After saying their goodbyes to Garp, the Oro Jackson set sail once more, heading out into the boundless sea. The atmosphere on the ship felt fresh and clear, as if it had been cleansed by the recent storm.
"Hey! There's a ship ahead!" Pittam called down from the crow's nest. "Looks like it's loaded with treasure!"
Everyone on deck looked over and saw a gaudy, overly decorated pirate ship blocking their path. The ship's figurehead was a grinning skull covered in cheap gems that glinted in the sun.
"Kuhahaha! My hands are itching for a fight!" Roger laughed heartily, with no intention of steering around them. "Get ready, boys! Time to stretch your limbs!"
What followed was less of a battle and more of a one-sided "collection" of resources. The enemy captain had barely finished shouting, "Hand over all your treasure!" before Rayleigh knocked him unconscious with a casual wave of sword pressure. The rest of the pirates didn't even have time to put up a fight before they were swiftly dealt with by Jabba, Nozdon, and the others. The entire process was easy, enjoyable, and almost comical.
Half an hour later, the deck of the Oro Jackson was piled high with loot taken from the unlucky crew. There were mountains of gold, silver, and jewels, alongside crates of rum, smoked hams, and all sorts of strange collectibles.
"We're rich! We're rich!" Buggy shouted, diving onto a pile of Berries with shining eyes. He was so happy he nearly fainted. "This is all mine! No one's going to take it!"
"Hey, Buggy, what do you think this is?" Shanks asked, pulling something from an ornate wooden box. It was a strange, purple fruit covered in spiral patterns. It looked as if it had been neatly sliced apart and then perfectly reassembled, giving it a bizarre, geometric appearance.
"Whoa! What a disgusting color!" Buggy said, pinching his big red nose with a look of disgust. "Get it away from me, Shanks! That thing has to be poisonous!"
"A Devil Fruit?" Rayleigh walked over, adjusting his glasses to get a better look. "I don't recognize it from the encyclopedia."
The rest of the crew gathered around, pointing at the strange fruit and talking amongst themselves.
"Those patterns… just looking at them makes me dizzy."
"You think you'd get diarrhea if you ate it?"
As everyone was discussing it, Kyle pushed through the crowd and walked toward Shanks. He saw the fruit and a knowing smile flashed across his face. Things were happening just as they were supposed to.
"If I'm not mistaken," Kyle announced, clearing his throat to get everyone's attention, "this should be the 'Bara Bara no Mi,' the Chop-Chop Fruit."
"Chop-Chop?" Roger leaned in, poking the fruit curiously. "The name doesn't sound very good. What does it do?"
"Its effect… is quite simple." Kyle's eyes moved across the crew, finally landing on Buggy with a slight smile. "If you eat it, your body can split into pieces whenever you want. And… any slashing attack will be completely useless against you."
"Slashing attacks are useless?!"
The words hit the crew like a bomb. Most of the men on the ship were swordsmen, so they understood exactly what that meant.
Shanks was the first to react. He looked down at the fruit in his hand in disbelief, then glanced at the sword hanging at his waist.
Roger just burst out laughing. "Kuhahaha! That's interesting! But I don't need any flashy abilities like that. A real man uses Haki to send both the enemy and his sword flying!"
Jabba also shook his head. "I use an axe because I enjoy the feeling of cutting through things. If the enemy can't be cut, then it's just boring."
Everyone on the ship was a powerful fighter with their own style, so none of them were very interested in such a strange ability. As for Shanks, his goal was to become a great pirate like Captain Roger, conquering the seas with Haki and his sword, so he wouldn't even consider eating it. The Roger Pirates weren't short on money, so there was no need to sell the Devil Fruit for extra cash. For a moment, this rare and powerful fruit had no one who wanted it.
"Since no one wants it, should we just throw it away?" Shanks joked, pretending he was about to toss it overboard.
"Wait!" an urgent voice cried out.
Buggy scrambled out from the pile of jewels, his eyes locked on the purple fruit. His breathing grew heavy. He had heard Kyle loud and clear—immune to slashing attacks!
Kyle saw his chance. He walked over to Buggy and, like a devil on his shoulder, patted him and whispered, "Buggy, just think about it." His voice was full of temptation. "Eat it, and that Shanks guy will never be able to cut you with his sword again. Every time he swings that sword of his, you can just split your body to dodge it perfectly. Then you can hit him from an angle he'd never expect… Just imagine it."
Buggy swallowed hard, his eyes flickering with excitement.
Kyle continued, adding more fuel to the fire. "And think about treasure hunting! If you find a narrow cave, you can take yourself apart to squeeze through. If you see a treasure chest on a high cliff, you can just send your hands flying over to grab it. You could even hide your body and just send out a hand or a foot to scout ahead. It would be perfectly safe and efficient! This is a god-like skill made just for a future 'treasure hunter' like you!"
