And here is the second half of the double chapter!
Enjoy!
Chapter 6: The Imperfect Plan
Eventually, Chiaki and Luffy met up with Zoro, Hoopa, Nami, and the three kids.
"Heyo, everyone!" Chiaki waved at them.
"There you are!" Nami said to the two. "We were just about to come looking for you two."
"Right, sorry for taking so long." Chiaki apologized. "Did Usopp go this way?"
"Yeah, he did." Zoro answered. "He looked scared out of his mind."
"So, what happens when you're with the Captain?" Piiman asked. "It looks serious."
"Yeah, I think he ran in the direction of the village." Ninjin added. "Did something happen?"
"Well, it was something…" Chiaki said.
"So, what is it? Don't leave us hanging." Hoopa demanded.
"That butler guy turns out to be a Pirate named Kuro." Luffy explained. "He said his crew is gonna attack the village tomorrow."
"Wait, really!?" Nami exclaimed as everyone was caught off guard by the information.
"Yeah, really." Chiaki confirmed. "Not only that, they're gonna do it at daybreak and are planning to kill that rich girl."
"What!? The Pirates are really gonna attack the village and kill Kaya!?" Piiman, Ninjin, and Tamanegi exclaimed in unison.
"Yep, that's what they said." Luffy said while adjusting his straw hat. "No question about it."
"Still, who could've guessed that the butler was none other than THE Captain Kuro…" Nami remarked. "I thought the Marines caught him and executed three years ago."
"Clearly, the Marines only caught the imposter, one that was prepared by that Kuro guy." Hoopa said as Usopp Pirates huddled together to discuss the next course of action.
"This proves it! Klahadore's a bad guy!" Ninjin said.
"Usopp saw right through him!" Piiman assumed.
"Yeah, I bet he was trying to warn everyone in the village so they'll have time to run away!" Tamanegi added.
"Well, that's perfect!" Nami stated. "Those stupid Pirates won't hurt anyone because the town will be abandoned by the time they get there."
"Yeah, that's right! We better run away too if we wanna live!" Ninjin stated.
"Alright! Let's pack our treasure and…" Piiman said before he was joined by his two friends.
"Run like the wind!" The three kids declared in unison before running off to the opposite direction.
"Oh no!" Luffy shouted abruptly, surprising everyone.
"What's up?" Zoro asked.
"Ah! We need to stock up before the meat shop guy leaves!" Luffy informed, which earned a whack in the head by Zoro using his sheathed sword.
"Come on, that's not really the issue at hand here." Zoro said as he saw his Captain fall to the ground face first.
(Later on…)
As the sun was starting to set and sky had turned to orange, Usopp was walking down on the road with a frown on his face while holding his left arm out due to being grazed by a bullet earlier. Not to mention that he was in tears in frustration while looking back to the village that he grew up in.
Why was he in such a state? Apparently, Usopp has visited the village to warn the villagers about the impending Pirate attack from the Black Cat Pirates. But just as Kuro suspected, no one would believe in him and proceeded to chase the town liar off. And even when he tried to warn Kaya and went as far as to try getting her out of the mansion, she would not believe him. And in the middle of that, he was shot by Kaya's other butler named Merry before running away, fortunately the bullet only grazed his arm. And so, he was feeling at a loss on what to do and even felt betrayed.
"There he is." Usopp brought his head back up and saw that Luffy, Zoro, Chiaki, Hoopa, Nami, and the members of the Usopp Pirates were hanging around at the side of the road.
"Captain!" The Usopp Pirates greeted their Captain as they approached him.
Usopp quickly wiped the tears from his face before he greeted them with a mask of happiness.
"Hey, what's up?" Usopp greeted them.
"Captain, we've heard all about those Pirates and their evil plan!" Ninjin stated.
"We better hurry and warn the people in the village so they have time to get away!" Tamanegi insisted.
"Warn the people…?" Usopp repeated as his mind flashed to the time when they did not believe in him despite that it was the honest truth.
"You're pathetic…"
"Stop it! We all know you're nothing but a liar!"
"It would do you some good to follow Klahadore's example of hard work and honesty!"
Thinking it back, the very thought of being driven out when he tried to warn them a second time scared him. So… he decided to let out a laugh.
"Well, obviously I'm lying like usual!" Usopp replied. "That butler made me so mad with what he said I thought I'd get him back and say he was a Pirate!"
The Usopp Pirates then joined in on the laughter as Luffy, Zoro, Chiaki, and Hoopa knew that he was obviously lying. Especially Luffy since he was with him and Chiaki and they eavesdropped about Kuro and his plan. The three kids then began walking away and stopped laughing altogether.
"Hey, where are you going?" Usopp asked them.
"Honestly, you've really disappointed me." Ninjin declared.
"Yeah." Piiman agreed.
"Even though that butler guy is a jerk, I thought you knew better than to lie to hurt someone and I admired you for being such a kindhearted person." Tamanegi stated.
"And to think we respected you all this entire time." Piiman added as he and the other two kids went back to their homes in the village.
Usopp was taken aback by the their sudden change of heart and was speechless as he saw them leave him.
(Later, that night)
The crew and Usopp were at the cliff near the ocean where Luffy, Chiaki, and Usopp overheard Kuro's master plan. Nami was tending Usopp's wound with a cotton that was soaked in a little bit of alcohol and slowly rubbing it along Usop's left arm, causing him to wince in pain. Then, she finished off the treatment by wrapping bandages around the wound.
