Chapter 49: An Unexpected Encounter!
High above, Buggy couldn't make out the flag of the pirate ship at first. It was only after falling for some distance that he realized he was quite familiar with the pirate crew attacking the ship Hancock was on.
A round skull with a wide, arrogant grin and a distinct scar on it. There was only one pirate crew in the world with this emblem: the Donquixote Pirates.
Accelerating again, Buggy landed beside Hancock at top speed.
Seeing Buggy descend from the sky, the Donquixote Pirates ceased their attack. Even Donquixote Doflamingo himself walked to the bow of his ship to look at the man who had just landed.
"Hancock, are you okay?" The first thing Buggy did was check if Hancock had been harmed.
"Brother Buggy, I'm fine." After her happy reply, Hancock's gaze immediately turned cold, staring deadly at the Donquixote Pirates who had fired upon her.
"What happened while I was up there? Why did a pirate crew attack you?" Buggy asked.
"Brother Buggy, not long after you left, this ship emerged from the sea. I guess they either had a failed coating at Sabaody or are a pirate crew returning from the New World. The moment these guys appeared, they started attacking for no reason. They only stopped their cannon fire when you made your grand entrance," Hancock's mood was not good at all after being attacked so senselessly.
"Fufufufufu, this is truly a most unexpected encounter. I originally thought I'd found a very worthy target to hunt, but I didn't expect the target to turn into two strong individuals in the blink of an eye. Fufufufufu, this is going to be difficult to resolve." Standing in the air above his pirate ship, Donquixote Doflamingo spoke to Buggy and Hancock with his unique laugh.
"Doffy, it's just one guy who appeared out of nowhere, isn't it? We can just take them out together," a guy with sunglasses and a long strand of snot hanging from his nose said to Doflamingo from his position clinging to the mast.
"Yeah, Doffy, although this guy who barged in seems pretty strong, he won't be a match for us. Let's just finish them off," a tall man dressed in Native American-style attire also stepped out and said.
"Fufufufufu, don't underestimate them. That man is a user of Conqueror's Haki. Even if that red-nosed guy is holding a Devil Fruit, this fight would only be a loss for us. A fight with no benefits is meaningless. Let's go."
To Buggy's surprise, Doflamingo had no intention of continuing the fight and instead chose to retreat.
Watching Doflamingo leave with his men, Buggy didn't make a move.
"Brother Buggy, why didn't we teach those guys a lesson just now?" Unlike the calm Buggy, Hancock was furious.
"Hahaha, Hancock, even if we could have won that fight just now, it would have been a tough one. Now is not the time to carelessly reveal ourselves. That pirate crew is different from ordinary ones; they are on the radar of the World Government's top brass. Fighting them too early would bring us no benefits at all. Besides, back on Jaya Island, I already found them a powerful opponent. Someone will teach them a good lesson for us."
"Brother Buggy, are you saying that was the Donquixote Pirates?" Upon hearing Buggy's words, Hancock immediately understood.
"Yes, that was them. Let them suffer a loss first. Later, after our pirate crew is formed, we'll run into them sooner or later. When that time comes, it definitely won't be as simple as just teaching them a lesson. Daring to touch my woman, they're really courting death."
One evening half a month later, on Gourmet Island in the Grand Line, Buggy and Hancock appeared at the back door of the shop where Betty was training in culinary arts.
Betty, who was taking out the trash, dropped the trash can in her hands. She rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing things, and then her eyes quickly turned red. She burst into tears and threw herself at Buggy.
"It's been seven years, Brother Buggy! I thought you didn't want me anymore!"
Beside them, Hancock could feel the deep attachment in that simple sentence. It was somewhat like the feeling of a puppy that had been abandoned for years suddenly seeing its owner.
Although the description wasn't a perfect fit, this was the feeling Betty and Buggy's reunion gave Hancock.
After hugging the little girl and comforting her for a while, Buggy directly led Betty and Hancock away from the shop.
As for the agreement with the shop owner, it wasn't that Buggy didn't have the "Tianxiang" spice on him. Upholding the principle of keeping his promises, Buggy would never break such an agreement without a special reason.
But after Betty told Buggy that the owner had married a new wife in the last two years and her life had become much more difficult, Buggy planned to first honor his promise and give the owner the item, and then settle the score with him.
However, Betty shook her head and magnanimously said she didn't want to pursue the matter.
What could Buggy say when his priority was to soothe little Betty? He could only turn around and leave.
Taking the Sea Train to Water 7 and letting Betty play happily for two days, Buggy then set off with Hancock and Betty towards the Calm Belt.
A year ago, when he took Hancock from Kuja, Buggy had promised her that he would bring her back to Kuja City within a year at most. Now that the trip to find Mihawk was over, Buggy naturally had to keep his promise.
The journey back to Kuja was smooth. After letting the ship rush into the Calm Belt, Buggy left with Betty on his back and Hancock, using Moonwalk. As for the ship full of toys left behind, it was soon sunk during a Sea King gathering on the calm surface of the Calm Belt.
Traveling straight up, they climbed to an altitude of nearly three thousand meters before Buggy and Hancock spotted Amazon Lily floating among the clouds.
As soon as they landed on the island, Sandersonia, who had become the new empress, came to greet them with her sister Marigold, Gloriosa, and others.
"Sister, it's been so long!" The two sisters immediately and happily pulled Hancock aside to chat.
"Elder Nyon, long time no see! Have you been well?" Looking at Gloriosa and her little follower, Buggy asked with a slight blush.
"Buggy, is this little one on your back the last one?" Gloriosa asked Buggy with a stern face.
"I swear, she's absolutely the last one!" Buggy immediately swore to the heavens and said fawningly.
"By the way, Elder Nyon, when did Monet get here?" Looking at the girl beside Gloriosa, Buggy asked, a little embarrassed.
(End of Chapter)