426. Skypiea Again

A few days after Buggy left Jaya, the Straw Hat Pirates arrived there. Then just like in the series, they will go to Skypiea. Of course, without Cricket there, they find out about Skypiea in a different way. They find out about it through the monkey brothers.

Those 2 monkeys are on Jaya to scavenge shipwrecks and Shandians' treasures in the sea. They are actually friends with Clown Pirates because they chased after Cricket as they are fans of Books of Norland. Those 2 met Cricket when he returned to North Blue a few years ago when the crew was on a break.

Then Buggy asked Cricket to send them to Jaya and find the remaining treasures of the Shandians. Cricket was skeptical they would accept that job, but they accepted it without any hesitation. So now, they are scavenging ships while searching for Shandians' treasures around Jaya.

What happens on Jaya with the Straw Hats is basically the same, except for how they find out about Skypiea, the way to go there, and their new bounties. Just like in the series, Teach shows them their new bounties. But now, there are 3 new bounties on their heads.

"Straw Hat" Monkey D. Luffy: 110 million

"Red Lion" Leonardo: 100 million

"Pirate Hunter" Roronoa Zoro: 60 million

Leo also gets a bounty because he was the one who defeated Crocodile. But he doesn't get a higher bounty than Luffy because Luffy is the crew's Captain. So Leo will do his order which makes him more dangerous to World Government.

Anyway, the Straw Hat Pirates ride the Knock Up Stream and go to Skypiea, leaving Blackbeard Pirates who got wrecked by the current. The 2 monkey-men have told them the story of Norland and how his descendant, Cricket has proved that Norlan wasn't a liar.

That story inspired the Straw Hats to go and see the truth that Cricket fought for. Also, they really want to see an island that floats high in the sky, above the cloud. They aren't just pirates, they are adventurers, after all, so they want to see new places on their journey.

Although Leo, Nami, and Robin have another thought. They know Cricket, after all, but he never mentioned or brag about this story, after all. So they want to know if the man in the monkeys' story is really the Cricket they know.

The crew arrives on the 1st layer of the White Sea and they have breathing difficulty, just like in the series. But there's no one attacking them now because the Shandians are living together peacefully with the Skypieans now. Usopp is still doing his stupid idea to swim in the cloud though, so they aren't really safe.

They finally find the gate to the upper layer and now they go up after paying the tax. Unlike in the series, there are some gatekeepers, and they are young soldiers. There is also a sign that shows the exchange rate of Belly and Extol, so they know the tax isn't expensive.

And they can't go to the upper level without paying anyway as the soldiers will attack them. But before they go to the upper level, the soldiers warn them to be careful. Something dangerous is happening on Skypiea, and if they aren't careful, they might not return to the Blue Sea.

The Straw Hats just listen and go to Skypiea excitedly. Maybe it's fate, but they also meet Conis, just like in the series. She becomes their tour guide and they go around the solid cloud island.

Usually, tourists can go to Upper Yard since the Skypieans & Shandians live together peacefully. But it is prohibited to enter Upper Yard and civilians are evacuated from there. Even Conis don't really know why except for a dangerous thing is happening there.

It intrigues the Straw Hats who really want to see Upper Yard as it is the other piece of Jaya. They also have faced dangers many times because they are pirates. If they are afraid of danger, then they will never reach their goals.

So they go to Upper Yard sneakily without Conis's knowledge. They succeed and immediately explore the soil island in groups. Upper Yard has been developed, but it still looks like a jungle. This place is massive, after all, but the people who live here are not that many.

While exploring, the Straw Hat groups get stopped by some soldiers. These soldiers are different from the gatekeepers. They look stronger and have better weapons. These soldiers are Shandians & Skypieans, and they tell the Straw Hats to leave Upper Yard now.

The Straw Hats don't want to listen to them, but suddenly, a massive explosion can be heard from far deep in the island. It takes everyone's attention because the explosion is really loud. So it should be a very powerful explosion because the whole island can hear it.

"Damn, it has started. You guys hurry up and leave. We can't guarantee your safety if you stay here any longer."

