The Legendary Man

"Join the Navy?"

Buggy's jaw dropped.

This must be some kind of joke.

Buggy's dream was to find all the treasures in the world. Although being in the Navy wouldn't necessarily conflict with that, joining the Navy would mean this dream was over. Rumor had it that any treasure found by the Navy had to be handed over.

He didn't feel this way when he was on Captain Roger's ship, but now that he's out on his own, he's encountering so many problems.

The Grand Line is too tricky; I must go to the weakest sea, the East Blue.

No, tonight I must find a way to escape, or my entire reputation will be ruined in this small Navy branch.

Buggy ignored the jailer's words; they were just pleasantries about looking out for each other if Buggy got a job at Navy headquarters.

"Do you really plan to take Buggy back to be a Navy officer?"

In the Navy base, Gion looked worriedly at Hailan's plan.

"Of course not. You can't just make anyone you meet a Navy officer; no one would be comfortable with that."

Hailan's answer reassured Gion, making it clear that this Navy headquarters princeling hadn't lost his mind.

"I just think, since that clown provided information about the pirates' Devil Fruit abilities during the raid, shouldn't he be rewarded? Or at least, shouldn't he be given a chance to redeem himself?"

Gion's recently relaxed expression turned serious again. "Redeem himself?"

"There are countless pirates on this sea. Could it be that we, the Navy, also have some responsibility?"

"Regardless of the type of criminal, our only response is lifelong imprisonment. Let me give you an example..."

"Suppose someone stole 10,000 Berries, and we sentenced them to death. What do you think the chances are that they'd become a real murderer?"

The toothpick in Gion's mouth wobbled back and forth. "Hailan, why do you think this way? You're just a Navy trainee."

Hailan lounged in his chair. "Precisely because I'm a trainee, I can entertain these seemingly unrealistic fantasies."

"Report!"

A soldier burst in, interrupting the conversation between the tired Rear Admiral and the trainee.

"Report, Rear Admiral Gion, the clown Buggy... has escaped!"

Gion shot to his feet. "What about Anderson and his officers?"

"They're all here. Only the clown Buggy has escaped!"

"Oh, what a relief." Gion sat back down.

Hailan signaled the soldier to calm down. "How did he escape? Wasn't he held in a solitary cell? What about his restraints? How did he get them off?"

Far from calming down, the soldier was drenched in sweat, recounting something terrifying. "No... his restraints weren't removed. The clown Buggy... he cut off his own legs!"

Hailan and Gion exchanged a glance.

Why does this plot sound so familiar?

Isn't this the same desperate act that the Flying Pirate "Golden Lion" Shiki performed to escape Impel Down three years ago?

Did I underestimate that red-nosed man?

Led by the soldier, Hailan and Gion quickly arrived at Buggy's cell.

But there were no severed legs or pools of blood, just a pair of cold shackles on the ground.

"Didn't you say he cut off his legs? How do you explain this?"

"No... I saw it... those big feet... where did they go?"

The Navy soldier was becoming incoherent, doubting his senses.

Just a while ago, the red-nosed pirate's legs had suddenly separated from his body. Buggy had used his Bara Bara no Mi ability to fly up to the ceiling.

A Navy soldier whose uncle worked as a guard in Impel Down was scared witless. The last person to pull a stunt like this was the "Golden Lion" Shiki. His uncle had told him the story at least ten times.

"Hahaha... seeing you arrogant Navy guys get tricked makes me happy. That red-nosed clown must be a Devil Fruit user. I just saw him break into pieces and fly away!"

Hailan turned to the Navy soldiers behind him. "You all saw who was laughing just now?"

The soldiers nodded, not understanding the significance.

"Hit them, shoot at them until they can't laugh anymore."

One good thing about the World Government's skewed laws is that as a Navy officer, you can beat up prisoners at will. As long as you don't kill them, it's okay.

Amid the pirates' wails and curses, Hailan and Gion left the cell.

"Sounds like a Paramecia-type Bara Bara no Mi ability. That guy's a Devil Fruit user. He was really hiding his power."

Buggy initially hid his Devil Fruit ability to escape after stealing the treasure map from Anderson's pirate crew. Who would have thought it would come in handy in a Navy cell?

Gion looked at Hailan. "What do you plan to do?"

Hailan was nonchalant. "I was going to give him a chance to redeem himself anyway. If he decided to run off early, so be it. He's not worth worrying about."

Hailan was a Navy trainee and Gion a Rear Admiral, but their relationship had been gpromisingsince Hailan was very young.

Moreover, Gion's amiable nature meant he didn't fuss over formalities, often making their relationship more like that of peers.

Aside from Vice Admirals Borsalino and Sakazuki, Hailan had good relations with most high-ranking Navy officers.

The former is due to a strained relationship with Zephyr, and the latter is due to his unbearable temper.

"Hailan, be honest, did you anticipate that the clown would escape and want to use this as an opportunity to shake up these lazy branch recruits?"

Gion squinted his eyes, quickly guessing Hailan's intentions.

When the pirate Valen knocked over the hotpot, Hailan noticed Buggy's agility. While not on par with headquarters' elite soldiers, it was impressive compared to the branch soldiers.

The lax Navy branch did need some discipline.

Hailan had anticipated Buggy's escape but didn't expect him to be a Devil Fruit user.

"Uncle Gion, let's keep this between us."

"Alright, but stop calling me uncle. I'm not that old."

Like a mischievous old man, Gion suddenly spat out his toothpick and slung an arm around Hailan's shoulders.

"Little Hailan, I know you're close with Sister Gion. We're heading back to headquarters tomorrow, and you'll see her again. I picked up a few tips from Jonathan. Help me out, will you?"

"Isn't this topic switch a bit too fast?"

"We just completed a mission, so I'm in a good mood. I want to leave a good impression on Sister Gion."

I've been single for two lives combined, 16 years each, and you ask me for dating advice?

Hailan wanted to shout this at Gion but held back.

He wanted to see what new tricks the Rear Admiral, who once had a crush on Gion, could come up with now.

After a bit of muttering...

"... I suspect Sister Gion will beat you to death if she hears this!"