"There. All done." Nami said.
"So, how come you lied to them?" Luffy questioned Usopp's decision to lie to the Usopp Pirates.
"Because all I do is lie." Usopp answered. "There's no way anybody is gonna believe what I had to say. Why should they?"
"Because what you were telling them is the honest truth." Zoro said.
"They are coming and they're gonna level this whole town." Nami remarked.
"Not to mention that they're gonna kill your friend and steal her wealth." Hoopa added.
"Don't tell me you're gonna throw in the towel?" Chiaki asked. "I thought you're better than this."
"Yeah, but what am I supposed to do?" Usopp asked. "They'll think I'm lying if I try to warn them. Everyone in the village thinks that tomorrow is just gonna be another normal day." He put his head down before he quickly brought his head up, having figured something out. "They'll think I'm lying and that's all they need to think! I'm gonna stop those Pirates at the beach tomorrow myself! This is all my fault for being such a liar. I don't care anymore if they drive me away with brooms or shoot me in the arm!" Usopp declared with tears in his eyes. "This is my village! It's my home and I love everyone in it! I have to… protect them!"
Everyone was moved by Usopp's words. That he wanted to protect the village despite being driven by the people there. His love for the village and its people was genuine and that was something they admired about him. That said, they decided that there was no way they were letting Usopp fight the Pirates all by himself.
"You're a hell of a good guy, sending your cronies away and going into battle alone." Zoro stated.
"Just so you know, I have dibs on all of their treasure, you got it?" Nami declared.
"Not if I beat you to it first, rookie." Hoopa grinned as the orange-haired girl glared at him.
"No way! I learned my lesson. This time around, I'm gonna steal it before you!"
"Okay, okay. I get it." Chiaki intervened. "Still, that Kuro guy really rubbed me the wrong way. A pacifist? Yeah, right! A coward is what he is! Manipulating that rich girl and setting her up to be killed just so he can steal her wealth… Honestly, he's a disgrace to all Pirates! At least my dad wasn't the type to pull crap like that."
"Your dad?" Zoro repeated. "Wait, is he a Pirate just like Usopp's dad?"
Nami was also surprised to hear that as well.
"'Was' a Pirate. He's retired now." Chiaki corrected. "If you're curious who my dad is, it's 'Terror King' Raizen."
Zoro was taken aback by the revelation. "Wait, that guy's your dad!?"
"You heard of him, Zoro?" Nami asked.
"A little bit." The swordsman stated. "From what I heard, he has a really big reputation of defeating every Pirate crew that they encountered, even defeating every Marines that chased after him and his crew. The strangest part is that he never was the one to attack first and even protected a town from other Pirates."
"Yeah, that sounds like my dad alright." Chiaki said. "He told me that he was never the type to pick a fight unless those Pirates or Marines gave him a reason to. And he is also not the type to raid a village or town like a savage. Also, he had a great respect for the Marines." He continued with a proud smile. "And that's what I admire about him."
"That's so cool…!" Luffy smiled.
"Wait a minute." Zoro said as he realized something. "Is that the reason you went out to the sea? To continue the legacy of your old man?"
"That'd be nice, but nah. I set out because I have a dream of my own." Chiaki answered.
"Does it have something to do with the promise you mentioned back at that town where we first met?" Luffy asked.
"I'm surprised you remember that. And here I was hoping you forgot that." The Pokémon Trainer muttered.
"So? What's that promise?" Luffy pried. "Come on, tell us!"
Chiaki turned away as the memories involving that promise made him sad. "... Let's just say I planned to make good on that promise."
"Aw…"
"Anyway…" The Pokémon Trainer decided to get back on topic. "So, yeah. We'll be helping you fight those Pirates so don't worry."
"Yeah." Luffy agreed. "So, you want a little help or what?"
"You guys…" Usopp muttered with tears in his eyes. "You're gonna help me fight all these Pirates? I don't get it."
"Well, you said there's a whole bunch of bad guys, right?" The straw hat boy asked.
"And you look scared out of your mind." Zoro added.
"For your information, I have nerves of steel! I'm perfectly okay with tons of bad guys!" Usopp claimed. "After all, you're looking at the legendary Captain Usopp, Brave Warrior of the High Sea!"
"Okay. But then why are your legs shaking?" Chiaki pointed as Usopp's legs were indeed shaking.
"Alright, fine! I'm scared!" Usopp admitted. "Why shouldn't I be? They're Captain Kuro's men! These guys mean business! I don't need pity! If you guys are sticking around because you pity me, then just leave! I don't need you laughing at me!"
"Calm down, Usopp." Hoopa assured him. "There's nothing funny about a guy who wants to risk his neck out to save his home from a crew of Pirates."
We're helping you because you are honorable." Zoro clarified.
"You really think we'd risk our lives out of pity?" Luffy asked.
"You see? None of us think of you that way. We're definitely gonna help you defend the village." Chiaki said with a smile.
"You guys…" Usopp was in tears as a couple of strangers that he befriended declared that they were more than willing to help him.
"Right, so what's the game plan?" Chiaki asked. "You have one, right?"
"Yeah…" Usopp wiped away the tears as he looked towards the crew with a serious look. "I got one. Follow me."
And with that, everyone proceeded to follow Usopp as they walked up the slope of the area.
