Early morning on the deck of the Oro Jackson, Buggy was sleeping soundly when—
"Bang!"
A bucket of ice water poured down, drenching his face!
Buggy shot up, soaked: "Ahhh! Who did that?!"
Rhett stood on the mast, grinning. "Wake up, Buggy Training starts today Didn't you beg me for it yesterday?"
Buggy sputtered: "What time is it?! The sun hasn't even risen! I'm still in the growth stage, you know!"
Rhett rubbed his wrist, a familiar feeling.
I can help you grow faster, little Buggy—
Buggy shot up. Whenever Rhett called him "little Buggy" like that, it meant trouble. Best to listen.
"Brother Rhett, of course! I'm up, I'm up."
On the training ground, Buggy and Shanks stood in a line. Rhett held a pitch-black wooden stick, smiling warmly.
Huh, the air felt fresher today.
"Today, I'll teach you Armament Haki It's simple—just focus your power on your skin"
Buggy was eager: "Hahaha! I'll master it in no time!"
Rhett nodded: "Good. I don't feel like teaching theory anyway, so let's get straight to practical exercises~"
The next second, Rhett swung the stick and smacked Buggy's butt!
Buggy howled: "Ow—! Why'd you hit me?!"
Rhett looked innocent: "Armament Haki is about body strength. I had this genius idea: if I beat you, and you try your hardest to escape, getting hit enough will naturally strengthen your body, and you'll develop Armament Haki~"
Shanks took a step back: "Uh… I just remembered I have something to do…"
Rhett grabbed him: "Don't run. You're next~"
"Whack!" "Whack!"
Screams filled the deck.
Rayleigh passed by, shaking his head. "These kids are so full of energy…"
Shanks shouted at Rhett: "Brother Rhett, if you keep this up, we're gonna fight back!"
Rhett smirked: "Go ahead, do whatever you want."
After a morning of chaos, post-lunch,
Buggy and Shanks lay bruised and battered on the deck, feeling like life had lost all meaning.
In the afternoon, it was time for Observation Haki training. Rhett had another "brilliant" idea.
Rhett grinned at the two, their faces a colorful mess: "From now on, you'll be blindfolded. I'll attack randomly, and you'll have to predict and dodge~"
Buggy, apparently humbled by nothing, was brimming with confidence: "Piece of cake!"
But then—
Instead of a stick, Rhett pulled out a peculiar farting shell that released a foul-smelling gas upon impact.
"Pffft—!"
Buggy staggered, gagging: "Ugh—! Rhett! You cheated!"
"In naval battles, you have to predict all dangers, including biochemical weapons~ You're not even calling me Brother Rhett anymore, how sad, boo-hoo." Rhett even pretended to wipe non-existent tears.
Shanks pinched his nose and backed away: "I demand a new teacher…"
Roger happened to pass by: "Then train Rhett the same way—make him fight Sea Kings. Nothing hones the will like life-and-death battles, hahaha!"
Shanks silently retreated. Suddenly, Rhett's training didn't seem so bad.
As days passed, the training continued.
Shanks' progress was several times faster than Buggy's. Buggy secretly practiced, but of course, Roger and Rhett noticed. Roger saw Rhett emerge and then left, trusting Rhett to handle it.
One night, while Buggy was secretly practicing his abilities, Rhett suddenly appeared.
Rhett acted casual as he passed by: "Buggy, your abilities could be much stronger~"
Buggy was wary: "What do you want now?"
"Doesn't it bother you that Shanks has surpassed you, even left you far behind?" Rhett smiled.
Buggy wanted to act tough, but tears welled up uncontrollably. Buggy was just a six or seven-year-old kid.
"Brother Rhett… am I just talentless? We're training the same, but I'm so far behind. I'm so angry—angry at myself."
Buggy, in the original story, had always lived in a world of powerhouses. Even Shanks, his peer, was hailed as a genius. No matter how hard Buggy tried, he couldn't keep up, eventually giving up. High expectations could make you soar—or crash hard.
Rhett pulled out a bunch of daggers: "Try this—!" With that, he sliced Buggy's body into several pieces, each tied to a dagger, attacking targets from different angles.
Buggy's Chop-Chop Fruit had immense potential. Buggy could precisely control every part of his split body, which was his foundation. Right now, it was just tied fabric, but if the split parts could freely transform in the future, he'd become even stronger.
The Chop-Chop Fruit could essentially function like a Logia Fruit. Among masters, elementalization was about preemptive action, similar to Obito's Kamui—body parts would phase out, and Armament Haki fists would pass through, minimizing damage.
Buggy's fruit could also split preemptively to avoid damage.
After a few tries, Buggy was ecstatic: "Hahaha! I'm invincible!"
Rhett could only shake his head. Typical Buggy.
"Swish!" "Swish!"
A few daggers, possibly tied loosely, flew toward Roger, who was sleeping on the deck!
Roger turned in his sleep, the daggers grazing his face and embedding into the wall: "Zzz…"
Buggy broke into a cold sweat: "Oh no… I'm doomed…"
Rhett patted his shoulder: "Looks like you need more practice with accuracy~ You didn't even hit him."
Rhett was just teasing Buggy. There was no way such a move could harm Roger, whose strength was beyond human.
After hellish training, Buggy and Shanks finally made significant progress.
Buggy could now control his splits proficiently, and his body parts could finally hold objects. While they weren't as dexterous as hands, gripping things was no issue. He even developed the "Buggy Bomb·Split Version" (each split hand holding a bomb).
Roger watched them proudly: "Hahaha! Now that's more like my crew!"
Rayleigh adjusted his glasses: "Though the methods were unconventional and the approach mild, the results are good."
Rhett bared his shark-like teeth: "I'm just thankful I didn't die during your training."
Rayleigh laughed heartily: "What can we do? You were a monster even at three years old. Of course your training couldn't be ordinary."