Chapter 9

"The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions."- Leonardo da Vinci

"Wonder where he ran off too…." Kya mumbled, sitting down on the steps of a house. The five of them had left the restaurant, when the long nose man had taken off for something. 'His nose…..it reminds me of-' She jumped slightly when Luffy sat down beside her, munching on some meat he had taken from the pub.

"Usopp pirate group is here!"

"Eh?" The Straw Hats stared in awe as three young kids, the kids who were with Usopp on the beach, popped out around the corner. "What?" Nami muttered, an eyebrow raised. "I don't know…..who are they?" Luffy added as they stared at the three young boys. "Hey…Captain isn't here." The one with the hat said. "It can't be that he's been eaten up!" Glasses added, their faces in shock. Kya snorted from her seat and leaned back. Kids were stupid.

"H-Hey pirates!" Skull hat shouted, raising his small sword. "What did you do to our Captain Usopp?" Apple head added, following suit. "Give us back our captain!" Glasses finished for them. Luffy finished gnawing on the bone that had held his meat, and threw it to the ground. "What delicious meat!" He said, ignoring the terrified kids. "Huh? Meat? He…He ate the Captain?"

Nami and Kya chuckled lightly as Zoro leaned over the railing to them. "Your captain…." "Wh..What? What did you do?" "We just…..Ate him." Kya busted out laughing as the kids mouths dropped and they turned to Nami. "Why are you looking at me?" She shouted angrily at them, only making them freak out even more. Her attention turned to Zoro and she walked over to him, hitting him on the head. "Why did you tell them those weird things?" She yelled and he only laughed as the kids fainted.

"Oi, oi." Kya chuckled, walking over to them. "We were kidding." She kicked the one with the skull cap lightly and he popped up. "Kidding?" He shouted as the other two sat up. "What are your names?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "Uh, Ninjin." The skull cap one said, then pointed to the two boys next to him. " Piiman, and Tamanegi."

After sharing names, the boys sat on the stoop and the pirates stood around them, sharing the truth of the boys 'captain'. "'It's that time again…?'" Tamanegi questioned after the explanation. "Yup, after he said that he left." Zoro said boredly, his head in his hand as he leaned against the railing. "Oh, so it was time to go to the mansion…"

"The mansion? Where the sick girl lives?" Nami said, surprised by this fact. "Why would he go there?" Kya asked, not believing a word they said. "To tell lies!" the boys said in unison. "Isn't that a bad thing?" Luffy deadpanned. "That's not bad actually! It's great!" Piiman smiled. "Yes! It's very good!" Tamanegi added lastly.

"Eeh?"

The boys explained how Usopp goes over to visit the mansion's owner, Kaya, and tells her lies to cheer her up from her sickness. 'He sounds too nice.' Kya frowned, clutching her arms tighter. "Wow! He's a great guy!" Luffy said, surprised at the fact lies could make someone happy. "He's a great guy!"

"So to restore her spirits, he's been going for a year to amuse her with made up tales?" Nami asked, seemingly interested in the story. "Yup. I like his nosiness."

"I like the captain's cowardice."

"I like his lies!"

"What kind of strong points are those?" Zoro and Kya muttered together, pointing out the flaws in the small group. She shook her head and sighed. 'To each their own, I guess.' She thought bitterly as Luffy spoke: "So this lady is feeling better already?"

"Yeah, and it's all thanks to the Captain!" Ninjin answered, smiling brightly. "All right! Then we shall go to the mansion and ask for a ship!" Luffy declared, pumping his fists in the air. "No! Didn't you just say you'd give it up?" Nami shouted at him, causing Kya to raise an eyebrow. Since when did the burglar feel so compassionate?

Of course, Luffy ignored her and turned to the boys. "Oi, show us the way to the mansion!" He shouted, and they nodded, heading off with Luffy right behind them. "What are we going to do with him?" Kya sighed loudly, shoving her hands in her pockets. Nami was muttering to herself as she followed the boys, her hand cradling her head. Zoro only chuckled as the three began walking together. "That's Luffy for you."

