LW: I predict a lot of pain in this chapter, for a good few of our heroes.
Rubber King and Mirror Master - Luffy Vs Usopp: Fight for the Merry
Going Merry
"Guys, guys guys!" Chopper shouts as he rushs out to where the others were gathered on the deck "Usopp's going to be ok" he announces
"Awesome!" Luffy cheers, though is grabbed by Kaos before he could rush in and annoy his friend
"Relax Luffy, I think he should get some time with Kaya before you barge in on them" the purplette teases, causing the straw hat boy to sigh and nod
"5 minutes, then everyone come in slowly" he decides "I know you were all as worried as I was" he winks then laughs, a few rolling their eyes, but denied nothing
A little later
"If you weren't so banged up I'd kick your ass for making us worry like that" Nami scolds, but it lacked the anger you'd expect
"Yeah, do you have any idea how scared we were for you when we saw you banged up, and then when you disappeared from where we asked you to stay?" Vivi argues
"Plus what were you thinking, trying to fight those guys yourself, heavily injured at that?" Sanji asks with a sigh
"You're not a brawler Usopp, your strengths don't include being able to take a beating, your main one is being insanely accurate with a slingshot, cannons and probably a gun if the mood struck you" Kaos adds, chin resting on his knuckles as his elbow was propper up by his knee
Usopp sniffles "I'm sorry everyone, this wouldn't have happened if I were stronger, I've let everyone down" he then shakily stands and throws himself at the crew, now on his knees crying into Zoro's leg "Please forgive me, I knew how important the money was, that we needed it to fix Merry, but I still couldn't stop it being taken" he bawled, clinging like a limpet despite the swordsman attempting to get him off
"Calm down you idiot, I can see you're sorry but you don't need to grab me like that" the swordsman whines
"Usopp stop flailing, you're still hurt" Chopper scolds, as Kaya tries to help untangle the sniper from Zoro's leg
"Don't worry about it, you did all you could" Luffy says as he watches his medical team get Usopp sitting and calm
"So, is there any way we can get the money back?" the long nose finally asks
"Don't know, until Franky reappears we don't have any leads" Luffy replies with a shrug "Besides, we still have 100 million to work with, that's a tidy sum" he grins
"Yeah but he lost TWICE that!" Nami shrieks in his ear, nearly knocking his hat off… before remembering who else was in the room "Sorry Usopp"
"No you're right, that was my mistake" Usopp says flatly "But what about Merry, can we fix her?" everyone tenses "I mean we still have enough money right? With all these amazing shipwrights it should be easy, and with the way the Grandline has been so far she'll need it, in fact she needs to be better than she ever was before" the sniper started to get more passionate and excited as he continues, the other squirming as they really didn't want to hurt him anymore, so soon after the Franky Family beat him black and blue
"Yeah, about that" Luffy bites the bullet "We're not getting the Merry repaired"
"What?"
"We're using the money to get a whole new ship. The Merry did her job well beyond what was expected of her class of ship, but the adventures we've been on, some of them have left scars even the Water 7 shipwrights can't make right. We don't have any other choice but to get a new one, I'm sorry you weren't around for the discussion but that is my decision" Luffy explains, hating himself as he watches a the light fade from Usopp's eyes
"No, stop lying! This is because I lost the money isn't it, because of me we can't afford to fix the girl up?"
"No you idiot, listen to him. Do you think any of us want to believe this? That any of us are happy about this? The ship is on her last legs, she won't even make it to the next island. The only way any of us are leaving Water 7 alive, is if we get a new ship" Kaos growls, stabbing Hebi into the table as he stands
"This is wrong, we can't just throw the Merry away like she's some broken doll, she's our home, she's practically part of the crew"
"We know, we've had this conversation already, even that she's been a part of the crew longer than everyone but Luffy, Kaos and myself" Zoro adds "Tying with you and Kaya of course"
"Exactly, this isn't right, after everything we've done, everything she's been through you can't just abandon her without even a backwards glance because some strangers say she's broken. She more than earned your respect and some dignity!" Usopp bellows, getting in Luffy's face, the others stepping back, knowing this wasn't going to end well
"You think this doesn't kill me inside? You think only you love the Merry?" Luffy asks, clenching his fists "I've already made my decision. Besides, do you think that you, or anyone on this ship know more about what makes a vessel sea worthy than those shipwrights up there?" he asks, pointing out the window, towards Water 7 "If we had someone with those skills I wouldn't even be asking those guys for a 2nd opinion, but we don't, you and Victor do your best, as do we all, but the Merry is just too far gone"
"That's not what the Luffy I know would say, he knew to trust in his crew, and his ship. What kind of captain are you to trust some sales pitch over his men's own hard work? You've fallen hard and fast Luffy, and it's not even been a day"
"Hey that's not fair, Luffy was just as mad as you when he was tol…" Nami tries to argue but Luffy waves her off, shocking the navigator
"Usopp you need to calm down and rest, you're going to aggravate your injuries" Kaya pleads, even with his fist clenched in Luffy's shirt the sniper was swaying uneasily, looking about ready to keel over any moment now
"Everyone shut up. I stand by my decision Usopp, and we're getting a new ship as soon as we've found one that suits the crew"
"Suits the crew, the Merry is exactly what we needed if you'd just put some effort into fixing her instead of trading her in for a new model you heartless bastard!"
