A pirate ship drifted across the sea, wisps of white smoke rising from the cannon muzzle at its bow.
"What a flashy bombardment!"
A blue-haired pirate dressed as a clown, with a big red nose, spread his arms as he gazed at the reef they had blasted apart ahead.
"Yes! Absolutely magnificent, Captain Buggy! With this ship, we can definitely dominate the Grand Line!"
Behind the blue-haired pirate in clown attire, one of his underlings offered that flattery.
"Of course!" Buggy roared with laughter. "This is a flashy refitted ship equipped with a warship's cannon! Put it on the market, and it would sell for a hundred million Beli!"
"But..."
Buggy suddenly leaned right into the underling's face.
The underling instantly broke into a cold sweat. "I... I didn't say that! You misunderstood!"
"You still dare say it's big and red?!" Buggy leaned even closer, his expression vicious. "I'll make you die a horrible death!"
"Aaah!" The underling was so frightened that he fell onto the deck and scrambled backward. "Captain! That's not what I meant! Please calm down!"
"Who am I?" Buggy's head spun an eerie full three hundred and sixty degrees as he looked at the pirates behind him.
"Captain Buggy! You're the great Captain Buggy!"
His men hurriedly shouted their answer.
"Very good!" Buggy planted his hands on his hips and laughed. "What's my goal this time?"
"To find the legendary Treasure Turtle!!"
His men shouted at the top of their lungs.
"That's right! Search for it with all the fanfare we can muster! That's treasure left behind by a legendary pirate! They say it holds priceless riches!"
Buggy relished this atmosphere.
This was how pirates should be!
Anyone who couldn't shout wasn't a pirate at all!
Sometimes, Buggy reminisced about his days aboard the Oro Jackson. Those had been the happiest days of his life.
Then Captain Roger had died, ushering in the Great Pirate Era!
Unfortunately, Shanks, who had inherited Captain Roger's legacy, had abandoned his original dream! That bastard Shanks! He should have been the one to become the next Pirate King!
Every time Buggy thought of that, fury welled up inside him.
If Shanks hadn't given up on searching for the treasure Captain Roger left behind, I'd probably be the first mate aboard his ship now, wouldn't I?
But there were no ifs!!
Buggy had already made up his mind. Once he found the Treasure Turtle and claimed the riches on its back, he would trade them for a bigger ship and build a more powerful cannonball!
He would return to the Grand Line! Since Shanks had abandoned Captain Roger's treasure, Buggy would find it himself!
"Captain Buggy! I think we've spotted that turtle!"
Mohji, a beast tamer wearing a furry headpiece and riding a lion, suddenly spoke up.
"Hm?" Buggy looked in the direction of his voice. Not far away, a shadow cut through the waves, swimming like a rocket!
Only upon closer inspection, through gaps in the spray, could they make out a turtle carrying nine treasure chests on its back!
The turtle looked panicked and flustered, just like a human.
"Looks like someone's chasing it!"
Cabaji, who wore a scarf and rode a unicycle, spoke.
Behind the swiftly swimming Treasure Turtle surged an even larger, faster wave! Within it, a silver-haired man sprinted across the surface of the sea!
Before anyone could react, the silver-haired man pounced on the Treasure Turtle and subdued it.
"Bastard! Let go! That's mine!" Buggy panicked at once and shouted at the silver-haired man.
The silver-haired man had clearly noticed Buggy's ship as well. Holding the Treasure Turtle, he stepped across the water, leaped into the air, and landed on its deck.
Norton pinned the heavy Treasure Turtle beneath him and slicked back his wet hair, exposing his smooth forehead.
"What a big red nose!"
Those were Norton's first words upon seeing Buggy.
"Aaah! You can't say that!" Behind Buggy, the pirates abruptly turned pale, cold sweat pouring down their faces!
Captain Buggy was about to lose his temper!
"Huh?! Whose nose are you calling big and red, you bastard?!" Enraged, Buggy charged at him!
"Chop-Chop Clown Knife!"
A detached arm clutching a knife flew toward him at incredible speed!
Norton reached out, caught the detached arm holding the knife, and suddenly grinned.
"Hey! Red Nose!"
"Who are you calling Red Nose?!"
"Whatever. Your name's Buggy, right? My name is Norton. Join my ship! Follow me! I'll take you to the pinnacle of the world!"
Cold sweat beaded at Buggy's temples. Though he was shocked that Norton had caught the flying knife with such precision, that lofty, matter-of-fact tone ignited an inexplicable anger inside him.
"Who do you think you are, you bastard?!"
At that moment, in Buggy's eyes, Norton's figure overlapped with that of a certain red-haired man.
"I'm not taking orders from you! Hand over the Treasure Turtle!" Buggy shouted.
"You mean this turtle?" Norton pointed at the Treasure Turtle beneath him. "Sorry to disappoint you, but this turtle isn't carrying any treasure! Not a single bit of gold or silver!"
While chasing the Treasure Turtle underwater earlier, Norton had already checked. Eight of the nine treasure chests were empty!
The remaining chest contained neither silver nor gold, but something Norton had never expected.
"You're lying! I don't believe you!" Buggy roared.
"Believe what you want." Norton shrugged. "The only treasure here isn't something you could handle anyway."
"Shut up! I'll kill you and check for myself!" Buggy flung out his lower body.
"Chop-Chop Pancake!"
Buggy's detached lower body spun like a top, sharp blades springing from the tips of his boots!
Without a care, Norton grabbed Buggy's spinning lower body and slammed it onto the deck.
"Hiss! That hurts!"
Buggy's expression twisted dramatically, his eyes bulging as tears welled up.
"Captain Buggy! Are you all right?!" His men bit their fingers as they asked anxiously.
"Idiots! Hurry up and help!"
Buggy recalled his lower body, but when he tried to recall the arm Norton held, it refused to come back!
It was as though that hand were pinned beneath a mountain. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't budge it!
"...Yes!"
Cabaji swung his long blade and attacked Norton from the left on his unicycle.
At the same time, Mohji directed Richie the lion to attack from the right!
Norton only felt bored.
He threw a punch!
A tremendous gust blasted out from his fist, blowing away Buggy's hat, knocking Cabaji off his unicycle, sending the beast tamer Mohji tumbling off Richie's back, and sweeping everything that wasn't secured aboard the ship into the sea!
Trembling, Buggy looked back.
He saw the calm sea suddenly churn with raging waves!
The gust from that punch swept like a tornado, whipping up enormous waves across the sea.
Buggy stiffly turned back and saw the silver-haired man seated on the Treasure Turtle before him grin, exposing gleaming white teeth.
"Come on, Buggy! Become my subordinate!"