Betaread and final touches done by Checkmate-13!
Chapter 13. The Smile of the White Sheep
"Join my crew!" Luffy proposed, showing the man in front of him his usual sunny grin.
Usopp blinked, feeling his jaw drop. "Huh?"
"Do you have a dream?"
"Uh…" The liar was completely stumped by the random question, not to mention the pirate's overall attitude change. "Why do you want to know?"
Luffy placed a hand on his hat. "Everyone sets out to sea with their own dreams and goals. I aim to become the Pirate King!" he declared adamantly, his whole being radiating with steely determination and confidence.
Usopp was stunned. He was a liar, maybe not a very good one, but still, he could always tell when other people lied. This kid was not lying. The next Pirate King was standing before him, offering a place in his crew. "I-I want to become a brave warrior of the sea!" Usopp announced, all previous hesitation swept aside.
The rubber boy grinned. "The Pirate King could definitely use such a person on his ship! I'm Luffy, this is Zoro, and Nami," he motioned to his nakama who a moment ago had walked over to them.
The sharpshooter smirked cockily. "I'm Usopp, but you can call me the great captain Usopp!" he pointed at himself proudly.
"No," Zoro promptly declined. "There is only one person I'm willing to call 'captain' and he's standing right in front of you."
"I have to agree with Zoro on this," Nami admitted, eyeing the long-nosed teen up and down. "You don't strike me as captain material."
"Oi!" the liar huffed before whining, "You could call me captain sometimes at least..."
Luffy burst into laughter. Ah, his nakama were the best!
"W-why did you come to this island?" a shy voice from behind Usopp asked, and everyone looked at the blonde girl, still sitting on the ground.
"Ah, Kaya!" exclaimed Usopp, flailing his arms and wincing right after as the pain surged through his wounds.
"I'm sorry about Luffy, he doesn't know how scary he appears to outsiders sometimes," Nami apologized with a friendly smile, offering her hand to the young lady to help her stand up.
"Do I look scary sometimes?" the straw hatted teen asked the other two males.
"Yeah!" they both instantly replied in unison.
"Shishishishi!"
"Be serious, guys…" the thief sighed, after helping Kaya off the ground. "We're not here to attack a village or anything," she explained. "We came to this island to restock and maybe find a ship."
"You're looking for a ship?" Kaya asked.
"Yeah, we can't go to the Grand Line with the two small boats we have right now," the navigator told her.
"Maybe you have a ship to give us?" Luffy inquired, being all serious.
"You can't just ask people for such big things!" Nami scolded him, absent-mindedly swinging her hand to smack him over his head and missing when the teen leaned out of the way.
Kaya chuckled. "Luffy-san, Zoro-san, Nami-san and Usopp-san," she bowed gracefully before them. "Thank you all for saving this village, and me."
The rubber captain hummed. "It's not that I tried to do that, but you're welcome!"
"If you feel indebted to us," the thief smirked slyly, "you could gift us a ship."
"Oi, oi!" Usopp objected.
"You don't make any sense," Zoro grumbled. "Didn't you just tell Luffy not to ask for such things?"
"It's not the same!" Nami seemed offended. "What I'm asking is only a small token of gratitude!"
"Sounds the same to me…" the swordsman muttered.
Suddenly Luffy's stomach growled loudly, demanding food, and he smiled sheepishly.
"Let's go to my mansion for now," Kaya suggested. "Usopp-san, you need to bandage your arm, and I left Merry after Klahadore..." she trailed off, a sad expression creeping across her features.
"Kaya…" Usopp didn't know what to say to her. He was staring at the girl with worry written all over his face.
"Okay, let's go," Luffy agreed, breaking the sudden silence which had stretched between them. "But after that – food!"
Piiman and Ninjin were staring at the tree which was one of Usopp's many hiding places.
"He's not here either," Ninjin remarked.
"Where is the captain today?" wondered Piiman while looking around. "And where is Tamanegi?"
"He's probably still sleeping," the purple-haired boy said. "I'm worried about the captain. He wasn't like himself yesterday."
"I agree."
