"BOSS, is it really useful for me to come along?"
Robin fidgeted with her fingers, looking a little uneasy.
It wasn't that she doubted Doflamingo would sell her out.
Even Yamato and Monet hadn't qualified to go.
And this time, they had Enel and Smoothie accompanying them.
Not to mention a whole ship full of enhanced replica soldiers.
With her meager strength, she really couldn't see any reason why she needed to follow them to the New World.
Wouldn't it be better to stay on Skypiea and contribute to His Majesty Doflamingo's kingdom?
"Fufufufufu~"
Doflamingo chuckled softly and reached out to pat the insecure girl on the head.
"Of course. You are the key to unlocking an unknown treasure. You're indispensable on this journey."
"Key?"
Robin's mind raced. She quickly put two and two together, then met that crimson gaze and asked tentatively:
"Ancient text?"
"Exactly!" Doflamingo gave her a satisfied pat on the head. That's the brilliance of a clever mind.
Unlike a certain lightning-playing dunce.
In his high spirits, Doflamingo decided to reward his clever subordinate.
Threads shot out from his hand, weaving into a life-sized replica of Nico Robin.
"Come, Robin. Show me how much you've progressed."
"?!" A bead of cold sweat trickled down Robin's forehead as she instinctively took a step back.
"There's no need for that, BOSS!"
She'd heard a bit about Doflamingo's… teaching methods from Ace and Zoffy.
"No worries. We've got all the time in the world." Doflamingo twitched his fingers.
The Thread Clone—Robin—lunged straight at the real Robin.
...
On the lookout tower, Enel adjusted his glasses and glanced blankly in the direction of his BOSS, who was in the middle of "educating" the girl.
Just now... had someone tried to attack him?
While Doflamingo's group was setting off for the New World—
The Marines were also building up forces at both Marineford and the G1 branch in the New World.
It wasn't about launching a surprise attack. After the incidents at Loguetown, and the G8 branch, the Marines had suffered heavy losses.
Several Vice Admirals had died, and even Admiral Zephyr and two Admiral candidates were gone.
They were clearly in a phase of generational transition.
Right now, they didn't have the strength to take on multiple emperors in the New World at once.
Instead, they were preparing for the possibility that Big Mom, Kaido of the Beasts, and the Heavenly Yaksha Doflamingo might team up and launch a joint assault on the Red Line.
...
Laboratory
"Shurororororo~ I knew it! I knew you weren't dead!"
Caesar laughed maniacally as he raised his sword, pressing it against a slime-covered plant that looked like a giant carnivorous flower.
The intense plasma heat instantly dried out the slime, releasing a sickening stench.
He knew it. This spore-type plant wouldn't die that easily. He'd been cultivating it for so long, and finally, it had come back to life.
"No, please, don't! We can coexist! We can achieve eternal life together!"
The freshly revived Lily Carnation tried to plead with Caesar.
She had just come back to life. She didn't want to die again.
But the twisted scientist Caesar was unmoved. He stared at her with a chilling gleam in his eyes.
"Expose your core. I want to take a look inside!"
Caesar was practically shaking with excitement. His sword pushed into the flower's gaping maw, threatening violence.
This was an entirely new direction for artificial Zoan-type Devil Fruits!
Immortality? A delusion of plants.
As if he'd believe that.
His mind was racing with possibilities.
"The original plan was to extract animal lineage factors to create a cultivable form of SAD. Then implant that into a plant. Once the plant matured, the fruit it bore would be a Devil Fruit."
"But BOSS said the project failed. That's because plants can't distinguish between cultivable SAD and unusable material."
"But now, with IQ and Lily Carnation, this could be a whole new breakthrough. Judge, Vegapunk—they'll all be left in the dust. I, Caesar, am the world's greatest scientist!!"
"No... please!"
Lily Carnation's eyes widened as she saw her mouth begin to catch fire.
She sobbed as she split her body open, revealing a special spore core nestled inside.
This was where her consciousness and life resided.
"Shurorororo~ Let me take a good look."
Just as Caesar was about to... uh, impregnate the plant—
In the neighboring lab, Judge was strapping on a brand-new combat suit.
The suit's design still followed Judge's favorite color scheme: matte gray.
Forged with alloy, the armor gleamed with a dull finish.
The helmet was golden, as always, but now featured a vent at the center of the brow.
Judge flipped open a hatch on the top of the helmet and slammed both hands down.
The Biorhythm Jet Dial devices in his palms expelled bursts of gas with a roar.
The suit launched into the sky.
Once airborne, Judge stabilized his posture and clenched his fists.
From his palm, a shockwave burst forth, visibly slicing across the forest.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Massive trees were severed cleanly at the trunk.
But it wasn't over. From the vent on Judge's helmet, a laser beam fired out.
It punched a smooth hole through one of the freshly felled trees.
"Hahahahaha!"
Judge crossed his arms and laughed out loud.
Didn't Caesar claim to be the expert in weapons development?
This was the ultimate battle suit, combining every offensive function of Sky Island Dials into one masterpiece.
Add in the modifications done to Reiju and the others—
The Germa lineage was truly BOSS's strongest weapon!!
...
"Gladius, did you see that?"
In another section of the lab, Franky lay stark naked on the operating table.He pointed toward the commotion Judge was causing, his tone desperate.
"If I can't deliver results that satisfy the BOSS, I'll be completely forgotten."
"And Tom-sensei's grudge... who knows how long it'll take to settle it. Help me, Gladius."
-----------
Fanfic is finished 527 chapters in total on p@treon/tambeerg