Chapter 556: Deal with Buggy
Ian wasn’t surprised by Buggy’s background exposure.
He was well aware that after the Impel Down riot, the identities of the prisoners who ca out with him had been thoroughly investigated by the Marines.
While Buggy was imprisoned, perhaps nobody paid much attention to him, but once he escaped alongside Ian, the Marines would imdiately discover, upon checking his background, that he was a hidden big fish.
How deep was the Marines’ aversion to Pirate King Roger? It might be hard to describe, but the fact that even after Roger’s death for over twenty years, the Marines hadn’t given up on tracing his bloodline showed a lot.
To the Marines, anyone connected to Roger was a subject of concern. Even Rayleigh, had he not lived in seclusion and appeared indifferent to worldly affairs, might have been ordered to be captured long ago by those in command if they knew he existed.
So, when they found out that Buggy, despite his deep and powerful background, was acting so low-key, the Marines couldn’t sit idly by. They suspected Buggy might be up to sothing and, out of caution, exposed him, considering him one of the masterminds behind the prison break, just like Ian.
If Sengoku knew that Buggy’s low profile was because he had been searching for “Captain John’s Treasure” all along, rather than plotting sothing in secret as he imagined, it’s hard to say what his expression would be like at that ti…
However, Ian wouldn’t expose Buggy. After all, these backgrounds were indeed facts for Buggy.
So, instead, Ian added fuel to the fire and said, “Hey, Buggy, looks like you can’t hide anymore. You’re going to be famous!”
“No… no!” Buggy hurriedly explained to everyone, in a fluster. He didn’t want the Marines to focus on him because it ant danger.
But his explanation was futile at this mont. Ian’s words indirectly confird that everything in the newspaper was true. The prisoners knew that Buggy and Ian were acquainted, old friends even. Didn’t Ian refer to him as an “old friend” when he saw Buggy in prison?
So, at this mont, all the prisoners stared at Buggy with gaping mouths, unbelieving.
Then Ian said, “Oh, by the way, Buggy, I t Uncle Rayleigh so ti ago, and he ntioned you!”
“Huh!? You t Uncle Rayleigh!? How’s he doing?” Buggy, caught off guard, asked excitedly.
As soon as these words ca out, a weapon held by one of the prisoners fell to the ground with a clatter.
“Th-they’re not talking about Rayleigh, the Dark King Rayleigh, right!?” The prisoners asked, trembling with fear. “Is he really a mber of the legendary pirate crew?”
“This… this is too shocking!” One prisoner said dumbfoundedly. “I never thought that Impel Down would be holding so many big figures…”
For a mont, the prisoners began to regard Buggy as a figure on par with Crocodile and Jinbe, akin to a Shichibukai-level character. Even Crocodile himself was quite surprised. He had always thought of Buggy, the red-nosed guy, as nothing more than a jokester. He never expected him to have such an astonishing background.
At this mont, Buggy also snapped out of his daze. He felt like he had been tricked by Ian and quickly waved his hands at everyone, saying, “W-wait a minute! While it’s true, don’t put such a big label on ! How am I supposed to navigate my pirate life from now on!?”
But then Ian put his arm around Buggy’s shoulder, embracing him without hesitation, and whispered in his ear, “Hey, Buggy, don’t rush to explain. Let
ask you, do you want to beco a Shichibukai?”
“S-Shichibukai?” Buggy was instantly stunned.
“That’s right!” Ian nodded and whispered softly, “You see, my Shichibukai title has already been revoked, and the sa goes for Crocodile and Jinbe. Plus, with the earlier deprived of Doflamingo, that leaves four vacancies among the Shichibukai. The Marines will definitely try to fill those gaps. In my opinion, you have a very good chance of receiving an invitation!”
“R-really?” Buggy widened his eyes, looking at Ian in disbelief.
“Of course it’s true!” Ian nodded. “Because of your background, even though the Marines will see you as an enemy, at the sa ti, if they find they can’t deal with you, they’ll try to recruit you. That’s how I beca a Shichibukai, believe ?”
