The days went fast. Every night Usopp would paint a new design on Buggy's face and every morning they were just a bit closer to Impel Down. It was a comfortable, easy living that almost made Usopp forget all about what the actual purpose of this ride was. Or, rather, where they were taking Buggy.

If he hated thinking about his minor (really, really small) crush on Buggy, he despised thinking about this fact tenfold that.

Still, he enjoyed the simplicity of it. Days and nights of easy skies and calm waves. Though, since they didn't have any more alcohol (not after that drinking party they didn't), both Usopp and Buggy had to abstain for a while. To Usopp, this was a rather good thing. He quickly came to find out that while drunk, he did a lot of stupid shit he'd forgotten by the next day.

According to Buggy and the rest of his crew, he'd pelted the Bellamy pirates to death, throwing cannonballs at them like Garp the Fucking Hero.

Who-, how? Really, Usopp couldn't even imagine himself being strong enough to throw a cannonball more than twenty meters at most, and now he was being told he threw them at a ship with the accuracy of a skilled marksman (nice to know he was still a sure shot even with ten promille in his blood)? Like it was nothing? Maybe he should consider adding cannonballs to his regular outfit? Just in case there was a ship in need of pelting?

Usopp flipped open a paper, wondering briefly if Buggy would like a paper to read. He didn't seem like the type to read the news, but he might wonder about-,

"Commodore!"

Usopp glanced up at Pepper. "For the last time, Pepper, I'm not a Commodore YET-,"

"Ship sighted, sir!" Onion said with a trembling salute. The only one missing now would be…

"A pirate ship, sir!" Carrot reported, also doing that very same shaky salute. Usopp almost felt like explicitly asking what they hell was so spooky, but considering that other people were aboard the Merry right now, letting his persona falter might not be a very good idea.

"Have any of our vessels engaged it yet?" Usopp asked, receiving a shake of the head in return. "And what affiliations does the ship belong to?"

In other words, what pirates are these? "Sir, um… it might be best you saw it yourself," Onion said, handing Usopp a spyglass. "Quarter past two."

Usopp frowned, but grabbed the spyscope anyways, turning his eye starboard. There, just on the horizon, a group of clearly defined ships were visible. In total, Usopp could spot about seven of them, all clad in the most decadent and childish of colours. Like a bunch of sea-bound circ-,

Usopp searched for a flag with such sudden fervor that he almost lost sight of them completely. Cursing, he readjusted the spyscope, getting a closer look. On the largest one, sporting an actual circus tent on deck, he noticed someone, standing just by the figurehead. She was the petite type, wearing what Usopp could only assume was meant to be an acrobat costume, but… More worrying…

She was flying a flag.

A flag with a big, red nose on it.

"...Shit," Usopp bit out. How the hell was he going to handle this? They were obviously not here to negotiate, rather to sink them. And probably also regain their captain. It's not that he hadn't planned for this very occurrence, he just hadn't planned what he'd do once it did happen. Seven ships… About seven hundred men, most likely more than that. According to the reports, Buggy's crew should only have had about three ships here in the New World, but the reports might have been false.

Or, rather, there was clearly some mistake here. Not that it mattered much.

A marine warship wasn't the kind of ship that any average pirate ship could hope to sink. A single warship could easily handle three pirate ships on its own. This was as a result of the intended purpose of the vessel, the long training all members aboard had received (unlike most pirates who only knew from experience) and the skills of the captains.

There was no doubt that Usopp and his ships and crew could soundly defeat these rag-tag criminals, but that wasn't what left Usopp mulling and uncertain.

How could he possibly order for the deaths of the only people Buggy seems to like? How could he tell him that the reason his entire crew was dead or dying was because he told his men to sink them? If he did that, Buggy might come to hate him! And rightfully so!

Usopp bit down on his fingernail.

"Sir, what should we tell the other ships?" Pepper asked.

"Tell them to stand by. Unless they attack, we will not retaliate."

"Yessir."

There was unrest among the marines, Usopp could tell. Not that he felt any different himself. If they didn't attack, they might be able to talk about this, but if they do attack…

Usopp will be able to explain to Buggy why they attacked.

