Chapter 329: ICISEI Episode 315

Episode 315: Gradually Obsessed with the Clown Pirate - Buggy

『 Luffy shouted at the top of his lungs: "ACE!! NO MATTER WHAT, EVEN IF IT KILLS ME, I WILL SAVE YOU!!"

Ace was so moved that tears streamed down his face!

Over on Whitebeard’s side, the division commanders watched Luffy’s performance, their eyes filled with admiration. One of them said slowly, "This kid... how can we let a youngster steal all the spotlight?"...

"Brothers, charge with me!"

"It’s not just for this little guy; we are Ace’s family too!"

"Even if we have to sacrifice ourselves for Ace, it’s worth it!"

The pirates’ spirits were highly roused, and they fought with even greater vigor!

Whitebeard turned to Marco beside him and said, "Marco, don’t you dare let that boy die here!"

Marco smiled slightly and nodded in response, "Understood!"

He knew that if they wanted to help Ace right now, the best way was to keep his younger brother alive. That was what real brothers should do!

At this moment, the Marines began to gather around Luffy, clearly unwilling to let him break through their defensive line.

The pirate allies around Luffy also quickly closed in, preparing to face the battle alongside him.

However, with only dozens of pirates against hundreds or even thousands of Marines, the gap in strength was indeed far too vast!

But Luffy didn’t care about any of that. He had always been impulsive, and his goal was incredibly clear—to get over to Ace and save him. He didn’t care how many people blocked the path ahead; if one came, he would beat one; if a hundred came, he would beat a hundred!

"We have to defeat the Marines, and then go see Pops!"

"Charge! Everyone works together, let’s fight as one!"

The various large and small fleets on the outer perimeter belonged to the different pirate groups under Whitebeard’s banner, with their numbers estimated to be around twenty to thirty thousand.

Although they weren’t official members but rather subordinates, their loyalty to Whitebeard made them willing to fight to the death here!

However, their opponents were Marine Vice Admirals.

These were extremely formidable figures!...

Against them, ordinary pirates were as fragile as toys, posing absolutely no threat.

After several successive failed offensives, the pirates’ faces turned pale with panic. "Are the Marine Vice Admirals really this strong?"

"But we don’t care who stands in our way; we won’t back down! We must save Ace!" 』

『 .....』

〜Gintama World〜

Shinsengumi—

Kondo Isao and the others were staring at the screen together.

"Ah, don’t be like that! The gap on the pirates’ side is way too big! That Marine Vice Admiral is already exhausted! Just a few more guys charging up can finish him off! Great job! They finally took one down!"

Seeing the pirates charge forward wave after wave, finally bringing down a Marine Vice Admiral after losing dozens of men, cheers instantly erupted in the yard!

Hijikata Toshiro: ...

His brow twitched slightly.

He felt extremely annoyed. You had to know that they were an official government force!

From a certain perspective, their responsibilities were the same as the Marines’.

How come the people here were all siding with the pirates instead of supporting the Marines?

Especially Yamazaki in the back, who had already unfolded a banner and was waving a small megaphone, cheering loudly for the pirates!

Hijikata Toshiro found this scene completely unacceptable. It had a terrible impact on their official image, and it had to be stopped. However, as the Vice Commander, it didn’t seem appropriate for him to step in directly, especially since the Commander was also on the scene!

He looked at Kondo Isao!

But at this moment, Kondo wasn’t cheering for the pirates. Instead, his eyes were full of hearts, and a strip of paper was stuck to his forehead that read—"Empress Boa is my life."

Hijikata Toshiro: ...

He knew he had to handle the situation himself. He cleared his throat lightly and said loudly,

"Who exactly are you guys cheering for?! You’re supporting the troublemaking side so enthusiastically, it’s like cheering for those destructive Joi rebels in our own world! Is that appropriate? We are law enforcement officers, a team representing the government! Figure out your stance before you start shouting!"

This made Hijikata Toshiro burn with anger. What infuriated him even more was that apart from Yamazaki quickly putting away his banner, the others barely reacted.

Just then, someone in the crowd waved at Hijikata, signaling him to look back at the screen.

On the screen, a Marine swordsman was being violently attacked by pirates. Unable to withstand the enemies, he was quickly defeated.

Okita Sougo said with a mischievous smirk,

"Vice Commander Hijikata, don’t you think this Marine looks quite a bit like you? It’s just that his end doesn’t seem very good. I hope our Lord Hijikata doesn’t meet a similar fate."

—

『 The Marines aimed their portable cannons at Whitebeard’s pirate ship.

"Lock onto Whitebeard, fire!"

Bombarding Whitebeard with cannonballs?

It was practically suicide!

Whitebeard didn’t even need to dodge; these cannonballs couldn’t cause him a shred of damage.

However, Whitebeard didn’t want his ship to be damaged, so he swung his great blade, releasing a blue light that destroyed the incoming cannonballs. Amidst the thunderous explosions, thick smoke rose, and red flames soared into the sky.

