A/N: Read 20+ chapters ahead at {patreon.com/Glivaria}
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Zoro stared at the crying babies and the groaning octogenarians, deeply disturbed. He looked at Bonney, who was currently delivering a devastating, high-arcing kick to the jaw of one of the few guards who had managed to dodge her aging wave.
"Her Devil Fruit is a nightmare," Zoro muttered.
"She's a terrifying, beautiful angel of time," Sanji swooned, his eye turning into a heart.
"Less talking! More smashing!" Luffy roared, blurring past them.
Luffy bit his thumb, his arm expanding massively. Gear Third. He didn't bother coating it in Haki this time; the sheer blunt force was enough.
"Gomu Gomu no... GIGANT PISTOL!"
Luffy's massive fist acted like a wrecking ball. He drove it straight down the center of the bladed forest, completely uprooting dozens of razor-leaf trees and blasting a massive, clean path through the center of the Crimson Hell.
The prisoners in the cells screamed in sheer disbelief. This wasn't an escape attempt. This was an invasion.
"Hey! Hey, Straw Hat!" a scarred pirate yelled from his cell, rattling the iron bars frantically. "You got the keys?! Let us out! We'll help you tear this place down!"
"I don't have time!" Luffy yelled back without breaking his stride. "I'm looking for Ace!"
They sprinted through the cleared path, the needle grass completely crushed flat by Luffy's attack.
But Impel Down was not without its monsters.
A heavy, rhythmic THUD. THUD. THUD. echoed from the shadows of the remaining trees.
"Watch out!" a prisoner screamed from a cell. "It's the guards of the forest! They'll chop you to pieces!"
A colossal figure stepped into the clearing. It was a Blugori—a massive, blue-skinned demon wearing a skull mask, its bulging muscles rippling beneath its dark cloak. It wielded a giant, double-bladed battleaxe that dripped with fresh blood.
The Blugori let out a guttural, terrifying roar, swinging the massive axe in a horizontal arc aimed directly at Luffy's waist. It was an attack designed to cleave a man entirely in half.
Luffy didn't even slow down. He didn't dodge.
He coated his right fist in a dense, invisible layer of foundational Armament Haki. The spiritual armor hardened his skin to a density far surpassing steel.
CLANG!
Luffy punched the flat side of the massive battleaxe.
The impact echoed like a cannon shot. The sheer, overwhelming kinetic force, backed by Luffy's newly awakened Haki, shattered the steel axe head into dozens of jagged pieces. The shockwave traveled up the handle, violently throwing the massive Blugori off its feet. The beast was launched backward, crashing through five bladed trees before slumping to the ground, completely knocked out.
The entire cell block went dead silent. The unbeatable monster of Level 1 had just been swatted away like a fly.
"AHHHHH! GET AWAY FROM ME!"
Before they could celebrate, a man in a striped prisoner uniform burst from the bushes on the far side of the clearing. He was sprinting frantically in circles, waving his arms in absolute, comical panic. A second Blugori was right on his heels, swinging its axe wildly.
Zoro sighed, stepping forward. He rested his hand on Sandai Kitetsu. A flash of cursed steel illuminated the gloom, and the second Blugori collapsed, a clean, shallow cut across its chest rendering it unconscious.
The prisoner stopped running, panting heavily, his tongue practically rolling out of his mouth. He fell to his knees, kissing the stone floor. "I'm alive! The great Captain Buggy lives to see another day!"
Luffy blinked, recognizing the massive, prominent red clown nose.
"Buggy?!" Luffy yelled, pointing at him. "You got caught?! What are you doing down here?!"
Buggy the Clown froze. He slowly looked up, his jaw unhinging and hitting the needle grass. His eyes bugged out of his skull as he looked at the trio of pirates and the pink-haired woman.
"Straw Hat?!" Buggy shrieked, his voice cracking. "What the hell are you doing in the great underwater prison?! Did you get caught too?!"
"Caught?! I broke in!" Luffy grinned wildly. "I'm looking for Ace! Do you know where the stairs are?!"
Buggy stared at him, his mind completely blanking out. He broke in? Into Impel Down?! This kid is a complete lunatic!
Then, the gears in Buggy's mind began to turn. The alarms were blaring. The guards were scattered. If Straw Hat was heading deeper, that meant he was drawing all the heat.
"Of... of course I know where the stairs are!" Buggy lied smoothly, crossing his arms and putting on an arrogant smirk, though his knees were still shaking violently. "I've practically memorized this whole floor! The exit is that way!"
Buggy pointed a thumb over his shoulder, deliberately pointing toward the massive hole in the floor that led deeper into the prison, hoping Luffy would take the bait so he could sneak back up to the surface.
"Thanks, Buggy!" Luffy yelled, immediately sprinting exactly where Buggy pointed.
"Wait, you idiot, that's down!" Buggy screamed, momentarily forgetting his own lie.
But Luffy was already at the edge of the massive, dark shaft leading to Level 2. He didn't hesitate for a microsecond.
"Let's go!" Luffy cheered, jumping directly into the pitch-black abyss.
"This is madness!" Sanji yelled, diving in after him.
"Finally, some fun," Bonney laughed, grabbing Zoro's arm and dragging the swearing swordsman down the hole with her.
Buggy stood alone in the clearing, listening to their fading voices. He stared at the abyss, completely flabbergasted.
"They're actually going deeper?" Buggy whispered. "Lunatics! Absolute lunatics! Well, perfect! They drew all the guards! This is my chance to slip out the front door and find Captain John's treasure!"
Buggy let out a boastful, greedy laugh, his detached hands rubbing together as he started sneaking toward the upper exit, entirely unaware of the absolute nightmare slowly descending the stairs behind him.