Hello, everyone! This is BlueRaptor629 coming back with not one, but two chapters!
And right here is the first part of the double chapter, so enjoy!
Chapter 5: Usopp the Liar
It was a quiet day in the middle of the ocean as two boats sailed side by side as well as an unusual creature that sailed alongside the two boats. It has been two days since the fight with Buggy and his Pirate crew, with Luffy and the others managing to get some downtime as they crossed through the seas with Nami's help in the navigation.
"There's absolutely no way we'll make it to the Grand Line in this condition!" Nami spoke up, voicing her complaints towards their current predicament.
"Hmmm?" Luffy, Zoro, Chiaki, and Hoopa hummed in unison as they looked towards her direction.
"You're right." Luffy agreed as his mouth was full from an apple he was eating. "We're gonna need a whole lot more meat." He said before tossing the apple core into his mouth. "Eating fruit everyday is for the birds."
"We'll also need some booze." Zoro said before he was thrown an apple to the face by Nami, which Luffy caught before it could fall into the water.
"Hey, Nami. You really shouldn't throw food like that." Chiaki told her only for her to toss an apple to his face. "Ow! What the hell!?" He exclaimed as one hand was rubbing the part of his face where it hurt while the other hand managed to catch the apple.
"You know, you really shouldn't be so quick to anger." Hoopa chimed in. "It's not good for your health."
"Shut up, you boneheads! Ugh!" Nami shouted as she grabbed another apple. "That's not what I mean! The Grand Line is a dangerous place! We need more than beer and meat to survive there! Not to mention the place is crawling with Pirates who are also in search of the One Piece, and they all have ships way better than this!"
"Now that you mentioned, I don't think it's a good idea to keep sailing on Lapras if the sea is getting dangerous." Chiaki noted as he glanced towards the Pokémon he was riding on.
"(It's regrettable, but even I have limits.)" Lapras stated. "(But I'm willing to take you somewhere until you get a ship. That's my promise to you.)"
While Chiaki did not really understand what Lapras was saying word for word, he could at least understand by feeling what was on her heart.
"And we don't have a crew." Luffy said as he began eating the apple that was thrown to Zoro.
"We don't have a crew, we don't have any equipment, or even a real ship for that matter!" Nami explained. "There's no way we'll ever make it like this!"
"I'd help you, but where's the fun in that?" Hoopa said as he grabbed an apple before eating it. "I use my powers only for emergencies or if Chiaki wants something."
"Really?" Nami said before turning towards Chiaki. "And you didn't think about having Hoopa summoned a ship? That power of his is very powerful for crying out loud!"
"Listen, Nami. It's not that simple." Chiaki said. "Hoopa's a bit out of practice because he's been sleeping for who knows how long." He argued. "He's getting better at it a little but you may never know that he might summon something else. Like he could summon a hostile creature or even an enemy Pirate if not careful. Even if he did summon a ship, there's a good chance he summoned one with people still on it."
"That is true…" As much as she hated to admit, Nami could not help but to see the truth in it.
"Well, we need a cook and a musician to keep us entertained." Luffy stated.
"A musician?" Zoro repeated before he burst out in laughter.
"So… stupid…" Nami muttered as she looked back at the map that she was currently holding. "A little to the south of here is an island with some settlements on it. And it looks like we might get our ship and some of the supplies we need there."
"FRESH MEAT AT LAST!" Luffy cheered.
"Lots of booze as well!" Zoro smirked.
"Is that all you think about!?" Nami asked angrily before glancing towards Chiaki. "You've been with them longer than I do, right? Are they always like this!?"
"Can't say. I mean, I was supposed to sail solo but those two ended up following me." Chiaki explained. "Also, this is a good time to go to a restaurant or something."
"Are you serious!?" Nami exasperated.
"Oh, I'm very serious." Chiaki replied. "We need more than just apples to have a proper meal. Gotta feed the brain too, you know."
"Plus, worrying is no good so just relax." Hoopa added.
"Ugh… What am I gonna do with you four!?" Nami facepalmed at the boys' carefree attitude.
(Meanwhile, at a village in an island)
"THE PIRATES ARE COMING!" A young man shouting at the top of his lungs as he ran into the village. "THE PIRATES ARE COMING!"
He was a slim, tan-skinned young man with medium-length curly hair, prominent lips, and a long nose that is the defining feature of him. His outfit consisted of a brown overalls with no shirt underneath it, a white sash around said overalls, an olive green plaid bandana that he wrapped on top of his head as well as a pair of rectangular goggles, and olive green shoes. He also carried a yellow satchel around his shoulder.
"RUN IF YOU WANT TO LIVE! THEY'LL BE HERE ANY MINUTE NOW! RUN!" The young man said as he kept running towards the center of the village. "THE KILLERS ARE ON THE SHORE! THEIR BLOODLUST ARE UNQUENCHABLE!"
Eventually, he tired himself out from all the running and the shouting and stopped in front of a house to catch some breath.
"W-W-We're doomed…" The young man said. "The Pirates… are… a…" He then got his head back up with a triumphant expression as he raised his arms high. "LIE! Hahahahahaha–Ow!" In the middle of his laughter, a cooking pan was thrown at the back of his head, causing a dent on said pan. "That hurt!"
"You little liar! You're not gonna get away this time!" A man shouted angrily as he was glaring at the young man, putting his right onto the window while holding a broom.
"We've had enough!"
"This little game is over!"
And with that, all of the villagers came out from their houses in order to teach the liar a lesson.
"Wait.. Wait… Wait!" The young man repeated excitedly as he saw the villagers were beginning to chase after him. "Now, run!"
"Ehahahahahahaha! Just try and catch me! Come on, slowpokes!" The long nosed young man taunted while giddily ran away from the angry mob.
Eventually, the young man managed to shake the angry villagers from his tail by climbing on top of a large tree, with the villagers returning back to their homes. Some time later after that, he proceeded to lie down on top of a branch.
"Ah… Yet another job well done." The young man muttered as he was laying down. "It is my solemn duty to send the winds of excitement through this boring, old village…"
"There he is!" A voice belonging to a child as the young man got up and turned towards the source.
"Hey, you guys. What's going on?" The young man asked.
