I was resting my head lazily on my paws, but my ears were perked up to alert me to any sounds. I was currently inside Nojiko's house; she had left me here and gone into town for a while. Something about this whole place, the town and all, made me uncomfortable. I was worried about Nami too, although I knew that Luffy and the others would help her. Hearing something from outside the house, I jumped up to my feet, my tail stiff in alertness. I slowly crept up to the front door, pushing myself against the wall next to the door so I could pounce on whoever came in if I didn't know them. I watched intently as the door handle began to turn and the door swung inwards. But what came through had me reeling back in shock with my eyes wide. Nojiko walked through the door, dragging Usopp in with her and a little boy following behind her.
It took me a few seconds to react but I quickly scampered over to Nojiko as she dropped Usopp roughly on the ground. I reached out and gently sniffed at his cheek, nudging him gently with my nose. I couldn't smell any blood, so he couldn't be that badly injured and he looked to be alright. I wonder what happened, as I didn't remember this bit. The only thing I remembered was fact that everyone eventually met up at Arlong Park and a huge fight went down.
Nojiko walked back in the room with a blanket and a wet cloth and she threw the blanket over Usopp. She glanced down to me and I looked curiously up to her.
"He's fine, he's just been knocked out," she said as if she felt the need to explain herself to a dog.
She then knelt down and placed the wet cloth on Usopp's forehead before standing up and walking over to the young boy who had been standing awkwardly and watching us.
I stared at Usopp for a few seconds longer before laying down against his side and laying my head on his shoulder so I could watch and see if he woke up. I listened quietly as Nojiko got the boy a cup of tea before tuning them out and lettings my thoughts wander.
What did I remember about this saga? This didn't seem to ring any bells, so I must have forgotten a few things. I do remember the part where Zoro got tied to the boat. I also remember Luffy in the flying boat and Nami stabbing herself. I could recall some parts of the fight at Arlong park and the tower collapsing. I couldn't remember any more than those flashes of parts, I hope that was enough.
"AHHHH!" Usopp screamed loudly as he jumped into a sitting position and I scrambled back, my eyes wide in shock at the sudden noise. Usopp's eye immediately darted to Nojiko and the boy that were sitting at the table on the other side of the room. "Th-this place is…?"
"So you woke up?" Nojiko observed dryly. "You are in my home."
"You're that woman from earlier… Who are you? And what about that fishman!" Usopp stuttered nervously before his eyes landed on me. "Mamori is here as well!"
"Don't worry, we lost him," she said casually. "My name is Nojiko and I grow tangerines here."
Figuring that this talk between could go for a while, I sat backwards on my haunches so that my head could flick in between that people that talked.
"Wait a second! You're the one who knocked me out!" Usopp shouted. Well, that was news to me. Why would she do that? "Are you the fishmen's lackey? Hmph, after I was going to save you too…"
"The one that did the saving was me!" Nojiko defended herself with a dismissive wave of her arm. "This is why outsiders are so much trouble." She then turned her attention to the young boy that sat across the table from her. "But you're from Gosa village right? If so then you should understand that attacking the fishmen will only get you killed. You of all people should be more then well aware…"
"I know! But… But they killed my dad! I won't forgive them even if I die!" the boy said with clenched fists as he cast his gaze to the table. "They brought along that huge monster I've never seen before and pillaged and destroyed my entire town! They killed so many people! That's why I have sworn revenge!"
Usopp's jaw dropped and he asked, "A huge monster? Then those tracks in the ground…"
"Those're the tracks left by that thing! It's unimaginably huge! They said they brought it over from the Grand Line!" the boy said with a shaking voice.
Wasn't that monster he was talking about basically a giant cow?
"There're monsters there too!" Usopp yelped sounding shocked but he moved himself to sit at the table with the others and I stayed silently on the ground.
"I… I even went to Arlong Park!" The boy said as he began to raise his voice to get his point across. "But some female member of the Arlong Pirates stopped me at the door! She was like a real witch! How dare she get in my way! I'll kill her too!"
"Then go ahead and die," Nojiko said in a blunt and emotionless way. "As long as you are going to end up dead, then feel free to fight. Some excellent revenge that is. But let me just say one thing. Thanks to me and that witch lady at Arlong Park interfering you've narrowly escaped death twice!" Nojiko then stood up from the table and turned her back on Usopp and the kid. "Get out of my house once you are done that tea. I hate naïve little brats like you."
