…Then her thoughts caught up with her actions.
Ellis just stared in horror at the mass-murdering ex-pirate captain in front of her as the coffee dripped from his face down to his body, staining the expensive fabric of his suit.
Not even his hair was spared.
They all stood in silence, only the whimpers and gasps of fear from the pirate crew breaking it.
Ellis pulled the now-empty pot close to herself as she inched back, Klahadore–or rather, Captain Kuro–only moved to clean off his glasses.
Once he put them back on, he moved around her to stand at the top of the slope. However, as he passed, she noted the veins in his forehead bulging.
He looked down upon his ex-crew's failure.
I'm really in for it now! If he's not reacting at that, then it only means he has something worse planned. Something that would include retaliation against me.
…But at least his anger will no longer be solely directed at Usopp, for whatever good that does.
But now, he'll really be focusing on me, she mentally cried.
"To think that these brats have held you back," Kuro finally said, dropping his duffel bag with a metallic thud. "How the Black Cat Pirates have fallen."
He paused.
"What have you got to say for yourself, JANGO?!" he bellowed.
Ellis could feel the shockwave his voice created.
"But–Uh–Well, I… You said–" Jango stammered. "I'm sorry, sir, but, you said letting the kid go wouldn't cause any problems," he awkwardly chuckled.
Oof, Ellis thought, you don't throw the words of a narcissistic person back in their face when something doesn't go their way.
"I did say that," Klahadore–sorry, Kuro said, adjusting his glasses with his palms.
Ellis put the pot down and inched around him, now standing next to Usopp.
"What's your point? He's an idiot. I knew no one would listen to his warnings and he would come stumbling back to take a stand against us." Kuro lowered his arm. "But the one thing I hadn't taken account for was your inexcusable weakness!"
There it is, blaming the people around you for your own oversights instead of planning around them in the first place. No taking ownership of your mistakes, either.
"Sir, we're not weak," Jango piped up. "It's just that…"
"Who are you to call us weak?!" Siam cut in.
"Watch what you say, Captain Kuro!" Butchie added.
The sound of metal clashing drew Ellis's attention to them menacingly handling their claws. Then her eyes were drawn to the color draining from Jango's face at their interruption.
"You used to be quite the killer," Siam continued, "but face it, Kuro. It's been three years, and we haven't exactly been living the good life, waiting on a rich girl, hand and foot!"
"Yeah, that's right!" Butchie said. "For three long years, we've been out sinking pirate ships and massacring villages!"
That's not something to brag about…
"Very good," Kuro said, condescension dripping from his tone. "Are you finished?"
He's treating his underlings as if they were misbehaving kids, not adult criminals.
"You've done nothing this whole time!" Siam shrieked. "We've been killing!"
"You butler! There's no way you can beat the Meowban Brothers!"
Then they moved.
In the blink of an eye, they ran past Zoro and right at their ex-captain.
"Don't–!" Jango called out. "Butchie, Siam! Stop!"
The two brothers shouted as they drew up on Kuro. All he did was reach down for the bag by his feet.
"You are not our captain anymore!" Siam declared as he approached, running on four legs like a cat.
"So sorry, but we have to kill you!" Butchie added.
Kuro suddenly swung his bag up from off the ground, moving to stand on his toes.
Ellis heard what she could only describe as wooden chimes as Kuro started doing some fancy footwork.
Kuro disappeared just before the brothers could land their strikes, leaving only tattered fabric strewn about the air.
He abruptly stopped behind them, the sound of blades slowly getting dragged out of their sheathes grating her ears.
"What–? He's behind them," Zoro observed. "How the hell'd he…? And what are those crazy weapons?"
Ellis and Usopp were the only ones to see the face of the ominous figure Kuro became. His form was shadowed by the late morning sun, the glare of his glasses adding to the intimidating silhouette.
They also saw the look of absolute terror on the faces of the Meowban Brothers.
"Who…? Who are you going to kill?" Kuro slowly stood up straight, before holding his arms in an X, the foot-long blades shining from the ends of his fingertips.
The two brothers spun around, slashing the air behind them.
"He snuck up–" Siam started.
"Right behind us!" Butchie finished.
Ellis heard the strange wooden chimes before she saw Kuro doing his fancy footwork once again, disappearing from view.
"Huh?!" Siam exclaimed.
"He–he's gone!" Butchie stuttered.
They all stood in silence, waiting.
"The… Pussyfoot maneuver," Jango choked out.
The what?
