Saint Saturn's Face
When Saint Saturn's face appeared on the Sky Screen, the corridor outside the maintenance cabin on Future Island remained quiet for a long time.
Bonney, still clutching the bear, her tears unfinished, had already lifted her head.
"That's him."
The bear looked at the Sky Screen, its paws slowly tightening.
"Um."
Sabo stood in the doorway, the flames pressing down between his fingers before being pulled back into his palm.
"This is the person who negotiated terms with you back then."
Vegapunk stared at the screen, his face grim.
"He was also the one who truly turned the conditions into shackles within the Pacifista Project."
Kizaru leaned against the wall, sweat still on his forehead.
"I only knew before that the Science Unit had higher orders."
"Now it seems that those orders were never intended to leave any way out from the beginning."
The images on the Sky Screen move forward.
The room in the Holy Land was very tall, the curtains were drawn tightly, and a thick document lay on the table.
Saint Saturn sat behind the table, a Den Den Mushi beside him.
The younger Vegapunk stood on the other side, with several people in white behind him.
Xiong stood in the center of the room, unshackled, but everyone's positions seemed to tell him that he had no way out.
Saint Saturn spoke.
Bartholomew Bear.
"Survivors of the Buccaneer Tribe."
"Former King of the Sorbet Kingdom".
"Revolutionary Army personnel."
"Every name on your body is enough to kill you once."
The bear looked at him.
"I'll negotiate the terms."
Saint Saturn turned a page of the document.
You have no right to negotiate.
The bear did not retreat.
"Then I'll stand here and say what I want to say."
Inside the Holy Land, one of the Five Elders placed his hand on the table.
"This section has also been retrieved."
The other person looked at Saint Saturn.
"You recorded it on video at the time."
Saint Saturn stared at the Sky Screen.
"Research processes need to be documented."
"I never imagined that something like this would be unearthed one day."
There was no sound in the dark depths where Imu resided.
But none of the Five Elders dared to speak again.
On the Sky Screen, Saint Saturn raised his eyes.
"Explain."
The bear's voice was steady.
"Cure Bonney."
"Let her live in the sunlight."
"She must not be hunted down in my clan's name."
"The descendants of Sorbet must not be subject to further persecution."
"No one Revolutionary Army this transaction shall be held accountable because of me."
After hearing this, Saint Saturn smiled.
"You've listed a lot."
"That's what the bear said."
"I can give a lot too."
Saint Saturn pushed the documents onto the table.
"Your body."
"Your abilities."
"Your Lineage Factors."
Your pain tolerance.
"Your obedience."
"And your memories."
Bonney looked up when she heard the last two words.
"Memory?"
Vegapunk cursed under his breath.
"You bastard."
Sabo asked.
"You knew that back then?"
Vegapunk shook his head.
"I know they want to erase people's dignity."
"But I didn't know that Satan had also listed memory as a separate experimental project."
The Bear in the Sky Screen Asks a Question.
What's the use of memory?
Saint Saturn looked at him.
"The most troublesome thing about your clan is that you're too good at remembering things."
"We need to know whether memories can be separated, whether they can be categorized, and whether they can still affect the body after being separated."
"The Pacifista Project needs a stable sample."
The bear remained silent.
Saint Saturn continued.
"You're perfect for me."
"Your capacity to endure pain far exceeds that of ordinary people."
"You have the Paw-Paw Fruit."
"You can make the pain pop out."
"Then you should be able to pop out other things too."
Vegapunk's expression changed upon hearing this.
"So they'd been eyeing the Memory Bubble since then."
Kizaru looked at him.
"So you later kept the bear's backup by finding a way from their experiments?"
Vegapunk did not reply immediately.
After a while, he spoke.
"At the time, I just wanted to have a way out."
"But this escape route was scraped together from between their blades."
Bonney looked at the bear.
Why did you agree to that?
The bear looked down at her.
"Because he said, only in this way can you survive."
Bonney gritted her teeth.
He's lying.
The bear nodded.
"I found out later."
New characters suddenly appeared in the Sky Screen.
[Public Q&A session open.]
[Question: What is the real hidden condition added to the Saint Saturn on the eve of the bear's transformation?]
[A, Completely erase the bear's personality.]
[B, Extracting Buccaneer Tribe Lineage Factors.]
[C, Monitor Bonney and reserve the right to dispose of her.]
[D, All of the above.]
It has been widely criticized around the world.
Sabaody Archipelago, Luffy slams his fist into the railing.
"Is there even a choice?"
Nami's face turned pale.
"After they cure the child, do they still want to retain the right to dispose of the child?"
Robin looked at the options.
"That's the most toxic part of the clause."
"Officially, it's said that after she's cured, she belongs to herself, but behind the scenes, there's an even higher level of authority."
Usopp opened his mouth wide.
"Doesn't that mean no matter what contract the bear signs, Bonney won't have any freedom?"
Franky's voice was deep.
"These guys have turned Father's wish into a trap."
Marine Headquarters.
Sengoku gazed at the Sky Screen, remaining silent for a long time.
Akainu stood by the window.
The answer is D.
Kuzan.
There is no second answer.
Kizaru gazed at the Sky Screen from Future Island.
I also choose D.
The White Mask agent was being held captive by Seastone, and laughter came from the ground.
"So what if you chose the right one?"
