"Ohhh, I'm so full!" Luffy stretched out on the dock, belly round like a drum.
"Mute! Mute!" Rokuro signaled to Murkrow perched nearby, then crouched down, opening his cloth pouch to retrieve a handful of gleaming silver baits—his special chakra-infused fish lures.
"Hey! Don't handle bait while I'm eating!" Luffy groaned, rolling away dramatically.
"You ate three grilled sea kings. You're not allowed to complain," Rokuro muttered.
Zoro, now chewing a toothpick after polishing off his own meal, muttered, "I don't care what you do, just don't try to fish me next time."
"You turned into a damn shark!" Rokuro resorted. "Who bites the bait and yells 'MEAT' like a maniacal predator?!"
Zoro smirked and half-drew his sword. "You trying to start something, fisherman?"
"Relax!" Rokuro grinned. "We've eaten. Time to punch someone."
He threw five Berries on the table and exited the small tavern with Zoro. The innkeeper peeked out from behind a curtain, relieved the three human vacuum cleaners were finally leaving.
After knocking out a few drunken pirates who tried to rob them ("Wrong move, buddy," Zoro warned as he unsheathed Wado Ichimonji), the pair made their way through the maze-like town.
Ahead loomed a garishly tall building painted red and white with a massive clown face on the front: unmistakably Buggy the Clown's hideout.
"The ego on this guy…" Rokuro muttered.
Inside Buggy's Base
Buggy the Clown twirled a wine glass and cackled under a string of carnival lights. "Rejoice, my loyal minions! Tonight we celebrate the return of the Grand Line sea chart—and the arrival of my newest partner! The dazzling, deadly… Nami!"
His crew of ragtag pirates erupted in drunken cheers, gobbling down meat and chugging grog.
Nami, seated near Buggy but visibly distant, kept glancing toward the rusty cage in the center of the hall—where Luffy sat, grinning like a fool.
Despite herself, she tossed a meat skewer toward him.
Luffy's face lit up. "Nami! You're so nice! Be my navigator!"
Nami's face froze. Buggy's did too.
"You feeding prisoners now, sweetheart?" Buggy said, voice calm but eyes glinting dangerously.
"No—uh, I—I just…" Nami stammered.
Luffy didn't help. "She's got a kind heart! She even tried to help me earlier!"
Buggy rose, his wide grin flattening. "Straw Hat… You think being a pirate is some sort of picnic? That cage you're in? That's your coffin."
He stepped forward slowly, eyes fixed on the iconic straw hat. "Where did you get that hat?"
"Huh? This? From Shanks!" Luffy said proudly.
The atmosphere snapped taut like a stretched rope.
Buggy's expression twisted. "Shanks… You dare say that name in front of me!"
The crew around them fell silent. Even Nami, who'd once considered Buggy an idiot, felt a wave of killing intent that reminded her of Arlong—the same aura of casual violence.
"Red nose…" Luffy muttered aloud. "You know Shanks?"
Gasps swept the room.
"Red… nose…?" Buggy trembled.
"HE SAID RED NOSE!" panicked crewmates cried, diving for cover.
Buggy's head tilted. He began laughing.
"Hahahaha! You've done it now, Straw Hat. Someone bring out the Buggy Bomb!"
A large wheeled cannon was rolled in, its cannonball painted with a hideous clown grin.
He handed a torch to Nami.
"Burn him," he said softly. "Or I'll blow you away too. Your choice, little thief."
He walked off with a flourish, leaving Nami frozen.
Nami's hands trembled. Buggy's aura had paralyzed her.
Can I really do this? Risk my life… for this idiot?
A crewmember growled. "If she won't light it, I will!" He grabbed the torch and stepped forward.
WHACK!
Nami slammed a metal rod down on his head. Sparks scattered, the fire extinguished. Her hands bled from gripping the hot handle.
Rokuro, hidden on the upper balcony, felt a lump rise in his throat.
"I— I didn't mean to…" Nami whispered, shocked by her own action.
Luffy blinked, then grinned. "Hehe… Knew you wanted to be our navigator!"
"SHUT UP, YOU RUBBER MORON!" Nami snapped.
But then she turned, placing her back to Luffy's cage.
"I'm not like you pirates," she said, voice shaking. "I'll never be someone who tramples on innocent lives for treasure!"
Buggy turned back, eyes shadowed.
"I see now," he sneered. "Anyone who plays me, Captain Buggy, gets a front-row seat in hell. KILL THEM!"
Dozens of pirates surged forward.
Nami stared at the wall of death rushing toward her.
"Run, Nami!" Luffy screamed, thrashing inside the iron cage. "RUN!"
But the attack never came.
Because a fireball slammed into the charging mob, engulfing them in searing heat.
BOOM!
"Art: Fire Style — Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Rokurostood at the gate, a rotund pirate form melting away as transformation chakra dispersed.
His Sharingan spun faintly, smoke swirling behind him.
"Whoa…" one pirate whimpered. "The fat guy—wasn't ours?!"
As the embers faded, Rokuro sprinted to Nami and crushed her in a hug.
"NAMIII!! Finally, we found you! Do you know how chaotic it's been without you?! I nearly DIED from Zoro's cooking!!"
"…Huh?" Nami blinked, completely lost.
Luffy, face pressed against cage bars, lit up. "Rokuro?! You were the fat guy?!"
"Shut it, Luffy!" Rokuro growled, wiping fake tears. "I've missed your punches, Nami! We need you to keep this crew in check!"
Nami stared. "Are you… emotionally unstable or something?"
Buggy snarled. "DO YOU THINK I'M JUST HERE FOR LAUGHS?!"
His detached limbs reassembled midair, a show of his Chop-Chop Fruit powers. "You'll regret mocking Captain Buggy!"
But just as he lunged—
"Three-Sword Style: Oni Giri!"
SLASH!
Zoro landed with a crash, slicing Buggy's torso into pieces.
But the body parts floated midair.
"Tch," Zoro muttered. "So it's true. Chop-Chop Fruit. Can't be cut."
Buggy cackled as his limbs zipped around. "You can't defeat me with blades alone!"
Rokuro groaned. "Idiot No. 2 arrived! And he didn't get lost this time—miracle!"
"I HEARD THAT!" Zoro snapped.
"Still true!"
"BOTH OF YOU SHUT UP!" Nami yelled.
Luffy grinned. "Zoro! Rokuro! LET ME OUT!!