This time, the chimes were to the left, fast approaching. Ellis noticed a line of dirt getting kicked up from the same direction.
…As if someone, moving faster than the eye could see, was passing there. Then she saw the shadow of a figure flicker past the backs of the Meowban Brothers, followed by the small clouds of dirt.
"You know, you're right," Kuro appeared, arms around their shoulders, a single claw blade from each hand pointed in their faces.
…Ellis was glad his back was facing her. The image of them would probably haunt her nightmares for weeks if she lived past this.
"I do feel a bit sluggish, after all these years," Kuro mocked.
Is this what would happen to me for throwing coffee in his face? Ellis thought. Getting sliced to pieces? Or something worse?
He paused for dramatic silence before continuing, "You're very lucky. I'm feeling somewhat merciful; maybe these years on dry land have made me soft…"
Or, he just likes to play with people's fears. Draw out their suffering for his amusement. Just a thought.
"...I'll give you five minutes." Kuro pulled his arms, and subsequently his blades, back from around their shoulders. "If you can't deal with the situation in five minutes, then I'll kill every last one of you."
There it is. Not even his crew is safe from him. Is it possible that he's drawing one last fear response before killing them off anyway? It's not likely he'd let them live, after all.
Kuro walked backward, up to the top of the slope, Siam and Butchie slowly turning their heads to face him.
"Now, have I made myself clear?" Kuro stood with his arms in an X again, showing off the glare on his blades.
"Um yes, y–y…yes, of course!" Jango stuttered. "That's perfectly clear! Thank you for being so forgiving! All we have to do is take care of this one guy!"
At least the terror in those two will make them sloppy and desperate when fighting Zoro. They're more likely to make mistakes now.
Nami struggled to her feet from behind Jango, gripping her bleeding shoulder.
"Five minutes will be more than enough time for them!" Jango continued, hysterical laughter following the statement.
Siam and Butchie sprung back into action, charging at Zoro once more.
"We nearly had him a few minutes ago!" Butchie said.
"We won't need one minute to finish him this time!" Siam added.
"We're counting on you!" Jango shouted. "Kill him! Kill him, dead!"
Then Nami stumbled past him.
"Zoro!" She shrieked, before kicking his swords at him. They spun in the air, flying in a large arch as Jango stared incredulously.
"What the–?!"
Way to go, Nami! Taking advantage of their misplaced attention like that!
"Hey! Easy there!" Zoro shouted back, grimacing at the way his swords were just handled. "You can't just kick 'em! Those are my swords!"
"How 'bout a thanks!" Nami replied as Zoro reached out to catch them.
"Yeah," Zoro spun into a stance, "I appreciate it."
Then he put the third sword in his mouth and launched the sheathes off.
"You idiot!" Siam shouted. "It won't matter how many swords you have!"
"Now you'll die holding three of them!" Butchie added.
Zoro loosely swung his swords around, warming up his wrists, before holding his two swords, tips pointed at the ground, overlapping the horizontal blade in his mouth.
It almost felt as though Zoro's aura changed. Ellis heard a sort of whistling instrument before he finally spoke.
"Tiger…"
Ellis had to wonder how he could speak with such clarity when simultaneously wielding a sword in his mouth.
"Haha!" Siam laughed, finally reaching Zoro.
Butchie just let out a guttural yell.
"You still don't get it," Zoro spoke, voice slightly muffled, before leaping into action.
He dodged between the two brothers, slicing them in a single stroke.
Siam and Butchie flew back, limp in the air. Ellis watched as they fell, almost as if in slow motion.
"Carrying three swords won't help you at all," Zoro turned his head back to face them, "unless you know Three Sword Style."
"Oh no," Jango choked out.
They grunted when they hit the ground, dirt clouding around them from the impact.
"This is bad."
The cowbell rang as Butchie tried forcing himself up. He fell in the direction of Jango, resorting to clawing his way to the captain's feet.
Then Ellis noticed the six gouged-out claw marks behind Zoro, faint trails of dust dissipating from them.
Does having three swords just give him a power-up? Ellis wondered, bewildered. Or could he have always moved that fast, but just didn't?
She really wanted to know how Zoro operated–the logic behind his skills.
Is it purely psychological?
Zoro stood up from his landing position and faced Kuro, laughing.
"Don't worry," he said, pointing one of his swords at him. "I can promise you, everything will be taken care of in less than five minutes."
Kuro chuckled and adjusted his glasses with one of his palms, momentarily hit by a glare from the sun.
