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Shwoosh...
Suddenly—
The Straw Hat crew and Dr. Henzo felt their vision blur.
A tall, youthful figure appeared in front of them in an instant.
Their pupils shrank, and cold sweat dripped down their backs.
"Gulp..."
"So fast!"
"So strong!"
In that moment, whether it was Sanji, Zoro—the main fighters of the Straw Hat Pirates—or even their carefree captain, Luffy, they all broke into a cold sweat.
Their bodies froze as a chilling sensation swept over them.
They couldn't even process how their opponent had moved—it was beyond their comprehension.
It felt like they weren't facing a human but a terrifying beast in human form.
It was unsettling.
"But you really do look a lot like that girl, Olvia..."
Shaka ignored the others.
He gazed at Robin—who, aside from her different hair color, looked exactly like a grown-up version of the little girl he had once known—and smiled. "If I weren't familiar with Olvia, I might've mistaken you for her!"
He did know Olvia.
But when he met her in Ohara, Robin's mother had only been a five- or six-year-old girl.
Like Robin, she had an extraordinary memory—an absolute genius who never forgot anything she read.
Shaka had even considered taking her under his wing.
But before he could act, he was trapped in the Rainbow Mist for fifty years.
"What?!"
Robin's entire body trembled.
Olvia... It had been so long since she last heard that name.
She stared in disbelief at the man before her. He knew her mother?
"You knew my mother, Nico Olvia? I'm her daughter, Nico Robin!"
She frowned, watching him cautiously.
Despite his sudden approach, she didn't sense any hostility from him. Instead, she felt an odd sense of peace, comfort, even familiarity.
It was a strange feeling.
Shwoosh...
Shaka didn't respond.
His large hand suddenly reached out and gently rested on Robin's head.
She froze.
"Hmm... So that's what happened?"
Shaka closed his eyes.
With his innate ability—honed to an absurd level through relentless training—his Observation Haki instantly read Robin's memories.
Losing her father at a young age, abandoned by her mother who left to explore the world with Ohara's archaeologists.
Growing up under harsh conditions, treated as an outsider. Then, at eight years old, watching Ohara be annihilated by the Buster Call, forced to flee alone.
Hunted by the World Government, betrayed time and time again.
Learning to betray others in order to survive.
Facing despair countless times, wanting to give up, even considering taking her own life.
Yet, for the sake of her mother, for the scholars of Ohara, for their unfulfilled dreams, she gritted her teeth and kept going.
A lifetime of hardship and struggle.
Scene after heartbreaking scene flashed through Shaka's mind.
"You've really had a tough life," he murmured, gently stroking Robin's hair.
His gaze was warm, filled with pity and sympathy for this so-called 'Devil's Child.'
A life so dark, so painful—almost too cruel to look back on.
Anyone else would have succumbed to the darkness.
Yet, despite everything, she had managed to keep her heart pure and kind.
That was something rare.
"Wait—you said you were trapped here, so how do you know about us?"
Robin instinctively took a step back, full of suspicion.
Years of suffering had taught her never to trust easily.
If he had been trapped here for fifty years, how did he know so much about them?
And why did he seem to know everything about her past?
"Heh, let's just say it's one of my abilities."
Shaka wasn't surprised.
He chuckled. "No need to be so wary. If I really meant you harm, you wouldn't be able to resist anyway, right?"
"..."
They fell silent, recalling the massive golden Buddha they had just seen—the overwhelming presence that made them tremble.
Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Nami, and Robin couldn't argue with that.
"Let's not dwell on that for now."
Seeing that the Straw Hat crew still wasn't fully convinced, Shaka didn't press further.
Instead, he briefly explained Epps Consade's situation. "Simply put, time flows differently in this space compared to the outside world."
"In other words, while decades have passed outside, I've only been here for a year."
"Hiss—"
"So that's how it works!"
"That's insane..."
Luffy, Robin, and the others finally understood.
No wonder he hadn't aged.
Time here was frozen, or at least vastly slowed.
"But... you really knew my mother?"
Robin took a deep breath.
She couldn't resist asking.
Maybe she could learn something—anything—about her mother, Nico Olvia.
After all, she had been sent to live with her uncle at a young age while her mother left to explore the world.
The next time they met... was their last.
And then Ohara was gone.
"Of course."
Shaka chuckled softly.
He didn't bother hiding the truth. "If we go by your timeline, over fifty years ago, after traveling the Grand Line for a few years, I returned to the West Blue. But I was ambushed by the World Government's CP0 agents and Marines."
"With my strength, I could have escaped easily. But I was young and reckless—I wasn't about to run without a fight."
"I fought them head-on."
"It was brutal. I managed to wipe out all those pests, but I was badly injured. I had no choice but to recover in Ohara... That's when I met your mother, Olvia."
He glanced at Robin and smiled. "Back then, she was just a little girl, but she was already famous as a genius. Even at her young age, she was recognized as a scholar—her knowledge of history rivaled even the most seasoned academics."
"Strictly speaking, I didn't need her help, but she had a kind heart. She insisted on taking care of me. In a way, she was my little savior."
"I treated her like a younger sister. I even promised her that once she grew up, I'd take her to sea—to search for the Poneglyphs and uncover the truth of the Void Century."
Shaka's gaze softened.
He looked at Robin, whose face bore a striking resemblance to Olvia's.
He sighed and smiled bitterly. "But I guess I broke that promise."
Despite his familiarity with Olvia, he couldn't help but think—
She had been an irresponsible mother.
Leaving Robin to fend for herself, forcing her to struggle alone in the dark world.
Betrayed again and again until she, too, learned to betray others in order to survive.
As a Devil Fruit user with the Hana Hana no Mi, she wasn't particularly strong.
The fact that she had survived this long...
Was nothing short of a miracle.
"I see..."
Robin murmured.
She never imagined that this man had such a history with her mother.
It was almost unbelievable.
"....."