A soldier only says that to Leo's group before leaving. Leo is in a group with Nami who forced him to follow her to hunt treasures.

"What should we do, sis?"

"Of course, we continue. As long as we don't get closer to the dangerous place they meant, we will be fine."

"Sigh, alright."

The other Straw Hats also have the same thinking and keep exploring the island. They don't get into any trouble even after exploring till night. So they continue it the next day and go deeper into the island, forgetting the soldiers' warning.

Then, after exploring for a while, the Straw Hats arrive at the City of Gold. The old buildings here are still coated by gold, like how they were supposed to be. Even the golden bell is there, but it has a wood pillar replacing its broken gold pillar that was taken by the Clown Pirates.

The City of Gold amazes the Straw Hats who have heard it from the monkeys' story. Now, they see it for themselves, the proof that Norland didn't lie. This place is still taken care of now by both Shandians & Skypians, and it's used for many events, but not as a living place.

*BOOM*

A loud explosion can be heard again, but now it's closer than yesterday. They can even see the smoke of that explosion that seems to happen on the other side of the City of Gold. The crew wants to check it, but suddenly someone falls in front of them.

It's a Shandia soldier who has a lot of damage to his body. He grunts painfully, so Chopper checks on him. The guy tells them to leave immediately before he passes out. It really makes them wonder what happens on the other side of this City of Gold.

They decide to check it after Choper treats the guy a little. Well, Luffy wants to go there, so they also need to go there. They go fast and finally reach the other side of the city. What they see is quite shocking.

They see many people are lying on the ground with a lot of injuries on their bodies. Only a few people are still standing and they all look in the same direction. The Straw Hats look at where they are looking and see a man standing there while holding an unconscious soldier's hair.

"Is this all you've got, Skylanders? Hah, truly disappointing. It seems the gold in this city will be mine in the end."

The man who says that is none other than Kuroko Buggy. He is the one who makes all these Shandians & Skypieans have a lot of injuries. Buggy was beating them quite hard, but he doesn't kill any of them.

The reason for this is he wants to take the City of Gold from Shandians & Skypieans. He attacked the guards and then the soldiers who came to assist the guards. Buggy defeated them very easily, but then he gave them a chance.

If they can defeat him in a week, then he will leave. It's almost a week now, but they can't even scratch him, not to mention defeat him. He never used his real power, of course, but no one here can defeat him.

Well, that was the reason used by Buggy as Kuroko to fight these guys. The real reason is he wants to set up something to fight the Straw Hat Pirates. But it's also a request from Skypiean's God and Shandia Chief.

Buggy has met those 2 first when he came here to te them his plan. Out of his expectation, they accepted his plan very easily. They are very thankful for it too because they always wanted to teach their young men a lesson.

The young soldiers here are very arrogant and think they are the best because they never lose to any pirate who came here. They don't care if they have a big advantage when those pirates are still adapting to the change of altitude, they just care about their victory, and it made them arrogant.

It would be very dangerous if they were still like that because dangerous enemies might come one day. So Buggy's plan is actually to help the 2 Gods to teach the young soldiers. He can show them what it really means to be powerful by defeating them singlehandedly.

So they set this all up and then Buggy kept beating these youngsters quite badly. Even Wiper is included among the soldiers who got beaten up by him. He wasn't arrogant, but he was still weak, so he needs to experience great fights to improve.

It has been 5 days, so they only have 2 days left, but they still can't defeat Buggy. He grins while looking at the miserable soldiers. Then he sees the Straw Hat Pirates who watch from afar and grin widely.

"Oho? There are some new faces there. So you have reinforcements, huh? Then let's see if they can save you."

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You can read more chapters ahead of my fanfics and more pictures on my Pa_treon page if you are interested.

Voting for this book is highly appreciate. Cover image is the MC, artist's ig: @fatmaqn_

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1. Chapter 443. The End (Fairy Tail: Sun Eater)

2. Chapter 462. Fallen Holy City (Transcended as Lord Buggy)

3. Pictures of both stories (ex: bounty poster & magazine cover) by fatmaqn_

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