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Let's turn back the clock to not too long ago.
Beyond the city walls of Amazon Lily, deep within the forest behind the Kuja Palace—
The jungle was dense, and the wildlife gave it a wide berth.
Robin was training alone.
She and Liam weren't always together. At times, Liam would vanish for days, sometimes even half a month, venturing alone to Rusukaina or other uninhabited islands within the Calm Belt to train.
Those savage lands were only suited for monstrous beings like Liam, who thrived in such extremes. Robin could join him occasionally, but the sheer intensity of his training was beyond what she could endure for long.
As a member of the Kuja tribe, Robin often remained in the palace, accompanying the ailing Snake Princess. But whenever she had the chance, she would slip away beyond the city walls to train.
With the power of the Hana Hana no Mi, scaling the walls was effortless.
Her training prioritized mastery over her Devil Fruit abilities, followed by Haki, with stamina coming last.
It wasn't by choice— it was a necessity.
If circumstances had allowed, Robin would have preferred to focus on building stamina. After all, she had always believed that a Devil Fruit power was a lifelong extension of oneself.
But after meeting Liam, she could no longer think that way. There existed the terrifying possibility of having one's ability stolen. Only her own physical endurance and combat prowess truly belonged to her.
Robin was still a young girl and not one with exceptional stamina. At fourteen, her body was maturing quickly, but that only made her more aware of her physical shortcomings. Kuja warriors were strong— she was not. Compared to fighters like Hancock or Liam, she was leagues behind, utterly outclassed.
Thus, when it came to improving both stamina and Haki, investing in Haki yielded a better return.
While Haki's development was tied to endurance, it wasn't wholly dependent on it. Since she lacked the stamina to endure brutal physical training, Robin had no choice but to pour most of her efforts into refining her Hana Hana no Mi.
For now, the only real threat to her Devil Fruit's safety was Liam.
Not that he posed any danger to her anymore. If he had ever wanted her Hana Hana no Mi, he could have taken it by now. But Robin doubted he would.
And so, deep in the jungle, she continued honing her Devil Fruit abilities.
One focus of her training was expanding her range—how far she could manifest limbs and how quickly they could bloom into existence across different surfaces.
Countless branches had been snapped by her conjured arms. Birds and beasts that had once wandered freely now avoided the area, having been subjected to her relentless grappling techniques.
Another aspect of her training involved refining her ability to create doppelgängers.
Her flower clones had both strengths and weaknesses.
On the one hand, they were a perfect mirror of her original body—similar to Liam's Stand. However, unlike his Stand, Robin's clones fully shared her senses, from sight and sound to touch and smell.
In that way, they were more than mere projections; they were extensions of herself. The only limitation was that they couldn't exist indefinitely, as they relied on her Devil Fruit's power to remain active.
One distinct advantage, however, was that while these clones transmitted sensations back to her, they did not transfer any physical damage.
For example, if one of Robin's flower clones had its arm broken, she would feel the pain as if it were her own— but her actual body would remain unharmed. This trait bore some resemblance to Blackbeard's Dark-Dark Fruit.
Unlike other Logia users, Blackbeard couldn't turn intangible, and while his darkness could swallow everything, he also suffered from heightened pain sensitivity, feeling twice the agony even if the actual damage remained the same.
The main drawback of Robin's ability, however, lay in the fact that her clones shared their senses with her real body.
This was a limitation she couldn't remove, just as a Gasu Gasu no Mi (Gas-Gas Fruit) user couldn't compress themselves into a liquid or solid state. As the wielder of the Hana Hana no Mi (Flower-Flower Fruit), Robin was bound by the fundamental nature of her power— an ability that was both a gift and a restriction.
When using her clones, even the slightest lapse in concentration could disorient her, as the additional layers of vision, sound, and touch overwhelmed her senses. This often caused both her real body and her clones to lag in battle.
Because of this, Robin typically avoided high-intensity combat while using her clones. If a fight was unavoidable, she would keep her real body stationary, dedicating her full focus to controlling the clone. But that wasn't enough—she needed to train, to refine her ability so that she could fight with both her real body and her clones simultaneously.
Her solution? Sparring against herself.
Robin created a flower clone to battle her real body. The confusing overlap of perspectives, the sounds echoing from both bodies, the clash of sensations— after just a few sessions, she found herself questioning her own existence.
There were moments when she lost track of which body was real. She had to pause and think, reminding herself whether she was the original or the clone. The feeling was dizzying and left her mentally drained.
Because of this, her mood had been unsettled lately, and she found herself avoiding Liam. She didn't want to burden him with her struggles.
Her desire to grow stronger came from a simple goal— she refused to become the weight Liam had to carry. If that was the case, how could she let him worry about her training?
She had to push past her limits. She had to become stronger.
Perhaps that sheer determination triggered something new within her Devil Fruit abilities.
Exhausted, Robin leaned against a tree trunk, panting, her thoughts tangled in frustration. If Liam knew she was pushing herself this hard with so little progress, how would he react? Would he offer kind words like a noble prince? Or tease her with his usual playful smirk?
Lost in thought, she unconsciously activated her Hana Hana no Mi ability.
Petals swirled and clustered in front of her, forming a shape—
But this time, the figure wasn't herself.
It was "Liam."
"Hah… hah…"
Robin caught her breath as she stared at the petal-formed version of him.
But something was off. The clone's eyes were empty, lacking the liveliness and warmth of the real Liam's gaze.
What shocked Robin even more was that, unlike her usual flower clones, she received no sensory feedback from it.
Meanwhile, at that very moment, atop the city wall, Liam suddenly experienced a strange vision—
For an instant, he saw Robin, exhausted, slumped against a tree.
…
Robin felt nothing from this flower clone. No sight, no sound, no connection.
Her creation—this "Liam"—stood completely separate from her senses.
(End Of This Chapter)