Me: "Hey guys."
PR: "Make this quick, baka."
Me: "I'm trying! Sorry guys but the end of the semester is coming and we are kinda freaking out."
PR: "At least you don't have an academic adviser that hates you."
Me: "Oh my God, he doesn't hate you. You are not one of those bimbos that think Archaeology is all Indiana Jones type shit."
PR: "True.. But still... Disclaim!"
Me: "Usopp, get your ass out here!"
The door flies open and Usopp walks in all grandiose like.
Usopp: I am the Great Captain Usopp-"
PR: "Get on with it!" :Pulls out dagger and throws it at him:
Usopp screams like a little girl and ducks.
Usopp: "I just came down with IfIdisclaimthenI'lldie syndrome. Sorry!"
I glare a soul shattering glare at him that leaves PR mildly impressed.
Me: "Do it."
Usopp: "AAAAHHHHHH! He owns nothing!" :runs from room quicker than he arrived:
Chapter 11
"We can't keep sailing like this," Nami told them all.
The two boats were sailing right next to each other and had been since they left the last island, two days ago. Right after Luffy had woken up from Gnocx's spell, he fumed at him for 'playing dirty' then did a 180 and asked Nami if there was any food on her boat. Recovering from the bizarreness of her new acquaintances' actions, she pulled out a large crate that was filled with apples. It took the combined efforts of Zoro and Gnocx to keep Luffy from eating the whole thing. Two days later, they only used up half of the crate.
At the sound of her complaint, Luffy, from his seat on the front of the boat, turned to face her, with an apple core in his mouth. He picked it from his mouth before putting it back in and swallowing it.
"You're right," he said after swallowing. "Eating fruit every day is for the birds."
"We'll also need some booze," Zoro added as he laid back.
That statement earned him an apple to the face, courtesy of the navigator.
"Are you an alcoholic?" Gnocx asked him, earning an obscene gesture via Zoro's middle finger.
"That's not what I mean, you boneheads," Nami said as she caught the apple that was thrown back to her. "The grand line is a dangerous place, we need more than meet and booze to get through it! Not to mention all the other pirates also after the One Piece that have much better ships than this!"
"We need a crew too," Luffy mused as he tossed another apple in the air.
"You do need more than four people on a crew," Gnocx added, not saying how surprising it was that something intelligent came from Luffy.
"We don't have a crew, we don't have equipment," Nami griped. "Or a real ship for that matter, there is no way we'll ever make it like this!"
"Yep," Luffy agreed easily. "We need a cook, and maybe a musician to keep us entertained."
"And he's back," Gnocx said with a sweat drop.
"A musician," Zoro repeated before he started to laugh.
"You're all so stupid," Nami groaned.
"Can you please not lump me with them?" Gnocx requested.
"I'll lump you where I want," Nami said with a half-hearted glare before slumping off.
She went and picked up one of her charts, examining it for any land that may be near.
"There's an island south of here with some settlements on it," she explained. "We may be able to get a ship and supplies when we get there."
"Fresh meat at last!" Luffy yelled, throwing his hands in the air.
"Some booze as well," Zoro added.
"Maybe I can see about speeding up my arm's healing," Gnocx said to himself, as over the last few days it didn't hurt him to make small movements anymore. "Surprising its actually healing fast considering all the stuff you've put me through already."
"Show me another trick, Space Guy," Luffy said, completely ignoring him.
"Would you like me to put you asleep again?"
"That's boring, do something new."
"What am I gonna do with you three?" Nami said, facepalming as Zoro rolled his eyes at Luffy's antics. "And I still don't know you're name."
Gnocx looked at her as she said that and started to ignore Luffy.
"Gnocx," he said simply.
She stared at him before rolling her eyes.
"What kind of name is that?" she asked.
"How the hell should I know, I didn't name myself."
A couple hours later, they found themselves drifting onto a beach. Once the boats stopped, they all stepped onto the land and stretched themselves out, spending two days in a cramped boat was uncomfortable after a while.
"It feels good to be on dry land again," Zoro moaned as he stretched his arm.
Luffy looked around with that excited gleam he gets. With his hat on his head he took in the sight, even though all they could see was the beach because, there was nothing but a large cliff in front of them, save for an incline that could be used to walk up to the top.
"There's a village around here somewhere, right?" Luffy asked.
"Yeah," Nami confirmed. "It's pretty small though."
"Ooo, oooh, then there has to be meat!" Luffy exclaimed, creeping Nami out when he all but got in her face. "There's gotta be a place that sells meat!"
