Second Wind

38

Somewhere on the Grand Line

The Big Top, flagship of the Buggy pirates, sailed aimlessly, the crew having no destination in mind. On deck, said crew were giving the captain a wide berth, lest they risk being blown away flashily. Buggy the Clown was persistent; he had followed Strawhat Luffy into the Grand Line, seemingly having no fear of the legendary sea, and even going as far as to speak of it with an air of nostalgia. And yet, it seemed that for all his seemingly endless flamboyance, even Buggy the Clown had limits; limits that most would refer to as a sense of reason.

When the Buggy pirates had first read the newspaper article describing the alliance between Whitebeards and Strawhats, they weren't sure how their captain would react. But his reaction was certainly not what they had expected. They were expecting a fit of flashy rage, and based on his prior exploits, maybe even heightened determination. What they didn't expect was him to fall into a state of depression. For the next couple days, he had done little other than eat, sleep, and sulk. When an underling had finally summoned the courage to ask why they weren't going after the Strawhats, he had almost been killed by a Muggy Ball. Buggy had then started going on a rant about how one never assaults a Whitebeard pirate or even one of their allies unless they were looking for a swift death. The crew had been baffled; after all, Captain Buggy had never been intimidated by a daunting or even impossible task before, so why now? But Buggy had seen things that they hadn't, images that were still fresh in his mind to this day.

For all their loyalty, his crew was naive. They didn't know what an enraged Edward Newgate was like. No, even Buggy the Clown could be rational at times, and that was his greatest shame.

"He needs to get over it," Alvida said as she leaned back in her chair. "Either risk defying Whitebeard or pick a new target. I don't care which. Anything's better than sitting around doing nothing."

Cabaji said nothing. Although he agreed with her, he had to sympathize with his captain's predicament. He had had his sights dead set on Strawhat Luffy and Roronoa Zoro, and now he was being forced to give it up. Perhaps the rest of the crew was optimistic, but Cabaji had no delusions of invoking Whitebeard's wrath and surviving. He sighed.

"We'll just have to wait for him to pull himself together. If I know him, he'll find some treasure to preoccupy himself with, and then he'll bounce right back. As much as I hate to admit it, going after Strawhat is suicide."

Alvida looked up at the sky. "Too bad. I was pretty interested in him too. I wonder if we'll ever see that annoying brat again." She smiled. "He packs one hell of a punch."

"He really does doesn't he?" came an unfamiliar voice. "But you should have seen him when he was a kid. He could barely move his fist in a straight line."

Alvida, Cabaji, and Mohji turned around in shock to find a complete stranger sitting on deck and eating their food. Alvida reacted with hostility. "Who the hell are you, bastard!? What are you doing on our ship!?"

"Ah, forgive me. I should have introduced myself earlier. My name is Portgas D. Ace. I was investigating a lead when I was lured here by the wonderful smell of your feast. Nice to meet you," he said with a formal bow.

Alvida was taken aback by his politeness. "Uh...pleasure's all mine...I guess..."

Cabaji on the other hand, was turning pale. "Portgas...D...Ace?" he repeated slowly. "Whitebeard's second division commander...?" Alvida's eyes widened.

Ace grinned widely. "Oh, so you know me? I'm flattered."

That was when the surrounding Buggy pirates started screaming in fear and generally creating chaos on board the ship. Ace looked at them with a raised eyebrow. "What's with them? You'd think the circus was in town." He looked back at Cabaji. "Then again, maybe it is. So? Where's the clown?"