But this strike didn’t stop there; the residual force of the attack swept directly in front of several Marines. After a powerful explosion of energy, the Marines were knocked to the ground.

At the same time.

The battle between the Marines and Luffy was equally intense. Luffy’s body was extremely flexible, so blunt weapons had almost no effect on him, and those who got too close ended up being countered instead.

After a few rounds, the Marines realized this approach wasn’t working and quickly shouted, "Hold on, let the swordsmen go forward!"

Sure enough, once the swordsmen took the field, Luffy immediately became cautious. Failing to dodge in time, he even had some hair shaved off the top of his head!

Realizing something was wrong, Luffy immediately did a backflip to distance himself from the enemy. His arms suddenly stretched out, punching his opponents fiercely.

Although he sent two guys flying, there were simply too many Marines.

In a moment of distraction, his abdomen was pierced by a sharp blade, and blood instantly gushed out.

Only then did everyone realize that even with a rubber body, he would still get hurt when facing sharp weapons.

Though he could stretch freely, he was practically helpless against sharp swords.

"I must save Ace! No one is allowed to block me!"

Faced with such a resolute Luffy, there was only one path in his heart. Ace wept bitterly, murmuring to himself, "Luffy, why did you have to come?!"

"Why did everyone have to come because of me?"

"Clearly, this was my own mistake. Not only was I careless enough to get captured, but now I’ve caused everyone to take so many injuries for my sake, and some might even lose their lives."

If he hadn’t been worried about his younger brother, Ace might have accepted his death calmly long ago. But now, a glimmer of hope for survival rose in his heart!

"We, the Second Division, must rescue Commander Ace! He is our boss; if we don’t act, who will?!"

This man held a wooden cannon, ruthlessly blasting the approaching Marines.

His voice was incredibly loud, and all the division members behind him echoed in unison, their momentum magnificent!

"Why... for a sinner like me..."

Ace knelt on the ground, his facial muscles twitching uncontrollably.

When he straightened his back again, the despair on his face had vanished.

Garp asked, "What happened?"

"Before, I was completely in despair and had lost all will to fight. Being in that state was too disrespectful to the comrades who are risking their lives for me. Now, I have made up my mind. No matter what lies ahead, I will accept it—whether it is a helping hand or the sword of judgment."

"I am no longer afraid!"

Ace’s eyes were filled with resolve.

At this moment, as Garp and Whitebeard stared at his spirit, they seemed to see the shadow of that man from the past in front of them!

Meanwhile, on the fortress walls, the powerful cannons that were supposed to target the ships were now turned toward the pirates.

BOOM—!

A loud explosion!

Intense firelight instantly erupted behind the crowd. In an instant, all the pirates were startled, because under the Marines’ siege, their group was like a bullseye. Any hit could cause devastating losses!

Anxious expressions appeared on many pirates’ faces.

At this moment, just as the second cannonball was about to be fired from the opposite side, Luffy suddenly leapt into the air, taking a deep breath. His body became more and more bloated, expanding continuously like a balloon!

The cannonball shot straight at him, but it couldn’t harm him. Instead, it was bounced right back.

BANG—!

Another loud explosion!

Several cannons were actually destroyed by Luffy in a single blow!

The pirates cheered loudly!

After all, this scene had resolved their immediate crisis.

Not far away.

The companions who had come along with Luffy watched him fighting, their faces filled with clear dissatisfaction.

"This guy seems to be stealing all the spotlight. What an annoying Straw Hat kid!"

"Captain Buggy, we can’t let Luffy overshadow us!"

"Let’s go save Ace first. Although I don’t really know who this Ace is, if we can save him, we’ll definitely become famous overnight!"

"No, taking Whitebeard’s head will make us even more famous!"

"While everyone is busy fighting the Marines, how about we quietly take down Whitebeard?"

"That’s right, kill Whitebeard!"

Most of these people were ruthless characters. Many had been sent to prison by Whitebeard or his subordinates in the past, so they harbored deep hostility toward him.

"Hahaha, indeed a great opportunity to make a name for ourselves. Let’s do it!"

On the surface, Buggy looked full of confidence, but in the depths of his heart, he was actually incredibly tense.

He thought to himself: "Even though the opponent is right in front of us, this scene of frantic slaughter is truly terrifying. Both the Marines and the other pirates are famously strong. If I strike at Whitebeard now, the consequences will be unpredictable... The best strategy right now should be to continue observing the situation before deciding. But how can I say that out loud?"

Just as he was having a headache, a voice suddenly sounded from behind him.

"Hey, red nose!"

"Red... red nose!"

"You bastard, who are you talking to?! So impolite, are you forcing me to take action?!"

Buggy hated it most when people called him red-nosed!

It made him feel like a ridiculous clown!

But when he saw clearly who the words came from, he froze completely.

Because this person was none other than Whitebeard, whom he had just been thinking of taking down!