"Good afternoon!"

"What is he doing now….?" Kya mumbled as the three of them walked up behind Luffy and the young boys. In front of them was a huge mansion guarded by a huge gate. "Please lend us a ship!" He shouted before climbing up the gate. "Let's just go in." He added, throwing his leg over the top. "Then what's the use of that greeting?" Piiman muttered as Nami slapped her face and sighed. "We can't stop him." She growled. "And since we can't stop him, we'll have to follow him." Zoro added and Kya nodded in agreement.

With too much effort, and a lot of complaining on Nami's half, the rest of them climbed over the gate. "Why am I here?" Nami seethed and Kya slapped her on the shoulder. "Just calm down." She said to the younger girl as the group went to the side of the mansion. "Captain!" The boys yelled, and sure enough, there was Usopp sitting against the tree talking to a young blonde girl. "Huh? Why are all you guys here?" The long nosed man shouted in surprise. "We brought this guy here!" The boys shouted, pointing at Luffy who happened to be standing in the middle of them. "Who is he?" The girl, most likely Kaya, asked.

"Oh! So you're the ojousama?" Luffy nearly shouted at the poor girl. Usopp walked coolly over to the group, throwing his arm around Luffy's shoulders. "These guys heard of my reputation, and traveled far to see me here. They are the new members of Usopp's Pirate Crew!" He said to her, his face stoic. "Yeah!...No! That's not..! We came to ask you something! We have a request!" Luffy moved away from the liar and towards the blonde girl. "A request? Of me?" She asked, pointing towards herself.

"Yeah! We need a big ship-"

"What are you doing here?" A new voice shouted from behind the group. There stood a tall man with slicked back black hair, large rimmed glasses and a nice suit. Kya narrowed her eyes at the unfamiliar man; he smelt like trouble. "You can't just barge into the mansion like this!" He shouted again. "Urg, the butler!" Usopp groaned, turning away from the man. "He's a butler?" Kya asked, an eyebrow raised slightly. "Klahador…" Kaya trailed off as everyone stared at him. "Listen, these people are-"

"You don't have to explain, I'll ask you about it later." The butler held up a hand to the young girl before turning to the others. "Please get out, or is there something you need to say?" And of course Luffy spoke up. "I want a ship." He laughed, but quickly stopped when Zoro and Kya slapped him on the back of the head. ""No way." Klahador said before turning to Usopp. "You…You're Usopp? I've heard some rumors about you….the villagers talk about you all the time." He said darkly, and Usopp stood tall and proud. "Oh..Oh thank you! You may call me Captain Usopp! Everybody calls me that!"

"The guards said….you were lurking outside the gates. What do you want here?" The dark haired man pushed his glasses up with the heel of his palm. Kya raised an eyebrow; what an odd way to push up his glasses. "Err….I heard that there's a huge mole inside the mansion so I wanted to see it for myself!" Usopp lied, making Klahador laugh. "I see that you can certainly lie well." "What?" "I have heard about your father too. You're the son of a filthy pirate. I'm not surprised that you turned out this way. But you had better stay away from Ojousama!"

"His dad was a pirate!" Luffy asked, speaking everyone's mind. 'He looks exactly like him!' Kya mentally slapped herself for not realizing who the long nosed boy's father was earlier. "Did you say filthy?" Usopp growled suddenly, clenching his fists tightly. "You and Ojousama belong to two different worlds. Is it money that you're looking for? Name your price."

"That's enough Klahador! Apologize to Usopp-san at once!"

The air was tense as everyone turned to Kaya, who was shaking with anger at her butler. "There is no need for me to apologize to an uncivilized person! I'm just telling the truth!" The man defended before continuing his rant. "I feel sorry for you…you hate your father don't you? Because he's a 'dumb, treasure hunter' who abandoned his family and village." Even Kya's fist clenched at the man's words. "Klahador!"