"Hey!" Usopp snapped as he butted in. "He's just a kid! Isn't that going a bit too far!"
Nojiko spun around and placed her hands on her hips as she snapped irritably, "So what if he's just a kid! Anybody who wants to die a dogs death can go ahead and die for all I care! It's not like they have any desire to live on anyway!"
Oh, ouch. That comment on a dogs death hurt; I sure as hell don't want to die like that.
"WHAT!" Usopp snarled in fury as he jumped up out of his chair too. I was still watching on silently, not really sure as what to do.
"I know of a certain child who has lived a far more painful life then death..." Nojiko sighed as she lowered her voice to an unruffled tone. "Because she looks forward to a better future." Suddenly her temper seemed to flare again as she screamed at Usopp, "THAT'S WHY I ABSOLUTELY LOATHE BRATS LIKE HIM WHO ONLY THINK ABOUT RUSHING TO THEIR DEATHS!"
"W-what..." the kid began to sob with tears running down his face which caught all of our attention. "What am I supposed to do then?"
"What about your mom?" Nojiko asked.
"She's still alive…" he sobbed.
"Then she must be worried," Nojiko said with a soft smile. "So why don't you go home to your mom?"
"You're actually a pretty good person, even though you do have a tattoo," Usopp said as he leaned back in his chair.
The kid had gone home and Nojiko and Usopp were seated back at the table. I was laying with my head on my paws beside the table, still silently listening to what was going on. I was almost tempted to walk the kid home to see he got home safely, but I thought it be best I not leave Usopp alone.
"Well isn't that prejudiced of you! Though I can't say much about you," Nojiko snorted as she took a sip of her tea.
"Ah! That's right, my name is Captain Usopp," he lied. "I came here looking for Nami but..."
Nojiko then proceed to explain to Usopp the stuff that I already knew about; like Nami being an Arlong Pirate.
"WHAT!" Usopp exclaimed loudly in shock. "Nami's a member of Arlong's Pirates!"
"Yup, Nami's pretty infamous around these parts," Nojiko confirmed. "Even that kid talked about her earlier, remember? She's that witch woman he talked about. She's the one who dropped that dog off here and more surprising would be the fact this is the house she grew up in. The witch and I are foster sisters."
"This is Nami's home?" Usopp exclaimed in shock, jumping up out of his chair. Did he always need to be that loud? His raised voice was starting to hurt my ears.
"That's right… She and I are orphans," Nojiko confirmed calmly. "We were adopted and raised in this house. The one who raised us has long been dead now, but the three of us used to live happily here in this village."
"This village..." Usopp stuttered, his jaw open wide. "Then why did she join Arlong Pirates that now rule over this village? Did she betray her own hometown!"
"Something like that," Nojiko hummed quietly, not seeming that concerned about Usopp's accusations. "A real witch right? So what's your business with that witch Captain Usopp?"
"Well, after what you just said I have more important things think about. So… she's been deceiving us all along… she must have been aiming for the treasure right from the beginning!" Usopp exclaimed.
I had to squeeze my eyes closed. I didn't know how Nojiko could just sit her listen to Usopp saying that but it sort of pissed me off. He didn't know the story behind it, granted. But he still shouldn't judge so easily.
"When I think that… It pisses me off so much!" Usopp snapped as he slammed his fist down on the table. "Even though she helped protect my village… And laughed so happily when sailing together with us... Inside her mind she was always planning on how to steal the treasure and ditch us!"
I let out a soft growl now, lifting up my head to glare at Usopp, although he didn't notice me.
"Laughing happily?" Nojiko questioned. "Her?"
"Why the evil witch!" Usopp raged. "A person like her deserves an attack of the spiritual order! I'll completely ignore her from now on!"
"I told you already, don't start trouble with the Arlong Pirates," Nojiko sighed with a jaded look.
"Well, as long as I can get back my ship it's fine. And since I've already found the ship I should hurry up and leave!" Usopp declared, but like hell I was going to leave.
"Well, that would be the wise thing to do. Messing with the Arlong Pirates won't end in mere injuries," Nojiko said before jerking her thumb towards the window and asking. "By the way, is that the ship you were looking for?"
"AH!" Usopp yelped yet again in shock. "The Going Merry! What is it doing over there?"
