Chapter title page: Chapter 549, "The Ship Departs." The cover illustration concludes Franky's short focused serial, "Franky's 'I'm No Good This Week.'" The subtitle reads, "Conclusion: The House Where Dr. Vegapunk Was Born." Franky stands in the snow before a boarded-up building marked "VEGAPUNK," staring at the birthplace of the genius scientist. The image is a side-story title card and not part of the Impel Down escape, but it points Franky's separated story toward Vegapunk's old home.
FrankyDr. Vegapunk
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The scene returns to Impel Down. On Level 4, Shiryu stands with the Blackbeard Pirates after saving them from Magellan's poison. Teach laughs, "Uiha-hahaha!! But we're alive!!!" while Laffitte admits that for a moment he thought they were done for. Van Augur says their coming here was fate, Doc Q coughs that fortune has been good to them again, and Shiryu says these people live on the edge. He adds that if he had not been carrying the antidote, they would be dead, and that they underestimated Magellan too much.
Shiryu of the RainMarshall D. TeachLaffitteVan AugurDoc QJesus BurgessMagellanBlackbeard Pirates
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Blackbeard says matters of life and death are decided by fate and that those who fear death are the losers. He laughs that they should live in the moment and thanks Shiryu for saving them. Shiryu answers that he already knows what will happen to him if he stays in Impel Down and says he has been waiting to meet a man like Teach. Blackbeard welcomes him again, saying Shiryu seems like he would make a fine addition to the crew. The alliance is sealed inside the very prison Magellan still thinks he controls.
Marshall D. TeachShiryu of the RainBlackbeard PiratesMagellan
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On the World Government private route, the Tri-Current, the escape ship sails with the prisoners. Ivankov tells everyone to let Inazuma rest and explains that he expelled the poison from his body with a combination of recovery hormones and tension hormones. Iva warns that these are forceful treatments: one shortens the lifespan, and the other has harsh side effects, so if possible it is best to let the body recover naturally. Inazuma is a Newkama needed for the revolution, and Iva says now is not the time to overburden him.
Emporio IvankovInazumaLuffyJimbeiImpel Down prisoners
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The prisoners mourn Bon Clay on the deck, calling out "Bon-chaaaan!!" and "Bon bro!!" One man says Bon was not a bad guy, and Luffy says he finally met Bon again and Bon saved him again. Some prisoners try to cheer him up by saying Bon is dead and there is nothing anyone can do, and that they can hold a funeral and send him off with a bang because they broke out of prison. Luffy angrily rejects that, shouting, "We don't know that Bon-chan is dead yet, you giant nose!!!" and even Buggy's nose starts bleeding more from the insult.
LuffyBon ClayBuggyEmporio IvankovJimbeiImpel Down prisoners
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A Marine radio transmission comes in across the sea. The Marines say they thought Buggy was merely another nameless pirate, but they discovered that he was once a member of Pirate King Gol D. Roger's crew. They also found that one of the Four Emperors, Red-Haired Shanks, once thought of Buggy as a brother. Buggy is horrified and asks how they know. The transmission continues that it is impressive a man like him stayed off their radar this long, hiding under the surface only to show himself at this time. They have not found a connection between him and Fire Fist Ace, but they are certain his objective is the same as Luffy's: to rescue Ace.
BuggyGol D. RogerShanksLuffyPortgas D. AceMarinesImpel Down prisoners
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The Marine transmission warns that more than 200 prisoners are on the ship, including Jimbei, Crocodile and Ivankov. The speaker says there is nowhere for them to escape and no way for them to survive if the Gates of Justice at Marineford are not opened, because they will not be able to leave the Tri-Current. Luffy grabs the receiver and shouts back, "I'm going to save Ace!!! So you just wash some potatoes and wait!!!" The Marines are stunned that he is picking a fight with Marine Headquarters, but Luffy wastes no words on fear.
LuffyJimbeiCrocodileEmporio IvankovPortgas D. AceMarinesImpel Down prisonersGates of Justice
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Buggy's followers explode with awe after hearing the Marine report. They shout that Captain Buggy was part of the Pirate King's crew and knew Red-Haired Shanks, and say they always knew their savior was an amazing pirate. Other escapees whisper that Buggy has that kind of history despite being so weak, and wonder why he is such a coward if that is true. Luffy mentions that Rayleigh also said something about a vice captain, and when Buggy hears the name Rayleigh, he remembers the Lord of the Underworld too. The conversation turns Buggy's accidental reputation into a new force on the ship.
BuggyLuffyShanksSilvers RayleighGol D. RogerEmporio IvankovImpel Down prisoners
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The prisoners keep praising Buggy as a fearsome man and a member of the legendary pirate crew. Buggy tries to deny and then realizes his stock is rising: the Marines are giving him too much credit, but the misunderstanding could work for him and technically none of it is a lie. He imagines using the prisoners, whose bounties are higher than his, as underlings. When they ask if he could become one of the Four Emperors or even the Pirate King, Buggy thinks no, even further, and lets the fantasy of a bigger future take hold.
BuggyLuffyImpel Down prisonersFour EmperorsPirate King
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Buggy's new followers declare that they will stick with Captain Buggy and take the ship from anyone who wants to go to Marine Headquarters, then be free. The mob turns toward Luffy's group and demands that Strawhat hand over the ship because they finally escaped from prison and have no reason to go to Marine HQ next. Luffy looks at them silently. Crocodile says this could be bad, and Mr. 1 suggests they just kill them all. Buggy, swept up by the chanting of his name, thinks, "That's right, I can do it... I feel like I can do it!!!"