"I won't let you say another bad thing about my father!" Usopp shouted, getting angrier by the second. "Why are you so angry? You're not very smart are you? You should have just told your usual lies….and say that your real father is a traveling merchant…or that you and him are not blood related." The comments finally did the young boy in, who rushed forward and clocked the butler in the face. Kya chewed the inside of her lip, her feelings a little confused. The guy didn't seem like the usual butler, and he definitely deserved that punch to the face. But it had nothing to do with her, so it didn't matter.

"Captain!" The three boys yelled out as the butler held his bruised face. "See! You're so violent! Like father, like son!" He yelled out. "Shut up!" Usopp retorted, looking like he was ready to cry. "I'm proud that my dad was a pirate! I'm proud that he was a brave warrior of the sea! You're right that I like to lie, but I'm proud of having a pirate's blood in me! I don't have to pretend that I'm not! I am the son of a pirate!"

"Oh yeah! That guy! Now I remember." Luffy said suddenly after Usopp's rant. Kya looked at him strangely for a minute but turned back to the scene as Klahador began to speak. "That pirate…a brave warrior of the sea? Don't make me laugh." The rude man pushed his glasses up again. "However the product of that barbarian is still in you! Whenever you're upset you just use your strength to hit others!" He stood up and brushed himself off. "After all, the reason you want to be close to Miss Kaya is for her money."

"What did you say? I-"

"Enough with the explanation! After all, you are a pirate's son! That's all I need to say!"

Usopp had had enough. He marched forward and grabbed Klahador by the shirt, ready to punch him again. "Don't you dare insult my father!" He cried out, stretching his arm back. "Stop it! Usopp-san, don't hurt him!" Kaya yelled from her window and he listened. "Klahador is not a bad person at all. He's being too hard on you, because he worries about me." She cried into her hand and the butler ripped Usopp's hand from his shirt. "Get out of here." He said slapping it away. "This is not a place for a barbarian like you! Remember this! Don't you ever dare come near this house again!" He yelled and Usopp turned around, heading towards the bushes. "Ya I know. You don't need to tell me to get out. I won't ever come back to this house again!" He said before disappearing.

"You idiot! Our captain is not that kind of person!" Ninjin yelled at the man. "You are stupid!" Piiman added, pumping a fist out. "Very, very stupid!" Tamanegi said, as if it would make the man cry. "Idiot!" The last one happened to be Luffy, who Zoro hit on the back of the head. "Hey! None of this is our business." He said, and Kya just shook her head. The three boys lunged forward, only to be stopped by Nami and Kya. 'Little punks.' The pink haired woman growled in her head; she hated kids. "You want a piece of me!" She looked over to see Zoro holding back an angry Luffy and shook her head.

"Get out! All of you!"

It took a lot of effort, but Nami, Kya, and Zoro managed to get the immature kids over the fence and away from the mansion. "Oi, what a pain." The assassin muttered, rubbing her temples with her fingers. "So many emotions." Zoro looked at her weirdly as they came to a railing near the road. "You say that like you're emotionless." He said, sitting down against a post with his swords by his side. She shrugged, laying down next to him with her hands behind her head. "Just saying." She muttered and Nami jumped up to sit on the top of the railing next to her.

"Where's Luffy?"

Kya sat up and looked at the two boys sitting with them, then around. Luffy had run off…..again. She sighed and crossed her legs, leaning back on her hands. "That boy…" She muttered. "Maybe he went to look for Usopp." Zoro suggested, crossing his arms. "If you're looking for captain you have to go to that place." Ninjin started, as if they were about to go on a manhunt for the boys. "Yes at the coast! Whenever he becomes stressed, he goes there." Piiman finished.

"Do you want to go?"

"No." Kya and Zoro said at the same time, and the swordsman stood up slowly. "By the way, where is your other friend?" Nami asked, the only person realizing he was gone. Kya sighed and sat forward, crossing her arms across her chest. 'This is such a pain.' She thought as the boys spoke. "You mean Tamanegi? He always disappears." Piiman said casually. "And comes back overreacting about something." Ninjin finished for him.

