One Piece - Tales of the Pirate King
Disclaimer: One Piece is property of Eiichiro Oda. I am not Eiichiro Oda
Chapter 4 - Bad Luck
Nami rested, on all of the available places, the top of the cabin of the little dingy they occupied. There, she could stretch like a lazy cat who just caught the fattest canary, the girl thinking back on the previous meeting with Gaimon
It was a relatively brief encounter: a nameless island rumoured to possess a great treasure, guarded by the 'Guardian God of the Forest', Gaimon, a man-in-a-box, literally, the man having fallen from a great height straight into a chest, where he had been stuck for the past twenty years. Then, with the arrival of trustworthy pirates, as if such a thing existed, he revealed the secret of the treasure island
All six chests, other than the one he himself occupied, where hidden on top of one of the island's plateaus. Luffy climbed, and to the sadness of all present, declared that all the chests where empty
And then he cheered Gaimon up, by noting that if they waited further, the man himself could have died deluded that he was guarding a great treasure, when in truth there was nothing. It actually worked, and the trio departed from the island waving goodbyes to Gaimon and his cheery menagerie of weird animals, who, the least said about, the better for her own sanity
Thus, they now navigated in silence towards Gecko Island, their next stop before… home
'I like here… I'll long for this… peace'
…
Of course, peace was quite possibly the worst possible word to describe their little boat, Luffy bugging Zoro as he fished, talking about the inanest of things. At least they learned a little about him, who claimed to have two older brothers, both who were famous pirates, already deep into the Grand Line, through neither she nor Zoro caught their names, as their captain blabbed too fast
Then she looked up from the map on her lap, and saw it: - "Luffy! We're approaching Gecko Island!"
"Really?" - Pulling a particularly fat tuna, Luffy exulted: - "Woohoo! Finally! The sea might be wonderful but with no action it's boring as hell!"
Blinking at the chants of 'adventure' coming from Luffy, Nami giggled softly, landing on the floor and letting his enthusiasm spread, as even Zoro woke up
"Halt!" - But, at the beach, they found opposition. Standing at the top of the cliffs surrounding the beach, a young man, tanned and with an abnormally long nose, dressed in brown overalls and boots, with a white sash around his waist, a satchel hanging from his shoulders, and a stripped white and blue armband on his left arm; most notably, however, was the blue headband with 'Yasopp' written on it at his forehead, holding a curly bush of black hair that reached his shoulders
"This is territory of the terrible captain Usopp! Captain of the Usopp Pirates, consisting of eight thousand pirates!" - As he spoke, hundreds of flags, showing a shocked mask over crossbones, appeared on the cliff, occupying it in its entirety between the edge of the beach and the slope entering the island proper: - "And this island is my territory! Any trespasser will be shot, so turn around and be gone!"
"So cool!" - The teen received an unexpected reaction, floundering at Luffy's reaction: - "You're Usopp, right? Of course you are, you have your dad's headband!"
"Eh? You knew my dad…? That straw hat! You're Luffy, aren't you? Shanks' protégé? He said you'd come one day!"
"Luffy, you know him?" - Zoro asked, his hand leaving his swords
Luffy laughed embarrassed, scratching his hat: - "Y-yes, I… completely forgot to tell you about him, right?"
And so the boy with the straw hat told his crew of Yasopp, sniper of the 'Red-haired' pirates, who never stopped speaking about his son, Usopp. The tanned boy joined the group, alongside three kids, who were the real crew of the Usopp pirates, much to his embarrassment and everyone's amusement, and he further explained the story, of how shortly after departing from Dawn Island, they visited Gecko Island, telling Usopp of Luffy, the boy with Shanks' straw hat and who one day would visit
"Well, what a coincidence you were in the way" - Noted Nami, with a deadpan stare at Luffy: - "Our captain completely forgot from mentioning you"
Luffy again scratched his hat, a weak apology leaving his lips as Nami, Zoro, and Usopp bonked his head
The Meshi, the restaurant of Syrup Village, was a homely, clean and well-cared for eatery. And the sole eatery of the village, for that matter
It reminded Luffy of the Partys Bar, and Makino
There, Usopp introduced Ninjin, freckled, who had shaggy purple hair covering his eyes, a red bandana with his crew's Jolly Roger, a black hooded sweater, orange trousers held by a brown sash, and brown shoes; Tamanegi, wearing glasses, with his brown hair resembling an onion, and with a yellow shirt under a blue vest, brown trousers held by a dark gold sash, and black shoes; and Piiman, lightly tanned, with dark green hair, a light green shirt with Usopp's skull and crossbones, a light blue sash holding blue trousers, and black shoes
There, Usopp also bragged about his snipping skills, using a slingshot of all weapons, somewhat explained by his sheer variety of ammunitions: - "From shrapnel bombs to incendiary shots, I have everything for every situation"
"Shishishi, then, welcome aboard Usopp, you're invited as our sniper!" - The friendship born between Luffy and the tanned sniper was completely unsurprising, really
Said sniper had to gather his things, and say goodbye to all his friends, including the three children who looked ready to weep at the departure of their captain
"Hey, Usopp!" - Before he could depart, however, Luffy asked: - "We also need a good ship. Any idea if we could get one around here?"