"Okay. At daybreak, the Pirates will be landing on this shore to begin their attack." Usopp said as he and the others were walking their way up. "But the only way they'll be able to get to the village is go up this slope. The rest of the shoreline is sheer cliffs so they'll have to come through here. If we can fight them while they are funneled into that narrow pass, their numbers won't mean anything and the village will be protected!"
"Alright, sounds pretty easy." Luffy commented.
"Talking about it is, but victory depends on our strength." Usopp replied. "What is it that you guys can do?"
"I cut." Zoro said.
"I stretch." Luffy said.
"I summon monsters to attack." Chiaki said.
"I cast magic." Hoopa said.
"I steal." Nami said.
"I hide." Usopp added.
Then, Luffy pulled him and put him into a headlock.
"WELL, THIS TIME YOU'RE GONNA FIGHT!" The five of them shouted with shark teeth.
"J-Just making a funny!" Usopp stated. "Come on, calm down!"
(At Kaya's mansion)
After meeting up with the rest of his crew to personally tell them to get ready for tomorrow's attack, Kuro headed back to the mansion in order to begin his own preparation. Then, he was greeted by Merry, the other butler that worked under Kaya.
Merry is a tall man with white curly hair, two short horns, and his lips are like that of a lamb. The collar around his neck also has white fleece of a lamb.
"Ah, Klahadore! Welcome back!" Merry greeted "Klahadore" as he entered a room in the mansion. Merry was using a wooden stair to climb up and clean the chandelier.
"How is she?" Kuro asked.
"She's resting just now. She was quite exhausted." Merry answered as he decided to fill in on details regarding what happened this afternoon to his colleague.
"I leave town for a few hours to tend to some errands and everything falls to pieces." Kuro remarked as he walked towards the window while loosening his collar. "That Usopp certainly knows how to cause trouble, doesn't he?"
"Yes. And on top of everything else he's done today, he claimed you were a Pirate." Merry replied. "Ha! I can't think of a more outrageous lie."
"Indeed." Kuro said with a smirk before noticing a small rectangular box wrapped white wrapping and a blue ribbon and immediately grabbed it. "What's this here?"
"Well, that's a present of course, from Miss Kaya to you, Klahadore." Merry answered. "It's been three years since you came to this mansion. And this gift is to say thank you for your hard work. It's a commemoration of sorts."
"How nice." Kuro replied sarcastically.
"The glasses you're wearing are always slipping and you have to push them back up, so the lady of the house custom ordered a new pair for you." The other butler continued. "Isn't she the most thoughtful young woman you've ever met?"
Kuro proceeded to unwrap his gift, which was a rectangular case that contained a brand new pair of glasses.
"How appropriate. Tomorrow will be a day worth commemorating." Kuro said with a malicious smirk. "It's a crescent moon tonight."
"Huh?" Merry then became confused by his colleague's sudden change in personality.
"It's on nights like this that I truly feel alive!" Kuro began. "My heart races and my blood boils in my veins!"
The bespectacled man then dropped the blue case on the floor before stomping on it, destroying it along with the glasses.
"Ah! Klahadore, what are you doing!?" Merry demanded. "Why would you do such a thing to Miss Kaya's present?"
Kuro then pressed his foot even further just for good measure.
"Oh, I'll be receiving a gift alright. But it won't be glasses." Kuro retorted as he turned around to the other butler with a smirk. "It'll be this entire estate!"
Merry was surprised even more with the way his colleague acted now.
"What are you saying!?" He asked as "Klahadore" turned around to face him.
"I suppose there's no reason for me to carry on the act any longer." Kuro claimed, fully shedding his "loyal butler" persona once and for all. "In a few hours, the village will be mourning the unforeseen tragedy."
It was then Merry started to realize that the "outrageous lie" that he had initially assumed from Usopp had become the terrifying truth. And he became more frightened when he saw Kuro quickly wear a black furry glove with five blades attached to each fingertips.
"Three long years I quietly waited for this!" Kuro declared as he charged forward to attack his "colleague".
"MISS! YOU HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE! RUN–" Merry screamed to alert his mistress just as Kuro slashed the chandelier, darkening the room before the former was slashed across the chest by the latter not long after that. "GAACK!" Blood spurted from the unfortunate butler as he fell down to the floor and lay down on his own blood.
Kuro simply stared at his victim as his blades were soaked in Merry's blood. After that, he proceeded to go upstairs and entered Kaya's bedroom. As he walked up to the side of his sleeping target, Kuro was contemplating whether or not she should kill the girl that he served for the last three years. Ultimately, he was against it and lowered the hand that was wearing the glove. Not because of whatever attachment he had for the girl, but because he believed that Jango and Black Cat Pirates would follow the plan accordingly.
And with a plan that he personally concocted and commanded, nothing will go wrong…
(A few hours later…)
Near the waters of the island was a large ship with a black cat as the figurehead. This was the Pirate ship for the Black Cat Pirates.
"Captain Jango!" A Pirate called as he knocked on the door. "Captain Jango, it's almost daybreak! It's time to get moving!"
The door was opened and Jango came out from his living quarters, moonwalking through the deck.
There was a subtle change in Jango's outfit and he now wore a blue, long overcoat with ring-like decorations.
"Good morning, Captain!" A Pirate greeted him.
"Good morning, sir!" Another Pirate stated as Jango stopped moving.
