Orange Dye
It was something very unexpected to find in the bathhouse. Particularly on the lip of the bathtub. Though this was a room Usopp rarely ventured to. Once a week at most.
"Why would this be in here?" Usopp wondered as he picked up and inspected the object. Being a craftsman himself, he knew what the object was. But why in the bathhouse? And why on the side of the tub?
Usopp placed the object on the edge of the sink, paying it no mind before turning the water on to the shower. He dropped his towel and stepped into the stream of steaming hot water and closed the curtain.
He dunked his head under the water, soaking his afro until the black curls draped past the top of his nose. Only for that object to pop back into his mind once again.
He just could not get past it. Why would anyone on the ship have orange dye? And why would they leave it there. Next to the bathtub?
Usopp wracked his brain trying his best to come up with an answer. Yeah, they all had orange clothing of some sort. Luffy had some shorts. Sanji had a few button-up shirts. Even Zoro and Franky had some orange t-shirts. Robin, and Nami as well. He'll. Even Usopp himself had a couple orange shirts of some sort. But none of them were dyed? And they would all buy new clothing once it was faded or destroyed, so it wouldn't matter.
As he washed his hair, a thought struck him. Like a lightning bolt hitting an unsuspecting bystander. Nami! Nami had orange hair! But why would there be dye? Particularly dye the exact color of her orange locks.
Then the thought struck him further. So hard he had to ask the question out loud. Maybe to force himself to believe such a ridiculous question. "Does Nami dye her hair?"
Then he laughed. "No! There's now way! I would have noticed. We all would have noticed!" But maybe though…
Usopp finished his shower, dried himself off, and dressed in a fresh pair of clothes. Just a plain green t-shirt and black shorts. The day had been hot, and humid, so staying cool in the early evening was a must. As far as he knew, they were heading into a summer island, and it certainly felt like it.
He went to leave the bathhouse for the galley. A refreshing drink would also be nice in the summer heat. But as he reached for the door, the bottle of orange dye caught his eye, and he quickly reached, snatching it up. This was a mystery he was going to get to the bottom of. Detective Usopp was on the case!
Much like he expected, most of the crew was in the galley. Most likely with the same thought he had. All for a cool drink prepared by their resident chef.
Everyone was there, but Luffy, Chopper and Nami. This gave Usopp the perfect opportunity to begin his investigation.
He cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "Hey, uh. Have you guys ever noticed any bottles of dye in the shower before?"
The whole room went silent. Robin, who was leaning quite comfortably into Franky, cooked a thin eyebrow. Franky lifted his sunglasses up, twisting his face into a questioning expression. Both Zoro and Sanji, who were mid argument, stopped their bickering, asking a simple "What are you on about?" In unison. Brooks' bony jaw had dropped. His bottle of milk nearly slipped from his fingers. Jinbei however had nearly no reaction. Being relatively new himself, he was still figuring out the nuances of each crew member.
Usopp then presented the bottle of orange dye. Placing it in the center of the table for everyone to see. Everyone stopped, and looked at it questioningly. All with quizzical expressions. Sense Robin. Who just continued to leave her eyebrow raised in Usopp's direction.
"Before I begin my investigation, I'd like to ask. Where are Luffy and Nami?"
"Why do you need to know where Nami-swan is, long nose? What's she got to do with it?" Sanji asked. His eyes shining at the meal mention of one of his "angels".
"Because I don't want to die." Usopp retorted back.
"Fair point." Sanji said. Lighting up a cigarette, as he walked back behind the counter, and began preparing dinner. "I believe she's working on a map in her room. Luffy is with Chopper. He fell into the sea while trying to catch a fish, and all his bandages got soaked and came off. Nami-san had to dive in after the idiot, and save him."
"Ok, so I know I'm not going to die. Yet…" Usopp began.
"So, what's with the dye?" Zoro asked. Seemingly annoyed as he could be cutting down a cook right now, but was rudely interrupted.
"I was getting to that." Usopp cleared his throat again. Trying to muster the courage to ask the first question. "Have you guys ever noticed if Nami dyes her hair?"
