One piece : Clown from Arkham

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"Haha..."

"Cough! Cough!"

"Hahaha!"

In the damp and gloomy ship's hold, three sturdy cages stood side by side, each containing a criminal. One was curled up in a corner, another had a sullen, gloomy face, and the last one lay on a metal plate, convulsing with uncontrollable, joyful laughter.

How could he not laugh?

Buggy turned his head, and the moonlight shone through the round window onto his face. His forehead bore an "X" mark, a bright red nose stood out, and his lips were painted a vivid red, though stubbly with beard.

Using two fingers to pull up the corners of his mouth, he laughed convulsively.

"Haha... ha..."

He was too happy! The world had such fascinating, miraculous things happening!

It was too delightful!

Buggy's face twisted against the floor, his mind filled with three personas.

One was a college student working part-time as a clown at an amusement park, trying hard to entertain a child who frowned, finding the adult immature.

Another was a patient at Arkham Asylum, who called himself Jack, though the world preferred to call him Joker. In his memory, Jack adjusted his tie in front of a mirror, trying to force a smile on his chemically corroded face, while the radio broadcast news of a terror attack on a Gotham bank.

The third was the infamous Buggy the Clown of the Grand Line, the Clown Emperor! The original owner of this body, captured while treasure hunting after stumbling upon a secret Marine base, encountering familiar children and a hefty man with an axe.

Three sets of memories mingled like dough, two parts Buggy, five parts Jack, and three parts the college student, mixed and kneaded until they merged seamlessly, forming a cohesive, gelatinous whole.

It was an incredible, joyful event! Buggy felt an indescribable sense of fulfillment, like the Joker seeing that twisted, intriguing figure in leather for the first time in a newspaper, or the college student rewarding himself with a Big Mac after receiving his part-time pay.

He had lost the fun of a city but gained the amusement of a world. How joyous!

...

"Shut up, you scum!"

The gloomy man raised his head, revealing a fierce expression. The cheerful laughter was unbearably jarring in the oppressive, humid ship's hold. If his hands and feet weren't chained, and he wasn't confined in this slave-like cage, he swore he'd use that red nose as bait for sea kings!

"Sorry, haha, sorry..."

"I just can't help it!"

Buggy sat up, waving his hand and wiping away a tear, apologizing sincerely, though his face still bore a grin.

"I can't help laughing at the thought of us heading to Impel Down, the legendary inescapable prison! Level one, level two, level three..."

He pointed at the gloomy man and another indistinct figure in the corner as if assigning them to cells.

"The crimson hell of sword trees with blade-like leaves, the beast hell teeming with venomous creatures, the boiling hell of extreme heat and starvation..."

Buggy described the hellish scenes with exaggerated, expectant enthusiasm.

The gloomy man's face turned ashen, his trembling arms causing his chains to clink. Impel Down, the absolute nightmare for pirates, known for its endless torture and inescapable security, struck fear into their hearts.

And they were on a ship bound for Impel Down, all prisoners being transported.

"Stop... stop talking!"

"I told you to stop talking!"

Behind the gloomy man's fierce facade was sheer terror. Experiencing hell was one thing, but the slow descent, waiting for the axe to fall, was a torturous ordeal.

"Are you scared?"

Buggy tilted his head, smiling brightly. His keen observation noted the man's bravado, trembling despite his tough front, and a barely visible scar on his crucifix-tattooed arm. This kid was definitely hiding something. A slim, sharp object likely concealed under the skin...

If not for the fear-induced tremors, Buggy might not have noticed. His luck was good.

Buggy's eyes narrowed, thoughts swirling. This fascinating world—staying locked up, waiting to follow the script and be imprisoned, only to escape when a hot-blooded kid caused chaos—was too dull. Predictable.

That would waste the miraculous change he'd experienced! He pondered briefly, then suddenly lunged to the cage edge, glaring at the gloomy man with a sharp, piercing tone.

"If you're so scared and don't want to go to hell, give me what you're hiding in your arm!"

"You don't want the guards to find out, do you, my dear cellmate?"

Buggy was familiar with intimidating such people. Gotham's streets were full of such thugs. You just needed to hook their uncontrollable fear, destroy their facade, and add a bit of sudden, direct pressure...

"How... how do you know!"

The gloomy man, palms sweating, had a severe knife wound on his right arm, a conspicuous scar, under which he had hidden a sharp blade as a last resort.

As expected...

Buggy's grin widened, eyes squinting as he habitually licked his lips, still adjusting to the absence of chemical corrosion and knife scars.

"Give it to me, or the Marines will execute you now."

"We all know that thing is useless now or in Impel Down; otherwise, you'd have used it already..."

"Right?"

Buggy's words, like a devil's whisper, eroded the man's resistance. A blade, even in Impel Down, was useless. Especially with the veiled threats...

The man lowered his head, ready to tear open the scar with his teeth.

"Fifteen million berries, Pirate Buggy."

"Hah, the Marines really underestimated you."

A voice came from the shadowed corner. The speaker turned, letting the moonlight reveal his face.

"The bounty of fifty-seven million berries... Mad Dog Musa!"

Musa raised his head, a scarred face with a faint smile.

"That's me!"

"So, you should know who to give it to."

"This great pirate is your best chance to escape..."

His smile grew arrogant. Musa's tone was firm, but he had no hope of escaping. His hands were shackled with sea-stone cuffs, locked in a metal dog cage, on a Marine warship escorted by a Rear Admiral.

How to escape? He found Buggy and Arnie's antics amusing. It was curious that a pirate with a fifteen-million bounty was locked up with him, the infamous Mad Dog Musa. The Marines had too much time on their hands.

As for what the other pirate was hiding... common among pirates, likely just a wire or blade, useless. Reporting it might get him a better meal!

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Newbie on the road! Make way!!

(End of Chapter)