This chapter is kinda short and I apologize for that but there is a cute little ZoLu scene coming next chapter so I hope that makes up for this.

Thank you for all the fantastic reviews! I really cherish them!

Thank you Shirani-Chan, Shizuka Taiyou,and Tairulz!

Without further ado, enjoy!

This is not completely my story. Some conversations and parts have been borrowed from other Fem!Luffy and LuffyxZoro fanfictions. However, most of this has been completely redone and rewritten by me.

The authors I have borrowed from are: Pen-Woman, ChemGirl, and Killjou. (If someone thinks I have added some of their story, I apologize for not listing you. PM me and I will add you)

Beta reader for Pen-Woman is TheBlackSeaReaper.

One Piece belongs to Eiichiro Oda

The Weirdest Guy Ever! Jango the Hypnotist

Lies and Deceit, it's all around me. Lies and Deceptions, two bad surroundings, I see no point, I see no end. Those are your enemies, who you think are friends. You see and hear it, find it hard to believe, they don't want any good, but only to deceive. You don't know who to trust, everyone's a target, the things they'll do so hard to forget. Deceit and Deception, over and over, the chances of good friends, like four leaf clovers, they'll think you don't know, or won't find out, but surely you do so without a doubt, the things that's done determines your fate makes choices for the best, better soon than late. Lies spread like a diseased infection. Life's just full of deceit and deception….by Angeline Richards.

Klahadore was livid. Not only had Usopp managed to sneak past him and was once again telling Lady Kaya all those stories, but he had brought along six other people. Three he recognized as boys from the village, ones that followed Usopp around as part of his Pirate crew. The other three were new though. A man, obviously a swordsman based on the swords he carried at his hip, and two women. The orange haired woman was unremarkable but there was something about the black haired girl that irked him. The way she was watching him, almost warily, as if she didn't trust him. She had also been the one to ask Lady Kaya a favor. His glare deepened, this had gone far enough. Kaya seemed to sense Klahadore's anger and she quickly said.

"Excuse them Klahadore, these people are…"

"You don't need to defend them, my Lady," The butler interrupted sternly, silencing the young blonde girl. He adjusted his glasses and turned to look at where she was leaning out of her window.

"I will listen to your explanation later; for now, I'd like all of you to leave this area at once or do you people have something to say?" His words were as sharp as a blade but Luffy just stepped forward calmly, her face melting into a soft smile, as if she didn't notice his strict tone.

"Yeah, we'd like a ship see…"

"Absolutely not," he snapped immediately, harshly, denying her request. Luffy's smile faltered slightly, a bit put out at his tone. Zoro placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, glaring at the butler. There was something he didn't like about that man from the beginning but this just cemented it. He wouldn't let anyone talk to his captain like that. He ground his teeth together and moved to take a step forward when a small hand covered the one still resting on Luffy's shoulder. He glanced down to see her shake her head, her lips twitching back up into that small smile and she glanced up at him before turning her gaze back to the butler. Klahadore just adjusted his glasses again and shifted his gaze from the raven-haired girl to the large tree next to Kaya's window.

"Usopp" he called out, knowing that the long nosed teen had hidden himself in the branches of the tree in an effort to go unnoticed.

"Crap," Usopp muttered, forcing himself back up onto the branch next to Kaya's window.

"I hear rumors about you all the time; you're pretty famous in this village, aren't you?" Klahadore said, his tone doubtful.

"You could say that," Usopp bragged with a chuckle, settling himself back into view of the others and standing up on his perch.

"So, you have faced all kinds of danger before. That's really something at such a young age," The butler spoke in a mocking manner that poor Usopp didn't seem to notice. Luffy's eyes narrowed slightly, her mouth set in a firm line. She didn't like where this was going, if this idiot of a butler insulted Yasopp's son she would knock him out. Kaya seemed to sense that some sort of insult was coming as well, she had a look on her face like she knew something very bad was going to happen soon and she wouldn't like it one bit. Usopp posed heroically and pointed at himself before saying.

"You may address me as Captain Usopp! That will help spread my name throughout the world."

"Captain, eh?" Klahadore snickered as he pushed his glasses up again.

"Then it's true that your father was a filthy pirate?"

"What?" Usopp cringed, not hearing Kaya gasp next to him.