"You idiots!" Jango scolded. "Only the sun can wake me up and live to tell about it! Do I make myself clear?"
"He's in a really bad mood." Another goon commented.
"Mornings are the worst." The second Pirate added.
"Just look! The moon is still up, so the sun couldn't have woken me." Jango said as he and the rest of the crew looked up to the night sky. "Now, which one of you did it?"
"Our apologies, sir! We're very sorry!" Jango's subordinates stated in unison.
"Well, in that case…" Jango then did a spin and a pose before moonwalking once more before he stopped near the mast of the ship. "Good morning, gentlemen."
"Wait. What's going on here?" A Pirate with a black face, white eyes, and brown eyebrows asked. "He was mad just a second ago."
"So, what? He's in a better mood now and that's all that matters! So, keep your big trap shut!" His crewmate berated him.
"It's confusing!"
"Oh, yeah? Well, your face is confusing!"
Then, the man he talked to turned around, revealing his "true face".
"Hmm?"
"Attention, men!" Jango announced. "Let's set sail!"
"YEAH!" The rest of the Pirates cheered as they raised their weapons to the air.
(With Luffy and the others)
Everyone has just arrived back at the shore. With Usopp's instructions, Luffy and Zoro proceeded to tip two barrels of oil, which they found and brought over from the village, over on the slope, causing large amounts of its content to come out and spill over the slope.
"Yep, I'm a genius!" Usopp declared proudly. "There's no way they'll be able to make it up to this slope now. All this oil we put here should keep them occupied while we go to work on 'em. They're gonna be busy slipping and sliding around like a bunch of idiots and then we show up and beat the crap out of them."
"That sounds like a good idea to me." Chiaki commented.
"Wow, so that's your plan, huh?" Nami asked.
"That's right! I'm going to defend the village no matter what it takes!" Usopp claimed.
"Let's just hope none of us slip on that oil and end up down there with them." Nami remarked. "Because they would be like sliding into the meat grinder."
"Well, don't slip into the oil, then." The Pokémon Trainer stated.
"Usopp, I gotta hand it to you." Luffy began. "You're pretty good at fighting dirty."
"Of course I am." Usopp stated. "There isn't anyone alive who can best me with a slingshot or beat me in the art of fighting dirty!"
The crew simply smirked at Usopp's boast as they turned towards the ocean.
"It's almost daybreak. They're coming." Zoro said.
"Got that right." Chiaki said as he pulled out his flintlock pistol and cutlass. "Get ready to welcome them, guys."
(In the other side of the island)
The Black Cat Pirates' ship has just arrived at its destination as it docked on a slope just outside of the village. The Pirate crew aboard the ship have all armed themselves with their weapons.
"We're here!" A Pirate announced as the anchor dropped down into the ground.
"Alright, men! You know what to do." Jango said as he began to relay the plan. Go ashore! Crush the village! Head for the mansion!"
"Aye aye sir!" The Pirates complied.
"Captain! There are already two boats here!" One of Jango's men reported as he pointed his finger to where Luffy and Nami's boats were docked.
"What!?" Jango exclaimed as he also saw the boats.
"Shall I investigate?" The Pirate that spotted the two boats asked.
"Leave 'em for later." The hypnotist replied. "They don't like treasure ships to me and we have a schedule to keep!"
"Understood, sir!"
Jango then turned towards the rest of his men.
"What are you waiting for? It's time to move out!" He ordered.
"HOORAH!"
(Meanwhile…)
"Where are they!?" Luffy wondered impatiently. "I thought we're gonna fight. The sun's up, what's the deal?"
The six of them were waiting for the Pirates to show up as the sun began to rise to the sky. But they found out they had not appeared despite waiting for almost an hour.
"Huh… Maybe they overslept?" Zoro asked.
"No, they're gonna show up alright." Usopp answered. "Lots of them."
"From what I know about Kuro's Pirate crew is that they are always on schedule regarding their plan." Chiaki recalled. "Because they know what happens when they're tardy."
Nami widened her eyes as she heard something… something that was far away. She placed her hands near her ears while taking a few steps to where the source was coming from.
"Hm? What is it, Nami?" Chiaki asked.
"Wait a minute. Maybe I'm hearing things, but it sounds like… battle cries from somewhere." Nami stated. "Yeah, I definitely hear them."
"So, the Pirates really did come." Hoopa said. "But where are they?"
"Oh no! It can't be!" Usopp gasped as the realization just hit him.
"What can't be?" Zoro asked.
"There's a shore just like this to the north!" Usopp said.
"Are you for real!?" Chiaki exclaimed.
"We're at the wrong shore!?" Luffy added. "That's not good!"
"And you didn't bother to tell us about that shore, did you?" Hoopa asked him.
"This is where they had their secret meeting, so I just assumed, okay!" Usopp answered.
"Then we better get to that shore right now! There's still time before those Pirates get to the village." Chiaki said. "So, where is it?
"You have to head directly north from here. If you run, you can make it in three minutes!" Usopp explained. "The terrain there is almost the same and all we need to do is to stop them at the slope!"
"Don't you worry. We're gonna stop 'em!" Luffy assured.
"Oh no!" Nami screamed as she realized something. "If those filthy Pirates are at the north shore, then they've already seen our boats! They'll take my treasure!"
"Say, Hoopa. What happened to my backpack?" Chiaki asked while glancing towards his traveling companion.
