Title: Of Dreams and Desires
Pairings: Smoker x Ace, Sanji x Zoro, and other side pairings
Ratings: T - NC-17
Chapter: 29 of ?
Summary: The road to One Piece is a dangerous one and each individual begins at different times and places. Some paths cross for a fleeting moment but the encounter could be so great that it can alter the initial direction. Every meeting is important and is planned by the souls long before the bodies see each other. Follow everyone's story and see what path they take.
Disclaimer: I do not make any profit from this story; all props go to Eiichiro Oda.
Author Note: Ugh, I hate allergy season. Hopefully, it won't affect how fast I update the story. If it does then you guys just bear with me. Thanks and I hope you enjoy this chapter. :3
Shout Outs: Thanks to SomeChibiGirl for adding my story to your alert list. ^_^ I'm glad you like it so far.
Beta Reader: descriptionsalive21, thank you so much!
Usopp
Finally, after all the hardships they'd been through on sky island and at the G-8 Naval Base, the Straw Hat Pirates could ease their minds and catch up on some well needed rest now they were back out on the open sea. Their sharpshooter, Usopp, had a bag full of dials and was ready to put them to use as he sat in the men's sleeping quarters near his hammock with a blueprint in front of him on the table. He had plans to upgrade Nami's weapon and he wanted to make sure it was perfect. He reached behind himself for a second set of dials but patted nothing but the soft cushion of the couch.
Usopp clicked his tongue as he stood and headed towards the mast, remembering that he'd left them in the galley from when he went to breakfast that morning. He climbed up the wooden beam and unlocked the hatch that separated the lower quarters from the rest of the ship. Once it was open he hosted himself to the deck of the Going Merry and her damaged upper mast greeted him, dragging a saddened sigh from his lungs as he put a hand on the steel plate holding her together.
We'll get you fixed soon, Merry; just hang on a little bit longer.
He walked up the stairs and towards the galley when a noise made him pause. He peeped inside the window to see if he could catch a glance at what made the sound but the angle of the window only allowed him to see half of the kitchen.
When the sound came again, Usopp pushed open the door and Zoro tripped in his attempt to put distance between Sanji and himself before they were seen. The sniper took note of the red faced cook and grinned.
Zoro cleared his throat as he stood, "What's going on, Usopp?"
Sanji turned back to the stove to stir what he could assume was lunch, "Food won't be ready for another hour or so."
Usopp went to the table and picked up his satchel. "Don't mind me," he situated the sack on his shoulder, pivoting back in the direction he'd come from, "just… getting my bag."
He chuckled under his breath as he exited the galley, closing the door with a soft click. He waited for a moment before laughter floated through the door followed by a moan. The fibber smiled and walked back down to the deck level of the Going Merry. He spotted the rest of the crew sitting on the cannon deck so he altered his path to see what the gathering was about. Chopper and Luffy were playing go fish while Nami and Robin watched on, relaxing in their lounge chairs.
The doctor looked up when a shadow was cast over his cards then smiled to Usopp when he climbed the last stair, reaching them, "Usopp! You wanna join us?"
Luffy pouted and looked to their sharpshooter with sad eyes, "I keep losing."
Robin held her book up to hide her chuckle, "That's because you keep telling him all of your cards."
Usopp cracked a smile as he glanced down at Nami, "Nah, I'm about to get to work. Oi, Nami."
She looked up at him over the rim of her shades, "What's up, Usopp?"
He held up the bag of dials and grinned, "I'm going to make some improvements on your weapon."
"It's about time! Those damn defects almost got me killed."
The long nose gave off a nervous chuckle, "Yeah, no one was supposed to use that party tool as an actual weapon."
Chopper beat Luffy in another round of go fish and the young captain threw his cards up in the air out of frustration, "Argh, I'll never understand this game! Usopp, play for me!"
Usopp shook his head, "No can do, Luffy. I got work to do."
Nami stretched and took off her shirt, revealing a solid red bikini top, "Well, before I start on my drawings I want to get a little sun bathing done." She pushed her sunglasses up on her nose and sighed as she settled into a good position.
Usopp's eyes trailed over the curves of her body before his face turned red and he excused himself, hurrying back to the men's quarters. Once he was back in the safety of his room he sighed and plopped on the couch, rubbing his sweaty hands on his overalls. He'd had this small crush on the navigator which was starting to grow the more time he spent around her. Sighing, he picked up the Clima-Tact and began the disassembling process for the upgrades.
An hour later, thumping from above pulled his attention and the hatch to the quarters opened to reveal their swordsman's head. Upon seeing Usopp, he pulled back only to jump down moments later. Landing on his feet, he brushed off some dirt and sat on the couch opposite of the long nose.