"Just forget about meat," she glared at him.
Zoro stretched his other arm while he yawned. Suddenly he looked up at a bunch of shrubbery on the cliff. He cut his yawn and his hand went to his swords.
"We're being watched," he warned them, getting their attention.
"Huh?" Luffy muttered before looking around excitedly. "Really? By who? Where? Do they have meat?"
Gnocx and Nami looked up to the cliff and then Gnocx and Zoro both saw a slight rustle in the bushes.
"Look out!" Zoro shouted at Luffy.
"Wha-ah!" Luffy exclaimed as something impacted the sand in front of his feet.
He suddenly had to quickly move his feet as the ground was pelted with unseen projectiles coming from the cliff. Nami ran for the boats as Zoro and Gnocx looked up on the cliff.
The projectiles stopped as dozens of flags rose from the shrubs, making a barrier. On the flags were oddly designed skull and crossbones.
"That's so cool!" Luffy shouted, waving his arms excitedly.
"Are we supposed to be impressed?" Nami deadpanned from her hiding spot.
They were all drawn to a gloating laughter, they looked on the cliff, and right in front of them was a teenager standing with his arms crossed. The teen had curly black hair and wore a bandana with goggles, he also wore brown overalls with matching shoes and had a small bag slung over his shoulder. His most distinguishing feature was his long and narrow nose.
"I am the Great Captain Usopp! Leader of the group of pirates that rule this island! You stand before a living legend, the most revered pirate who ever lived!" the newly identified Usopp shouted down to them.
Strangely enough, Luffy's admiring look suddenly turned pensive as Usopp rambled on.
"Surely you must realize that attacking this island is pure suicide," Usopp told them. "My 80 million men and I will take you out if you try!"
"Awesome!" Luffy screamed in a loud, drawn out way.
Zoro, Gnocx, and Nami only looked at him with exasperated looks.
Nami sighed before she looked up at the smirking teen.
"You expect us to believe that?" she asked.
She looked at her before jumping.
"Gah, she knows," he said, completely shocked.
"You're up there and we're down here," Gnocx added, looking over to where the flags were, "The height makes it look as if the flags are taller than they really are, when in fact they barely go above the bushes, so my guess is that you roped a couple kids into this."
"And now we know you're lying," Nami finished with a smrk.
"Oh, crap, how could I be so dumb, I practically told her that I was lying!" Usopp despaired.
Nami sweat dropped at Usopp's response.
"What?" Luffy asked them. "He was lying?"
"Curse you both!" Usopp said, referring to the two who analyzed him. "Well maybe 80 million men was an exaggeration, but I still have a great many men under my control!"
"I'd say three," Nami deadpanned, looking at the flags.
Suddenly, screaming came from the bushes as three children jumped from them.
"Wah! She does know!" they cried before running away.
"Where are you guys going?" Usopp panicked. "Come back!"
Gnocx walked over to Luffy and bent down to pick up one of the projectiles, a small lead ball.
"A pirate using a slingshot," Nami grinned as she walked up to them. "Now I've seen it all."
"That's pretty cool," Luffy laughed, much to Usopp's chagrin.
"Shut up," he growled down at him. "Shut your mouth or I'll shut it for you!"
Usopp reached into his bag and pulled out the same slingshot he used to fire at Luffy, he pulled it back, ball already in place.
"I'm a proud man and I won't stand for being laughed at," he glared. "One last chance, leave or you'll see why they call me Proud Usopp, and not Pushover Usopp."
Luffy stared up at him before pulling his hat down to shade his eyes.
"You've seen how good I am with this thing, so, you know I could rival anyone carrying a pistol."
Luffy grinned and tilted his head slightly upward to look at him.
"So you took your pistol out," he began. "But are you ready… to use it?"
Usopp's legs started to shake as he gaped at Luffy.
"Guns aren't for threats," Luffy told him. "They're for action. Are you ready to risk your life?"
Nami looked over at Luffy with a raised brow, as did Zoro and Gnocx. Zoro chuckled to himself as he was the first to catch on. He looked up at Usopp withdrew one sword about an inch.
"I can assure you, we're real pirates," Zoro advised. "Consider your next move, very carefully."
Usopp started to shake with a bit more intensity, but when he looked into the eyes of the two pirates challenging him. His resolve crumbled. He allowed the slingshot to snap back into place and he dropped his lead ball. With a defeated sigh, he fell to his knees.
