Pirate: I, Buggy, am the Emperor, the Emperor of the Clown King!

Clown Magic: The Omnipotent Power of Omnipotence.

If you insist on being omnipotent, you will be able to do nothing.

If we abandon our all-encompassing focus on a single point, we can create a moment of miracle or destruction from nothingness.

This is the fundamental reason why clown magic can be ever-changing, yet it always relies on magic tricks, techniques, and on-the-spot specialization.

The more extreme something is, the more fragile and fleeting it becomes, and the more it depends on the Clown King for its maintenance.

Because power itself is nothingness, it must rely on form, action, ritual, and performance to be anchored and defined.

Therefore, it can only manifest in the form of magic and cannot unleash pure, violent power like other ultimate forms.

In other words.

It is rather rigid in its use, requiring adherence to the magic procedure, and has many limitations, making it difficult to adapt.

However, once successfully used, its effects are extremely powerful.

For Bucky to understand and recognize this with only 15% completion is an absolute steal.

This is equivalent to a typical clown monster trying to understand the essence by constantly using clown magic, and trying to understand the inner self through superficial asceticism.

Bucky, on the other hand, first understood the essence of the art, and then began to learn how to use clown magic.

The difficulty levels for the two sides are completely different.

Now is the time to test this [omnipotent omnipotence].

Bucky's lips curled up slightly as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a white handkerchief.

That handkerchief was ordinary; on the surface, there was nothing strange about it, and in fact, no matter who held it, there was nothing strange about it either.

This is the white handkerchief that Bucky usually uses to wipe his sword.

And this handkerchief now plays an extraordinary role in his hands, serving as an essential ritual prop for clown magic.

[Clown Magic - Magic Handkerchief] is a classic skill of the Clown King.

Before the numerical flaws are exposed, the ability to turn anyone into a puppet is no ordinary terrifying move.

Well... normally, this trick is unlikely to work.

Because a normal person would dodge or fight back when faced with a handkerchief thrown by an enemy, but this magic handkerchief flies slowly and has low strength.

Therefore, this move is generally limited to situations where the opponent has no intention or ability to resist.

Before using this move, the Clown King usually beats his opponent into submission and fear through violence.

Bucky twirled the handkerchief between his fingers twice, his movements unhurried, like a magician warming up before a performance.

"?" Alvida looked at Bucky, her brows furrowing slightly, wondering what he was up to now.

"Alvida~" Buggy's voice was unhurried, with an indescribable composure, "You know what? The heroes of this world often have one thing in common."

He unfolded the handkerchief in his palm; the white fabric stood out starkly against the dark clouds.

"They're very pragmatic." Bucky paused, his gaze shifting from the handkerchief to Alvida's face. "They know when to bow their heads and when to obey."

As for why those who are discerning in their circumstances are considered wise?

Of course, it's because those who didn't know what was good for them all died.

The only truth is survival, because history is written by the victors.

Just like how world governments can erase 800 years of history at will.

Alvida tightened her grip on the spiked club slightly, her hand tensing slightly.

She felt something was wrong, but she didn't know what it was.

The Joker King Bucky in front of me is definitely no good.

"You made the right choice," Bucky continued, a hint of pleasure in his voice.

"So I'll give you a novel experience~"

"This is both a reward that wipes the slate clean of our conflict and a punishment for your admission of wrongdoing and acceptance of punishment."

Bucky held up the handkerchief, letting it flutter gently in the wind.

"What rewards and punishments?" Alvida asked, her voice tinged with wariness.

She wanted to resist, but didn't know how.

This is the most terrifying aspect of the Clown King's Clown Magic Handkerchief – the first encounter kill.

In particular, Bucky was using conversation to attract Alvida's attention.

Alvida thought that Bucky's so-called punishments and rewards... all seemed to point to some not-so-pleasant yet rather-pleasant adult matters.

Anyway, I never expected that there was something wrong with the handkerchief in Bucky's hand.