"Three," Kuro responded. "Three minutes left."
Then Ellis noticed Butchie gripping Jango's leg.
"I-I–" He coughed. "I…I'll," he paused, "slaughter him." Butchie choked. "P…please, Captain," he heaved. "I can… do it. Hyp–no…tize me." The cowbell rang as he looked up at him. "Just do it!"
"He's still alive," Kuro observed. "You do sloppy work."
Diminishing the accomplishments of others, Ellis absentmindedly thought. Zoro had defeated two skilled opponents in a single stroke, but because he didn't kill them, Kuro had to critique him.
There is no living up to the standards of people like Kuro. There are no accomplishments, only an inability to satisfy them. It's perfection or failure.
The phantom of past stress haunted her.
Don't think about it. Now's not a good time to think about it. It's not safe.
Kuro hadn't drawn his focus to her or Usopp, but she had a bad feeling that all she had to do was wait for him to count to zero. She and Usopp are probably pretty high on his shit list right now.
…Does Kuro realize that it's not everyone's goal to kill the people they're fighting against? Zoro's a bounty hunter—or, at least, he was. If he turned pirates in dead, he lost a percentage of the reward money. Naturally, his incentive wouldn't be to kill. Just beat, and turn in alive.
The sound of twinkling drew her attention over to Jango. He was crouched down, swinging his chakram in Butchie's face. Nami stood behind them.
What is it this time?
"So he is," Zoro said. "Guess all that blubber protected his vitals."
He was TRYING to kill him?! Don't give Kuro an inch! If you concede to missing a standard, even if that wasn't what you were trying to do in the first place, they'll dismiss you in your entirety!
…unless that's what Zoro's trying to do in the first place. Make Kuro underestimate him from the start.
No, that's a bit too deep. Plus, these tiny hints are easy to miss if you've never been exposed to people like Kuro for extended periods of time. I'm just overthinking things again.
Butchie's joints started erratically jutting out. The sounds of bones, cracking and grinding unnaturally, filled the air.
Then he started growing in mass. Kind of like the Hulk, but without all the green.
Butchie stood up, feet cratering where they landed. Ellis stared in horror, distantly hearing one of Zoro's swords clattering.
Butchie faced him, veins bulging in his face. His teeth were bared, face unnaturally contorting to fit the expression. His saliva practically frothed at the mouth, dripping over his chin, and he screamed.
It was inhuman. Gutteral. Completely animalistic.
And he was staring Zoro down.
"Butchie!" Jango called out. "Kill him!"
Nami caught Ellis's eye, and they stared each other down. Minute gestures, developed after many shared heists, allowed them to communicate in a fraction of a second. Even from such a distance.
"What, really?" Zoro said. "You're back for more?" He put his foot under the blade he dropped before kicking it up in the air.
Ellis finally nodded, a new plan set. Barely a plan, but her mind churned with the possibilities.
Butchie let out a bestial roar, spittle flying out.
Zoro caught the handle of his sword in his mouth before standing in a new stance, holding his blades like a slanted capital H.
Zoro had less than three minutes before Kuro would join the fight. If nothing changed, then Ellis would have to join in, leaving Usopp vulnerable. Not to mention, Jango was probably just as formidable, considering he was the interim captain in Kuro's absence.
At Butchie's first step closer, the ground trembled, and he slowly made his way closer to his target.
There were several variables Ellis could put into play. Her ability, for one. The other option would be to bring Luffy back into the fight–should he not be dead. Since Nami was more of a liability than a fighter with her injury, it would be worth it if she could somehow bring him back.
The pirates on the beach weren't a threat anymore, and the only thing she needed to keep an eye out for would be Jango. She was already behind him, so she would just have to be wary of any long-range attacks he could dish out.
Ellis, in the meantime, would keep guarding Usopp. Or, at least, stand out of his range of view and heal him as discreetly as possible so he could stand on his own once again.
Nami used everyone's focus on Butchie's transformation as a distraction, turning and running down the slope.
As she reached the beach, Jango turned his head to look at her. As he started spinning his chakram, Ellis shouted, "Nami, duck!"
Jango launched them at her.
Nami slowed once she reached the beach, and once Ellis's voice reached her, it was almost too late.
"Get up, you bum!" Nami shrieked.
"Dodge it! Quick!" Zoro warned.
"Two minutes," Ellis heard Kuro mutter, "and counting."
Nami turned to look behind her but fell, and Ellis wasn't sure if she dodged the chakram in time. Well, she wasn't sure until–
"Nami! You can not just go around stepping on people!"
