Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece

The Pirates Are Coming

Usopp sat with Luffy in shock as he processed the words he heard. The damn butler was planning to assassinate Kaya, but why? The family took him in when he washed up on the shore of the island, they gave him a job, and he loved Kaya. Or was it all an act?

Jango then said, "It's been a while hasn't it, CAPTAIN KURO."

Usopp's eyes widened. This damn butler was a pirate, and yet he badmouthed his father. That hypocrite how dare he. He had half a mind to go down there and pummel him if he didn't know that he would get creamed.

His was cut out of his thoughts as the man now named Kuro said, "Didn't I tell you to never address me with that name again. That man has long died."

What does he mean that the man has long died? He is alive, isn't he? Unless he was a zombie which made Usopp quiver in fear due to the rising dead.

Jango then added, "Ok, I won't say it again though it is a surprise to know that the infamous captain Kuro is now nothing but a caretaker to a little girl." Usopp's blood ran cold before he could even squeak Luffy put his hand on his mouth telling him to be quiet. Then Jango asked, "Remind me again, why you are doing this?"

Kuro sighed, "Do I have to?" he looked at his follower as he said, "Listen, I enjoyed the life of the pirate. The treasures, the gold, and most importantly the reputation that came with it, everything that I ever wanted or so I thought. However, it was that reputation that annoyed me." he said as he adjusted his glasses, "You see I craved to have some peace and quiet, but the Marines wouldn't allow that, add to them the bounty hunters and my life was a mess. So I decided to find a way to have peace and this is the best way to live comfortably. For three years, I've been planning for this day."

"I still don't get something yet" Jango said causing Kuro to raise any eyebrow, "Why not kill her and take her wealth."

Kuro massaged his forehead due to subordinate's thick skull, "Didn't you hear word said?" he said with a little annoyance. Kuro then composed himself as he explained, "If I wanted to kill her, I would have done it years ago. Do you think I like serving that brat? But then I would still be an outlaw, and won't have a peaceful life." Jango then nodded his head as he started reminiscing on something. Usopp on the other hand was fuming but kept his cool.

"You I still can't believe that day when you told me your plan to put that cabin boy that looked like you under hypnosis," Jango said as he remembered how the boy was taken instead of his captain to be executed.

Jango then asked, "When I worked with you all these years back, you always spilt the scores, will I get my share this time?"

Kuro sighed, "Yeah, you will get your share like the previous times." He adjusted his glasses, and then said, "Let's talk about the plan."

Jango nodded his head as he said, "Well the assassination…"

He was cut off by Kuro who interjected saying, "I think assassination is a rather strong word. I prefer 'accident'."

Jango then smirked evilly as he said, "Yeah 'accident', when the crew attacks the village, we go and the girl 'accidentally' bites the dust."

Kuro then showed a little anger as he shouted at his subordinate, "No, you idiot," Kuro then calmed himself down and adjusted her glasses, and said, "You first have to hypnotize her to put all her wealth to me."

"Yeah, sorry captain, after we hypnotize her to write her will for you, after that she bites the dust." Jango correct himself

Usopp's eyes widen as the realization hit him. This was a pirate captain that was going to destroy his village, and worst of all he was targeting Kaya. To think that someone who lived among them for so long was plotting against them was truly horrifying. If he didn't hate him before, he sure did now.

"Yes and with that, I will have a peaceful life," Kuro said.

"Peaceful?" Jango snickered, as Kuro looked at him, "Didn't you kill the girl's parents too."

Kuro shook his head, and said, "No, I didn't. That was truly an accident that I only benefitted from."

Usopp stood and began to walk away with Luffy, but he accidentally stepped on a branch causing the two down there to notice the two's presence. Kuro and Jango looked up and saw the two. Jango began to panic that they were discovered and that the boys will tell the village, but Kuro calms him down.

He then looked a Usopp, and says, "Well, well, if it isn't the village's liar," he chuckled a little as he continued, "What are going to do now? Go ahead, tell the village, but remember they won't believe since after all you're known as a liar."

Usopp trembled as he looked at the man standing below. He was telling the truth. The people won't believe him, but he had to try. That was his village he couldn't just let pirates just run through it and kill everyone. It was his duty as captain Usopp.

