Buggy the Clown—A man who embodied both absurdity and outrageous luck!
Though he had once been a member of Pirate King Roger's crew, he never possessed the overwhelming talent or commanding presence of his fellow apprentice, Shanks.
On top of that, his Devil Fruit stripped him of the underwater prowess he once took the greatest pride in. Then came Roger's death, Shanks's apparent cowardice, and a series of unforeseen upheavals…
All of it eventually drove the now middle-aged Buggy to willingly degenerate into nothing more than a workhorse pirate scraping by in the East Blue.
But…
A lack of strength didn't mean Buggy was worthless.
Even though Red hadn't followed later One Piece developments in great depth, when he once saw a video by a content creator—where Buggy was being stepped on by "Old Sand," yet still loudly declared his intent to join the battle for the One Piece—
Red couldn't help but be moved.
From a certain perspective, Buggy possessed a "protagonist halo" that was no less dazzling than Luffy's.
Just lying down and winning his way through life, he somehow slept his way into becoming an Emperor of the Sea…
That kind of fortune was truly something ordinary people couldn't hope to match.
A great man once said:Unite all forces that can be united.
Red believed this wholeheartedly.
And so, for a pirate as valuable as Buggy, Red preferred to take control of him himself.
After all, a clown wasn't merely a symbol of comedy—
Among all the cards in one's hand…
He could very well be the trump card that decided the final outcome.
…
…
"Kid, say it already—what kind of cooperation are you proposing?!"
Inside the Buggy Pirates' base, after driving off a crowd of brainless flatterers, Buggy sat at the head seat with his two right-hand men, Mohji and Cabaji, glaring down at Red as he questioned him.
In truth, the sane-minded Mohji and Cabaji had long since realized how dangerous Red was and wanted nothing to do with this conversation.
But under Buggy's authority, they had no choice but to remain.
Opposite Buggy stood a ridiculously styled red reception table.
Fresh fruit, food, and a bottle of sake rested atop it.
Red sat calmly at the table, enjoying treatment befitting a VIP.
Zoro and Nami flanked him on either side, much like Mohji and Cabaji did for Buggy.
As for the Straw Hat Pirates' actual captain?
That idiot was currently outside, happily brawling with the Buggy Pirates, enthusiastically joining the celebration titled "Captain Buggy Is a Subordinate of the Pirate King."
At this point, he had probably already shoved chopsticks up his nose, performing one of his signature tricks for the crowd.
"Don't keep calling me 'kid.' That's pretty rude, Senior Buggy."
Sitting upright, Red smiled faintly and lifted his cup for a small sip before introducing himself.
"You can call me Red. That's my name."
"These two beside me are Zoro and Nami. As for the weirdo outside…"
Red's tone suddenly shifted, and he sighed deeply.
"As much as I hate to admit it, that guy is our captain—Monkey D. Luffy."
"D!?"
Buggy's brows knit together as he instantly latched onto the key point.
After all, as a former crew member of Roger's ship, even if he'd spent years loafing around the East Blue, his knowledge far surpassed that of many powerhouses in the New World.
Seeing the reaction he expected, Red grinned and continued meaningfully:
"That's right, Senior Buggy."
"Luffy—like Pirate King Roger himself—belongs to the D. clan, known as the Natural Enemy of the Gods!"
"I believe that as a former member of Roger's crew, you understand the weight of that information."
"I do understand it," Buggy muttered, his gaze drifting as if recalling something from the past.
But soon, he smacked his lips dismissively.
"So what if he's from the D. clan?"
"Throughout history, countless members of the D. clan have appeared on the seas. If you think a name and some bloodline alone can shake the world…"
"Then you're being far too naive!"
"That's true," Red said without refuting him.
But the very next moment, he raised the stakes sharply, flashing Buggy a grin.
"However, Senior Buggy—what if I told you that Shanks never became Pirate King because he was waiting for Luffy?"
"How would you respond to that?"
"..."
"What did you say?!"
Buggy froze for several seconds before his red-nosed head suddenly detached from his body and flew straight toward Red.
"Brat, you'd better know exactly what you're saying!"