As if on cue, the screams of a young boy echoed around them. "Danger!" Everyone turned to look at Tamanegi running up the street. "We are in trouble now! There is a person who walks backwards!" He shouted, running up to the other two boys.

"There is a weird guy who is walking backwards towards here!"

"Liar!"

"I'm telling the truth! Look!"

Everyone looked back down the hill, and sure enough a man wearing mainly black and a tall hat was moon walking up the slope. Kya raised an eyebrow and stood up. 'What is with this town?' She thought, placing her hands on her hips. "Hey who told you that I am weird? I am not a weirdo." He said, though his outfit and way of movement was quite the opposite of 'not weird'. His glasses were in the shapes of hearts and he had something on his chin….a beard maybe?

"But you looked really savage."

"Don't be stupid, I am just a regular hypnotist." The man retorted. 'Hypnotists are regular?' Kya scoffed and kicked the dirt on the ground. "Hypnotist? That's cool!"

"Why don't you show us some tricks?"

"Yeah!"

The hypnotist looked at the boys like they were crazy. "What?" He asked, tilting his hat. "Don't be stupid, why do I have to listen to someone I don't know? You shouldn't show your trick the first time you meet someone." He said, before pulling out some weird ring on string and holding it in front of the boys. "Listen! Look at this ring!"

"Why didn't he just say that in the first place?" Zoro mumbled and Kya dropped her head. "So many idiots…" She said out loud as the hypnotist began to swing the ring in front of the kids. "When I say 'one, two, Jango!,' you will be sleepy! Understand? One…..Two…..Jango!"

Surprisingly, the kids did pass out but so did the hypnotist. "Why the hell are you sleeping too?" Zoro yelled. "Bakas." Kya muttered to no one, smacking her forehead to her palm as she walked over to the four of them. "Get up." She said, kicking the hypnotist in the head. He shot up, frowning and looking at her. "Oi! Girl! Don't hit the hypnotist!" He shouted, jumping to his feet. He towered over her, his breathing hitting her forehead. "Oops." She said harshly, her hands going back on her hips. "Aha! I like you! You got spunk!" He laughed and flicked her on the forehead. "Bye for now, I have a meeting to attend!" He then moonwalked, waving at the group, down the hill.

"What was that all about?" Nami muttered, hoping off the rail. "Who knows." Zoro said, leaning back and looking at the sky. "Guess we'll just wait for Luffy to come back." Kya said, rubbing her forehead. 'That actual hurt.'

"Do you think we should wake them up?" Nami asked, looking at the three boys worriedly. "They'll be fine." Kya answered, walking back over to her spot where she promptly sat down. "So…..Kya." The other girl started off hesitantly. "What?"

"You know you still never answered out question."

She sighed, blowing her bangs out of her eyes. "And?" She shot back, only to be hit on the head by Zoro. "Woman, just answer our damn question!" He nearly shouted, and the boys stirred. "It was just someone from my past!" She yelled back, rubbing her head. "That's it okay!" He gave her a disapproving look. "I'm not lying this time."

"How can we trust you?" Nami added in, leaning over. "You're one to talk, thief." Kya said glumly, and the orange haired woman turned away with her nose in the air. "Look, I'm just saying. It was someone from my past, who we don't have to worry about any more. And that's all I'm telling you."

"Well you told me you lived on the Grand Line. And your parents are dead." She looked up at the man next to her. "Yes. That's true too. But that's it." She said finally, and the other two shut up as the boys woke up.

"What happened?" Ninjin asked groggily, rubbing his head. "You guys got knocked out by the weird hypnotist. And then he left." Nami answered him. "Oh." The three of them stood up on shaky legs, walking back over to the railing. "Well that sure was weird."