Luffy then shouted, "Hey you, weird guy," Kuro then looked at Luffy and acknowledged his presence, "I won't let you harm Usopp's village."

Kuro then snorted and said, "As if I'd let a second-rate pirate stop me," He looked at Jango and said, "Jango, you know what to do."

The man jumped clearly startled and nodded his head. He looked at the boys and said, "Now boys, look at the pendant, and when I say 'One, Two, Jango' you'll both go to sleep."

Usopp didn't look, but Luffy being Luffy looked at it not caring.

"Now One,"

"Two"

"Jango"

Like the last time the trick worked, however just like the last Jango fell victim to his own trick as he fell on the sand snoring. Luffy on the other hand fell from the top of the cliff snoring till his head hit the ground giving the impression that he died.

Usopp looked at his new friend with fear. Luffy just died. What was he going to do? What was going to tell his friends? Soon, he turned and ran quickly to the village in hope of warning them, and he also was planning to tell the others that Luffy just died.

Kuro looked and shook his head, "Do as you wish, but it won't make a difference. In the end, the village trusts me more than they do with you." He looked at the still simply Jango. He kicked him and told him to go and get the men ready. He then went to the mansion to ready himself for tomorrow.

Usopp ran as he can. He still can't believe that Luffy actually died. What he was going to tell the others? He really felt bad for him because he was the reason why he died. Had he didn't step on that twig, would have Luffy died? No, he would be running with him to warn the others about that damned butler, pirate, honestly, he didn't know what to call him anymore at this point not that he cares anymore.

He then saw in the distance Luffy's friends and walked toward them with tears in his eyes. The 3 looked at him, and Robin said, "What's wrong, Usopp?"

He looked at her remembering that she's Luffy's girlfriend as he said, "I'm sorry guys, but…" he stopped a little causing Zoro to say, "But what?"

"Luffy's dead. We were caught up in something, and now Luffy's dead because of me. His body is at the north entrance to the island. I'm sorry I have to go to warn the village of the upcoming pirate attack." He said before running off into the distance.

Both Robin and Zoro looked at each other and began to laugh. Nami looked at them astounded at how they can laugh at such a predicament. She was really angry at how Robin was laughing at her boyfriend's death. "How can you two laugh at such a time? And you…" he said pointing at Robin, "Your boyfriend just died how you can even think about laughing?"

Robin looked at her and said, "Calm down, Luffy isn't dead."

Zoro nodded his head saying, "I think the grand line will be destroyed before he kicks the bucket."

"How can you both be so cool about this? You heard what he said." Nami demanded with frustration. Sure, she hated pirates but Luffy didn't seem like a bad person.

"I know my Luffy won't die that easily," Robin said in a confident tone.

"Wanna bet?" Nami said.

"Okay, if you win you go your way, and we won't bother you. In addition, you will have all our money," Nami had her eyes turn into beri signs as she heard money, "But…" Nami quirked her ears to hear her end of the bargain; "If my boyfriend is alive, you'll give us all the treasure that you have." Nami's turned pale white from fear as she thought all of the precious money she collected to be gone down the drain. She looked at Robin who held out her hand to finalize the deal, and reluctantly shook it.

Back with Usopp, he ran to the village, as he began screaming, "The pirates are coming! The pirates are coming! The pirates are coming..." this continued till a shoe hit his head.

He looked and saw one of the villagers looking at him with an angered face, the man shouted as he jumped out of his window, "Shut up. Don't you ever stop with that line?" More people then started to appear around Usopp who was afraid for the villagers' lives as he said, "I'm not lying this time. They're planning to attack the village first thing tomorrow morning."

He looked around him but saw that no one believed him. At this moment, he knew that he messed up big time with his constant pranks. He then remembered Kuro's words that no one will believe him. He tried one more time, "Listen I know that I was pranking all this time, but this time I'm saying the truth. You need to believe me or at least give me the benefit of a doubt…" the villagers all looked at him with skeptical looks as he continued to speak, "That damned butler of Kaya is a pirate captain and is planning to attack the village so he can…"

He was then silenced by a punch to the face by one of the villagers who glared at him saying, "Don't you dare bring Klahadore in this, you filthy liar. To think for a moment you almost fooled us into believing you." The man who punched said.

