Surviving a Challenge.

Luffy's has spent his time with his other "inmates". Most, if not all of them, excluded the boy due to his childish actions and naiveness towards the situation they're in. I mean sure, they're just kids in between the ages of 5 to 7, but most of them have already coped with the fact that they're screwed and no one would help them.

The last thing they need is a loudmouth blabbering all the time and trying to get in their business, because they know that they should only care for themselves. Luffy would sing horrible songs during the "exercises", talk to everyone despite never getting an answer and would treat everything as a game.

Another day, another chance to see his "friends", at least that's what Luffy thought.

"Greenie!!! Good morning!" Luffy greeted his green-haired roomie.

"Shut up…it's too early for your nonsense."

"Hey, hey, will you finally tell me your name?" Luffy.

"Ugh! If I tell you, will you stop bothering me?"

"Sure."

"My name is Zoro. Now, let me sleep." Zoro.

"Cool name. Zoro…Zoro, Zoro, feels familiar for some reason." Luffy.

After several minutes later, both kids were fed up and went to do more tests. Luffy, Zoro and some of the other kids managed to finish them on time, including the other 19 that Luffy deemed as "familiar".

Luffy saw the orange-haired girl talking with the light blue haired one and the dark haired with blue eyes.

"Yo! What are you playing?" Luffy.

The girls looked at Luffy with skepticism but the orange-haired one answered.

"We're just talking about stuff."

"Cool! My name is Luffy by the way." Luffy.

The orange hair girl was hesitant to give her name but, there was something about Luffy that made her believe in him.

"Nami." The girl answered.

"I'm Vivi, and this is Karoo." Added the light-blue haired girl pointing towards her small pet duck.

"...…Robin." The black-haired girl with blue eyes.

Luffy's eyes shine and he begins to jump out of happiness.

"Yay! I made three more friends!" Luffy is running around in circles.

The girls simply look at him with confusion. Luffy stops celebrating and goes towards the three girls.

"So, what do you want to play?" Luffy.

"Play?" Nami.

"Yeah, play. We should be having fun instead of having to wait here getting bored." Luffy.

"You do realize the situation we're in, right?" Robin.

"Situation?" Luffy.

"We're all currently prisoners in this facility, fit only to be test subjects for whatever purposes the higher ups have." Robin.

"I see...…so, what do you want to play?" Luffy.

"WE'RE IN NO CONDITION TO PLAY!!!" The three girls yell at Luffy.

"But why not?!" Luffy.

"Robin just told you! We're never free to do anything in here, we'll be forever used and then disposed of after being deemed useless. We can't waste our energy playing mindless games." Vivi.

"Hmm...… I don't like it! I'll live as freely as I possibly can, and that means to do everything I want!" Luffy stated, bringing the attention of several kids.

Luffy decides to run off elsewhere and play by himself and left the girls wondering about something.

"If what he says is true, then why hasn't he tried to escape?" Vivi.

"Aro!" Karoo.

"Maybe he's not THAT dumb?" Nami.

"No, I believe that he has deeper reasons to not escape." Robin.

"Well, you've always been the smartest nee-san." Nami.

While the girls were pondering about Luffy's true goals, the other kids had some thoughts of themselves.

'That bastard! How dare he hoard all those beautiful girls!' Swirly eyebrows kid.

'Such a foolish kid.' Snake earrings girl.

'That…was…SO COOL!' Green mohawk kid.

'I want to play but, no one will play with a monster like me.' Reindeer.

'He will probably die before the year ends.' Magenta-haired boy with scarf.

"Pay-tan, Pay-tan! That kid is such an idiot!" Blue-haired girl with mask.

"Nee-san, you're too loud." Purple-haired boy with mask.

"Did you just say that I'm loud!? What part of me is loud?!!!" Blue-haired girl with mask.

'That kid thinks he's SUPER? Hmph! Such a waste of space.' Kid in trousers.

'Yo-ho-ho-ho-ho! Such a nice change of pace from the usual gloom.' Slim kid with afro.

'His voice is really annoying.' White and red-haired girl.

