The Straw Hat Must Not Be Handed Over
"Never let your Straw Hat out of your hand."
Robin had barely uttered her warning when Luffy pressed his Straw Hat to his chest, while Zoro and Sanji simultaneously moved forward to block the black and red rays of light cast from the Sky Screen.
Nami rolled up the sea chart and stuffed it into her clothes. Turning around, she shouted to the evacuees, "Everyone keep going! Don't look back at your hats. Anyone who does, I'll dock their rations!"
Usopp was about to turn around, but upon hearing this, he stubbornly turned his head back.
"I didn't see it, I was escorting someone."
Garling stood on the Chief Adjudication Platform, his blade pointed at Luffy.
"The Old Days Index is a world-class dangerous item; its holder must surrender it."
Luffy up.
"Don't want."
Garling said coldly, "You don't understand what it will bring."
"I won't give it to you either."
Shanks looked at the straw Straw Hat through the Sky Screen, the old lines on the back of his hand still bleeding, but he didn't speak immediately.
Benn Beckman whispered, "Boss, if the topic becomes 'Clear Index,' the Straw Hats will be under scrutiny from all over the world."
Shanks held his sword horizontally in front of him.
"It's been under surveillance for a long time."
The Sky Screen- covered canvas unfolds.
[Additional Questions for the Throne-Stamped Review Examination]
To prevent the risk of the Gate of Old Days, how should the Straw Hat Lining Old Days Index be handled?
[A. To be sealed away by the World Government]
[B. To be destroyed by the Holy Knights]
[C. Handed over to Red-Haired Shanks for recovery]
[D. To be kept in custody by the holder and protected by multiple witnesses]
Garling looked at Shanks.
Choose C, you can save him.
Silence fell over the Red-Hair ship. Yasopp's hand stopped beside the breech, and Benn Beckman didn't speak immediately either.
Luffy stared at the Sky Screen, not looking at Shanks.
Shanks.
Shanks looked up.
"Um?"
"Do you want to take it back?"
Shanks looked at the hat, recalling the image of him laughingly placing it on a boy's head in East Blue Tavern many years ago, the image clearly illuminated by the Golden Light of the Sky Screen. His fingers touched the hilt of his sword, and he finally spoke.
I won't choose for you.
Luffy grinned.
"Then I'll choose D."
Shanks then said, "The Red Hair Pirates, choose D."
Benn Beckman exhaled and raised the gun again.
Choose D.
Yasopp laughed and scolded, "You should have said so earlier! You scared me!"
Shanks looked at Luffy in the Sky Screen.
"Luffy, the hat is a promise, not a chain. If you want to keep it safe, carry it yourself."
Luffy put his Straw Hat back on and turned around.
"I know."
Garling's face darkened.
"Red-Hair, by abandoning the index recovery, you are tantamount to assisting the spread of danger."
Shanks replied, "What I'm giving up is your power to decide for others."
Robin looked at option D but didn't rush to choose.
"Luffy, Option D isn't just about you holding it; it'll put you under the watchful eyes of many. From now on, every time the Straw Hat triggers an index, it will be recorded by the Sky Screen."
Luffy looked at her.
"What's the problem?"
Robin looked down at the texture of the Inner Compartment.
"The problem is, they'll find you more easily."
Zoro chimed in.
They were looking for him anyway.
Sanji kicked the guard blocking his way into the wall.
"The only difference is the number."
Nami rubbed her temples.
That doesn't make me feel at ease at all.
Usopp raised his hand.
"I request that this sentence be deleted from the record."
Sky Screen ignored him.
Bonney looked at Luffy's straw Straw Hat, then at Kuma.
"Dad, will the index really harm him?"
The bear replied, "It will bring danger."
Bonney then asked, "What if we hand it over to the Holy Land?"
The bear looked at Garling.
"Danger can become someone else's life."
Bonney immediately looked up.
"The answer is D."
Lumi whispered to Mia on the Scrap Platform, "Will Straw Hat Brother get arrested?"
Mia crouched down and put the file box aside.
"Someone will want to arrest him."
Lumi bit her lip.
"Then I'll choose D. He let us choose for ourselves just now, and now I'll let him keep it himself."
The Little Bear raises its paw.
"S-Bear, select D, protect, select."
In Marineford, when Akainu saw option C, his gaze lingered on Shanks' name.
Sengoku asked, "How should we choose our navy?"
