There was no way Uta would fight Ace. She didn't have particularly outstanding physical abilities, and this kid called Ace was clearly three or four years older than her. They weren't even in the same weight class.
This idiot Buggy wanted her to fight Ace—clearly something was wrong with his head!
"Ptah—got told off, huh, Buggy? You really have no authority as a captain, getting scolded by an apprentice. How embarrassing!" Shanks selectively forgot about his own low status on his own ship and started mocking Buggy.
"You're the same," Beckman called him out without hesitation.
Shanks wasn't bothered by that. Instead, he decided to tease Uta, this little miss who looked so prim and proper.
"Hey there, miss—is your name Uta? What a beautiful name. Sounds just like a song." Shanks' flattery was pretty ham-fisted.
"How about it? Want to come aboard our ship as an apprentice pirate? Sticking with a guy like Buggy will just turn you into a circus clown. We've got two apprentices on our ship you could hang out with!"
Saying this, Shanks slapped Ace on the back and shoved him forward. Ace stumbled, then turned around and glared at him.
"See? If you look closely, this kid's actually kind of handsome. If you join our ship, how about we make him your boyfriend?"
Buggy: ???
Uta: ???
Uta's relatively calm gaze lingered on Ace for a moment, then visibly turned to disgust.
"I don't want some dumb, rough, fighting-only brat as my boyfriend."
Ace: ???
Who are you calling a brat?
Ace hadn't even recovered from Shanks' embarrassing suggestion when he heard Uta's words of disdain, making him furious.
I, Ace, am not a brat!
"Shanks, you bastard! You want to steal my daughter for your crew, and you're trying to trick her with this dung-faced kid? Are you even human?!" Buggy was so angry his limbs disconnected, flying over to brawl with Shanks.
Neither of them used their real strength—it devolved into a street fight, rolling around on the deck. Buggy's detached hand pulled at Shanks' hair while Shanks yanked Buggy's red nose.
"So what? It's tradition for the Four Emperors to poach crew members when they meet, isn't it? If you've got a problem with it, you can poach mine!"
It was widely known that there were several unspoken rules among the Four Emperors. One was that when meeting a challenger, you first cut off one of their arms. Another was that when the Four Emperors met, they always had to poach at least one person first.
"Who would want that brat?!" Buggy said with visible disgust. In his eyes, this kid called Ace was nothing but a troublemaker. He had no intention of letting him join his crew.
Ace, who was right in the middle of that insufferable age, was somewhat hurt by this—but mostly defiant.
"Hey, aren't you guys going too far?" Enel and Beckman stepped in to stop the farce. These two were the reliable ones most of the time.
Though the former immediately turned into a love-struck puppy whenever Furaese was around, and the latter spent his free time flirting with girls at bars. Ren had once thought Makino's baby might belong to Shanks, but after learning about Beckman's true personality, he'd started to suspect it was actually Beckman's kid.
But that was just suspicion. As for the truth—who knew.
Shanks and Buggy finally stopped their street-level brawl thanks to the intervention of their respective vice captains, and both straightened out their clothes.
"So, Shanks—why the hell are you here?" Buggy asked.
"That's the question I should be asking, isn't it? Can't I come to the East Blue to pay my respects to my old captain?" Shanks brushed it off first, but he had no real intention of hiding it from Buggy. He revealed his target directly—the items being transported by the World Government.
So you see, if this isn't love!
"Items from the World Government, huh? Interesting—let me take a look too." Buggy's interest was piqued, and he didn't hold back at all.
"Hold on, Red-Nose—I know you're close with our captain, but this is the Red Hair Pirates' target. You planning to interfere?" Beckman was getting a little annoyed now.
It wasn't that he cared so much about the treasure—this wasn't Shanks' personal business. It was a Red Hair Pirates raid. Even if all they ended up with was a few Berries, there was no way they were letting the Buggy Pirates stick their noses in.
"That's how it is. You need to learn your boundaries, Buggy. This is our crew's business—if you try to get involved, we'll treat you as an enemy." Shanks didn't yield either, placing one hand on Griffin.
"Give me face—just leave, how about it? Next time we meet, we can still share a drink."
Hearing this, Enel's expression turned amused.
"What do we do, Captain? I think we're being threatened!"
"The mighty Red Hair Pirates—truly impressive. But don't forget, the one who took down that little kitty was me." Furaese echoed her captain's sentiment, delighting Enel to no end.
"Hey, I don't acknowledge that guy as a cat!" Nekomamushi immediately protested.
"If you want to fight, I'm ready anytime." Big dog Inuarashi gave off a reassuring presence.
"I—I don't really like fighting, but if it's the captain's orders…" Kawamatsu said timidly.
Uta: "How boring. I'm going back to the ship. Don't go too far."
Hearing his crew members speak up one after another, Buggy's smile grew wider and wider. The corners of his clown-painted mouth stretched all the way to his ears.
"You see? That's the situation. You want me to give you face, Shanks? You think you ate the Face-Face Fruit or something?"
Buggy grinned slyly while slipping several throwing knives between his fingers.
He was truly riding high right now. His crew backing him up like this didn't happen often—especially in front of Shanks. It made him feel like a proper captain for once, and the feeling was intoxicating.
As for that so-called World Government treasure—sure, he was curious, but he wasn't taking it too seriously.
What kind of treasure could be transported by a loser like that?
If it were a real treasure, shouldn't they have sent Garp or a Marine Admiral? Instead, those three who'd become Admirals were still babysitting a bunch of idiot Celestial Dragons. What a joke.
[
Dear Readers,
I hope you are doing well. I am writing to you today because I need to be completely honest — things are genuinely tough right now, and I cannot keep going without your help.
My financial situation is the worst it has ever been. I am struggling to stay afloat, and every bit of support matters more than I can put into words. I do not say this lightly, but I really need your help as much as you can give.
Despite everything, I am still posting 5 chapters every single day across all my active fictions. That is a relentless schedule, and I am pouring everything I have into making sure you never have to wait. I love doing this, and I do not want to stop — but I cannot do it alone for much longer.
If you have been reading and enjoying the work, please consider supporting me. I have structured the tiers to give you incredible value in return:
Adventurer — $3/month
- 20 chapters ahead of free release for all my works
Warrior — $7/month
- 40 chapters ahead of free release for all my works
Immortal — $10/month (Best Value)
- 60 chapters ahead of free release for all my works
- Access to character images and visual references
- Bonus side stories and exclusive content
Special Note: On top of the early access above, every tier receives 150 chapters across all fics per month — a massive library of content waiting for you no matter which level you choose.
Important: Subscribing through the Apple App adds an extra 30% fee due to Apple/Patreon policy, and payments are delayed by 2–3 months. Please subscribe through your browser so more of your support reaches me when I need it most.
I am not asking for charity — I am asking because this is what keeps the daily chapters coming, what keeps the stories alive, and what keeps me from drowning right now. Even $3 makes a real difference. If you cannot subscribe, sharing my work with even one person who might enjoy it helps more than you know.
Thank you for reading. Thank you for your time. And thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for even considering it.
Patreon: patreon.com/anish_44
Ko-fi: ko-fi.com/anish_44
]