“But… but I don’t even have a pirate ship anymore, and my crew is a bunch of idiots!” Buggy said dishearteningly. “How can a pirate crew like that stand up to the Marines?”
“That’s why,” Ian said with a smile, “this ti, going to the battlefield with
is an opportunity for you! Your background is a valuable asset. When the ti cos, I’ll allow you to take so of these prisoners with you and form your own crew. Then you won’t have to worry, right?”
Ian’s words filled Buggy with excitent, but given his past experiences of being tricked by Ian, he remained cautious. “Are you really going to help
like this?”
“What are you saying…” Ian said with a straight face. “Of course… it’s not like I’m helping you for nothing!”
However, upon hearing Ian’s assurance, Buggy relaxed a bit. “That’s great, then. Just tell
what you want in return!”
“I don’t need anything too botherso, don’t worry!” Ian said with a smile. “After you beco a Shichibukai, you’ll definitely have contact with the Marines. When they have any movents or plans, you’ll need to find a way to pass that information to !”
Yes, that’s Ian’s goal. He may have been stripped of his Shichibukai title, but he still needs to have a presence within the Marines. While Kuina can occasionally pass on information to Ian, her identity is inconvenient. With Buggy, however, there wouldn’t be any issues. Even if the Marines found out, it wouldn’t matter much because Buggy was originally a pirate.
Ian had already figured out that if he could lift Buggy up to the position of Shichibukai, he could then have him pay attention to the situation within the Marine Science Unit. Ian wanted to find out what happened to Uncle Kuma in the end.
Developing Buggy into his own informant, and at the level of a Shichibukai informant at that, felt exhilarating no matter how he thought about it. Didn’t Kaido work with Doflamingo in the sa way?
Although their collaboration was for evil purposes…
At this mont, Buggy was truly moved. After hearing Ian’s terms, he thought carefully and found that it wasn’t anything extraordinary. He could totally do it. Imdiately, he looked at Ian and said, “Deal!”
“That’s great, my friend!” Ian said satisfactorily. “Rest assured, I’ll find a way to give you opportunities to shine. By then, you’ll beco soone everyone looks up to!”
“Hahaha!” Buggy laughed heartily. After his change of heart, he stood with his hands on his hips and laughed heartily, then, with an air of sophistication, stroked his chin and addressed the prisoners present, “Well, it seems I can’t hide it anymore… That’s right, I was a crew mber on the Pirate King Roger’s ship, and Red-Haired Shanks, one of the Four Emperors, is my sworn brother! Ah, those were the days, fighting alongside Captain Roger and Vice Captain Rayleigh…”
“Whoa!” The prisoners gasped in shock, then erupted into a chorus of uproar.
Hearing Buggy’s admission firsthand, the prisoners finally understood why the Marines singled him out while others were not ntioned. It seed like this was indeed true. Didn’t Ian just have his arm around Buggy’s shoulder, displaying the deanor of lifelong friends?
At that mont, Buggy’s reputation among the prisoners soared…
And his crew mbers from the Buggy Pirates only now realized the true extent of their captain’s background. Cabaji and Mohji, among others, fell to their knees before Buggy, tears streaming down their faces, filled with gratitude and worship, swearing allegiance to him for life…
Ian smiled contentedly as he watched Buggy address the prisoners, pleased with the outco. anwhile, Crocodile whispered behind him, “Looks like you’ve gained another pawn…”
“Can’t put it that way; it’s just a mutual exchange!” Ian retorted without even looking back. “Just because we don’t care about the Shichibukai title doesn’t an others don’t, right?”
Crocodile chuckled coldly and fell silent.
At that mont, the bay was suddenly shrouded in shadow. Looking up, Ian saw a massive cloud looming overhead, blocking out the sunlight and casting a vast shadow.
With his keen eyesight, Ian vaguely saw the colorful balloons beneath the cloud, a smile creeping onto his face.
“It’s finally here, my Sky Island!…”
Reviews
All reviews (0)