After a full hour, Buggy finally absorbed the Grace of the Sun.
"How's it going, Buggy?"Kaoru Tsubasa sat to the side, watching him curiously.
"How should I put it? Brother Tsubasa, I feel like I've improved… just a little bit," Buggy said, scratching his head. He was confused. Moments ago, he'd felt an incredible surge of power—but now that the fusion was complete, it was as if only his physical strength had increased slightly.
"Well, that's normal." Kaoru nodded. "Grace: Sun grows stronger as the sun rises. It's only early morning—half the sun's still hidden. Once it's fully up, the power will awaken completely."
"Buggy, come here."Kaoru beckoned him closer.
Buggy hurried over, still trying to understand what was happening.
"Listen carefully," Kaoru said. "The power I gave you isn't from this world. It's a blessing from the Supreme God—called the Sun."
Buggy blinked. "Supreme God? What's that supposed to be?"
Kaoru sighed. "Why is your focus always so weird? Shouldn't you be more curious about your new ability?"
"The Supreme God," he continued, "is the ruler of the angels."
"Angels? For real?" Buggy's eyes widened. "You mean like the ones people say live on Sky Island?"
Kaoru smacked his forehead. "Stop getting distracted and listen carefully."
With that, he struck Buggy on the head with his signature Iron Fist of Love.He'd been using that move a lot lately—first on Marco back in Loguetown, and now regularly on Buggy since they'd arrived in Redoria.
"Ow! Okay, okay, I get it!" Buggy rubbed his head and focused again.
"Alright," Kaoru said, "Grace: Sun enhances your strength as long as the sun is visible. At noon, you'll be able to unleash your strongest power—but it lasts only one minute."
"For that one minute," he continued, "you'll hold the greatest strength in the world."
Buggy's jaw dropped. "The strongest? Like… stronger than Roger?"
Kaoru smiled faintly but didn't answer. In truth, the potential was terrifying—comparable to Escanor from another world, whose power at noon rivaled even the Demon King's. In the pirate world, it was an unimaginable force.
"The Sun, huh?" Buggy tilted his head. "Then… what happens at night?"
Kaoru froze for a moment.Wait… was Buggy actually asking the right question for once?
He coughed lightly to hide his surprise. "At night, the Grace of the Sun becomes dormant. You can only rely on your original power—the Chop-Chop Fruit."
"What?! So I'm weak again at night?" Buggy wailed. "That's not fair! I thought I'd finally be like Captain Roger!"
"Oh, I forgot to mention," Kaoru added casually. "After noon passes, your strength will start to decline until nightfall—then it disappears entirely."
Buggy fell to the ground, despair written all over his face. "So I'll be strong during the day and useless at night? Should I just stay hidden forever?"
"Get up, Buggy," Kaoru said calmly. "From now on, I'll train you to control the Grace of the Sun."
Despite his sulking, Buggy got up. He knew he needed to master this power before it controlled him.
"Alright then—let's do this!"
Buggy activated the Grace: Sun. His muscles swelled, his body radiating heat and light.
"Whoa! Look, Brother Tsubasa! My muscles—my muscles got huge!"He flexed proudly. "See? Look at this! I'm amazing, right?"
"Hahahaha! From now on, call me Captain Buggy! I'm invincible! The Navy, the pirates—none of them can stop me! Hahahahahaha!"
"Boom!"
A powerful fist slammed down on his head again.
"Stop being so noisy," Kaoru said, shaking his head. "You're giving me a headache."
Buggy crouched down, rubbing his head again. "Brother Tsubasa really doesn't know how to appreciate greatness," he muttered, drawing circles in the dirt with a stick.
"Here." Kaoru tossed him a notebook. "Take this."
Buggy caught it, blinking. "What's this?"
"It's a record of techniques you can learn with Grace: Sun," Kaoru explained. He'd written it from memory, based on Escanor's abilities from another life.
Buggy flipped through the pages, reading aloud:
"Cruel Sun…""Divine Sword—Escanor…""Sacred Spear—Escanor…""THE ONE: Available only at noon.""THE ONE [Ultimate]: Burns life itself to exceed all limits."
Buggy's eyes sparkled. "These sound incredible!"
For the next several days, Buggy stayed in Redoria to train under Kaoru's watch. Everything went smoothly—except for the first day.
Kaoru lost track of time.
At noon, when the sun reached its peak, the power of Grace: Sun exploded out of control. Buggy flared up like a living inferno——and accidentally set Kaoru on fire.
By the time it was over, Kaoru's once-luxurious purple hair was completely gone. His bald head gleamed under the sunlight like a polished pearl.
"Aaaaahhh! My beautiful purple hair!"
Furious, Kaoru drew his twin blades—Ace and Raiden—and lunged at Buggy.
Of course, Buggy's Chop-Chop Fruit made him immune to slicing, and Kaoru hadn't infused his blades with Haki.
So after a flurry of harmless slashes, the scene ended with Kaoru's rage smoldering… and Buggy laughing nervously from a safe distance.