"Yeah, we're almost out of space…" - Agreed Nami, nibbling on a piece of fruit
Scratching his chin, Usopp thought about it, and snapped his fingers: - "There~ might"
"Follow me!" - And they did, all of them moving together after paying for their meal, Luffy animatedly talking with the children, cheering them up, as they imagined all the adventures Usopp would get himself into with Luffy and his crew
They soon reached a beautiful mansion, surrounded by a plant fence and a light and soft yellow with a blue roof, making the crew of pirates whistle in appreciation. Usopp guided the crew to a secret opening, a place where a block of plant could be safely removed, and from there they entered the building, soon reaching an open window, where a cute young lady rested
The lady noticed them soon, and exclaimed happily, with a note of confusion: - "Usopp! And… friends?" - She had light blonde hair, and was wearing a soft white camisole, as if she had just gotten out of bed; considering that, from what Luffy and company could see, that window led to her bedroom, that might just be the case
"Hey, Kaya, this is Luffy, like Shanks said!" - Sort of introduced Usopp, the girl brightening further as if that was enough: - "Luffy, crew, this is Kaya; she is the owner of the manor, and might have the ship you asked for"
"Eh!? Captain is in first name basis with the pretty lady!?" - "Eh, boys; Kaya only has a first name"
As the children gazed in awe at their captain for such a fetching catch, Luffy climbed the tree besides the window, actually reaching Kaya and thus able to speak on the same level, the dark-haired boy asking if she had a ship available
"Of course, Luffy" - "Eh?"
Giggling, Kaya explained herself: - "Shanks spoke of you when he visited, and I can name only one person on the entire Syrup Village who dislikes pirates"
"I can speak with Merry; technically, the ship is his, but he should be more than willing to give it away to you"
Luffy blinked, then grinned widely: - "Thank you!" - And pulled the girl into a hug, almost taking her from the window, to her laugher and everyone's amusement
Except Usopp: - "Oi, Luffy, Kaya is sick! Be more gentle with her!" - He said, taking Kaya from the hug and literally carrying her back inside, climbing the tree in record time to separate the two. Then he realized he was carrying her like a bride, and somehow swiftly and gently dumped her on her bed, blushing bright red alongside her; a smile was still present on Kaya's face, one must note
The lass in fact giggled, at the dopey expression on the tanned teen's face: - "You worry too much, Usopp; soon you'd be just like Klahadore"
Usopp stopped staring at his own hands, and adopted a frown, through one could see his eyes still shone, as he perched on the tree alongside Luffy: - "Now, I'm almost insulted; would Klahadore, at the age five-" - And so Usopp wove his tale, of when, at the age five, he fought a giant goldfish, whose poop was so big it could be confused with entire islands, and how he valiantly, on his tiny boat, fought and defeated it to feed a desperate starving village, to be known forevermore as the 'Heroic' Usopp
It was to a group filled with laugher that Klahadore introduced himself: - "What is happening here!?"
The group, including Kaya, blinked as one, as they noticed his presence; slim, with well cared black hair, glasses on his face, almost slipping and put back in place with the palm of his hand, and a black tie over a fine black suit with a white collar and… curious golden markings on the front, alongside equally curious stripped black and white shoes
"What are you doing here? Do you know you are breaking in private property?"
