Seeing those two statues, Smoker's pupils trembled.
Especially the one of Roger.
That kingly expression was exactly as he remembered it from 22 years ago.
Even when he was about to die, Roger had carried himself like a victorious general coming home.
After a moment, Smoker snapped back to the present.
"Buggy, what's the meaning of this?" he growled. "Are you challenging the dignity of the Marines?"
Buggy just chuckled and started walking right towards him.
"White Hunter," he said, "do you know what day it is tomorrow?"
Those words made Smoker's heart skip a beat.
"The 22nd anniversary of the Pirate King's death."
"Correct." Buggy stopped, his eyes filled with a distant, nostalgic look.
"I was raised by Captain Roger himself! Before his execution, he told us not to save him. But tomorrow, on the anniversary of his death, I'm going to settle that 22-year-old debt with you Marines."
He walked right up next to Smoker, whose muscles instantly tensed, ready to fight.
But Buggy just waved a hand dismissively.
"Don't worry, we're not fighting now," he said. "It's not too late to throw down when your reinforcements get here. For today, we're just going to walk around town and buy some supplies. I guarantee we won't harm a single civilian. How about it?"
Hearing that, Smoker was torn.
His gut told him to never compromise with a pirate.
But the situation was tricky.
His backup wouldn't arrive until tomorrow.
If they fought now, the people of Loguetown would get caught in the crossfire, and he couldn't protect them all while fighting Buggy.
Plus, the Straw Hats were somewhere on the island, too.
For the safety of the town, no matter how much he hated it, he had to agree.
"Hmph. I hope you keep your word," Smoker grumbled. "Otherwise, I'll take you down even if it costs me my life."
Buggy laughed. "Don't worry. This is Captain Roger's hometown. Even if someone else wanted to mess it up, I wouldn't let them."
He was being completely serious.
Smoker sighed and put his weapon away. "Tomorrow, I will definitely arrest you. Don't you dare run away before then!"
With that, his lower body turned into smoke, and he rocketed off toward the Marine base.
…
Buggy took a deep breath, then called out to his ship.
"Gin! Let's go check out the town together."
A man in a striped tracksuit and a bandana jumped off the ship.
"I just want to see the Pirate King's hometown," Gin said grumpily. "I never said I'd become your subordinate."
Buggy just ignored him and spotted a nearby building.
"Kahahaha! There's a bar over there! Let's go get a drink!"
Hearing the word "drink," all the pirates got excited and rushed toward the bar.
…
Buggy kicked the door open and yelled, "Boss! Bring out all your booze!"
But there was no answer.
The owner had taken one look at the giant floating islands and run for the hills.
The only person still sitting in the tavern was Ray.
Cabaji, annoyed by the silence, started yelling at the white-haired man with the ponytail sitting at the counter.
"Our captain told you to serve drinks! Are you deaf?! Do you know who we are?"
He pulled out his saber, about to press it against Ray's neck.
But just then, Buggy grabbed his hand and then punched him so hard he flew right out of the bar.
"This is Loguetown! Have you already forgotten what I just said?!" Buggy's eyes were fierce, and his killing intent was so strong it made the other crew members gulp.
"Cabaji, if there's a next time, you'll be keeping Monkey company in prison."
Cabaji trembled and quickly apologized.
After that, Buggy walked over and sat down next to Ray.
"Hey, boss, sorry about that," Buggy said politely. "Don't be scared, we won't hurt you. Just serve us some drinks, we'll pay."
Ray was almost amused.
All he'd done was put on sunglasses, change his hairstyle and clothes, and tie a bandana on his head... okay, that was actually a lot of changes.
'Nami is too much,' he thought. 'I'll have to train her harder next time.'
Even though he was hiding his aura, did Buggy really not recognize him?
'I guess I didn't beat him hard enough last time.'
"Get it yourself," Ray said, his voice cold.
Hearing their captain get dismissed like that, the other pirates, even with Buggy's warning, got furious.
"You pretty boy, how dare you be so ungrateful?"
"Who in the entire East Blue would dare look down on our captain like this?!"
Amid all the shouting, Buggy and Alvida both realized something was off.
The man's voice and his silhouette... both felt a little familiar.
At the same time, Ray got annoyed by all the noise.
A terrifying, demonic killing intent erupted from him, and this time, he didn't hold back.
The chattering pirates were instantly knocked unconscious.
Only Buggy, Alvida, and Mohji were left standing.
Cabaji, who had just stumbled back in, was swaying on his feet.
Alvida's legs went weak, and she let out a moan.
Recognizing that familiar, terrifying aura, Buggy instantly knew who it was.
Buggy stared at Ray, his lips twitching.
"Ray, what is this madness? I... Pfft hahaha! What kind of embarrassing outfit is this?! You look so delicate, like a real pretty boy! Hahahaha!"
He was about to yell at Ray, but he couldn't stop himself from laughing.
His laughter died down pretty quickly though.
Because Ray's sword, coated in Haki, was now resting against his neck.
"Ahem," Buggy said, his face turning red as he tried to suppress his giggles.
"I admit, I might have exaggerated a bit just now."
Seeing his expression, Ray's anger flared up again. "Keep laughing if you want to die."
Buggy took a deep breath and finally managed to calm down.
"No, no, no. I've got important business here. Our duel will have to wait."
Ray already knew what was up.
Buggy was planning to take on the Marines tomorrow, on the anniversary of Roger's death.
It was partly to deal with his own guilt, and partly to make a grand announcement that a former Roger Pirate was back in the game.
And, of course, because he loved showing off.
Either way, Buggy fighting the Marines would take some of the heat off the Straw Hats.
And honestly, Ray kind of admired the guy's guts.
He wouldn't seriously hurt him, not now.
There would be plenty of opportunities to beat him up later.
At this point, everyone still conscious knew this was Ray, the guy with the 65 million bounty.
But the Buggy Pirates knew something outsiders didn't: Ray's bounty was way too low.
Buggy himself had admitted that even with his new powers, he'd probably lose to Ray.
Cabaji, who had just been about to hold a knife to Ray's neck, was now trembling with fear.
If Buggy hadn't stopped him, he'd be in two symmetrical pieces right now, just like Captain Morgan.
"Ray-sama, I'm sorry!" he cried, his whole body shaking.
Ray didn't respond.
He had genuinely been about to kill him, but there was no point dwelling on it now.
He glanced at Buggy and asked a simple question.
"Buggy, do you truly understand the consequences of what you're doing?"
"Death?" Buggy laughed. "Kahahaha! Some things you just have to do, otherwise you can't live with yourself."
Hearing that, Ray didn't ask any more questions.
To get to the top, you had to resolve your inner conflicts.
Buggy had clearly made up his mind.