Zephyr stared at the newcomer with wide eyes.
He never expected that the very pirate he had just categorized as "evil" in his mind would appear right before him.
The former Admiral had completely different views on the Straw Hats compared to Buggy's crew.
To him, the Straw Hats were an anomaly, but Buggy? Buggy was a remnant of the Pirate King's crew, a man known for chaos.
Driven by this instinct, Zephyr immediately tensed his muscles, his massive mechanical arm whirring as he prepared to attack the clown.
However, just as Zephyr made his move, a figure vanished from the deck of the Going Merry.
In the blink of an eye, Ray appeared directly in front of the massive old man.
He didn't draw a weapon, but his presence was cold enough to freeze the air.
He looked Zephyr in the eye and speak indifferently.
"If you want to save people, stay calm."
The words were simple, but the warning was clear.
Hearing Ray's voice, Zephyr took a deep breath. He forced his muscles to relax and stopped his attack, though he glared past Ray at Buggy with lingering killing intent.
Meanwhile, the Buggy ship docked.
Buggy the Clown leaped off the bow, soaring through the air and landing next to Ray with a dramatic thud.
He dusted himself off and looked up.
His jaw dropped!
"Holy fucking shit! It's Zephyr!"
Without another word, Buggy pulled out his knives, entering combat mode instantly.
He knew exactly who this old man was. Back when he was a rookie sailing the Grand Line with Roger, they had encountered Zephyr plenty of times.
Though Zephyr wasn't quite as terrifying as the "Hero" Garp, he was famous for being even more tenacious.
The man had incredible perseverance.
Even when you knocked him down, he would struggle back up and keep fighting, always charging at the forefront of the Marine forces.
He was a nightmare for pirates.
Seeing the two of them ready to tear each other apart, Ray naturally didn't want to waste energy mediating personally.
He glanced at Chouchou. The little white dog barked and growled, explaining the situation—the Buster Call, the evacuation plan, and Zephyr's truce—to Buggy.
As the dog finished explaining, realization dawned on Buggy's face.
Then, pure outrage took over!
"Damn it, Ray! You screwed me over!" Buggy screamed, his nose turning a brighter shade of red.
"You called me here for a suicide mission!"
He turn around to face his crew member.
"Alvida! Since you've been rescued, come with me right now. We are leaving! I don't want to face a Buster Call head-on! That's insane!"
Hearing Buggy's panicked order, Ray showed absolutely no reaction.
He leaned back, his expression saying, Go ahead if you want. I won't stop you.
Buggy had originally intended to catch up with Ray and Luffy to hang out, but he realized Ray had only used Alvida to lure him here.
Ray wanted him to face the Marine fleet together.
Buggy was definitely unhappy about being used as a pawn!
But then, Alvida crossed her arms. She looked at her captain and shook her head.
"I'm not going," she said firmly. "Leave if you want, Buggy."
Buggy looked frantic.
He grabbed his head in disbelief. "What do you mean you're not going? Are you planning to die with this idiot? That's a Buster Call! Ten battleships! Five Vice Admirals! Do you even know what a Buster Call is?"
Alvida flipped her hair, acting as if the answer was obvious. "Of course I know. But I have to repay the favor. Ray saved me from the auction. If I leave now, what's the difference between me and a stupid clown?"
Hearing this, Buggy nearly coughed up blood.
He staggered back, clutching his chest.
"You... you...!!" He pointed a shaking finger at her. "Insulting me so directly? To my face?!"
"I... damn it... I..."
Buggy paced anxiously in place, stomping his feet and growling in frustration.
Watching him have a mental breakdown, Luffy and the others burst into laughter.
They naturally wouldn't force Buggy to help.
They respected his freedom.
Ray had only called him over to give him the option; whether he helped or not was entirely up to him.
Of course, if Buggy was willing to stand with the Straw Hat Pirates today, Ray would definitely remember it and help him in the future.
Nearby, Zephyr watched the scene silently.
He assumed Buggy would definitely run away.
No matter how close he was with the Straw Hat Pirates, no sane pirate would wade into this mess for someone else.
Self-preservation was the first rule of piracy.
But seeing Buggy's internal struggle, Zephyr had a strange feeling. Could it be?
Suddenly, Buggy, enraged by his own conscience, jumped three feet high and started cursing at Ray again.
"I can't believe I fell for your crap! Damn it all!"
"Fine! I'll fight with you!" Buggy yelled, throwing his hands in the air. "I'd feel guilty just leaving like this, okay?!"
He pointed an accusatory finger at Ray. "Don't get the wrong idea! I'm not some righteous guy. I just don't want to owe you any favors, got it? After this, the two favors you did for me—saving me in Loguetown and rescuing Alvida—are repaid! We are even!"
"Damn it, what did I do to deserve this bad luck?"
In response to the clown's rant, Ray just snorted coldly.
A tiny smirk appeared on his face as he turned and headed back toward the Going Merry.
Since the matter was settled, he wouldn't waste anymore words.
Buggy grumbled, watching Ray walk away. "Why is he still acting all aloof? He didn't even say hello!"
Helpless, Buggy walked over to Luffy while looking miserable.
"Luffy, your old pal here is about to take a huge loss this time. Don't forget my kindness later, alright?"
Luffy grinned, stretching his arm out to wrap around Buggy's shoulder. "Shishishi! Thanks, Buggy! Let's throw a party first!"
Zephyr watched Buggy's reaction in total surprise.
This guy... he was willing to commit what was essentially suicide just to repay a debt? It couldn't just be about favors.
That was loyalty.
'If these people were my disciples', Zephyr thought wistfully, 'how great it would be if they worked together for the Marines.'
Later, the group sat down to discuss the plan.