"You think this doesn't hurt, to let the ship go?"
"If it did you wouldn't be doing it!"
"That's not how that works Usopp, I don't want to do this, but it's the only real option we have, otherwise we're not going anywhere, ever again" Luffy yells "If you don't like the way I'm running this ship then why don't you just…"
"ENOUGH!" yell several of the crew, Kaya ensnaring and gagging Usopp in her syrup, while Sanji kicks Luffy against a wall, Vivi using her wires to make him hold still
"This conversation is getting you nowhere except into a spiralling rage. You both need to calm down before something happens that you can't take back" Kaos groans, his face hidden in his hand "So would you kindly calm the fuck down?"
Luffy breathes deeply, staring up at Vivi's worried face "Thanks, I was working myself up into quite a meltdown wasn't I?" he chuckles bitterly
"Yeah, but it got the truth to come out" Usopp says, pulling himself free of Kaya's syrup "When something doesn't work or starts complaining, toss it and keep moving ay?"
"What? That's not true" Luffy argues as he gets up
"Bull! You were about to tell me to take a hike, plus you're abandoning the Merry and getting a new ship, so what's the difference?" Usopp growls "In fact, you clearly don't deserve to be her captain, not if you refuse to show the Merry the respect she's earned
"Usopp?" Nami asks, having a very bad feeling seeing her fellow coward acting like this
"You wouldn't dare" Alvida hisses, getting a few raised eyebrows
"I challenge you for the Merry's captaincy! Clearly it's the only way I'll know someone will do her right"
"Ussop stop this now, don't you think Luffy would be fighting just as hard to repair the Merry if there was even a chance of success? Look at what happened less than a month ago, we were in the sky because we all took a chance that might work. If Luffy says we're getting a new ship, it means there's nothing we can do" Kaya pleads
"I can see that" Usopp says in a monotone, chilling the Ami girl's insides "But he's talking about scrapping our home like it was a torn shirt, I can't let that stand"
"Chopper, you did check him for brain damage right?" Valentina tried ask the reindeer as covertly as she could, meaning only Nami and Victor heard, besides the doc in question
"He has at worst a concussion but nothing permanent" Chopper replies
"It's not because I'm hurt, but it is a prime example of what I've been thinking about. You're all so strong and i'm a weak link, just look at today. I lost most of our funding, at one point for the Merry's repairs but now apparently her replacement. It's clear things will just get tougher as we keep going further into the Grand Line and I'm just going to slow you all down"
"You idiot, you're a ranged fighter, you're not supposed to be a monster brawler like Luffy or Kaos" Sanji argues
"Plus you're talking like Nami or Vivi could take any more of a beating than you did" Kaos sighs "You're part of this crew, a founding member and the best marksman any of us have seen on this trip, how can you think you're useless?"
