Although it was a quick-response question, no one moved.
The previous punishments were far too horrifying—no one dared to take the risk easily.
Of course, the rewards for answering correctly were tempting, but everyone knew it required serious thought.
"The Straw Hat Pirates... this group formed by that straw hat boy... hasn't been around that long. They don't even have bounties yet. If this is a future event, it's more likely that they were captured by the Navy after entering the Grand Line,"
said King Neptune, ruler of Ryugu Palace on Fishman Island, calmly analyzing the situation.
To someone like him—who rarely left the depths of the sea—the World Conference was a fresh experience, so he had become unusually talkative.
"Didn't you notice? That brat has ties to Red-Haired Shanks. Would the Navy really dare touch someone like that?"
another monarch chimed in.
[Buggy: What's so special about being related to Red Hair anyway? Hmph!]
Buggy's words appeared on the giant screen, immediately followed by his exaggerated grimacing expression.
"Woah~ Scary stuff! These little brats attacking Enies Lobby? Come on, no way~"
muttered Kizaru, lips curled in amusement.
To him, this no-bounty group—even if they did reach the Grand Line by dumb luck—stood no chance of opposing the World Government.
In his mind, the most believable option was that they were captured, then escaped and somehow launched a desperate counterattack.
Meanwhile, Garp—the legendary Marine Hero—remained silent.
He didn't want Luffy's identity exposed just yet.
If the world knew Luffy was his grandson, that would only put him in more danger. Garp had always wanted Luffy to become a Marine, to protect him from this very kind of life.
[Arlong: Those little punks wouldn't dare touch Enies Lobby! Do they even have the strength?! They seem more interested in helping villagers rebel against me!]
Far away, Arlong the fishman tyrant had already received word: Nami and Luffy were trying to overthrow his rule.
"That girl… she belongs to me. Only then can I get wealth and control these villagers!"
Arlong hissed in fury.
[Arlong: I'll answer! My guess is: The Straw Hat Pirates were captured and are on the run — Option B!]
Arlong was certain. To him, the Straw Hats were just nobodies. They had no power. If they really did go to Judicial Island, being captured was the most reasonable explanation.
After all, he himself was a dominant pirate in the East Blue with a 20 million berry bounty.
[Arlong of the East Blue?]
The crowd blinked.
Most of them had never heard the name.
There were so many pirates with bounties over 100 million in the Grand Line—it wasn't surprising that this East Blue warlord was unknown to them.
His notoriety was local at best.
[WRONG ANSWER! You will now be punished.]
[Punishment: Confiscate the 100 million berries Arlong has seized!]
The moment the voice fell, a massive wheel began spinning on the giant screen again.
The Wheel of Fortune, or rather the Wheel of Misfortune, was terrifying just to look at.
Arlong was now visibly shaken. But he still tried to convince himself.
"This can't be real. There's no way this live Q&A can actually affect me... it's just some trick..."
He was wrong.
[PUNISHMENT: Weakened Ability!]
The wheel stopped on the word "Ability".
The screen now displayed Arlong relaxing in a poolside chair, somewhere in the East Blue.
"AAARGHHHH!!!"
A bloodcurdling scream rang out.
Everyone watching the broadcast saw it: A flash of light sliced through the air—
Arlong's long, jagged nose was cut clean off.
Blood splattered across the entire screen. His face contorted in sheer agony as he fell to the ground, writhing and screaming.
It was a gruesome, chilling sight.
Countless spectators instinctively covered their own noses.
They all felt it—like a phantom pain. It was too real.
For Arlong, this was a tragedy beyond pain. His teeth might grow back, but his nose—his most important attack weapon—was irreplaceable.
[This scene is too bloody. We will now end this segment. Who else wants to answer?]
The screen flickered.
Arlong's mutilated figure disappeared.
But the fear lingered.
All eyes scanned each other. No one dared answer again.
Back with the real Straw Hat crew, Luffy turned to Zoro.
"Zoro, do you know who Nico Robin is?"
Luffy tilted his head, curiosity dancing in his eyes.
After getting the last question right, Luffy was itching to answer again.
"Hey! Are you serious? You don't want to answer that question, you idiot! You were just lucky last time!"
Zoro scolded him, rolling his eyes.
Luffy had known the answer to the previous question.
But this one? No one did.
"Luffy~ Don't do it! If you're wrong, someone else could get punished! I don't want my nose cut off too!"
Usopp wailed, hugging Luffy's leg tightly and trembling at the memory of Arlong's punishment.
"Oi oi, Usopp, don't you trust me at all? Besides, if anyone should get punished, it'll be me."
Luffy beat his chest with pride, ever the optimist.
[Reminder: If someone in one team answers incorrectly, a member of that team will berandomly selected to be punished.]
The broadcast gave its cold declaration.
Usopp's eyes bulged in horror.
"LUFFY, PLEASE! DID YOU HEAR THAT!? JUST GIVE UP!"
He was practically crying now.
Would Luffy go through with it?
Would someone else answer?
The tension in the broadcast room was now palpable, and the entire world was holding its breath…