"WAAAAAAAH!" a cry suddenly rang in the distance, and both kids looked at the blonde boy with glasses, dashing madly at them while crying at the top of his lungs, "THIS IS BAD! THE PIRATES!"
"Why are you yelling, Tamanegi?" asked the green-haired boy.
"What's this about pirates?" Ninjin questioned.
Catching his breath, Tamanegi stopped in front of his friends. "I saw two boats on the southern part of the shore, and I went to investigate them. One of them has a black sail with the Jolly Roger! It's the symbol of Buggy's pirates!"
"You're lying!" both boys chorused.
"It's true!" exclaimed the blonde. "There are pirates somewhere on the island!"
All three kids fell silent for a moment, until they heard voices nearing them. They promptly jumped into the forest and hid in the bush.
"That's the captain!" Ninjin whispered as he spotted Usopp with three strangers walking along the path.
"What's he doing?" wondered Piiman.
"I have never seen those people before…" Tamanegi pointed out before paling. "They are probably the pirates!" he hissed to his friends.
"The captain is in danger!" the green-haired boy stirred, but Ninjin stopped him.
"Let's follow them for now, and see where they take the captain," he suggested.
Both boys nodded, determination burning in their eyes.
"Usopp…" Luffy tilted his head to one side. "Usopp…" He tilted his head to other side. "Usopp…" The rubber boy continued chanting the name of his newest crewmate and swaying his head in deep contemplation. "Usopp…"
The long-nosed teen grew more nervous every time the straw hatted pirate said his name. Even though this kid just invited him into his crew, and he kind of accepted the invitation, Usopp was aware that he was dealing with real pirates here. A real pirate captain probably ruled over his crew in a ruthless and brutal way.
"Usopp…" Briefly glancing at the bush further away from the path they were taking, Luffy continued, "Usopp…"
"Ahhhh! Stop it!" Nami was the first one to finally snap because of his chanting. "What are you doing, Luffy?!"
The rubber captain hummed, bending his eyebrows into an annoyed frown. "I can't remember where I heard that name."
"Huh? You heard my name somewhere?" the liar looked at him before grinning proudly. "Of course, you did! After all, I'm the great capt–"
"No, it was something else…" drawled Luffy. All that thinking was starting to give him a fever.
"Maybe you heard something similar," the navigator tried to help.
The black-haired teen face lit up after some more struggling to remember. "Oh! That's it!" He flashed a bright grin at his nakama. "Nami, you're so smart!"
The thief smiled back at him, glad that he would stop his irritating chanting now.
"Usopp!" Luffy yelled, turning at the long-nosed teen and once again startling him. "You're Yasopp's kid, aren't you?"
The sharpshooter almost tripped over on the flat path from hearing his question. He gawked at the grinning rubber boy in shock. "H-how do you know that?"
"I've known him since I was a kid!"
"Really? You know my dad?"
"Yup," Luffy nodded before closing his eyes as memories from the time spent with Yasopp and the rest of the gang flashed through his mind. "Yasopp's shooting skills are the best! He never misses anything within his range!"
A slight blush dyed Usopp's cheeks like it was him who Luffy had praised. He felt pride welling inside of his chest. His dad was a hero to him!
"Is your father a pirate too?" Zoro asked.
"Yeah!" Usopp confirmed without any hesitation, smiling happily. "Even though he left me for the sea, I'm always proud of my dad!"
"Yasopp is a great pirate!" Luffy exclaimed, excited. "He's one of the Red-Haired Shanks' nakama, and Shanks is an amazing pirate!"
"So he's on that Red-Haired Shanks' ship huh…" the liar drawled while looking into the distance, thinking about his dad chasing his dreams on the far away oceans right at this moment. Suddenly he blinked, turning at the grinning straw hatted boy. "You mean Shanks..? SHANKS THE RED-HAIRED?!"
Zoro scratched his head. Where had he heard that name? Nami was listening to the conversation wondering what connection Luffy had with that Shanks person.
"Shishishishi!" the rubber teen chuckled. "That's right, Usopp! Your dad is on the Yonko's ship!"