"Real pirates have a lot more punch behind their words apparently, because they can back them up," Usopp groaned. "That's so cool."
Luffy and Zoro looked at one another for a second before both started to laugh. Gnocx shook his head at their chosen form of entertainment while Nami rubbed her temple.
"I stole that," Luffy told Usopp.
"Huh?" the long nose replied.
"I stole those words from Red Haired Shanks, a pirate I know," Luffy explained.
Usopp's eyes widened and he lurched forward so that he was on his hands and knees, looking down at him.
"You really are a pirate!" he said. "And you know Red Haired Shanks, oh man."
"Yep," Luffy grinned. "I know you're dad too, his name's Yasopp, right?"
This earned him befuddled looks from everyone. Usopp suddenly lurched in his excitement, unfortunately for him, that excitement sent him rolling off the cliff and down onto the sand. He quickly righted himself and looked at Luffy.
"You're right," he confirmed. "My dad's name is Yasopp. But…how do you know him?"
Luffy had gone on to explain that Yasopp was a member of Shank's crew and they had met when he was a boy. He told Usopp that he had to hear about him from Yasopp until his ears bled, showing the pride Yasopp had in his son. Before the conversation could go farther, Luffy's stomach acted up and Usopp led them all to a small tavern in his village. Not long after, Luffy was gorging himself on his precious meat. Gnocx sat next to him in the booth, drinking water, while Nami and Zoro sat across from them, boozing it up and eating a piece of bread respectively. Usopp gushed to Luffy about his dad while he told him more about how he was when he was a kid. The rest just listened to them.
"Maybe you could help us," Nami suggested, drawing Usopp's attention. "Do you know someone who we can get a decent ship from?"
"Uh, sorry," he said looking away. "We are a pretty small village."
"What about that huge mansion up there," Zoro asked, looking outside the window to the mansion up on a hill.
Usopp started at this and froze.
"Problem?" Gnocx asked.
"Hey, do you know them, Usopp?" Nami asked, hands folded. "Surely with all that money they can help us."
"You stay away from there!" Usopp yelled, suddenly changing moods.
The four looked at him with various gestures of confusion. Usopp suddenly started to sweat as he realized what he had done.
"Uh, I forgot, I need to go take care of something, see ya."
And with that statement, he fled from the building. Luffy took another bite of an apple, ignoring what just happened.
"I thought you were sick of fruit," Gnocx observed.
"It still tastes good," Luffy replied. "Besides, I had meat so I'm alright now."
"Why do you think he left in such a hurry?" Nami asked.
"Who knows," Zoro said, drinking a newly refilled mug of booze.
"He probably went to the mansion," Gnocx guessed. "I mean it's possible. He seems protective of it, so maybe he has a friend that lives there."
"You think?" Nami asked him, fetching more bread.
"I don't know, but did you guys notice that the villagers didn't really acknowledge him when we walked through. It's a small village so you'd think they'd be tight knit."
"I didn't notice, Space Guy," Luffy said as he chewed his apple.
"Well of course you wouldn't," Nami deadpanned. "You were more focused on stuffing yourself."
Before any more conversation, or jabs at Luffy, could be had, the doors to the tavern were thrown open. Standing in them, with tiny wooden daggers in their hands, were the three kids that Usopp had roped into his trick earlier.
"The Usopp Pirates have arrived!" they shouted in unison.
The old man at the bar just looked up from his paper for a second before going right back to it.
Nami turned around in her booth to look at them.
"Those are the kids from earlier," she observed.
The kids all had apprehensive looks on their faces
"Captain Usopp is gone," one of them said.
"Did they…" another one started.
One by one they ran up to the head of the table, where Usopp had been and started to shout at them.
"Fess up you filthy pirates," the one in the middle yelled. "What have you done with our beloved captain?"
"Tell us now!" the other two demanded.
Luffy just finished his drink and sighed contentedly while patting his enlarfed stomach.
"That meat was good," he said, rubbing his stomach.
The kids looked at his stomach then huddled together, shivering.
"What meat?"
"Are they pirates or cannibals?"
Cannibals? Gnocx thought to himself while Nami chuckled at their antics.
Gnocx looked over to Zoro and saw that he adopted a very sadistic smirk on his face.
"You can't be serious," he said to him.
Zoro ignored him for his act of sadism.
"If you're looking for your captain," Zoro began ominously, before his smirk widened exponentially. "We ate him."
The kids shook harder then looked at Nami.
"Wah! Canniball!" they screamed, looking at her still.