'Why isn't he trying to escape if he wants to be free?' White-haired girl with light blue tips.

'That kid is crazy, 100% delusional!' Long-nosed kid.

'I pity whoever follows that kid.' Blue-skinned kid.

"What do you think, Sabo?"

"He's not bad, a little too dumb but overall, not bad. What about you, Ace?" Sabo.

"Maybe, I want to test him a little further." Ace.

"As strict as always I see." Sabo.

'He seems interesting, maybe playing a little won't be so bad.' Bunny girl.

Luffy kept playing using his rubber powers for the rest of the day, including during the tests.

The days passed and Luffy hadn't made much progress with Zoro, Nami, Vivi, Robin and the other kids. He didn't had time to think about that though, because there was an important announcement for today.

"Listen up defectives. We'll be starting the "selection" soon. Ask for anything you'll need to fight, remember, if you fail, you'll die." Thug.

The thug leaves and some kids begin to panic.

"Umm…what's that selection thingy?" Luffy.

"It's an event that happens every three years, all of the kids will enter a nonstop battle against wild animals and monsters. Those who live will be transferred to a place known as "Creek" and the rest will be...disposed." Zoro.

"Disposed? As in…" Luffy.

"Killed, exactly that Luffy." Robin.

"I see...Everyone! let's do our best!" Luffy tried to cheer the mood up but failed.

"They look even more agitated now." Robin.

"Hmm…! I don't like this at all." Luffy.

"I really hope that you fail this test, can't stand a single day more with you in here." Zoro.

"Waa...that was harsh." Vivi.

"Don't worry Zoro, I will surely pass." Luffy.

"Didn't you listen to me?!" Zoro.

The girls giggle at the interaction and begin to talk about how to survive the selection.

After a few hours, the kids were taken to a big room with a monitor and a door. The monitor turned on and a person spoke.

"Greetings, dear test subjects." Spoke a man.

The man was an rather young scientist wearing a suit.

"Now, I know some of you may know what will happen during these "tests", but for those who don't, I'll explain."

"You'll be spending the next 12 hours fighting four your lives against…let's call them failed test subjects. Those who survive for said 12 hours will get rewarded."

"And if we lose?!" Luffy asked.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! It's the first time I ever see a subject like yourself being so carefree. Fine, I'll humor your question. Those who fail are going to die, without any type of mercy, we'll use your bodies for even more experiments and possibly transformed into monsters." Man.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!" Kids.

'The terror in the faces of children…. I can never let go of this sensation! Now, what about that other chi-------'Man.

"I see…GUYS! LET'S SURVIVE ALL!!!" Luffy yelled.

The once scared kids that were running in panic for some reason stopped. They felt relaxed for some reason, they didn't have any reason to trust or even listen to Luffy, but hearing him saying those words, really helped them.

The scientist saw the scene and his face darkened.

'How dare you ruin my fun! I'll make your test ten times harder!' Scientist.

A certain magenta-haired kid got somewhat of an idea about what went through the scientist's head and smirked.

'Nice going, kid.'

The monitor went off and a thug took a microphone to explain the situation.

"I'll be calling your names and you'll enter your respective doors." Thug.

The thug called one kid after another until a known face was called.

"Roronoa Zoro, it's your turn." Thug.

'Roronoa?!' Nami.

'THAT Roronoa, right?!' Vivi.

'Isn't Roronoa THAT family name?' Long-nosed kid.

'Interesting.' Robin.

"Roronoa? So, your name is Roronoa huh, Zoro?!" Luffy spoke to his "friend".

"So what?" Zoro.

"Nothing, I thought it was interesting!" Luffy.

'Is he an idiot?' Zoro.

Zoro entered the cabin holding three swords in his waist and a bandana in his head.

'How is he planning to use 3 swords?' Everyone.

The guard received an order from his coms and stopped Zoro from entering.

"What's the idea?" Zoro.

"There has been a new arrangement to surpass this test." Guard.

