Robin stared at the newly formed Devil Fruit resting in Rowan’s hand.
Her thoughts ground to a halt.
A Devil Fruit…
Recovered?
Recreated?
Harvested from a dead user?
The very idea was absurd.
Impossible.
And yet she’d seen it happen with her own eyes.
Only moments ago, Daz Bonez had possessed the Dice-Dice Fruit.
Now he was dead.
And the fruit had returned.
Not somewhere across the world.
Not through some mysterious cycle of rebirth.
Right here.
Immediately.
Under Rowan’s control.
A chill ran down Robin’s spine.
If this ability ever became public knowledge…
The world would erupt.
The Marines.
The Yonko.
The World Government.
Every major power on the seas would tear itself apart trying to seize it.
This wasn’t merely valuable.
It had the potential to reshape the balance of the entire world.
As if none of that mattered, Rowan casually tossed the Dice-Dice Fruit into a storage chest aboard the Ark Maxim.
Then he turned back to her.
The same relaxed smile returned to his face.
“Looks like we don’t need to continue this conversation on the ship.”
He spread his hands toward the now-quiet battlefield.
“So.
Can we talk?”
Robin blinked, forcing herself back to reality.
Questions flooded out before she could stop them.
“Who exactly are you?”
“Was that really Devil Fruit extraction?”
“And why are you looking for me?”
Rowan chuckled.
“One at a time.”
He pointed a thumb at himself.
“Rowan D.
Drake.”
Then toward the man beside him.
“My first mate.”
Wiper lifted a hand in a lazy greeting.
Rowan’s gaze returned to Robin.
“And yes.”
“I can reclaim Devil Fruits.”
There was no point denying it.
Not after what she’d just witnessed.
His expression grew slightly more serious.
“As for why I came looking for you…”
His eyes met hers.
“I’m building a pirate crew.”
“And I want you to join it.”
Robin’s eyes narrowed.
That answer surprised her more than she expected.
Someone with Rowan’s power shouldn’t have any trouble attracting followers.
Strong fighters were everywhere.
Capable people could always be found.
So why her?
Why specifically Nico Robin?
Why travel all this way?
Why reveal so much?
Why expose an ability that could make the entire world hunt him?
A knowing smile tugged at Rowan’s lips.
“You’re wondering why I chose you.”
Robin didn’t answer.
She didn’t need to.
Rowan already knew.
“Simple.”
He folded his arms.
“We share the same enemy.”
The change in Robin’s expression was immediate.
Because there was only one answer.
Rowan spoke the words without hesitation.
Without fear.
The air seemed to still.
Even Wiper remained silent.
Robin watched Rowan carefully.
Searching for deception.
For manipulation.
For hidden intent.
She found none.
Then Rowan began to speak.
For the first time, he shared part of his past with someone outside his crew.
The Kingdom of Valeria.
The World Government’s greed.
The political manipulation.
The corruption.
The coup.
The betrayal.
His father’s sacrifice.
His escape.
The destruction of everything he had once called home.
He left certain things unsaid.
The Dual Devil Fruit System.
The true nature of the Forbidden Black Coffin.
Those secrets remained his alone.
But the heart of the story was genuine.
And Robin could tell.
Because she recognized the pain behind it.
She had lived through something frighteningly similar.
By the time Rowan finished, the tension in her shoulders had eased.
Valeria had been stolen.
Ohara had been erased.
Different tragedies.
The same hand behind both.
The World Government.
Robin lowered her gaze.
“So your kingdom suffered too…”
Rowan gave a quiet nod.
Neither spoke.
For a few moments, words felt unnecessary.
Some wounds required no explanation.
The silence lingered between them, heavy with memories neither wished to revisit.
Eventually Robin let out a soft breath.
Trust wasn’t the issue.
At least, not entirely.
The problem was reality.
The World Government wasn’t some enemy that could be challenged through sheer determination.
It was the strongest organization in the world.
She had spent years fleeing from it.
Hiding from it.
Surviving only because she never stayed in one place for long.
Everyone who stood against it eventually disappeared.
Rowan seemed to read her thoughts as easily as a book.
A small smile crossed his face.
“How about this?”
Robin looked up.
“You don’t have to give me an answer today.”
One eyebrow rose.
That wasn’t what she’d expected.
Most captains would have pushed harder.
Applied pressure.
Demanded loyalty.
Threatened consequences.
Instead, Rowan simply shrugged.
“Wait.”
Robin blinked.
“…Wait?”
“Until I defeat Crocodile.”
The words were delivered with such casual certainty that it took her a moment to process them.
Not a bounty hunter.
Not some local pirate.
Crocodile.
A Warlord of the Sea.
One of the most dangerous men in the Grand Line.
“After that,” Rowan continued, “you can decide whether you want to join.”
Robin stared at him for several seconds.
Then a quiet laugh escaped her lips.
Because it was ridiculous.
Defeat Crocodile?
The man who controlled Alabasta’s criminal underworld from the shadows?
The leader of Baroque Works?
The confidence required to say such a thing bordered on insanity.
And yet…
Her gaze drifted toward the remains of the battlefield.
Toward the Ark Maxim.
Toward the chest now holding a recovered Devil Fruit.
After everything she’d witnessed today, dismissing him outright felt impossible.
If Rowan truly defeated Crocodile…
Everything would change.
Baroque Works would collapse overnight.
The protection she currently enjoyed would vanish.
And she would be forced to run again.
Just as she always had.
Unless…
She found herself considering another possibility.
A future where she didn’t have to keep running.
The thought alone was startling.
Robin didn’t accept his offer.
But she didn’t reject it either.
For now, she left the door open.
Rowan noticed.
That was enough.
Promises meant little.
Results would speak for themselves.
“Speaking of Crocodile…”
His gaze shifted toward Rainbase.
“Where is he?”
Robin answered without hesitation.
“Not here.”
“He left Rainbase recently.”
Rowan clicked his tongue.
That was annoying.
Tracking people across an entire kingdom sounded like a waste of time.
Then Robin remembered something.
“I may have a way to contact him.”
That immediately got Rowan’s attention.
“Oh?”
Robin reached into her coat and produced a small signaling flare.
“An emergency signal flare.”
“Only senior Baroque Works officers carry one.”
She held it up between her fingers.
“If it’s fired, every high-ranking agent receives the summons.”
A faint smile touched her lips.
“Including Crocodile.”
For the first time, Robin expected hesitation.
Maybe caution.
Maybe a discussion of strategy.
Perhaps even concern.
Instead—
Rowan’s eyes lit up.
“Perfect.”
Robin paused.
“…Perfect?”
A grin spread across his face.
The kind of grin that made sensible people reconsider their life choices.
“I was worried I’d have to track them down one at a time.”
He pointed at the flare.
“Fire it.”
Robin stared.
Then stared a little longer.
Was he serious?
That signal would gather nearly the entire leadership of Baroque Works in one place.
An assembly powerful enough to terrify most pirate crews.
Rowan, however, looked delighted.
“One location.”
He raised a finger.
“One battle.”
A second finger.
“One cleanup.”
The grin widened.
“Much more efficient.”
🌟 The story is already written… waiting to be unleashed.
🔥 Your power determines how fast the tale unfolds.