One Piece: The Strongest Creature

Kahn's ambition is truly bold.

He aims to create an artificial version of the Paramecia-class Gum-Gum Fruit, which is, in reality, the Zoan-class Human-Human Fruit, Model: Nika.

This task is undoubtedly a monumental challenge, but in Kahn's mind, manufacturing a Zoan-type Human-Human Fruit with the Nika form is actually more feasible than replicating the abilities of the Paramecia-class Op-Op Fruit.

With Vegapunk's breakthrough knowledge on bloodline factors and Devil Fruit replication technology, the first Devil Fruit Kahn targeted wasn't Kaido's artificial Mythical Zoan Azure Dragon form nor Bartholomew Kuma's Paramecia-class Paw-Paw Fruit.

Instead, it was Monet's Paramecia Op-Op Fruit. 

In this world, two Devil Fruits stand out as the most sought-after

The "Gum-Gum" Fruit, valued at 5.6 billion berries by the World Government due to its true identity as the Nika Fruit, and the Op-Op Fruit, previously given a bounty of 5 billion berries by the Government.

When the Nika Fruit's true nature was revealed, it was recognized as a powerful mythical entity.

Yet, to Kahn, even the Nika Fruit doesn't quite compare to the versatility of the Op-Op Fruit.

The Nika Fruit, with its life-draining powers, forces the user to expend lifespan when utilizing its advanced abilities, like Gear Second and Gear Third.

Upon awakening, this lifespan depletion accelerates even more.

If he had to choose between the Nika Fruit and the Azure Dragon form, Kahn would pick the Azure Dragon form for its raw power and durability.

The Op-Op Fruit, however, is different.

It is truly worthy of being called the ultimate Devil Fruit because of its wide-ranging abilities, which include powers based on rules and even abstract concepts.

Its only drawback is its stamina demand.

If Kahn hadn't already consumed the Zoan-class Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Model: Phantom Beast, he would have chosen the Op-Op Fruit without hesitation.

With his innate Observation Haki, Kahn can easily read minds, quickly mastering knowledge and skills across fields.

If he were to venture to the Drum Kingdom, he could rise to world-class prominence in no time.

Thanks to his monstrous natural strength, Kahn would be able to maximize the potential of the Op-Op Fruit, especially if he managed to awaken it.

Of course, the Op-Op Fruit's most notorious power is its Immortality Surgery, an ability that solidifies its status as the ultimate Devil Fruit.

Before his time-travel journey, Kahn learned about the life-draining effects of the Nika Fruit and quickly connected it with Trafalgar Law's immortality-granting powers in the Op-Op Fruit, understanding how it could potentially counterbalance the risks of the Nika form.

If Trafalgar Law performed the Immortality Surgery on Luffy, it could indeed make Luffy nearly invincible.

His awakened Nika form would become his permanent state, potentially giving him unmatched strength.

And if it were possible to copy both the Op-Op Fruit and the Nika form abilities, then transferring them into a perfected clone or a Seraphim could create a truly unstoppable weapon.

Driven by this idea, Kahn wasted no time after acquiring Vegapunk's technology for bloodline factors and Devil Fruit duplication.

He immediately took samples of Monet's blood, aiming to replicate her Op-Op Fruit. However, he quickly hit a roadblock.

Though he now had the bloodline factor and the Duplication Fruit, the complex nature of Paramecia fruits—especially one as powerful as the Op-Op Fruit—meant the replication process was still elusive.

It seems that replicating Paramecia-class abilities, particularly the concept-based powers of the Op-Op Fruit, might be far harder than recreating Zoan-type fruits.

For now, Kahn decided to focus on a different target: replicating the Mythical Zoan Nika Fruit.

Vegapunk had previously managed to create a man-made version of Kaido's Azure Dragon fruit, another Mythical Zoan.

Given that success, replicating the Nika form might be a more achievable goal than the Op-Op Fruit.

However, just as Kahn began preparations to replicate the Nika form, news of the capture of the three sworn brothers—Luffy, Ace, and Sabo—spread rapidly across the major factions.

With bounties totalling over 5 billion berries, the trio's movements were constantly monitored, especially with the massive number of informants scattered across places like Dressrosa, one of the New World's most chaotic trade hubs.

Due to its size and influence, Dressrosa was a key intermediary island, with a concentration of mercenaries and traders rivaling even Sabaody Archipelago.

When Sabo entered Wano's waters with the Straw Hat and Spade Pirates, he sent some of his men back to Revolutionary Army headquarters with newly acquired weapons.

He ordered them to contact the army in case of trouble.

However, as days passed without any sign of the three brothers, other factions began suspecting that the brothers had met a grim fate.

The Revolutionary Army's behavior confirmed their suspicions, especially when Sabo's Vivre Card started to burn, reflecting his life in peril.

The Vivre Card—a miraculous paper linked to one's life force—left only a small corner when its owner was near death.

After observing Sabo's Vivre Card flicker between burning and restoration for over a week, Monkey D. Dragon realized that his chief of staff had been captured.

He breathed a sigh of relief as the Vivre Card's partial burning indicated Sabo was still alive. With both his son and Sabo in Wano, Dragon held onto hope that they might be rescued.

Determined to act, Dragon called upon the Revolutionary Army's forces stationed in the New World and then used his connections to obtain a way to contact Doflamingo.

Since Kahn's rise to the top, the previous head of the black market had lost direct contact with him. Now, only Doflamingo, Gekko Moria, and West Blue's Capone Bege had Kahn's contact information.

Even allies in the Grand Line, such as Margaret and the island overseers across the four seas, had contact only through Hancock's and Chuan Jian's intermediaries. 

For Dragon and the Revolutionary Army, this bottleneck meant Doflamingo was now their sole link to Kahn—a position Doflamingo had earned over years of loyalty to Kahn's "Cross Family" operations.

This was the ultimate reward Kahn bestowed on Doflamingo for his relentless dedication to the family's goals.

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