"Monkey D Luffy, you'll only be able to participate in this specific test as long as you are also betting the lives of these participants: Portgas Ace, Goa Sabo, Roronoa Zoro, Chizu Nami, Sogeki Usopp, Tony-Tony Chopper, Vinsmoke Sanji, Shinda Brook, Nefertari Vivi, Shīrudo Bartolomeo, Kemononoō Yamato, Charlotte Katakuri, Kyōryū Ulti, Kyōryū Pendragon, Fanta Franky, Nico Robin, Ado Uta, Senpū Jinbe, Boa Hancock, Yasei Carrot."

"Due to some changes in this test, all of you will be unable to perform it, however, as I previously mentioned, Monkey D Luffy. You will be taking their challenges as your own, if you fail, so will they. And viceversa." Guard.

The kids' eyes widened in surprise and despair after hearing this.

"That's not fair!" Yamato.

"Why let a man represent me?!" Hancock.

"Of course, you can forfeit this challenge and get punished in return. But the rest will suffer an even worst fate for not doing the challenge." The guard explained with a wicked smile.

"We're dead, nee-san!" Pendragon.

"Huh?! Who the hell are you to tell me what to do---" Ulti got cut off due to her getting tazed.

A guard almost 3 meters tall tazed Ulti and was stepping on her back out of fun.

"NEE-SAMA!!!" Pendragon.

Pendragon began transforming into a Spinosaurus but got smacked down in an instant.

"Hey! I will do the test, so stop bothering everyone!" Luffy.

"You got some nerve telling me what to do, kid!" Guard.

"Bullet! Stop playing and throw the kid into the chamber, we can always take our time to "discipline" the rest later." Thug.

"Hehe! Sorry. I get easily riled up by their nonsense." Bullet.

Bullet grabs Luffy from the head and brutally throws him to his chamber.

"Let's see if he can survive." Bullet.

The kids watch the chamber as it closes down and resign any hope they had about surviving.

"Don't be idiotic, the professor said that those Nomu's were 30 out of 100% near perfection. No way a 5-year-old can defeat them." Thug.

"Green Bull, remember that I killed a whole gang of Yakuza when I was a brat as well. Never underestimate a person in the brink of death with nothing to lose. When you're about to die, your body excerpts everything it has for you to survive." Bullet.

Luffy gets up from the floor and sees nothing, the whole room is completely dark but he could hear the hisses of some strange beings.

'If I die, I will take them with me, was it?' Luffy.

The hisses became louder and some silhouettes were becoming more visible.

'I don't want that! If I'm going to die, then I'll die by myself!'

A being jumped out of the shadows and prepared to engulf Luffy.

'I WON'T DIE!!!' Luffy looked at the beast in front of him and punched it.

The moment the punch landed, Luffy unconsciously generated a shockwave of raw power from within himself and pushed back the creatures, he did not defeat them, but managed to lower their abilities.

Luffy realized what happened to the beasts and wondered what he did.

'What…was that just now?'

Before he could think about it more, Luffy defended himself from a creature that lunged at him.

(Outside the chamber)

"Now, kids. Enjoy your final moments, I mean rest, while the professor habilitates the monitor of the chamber." Green Bull spoke faking a smile.

"We're dead! We're so dead Vivi, Robin!" Nami cried to her friends.

"Such a cruel ending to our existences, maybe we'll meet again in the afterlife." Robin.

Nami begins to cry harder.

"You shouldn't say such things, Robin-san." Vivi.

"Don't you think its odd?" Uta interrupted their conversation.

The trio looked at the girl thinking about what she just said.

"They added our tests difficulty to his and made him take such a hard choice, why?" Uta.

"It could be the work of that creepy scientist." Zoro joined the conversation.

At this point, all the kids were listening to the conversation.

"What do you mean?" Vivi.

"That scientist enjoys watching kids cry and despair, I saw his creepy smile while everyone was crying earlier." Zoro.

"What does that have to do with Luffy?" Nami.

"It probably was the fact that he was not in despair even once, we've all done our fair share of crying at least once, he probably has the sick pleasure of seeing Luffy cry." Robin answered.

"What a psycho!" Nami.

Their thoughts and attention were driven to the screen that was turning on, what they saw left them astonished.