"Don't worry. I put it in my Treasure Pit right before we went to the restaurant yesterday." Hoopa said as he opened up a portal with his ring and pulled out what appeared to be a backpack from it. "See?"
Chiaki took the bag and quickly went through it. Fortunately, everything he had was still there.
"Yup, this is mine alright." Chiaki said as he sighed in relief before the former handed said backpack back to the latter as he stored it in his Treasure Pit once more.
"Well, good for you!" Nami yelled at him. "But those Pirates are gonna take away my treasure! I have to stop them!"
"I'll be there in 20 seconds!" Luffy said as he turned around and dashed towards the north shore.
"Oh, man! My brilliant oil strategy was all for nothing!" Usopp lamented as he went after the straw hat boy.
"My precious treasure…" Nami muttered.
"Nami, there's no use thinking about it!" Chiaki told her. "If we're able to stop them at the slope, we can get back your treasure!"
"He's right, you know!" Hoopa added. "Come on, let's get moving!"
And with that, Chiaki and Hoopa took off to the north shore.
"Come on, let's get out of here!" Zoro told Nami.
"Yeah!" What Nami did not realize was that she was standing on the oil and soon found herself slipping on it with a scream. She reached out to one of Zoro's swords and grabbed ahold of it, this made the swordsman fall with her.
"Help! I'm gonna fall!" Nami pleaded as she held on to Zoro's leg.
"Let go, you moron!" Zoro said they slid down just a little. "Hey, Chiaki! Help!"
Chiaki turned around and saw this.
"Really?" Chiaki sighed as he turned towards Hoopa. "Hoopa, help them out."
"If you say so." Hoopa complied as he opened up a portal just behind Nami and Zoro.
"Okay, just slide into the portal, you two!" Chiaki told the two.
"Yeah, got it!" Zoro said as he and Nami do as Chiaki told and ended up next to them.
"Thanks…" Nami said as she wiped the oil away from her clothes.
"Yeah, that was a close one." Zoro added.
"You're welcome." Hoopa said with a smug look on his face as one of the rings went back dangling around his horns.
"Come on! Let's hurry before those Pirates make it to the village!" Chiaki said as he dashed off to the location with Hoopa, Zoro, and Nami.
(With Usopp)
Usopp was sprinting forward to the north shore in order to stop the incoming attack from the Black Cat Pirates.
"I swear on my life that they never set foot in my village!" Usopp declared while running. 'That Luffy sure is a good runner! He's so far ahead that I can't even see him anymore!'
Sure enough, he arrived at the designated location but he realized there was no sign of the aforementioned straw hat boy. But the upside was that the Pirates have gone up into the slope. Immediately, he launched a barrage of silver lead pellets that knocked down some of the Pirates.
"It's an ambush! Somebody's up there!" A Pirate reported as Jango and the rest of the crew looked up to see Usopp standing at the top.
"We meet again." Jango said.
Usopp was out of breath as he looked down at the Pirates on the slope with a slingshot on his hand.
"I am the legendary Captain Usopp! I've been waiting for you!" Usopp announced as he held up his fist towards the Black Cat Pirates. "All my men and I are ready to fight to the death! Turn back now if you value your lives!"
Despite the boast he uttered, it did not stop the shaking of his legs.
'I wasn't supposed to be the first one here!' Usopp thought, panicked that he got to the place before Luffy. 'He was running way ahead of me! I can't handle these guys alone!'
"It's you! I remember!" Jango said. "You're one of the troublesome brats who overheard our plan. What do you think you're doing?"
"I'm warning you!" The long nosed liar began. "Leave here while you still can! If you don't, my 100 million crewmen will massacre all of you!"
"100 million?" A Pirate asked in confusion.
"Are we supposed to believe that?" Another Pirate added in disbelief.
The Pirates that Usopp is up against, however, were not so stupid to believe such an obvious lie. But…
"No way! 100 million!? Incredible!" Jango exclaimed in amazement.
"Captain, he's obviously lying!"
"Then, it's time to call his bluff!"
"They saw through it!?" Usopp exclaimed.
"That guy seriously thought he could fool us!" Another Pirate stated.
"What's that? You've been lying to us this whole time!?" Jango screamed.
"Captain Jango! Take a look at this!" One of his men called out to him.
"Oh, no. Is it bad?" The hypnotist asked.
"No, sir! It's good!" The Pirate replied. "We searched those other ships and found a huge load of treasure! It's hard to say how much, but it's around 5,000,000 Berris!"
"What?"
"5,000,000 Berris!? How in the world did those guys get ahold of so much treasure!?" Usopp exclaimed in disbelief, surprised by a couple of strangers that he just managed to amass a treasure that much. That said, it gave him an idea. "I see you found my loot! Well, you can have it!"
"You're just gonna let us take your treasure?" A Pirate asked.
"That's right! Just turn around and forget all about this place, and the treasure is yours!" The long nosed boy stated.
'I didn't think people THAT stupid actually existed." Another Pirate remarked.
"At this point, he's just embarrassing himself." A Pirate next to Jango added, feeling a little sorry for Usopp.
"Okay, do you know what a Pirate is?" Jango asked rhetorically. "We're going to take this treasure and there's nothing you can do about it. And there's no way we're turning back until we get what we came for."
"Well, yeah…" Usopp said, seeing the logic from the hypnotist. "That makes sense."
Jango then pulled out his pendulum once more.