The more mysterious and unfathomable something appears, the more powerful it seems before its true nature is revealed.

This is the king of deception and trickery.

"It's a reward for a wonderful experience~" Buggy continued to guide Alvida's thinking with his words, "and also a punishment that makes you understand the true nature of this world more clearly~"

Bucky is increasingly enjoying being a riddle teller, and he gets incredibly happy seeing others suffer because of what he says.

Don't tell Riddler to get out of Gotham City.

Tell me, isn't it great to be a riddle solver?

Just because you dislike others being riddle tellers doesn't mean you don't want to be one yourself.

Bucky threw the handkerchief forward.

The handkerchief flew out of his hand, as lightly as a leaf blown by the wind.

Time seemed to slow down in Alvida's eyes as she watched the handkerchief fly towards her, feeling utterly bewildered.

I didn't sense anything strange or unusual about the handkerchief, and my sixth sense didn't detect any danger.

From any angle, it was just an ordinary handkerchief.

Alvida stood there, watching the handkerchief fly towards her, and then the handkerchief suddenly grew larger.

Alvida's pupils contracted sharply, but it was too late to resist.

The white handkerchief suddenly grew as large as a curtain, covering her entire body, and then, as if without any obstruction, fell directly to the ground.

It was as if there was nothing inside.

It's like magic.

The magician covered a person with a cloth, and then the person disappeared.

It's that simple, that clean, and that... eerie.

A white cloth lay quietly on the wooden board on the execution platform, trembling slightly in the wind.

"Ya...Ya...Ya...Rita...gone?!" Luffy's voice boomed across the plaza, filled with indescribable shock.

He lay on the ground, his eyes wide open and his mouth agape.

Bucky ignored him, simply raising his hand slightly. The white cloth floated up from the wooden board, growing smaller and smaller in the air, before flying back into his hand and returning to its original size.

Bucky unfolded the handkerchief in his palm and looked down at it.

A small, chibi-style doll has appeared in the very center of the handkerchief.

The doll was dressed in Alvida's clothes and was holding a small spiked club.

"Not bad." Bucky picked up the doll from the handkerchief with two fingers, held it up to his eyes, and examined it closely. "Very exquisite."

Then he tucked the doll into his arms and casually touched his chest.

To be honest, using [Clown Magic - Magic Handkerchief] seems to consume a lot of energy... It's hard to say exactly how much it consumed, but my heart was pounding.

As for why it's placed inside the shirt at the chest?

Wearing it like a pendant on your waist... that's a bad habit, so it should be put in an inner pocket.

Bucky remembers the Clown King in the original comics, who was ruined by this bad habit.

Luffy stared at all of this, completely stunned, as if struck by lightning.

He had never heard of this ability in his conversations with his grandfather Garp or with the Red-Haired Pirates.

Where can you turn a person into a doll?

What kind of ability is that?

What kind of fruit is that?

What exactly is that thing?!

"You! What did you do to Alvida?!" Luffy roared, his voice hoarse, and the veins on his neck bulged out one by one.

"What's wrong?" Buggy looked down at Luffy lying on the ground, a slight smile playing on his lips beneath his mask. "As you can see, I've turned her into a collectible."

"A collectible?!" Luffy's eyes widened even more. "You! You turn her back!"

"Why?" Bucky retorted, a hint of mockery in his voice. "She's mine now. I'm free to do whatever I want with her."

"She traded her freedom for yours, and then told me to plead guilty and accept punishment."

"She's already pleaded guilty and accepted the punishment, so how I handle it is entirely up to me."

"If you confess, then you are guilty; what your crime is is unimportant."

This sophistry is perfectly reasonable, and Bucky doesn't see anything wrong with it at all... [in every sense of the word].

Although this would be extremely offensive to Luffy.

But so what?

Buggy was curious: what would Luffy do if he had Nami and Alvida team up to fight him?

This was so much fun!

"hateful--!!!"

Luffy's fist slammed into the wooden board, making a dull thud.

