"Hey! Buggy, you really are too much of a coward. You couldn't even hold a newspaper. Tsk."
Shanks wagged his finger in front of Buggy's face, full of disdain.
"Damn you, Shanks! I'm going to teach you a lesson today! How dare you disrespect the future Pirate King!"
Buggy lunged at Shanks and the two of them started wrestling. Reid watched from the side, finding the whole scene amusing and entertaining.
"Just like in the anime and manga, these fights look intense, like real punches are being thrown, but they carry a sense of playful brawling."
Roger grinned, but inwardly, he wasn't calm.
"The Navy really lost face this time. They actually resorted to a Buster Call... Hmph. Garp will probably come too. Hopefully that guy can at least stop them from harming innocent people."
Roger's thoughts drifted to the time he entrusted Ace to Garp in prison.
When it came to justice within the Navy, Roger believed only in Hero Garp—he wouldn't trust a single word from anyone else, not even their punctuation marks.
"You pathetic Buggy, can't even hold a newspaper and still call yourself the future Pirate King!"
"Shanks! Who do you think you are, huh?! If you saw this news, you'd totally wet your pants!"
Hearing Buggy's words and remembering Roger's earlier reaction, Shanks suddenly calmed down.
"…What kind of news?"
"Hmph! It'll scare you to death if I tell you. The Navy headquarters has already deployed two Admirals, three Vice Admirals, and a massive fleet. That's the scale of a Buster Call."
"Buster Call? Wait… you mean that indiscriminate destruction order?"
Shanks' face turned pale, not out of fear for himself, but for his family… the people on Roger's ship who were like family to him.
Seeing Shanks' frightened expression, Buggy puffed out his chest with pride.
"See?! What did I say? Scared stiff! Shanks, with that mouse-like cowardice, you think you can be a captain? Hahahaha!"
Shanks ignored Buggy's taunts and walked over to Roger.
"Captain… is it true?"
Roger laughed heartily, then grinned and ruffled Shanks' hair.
"Shanks, are you scared?"
"I'm not scared! But… what about our family? Roger, what about Rouge's hometown? And Wano… and…"
Tears welled in Shanks' eyes. His lips quivered from worry. He thought about how Roger had found him in a treasure chest. He deeply valued those he called family.
"We are men who stand tall. Now's the time to protect our loved ones."
Roger gently stroked Shanks' hair, eyes filled with warmth and expectation.
"Shanks is someone who can inherit the Will of Freedom. I wasn't wrong about him. This kid has a bright future."
"Mhm!" Shanks nodded firmly.
"Captain Roger, I won't let anyone harm my family!"
"Hahaha! Then do your best to grow stronger."
"I will! I'm going to become a real man!"
"Tch, that Shanks guy's spouting nonsense again. Only I, the Pirate King Buggy, am a real man!"
Buggy muttered under his breath.
Though he said that, seeing Roger patting Shanks' head made something stir in his heart.
"Family…"
"So this is the charisma of the Pirate King… Even as a child, Red-Haired Shanks had the resolve to put family first. All great men seem to share this trait—Roger, Red-Hair, Oden, Whitebeard…"
Reid watched the scene, deeply moved.
"Coming to the One Piece world might not be a bad thing after all. With my god-tier system, I will make my mark too."
He smiled and looked ahead at the endless sea, his heart filled with anticipation.
Meanwhile, all across the world, the newspapers from the News Coos had been delivered.
"No way! Roger escaped?! How the hell did he manage that?!"
"Major news! Huge news! This is going to be the talk of the world for weeks!"
"As expected of a legendary pirate. Even the Navy looks like children compared to him!"
"Don't underestimate the Navy. A Buster Call is no joke."
Zou – Whale Forest
A small Mink Tribe warrior, resembling a jaguar, stood atop a tree with tears in his eyes.
"Roger… that's great. I knew someone as great as you wouldn't be taken down so easily."
Sabaody Archipelago
A blond man with glasses stood with a smug smile on his face. The lenses of his glasses gleamed.
"So Roger's fine after all. I guess those rumors about his execution were just fake."
"Rayleigh, did that brat Roger really get away?" A short-haired woman with a gold necklace and a cigarette in her hand spoke.
"Yes, Shakky."
"Whew…" Shakky exhaled a puff of smoke, sat down beside Rayleigh with her legs crossed.
"Roger really is a charming man. Much more attractive than you."
Rayleigh blushed. "Shakky, where did that come from…"
"Hehe~" Shakky giggled, her eyes gleaming. "But the Navy is going to launch a Buster Call. I need to meet up with Roger quickly."
Rayleigh pulled out a Vivre Card. It slowly turned in a specific direction.
Shakky glanced at it, looking thoughtful.
"That's pointing toward the South Blue. What's Roger doing there?"
She spoke to herself and exhaled more smoke.
"Oh? South Blue?"
"That's right. I think Roger has something very important to do there. If the Navy is planning a Buster Call, they'll send multiple Admirals and specially designed top-tier battleships. I suspect they'll even be made of Seastone. That stuff can't hurt Roger… but others may not be so lucky."
Shakky's gaze shifted toward the door. She took a deep drag and exhaled.
"Shakky, are you saying Roger's going there to evacuate someone?"
"Mhm. That's what I think. Rayleigh, does Roger have someone important in the South Blue?"
"Well… I'm not sure. Maybe during the past year, Roger met someone important on an island in the South Blue."
"Maybe." Shakky nodded. "Whew…"
"You should cut back on smoking," Rayleigh suddenly said, his eyes showing concern.
"Oh? Worried about my health now?" Shakky raised an eyebrow, eyeing Rayleigh with amusement.
Rayleigh smiled.
"Yes. We've been friends for years. I want you to live a long life."
"Tch. You just don't want to be lonely."
Shakky gave him a sideways glance full of mockery.
"Hahaha! I wouldn't want to lose an old friend like you. Alright, I should be off."
Rayleigh stood and headed toward the door. Before leaving, he turned and grinned.
"Shakky, see you soon."
"Yeah, yeah. Just go."
"You really are a cold-hearted woman. Couldn't even say one nice thing…"
Rayleigh muttered to himself, waving as he left.
"Wait."
"Hehe, Shakky, are you coming with me?"
Rayleigh turned, joking with a hopeful look.
"I gave up that life 20 years ago. I'm just reminding you—be careful, got it?"
"Whew…"
Shakky blew out another puff of smoke, not even looking at him.
"Got it."
Rayleigh smiled and left quickly.