New World
Above the Crimson Empire
Once roaring with thunder and swirling with ominous black clouds, the skies above the Crimson Empire had been ripped open. They now stretched unnaturally clear and still.
High above Adam Tree, thousands of meters into the sky, a colossal, blood-drenched dragon was collapsing.
It could barely be called a dragon in the traditional sense. Its form resembled a Western dragon, with wings stretched wide like an endless curtain of steel, but its size dwarfed even Kaido's monstrous transformation. The beast spanned several kilometres from snout to tail, its overwhelming presence seeming to crush the sky itself beneath its shadow.
Yet, it was no natural creature.
The so-called dragon's body was encased in a gleaming, silver metallic shell that gave it an unnatural, artificial aura. If not for the jagged, pitch-black scales peeking through its legs and joints, no one would have realised there was once a living creature beneath the armour.
Its wings stretched like endless clouds. From its skull, twisted, black horns jutted upward, framing a maw lined with razor-sharp fangs now stained crimson. Blood dripped from its lips and poured from its nostrils. Its crimson eyes, once filled with arrogant malice, now radiated nothing but primal, helpless fear.
That fear was palpable, even through the live broadcast.
It had tried to hide, looming behind the clouds to impose its tyranny from above, but it had not expected that man to shatter both the clouds and its body with a single, devastating blow.
Its steel hide, its supposedly indestructible scales, none of it had withstood Buggy's Nuclear Crush. The impact left its armoured body webbed with countless fractures, each one gushing torrents of blood. The beast's regenerative abilities, immense as they were, could not keep up. There were simply too many wounds, too much damage.
The power of Buggy's attack was beyond terrifying.
He had not only faced the island-destroying weapon. He had also driven the mighty black dragon, Uranus of the World Government, to the brink of death.
Even the Five Elders and Akainu, watching from the safety of Mariejois, sat frozen in disbelief.
Buggy's strength had shattered their expectations and crushed their understanding of what was possible.
Huff... Huff...
The steel dragon's blood rained down like a crimson monsoon. Curiously, not a single drop dared touch Buggy. Three meters before it could reach him, the blood disintegrated into dust, vanishing without a trace.
Those watching below were not so lucky.
A few unfortunate souls were drenched in dragon's blood, their stunned faces quickly twisting into disgusted grimaces.
Woahhhh!!!
The crowd finally snapped out of their daze, erupting into chaos.
"F-fuck! Vegapunk! That's a fucking dragon! What the hell did you build?!"
"Is that even a weapon? Looks like a damn nightmare come to life! Vegapunk, you mad bastard, why did you do this?!"
"I don't care how big it is, did you see what Captain Buggy did? He took it down in one fucking hit!"
"That explosion just now... I swear I nearly pissed myself. Captain Buggy's a goddamn monster!"
"Wait... that thing's dying, right? It can't use that attack used with the mother flame trick again, can it?"
Panic and awe rippled through the crowd. The cadres of the Buggy Pirates turned their gaze to one man, Vegapunk.
The scientist sighed, his face a picture of frustration and resignation.
"Something this massive? You think it can fire twice in a row?" He snorted. "Even I'm not that much of a genius. It took years of biological engineering to merge the bloodline factors of mythical beasts. Not that you lot would understand."
He glanced at the bleeding beast in the sky.
"And it doesn't matter now. This big guy's finished."
His voice carried a hint of regret, but even more than that, admiration.
"No matter how powerful an Ancient Weapon is, it still cannot surpass the strength of a human. The force Buggy unleashed just now was not just stronger than Uranus's mother flame output. It obliterated it."
Vegapunk shook his head once more. His eyes were wide behind his glasses.
"It is almost beyond comprehension that a man's strength could reach such a level."
Hearing Vegapunk's exclamation, Bullet let out a sneer.
"I told you already, old man," he said, his tone dripping with contempt. "Did you forget who Captain Buggy is? You think someone like him could lead us without that kind of strength? Don't insult him."
His words made Vegapunk pause, instinctively turning his head toward Bullet and the others.
And at that moment, thanks to Bullet's loud declaration, countless viewers around the world tuned into the live broadcast and shifted their attention as well.
Their eyes fell upon the figures standing behind Buggy.
Gabban, Bullet, Doringo, Enel, Dragon, Boa Hancock. Zephyr, Sunbell, San Juan Wolf, Jinbei, Crocodile, S-Snake, S-Hawk.Ain, Shuzo, Gecko Moria, Rob Lucci, Inuarashi, Nekomamushi, Binz...
Every one of them was a name that shook the seas.
And these were only the ones present. There were still other terrifying combat forces within the Buggy Pirates, either in training or spread across the world.
Just by looking at this lineup, anyone could see how the Buggy Pirates were structured into clear, terrifying echelons of strength.
They had six or seven fighters at the level of Admirals. Another six or seven who stood as quasi-Admirals. Then, seven or eight more at the elite Vice Admiral level.
Against such a monstrous lineup, even the full might of the Marines seemed laughable.
All over the world, cold sweat trickled down the backs of countless onlookers.
Supernovas, officers of Naval Headquarters, even the highest echelons of the World Government, now understood the brutal truth.
The Buggy Pirates were a force of unprecedented terror. And with the backing of the Crimson Empire, they were only going to grow stronger.