"Alright, then." Jango said. "On the count of 'one, two, Jango', you'll let us by."
"It's that strange weapon from before!" Usopp exclaimed.
"One, two, Jan–"
But then, a certain orange haired girl appeared from behind Usopp and whacked him on the head.
"DON'T YOU EVER TRY TO GIVE AWAY MY HARD-EARNED TREASURE!" Nami shouted as the liar was sent flying to the air before he landed on his back.
"My heaaaaaad!" Usopp screamed in pain.
"Hey, who is this crazy girl!?" A Pirate wondered.
"Captain!" Another Pirate called out to Jango, who once again had hypnotized himself. "This is no time to be hypnotizing yourself! We got a mission to carry out, remember?"
Jango only gasped in realization as he remembered that there was an important task that he and the crew needed to carry out.
"Great, it looks like they haven't reached the village yet." Not long after Nami arrived was none other than Chiaki. Hoopa also appeared shortly after Chiaki.
"That treasure boat is mine!" Nami declared as she pointed her finger forward. "And I'm not gonna let you have a single Berri, do you hear me!? In fact, you better clear out because I'm coming down there to get it back!"
"I see someone's motivated." Hoopa chimed.
"You better hands off of my treasure too if you know what's good for you!" Nami retorted.
"Relax, Nami. I'm not that devious. I have boundaries too, you know." The Mischief Pokemon stated.
"He speaks the truth. I know Hoopa well." Chiaki said, vouching for Hoopa's claim.
"Well, fine…"
"Hey!" The three turned around and saw that Usopp was calling out to them, particularly Nami. "That really hurt!"
"Who said you can give them my treasure!?" Nami asked angrily. "You got what you deserve!"
"I didn't give them the treasure! I said I would give it to them!" Usopp argued.
"That's the same thing!" The orange-haired girl stated. "And I just saved your life."
"Huh?"
"You see, Usopp…" Chiaki began as he pointed his finger towards Jango. "That weirdo's a hypnotist, which is how Luffy ended up falling asleep all of a sudden."
"Not to mention he used it on those friends of yours yesterday to fall asleep, so don't watch it." Nami added as Jango clicked his tongue.
"Hypnotist…?" Usopp muttered.
"So, where's Luffy?" Nami asked. "He's a fast runner, I thought he'd be here way ahead of you."
"I don't know. He either got lost or chickened out." Usopp replied as he stood up.
"I'm pretty sure he got lost." Chiaki assumed as he realized that Zoro was not with them as well. "The same goes with Zoro."
"Ugh… Right when we need those two too…" Nami muttered.
"Okay. Just because they aren't here doesn't mean we don't stand a chance." Chiaki said. "I guess it's up to us to hold them off here until Luffy and Zoro make it into this place."
"What!?" Both the Navigator and the liar exclaimed in unison.
"M-Me!? Against those Pirates!?" Usopp asked in fear. "No way! How about I take command here while you, Hoopa, and her…" He took a few steps back before pointing at Nami. "Go and kick their butts!"
"What!? Me!? What about you!?" Nami exclaimed as Usopp was smirking at her. "I can't take on a buttload of vicious Pirates all by myself! Chiaki, his Pokémon, and Hoopa probably can, but not me! That's just suicide!"
"What? Like I'm gonna do any fighting?" Usopp asked. "Beneath this calm exterior lies the abject terror of a coward!"
"Well, at least he admits it." Chiaki said before watching the back-to-back argument between Usopp and Nami about who was the bigger coward amongst them.
Jango and his men also looked on with dumbfounded expressions as they watched said argument happen.
"This is getting nowhere…" The Pokemon Trainer groaned as he facepalmed.
"Hey, Chiaki." He turned around and saw Hoopa, who was calling out to him.
"What's up?"
"Seeing that those two are not gonna be of any help, especially if they're like this…" Hoopa began while glancing towards Nami and Usopp, who were still arguing. "I was thinking of bringing 'outside help' from my world. If you know what I mean."
"Outside help? You mean bringing a Pokémon here with your powers to help in fighting these Pirates?" Chiaki asked.
"What do you think?" The Mischief Pokémon stated. "I know you're thinking we're better off fighting with just us two and your two Pokémon, but… it'd be a lot better for our chances of winning if we had a powerful Pokemon at our side. At least until Luffy and Zoro arrive."
"Hmm…" Chiaki put his finger on his chin as he decided to think about Hoopa's suggestion.
If Luffy and Zoro were with them right now, they could have driven off the Black Cat Pirates from the island by now. But since they were not present to fight this large crew of Pirates and how the oil plan that Usopp came up with ended in failure, they had no choice but to fight with what they have right now. In addition to that, Chiaki could also tell that the Black Cat Pirates were no mere amateurs compared to the Buggy Pirates, so fighting with just him, Hoopa, his Pokémon, Nami, and Usopp might not be enough. Not to mention he could tell the Pirates may have a few tricks on their sleeves that he was not aware of, especially since this is the Pirate crew that the infamous Captain Kuro led.
"Alright, then. Let's do that!" Chiaki said, having come up with a decision. "I know this is risky, but desperate time calls for–"
"We don't have time for this nonsense…!" Jango muttered, realizing that they were already behind on schedule just by sitting and watching someone arguing. "Alright, men! Let's get to work! Crush them and move to the village!"
