After throwing Onigumo away, Hinata Hyuga turned her gaze toward the two little girls who were playing around. When her eyes fell on Hancock, a hint of surprise flashed through them.
"Hancock... she seems even cuter now?"
"No, it's not just an impression; her whole body is radiating a very special charm."
"At the moment, it's just being emitted subconsciously."
"If she can strengthen and control that charm, even at a young age, how many men would be able to withstand it?"
Of course, Hinata thought to herself, the great Emperor of the Holy Empire, Lucian, would certainly be able to withstand it.
"Hmm? Petrification?"
During their play, Hancock accidentally touched Robin's hand. Robin watched with surprise as her hand began to turn to stone. A burst of Spiritual Power erupted from her. Spiritual Power, being a high-level energy, immediately dispelled the abnormal energy that was currently not very strong.
Robin stepped back a few paces and raised her hand. "Your ability is a bit dangerous. You should get familiar with it first."
As she spoke, Robin was also somewhat surprised. This innocent little girl seemed to have become even more beautiful. What would she be like when she grew up?
"Liar!" Little Hancock stared with huffing, angry eyes. She felt she had been too naive to believe this girl's nonsense and eat that Devil Fruit. It really tasted terrible!
Ignoring Hancock's glare, Robin said with a smile, "You should thank me. If my guess is correct, your fruit is related to charm, something countless women would beg for."
"Charm?" Hancock paused for a moment, then tilted her small head up. "My charm was already great to begin with, so this is only natural."
A black line appeared on Robin's forehead. This little girl was truly too proud.
"I think I'm starting to understand the ability..." Hancock raised her hand slightly, making a gesture as if drawing a bow. A pink longbow formed in her hands, with heart-shaped arrows.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
A dozen heart-shaped arrows struck the floating debris of the ship. Under the watchful eyes of Hinata and Robin, the fragments hit by the arrows were instantly petrified and crumbled into dust under the impact.
Hancock's eyes sparkled with joy. "I can release a special energy to petrify those who are captivated by me. Not only that, another way to use it allows me to petrify whatever I hit, whether they are charmed or not, and whether they are living beings or inanimate objects. Everything petrified after being hit by the arrows. I like this power!"
Soon, Hancock was happily and tirelessly testing her new ability, cheering with excitement.
Hinata gave a simple evaluation: "A decent ability."
"It is indeed good," Robin nodded, not forgetting to warn her, "Don't be so naive in the future. Just now, I said a few random things and you believed me and ate the Devil Fruit. If it had been the Pig-Pig Fruit or something like that, I guarantee you would have cried yourself to death."
The happy Hancock didn't care about that. She snorted in rebuttal, "So what if it was a Pig-Pig Fruit? Pigs are so cute. If I ate it, I would just be even cuter."
Robin's eyelid jumped. She was truly defeated by the girl's innocence.
Then, Robin adopted a serious expression. "Boa Hancock, there are a few things you must promise, or else I'll throw you into the sea."
Hancock looked confused.
"I come from the Holy Empire; you will understand more later. First, you need to work hard to become strong—stronger than everyone on Amazon Lily. Second, you must become the new Empress and unite the entire Amazon Lily Kingdom. Third, lead your kingdom to join the Empire. Do you understand?"
Hancock became even more dazed. After a long while, she asked, "What if I don't agree?"
"Then there is only destruction," Hinata replied.
This startled Hancock. She had seen how powerful Hinata was, and that was only a fraction of her strength.
Robin said seriously, "The Empire's goal is all kingdoms, the entire world. No one can stop it."
An Empire aiming for the whole world... just how powerful would that be? Hancock was lost in thought for a long time, looking at the two girls with complex emotions. "Why... choose me?"
Hinata said calmly, "You look pleasing to the eye."
Robin followed up, "In short, your luck is good to have met us. Work hard; there isn't much time left. Finally, you are a kingdom, so stop calling yourselves pirates. The Empire does not like the word 'thief'."
As she spoke, Robin took out a glowing Spirit Bead from her storage ring and handed it to Hancock. "If you want to become stronger, eat this. Goodbye, Boa Hancock."
Whoosh!
Just as Hancock took the Spirit Bead, she felt herself flying. She grew further and further away from Hinata and Robin. She suddenly shouted with determination: "I, Boa Hancock, will not lose to you!"
Watching Hancock disappear, Robin smiled. "A truly competitive and proud girl, though a bit naive."
Robin's reference to "naive" meant that the 12-year-old Hancock did not understand the darkness of the outside world. She was full of curiosity and longing. If she hadn't met Hinata and Robin, the three sisters would have been kidnapped by traffickers, beginning a dark life.
"Wait... the spiritual particles in that Spirit Bead are too dense. If her willpower isn't strong enough, she will die," Robin suddenly realized.
Hinata remained calm. "If she dies, it only proves she was nothing more than that."
Robin did not argue. It was the truth. If Hancock weren't from Amazon Lily, they wouldn't have given her a Spirit Bead. For special islands like Amazon Lily or Fish-Man Island, Lucian preferred to leave them to be managed by their own people, much like how Sara still manages the Ancient City of Rouran in the Empire.