"Klahadore, stop this at once!" The lady ordered but Klahadore ignored her and continued with his insult.

"You are the son of a lowly, filthy pirate." Usopp's teeth were clenched and his whole body was shaking with fury. At the base of the tree, Luffy didn't appear to be doing much better. Her face was shadowed by her hat and her fists were clenched at her sides, knuckles white.

"Although anything you do wouldn't be much of a surprise to me, would you please stop bothering Lady Kaya." Kaya was upset at Klahadore for saying such an awful thing about Usopp's father when the long nosed teen had been nothing but nice to her and the others were scowling at the butler.

"Who do you think you are? You have no right to call my father that!" Usopp growled but Klahadore ignored him and continued.

"You come from a totally different world from our Lady. Do you seek her fortune? How many times will you try to deceive her?"

"THAT'S ENOUGH KLAHADORE, APOLOGIZE TO USOPP AT ONCE!" Kaya yelled angrily. How dare Klahadore accuse Usopp of being a scoundrel. Usopp turned to look at her, was surprised by her outburst and his eyes widened with worry. In her anger, Kaya had leaned forward and was now nearly hanging out of the window. If she lost her balance she would fall!

"Hey Kaya, be careful!" Usopp hissed, reaching out an arm towards the lady, just in case. No one seemed to hear him though and even Klahadore ignored the lady's position and continued with his rant.

"Why should I apologize to such a barbaric man, Lady Kaya?" Klahadore asked, sounding genuinly confused, if still a bit smug. "I'm just stating the facts, but I do feel sorry for you, Usopp. Your heart must be filled with hatred; hated for your foolish father who abandoned you and your mother to take a life of a pirate."

Klahadore shook his head with feigned pity as he continued to ramble and insult Usopp's father.

"Klahadore," Kaya whispered.

"You bastard, you'd better stop insulting my father!" Usopp jumped from the branch he stood on, startling Kaya. She was worried he'd hurt himself but felt relief when she saw a flash of metal from the steel hook secured to the branch. It allowed Usopp to easily slide down and land safely on the ground. Once his feet touched the ground the hook disengaged itself from the branch and coiled itself back into Usopp's satchel.

"Why are you so agitated?" Klahadore asked, pushing up his glasses.

"It's times like these that you should just do what you do best; lie. Why don't you lie and say that your father is just a marketing salesman or that you have nothing to do with your father or better yet, that he's not your real father…" Klahadore continued to list off ideas, not noticing how Usopp's fists tightened at his sides. After a few seconds, the long nosed boy snapped and charged forward, punching Klahadore hard enough to knock him to the ground.

"Usopp." Kaya gasped in shock.

"Captain..." the Usopp pirate crew was also shocked. They'd rarely seen their Captain this angry before, but to see him actually hit someone...

Zoro, Nami, and Luffy just watched the scene before them, their expressions unreadable.

"See that! He immediately turned violent. No wonder they say 'like Father, like Son'." Klahadore snarled, wiping at his bruised cheek.

"SHUT UP!" Usopp shouted, causing the butler to flinch slightly.

"I'm proud that my father is a pirate, that he's a brave warrior of the sea! I'm very proud of him." Usopp pointed at himself and took up his heroic pose again. "Although it's true I lie a lot, I'm not ashamed of my heritage and that heritage is something I am honored about because his blood runs through my veins. For I'm son of a pirate!" He loudly yelled to everyone who was near, the pride clear in his voice. Luffy smiled fondly, Usopp was reminding her more and more of Yasopp, so brave a respectful. She was so happy that she had found Usopp at this island. He was a true pirate, maybe he would join her crew? She was drawn out of her thoughts when Klahadore snorted.

"Pirates are brave warriors of the sea, huh? You're pretty naïve to have that belief." The butler slowly rose to his feet and calmly dusted his suit.

"What?!"

"But you're right about one thing; you admitted that pirate blood flows within you. You like to lie and would resort for violence whenever something upsets you. You ultimate goal was to get Lady Kaya's fortune and that's why you got close to her."

"What are you talking about? I would never…"

"A pirate is a pirate no matter what you say, and your father's a pirate which is proof enough!" Klahadore shouted angrily.