"Wait a minute…" Usopp began to mumbled to himself. "Alright, I've already grasped the basic geography of this area. I remember there being a village to the west of here. That has to be Cocoyashi village center... That's where I saw those fishmen."
Suddenly Usopp went silent and his jaw dropped down.
"What's wrong?" Questioned Nojiko.
"I forgot that one of my crew mates unfortunately got himself caught by the fishmen," Usopp said and I felt my lips twitch in annoyance at that lie. Usopp and either Jonny or Yosaku had tied him up and left him there. "And he was already on the verge of death! I just hope he didn't provoke them and get himself killed…"
Are you kidding? This is Zoro we are talking about. Of course he's pissed someone off! I'm going to get grey hairs early with all the worrying and stressing I do…
"He's inhuman!" Usopp yelped loudly in fear.
We were hiding behind a building, watching Arlong talk to one of the villagers with many stitches on his body. There were lots of other fishmen behind him and there were no other villagers in sight. Usopp apparently wasn't that keen on Arlong's look. I, on the other hand, was holding back a growl. He didn't look that scary in real life, but I still didn't like him. Luffy could kill him though, so we didn't have much to worry about except keeping ourselves alive in the meantime.
"He is a fishman," sighed Nojiko.
"But it looks like Nami didn't come with him…" Usopp muttered quietly.
"She's probably at Arlong Park," Nojiko said in a nonchalant way.
"I've got 20 villages under my rule," Alrong smirked. "And rebels are quiet a nuisance for us rulers. I destroyed the rebellious port town of Gosa to teach a lesson to all the other towns! If someone fails to pay their tribute, then it means that they plan to rebel against us!"
'What a monster,' I hissed mentally. 'Not in body, but in mind.'
"Tribute?" Usopp asked, still peeking around the corner. I was pressed up against his legs also still watching what was going on. "What's he talking about?"
"It's money we have to pay month after month…" Nojiko said, showing a little bit of emotion this time. "We have to buy our own lives from them! Adults, kids, everyone! So if there is a single person in any village that fails to pay his tribute then his entire village will be destroyed just like Gosa village!"
"A whole town destroyed because of one single person!" Usopp exclaimed, his eyes bulging out of their sockets. "Talk about cruel!"
"That's life under Arlong's rule," Nojiko stated. "With their 'racial doctrine' they don't even think twice about killing a human…"
"Hear me well inferior humans!" I heard Arlong call out. "All you need to do is work hard and pay the tribute! There is no need to think about anything else! What I need is an enormous sum of money! YOUR MONEY WILL BECOME THE CORNERSTONE OF MY ARLONG EMPIRE THAT WILL SOON RULE ALL EAST BLUE!"
"ARLONG EMPIRE?" Usopp yelled. "He's trying to build his own nation? So then he is going to turn all of East Blue into his fishmen empire? But that would include my home town too..."
"Whatever happens, happens," shrugged Nojiko. "All we can do is quietly sit still and endure it… For now."
"For now...?" Usopp echoed her.
"ARGHHH!" We heard a voice cry out in pain
"What's that?" Usopp cried.
"GEN!" Nojiko Yelped in worry and shock.
"Possessing a weapon is a clear sign of rebellion," Alrong stated as he held up the stitches man with the pinwheel on his head, Gen, by the front of his shirt. "The case of unrest and disturbance in my lands. And to make sure there aren't any more rebels like you, I'll kill you to show the other villagers what happens to rebels!"
"WHA! All he did was collect some weapons!" Usopp object to himself. "He's seriously going to kill someone over that much!"
"That son of a…" Nojiko snarled as she bolted out from behind the building and towards Arlong.
"Hey! Come back here or you'll be killed!" Usopp yelled after her but she didn't listen and kept running.
I looked up to Usopp; he was going to do something right? If not, I was going to be following Nojiko's lead. But Usopp didn't let me down, and with several muttered curses he began to clamber on top of the building as we heard more scuffling for the main street. I was quick to follow Usopp up with the use of some handily placed crates and we finally reached the top of the building in time to see Arlong pick Gen up by his middle and lift him up over his shoulder ready to throw him.
"LET THIS BE A WARNING TO THE REST OF YOU!" Arlong yelled as he continued to swing Gen down at the ground.
"KAYAKU BOSHI*!" Usopp yelled as he let loose one of his little 'bullets'. It smashed into Arlong and exploded causing Arlong to release Gen and stumble back in pain and shock. Usopp really did have good aim.
