A new question appeared again on the giant screen.
It wasn't just any question—it was another brutal, moral one, testing the Navy's so-called justice.
On the refugee ship, there were women, elderly, and children—the last survivors escaping from the burning O'Hara.
At that moment, everyone aboard the ship prayed silently, hoping for a miracle… hoping the Navy would show mercy.
But the truth of what happened—that was something only Akainu, Aokiji, and a handful of Vice Admirals knew.
["This question can be answered by the Navy!"]
Surprisingly, the Navy was not barred from answering.
But that only made things worse.
After all, what Navy officer would dare answer and expose such a scandal?
It was likely they would remain silent, hoping the question would be skipped.
[Red-Haired Shanks: "Where are the Navy? This one's all yours."]
[Whitebeard: "I doubt they have the guts to answer it."]
[Ace: "Dad's right. They'll definitely stay quiet. No chance they'd admit to something like this."]
Across the seas, pirates and civilians alike watched the feed, commenting as the screen remained quiet.
"Looks like the Navy still hasn't answered a single question."
"They're scared. I mean, answering could expose them further."
"What if this whole quiz thing is a Navy setup? I mean, how else could someone broadcast live to the entire world?"
"If I knew the answer, I'd totally try."
"The rewards are great, but the punishments? No way I'd risk it unless I was sure."
The crowd remembered the previous rewards—Devil Fruits, physical pills, even mysterious blessings.
But they also remembered the punishments—humiliation, injury, loss of power, and worse of all 'sudden death'.
Meanwhile, in the East Blue, the Buggy Pirates were watching eagerly.
"Captain Buggy! We should try to answer!"
"Yeah, let's earn some rewards!"
"Only you can do this, Captain!"
The crew all believed in their captain's greatness—whether that was blind faith or pure comedy was up for debate.
[Buggy: "Hey! Who told you idiots I was gonna answer?! Stop jumping ahead!"]
Buggy was in a panic.
He had no idea what the right answer was.
One wrong guess and he could be punished on live broadcast!
["The Buggy Pirates from East Blue seem quite eager. Why not give them the opportunity to answer?"]
[The timer starts now: You have 5 minutes. If you fail to answer or get it wrong, you will be punished.]
[Buggy: "WHAT?! Who gave you permission to nominate me?! Damn system doesn't follow rules!"]
Buggy's eyes were wide with shock. He felt like he'd just stepped on a landmine.
Meanwhile, his crew was… celebrating.
"Captain Buggy, it's your time to shine!"
"I bet we're gonna win a Devil Fruit this time!"
"You're the smartest pirate alive, Captain!"
Buggy, meanwhile, tried to act cool:
"Tch, you think flattery will work on me?"
But secretly, he was grinning.
Until the panic set in again.
How the hell was he supposed to answer this?
Suddenly, familiar names popped up on the chat.
[Luffy: "Buggy! Don't mess this up! I wanna see you again! If you get it wrong, we might never meet!"]
[Buggy: "Who the hell wants to see you?! I haven't even answered yet. What if I get it right?!"]
[Red-Haired Shanks: "@Buggy – Long time no see, buddy!"]
[Buggy: "@Shanks – Don't 'buddy' me! It's your fault I ate the Devil Fruit in the first place!"]
[Shanks: "What?! We were both just trainees on Roger's ship! How is it my fault?"]
[Luffy: "WHOA! Buggy and Shanks know each other?! This is amazing!"]
The world was shocked.
Buggy and Shanks—former crewmates on the ship of the Pirate King Roger?!
No one expected that!
Even Buggy's own crew were stunned.
"Captain, you're amazing! You actually know one of the Four Emperors!"
"I knew it! You're secretly super powerful!"
"Forget Four Emperors—we have the Fifth: Captain Buggy!"
Buggy's face lit up as his ego was fed with endless flattery.
He was loving every second of it.
But then reality hit again: he had to answer.
Backing out now would destroy the image his crew just built up.
He began to analyze.
Based on what he knew of the Navy—and especially Akainu—they definitely wouldn't spare the refugees.
They were witnesses.
Survivors of the Navy's dark side.
There was no way the Navy would let them live.
Buggy clenched his fists.
This was dangerous.
But he had to answer.
[Buggy: "Fine! If I die, I die! But what if I'm right?!"]