After a momentary silence, the boys were collecting their thoughts, there was loud shouting echoing around them. "Captain!" The boys shouted, walking in front of him but the older one ran right past them. "Wasn't he with Luffy?" Zoro asked and Kya nodded, her eyebrows furrowed with confusion. "I think he's still mad about that guy insulting his father." Nami chimed, jumping down from the railing. "I see."

"I don't think so!"

"I think that something must have happened at the coast!"

"He is in a hurry, which means that something must have happened."

Zoro and Kya exchanged worried looks and nodded. "Where's the coast?' She asked quickly, and the boys turned to her, excitement in their eyes. "I smell something fishy." Ninjin shouted, ignoring her. "It's time for Usopp's Pirates to show their skills!" Piiman said, crossing his arms. "Right! That hypnotist also went to the coast!" Tamanegi bellowed and Kya sighed in annoyance. "You don't have to tell me that, just how can I get there?" She growled at them and they stopped to stare at her.

"U-uh-uh, follow us!"

The boys took off in the direction Usopp came from, running straight through the forest until they came to a cliff. "There's nothing here." Zoro trailed off, scratching his head. "Knowing Luffy….." Kya started, walking towards the edge. "He'd be in down there." She pointed, and sure enough, Luffy was down there asleep with his ass in the air. "That baka!" He shouted, stomping his foot on the ground. "Is he okay?" Nami cried, running down the slope next to them to get to the boy and the others followed.

"Eh, he's sleeping." Kya muttered over her captains loud snores, though his face was planted in the ground and his ass in the air. "Maybe we should wake him up…." Nami grabbed a stick and poked his ass, which only made him fall over on his side. She growled at him, stamping her foot on the ground. Get up!" She screeched, hitting him on the side of the head. Everyone backed away slowly from her as Luffy stirred awake. "She's really scary when she's mean." Piiman said, shaking slightly.

"Nyah, what happened?" Luffy moaned, rubbing his head as he sat up. "What happened? I'll tell you what happened!" Nami shouted, marching forward, only to be stopped by Kya. The older girl hooked her arms under Nami's arms, holding the kicking girl back. "Why are you here?" Zoro asked, handing the straw hat over.

"Well I followed Usopp over here, and we saw that butler guy from before. He was down here talking to some weird guy with glasses. They said they were going to kill Kaya and invade the village." Luffy muttered, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Wha-?"

"They will kill Miss Kaya!"

"And they will invade our village, is this true?"

He turned to the boys and nodded. "Yes. That's what they said, I don't think it was a mistake." He said as Kya released Nami from her grasp. "Then, why are you here sleeping?" Zoro asked, and the by cocked his head to the side. "That's…I think I was standing over the cliff."

"That man is really bad!"

"I think so!"

"I think that hypnotist is his friend for sure!"

"That's why your captain was running to the village." Nami started. "It's good that you knew tis before it happened. If you can escape now, you will be safe. These enemies are very stupid." She told the boys and they nodded. "That's true! Let's get out of here." Ninjin shouted. "Yes, let's get all our treasure and run away!" Piiman agreed, clutching his fist. "The treasure box, snacks, toys, and…." Tamanegi trailed off, counting on his fingers before they ran back up the hill. "Let's hurry!"

'Was it necessary to be so loud?' Kya sighed mentally, looking out at the vast sea. "Gee!" Luffy shouted behind her. "What is it?" Zoro asked boredly. "We'd better hurry up and buy some meat before the butcher runs away too!" The captain shouted, and she sighed loudly. "Baka!" The swordsman yelled, punching the younger boy on the back of the head. "We don't have time to worry about food!" Nami shouted, her hands on her hips. "Nyah, Kya! Make them stop!" He whined, getting to his feet. She couldn't help but chuckle lightly. "We'll go get food later." She turned around and smiled at him, only making Nami angrier. "Don't encourage him!"

