Because of Kizaru's intervention, Mihawk chose not to join the battle.
However, he didn't leave either. After rowing a little farther forward, he sat in his boat and watched the spectacle.
Besides Mihawk, another pirate ship had pulled alongside the giant turtle-shaped vessel ahead.
The leader of this band of pirates was one of the newly appointed Shichibukai, a Haki Awakening user with the color of luck: Buggy the Clown.
Thanks to the removal of three Shichibukai—Crocodile, Gecko Moria, and Knight of the Sea Jinbe—around the time of the Paramount War, Buggy had gained the allegiance of a group of Impel Down prisoners. The Navy and the World Government, eager to fill the vacant Shichibukai seats, had selected him as a new member.
This Navy-issued summons to the Shichibukai was the first one Buggy had received since becoming a Shichibukai.
Buggy hadn't expected to be so lucky. On his way to the Navy to answer the summons, he'd already run into the enemy the Shichibukai had gathered to face. He'd even encountered Strawberry Boy and Empress Hancock.
Watching Strawberry Boy and the Empress charge aboard the enemy's massive ship and engage the subordinates of Byrnndi World, the World Destroyer, the ever-clever Buggy spotted an opportunity to earn the Navy's favor.
He notified the Navy by Den Den Mushi, emphasizing that he was holding off Byrnndi World. Meanwhile, he planned to wait until Straw Hat and the Empress defeated the enemy or both sides were too weakened to fight, then swoop in and claim the spoils.
After hanging up the Den Den Mushi, Buggy took a pair of binoculars from one of his men and observed the battle ahead.
"How are Straw Hat and the others doing?"
"If you're that interested, why not go over and see for yourself?"
An unfamiliar