"So this is where you've been hiding."
Usopp chuckled as he tightened a screw, "I wouldn't say hiding." He held up the partly finished weapon, "I'm making some changes to Nami's weapon."
"Ah, I see." The teen stood and walked over to the barrels lined against the wall. He took a cup, popped one of them open, and filled the mug before returning to his seat. "You've been doing a lot for Nami recently."
A blush crossed Usopp's cheeks as he fumbled over his words, "Well… she… ya know… I don't want her to be vulnerable in fights."
Zoro grunted and silence enveloped the pair. Usopp picked up another dial and the second part of the Clima-Tact before he spoke again, "Can I ask you something?"
Another grunt came from the brute as he took another swig of his drink. Usopp quickly peeked up at him before sighing, "Hypothetically, how would you approach someone who you thought was out of your league?"
Zoro leaned his head back to stare up at the wooden ceiling. He thought back to his difficult relationship with Sanji and rubbed his eyes, "Well, first I'd make sure that there was actually something there. Like," He huffed, trying to find the right words, "I would make sure that person was attracted to me as well before I started to make any advances."
"Ok… but how do you do that?"
The swordsman grinned as he thoughts went to his blond, "Small things. Be in the same space as them and see how they react. A small touch here and there doesn't hurt either. Always watch for their reaction to the things you do."
Usopp scratched his head, "Then what?"
"If the attraction is mutual then go for it."
"Yeah but how?!"
Frustrated, Zoro gulped the rest of his drink before lying down on the couch with his arm over his eyes, "Shit, I don't know. Why don't you go ask the love cook or something?"
Usopp groaned and collected the scattered pieces of the Clima-Tact before he left the men's quarters in search for Sanji.
U
"How to talk to someone out of your league?" Sanji reiterated as he pulled the bread from the oven and set it on the cooling rack before he turned to Usopp. "The question is why do you think this person is out of your league?"
The inventor attached a dial to the end of one of the poles, "This girl, she's really pretty. Crazy smart, ya know. Confident in her skills and she's pretty fearless; putting herself in danger for others. If… certain situations hadn't of happened then I know she wouldn't have ever looked in my direction."
The blond hummed as he lit a cigarette and leaned his hip against the counter, "Do you think you're ugly, Usopp?"
"Huh?" A confused look crossed his face as he turned to face the cook.
Sanji puffed on his smoke before asking again, "I said, do you think you're ugly?"
There was a beat of silence before Usopp responded, "I've seen worse and better."
"So you think you're average."
Usopp shrugged his shoulders, "Well yeah."
"Did you know I've always been impressed with how you make up different inventions? I know I could never do that, let alone shoot a target like you do." Sanji eyed Usopp, waiting for his response.
"Well it's just something that I've always been able to do. I think I got the inventing from my mom and the shooting skills from my dad."
Sanji hummed again, "Back on Little Garden you were brave when you decided to stand up against Baroque Works when the giant's battle was interrupted. Again, when you fought that mole lady and her accomplice when they told you Luffy was dead back in Alabasta. And, if I recall correctly, on Skypiea, had it not been for you sacrificing yourself for Nami and me back on Enel's ship we wouldn't have made it out alive. I'd say you are pretty fearless."
Usopp frowned in thought, "What does any of that have to do with anything, Sanji?"
He clicked his tongue and flicked the ashes to the ground, "You say she's smart, pretty, and fearless."
He nodded his head, "Yeah."
"You say you are smart, fearless, and average." He watched Usopp screw on a dial.
Another nod, "Right."
"So how is she out of your league when you two are basically the same thing?"
He nodded again, "Exactly…" He trailed off as he stared at the wall before he shook his head in confusion, "Wait, what?"
Sanji sighed smoke through his nose and butted out his cigarette, "From what it sounds like, you two have the same traits. The problem is not that she is out of your league. The question you should be asking yourself is not how can you pick up someone like her but instead how can you become confident in yourself."
Letting the words sink into his brain, Sanji took the dishes out of the cabinet and began to set the table. "Why don't you think on it for a while and go get the others; lunch is ready."
Usopp gathered his items and put them back in his satchel before exiting the galley in search of his other nakama. When he stepped outside he heard the voices of Nami, Robin, and Chopper drifting down from behind the tangerine trees. Not wanting to confront his infatuation just yet, the teen decided to get Luffy first, who was sitting in his normal spot atop Merry's head. His heavy boots clunked against the deck as he stepped up to the figurine. The open air and cool breeze eased Usopp's mind and for a moment he forgot his problems. It wasn't until he heard Nami's laughter did he cringe and sigh, alerting Luffy and making him tilt his head back towards his third crewmate.