"I bid you good morning, Captain Usopp!" The voice turned out to be a little boy with green hair and a single strand of hair on top of his head.
"Fear not! Your loyal crew of the Usopp Pirates have arrived!" The boy with purple hair, which the bangs overshadowed his eyes, added.
The young man named Usopp came down from the tree to greet his "crewmen".
"Piiman! Ninjin!" He greeted the two kids. "It's just you two? Where's Tamanegi? Have you seen him around?"
His question was immediately answered when he and the other kids heard a third voice screaming in fear in the distance.
"SOUND THE ALARM! THEY'RE HERE! THEY'RE HERE!" The third voice shouted where he briefly fell down before continuing to run. "THEY'RE HERE AND THEY'RE GONNA KILL US ALL!"
"Hey, it's Tamanegi." Ninjin stated.
"I wonder what he's freaking out about?" Piiman wondered.
"PIRATES! PIRATES! THEY'RE HERE! THEY'RE REAL LIFE PIRATES! WE DON'T STAND A CHANCE!" The voice belonged to a bespectacled boy with a round head and light brown hair.
"Stop playing." Usopp told the boy, who stopped just short in front of him.
"I'm not playing!" Tamanegi said, causing his "Captain" to sweat drop that he was telling the truth.
"It's for real!?" Usopp asked.
"This is for real! Pirates are here!" The bespectacled boy confirmed.
"Gah! Got to go!" Usopp said before running away. "Uh… Time for me to have my snack!"
"You chicken!" The three kids shouted as their "Captain" turned around.
"Uh… Actually, I'm sick! Yeah! I had 'I'll-die-if-I-don't-eat-my-snack' iosis!" Usopp said, making up the lie on the spot.
"You liar!" His "crewmates" scolded their Captain for showing his cowardice too easily.
"You always told us that you want to become a real Pirate someday and now's our chance!" Ninjin said.
"Yeah! What's with you? What kind of Pirate is afraid of other Pirates?" Piiman asked.
"If I recall correctly, it was Buggy the Clown's mark!" Tamanegi stated.
"Buggy the Clown…!?" Usopp exclaimed fearfully as he slowly turned around to run away. "I think I'll…"
"But I only saw two tiny boats and a blue sea monster with a shell on its back!" Tamanegi continued. "I think they were just four people, with one of them riding that sea monster."
He was fully turned… only to turn around again.
"It's go time, brave Usopp Pirates!" Usopp announced. "We do have a village to protect!"
The three kids just sweatdropped at their Captain's attitude turning to a complete 108.
"Let's go, men! Move out!" Usopp said as he ran to prepare for countermeasures.
"Sir!" The three kids said, believing that their Captain was going to do something cool.
(With Luffy and co.)
"Thanks for the help, I'll see you later." Chiaki said to Lapras as a portal was opened next to the Pokémon.
"(Of course, Chiaki. Until we meet again.)" The Transport Pokémon said before she entered through the portal.
"I can't ever get used to this…" Nami muttered as she saw Hoopa close the portal with his ring.
Even with the explanation she got about Pokemon from both Chiaki and Hoopa, she was still not used to Pokémon. And with that, Luffy and Zoro disembarked from their boat. The former excitedly looked around while the latter stretched as soon as he got off from the boat.
"Feel good to be on dry land again…!" Zoro commented.
"There's a village somewhere around here, right?" Luffy asked his Navigator.
"Yeah. It looks like a small one though…" Nami said as she had her eyes fixated on the map she was currently holding.
"If there's a restaurant or something, then that's the first place we need to visit." Chiaki commented.
"Sheesh, you're starting to sound like Luffy." Nami muttered.
"Ooh, ooh! Then there's meat! There's meat!" Luffy approached his Navigator as he began drooling at the thought of eating his favorite food. "There has to be a place to eat meat in this village!"
"Just forget about meat for a minute, would ya?"
As Nami said that, a sound of rustling in the bushes could be heard, but only Zoro and Chiaki seemed to notice.
"Careful." Zoro said as he thumbed up one of his katanas. "We're being watched."
"Huh?" Luffy spoke in confusion before grinning. "By who? Where are they? They got meat?"
"Yeah, I thought so too." Chiaki said as he pulled out one of his flintlock pistols. "Heads up, guys! Looks like we're gonna meet the welcome committee."
"I hope they give us meat!" The straw hat boy said cheerfully.
"Look out!"As Zoro shouted, multiple small pellets were shot near Luffy's feet, causing the guy to bounce around to avoid getting shot. As this was happening, Nami ran to the side of her boat for safety.
Then, several black flags with a skull and crossbones tied to some poles rose up from the bushes.
"That's so cool!" Luffy said as he waved his arms around in an excited arm.
"Is this supposed to be when we're impressed?" Nami remarked.
"Hahahahaha!" The five of them turned around to see an unfamiliar young man standing above them. "I am Usopp! Leader of the invincible nation of Pirates that reigned over this town! You stand before a living legend and the most revered Pirate who ever lived! I am the great Captain Usopp!"
Luffy was excited at the introduction before he noticed something about Usopp.
"Surely you know that plotting an attack on this island would mean certain death! My army of 80 million, super mean Pirate soldiers would squash you like bugs!" Usopp boasted.
"AWESOME!" Luffy shouted in amazement, having completely believed in the obvious lie that the others managed to see through.
"You expect us to believe that?" Nami retorted.
"Ah! She knows!" Usopp screamed.
"Yep." Nami smirked, revealing to have used the earlier statement as bait. "Well, now I know."
"How could I have been so dumb!?" Usopp berated himself, having been tricked into admitting. "I practically told her I was lying! I'm such an idiot! So stupid!"
"What!? He was lying!?" Luffy shouted in disbelief.
"Curse you, you crafty tactician!" Usopp cursed Nami. "80 million may be an exaggeration, but I have a great deal of many men under my control!"
"Let's see…" Chiaki put a finger onto his chin. "The "great deal of many men" you have? Aren't they just three little kids?"
"AH! HE KNOWS!" The aforementioned little kids yelled as they dropped the flags and ran away.
"Hey, where are you guys going!? Come back!" Usopp tried to plead his "subordinates" to stay but to no avail.