"Luffy" Usopp speaks directly, ignoring both of the other's arguments "I still believe you'll be king of the pirates, but I'm clearly not going to make it that far. I'm not going to hang around as some mascot or charity case, so at least this way I can make sure the Merry is treated well when she ends her journey, and maybe I'll be able to learn a craft here" he sighs "There's no sense traveling together when we don't even have the same goal"
"We all have different goals, idiot" Zoro grunts "We're all here to help each other achieve them"
"So, will you do it Luffy? Will you fight me for the Merry?" he asks, Luffy nods, the shadows hiding his eyes as he stops
A little later
"This is so fucking stupid" Nami complains as the 2 get ready to beat the crap out of each other on the shore, getting a responce from an unlikely source
"True, but it may also have been a necesarry throw down" Vivi says, sighing deeply before sitting between Alvida and Kaos
"Vivi, you're actually ok with this?" the navigator asks "What happened to the princess who didn't want people fighting?" she says, partly in jest, but mostly confusion
"She became a pirate, besides I didn't say the fighting was the problem, but hundreds of people dying over nothing was. This is more than surface level problems, or even Zoro and Sanji's competitive sniping, Usopp feels inadequate and needs to prove to himself and us that he's still strong enough to keep going, that he's not just dead weight. Despite the fact he's helped you and I get out of a similar thought process when we went to him looking for weapon upgrades" Vivi notes, referring to her wire gloves and Nami's climatact "Unfortunately a new slingshot won't do the trick for him this time, so seeing where he stands against Luffy just might"
"But he's already beaten to Hell, how is this even fair?" Valentina grouses, a shiver runs down her spine hearing a familiar chuckle she shouldn't be hearing this far from home
"Kufufufu. You say that like he could take more than a single hit from Luffy on a normal day. Much like Nami, Vivi and to a lesser sense you if the enemy catches you off guard Usopp is a glass cannon, able to deal a good bit of damage, but not able to take it. Which is one of the reasons he's like this, in a regular fight those idiots wouldn't have gotten close enough to hurt him without getting shot, smacked, cut up, exploded, crushed or sliced to peices" Kaos explains, calmly watching the 2 get ready
"I still don't like it" Nami says, returning to the conversation
"Join the club, now shut up" Zoro grunts from his perch on the side of the Merry, standing beside a visibly shaking Kaya, her only solace being that she had been allowed work on Usopp before the fight, to get him as patched up as the deadline allowed for.
"You're still doing this, proves you're less of a coward than when you first set off" Luffy notes, the comment should have made one of them smile, any other time it would have "I don't want this to be a regret Usopp, you have to be sure"
"Oh I know what I'm doing Luffy, in fact I know I can win against you" Usopp declares, in a more serious tone than his usual boasts, making the others worry a little for both sides now
"Luffy's not coming out of this one unharmed is he?" Artemis asks with a frown
"Probably not, he'll still be better off than Usopp, but he'll take some hits if Usopp really does have something planned" Kaos responds, curious as to what their former sniper had in his bag of tricks
"We've been through quite a few battles, I've seen most if not all your moves. I know your strengths and weaknesses" Usopp lists, not breaking eye contact with Luffy "But what you've forgotten about me is…."
I HAVE OVER 8000 MEN ON MY SIDE!
"Surrender now, or I'll have them attack you!" Usopp orders
"What? Why didn't he tell us he had this kind of support?" Chopper shrieks in panic
"Even when he's pissed, Usopp is still Usopp" Nami sighs, lightly chuckling
Luffy frowns "You asked for this fight, at least take it seriously!"
Usopp psychological warfare
"You have razor sharp needles, stuck between all your teeth, and cactus spines under your fingernai…" he stops when he see's the attack didn't phase the rubber boy
Gum Gum Pis…
Luffy stops when he sees Usopp cough up blood and fall to his knees
"Shit, he really should have waited until he was patched up before doing this" Sanji swears, while several grimace and Chopper & Kaya whimper seeing their friend in such pain
"Are you standing there pitying me? What kind of fight is this?" Usopp taunts readying his next trick
Flash Dial
While Luffy flails blindly Usopp pulls out his slingshot and aims another 'special attack'
Egg star
"Damn it, these are rotten. Stop messing around and fight me!"
"This is how I fight, now best to watch that big mouth of yours"
Tabasco Star
The pellet goes right in Luffy's mouth as expected, the rubber boy turning bright red and spitting fire
"Watch where you step, this entire area is a caltrop deathtrap" Usopp shouts, just before Luffy falls backwards onto several
"He's controlling the battlefield" Chopper gasps
"He's a fucking idiot, but also a tactical genius. Now if only he'd focus on that rather than his comparatively glass jaw and we wouldn't be in this mess" Kaos groans, pinching the bridge of his nose, wondering how long Usopp can keep this up, as Luffy only needs one good hit to end this fight. He was also glad nobody with even half the endurance of some of Luffy's tougher opponents had the skills Usopp was showcasing or he'd have been fucked by now.
Pepper Star
The pepper cloud did several things, temporary blindness for Luffy, in a mix of the cloud itself and the sneezing, as well as messing with his balance and getting the captain spiked with several more of the caltrops
"I'm not going to give you an inch Luffy!"
Special Attack: Shuriken shooting star
'Shuriken Kage Bunshin. Impressive Long nose'
Luffy blanched as he jumps to avoid the rapidly approaching walls of death, Usopp clearly trying to capitalise on his devil fruit's only unique weakness to sharp objects.