Akainu replied, "D."
The crane raises its head.
Are you sure you want Straw Hat Boy to continue holding the index?
Akainu looked at Luffy in the Sky Screen.
"Handing it over to the World Government will turn all the witnesses into evidence today. If we hand it over to the Holy Knights, we won't even need to ask any questions. Handing it over to Red-Hair will just shift the responsibility from one pirate to another."
Garp laughed, then coughed twice halfway through his laugh.
"So you're handing it over to that brat?"
Akainu said coldly, "It will continue to be kept by the holder and protected by multiple witnesses."
Garp waved his hand.
"It's all the same; he must have heard it as 'this hat is still mine.'"
It was rare for Sengoku to not object; they simply stamped the seal on the document.
"Navy Independent Review Group, option D."
The dragon also spoke.
"Revolutionary Army, select D, index does not enter any single authority."
Vegapunk continued, "Future Island Technical Team, select D, and request the creation of an index to trigger a public log."
Nami immediately stared at the Sky Screen.
"Public logs are fine, but don't publish coordinates."
Vegapunk quickly added.
"Desensitize, desensitize, only disclose the triggering cause, not the location."
The Sky Screen recorded all choices. Option D, with its Golden Light rising, saw the black markings on the Throne extend directly into the Straw Hat's Inner Compartment without waiting for a judgment.
[A request to force removal of the Throne has been detected]
[Clear target: Old Days Index segments]
Luffy raised his hand and pressed down on his Straw Hat. The black and red light touched the brim of the hat, forcing out a dazzling gold color from the originally gentle patterns inside the Inner Compartment.
Robin's face turned pale.
It bypasses the question-and-answer process and directly erases the text.
Shanks his sword, and the old markings on the back of his hand lit up.
"Luffy, don't try to fight back, let the index choose itself."
Luffy frowned.
How to choose?
Shanks shouted, "Ask it if it wants to be removed from the Throne."
Luffy looked down at his Straw Hat, so intently that Nami next to him stopped what she was doing.
"Hey, Straw Hat, would you like to?"
Usopp exclaimed in despair, "It can't talk!"
The gold patterns on the Straw Hat's Inner Compartment shone even brighter after those words, and a line of incomplete Ancient Script emerged from the inside of the brim, Robin immediately read aloud.
"The gate recognizes the Bearer, not the king."
Garling slashed down with his sword.
"Destroy."
Zoro drew his sword, Sanji raised his leg, and Koby and Tashigi rushed forward, but the black and red beam didn't hit anyone; it only pierced the text itself.
Robin pressed his hand against the edge of his Straw Hat; red marks were burned on the back of his hand.
"I bear witness that the index is not the property of the Throne."
Luffy reached out to pull her.
"Robin!"
Robin did not let go.
"I am a witness to history, so I choose D."
Nami rushed forward and held down the other side of the hat brim.
"I witnessed it; it's Luffy's hat."
Usopp, with a long face, also placed his hand on it.
"I bear witness, even though I want to run away now."
Sanji and Zoro reached out at the same time, Chopper hugged Luffy's waist from behind, and Franky and Brook also rushed over from the direction of the evacuation team, putting their hands on their partner's shoulders.
Luffy looked at them and whispered, "Don't do anything rash."
Zoro replied to him.
"Shut up, Captain."
The Golden Light from the Sky Screen finally subsided.
[Answer: D]
[The Old Days Index will continue to be kept by the holder.]
[Established with the witness of multiple parties]
[Request to forcibly remove the Throne was rejected]
The black and red light was bounced back to the Chief Adjudication Platform, a deep crack appeared on the disc beneath Garling's feet, and his hand holding the knife was torn apart by the backlash, blood dripping down the hilt.
Sabo seized the opportunity and charged forward.
"It's time to end this."
Garling did not back down. He plunged the knife into the crack in the Chief Adjudication Platform, looked up at the Sky Screen, and for the first time, a near-mad stubbornness appeared on his face.
"If the index is preserved, then respond by forcing the door according to the index rules."
Shanks' expression changed drastically.
"Stop him! He's going to smash the Gate of Old Days with the Chief Adjudication Platform!"
Vegapunk's instruments simultaneously triggered an alarm.
[WARNING: The Chief Adjudication Platform is forging confirmation from all parties]
[Objective: Simulate the conditions for Everyone Has Arrived using global quiz records]
[The Gate of Old Days's False Response Begins]