"A Pirate using a slingshot, huh? Now, I've seen it all." Nami picked up one of the silver pellets that Usopp used to shoot Luffy with as she blew some sand from it.
"Hahahahaha! That's pretty cool!" Luffy laughed, which Usopp took offense to.
"Ugh! Shut your mouth! Or I'll shut it for you!" Usopp retorted. "I'm a proud man and I won't stand for it!" He proceeded to pull out his slingshot from his bag and aimed it at Luffy. "This is your last warning! Or you get to see why they call me 'Proud Usopp' and not 'Pushover Usopp'! Is that clear!?"
Luffy responded by putting his head down before placing him on top of his cherished hat.
"You've already seen for yourself just how good I am with this thing, so you know I can rival anyone carrying a pistol!" Usopp boasted, still pulling his slingshot.
"Now that you've drawn your pistol, are you willing…" Luffy began as he smiled at Usopp. "...to use it?"
"Huh!?"
"Guns aren't for threats, they're for actions." Luffy stated. "Are you willing to risk your life?"
Zoro, Chiaki, and Hoopa realized what Luffy was aiming for as they turned towards Usopp with a smirk.
"I can assure you, we're real Pirates!" Zoro said as he pushed up one of his katanas. "Consider your next move very carefully."
"I heard you can rival anyone with a pistol, is that right?" Chiaki said as he twirled his flintlock pistol before aiming it at Usopp. "Care to test that theory?"
"You must be either brave or stupid for picking a fight against us, boy." Hoopa said. "Your life is literally in the palm of my hand! If I feel like sending you somewhere, I can. And I feel like I want to squish you where you stand, I can also do that just as easily."
At this point, Usopp was sweating as he had a hard time releasing his shot. And it lasted for quite awhile as they kept staring at each other without missing a beat. Eventually, Usopp let go of the sling but his silver pellet fell to the ground as he knelt down.
"Real Pirates definitely have a lot more punch behind their words because they can actually back 'em up. That's so cool." Usopp commented with tears.
Luffy, Zoro, Chiaki, and Hoopa smirked at each other before they broke into a fit of laughter.
"I stole that." Luffy stated.
"Huh?" Usopp was confused as he did not quite hear it.
"I stole those words from 'Red-Haired' Shanks." Luffy clarified. "A Pirate I know."
"What!? You know 'Red-Haired' Shanks!?" Usopp asked in shock. "You really are a real Pirate! Wait, you gotta be lying! Do you really know him?"
"Yep." Luffy confirmed happily. "I know your dad too. His name is Yasopp, right?"
Usopp was caught off guard by the mere mention of his father as his look of surprise quickly changed to excited laughter. By leaning forward, however, he tumbled down from the cliff until he landed head first.
"You're right. My old man's name is Yasopp." Usopp replied as he got up. "But how… How in the world do you know him?"
(A restaurant in the village)
After that, Usopp proceeded to take Luffy and the others to a small restaurant in his village, with the guy being generous enough to give them food. Luffy was biting off a piece of meat while Zoro had a mug of beer near him. Chiaki, Hoopa, and Nami were the ones who were eating normally.
"This is good, huh?" Usopp asked.
"Sure is. Thanks for showing us this place." Chiaki replied before putting a spoonful of food into his mouth.
"You're welcome."
"So, I met your dad when I was just a little kid." Luffy told Usopp.
"Hold on, does my old man really know Shanks?" The long nosed young man asked.
"Know him? When I met your dad, he was part of Shanks' crew so they were probably pretty good friends." Luffy elaborated.
"I can't believe it! My old man's sailing the high seas with famous Pirates!" Usopp remarked, feeling proud that his father joined up with Shanks.
"I haven't heard from him in a while, but I bet he's still with them." The straw hat boy stated. "He was a heck of a sharpshooter!" Luffy said as he took an apple. "I'd keep him on my crew."
Seeing the apple reminded Luffy of a time where the aforementioned man managed to shoot an apple so well to the point where said apple burst upon contact. The guy even boasted that he could shoot an ant between the eyes from across town. Of course, Yasopp told Luffy about his son for the hundredth time even when he was drunk.
"He used to go on and on about his son." Luffy recalled. "I think I've heard enough about you to make my ears bleed. And let me tell you, he was a great Pirate."
"Yeah, really?" Usopp said as he heard more about his father from Luffy. "I sure am proud of my old man. He left into a Pirate's life on the endless sea. And chose a life of real adventure!"
Chiaki could not help but to smile at Usopp, happy to find out that he too admired his own father with great pride for being a Pirate. Although Raizen has long since retired from piracy to start a farm and family with Tomoe, Yasopp, even now, was still sailing with someone as remarkable as Shanks while still remembering his son fondly even when he made a hard decision to leave him.
'They sure are amazing…' Chiaki thought as he always admired those types of Pirates. But of course, he had a great deal of respect for the Marines as well. As long as they were not corrupt or overzealous.
"Maybe you can help us." Nami spoke up, earning Usopp's attention. "Do you know someone who can provide us with a decent ship? Or even anyone who knows how to sail for that matter?"
"Well, it's a pretty small village. Sorry, but I just don't think we'll be able to help you." Usopp answered.
"But what about that huge mansion?" Zoro questioned, staring at the aforementioned place through the window. "The one on top of that hill over there?"
"Hey, do you know them, Usopp?" Nami asked. "With all that money, surely they can help us get our boat?"
"Guys, I don't think we can do that." Chiaki told them. "It's not that simple–"
"You stay away from there!" Usopp intervened, shocking everyone and even Usopp himself at the sudden outburst. "Uh… I just remembered something that I really gotta do! Everybody knows me at this place! So, stay and eat as much as you want!" He proceeded to grab his bag. "Well, uh… Gotta go!"
And with that, Usopp hastily left the restaurant.
"Why was he in such a hurry to get outta here?" Nami wondered aloud.
"Whatever it is, it's best that we stay out of it." Chiaki told her. "I'm sure it's really personal to him."
"And how'd you know that? Do you have a rich person as a friend or something?" Nami asked, which caused Chiaki to tense up.
"Sorta… Once upon a time." Chiaki muttered awkwardly,
"Okay…" Nami replied as she decided not to pry about it… for now.