BuggyLuffyCrocodileMr. 1JimbeiEmporio IvankovImpel Down prisoners
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A Marine broadcast reveals more about Buggy. The Marines say they thought he was merely another nameless pirate, but they now know he was once a member of the Pirate King Gol D. Roger's crew. They also found out that one of the Four Emperors, Red-Haired Shanks, once thought of Buggy as a brother. Buggy is horrified and asks how they know, while the ship erupts in shock. The report adds that it is impressive a man like Buggy stayed off their radar for so long, hiding under the surface only to show himself now, and that although they have not found a connection between him and Fire Fist Ace, they are sure his objective matches Luffy's: rescuing Ace.
BuggyGol D. RogerShanksLuffyPortgas D. AceMarinesImpel Down prisoners
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The Marine voice continues that more than 200 prisoners are confirmed on the ship, including Jimbei, Crocodile and Ivankov. It warns that if the Gates of Justice at Marineford are not opened, the escapees will not be able to leave the Tri-Current, so there is nowhere for them to go and no way for them to survive. Luffy grabs the receiver and shouts back, "I'm going to save Ace!!! So you just wash some potatoes and wait!!!" The Marines are stunned that he is picking a fight with Marine Headquarters itself, but Luffy answers the threat with absolute confidence.
LuffyJimbeiCrocodileEmporio IvankovPortgas D. AceMarinesImpel Down prisonersGates of Justice
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The prisoners swarm Buggy with awe. They shout that he was part of the Pirate King's crew and knew Red-Haired Shanks, and some say they knew their savior was an amazing pirate. Others privately note that Buggy has that kind of history despite being weak and ask why he is such a coward. Luffy, hearing the name of Roger's crew, remembers that someone once mentioned a vice captain and asks Buggy if he knows a guy named Rayleigh. Buggy reacts in shock, saying Rayleigh's name came up too and calling it an amazing conversation, while his accidental legend keeps growing.
BuggyLuffyShanksGol D. RogerSilvers RayleighEmporio IvankovImpel Down prisoners
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Buggy's followers keep praising him as a fearsome man and a member of the legendary pirate crew. Buggy starts to protest, then realizes the misunderstanding may benefit him: his reputation is rising, the Marines are giving him too much credit, and none of it is technically a lie. He thinks that if he can use all these prisoners as his underlings, his piracy life could begin from here. When the men imagine him becoming one of the Four Emperors or even the Pirate King, Buggy secretly pushes the fantasy further and sees a way to turn their admiration into power.
BuggyLuffyImpel Down prisonersFour EmperorsPirate King
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Buggy's new followers declare that they will stick with Captain Buggy. They say they will take the ship from the people who want to go to Marine Headquarters, then be free. The mob turns on Luffy's group and demands, "Hand over the ship, Strawhat!!" because they finally escaped from prison and have no reason to go to Marine HQ next. Luffy stares back in silence while Crocodile says this could be bad and Mr. 1 suggests they simply kill everyone. Buggy, hearing his name chanted, clenches his fists and thinks, "That's right, I can do it... I feel like I can do it!!!"
BuggyLuffyCrocodileMr. 1JimbeiEmporio IvankovImpel Down prisoners
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Luffy cuts through the rising mutiny by shouting, "Be quiet, you bunch of morons!!!" and knocking Buggy away. He tells everyone to calm down and think: there is no stopping the ship now, because they are already heading for the center of the war and have come this far. Luffy says a chance like this will not come around again. Buggy, launched but still quick to exploit the moment, declares that if they are men they should come with him and chase his dream. He promises that today he will take Whitebeard's head, and with it, the whole world.
LuffyBuggyWhitebeardImpel Down prisoners
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Buggy's speech succeeds spectacularly. The prisoners say they have been in the darkness of hell for so long that they lost sight of what matters: the dreams they all have and the treasures of their hearts. They decide to follow Captain Buggy to Marine Headquarters, shouting that they do not need a boring life or peace. Luffy notes that the result worked out well, and Crocodile says Buggy seems to have a talent for this. Buggy basks in the cries that he is the world's leader and promises, laughing, that he will allow them to follow him anywhere.
BuggyLuffyCrocodileMr. 1Impel Down prisoners
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At Marine Headquarters at high noon, the order is given to take the prisoner to the execution site. There are three hours until the execution. Ace is led up an enormous staircase in chains between guards. Memories of Luffy echo in his mind: Luffy asking him to listen, the brothers saying they are definitely going to live without regrets, and Ace answering, "Yeah!!" The panels stretch the climb into a solemn procession, with each step bringing Ace closer to the public scaffold and the war waiting below.
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Ace reaches the doors to the execution platform. A Marine says, "Stop. We're opening the door," and the doors begin to part. Ace remembers Luffy saying that someday they will go to sea and live the way they want. The page frames Ace from behind, hands chained, walking toward the light beyond the opened doors. He is not stepping into freedom but onto the execution stage, yet the remembered promise of choosing their own lives follows him to the threshold.
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SBS question corner page. A reader asks whether something is hidden inside Hannyabal's chin, like his dreams, and Oda says yes: a dream named "ambition." Another reader asks where each Strawhat would be from if One Piece took place in the real world. Oda gives his image: Luffy from Brazil, Zoro from Japan, Nami from Sweden, Usopp from Africa, Sanji from France, Chopper from Canada, Robin from Russia, Franky from America, and Brook from Austria. A final reader notes that Ivankov's Death Wink sounds like "Bachon" rather than ordinary "ba," and Oda explains it is because Death Wink has destructive power, then says the voice-actor SBS will take a break.