"Captain John's treasure? Who's that? Black Wing, don't think you can fool our boss Buggy with just any old story!" Mohji and Cabaji exclaimed, eyeing the armband Ian pulled from his pocket. Since when had a Marine Vice Admiral become a con artist? They'd never heard of such a thing.

After the God Valley Incident, where the Marines and Roger had joined forces to crush the Rocks Pirates, the whereabouts of the vast fortune amassed by the Rocks crew remained a mystery. However, the fact that even Buggy, a seasoned pirate and former Roger Pirate, was seeking Captain John's treasure suggested a possible explanation.

It was entirely plausible that the greedy Captain John had absconded with the Rocks Pirates' entire fortune, effectively betraying the entire crew. After all, this was a crew that had fostered future Emperors like Kaido and Big Mom, legendary pirates like Whitebeard and Shiki, and had been so formidable that it took the combined might of Gol D. Roger and the Marines to defeat them. Their treasure hoard must have been immense.

"That doesn't look like a fake…" Both Garp and Buggy instantly recognized the armband as John's, one a Marine hero, the other a former Roger Pirate, both veterans of the God Valley Incident.

"Yeah, I got this from Moria. He and his crew were turned into zombies, so they clearly didn't know its value." Ian explained, still baffled as to why John, a crewmate of Whitebeard, Shiki, Kaido, and Big Mom, would end up as a zombie.

He had used his Vice Admiral privileges to investigate John and discovered a staggering 2.2 billion berry bounty, the same as Blackbeard. Given John's affiliation with the Rocks Pirates, such a bounty wasn't entirely surprising. However, beyond that, he found no other information. Like the Straw Hat, perhaps the armband was simply a symbol of his identity.

Otherwise, Moria wouldn't have left it on the zombie. From the earlier context, it was deduced that Captain John was betrayed and killed by his own crew, and then mocked by his fellow zombies. This suggested that John, much like his betrayal of Rocks, was ultimately betrayed by those he trusted.

This revelation only fueled Buggy's obsession. Ian couldn't fathom the extent of Buggy's avarice, but the fact that Luffy had secured Buggy's assistance in escaping Impel Down with a mention of treasure spoke volumes. Buggy's greed bordered on madness. Otherwise, during the Marineford War, when Shanks asked him to return Luffy's straw hat,

Buggy would never have been so easily distracted by a new treasure map, forgetting his Devil Fruit weakness to water. Carefree and focused solely on treasure, that was Buggy's simple pursuit, a philosophy likely inherited from his time with Roger.

"No way! I have to examine it to see if it's real!" Buggy exclaimed, reaching for the armband, only for Ian to pull it back. "Here's the item. Take it or leave it."

Ian's casual demeanor and nonchalant expression, coupled with his stoic face, only served to further agitate Buggy. It conveyed a sense of indifference, a subtle challenge. And indeed, it was.

Ian was merely curious about Buggy's true strength.

Buggy seemed content with its basic applications. He thought of Gildarts Clive, the Fifth Guild Master of Fairy Tail, whose immense magical power caused unintentional destruction, prompting his town to create a special path for him,

allowing him to walk directly to the guild hall without demolishing the streets. Gildarts even bore a striking resemblance to Shanks, leading many to believe he was making a cameo appearance.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Buggy hadn't provoked him, so there was no reason for Ian to resort to violence. Crocodile, Moria, and Enel, however, had deserved their fates.

"Go get him, Boss!" Mohji and Cabaji roared, unwilling to let a Marine belittle their captain.

"You don't have to win, just achieve a draw. As long as your strength is comparable, it'll prove you're worthy of the Warlord title." Garp added, a veiled threat laced in his words. If Buggy failed, he would be arrested.

"..." Buggy was trapped, with no way out. He couldn't find a plausible reason to refuse, and the allure of Captain John's treasure was too strong to resist.

Finally, they gathered on the ship's deck.

The Marines formed a perimeter, with Garp, Tashigi, Mohji, Cabaji, and the two giant lion-dogs, Richie and Chouchou, at the forefront, eager to witness the clash between a potential Warlord and a Marine Vice Admiral.

Both Ian and Buggy levitated above the deck. Ian, with his fusion rate at 47% and his Murciélago form unlocked, could briefly defy gravity.

Buggy, relying on his Devil Fruit ability, kept his feet planted on the ship, his face a mixture of bewilderment and apprehension.

The Chop-Chop Fruit, a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit, allowed Buggy to split his body into multiple pieces, launching them at will. However, his feet had to remain on the ground, and his ability's range was limited to a 200-meter radius. While he wouldn't die if he exceeded this range, he would lose control of his detached body parts.

"Watch out!" Ian warned Buggy, his expression unchanged.

"Nani?" Buggy responded, momentarily confused.

Whoosh! Ian vanished in a burst of Sonido, the air crackling with the force of his movement.

Reappearing behind Buggy, he launched a simple punch, without any special abilities, relying solely on his enhanced physical strength.

With his current fusion rate, he possessed several tons of raw power. He wanted to test Buggy's strength before unleashing his power, otherwise, he might accidentally turn the clown into paste.

"Chop-Chop Festival… Emergency Escape!" Buggy reacted instantly, using his Devil Fruit ability to split his body apart and evade Ian's attack.

"Damn you, Black Wing! You attacked without warning! We didn't even start yet!" Buggy roared.

"Amazing, Captain Buggy! You dodged Black Wing's sneak attack!" Mohji and Cabaji cheered.

"Not bad, Buggy." A faint smile played on Ian's lips. While Buggy could split his body apart upon contact, if the force exceeded his limits, he would still be crushed.

His punch had been powerful enough to create a sonic boom, but it had connected with nothing but air. Garp also smiled. "So that's how it is. He splits apart just before impact to avoid the full force of the blow."

Busoshoku Haki, a power originating from the user's body, similar to chakra, magic, or spiritual pressure.

During the Enies Lobby arc, There was something called "Doriki" unit of measurement used by CP to directly determine someones level of physical power" while Observation Haki was called "Kenbunshoku."

Assuming an average Marine soldier had a Doriki of 10, anyone exceeding 500 was considered superhuman.

Lucci possessed a Doriki of 4,000, while Spandam, the CP9 commander, was a weakling with a Doriki of 9.

By comparison, Ian's power level was around 200,000, while top-tier fighters like Garp and Whitebeard reached 500,000 to 600,000, exceeding the limits of ordinary humans.

Busoshoku Haki was effective against all Devil Fruit types, even Logia users. During the Marineford War, Buggy had managed to withstand Mihawk's devastating slashes. Even Devil Fruit abilities had their limits. As a former member of the Roger Pirates,

in a world filled with powerful individuals, Buggy couldn't possibly be a complete weakling.

"Chop-Chop… Bara Bara Hocho!"

"Chop-Chop… Pancake!"

Buggy wasted no time, launching a flurry of attacks. He detached his knife-wielding arm, sending it spinning towards Ian like a bladed frisbee, without reassembling his body.

His movements were fluid and precise, without a single wasted motion.

"Now, aren't you the one attacking without warning?" Ian chuckled..