The two girls didn't feel like going to Amazon Lily to pick and choose, so they chose Hancock by chance. Then, Robin looked at Hinata. "Are we going to Sabaody now?"
"Yes, let's see how many people we attract." Hinata Hyuga was completely unafraid. If anything went wrong, she could easily take Robin and leave.
Robin asked, "Should we inform Commander Kakashi?"
"Naturally. It's a matter of principle. Let's go."
Hinata Hyuga sent a spiritual communication to Kakashi and flew toward Sabaody with Robin.
On the Kuja Pirates' ship, all the female crew members were going crazy looking for Hancock. Suddenly, a dark shadow fell from the sky.
"Ouch..." A soft cry rang out, bringing immense joy to the crew.
"Is Hancock back?"
"Is Elder Sister okay?"
"Quick, take Hancock for a check-up!"
Hancock looked up and was surrounded by the women. The Spirit Bead in her hand accidentally fell into her mouth.
Gulp.
After swallowing it, Hancock was stunned. After the Devil Fruit, she had accidentally eaten another strange thing. Nico Robin, I'll remember this.
"Ahhhh!"
Hancock's cries of pain rang out across the ship. While the women were worried, Hancock's determined voice followed. "This feeling... is it something to make me stronger? If so, this little pain... I can bear it, hmph!"
Hancock persevered, sweat dripping from her forehead. Finally, only muffled groans remained. Under the shock of the crew, the aura on Hancock grew stronger and stronger.
Then, it erupted!
Like a violent wind sweeping the entire ship, it rippled out to the sea, instantly clearing the area. Hancock's aura was like that of a ruler, full of overwhelming dominance. In an instant, Sandersonia and Marigold froze. The other crew members froze too. Their bodies and expressions were all solidified.
Thud! Thud!
The two sisters closest to Hancock rolled their eyes and fell to the ground. Centered around Hancock, the women collapsed one after another like corpses.
"Conqueror's... Conqueror's Haki!" A few crew members who hadn't fallen were in disbelief, but their voices held deep joy. For countless years, Amazon Lily had not seen a woman with Conqueror's Haki. If one appeared, she was destined to be the Empress.
Boom!
Suddenly, Hancock's Conqueror's Haki became even more intense, mixed with a burst of Spiritual Power, accompanied by black and red lightning. Cracks appeared on the deck, and the remaining women who hadn't fallen finally collapsed.
"The Spiritual Power system... is this my new power?" Hancock opened her eyes with a flash of joy. Her body had also grown a bit taller. She looked at the women around her. "Are they all asleep?"
At the same time, a wisp of strange power crossed through layers of obstacles, went above the Sky Island, passed through the spatial portal, entered the Holy Empire, and returned to Lucian.
"Boa... Hancock?"
"The first Spirit Bead wasn't wasted; Robin gave it to her."
Lucian opened his eyes, a faint light inadvertently flowing between them. The moment Hancock swallowed the Spirit Bead and endured the process, Lucian learned everything about her. Everything!
Robin, as the secretary assistant acting with the army, carried many Spirit Beads to select a new generation of talent for the Empire in the pirate world. Those with weak will would surely die, but those who could endure were worth cultivating.
"The Pirate Empress? 12 years old, the most innocent age... A lucky little girl."
The heavily injured Onigumo was quickly discovered by the Marines on the island. Because the information he carried was so important, Marine Headquarters sent Kizaru to retrieve him as quickly as possible.
Inside the Fleet Admiral's office, the one serving as Fleet Admiral was still Kong. The Op-Op Fruit incident with Admiral Sengoku would happen a few years later. The Fisher Tiger attack on Mariejois with Vice Admiral Kizaru was four years away. So, barring any accidents, it would be a few years before Sengoku became Fleet Admiral.
Sengoku thought to himself: I'm already a 60-year-old Admiral; the Marine career path is too difficult.
"What? The Heavenly Gold was stolen?"
"The attacker was a disciple of Kaguya Otsutsuki?"
"The Holy Empire's Holy Guard?"
"They dare to declare war on the World Government?"
In the office, a series of unbelievable and angry roars came from Kong. "What a Hinata Hyuga! Simply lawless!"
The generals looked at each other. Were women these days so terrifying? Leaving aside Kaguya Otsutsuki for a moment, even her disciple didn't care about the World Government. On what basis? An Empire that popped out of nowhere?
At that moment, a mocking voice rang out.
"Tsk tsk, is this the Fleet Admiral's office? It's too small and shabby. Oh, sorry..."
"I forgot, the Marines are just a bunch of paupers."
"Who?!" The generals looked sharply toward the source. They saw a pale figure appearing by the window, yawning and waving at everyone.
"Hello everyone, I am White Zetsu, the Head of the Intelligence Department of the Holy Empire."
"May I ask, who is the strongest here?"
The generals were about to act, but hearing the words "Holy Empire," their expressions tightened.
Then, White Zetsu grinned. "No one is answering? Then I'll answer. In my opinion..."
"Everyone here is trash!"
"Damn you!" Akainu attacked in a rage, ruthlessly launching a Great Eruption.
Boom!
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