Meanwhile...
East Blue, Orange Town.
The Buggy Pirates.
Sitting on his throne was the infamous pirate known as "Buggy the Clown," with a bounty of 15 million Berries.
At his side stood two of his high-ranking crew members: Mohji the Beast Tamer and Cabaji the Chief of Staff.
"Damn it! Why is the treasure scouting team taking so long to return?!"
"Don't tell me... they ran off with my treasure?!"
"If I find out someone betrayed me... I'll make sure they regret ever being born."
Buggy sat on his throne, bored and irritated. Seeing that his treasure-hunting team hadn't returned on time, his mind spiraled into anger and paranoia.
"Uh-oh..."
"This isn't good! Buggy's getting mad!"
The surrounding subordinates trembled under Buggy's seething rage, terrified that their cruel captain might blast them away with his cannons or Devil Fruit powers.
"Captain Buggy!!"
"The treasure scouting boat has returned, but... all the crew members are gone."
"The ship was sailed back by a strange woman with long blue hair who insists on meeting you."
Just as Buggy suspected betrayal, things took a strange turn. His treasure boat had returned—without its crew—but as long as the treasure was back, he didn't really care.
"So the crew's gone? Whatever. As long as my treasure is safe..."
"And this woman... wants to meet me?"
"Bring her up!"
"I want to see who dares demand an audience with the great Buggy!"
"Don't they know I'm a fearsome pirate with a 15 million bounty?!"
Buggy sneered, a mix of cold disdain and curiosity flashing in his eyes.
Having ruled the East Blue for so long, Buggy's sense of danger had dulled.
"Understood!"
The crewmate who delivered the message ran off to "invite" the woman aboard.
—Five minutes later—
The clear sky suddenly turned dark.
A black cloud loomed above, oddly localized, pouring down rain and wind.
Beneath that storm...
A woman approached. She carried an umbrella, wore a blue overcoat and a fluffy blue hat, with silky long aquamarine hair. Her face was beautiful and dignified, but her expression was grim and cold.
Each step she took brought the storm closer.
"Ugh..."
Buggy's eyes widened in shock. His whole body trembled on his throne.
No, he wasn't enamored by her beauty—he was pure terrified.
That wasn't some ordinary woman. That was a powerful Devil Fruit user!
"Drip drip... drip drip..."
As she advanced, she muttered incoherently, her eyes somewhat vacant, as if lost in thought.
"Hey! Lady!"
"Don't come any closer to our captain!"
"Yeah! Do you know who you're talking to?!"
"This is Captain Buggy the Clown! 15 million Berries! And a Devil Fruit user too!"
Buggy's subordinates quickly surrounded her, shouting and trying to intimidate her with Buggy's reputation.
"Too much noise."
The woman merely raised her hand. Instantly, streams of water formed into whips and lashed out in every direction, striking the pirates down.
BOOM!
A deafening crash.
"AHHHH—!"
"She's a Devil Fruit user too?!"
The Buggy crew were thrown overboard into the sea by her water whips.
"You fools!"
"Didn't the storm over her head and constant rain clue you in?! She's clearly no normal woman!"
"When dealing with someone that strange, your first instinct shouldn't be to fight, but to observe carefully!"
"That's the only way smart pirates survive in this sea!"
Buggy was furious at his subordinates, feeling utterly disappointed.
If his entire crew were this reckless, he'd get himself killed one day.
"You..."
Just as Buggy was about to scold them further, a sharp underling snuck behind the woman, raising a blade to strike.
"Oh..."
Buggy paused, curious to see what would happen.
SWISH!
A gleam of steel.
The pirate's blade sliced the woman clean in half.
"Got her! That's what you get for ignoring your blind spot!"
"No! Look—her body isn't bleeding... it turned into liquid?!"
To their horror, the woman's bisected body didn't spill blood or guts.
Instead, her form reassembled from flowing water, standing tall and cold as ever.
"Crap! A Logia-type Devil Fruit user?!"
Buggy's heart froze.
Though he had once served as an apprentice on the Pirate King Gol D. Roger's ship, his Haki mastery was practically nonexistent. Against Logia users, he had no chance.
"Seems you people don't want to talk peacefully."
The woman finally spoke, voice icy:
"Water Flow: Rising Mist!"
WHOOM!
A massive magic circle expanded to envelop the entire ship.
Everyone aboard—including Buggy—froze, their faces pale.
They all felt a bad omen.
BOOM!
A high-pressure blast of seawater surged from the circle, launching everyone skyward like cannonballs.
Then, they rained down like droplets.
—
Elsewhere.
Eden and his group, who had arrived fashionably late, looked up at the rainbow forming in the post-storm sky.
"Wow... it's really beautiful~" Eden said softly.