Chapter 7: I Pity You.

AN: Hey guys! It's been a while. I apologize for the wait, I've been a little bit busy with my studies and I spend my free time reading other mangas or watching other stuff, which drove me away from One Piece a little bit. And now I'm in vacations but I still don't have much time to write. So, yeah, I cannot really promise you a chapter every week, every two weeks or even every month because I like my freedom, first, and because I don't know when I'll be truly inspired.

Yeah, that's my twisted way of doing things, sorry to impose it to you.

To iitrnr: Yes I know. But then again, Usopp doesn't think this way. He thinks he has no chance of winning, which makes everything more epic.

To LoganAlexander : I read the first chapters of the manga again and no, Zoro's hands are not tied. They would've been pretty close to the sword arm if he was attached with his swords. And why did he use his swords ? Simply because Zoro likes to cut things with his swords.

To bookygurl3400 : Kamoulox!

So, this is the fight between Usopp and Kuro. That's the main reason why the straw hats have kept their appearances and their weapons, just so Usopp could have a decent fight with him.

"I challenge you to a duel to the death!"

Kuro and Usopp stared at each other. The sniper had his slingshot aimed at his enemy who looked completely calm. He adjusted his glasses with the palm of his hands, so his claws wouldn't hit his face.

"A duel, uh?" Kuro said calmly. "I'm not a pirate anymore; I don't want to play games. You better run away, kid, if you don't want to be killed."

Usopp smirked. "Are you afraid to lose, Kuro?" He taunted.

Kuro grit his teeth in annoyance. "Fine!" He snapped. "If you want to die, then that's fine for me!"

Kaya gulped. At the same time Merry regained consciousness. He stared at the scene silently.

"Let's meet in one hour at the North Shore." Usopp proposed. "We'll be far from the villager's eyes."

Kuro narrowed his eyes. "That's fine for me." Then he stared at Kaya, and gave her one of his darkest glares."And you, don't take this opportunity to flee."

Kaya paled.

Kuro smirked cruelly. "If you do, then I'll slaughter every villager myself, one by one."

Kaya gasped.

"Understood?" Kuro asked.

She nodded weakly.

Kuro walked away in direction of the mansion's entrance, thus turning his back to Usopp.

"If I were you I wouldn't hesitate shooting my opponent in the back." He said to Usopp.

He twitched. "You're not me." Usopp retorted.

As a reply, Kuro disappeared using his 'silent step'. He reappeared on top of the wall.

"I noticed." He said. "Don't make me wait." Then he disappeared again.

Kaya remained silent for a moment. Too many things happened in a short lapse of time, it was more than she could handle.

"Well, I guess I'll have to go." Usopp said casually. He opened his bag and sorted a couple of odd objects.

"You shouldn't be doing that for me." Kaya said weakly.

"It's suicide!" Merry shouted, horrified. "This man is dangerous!"

Usopp smirked. "I have some tricks up my sleeve too, you know. Trust the Captain Usopp to always take-up a challenge."

Kaya looked down. "I can't make you change your mind." She admitted, and then stared at Usopp in the eyes. "So, please, don't die."

Kuro was standing on the slope at the North Shore, waiting for his 'opponent', or rather his victim, to come.

'What an annoying brat.' Kuro thought. 'How does he know everything? And Jango that hasn't come yet… but maybe it was Jango who told him everything in the first place, after all he's the only one who knows about my plan.'

Kuro frowned. 'Maybe over the years he grew up a brain and realized that I would kill anyone who knew my real identity, and that he was on my list of future preys. Before I kill Usopp I'll make him spit out the truth out of his mouth.'

Kuro saw a silhouette coming from the forest. He smirked.

"So, you came after all." Kuro stated. "Tell me frankly, Usopp, why did you not run away? I gave you the opportunity, though."

Usopp approached the slope. "You wouldn't understand." He replied calmly. "It's just that, if I ran away, I would have regretted it my entire life."

Kuro snorted. "Nonsense. You prefer to die rather than live with regrets?"

Usopp sorted his slingshot out of his bag. There was something new on him; now he was wearing a glove on his right hand. It caught Kuro's attention for a moment.

"I already said that you wouldn't understand." Usopp retorted.

Kuro stared at the long-nosed sniper with disdain. "Whatever. You're just a kid playing pirate. Even if you can throw carnivore plants, you're no match for me."

Usopp aimed his Kabuto to Kuro's direction and fired.

"Hissatsu Midori Boshi, Take Javelin!"

A dozen of giant bamboos popped up on the ground. At the same time, Kuro used his silent step and disappeared. He reappeared in front of Usopp.

"Not bad." Kuro admitted. "However, I'm too fast for you."

Kuro was about to slash Usopp with his claws when Usopp threw a ball on the ground.

"Usopp smoke ball!" Usopp yelled, and smoke appeared, blinding Kuro for a few seconds. Usopp profited of the occasion to take some distance.