His face flushed red, and the veins on his forehead bulged out one by one. He wanted to stand up and rush over to punch that annoying mask.

But Luffy couldn't stand up.

Bucky looked at him, looking down at him.

The two people were less than a step apart.

One was standing, and the other was lying down.

One looks down, the other looks up.

"Straw Hat Boy," Buggy said, his words laced with seductive intent, "do you know why you lost?"

Luffy stared at him without saying a word.

"Was it because of the anesthetic or the sneak attack? Was it despicable!" Bucky's voice was full of mockery.

"No, none of that. Don't make any excuses~" Buggy's gaze swept across Luffy's face as if he were looking at something very interesting. "You lost because you were too weak."

"I'm a pirate, you're a pirate, we're all pirates."

"I'm standing here, you're lying here."

"So what's the difference between us?"

"It's power!"

"Because I'm strong, I can bully Alvida."

Buggy looked at Luffy, actually hoping that Luffy could unleash his Conqueror's Haki here.

Buggy wants to awaken Conqueror's Haki, but he has no direction at all.

He felt he was lacking a bit of excitement.

For example, when Luffy uses Conqueror's Haki, let Buggy experience what Conqueror's Haki feels like.

Although Buggy the Clown has memories of Roger, Rayleigh, Shank, and others using Conqueror's Haki, these memories are somewhat distant and not very profound for Buggy the Clown.

"!!!" Something was burning in Luffy's eyes.

"And you're weak, so weak that you can't protect anyone," Bucky continued, his voice still so soft and gentle, "so weak that you can only lie here and watch others be turned into toys."

"So weak that they can only be bullied."

"So weak...he doesn't even have the ability to stand up."

"All the tragedies in this world can be attributed to the incompetence of those involved."

"So ditch your boring pirate pretend game~"

"To achieve victory by any means necessary!"

"Victory after victory, victory after victory!"

"The one who wins in the end is the Pirate King." Buggy's last sentence was drawn out, revealing a chilling somber tone.

"Shut up!!!" Luffy roared, his voice hoarse with an indescribable raspiness. "I will—!!!"

"You'll definitely what?" Bucky interrupted him. "You'll definitely protect all your comrades?"

"Hahaha!" The laughter welled up from deep in his throat, carrying an indescribable mockery. "How pathetic."

Something was shimmering in Luffy's eyes, an emotion that was about to overflow and was hard to describe.

This world shouldn't be like this!

—Absolutely! Absolutely! This shouldn't be happening!

"Who do you think you're talking to?" Buggy's voice suddenly changed from its usual languid, amused tone to a lower, cold, and condescending one: "Who do you think you are? Monkey D. Luffy!"

"!!" Luffy's pupils contracted slightly.

"You think you can do whatever you want in this world just because you're Garp's grandson?" Bucky's voice suddenly rose.

While it's possible in a certain sense, Bucky obviously wouldn't say that.

The king of trickery's rhetoric is, of course, sophistry.

"Wake up, Garp won't always be by your side."

"Your companions did come to your rescue, but they are in dire straits themselves."

Are you truly prepared to bear the responsibility for the lives of all your companions?

"You're just playing your pirate make-believe game!"

"I assert here that if you continue playing the One Piece game with this attitude... a hopeless future is not far off."

Buggy recalled the scene in the original anime where Luffy lost his crewmates on Sabaody Archipelago.

Friendship, unity, hope... none of these could stop them from being defeated one by one by the raging bear.

"They can't save you." Buggy's voice scraped at Luffy's heart like a dull knife.

"You can't protect anyone."

"With your current mindset, even if you become the Pirate King, it will be the same."

"I have no interest in humiliating you too much, even if naivety is considered foolish."

"However, doing something knowing it's impossible is also called courage... Perhaps you can carve out a niche for yourself with this foolish and blind courage?"

"Hahaha... This is so funny."

Buggy was very curious about Luffy's future choices, as he spouted a series of outrageous theories.

It's fine if you're corrupted by your own self-deception.