Luffy sat up, raving at her before taking the chakram to the back of the head. The force of the hit stretched his neck to an unnatural length.
Ellis winced, but since Luffy wasn't taken out by the hit, she let herself feel relief.
Phew, he somehow survived! I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, so I won't question it!
…Not until this whole fiasco is over with, anyway.
"NO! How is that twerp still alive?!" Jango shouted in disbelief.
"That's either the best timing or the worst timing in the world," Zoro commented. "I can't tell."
Luffy spun to face them.
"Luffy!" Ellis heard Nami exclaim.
"OOOUCH!" Luffy finally registered the pain, ripping the chakram from the back of his head and throwing it to the ground. "That hurt, you jerk! Why'd you do that?!"
"Hey, Sleeping Beauty, that wasn't me!" Name defended. "It wasn't… me," she whimpered, finally succumbing to her injury.
"You okay? Nami?" Luffy asked gently. "Did you get hurt? Let me see it."
Ellis took the lull of people's attention as an opportunity. She inched so Usopp was between her and the view of battle. Ellis put a knife away to free her hand. This time, without touching him or reaching out, she let her ability flow.
A faint ribbon of light formed from the center of her palm, connecting to the center of Usopp's being. She only let a small trickle out, hoping the gradual healing would go unnoticed by her target and anyone around them. She then turned her attention back to Kuro, the biggest threat, as her ability worked its way through.
It was foolish to take her eyes off of a battlefield when she didn't need to. Her ability pretty much works on its own after it's activated.
In that time, Luffy turned from Nami and walked his way over to the enemy crew.
"One minute, and counting," Kuro said. His crew went into an uproar..
"Kuro can't be serious! We can't possibly finish them in one minute!"
"C'mon, guys! Stop messing around and end this already!"
Then Luffy reached the back of their group. The sun shone behind him, the ominous sound of flip-flops reaching their ears.
The crew scrambled to make way for him, falling over each other to give Luffy a path to the slope. There were many teary faces as they did.
Luffy didn't falter in stride as he walked through them and onto the stone path.
"Butchie! Quickly, there's no more time to waste!" Jango ordered. "Kill that three-sword bastard! I'll take care of the freaky bendable kid!" He pulled out two more chakrams and stepped into his path.
Luffy stopped in front of him, staring him down.
"I'm coming for you, Straw-Hat!"
"Hm. Time's up," Kuro said. "You knew the deal. Now you die." He slowly lowered his arms from the X pose, blades pointed down and perfectly parallel to each other.
If Luffy's facing Jango, and Zoro's facing Butchie, then that means… Kuro's up to me.
Ellis cut off her healing.
"Hey, wait," Luffy said, falling from his intimidating stance. "Why is that shady butler here?"
"It's that kid," Kuro noticed. "Didn't he die, falling off a cliff?" Then he smirked. "Nice trick."
It's interesting how Kuro could call Zoro sloppy for missing a kill, but commending someone he himself failed at killing.
"How sloppy of you," Ellis mumbled.
Kuro's eyes shot over to her, and she realized he heard that.
Oops. Well, he was going to brutally murder me anyway, so why not be a little sassy about it?
The sound of wooden chimes emitted from him as he stood on his toes once more. She pulled her sheathed knife out, readjusting her grip on her other one.
"Don't ever give me attitude–"
Ellis distanced herself from Usopp and entered a stance.
"-unless you want to die."
Ellis intercepted the hit, feeling the force behind his swing reverberate deep in her bones.
She hated blocking, but with Usopp behind her, she couldn't risk jumping out of the way–
Kuro got hit in the face by a projectile.
It seems Usopp gained a sudden surge of energy and felt capable of rejoining the fight. Good for him.
"Why are you doing this?!" Usopp yelled. "What did Kaya and the villagers ever do to deserve this?!" His legs trembled as he stood, arm still holding out his slingshot.
Ellis could feel the focus of everyone on the beach turn to them.
Great.
Kuro got out of his stance, standing straight and pushing his glasses up with his palm. The way his blades were angled away from his face combined with that movement made Ellis realize that was why he adjusted his glasses so weirdly.
The more she learned about him, the more cold-blooded he became.
"Nothing," Kuro responded. "The villagers have done nothing but give me peace."
"Nothing?!" Usopp repeated. "Then what's the point in targeting them? Why are you doing any of this?! They have nothing to do with Kaya's money!"
