Here is the lovely chapter 7! I hope you guys enjoy it and a big thank you to you people who support this story! Also I don't own One Piece.
Tani walked along the dirt path until she found the others. Onion was missing as well as Luffy and Usopp. That means Jango hasn't showed up yet. She smiled to herself. She wanted to see Jango hypnotise himself. Running over to the others, she leaned on the railing next to Zoro and Nami.
"Hey" She said to the 2.
"Where were you?" Nami asked her. Tani smiled and said "I had a message to give to Klahadore." She made sure to use his alias this time.
"A message?" Nami parroted.
"I hope you didn't hit him. With the way you where seething back there, it looked like you wanted to kill him" Zoro commented dryly. Tani smiled sweetly at him, and didn't answer.
"TERRIBLE NEWS, GUYS! AHH!" Onion yelled as he ran at them.
"You see?" Carrot said. Tani must have missed the part where they were talking about Onion.
"Listen to me! Some nut-jobs on his way here and he only walks backwards! Hey, when'd you get here?" Onion looked at Tani. Tani blinked and said "Just now"
"You liar" Carrot and Pepper said to Onion at the same time.
"It's the truth!" Onion yelled, then turned around and pointed behind him. "There he is!" Tani smiled herself silly when she saw Jango. Walking backwards just like Onion said. It was funny watching it in the anime. It was hilarious seeing it in reality.
"Which one of you has the nerve to call me weird?" Jango said as he stopped by them. "I'm just a normal guy." More like a pirate, Tani sweat dropped.
"That so? You look insane" Nami commented.
"Don't be silly. I'm just an ordinary run of the mil hypnotist" Jango answered. Tani leaned forward a bit, her face almost spilt in two.
"A hypnotist? Really? Awesome!" Onion said.
"Show us something!" Pepper.
"Yeah, do something!" Carrot.
"What?! You fool's. What makes you think I'd want to show my hypnotist skills to road-side strangers? Okay, you've convinced me. Now watch the ring closely" Jango said, switching from one decision to another.
"What a ham" Zoro commented, causing Tani to snicker.
"Now, by the count of Jango you will be in a deep sleep." He was swinging the ring back and forth. Tani watched Jango himself instead of the ring. "Okay, are you ready? One, two Jango!"
The three kids and Jango hit the dirt, fast asleep. Jango's hand that held the ring stayed in the air, with the ring still swinging.
"Who is this freaky weirdo?" Zoro said with a tick mark. Tani out right laughed at the three. Jango then woke up and with a few parting words, was on his way. The kids woke up soon after. Zoro had switched to standing up and Tani had taken residence of the fence.
"Our Captains been gone for quite a while" Carrot said as he stepped forward. Tani knew where Usopp was, but kept her mouth shut.
"Yeah, Luffy too" Zoro answered, with his arms crossed. He didn't look like a happy capper.
"He probably just needs some time" Onion spoke up.
"Whenever he gets really upset like this, you can count on his hanging out by the shore" Pepper said, turning to look at the pirates, with his hands on his hips.
"Uhh. AH!" Carrot said. It seemed like he spotted something.
"UHAH!" The three kids yelled in unison. Tani spotted Usopp running at them from the distance.
"Captain!" Again, the kids said at once. 'How do they do that?' Tani thought to herself.
"Huh?" Nami looked over to where the kids where looking. Usopp looked out of breath and he was panting. He also looked like something was really bothering him.
"Hold on. I thought Luffy was supposed to be with him" Zoro, the ever thoughtful… Well, he was the first mate.
"Captain!" The kids yelled again, but had to quickly get out of Usopp's way as he ignored the kids and kept running.
"Hey! Where's Luffy, is he still at the shore?" Nami asked, her voice going small as Usopp ignored her, too and kept running. "Wow. He looked really upset but why? Still mad at the butler?" Nami said when Usopp was gone. Tani jumped off the fence, landing on her feet easily. Tani shook her head at Nami's question and said ominously "No. It has something to do with the butler, but he's not upset for that reason anymore."
"If you know why, then tell us" Nami said, looking curious. Tani shook her head.
"It would be better if I didn't dish out my knowledge." She moved both her hands behind her head. "I might get killed for it." She stuck her tongue out. Zoro gave her a long look, meaning he had taken what she said and filed it away for later thinking.
"Who knows?" Zoro answered Nami's pervious question with his own.
"No! That wasn't just a mad face" Carrot said.
"That look was different" Pepper added.
"It was the tragic face of sheer desperation" Onion said.
"Hey. Why don't you guys show us the way down to that shore" Zoro asked (demanded) of the kids.