"That's enough, I won't let you insult my father ever again!" Usopp grabbed the front of Klahadore's suit again and prepared to punch him again when Kaya's voice stopped him.

"Stop it Usopp, please don't use violence again." Kaya begged, coughing slightly. "Klahadore is not a bad person, he's only…he's only protecting me, so please." Her voice begged Usopp to stop, and as much as Usopp wanted to smack him to the ground, he couldn't hurt Kaya's feelings by hurting her butler so he let him slip from his grasp. He would let his anger go…for Kaya's sake.

"Get out now, and don't come close to Lady Kaya again," Klahadore said coldly.

"Yeah, you don't have to tell me twice." Usopp snarled. He turned and pushed his way past Klahadore, refusing to look at the smug man until he was out of sight. The Usopp Pirates were furious and they stuck out their tongues and spat at Klahadore in an effort to anger the older man.

"You bastard!"

"Stupid butler. Our Captain is not that kind of person," cried Carrot.

"That's right, you idiot!" growled Pepper.

"Yeah, you idiot!" Onion added, wanting to have his own say. Klahadore glared menacingly at the children, furious at them and their simple name calling. His dark expression caused them to scream in fear and they scrambled back to cower behind Nami. Luffy just glared at Klahadore, her stare intense, eyes promising retribution for what he had done to her friend.

"I'm gonna make you pay for what you just did," she mumbled, her words just loud enough for Klahadore to hear.

"Leave here at once" he ordered, growling at the raven haired girl. Luffy gave him one final glare, her mouth set in a firm line before she walked past the butler, heading in the same direction as Usopp, the others following behind her. Zoro paused in his walk as he neared Kuro and favored the man with a dark look. It was a look that said, 'hurt her or get in her way and I won't even give you the chance to beg for mercy.' One hand rested on the hilt of his sword for emphasis and he nodded at Klahadore curtly before following after his captain and the others.

Inside Kaya's room, the young lady was sitting on her bed again, her back against the headboard and her face buried in her pillow. She was sobbing softly, crying for Usopp and the horrible things that Klahadore had done to him. He didn't deserve that kind of treatment, he was a good person. Why couldn't Klahadore see him the way she did? She heard a soft knock at the door but didn't say "enter", she already knew who was outside. She heard the person open the door anyway and Klahadore entered, pushing a rolling cart that was filled with food and tea for her.

"Time for your meal, Lady Kaya," the butler said softly.

"I don't want it, I don't feel like eating." she mumbled quietly, refusing to look at him. Klahadore just sighed.

"You will break the Chef's heart by saying that. In consideration of your weak health, the Chef worked long and hard on this," he said trying to convince her to eat, knowing it would help her recover. He picked up a tall pot that was filled with warm milk and poured it into the tea pot. As he did, Kaya spoke.

"Why did you say such harsh things to Usopp?" Klahadore stopped what he was doing and stared at the small and fragile girl.

"I know it's my fault for seeing Usopp without your acknowledgment, but you didn't have to say such awful thing about him and his father." She continued. Klahadore gazed at the little girl sadly, he knew he had been harsh, but why couldn't she see that this was for her own good? He put down the pot and said.

"May I sit down?" he calmly asked.

"Go ahead" she replied with a sigh. Klahadore sat on the side of the bed as he stared at Lady Kaya and spoke.

"It has…been three years since I came to this house." Kaya lifted her head up and stared at Klahadore to see that he wasn't staring at her but his eyes were staring at something on the ground.

"What happened on that day…I still haven't forgotten." she understood what he was saying.

Three years ago, she was watering the flowers when she noticed Klahadore walking wobbly towards the mansion's gate till he collapsed. She remembered it clearly like it was yesterday.

"At that time, I made a careless mistake and I was kicked out of the ship where I worked. Without a job or any money, I was on verge of death," he spoke as he reminisced about the day he was saved by Kaya's late father. When they saw he was dying, Kaya and her parents brought him inside their mansion, treated and nursed him back to health, and when he finally healed Kaya's father took him in as part of the family and he worked as a butler.

"Your late father saved my life and…you, are his most precious daughter. To speak to you as an equal like this, I'm aware that I may have gone overboard. However, I cannot find the heart to trust this boy because…if…if anything was to happen to you; How could I face your father, who took me in?" he covered his face with one hand and his lower lip trembled as if he was ready to burst in tears.

