After joining the Navy's Science Unit, Hughes, like Vegapunk, was granted an audience with the Five Elders.
If Vegapunk had won the Ibel Peace Prize for inventing "GP Flower"—gunpowder that bloomed into flowers—then Hughes, who had created E.S. drugs and made warfare even more brutal, was probably the least welcome person for that same prize.
However, the Five Elders gave him quite a high evaluation.
As they put it: "The World Government needs talent like you!"
Though their meeting was brief, both parties got along well.
The Five Elders hoped he would continue developing E.S. drugs, striving to make their effects more controllable while minimizing side effects.
The results would serve as a secret weapon for suppressing maritime unrest.
Hughes got what he wanted: massive research funds at his disposal.
For someone who had developed genetic serums, improving a physical enhancement drug was almost trivially easy.
But he couldn't just slap the final product in their faces right away.
While that would better demonstrate his value, it would also make those greedy power-holders squeeze even more of his time and energy.
He had allied with the World Government, but that didn't mean he would bend over backwards to please them.
At its core, their relationship was one of "cooperation."
Having a controllable research project was absolutely perfect.
Once the timing was right, he could unveil a new breakthrough to show his sincerity and prove he wasn't just embezzling research funds.
There's a phrase: "hoarding valuable goods for profit."
He had to be like a patient fisherman, carefully setting hooks and casting bait bit by bit.
To this end, E.S. drug versions 1.0 and 2.0 had appeared in succession.
Version 1.0 reduced the potency—it didn't multiply strength exponentially but provided small incremental boosts of 10%, 20%, or 30% within the human body's tolerable range.
If two fighters were roughly equal in strength, they could use the 1.0 formula.
Version 2.0 accelerated when side effects kicked in compared to the original, preventing massive lifespan reduction from overuse.
After the drug wore off, users would experience total weakness accompanied by severe pain.
The more pills consumed, the shorter the temporary power boost lasted, and the stronger the backlash afterward.
Dosage had to be carefully calculated based on individual circumstances.
Otherwise, swallowing a handful at once might literally burst the body on the spot.
Having demonstrated his value, the World Government naturally became willing to invest more in him.
Using the massive amounts of gold obtained from the World Government, he purchased many novel gadgets from his system.
However, being constantly under the World Government's watchful eye meant many items weren't suitable for research in his current situation.
After all, those things were far too shocking and revolutionary.
Plus, everyone around him consisted of the world's smartest people—they weren't easy to fool.
So he needed the people around him to be idiots instead.
Apart from the Navy, that left only pirates.
The Revolutionary Army had just emerged and was too poor—immediately ruled out.
Moreover, some of his research required human experimentation, which could cause unpredictable problems.
Among pirates, the top-tier ones showing imperial potential included Whitebeard, who only cared about collecting sons and held no interest for Hughes.
That left only the Big Mom Pirates and the Beast Pirates.
Since MADS disbanded, Queen had hooked up with Kaido.
Besides, two tigers couldn't share one mountain—Hughes didn't want to cooperate with the Beasts only to face Queen's mockery.
What about the Big Mom Pirates?
Honestly, he didn't want to deal with that crazy woman.
But undeniably, the Big Mom Pirates had the best foundation among all pirate crews.
And their crew lacked top-tier scientists.
Her dream was to make everyone the same size as her, sitting as equals around a dining table.
"Human gigantification technology" was exactly what she needed.
Within the confines of the Grand Line world alone, cracking this technology would indeed be challenging.
But his confidence came from the infinite worlds behind his system!
The simplest method was bloodline modification serums.
Essentially genetic splicing—using giant bloodline modification through genetic fusion drugs to fundamentally transform humans into giants.
Afterward, they'd just need massive food intake for natural growth.
Additionally, there was the "Bicep King" ultimate steroid from the One Punch Man world.
When consumed by ordinary people, their bodies rapidly expanded, transforming them into giants hundreds of meters tall in short order.
At that point, the law of energy conservation would lose all meaning before such power.
A single punch from such giants could easily destroy half a city—in the Grand Line world, they'd rival the three Ancient Weapons.
Even Oars, called "Continent Puller," would barely reach their knees, appearing like a small child.
Even Ultraman Tiga might be dealt with in one slap.
This was the most perfect giant serum.
There was also the Pure Titan serum from the Attack on Titan world.
Its main component was giant spinal fluid.
This special drug could transform people into mindless giants.
They mainly exhibited intense predatory desire toward humans, stemming from their instinct to return to human form.
These giants, retaining only basic feeding instincts, were quite suitable as biological weapons.
If he truly partnered with Big Mom, the last option was what he intended to offer.
Presenting the others would feed her too well.
Actually, there was one more person desperately seeking top scientists: Golden Lion Shiki of the Flying Pirates.
However, since escaping from Impel Down, this guy had completely vanished.
Even the World Government didn't know his whereabouts, let alone Hughes who had no connections whatsoever.
Finding him was completely wishful thinking.
With the first tier unavailable, what about the second?
Gild Tesoro hadn't risen yet, but if he became the future Golden Emperor who would dominate the underworld with money, he'd definitely be the best partner—provided he had the vision.
In the current environment, only Doflamingo barely caught his eye.
What a headache. If not for wanting to avoid trouble, he'd just go solo.