"This smells like an adventure to me" Carrot said. The kids where in a huddle kind of thing.
"Yeah! Something happened at the shore" Pepper answered.
"I think this calls for the Usopp pirates" Onion commented.
"Enough already! How do we get to this place?" Zoro sounded annoyed. Nami jumped off the fence. Tani walked over to Zoro, placing a calming hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down. The kids are just excited for an adventure" Tani said to him.
The kids showed them to the cliff. Tani walked over to the cliffs edge and looked around.
"This is the place" Carrot said.
"Our captain always comes here to be alone and think" Pepper said.
"It is nice" Onion said. The three kids where looking around, probably trying to find Luffy.
"I don't think that Straw Hat guy is here" Pepper said to Zoro.
"The rocks sure are loose here" Nami said. Tani looked down and spied Luffy down at the bottom of the cliff.
"Nami. Be careful. You too, Tani" Zoro said. Ah, the loyal first mate.
"Uh. Guys? I found him" Tani said, pointing down.
"Luffy?" Zoro looked over the cliff as well as the kids.
"Whoa" Onion said.
"Hey, it's that straw hat guy!" Pepper said.
"And his butt" Carrot said. They got climbed/slid down the cliff to the bottom, gathering around Luffy.
"Luffy! What did you do? How did this happen?" Nami sounded terrified and shocked and scared.
"He fell!" Carrot said.
"He's a goner!" Onion said.
"So that's why our captain looked so upset" Pepper seemed like the only not terrified one there, besides Zoro. Tani then heard Luffy's snores. Tani's face spilt into a small smile and she bit her lips to keep from laughing. Zoro looked at her and said "What's so funny?"
"Listen and you'll find out" Tani giggled quietly. They all took her advice and listened.
"Hm? Wait a minute…" Zoro said, raising an eyebrow slightly.
"Heh! Lazy bum" Zoro lifted one of his sheathed swords and walked over to Luffy, hitting Luffy's lower back. Luffy's hands flexed and he made a 'hen' sound.
"AHHH!" The three kids and Nami freaked out. Luffy sat up, yawning.
"Good morning, guys" Luffy said, smiling. Tani couldn't help but burst out laughing. She fell on her ass.
"Hahahahahaha-OW-hahahahha!" Tani laughed, interrupted with a yelp of pain when she fell. She had sat on a sharp rock. "Stupid rock…" She got up, picked up said rock and biffed it into the ocean. It flew so far she couldn't see it before it landed into the ocean with a small, barely hearable splash.
"…"
Luffy then explained everything he and Usopp had heard.
"WHAT? Pirates are going to attack the village? Then their gonna kill Kaya?" The kids yelled.
"Yup, that's what they said. No question about it." Luffy answered as he put his hat back on. Tani wasn't surprised at this news, seeing as she already knew it.
"Wahhh!" The kids made scared sounds.
"So, what made you think it be a good time for a nap?" Zoro asked Luffy.
"That's the thing. I don't remember going to sleep, or getting down here at all" Luffy said with a big smile. The kids did a huddle, clearly talking about Kuro and Usopp and some other shit. Tani looked down at Luffy and offered him a hand. Tani heard where Nami commented about the village and just had to put in "But will the villagers believe him? He's known to be a liar. Will they believe him, or think he's just lying again?"
"Of course they'll believe him!" Carrot said.
"Yeah! They'll believe!" The two others said in unison. Tani raised an eyebrow at that, but said nothing. The kids went back into the huddle, and commented about running like the wind and ran away, back toward the village.
"Oh no!" Luffy suddenly said.
"What's up?" Zoro asked him.
"AHHH! We need to stock up before the meat shop guy leaves!" Luffy yelled looking like it was the end of the world. Zoro walked behind Luffy and hit him with a sheathed sword.
"Come on. That's not really the issue at hand here." Zoro said. Tani giggled. Luffy accepted her outstretched hand and Tani helped him to his feet. They walked, following the kids back to the village.
"CAPTAIN!" The kids yelled when they caught sight of Usopp. Tani stood behind the kids, with Luffy, Zoro and Nami.
"Hey guys!" Usopp said, raising his injured arm in a wave. Tani was sure that she was the only one who knew it was injured.
"HEY!" Luffy yelled, smiling. Usopp's face went from happy smile to dumb shock and horror. He made a surprised sound, before running over to Luffy.
"Wait! You're alive again?" Usopp asked Luffy.
"Alive? Yeah! And I had a pretty good nap!" Luffy said, looking confused at first, but smiling at the end.
"He was sleeping the whole time" Pepper said.
