One Piece: Let's go Luffy Chapter 526 526: Willpower Test

"Whoo-hoo~!!!"

High above the cloud-wreathed sky, Luffy spread his arms wide, savoring the feeling of the fierce wind rushing past him as he let out a delighted cry.

His red shirt and iconic straw hat fluttered wildly behind him, as though venting all the frustration he had bottled up over this period in his place.

Although the Straw Hat Pirates were drawing ever closer to breaking through the atmosphere and entering outer space, the closer they got, the more impatient Luffy and the others beca.

They could hardly wait to witness an even vaster world.

And today, they had finally reached the most crucial step.

The Road Poneglyph that had been hidden for so long was finally about to be completed!!!

"Hey, Luffy! Be careful! The wind's really strong here, so don't fall off!"

Near the bow of the Going rry, Usopp, who was just as excited, pulled his goggles down over his eyes. Laughing loudly as he reminded Luffy, he gazed out over the boundless sea of clouds below.

Elbaf.

He, Usopp, was finally about to set foot on this legendary land.

The fabled Elbaf was a nation that produced warriors. Those who could earn Elbaf's recognition were all the bravest fighters under heaven.

And that had once been one of Usopp's wishes when he set out to sea.

He simply had not expected the Straw Hat Pirates to advance at such an astonishing pace. In a re two or three years, the land he had once dread of visiting had actually beco one of their territories.

Life was truly rich and colorful, full of unexpected joys.

At the bow, Luffy, who was enjoying the wind, and Usopp, who was lost in emotion, dragged Chopper—infected by the atmosphere between the two and grinning foolishly—into their antics.

Inside the cabin, however, Robin, with Nami's help, was cutting off her beautiful black hair, leaving it just around shoulder length.

This was the hairstyle she had worn as a child.

It was also the hairstyle she had kept during the ti when she first t Saul.

"How is it, Robin?"

At that mont, Nami, having shown off her haircutting skills, took out a golden mirror inlaid with exquisite gems and held it up in front of Robin with a smile.

"Just right. It's perfect. Thank you so much, Nami."

Looking at herself in the mirror, suddenly appearing much younger, Robin imdiately smiled softly at Nami.

Without her long hair, she had lost a little of the mature charm befitting an adult woman. In its place was an innocence that seed ready to spill from her lively eyes.

Taking advantage of the mont while the praised Nami went to put away her tools, Robin turned her gaze toward the window. Looking at the expanse of snow-white clouds, her consciousness seed to return to the past.

"Saul… it's been a long ti~"

…

…

"Mm, mm. I understand."

"Good. We'll descend directly into the Sun World in a little while. Just have Dr. Vegapunk prepare everything by then."

"And have those giants who are willing to go to sea with the Straw Hat Grand Fleet get ready too. When the ti cos, I'll load Pokémon panels for them one by one."

"Oh right, are Red-Hair's guys still in Elbaf?"

"I see. Looks like losing to Luffy's little brother hit him pretty hard. Sure enough, even the broadest-minded person has things they care about."

"Don't tell them we're coming today yet. After we get the Road Poneglyph information, I'll have Luffy suddenly appear right in front of him and give him a proper scare!"

Compared to his relaxed companions, Red, who was about to arrive in Elbaf, had temporarily held an hour-long call with Moria, arranging the work plan on that side in advance.

As for Moria, who had beco increasingly skilled at working for Red, he was extrely serious. He committed every single instruction from Red to the little notebook in his heart.

The Going rry advanced at high speed.

After Sanji bustled about, a long-awaited small party was held in the Going rry's dining room.

Heartfelt smiles appeared on everyone's faces.

Although becoming the Pirate King was no longer the ultimate goal of their pirate crew, it could still be considered a milestone achievent.

And compared with obtaining the empty title of Pirate King, everyone was actually far more curious about the truth hidden within this world. They looked forward to the mont when that secret would be unveiled.

However, since they still had proper business to attend to shortly, Luffy's proposal to perform a belly dance together with Usopp was suppressed by everyone.

And so, amid everyone's laughter and noise, the Going rry slowly docked atop a thick branch of the World Tree.