'I fell for an old trick!' Kuro thought angrily. 'However…'

Usopp aimed at Kuro's direction with his slingshot.

"Hissatsu midoriboshi…"

Kuro finally got out of the smoke cloud and used his silent step to get out of Usopp's range.

Usopp fired and missed. A giant flower bloomed on the ground.

"Rafflesia!"

The flower excreted a stinky odor, destabilizing Kuro for a few seconds. 'Shit!'

Thanks to this diversion, Usopp had managed to go far enough from Kuro. Or rather, Usopp was far enough from his next attack's range. He was standing on top of the hill while Kuro was down the slope. It was a perfect position for a sniper.

Usopp aimed at Kuro, who was heading to him.

Usopp widened his eyes. There was something strange going on in Usopp's head. 'Aim here?' He thought, before stretching his weapon.

It happened in one second.

Usopp fired an explosive ball.

Kuro used his silent step to avoid it.

However, the projectile arrived one meter next to Kuro. The blow, combined with the speed of his technique caused Usopp's enemy to be projected in the air.

Usopp couldn't believe his eyes. 'How come I predicted where he'd be at this precise moment?' He thought in bewilderment. 'It was as if I could hear the future…'

Then he realized, a bit too late, that it was the ideal time to shot at his opponent -since he was in the air-, the former captain of the Black Cat landed on his feet, a few meters next to Usopp. The blow had caused him apparent damages, but he didn't seem to be affected.

"You!" Kuro snarled, revealing his anger for a second, before calming himself again. "Who are you?"

Usopp smirked. "I told you. I'm a pirate. I'm the proud sniper of the straw hats crew."

Kuro snorted. "You're not a captain and you still want to defy me."

"You aren't a Captain anymore." Usopp retorted. "You left your crew three years ago."

Kuro stared at him with a menacing glare. "True. Tell me, brat, who told you about my plans?" He asked. "Is that Jango?"

Usopp looked confused for a moment. "Who's Jango?" He asked back. "The hypnotizer?"

He narrowed his eyes. "Jango is the only one aware of your plans. It has to be him. Once I'm done with you and he'd done his part of the bargain I'll finish him off just like these useless pawns that call themselves my crew."

Usopp gritted his teeth in anger. "They're your crewmates!"

Kuro had an amused smirk on his face. "They were just a bunch of noisy brutes, just good enough to raid thorps. They won't miss to anyone. And I need them to die so my plan is complete."

Usopp stared at Kuro and the first reaction he felt wasn't fear, but disgust.

"You know." Usopp began. "You are the kind of man my captain hates the most. You never had any faith in them?"

"Faith is for fools." Kuro said. "The only thing you should rely on is your own intellect."

"You know what?" Usopp asked finally. "I pity you. You should never had been a pirate in the first place."

"Thank you." Kuro replied with a hint of sarcasm.

Usopp smirked. "People like you are just good enough to be a lap dog for the government."

Kuro twitched in annoyance. "You're starting to get on my nerves."

Then he disappeared, using his silent step technique again.

Kuro reappeared a second later one meter next to his opponent, the blades on his glove's left hand about to lacerate Usopp's head.

The long-nosed sniper was shaking his knees in fear, and would have done nothing if his survival instinct made him make a move without his conscent.

Usopp placed his hands in front of his face, in order to protect himself from the blades.

Kuro hit Usopp's right palm with his claws, and then, at the moment of the impact, the attack was like absorbed by Usopp's glove.

The sniper smirked once he realized what happened. 'The impact dial has worked!' He thought. 'I'm relieved.'

'What happened?' Kuro thought to himself. 'It's not normal. I should've sliced his hands in pieces and yet…'

Without losing a second, Usopp approached his enemy and placed the palm of his hand next to Kuro's face. "It's time for you to receive your attack!" He announced proudly.

Kuro reacted automatically and prepared to attack with his right hand. He tried to get away, but Usopp grabbed his left arm with his free hand. The attack he received earlier made him lose a bit of strength and thus wasn't able to avoid the incoming hit.

"Impact!"

Just when Usopp pressed the button of the shell-lookalike impact dial in order to hit Kuro's face, the ex-captain of the Black Cats managed to lay an attack on Usopp's chest by slashing with his five blades.

The force of the impact projected Kuro away; he fell on the ground, struggling to keep a state of consciousness. Meanwhile Usopp fell on the ground too, his right arm receiving the backlash of his attack. He coughed up blood, realizing that he had been slashed on the chest.

Kuro stoop up with difficulty. His face was covered in blood, his own blood. His glasses were now nothing but twisted metal and broken glass. His leg was wounded, too, which meant that he'd have difficulties to use his technique again. Kuro was a bit stunned, but at least he was still standing.