"K-Klahadore! Don't worry, they're friends!"
"I worry, that they might be a bad influence, lady Kaya, especially Usopp, 'the Liar'"
The somewhat pompous butler soon herded the group outside, the crew not wanting conflict, satisfied with the promise from Kaya. Through, it seemed he wanted problem, as he didn't wait for anyone to get out of hearing range to badmouth pirates 'and their spawns'
Kaya admonishment made it more bearable, though
The words of Klahadore, while washing away like water on a duck's back for Luffy, Nami and Zoro, were much more effective on Usopp, who hated anyone who badmouthed his father. Yasopp was a pirate, making Usopp the son of a pirate, something he was proud of!
So he went to the cliffs at the south of the island to mope and sulk. He had a particularly pleasant imagery on his head, when Luffy, concerned for his newest crewmate, appeared out of nowhere, the surprise almost dropping the tanned teen from his perch and down into the beach
"Don't do that!" - He hissed, before blinking in confusion: - "And what are you doing here?"
"Checking on you. You're on my crew now, right?"
"… Is it as easy as you say? So far everything has been quite simple"
"Well, too simple, to be honest; I didn't expect your girlfriend to agree to simply give us a ship, just like that"
Ignoring the sputtering Usopp, Luffy continued: - "We were actually going to plan a party to welcome you and commemorate getting the ship, but you were gone by then"
"Heh, sorry; but that damned butler~" - Usopp also decided to ignore the 'girlfriend' comment, focusing on the rest: - "If I had been closer, I'd punch him in the face"
"Your girlfriend probably wouldn't like that" - "No, she wouldn't…"
A beat
"And she's not my girlfriend" - "She isn't!?"
"Did you hear something" - "Hm? Nope, I've heard nothing"
A beat. Luffy and Usopp, carefully, peeked over the cliff, and to their surprise, discovered they weren't alone; down below stood Klahadore and… a somewhat weird man: the outfit was rather acceptable, consisting of a blue jacket and hat, green gloves and pants, a black belt, and black shoes with white socks; but the heart shaped glasses and the stripped thing on his chin that was definitively not a beard were somewhat bizarre
"Matters not, probably a deer or other wild beast" - Remarked Klahadore, turning to the other man and speaking with a tone of admonishment: - "And you? Falling asleep in the middle of the streets? Didn't I tell you to not call attention, Jango?"
Jango's answer, to the eavesdroppers, was completely baffling for them: - "I'm not weird. Who are you calling weird" - But it appeared to be expected by Klahadore, who simply sighed:
"Doesn't matter. As long as the plan goes through, it should be enough"
"Oh yes, the murder of, Kaya, isn't it? My, so heartless, to order the death of a young girl, captain Kuro"
Further conversation almost went unheard, Usopp retreating in shock at what he was hearing: - "Now, now, murder is such a strong word, Jango; it was an 'unfortunate accident', remember? And what did I tell you about that name? Call me Klahadore"
"Yeah, yeah, we invade, sack the village, sack the obviously rich manor atop the hill, and the poor girl doesn't survive the experience" - Jango waved his hand, as if such details didn't matter: - "Dying after she has been hypnotised and has a will giving everything for you, yes, I do remember the plan, Klahadore"
"It will be soon, right?" - The question made Usopp lean again, clearly desperate: - "The guys are getting restless on the Bezan"
"Then you can begin by tomorrow morning, as soon as the sun rises"
"K-K-Kuro? C-captain Kuro 'of a Thousand Plans'? H-he's s-supposed t-t-to h-have been e-executed three years a-ago! Right… right a-as Klahadore washed ashore!"
"Usopp, calm down" - Zoro finally said, putting his hands on the teen's shoulder: - "Didn't you heard his plan was going to be executed this morning? Then we can still deal with him"
"If you want, you can keep watch over her" - Pointed out Luffy: - "We can deal with the pirates easily"
"Yes… wait, a-actually, Luffy, it's better if you deal with him! You can more easily protect Kaya and fight at the same time!"