It's good to resist your own temptations and strengthen your resolve.

Either extreme is fine, just don't oscillate between them.

"Aaaaaah!" Luffy's teeth were clenched so tightly that they were grinding together, and something was swirling in his eyes.

It wasn't tears.

It was definitely not tears.

How can one's own path be rejected like this?

—You can't do that!

"The Pirate King shouldn't be like that! He should be the freest person on the sea!" Luffy wanted to argue, and he really thought so.

Just as Buggy said, he didn't understand what the so-called pirates were.

There might be good people among the pirates.

But pirates are definitely a vicious and ruthless group.

"This world doesn't need a Pirate King who only shouts slogans." Buggy looked down at Luffy. "What this world needs is someone who can truly stand at the top."

"And you!" Bucky reached out and pulled a white handkerchief from his pocket, "You're still a long way off~"

Luffy stared at the handkerchief, his pupils suddenly contracting.

He recalled the scene where Alvida was covered up, and then Alvida disappeared and was turned into a small chibi doll.

"Let me see too~" Buggy's voice was soft, "Take the form of a doll~"

This is a lie.

Bucky knew that Dragon was there and wouldn't allow such a thing to happen, but that didn't stop him from being mischievous.

As for what happened?

That's impossible.

Dorag is truly capable of enduring what ordinary people cannot.

Buggy tossed the handkerchief forward, lightly covering Luffy.

Luffy's eyes were wide open; he wanted to move, but he couldn't.

then!

boom!!!

A bolt of lightning struck down from the sky, hitting the execution platform directly.

The first thing to be affected is the white handkerchief between Luffy and Buggy.

boom!!!

Thunder roared across the square, making many people's eardrums ache and the ground tremble.

The white handkerchief was torn to shreds and burned by lightning, turning into countless fragments that formed dust swirling in the air.

The same problem remains: while the Joker's magic skill effects are very strong, the numerical values ​​are too low.

The execution platform was struck by lightning; the welded iron frames deformed under the high temperature, the fixing screws loosened under the impact, and the wooden boards shattered in the explosion.

The execution platform began to tilt.

Bucky had already moved the moment before the lightning struck; in fact, one could say he was preparing to run away the moment he threw the handkerchief.

He leaped off the execution platform just before the lightning struck, his clothes fluttering in the wind, his mask standing out starkly against the dark clouds.

Bucky turned to look at the tilting execution platform, the handkerchief shattering in the lightning, the iron frame deforming in the lightning.

Only Luffy remained unharmed amidst the lightning.

Rubber Fruit, Rubber Fruit... Is this really a Rubber Fruit?

Everyone says rubber doesn't conduct electricity, but how can rubber be struck by lightning and remain completely unharmed?

There's an upper limit to how well rubber can conduct electricity!

Ordinary rubber lightning protection, even with various thickened and specially made materials, can only protect against lightning strikes up to 10,000 volts.

The standard for direct lightning strikes from the sky is usually measured in 100 million volts.

The difference between the two sides is 3 to 4 orders of magnitude.

You say you don't conduct electricity and aren't afraid of electricity, is it because you're a rubber person?

The dark clouds are swirling.

This rotation looks very unnatural.

It was as if it was being pulled and stirred by some force, forming a large vortex.

Lightning darted through the clouds like a luminous snake, winding and twisting, tearing open the dark clouds again and again.

With each tear that appeared, a thunderous roar would roll down, booming and shaking the ground.

Then a torrential downpour began, as if a hole had been punched in the sky.

"Tsk." Bucky looked up at the sky.

Such a wide range of celestial changes and manipulations... what exactly is Monkey D. Dragon's ability?

This thing is incredibly good at hiding; it's hidden so well.

Monkey D. Dragon has been developing the Revolutionary Army to challenge the World Government's rule, but he himself rarely takes action.

In fact, even the World Government only knew that Monkey D. Dragon was Garp's son, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, and very powerful.

And then no more.

Just how powerful it is, and where it is located... nobody knows.