"Will it work…?"
"Luffy… there's no way… there's no way he's just going to die like this?!"
In the real world.
Not far from the waters outside the port at Sabaody Archipelago—
On the deck of the Thousand Sunny.
Nami, Robin, and the others covered their mouths, faces full of worry.
Their eyes were locked on the screen.
They were terrified of missing even the slightest change in what came next.
Because earlier—
Through the video's revelation of the future—
They'd learned that in the future, Luffy wouldn't just end up thrown into Impel Down…
He'd also be subjected to a venom execution, to the point where he'd nearly died on the spot.
The moment they saw that, Nami, Robin, Chopper, and Usopp had all burst into tears right there, their hearts gripped by overwhelming fear!
Because if…
If something truly unfortunate happened—
If Luffy couldn't pull through, and the tragedy came true—if he died inside Impel Down—
Wouldn't that mean…
The Straw Hat Pirates would be gone forever?
Shattered.
A scattered wreck of a crew!
Reduced to yet another failure discarded on the roadside of the Grand Line—like countless other pirates—reaching the exact same ending.
A miserable stepping-stone on the road to that mysterious place—Laugh Tale!!!
They couldn't accept an outcome like that.
Not in any universe.
So the only thing they could do now—
The only thought they all shared—
Was to pray.
To pray that a miracle would happen.
To pray that the Luffy of the future—Luffy of the future—could, through sheer stubborn will, wake up again.
Only then…
Only then could he claw his way back to life from the edge of death.
And even that would only be the first step!
Because after that, with a battered body, he'd still have to escape Impel Down—this prison-cage—
That was the real hell-difficulty!!!
But…
Unlike his crewmates—
Luffy himself looked calm.
Under his straw hat—
There wasn't even a trace of worry on his face.
Instead…
For some reason, there was a clear, obvious curiosity—and anticipation—rising up in him.
"Huh…"
Luffy bared his teeth in a grin.
And, completely carefree, he muttered to himself:
"Impel Down, huh? I've heard that place locks up a lot of big shots!"
"And there are even some monsters from the old era—people who once competed with Roger and Whitebeard for the title of Pirate King!"
"If future me goes there… then I'll probably run into those legendary people, right?"
Right then—
The thing occupying Luffy's mind wasn't his own future life-or-death situation.
It was…
The rumor of Impel Down, Level 6.
If he remembered correctly—
That first Warlord he ever defeated—
Crocodile, the Desert Crocodile—
He'd heard that after the Marines arrested him…
He'd been locked away on Level 6 of Impel Down.
"So that means…"
Luffy's eyes spun as a sudden idea hit him.
"Future me might even meet the Desert Crocodile again!"
The moment he imagined that possibility—
He found it unbelievably fascinating.
And his instincts told him, loud and clear:
Future him would definitely survive.
There was no way he'd die so easily in Impel Down just because of this poisonous, near-fatal injury.
If anything—
He'd probably recover and come back to life!
And then he'd cause absolute chaos inside Impel Down with the Okama King and the other inmates—
It wouldn't even be surprising if they broke out in a jailbreak!!!
Nearby—
Hearing what Luffy was saying—
And seeing him smiling to himself in that strange, abnormal way—
Zoro and the others were speechless.
Across the entire sea, there were countless pirates…
But only Luffy—
This guy with an absurd background and an even more absurdly innocent personality—
Could be facing something like this…
And still have his thoughts leap in wild directions, with a heart big enough to treat it like it was nothing!!!
At the same time—
While Luffy himself—
And the entire Straw Hat crew—
All reacted differently to the exposed future…
The transparent light-screen continued.
The "ranking" footage kept playing, and new scenes continued to be revealed—
And it caught everyone off guard.
In full view of the entire world—
A miracle really did happen!!!
Yes.
In less than a day—
Whether because of protagonist plot armor, or because of sheer stubborn will—
Luffy actually held on and made it through!
Alone in a dark, sealed room, he recovered at full health and "revived"—
Then woke up again in a completely renewed state!
And because of that—
Even the Okama King found it unbelievable!
It genuinely felt like watching a science-fiction movie.
No one expected it…
Luffy looked so young—
Yet his vitality was that terrifyingly strong.
It could only be called a miracle!!!
"Whew…"
At Marine Headquarters—
Inside the Fleet Admiral's office—
Watching that scene unfold with their own eyes—
As Luffy's grandfather, Garp's heart finally dropped back into place.
He let out a long breath.
After wiping the sweat off his face, he broke into a grin again.
"This is some seriously vicious poison! Ha! That brat Luffy—just like I thought! That's my grandson! Born with a freakish soul!"
"Yes…"
Vice Admiral Tsuru was stunned too.
But she nodded in agreement as she said,
"Magellan's poison isn't something you can joke about. That Straw Hat boy's willpower—and that Okama King's Devil Fruit ability…"
"It really is eye-opening!!!"
To be honest—
A moment ago, even Tsuru had thought Luffy was as good as dead.
There was absolutely no way he could endure it.
But as the protagonist of this ranking—
With the help of the third "background" figure—Ivankov—
He had resisted and nullified the power of the Venom-Venom Fruit.
A development like that—
No one could have predicted it.
And this clip also made the viewers understand something:
Why Ivankov—
Whose fame and strength were far inferior to Kuma and Dragon—
Could still follow after those two…
And become Luffy's third "background" figure.
It really did make sense.
He was practically like a reborn parent—
Or, to exaggerate a little…
He had given Luffy a second life!!!
However—
Back in Impel Down—
Magellan himself—
Watching the ranking video together with his subordinates on Level 4—
Was furious.
Under his black cap—
His brows were twisted tight, his anger at its peak.
He was deeply dissatisfied with what he'd just seen—
He even felt like his Venom-Venom Fruit ability had been publicly slapped in the face in front of the entire world.
It was humiliating!!!
"Tch…"
"So you're Straw Hat, huh?"
Arms crossed over his chest—
His gloomy eyes burst with killing intent so thick it felt tangible.
Magellan spoke in a low voice.
Staring at the screen, he muttered:
"Fine. If this ranking video has already exposed the future in advance…"
"Then someday, if we really do meet inside Impel Down…"
"I swear—I'll kill you on the spot!"
"I won't allow you any chance to get lucky and receive treatment beforehand!!!"
This time—
Inside Magellan's heart—
His hostility and killing intent toward Luffy reached an unprecedented level.
Even though—
He had never even met Luffy before!!!
(End of Chapter)
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