"Kahahaha! Can you believe this? Just three rookies, and they think they can challenge me, the great Captain Buggy! You've got guts, I'll give you that!"
Floating in the air, Buggy was laughing like a madman.
The menacing look on his face made the mayor break out in a cold sweat.
Buggy's laughter snapped Nami out of her daze.
She seemed to remember what she was there for, and her expression turned serious.
Luffy glanced at Buggy, then turned to Ray.
"I'll take the clown!"
"Fine."
Ray nodded, then casually grabbed Chouchou by the scruff of his neck and carried the little dog out of the way.
The butcher and his wife were completely baffled.
Were they just going to start fighting?
Just like that?
Then why did they even bother coming along? Clearly, this was about more than just those two goons from earlier.
Just as the butcher was about to try and explain things to Buggy, Luffy had already charged forward.
"Come on, you two! Don't get caught in the crossfire!" At Ray's call, the couple had no choice but to hurry over to his side.
"Sir, how strong is your friend?" the butcher asked nervously.
"He's not bad."
"Not bad?! Aren't you worried he'll get hurt?" the woman asked, concerned by Ray's casual assessment.
"I'm here arent i?."
After that short reply, Ray ignored them and started talking to the little dog.
"Sit. Good boy. Shake. Hmm, not bad at all."
Seeing Ray so relaxed, the couple could only look at each other helplessly.
The woman suddenly remembered the mayor was still out in the open and urged her husband to bring him over to safety.
But when the butcher returned with the mayor, he found his wife once again staring at Ray with hearts in her eyes, practically drooling.
At this point, even the mayor was giving the butcher a weird look.
The poor man just sighed, already accepting his fate.
…
Meanwhile, Luffy had already launched a fierce attack on Buggy.
"Gum-Gum… GATLING!"
His fists blurred, becoming a Gatling gun of rubber that completely surrounded Buggy.
With a final roar, Luffy's punches slammed into their target, sending the clown flying into a building in the distance.
Nami saw her chance.
She slipped away into the alleys, heading for Buggy's base.
~
Luffy landed while frowning.
He recalled the feeling of his punches.
Out of that entire barrage, he felt like only the very last one had actually connected with something solid—Buggy's hand.
That strange sensation told him this wasn't going to be an easy fight.
Just then, another massive explosion rocked the town.
A Buggy Bomb.
The shockwave tore through another row of houses, including the one Zoro was sleeping in and the spot where Ray and the others were standing.
As the dust settled, Zoro crawled out of the rubble, letting out a huge yawn.
Meanwhile, a silvery-white glow had protected Ray and the others from the blast.
A closer look revealed that the protective barrier was coming from the little dog, Chouchou.
The mayor, who was still trying to process Luffy's rubber arms, was now staring at Chouchou with his jaw on the floor.
He was pretty sure he'd never seen anything so bizarre in his entire life.
Yet the butcher still looked deeply worried, even after seeing how strong Ray's group was.
…
In the distance, Buggy slowly walked out of the wreckage, followed by his crew, including Cabaji the Acrobat, who was balancing on a unicycle.
Cabaji flicked his long hair. "Captain, allow me to handle these small-timers."
Buggy grinned. "You take the pirate hunter. Straw Hat is mine." He then turned to the rest of his crew.
"And next time, no one fires a Buggy Bomb without my order!"
His sharp gaze made his men sweat—especially the one-armed, black-nosed clown, who was the one who had suggested it to Cabaji in the first place.
"Yes, Captain! It won't happen again!" Cabaji called out, stepping forward.
"Kahahahaha! Fine, I'll let it slide this time. Now, let's take care of these rookies who were stupid enough to challenge us!"
"YEAH!" the crew roared.
With that, Cabaji charged toward Zoro on his unicycle, while Buggy slowly advanced on Luffy.
The black-nosed clown saw that only Ray's group was left open and eagerly pointed, sending the rest of the crew charging in their direction.
~
Zoro smirked as Cabaji pedaled toward him. Ignoring the sharp pain in his side, he tied on his bandana and settled into his Three-Sword Style.
Luffy had warned him that Buggy was mysteriously strong, so he should be careful with his men.
"Let's see what the Buggy Pirates are really made of!"
As Cabaji closed in, Zoro's eyes sharpened.
"Three-Sword Style: Ogre Cutter!" (Oni giri)
Their bodies flashed past each other.
Three bloody gashes erupted across Cabaji's chest, and his eyes rolled into the back of his head as he collapsed, out cold.
Zoro sheathed his swords, his lips twitching in annoyance.
"This… is really pathetic."
The guy's speed and skill were worse than his own from years ago.
Not even worthy for a warm-up.
"But Luffy said to be careful… cough!" Zoro spat out some blood.
His injury flaring up as he leaned against the rubble to catch his breath and watch Luffy's fight.
As for Ray's situation? Zoro didn't waste a single thought worrying about it.
~
And he was right not to.
Ray hadn't moved an inch.
Standing in front of him was Chouchou—who was now a five-meter-long, three-meter-tall white dog covered in glowing symbols.
With casual swipes of its massive claws, it was sending waves of Buggy's pirates flying.
The mayor wiped his glasses, his pupils shrinking to pinpricks.
He'd lived for sixty years, and now he was seeing a mythical beast with his own two eyes.
Chouchou's claws tore through the pirates and the rubble alike, painting the ground red.
In less than a minute, only the black-nosed clown was left.
Chouchou picked him up in his jaws, trotted over, and dropped him at Ray's feet before sitting down like a good boy.
~
Meanwhile, the real battle raged on.
Buggy was using his Chop-Chop powers, splitting his body apart to dodge every one of Luffy's attacks.
No matter how fast Luffy punched, Buggy's hands, feet, and torso would just float out of the way.
"Is this all you've got, Straw Hat?" Buggy taunted, his head floating calmly in the air.
Luffy was getting frustrated.
If this kept up, he'd run out of energy.
"I've seen enough of what you can do, Straw Hat," Buggy declared. "Now it's my turn. Prepare to lose."
With that, Buggy's body split into dozens of pieces.
Then, under Luffy's shocked gaze, every single one of those floating parts suddenly turned jet-black and shot toward him.
"Armament Haki!" Zoro and Luffy shouted at the exact same time.