I own neither One Piece or Jojo, the idea for this story is entirely my own.

Chapter 2 VS. The Black Cat Pirates!

Zoro and Luffy watch in fascination and awe as a blast of emeralds shoots from the serpentine ghost's hands like they were shot out of a canon. It was like a minor storm; the stones flying faster than an average man could see. The attack is over as quickly as it begun and Noriaki moving. His ghost unfurls one of its arms into a vine and Noriaki quickly grabs on and swings himself from the top of the cliff.

"Whoa… whoa whoa whoa! So cool!" Luffy is practically vibrating with excitement. "Wait for me!"
"What is that?" Zoro asks, watching Noriaki drop down onto the beach below.
"I don't know, but it's really cool!" Luffy says.

He practically flings himself off the cliff to join the fight. Zoro just sighs and draws his swords. Best he joins in so he doesn't get left behind. Kuro and Jango are completely blindsided. Noriaki's attack had been fast, from above and seemingly had no source. Kuro had not expected Noriaki to have any combat capabilities nor that he'd even be able to fight. He'd assumed the boy delicate based off his grave injuries he'd been inflicted and his diminished strength and stamina. He's so caught up processing his assumptions that he misses the boy preparing a second attack until he's hit a second time. The stones strike him like hail, sending him sprawling down the beach. Unlike hail however, the stone's sharp edges tear his skin, causing blood from the cuts on his face to drip into his eye and obscure his vision.

"I knew there was a reason I didn't trust you. Good to know my instincts are still sharp," Noriaki says cooly, his eyes narrowing into slits.
"You…?!"

How was that even possible? He had the sense the boy didn't like him but to realize that unlike the townsfolk, he'd never trusted him was a bit of a shock.

"Don't look so surprised Kladahore, if that is you real name," Noriaki says dryly. "I had a feeling you were trouble; I just wasn't expecting this."

Hierophant growls, circling his user's shoulders. Not that Kuro can see him.

"Captain!" Jango quickly scrambles to prepare a hypnotism but…
"Gum Gum Pistol!"

Luffy's attack hits the man in the back of the head. Noriaki quickly glances behind him, having forgotten briefly about the second man on the beach. But that's all Kuro needs to sweep Noriaki's legs out from under him. Fast. In an instant. A husky, baritone laugh echoes in his ears. Noriaki hits the sand hard, which knocks the wind out of him. Fortunately, he's not disoriented. Hierophant launches out a web of vines.

"Get him," Noriaki orders.
"You're too slow!" Kuro taunts.

He makes one of his teleports to avoid the encroaching vines, only for ones he hadn't accounted for to snare his ankles and make him smash face first into the cliff.

"Speak for yourself," Noriaki says as he pushes himself back to his feet. "I may be slow but so are you."

Kuro staggers to his feet, livid, blood trickling down his face. Massive long blades slide out from his sleeves, one attached to each of his fingers. Noriaki slides into a combat stance, his mind whirling. Blades mean close-range combat, not something he's particularly suited for, his first and only battle with Jotaro and his second attempt with Dio had definitely proved that. But he does have the man against the cliff, if he doesn't teleport again, the bombardment route to keep him from getting close would be the way to go. Kuro blinks out of existence and Noriaki has the briefest moment of panic, wondering if Kuro would break his trap like Dio had and then… Crash! Metal grinds against metal and Noriaki jolts in surprise when suddenly Zoro's back was to him and his swords, all three of them, were there, blocking off Kuro's swords from him. Noriaki's heart leaps in his chest when he realizes how close he'd likely come to getting injured or killed in the exact same way that had gotten him killed the first time.

"Huh," Zoro says. "You look very well for a dead man, Captain Kuro."
"You know this guy?" Noriaki asks.

Kuro just looks pissed.

"Bounty Hunter," Zoro says by way of explanation. "I know all the big names of pirates running around the East Blue. Including those that are supposed to be dead."
"Bounty hunter…?" Noriaki remembers Zoro mentioning that earlier but it's only now that his brain is processing that.
"Gum Gum… STAMP!" Luffy yells.
"You've never heard of the Demon of the East Blue?"

He blocks another blow from Kuro and nudges Noriaki back a couple of feet as Luff's foot prepares to come down from the sky. Noriaki sees Jango more or less disappear under Luffy's sandal with a wince-inducing cracking sound, something's definitely broken there! And gawked when Luffy casually snaps his leg back to its regular length. Noriaki makes a soft wheezing sound as his mind tries to comprehend what it just saw.

"I uh…" He's not entirely sure how to process this.
"He ate a devil fruit," Zoro explains.
"Right… Usopp did mention devil fruit powers could get weird," Noriaki says.