And the whole world might as well have stopped. A pin drop could be heard in every sea. And all eyes were now dead locked on Usopp.
"What?!" They all asked in unison.
"Are you serious? Did your brains go to your nose?" Sanji raged.
"Why would you even ask that?" Zoro retorted.
"Well, why would anyone need orange dye like this?" Usopp came back defensively.
"Bro. That's your first conclusion? That ni-chan dyes her hair?" Franky Barked out.
"Shhhh. She'll hear you guys, dammit. Be quieter." The sniper said, trying to calm the group.
"You'd think we'd have noticed something like that by now." Zoro snorted.
"Yeah, you'd think. But she's duped us before. Who knows with this, and what other secrets the cat thief may be hiding." Usopp came back with.
But Zoro was having none of it. "Don't even think about accusing someone on this ship of anything. The witch drives me nuts, but I trust her. We all trust her. And more importantly, our Captain trusts her. Got it Usopp?" He said to the sniper with a glare. The room was silent, and Usopp nodded to the swordsman's order.
"Even still though. That's a crazy thing to hide." Franky said.
"Well, Robin. You used to be her roommate. Did you ever notice anything?" Usopp asked as he turned to the archeologist.
Robin's eyes quickly flickered from a sharp glare, to a light smile. The same smile she gives when she absolutely already knows the answer, but wants everyone to squirm as they fumble to fund it themselves. "I don't know Usopp. Might it be best to ask our Captain? He would know better than anyone."
Usopp's jaw near dropped at the suggestion. "Are you nuts?! He'll tell her we asked!"
Robin chuckled. "Oh, you don't know that. And if anything, he'll be honest with us. He'd never lie to us. Not like he really can anyway."
"Fair point. I guess it's worth a shot. But I'm not asking. Robin. I need you to do that. That way, if he does tell Nami. She won't have me flogged."
Robin chuckled again, and Usopp couldn't help but wonder that this woman knew something he didn't. But he paid it no mind for now. His focus had to be the new target. Luffy.
Not a hard target by any means. For one, Luffy was absolutely incapable of lying. It wasn't in his nature, and he generally detested people who did lie. But, this line of questioning would be focused on Nami. His navigator. His closest friend. And his lover and Queen. He may not lie about something related to her, but he also may not like the questioning to begin with. They all knew very well making her upset, or even offending her could result in a brutal beating.
But that was something Usopp had to risk. This was now his new life's mission. He was a brave warrior of the sea! He took risks!
The group sat, and chatted further on the subject. Keeping their voices hushed so as to not alert anyone outside the galley. Until the man they had been waiting for barged into the room.
"Sanji! I'm starving! Meat!" He demanded. And matched his way to the head of the table. The end furthest from the door. So he could keep his normal watchful eye on it in case any danger came through. Zoro had been in his normal seat to the Captain's right, while the seat to his left remained vacant for now. Typically reserved for his Navigator. A position he could not only keep a close eye on, but also easily defend if need be.
"Alright, alright. Calm down you rubber idiot. I already got something for you." Sanji said. Passing from around the bar from the kitchen to deposit a plate of cooked meats, and a glass of ice water for his Captain.
Chopper was the only other one still missing, besides Nami. Usopp noticed. He must have decided to stay in the infirmary and clean up after patching Luffy up for the second time today. The bandages wrapped around his left elbow, and knee. As well as fresh ones on his cheek and nose. A sea king had attacked the Sunny right after breakfast, and Luffy had taken a pretty good beating from it. Though he did prevail in the battle. After being snatched in its huge jaws, and chewed on like a piece of gum, before beating the inside of the beast's mouth. He was spat back onto the deck. The monster went in for one final attack, but that was its undoing. An infusion of Conqueror's Haki and Armament Haki wrapped the Captain's fist, and he punched the sea king square in the nose. Killing it instantly.
Luffy was now eating the remains of the delicious rare meat provided by the morning's attack.
Usopp swallowed nothing. Preparing himself for what was to come. "Hey, ah, Luffy. We, or Robin rather, has a question for you." Usopp began.
