The Bucky Pirates didn't land at the pier like most would expect. Instead, they approached stealthily from the northern beach, using the cover of dunes and jungle thickets. Vivi, riding Karoo the Super Spot-Billed Duck, dashed into town. What greeted her eyes was chaos—villagers sprinting in panic, screams piercing the air, and pirates grinning madly as they slashed down innocents.
"Quack-Kalu!" Karoo's legs faltered, trembling. Vivi paused, glancing down at her loyal but timid mount. "Forget it," she murmured, stroking his feathers. "Just cheer me on from here." She dismounted, leaving the pup Xiuxiu beside him for protection. Her eyes sharpened.
Mid-leap, Vivi drew the famed blade Huazhou, the sunlight flashing on its polished steel. Two pirates charging with machetes yelled threats—but before one could finish his shout, Vivi's blade plunged into his chest. He collapsed in a bloodied heap.
More pirates surged forward, their boots thudding against the dirt streets. Vivi exhaled, steadying her focus. As the mob closed within ten meters, she activated Soru—one of the Rokushiki Six Styles. Her feet stomped the ground in rapid succession, producing explosive force and vanishing from sight.
To the untrained eye, she disappeared like a mirage.
A moment later, twin arcs of steel flashed through the air. Blood sprayed across the narrow alley, and two more pirates dropped, clutching at torn throats.
Before the blood even hit the ground, Vivi was already past them, intercepting another wave. While the likes of Bucky, who had eaten the Chop-Chop Fruit (Bara Bara no Mi), were notoriously hard to kill, his underlings lacked any such defense.
Since their time departing Whiskey Peak, Vivi had practiced Golden Lion Shiki's sword techniques, integrating them with her refined agility. While she found some of his flashy aerial techniques impractical, her base skill had vastly improved. Now, she danced through enemies like a whirlwind.
Using Soru and her own elegant footwork, she shifted through opponents fluidly. She combined graceful spins with precise slashes, adapting battle rhythm into something like a deadly waltz.
The powerful "Lion: Thousand Cut Valley" move was too energy-consuming to use constantly. So, she trimmed it down to a compact version—Lion: Nine Cut Valley. There was no need for redundant flourishes. Nine lethal strikes flowed in one breath.
Blades shimmered—slicing through necks, ribcages, and collarbones. Vivi moved lightly, almost carelessly. When she reached the end of the alley, she flicked her wrist, sending crimson droplets scattering from Huazhou. Behind her, nine pirates collapsed, their eyes wide with disbelief.
"Kill her!"
"Take her down!"
"Move aside! Let me, Kabaji, take her head!"
From the crowd burst a thin man on a unicycle, plaid scarf fluttering, hair covering one eye. It was Kabaji, Bucky's sword-wielding acrobat and chief of staff. Vivi blinked. Despite herself, she admired his balance. If Whiskey Peak ever needed circus acts, she mused, he'd be a top-tier recruit.
"Woman! Prepare to die! Watch my acrobatics: Fiery Spit!" Kabaji shouted, dramatically leaping forward.
But Vivi had already begun charging her technique.
Dragging her sword behind, she advanced slowly, syncing her breath and body. Power flowed from her legs to her hips and shoulders. When Kabaji lunged forward on his unicycle, her motion reached its peak.
With a sharp upward swing, she unleashed a fiery red arc—her blade trailing a flame-shaped afterimage as she shouted:
"Chop!"
Kabaji's eyes widened. He yanked backward, letting his unicycle skid and tilt. The slash barely missed his face, slicing a deep gouge in the wall behind him. He rolled with the fall, hit the ground, and dramatically played dead.
Vivi didn't bother finishing him off—her instincts warned her. A split second later, a lion's roar echoed from the flank.
Whirling around, Vivi saw Ritchie—the massive lion she'd previously faced in town—charging, claws extended and saliva dripping. Atop a nearby building stood Mohji, the beast tamer, urging it forward.
But Ritchie hesitated mid-leap.
Recognizing her, the lion's eyes showed panic. It tried to brake mid-charge, but momentum carried it forward. In a comical twist, Ritchie raised his front paws in surrender.
"Out of my way, furball." Vivi didn't hesitate. She bent her left knee and rammed it into the lion's gut. The beast wheezed. Spinning around, she delivered a roundhouse kick that crashed into the lion's cheek.
Ritchie careened sideways like a bowling ball, crashing into Mohji and a dozen other pirates. The mass of bodies rolled and smashed into three houses, leveling them.
"Kabaji-sama has been defeated!"
"Moji-sama and Ritchie too?!"
The remaining pirates hesitated. Painted faces, rainbow clothes, mismatched hats—these Bucky pirates looked like circus rejects, but now they were pale with fear. Though they had encircled Vivi, every time she took a step, they took two back. Swords trembled in their hands.
"Tell your boss to come here," Vivi said, voice calm but firm. "I have something to discuss—oh, there he is."
High atop a roof, trying to blend with a chimney, was Bucky the Clown himself.
He wore an oversized orange pirate hat with the skull-and-crossbones symbol, his white-painted face marked with blue accents. His huge red nose stuck out like a beacon. His clown shoes dangled over the ledge.
Vivi sheathed Huazhou and pointed toward him.
"Oi, Clown Bucky. Don't hide, I see you."
The wariness in Bucky's eyes flared. The fiery arc she'd launched earlier still burned in his memory. Though he was a Logia-class fighter by effect—able to split and reassemble thanks to the Chop-Chop Fruit—he didn't know the limits of Vivi's power. What if she could use Haki?
"Hmph! This town belongs to Captain Bucky now!" he shouted, waving his arms. "I've dealt with sword users before! Get out before I get serious!"
"I've shown you strength," Vivi replied, "and you still bark like that? How tiresome."
Truthfully, even Mihawk would struggle to finish Bucky off with swordplay alone. While legends say that even the World Government tolerates Bucky because of his link with Red-Haired Shanks, it's undeniable: swords are nearly useless against a man who can separate his body at will.
Still, Vivi didn't draw her blade again.
Instead, she raised her palm—and black Busoshoku Haki bloomed across it like polished obsidian.
Before she could speak, Bucky's brain short-circuited.
"Wh-WHAT!? You calling me RED-NOSE!?"
She hadn't said anything of the sort, but Bucky had already spiraled into delusion. In his mind, her Haki was an insult. Her tone, her posture, even her existence—all were disrespectful to his glorious nose.
His face flushed with rage.
"YOU DARE?! TAKE THIS!!"
Bucky flung four knives from each hand. They gleamed in sunlight and streaked toward Vivi like lightning.
She narrowed her eyes.