"Yeah… yeah, that's a better plan" - Admitted the boy, pouting. He would have preferred to participate in the big fight, but protecting Usopp's girlfriend took priority; and while he knew that, while a sniper, Usopp was still a capable fighter, if his opponent was well known after three years of supposed death…
"Besides, with your Devil Fruit, you can sneak inside and hide close to her, in case anything happens" - Noted Nami, imagining the uses a thief could find with such powers, ranging from forging lockpicks to squeezing into tight hiding places to simply strangling enemies into unconsciousness
"Fine. But first, we need to discover wherever they will attack"
"W-well, they will attack from where we found them, right? It's the only entrance to the island proper"
"What about where we met?" - Luffy deadpanned, making Usopp pause
"Those cliffs… those cliffs are much closer to the village; true, it's more likely they'll attack from there!"
Thus, offered Luffy: - "… So, while I can't participate, that doesn't stop me from laying down some help, right?"
The plateau was simply unsurmountable, other than the natural ramps, so it was only natural that said ramps to be booby trapped, Luffy covering it with candy filled potholes that, when stepped on, would glue the foot in place, hopefully wrenching it out of position, the traps complemented by Usopp with caltrops to ensure even the paths without potholes would be troublesome to cross
And, since better safe than sorry, the other cliff was trapped with slippery oil, to buy time in case the pirates did appear on the coast Kuro and Jango talked
That didn't stop Luffy from having to crunch himself into an itty-bitty blob of candy, that rolled in position through the bushes and used its sticky properties to climb the wall, resting right at the window of Kaya, watching over her sleeping form. It was a very boring watch, for the most part, with nothing happening, but then he heard a small shout of pain, followed by what appeared to be wood being carved
Squeezing under the window, Luffy bounced over Kaya, and hid under her bed, as a slightly sweaty Kuro appeared, with fuzzy gloves, whose fingers had a katana at each tip, making for wickedly long claws. Claws that were covered in blood. Kuro already killed somebody
"You bastard!" - Kaya awoke, shocked at seeing her normally calm and peaceful butler armed and with blood on said arms, and before she could ask what was happening, Luffy shouted: - "Candy Candy Cannonball!" - And launched himself forward, shooting himself with elastic tiny limbs, and growing in size until he was human again, already spinning in place for a devastating kick on Kuro, who jumped back
"Candy Candy Lance!" - The kicking leg extended forward, his foot hardened and spear-shaped, going through the wall as Kuro again evaded, running away
"L-Luffy!? W-what is happening!" - Called out Kaya, as she made to stand up: - "W-why was Klahadore armed!? Luffy!?"
"Kaya! Does anyone else live here!?"
"M-Merry!? Oh Luffy, what is happening!?" - Luffy didn't had good news for the lass, however
"Kuro's claws were covered in blood" - And the poor girl toppled over. Luffy could now see the sickness that Usopp mentioned; the girl was sweating severely, fidgeting and trembling in place, and clearly had no strength to stand up
"N-n-n-no, M-Merry is alright… Kuro?"
Luffy didn't bother explaining, instead gently taking the girl, carrying her downwards to a scene of a massacre. Merry was dressed in a suit much like Kuro, and white hair that did not look to be from age, with two curls of brown hair resembling a lamb's; he also had vicious gouges on his chest, bleeding profusely. So shocking the sight, Kaya couldn't even scream
"Mister Merry!? Mister, you're alive? Did Kuro do this to you!?"
"M-m-mistress K-Kaya?" - "She's okay, mister; I stopped Kuro"
In spite of his wounds, Merry laughed in relief: - "K-K-Klahadore~, K-Klaha-"
"Is secretly a pirate who was supposed to have been executed three years ago, named Kuro 'of a Thousand Plans'" - Finally explained Luffy, drawing a strangled gasp from Kaya, who shook her head in denial
"N-no! K-Klahadore wouldn't, h-h-he-"
"H-he speaks the truth, lady Kaya" - "Oi, mister! Don't strain yourself!" - Merry didn't care, leaning on the wall, at least not attempting to stand up: - "K-Kaya, y-you need to hide, you need to find a safe place; I'll be fine, I'll be fine"
"Merry~…" - It was clear the lass didn't want to abandon her butler, however
Luffy came to the rescue of them both: - "The safest place will be with me, don't worry. I'll stay to protect you both"
Kaya, sobbing, gave him a hug: - "T-thank you Luffy~… c-could y-you help me patch up Merry? W-we s-should have a medical kit somewhere…"
The boy with the straw hat really wanted to go after Kuro, but he knew that the girl and her real butler needed protection more than anything: - "Sure, what do you need me for?"
