"Shin, join our pirate crew!"
A certain rubber man with a straw hat flashed like a puppy in front of Shin and spoke enthusiastically.
Just moments ago, Shin used his ability to heal Zoro completely in an instant. Immediately after, Luffy rushed forward, eagerly inviting Shin to join the Straw Hat Pirates.
Shin easily punched him, smashing his head to the side, and then replied, "Sorry, I've already joined a pirate crew."
"Oh~" Hearing Shin's words, Luffy responded dejectedly. Though he had a strong knack for persistence, he had never actively tried to poach someone from another crew.
"And my captain—you must be familiar with him. His name is Ace," Shin continued.
"What! Ace!" Luffy immediately sprang up, bombarding Shin with questions. Shin patiently explained Ace's current situation in detail.
"So, Ace finally joined the Whitebeard Pirates?" Luffy scratched his head.
"That's right. Now, he's a subordinate of one of the Four Emperors. Also, let me tell you—the red-haired Shanks is also one of the Four Emperors of the New World."
"New World..." Luffy's face lit up with longing. "Just wait, I'll be there soon!"
"By the way, if you're looking for a doctor, I can introduce you to one," Shin added. "And he's a very interesting one!"
"Really?" Luffy became excited again. "Where is he?"
"Well... he's quite far away right now." A mysterious smile appeared on Shin's face. "But I can take you to meet him!"
At Punk Hazard.
"Hmm... the artificial Human-Human Fruit is definitely more practical than a standard Zoan-type."
"Yeah, and the so-called 'smile failures' rarely happen anymore. Since it's a Human-Human Fruit, there's a 100% compatibility rate with Devil Fruit users."
"The only flaw is..."
"These guys look like hairy primates!"
In the laboratory, Queen and Caesar Clown, the two scientists, examined their test subjects who had consumed the artificial Devil Fruits.
Despite the improvements, those who ate the Human-Human Fruit variants had all grown covered in yellow fur, though some retained their original appearance.
A flash of light signaled Shin's arrival, teleporting onto the scene with the Straw Hat Pirates.
"Boss Shin!"
Queen and Caesar Clown rushed over, eager to please. Shin closed his eyes and accessed their brain chips, quickly absorbing all their latest research data.
"Well done! It looks like the artificial Human-Human fruit is finally perfected."
"But..." Queen frowned. "Their fur..."
Shin rolled his eyes. There was no need to overthink it—the yellow fur was clearly a side effect stemming from Chopper, who had originally consumed the Human-Human Fruit as a reindeer.
"It's fine. If it bothers them, they can just shave daily." Shin shrugged. "Give them some high-end electric razors."
"Uh..." Queen and Caesar Clown exchanged glances, not expecting such a simple solution. But after thinking it over, it was far less problematic than growing extra limbs or experiencing uncontrollable mutations. Compared to that, shaving was a trivial inconvenience.
"By the way, I found a new test subject for you." Shin suddenly pulled Luffy forward. "This guy here ate Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Model: Nika. Luffy I hope you can participate in the research."
"Participating in research?" Luffy tilted his head, then grinned. "Wow! That sounds cool! What do I have to do?"
"Are you suggesting that Luffy should participate in the research? Are you trying to blow up the entire lab?" Usopp, the only one in the Straw Hat crew with some scientific knowledge, looked horrified.
"It's already been researched," Shin said bluntly.
"Wait... does that mean he's the test subject?" Usopp's eyes widened in realization.
"Don't worry." Shin waved dismissively. "At most, it'll just be some blood tests. And..."
"For every test, you'll get a super-nutritious meal! All kinds of meat from the sea—unlimited!"
A loud clatter sounded as everyone turned to see Luffy, his face now blank like a mindless zombie. His mouth hung open, saliva dripping onto the floor like a waterfall.
"All the meat of the sea... unlimited?!"
"I'M IN!"
With a loud thud, Nami punched Luffy in the head. "Wait a minute! Weren't we here to find that doctor named Chopper?!"
"Did someone call me?"
A small, cute voice spoke up from under a nearby table, and then Chopper emerged.
Given that both Queen and Caesar Clown were incredibly tall, the lab was designed with their proportions in mind. Chopper, by comparison, walked through it as if he were in the land of giants, which was why the Straw Hats hadn't noticed him at first.
"What a cute little raccoon dog!" Nami's eyes sparkled, immediately abandoning her idiot captain to focus on the adorable Chopper.
"Hey hey hey! Even if you call me cute, I won't be happy! Hehehehe! Also, I'm a reindeer, not a raccoon dog! Hehehe!" Chopper blushed and twisted around bashfully.
"But you're obviously happy," the Straw Hats immediately retorted in unison.
"Wait, you're Chopper?" Nami asked in surprise. "So the ship doctor Shin mentioned is you?"
"Isn't it more surprising that the reindeer is talking in the first place?" Usopp shouted, still trying to wrap his head around it.
"I ate the Human-Human Fruit, which granted me human intelligence and the ability to speak.," Chopper explained proudly.
"Although my medical skills aren't on Shin's level or as advanced as Dr. Kureha's, I'm still considered a renowned doctor in the Drum Kingdom."
Unlike in the original timeline, King Dalton's governance had made the Drum Kingdom more accepting of doctors, without the oppressive doctor-hunting policies of the past. Because of this, Chopper had been practicing medicine there for some time, further honing his skills.
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