."

Natasha laid out the proposal directly.

"A new department? An advisor position?"

"There's not even a single member yet, and you want me to be an advisor to what exactly?"

Qin Xiao sounded completely uninterested.

A "new department" sounded impressive.

But in reality, it meant they currently had nothing.

And the title "advisor" itself was amusing.

When they needed you, you were an advisor.

When they didn't, your opinions could be ignored entirely.

It was an empty title.

"As long as you agree, SHIELD will grant you internal security clearance."

"Of course, since you're still under investigation, it will only be temporary access."

"And the clearance level won't be particularly high."

"As for the department being empty…"

"I'll be its first member."

"I'll consume a compatible Devil Fruit and serve as your assistant."

Natasha spoke with a perfectly serious expression while shamelessly bluffing.

Qin Xiao listened just as seriously.

"You know what? Sure."

"Even though I know SHIELD is trying to use me, I still don't mind."

"As a Devil Envoy, people like you are my favorite."

"People who believe they can exploit the power of demons."

"People who think they can someday counter that power."

"But in truth…"

"You have no idea what demons are truly capable of."

"Trust me. Once there's a first time…"

"there will be countless more."

Qin Xiao remained calm throughout.

To SHIELD, this was essentially a low-cost investment.

They offered him meaningless temporary authority in exchange for his support in building a new department.

On the surface, he gained official SHIELD status.

But only temporary status.

If this had truly been an equal-value transaction, Qin Xiao would never have agreed.

Unfortunately for SHIELD—his true objective was distributing Devil Fruits in the first place.

The more fruits he gave away, the stronger he became.

Just like during the Stark Expo incident.

Originally, Qin Xiao thought the Return-Return Fruit wasn't particularly useful.

Yet immediately after returning from Asgard, it proved invaluable.

Combined with the Rumble-Rumble Fruit's speed, the Return-Return Fruit produced effects beyond his expectations.

And as battles increased, combinations between Devil Fruits would become increasingly important.

Even seemingly useless fruits like the Revive-Revive Fruit might someday reveal unexpected applications.

As the saying goes—you can never have too many skills.

There was another reason Qin Xiao valued SHIELD so highly.

Compared to lone users like Frank experimenting blindly—an organization as massive as SHIELD would research and develop Devil Fruit abilities at terrifying speed.

They might even unlock Devil Fruit Awakenings sooner than expected.

So honestly?

Even if SHIELD offered only the tiniest benefits, Qin Xiao would still hand over Devil Fruits.

Exactly as he said—once the first step was taken, countless more would follow.

This "new department" might currently have only one member.

But once the door opened, many more would eventually enter.

Natasha naturally understood all of this.

Qin Xiao clearly saw through SHIELD's intentions.

Yet he still agreed.

Which meant he had absolute confidence in his own power.

Just like SHIELD trusted theirs.

Now it simply depended on whose confidence would prevail.

"Then… can you finally show me my Devil Fruits?"

Natasha changed the subject immediately.

If the conversation continued any longer, she feared she might lose her resolve.

Ripples spread across Qin Xiao's body.

Six Devil Fruits emerged before her.

"These are your compatible Devil Fruits."

Natasha examined them carefully before her expression turned strange.

"I've seen this one before."

"The Love-Love Fruit, right?"

She instantly recognized one of them.

Pepper had been compatible with it previously.

"That's right. So I won't bother explaining that one."

"As for the others…"

"This is the Soul-Soul Fruit."

"As the name suggests, it allows control over souls and lifespan."

"It can even grant souls to objects and elements, giving them consciousness."

"Of course, using it consumes lifespan."

"So unless you want to sacrifice your own life, it's best to collect lifespan from others first."

"Most people might struggle morally with that."

"But honestly?"

"I don't think you'd have any problems."

Natasha's eye twitched slightly.

Qin Xiao continued casually.

"This is the Clone-Clone Fruit."

"It allows you to transform into anyone you've seen before."

"This is the Clear-Clear Fruit."

"It grants invisibility."

"This one is the Door-Door Fruit."

"It allows you to open doors anywhere."

"Literal doors."

"No matter where."

"Once opened, you can travel freely through them."

"And finally…"

"The Calm-Calm Fruit."

"It creates a silent zone around you."

"A space where no sound can escape."

"Honestly, all of these seem tailored toward intelligence gathering."

"Every single one would make espionage much easier for you."

Qin Xiao openly shared all his observations.

Natasha's expression became increasingly complicated.

Others might not fully grasp how terrifying these abilities were.

But she did.

For someone with her training—any one of these fruits could turn her into a superhero.

Or—a super assassin.

"Which one is the most compatible with me?"

Her gaze swept across the fruits before stopping on Qin Xiao.

"Without question?"

"The Love-Love Fruit."

"You've undergone the strictest spy training."

"You know exactly how to use your beauty."

"And this fruit is built entirely around charm."

"I know what you're thinking."

"You're wondering whether this fruit could petrify even me."

"Because if it can't affect me, then it's not truly perfect."

"If you want to test it, feel free."

"I already told you before—""while I'm not particularly interested in you…"

"occasionally relaxing together wouldn't be a problem."

"And honestly?"

"You probably wouldn't mind relaxing once in a while either."

Qin Xiao's words were ruthless.

Truthfully, he wasn't genuinely interested in Natasha romantically.

Her emotional history was far too complicated.

Take Hawkeye, for example.

Normally they just seemed like coworkers.

Yet in Vormir, they practically staged a tragic love story.

It felt strange—yet somehow inevitable.

After all, why else would Hawkeye be the one who pulled her out of darkness and brought her into SHIELD?

Something clearly existed between them.

Whether romantic or familial didn't really matter.

And during her years as a spy, Natasha had used her body countless times to complete missions.

Still—if it was merely mutual relaxation, Qin Xiao truly didn't care.

Natasha's expression changed repeatedly.

At this point, even Qin Xiao couldn't tell whether she was genuinely angry or just acting.

Not that he particularly cared.

To him—this was merely a transaction.

"Then aside from the Love-Love Fruit…"

"which one suits me best?"

"The Soul-Soul Fruit."

"Good."

"I'll take that one."

Without hesitation, Natasha picked up the Soul-Soul Fruit and bit into it.

Crunch.

Crunch.

Her expression barely changed as she forced herself to finish the fruit bite by bite.

Qin Xiao's eyebrows twitched.

Yep.

She was definitely venting her frustration on the fruit.

Natasha glared at him furiously.

"Let me make one thing clear."

"Even without relying on beauty, I'm still an exceptional agent."

"And do you think I wanted to rely on beauty?"

"Do you think I wanted to be sent to that place for training?"

"My past can't be changed."

"But my future…"

"I'll fight for it myself."

Qin Xiao simply shrugged.

"Really?"

"I'll be looking forward to it."

"Anyway, that officially makes the two of us the only members of this new department."

"Now then…"

"Take me to SHIELD."

Natasha turned around and walked away.

"Then let's head to the new SHIELD department."