After stirring up a few bouts of chaos, Buggy finally managed to hide himself away in a narrow alley. At this point, he didn't have many Buggy Balls left, and lingering too long meant risking capture.
He darted between shadowy alleys, constantly avoiding patrolling Marines. He didn't dare show his face — if even a trace of him were discovered, the Marines would swarm in an instant.
His recent antics had completely infuriated Captain Endless. In response, the Marines had locked down every port on the island. Until Buggy was caught, no ships were allowed to set sail.
The pirates of Loguetown weren't having any luck either. The already-frantic Marines had begun rounding up anyone who even looked like a pirate. Bars, inns — even unfortunate gangsters and mobsters were being mistaken for pirates and hauled off. It served them right for acting like tyrants before.
The island had plunged into chaos. Under extreme pressure, the pirates started to revolt. Gunfire echoed through the streets, smoke filled the air. Some took the opportunity to loot and slaughter, then gathered their crews and attempted to break through the Marine blockade to escape into the sea.
"GYAHAHAHA! Let this grand feast be the birth of the name 'Bluebeard'!"
A flamboyantly dressed pirate, wielding a massive nine-ring broadsword, stood before two terrified sisters clinging to each other.
Raising his blade, Bluebeard prepared to strike. The girls, faces full of despair, shut their eyes, waiting for death to come.
But death never arrived.
Instead, they heard a heavy thud. When they dared to open their eyes, the pirate's head was already separated from his body, which now lay crumpled on the ground.
In the distance, a young man stood holding a small dagger — a blade so tiny it seemed almost alive, dancing between his fingers with graceful lethality.
Each flick of the knife saw another pirate silently fall to the ground.
The sisters looked back toward the street he'd come from — it was now littered with the corpses of pirates.
...
...
That moment was forever etched into their memories.
Weiss walked through the bloodstained streets, unsure himself how many pirates he had slain. They were just grunts — if he had mastered Conqueror's Haki, a mere glance would've been enough to wipe them out.
As he expected, only a rare few in this world set out to sea in pursuit of freedom or dreams. The majority simply wanted a way to vent their inner violence.
Some had been bullied, some oppressed, others deceived. But the moment they became pirates, they unleashed the darkest parts of themselves.
The vast majority of pirates were evil.
Weiss couldn't help but regret not awakening Conqueror's Haki. With it, he could have brought most of them down in one fell swoop.
But then again, with the strength of Loguetown's population, even a single burst might knock out everyone.
Half an hour later, the sound of gunfire began to fade.
The Marines weren't pushovers. After the initial wave of pirate resistance, they quickly adapted their strategy — opening up one port and slowly compressing the pirates' territory from the inside out, forcing them step by step toward the sea.
Now that there was a way out, the pirates lost their will to fight to the death. Escape became their only goal.
"Lieutenant, are we really just going to let those pirates set sail? Isn't that letting them off too easy?" one Marine asked, clearly frustrated.
"You think Captain Endless is going to let them get away?" the lieutenant replied with a smirk. "Don't underestimate his sense of justice. Haven't you noticed? Every Navy warship is gone from the base."
"You mean…?" The Marine's eyes lit up.
"Let's go. Back to Loguetown. There are still pirates active in the city. Push them toward the sea. Then let our brothers bury them beneath the waves. A bunch of damn scum!" The squad marched onward with renewed purpose.
---
Meanwhile, what was the root cause of all this chaos — Buggy — doing?
He was hiding inside a dark alley, curled up inside a box bolted to the wall. He peered through a tiny gap to observe the outside.
A squad of Marines stood at the mouth of the alley, talking among themselves, though Buggy couldn't make out exactly what they were saying.
"Huh? Lieutenant, there are a pair of legs over there."
"Probably some old doll's legs. Don't let your guard down — we're dealing with the notorious pirate Buggy."
As the Marines moved on, Buggy let out a long sigh of relief. In just five minutes, he had seen at least three Marine squads pass by. He didn't dare make a move — the foot soldiers didn't scare him, but if he ran into a Marine captain or, worse, Weiss, it'd be game over.
There would be no escape.
"Captain? Are you in there?"
The sudden voice startled Buggy so much he almost screamed. He thought he'd been caught. But when he recognized the voice, he relaxed — it was Mohji.
"Mohji?! How'd you find me?!"
"Captain… your legs are sticking out."
Buggy popped his head out of the box, only to see a pair of bare feet sticking out beneath him. Mohji was riding Richie, the giant lion, whose massive body blocked the entrance to the alley.
Buggy had hidden himself inside an old honey crate. Don't ask how it could fit a person — this was anime logic. When he'd squeezed in, he'd instinctively used his Devil Fruit powers… but forgot to bring his legs with him.
Anyone unfamiliar with his powers would've assumed the legs belonged to a discarded doll.
Jumping out of the box, Buggy patted Mohji's shoulder. "Good man! You're the only one who's come to find your great captain! I hereby promote you to first mate!"
Under normal circumstances, Mohji would've leapt with joy. He and Cabaji had been locked in a constant struggle for that title.
But this time, Mohji was teary-eyed. "Captain, I did try to bring the ship around to pick you up… but that bastard Cabaji took the ship and ran! He's a traitor!"
He wiped his eyes dramatically. If that jerk hadn't sailed off, Mohji would never have come back here. Loguetown was a death trap! He had barely escaped multiple times by pretending to be a circus animal trainer!
"What?! That damn Cabaji! I treated him so well, and he dares abandon the great Captain Buggy?!"
Buggy was so enraged that his body once again flew apart into pieces, flailing mid-air.
He was livid.
"Captain... maybe you should surrender? The Marines are everywhere. They've let the other pirates escape and are now focusing all their efforts on capturing you."
"It's fine, Captain," Mohji said carefully. "With your strength and reputation, they'll probably just lock you up in Impel Down. Even Golden Lion escaped from there — surely the heroic Captain Buggy could, too."
Buggy stood tall, hands on his hips, grinning proudly. "Exactly! Impel Down? With my wits and powers, I could break out in no time!"
(In the original story, because Buggy's Devil Fruit abilities weren't well-known, the Marines treated him like a regular pirate — allowing him to escape and eventually meet Luffy.)
"Like hell I'm getting caught! Why don't you go to Impel Down instead, huh?!"
Buggy snapped, unaware that Mohji was staring behind him in terror.
"…Buggy. You're under arrest."
---
Currently at chapter 425 on Ko-Fi
https:// ko-fi.com/sami27