Luffy looked up from his meal and raised an eyebrow at them. Indicating he was waiting for it. Then looked to Robin as he took another large bite from the hunk of meat on the bone in his hand.
"Well, Captain. Usopp wanted to know something about Nami." Robin began with. Usopp's jaw nearly fell to the table. Robin had tossed him under both a literal and figurative bus. He begged her with his eyes not to finish, but she gave that sweet smile. A smile that was anything but.
Luffy looked at them both quizzically, but said nothing. Indicating he wanted the rest of the question.
"Usopp would like to know if Nami dyes her hair." Robin finished. Flashing not just that smile of hers, but her eyes. Eyes that shone of the devil. Tricking her unsuspecting victim into a contract for their soul.
Luffy had stopped taking bites, and swallowed. And the look he gave was a mix of confusion, and slight disgust. "Usopp, are you dumb? Why would Nami do that?
"Uh, well…" Usopp began to panic. "I found this bottle of orange dye, and just had the random thought." He said. Trying to laugh it off.
"You're being weird too." Luffy retorted.
"Well, you're the only one left who would know! Have you ever noticed any other hair on her body that wasn't orange?" Usop asked further. A slight blush crept over his face.
A loud thud was heard from the galley, and a spurt of blood shot up towards the ceiling. It seemed Sanji had fainted from the mere thought of Nami's more intimate parts.
"Luffy's face twisted again. "Yeah. You are weird." Then he proceeded to take another bite.
Zoro laughed. Both at the fainted cook, and the embarrassed sniper. "Well, since that's solved, can one of you guys wake up the pervy cook so I can have dinner?"
"Yeah. I guess it is." Usopp sighed. "That still doesn't tell us what this dye is for though."
At that exact moment, Nami had walked in. Followed by Chopper. After she had finished working on her latest chart, she had gone back to the infirmary to check on Luffy. After he had fallen into the sea, and her ultimate rescue of him, his bandages had become soaked, and all fell off him. Leaving a bloody mess in the grass that had made her panic.
The whole room had gone silent when she entered, but the woman paid it no mind. She already knew her crew could be weird. Her Captain being the weirdest among them. Though it was something she would never change for the world. Despite their weirdness, she loved them all. They were her friends, her family. Then there was Luffy. Even with all his nuances, antics and strange behavior. It all seemed just normal to her. And she absolutely loved him the most amongst them all. He was her best friend, her companion, and the love of her life.
Nami had walked through, taking her seat beside Luffy. Chopper had done the same next to Usopp. The chef chose this moment to make his recovery, and came out from behind the bar. Platters on both arms and hands full of assorted meats and vegetables. Dinner on the Thousand Sunny was finally served.
The meal went on as normal. Usopp, Chopper and Brook Trying to fend off probing, rubbery hands from their plates.
Then, Nami spoke up. Breaking the noise of the ruckus everyone was making. "Hey, Robin. Have you seen the orange dye anywhere? It's the only color I can't find after we used them."
Usopp nearly spit his dinner out, and his eyes moved with lightning speed to Robin's direction.
And she chuckled. "Oh. Usopp found it in the bathhouse. It should be under his seat."
Usopp felt his heart drop. Robin had glanced at him briefly. Flashing him a sly smile.
"Oh. Thanks Usopp! Now we can finish tie-dying those shirts for everyone! I was looking everywhere for it!" Nami smiled brightly. And for just a brief moment, the sniper felt relief. Oh. They were just doing some tie-dying. What a dumbass I am.
Then, it all was broken by a familiar laugh. A laugh everyone could recognize from miles away even. The laugh of one one Monkey D. Luffy.
"Oi, Nami. That's what that dye was for? Usopp thought it was for your hair. Hahahaha!"
It was at that moment, the bright smile on Nami's face faded. The room suddenly felt cold and dark. They had all experienced the power of the Darkness Fruit. This felt far more threatening. The angry aura emitting from the firey redhead was focused entirely on the poor sniper. And this time time, there was no one to save him from that darkness as it swallowed him. All hope was lost to Usopp. His Captain, and first mate merely laughed at his predicament as the wrath of the sea set her focus on him, and him alone.
"You what?!