After Usopp left on a personal errand, Luffy and the others proceeded to order some more food and ate them. But once they were finished eating…
"The Usopp Pirates have arrived!" A certain trio of kids announced they entered the restaurant.
"Who are these kids?" Nami wondered.
"Probably friends of Usopp." Hoopa stated.
"Captain Usopp is gone!" Ninjin remarked.
"Did they…!" Tamanegi wondered as he and the other two kids ran up to the table.
"Fess up, you filthy Pirates! What have you done to our beloved Captain?" Piiman demanded. "Tell us!"
"Yeah, tell us now!" Ninjin and Tamanegi added in unison as Luffy was drinking from his mug.
"Ah… that meat sure was good!" Luffy said as he patted his stomach.
"I have to give it to the cook, he knows how to serve a meal." Chiaki added.
"What meat!?" Ninjin exclaimed.
"These Pirates are cannibals!" Tamanegi added as Nami simply chuckled at their assumption.
"What have you done!? You savages!" Piiman demanded as he and his other two friends were frightened by the supposed "cannibals".
"If you're looking for your Captain…" Zoro began as he flashed a grin at the three kids. "We ate him."
"Yep. And he was delicious~" Hoopa smirked as he held up a bone. "See?"
"AHHH! CANNIBALS!" The three kids yelled in unison as they looked at Nami.
"WHAT'RE YOU PUNKS LOOKING AT ME FOR!?" Nami retorted with shark teeth as Luffy, Zoro, Chiaki, and Hoopa let out a laughing fit at the misunderstanding. "You just had to say something stupid, didn't you!?"
(In front of the mansion)
Once the misunderstanding was cleared up and some introductions were made, the three kids proceeded to lead Luffy and the others to the mansion that they saw earlier.
'This honestly reminds me of Jim's old mansion…' Chiaki thought as he laid his eyes on the mansion that was beyond the gates. 'Oh, Jim…'
"Whoa…! This place is huge!" Luffy commented.
"And if our Captain ran out at this hour, then this is the place he's gonna be!" Tamanegi explained.
"Oh. What in the world does Usopp come here for?" Luffy asked.
"He comes to lie." Ninjin answered.
"To lie!? That's terrible!" Nami remarked.
"He's not a bad guy!" Piiman defended his "Captain". "He's great! Isn't he?"
"Yeah, he's awesome!" Tamanegi added.
"And how's a liar awesome?" Zoro asked, dumbfounded by the kids' take on Usopp.
"Well, Kaya…" Piiman began. "The girl who lives there has been in a terrible depression that keeps her weakened in bed since her parents got sick and died a year ago. She's very rich but all that money couldn't save her from sadness."
So, our Captain comes up with special made-up stories to make her laugh and cheer up." Tamanegi added.
"Captain Usopp is the best at telling lies!" Ninjin said.
"Wow, that really was pretty nice of him." Luffy commented.
"And he did all for a sick girl too. Usopp's an okay guy in my book." Chiaki stated.
"Yeah!" The trio of kids said in unison.
"The best thing about him is his mischievous side." Ninjin said. "He's always up to something!"
"I like him because he's not afraid to be silly." Piiman stated.
"And I like the Captain's crazy lies." Tamanegi added.
"So, when he tells her those stories, he makes her feel better?" Nami asked.
"Yep. Lot's better!" Ninjin answered.
"Great!" Luffy grinned as he raised a fist. "I think we should ask her for a ship, after all!"
"We're not the ones who are making her feel better." Zoro corrected. "Usopp is."
"Like I said, it's not that simple you know." Chiaki tried to reason with Luffy before he pointed a finger to a pair of guards, who were stationed in front of the gate. "Especially not with those guys in the way."
"Yeah, they won't let anyone through." Tamanegi elaborated.
However, everyone seemed to notice that Luffy ran off somewhere. Speaking of the guy, he was climbing up the gate.
"I'll go ask her!" Luffy declared, alerting everyone.
"No, you're not gonna–"
"Luffy, wait–"
"Gum Gum…!" Despite Zoro and Chiaki's protest, Luffy stretched his arms while still holding onto the fence as his back touched the ground.
The trio of kids, who were not familiar with Luffy's Devil Fruit powers, screamed as they were shocked to see someone could stretch their arms.
"His arms are all stretchy!" Tamanegi exclaimed.
"He's some kind of monster!" Ninjin yelled.
"Pardon me the Intrusion…!" Everyone immediately tried to stop what Luffy was about to do. "Rocket!" But it was to no avail as they found themselves being flung high into the sky by the straw boy.
(With Usopp)
Sitting on a branch of a tree was Usopp, who was telling stories to a pale-skinned, blonde girl by the window near said tree.
"So, after that terrifying and traumatic little incident, we escaped into the sky riding in a giant slingshot ball!" Usopp told excitedly to the girl, who saw several twinkles in the sky.
"What's that?" The girl asked while pointing upwards.
"Huh?" Usopp proceeded to look up and saw what was coming down from the sky.
"YAHOOOOO!" Luffy cheered as he and the others hit the ground soon after, creating some dust clouds from the impact.
Once everything was settled, everyone was revealed to have landed in a different way. Piiman, Ninjin, and Tamanegi fell on some bushes, Luffy and Zoro crashed into the pavement, creating small craters in the process, and lastly, Chiaki, Hoopa, and Nami landed on the grass.
"That worked well." Luffy muttered.
"Yeah, real well!" Nami shouted sarcastically,
"Um… Nami." Chiaki said as he leaned up to look at Nami, who had landed on his body. "Can you please get off?"
"Oh! Sorry about that, Chiaki!" Nami said as she immediately got off of Chiaki. "Wait… You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
"Would it make you feel better that I didn't?" Chiaki said as she stamped on one of his feet with her boot. "Ow! What did I do!?"
"My goodness! Are you okay?" The blonde girl asked.
"Don't mind them, Kaya." Usopp assured the girl. "This happens to me all the time. That's just the price of being a famous adventurer! They're just new recruits who heard about me and came to join the Usopp Pirates."
"Nope, not me. I came here to see you." Luffy stated as he got up. "I wanted to ask you a favor."
"A favor? For me?" Kaya repeated.
"Uh-huh! I was wondering if there was any way you could help us to get a boat–"
"You there!" Everyone turned around and saw someone entering the yard.