"Oi, Usopp, what's going on?"
"Ah, Luffy," he picked at the blue and white armguard he wore, "I got a question for you."
The captain pushed his straw hat out of his face and sat up to look at Usopp, "Sure."
"How are you so confident in your fighting abilities?"
Luffy looked at Usopp in his eyes for a moment and chuckled before he closed his eyes, going back into his resting position. "Honestly, I understand my limitations and then I try to surpass those limitations. Always try to best yourself is what Gramps used to say."
Usopp scratched the end of his nose in thought, "Do you use that same mind set when it comes to talking to women?"
He hummed, "I've never had any interest in anyone, so I wouldn't know how to help you there."
"I wish I could put a little part your confidence, Sanji's suaveness, and Zoro's spirt in me. Maybe it'd help me not be a coward in and out of the battlefield." Usopp's shoulders drooped dejectedly.
Luffy shook his head at his peer's words, "Nah. Instead of wishing you were someone else, be proud of who you are. You never know who's been looking at you wishing they were you."
A look of adoration crossed Usopp's face and he smiled, "Come on, Captain, lunch is ready."
"Meat!" The boy shot up and called upon his devil, extending his arm to the rail in front of the kitchen door. "Everyone, meat!"
With those words he slung himself towards the kitchen the same time Sanji opened the door to announce that the midday meal was ready. The colliding of the two men drew the attention of the crew and they came to investigate the commotion. When Usopp saw Nami descend the steps he felt a flutter in his stomach and drew in a shaky breath. After lunch, when he got done with her weapon, he was going to talk to her.
U
The long nose gathered up the newly designed Clima-Tact and made his way to the women's sleeping quarters, where he was sure to find Nami working on some maps. He tightened the bandana on his head before he raised his fist to knock at the door. He heard Nami's silk voice telling him to enter and with one last pep talk to himself, he turned the knob and pushed opened the slab of wood that separated him from her.
Nami glanced up and smiled when she saw it was Usopp, "What can I do for ya?"
He gulped nervously as he held out her bo staff, "I'm done with the upgrades."
She drew a few more lines on the paper in front of her before she placed the pen down and turned to look at the sharpshooter, letting out a squeal, "It looks amazing!"
"Yeah, doesn't it?" His nervousness faded as he stepped into his comfort zone to begin explaining what he'd upgraded, "Due to the dials attached at the end, all of your attacks should hit harder and it should give you some additional range. It arranges just like the last bo staff. Give it a whirl."
The orange haired woman stood from her chair and did a few stances with her new weapon. Proud of his work, Nami ran to him and gave him a quick hug and kiss on the cheek, "I love it Usopp, thanks."
He blushed and began to sweat a little, "No problem. I call it the Perfect Clima-Tact."
"I can't wait to give it a try on someone."
While she inspected the weapon Usopp shifted from foot to foot, unsure of what to say next. He cleared his throat, gaining her attention, "Nami, I wanted to ask you something."
The navigator raised an eyebrow, "Shoot."
"I'm uh, interested in this girl and I uh… I don't know how to necessarily… approach her. Do you have any tips?"
"Mmm," Nami hummed as she moved across the room and sat on her bed, crossing her legs, "Does she like you back?"
Usopp sighed and sat in the chair she was previously occupying, "To be honest, I doubt it."
"I don't know Usopp, Kaya seemed pretty interested last time we saw her," she said, wiggling her eyebrows.
He stuttered and she burst out laughing at his reddened face, "Why don't you just write her a letter with your feelings in it? Most people are better at expressing themselves through writing than voicing."
"Yeah but–" he tried to explain.
"But what?" She quickly cut him off. "The worst thing she could do is deny you. At least from there you'll know that you'll have said all that you needed to. Kaya seems like the type that even if you guys couldn't be in a romantic relationship, she'd still try to maintain a friendship in the least."
Usopp glanced at her, "Would you?"
Nami cocked her head to the side, "Try to stay friends?"
He nodded.
"Yeah, especially if I was friends with the person to start with; nothing should stand in the way of a nakama bond." She stood from the bed and made a shooing motion with her hands, "Now out; I have to get done drawing."
With an idea formulating in his head, Usopp left the women's quarters and made his way to the men's. He was going to win the heart of Nami in his own way.
Go head then Usopp! You can do it! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Please leave your thoughts even if anonymous. Thanks again for reading and stay tune for next chapter: Portgas D. Ace - Huredhiel