Surprisingly, Buggy also agreed with Luffy's idea to evacuate the residents.
Though Buggy was a scheming, greedy pirate, he didn't like using civilians as shields.
This was a core value he had learned from his former captain, Roger, and it was deeply ingrained in him.
At this, Zephyr was completely baffled.
He couldn't hold it in anymore!
"Then why did you fight Doflamingo on Jaya Island without any regard for civilian lives?" Zephyr asked sharply.
"I heard you nearly destroyed the place."
Hearing Zephyr's accusation, Buggy immediately flew into a rage.
"Hah?!" Buggy snapped. "First of all, that bastard started it! And second, you don't know the whole story!"
Buggy waved his arms aggressively. "That son of a bitch Doflamingo... when he was about to be defeated by me, he used some damn technique called the 'Parasite'! He controlled the civilians like puppets and forced them to attack my subordinates! I don't allow my men to lay hands on civilians, so we were stuck!"
"If not for that, would I have been so restrained? Would Alvida have been captured? Just mentioning him makes me angry," Buggy growled, clenching his fists.
"When I get to the New World, he'll be the first one I eliminate!"
Zephyr stood there, stunned. He found this more and more absurd.
This Buggy... actually didn't allow his subordinates to harm civilians?
'What is wrong with pirates these days?' Zephyr wondered. 'Since when do they have moral codes?'
He shook his head.
Forget it.
The top priority now was still evacuating the civilians.
After everything was over, he would still have to take action against the Straw Hat Pirates and Buggy. In his view of Justice, a thief was a thief.
As long as they bore the identity of "pirate," they had a negative impact on the world.
But deep in Zephyr's heart, a small crack had formed in his absolute beliefs, though he didn't dare to acknowledge it yet.
He turned to address his two students. "Ain, Binz, let's go. We need to organize the evacuation ships."
He took a few steps, but then noticed something odd.
Ain wasn't moving.
"Ain?"
Zephyr turned around. Ain was standing statue-still, staring in the opposite direction.
Binz looked at Zephyr with an exasperated expression and whispered.
"Sensei... ever since she saw that guy called Ray earlier, she's been like this. She hasn't blinked once. Look, she's sweating all over, as if she's forcibly controlling herself from jumping him."
"NANIIII?"
Sure enough, Zephyr looked closely and noticed the abnormality.
He saw Ain clenching her fists tight against her sides.
Her face was flushed, and her eyes clearly showed intense infatuation as she stared unblinkingly at Ray, who was sitting casually on the deck of the Going Merry.
"This...?" Zephyr felt a headache coming on.
The old man sighed, took off his sunglasses, and walked directly in front of Ain.
He bent down, lowering his massive head until he blocked her line of sight completely, making direct eye contact.
This move was effective.
It broke her visual connection to Ray and forcibly pulled her back to reality.
Ain blinked rapidly, realizing her teacher's face was inches from hers.
She panicked.
"Ah! Zephyr-sensei!" She recoiled, suddenly covering her nose and mouth with both hands.
"You have bad breath!"
The unexpected insult hit Zephyr like a physical blow.
The old man's cheeks flushed red with embarrassment and anger.
"Cough!" He cleared his throat loudly to hide his awkwardness. "Let's go!"
He turned and marched away.
Ain and Binz quickly followed.
On the way back, Zephyr secretly breathed into his cupped hand a few times to smell it.
'Is it really that bad?' he worried.
'Maybe we should stop to buy some new toothpaste on the way...'
...
Back by the shore, the mood had lightened considerably.
After analyzing the situation and agreeing on the evacuation, Luffy immediately threw his hands up.
"Party! Let's have a party!"
He invited all members of Buggy's crew to join.
The prospect of food and booze cheered everyone up.
Then, Luffy thought of someone. "Oh! Let's call the Franky Family over too! They are funny guys. We can deal with the shipbuilding matters after eating."
Everyone else agreed. Chouchou barked, ready to set off to find them.
However, just then, a figure came sprinting down the path toward the docks.
It was Zanbai, the second-in-command of the Franky Family.
He looked disheveled and frantic.
"Straw Hat-aniki! Ray-aniki!" Zanbai yelled, waving his arms.
Then he stopped when he see the clown.
"Eh? Who is this Red Nose guy?"
Hearing this forbidden nickname, Buggy immediately became furious.
"Did you just call me Red Nose?! Are you looking to die, punk?!"
Luffy grabbed Buggy to stop him and looked at Zanbai's condition.
"What happened?"
Zanbai gasped for breath, his face pale and terrified.
Tears were welling up in his eyes.
"It's bad! I went to the secret base to find Franky-aniki today. But when I arrived at the scene... I only found signs of a struggle and bloodstains everywhere!"
Zanbai fell to his knees. "Franky-aniki had completely disappeared! The others and I searched everywhere nearby but couldn't find him. It looks like he was taken! So I came running to ask for your help."
"Please!" Zanbai begged, bowing his head to the ground. "As long as we can get Franky-aniki back, we're willing to do anything to repay you all!"
Buggy stood there confused.
"Franky? Who's that?"
Meanwhile, the atmosphere among the Straw Hat Pirates shifted instantly.
The party mood vanished. They all stood up, their expressions serious.
They declared they would definitely find Franky and bring him back.
On the deck of the Going Merry, Ray had overheard the entire conversation.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
He knew exactly what had happened.
CP9 had made their move ahead of schedule because of Spandam's panic.
Ray didn't waste a second. He looked down at the white dog beside him.
"Chouchou."
The dog looked up, ears perked.
"Go to the warehouse," Ray ordered calmly. "Follow Franky's scent and find him."
Chouchou barked sharply, a look of determination in his eyes.
"Roger that, Master!"