A cowardly plan, but by far better than going down and facing Buggy.

Less than a minute later and a cannonball crashed mere inches from the Merry, causing such a splash that it rocked the ship from side to side. And Usopp wasn't the only one who noticed it.

"Warning shot deployed, Third Commander Nami!"

Nami nodded. They're probably keeping Buggy in one of the larger warships, but she still couldn't dismiss the possibility that they kept him in the smaller caravan. "-Prepare the Buggy balls."

"Yes, m'am!"

Buggy tumbled ass-over-keel out of bed, realizing now that his nap might have been ill-placed. "What the fucking hell-," he grunted, cradling his poor hurt head. Maybe if he'd had his hat, he might not have gotten a bump like this. Apart from that, he had to ask himself what the fuck was happening.

...Was someone attacking? Is that what happened?

Buggy leapt to his feet, practically throwing his body at the window. Hands fumbling, he pressed his nose against it, glancing anxiously for any sign of a familiar ship. And…

And there it was. No, there they were! The Big Top was there, along with six other ships, all clearly of his domain. Seven in total. Hold on. He only brought a total of three ships here to the Grand Line, so…

Ah! That's why this took so long, they had to collect the full forces!

Why, that's-!

A vision of a certain marine sinking a ship using nothing but his two hands and a sack of cannonballs passed unwelcome through his head.

...That's terrible! Not only was his main ship going to join Davy Jones' locker, but so too is his entire fleet! All his 873 circus-themed pirates! Mohji, Richie, Cabaji, and Nami…!

If he didn't do something, every single person he loved would die.

"H-, HEY! GREENHORN!" he called out, tossing himself from the window and over to the bars. The chances of Usopp hearing, especially while being pelted by cannonballs (those bloodthirsty fools!) were pretty much null, and still Buggy had to try. "GREENHORN!" He made use of any and all weapons of sound warfare at his disposal, creating the most ghastly sounds by pounding his shackles against the bars, bashing his foot into the wooden floor, and finally by grabbing his porcelain plate, the one he'd gotten for breakfast, and simply tossing it against the wall, creating a beautiful crash that made his ears hurt.

...No response.

The only reply he got was in the form of cannonballs and cracking wood. The battle had begun.

Buggy fell to his knees. Slumped over, he wondered if this was hell. Hearing the murder of the only people he cared for, unable to so much as stop them. And-, and he could, too! If he just talked to Usopp, he could change his mind!

He'd go along to Impel Down, he'd be a quiet prisoner, as long as his crew was spared!

He gritted his teeth, and prepared for the worst.

"...He knows?"

"Yes, Commodore, that's what it sounds like," Onion answered.

"I'm not-, whatever. Continue the assault, I'll speak with him," Usopp said, and headed towards the cell. Before he even opened the door, he had to pause for a moment, hand hovering over the doorknob. A deep breath.

The second he entered the room, he was met with a rather forlorn gaze. Hopeless, even. Usopp stalled his tongue, deciding not to be the first to speak. He wasn't here to bargain with Buggy. No, he'd been called specifically to let Buggy bargain with him.

Buggy soon picked up on Usopp's silence. "...Please," he choked out. "Please spare them."

Another crashing cannonball rocked the Merry. "-They have already begun their formal attack. Sparing them would be the worst option for these ships and our mission."

"I-, I'll do anything. Please. You can take me to Impel Down, you can shove me down Magellan's toxic throat. I don't care. Just-, please, spare them," Buggy said, glancing up at Usopp from where he sat slouched over on the floor. "If-, if I tell them to leave, they'll leave. So… please."

Usopp stared down at him, lips drawn tight, eyes sharp. Sharper and more serious than they'd ever been.

"...Please. Usopp."

That changed his mind.

Usopp fished out his keyring, containing a key to every single door on all three ships, and quickly found a certain specific one. It was silver, lacking almost all detail apart from the word "Cell" and… and a red circle. In honour of their first real, actual prisoner. Using said key, Usopp unlocked the cell, pulling it open.

Buggy looked up at him, eyes and mouth wide open.

Usopp reached down a hand, and smiled. "Come on, let's change their minds before they haven't got any minds to change."

