Warnings: violence, weapons, injuries

Disclaimer: Eiichiro Oda owns One Piece, I own my ideas/plot/words/etc...

11. Flowers Can Grow in Trash Heaps

Usopp and Chopper were running as fast as they could through the junkyard. Usopp was absolutely terrified. He got caught stealing some tools that he thought he could use to help him in fights, and now he had five strong men chasing him.

But he was only twelve, and he wasn't that strong.

He was panicking inwardly, wishing his father was here to help him out, or that his mom was here to calm him down, but he knew they weren't.

He took a sharp turn and immediately regretted it, coming upon a dead end. But, he knew if he was caught here, it would end badly. Looking back, he saw them men running after him, yelling about the tools and gun he had stolen.

He hadn't meant to take the gun, he panicked when they saw him and he picked it up…

He wasn't good under pressure.

He turned away from them, put Chopper in his shirt and tucked it in so he wouldn't fall, and quickly began to climb up the hill of trash. His hands grabbed anything they could while his feet desperately searched for purchase on the unsteady mound. He climbed fast, grabbing onto corners of furniture, broken bikes and ropes, using anything and everything he could to climb. His hands bled and bruised from nails sticking out or sharp objects but he refused to cry out. He did let tears fall, but Chopper, his only friend, licked them away, and it only encouraged him to keep climbing.

When he reached the top, he looked back down and saw the men glaring up at him. He thought he had won until another appeared out of nowhere, aiming a gun up at him. His eyes widened in fear – he couldn't escape a gun. He covered Chopper and crouched down low, letting the tears fall now and waited for the gunshot.

He heard it.

He felt no pain.

He looked back down the garbage mound in confusion, staring at the sight below him. There were some men down there, fighting with the men who were just chasing him, and they were kicking ass. Usopp watched as the men fought, over what he didn't know, but he was happy he was safe for now. He looked around, but saw nowhere he could go. The only way down was the way he came up.

"Hey!" He looked down at the men who called him. It was one of the men who beat up his pursuers. "Are you alright?"

"I-I-I'm ok," He managed to get out through his tears as he stared down with fear. Even though they stopped his pursuers, it didn't mean they wouldn't hurt him.

"Do you need help getting down?"

"N-n-no, I-I can do i-it."

Usopp slowly began climbing down the mound, looking for foot holds once again. However, once he was halfway down, one of his footholds moved. His grip wasn't strong enough yet and so he fell. Chopper yelped and Usopp panicked, not knowing what would happen, when he was suddenly caught.

"You ok, kid?" Usopp looked up to see a…he wasn't sure if it was a man or woman, but he knew it was an adult. Confused and scared, he just nodded. The person shifted him to a different position and had him hold onto his/her neck as he/she climbed down the mound. When they reached the ground, he was put down. He quickly took Chopper out and held him close while he growled, staring up at the strangers. Aside from the man/woman who helped him, there were two very large men as well. One was wearing a top hat, had a mustache and smelled like roses while the other was slightly bigger, very buff and had diamond earrings and rings on. The one who saved him kneeled down to his level and began to talk to him.

"Why were they chasing you?"

"I…I stole some stuff, 'cause I-I needed some and I s-s-saw a gun and picked it up. They, they thought I was taking it, but I wasn't. It looked cool…" He quickly took his backpack off and gave it to the man/woman, who looked through it, confirming the gun story.

"Why were you stealing from them?"

"I don't have money and-and I can't fight off other people…"

"What about your parents?"

Usopp's eyes became watery but he wiped it away with his arm. "They're dead. It's just me 'n Chopper," The dog was glaring at the people, standing protectively in front of the boy, but he wasn't growling or nearly as hostile as he was before. The three adults looked between each other then back at the child before the man/woman spoke again.

"Your hands are injured, right?" Usopp looked down at his hands, which were covered in dirt, blood, cuts and bruises, much like the rest of his body. He had had his fair share of fights, and lost them all, this past week. "We can bandage them up for you. Do you want to come with us?"

Usopp was nervous. His parents had always told him to avoid strangers and not go with them, but he didn't have parents anymore. He had nowhere else to go. It was this or going back on the streets. So, he nodded hesitantly and took the hand offered to him, walking off to a place he hoped was warm and danger-free.

A/N: I'd write more but I'm in a very uhhhh let's say nervous state of mind right now.

PsychoRien: It's gonna vary who finds the kids, and I can't say anything, don't wanna spoil anything.

inulover305: You'll see as time rolls on!

Keirra: Thank you so much! Your words mean a lot, like, you have no idea! :)

Xx-FirePhoenix-xX: Ah, 104 degrees Fahrenheit, sorry I should've clarified! That would be around 40 degrees Celsius.

youshouldn'tneedtoknow: I hope you'll continue to enjoy it! :)

natsuandlucy4ever: Hahaha, those two will have an interesting relationship

Sorry if my replies make no sense, as I said not the best state of mind right now. But still, thank you so extremely much for reading! It means a lot to me! I love you guys/gurls/whoever you are! :)