The situation on the cliffs… were going well, all things told
They guessed right, and the traps and caltrops did wrench several pirates back, many twisting their own feet as they stepped on potholes and moved them out of place. Those who did pass had the very unpleasant surprise of dealing with the infamous pirate hunter Roronoa Zoro, who didn't hesitate in slashing them apart
Then Jango called the attention of everyone present. Nami and Zoro, who met them before, noticed he was wearing a longer coat, with various golden rings decorating it: - "When I say: 'one, two, Jango', you will simply move away and let us pass"
"One, Two, Jango! You're welcome~" - He waved his ring, and then turned aside, having hypnotised himself
"You know, you showed us your tricks before, right?" - Remarked Nami with an eyebrow raised, worrying for the pirate's sanity, having closed her eyes. The meeting had been brief, when the man, walking backwards, after commenting that he wasn't weird, introduced himself as a passing hypnotist, showcasing his powers by hypnotising the Ninjin, Tamanegi, and Piiman, falling asleep alongside them
"Grr. Then, 'Black Cat' pirates! When I say 'one, two, Jango', you'll be stronger than ever! Your wounds won't matter anymore! And you will stomp down those insignificant pests!"
"One, Two, Jango!" - Notably, Jango covered his eyes with his hat as he finished
"Does he honestly expect that to work?" - Asked Zoro, blinking in time to nullify the effect. To his and Nami's shock, it did, the pirate crew roaring as one, one of them punching the cliffs and making a part of the natural walls to collapse
"Welp… fuck" - Drawing his white blade and putting it in his mouth, the green-haired swordsman prepared for a difficult battle
Then, another shock for the pair, as Usopp released his own, surprisingly intimidating, warcry, drawing his slingshot and taking aim. Zoro almost let his prized katana fall from his mouth, as the tanned boy let loose a barrage of his pachinko pebbles, the metal pellets striking with enough strength to break bones, aimed at every body part he could hit, an unfortunately high pitched scream indicating it included even the dirtiest target possible
Then he pulled his hammer, his slingshot thrown into his offhand, and charged, belting another warcry. Nami realized then: - "Usopp didn't met the hypnotist!" - And thus, didn't knew to avert his eyes from the ring
The first pirate still standing tried to roar and slash with a scimitar, but had his head literally stomped on the ground and used as a stepping stone for Usopp to jump high, who jumped over the front line and charged after Jango, much to his sputtering. Fortunately, for the pair atop the cliffs, the tanned teen already weakened severely the numbers charging at them: - "Dragon Twister!" - Thus, they were easily defeated by Zoro, who, while recognizing the newfound strength of the pirates, simply was stronger, especially with the number advantage so heavily reduced
Even Nami shined, unfolding her staff from its hidden place, parrying a scimitar and countered with a blow at the shoulder, then spinning in place to stab his chin; the next jumped and slashed with two sabres, slamming them on her staff and meeting his defeat as she twirled her weapon, both making him slip to her right and making him meet her staff on his ear
Two more pirates met their defeat, charging right into her staff and clotheslining themselves as she thrusted it forward horizontally. A fifth charged with a crude stone hammer, but the tangerine-haired lass simply stepped back, stepped on the weapon that crushed her previous position, and kicked him in the face
"Heh, that was- Usopp!" - Nami noticed the tanned teen, fallen on the ground, in front of Jango, who was panting and slowly crawling backwards, having hypnotised Usopp into falling asleep
"Usopp!" - "Nami, wait!" - The lass charged herself, Zoro almost following, only halting because then no one would defend the village; Nami charged forward, stomping on the pirates and slamming her staff on anyone who tried to grab her
One of them still tried to stand up, crawling towards her, but was stomped on, this time by Zoro: - "Do you really think this is a good idea?"
"C-c-captain! W-we don't s-stand a chance against these guys!" - Said the man under Zoro's foot
"Tch, Buchi, Sham! Come here!" - Answered Jango, directing himself to two persons, who appeared from the top of the ship: - "Deal with the swordsman! The girl… appears to be mine"
"Actually, I'm here for~ this" - And she stomped on… Usopp's head: - "Gurk~"
The teen was pretty chafed by it: - "Nami! What the hell!?"