"Yonko?!" both Zoro and Nami exclaimed at the same time.
"How do you know such a pirate, Luffy?" the swordsman inquired cautiously.
The boy brushed over his straw hat's rim, and a melancholic smile tugged the edges of his lips. "He saved my life and gave me this hat," he finally replied. "Shanks was the first one who inspired me to go on this journey."
The thief stared at the straw hat before asking, "Is that why you care about it so much?"
Luffy's smile faltered. He clutched the hat's rim with both hands and pulled it down harder, like he was afraid that it would fly away at any moment. "It's… very important to me," he uttered in a hushed voice.
Zoro glanced at his captain, remembering that episode after the nightmare he had the first night they sailed together. The hat actually helped the kid to calm down and come back to his senses. It was probably somehow connected to whatever happened to him, but the swordsman wasn't sure he wanted to hear about it. Every sign showed that Luffy's past was far from pretty.
Nami suddenly felt guilty for asking her question, she definitely didn't like the sight of Luffy cringing and clinging to his hat with apparent desperation. He was always so confident, strong and reliable. Now the boy looked scared, but of what, the navigator couldn't tell. She wanted him to smile brightly again, the way he always did.
Usopp was really confused. The straw hatted teen was a strange person, even more so if you took into consideration that he was a pirate at such a young age. A very strong pirate captain, at that. But now while staring at him, the sharpshooter couldn't see more than just a kid who needed some comfort and be protected from the hostility of the world.
"The tavern is just around the corner, guys!"
"Luffy, we're almost at the place where we can get food."
"You haven't forgotten that I'm paying for your food, captain? So you can get as much as you want."
All three of them suddenly started to speak at the same time, trying to cheer up the smallest one among their group. Luffy lifted his head. His companions were watching him closely, worry and concern visible on their faces. The rubber boy tugged his straw hat down again, but this time he couldn't fight the relieved, happy smile growing on his face. He wasn't alone anymore. He had trustworthy nakama by his side!
Nami felt tricked, conned, deceived and defrauded. All at the same time.
The group was sitting around the table in the local tavern where Usopp had led them to have a dinner.
The thief one more time eyed the pile of empty plates towering her, and had to gulp down the urge to bang her head on the table. She looked Luffy up and down. Where the hell had all that food gone?! And why did he never eat so much while in the open sea? If he did, they would certainly go out of food in a day.
Her gaze shifted to the swordsman, sitting next to her. His tower of plates wasn't that impressive, but the number of empty bottles on his side of the table would have put to shame even the heaviest drinker. Scratch that. Bunch of drinkers.
Nami groaned and actually hit the table with her head. "I knew it…" she mumbled, resting her forehead on the table. "I knew there was a catch in this deal."
"Hm?" Luffy swallowed another bite from the meat chunk in his hand. "What's wrong, Nami?"
The navigator clenched her teeth, slammed her fists on the table, and straightened up, glowering at the straw hatted pirate. "You tricked me!" she yelled. "My deal to pay for your food," she pointed at the tower of plates, "and booze..!" she waived at the empty bottles. "I-I had no idea you two can eat and drink this much!"
"I told you that I can eat a lot!" Luffy grinned at her, causing Nami to scowl.
"And I told you that I can drink a lot," Zoro added, not paying attention that his words made the thief's eyebrow twitch.
Yeah, Nami remembered clearly that they'd said that, but… she glanced over the plates and bottles once again, and banged her head back down on the table with a pained sigh. She couldn't go back on her word, but right now she would have to spend half of her money just to satiate these two monsters every time they visited a place to eat.
"What kind of deal are you talking about?" Usopp asked, curious about the despair radiating from the orange-haired girl.
"When we first met we made a deal with Nami: she can have all the treasure we find, but she pays for our food and drinks," Luffy explained, throwing another steak into his mouth.
"Yeah, now half of that treasure will go to just feeding you…" the navigator whined meekly.
"Shishishishi!"