Several different voices, both human and fishmen called out.
"What was that!"
"Arlong!"
"Look over there!"
"There is someone standing on the roof!"
"Identify yourself!"
"I AM THE BRAVE WARRIOR OF THE SEAS!" Usopp cried out, although his legs were shaking. I silently leaned against his legs to give him some comfort and it seemed to work as his shaking seemed to decrease. "CAPTAIN USOPP! AND THIS IS MY COMPANION, MAMORI!"
"Huh… Usopp?" one fishman muttered.
"Never heard of him," stated another.
"It's them!" Nojiko gasped.
"Who are they?" several villagers exclaimed.
"FEARD BY THE ENTIRE WORLD AS THE MAN FROM HELL, THEY CALL ME 'USOPP THE WICKED KING'!" Usopp yelled as he lied. I was sort of embarrassed to be standing next to him, but at the moment we had bigger fish to fry. Pun intended. "I HAVE 8000 SUBORDINATES AT MY COMMAND! FLEE AT ONCE AND I SHALL CONSIDER FORGIVING YOU!"
"Arlong, that's him! He's that guy I told you about earlier who escaped from me!" one of the fishmen cried.
"I don't care if you've got tens of thousands of followers!" Arlong snarled, his head bent over as he recovered from the earlier shot. "Just try me! I'll crush every one of them! Even though you are just a puny human...!" His head suddenly snapped up to glare viciously at Usopp and myself. "LOWLY HUMAN SCUM! HOW DARE YOU ATTACK ME!"
Alrong jumped forward, gripping the corner of the house and lifting it right off of the ground using sheer strength alone. With a cry, Usopp dropped to his stomach and gripped onto the edge of the house but I had no such luck. I didn't have fingers to grip onto anything so I launched myself straight off the roof without a second thought. I went soaring through the air above everyone, my eyes as wide as some of the villagers. I can't believe I just jumped off a two story building.
The ground was coming faster to them than I would have liked it to so I squeezed my eyes closed. I quickly remembered something a horse crazy friend of mine had said back on Earth one time.
'When you fall off a horse, always try and land on your shoulders and roll to alleviate some of the force behind the fall,' the advice echoed in my mind.
Well, I had never had a chance to test that theory and I think now might be the best time. I wondered whether it even worked for dogs.
I angled my body so that my right front paw would hit the ground first, and as soon as I felt first contact I let it crumble beneath me, pitching myself onto my shoulder. The motion then caused me to roll over several times as the rest of the body came in contact with the ground, my eyes not opening for a second. I only stopped rolling when I felt something slam into my side, causing me to stop completely. I cracked open my eyes to stare blankly up at a fishman. It appeared that I was currently on my back, my side propped up against a fishman's legs, which is what cause me to stop. He looked down at me looking just as shocked as I was. I quickly jumped up though and threw myself away from the fishman before he could do anything, ignoring his cry behind me. I spun around and started weaving in and out of the fishmen before they noticed me and headed cautiously towards Arlong.
"Arlong! Wait! You're not going to destroy the village are you!" I heard one of the fishmen cry out.
"Human villages are easy to crush but our goal is to rule over them!" another objected.
"If you turn this village into another Gosa village then out tribute funds will decrease again!" yet another fishman inputted.
"If our funds decrease then all we have to do is concur another village!" snapped Arlong. "WE ARE THE SUPREME BEINGS!"
Arlong then proceeded to smash the building he was holding into another house causing them both to shatter into splinters of flying wood.
'USOPP!' I cried mentally in worry.
"CRAP!" I heard a familiar voice yell. "He's going to kill me!"
I then saw Usopp running across the roof of another house much to my relief. It was short lived when a fishmen started calling out, "He's alive! After him! Don't let him escape!"
"CATCH HIM AND KILL HIM!" Alrong roared.
Two other fishmen quickly jumped forward to restrain Arlong crying out, "Let's return to Arlong Park! At this rate he is going to annihilate the entire village!"
I hesitated, stopping my advance. I shouldn't attack the fishmen now because that will get the village in more trouble they don't need. I'd best help Usopp then, I think the villages can handle themselves for the moment now that the fishmen are leaving.
That decided I quickly ducked behind a building until the fishmen were out of sight and then took off at a sprint, following Usopp's scent. I just hope he could hold out for now.
Kayaku Boshi: Gunpowder Star