The Black Cat Pirates let out their battle cry before charging through the slope towards the four of them with their weapons drawn and ready to swing. Nami and Usopp stopped their argument when they heard said battle cry.
"Here they come!" Nami exclaimed with a worried look.
"Hoopa, do it now!" Chiaki told his partner.
"Your wish has been heard loud and clear." Hoopa said as he used his psychic powers to move one of his rings and placed it vertically in front of them.
"What the…?" The Pirates stopped advancing when they saw the ring floating before them.
"What now?" Jango muttered.
"Now, let me show you some real magic!" Hoopa boasted. "With this ring, I'm gonna summon a reinforcement to deal you Pirates in one fell swoop!"
"A reinforcement powerful enough to defeat us? Is this a lie too?" A Pirate asked, easily dismissing it as a bluff.
"Nope, it's as real as it gets!" Hoopa retorted as the ring expanded so much that it can an average human.
"Wait… Is that ghost thing really gonna call something powerful to defeat us all!?"
"This isn't what Captain Kuro told us!"
"This… might be bad." Jango gulped as he vaguely sensed Hoopa's power emanating from the ring/portal. 'This ghost-like creature might be the thing that Captain Kuro failed to take into account…'
"Is he gonna do what I think he's gonna do?" Usopp asked. Truth to be told, he had seen Hoopa's powers before when he sent Lapras back to where she came from. He was both scared and amazed when he saw that happen.
"Yeah, and I still can't get used to seeing this." Nami added.
"Behold! Alléhooparing!" Hoopa chanted as a scarlet red window-shaped energy appeared within the ring as it glowed, activating the ring's true mechanism.
Sure enough, something came out from the portal.
"Whoa! Something actually came out from that thing's ring!" A Pirate exclaimed.
But to everyone's surprise, that "something" actually turned out to be someone.
"Wait, what…!?" The figure said before the person slipped and fell and tumbled through the slope before eventually stopping and landing on her bottom.
Chiaki and Hoopa took a closer look at the newcomer and realized something important about the "outside help".
"Hoopa… That looked awfully like a human." Chiaki pointed it out.
"That's because it is a human." Hoopa clarified, still in disbelief with the result of his powers while recalling his ring back to his horn.
As Hoopa stated, instead of a Pokémon, coming out from the portal was a human female. A young woman who was approximately around the same age as Chiaki. She had short, maroon red hair that she tied into a left side ponytail with a black ribbon and green eyes. Her outfit looked out of place compared to everyone as it is consisted of a gray skin tight bodysuit with a black vest that had a black and white shield-shaped mark with cyan-colored "P" and a reverse "Z" on the left side of the vest, black long gloves, black beret on top of her head which had a white "X" on the center, similarly-colored belt around waist and long boots. And the lower half of her face was obscured by a black mask.
"Ow… That hurt…" The young woman stated as she stood up and rubbed the part of her butt where it hurts. It was then she noticed the unfamiliar landscape she found herself in. "Huh!? Where's this!? There isn't a place like this in Unova!" It took her a few seconds to realize what brought her here. "Wait. That weird portal!" She turned her back only to realize said portal was no longer there. "What!? It's not there!?"
The Black Cat Pirates looked at each other before they let out a fit of laughter.
"Seriously? I was expecting something like a monster or something but it's just a girl!" One of the Pirates guffawed.
"Huh…?" The young woman turned towards a couple of men who were laughing at her.
"Yeah, some reinforcements turned out to be! It's just some random chick!"
"All that buildup but only for a girl in a weird getup came out!"
Chiaki felt really embarrassed by the sight he was witnessing as he could only glare at Hoopa for the fumble.
"What? I'm just as surprised too, you know!" Hoopa defended. "I promised you I was trying to summon a really strong Pokémon! Not some random girl!"
"I was an idiot for easily believing in your suggestion…" Chiaki uttered as he facepalmed once more.
"Hey! You're to blame for this too! I was hoping you would give me the signal in the middle of the battle, NOT at the start!" Hoopa retorted, glaring back at Chiaki.
"Oh, so it's my fault, huh!? Well…"
Nami and Usopp could only sweatdrop at the sight of a guy arguing back-and-forth with a genie-like creature.
"Wow, is that how we look when we argue earlier?" Nami questioned.
"I hope not…" Usopp answered.
"Ugh! We don't have time for this!" One of the Pirates said as he charged towards the girl with his hammer ready. "Sorry, girlie! But you need to get out of our way!"
"So, that's how it is, huh? After laughing at me, you're going to attack me?" The young woman muttered as she just stood there.
"Hey, look out!" Nami tried to warn the girl.
"Oh, no! She's done for!" Usopp exclaimed.
But what happened next surprised the two as the girl went for an elbow strike on the Pirate's chin, causing him to drop his hammer.
"Hi-yah!" The young girl said as she went for a double palm strike, sending the Pirate flying through the air before falling into the ground as he was knocked out.
"She… She just knocked out one of our crew members!" A Pirate exclaimed, this caused Chiaki and Hoopa to stop arguing with another and looked at the sight.
"Wait… She did that!?" Chiaki exclaimed in disbelief.
"That's… certainly not normal." Hoopa added.
"Whoa… That girl just beat that Pirate's ass!" Usopp said, feeling just as surprised.
"Yeah. And from the looks of it…" Nami began. "She knows what she was doing too."
Jango and his men were taken aback by the sight they just witnessed.