"Yeah, Klahadore is an upstanding man you could only wish to reach his level." A woman shouted. The rest began yelling at the long-nosed at how he was nothing but a liar while Klahadore was an amazing man. He briefly managed to see the ex-pirate captain make beside him with a smug expression on his face as the villagers began to beat Usopp up.

The boy didn't what to do now, but he still had a second thing to do before he can call quits. He needed to warn Kaya about that damned butler's intention. So with whatever strength he had left, he heaved the villagers and began to run as fast as his legs can carry him to Kaya's mansion. He needed to warn her. She was going to believe him after all.

Back at the mansion, Kaya sat with Merry as they patted Klahadore's gift for his service to the family. It was an antique glasses that Kaya personally requested for the man that took care of her when her parents died. Sure, his methods were extreme, but his heart was in the right place.

"I hope he likes it," Kaya said as she gave it to Merry. Merry smiled at the girl's kind heart and said, "I'm sure that Klahadore will like it very much."

They both then heard a rustle from outside Kaya's window. The girl went to open it, and was shocked by the sight that greeted her; it was a very bloodied and beat-up Usopp who looks like he was through hell itself. The girl gasped as she said, "Usopp, what happened to you?"

Merry had a different reaction saying, "What are doing here? Get out of this location at once."

Usopp ignored Merry as he desperately grabbed Kaya startling the poor girl, and causing Merry to scream, "Unhand her."

Usopp looked at Kaya with a serious look as he said, "Kaya, you have to hear me out. Your life is in danger. You need to leave this place at once."

The girl looked at him in confusion and said in fear, "What are you talking about, Usopp?"

"I mean they're someone planning to kill you tomorrow," this shocked both Merry and Kaya as they listened to Usopp, but Merry said, "Who would want to hurt Miss Kaya."

Usopp looked at Kaya, and said, "Kaya, do you believe me?" the girl hesitantly nodded her head.

The boy then answered, "It's that damned Klahadore."

Merry who had enough of this game said, "Now, don't go badmouthing one of the family's most loyal members, let alone a person who loves Kaya as much as a man loves his daughter."

Usopp then said, "It was all a play to gain your trust. He only wants to have Kaya's wealth. He was planning for this from the moment he stepped into this house. He's planning to kill everyone in the village and force Kaya to write her will to him so he can take her money."

Merry then shouted, "Lies! Why would Klahadore do such a thing?"

Usopp then said, "Because he's a pirate. His real name is Kuro and I heard him plotting with his associate how he was planning…"

"Shut up!"

Both Merry and Usopp looked shocked at Kaya who was trembling as she looked at Usopp. Usopp moved forward as he said, "Kaya…"

"Stop, just stop!" Kaya yelled. "Listen, I like the stories you tell me to make me feel better, but this is going way too much. I understand that you and Klahadore don't see eye to eye but there's no need to make such lies."

"Kaya, please listen to me. I know what I'm saying is hard to believe, but it's the truth. I'm telling that bastard isn't who is pretending to be." Usopp begged the girl to hear him out, but she refused to listen to him anymore.

"Don't dare talk about Klahadore that way. Keep him out of your lies. He doesn't deserve what you are saying about him." Kaya screamed further

Usopp then grabbed Kaya's hand as he tried to yank her out of the window saying, "Kaya you need to come with me now. I know it's hard to believe me, but Klahadore isn't whose he's pretending to be. He's just a pirate who is after your money. Please believe me." The boy then suddenly felt something stung him as he let go of Kaya's hand and fell off the tree to the ground altering the security. He looked at Kaya with disbelief and betrayal as she said, "How can I believe you when you're like that?"

The boy stood there shocked and only felt being grabbed by his arms. He looked and saw the mansion's security trying to talk him out of the mansion.

He struggled against them since deep down he still believed he can convince Kaya to come with him. One of them approached him, and Usopp took out his slingshot and he aimed it at him sending a pellet into his face. Another one tried to tackle him only for the boy to roll and shoot him in the back of his head.