"Forgive me, if I upset you in any way."

"No, I'm not upset. I know what're you trying to do and I'm very grateful to have you, Klahadore, but you're wrong about one thing. Usopp is a good person," said Kaya, and then Klahadore got up and adjusted his glasses.

"However, whether or not he's a good person is a different matter." he said it again.

"Klahadore, you are so narrow-minded."

"I'm fine with being narrow-minded." he said as he turned his head to Kaya and smiled and Kaya smiled in return.

In the middle of the field on the outskirts of town, Zoro, Nami, Pepper, and Carrot were sitting against a fence. They were relaxing without a care in the world, as if they hadn't been rudely kicked out by that jerk. Onion wasn't with them, having said something about seeing something strange in the woods and had gone to investigate it. Luffy had disappeared as soon as they left the mansion, taking off in the same direction Usopp had gone.

"Hey, where did Luffy go?" Nami asked, settling herself on top of the thick wooden fence.

"Beats me," Zoro sighed. " Maybe she went after Usopp." Zoro leaned back against a post of the fence, his fingers interlaced and cushioning the back of his head. He wasn't overly worried about Luffy at the moment. For all the times he protected her, Zoro knew Luffy could take care of herself and this village was tiny. How much trouble could she honestly get into?

"The Captain should be 'there'." Pepper said after a second, nodding.

"Yeah, at the coast. Whenever he's troubled, he always goes there," Carrot added.

"Do you want to go and check on them?" Pepper questioned, turning to glance at Zoro and Nami, adding them to the conversation.

"Nah, I'll pass" said Zoro. Deep in his mind, he trusted his Captain. She would know how to deal with Usopp just like she had when she confronted Helmeppo. Then Nami faced the boys and inquired again.

"Speaking of which, where did your other friend go?"

"Oh, you mean Onion? He's always disappearing off to somewhere." Pepper said, waving a hand dismissively.

"Then he'll come out of nowhere, screaming," Carrot added, and right on cue Onion appeared over the crest of the hill, a look of sheer horror on his face, running towards them screaming.

"IT'S HORRIBLE!"

"See." The two boys stared at Nami with one eyebrow raised as their friend proved their point. Onion stopped to catch his breath before continuing.

"A man doing the moonwalk! A very weird man is doing the moonwalk."

"Liar" both Pepper and Carrot yelled, used to Onion's outrageous stories.

"It's true, look!" Onion pointed down the path, and true to what he said a man was walking backwards, doing the moonwalk. The weird man stopped and faced the three kids.

"Hey, who was it? Who's the brat that called me weird, I'm not weird!" the man exclaimed doing an odd spin before posing.

"You could've fooled me" scoffed Nami.

"That's ridiculous; I'm just a Hypnotist passing by."

"A Hypnotist, wow." Onion's expression was one of awe as he approached the newcomer.

"Can you show us?" Pepper asked excitedly.

"Yeah, show us!" said Carrot and the man suddenly glared down at them, exuding a menacing aura.

"What?! You must be joking, why should I show my Hypnotic skills to bunch of strangers I hardly know…?"

"Alright, I'll show you." he conceded quickly, magically pulled out a metal ring from his jacket.

"He's going to show them anyway." Zoro sighed, partially ignoring the spectacle.

"After I say 'one, two, Jango' you will fall asleep." the man exclaimed, beginning to swing the ring left and right.

"Got it? Here I go, one…two…JANGO!" As if a switch had been thrown the three kids tumbled backwards, asleep. Unexpectedly though, the hypnotist collapsed, asleep as well.

"WHAT KIND A HYPNOTIST ARE YOU TO FALL FOR YOUR OWN TRANCE!" Zoro's shouted, a vein appearing on his forehead.

Usopp sat at the edge of a cliff on the south side of the island, legs crossed, watching the waves crash against the shore because of the gentle wind. The sights and sounds calmed him completely but also produced a longing to sail on the open sea. Traveling from island to island, having adventures and excitement and feeling the thrill of adrenaline. Facing your enemies down like a brave warrior of the sea…like his father, but what always stopped him from leaving was Kaya

Ever since he first saw her, he had been in love with Kaya. He believed Kaya was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen and wished that he had the guts to tell her that. Then when he heard about her parent's death and sudden illness, he decided to take matters to his own hands. He mustered all of his courage and went to her mansion and told all her about his adventures in the sea and thus began his daily routine. A routine for both him and Kaya, always looking forward to seeing her bright smile. Usopp was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn't notice Luffy hanging from the branch in front of him.