Luffy's arm stretches waaaaay out and snags the back of Kuro's coat. Nope. Still weird and almost terrifying to look at. That will take some time to get used too.

"Bazooka!"

Zoro nudges Noriaki further to the side a few seconds before Luffy slams into Kuro like a cannonball and they both go flying down the beach.

"Fuck…!" Noriaki exclaims.

Holy hell, that impact! How did Luffy manage that?! But he can't focus on that right now, the battle isn't over yet. There could be more people with Kuro waiting for an order to attack Kaya. Shit, they need to get moving.

"We should probably get moving," Noriaki says.
"Which way?" Zoro asks. "To help Luffy or to warn the lady of the house that her life's in danger?"
"Both," Noriaki says. "You go back up Luffy, he'll probably need an extra set of hands to compensate for his lack of weapons. I'll run to the mansion and warn Kaya, I know how to get there from here. Once she's safe, I'll come back to help."
"Right. Hurry, just in case."
"Be careful."

He gives Zoro a quick nod and runs for the path leading up to the mansion. He doesn't relish explaining this to Kaya, but it's much better that she be informed. If Merry's there, he can take the proper precautions to keep her safe but making them believe him about the threat Kuro poses will be tricky. Kaya was not going to take the news well; he knew that much. Klada… Kuro had been in her life since he was a young child. Noriaki grimaces and puts on more speed. He can handle this. Kuro's not on the same level as Dio. The teleporting had caught him off guard, is all. That was going to be a pain, but he'd find a way to counter it. Force him indoors maybe, limit his movements?

Well. Assuming Luffy and Zoro don't deal with him first. They caught the bastard by surprise. Either way, Noriaki got the sense that Kuro was a crafty bastard having very effectively faked his own death if Zoro's words are to be believed. He hopes they can manage until he gets back. But right now, Kaya, and by extension Usopp, Merry and Nami's safety in more important. He catches sight of two people just a bit further down the path. Is that them? Noriaki squints. He can see two figures in the distance but neither of them has Usopp or Kaya's frame. Frowning, he slows down a little and tries to be discreet in his approach. The closer her gets, the more obvious it is that these two were too tall and one too bulky to be either Kaya, Usopp or even Merry. 'Hierophant,' Noriaki wordlessly summons his Stand. He needs to take care of them quickly.

"-think that meeting out on the beach is safe?" The tall, thin man with blue hair asks.
"I'm sure everything is fine," the other, more rotund man responds. "Our captain won't let anything get in the way of the plan. And if by any chance someone comes across them, Jango can just hypnotize them into throwing themselves off the cliff and into the sea."
"Oh, it's far too late for that," Noriaki says menacingly.

He steps into the center of the path. He can feel that familiar feeling of adrenaline singing through his veins. Of course, Kuro had more help. But right now, he needs their attention on him and away from Kaya and the village. He won't let anything happen to her or to the rest of the people in town.

"Eh?! You?!" The blue-haired man squawks.
"Surprise," Noriaki deadpans.

Hierophant chirps and waves but Noriaki can tell neither of the two goons in front of him can see Hierophant. Good! Then they wouldn't see this coming. And frankly, that's the way he likes things. The twosome draw their swords just in time to take an Emerald Splash to the face.

"You're going to need to try harder than that!" Noriaki taunts.

He grabs one vine and Hierophant pulls him up into the trees.

"Ugh, where'd he go?" The portly goon asks.

Noriaki directs another attack down on top of them. The two men yelp, attempting to climb over each other to avoid the attack. Noriaki smirks a little to himself. This… This was something he missed. The exhilaration of a good fight. By God, he feels like himself again. He feels alive. He sends Hierophant down to tie the sibling's legs together in a net. And chuckles a little when the twosome face plant in the dirt. Now, how best to knock them out…? He could always drop them on their heads, that was usually pretty effective. Or he could always hit them against a tree.

"Let's see if I can hit as hard as Jotaro," Noriaki says, cracking his knuckles with a sharp grin.

The poor bastards don't get more than a second to be worried before Hierophant unleashes several punches. Then it swings the pair of pirates around like a hammer before slamming them into the tree trunk. Noriaki has Hierophant release the two, and they drop to the ground and don't get back up.

"They couldn't see Hierophant… but Luffy could?" Noriaki muses. "How is that possible?"

He couldn't make heads or tails of it. Luffy didn't appear to have a Stand at all, so how could he see Hierophant Green? That should be impossible. Only another Stand user can see Stands as per what Avdol told him. Maybe Luffy had the potential for a Stand, but Noriaki can't be sure. There was really no way to test whether or no someone could develop a Stand.