Kaya could only watch as the person she saw as her friend attacked her employees, so she yelled, "Usopp leave my house, and never come back." The boy looked at her as he was pinned down by the guards. He looked at Kaya who simply said, "Maybe Klahadore was right. Maybe, you aren't my friend as I thought you were." Now that hurt Usopp very deeply as Kaya's words were like swords in his chest. He saw her for one last moment before he was thrown out by security. he also noticed the damn butler walking inside the home with a smirk that said didn't I tell you no one will believe you.

The boy was left bruised, beaten, humiliated, and most importantly for some reason heartbroken. But he picked himself up; even if no believed him. Even if he had to fight alone and die, he will protect his village.

The boy then walked away to start planning how to defend his home from the invaders.

Back where Luffy was laying the others came across him. Nami looked at him and kicked him a little and said, "See, he's as dead as a doorknob." Her eyes then turned into beri signs as she said, "Now, pay up."

Zoro looked at Luffy and said, "How about we get a closer look."

The money girl pouted but nodded her head. Once they stood in front of the boy, they saw his chest going up and down meaning he was willing and kicking. Robin smirked at Nami and said, "You were saying something about him being dead as a doorknob, turns out he is alive and kicking. When we get back to our boats I expect all the money to be in my possession."

Nami felt her world shatter as she saw the peaceful-looking face of Luffy, as he slept away. She then tried to leap on him, and strangle saying, "The bet is that he's dead. It didn't specify the time of death." Disembodied arms held in her place as Robin came closer with a very dark aura surrounding her.

"NEVER TRY TO HURT MY LUFFY, GOT IT?" the raven-haired girl said in a deathly demonic voice.

Nami gulped in fear as she nodded saying, "Crystal"

Robin then let her go. Nami then saw Zoro approach Luffy and poke him all over to wake him up but to no avail, "I think he's in a coma since he can't wake up." Zoro said.

Robin then approached Luffy and whispered into his ear, "Luffy, wake up. It's time for cuddles." As if a magic word was said, the boy jumped to his feet and hugged Robin while rubbing his face affectionately into Robin's which was more than willing to return the affection.

Nami then said, "What the hell kinda wake-up call is that?" The girl's mind short-circuited. What kind of pirate acts like a lovesick puppy? It just wasn't possible.

The boy looked at her innocently as he said, "I just like cuddling with Robin. Is that so wrong?"

The orange-haired girl sweat-dropped at the boy's words, but Zoro then changed the subject to something less embarrassing in his opinion as he said, "So how did you end here?"

Luffy then came out of his girlfriend's embrace as he looked at Zoro, and said, "Some weird Hypno-guy made me fall asleep."

"Was the guy wearing all blue, and walking backward," Robin asked from beside him?

Luffy nodded, "He was working with that butler guy from earlier, but when I and Usopp discovered his plans; the butler told the guy to kill both of us."

"Wait" Zoro stopped Luffy, "Why would the butler work with him?"

"Well turns out that the butler was a pirate captain that was supposed to be executed 3 years ago. But he had a very convincing double who took the bullets for him after that guy was hypnotized that he was the captain." Luffy explained.

"Okay, so that answers that but who is the captain?" Nami asked in curiosity. Such a person must have a huge brain to think of something this smart. The only person she could think of is dead, or is he…

Luffy then scratched his chin as he said, "I think his name is Hero, no Kero, no Kiri…" Luffy went on to count names till Robin stopped him as she asked, "Luffy, was his name by any chance Kuro?"

"Yes, that's it," Luffy said triumphantly, but Robin had other thoughts.

Kuro of a thousand plans, that was his name when he was a pirate captain of the black cat pirates. He was known as the smartest person in the east blue. He was also known to have backup plans for his backup plans. But 3 years ago, she read that the marines executed him after he was captured by none other than Captain Morgan. It seems that was a hoax done by Kuro himself to run away from justice.

Zoro looked at Robin's concentrated face and asked, "Is he that dangerous?" The question attracted Luffy and Nami's attention.

Robin nodded her head saying, "He's one of the smartest people in the east blue if not the world. To say, he is dangerous is an understatement."