It was a man with slicked-back black hair and was wearing a pair of round glasses. He wore a black suit with two golden poop-like designs on it over a white shirt that has spiral-like protrusions on the end of the collar, a black tie, and sports striped shoes.
"What do you think you're doing?" The man asked.
"Klahadore…" Kaya muttered as the man known as Klahadore approached Luffy and the others.
"Get out." Klahadore ordered while pushing up his glasses with the palm of his hand. "I'll have you know that this is criminal trespassing."
"Hey, guys. Who's he?" Luffy asked.
"Uh, actually… Klahadore, these people are–"
"Not now, Kaya." Kaya's supposed caretaker interrupted his mistress. "You can tell me all about these riffraffs…" He then saw Hoopa amongst the "riffraffs". "And a bizarre-looking creature after they left."
"Bizarre? That's a little rude." Hoopa muttered.
"Now, get out! All of you!" Klahadore demanded. "Leave now unless you have business with me!"
"Alright! Do you think you could help us get a ship?" Luffy asked.
"Certainly not!" The man said, refusing to help Luffy.
"Aw…" Luffy hung his head down in disappointment.
"You see? It's not that simple…" Chiaki said to Luffy before he turned towards Klahadore as he felt… something dangerous about him. 'Still… I'm getting goosebumps from seeing this guy. I don't think… he's an ordinary butler.'
"Usopp!" Klahadore called out to the one guy who kept trespassing into the mansion.
"Crap!" Usopp exclaimed, having been spotted.
"You have quite the reputation. You're quite well known in the village." Klahadore stated as Usopp climbed back on the branch that he previously sat on.
"Sure am." The long nosed liar stated.
"I hear you've been on many adventures. Quite impressive for someone as young as you." Klahadore complimented but Chiaki could tell that there was a hint of sarcasm in that sentence.
"Usually, people who admire me so much call me 'Captain'!" Usopp stated. "So, it's Captain Usopp to you!"
"Captain, huh?" Klahadore repeated as he pushed up his glasses with his palm once more. "Your father also has something of a reputation as well."
"What!?" Usopp exclaimed as he knew that the butler meant that in a derogatory way.
'Oh, yeah. I've seen this before…' Chiaki thought as he clenched his fist in order to keep his temper in check. 'He's gonna do what I think he's gonna do!'
"Klahadore, please stop!" Kaya pleaded.
"You'll never be anything more than the son of a filthy Pirate!" Klahadore said harshly.
'There it is…' Chiaki thought, having witnessed this type of slander before.
"Who knows what sort of trouble you're up to now?" The bespectacled man said. "All I ask is that you and your kind leave this respectable young lady alone!"
"A filthy Pirate!?" Usopp repeated as he kept glaring towards the butler.
"You and she are from completely different worlds and you know it." Klahadore continued. "Is it money, you're after? How much do you want?"
"CEASE THIS AT ONCE, KLAHADORE!" Kaya ordered. "APOLOGIZE TO HIM!"
"Hey, calm down, Kaya–" Usopp tried to assure his friend but his friend's butler was not finished.
"I don't believe there was any reason to apologize to this savage young man, my lady." Klahadore interrupted. "My goal isn't to slander, I'm merely stating the truth. I sympathize with your situation. You must hate your great idiot of a father for abandoning his family and his village because of his mindless lust for treasure."
"Klahadore, stop!" The blonde haired girl reprimanded him.
"Don't you dare insult my father ever again!" Having been riled up enough by Klahadore's insults to his father, Usopp jumped down from the tree but not before using a grappling hook to safely descend to the ground. Said grappling hook zipped back inside his bag as he glared at the biased man.
"Why have you gotten so worked up, Usopp?" Klahadore asked in a provocative tone. "It's times like these when you should do what you do best and lie. Tell me how your father is really a traveling salesman? Or maybe about how you aren't actually related by blood?"
"ENOUGH!" Having had enough of the slander, Usopp rushed towards Klahadore and punched him across his face, knocking the butler down. While Kaya and the three kids gasped in surprise, Luffy, Zoro, Chiaki, Hoopa, and Nami simply stared at the sight.
"Captain!" His three crewmates in the Usopp Pirates shouted as Klahadore leaned himself up and rubbed his hurt cheek.
"Case in point. He resorts to violence." Klahadore stated while pushing his glasses. "I guess the apple never falls far from the tree, does it?"
'That asshole…! That's only because you continued to poke him where it hurts! Anyone would be angry!' Chiaki thought as he barely contained his temper, just barely.
"SHUT UP!" Usopp retorted. "My father listened to his heart and chose a life of risk and adventure! I'm proud to say that my old man is a brave warrior of the sea! You're right, I've been known to exaggerate from time to time, but I will never lie about who my father is! I refused to be ashamed of my heritage! I AM THE SON OF A PIRATE!"
"Captain…" Ninjin muttered, seeing how serious the speech was.
"Hehehe… Pirates are 'Brave Warrior of the Sea', are they?" Klahadore questioned before he let out a laugh. "That's quite a twisted way of putting things. You don't seem to understand that you're living proof of his savage blood. You run around spouting lies and use violence when you don't get your way. To top it off, you cozy up to the lady of the house to steal her fortune."
"You're wrong!" Usopp denied. "I only–"
"YOUR FATHER IS A FILTHY, NO GOOD PIRATE!" Klahadore shouted. "TREACHERY IS IN YOUR BLOOD! OF COURSE, YOU WOULD HAVE SUCH AN EVIL SCHEME!"
"YOU WON'T LET UP, WILL YOU!?" Usopp snapped as he grabbed the butler by the shirt with one hand and reeled with the other hand, ready to punch him again.
"STOP IT, USOPP!" Kaya pleaded. "Please, no more violence! I can't take it! Klahadore isn't a bad person! He's just… He's just trying to do what he thinks is best for me and sometimes he goes too far!"
While reluctant, Usopp eventually calmed down and loosened his grip on the butler, who immediately slapped the hand away.
"Leave this place. You are never to come here again!" Klahadore ordered.
"Yeah, I get it. You don't have to tell me twice, buddy." Usopp said as he began walking away with his hands in his pockets. "This is the last you'll ever see of me!"
