Chapter 5: Clown's Treasure and the Red-Nosed Rage
After clearing the table, Nami briefed the three on Buggy. "Buggy loves cannons. Rumor is he once bombarded an entire town just because a kid mocked his nose. And he's got some weird magic tricks too!"
"Magic? Like this?" Luffy stretched his cheeks wide, startling Nami.
Sol explained, "Buggy's a Devil Fruit user like Luffy. He ate the Chop-Chop Fruit—a Paramecia that lets him split his body into pieces."
"Devil Fruit? Aren't those just legends of the sea?" Nami asked, puzzled.
Luffy grinned and demonstrated, pulling his face like rubber. "It's so weird—my body's really made of rubber!" Nami tugged his extended arm, commenting on the stretch.
Sol continued: "Devil Fruits are the sea's hidden treasures. Eat one, gain crazy powers—but you become a hammer in water, can't swim. And one fruit sells for 100 million Berries on the market."
"100 million?!" Nami's eyes turned to Berries (₿₿₿). "Where can I find one? I'll grab it and sell it!"
Seeing her greed, Sol teased her. "Nami, ever heard of the legendary Op-Op Fruit?"
"What's that? Sounds like something a doctor would eat," she asked.
"Exactly—it lets you perform surgery. Rumors say if you master it fully, you can do the 'Immortality Operation.' Worth 5 billion Berries!" Sol said with a grin.
"5 billion! I could buy Cocoa West Village a hundred times over!" Nami nearly fainted from excitement, grabbing Sol's collar. "Tell me—where's that Op-Op Fruit?!"
"Too late—it's already been eaten," Sol replied.
Nami pummeled him instantly. Shark teeth bared, fists steaming: "Damn you, messing with me?!"
Sol emerged covered in lumps, mumbling "Sorry…" Luffy watched in fear. "Scary… evenSol can't handle her."
Zoro asked, "Nami, why do you need so much money?"
She explained she had to scrape together 100 million Berries to buy back her village.
"Enough of that—let's figure out how to deal with Clown Buggy," Nami changed the subject.
"How about we charge in and declare war?" Luffy suggested.
"Solid idea, Luffy!" Sol praised.
Zoro agreed. The three slapped hands and decided to head out immediately, ignoring Nami's complaints behind them.
"These idiots—are they brainless?" Nami groaned, following anyway. No choice but to trust them now.
On the way, Luffy poked a roadside dog for fun. It chomped his hand and wouldn't let go. "Ow ow ow! Let go, you dumb mutt!"
As Luffy flailed his arm to shake it off, an old man in armor stopped him. "Stop! Don't bully Chouchou!"
"Huh? Who're you, old man?" Zoro asked.
"I'm the mayor of this town. This dog's Chouchou—my old friend's pet from ten years ago. His owner got sick and died recently."
"But Chouchou doesn't know. He's still following his master's last order: guard that pet shop." The mayor calmed Chouchou, who finally released Luffy's arm.
"What a good boy. I won't hold it against him," Luffy said, blowing on his red, bitten hand.
Just then, a massive lion approached—Mohji the Tamer and his pet Richie. "Yo yo yo, look what we found: some stragglers—and the thief who stole our treasure!" Mohji laughed, ordering Richie to pounce.
Sol stepped forward, inhaled deeply, and unleashed a massive flame from his mouth. "Fire Dragon's Roar!"
In Nami's stunned eyes, a roaring torrent of fire blasted Mohji and Richie flying—one man, one beast—sent soaring in an instant of searing heat. She realized it wasn't a trick; someone really breathed fire.
"Easy," Sol wiped his mouth.
Nami rushed up. "What was that? Fire? Are you a Devil Fruit user too?"
"Nope—not a Devil Fruit. This is Dragon Slayer Magic. Luffy's the one with the fruit," Sol explained.
"The sea's full of wonders!" Nami marveled. Confidence surged—she knew victory was assured. "Hurry up, you three!"
"This woman flips fast," Zoro muttered, speeding to catch up.
Luffy waved goodbye to the mayor and Chouchou. "Don't worry—I'll send that Clown Buggy flying!"
Sol trailed behind, yawning.
Soon the four reached Buggy's mountaintop camp. Nami burst in, waving dramatically: "Hand over all your treasure, Buggy!"
"Hand over my treasure? You joking? You damn thief stole my navigation chart!" Buggy roared back.
Nami yelped and hid behind Zoro. "Too scary—I can't! You guys handle it—beat them!"
"Hey, can you get off my back when you say that?" Zoro grumbled—Nami had grabbed his shirt collar, yanking it tight and choking him.
"Oh, sorry!" Nami let go and retreated. "Where are the other two?"
Buggy fired his dagger-holding arm. "Chop-Chop Cannon!"
Zoro drew his three swords to block. Slash slash slash—he chopped the arm into countless pieces that fell to the ground.
As he charged, a blade stabbed his side from behind. "What?!"
He turned—Buggy's chopped arm had reassembled and struck.
"Boom!" The arm flew back to Buggy. "Surprised? I ate the Chop-Chop Fruit—I'm a split human! Slashes are useless against me. I'm a swordsman's worst nightmare!"
"Zoro, how'd you get hurt?" Luffy and Sol strolled up casually, spotting the wound.
Sol greeted Nami with a nod and stood beside her.
"It's nothing," Zoro said, tying on his bandana, eyes blazing with battle spirit at Buggy's crew.
"Alright, red-nose—you're Clown Buggy? Get ready—I'm gonna send you flying!" Luffy cracked his knuckles.
That hit Buggy's sore spot. "Bastard! Who're you calling red-nose?!"
"Chop-ChopDashboard Pancake!"
Buggy split his lower body, launching it spinning like a flying disc—shoes popping hidden blades in a deadly whirl.
Luffy gawked. "So cool! You can split your body anytime!" He stretched an arm to grab a nearby doorframe and zipped out of range.
But Buggy controlled the lower half—it U-turned and chased Luffy. Luffy laughed while dodging nimbly. Many Buggy underlings got caught in the spin and sliced up by mistake.