"A god-like skill…" Buggy murmured, already picturing the scene in his mind. He would be like a god, ignoring all sword traps and moving freely through mountains of treasure, while Shanks could only watch from behind, stomping his feet in frustration.
"I'll eat it!" Buggy declared, snatching the fruit from Shanks's hand. His eyes burned with ambition.
"Hey, Buggy, that thing looks really gross!" Shanks warned him.
"For treasure and for the future! I'll endure it!"
Buggy made up his mind. He closed his eyes, opened his mouth wide, and took a huge bite as if he were swallowing poison. The next second, his face twisted into an ugly expression. His features scrunched together as tears and snot streamed down his face.
"Ugh—! W-what is this taste! Ugh!"
He clutched his throat and retched, looking so miserable that everyone else burst into laughter.
"Kuhahaha! Buggy, the look on your face right now is priceless!" Roger howled, slapping his thigh.
After he finally recovered, Buggy wiped his tears away, feeling like something new had been added to his body. He stood up, put his hands on his hips in what he thought was a cool pose, and beckoned to Shanks with one finger.
"Shanks! Come on! It's time for you to witness the true power of the great Captain Buggy!"
"Idiot, what are you going on about now?" Shanks replied, but he still drew his sword, curious to see what would happen.
"Watch closely!" Buggy took a deep breath and shouted, "Let me show you the man who cannot be cut!"
Shanks didn't hold back. With a flick of his wrist, his blade flashed, slicing straight toward Buggy's waist.
"Ah—!" Buggy screamed instinctively and shut his eyes.
But the pain he expected never came.
He opened his eyes in confusion and found his upper body floating in the air, while his legs were still standing on the deck below. Shanks's sword had passed right through the empty space where his stomach should have been.
The entire ship went completely silent.
Then, an earth-shattering roar of laughter erupted.
"Wow! It really split apart!"
"Buggy, your legs are still down there!"
Buggy looked down at his floating torso, then at his legs on the ground. For three seconds, his brain couldn't process what had happened. Then, he burst into a fit of wild joy.
"I did it! I really did it! Hahaha!" He laughed like Roger, but his high-pitched voice made it sound more comical. "Shanks! Did you see that? Your sword is useless against me!"
His upper body spun triumphantly in the air and then suddenly shot toward Shanks. "Take this, Red-Haired bastard!"
"Interesting," Shanks said, his eyes narrowing. He quickly stepped back, dodging Buggy's "flying body tackle."
The fight began instantly. With his new powers, Buggy was like a different person. He split his body into pieces, turning his hands into flying fists while his feet ran across the deck, coordinating with his floating torso to launch a wild, three-dimensional attack.
"Take this! Chop-Chop: Flying Fist!"
"Chop-Chop: Carnival!"
For a moment, Buggy's body parts were flying all over the deck. He even started throwing knives and forks, making the scene completely chaotic. Shanks was caught off guard by this bizarre fighting style at first and was almost grabbed from behind by Buggy's flying hands several times.
"What do you think, Shanks! Ready to surrender?" Buggy's head floated in the air as he shouted triumphantly. "My Devil Fruit ability makes your precious swordsmanship look like a joke!"
"Is that so?" Shanks's breathing grew steady, and his eyes became sharp and focused again. "Your moves are flashy, Buggy, but you have a huge weakness."
As soon as he finished speaking, Shanks suddenly sped up. He ignored the flying hands and feet and instead rushed directly toward the pair of striped socks standing still on the ground—Buggy's feet.
"What?!" Buggy shouted from the air, suddenly alarmed. He had forgotten that his feet couldn't fly.
Shanks closed the distance and, without even using his sword, simply stuck out his foot and tripped him.
Thud.
With a soft sound, the feet standing on the ground lost their balance and fell forward. This simple action was like flipping a switch, instantly cutting off Buggy's control over all his airborne parts.
Everyone on the deck witnessed a hilarious sight: Buggy's head, torso, arms, and thighs, which had been flying around just moments before, suddenly lost power and came clattering down from the sky, landing in a messy pile on the deck.
The entire ship fell into a dead silence once more.
A second later…
"Pfft—hahahahahaha!"
"I can't… my stomach hurts… Kuhahaha!"
"Buggy, you've completely fallen apart!"
Roger laughed so hard that tears streamed down his face as he squatted on the ground, unable to stand. Even Rayleigh couldn't help but chuckle, his shoulders shaking.
Shanks walked over to the pile of parts and lightly tapped Buggy's still-glowing red nose with the tip of his sword. A smile played on his face. "Hey, Buggy. You lose."
"Damn it—!"
Buggy's roar came from the pile of limbs, full of shame and frustration. He was so close to winning. He had pushed Shanks into a corner! How could he lose just by being tripped?
And so, the lifelong rivalry between the future Yonko, Red-Haired Shanks, and the future Warlord of the Sea, Buggy the Clown, turned a brand new page aboard the Oro Jackson.
Though, it was a ridiculously hilarious beginning.
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