"Captain, we heard all about those pirates and their evil plan!" Carrot said.
"We better hurry and warn the people of the village so they have enough time to get away!" Onion said his arms in the air. Usopp's face changed. He frowned and looked like he was having unpleasant flashbacks. Usopp started laughing after a bit, though it sounded forced to Tani's ears.
"Hahahahahah! Well, obviously I'm lying like usual! That butler made me so mad at what he said! Hahahahaha! I'd thought I'd get him back and say that he was a pirate! Hahahaha!" Usopp laughed. The kids joined in after a few seconds.
"Oh, I get it! You put the straw hat guy up to it too!" Onion laughed. They started walking away.
"Hey, where ya going?" Usopp turned around and asked them. Tani saw the blood on his arm, the one he was hiding.
"Honestly? You've really disappointed me" Carrot said.
"Yeah!" Pepper agreed.
"Even though that butler is a jerk, I thought you were better than lying to hurt someone. I admired you for being such a kind hearted person" Onion said
"And too think, we respected him all this time" Pepper said.
"I was wrong about him, guys" Carrot said.
"Let's go home" Pepper said.
"Yeah. I think it's supper time anyways" Onion said.
Tani started after the kids. 'They can be really harsh sometimes' she thought. Tani looked over at Usopp. From this angle, she couldn't see his face, but she knew he probably had a sad face on. After a few minutes of staring, the group walked back to the shore. Nami was treating Usopp's shot wound. Usopp was making noises of pain. She wrapped it in a bandaged and said "There! All done."
"So, how come you lied to them?" Luffy asked
"Because all I do is lie" Usopp answered. Tani frowned to herself. She was sitting on the ground, lying against a rock. "There's no way anyone was going to believe what I had to say. Why should they."
"Because what you were telling them was the honest truth" Zoro said, leaning forward.
"They are coming and their gonna level this whole town" Nami commented.
"Yeah, but what am I supposed to do? They'll think I'm lying if I try to warn them. Everyone in the village is going to think tomorrows going to be a normal day." He clenched his hand and said, standing up "They think I'm lying and that's all they gotta think! I'm going to stop those pirates at the beach myself! This is all my fault for being such a liar. I don't care anymore if they drive me away with brooms or shot me in the arm. This is my village. My home and I love everyone in it. I have to protect them!" Usopp was crying now. Tani felt a tender smile spread across her face. She liked Usopp because of this reason.
"You're a hell of a good guy. Sending your cronies away and going into battle alone." Zoro's hand tightened on his swords as he talked.
"Just so you know, I've got dibs on all the pirate treasure, ya hear?" Nami said her raised hand in an 'OK' sign.
"Do you want a little help or what?" Luffy asked, he had his arm stretched across his body, with his hand on it.
"I'll make sure to give it my all~!" Tani said, giving Usopp a thumbs up.
"You guys… You guys are gonna help me fight all these pirates? I don't get it" Usopp asked, still trying to get his crying under control.
"Well, you said there's a whole bunch of bad guys, right?" Luffy asked as he flexed his hand.
"And you look scared out of your mind" Zoro added.
"For you information, I have nerves of steel! I am perfectly okay with tons of bad guys! After all, you're looking at the legendary Captain Usopp, warrior of the high seas!" Usopp said. He did look scared, Tani noted. And his legs where shaking. Usopp hit his shaking legs as he said "Damn it. Alright, fine! I'm scared. Why shouldn't I be? Their Captain Kuro's men! This guy's mean business. I don't need pity. If you guys are sticking around cause you pity me, just leave! I don't need you laughing at me!"
"We're not laughing at you. We're helping you, because you are honorable" Zoro said.
"You really think we'd risk our lives out of pity?" Luffy asked.
"I sure as hell wouldn't" Tani answered Luffy's question. Usopp started crying again. "Ah! You guys…!" Tani smiled at him. Tani would definitely give it her all, but she wasn't sure how much help she'd be. She didn't have any weapons to speak of. Oh well. Just gotta work with what you got!
Tani tuned back into the conversation as Usopp started talking again while he lead the 4 others back up the slope.
"Okay! At daybreak, the pirates will be landing at this shore to begin their attack. But the only way they'll be able to get to the village is to go up this slope. The rest of the shore line is sheer cliff, so they have to come through here. If we can fight them while their funneled into that narrow pass, their numbers won't mean anything and the village will be protected"
The group of 5 stopped at the top of the slope. Tani was impressed with how good Usopp was with analysing things. She was so impressed that it almost slipped her mind that the pirates where going to show up at the other slope.
