Horu Horu no Mi

The Horu Horu no Mi is a Paramecia type Devil Fruit that grants the user the ability to create and control special hormones that can affect anyone they strike by however the user desires. Horu is short for "horumon" (ホルモン, hormone). In the Viz Manga and FUNimation subs, it is called the Horm-Horm Fruit. It was eaten by Emporio Ivankov.

Strengths and Weaknesses
The major strength of the fruit, as demonstrated by Iva, is to create and manipulate special hormones. These hormones can manipulate various aspects of a person such as gender, body temperature, pigmentation, growth, and even emotional state. The hormones can also be used to greatly increase a persons battle capabilites through healing and energizing. By turning their four fingers into syringes and stabbing a person, the user is able to inject these hormones and change the person on a genetic level to whatever the user desires. This process can also be used by the user on themselves to aid them.

The fruit so far doesn't seem to have any specific weaknesses outside the standard Devil Fruit weaknesses.

Usage
The fruit's bestowed hormone powers, as used by Iva, have been used for a variety of reasons. Iva seems to enjoy playing around with the concept of "gender" as he and his ally Inazuma are seen switching in and out their male and female forms. In addition, supposedly all the newkamas of level 5.5 have switched sexes. Though Iva enjoys playing around with his powers, they can also make him a powerfully persistent opponent in battle. Iva has clashed with the likes of Akainu and Magellan and has come out of these battles with little harm, despite the deadly abilities of both opponents. Iva's quick recoveries can be assumed to be due to his ability to greatly heal and energize his body through hormones.

The fruit's powers are the source of Ivankov's "miraculous" reputation, which, aside from gender changing, allow Iva to perform other miracles on people besides himself such as extreme healing, using them to allow for a body to adjust from a fatal-condition to having a chance of survival. However, while he can make the adjustment within the body to heal from these conditions, the miracle is also dependent on the person hit by the altering hormones, whereas only those with a strong enough will can survive and use their survival instincts via the hormones to their advantage. Depending on what the conditions the patient is in, as well as the hormones used, the receiver may suffer a shortening of lifespan in exchange for a "cure".

The named techniques that are used by Emporio Ivankov that involve the Devil Fruit are as follows:


 * Emporio Onna Hormone (エンポリオ･女ホルモン): By injecting a male with special female hormones, Iva is able to transform them completely into a female. In the Viz Manga, this is called Emporio Estrogen. This was first seen being used on an inmate in Level 5.5 that was trying to get revenge on Iva. He can also use this on himself, doing so when he fights Sadi-chan. In addition, Iva was able to transform himself and other women (supposedly) into men, but this usage for his ability is not a named technique. It appears that this technique does not affect the clothes of the user as every time someone is hit with this technique their physical appearance changes, but their clothes seem to remain but as appearance is changed, their clothes may be too small or big for them.


 * Emporio Chiyu Hormone (エンポリオ･治癒ホルモン): By injecting special hormones meant to release the body's immune system's full potential into a sick person, Iva is able to cure them. This is the secret to his "miracle" healing. Since the hormones only unleash the immune system's potential, the chance of survival is mostly based upon the individual's will to live. In order to use this technique, a certain amount of the target's life-span must be sacrificed in order to compensate for the energy used to heal the damage. In the case of Luffy's injuries, it took 10 years of his life-span. In the case of things like poison it seems to make them immune to the very ailment that plagued them. In the Viz Manga, this is called Emporio Healing Synthesis. This was first seen being used on Luffy to counteract Magellan's poison.


 * Emporio Tension Hormone (エンポリオ･テンションホルモン): By injecting special adrenaline affecting hormones, Ivankov can provide a tired person with a supply of adrenaline that can relieve tension and allow for easier movement for an entire day. There is an aftereffect after being injected with this hormone, which causes the user to feel nausea and tired. There is a limit to how much fatigue the hormones can relieve, as Ivankov warned Luffy that he would not be getting up again after receiving a second dose. This is called Emporio Energy Synthesis in the Viz Manga and Emporio Energy Hormone in the FUNimation subs. This was first seen being used on an exhausted Luffy. Ivankov has also used this together with Emporio Healing Hormones to recover quickly from fatal poisoning.


 * Emporio Ganmen Seicho Hormone (エンポリオ・顔面成長ホルモン): By injecting special face manipulating hormones, Ivankov can make a person's face expand to enormous proportions that surpass even giants. This is called Emporio Face Growth Synthesis in the Viz Manga and FUNimation subs. This was first seen used by Ivankov on himself during the escape from Impel Down level 4 to make his Death Wink technique into a more powerful version called Hell Wink. While his head is in this state, it allows his hair to hold up to at least 235 people inside it.

Anime and Manga Differences

 * In the manga, Ivankov forced a guard to show him where Ace's cell was. In the anime, he used his Emporio Onna Hormones to turn the guard into a woman and persuaded her to tell him where the cell was.
 * In the anime version of his confrontation with Akainu, Ivankov used his syringe needles as slashing weapons in conjuction with his Newkama Kenpo.

Translation and Dub Issues
The Devil Fruit's gender changing hormones were first seen being used on a male prisoner. In the magazine serialization of the Viz Manga, when the guy was changed into a girl, a top was added to her for censorship reasons despite the guy appearing shirtless earlier.

Trivia

 * In a SBS, a fan asked Oda if he would draw the Straw Hats as they would if they were genderswapped by Iva's hormones. In response, Oda provided the following drawings. For the male crewmembers turned female, they would use a typical Japanese feminine style of talking. The opposite is also said for the female crew members with them using a typical Japanese masculine style of talking. Female Luffy is apparently a vegetarian. Female Zoro apparently doesn't like putting a sword in her mouth as it would chip her teeth. Female Sanji's specialty would be sweets. For most of the Straw Hats, the genderswap is very apparent. Brook however isn't so apparent since he has no flesh to help identify whether he was injected with Iva's gender changing hormones or not.
 * In real life, hormones can be used to enhance the body in specific ways, including turning a man into a woman and vice versa.

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Horu Horu no Mi