At the same time, near the waters of Marine Branch 153, a pirate ship was cruising on the sea.
The ship's lanterns flickered, their light shining on the fluttering flag, revealing a skull with a smiling face that looked like a circus clown.
At the bow, a massive lion lay prone on the deck, sprawling lazily.
Beside it, a man dressed in a very wild manner was bowing his head, reporting the situation to the figure in front of him.
"Captain Buggy, Cabaji has already led a team to infiltrate. They will launch the operation at dawn."
"Hmm? Well done, Mohji."
The red-nosed Buggy looked out at the dark sea, his lips curling into a sinister grin. "Once we take this Marine base, the treasure will be right before our eyes."
Mohji hesitated for a moment before asking, "But Captain Buggy, what does the treasure have to do with the Marine base?"
"Idiot, this matter isn't that simple."
Buggy sneered, "There are too many fake treasures on the sea. I've already investigated this. This treasure news came from Marine Branch 153. The guy who sold me the intel said that someone in the Marines wants to keep the treasure of a lost kingdom for themselves, which is why they spread this news far and wide."
"So as long as we take Marine Branch 153, we can find the treasure's location."
"As expected of Captain Buggy."
Mohji immediately looked at him with admiration. "Following you is my greatest honor."
"Hmph, keep learning." Buggy laughed heartily with pride.
He had gone to great lengths, investigating many channels to uncover the truth.
...
Early the next morning,
The ship arrived at the island where Marine Branch 153 was located.
With Nami's navigational skills, they could have crossed this distance very quickly and arrived several days earlier. However, because Hiroto was in poor condition at the time and Zoro was still acting like a corpse, they had sailed along leisurely.
As they approached the small island, two massive, towering Marine buildings could be seen standing tall on the island, with rows of residential houses forming a town below.
"It's quite beautiful."
Hiroto looked into the distance. Since they weren't flying a pirate flag, their ship's approach didn't raise any alarms.
Except... he could vaguely see smoke rising from the town.
An illusion?
Just as the thought flashed through his mind, Hiroto saw a middle floor of one of the Marine buildings explode with a boom.
Intense flames surged out. The power of the explosion far exceeded that of an ordinary cannonball, followed by countless fragments of stone and a large amount of paper flying through the air.
"Captain, it's the Buggy Pirates!"
From the watchtower, Carina slid down and reported what she had just seen through the telescope.
"I saw a pirate ship docked next to the island. Judging by the flag, the Buggy Pirates are attacking the town."
"The Buggy Pirates? You mean Buggy the Clown with a bounty of 15 million berries?" Nami was somewhat surprised.
While steering the helm, she asked, "Are we still entering the port, Captain?"
"Who do you think I am? Pull over."
The ship approached quickly, and Zoro, hearing the commotion, appeared while yawning.
He then got a brief summary from Nami. Currently, Nami had the lowest status on this ship.
Zoro stood behind Hiroto with excitement. "Yo, is there a fight as soon as I wake up?"
Perfect.
He had reviewed his defeat to Hiroto many times and felt he had gained something. It wouldn't be bad to test his skills against this group of pirates. A 15 million berries bounty pirate was something of a challenge for him.
"Don't underestimate the pirates we're about to face. Their captain can be considered a nemesis to swordsmen." As if sensing Zoro's fighting spirit, Hiroto gave a warning.
Buggy, a former member of Roger's crew, one of the future Four Emperors, with a bounty as high as 3.189 billion berries. However, this man didn't have the strength to match it at all, though his luck could be described as monstrous.
He had somehow become one of the Four Emperors with the support of Mihawk and Crocodile.
Yet for a swordsman, with his devil fruit ability, he could indeed be called a nemesis.
Zoro was confused. "A nemesis to swordsmen?"
"You'll understand once you meet him—what a so-called Devil Fruit User really is."
Hiroto didn't explain further and looked toward the approaching port.
There, the Buggy Pirates seemed to be wrapping things up.
...
The town below the Marine base was in total chaos, filled with the screams and fear of civilians.
The battle that had lasted from dawn until now had resulted in the stationed Marines being forced to retreat and defend from within the Marine branch base.
The explosion just now was the start of a breakthrough.
Many civilians in the town hadn't found a chance to enter the Marine base and were now facing the pirates' looting.
"If you don't want to die, hand over your money obediently." A pirate held a blade to a child's neck, threatening the weeping parents.
Not far away, several unlucky merchants were captured and, looking dejected, were escorted to the port by pirates.
"Where are the valuables? Tell us yourself. If we find them, there will be hell to pay."
"I'll give them, I'll give them, just let me go."
"No! Don't take my goods! I took out a huge loan to come here and do business!"
Slash—
The blade swept across the resisting merchant's neck, and blood splattered on the ground.
The pirates were grinning maliciously, threatening the remaining merchants to point out where the treasures on the ships were.
As members of the Buggy Pirates, their tastes were the same as Buggy's—gold, silver, and jewels were their pursuit. If they were willing to hand over their entire fortunes, it wasn't impossible to spare these merchants.
In a dark alleyway, a blood-covered bearded Marine Lieutenant watched this scene with immense fury.
He had been knocked unconscious by the pirates in the recent battle and had survived by sheer luck because of it. However, as a Marine determined to kill pirates, he had no intention of retreating.
It had only been a few days since Morgan's sudden death had returned peace to this town, and now this gang of pirates had taken advantage of the situation.
"Civilians are still suffering at the hands of pirates, how can I shrink back and run away?"
The lieutenant slammed his fist against the wall, then picked up his weapon and looked toward the port.
If he wanted to rescue the civilians, he had to find a way to open an escape route.
He stood up, holding his sword and gun, and advanced quickly, already prepared to die in the line of duty.
Shortly after, an agile and massive lion suddenly appeared. Mohji, riding on its back, seemed to have discovered something.
"Ho, so there really is a Marine survivor. This direction... you actually want to take back the port?"
Mohji gave a cruel laugh. "Let's go, Richie. Let this Marine know who he's facing."
"Roar." Richie growled as he advanced.
Soon, the man and the lion arrived at the port.
There, they found the Lieutenant who had ambushed and knocked down a few pirates and was currently entangled with others.
"Go!"
Richie leaped over the surrounding pirates and, with a pouncing swipe of his paw, sent the Lieutenant flying, making him crash into a pile of wooden crates.
Wood splinters flew everywhere and the Lieutenant, slumped on the ground, looked despairingly at the man riding the lion.
The wooden crates behind him fell over, revealing two figures.