His legs instantly went weak, his eyes widened, and he could hardly believe it!

"Whitebeard!"

"It’s actually Whitebeard talking to me! This man is the world-renowned Whitebeard!"

He was so scared that snot even started running down his nose.

Whitebeard’s expression was very grim, and he said coldly, "I wondered who it was. So it’s you, you little brat!"

"I really didn’t expect you to still be alive!"

The Pirate King, Roger!

It turned out Buggy was once a member of Roger’s crew!

Everyone was stunned. Because of his flashy makeup, people couldn’t tell his age at all and thought he was not much older than Luffy. They hadn’t expected him to be an old subordinate of Roger!

Meanwhile, Buggy was so terrified that tears welled up in his eyes, and he grumbled inwardly: "It’s over, I’ve been found out, I’m doomed!"

His subordinates were also so scared that their legs wouldn’t stop shaking. "We’re doomed; now our only option is to run, and we might not even make it out alive!"

The group of people in prison uniforms who had just been discussing how to deal with Whitebeard now had their faces turn pale as they watched the scene before them.

Could it be...

Were they about to fight?

"Whitebeard! It’s actually that Whitebeard!"

"Captain Buggy is actually talking to the legendary Whitebeard!"

"This is Whitebeard!"

"To be able to work under our Captain is truly an honor!"

"As expected, working under a legendary big shot is just different!"

Seeing his group of underlings rejoicing just because Whitebeard had initiated a conversation with him, Buggy was so angry his lungs were about to burst. He grumbled in his heart: "Do you guys have any resolve to fight at all? Didn’t we agree to deal with Whitebeard? Hurry up and step up to share some of my burden!"

Whitebeard asked coldly, "You brought so many people here; you must be after my life, right?"

Buggy was just about to shake his head in denial, but his group of subordinates immediately responded in unison!

"That’s right!"

Buggy was so angry at these guys that he almost spat blood.

"You guys..."

He glared angrily at them.

The group immediately understood what Buggy meant, and one of them stepped forward and said:

"Ah, this kind of thing should have been announced by the Captain himself. Sorry, Captain Buggy, we accidentally stole your spotlight this time. This kind of thing should still be done by you. Great Captain, please formally issue a challenge to the legendary pirate, Whitebeard!"

Buggy was completely dumbfounded!

He stood frozen on the spot!

Now caught between a rock and a hard place, he could only brace himself and say to Whitebeard, "Long time no see, Whitebeard. You better be prepared!"

As soon as these words were spoken, a burst of cheering immediately erupted from the crowd.

"Oh? Quite courageous!"

"It doesn’t matter if you want my head, but have you thought about what comes next? With so many Marines here, can you successfully escape? And you’ll have to face our Whitebeard family. How will you survive? Your companions might all end up buried here!"

"Actually, I’m worried about this issue too. How about this? Let’s join forces to finish off the Marines first, and then we can consider our dispute. What do you think of this proposal?"

Hearing this, Buggy’s subordinates cheered one after another.

"Look how much Whitebeard appreciates our Captain!"

"To think even Whitebeard would take the initiative to propose cooperation, that’s giving us too much face!"

"It’s fine to put Whitebeard’s matter aside for now. After all, with your ability, Captain, victory is already within our grasp!"

"He’s practically treating our Captain as an equal powerhouse!"

One slightly sober subordinate quickly reminded, "Our current strength is simply not enough to fight the Marines!"

Hearing this, Buggy turned his head with a forced smile on his face and said, "As long as I get serious, it’s not impossible, right?!"

"Stop lying to yourself, you’ve completely lost your mind!"

But under the praises of the others, Buggy became more and more smug.

"I seem to see the demeanor of the ruler of the world!"

"This is our Captain Buggy!"

Buggy put on an air of contemplation and said, "It’s also fine to deal with the Marines along the way. Alright, Whitebeard, I’ll move together with you!"』

『 .....』

〜Dimensional livestream, Chat Room〜

[ Rimuru Tempest (Tensura): "My goodness, this guy is completely immersed in this flattery." ]

[ Oyama Mahiro (Onimai): "Exactly, a clown is indeed still a clown." ]

[ Tony Stark (Earth-616): "Heh, to be turned into this state by just a few words..." ]

[ .....]

『 Marco looked down at the group of people and spoke, "That’s really not very smart!"

Whitebeard had a smug smile on his face and said slowly, "Setting aside that red nose, the prisoners following behind him are truly not to be trifled with. If we really oppose them, it would be a big trouble for us!"

Buggy didn’t realize at all that he had been played, and was still smirking to himself.

Whitebeard looked toward his several large ships in the distance and said calmly, "Next is dealing with them!"

On the outer shores, everyone was fighting desperately.

"The reinforcement ships behind us have also caught up; help will arrive soon!"

"We have the upper hand now!"

Waves of pirates jumped down from the ships that had just arrived at the shore, shouting loudly as they charged toward the Marine base. 』

『 .....』