"So what do we do now?" Nami asked. She didn't want to die at the hands of some genius pirate.

Robin said, "We go look for Usopp. It's his village so we need to work with him." The others nodded as they went off to look for the boy with a million lies up his sleeve.

The group then returns to the 3 children who were waiting for them by the fence, and Luffy then told the children what happened to earn a fist to the head from Nami, who is chastised for blabbing too much information.

The children then began running around as they screamed about pirates coming to destroy the village, and kill them. Onion first spoke, "Oh, no. What are going to do; pirates are going to attack the village."

Pepper then replied, "Let's go tell captain Usopp. He'll know what to do. Maybe, we should put up our defenses like last time." The 4 teenagers beside them chuckled a little at the mention of defenses. Their defenses were a couple of flags and shaking bushes. It was kinda cute if you asked Robin.

"You idiots," Carrot said, "Captain already knows. He clearly went to warn the village when he ran by us." The other 2 children remembered when Usopp ran in a hurry to the village and nodded their heads as they went back to thinking about what to do about the incoming invasion.

To their side, the group of pirates sat in silence, as they listened to the kids come up with outrageous plan after outrageous plan to combat the invasion. It would be extremely funny if it weren't for the fact that the village was going to actually invade. So Zoro cut the silence as he asked, "So are we seriously going to wait for captain 'lies a lot ' to ask for his help?" he stopped for a moment and then added, "I'm sure we can take some washed-up pirate wannabe."

Robin then clarified the situation, "We're not waiting for his help. This is his village; we're going to help him defend it. It's not our duty, but he's our friend; it's the least we can do for him for his hospitality."

Nami then said, "Ok, aside from being the weirdest group of pirates I've ever worked with." She looked at Luffy who was idly watching a butterfly, and then slapped her forehead and asked, "What are going to do about the villagers? They aren't exactly going to be happy to see that their heroes are a bunch of pirates. If anything it's going to make the situation even more complicated."

Luffy then spoke a few rare words of wisdom, "Don't worry, they won't even know that the attack occurred."

"Why," Nami asked with her eyebrow raised. It's a pirate invasion. You can't sleep through that unless you have one of the heaviest sets of heads that the world has ever seen.

"Well, Usopp said it himself." He said in a 'You should know this' tone, "He's been pranking everyone here since he was a child and since it's been so repetitive…" he trailed off only for Nami to complete it, "Even if he warned them, no one will believe since they'll think it's one of his lies. And since they saw us with him, they won't believe us either."

Nami then huffed, "Wonderful, just wonderful. A pirate invasion is occurring, and we just had to make buddy-buddy with the village's liars. Could this get any worse?" she looked at the trio of pirates and cried silently saying, "This isn't what I signed up for." She looked at Robin specifically and cried even harder remembering the money she just lost due to her stupid bet with the raven-haired girl.

Luffy then said, "Let's wait for Usopp to see what he has up his sleeve." He wanted to save the village for Usopp, but the boy first needed to show him what he was made up of.

Back with Usopp, after receiving the beat down of his life from the villagers and his fallout with Kaya, he walks with a dejected look on his face as he rubbed his cheek. What hurts the most was the look Kaya gave him as he was thrown out. He remembered the look of sadness and betrayal in her eyes. It was like she was looking at her enemy, not her friend. He also remembered how Merry tried to get a gun, and Kuro walked in with a smirk on the front door. He knew this was going to happen; he knew no one was going to believe, but he can hope, can't he? Deep down, he truly hoped that someone would give him the benefit of a doubt, but no one did, not even Kaya believed him.

He was suddenly jolted from his thoughts when he saw 3 children in the distance arguing about how to defend the village and instantly grimaced. He then walked up to the children as he noticed the others looking at him as if they were anticipating something from him.

He shook his head as he approached the children and said, "Hey guy, what are talking about?" He chose to play dumb.

The children looked at him confused as they said, "We're planning for the pirate invasion."

Usopp then laughed as he said, "Hahahaha, I tricked you all again." He said this knowing that the children might lose some respect for him, but it was much better than seeing them getting killed. He then noticed the looks he was receiving from the children; it was that of utter betrayal. He internally sighed, but the sacrifice was worth their safety.