"What are you punks looking at me for?" she demanded, pissed.
They kids continued to scream until they all fell onto their backs, panting. Zoro and Luffy cracked up while Gnocx shook his head.
"Was that necessary," Gnocx asked.
"That was funny you gotta admit," Zoro said, smacking the table repeatedly as he laugh.
"Of course you have to go and say something stupid!" Nami screamed at him.
Eventually the kids calmed down and Nami told them that Usopp had left.
"He must have went to see, Kaya," the child, now named pepper, as was now obvious as his hair was a dark green with a little sprig on top, making his head resemble the vegetable.
"Does she live in that mansion?" Gnocx asked them.
"Yep," the second one, named onion, and like his friend, his blonde hair makes his lead look like an onion. "She's been his friend for a long time. She's real sick and she has been since her parents died a year ago so he goes to her and tells her stories to help her feel better and to make her laugh."
"Do you think you could take us there?" Nami asked.
The children agreed and they left together, it didn't take them very long until they found themselves outside of a white metal fence, surrounding the house.
"Woah, this place is huge!" Luffy exclaimed.
"And if our captain is missing at this hour, this is where he has to be," Onion said.
"Great," Luffy said. "We should definitely ask her for a ship."
"We're not the ones who make her feel better, Usopp is," Zoro said patiently.
"I can't believe he is going to ask a random stranger for a ship," Gnocx said from next to him.
"Are you really that surprised?" Zoro asked him.
"I shouldn't be, but once again, the idiot manages to destroy my expectations."
"He has a habit of that," Zoro sighed.
"You can't get in," the kids told him. "Those guards at the gate won't let you pass."
"I'll get in," Luffy said as he jumped on the fence.
He grabbed the top with his hands and pulled himself back, stretching his arms and making himself a sort of spring.
"No you're not!" Zoro said as he ran at him.
"His arms are all stretchy!" the kids screamed as they boggled at his powers. "He's some kind of monster!"
One by one, the six of them grabbed at his body at random, to keep him from launching, unfortunately it was not enough.
"Pardon the intrusion!" Luffy exclaimed. "Gum Gum Rocket!"
He flung himself above the fence, and high into the air, but he also was forced to bring the six people with him so know they were all suspended in the air, and freefalling.
"Yahoo!" Luffy screamed as he plummeted, landing face first onto the ground and causing a dust cloud to rise. Gnocx and Zoro both landed on their backs and made cracks in the sidewalk they landed on. Nami somehow managed to land with out hurting herself, as did the kids.
"That went well," came Luffy's muffled voice.
"Yeah, real well!" Nami growled at him.
Gnocx and Zoro both sat up and Zoro hit Luffy on his head, pushing it further into the ground. Gnocx decided to give into the temptation and hit him as well.
"Idiot," he muttered as he stood up, silently thanking anything because his arm didn't even hurt.
"My goodness are you okay?" a female's voice called.
The group looked up to see a girl about Usopp's age looking down at them from her window. She had blonde hair that reached her shoulders and wore a white pajama gown.
Usopp, who was sitting in the tree outside her window, panicked at seeing them.
"Don't mind them, Kaya," he said, trying to do damage control. "This happens to me all the time. It's just the price of being a famous adventurer. Can't get away from all the adoring fans. They're new recruits that heard about me and wanted to join the Usopp Pirates."
"Yeah and you can use real magic," Nami whispered to Gnocx as he helped her up.
Gnocx only closed his eyes with an amused smirk.
"Nope," Luffy denied as he stood. "I actually came here to see you."
"Me?" Kaya asked.
"I wanted to ask a favor."
"A favor?"
"Yeah, I was wondering If there was a way you could help us get a boat—"
"You there," a stern voice interrupted.
They all looked toward the entrance of the mansion where they saw a tall man in a black uniform approaching. He had short, black hair that was slicked back and he wore glasses.
"What do you think you are doing here?" he demanded as he approached.
He lifted his hand and used the heel of his palm to adjust his glasses.
"Klahadore," Kaya whispered.
"I'll have you know that this is criminal trespassing," the butler, Klahadore warned.
"Hey guys, who's he?" Luffy asked them causing them to shake their heads at him.
There you have it, the first part of the Syrup Village Arc. I seriously can't wait until I can realistically have Gnocx be amused and laugh. He's stiff right now.. ugh. but I can't rush it. In another Volume or two I can be more whimsical with him. Anyway. I hope you enjoyed this and I shall see you next week.
~Shaded Truths~