"Lord Luffy!!! Lord Red!!! And honored lords and ladies…"

At the edge of Elbaf's Sun World.

Seeing the Straw Hats walk down from the deck, Moria, who had originally been standing by in place, seed to receive so sort of command. He imdiately jogged over, arriving before the Straw Hats as he bowed and scraped in greeting.

"You must all be exhausted after such a long journey!"

Moria's eyes shone brightly. Although he possessed a massive seven-ter-tall body, those few steps just now had sohow given off a sense of lightness, without causing the ground to tremble at all.

It could only be said that after experiencing the pleasure of working for the Straw Hats, the current Moria could no longer stop himself.

Five large words were written all over his face:

[I want to improve so badly!]

"Moria, how are the preparations?" Red asked directly as he stepped onto the World Tree's branch, not even taking the ti to marvel at Elbaf's dreamlike scenery.

Moria had already made all the arrangents. He imdiately bent slightly at the waist and guided them with a smile.

"Everything is ready, Lord Red."

"Dr. Vegapunk is currently waiting for you all at the border between the Sun World and Heaven World. Would you honored lords like to tour Elbaf's environnt first, or go directly to the doctor?"

"Luffy, what do you think?"

Red smiled faintly and handed the decision-making power to his own captain.

"Huh?"

Luffy, whose brain had nearly atrophied from lack of use, froze for a mont. His gaze also quickly swept around the surroundings.

One had to admit, Moria truly did have a talent for administration.

The branch where the Going rry had landed was not only far from the various villages of the Sun World, with few people around, but was also located at a relatively high point in the Sun World.

Standing here, one could almost take in the full view of Elbaf.

Luffy and the others were likewise captivated by this magnificent island.

However, the mont he thought of the final Road Poneglyph, he still reluctantly gave up the idea and said,

"Let's go to Vegapunk's place first! It shouldn't take too long over there, right?"

"If everything goes smoothly, we should be back very soon," Red answered with a smile.

"Then okay!"

Luffy struck his palm with his fist and made his decision.

"Then let's go see that Heaven World first!"

"Understood. Honored lords, please stand firm and hold on~"

Having received his orders, Moria grinned.

The next instant, a sheet of shadows exuding an ominous aura suddenly spread out from beneath his feet, covering the area beneath the Straw Hats in pitch-black darkness.

Imdiately afterward, a huge bat head surged up from the ground. Large masses of shadow rapidly condensed and gathered into the body of a gigantic bat, lifting Red and the others up entirely.

Whoosh~!

The shadow bat suddenly beat its wings, carrying the Straw Hats and Moria as it flew toward the higher reaches of the World Tree.

During this ti, Moria even played a small trick. He controlled the shadow bat to deliberately slow down and linger a little longer in the more scenic areas, allowing Red and his companions to experience the pleasure of looking down upon all the mountains from above.

Red did not know whether it was just his imagination, but after he sensed Moria's intention, he vaguely seed to see an illusion of a black, old-fashioned jacket on him.

It was an administrative jacket beloved by veteran cadres!!!

Red believed that if Moria had ever left footprints on Earth, then his ancestral ho would definitely be—

Shandong!

Mm…

After all, Shandong produced fruits and vegetables. Occasionally producing a deford giant onion was not impossible to understand.

Under Moria's control, after roughly half an hour, the gigantic shadow bat slowly landed on a strange island cloud outside the range of the World Tree.

The reason it was called strange was because this island cloud was not as stable as a normal island cloud. Instead, it constantly wobbled like jelly, yet stubbornly remained suspended in midair.

This was indeed not an ordinary island cloud ford by the natural environnt, but a temporary foothold Vegapunk had built in the sky using scientific thods.

As the bat vanished, the Straw Hats landed one after another in this area, which was neither too large nor too small.

At that mont, Vegapunk was lowering his head as he operated a strange device in his hands. He was so focused that he did not even hear the Straw Hats arrive.

It was Red who took the initiative to step forward and greet him, temporarily pulling him out of his thoughts.

"Doctor, long ti no see~" Red said with a smile.

"Huh? Red, you're already here?"

Vegapunk, who seed to have fallen into so sort of ntal dead end, suddenly froze. Only after seeing Red and the others did he abruptly seem to rember sothing, and clarity returned to his eyes.