And with that, Usopp left the yard.
"Usopp…" Kaya said somberly as she watched her only friend leaving her mansion.
The three kids run up to glare against the overzealous butler.
"Hey! You butler jerk!" Ninjin called out to him. "Our Captain's not that kind of guy!"
"You stupid jerkface!" Piiman shouted.
"Jerkface!" Tamanegi added.
"JERKFACE!" Luffy shouted, which earned him a whack from Zoro.
"Shut up, you don't have a bone to pick with him." Zoro scolded his Captain.
Klahadore glared down at the three kids, which frightened them so much that they ran and hid behind Nami. Luffy, on the other hand, was about to charge towards Klahadore to beat him up, only to be stopped by Zoro.
'That bastard… He really said something he shouldn't have…' Chiaki muttered as he barely contained his rage towards the butler and just one step closer to snap and gave him a beatdown.
The words that the butler used on Usopp…? He had heard of those words a long time ago. The guy might as well insult him and his father too.
"Chiaki, Chiaki. Now's not the time to go rage on him." Hoopa said, trying to calm his friend down. "Cool your head, will you? You're just giving him what he wants."
"Right… right." Chiaki said as he managed to regain his composure. But he still glared at Klahadore.
"You will all leave immediately!" Klahadore demanded.
Once everyone left the mansion, they decided towards the side of a road. Nami was sitting on the wooden fence while Zoro sat down and leaned back to the fence. Piiman and Ninjin also sat down near Nami.
"Hey, where are those two gone off? Luffy and Chiaki?" Nami asked, having realized that the aforementioned two were not with them when they left the mansion.
"Who knows? They probably went after that Captain." Zoro answered with his eyes closed.
"I bet he's at his secret spot." Piiman stated.
"Yeah, over by the shore!" Ninjin said. "He always goes there when he's gonna think something over."
"Should we go see?" Piiman asked Zoro.
"Huh? They're fine." Zoro stated.
"I agree." Hoopa said. "Even without me, Chiaki can hold himself in a fight."
"Those three can take care of themselves." Nami added as she realized that the third kid was not seen. "But where's your other friend?"
"Oh, yeah! Tamanegi!" Piiman and Ninjin said in unison as they also came to realize that their friend was not with them.
"Come to think of it, he just up and disappears a lot." Piiman stated.
"Yeah. And then he shows up out of nowhere, all freaked out."
As Ninjin said that, Tamanegi appeared and ran towards them, frightened about something.
"Terrible news, guys!" Tamanegi cried as he ran towards his friends.
"You see?" Ninjin stated simply.
"Listen to me, some nut job is on his way here! And he only walks backwards!" The boy reported.
"You liar." The other two kids said in unison.
"It's the truth!" Tamanegi proceeded to point at the direction where he ran from. "There he is!"
Sure enough, an eccentric man was indeed heading towards their direction by moonwalking. The man was wearing a blue jacket and a similarly-colored wide brimmed hat, olive green trousers and gloves, and black shoes with tall white socks. When he turned around to face everyone, he was revealed to have worn red heart-shaped sunglasses and had a beard-like growth on the chin.
"Now, which one of you people has the nerve to call me 'weird'?" The man asked. "I'm just a normal guy."
"Is that so? You look insane." Nami stated bluntly.
"Don't be silly! I'm just an ordinary, run-of-the-mill hypnotist." The man assured her.
'Stop fibbing… A hypnotist is not normal either. And you're not even a Psychic.' Hoopa thought.
"A hypnotist? Really? Awesome!" Tamanegi said.
"Show us something!" Piiman spoke.
"Yeah, do something!" Ninjin added.
"What!?" The man turned towards the kids. "You fools! What makes you think I would want to reveal my masterful hypnosis techniques to a bunch of roadside strangers?" Despite saying that, he pulled out a pendulum, which is a small ring with bladed edges that was tied to a string, in order to demonstrate it. "Okay, you convinced me. Now, watch this ring closely."
"What a ham." Zoro stated.
"So, by the count of Jango, you'll be in a deep sleep!" The man stated as he started waving his pendulum left and right. "Alright, are you ready? One, two, Jango!"
Immediately, the hypnosis kicked in and the three kids immediately fell asleep on the ground… along with the hypnotist as well.
"Who is this freaky weirdo!?" Zoro exclaimed, dumbfounded by the self-hypnosis that the man inflicted on himself.
(Meanwhile…)
On a hill overlooking the shore was Usopp. The guy was lost in thought while looking over the sea.
"Yo." He turned around and saw Chiaki, who managed to make his way to the spot. "Mind if I sit here?"
"Just leave me alone." Usopp muttered, still clearly upset about what happened.
"I know, but I can't exactly do that. Especially since you're still hung up on what happened back there." Chiaki said as he sat down next to him. "Look, you really shouldn't think too hard about what that piece of shit of a butler said about your old man. Honestly, where did he get off saying stupid shit like that when he barely knew the guy? Your dad's really wonderful, you know."
"Really?" Usopp asked.
"Yeah, from one son of a great Pirate to another." Chiaki smiled.
"Hold up, your old man's a Pirate too?" Usopp asked with surprise.
"'Former' Pirate, actually." Chiaki confided. "Tell me, have you heard of the Apex Pirates?"
"The Apex Pirates!?" Usopp exclaimed. "That infamous Pirate crew that was led by 'Terror King' Raizen!? The one man that is said to have defeated hundreds of Pirate crew and Marines all by himself!?"
"Yeah, that's the one." Chiaki said. "And Raizen happened to be my dad."
"Whoa…" Usopp was in awe at the information.
"To be honest, I actually met your father a few years back." Chiaki stated. "He came to my hometown and visited my dad with Shanks and some other guys, offering a spot in his crew."
"And what did he say?" Usopp asked.
"Well, he turned the offer down." Chiaki said. "Said that he was in the middle of his greatest adventure of all: Starting a family with someone he treasured dearly, which is my mom."
"That's… actually sounds so cool!" Usopp commented. Even though it was different with his father, he could tell that he simply chose to give up the harsh life on the sea and settle down and somehow made it a life of adventure despite how mundane it was.
"You said it!" Luffy suddenly appeared in front of them as he was dangling on a tree branch with his legs.
