It worked!!!
As the light of evolution faded, the brand-new form before him came fully into view, and an expression of overwhelming joy instantly spread across Red's face!
He raised his head and looked up at Luffy towering above him.
"Luffy! How do you feel right now?!"
"Right now I feel… better than ever!"
"It's like anything I want to do—I can do it!"
In his completely new state, Luffy grinned from ear to ear.
As his voice fell, two bulging mounds of muscle suddenly popped out from his raised arms like something straight out of a cartoon sailor, and he laughed cheerfully as he looked down at Red and the companions behind him.
"But speaking of that…""Red, when did you all get so short?!"
Luffy suddenly frowned in confusion and lowered his head to ask curiously.
At the same time, a massive shadow swallowed Red and the others whole.
Hearing this, Red immediately laughed in exasperation.
"Have you ever considered…""That it's you who suddenly got taller?!"
"Huh?" Luffy froze for a moment, then hurriedly looked himself over before finally realizing—
"I think… I really did get taller!"
"You only noticed now?!"
Completely defeated by Luffy's slow reaction, Red helplessly smacked his own forehead.
Perhaps due to the power of Nika, the Armament Haki that normally stabilized Devil Fruit forms had lost its role, triggering another type of enhancement tied to the Normal-type attribute…
An enhancement to Luffy's physical size!
This caused Luffy—who had simultaneously awakened both Normal and Fairy attributes—to completely shed his former compact build.
Before this, even in Gear Fourth's inflated form, Luffy stood at only around three meters tall—solid, but still well within the standard range for top-tier fighters in the pirate world.
Now, after awakening the Nika form, Luffy's body had soared straight to nearly eight meters in height, forcing Red and the others to crane their necks just to speak with him.
Even in the pirate world, this kind of physique was extremely rare.
Among everyone present, only King Neptune—watching from afar—could be said to rival Luffy in height.
After all, Neptune's total body length reached an astonishing 12.2 meters. It was only because he habitually folded two-thirds of his massive tail beneath him that he appeared slightly shorter than Luffy at the moment.
Of course, height alone did not represent true strength.
And what made Luffy terrifying now was far more than his size.
"So this is what Red meant by Devil Fruit awakening?!"
At this moment, the Straw Hat crew—seeing that Luffy's condition had stabilized—finally rushed over in concern.
When they noticed the relaxed smile on Red's face, the weight hanging in their hearts finally lifted.
One by one, they began examining Luffy's new form.
"Other than being bigger and changing color, it doesn't look all that different,"Usopp muttered, forming a figure-eight with his fingers and resting it under his chin in thought.
Meanwhile, Zoro and Sanji stared at Luffy, flashes of astonishment crossing their eyes.
Under Observation Haki, Luffy didn't feel stronger at all—if anything, his presence seemed faint, as if he were merging with the surrounding natural world, which felt deeply unsettling.
Yet at the same time, their instincts as warriors screamed warnings at them.
From Luffy's body radiated an overwhelming pressure.
It felt as though…
They and Luffy now existed on entirely different tiers of life.
"Guys!"
Clap!
Suddenly, the evolved Luffy spread his arms wide and struck a bodybuilding pose, flexing dramatically as he shouted excitedly:
"I feel like I've gotten way stronger!"
"Zoro! Sanji! How about we spar again?"
As he spoke, a bright gleam flashed through Luffy's eyes, clearly itching to show off his newfound power.
Fortunately, Red stepped in at once, stopping Luffy before he could act.
"Have mercy on them, Luffy!"
"To get you to awaken Gear Fifth, Zoro and Sanji went ten days and ten nights without sleep…"
"You should get familiar with Gear Fifth first and let those two get some proper rest."
As Red spoke, his gaze shifted to Luffy's attribute panel.
Because leveling required exponentially increasing experience—and because Red had recently focused more on the other companions—
Even now, Luffy was only Level 69.
In his normal state, his total attributes were just over 1300, which translated to roughly a standard Yonko Commander-level fighter in the pirate world.
Of course, this was purely raw physical stats and didn't account for his absurd abilities.
Red had recorded it before: when Luffy entered Gear Fourth: Black God of War, his attributes surged by nearly 300 points, temporarily pushing his total to around 1600.
That firmly placed him among top-tier powerhouses. Even against Admirals like Akainu or Kuzan, he might lose—but he wouldn't be obliterated the way Doflamingo had been.
And now—
With Luffy successfully entering Gear Fifth, his power had undergone yet another leap!
A full 600 points were added on top of his base stats, pushing his total attributes beyond 1900!
It might look like only 300 more than Gear Fourth—
But once attributes reached this level, even a single point of growth translated into massive, exponential increases in combat power.
In Red's estimation, Luffy's base form was already close to his canon strength after returning from two years of training—and with Conqueror's Haki coating and Six Powers techniques, he might even surpass it.
Now, he had awakened Gear Fifth and gained Pokémon-ization enhancements.
At this moment, aside from the mysterious Five Elders and Imu themselves, Red genuinely couldn't think of anyone left in the world who could stand against Luffy.
To grow from an East Blue rookie into a Yonko capable of confronting the Five Elders in just three years was already a miracle.
And now, with Red's "cheat" ability—
That time had been slashed to one-third.