"What do you mean Captain?" Onion asked Usopp. The captain won't lie to them; they were a team, and they usually pranked the village together.

Usopp then laughed even further as he said with a confident tone, "Well, this was a small test of mine to see how much the village was ready for a surprise attack, and they all passed." He said while sweating nervously hoping the children don't catch his lie.

The children then began to mumble annoyed about how their captain lied to them as Carrot said, "That was not cool, you know."

Onion then added, "Yeah, we really thought the village was about to be attacked."

Pepper then gave his 2 cents saying, "What a disappointment, come one guys let's go home."

Usopp then watched as the 3 three children retreated away from them. H sighed finally and slumped to the ground as the kids were far away from them. He then grabbed his head between both his hands as he calculated his chances of actually defeating Kuro and his crew which were close to zero; forget that it was zero.

He then felt a hand rest on his shoulder, and he looked at Luffy who was smiling as he asked him, "Why did you lie to them?"

Usopp looked shocked; he honestly didn't expect the pirate captain to ask him to ask such a question, so he said, "I just can't watch them die… they're my friends, they're my only friends since I was a child. I didn't want to see any harm caused to them."

Luffy then put his hand in front of him and said, "But the pirates are attacking; what are going to do about that?"

Usopp looked confused for a moment before he said as he grabbed Luffy's hand, "This is my village, and I'm not going to let them hurt anyone."

Luffy then said, "Great let's now go to the beach and talk about what we are going to do to defend the village." Luffy then began dragging Usopp as he nodded to the others to follow so they can decide what to do. Usopp all the while was not sure what was happening anymore, but he was sure glad he had someone by his side. He was now going to defend the village and no one was going to stop him.

Back at Kaya's mansion, Kuro and Merry stood each dusting something. Merry was singing happily as he looked at a picture of little Kaya with the man he knows as Khaladore. He then smiled as he put it back on the shelf. He began to remember fondly all the good moments with the family, but frowned at what happened today, he then looked at Kuro, and said, "How was your walk today?"

The man then adjusted his eyeglasses with the back of his hand as he said, "Well, it was mostly calm, but I saw an interesting sight as I was returning."

Merry put his hand to his chin as he asked in interest, "And what was that?"

"I saw that pirate boy getting beat up by the villagers. They were all yelling at him to stop lying. Then I also saw him getting kicked out from the mention. I hope he didn't cause any problems." Kuro said; he finished his statement wondering if Merry or Kaya actually believed him because if they did that would put some serious sticks in his wheels. He then eyed Merry carefully to determine whether he was lying or not.

Merry then looked at him as he said, "Well, you won't believe what he said when he came here."

Kuro quirked an eyebrow as he said, "Do tell"

Merry then laughed, "The boy came here yelling that the pirates were going to attack the village, and apparently you were their leader. He said you have been planning for this for 3 years, and you want Miss Kaya's fortune. Can you believe such lies?" Kuro smirked to himself as he sensed that the man wasn't lying to him. How someone was that trusting was beyond him, but he didn't care. He wasn't a guy to refuse a gift and ignorance was the best gift of all.

He then said in an astonished voice, "Wow"; he then walked over to the counter and he exclaimed, "To think that all of that happened with me gone. I hope he didn't hurt anyone." He then opened a drawer and saw something that made him smile evilly.

"Oh no, he only hit some guards with his slingshot, but nothing too bad," Merry said as he turned around and saw Kuro holding a small case. He frowned as he said, "Ah shucks; we were hoping to give it to you tomorrow."

"What is this?" Kuro asked Merry in a cool voice

"Miss Kaya wanted to celebrate your anniversary of joining the family so she brought you these new eyeglasses. She thought you would appreciate having them." Merry said as he saw Kuro eyeing the glasses. He wasn't expecting much more from him honestly, but he thought that to each their own. What happened next was something he would never forget, or even expect.