Ninjin, Piiman and Tamanegi dashed through the empty area between two houses and flattened themselves against another house's wall. Ninjin peeked around the corner, scanning the remaining distance to the tavern. He gave the signal to the other two boys, and all three tiptoed towards their goal. They hid behind some barrels and formed a ring to decide their course of action.
"This is the place where the pirates brought our captain," Piiman summarized.
Tamanegi pulled out his wooden sword and clenched it, determined. "We must save him!"
"Real pirates are savages," Ninjin pointed out, also drawing his toy weapon. "They might have brought captain here to eat him."
"Idiot! It's onibaba who eats people!" the green-haired boy reprimanded his friend. He lifted his wooden sword in front of him, and the other two followed his lead. "This is going to be the most dangerous battle for the Usopp Pirate Crew! Everyone stay alert and ready!"
All three boys nodded and bumped their swords together, resolving themselves for the life or death battle to save their captain. With a final last glance between each other, they kicked the tavern's door open and stumbled inside. "The Usopp Pirate Crew is here!" they chorused.
The pirates looked at them from where they were sitting. Luffy raised an eyebrow, his mouth full of meat, preventing him from saying anything.
Nami stared at the boys. "What's going on?" she wondered.
"Usopp Crew?" Zoro mumbled under his nose, contently sipping the sake straight from the bottle.
"AH! The captain is not here!" yelled Ninjin, all color draining from his face.
"D-don't tell me… he was…" Tamanegi stuttered.
"Oi, pirates, what did you do to our captain Usopp?!" demanded Piiman, pointing his wooden sword at the enemies.
"Give us back our captain!" the other two pleaded.
Luffy swallowed the last bit of his food, patting his stomach in a blissful satisfaction. "That was some delicious meat!" he exclaimed happily.
Three pairs of frightened eyes fixed on him.
"M-meat..?"
"C-captain really was… eaten..?"
"No way..!"
Nami started chuckling, amused by the reaction of these kids.
Zoro placed his arm on the table and leaned on his palm. A sinister smirk appeared on his face as he stabbed one of the last meat cuts left with a fork and lifted it up to his mouth. "Your captain," he drawled, getting attention of the three boys, "was just eaten."
The children blanched, watching as the swordsman ripped the piece of meat in his hand in half and chewed it, grinning evilly. They eyes darted back at the straw hatted teen when he hummed loudly.
"Maybe I should eat some more?" Luffy asked nobody in particular while eyeing the kids up and down. He licked his lips, and a smile spread on his face.
The boys took a step back. "GYAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" they screamed at the top of their lungs. Their eyes bulged out, tears and snot splattering everywhere.
The pirates burst into laughter. That was quite a cruel joke, but neither of them regretted playing it on these kids. Their reaction was priceless.
Usopp suddenly ran over from somewhere at the back of the tavern, alarmed by the scream of doom. "What happened?!" he hastily questioned, and only then he noticed three boys lying on the floor, trying to catch their breath after literally screaming their lungs out. "Piiman, Ninjin, Tamanegi? Guys, what are you doing in here?"
The boys gawked at him for a while. "CAPTAIN!" all three shouted, jumping up and tackling him into a group hug.
"We thought you were gone!"
"The pirates said that they ate you!"
"We were so scared!"
Usopp was stunned. "Wha… What happened?" he asked. He never saw his pirate crew so frightened, and certainly hadn't expected to be hugged by them.
"Maybe you went a bit too far?" Nami whispered to her companions, feeling slightly guilty and worried about the children.
"Nah, it's fine," Luffy brushed her worry off, grinning. "It was just a joke, Usopp!"
The tavern's door opened again, this time more carefully as the blond girl came inside. Upon seeing the pirates, Kaya's face lit up. "Here you are!" she exclaimed, excited.
"Hey, ojou-sama!" Luffy flashed his usual sunny smile at her.
Kaya's eyes fell on Usopp and his younger friends who still refused to let him go, and she giggled, causing the long-nosed teen to blush.
"Come on, guys, let me go," he urged his crew. "You're the Usopp Pirate Crew! You shouldn't get scared that easily!"
The boys gasped, jumping from him and grinning. "Right, captain!" they chorused.