"What an annoying brat." He said aloud, panting heavily. "I thought that he'd be defenseless in close combat. I've been fooled, but…"

Kuro stared at his enemy, lying on the ground and bathing on his own blood. "It's over. I must've hit a vital organ."

It was probably one of his hardest battles he'd ever fought, but he won. This Usopp was using techniques Kuro had never seen before, such like throwing instant-growing carnivore plants or using a device that released a tremendous amount of force. Even his slingshot was weird. Kuro wasn't sure, but it seemed like Usopp's own weapon was a living plant.

'How in the World did he learn to use those things?' Kuro wondered. 'He ma y be the son of a Yonkou's lieutenant, He never left the village in the first place. Or had he?'

He turned his back to Usopp and stared at the ocean. 'Jango will arrive today.' He thought. 'He may have already landed on this island. It doesn't change a thing if he tried or not to make me kill by telling my plans to this kid. I'll kill Jango once he has done his job. After all, no one must know my true identity…'

"Have you ever been taught… not to turn your back to the enemy?"

Kuro's blood froze.

"So." He said. "You were still alive."

Kuro turned to see his opponent. Usopp was standing, holding his black slingshot, but Kuro could sense he was struggling not to fall. On his chest, he had five parallel slash wounds.

"Tell me, you didn't think you had a chance against me in the first place, did you?" Kuro mused.

To his surprise, Usopp shook his head. "No. I thought I had no chance to win." He admitted. "I have always been pessimistic."

Kuro stared at Usopp with pity. "It's called 'realism'. It's what you lacked to survive. In this World, it is no use to be honorable, to play the hero or to live with principles. What truly matters are the results."

Usopp coughed up some blood but didn't avert his gaze from his enemy. "It's as you said."

Kuro raised an eyebrow.

"What truly matters are the results." Usopp continued. "My Captain is supposed to come to this island today, and he's the strongest man I've ever seen. I just wanted to make sure you'd kill time with me and not with anyone else."

Kuro widened his eyes. "Even though you knew you'd die?"

Usopp smirked. He was holding two seeds in his hand. He took one of them and put it in his Kabuto's mouth.

"True, but I kind of overestimated you." Usopp said mockingly. "You really hit like a little girl."

Kuro's face reddened in frustration and ran in Usopp's direction.

Usopp stretched his slingshot. 'It's happening again!' He thought. 'Kuro's going to jump… there. It's like last time in Dressrosa…'

Usopp fired. "Hissatsu Midoriboshi…"

Kuro jumped to avoid the hit. He would have used his silent step technique, but he couldn't because of his wounded leg.

However, instead of aiming at Kuro, he aimed at his feet's destination.

"…Trampolina!"

A weird flower popped up below Kuro's feet. It was a sort of salad lookalike plant with a big bubble on the center. Kuro had the misfortune to land on the bubble. He was projected in the air.

"It worked!" Usopp exclaimed. "I managed to hear through his movements! Is that … Haki?"

Kuro was ten meters above the ground. Such a fall would be disastrous for him, but it wasn't what worried him the most.

'I'm the perfect target for him!' He thought with dread. 'How? How come a little punk like him managed to ruin everything?'

Usopp fired his last projectile. "Hissatsu Midoriboshi…"

A red seed was flying in Kuro's direction, and he couldn't avoid it.

"No!" He snarled in pure anger. "My plans cannot fail!"

"… Impact Wolf!"

The seed had now sprouted, forming a green plant with the shape of a wolf, rushing at Kuro.

The red seed touched his target and released a shock wave.

Kuro fell unconscious and was projected away, in direction of the beach.

On the shore of Gecko Island, a tall and thin man got out of his small embarkation. He was wearing a blue vest, a blue hat and heart-shaped glasses. What was odd about him was that he had a mushroom stuck on his chin. This man's name was Jango.

Jango was once the first mate of the Black Cats Pirates, but had been promoted Captain since Kuro had left.

Jango stared at the island. "The captain had told me to come here three years after his departure." He muttered. "I wonder where he is…"

Then as if someone wanted to answer him, an unidentified object flew to Jango's direction.

His jaw dropped when he recognized his Captain.

"Ca-Captain Kur…" Jango didn't finish his sentence as his beloved Captain crashed to the hypnotizer, knocking him out in the process.

AN: So, Kuro has lost to a brave warrior of the seas! I hope I have met your expectations, since it's the first time I'm writing a serious One Piece fight. Next chapter Usopp will meet Luffy, Nami & Zoro, they'll get the Merry again and sail for the Baratie!

And after the next chapter there will be the Mini Adventures of Brook and Chopper, and after that ... we will go back to the present time for a while. You know, when the mugiwara were supposed to sail in the New World? Yeah, well we'll meet some characters from this timeline.

I know, I know, I've already done that in one of my stories and it can be damn confusing. I'll do it only once this time, I swear!