In the original story, look at how many things Orochimaru did in pursuit of immortality.
So as long as Rowan was willing to offer him a chance at eternal life, Orochimaru definitely wouldn't mind working for him.
With that in mind, Rowan had no objections.
Seeing that, Tsunade let out a quiet sigh of relief and continued, "Actually, the reason I want to bring Orochimaru in isn't just for the human experimentation. I also want to study Devil Fruits with him."
"When I examined Nico Robin's body just now, I found the power of Devil Fruits to be incredibly strange."
"So I want to work with Orochimaru and research Devil Fruits together. Maybe we really can replicate them, just like Vegapunk did."
Hearing that, something stirred in Robin's heart. She had just read the manga and now understood Tsunade's and Orochimaru's capabilities.
They might not be as all-around brilliant as Vegapunk, but when it came to research on the human body, they were absolutely no worse than him.
If the two of them really succeeded in replicating Devil Fruits, she could contact the Revolutionary Army and turn every one of its members into Devil Fruit users.
If the Revolutionaries truly had an army of Devil Fruit users under their command, then overthrowing the World Government might not be difficult at all.
No matter how powerful Lord Imu was, could he really handle a hundred Devil Fruit users? A thousand? Ten thousand? A hundred thousand?
And how many did the Five Elders have, exactly?
Robin made up her mind on the spot. She had to be involved in this. Only then could she share in the results.
No… maybe there was an even better option.
A thought suddenly flashed through Robin's mind, and she said, "If you want to research Devil Fruit powers, I do have a few good candidates in mind."
Tsunade turned to look at her.
Robin said, "What do you think of the Revolutionary Army's Devil Fruit users?"
Tsunade's eyes flickered. "That's actually a good idea."
The Revolutionaries weren't like the World Government. There really was a basis for cooperation there.
And they also had quite a few Devil Fruit users.
Emporio Ivankov, commander of the Revolutionary Army's Grand Line forces, user of the Horm-Horm Fruit.
Inazuma, deputy commander of the Grand Line forces, user of the Snip-Snip Fruit.
Belo Betty, commander of the Eastern Army, user of the Pump-Pump Fruit.
Morley, commander of the Western Army—not only a giant, but also the user of the Push-Push Fruit.
Karasu, commander of the Northern Army, a Logia user of the Soot-Soot Fruit.
And beyond them, their leader Dragon was also a power user.
Judging from the manga, Dragon could stir up storms, which made him look like some kind of Logia user.
But as the series kept evolving, people started realizing that Mythical Zoans were the real meta.
The Five Elders were all Mythical Zoans.
A lot of the Holy Knights were Mythical Zoans too.
So Dragon might also be a Mythical Zoan user—possibly even a dragon-type Mythical Zoan.
If they could study those powers, it would definitely be a huge help in replicating Devil Fruits.
More importantly, the Revolutionary Army saw Nico Robin as the light of the revolution. If it was Robin asking, there really was a chance they could reach some kind of cooperation with them.
Then both women turned to look at Rowan.
Whether they could cooperate, and how they would cooperate, all depended on whether Rowan was willing.
After all, he was the one who actually held the final say.
Without Rowan's help, never mind working together—they wouldn't even get the chance to meet.
Seeing the way they were looking at him, Rowan leaned back, sinking fully into the sofa.
"That's up to you. I'm not against it. Honestly, I'm not that interested in all the fighting and killing."
"What I want is simple: travel to places I've never been and eat food I've never tried."
"Of course, if I can pick up some supernatural powers along the way, I won't complain."
"As for all the killing and scheming, you two can handle that yourselves."
"If you need my help, just say the word. I won't refuse."
Tsunade and Robin exchanged a glance, both seeing a flicker of excitement in the other's eyes.
As long as Rowan didn't oppose it, their plan was already half a success.
Robin stood up at once. "I'm going back now to contact the Revolutionary Army. I also need to deal with Crocodile's side of things. I can't be away too long—I have to go back."
At the moment, she was still working under Crocodile. If she disappeared for too long, it would be easy for him to get suspicious.
Until she learned chakra, mastered ninjutsu, and surpassed Crocodile, she still needed to keep lying low.
"Alright."
Tsunade didn't try to stop her. "I'll meet with Orochimaru soon. Once we come up with a solid plan, I'll notify you."
Robin nodded and looked at Rowan with bright eyes.
"I'll be troubling you again, Rowan."
Rowan stood up, walked over to a sliding door, and pulled it open. Beyond it was Nico Robin's room.
Robin stepped inside on her long legs. As she passed Rowan, she let out a soft laugh.
"The next time we meet, I'll have a surprise for you, Rowan. Please look forward to it."
Hearing that, Rowan couldn't help feeling a bit intrigued.
"Alright, I'll be waiting for your surprise. Don't disappoint me."
Robin smiled faintly. "I won't."
Then Rowan closed the door, cutting off the connection between the two worlds.
He turned back to look at Tsunade and asked curiously, "What do you think Robin meant by that surprise?"
Tsunade shrugged. "No idea. Maybe gold. Maybe food. Or maybe even a Devil Fruit. She's basically second-in-command of Baroque Works right now—she can mobilize all of its resources."
"For someone like her, getting her hands on a Devil Fruit might not be that hard."
Thinking about it, Rowan figured that made sense.
Devil Fruits might be precious to ordinary people, but for Robin right now, they weren't exactly impossible to obtain. After all, Baroque Works already had several Devil Fruit users in its ranks.
She really might be able to get her hands on one.
"If possible, I'd rather she got a really powerful Devil Fruit."
"That depends on luck," Tsunade said. "Devil Fruits are common enough, but the truly powerful ones are much rarer."
"Fair enough."
Creak…
Just then, the front door to Tsunade's house was pushed open.
A moment later, Shizune's voice came from outside.
"Tsunade-sama, I brought the person you wanted."
Rowan and Tsunade both turned toward the entrance.
Shizune walked in with quick, light steps, and behind her followed a white-haired young man with glasses and an easy, gentle-looking smile.
Kabuto Yakushi.