Kaya chuckled again then turned to Luffy and his nakama. "I have a surprise for you all. I hope that you would accept it openheartedly."
"A surprise? For us?" the straw hatted boy asked, tilting his head to the side. Nami and Zoro also stared at her, curious about what she had in mind.
"Yes, follow me, please."
"Oh, I will join you later," Usopp quickly said. "I need to talk to my crew before that."
Luffy smiled at him. "Okay, see you later, Usopp!" He waved his hand before following the young mistress out of the tavern.
"While not losing sight of our ambitions, swear that you will go on the road you have chosen!" Usopp shouted, standing proudly in front of his pirate crew. Tears started to gather in his eyes.
The boys nodded furiously, trying but failing to stop their tears from spilling out.
"Starting today the Usopp Pirate Crew…" the young sharpshooter swallowed hard, but held his head high. "…IS DISBANDED!"
Kaya was smiling with contentment while all three pirates were beaming with pure happiness from the sight of their surprise gift.
"Ohhh!" Zoro cheered, wide smile plastered on his face.
The ship with natural brown hull and white railings was peacefully swaying, anchored at the shore.
"A caravel!" Nami rejoiced, jumping from excitement.
The sails were singing as the wind brushed through them, while flags lazily fluttered in the breeze.
"WOOOOW!" Luffy shouted in awe.
The white sheep figurehead with swirly horns was softly smiling at the three young pirates who'd soon sail it to the faraway seas of adventure, chasing after their dreams.
"It is somewhat old-fashioned, but I designed it myself," the man who they met at Kaya's mansion spoke to them. "I call it Going Merry!"
"Going Merry…" Luffy repeated, before breaking into huge, sunny grin. "One more nakama!"
"I will explain the steering system," the ship's designer smiled softly at the hatted boy, happy that he liked the vessel. "First of all, in order to–"
"Ah, you can explain all that to Nami," Luffy interrupted him. "I don't think I would understand any of it, and she's our navigator!"
Nami nodded. "I'll listen to the explanation."
"I'll go find Usopp in the meantime."
Luffy was laughing joyfully while carrying Usopp's enormous bag without any effort. "How did you plan to reach the shore if I hadn't come to get you?" he asked.
The long-nosed teen puffed his chest. "I could carry it myself!" he claimed. "But I'm not in the mood right now."
The rubber boy laughed again. They reached the shore where Going Merry was anchored. Zoro was already napping on the ship, leaning on its railings. Nami was chatting with Kaya who waved her hand once she spotted both boys coming down the slope.
"So, you're going to the sea, Usopp-san?" the blond girl inquired.
"Yeah, I'm going as a member of Luffy's crew," he confirmed. "Please, don't stop me."
Luffy easily jumped onto the ship with Usopp's bag. Nami climbed the rope ladder right after him.
"Oh, you're back?" Zoro mumbled groggily, before yawning.
"Yep!" Luffy grinned at his nakama, dropped the bag, and leaned on the railings to watch Usopp and Kaya saying their goodbyes.
"I look forward to that!" the blonde smiled shyly at the sharpshooter. He smiled back and turned to climb onto the ship.
"Not going to kiss her?" Luffy suddenly asked.
Nami blinked at him. Zoro snapped fully awake. Usopp almost slipped from the ladder, and Kaya blushed.
Luffy frowned, confused by their strange reactions. "Shanks always kissed Makino when he left the village," he recalled. "I thought it was a normal way to say goodbye to a female." His frown deepened than Zoro burst into laughter, Nami facepalmed, and Kaya's blush intensified.
"L-Luffy, that's…" Usopp stuttered, but didn't know how to explain that it wasn't actually that normal.
"I kissed Makino and Dadan on the cheeks when I left," Luffy said, scratching his head in confusion. "Maybe that's why Dadan fainted… Makino was really happy though."
"We really should go!" Nami suddenly exclaimed, breaking the awkwardness which started to build up among them. "Thank you again for the ship, Kaya!"
The blonde cleared her throat, smiled and waved. "Have a safe trip everyone!"
Next Chapter: The Scar of the Past