Less than a year.
To forge the strongest existence on the seas!!!
"The Straw Hat Pirates… are finally rising!"
Red's eyes gleamed as he imagined using Luffy's invincible presence to conquer every Pokémon game world, clearing all challenges and achievements—
And through the machine's rewards, becoming the second invincible member of the Straw Hat Pirates!
…
…
"Ah—right…"
On the other side, as Red basked in his grand vision of the future, Luffy suddenly realized something after hearing his words. A look of apology spread across his face.
"You're right."
"Sorry, Zoro. Sanji. I completely forgot."
"You've both worked really hard these past few days!"
Unaffected by Nika's will, Luffy's mind remained perfectly clear, capable of gratitude and apology like any normal person.
He knew when to thank others and when to say sorry—rather than laughing foolishly at everything like an idiot blinded by arrogance.
Seeing this, Red's lips slowly curled upward in satisfaction.
The Nika Fruit had always been a knot in his heart.
After all, no one wanted a longtime friend to be influenced by an alien will, developing thoughts and emotions that weren't truly their own.
After everything they'd been through, Red had finally completed the last piece of the puzzle—allowing Luffy to awaken the fruit's ultimate power in a perfect state.
Countless emotions flashed across Red's face.
Then, suddenly, a sly glint appeared in his eyes as he spoke to the still-overflowing-with-energy Luffy:
"That said… now that you've gained new power, it really is necessary to get used to it early."
"That way you won't be caught off guard in future battles."
Red looked up at Luffy with an amused yet expectant gaze.
"Luffy, what do you think about letting Mewtwo be your first opponent after awakening Gear Fifth?"
"Mewtwo?"
With no sparring imminent, Luffy gradually dispersed the Nika power within him, his body shrinking back to normal size.
But at Red's suggestion, a sharp light flared in his eyes, and he excitedly slapped his palm.
"You mean that weird-looking but super-strong cat?!"
Luffy stepped forward eagerly, grinning.
"Sure! Let that guy be my opponent!"
"Last time, it really beat me up badly!"
Battle spirit blazed in Luffy's eyes.
But Red gently pushed him back and chuckled.
"Relax. You'll have plenty of time to work yourself to death later."
"Before that, I need to deal with this thing."
As he spoke, Red flicked his wrist.
A spherical psychic barrier instantly rose from his palm into the air.
"This is…?"
The Straw Hats stared in confusion.
Robin—well-versed in the Poneglyphs and fully aware of Red's plans—pointed directly at the frantically writhing presence inside the barrier.
"So this little thing is the danger you mentioned, hidden within Luffy's fruit?"
At her words, everyone crowded closer.
Usopp, hiding behind Franky, peeked out nervously and asked:
"This is the thing you said would turn people into laughing heretics?!"
"It's that dangerous—so why not just erase it?!"
"Y-yeah~"Chopper added anxiously, trembling as if Red were holding a live bomb.
Unfortunately, in his panic, Chopper hid only his hands behind Franky's hairy legs—leaving his entire body exposed.
Facing their concerns, Red merely smiled calmly.
"No. Killing it outright would be far too wasteful…"
"Compared to that, I have a much better idea."
As his words fell, another sphere appeared in Red's hand.
Its top half was deep purple, the bottom half pure white, with a precise button at the center.
That's right.
What Red had taken out was the only Poké Ball in the entire Pokémon: Let's Go world that could be brought into reality—
The Master Ball!!!
As a one-of-a-kind treasure, the Master Ball possessed three incredibly powerful effects.
The first two applied to Pokémon in the game world, granting increased experience, items, and access to move tutors.
But the third effect was something else entirely—
It could be used in the real world to forcibly designate a target and capture them as a Pokémon!!!
Red had always considered this real-world effect somewhat useless.
If someone acknowledged him, they could already become his Pokémon naturally.
And if they didn't, forcibly dragging them into the game world wouldn't let Red control them anyway due to their resistance.
Fortunately, Red hadn't wasted the Master Ball on Legendary Pokémon just for in-game rewards.
Now, his purpose was crystal clear.
He intended to use the Master Ball's forced capture to turn the instinct-only Nika will into a genuine Pokémon—allowing it to exist permanently as an ally or support of the Straw Hat Pirates!
After briefly explaining the Master Ball's function, Red acted without hesitation, activating its effect and selecting the Nika will trapped within the psychic barrier.
In an instant, a beam of purple light shot out from the Master Ball's opened button, piercing the barrier and striking the Nika will.
The next moment—
The previously chaotic Nika will froze in place, as though encountering something utterly incomprehensible.
"It worked!"
Seeing that the Master Ball could truly target the Nika will, joy flashed through the eyes of Red and the Straw Hats.
Already in sync with Red, Usopp immediately pulled a soft couch from his storage space and placed it behind him.
Red leaned back and collapsed onto it.
At the same time, the Nika will—still inside the barrier—followed him.
This time, however, the psychic barrier became a protective shell, preventing the Nika will from unconsciously dispersing into natural energy.
Clearly, Red had already entered the game world—bringing his newest Pokémon with him.
With this, Red had truly opened an entirely new door—
Successfully recruiting the will of a Zoan-Type, Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit into his ranks!
(End of Chapter)