"So this is where you were," Luffy said, smiling softly as Usopp flailed back in shock.

"Sheesh, it's only you. Can't you greet people in a normal way…What is it? What do you want?" he frowned, not really in the mood to deal with anyone.

"Nothing really," She let go of the branch, balancing herself in a handstand and started walking towards him in that manner. After a couple of steps, she fell to the side with a thud but didn't seem to mind the pain. Usopp blinked at the strange girl, shocked out of his sadness for a second before he returned to being somber. They sat in silence, the only sound being the waves breaking against the shore and Luffy clapping her soles together, hands gripping her ankles.

"That damn butler. How dare he insult my father like that," Usopp eventually mumbled.

"Yeah, that guy was a jerk and I don't like him either. It doesn't matter what anyone says, Yasopp still is and always will be a great pirate," Luffy replied, turning to smile at Usopp, who felt his enthusiasm returning with her encouragement.

"Yeah, he sure is! in the Great Pirate Era, my father sails the ocean without knowing what's ahead! I feel really proud of him…say, what about you? Is your father a pirate too?"

"Hmmm, nope." Luffy shook her head. "I don't have a father, in fact I don't even know if I have parents." Her words were straightforward, without a hint of sadness in her tone.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I may not know much about my dad but…Shanks has been like a father to me, he kept telling me stories about his grand adventures, meeting new and strange people, the parties they celebrated every day, and… he inspired me to become a great pirate and to be the first ever Queen of the Pirates like Gol D. Roger. He never stopped believing in me." Luffy smiled happily, her gaze unfocused as she thought back to her mentor and father-figure. She really loved talking about Shanks, telling people about how amazing he was.

"Wow, he must've really loved you a lot to encourage you to sail through the ocean, huh." Usopp said, a fond look on his face.

"Shihehehe yep," she laughed, rubbing her nose a little self consciously. "And one day we'll meet again and I'll show him how strong I've become!" Usopp smiled but it faltered after a second and he sighed.

"I wish I could sail to the open ocean one day as a pirate. But first I want Klahadore to come here and apologize for insulting my dad. He needs to beg for forgiveness!" he said self-assuredly.

"You mean him down there with the weirdo?" Luffy asked pointing down the cliff where Klahadore was walking with the heart shaped glasses guy.

"Yeah, that him…WAIT A MINUTE! What's he doing here?" Usopp crouched down on the ground and pulled Luffy down too, inching his way towards the edge to listen in to the conversation between the two men.

"Jango, didn't I tell you not to attract any attention in this village, yet you were sleeping in the middle of the road." said Klahadore irritated.

"That's ridiculous, I didn't attract any attention at all and I'm not weird either," The man, Jango, huffed. Klahadore frowned and adjusted his glasses with a bit of frustration.

"So, are the preparations for the operation complete?"

"Of course, we can start at any time…the operation to assassinate Lady Kaya." Jango said, smirking. Up on the cliff both Luffy and Usopp cringed in shock. Usopp couldn't believe what he was hearing. This man, Jango along with Klahadore, were planning to kill Kaya. Just the thought of it, his heart stopped beating instantly…they couldn't do that.

"Don't say assassinate, that sound wicked, Jango."

"Ah yes, an accident…it was an accident." Jango chuckled, remembering the plan.

"We can't just kill her, Lady Kaya has to die from an accident, don't ever forget that!" Klahadore bellowed at the last comment and sighed at his partner's incompetence.

"Sorry, we just have to wait for the signal to attack the village and then kill the little girl, right? Then, you will take her inheritance."

"Are you an idiot? Can't you use your brain for once. An outsider like me can't take her inheritance, I guess I have to retell you the plan again. Before we kill her, you'll have to hypnotize Kaya to write a will. In that will, you'll make her write that all her fortune will go to her trusted and faithful butler, Klahadore." A dark smirk formed on Klahadore's face and a frightening look entered his eyes. Usopp had never seen him like this, he could not believe it…the bastard that Kaya trusted with her life was betraying her to get her fortune. How could he do this to the girl whose late parents saved his life from the brink of death? Was he so heartless that he only cared for her fortune?