"Thank me later, now fight!" - And she struck with a leap, Jango simply turning aside to let the strike pass, raising his ring to strike but backing down again at the shout of: - "Lead, Star!"
While Nami and Usopp faced the captain, Zoro watched with eyebrows twitching as Sham, trembling and after a long time of whining, charged at the pirate hunter. It would have worked too, if not for the small snickers a few of the downed pirates released, cluing the green-haired young man that something was afoot
The sudden light that entered the slit eyes of Sham still caught him by surprise. Sham had green hair, much like Zoro, divided into three curly points, one in each side of the head and one as his bangs; he was dressed in a navy shirt with grey buttons and a magenta bowtie, light blue shorts, and brown shoes with white socks
And on each of his hands, delivering an onslaught of fast attacks, dark brown clawed gloves that caught the ex-pirate hunter by surprise, defending himself with the two katanas in his hands
"Nyahahah, smart one, aren't you!? Now, Buchi!" - "Right, brother! The Cat Stomp!" - Zoro looked up, and paled. Buchi was fat and tall, unlike his skinny and hunchback brother; pale-skinned, he wore a shoulder pad on his left side, making him resemble an overweight black and white cat, and over it a cloak of stripped light and dark purple with white fluffy brim, black and pale pink stripped trousers held by a yellow sash, brown boots, and a black hat that would cover one of his eyes if not for a hole
He also had claws on his hands, thanks to blue, almost white gloves, but that was meaningless in face of the fact that a giant of a man was about to attempt to stomp him, though he had a way to evade: - "Wolf Blade Stream" - Leaning forward, Zoro danced, slashing with the blade on his mouth, and changing places with Sham, who almost was the one stomped on, an attack that broke the stone
To the swordsman's surprise, Sham was not wounded, in spite of the visible cut on his shirt going almost all the way through it. Zoro ignored the banter between the two, instead focusing on his opponents
Sham hunchback and skinny build made him a shorter, smaller target, and was not to be underestimated. Buchi was the real danger through, containing all the strength of the pair
Zoro's attention returned to Sham, as the enemy with green-hair realized that their banter was being ignored: - "Hey! Cat got your tongue? Prepare for this! March of the Pussywillows!"
"… What sort of attack is named that?" - With a twitching eyebrow, Zoro decided that the best course of action was to defeat Buchi first, so he prepared to do just that: - "Tiger Hunt!"
The attack wasn't aimed at either of the two, rather aimed between them. The shockwave pushed them apart, and Zoro realized the flaw of his plan, as the one in front of him was the one at his left, Sham
Well, he had a way to deal with that, too: - "Dragon Twister" - The spinning attack was performed while jumping backwards, so while the skinnier opponent didn't even need to bother to evade, Buchi had a bladed hurricane moving in his direction, launching him upwards and backwards with an X shaped cut on his chest, as he failed to evade
"B-Buchi!" - "Don't worry, now's your turn" - "Eh?"
"Demon Slash!"
Meanwhile, Usopp and Nami… hadn't much trouble
Oh, Jango was a formidable opponent, his ring being bladed and slashing through Nami's staff and almost striking her chest. But she could still fight, able to use the two intact parts halves of her staff as a quarterstaff, with Usopp serving as ranged support, snipping not only Jango but also any pirate who appeared willing to intervene
And the man couldn't attempt to hypnotise anyone: attempt to make them let him pass, and they'd simply close their eyes; attempt to power himself up, and they wouldn't close their eyes, also getting the boost
In short, he was screwed, and he knew it, even more as he realized that Zoro knocked down Buchi and might have killed Sham
Whether Kuro's sudden appearance make it better or worse was to be decided. Then he realized that Kuro had been there for a while, and was visibly displeased with the situation; so, worse, a lot worse
"Pathetic" - With the comment, Nami and Usopp could only gasp, as they saw the enemy captain disappear. Nami hastily raised her remaining staff pieces in a defensive position and that saved her life, as Kuro started on her, five blades slamming on the crossed pieces. Then the staff splintered, and the tangerine-haired lass gasped in pain as her attempted kick turned into an ill-advised block, two blades being halted by her left leg. She outright screamed as Kuro proceeded to grab and throw her, gouging further her shin and thigh
Calling for her, Usopp fired as fast as he could, missing and waiting until the last moment. Kuro was on top of him not a second after dealing with Nami, the ginger crawling away, but the dark captain only met smoke from a small bomb dropped just at the right moment, followed by a call: - "Sure Kill, Explosive Star!"
