Summary:
As Luffy’s heart beats like a drum, he wonders how he can stand despite losing his fight with Kaida, and also why he feels like he’s having so much fun. Meanwhile, Momonosuke told Yamato what Zunesha told him: Luffy is Joy Boy.
In the Pleasure Hall’s right brain tower, the sound of Luffy’s heart awakens Sanji, who immediately calls out Luffy’s name. Throughout the castle, people can hear Luffy’s heartbeat, with some of them, like Nami and Tama, crying tears of joy that he is still alive. Meanwhile, in Mary Geoise’s Holy Land, the Five Elders ponder whether sacrificing one of their best agents was the right call, as it only enraged Kaidou, but decide it’s best to extinguish something so “troublesome”. The Elders reveal that 800 years since the World Government was founded, they have been trying to take possession of Gomu Gomu no Mi, but she somehow evades them as if she has a mind of her own. That’s when they reveal the truth: Gomu Gomu no Mi is actually a mythical Zoan Devil Fruit called “Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika”! According to them, this Devil Fruit gives the properties of rubber in battle limited only by the user’s imagination, and the user brings smiles to people far and wide; the epitome of a ‘Liberation Fighter’. However, awakening it is said to make their rubber body exponentially stronger and give them more freedom to godlike levels, causing them to declare the Devil Fruit the most ridiculously powerful thing in the world.
At the Treasure Vault, Orochi tries to plead for Hiyori to save him, claiming that he always respected Oden and that he was just Kaidou’s pawn all along. However, Hiyori reminds him how he and Kaidou both tricked Oden into making a fool of himself for five years based on an empty promise to leave, and how he expected him and Kaidou to keep their word to spare him during his execution. Even though she saw him smiling, she felt that he had been suffering the whole time from carrying the burden of saving Wan from him on his shoulders, even though she remembered when he told her that he was okay with what others said about him, because he has his family. Orochi tries to appeal to Hiyori again by saying that he will acknowledge Oden’s legacy, but Hiyori throws off her mask and asks him to shut up, proudly calling her name with tears in his eyes. She stands before a horrified Orochi and states that she was always proud to bear her father’s name while denouncing him as nothing more than a heartless wretch who killed people every day he was the shogun. Orochi desperately begs her to spare him, just as Kanjuro’s Kazenbo appears, still shrunken. Orochi demands that Kazenbo kill Hiyori, but the faint image accidentally touches him and sets him on fire as Hiyori watches.
On the roof, Luffy says he can fight longer now and declares his new form “Gear 5”.
With his new form, Luffy unleashes a huge blast of Haoshoku Haki, knocking out several beast pirates before he enlarges his hand, grabs Kaidou’s entire dragon form, and pulls him back up to the roof. He then wraps his arm tightly around his body and twirls it around before slapping it back and forth on the surface. Kaidou eventually recovers and admits that he’s glad Luffy is still alive, before firing a Bolo Breath at him. However, Luffy grabs hold of the ground and turns it into rubber, bouncing the fire back at him. Although hit by his own attack, Kaidou recovers and apologizes for CP0 sabotaging their fight, but Luffy accepts his apology and prepares to finish his fight with him.