"I want more," Kuro adjusted his glasses once more. "You see, simply acquiring wealth isn't enough. More than anything else," he paused, "what I want is peace."
"You want… peace?" Usopp repeated, not understanding where he was going with this.
"Yes. Just peace… peace of mind. It's simple, really," Kuro monologued. "I've spent the last three years earning the trust of the entire village. And to be honest, I find this new sense of peace and tranquility quite comforting." His eyes softened, gaining a strange gleam. "When my plan comes to fruition, I will live with this sublime peace of mind."
Usopp stepped back, uneasy with whatever Kuro's got going on.
"Yes…" Kuro continued, opening arms wide in manic glee. "A glorious comfort of a peaceful life will be mine for forever and ever!" He turned to face the direction of the village and extended his arm, spreading his fingers apart in such a way that emphasized the blades protruding from each finger. "In short," he turned to face his crew, "these pirates are coming!" He turned back to Usopp. "And you! You got in the way, and must die. These things will happen."
"There's no use talking to him!" Usopp muttered.
Oh, quite the contrary, Ellis thought. He's the type to monologue. I can use that.
"Working under Kaya must've been unbearable," Ellis piped up, causing Usopp to snap his head to her. "Ever since her parents died, she had to lean on you. You must've hated it."
Kuro eyed her. "We spent so much time together, even before her dear sweet parents passed away. She was more than my master," he adjusted his glasses again, "she was my best friend. So much time… So many memories; together we suffered, together we rejoiced." He lowered his hand. He continued softly, "Like family."
Here we go.
"I took her on shopping trips in the city, I looked after her so diligently when she was ill, and we used to talk for hours and hours," he continued. "I was devoted to her. For so long… for so very long, I've endured it." His voice hardened. "I quietly suffered so today I could end her life, and take everything I deserve!"
…Ellis didn't think he would actually go on this long of a monologue. He must have really been holding it in for all these years. Hopefully all of this will fire up her allies. With how things have been going, they need a bit of a boost.
Kuro's voice filled with contempt. "I, who was once the feared and respected Captain Kuro, had to bow and humble myself before some snot-nosed little girl. It went against every fiber of my being."
"Damn you," Usopp muttered.
"Do you understand the depth of these daily insults?" Kuro bellowed, "Do you understand the rage created by those transgressions against my pride?!"
This is the first time someone like this admitted it so plainly. I don't remember the last time She had this much introspection, if she were even capable of it.
"You do know that if an entire village got slaughtered, the first person they'd look at is the sole survivor, right?" Ellis said. "There's no peace in that."
Wait…
"Unless…"
How he's the type to tie up loose ends. How he's so clearly willing to kill his crew.
Ellis mumbled, "You're planning on framing your crew for the slaughter. A dead village, and a dead pirate crew… you wouldn't even need to say a word. The scene would explain itself."
"KURO!" Usopp launched a projectile.
At the first hint of the wooden chimes, Ellis shoved him to the ground. But, before she could follow him, blades surrounded her head.
"Thank you for reminding me…"
Ellis froze.
Kuro was behind her.
"Young lady, I owe you for throwing coffee at me. Let's make it even," he growled. "You also got in my way, earlier. Keeping Usopp from hitting me, back at the mansion. Not to mention…" Ellis could hear the sound of blades clashing against each other as he adjusted his glasses. "You're too smart for your own good."
Well, this is it for me. It was nice knowing you–
Kuro flew back as Luffy launched his fist all the way from the other side of the battlefield.
Ellis spun around to face the man now splayed on his back, the sound of rubber retracting back to Luffy echoed in the otherwise silent battlefield.
I didn't realize he had that much range, Ellis thought rather sluggishly. Maybe I need to reevaluate the capabilities of the people I'm fighting with.
"If he hates getting hit that much, he's about to have a really bad day!" She could hear Luffy in the distance.
No kidding.
A/N:
4.2k words.
Every time I'd write for this arc, I keep thinking "this is the last chapter before I can move on to the next arc." Each time I am proven wrong. I'm pretty confident the next chapter will be the last time I have to write for this arc, though, considering we're at the tail-end of it. Watch me be wrong and have to add the post-battle events in two chapters, lmao.
I haven't updated the previous chapters yet, though I have written the changes for the first few. I'll let you guys know once I post the edited chapters.
Fun fact: this chapter is the entirety of episode 13. Literally from start to finish, just without featuring Kaya, since I kind of wrote her out of them. Anyway, please enjoy!