"Damn, why did he never do this shit when we were fighting enemies?" Alvida complains, but was notably ignored by more important issues
"Finally noticed have you?" Usopp asks, Luffy panting and frowns as a mist seems to be filling the area "I'm using a breath dial, you just didn't notice the gas due to the overpowering smell of the rotten eggs"
"Gas?"
"Oh shit"
"Long nose isn't playing around"
"Oh Usopp"
"Everyone back on the Merry!"
Flaming Star
The fireball and shockwave hide Luffy from them, then pushed the Merry a few feet deeper into the water, the crew holding on just in case things got worse
"Yeah, that's not something you can just walk away from" Zoro says, wincing in the flash of flames
"But he'll survive right?" Vivi asks fearfully
"If it's a flash and puff, Luffy will be fine eventually, the problem is if he's actually ON FIRE" Kaya replies, chewing her lip as they wait for the smoke to clear, Chopper calling for them with no response
"I know you're out there" Usopp says, mostly to himself "You don't give up, you fight until there's nothing left in you" he finishes just as Luffy comes rushing out of the smoke
Gum Gum Gatling
Exploding Cactus Star
The rain of needle like cactus barbs pepper Luffy as the explosion knocks him back, giving him barely a moment to breathe before the next…
Triple Exploding Star
...Luffy bobs and weaves his way around the slowly being destroyed battlefield, Ussop continuing to take out the wasteland around them. But the sniper knew he couldn't keep it up forever as seen from one moment of weakness
Gum Gum Pistol
Leading to a rubber fist colliding with the centre of his face, throwing him back an impressive distance, which Luffy capitalises on to charge up
Gum Gum Bazooka
Which does nothing, as the attack was absorbed by Usopp's impact dial
"That probably would have hurt, how about we check" Usopp says, before shoving the shell in Luffy's face
IMPACT
"Bet he wished he'd waited now" Kaos winces along with the others as the Impact dial sends Luffy flying back, but the recoil clearly fucked Usopp's arm up even more than it already had been "A trick like that, could have won him the fight if he was in good health right now"
"Does that mean it's over?" Chopper asks hopefully, Artemis turning with a similar, questioning look
"No, not yet" Victor answers, seeing Luffy was still standing, while Usopp was shaky, but still ready and willing to continue
"I won't lose to you!" Usopp yells/declares, Luffy just stares, breathing heavy and deep, before sending his arm back far enough it nearly reached the ship before pulling it back
Gum Gum Bullet
The impact of Luffy's fist practically embedding itself in his guts had Usopp coughing up blood for real this time, his knees knock before collapsing, sending him face first into the dirt
"Now, it's over" Zoro says, his face stony with no discernable emotion, as Luffy slides more than falls to his knees, holding his arm to his chest
"Usopp, you idiot. You knew there was no way you could beat me? Why do this, why make me beat you up when you've already gone through so much today?" he groans as he pulls himself to his feet again "You can do whatever you want with the Merry" he says, surprising the sniper "I'm not letting anything hold us back, we're getting a new ship, it's the only way forward" Luffy then sways as he walks slowly back to the Merry, where Sanji was fighting Chopper to keep him on the ship and away from Usopp, with marginal success, even if the crying Yeti of a reindeer was crying like the small child he was. He turns to his brother "She's gone already, isn't she?" he asks, getting a humourless chuckle before Kaos looks down with an oddly expressionless face
"Was there ever any doubt?" he responds, the cue for the rest of them to notice that Kaya had slipped away after the duel ended, Valentina preemptively kneeing Sanji in the gut before he could run off looking for her, despite the lecture he'd just given Chopper
"No, those 2 were a package deal, even if they didn't know when we first picked them up" Luffy's lip curl for a second, while his girls are surprised by his moment of insight, before they snap out of it and move on to fussing over his injuries, as well as doing their best to stem the flow of tears running down his and their faces.
Seeing the captain was out of commision, the researcher took temporary command "Ok everyone, pack your things, we need to go. This was our last time on the Merry, let's not make it any more painful than it already is by dragging it out" he orders, turning on his heels with a swish of his cloak and making his way into the ship, Artemis and Zoro following, with the others moving soon after, though slowly and just shy of unwilling.
Meanwhile, back in the crater Luffy had left him in, Kaya cries along with Usopp as she patches him up, it tearing at the young logia's heart to see her most precious person broken like this, confident, bombastic Usopp, now just a whimpering mess. She kisses him softly as he passes out from the pain, knowing she would have to wait until the others left before moving him back into what would remain of the Merry's infirmary.