"The terms have been signed."
Sabo stepped on the ground next to him.
Try laughing again.
The White Mask closed his mouth.
The countdown on the Sky Screen has ended.
[Correct answer: D, all of the above.]
[Hidden terms revealed.]
In the scene, Saint Saturn picks up another document.
"You just said that after she's cured, she belongs to herself."
The bear looked at him.
"Yes."
Saint Saturn placed the documents on the table.
"Can."
"But the premise for her belonging to herself is that she doesn't touch any of the history you left behind."
The bear raised its eyes.
Saint Saturn continued.
"Don't tell her about the Buccaneer Tribe."
"Don't tell her the details of your transaction."
"Don't tell her the story of the sun."
"She must not be allowed to contact the Revolutionary Army."
"Don't let her know that she was saved by the World Government."
"That's what the bear said."
She wasn't saved by you.
She was receiving treatment.
Saint Saturn looked at him.
The wording is not important.
The bear looked at the document.
If I don't agree.
Saint Saturn raised his hand, and the white-clad personnel produced another report.
It described Bonney's condition.
Saint Saturn said.
"Then she will continue to stay in the room where she can't see the sun."
"Until the disease spreads."
"Then we will classify her as an incurable case."
Bonney's hands were trembling.
He's using my illness to threaten you.
The bear did not answer.
He simply placed his hand on Bonney's head.
Vegapunk spoke from within the Sky Screen canopy.
"Saint Saturn, this is not a medical protocol."
"This is a hostage agreement."
Saint Saturn looked at him.
You're in charge of the treatment.
"Don't be responsible for morality."
Vegapunk gritted his teeth.
"If science doesn't even care about people, then it's just a tool."
"Saint Saturn said coldly."
Tools can change the world.
"As long as it's in the right hands."
Outside the Sky Screen, Vegapunk closed his eyes briefly.
I should have turned against them back then.
The dragon looked at the screen.
You can't flip it.
Sabo said.
But you made a backup later.
Vegapunk looked at the bear.
That was the smallest act of resistance I could muster.
The bear looked at him.
That's enough.
"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be back today."
Vegapunk didn't speak, but his glasses slipped down his nose slightly.
The bear in the Sky Screen picked up a pen.
Bonney shouted it out.
"Don't sign!"
She knew it was the past, but she still cried it out.
The bear's hand stopped on the document.
The image shows Saint Saturn looking up.
You hesitated.
"That's what the bear said."
"I want to add one more."
Saint Saturn narrowed his eyes.
You are not eligible to add any more.
"That's what the bear said."
She receives a letter every year on her birthday.
"The letter doesn't mention history."
"No transactions written down."
"Just write that I am still alive."
Saint Saturn looked at him.
"You will be gradually erased of your personality."
"That's what the bear said."
"Then I'll write while I can still write."
"Once it's full, hand it over to Vegapunk."
Vegapunk looked at Saint Saturn.
"This doesn't affect the experiment."
Saint Saturn stared at the bear for a long time.
"Can."
"But the letter must be examined."
The bear nodded.
"Can."
Bonney covered her mouth.
She thought of those letters that would never arrive.
"How much did you write?"
The bear looked down at her.
"A lot of."
Vegapunk whispered beside him.
Some were confiscated.
"I've hidden some of them."
Bonney turned her head.
Where?
Vegapunk pointed to the console.
"Still on Future Island."
"I just didn't dare to send it."
The golden lettering on the Sky Screen continued to appear.
[Hidden Terms, Item 1 Revealed.]
Even after Bonney recovered, she remained under long-term surveillance by the World Government.
[Second hidden clause revealed.]
[The bear must not convey to Bonney the history of their tribe, the truth about the trade, or memories related to the sun.]
[Hidden Terms, Item 3 Revealed.]
[After the bear's personality was erased, his body and memory samples were received by a project directly under Saint Saturn.]
The Marine Headquarters was in an uproar.
Akainu looked at the Sky Screen.
"Is this what you call saving someone?"
Sengoku: Press and hold the desktop.
This is kidnapping.
Kuzan looked at the marines in the square.
Did you all hear that?
"If anyone tries to pressure you with orders from the World Government again, ask them first how many layers are hidden beneath those orders."
In the Holy Land, Saint Saturn looked at the publicly disclosed terms with a gloomy expression.
"Keep it playing."
One of the Five Elders couldn't help but ask.
"Shall we continue?"
Saint Saturn said.
"It has already taken this step."
"If we take action, it will only prove that there's more to come."
But the Sky Screen did not wait for them.
New problems have arisen.
[Follow-up question: What did Kuma really ask Vegapunk to secretly withhold when he signed the hidden clause?]
[A, A birthday letter to Bonney.]
[B, Old Records of the Buccaneer Tribe.]
[C, My own memories of the story of the sun.]
[D, All of the above.]
Vegapunk looked up.
"Broken."
Bonney looked at him.
You hid it?
Vegapunk looked up at the Sky Screen.
"I hid it."
"But I didn't expect it to ask at this time."
Outside the maintenance cabin, the White Mask agent who had been restrained looked up and revealed an ugly smile.
That's right.
"What Saint Saturn was most looking for had always been on this island."
The countdown on the Sky Screen began to tick.
At the same time, deep underground on Future Island, a long-sealed secret door was remotely activated.