On the shores of Onigashima, Mr. Queen arrived to find the two other lead scientists of the Beasts Pirates, Caesar and Judge, already waiting. Joining them was Issho, a man who had only recently aligned himself with the crew. The expressions on all three men were a mix of shock and nervous excitement.
Mr. Queen ignored the eager glances of Caesar and Judge, focusing his attention solely on Issho. Although he did not fully understand why his elder brother trusted this man so much, he remembered the decisive battle two years prior. In that moment, Issho had dared to defy both the Marines and the World Government for the sake of true justice, choosing to abandon his position. That act alone proved his reliability.
"Mr. Issho, the future of our Beasts Pirates is in your hands," Mr. Queen stated.
Issho nodded heavily. His reason for joining the Beasts Pirates was singular: Kaido of the Beasts had entrusted the future of the world to him. Thinking of the children under his care, Issho felt the gravity of the burden. He recalled Kaido's words to him: "Worororo, Issho, do you know why I entrusted these children to you? It is because I understand one thing: whether it is King, Mr. Queen, Jack, Eneru, or the children of the Tobi Roppo, they have all been pirates for too long. The belief in the survival of the fittest is deeply ingrained in them. They are excellent warriors, but I have no confidence in them becoming the rulers of this sea. I chose you because I do not want them to one day become the people I despise—the Celestial Dragons living in the Holy Land Mary Geoise. That would make all my efforts seem ridiculous."
Regardless of Kaido's reputation, this level of trust made Issho feel deeply valued. "Understood, Mr. Queen. This old man will protect them with his life."
"Then I leave it to you," Mr. Queen replied.
Issho nodded, pointed his sword toward the ground, and released waves of purple gravity that rippled outward. Onigashima began to rumble, slowly lifting into the air. "Then, everyone, I take my leave."
As Onigashima ascended into the clouds and vanished, Mr. Queen turned toward Caesar and Judge with a faint smile. "You two have been waiting a long time, haven't you? Let us set off. It is time to prepare for the final war."
In the New World, within the Totto Land sea area, all battles ground to a halt. Every gaze turned toward the cheerful, white figure dancing in the sky.
"That white form—there is no mistake. It is the Sun God recorded in our Elbaf legends!" Dorry, captain of the Giant Warrior Pirates, stared at Luffy in his Gear Five state, his eyes wide with disbelief. The other giants shared his awe, though Loki merely gritted his teeth.
"No... it cannot be! I am the Sun God!" Loki hissed, but it was already too late. The free, white form of the Nika had captured everyone's attention.
"Is this the Nika that Roger spoke of?" Jia Peng murmured, a trace of nostalgia in his eyes.
Shanks watched from a distance, his expression finally settling into a calm resolve. "You succeeded, Luffy," he whispered, touching his missing arm. "I won the bet."
The members of the Straw Hat Grand Fleet watched their captain in stunned silence. He was unrecognizable compared to the Luffy they remembered. The white form was incredible, and the power he radiated was even more astonishing. Charlotte Linlin's desperate, frustrated roars were evidence of this shift. She felt a profound sense of powerlessness; her slashes could not land, as Luffy's body seemed to have transformed into something infinitely fluid, dodging Napoleon's strikes with ease. His awakened Devil Fruit ability allowed him to nullify her powers, turning Prometheus's flames and Zeus's lightning into rubber.
Even her legendary physical defense could not withstand his rubberized strikes. The only weapon she had left was Haki, but Luffy's reserves seemed inexhaustible. Every time she believed his Haki was fading, a strange, rhythmic drumbeat echoed, and he appeared invigorated, as if he had been given a stimulant. The process felt like a life-draining technique, similar to her own abilities, yet where she could only use such power sparingly, Luffy repeated the process endlessly.
"Am I actually going to lose? Do not joke around!" Linlin roared in a rage. Her soul burned within her, fueling a surge of terrifying speed and strength, imbued with Conqueror's Haki and the power of the Gura Gura no Mi. She landed her strongest blow squarely on the Straw Hat.
Luffy flew backward like a kite with a broken string. As he tumbled, his white form flickered and vanished, his body aging rapidly into the visage of an old man.
"Did it work?" she gasped.
It did not. In Linlin's widened pupils, she watched the old man slam into the earth. The familiar sound of drums echoed once more, and a powerful aura erupted from the crater. Luffy, still appearing as an old man, returned to his Gear Five state.
Linlin panted, her eyes wide with frantic rage. "Why? Why can you still stand?"
"Why?" Luffy shouted, his voice spirited and full of life. "Because I cannot fall here yet! Usopp, Momonosuke, Ace, Shanks—they are all waiting for me. For the sake of my companions, I will send you flying, Big Mom!"
For a heartbeat, Linlin seemed lost in thought, her eyes becoming hazy and her body swaying. Then, a faint golden light flickered in her gaze, and she steadied herself.
"Boom!"
Scarlet Conqueror's Haki exploded from her body, swirling like burning flames. An aura of terrifying, extreme malice emanated from her. Everyone watching felt their blood run cold. Even Luffy, in his Gear Five state, stiffened. Charlotte Linlin, wrapped in the crimson glow of her Haki, looked like a demon rising from the depths of hell, her eyes blood-red.
"Companions? Mamamama... Straw Hat, do you even know what it truly feels like to lose one?"