"You're finally here. I've been waiting for you for ages."

As he spoke, he directly turned around and strode toward another edge of the island cloud area. While walking, he said,

"Hurry and co over. Once the willpower test is complete, you'll be able to enter Heaven World!"

"A willpower test?"

Red and the others looked at one another. However, already used to Vegapunk's state as a science-obsessed researcher, they did not say much. They simply followed Vegapunk all the way to an area that looked like a massage room.

One small bed after another, each large enough for one person to lie on, was neatly arranged atop the island cloud.

And beside each of those small beds was a virtual ga helt that Red and the others could not have been more familiar with.

At that mont, Vegapunk began explaining to Red and the others as usual.

"That prince of Elbaf was correct. The device inside the secret chamber is indeed a mysterious apparatus capable of affecting the Sunstone's wave frequency by emitting a mysterious signal."

"After two months of research, although I still haven't figured out the specific principles behind that device, by imitating its signal, I created a batch of protective suits that can efficiently isolate Sunstone energy."

"However, these protective suits are ultimately only failed imitations, so they cannot completely isolate Heaven World's Sunstone energy. To prevent anyone from being affected by Sunstone energy that seeps through, I first need to conduct a willpower test on you to ensure that no problems occur after you enter Heaven World."

"Speaking of which, if Red hadn't insisted on prioritizing speed, I would absolutely never have allowed you to wear such failed products!"

As Vegapunk fiddled with the switches on the equipnt, he kept grumbling under his breath.

It was enough to show that he still had quite a few complaints about Red's urgent demands.

Having others use flawed scientific products he had created was practically a slap in the face to a perfectionist like him.

So, in order to prevent anything from happening to the Straw Hat Pirates in Heaven World, Vegapunk had added the extra step of a willpower test.

After operating so of the equipnt, Vegapunk finally ca back to himself. He patted the virtual ga helt by the window and said to everyone,

"I used Sunstone to set up a special ability inside this. As long as you put it on, you will enter a virtual world constructed from your own desires, just like entering Heaven World. At the sa ti, your consciousness will also beco hazy."

"You must rely on your own willpower to break free from the dream. Only then can we guarantee that no problems will occur after you enter Heaven World."

"Oh? A device that tests willpower!? Interesting!"

After hearing Vegapunk's explanation, Zoro imdiately beca interested.

He strode forward and directly picked up a virtual helt. After playing with it for a mont, he seed to think of sothing amusing, and his eyes suddenly lit up.

"Hey, perverted cook. Interested in competing with ? Let's see whose willpower is stronger."

"The loser has to wash the other guy's socks for a year!"

"You… you bastard…"

Seeing the wicked grin at the corner of Zoro's mouth, Sanji had already sensed sothing bad. After hearing those words, his steps forward abruptly froze.

A deeply conflicted expression appeared on his face, as if he had no confidence in himself.

But at that mont, Zoro spoke again.

"Hey? I'm talking to you, perverted cook. Why aren't you saying anything?"

"Don't tell you're scared?!"

"...Who… who's scared!!!"

Under Zoro's mocking expression, Sanji suddenly clenched his fists, a furious fla flashing through his eyes.

Then he strode forward, quickly picked up a virtual helt beside Zoro, and fastened it over his head.

"Then let's see whose willpower is stronger, Moss Head!!!"

"Good!"

As he spoke, Zoro also put on the virtual helt and directly lay down on one of the small beds.

"In that case…"

Red smiled and clapped his hands, saying to everyone,

"Follow the doctor's requirents and go take the willpower test."

"Huh? Red, you're not going?"

Looking at Red, who stood in place without the slightest intention of moving, Usopp imdiately asked curiously.

Red shook his head.

"I'll pass. I'm the kind of person who doesn't have much willpower~"

"I'd better not join in on the fun."

As soon as he finished speaking, Red waved to everyone again, signaling for them to follow Vegapunk's instructions.

Very soon, aside from Red, all the Straw Hats lay down on the testing beds and put on their virtual helts.

Beside them, after operating the machine for a while, Vegapunk reminded everyone,

"Get ready. I'm activating the equipnt!"

(End of Chapter)