"It will be the first step of my plan to take over the huge inheritance, it's…perfect," The butler chuckled as he pushed his glasses.

"I spent three whole years here to win everyone's trust. So no one would be suspicious, even if she left all her inheritance to me."

"You became her butler for three years just for this, it really surprised me back then, Captain Kuro," said Jango as he did his weird dance spin.

"Three years ago…you suddenly said that you wanted to quit being a pirate. You got one of your crew to act as you in order to have the world think that Captain Kuro was executed. That marked the beginning of your devious plan. It's no wonder they call you Captain Kuro of a Thousand Plans." Jango was still impressed by his Captain's scheme.

"Don't call me by that name again," Klahadore, Kuro, scoffed at his vice-captain.

"I gave up my name three years ago; I just want her fortune and to not get chased by the Government anymore. Then I will become a peaceful citizen." he smirked at his plan and Jango laughed.

"I can hardly imagine as you a peaceful citizen, so for the sake of your own peace, you even went so far as to kill the brat's parents?"

"Now now Jango, her parent's death has nothing to do with me, it was unexpected," said Klahadore, or Kuro, truthfully, shaking his head softly.

"Oh well, it doesn't matter now, just hurry up and give the signal, our ship has been anchored nearby for almost a week already, my men are getting impatient" said Jango. He also couldn't wait to slice the girl into tiny little pieces after she wrote the will. Then all the fortune will be theirs for the taking.

Up on the cliff, Usopp's heart couldn't stop pounding, as if it was ready to burst from his chest. To think that after all this time Klahadore the butler was actually none other than Captain Kuro of the Black Cat Pirates.

'This is bad, we just overheard their plan, I-I have to get to Kaya and warn her'

"Luffy, we have to get out of here. These guys are the real deal, that Captain Kuro is said to be the smartest and also the cruelest among all the pirates. I heard he was killed three years ago but now he is alive and here, and he is been impersonating as a butler to get to Kaya's fortune all this time. If we let this happen, the village will be attacked and Kaya will be in danger!" He imagined the villagers screaming in horror and Kaya's terrified face before a pirate struck her down before she could scream.

"This is really terrible." He grabbed his head as he tried to make the scary images go away. Luffy glanced between Usopp and the men, angry that they planned to kill someone who had been nice to her, someone that her friend cared about very dearly. With a frown she stood up, hands clenched tightly at her side and face determined.

"Hey, what are you doing? Get down before they…"

"Hey, you bastards! Don't you dare hurt Kaya!" she shouted, trying to catch the man's attention. Usopp fell behind her, unable to believe that she was actually stupid enough to call Captain Kuro out. Below, the two men looked up to see the teens watching them from the top of the cliff.

"Who the hell are you?" Jango asked, his words harsh, but his tone a bit curious.

"Are you insane?!" Usopp panicked, scrambling to his feet. "Are you trying to kill us?! We've gotta get out of here!" The long nosed teen tried to grab Luffy's arm to drag her away but froze when he heard Klahadore's voice.

"Well well, if it isn't Usopp." Kuro's words were harsh and cold and his face appeared to be completely devoid of emotion. Usopp felt his body freeze with terror as he stared at the butler.

'I've been spotted too!'

"You wouldn't have happened to have heard our conversation, now would you?" His words were sharp, body coiled as if he was a viper waiting to strike.

"Nononono, we didn't hear a single word of it. We were just passing through, that's all," Usopp back peddled, trying to come up with a quick, but convincing, lie still pulling on the raven-haired girl's arm. Unfortunately, Luffy wasn't one for subtlety and she always spoke her mind.

"I heard everything" she said, placing her hands on her hips and glaring down at the two men.

"Shut up!" Usopp hissed, letting go of her arm to smack her on the shoulder.

Kuro sighed, a little exasperated. Now that his plan and secret had been revealed to these two, he had no other choice. He used one arm to signal Jango and pointed up at the two teens, silently ordering the other man to take care of them.

