Push Them All Down

Weapon Street.

Due to the previous commotion, there were fewer pedestrians on the street. Wilton, having left the Marine base, carried a dumbbell on his back while working his biceps with another in his left hand, effectively treating it as a weighted workout.

In his right hand, he held two skewers of takoyaki, taking large bites.

Delicious.

He had come here to see if there were any fitness machines or perhaps to upgrade his dumbbell weapons. He had originally planned to order custom weapons from the Marines once his contributions were sufficient.

For example, pure Seastone dumbbells.

Those things were hard, heavy, and extremely effective against Devil Fruit users. If he had a pair of such dumbbells as weapons, dealing with ability users would be twice as effective with half the effort.

Originally, dual axes would have been more suitable.

He could use them too.

But for some reason, perhaps due to the "Glory Collection: Vitality Assault" skin, he preferred using dumbbells as weapons.

Purely personal preference.

BOOM—

Before Wilton could even enter a weapon shop, a massive explosion echoed from the distance. Soon, thick smoke billowed into the sky, accompanied by a cacophony of noise.

Before long, Wilton saw a large number of civilians fleeing in a panic.

Truly the free Loguetown, chaos every day.

Never a moment's peace.

As the final defense line of the East Blue, anyone, whether pirate or otherwise, who wished to go to the Grand Line had to pass through here. Although the East Blue was known as the weakest sea, there were still plenty of monsters and demons for ordinary citizens.

Too bad for these troublemakers.

Observation Haki spread out.

It quickly covered several streets, everything within his grasp.

"Explosive Double Axes!"

Wilton crouched slightly, then leaped forward with immense force. In that instant, the ground cracked and split, the hard, thick surface collapsing into a ten-meter-wide spiderweb-like crater.

Like a meteor rising from the earth, he shot up at incredible speed, leaving a beautiful arc. Like a missile head, he streaked across street after street. Within the range of his Observation Haki, he could pinpoint his target.

At this moment, on a certain street, two groups were engaged in a fierce firefight.

One side was pirates, the other was the underworld.

Swords and pistols fired wildly, and many had already fallen within the combat zone. The pungent smell of blood filled the air, and there were even innocent civilians caught in the crossfire.

"Protective Barrier."

"Chop-Chop. Clown's Flying Daggers."

In the midst of the crowd.

Two figures engaged in battle were particularly eye-catching. One was a man dressed as a clown with a distinctly red nose, and the other was a man with a grass-green mohawk, tribal markings under his right eye, and a nose ring, looking like an ogre.

In addition, there was a beautiful woman with exceptionally smooth skin, weaving through the crowd with effortless grace. Wherever she went, the attacks from the underworld thugs, whether swords or bullets, simply slid off.

As if in an unoccupied realm.

These three would become quite famous in the future: Clown Buggy, Iron Mace Alvida, and Ogre Bartholomew. All three were Devil Fruit users.

Just as everyone was fighting fiercely, a piercing sound suddenly erupted from above. They instinctively looked up, and then a dark, missile-like shadow slammed heavily into the middle of the crowd. Instantly, a circular shockwave spread out in all directions.

The ground within a fifty-meter radius cracked and collapsed, with the very center continuously rising.

A large amount of dust mixed with gravel shot out like bullets. Both sides engaged in the firefight were sent flying backward. Some died before they even hit the ground, but only Buggy, Alvida, and Bartholomew remained standing steadily.

Buggy's body split into pieces to evade the flying debris.

Alvida's entire body was smooth, and any attack would simply slide off.

Bartholomew crossed his middle and index fingers, and a transparent protective barrier appeared before him, blocking all attacks.

"What the hell was that?"

"Scared me to death."

"Hehehehe."

The three stared intently at the dispersing dust as a tall, muscular shadow gradually became clear.

"Marines!"

The dust completely cleared.

Buggy and the other two looked slightly grim. The dumbbell weapon and the exposed muscles of the newcomer didn't look like mere showpieces from any angle.

Furthermore, the word "Justice" on the dumbbells and the word "Justice" on his red and white tight-fitting vest clearly indicated the identity of the man who had fallen from the sky.

"What a pleasant surprise."

Wilton was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected to encounter these three at once. But then he remembered that with the Straw Hat Pirates appearing in Loguetown, it was only natural for Clown Buggy and Iron Mace Alvida to show up as well.

If he hadn't captured the Straw Hat Pirates, in the normal course of events, Buggy and Alvida would have captured Luffy and nearly executed him at the execution platform.

Bartholomew himself was born in Loguetown and hadn't set sail yet, but he was already a mafia boss ruling seventy to eighty towns, with both power and wealth.

In the future, this number would rise from seventy to eighty to one hundred and fifty.

Seriously involved in organized crime.

Why would these three get into a fight?

This didn't happen at this point in the original story.

Little did they know, it was because one of Buggy's subordinates was investigating the Straw Hat Pirates' whereabouts in the mafia's territory and got swindled out of 100,000 Belly. Given Buggy's greedy nature, how could he stand for that?

You can insult him, kill him, mock him, but you absolutely cannot covet his wealth.

After a back and forth.

The two sides ended up in conflict, which eventually alerted Bartholomew. Both sides were leaders, and if their subordinates were bullied, they would naturally seek to regain face. Otherwise, how could they maintain their standing in the underworld?

They naturally started fighting.

Speaking of which, it was Wilton's fault. If he hadn't captured Luffy in advance, Luffy would have definitely gone to the execution platform. Like a lightbulb in the dark, it would have been impossible for Buggy's crew, who were seeking revenge, not to notice him.

But now that he was captured by Wilton, Buggy's crew naturally had to investigate.

Then the conflict erupted.

"There's only one Marine."

At first, the three were wary, but upon confirming that Wilton was alone, they all breathed a collective sigh of relief in their hearts.

"Our target is Monkey D. Luffy. There's no need to waste time here. The Marine Captain guarding Loguetown is Smoker, and that guy is a Logia-type ability user."

Buggy and Alvida prepared to retreat.

As for this guy named Bartholomew, his influence seemed quite significant. They would find another opportunity later. For now, they would let the Marines and the other party fight it out like dogs.

"Retreat!"

Clean and decisive.

Buggy signaled to his subordinates.

"Fight!"

Seeing Buggy and Alvida and their crew about to leave, Wilton's feet exploded, and he vanished from his spot. When he reappeared, he was above Buggy, gripping his terrifying dumbbells with both hands and smashing down as if cleaving the heavens and earth.

"Explosive Double Axes."

A force beyond imagination descended.

Buggy's hair stood on end, and his body immediately disintegrated into fragments, scattering in all directions. In an instant, he knew he had encountered a formidable opponent.

Bang--

A thunderous roar.

The ground within a forty-meter radius exploded, forming a circular shockwave that spread outwards. Buildings on all sides collapsed. Alvida and Bartholomew didn't even have time to defend themselves before they were sent flying backward, crashing to the ground in utter shock.

Buggy, whose body had also turned into countless fragments, was the same. However, it was incredibly strange that those body fragments seemed to have been affected by the Slow-Slow Fruit, their movement speed instantly halved.