Unfortunately, the attack splashed harmlessly on the 'Bezan Black', Kuro too fast for Usopp to aim correctly. When the smoke settled, Kuro was standing up in a hunched-up position, swaying as if drunk, and looking down, much to the panic of his crew: - "T-t-the captain's Out of the Bag attack! W-Wait, c-captain K-Kuro"
"You almost spoil my plans. After three years of planning. And you expect any sort of mercy?" - He muttered: - "Jango, get out. Get to the manor. Hypnotise Kaya, and kill her. Before I kill you~"
"Out of the Bag"
Kuro disappeared. Then the scar appeared
A huge swath of the cliffside was cleaved, as if they were made of paper
"Oh fuck!" - Then a huge swath of the stuck pirates was cleaved
"W-what the hell!?" - Usopp was baffled with the senseless violence. So was Zoro, but he paid attention to what the pirates were saying; apparently, Kuro's greatest strength on the battlefield was his sheer speed, known as the Pussyfoot Manoeuvre, allowing him to move so fast that even Kuro himself couldn't see what was happening around him, the pirate captain striking both friend and foe, uncaring of the difference
The shout was how Kuro identified Usopp's position, slashing blindly in his direction and almost striking him, then stopped, looking straight at the boy at his side. Said boy tried to whack him with his hammer
Usopp missed, Kuro simply leaning back, and stepped back in turn, also evading the slashes of the enemy. Kuro didn't stop, continuing walking forward and slashing at Usopp, who turned and ran away, taking aim and exclaiming: - "Sure Kill, Smoke Star!" - And establishing another smokescreen
"This is starting to get annoying" - Stated Kuro
Zoro answered, finally passing over the field of traps and fallen pirates: - "Then let me entertain you. Demon Slash!"
Three swords met five, Kuro crossing a hand to intercept the attack; Zoro simply forced through, knocking the pirate captain backwards, the pirate hunter right at his heels. Swipe left, right, a twin slash with the blade on his mouth and the one on his right hand, stab forward with the white blade, setting up for another: - "Demon Slash"
Kuro blocked with the same hand, and regretted it, as with twin grunts, he was once again thrown back, as Zoro slashed through the blades, breaking all five swords. The black cat used the minute opening left by breaking his weapon to attempt to gouge the pirate hunter's head, but Zoro's katana on his mouth stopped the attack, parrying it and leaving Kuro wide open for the two blades on the green-haired man's hands
Grunting at the cuts opened on his chest, Kuro moved to backhand Zoro with his almost weaponless hand, the fragments of his claws still made for rather lengthy blades, the attack blocked by a raised nameless sword
The battle raged wordlessly, the only noise the clash of high-quality steel blades; and like all battles, it had to end. Kuro slashed forth with his full hand, but was forced to stop his attack because of a wide slash, then while stepping back, he stepped on a miserly little caltrop that had been dropped earlier, who flew away in the chaos and landed in the wrong place, at the wrong time
Zoro felt robbed of a great fight, but conceded he had to finish it. His opponent on the ground, he shouted: - "Dragon Twister!" - And the spiral of blades and wind launched Kuro much like it launched Buchi, the man shouting as he was defeated
"N-n-no! T-this can't be!" - Were captain Kuro's last words, before unconsciousness claimed him
Jango felt a shiver going down his spine, for reasons unknown. He felt it after feeling a shiver go down his spine, for meeting a waving guy standing in front of the doors of the mansion, a wide grin promising pain should the pirate attempt anything. Said guy's head was upside down
"Fuck it, I'll just hide in the forest" - After all, Kuro needed him to hypnotise the lass. He would kill him only after that
Then, looking through the trees, the green-haired man appeared, carrying a massive sack, followed by the tangerine-haired girl, who was limping thanks to a bandaged and bleeding foot, and the tanned boy, supporting the lass. His captain was nowhere in sight
Fuck
Luffy watched as the weird guy disappeared. Good, that he knew better than to cause trouble
Turning to his friends, he waved, moving to help Usopp and Nami: - "Zoro! Nami! Usopp! How was it?"