He watched as the man he knew as Khaladore lifted the case high up in the arm, and then he slammed it into the ground earning a gasp from the now flabbergasted Merry. He then saw the man begin to stomp on the case destroying it with the glasses inside it. When he stopped, he chuckled a little earning an indignant sound from Merry. He looked over at the man over was beyond shocked, he asked with a sick smile, "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong" Merry repeated in an angry voice, "What's wrong is that you destroyed something Miss Kaya wanted you to have. If you didn't like it you could have said something."

Kuro began to chuckle to himself. The idiot still believes that he was a member of this family; he honestly couldn't wait to see his reaction when he knows the truth. It was going to be amusing indeed. He looked at the man as he approached the counter from where he got the glasses, and he said, "Want me to have, you say? You don't get it. Do you?"

Merry not catching on asked, "What don't I get?" he didn't see Kuro retrieve something from the counter.

Kuro with his back to Merry said, "I want something far more than a simple thank you from the services. I want much more from that." Merry shivered to the voice by which Kuro spoke to him. It was like he didn't know the man anymore. It was honestly nerve-racking, but what could he want more from them? Merry tried to think of something but nothing came to mind. He looked at the man as he spoke with fear in his voice, "What do you want?"

The previous pirate captain said as he began slowly to turn to the man revealing a pair of knifed gloves on his hands startling Merry, "I want all this."

Merry taken aback by the asked, "What do you mean by this?" Merry screamed, but he was now taking his distance from the apparently armed man. He couldn't believe what he was speaking; it was as if he never knew the man anymore. It was frightening, to say the least.

"I want this entire mansion. I want everything she owns. I want all her fortune. I want everything she has and owns. In summary, I want the one thing she has that I can't have; her life." Kuro said with a sickening voice.

Merry then shouted, "What are saying? Are you going to kill Miss Kaya? She loves you very much. What about all the years you spent with us?"

Once again the previous pirate captain laughed; he then said, "Love? What a stupid sentiment? Only the weak believe in it. Tell me what her love is going to give me a comfortable life. NO. Is it going to let me be rich and live in peace? No." He then looked at Merry and brandished both gloves as he said, "The years we spent together was nothing more than a small play I did to reach my goals. You were all but pawns in my path to reach my endgame."

Merry took a step back, as he suddenly remembered what Usopp said from earlier, "No, it can't be… He wasn't lying."

Kuro then clapped as he mocked Merry, "Your observation skills astonish me, but I have to tie some loose ends now." He said as he eyed Merry weirdly.

Merry knew where this was going as he saw Kuro lift his claws, so he tried to stop him by trying to reach for a gun he have hid in case of an emergency, "Khaladore, please think about what you are doing? The mansion is filled with armed guards, if you kill me you won't make it alive."

The man laughed as he said, "Already taken care of." Merry's blood ran clod as he heard him, so he asked with a sight pain in his voice as he slowly reached for the gun, "What do you mean by that?"

The man didn't answer, but he lifted his claws, causing Merry to shout at the implications, "How could you kill them? They were like a family to you, me, and Miss Kaya."

The man laughed some more as he finally said, "Family is nothing but pawns." He stopped and then added, "And you're a pawn who has outlived your usefulness."

Merry in a quick movement brought out his gun, but Kuro was faster as he passed by him. What Merry then felt was extreme pain. He then fell to the ground as he small pool of his own blood began to form under him causing him to choke o his own blood.

Kuro looked at him with little satisfaction as he said, "Maybe you should have listened to the pirate boy?"

He then sat on the chair of the room as he inspected his watch, "Only a couple more hours till sunrise."

He then adjusted his glasses as he stood up and walked outside the room, looked at Merry, and said, "Thank you for the accommodation, but your services will be no longer required."

Author's Notes:

Welcome back to my fanfiction, in this chapter we saw Khaladore's true colors emerge. We also saw that Robin realized who they were dealing with. And Usopp got rejected by Kaya who thinks is lying to her. And finally, the guys took away Usopp to start planning for their counterattack. In the next chapter, the crew and Usopp will put forth a plan, and the invasion will begin.

As always please do take care of yourselves, leave a comment telling me what is your opinion about the current chapter, and put a review telling us which arc is your favorite and most excited for.

And finally, I hope you enjoy reading my work and see you next time with a brand new chapter