"You're so cool…" Luffy says, awestruck.

Noriaki yelps and spins around.

"Luffy?! I thought you were fighting the butler!"
"Fucker teleported away," Zoro says, irritated. "We figured we should catch up with you."

Of course. At least neither of them look badly hurt.

"Right," Noriaki sighs. "Well, we're not far. Come on."

The mansion is a good minute away at a good run. With luck Kuro is licking his wounds somewhere and not heading there. Noriaki wouldn't count on that being the case but depending on how long it takes for Kuro to attack again, it means he'll have some time to better prepare. His lungs are a little tense when the mansion comes into view. Everything looks… fine. But Noriaki knows that fine can be deceiving. He just hopes this is a good sign.

"Kaya?" Noriaki calls. "Merry? Usopp?"

He runs through the open gates.

"Kaya? Usopp?"
"Oh, Nori?" Kaya leans out her window, surprised. "What's wrong? You sound so out of breath."
"I ran here from the beach. Looks like my stamina still isn't quite what it used to be," he says a little bitterly. "We need to talk, there's a problem."

He'd been moping a lot in the months after he first washed up. Depression, Merry had called it. He understands now what Jotaro had been talking about the few times he'd mentioned his struggles with depression. And since he was injured, his strength and stamina have been greatly reduced. He's been working on improving it, to try and get back to what it used to be, but it's been difficult. Some days he just didn't want to get out of bed, after all. And other days moving was just too painful. Right now, though, the adrenaline and the passion are reignited.

"Kaya, are Usopp and Nami with you?" Noriaki asks.
"Yes, they're just inside. Merry's talking with them. Are you sure everything's alright?" Kaya asks.
"I'm not hurt, but I overheard something you and he need to know about. Ah, but I'll come inside and to tell you about it, one moment."

He takes a few seconds to cough into one hand before waving Zoro and Luffy over. He steels himself for the explanation. He takes a deep breath.

"We really should talk inside," he says.
"Okay," Kaya says, concerned.
"Thank you."

The doors are opened by Kaya a few minutes later. He quickly follows Kaya inside as Luffy and Zoro trail in behind him. She leads them into the living room where Usopp and Nami are talking with Merry.

"-would cost quite a bit and," Merry spots Noriaki and jumps a little. "Good heavens Noriaki, you look like you've seen a ghost."
"Oh Nori!" Usopp says. "Are you okay?"

Before Noriaki can answer however, Luffy blurts out:

"We got into a fight with a fake butler!"
"What?" Usopp asks.
"Yes," Noriaki sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. "We just found out that Kladahore isn't actually Kladahore, his name is Kuro and he's a pirate. And we overheard him discussing a plan to kill Kaya for her money with another crewmember. And killing Usopp because you and him are friends. And killing me because, in his opinion, I'm going to marry you for your money. Which is a stupid reason for marrying someone, even if I was interested in marrying you, the money would not factor into my decision."

He's still pretty sour about that.

"W-What…?" Kaya breathes, stunned.
"Uh Nori, I know you don't trust the guy but that's a little steep, don't you think?" Usopp asks.

Before Noriaki can make a retort, Zoro steps in.

"It's true," he says. "We found him on the beach, talking to a hypnotist. I'm fairly certain that's Kuro's first mate: Jango."

He matter-of-factly relays what they'd seen and heard. Noriaki swallows a little. Blunt, and matter of fact, he is once again reminded of Jotaro. Kaya sinks into the couch, paler than a ghost and shaking. Usopp immediately rushes to her side. Zoro pulls a slightly yellowed bounty poster from his haramaki and unfolds it before passing it to Merry.

"This your butler," Zoro asks.

Merry takes it and blanches.

"Blessed Nika," he exclaims
"I'll take that as a yes," Noriaki murmurs.
"That's Black Cat Kuro. Or Kuro of a Thousand Plans, depending on who you ask. It was thought he was killed in a fight with the Marines about ten years ago. Apparently not."
"He's a pirate..!" Usopp squawks.

Kaya is shaking even harder now; Nami sits on her other side and wraps one arm around her protectively.

"I don't understand…" Kaya murmurs
"I'm sorry Kaya," Noriaki says.
"He's been with my family since I was little girl. He looked after me after my parents died. How can he be a pirate."
"By faking his death. He referenced having done so, and he would have needed time to truly integrate himself with you, your parents, and the village. Being here for years would allow him to gain everyone's trust."
"I still don't understand why? Why would he want to kill me?"
"My guess, he's doing this as a retirement plan," Zoro says.
"Scumbag," Nami hisses, seething.
"Agreed," Noriaki says. "Luffy and I knocked him around a little, so he is injured but I don't know how much it'll slow him down."

