💖 If you enjoy my work, consider supporting me on Patreon. I'm offering advanced chapters there as a thank-you to readers.
--------------------
Check out advanced chapters on : patreon.com/DragonOP
--------------------
"Yo-ho! My tail grew back!"
In the center of Apple Town, Wukong was literally bouncing with joy, using his strong, furry tail like a spring to hop around the square. After nearly a year, his tail—the part of him he'd had since he was a baby—had finally returned.
While he had adapted to living without it, he had always felt a phantom sense of loss. Now, with the tail wagging behind him, his balance felt perfect and his spirit was soaring. "Sure enough, with my tail back, my body feels even stronger!" He laughed, clutching his head in happiness.
Behind him, Nami stood frozen, her hands covering her mouth. He... he really grew a tail? She was shocked for a moment, but as she watched him zip around, she quickly processed the information. Wukong was already so far beyond a normal human that a tail actually made a weird kind of sense. Maybe he's a Mink? Or some kind of mutated ape? she wondered, her mind already building a mysterious legend for her companion.
Buggy reattached his right arm, rubbing the massive red welt Wukong had left on it. He stared at the celebrating boy with a mix of confusion and fear. Is he part of the Mink Tribe? But he looks completely human otherwise!
Buggy shook his head, clearing his thoughts. Who cares what he is! He's an enemy of the Great Buggy! Seeing Wukong's guard was down, Buggy signaled his lower body—which was still standing several meters behind Wukong—to launch a silent, surprise attack. Hmph, stay distracted, you brat!
But as the legs lunged forward, Wukong's tail twitched like a sensor. Using the tail's muscular recoil, he leaped straight up into the air, letting Buggy's legs pass harmlessly beneath him. "Hey! I won't fall for the same trick twice!" Wukong grinned down from the air.
"Damn it!" Buggy snarled. He retracted his legs and launched a two-pronged assault. He shot his left hand (holding a knife) around Wukong's back to block his escape, while leaping into the air himself with a long sword in his right hand. "Let's see you dodge this!"
Wukong saw the sword coming from above and the hand waiting behind him. A mischievous idea flashed in his mind. He thrust his Power Pole firmly into the ground at an angle, and just as Buggy was about to land his strike, Wukong vanished with a burst of speed.
"Cackle! You can't escape—wait, what?!"
Buggy's momentum was too great to stop. He descended at a perfectly precise, unfortunate angle directly onto the Power Pole stuck in the ground.
SQUELCH!
As the saying goes: The chrysanthemum wilts, and wounds are everywhere...
Buggy's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. His face turned from white to green, then purple, and finally a deep, throbbing red. He let out a silent, soul-piercing scream before finally howling and jumping around, clutching his backside. No matter how much he bounced, the Power Pole remained stubbornly "embedded."
"Hahahahaha!!" Wukong fell to the ground, rolling in the dirt and clutching his stomach as tears of laughter streamed down his face. "Buggy, now you have a tail just like me! Hahahahaha!!"
Nami watched the eye-watering scene, her face flushing. She hadn't realized Wukong had such a... devastating sense of humor.
After a few minutes of Buggy bouncing like a frantic monkey, Wukong wiped his eyes and stood up. "Do you want me to pull it out for you?" Buggy, in too much pain to even speak, nodded his head like a pecking bird.
Wukong stepped behind him, grabbed the Power Pole, and gave it a gentle tug. It slid out, and Buggy collapsed into a heap, drenched in cold sweat. "Tha-thanks," he wheezed instinctively.
"Hehe, you're welcome!" Wukong grinned.
The sound of Wukong's voice snapped Buggy back to reality. The humiliation fueled a final, desperate rage. "YOU DAMN BRAT! I'LL KILL YOU!!"
"Full Body Explosion Counterattack!!"
Buggy's body shattered into dozens of small fragments—hands, feet, torso, and even his nose—swarming toward Wukong like a cloud of angry hornets. Wukong's eyes widened at the bizarre sight, but he didn't panic. He focused his senses, spotted Buggy's head floating in the center of the swarm, and swung the Power Pole with all his might.
BANG!!
The blow flattened Buggy's pirate hat and sent his head spinning. The stars Buggy saw were enough to fill a galaxy. His eyes rolled back, and his various body parts clattered to the ground like discarded toys.
"Oh? You're not very tough after all," Wukong pouted, poking the unconscious head with his staff. "I thought a Devil Fruit user would be stronger."
He turned and waved to the stunned Navigator. "Yo! Nami! I defeated him!"
Nami finally breathed again, a sweet smile returning to her face. "Mm! Wukong, you're amazing!"
Five minutes later, the two were busy tying up the unconscious pirates. Nami looked around, counting the bodies. "Odd... the numbers aren't right. There should have been a giant lion and a few more officers."
Wukong blinked. "The big lion? Oh, I saw them run away while I was fighting the red-nosed guy. They ran really, really fast."
Nami sighed with relief. "Well, if they fled, they probably won't be back for an ambush. Let's get Buggy and Cabaji to the Marines before they wake up. We have enough money for our ship now!"