"Sakazuki, this time you acted far too impulsively."
Fleet Admiral Kong's voice was sharp as he lectured the injured Vice Admiral.
"Didn't I already order that the task of identifying archaeologists be left to CP? They had already verified that refugee ship so why did you intervene?!"
"Mr Kong, what if archaeologists were hiding among them?"
Sakazuki raised his head, his tone hot with anger.
Kong's brow twitched.
"How many? One? Two? Are you really taking this so seriously?" He gave Sakazuki an annoyed glare.
"This is the first time I've seen someone fight to take blame for work that isn't even his!"
"You claim you want to become an Admiral one day, but could you at least learn to protect your reputation?"
His voice grew colder.
"You're a Marine not a butcher. Remember that."
"...Yes."
Sakazuki lowered his head, his hands trembling, but he said no more.
Kong exhaled and leaned back in his chair. Looking at Sakazuki's bandaged wounds, his tone softened.
"Enough. Just… pay more attention in the future. You're still one of the pillars of the Navy. Don't waste your future by being too reckless."
"Yes, Mr. Kong."
Sakazuki finally nodded, his expression less tense than before.
---
A few days later…
Rain sat under a tree with a newspaper spread out in his hands. His brows rose slightly in surprise.
"No bounty posters?"
Mira leaned over his shoulder, curious, then suddenly grinned.
"It seems the Navy's scared of us." She puffed her chest with pride, her smile gleaming with confidence.
Rain chuckled and shook his head.
"In the end, it's simple. The Navy tolerates us because we haven't done anything that crosses the line."
"If we had acted like true pirates, there's no way they would've stayed this quiet."
Mira crossed her arms, still smirking.
"Well, I don't mind. Let them be afraid. It just means we get more time to grow."
Rain folded the paper, his expression calm but thoughtful.
"They're not afraid of what we are now… they're afraid of what we'll become."
In the year that followed, Rain and Mira traveled across the seas with their two young companions, Hiyori and Robin.
Along the way, they occasionally lent a hand to Buggy.
That "help" often came in the form of convincing rivals...usually with their fists.
Germa 66, for instance, had to be beaten into submission before agreeing to supply android soldiers as logistical support for the Buggy Delivery.
They toppled one of the dark world's "emperors," the Shipping King Umit.
They visited Fish-Man Island, purged the lawless district of slavers, and sealed a trade pact:
Fish-Man Island would supply undersea resources, while Buggy's network would handle global distribution.
In return, Fish-Man Island gained full control of shipping routes, while Buggy seized Umit's market share completely.
They even plunged into the Calm Belt, rescuing the three Boa sisters from slave traders.
With Amazon Lily's warriors mining rare resources from the Calm Belt and Buggy's Chamber of Commerce handling sales, a powerful new partnership was forged.
One move after another—each more outrageous than the last.
Before long, Buggy's network had swallowed half of the dark world alongside Doflamingo, and his Chamber of Commerce rose to the top of the world's markets.
Buggy the Clown… became the richest man alive.
For him, life couldn't have been more perfect.
Time passed. By now, it was the year 1507. Rain and Mira had walked this world for a long time now.
"Just one more year before we can go back…" Mira murmured, her expression soft as she thought of her siblings.
"I wonder how Lisanna and Elfman are doing now."
"Don't worry," Rain smiled. "Another year, and we'll return. Besides didn't we already find a perfect Devil Fruit to gift Lisanna?"
Elfman? Neither of them had prepared anything for him.
As a man, learning to wield his magic was enough...there was no need for the crutch of a Devil Fruit. In the end, magic had no upper limit; Devil Fruits did.
Lisanna, though… she was different. For her, the fruit was a gift worth bringing home.
"By the way, Buggy came to see us recently, didn't he?" Mira tilted her head curiously.
"That guy was being so mysterious. He wouldn't explain a thing over the Den Den Mushi only said he'd tell us face to face."
Rain chuckled. "If he's being that secretive, it must be something big."
"It can't be… that thing, right?"
The thought flashed through Rain's mind. He found it almost unbelievable, but aside from that possibility, he couldn't imagine what else Buggy could be plotting.
"In any case, we'll know when the time comes." Rain shook his head. "No point overthinking it now."
"I just hope Buggy brings something interesting to the table," Mira added with a sweet smile that didn't reach her eyes.
"Otherwise, I'll just have to spar with him until he cries."
Her voice was soft, her expression gentle—yet both Robin and Hiyori shivered on instinct.
"Mira-nee's smile looks scary again…"
The two girls exchanged a glance, silently praying that Buggy wouldn't do anything foolish enough to get on Mira's bad side.
Over the year, they'd long since learned that behind Mira's "gentle" exterior was a side far more ruthless than most pirates.
---
New World — St. Louis Island
After becoming the world's richest man, Buggy had moved the headquarters of the Buggy Delivery from Spring Queen City to St. Louis Island.
The choice wasn't random. St. Louis sat at a strategic crossroads in the New World, close enough to trade routes to dominate business, yet not so exposed that it would invite a direct siege.
Most importantly, it wasn't far from the Navy's G-1 base.
A risky choice for most but not for Buggy.
"Having the Marines breathing down our necks just keeps other scavengers away," he had bragged more than once.
Besides, St. Louis had a convenient shield: Dressrosa. That country, firmly under Doflamingo's rule, sat between the island and G-1.
And since Doflamingo was his "partner," Buggy reasoned, Dressrosa was basically his territory too.
"See?" he laughed once, wine in hand. "Even the Marines have to get through my kingdom before touching me!"
Buggy's logic was as shameless as ever, but in its own twisted way, it worked.
[Author Note]📢
Hey everyone!
Just a quick update — I've started a new Naruto novel:
Naruto: From Scratch With a Template System
It's a fresh project with cleaner writing and a steadier release pace.
If you enjoyed my previous stories, feel free to check it out!
Thanks for the support 🗣️
— Arthorain