"I guess it can't be helped." Jango sighed, pulling out his hypnotic ring. "Hey, you two!" Both Luffy and Usopp turned their gaze from Kuro to stare at the other odd man as he dangled the ring in front of his face.

"Look carefully at the ring."

"A ring?" Luffy, always curious, followed the ring with her eyes as it began to swing from side to side, looking almost like a cat tracking a bird.

"I don't like this, its got to be a weapon," Usopp exclaimed, covering his eyes with his hands and peaking cautiously between his fingers. Jango began to swing the ring more purposefully as he talked.

"With 'one, two, Jango' you'll fall asleep, got it? One…two…JANGO!" Before the words had even left his mouth, Usopp had leapt backwards, curling into a ball in fear. He cowered for a few seconds but when nothing happened, he began to get curious. Uncovering his head, Usopp glanced back towards the cliff where Luffy still stood, her back to him.

"That was odd," He muttered, moving to stand up. "Nothing happened. Luffy?" The long-nosed teen became a little concerned when Luffy didn't answer him and he took a step towards her right as she let out a soft snore. At the base of the cliff, Jango had also fallen for his hypnosis and was currently using Kuro's back as a makeshift bed.

"You idiot, you fell for your own hypnosis again." Kuro muttered, frustrated with his vice-captain. "I thought you had gotten that under control."

"Asleep?" Usopp asked, watching Luffy warily, still a little confused. The girl let out another soft snore as she began to pitch forward, unable to remain standing while she was sleeping.

"Hey, what are you doing? You're going to fall!" Usopp cried, trying to grab her. He had reacted too late though and his hands missed her tunic by mere centimeters as she fell forward, tumbling down the cliff with a loud crash.

"She fell down, from that height no one could survive that fall." Jango muttered, having finally woken up. He shook his head as he observed the girl's frail form crumpled on the beach in front of him. He hadn't really wanted to kill her, but orders were orders. Usopp clenched his fists on the grass as he knelt at the edge of the cliff, staring down at Luffy's unmoving frame.

"Shit, that guy…killed her."

"So, what do you want me to do with the other one?" Jango asked, turning to Kuro as he pointed up at Usopp.

"Nothing, no matter what he says, his words won't reach out to them. After all, he is nothing but the village's liar." Kuro turned away from the cliff face and he took a step back towards the village. "We will start the plan tomorrow morning," He ordered Jango. "Attack the villagers at dawn and make it look like an accident when you kill Kaya."

"Do you hear that, Usopp?" Kuro turned his gaze up to the long-nosed teen, smirking menacingly at him as Usopp forced himself to his feet and disappeared into the woods.

"Are you sure about this?" Jango asked.

"Of course, my plan will not fail!" his eyes flicked back over to the body of the girl who had tried to stand up to him and he grinned, feeling a rush of satisfaction at the sight.

'This is bad…this is bad, the entire village that I know and loved will be slaughtered and Kaya will be killed too. I can't let that happen' Usopp chanted over and over in his head as he ran, trying to get to the village as fast as his feet could carry him. An image of Kaya's beautiful smile appeared in his mind and the memories that he and Kaya had shared, the stories he'd told her, the laughter they shared, the smile on her face brightened his heart with love. As each memory passed through his mind, tears ran faster and faster down his cheeks and he eventually let out a choked scream.

"KKAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAA!"

Another chapter down! I think this shall become my new schedule. I will have at least one chapter up a week, more if I get in the mood to work.

I've been having a lot of ideas run through my head for later chapters and later arcs. I feel like Zoro will become fully aware of the fact that he loves Luffy sometime either in the Baratie arc or in Arlong Park. I think he'll come to terms with it shortly after that. I'm trying to think of a time when I feel Luffy will start to realize her own feelings. As naive as Luffy can be, she is not stupid so she'll eventually realize it. I think it will be interesting watching the rest of the crew figure out that they love each other. Nami already knows and I think Usopp'll figure it out pretty quickly but still, it'll be fun.

I've got an original chapter idea for sometime after Alabasta, because that's when Luffy gets her serious bounty for beating Crocodile and I've got a cool idea for that. This means I've got to sit my butt down and start writing though, lol.

Anyway, my rant is over. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, short though it was and look forward to the next one!