Next day
Sanji sighs as he steps onto the roof where the others appear to have gathered "Was there any point in renting those rooms if nobody used them?" he asks rhetorically, seeing even Artemis had just curled up on Kaos' lap and fallen asleep there after several hours of doing exactly the same as researcher and chef did: waiting to hear back from Robin. The others, far as he could tell, while drained, just couldn't bring themselves to sleep after the previous night
"I hate this place" Chopper says, mostly to the air "Since we got here it's just been one bad thing after another. The Merry is broken, Robin disappears and now we lost Usopp and Kaya"
"There's nothing we can do, they chose to leave the crew, we can't force them to stay" Zoro argues "What you got planned for today cook?"
"I'm going to keep looking for Robin, give her the update on what's happened. She's still in the city sparkles?" the blond asks, Kaos raises an eyebrow but nods
"Yes, don't ask me where, but I can still feel her in Water 7"
"Good enough for me, I'll head out shortly"
"I want to help too, count me in" Chopper perks up, trying to distract himself
Suddenly the door is flung open and Nami rushes in "Luffy! It's all anyone can talk about in town, Iceberg was attacked last night and shot!" the navigator shouts, Vivi and Luffy perking up at the nice but very odd blue haired man's name, then frown when the rest of the statement registered
"Icepops from the shipyard? But why, he seemed to be everyone's favourite guy" Luffy wonders, though remained on his perch
"Who?" Valentina asks, visibly confused
"Iceberg, he's the head of the Galley La company, the shipbuilders, and the Mayor of Water 7" Vivi explains, to which Alvida whistles
"So a big shot. Yeah people like him don't just randomly get shot, something weird is going on"
Luffy nods and stands "I'm going to go check on him" he announces before bouncing away
"Hey, wait for me Luffy"
"Slow down you rubber dumbass!"
Kaos chuckles as Vivi and Nami chase after him, before standing himself and wondering if there was any point following, or if he should try his hand at locating Robin himself?
Luffy rushed through the streets of Water 7, theories as to the assassin (Pirates, Franky, a few brave souls blaming the WG) going in one ear and out the other, his mind focused on getting to and checking out Ice-pops. He probably would have barreled straight into the door of the main shipyard, if Vivi and Nami hadn't caught up to him on Yaguras, and pointed out that he wouldn't be there, given the whole 'he just got shot' thing. This lead Luffy to suggest they visit his home, which was situated in the main office of Galley La, so they directed their yagura's in that direction, the 2 animals cheerfully bobbing along. Things were quiet between the 3, until blaring sirens shattered the silence, as well as a warning for an incoming 'Aqua Lagoona'
"Um Nami, what the Hell is that?" Luffy asks, as the announcer didn't give any details besides 'sometime tonight'
"Not a clue, but sirens are never a sign of something good" the navigator admits, getting nods from her 2 crewmates.
When they reached Dock one it was as crowded as expected, and the trio were disappointed, even if they understood the reason, that the place was locked down to everyone but authorised personnel.
"This sucks, how are we supposed to see Ice-Pops now?" Luffy grumbles, though was immediately distracted by loud drum beats 'Hmm?'
"Did you people say my name?" Came a loud, and enthusiastic bellow
"My idiot senses are tingling" Nami sighs, hiding her head in her hands while Luffy and Vivi look up at the source of the commotion, 3 shadowed figures behind a tarp
"Don't be shy, come on out an say my name!" he continues, then frowns when the gathered crowd start yelling at him to leave "I'm too good for these plebs" he sighs, as the tarp is pulled away "I'm Water 7's number 1 SUPER Guy. The face of the underworld and you know why. I'm the man with the plan, the power and fame, and people everywhere call out my name!"
"FRANKY!" the blue haired man shouts, a small explosion going off behind him as he and his entourage stand in his Super! Pose. Given most of them thought he attacked Iceberg, and the explosion a moment ago, it made sense there was an almost immediate stampede as they tried to get away from the odd man with blue hair and a metal nose, dressed in only an open hawaiyan shirt and speedo
"What just happened?" Vivi asks, really confused
"Come out and show yourself Straw Hat!" Franky shouts down at the fleeing crowd
"Franky… he's the boss of those goons who took our money" Luffy gasps, frowning deeply
TBC
LW: Well, things are getting more intense, and the Super Cyborg makes his true first appearance. Also I kind of tilted the fight more onto Usopp's feeling of weakness and away from the Merry's condition itself, as I felt in these circumstances it would be the bigger issue, Merry and his defeat at the hands of the Franky family were just the reasons it was brought to the forefront and became something to fight about, the straw that broke the camel's back, so to speak.