And that's when the lights dim significantly, and metal security grates drop down to seal the windows and the doors.

"That's the panic shutters closing," Merry says. "What on earth?"
"Panic shutters?" Noriaki asks. "You have a security system?"
"Yes," Kaya says. "My parents installed it in case pirates attacked. We'd be safe indoors and the pirates wouldn't be able to get in.
"And now we're trapped inside with the pirates," Noriaki mutters. "Crap. Okay…"

Sinister laughter fills the air and Noriaki groans, his brain whirling a mile a minute. Kaya's safety is most important but she's in no condition to fight. Getting her out of the manor and away from the fighting will have to do.

"Is there a way to deactivate the security system?" Nami asks.
"Y-Yes," Merry affirms. "There are two switches, one in the kitchen and one in the master bedroom on the second floor. I'd just need to flip it."
"Which one do you think he went for?" Zoro asks.
"The kitchen, I think. There's a back door at leads into the cellar, which goes right up into the kitchen."
"Okay, good. Get the security system turned off and then get Kaya out. Find somewhere safe to hide. We'll come find you afterwards," Noriaki says.
"Nami, you and Usopp protect Kaya and Merry," Luffy says. "Me, Zoro and Nori will finish Kuro."
"Right! C'mon Kaya, lean on me," Usopp says.
"Ah…"
"Be careful," Noriaki says.
"You too."

Noriaki watches Merry, Usopp, Kaya and Nami head upstairs. Luffy reaches up and adjusts his hat.

"Let's beat this guy up," he says.
"Lets," Noriaki agrees as he wordlessly summons Hierophant. "Spin me a web, will you?"

His Stand chirps and fans his vines out throughout the hallway and varying rooms. He's spent the last two years perfecting this trap. It got him killed last time he used it, it won't happen again.

"Whoa…" Luffy says, giving Noriaki a starry-eyed look.
"Come out, come out wherever you are…" Kuro calls, his voice silky smooth and dripping malice.
"I feel like I should be saying that to you," Noriaki deadpans, clicking his tongue. "You're a tricky bastard, I'll give you that. But I've fought trickier bastards than you."
"Don't charge right into the vines, moron!" Zoro says, grabbing Luffy's arm.
"Yeah, please don't do that," Noriaki says. "It'll hurt. A lot."

Kuro teleports somewhere and trips several vines at once. A lout shout of pain can be heard in the distance as Noriaki's attack slams into him.

"Gotcha," Noriaki says gleefully.
"There he is," Zoro says, drawing his swords once more. "Downstairs."
"Merry was right, he probably snuck in through a back door. Come on."
"LETS GO!"
"Watch out for the vines!" Noriaki and Zoro shout in concert as Luffy runs ahead.

Hierophant frantically retracts the ones in the impulsive pirate captain's path. Noriaki sighs.

"Let's just hope he doesn't trigger the vines further down. I can't affect the ones I can't see," he glances at Zoro. "Is he always…?"
"Yes," Zoro deadpans. "I suggest getting used to it, you'll be coming with us for the long haul."
"I suppose that's fair," Noriaki says, sighing deeply. "Let's get moving before he hurts himself."

His heart flutters in his chest. Would he… should he go with them? He is lonely, he can't deny Luffy was right about that. Having Usopp and Kaya around helped ease the familiar ache, but he was still lonely without his dearest friends. He felt like an alien, crash landed at the wrong end of the universe with no repair tools in sight and no way to call home. It hurt a little, knowing he didn't belong here. That he didn't belong anywhere.

But this… fighting to protect an innocent girl, a friend… he knew this. Fighting for a friend was something he knew intimately well. He feels like himself again. So, he stows that alienated feeling and throws himself into chasing after Luffy and that damn Kuro. He was going to beat the shit out of that fake butler if it was the last thing he did!

"Gum Gum Pistol!"

He's probably that way. Noriaki and Zoro pick up the pace. Noriaki can feel Kuro breaking more vines and Heirophant's responding attacks. There's a lot of crashing noises following resulting attacks. The redhead cringes a little, hoping he wasn't breaking anything of sentimental value, but the sounds serve as a homing beacon.

"I hope Kaya won't get too mad at us for wrecking her house," Noriaki says.
"I think she'll be too busy being happy to have survived," Zoro says.