"Luffy!" - Called the pair he moved to help, through for different reasons:
"Luffy! Tell Usopp that I'm fine, and we should've pillaged their ship" - "Luffy! Tell Nami that she's not fine and that she should get her leg checked!"
"Usopp, Nami is fine and you could have easily pillaged their ship. Nami, you're mostly fine and do need medical attention" - Her leg was still bleeding, the bandages stained red
Zoro started describing the fight, ignoring the pouting faces from the wounded lass and the tanned teen, Luffy's eyes shining at his 'awesome crew', the boy whooping with joy at the victory
"Alright! Wait, what happened with Kuro?" - Comically enough, Luffy was still in a commemoration position, one arm and leg raised as if jumping
All three who participated in the fight shrugged: - "No idea" - Last they seen, the man was just… left there, bleeding from his wounds, his crew slowly picking their own pieces and moving back to their ship
Luffy next asked about the sack that Zoro carried, the man answering that Nami wouldn't stop buggering them about her treasure on their little boat, which she feared would be stolen by the pirates if they were to simply leave it there
Luffy dealt with that by praising her forward-thinking, as now they could simply abandon the little boat and never see it again, a statement that had all three blinking, as it was true. Nami would claim it was her idea all along
The victory party that followed was incredibly subdued. Kaya, the hostess, was a frail young lady, so Luffy and crew ensured it all went as peaceful as possible; the fact that only the four, plus the wounded Merry and the children, were present helped with that. After all, who would believe that gentle and peaceful if pompous Klahadore was secretly the highly violent and cruel captain Kuro, executed three years ago? No; better let it all die, a little lie to protect the peaceful Syrup Village and said peace
And, on the next day, after a good night of sleep on Kaya's mansion, they met her
"She's a cute little caravel!" - Exclaimed Nami, her eyes shining alongside her crew, including Zoro. The Going Merry, as that was her name, was a little caravel with one main mast and a secondary one, with a sheep figurehead above a cannon; painted mostly white, the parts not painted were its wooden body, and darker keel
She was adorable, and the crew loved her from the moment they laid eyes on it
"This calls for a party!"
"Oi, Luffy; we just had one" - Usopp pointed out, but the boy with the straw hat didn't care
Turning to Kaya, he declared: - "This time call the entire village! Usopp is sailing away, and he needs a proper goodbye!"
This time, the party was a proper one, or as defined by Luffy, adequate; the village was weeping as they sent away their dear liar, waving their goodbyes as they heard his many tall tales, many which he promised to make true as he himself wept with emotion
Then Kaya stood in front of Usopp as he prepared to sail away, and words escaped the talkative teen. Mostly because the fair blonde kissed him, much to the approval, laughter and applause of the partygoers
AN; Happy new year! Yay! Goodbye 2016, hello 2017!
Woo, and the fireworks here in Santos were beautiful... then again, so they were last year
No reviews this time, so we can go straight to the canon changes, the most notable one being that we have our first pairing, Usopp with Kaya! It will be mostly be lived through letters and bounty posters, as Kaya will stay to be a doctor and Usopp will be the sniper of the Pirate King
Another important one is that Zoro, Nami and Usopp had their time to shine, as Luffy stays at Kaya's Manor to protect; Zoro easily trounces Sham and Buchi, never losing his swords, Usopp takes Luffy place, being hypnotized and stomping on the pirates, and even Nami having some fun, beating down a few of the pirates and joining Usopp in taking down Jango. Then Kuro appeared, and hurt our favourite thief... Usopp's trickery proceeded to save his life, and Zoro dealed with him too, breaking one of his weapons and sending him bleeding and flying
... Oh, and Gaimon happened pretty much as canon, just being a footnote into the story. Perhaps I'll flesh it over with a flashback, since the kindness Luffy displayed was, to me, what had Nami truly starting to like being a 'Straw Hat', but for now, it'll just be the beginning of a block
Anything else, anything else...? No? Okay, then again, happy new year and have a nice day!
Peace!