"Don't think that just because you have Devil Fruit powers, you can toy with me!!!"
Two white-gloved hands flew over as well, gripping Red's collar tightly.
Clearly, some topics were enough to shatter Buggy's fear and make him stand tall again.
Yet Red simply pushed Buggy's head away in disgust, preventing his saliva from splashing onto him, and said leisurely:
"Of course I know what I'm saying, Senior Buggy."
"After all, I came here with full sincerity—to invite you and your pirate crew to come under the banner of the Straw Hat Pirates."
"Hey! Brat! Don't push it too far!!!"
Even while being held in Red's grip, Buggy twisted his mouth and spat angrily,
"You expect me to join some rookie pirate crew that just left the nest?!"
"That's impossible!!!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Buggy flatly rejected Red.
If Red hadn't already said things that piqued his interest, this insulting proposal alone would've earned him a knife in the gut.
Yet in the face of Buggy's outright refusal, Red merely smiled calmly.
"There's no such thing as impossible, Senior Buggy."
"Do you remember the day Roger was executed—your falling-out with Shanks?"
"Don't you want to know why Shanks suddenly changed like that… and disappointed you so deeply?!"
"You—!"
Buggy's head snapped around, his gaze locking onto Red's eyes—eyes that looked as though they controlled everything.
"Why do you know about this?!" he asked in a trembling voice.
Red smiled lightly.
"Of course I know."
"Because…"
He slowly raised a finger and tapped the corner of his eye twice.
"I possess eyes that can see both the past and the future."
"..."
Buggy stared intensely into Red's eyes and pressed on,
"Is that… your Devil Fruit ability? Or something else?!"
In this world, there were many inexplicable powers.
Some came from Devil Fruits. Others were innate.
So even someone who could see the past and future didn't shock Buggy too much.
What he really wanted was the truth Red held.
Knowing this, Red didn't answer directly. He simply curved his lips upward.
"You can think of it that way."
"In short, Senior Buggy—I know many things about Roger, about Shanks…"
"And about you."
"Do you want to hear them?"
"..."
Buggy's gaze flickered.
After a brief silence, his head suddenly flew backward, reconnecting with his body.
Truth be told, the confidence in this young brat's eyes was overwhelming—so much so that Buggy was starting to believe he really did know something.
And when it came to Shanks, Buggy himself had countless unresolved questions, ones he still hadn't figured out even now.
"I want to hear what kind of nonsense you can come up with," Buggy snorted at Red.
Red's lips curled into an inscrutable smile as he raised his head and said,
"Senior Buggy, I know you've always harbored resentment toward Shanks—blaming him for making you eat a Devil Fruit and for losing an important treasure map."
"But in truth…"
"The real reason you hate him is because you saw the one most favored by the captain give up his chance to compete for Pirate King—and you felt disappointment born of unfulfilled potential. Am I wrong?"
"Hmph."
Buggy snorted, neither confirming nor denying it.
But the tension clearly visible on his face showed Red had struck straight at his heart.
At the same time, this only reinforced Buggy's belief that Red truly possessed some special ability.
After all, Shanks would never tell anyone these things.
And then, the words that followed made Buggy's heart feel as though it were being viciously squeezed by an invisible hand.
"But what you don't know, Senior Buggy…"
"The reason Shanks made that choice was because he heeded Captain Roger's advice, wasn't it?"
"What did you say?!"
Buggy shot to his feet again, gripping both armrests tightly.
But Red continued regardless:
"The Pirate King Roger—who used his life to usher in the Great Pirate Era—knew very well…"
"That what this world truly needs is not another Pirate King."
"That's why, before his death, he entrusted everything to Shanks."
"And burdened with that responsibility, Shanks spent all these years playing the pirate 'make-believe game' you speak of—protecting even more weaklings along the way."
"However, Senior Buggy, what you don't know is that Shanks has actually been waiting for an opportunity…"
Red's gaze burned like a blazing sun as it locked onto Buggy. His lips moved slowly.
"An opportunity to completely overthrow the World Government and the rule of the Celestial Dragons!!!"
(End of Chapter)