They turn a corner and there they were. Kuro looks absolutely furious; his pristine livery is a mess from the attacks and the blood stains. His glasses are broken and Luffy has a very serious expression. Zoro and Noriaki are both quick to slide into battle stances. Luffy looks like he's got this, but he won't get complacent. Complacency got him captured by Terrance D'Arby and later got him killed by Dio. It's not happening again.

"Stupid," Luffy says darkly.
"You…!" Kuro seethes.
"Us," Noriaki deadpans. "Where's the rest of your crew?"
"Either dead or in prison," Kuro says coldly. "I don't know, nor do I particularly care."

Luffy's entire body goes rigid. Noriaki almost balked. Fuck, that tangible killer intent lit up the entire room.

"You're an even bigger asshole than I thought you were," Noriaki spits.
"You abandoned your nakama?" Luffy demands, furiously.
"I was the captain," Kuro says with a shrug. "It was my prerogative to discard those who were of no use to me."
"People aren't objects to be discarded," Noriaki snaps coldly.
"A captain… protects his crew!"

Luffy's next punch has a lot more power to it, enough that Noriaki's eyes widen at the results. Kuro is punched clen through a wall and Luffy tears after him once more.

"Bastard should have kept his mouth shut," Zoro snorts. "This battle's over."
"I suspect you're right."

He hears a few more crashes and then:

"Gum Gum… BELL!"
"That's a new one," Zoro says a bit fondly.

The sound of a window breaking echoes through the house and Noriaki winces.

"I really hope Merry doesn't bill us for all this damage," he says. "I don't know if I can cover all the damage money wise."

Zoro looks alarmed at the thought.

"Not a word to Nami. Not. A. Word," Zoro says firmly.
"My lips are sealed."

Zoro shudders in relief. Yes, let Nami hear nothing about potential repair bills. She will lose her mind and he'll be hearing about it for weeks.

Fortunately, things didn't come to that. They helped with the cleanup; Noriaki went out of his way to make sure Kuro and his remaining crew were tightly bound and disarmed to be given to the marines later. Luffy is fairly easily roped into helping repair and replace things he broke in the fight. Kaya is unharmed, albeit quite shaken. Merry is fretting over her, Noriaki doesn't blame him. Usopp and Nami are alternating between helping with the cleaning and comforting Kaya. Noriaki pauses and decides to wander over to Merry.

"How are you holding up?" Noriaki asks.
"I admit, I'm still rather shaken," Merry confesses.
"I understand. Are you hurt?"
"N-No. Thank you for your concern."

Noriaki squeezes the older man's shoulder comfortingly.

"Kaya's safe now," Noriaki says. "She's going to need you to bounce back from this."
"I know, Noiraki. I will, thank you."

Noriaki squeezes his shoulder again and walks over in Kaya's direction.

"How are you holding up?" He asks her.

His blonde friend looks up at him with a pained expression and Noriaki hugs her gently. Kaya sniffles and buries her head in his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Kaya," he tells her.
"Why are you sorry…?" She asks. "You and Captain Luffy saved me…"
"You're upset. You just found out someone you knew and trusted never cared about you and intended to kill you. That's a blow."

Kaya nods slightly and hugs him tighter.

"Everything's going to be to alright now, Kaya."

He rubs her back, like his mother used to when he was upset. She holds him tighter and his heart relaxes a little. It's… nice. It reminds him a little of just how much he misses being hugged. He really does miss it. Luffy was right. His loneliness clearly runs deeper than he thought. He'd known that, and yet… He felt… seen. His mind circles back to that wild recruitment pitch. "Join my crew! We're going to the Grand Line, and find the One Piece, and have all kinds of awesome adventures! You can paint everything you see along the way and you'll never be alone anymore, it'll be great!" Gently releasing Kaya, Noriaki finds his feet carrying him in Luffy's direction.

"Luffy?"
"Eh? Oh, Nori. What's up?"
"Does that offer to join your crew still stand?"

The boy's expression lights up.

"Of course it does!"
"That's good," Noriaki smiles shyly. "I would like to travel with you all. If you'll have me.?"
"Yeah! We've got a new crew member!"
"You're sure about this?" Nami asks.

And Noriaki's not sure if she's addressing him or Luffy, but Luffy answers anyway:

"I'm always sure! You've got a good heart."
"I'm sure too. I'm not making this decision lightly."

He's a little afraid. Of getting attached again, of finding some people to love only to be torn away from them again. But if he stays, he'd only be wasting away here in Syrup Village and his parents… they wouldn't want that for him. No, they'd want him to find his happiness again. So… he'll take a chance. He'll join a pirate crew and see what kind of trouble he gets himself into.

A lot, as he'll later come to learn. It will be a lot of trouble.