On the Buggy Pirates' ship...
Alvida hefted her giant iron mace.
"Captain Buggy," she said, a little nervously, "the Marines must have noticed us by now."
But Buggy didn't seem to hear her.
His clown makeup kept him in a permanent grin, but in reality, his expression was solemn.
"Tomorrow," he said quietly, "marks 22 years since Captain Roger's execution."
Hearing the somber tone in his voice, Alvida and Cabaji caught on.
"So those statues..." Cabaji said, "...you made them for him? That's really thoughtful, Captain Buggy."
The rest of the crew sighed in admiration, showering their captain with praise.
"So loyal and righteous!"
"A strategic genius!"
"So handsome and powerful!"
The compliments just kept coming.
Buggy listened, looking very satisfied, and his heavy mood started to lift.
He burst into his signature hearty laugh, but a few moments later, his expression became serious again.
"My men," he said, his voice ringing out, "this plan is extremely risky. Are you afraid?"
"NOT AFRAID!"
"WE'LL FOLLOW CAPTAIN BUGGY TO THE DEATH!"
"ALIVE AS BUGGY'S MEN, DEAD AS BUGGY'S GHOSTS!"
With every cheer from his crew, Buggy's aura seemed to grow stronger.
He flew up into the sky, spread his arms wide, and issued a final command.
"My men, let the Marines feel my wrath!"
"┗|｀O′|┛ Roar~~!"
…
That furious roar just so happened to be heard by Smoker, who had just arrived at the shore.
"Dammit," he growled. "This doesn't look good."
He let out a puff of smoke. "Sorry, Hina. Looks like I have to take on Buggy now."
He didn't have a choice.
Judging by Buggy's aggressive entrance, there was no way he was going to be able to stall him for a single day.
Coincidentally, Ray had also just arrived at the scene.
He was sitting in a tavern not far from the shore, watching Buggy's ship and the massive floating islands get closer and closer.
He was actually a little interested.
'This Buggy guy sure knows how to make an entrance,' he thought.
Ray knew that after all of Buggy's recent antics, the Marines had to be ready for him.
And yet, Loguetown was completely peaceful.
There was no sense of panic or tension.
That was weird.
If he hadn't seen this for himself, he might have thought their trip here would be smooth sailing.
But now, he was sure of it: the Marines had set a trap.
He took a slow sip of his drink and noticed a white-haired figure standing on the shore.
'That must be Smoker. If he confronts Buggy now, isn't he going to ruin the Marines' whole plan?'
But then Ray just shook his head.
From what he remembered, Smoker was a total maverick who almost never listened to his orders from HQ.
'How interesting,' Ray thought, settling in to watch the show.
…
Five minutes later, Buggy's ship was about to dock at the western coast.
The sailors and farmers on the shore, and the people in the bars, all started to notice the giant chunks of island floating in the sky.
On the dock, a sailor was so terrified he dropped the cargo he was carrying.
"What is that?"
"Is it a natural disaster?"
People started dropping what they were doing and running for their lives.
In a nearby bar, a group of thugs saw it too.
"Holy crap, am I drunk? Look at the coast!"
"Damn, is that land flying in the sky?"
"There's a ship under it! Hey, that pirate flag looks familiar..."
"Let me see."
When the thugs got a clear look at the jolly roger, they all jumped up in shock.
Involuntarily, they all said the same name: "Buggy the Clown."
"Quick, go tell the boss! Something big is about to go down!"
They threw some coins on the table and rushed out of the bar.
"Hey, why is that white-haired guy still just sitting there?" one of them asked.
"Don't mind him. He's dead meat when those islands fall. Finding the boss is more important."
…
Finally, the pirate ship docked.
Smoker stood at the harbor, his expression grim, as Buggy stepped onto the shore.
"Buggy," Smoker said, "what is the meaning of this?"
Buggy recognized him and just grinned.
"Kahahaha! If it isn't the White Hunter, Smoker! What, trying to stop me from coming ashore?"
The second he finished speaking, Alvida, Cabaji, and the rest of his crew all got into fighting stances.
They knew that Smoker and their boss had been rivals for years, always fighting to a draw.
Even if Buggy had gotten stronger, they couldn't underestimate the Marine in front of them.
He wasn't some branch captain; he was from Marine Headquarters.
He was on a whole different level from the other Marines in the East Blue.
Seeing them get ready, Smoker pulled his jutte, a Seastone-tipped weapon, from his back.
He was feeling an immense amount of pressure.
He hadn't called for reinforcements because if those islands fell, they'd just be wiped out.
His only choice was to fight Buggy with his life on the line and try to force him to land the islands on the western coast, away from the main town.
With his resolve firm, he pointed his weapon at Buggy's face.
"Come on," he said, "let's see how much stronger you've really gotten."
But to his surprise, Buggy didn't seem to want to fight.
"White Hunter," Buggy said, "let's skip the fight today. I only came here for one reason."
Under Smoker's confused gaze, Buggy just took a deep breath and waved his hand.
The dozens of island fragments in the sky began to move, assembling into two huge, circular islands, each a kilometer wide.
With a thunderous CRASH, they landed in the sea right off the coast.
Smoker just frowned, completely baffled.
What was Buggy up to?
…
Sitting in the bar, watching the whole thing, Ray suddenly had an idea of what Buggy might be doing.
'Is this guy trying to declare war on the Marines?'
He could see something on the new islands—fragments of what looked like statues.
Sure enough, Buggy waved his hand again, and his power activated.
On the two small islands, the fragments rose up and started to piece themselves together.
Eventually, they formed two giant statues.
One of them was of Buggy the Clown himself.
The statue had its hands on its hips, laughing manically at the sky.
It was a pretty good likeness, but you could see a clear sense of malice in its eyes.
Ray's lips curled into a small smile.
"How narcissistic."
But when he looked at the other statue and he got serious.
It was of a man holding a saber, a confident expression on his face, and an aura of overwhelming power.
Just looking at it, you could feel the presence of a king.
It was a statue of the Pirate King himself—Gol D. Roger.
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