Buggy let himself be pulled to his feet, and led outside the cell by the hand. He hadn't been touched by a human in… weeks? Lord only knew. He couldn't say he didn't like it, but the reason was forming a lump in his throat. Unable to do or say anything, he followed behind Usopp, holding his hand, looking at that small, caped back. It felt odd, being taller than him. But also right, in a strange way.

And then, he was on deck. Stuck in that cell, he'd forgotten how big the sky was. It wasn't just a little circle, it was an endless expanse, a mirrored sea in the sky, bright blue and friendly and almost too much.

Buggy stumbled, almost losing his balance as he arched his neck to take in the whole of it.

He'd missed the sky.

One would think, as a pirate, he'd miss the bigness of the sea more than the sky, but not so. He knew there was an end to the sea, after all, he'd been there and back. The sea ended, as all things did, but not the sky. The sky couldn't be explored or mapped or quantified. There wasn't some part of the sky that no man had seen, and that's what Buggy admired about it. Its great, unfathomable honesty.

"Buggy, everything alright?" Usopp asked in that soft, quizzical voice of his. He didn't sound like a stoic marine interrogating a pirate anymore, and Buggy was thankful for that.

"Oh, um, nothing," Buggy lied, returning his gaze to the battle in front of them. So far, Buggy's fleet was actually quite far away, so they must've been using the special long-distance cannons to get a clear shot at the marines ships. The downside being that the cannonballs were quite small and the shot usually missed.

Only one of the warships was actually engaging them, angled side-ways to protect the other warship and the small caravan. A strategic move, and Buggy had no choice but to recognize that Usopp wasn't a terrible strategist.

Suddenly, Usopp handed him a megaphone and started dragging him up the stairs and over to where Buggy's crew could see him. Buggy poked the megaphone twice and brought it to his lips.

One could only hope they would hear him. "-MEN!"

Was it just Buggy's imagination, or did they ceasefire?

In this small window, Usopp grabbed a spyglass and took a look at what they were doing. "...The orange-haired girl seems to be confused."

"N-, Nami? Hold on- Nami! Turn around! If you escape, they won't pursue you!" he stopped for a moment, turning to Usopp. "You won't, right?..." Usopp shook his head.

Usopp spied Nami procuring a megaphone of her own, and it was all-too-similar to his and Buggy's first meeting, all those months back. It had almost been a year, hadn't it? Ah, time goes fast when you've got things to do. "-Captain! We've come to rescue you!"

Buggy gritted his teeth. "Y'see, that's the problem. You won't win! Your deaths will be in vain! Please, this is an order!"

There was a short pause. "We are prepared for that."

Buggy gaped. When he turned to Usopp, he found that the marine Commodore wasn't surprised in the least. Before Buggy could so much as ask him what the hell they were supposed to do now, Usopp grabbed the megaphone out of his hands, turned it on, and brought it to his lips.

"We aren't bringing him to Impel Down." It was a lie. There was no way that wasn't where they were bringing him, and Buggy knew it well.

They didn't answer at first. "Is… is that true?"

Usopp silently handed Buggy the megaphone, giving him a nod. "Y-, yeah, it's true. I'll return, don't worry, just… If you stop attacking, this will all be glanced over, alright?"

It couldn't be true. The chances of that being the real and actual truth were pretty much zero. Nami knew it all too well, but… Buggy had never lied to them before. He just wasn't the type. Pretend, yes, but not outright lie. And why the hell would he cover up for a bunch of marines?

She hated having to believe what she knew had to be a lie, but…

"Men, turn it around. We're retreating."

"Nami-,"

"Do it!" Nami hissed, glaring at the pirate. She brought the megaphone back to her lips. "We'll be at Sabaody Archipelago."

And that was that. Buggy's crew left, and nobody died.

It was the best turnout, and still it felt lacking to Usopp. There must have been a way for him to secretly hand over the pirate captain without anybody finding out. There must have been a way to avert it all without lying.

Still… These were just idle complaints.

Two days later and they reached Enies Lobby, where Buggy would be put on trial and later taken through the Gates of Justice.