"Calm down." She waved the orange haired girl off, looking up at the cliff. "We should probably head back though." She added, sighing lightly. "I got it!" Luffy shouted, stretching his arms out and grabbing a hold of the edge. He flung himself up, carefully landing on his feet, before looking down and giving the other three a cheeky smile and a thumbs up. "We could have just gone up the slope…." She muttered, hanging her head down.

Suddenly, something wrapped around her, Zoro, and Nami, pushing them together. "What the-" The swordsman didn't have time to finish before they were pulled up onto the ledge in an untimely fashion. Zoro and Nami tumbled face first on the ground, while Kya steadied herself on her feet as she slid. "That would have taken too long." Their captain smiled at them, placing a hand on his head. "I'm going to kill you!" Nami screeched, shaking her fist at him. "Ah, Nami! I didn't know you'd get all dirty!" The boy defended, waving his hands as the girl stalked forward. "Eh, Nami we should head back…." Zoro trailed off, rubbing the back of his sheepishly. She turned to glare at the older man, who inched behind Kya. "Don't get me involved in this." She murmured, stepping away from them and heading back to where they first were.

"Hey, hey! Don't leave me there!"

She didn't wait for Zoro, but he jogged up next to her with his hands shoved in his pockets. "Heartless woman." He muttered to her and she scoffed. "Shut up. You should have just kept your mouth shut." She shot back, making him frown. "See? Heartless." She punched him in the shoulder. "Baka. I'll hurt you." She sung, sticking her tongue out him. "Are those fighting words?" He bent down and pressed his forehead to hers angrily. "Get out of my face bozo!" She growled, the lightning in between them igniting. "Who are you calling a bozo, pinky!" That did it. She pushed his chest sending him back onto the ground. "Stop calling me pinky!" She yelled and he laughed. "No."

"Mah, Kya~! You left me all alone with Nami!" Luffy's whine echoed around them as the other two members walked up. The poor boy had a bump on his head the size of a rock, and Nami was still fuming. "Well you left me all alone with this bozo." She pointed at Zoro as he stood and brushed himself off.

"Oi!"

They crew turned to see the three young boys sitting by the rail post from earlier. Luffy waved cheerfully and the group walked over to them. "I thought you guys were running away." Nami asked as they reached the post. The boys were about to speak when something caught there attention.

"Captain!"

Usopp turned to the group, his eyes glossy, and waved. "It's you." He said unenthusiastically before seeing Luffy. "Eh? You're not dead?" He nearly screamed. "Dead, no. I just woke up." Luffy answered, his face clearly confused. "He's in a deep sleep." Piiman said, before shouting heroically. "Anyway, we know everything! We have to hurry and tell everyone about the pirates!" He said and Usopp's face fell. "Tell everyone…?" He repeated, before laughing lightly.

'What is he on?' Kya thought, crossing her arms over her chest. She had met weird people in her life, but he nearly topped the list. "You should know I was lying again! I just hate that butler so I made up that story about him being a pirate!" He laughed merrily. Kya shot a look at Nami, who bit her lip from speaking. What was going on with this idiot?

"You lied?"

"I thought it was true!"

"Why are you guys playing along with him?"

The real pirates shot looked at each other, their faces contorted with confusion. "But I don't like the captain doing that." "I don't like it either!" "Even though that butler is bad, captain never should make up stories about anyone." Kya rubbed the bridge of her nose with her finger in annoyance. These kids were really getting on her nerves.

"Let's go home."

"Ya, it's dinner time!"

"What will we have tonight?"

The group watched the three young boys walk off, leaving Usopp standing there. "Eh, what was that all about?" Zoro muttered, scratching his head. "After dinner tonight, will you guys meet me at the coast?" Usopp asked quietly, kicking at the ground. "Uh, ya. I guess." Luffy answered, raising an eyebrow. They watched as Usopp walked off, hands in his pockets and a cloud of gloom around him. "What's wrong with him?" Nami asked, a little frustrated with the whole situation. "What a weird kid." Kya sighed, looking at Luffy. "What are we gonna do, Luffy?"

"Eat."