Resources. Talent. Combat power. Everything would be cultivated endlessly.
Even the usually arrogant Five Elders, watching from the Holy Land, felt a rare moment of relief that they had chosen to act against the Buggy Pirates now. A few more years, and the World Government might not even be able to compete with them, neither in strength nor in numbers.
The kings of the underground world were even more shaken. They had always seen themselves as powerful, arrogant in their influence and muscle, believing they could at least hold a candle to the Four Emperors.
But now they realised the truth.
They weren't even playing the same game.
While everyone remained stunned by the overwhelming might of the Buggy Pirates, the machine dragon, still lingering high above the sky, seemed unable to withstand the bleeding any longer.
It lifted its head, letting out a pitiful, agonised cry that echoed across the heavens.
"5!!!"
Almost every head snapped upward at the same time.
The beast's wingbeats slowed, growing weaker and more laboured. Moments later, its enormous body began to tilt, falling from the sky like a dying god.
At that moment, Buggy's voice rang out, calm and casual, from above.
"Hey, Old man, that thing you made… is the meat edible?"
Vegapunk blinked, not quite following where Buggy was going with this. He nodded almost reflexively.
Aside from the outer layer of energy armour, it's composed of normal biological components. Of course it's edible... Wait, don't tell me you—"
"Exactly," Buggy cut him off, grinning ear to ear. "The World Government was kind enough to send us such a massive feast. Be a shame to let it go to waste, right? Looks like the Crimson Empire's having an extra meal tonight."
Above the battlefield, Buggy clapped his hands together.
"True Several Thousand Hands Jutsu."
Whoosh! Whoosh!
As his words echoed, a surge of life erupted from the forest below.
Dozens of towering wooden palms, each hundreds of meters in diameter, shot upward like titanic hands reaching for the sky. They caught the black dragon as it plummeted, securing it tightly within their grip.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The earth trembled from the force as the dragon's massive, battered body, still glowing faintly with the embers of Buggy's attack that had charred the outer layer.
Clatter...
Even now, its blood continued to pour, cascading from the colossal wooden palms like rivers.
The sight froze everyone watching the live broadcast.
That monstrous beast, the one that had towered above the sky only moments ago, now looked like nothing more than a slab of meat in Buggy's grasp.
A cold, uneasy chill ran through the hearts of countless onlookers. Had Buggy truly become this powerful?
At this moment, the black dragon let out one last, furious roar.
Crack!
Facing the dying dragon's final defiance, Buggy remained perfectly calm.
"Hawk," he said, his tone casual yet commanding, "cut off its head and send it on its way."
"Yes, Captain!"
Before anyone could process who 'Little Eagle' was, a figure shot into the sky from the grounds of Adam's Sacred Tree.
As the crowd looked up, they finally saw it. The Seraphim, its obsidian wings spread wide, flames trailing behind its silhouette.
S-Hawk.
Hovering at a hundred meters above the battlefield, the figure paused midair. Then, mimicking Hawkeye Mihawk's iconic stance, it raised its blade.
Swoosh!
Poof!
In the next instant, an orange slash tore through the heavens.
A devastating arc of sword energy, spanning over a thousand meters, cleaved across the sky. The still-struggling black dragon was severed cleanly in two, its massive body falling apart midair.
The severed body plummeted. The head crashed separately, accompanied by a final, pitiful splatter of blood.
Vegapunk's engineered weapon of mass destruction, a machine beast capable of levelling islands with a single breath, had fallen.
Buggy nodded, satisfied.
"Good. Later, turn this dragon into food for the people of our empire," he said casually.
He turned his gaze toward his towering chef, Panz Fry, grinning.
"Uncle Fry, no one's ever cooked a dragon before, right? Want to be the first?"
Ha ha ha ha!
Panz Fry waved his enormous iron spatula, a wild grin on his face.
"Captain Buggy, you do know my tastes! I've never cooked dragon meat before, so today, I'll make history in the chef world!"
He thumped his chest with the spatula. "Captain Buggy, everyone, save your appetites! I'll serve you the feast of a lifetime!"
Buggy chuckled.
"No need to rush," he said with a laugh. His gaze swept over the Buggy Pirates gathered below, flashing them a toothy grin.
"Originally, I was planning to give the World Government a few more days. But since they decided to strike first..." His grin stretched wider, filled with mischief and bloodlust. "Then let's not wait."
He raised his hand high, his voice booming across the battlefield.
"What do you say, boys? How about we take a little trip to the Holy Land of Mariejois? Let's smash the Celestial Dragons tonight!"
For a moment, the world fell into utter silence.
Even the Buggy Pirates were frozen, unable to react.
Was this... Buggy, declaring war on the World Government?
Wasn't this a bit... too sudden? Too insane?
The entire world, watching through the live broadcast, stood in stunned disbelief.
And then, breaking the suffocating silence, a playful voice echoed through the air.
"Heading to the Holy Land of Mariejois? Now that's an interesting plan. I think I'll tag along, if you don't mind."
Everyone stiffened instantly, a cold chill crawling up their spines.
They all spread their observation haki in every direction, but there was nothing. Not a single presence.
A top-tier powerhouse had slipped past their senses.
Who the hell was it?!
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