What a terrifying battlefield!!!
Buggy realized he had still underestimated just how brutal this war really was.
A laser beam had just exploded not far from him. He had nearly lost his life on the spot.
"As expected... I should hurry and get closer to Ozz..."
Just as Buggy was thinking that, a loud voice came from behind him.
"Hey, Red Nose!!!"
The moment he heard that, Buggy reacted like it was instinct. He spun around and shouted back.
"Who are you calling Red Nose, bastard?!"
"I'll kill you, you bastard!!!"
Then he got a proper look.
Buggy nearly pissed himself. Snot and tears exploded out at once.
"Pwah..."
Whitebeard!!!
"I was wondering who it was. Aren't you one of those brats from Roger's ship, just like Ozz?"
"How nostalgic. So you're still alive."
Buggy's face trembled. His mouth hung wide open.
Crap, he's got his eyes on me!!!
Mr. 3, the future right-hand man of an Emperor, was horrified too.
We're done for. The only option now is to run.
Only the underlings had a completely different train of thought. In their eyes, being personally addressed by Whitebeard was a symbol of strength and status.
"So awesome..."
"As expected of a legendary figure..."
Buggy was going numb.
What are you idiots getting emotional for?!?!
Then Whitebeard continued.
"You brought that many prisoners with you. Did you come here to take my head?"
"Yes!!!" the underlings answered first.
Buggy was about to wet himself. He stared at them in shock, but now the arrow was already on the string. He had no choice but to commit.
So he pointed at Whitebeard and made an overbearing declaration.
"Yeah, long time no see. Prepare yourself!!!"
Buggy stood with his back to everyone, tears streaming down his face, snot pouring all over.
Mr. 3 was completely dumbfounded. His eyeballs nearly popped out.
There has to be a limit to how suicidal someone can be!!!
"I don't mind if you want my head, but as pirates, shouldn't you deal with these Marines first? There are too many Marines even for me to handle comfortably...
And if we're talking about who might be able to deal with Ozz, then maybe the only one would be you, his old companion who understands him best."
"So then, how about we form a temporary alliance?"
Whitebeard invited Buggy to team up.
Buggy froze.
His underlings, on the other hand, were so excited their faces flushed red.
"Hey, hey, just how highly does Whitebeard think of your strength, Captain Buggy?!"
"He actually said only you can deal with that Black Spear guy. Ooooooh!!!"
Only Mr. 3 stayed relatively clear-headed.
No, this is obviously him trying to use their connection to handle Mr. Ozz, isn't it???
"Fighting the Marines and all that is way too reckless..."
But Buggy was starting to get carried away.
He turned back with a grin.
"Well... no rush. I'll go have a chat with Ozz first."
In the eyes of his underlings, however, that line meant that Buggy had tremendous face in front of that man.
"After all, when it comes to war and all that, Ozz is the one who has the final say."
Mr. 3 was going numb again.
Buggy had gotten so full of himself that he now thought he could actually influence the outcome of the war.
But before he had even gone very far,
a sandstorm Little Sand had launched at Little Doffy blew him straight into the sky.
On the other side,
Whitebeard wore a smile.
"Even if it was only a few words, I hope I can use that red nose to pull Ozz over to our side. He's the biggest variable on the battlefield."
With Luffy's arrival, the tide of battle shifted instantly.
The pirates now had reinforcements. It was as if they had all been injected with adrenaline as they charged toward the execution platform.
"So, are you going in now, Little Hawk?"
Ozz stood in front of the platform with both hands in his pockets, sometimes looking absent-minded, sometimes casually scanning the battlefield. When he saw Mihawk advance with his sword, he asked in curiosity.
Mihawk glanced back at Ozz and nodded.
"I want to see just what kind of spirit the Straw Hat brat you called a child of destiny truly has."
"Is that so? Then maybe I'll head down and play around too. A little dessert before the main course sounds nice."
Ozz said it with a smile as he watched Mihawk move directly into the path Luffy had to take.
Even so, Mihawk still wasn't using his full strength.
"You're... Hawk-Eye!!!"
Luffy's pupils shrank as he remembered how powerful this man was.
"I merely came to test you after hearing Ozz's words."
Mihawk slowly drew the black blade from his back. Jinbe immediately moved to block him.
"Sorry, Mr. Mihawk. I have no intention of becoming Mr. Ozz's enemy. This is all for the sake of saving Ace!!!"
"..."
Mihawk said nothing. One slash sent old Jinbe flying unconscious into the sea.
After that, he began chasing Luffy down with what was clearly a watered-down assault, cutting at him over and over.
"If this is all you can do, then you are nowhere near the level Ozz spoke of."
"You absolutely will not dodge the next slash!"
Just when Mihawk had chased Luffy into a position where escape was impossible,
"Jet Human Shield!!!"
Luffy yanked Buggy down in front of him just in time, and Mihawk's slash cut clean through Buggy at the waist.
"You bastard, Straw Hat! What the hell are you doing?!"
Then Luffy flung Buggy away.
Clang clang clang clang clang!!!
Mihawk chopped him into hundreds of pieces.
Buggy reassembled without a scratch and immediately exploded in rage.
"Unforgivable!!! You're one of Ozz's people too, aren't you?!"
"???"
Looking at this familiar guy who could never quite be cut to death, Mihawk was momentarily taken aback.
"You're Ozz's..."
"Since you know my relationship with Ozz, you'd better show me some respect!!!"
Mihawk could not be bothered to entertain Buggy any further.
Setting aside the fact that he was Ozz's good friend, Buggy inspired absolutely no interest in him whatsoever.
"When it comes to ties with Ozz, mine are no less than yours."
He smacked Buggy flying with the flat of his blade, then turned to continue pursuing Luffy,
only to be intercepted by Vista.
After being blocked again and again, Mihawk began to think.
As he took Vista's sword strikes head-on, he could not help but feel something strangely familiar.
Being surrounded by so many people, being recognized wherever one went, being acknowledged by strong men to an absurd degree.
This kind of experience, like being a true child of destiny,
other than Ozz, this was the first time he had seen it in anyone else.
"Interesting..."
Seeing even Little Hawk start phoning it in, now simply trading sword strikes with Flower Sword Vista for fun, Ozz finally decided to enter the field.
Without anyone noticing, he took a light step and instantly appeared beside Buggy.
With one hand, he steadily caught Buggy, who had just been swatted away by Mihawk. In the other, he held Seagull King's live-broadcast Den Den Mushi.
"You're still just as reckless as ever, Buggy. You've got to be more careful on a battlefield."
Half-dazed, Buggy opened his eyes. The moment he saw the man in front of him, tears welled up as he threw himself into Ozz's arms.
"Ozz!!!"
"It really has been a long time!!!"
"Hahahaha, yeah, it has."
Ozz patted him on the shoulder, then smiled and handed him Seagull King's broadcast Den Den Mushi.
"Sorry, but I've got something else to do. I'm leaving this live Den Den Mushi with you."
"You're a man I recognize, Buggy."
"Go make your name known across the world."
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