I thought about how I'd handle Gear 5 if I were Oda without retconning the fruit to be a zoan

>The fruit was actually the stretch stretch fruit, it allows the user to bend reality to their will
>by default the user's body gets rubber like properties since it's stretchy carbon, it takes on the rubber properties
>it's one of the "God fruits", a fruit chosen by the gods itself
>God fruits have their own destinies just like zoans have their own wills
>the reality stretching only happens once awakened, just like any other paramecia that when awakened effects the environment
>the awakening condition for the fruit was an extremely strong body, advanced CoC. Things Luffy's bloodline has
>God fruits have special conditions that when an awakener meets, allows them the properties of that god
>The property was to be of the monkey bloodline, who had extremely strong bodies and could create special flames from their fist
>when Luffy "died" to Kaido the condition was met and he awakened his fruit subconsciously, reality warping the flames of his bloodline to be sun flames and gaining sun god powers
>this fanfic Gear 5 behaves just like real Gear 5 but without retconning to be a zoan fruit.
>It was the fruit chose Luffy because of it, just like a zoan. It has a god's will.
>The reason the Gorosei didn't know until late in the series that Luffy had it was because they thought Ace had it
>they thought Ace was the special "Joyboy" bloodline that created flames with his fist and by defacto later Roger must have been the descendant of Joyboy, not Garp
>they thought Whitebeard was protecting him for this reason, Shanks delivered the fruit to Roger's son in the East Blue and not Luffy, and this is why Marinefold was such a big deal
>They didn't realize until Luffy started using Red Hawk in Dressarosa on Doffy that he had the real fruit. The marines reported it.
>they realized by Doflamingo bragging that Ace's fruit was the mera mera that Ace never had the real Gomu Gomu