'Should I tell them? Would that change the storyline in anyway?' Tani thought to herself. It probably wouldn't right away, but if something is changed now, it might cause a ripple effect and there could be many changes in the future. But then again, now that she was in the anime, things will change with just her presence. That was unavoidable. So what were a few changes now? Things continued on as Tani stayed lost in her thoughts.
"Alright! Sounds pretty easy!" Luffy said.
"Talking about it is, but victory depends on our strength. What is it that you guys can do?" Usopp said, looking at the 4 of them.
"I cut" Zoro said, his arms crossed and his weight on his left foot.
"I stretch" Luffy said, with his arm out.
"I steal" Nami said, her hands on her hips. When Tani didn't speak up, the other 4 turned to her and noticed her faraway look.
"And? What do you do Tani?" Usopp asked, shocking Tani out of her thoughts.
"Huh?" Tani asked, looking at the lot of them. Finally Usopp's question register in her mind and she said, "Um I hit?"
"I hid" Usopp said, sounding scared.
"YOU HAVE TO FIGHT TO!" The other 3 yelled. Luffy had Usopp in a headlock. Usopp had tears running down his face and Luffy, Nami and Zoro looked furious. Tani giggled to herself, but otherwise stayed out of the 'bonding' experience, as she called it.
"Just making it funny! Come on, calm down!" Usopp pleading with his tormenters. After about a minute, Luffy released Usopp and Tani decided now was a good time to speak up about changing slopes.
"Guys." Tani said, which caused the others to look at her. Usopp had run off to get the barrels of oil they'd need while Tani had been lost in thought again. 'Danm! That guys fast!' Tani thought.
"I thought it'd be a good idea to tell you that this isn't the slope where the other pirates are gonna show up. It's the other slope" Tani said, a serious look on her face.
"How do you know that?" Zoro asked, a suspicious look growing on his face. Nami looked at Tani with the same look, but less noticeable. Luffy just looked confused with a half-smile on his face.
"Hm. A little bird told me" Tani said, a half-smile on her face.
Nami stepped forward and pointed a finger in Tani's face. "We get it, you're knowledgeable. Now I think it's time you tell us where you got this knowledge."
Tani went cross-eyed as her eyes focused on Nami's appendage, then she looked to Nami with a sad look on. 'If I tell them, they won't believe me. They'd probably leave me here.'
"I'll tell you, I promise, but not right now. We have a battle coming and we need to be focused" Tani said, being completely serious for the first time since showing up here.
"But-!" Nami started, but Luffy interrupted her.
"Don't press anymore, Nami. She promised she'd tell us, so she'll tell us when she's ready" He said with a big smile and a few feeble protests later, they dropped it. They silently agreed to trust her on this one. Around this time Usopp came back with 3 barrels and was told about the location changed. He protested a bit, saying how could Tani know and such, but gave in after a bit. They made their way to the other slope. When they got there, they moved halfway down the slope and started pouring the oil onto the ground.
"Yup. I'm a genius" Usopp said, looking proud of himself. Luffy was sitting on the ground, Nami, Zoro and Tani standing behind him.
"Don't slip down, Luffy" Tani said a warning to her captain.
"Yeah I know!" Luffy said back happily.
"There's no way they'll be able to make it up this slope now! All this oil here should keep them occupied while we go to work on them. Their gonna be busy slipping and sliding like idiots and we show up to beat the crap out of them!" Usopp continued.
"Wow. So that's your plan, huh?" Nami asked, as she and Zoro walked forward.
"That's right! I'm gonna defend the village no matter what it takes" Usopp answered.
"Let's just hope none of us slip of that oil and end up down there with them" Nami pointed out a flaw in Usopp's plan. "Because that would be like sliding into a meat grinder."
"Usopp, I gotta hand it to you, you're pretty good at fighting dirty" Luffy commented as he slid one of his feet in the oil.
"Of course I am! There isn't anyone alive who can best me at the slingshot or the art of fighting dirty!" Usopp was looking proud of himself again. Tani smiled at his expense and it seems the other 3 pirates where as well.
"It's almost daybreak" Zoro said as he looked out along the horizon. Tani suddenly felt very nervous. In all her life, she had never felt so anxious before. She had a good reason to feel that way, since she had no weapon, just her fists and no power to speak of. Luffy looked back at her and smiled reassuringly. Tani blinked at him, and all her nervousness seemed to just dissipate. She smiled back slightly. His smiled widened and he turned to look forward again. When the enemy arrived, she'd be ready to kick some butt!
With that, another chapter comes to an end! Remember to click that review button. Have a great day/night! Lily out! :)