"Gah!" Usopp exclaimed as he was startled by it.
"Hey. Luffy." Chiaki greeted Luffy as he fell down on his back. He leaned up and proceeded to join with the other two.
"So, Chiaki! Is it true that your dad used to be a Pirate!? And he met with Shanks!?" Luffy asked eagerly.
"I guess you could say that." Chiaki said. "Is it lame? Seeing someone as my dad retired from the Pirate life?"
"Lame? Nope!" Luffy said. "I mean it's not like how Yasopp left this island to join up with Shanks's crew, but I think it's still really cool!"
"Thanks, Luffy." Chiaki smiled at the straw hat boy.
"Still, I can't believe that butler…" The two turned around to see Usopp, who was upset once more. "Insulting my old man like that…"
"Yeah, I hate that guy too." Luffy agreed "No matter what anyone said, Yasopp was a great Pirate!"
"Yeah, really!" Usopp remarked happily. "I always looked up to my old man living every day with life on the line! Out in the ocean! He made a brave choice and I admire him for that!" His expression then turned sour. "But then, that stupid, snotty butler stomped all over my pride. He's gonna pay for this!"
"Hey, wait!" Luffy called out to him. "Do you know if you're ever gonna see that girl again?"
"I don't know…" Usopp answered. "I'll consider it if that butler apologizes to me for the thing he said."
"That butler over there?" Luffy asked as he pointed his finger to the person, who turned out to be there down below, meeting with a certain eccentric man that Zoro, Hoopa, Nami, and the three kids met.
"Yeah, that's the one. If he–" It took him a few seconds to realize that Klahadore was there as he leaned over and slammed Luffy's head to the ground to prevent him from being spotted. "WHAT IN THE WORLD IS HE DOING DOWN THERE!?"
"Hey! What's the big idea!?" Luffy said with his voice muffled.
"Let's quiet down, Luffy." Chiaki told him as he also leaned over. "Now, let's see what are you doing, Mr. Butler?"
"Hey, Jango." Klahadore began. "I specifically ordered you to keep yourself inconspicuous! That doesn't mean sleeping on the road."
"Relax, man. I perfected the skills of a chameleon. I blend in." The man known as Jango assured.
"There's someone else with him! And man, is he weird?" Luffy muttered.
"I've never seen him before." Usopp remarked. "Who is he?"
"So, have all the necessary preparations been made?" Klahadore asked while pushing his glasses up.
"But of course. We can start anytime." Jango answered. "On the 'Rich Girl Murder Plan'!"
"Murder!?" Usopp exclaimed as he immediately became worried. Chiaki widened his eyes in surprise while Luffy still had a blank expression.
'Hold up… Are they gonna do what I think they're gonna do!?' Chiaki thought.
"Don't call it murder, Jango." Klahadore scolded him. "I don't like the sound of it."
"Oh, right. 'Accident'." Jango stated. "It's an 'accident' that you planned."
"Uh… What're those guys talking about?" Luffy wondered as he did not understand it.
"Just be quiet!" Usopp shushed him. "Maybe if we listen a little closer, we can find out."
"Bad idea." Chiaki chimed in. "They'll know we've been eavesdropping on them if we do that. We should stay here and hopefully they're dumb enough to blab what they were planning."
"We can't simply kill her." Klahadore stated. "It is critical to our plan that Miss Kaya perishes in an unfortunate accident. So, don't screw that up."
"So, basically…" Jango began as he sat down on a rock. "On your signal, the men and I storm the village and 'accidentally' kill the little rich girl. Then, you get her inheritance and we all get paid, right?"
"You moron! Your ignorance is astounding!" Klahadore reprimanded him. "We're not related, so how can I inherit anything from here?"
"You'll work very hard too?"
"No, Jango. I won't." Klahadore replied. "Now, listen to me. This is the most important part! Before you kill her, you'll use your hypnosis to make Kaya right her will. And it will say, 'I leave my entire fortune to my butler, Klahadore'."
Usopp grounded his teeth in worry as he found out that the butler intended to unleash a crew of Pirates into the village to kill Kaya and steal her fortune.
"Then, only then, will I have undisputed control of her enormous fortune!" Klahadore declared with a malicious grin on his face. "And no one will suspect a thing. I have spent three long years, gaining the trust of everyone around me. So, it would be unsurprising for her to leave the entirety of her inheritance to me."
"Three years as a butler for this, huh?" Jango said as he stood up. "You sure had us scared back then, Captain Kuro." He continued, name dropping Klahadore's true name as Kuro. "Three years ago, you suddenly said you were giving up life as a Pirate. In no time at all, you've set up someone to be your double and then you let the world see 'Captain Kuro' executed. Only now do I understand that was just the beginning of this plan. You are the man 'of a Thousand Plans'!"
"Never call me that again!" Kuro glared. "I've abandoned that name years ago. I now wish to obtain wealth without attracting the attention of the Government. In other words, I'm a pacifist."
"Hahahaha! Some pacifist you are!" Jango scoffed. "Murdering an entire family doesn't exactly qualify as 'peaceful'."
"Hold on. I haven't murdered an entire family." Kuro corrected him. "The father's death wasn't planned."
"Whatever you say, it makes no difference to me." Jango retorted. "If it's all the same to you, hurry up and give the word. The crew is getting bored, we've been waiting in the water near here for over a week. And the men are growing more anxious by the minute."
Usopp, Chiaki, and Luffy have listened to the whole conversation from the edge of the cliff they were on. While the former two managed to understand it, the latter one not so much.
'This is horrible!' Usopp thought as he was shaking in fear. 'This is really horrible!'
"What're they talking about? Is it bad guy stuff?" Luffy asked.
"Well, I'm glad you understand the basics of it." Chiaki told Luffy.
"And they're not just bad! They're evil!" Usopp said.
"I knew something wasn't right about that butler. But I didn't think he's actually THE Kuro." Chiaki began. "Captain Kuro. Yeah, I have heard of him before. He's the Captain of the Black Cat Pirates. Word has it that he is smart as he is dangerous. A top-tier schemer and a highly merciless killer? That's a dangerous combination for a Pirate to have. I guess the one that the Marines caught and executed wasn't really him, just someone he set up to be his patsy."
"I know, I read about that too." Usopp stated. "I thought he was dead but it turns out, he's alive and well! Posing as Klahadore the Butler! And he sets his diabolical sights on Kaya's fortune for the last three years! First, they'll attack the village and then they'll kill Kaya!" He explained anxiously as he immediately imagined the worst possible scenario. "This is bad! This is seriously bad!"
"I agree. He accused you of trying to go after her money, but it turns out he was the one scheming about it." Chiaki added as he was reminded to that fateful day. 'I'll never let that kind of thing happen again!'
Just then, Luffy stood up, surprising Chiaki and Usopp.
"Hey, get down! They'll see you!" Usopp warned him.
"Luffy, don't!" Chiaki also warned but it was too late.
"HEY, BAD GUYS! YOU BETTER STAY AWAY FROM THAT GIRL!" Luffy shouted, causing Kuro and Jango to be aware of his presence.
"Who're you!?" Jango exclaimed in surprise, having noticed Luffy.
"You idiot! They spotted you! Come on, hurry up and hide before they decide you need a long, slow death!" Usopp said as he was pulling Luffy's left arm, unaware that he also came out from hiding as well.
"Well, now… If it isn't Usopp, the mischievous town liar." Kuro said.
"Ahhhh! Oh no! I'm spotted too!" Usopp exclaimed.
"I guess there's no point anymore." Chiaki muttered as he revealed himself to Kuro and Jango.
"Did you… hear anything?" Kuro asked the three eavesdroppers with a glare.
"Nope! Nothing at all! Not a peep! We just got here! We didn't hear anything!" Usopp answered frantically.
"We heard it all." Luffy stated bluntly.
"Shut up!" Usopp retorted as he gave a quick slap on Luffy's chest.
"Yup. We heard everything." Chiaki said with his arms folded. "Thanks for revealing your plan. Now, we can kick your ass without feeling bad about it!"
"No, we won't! Stop making it worse!" Usopp retorted.
Kuro simply let out a chuckle before he mentioned Jango to handle the three young men.
"Well, if you say so." Jango complied as he walked forward and pulled out his pendulum. "Pay attention, boys! And watch this ring closely! By the count of Jango, you will be in a deep sleep! Are you ready? One… two…"
"Run for cover! He's gonna kill us!" Usopp said fearfully as he ducked down to the ground. Chiaki and Luffy, however, kept standing on the edge of the cliff.
"Hypnosis, eh? That sounds like a cheap trick. You have to be either a Psychic or a Psychic type Pokémon for that to work." Chiaki scoffed.
"Jango!"
"Idiot. Like we'll fall for that easy!" Chiaki said, unaffected by the hypnosis because he turned away. He then turned towards Luffy. "Right, Luffy–"
To his surprise, Luffy had fallen asleep while still standing.
"You know, I should have figured he fell right into it easily." Chiaki muttered as he saw Luffy leaning forward. "Whoa there!" But just before the sleeping straw hat boy was about to fall to the bottom of the cliff, Chiaki managed to pull him back before it could happen. "That was a close one."
"Jango, you idiot! I see you're still falling asleep on the job." Kuro reprimanded him, who had fallen asleep while leaning his back towards the disguised Pirate.
"Is he dead…?" Usopp asked Chiaki.
"Nope, he's just sleeping." Chiaki answered as he pulled a piece of steak from his blazer and proceeded to wave it in front of his meat. "Luffy~ I got some steak just for you!"
Luffy's nose twitched at the smell of the steak that was waved near him before his eyes snapped open as he leaned up and immediately ate the steak that Chiaki had.
"Whoa! That actually works!" Usopp exclaimed.
"So good~" Luffy muttered as he chewed the meat before swallowing it down. "Thanks, Chiaki!"
"Anytime, man." Chiaki smiled.
"Say, why was I sleeping?" Luffy wondered.
"That weird guy, I think his name is Jango, put you and himself to sleep." Chiaki pointed towards the aforementioned hypnotist, who had woken up.
"Sorry about that." Jango apologized to his Captain before looking upwards. "Should I try again? Before they could try and warn the villagers?"
"There's no need." Kuro answered. "Everything that Usopp could say will sound like lies. And they wouldn't believe the words of some newcomers to the island either. Jango, tomorrow at daybreak, the men are to attack the village. Rough up the villagers some and tear up their home a little for good measure. And above all… make sure Miss Kaya's death looks accidental."
"Tomorrow!?" Usopp repeated as he was shaking in fear.
"Just accept it, Usopp." Kuro said with a smirk. "There is nothing you can say or do to warn the villagers of this impending tragedy.
Usopp took one last look at Kuro before he turned away and left.
"Hey, where are you going?" Luffy asked.
"I have to warn everyone! I have to warn Kaya!" Usopp declared as he quickly left the area.
"Come on, Luffy. Let's go meet up with the others." Chiaki stated.
"Wait. We're not gonna stay and kick his ass?" Luffy asked while pointing his finger at Kuro.
"Not yet. We should get the others on the same page first." The Pokémon Trainer stated. "Don't worry, man. That bastard's gonna get what he deserves tomorrow. Let's go!"
Chiaki dashed off with Luffy followed right after.
Next...
L: Yep, that's what they said.
U: Because all I do is lie.
C: Still, that Kuro guy really rubbed me the wrong way.
Z: And you look scared out of your mind.
K: Three long years I quietly waited for this!
Z: It's almost daybreak.
C: Hoopa… That looked awfully like a human.
C/H/L: Next time on The Straw Hat's Monster Tamer, Chapter 6: The Imperfect Plan
L: I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!
And that is it for the first half of the double update.
Now, I know I should be naming the three kids in the Usopp Pirates as Pepper, Carrot, and Onion. But... I think it's better to just call them by their Japanese names since there is Carrot the Rabbit Mink, a character that will appear far later in the story. But for those who doesn't understand Japanese, I'm gonna provide the translation:
Piiman= bell pepper
Ninjin= carrot
Tamanegi= onion
And yes, I'm fully aware that manga is now entering the Elbaf Arc. But I'm not gonna think too much on it since I still got a long way to go before reaching to that point.
Be sure to leave a review as usual and I'll see you next time!