"Captain… Did you see that?" A Pirate next to Jango asked. "That strange girl just defeated one of our guys!"
"Oh, I saw that…" Jango muttered as he gulped. 'Dammit…! Why did that ghost creature have to summon a girl who happened to know martial arts!? This is bad!'
"Come on! Let's take her out! It's just one girl!" One of the Pirates rallied his comrades.
"Yeah! We can easily beat her! She doesn't seem to have a weapon on her!"
"We're the Black Cat Pirates! We're not some run-of-the-mill thugs that can get beaten by a girl! Let's go!"
And with that, the Pirates went charging towards the young woman.
"Wait, you fools! Stop!" Jango tried to warn his men but it was too late.
"So, you guys are Pirates? Well, that makes things easier for me." The young woman said as she spun her arms around before entering a fighting stance. "Bring it!"
The young woman proceeded to dash forward right into the crowd of advancing Pirates. She dodged two swings of a sword from a pair of Pirates before she struck them down with open hand strikes on each of them. She quickly bent down with her arms raised to avoid a vertical swing before doing a sweep kick on the ax-wielding Pirate before rising up and jumped into the air slightly and did an air kick on another Pirate. She then saw five more Pirates charging at her with their weapons raised to the air. With a quick thinking she did a roundhouse kick powerful enough to knock one Pirate to another before performing a palm strike to another Pirate, which was also strong enough to send that Pirate to his two other crewmen, knocking down as well as they were lying on the ground.
"Wow… She's really strong." Usopp commented as he was impressed with the new girl's fighting prowess.
"Yeah. I had a feeling she's used to this." Nami added.
Chiaki and Hoopa were taken aback with how the girl that the latter accidentally summoned managed to handle herself against a large crew of Pirates.
"You know, Hoopa, I take back what I said." Chiaki admitted. "Maybe you were thinking something great."
"Wait, I did?" Hoopa asked in confusion before he decided to go along with it because he was not angry at him anymore "I mean, of course I did! I thought at the last minute that a human martial artist would be more than enough to fight these Pirates! I totally planned that! No doubt about it!"
"That said, I don't think she can handle those Pirates by herself." Chiaki said worriedly as he wielded a cutlass and a flintlock gun on each of his hands. "Usopp! Provide long-range support for us!"
"You got it!" Usopp nodded.
"Nami and Hoopa, you're with me! Let's help the girl!" Chiaki told them.
"Alright." Hoopa complied.
"Wait, me!?" Nami exclaimed.
"Yes, you! It's time to put that staff of yours to good use, don't you think?" Chiaki asked. "Plus, didn't you say you were gonna come down and take back your treasure? Come on, I'll help you with that."
"... Okay, fine! If I get myself hurt, I'll charge you for the medical fee!" Nami said as she reluctantly ran towards the Black Cat Pirates with Chiaki and Nami. Usopp also followed them a little before he stopped at a perfect position.
With the young woman, she managed to grab a Pirate by the right arm, pulling him forward before she smacked the Pirate in the back of the head and then slamming him to the ground, knocking him out. Another Pirate decided to be crafty to try attacking her from behind, which ended up to be his downfall when she did a back kick, causing him to be sent flying in the brief before she performed a double palm strike on the airborne Pirate, causing to be sent flying backwards and landed on the ground on his back, having been knocked out.
"Go down, girlie!" A Pirate shouted as he raised his sword up in the air to try attacking her from the side. But before she could retaliate, she heard a gunshot and said Pirate felt something painful in his hand which caused him to drop his sword. "Ow, my hand–"
He didn't get to finish as he was sliced in the chest, causing him to scream in pain before falling to the ground unconscious.
"What?" She muttered aloud as she saw the one who did it, a young man that she did not recognize.
"Hey, you okay?" Chiaki asked her, but he found himself being thrown to the ground by the young woman. "Ow!" He then saw her about to finish him off with an open hand strike. "Whoa! Easy! Easy! I'm friendly!"
Hearing the plea was just enough for the girl to stop what she was doing and realize that the guy she just flipped over was not with the Pirates that insulted her.
"Oh, sorry!" The young woman apologized as she helped the guy up. "I thought you're one of the Pirates."
"It's all good." Chiaki replied before he quickly subdued a Pirate that was charging towards him. "I guess I kinda deserve that when I pluck you from your world."
"Wait. 'My world'?" The young woman questioned.
"That's right." The Pirates that were about to attack the two were enveloped in pink outline before being thrown into the wall, knocking them down.
"Was that… Psychic?" The young woman wondered, having recognized the move.
"Oh, good. So, you know what the move is called. That makes it easier for me." And with that, Hoopa made himself known to the young woman.
"Are you a Pokémon…?" The young woman wondered as she pulled out a pink rectangular device with a glass screen on the front, and blue eyes and white grinning mouth on the back that she pointed towards Hoopa.
"What are you doing?" Chiaki asked as he subdued three more Pirates non-lethally. Little did he know, he would get his answer sooner than he expected.
"Hoopa, Confined form. The Mischief Pokémon. A Psychic and Ghost type. This troublemaker sends anything and everything to faraway places using its loop, which can warp space." The device said.
"Yeah, that definitely sounds like Hoopa…" Chiaki said, considering what was said on the unfamiliar device to be accurate.
"Oh, yeah, he's a real troublemaker alright." Nami chimed in after she whacked a Pirate with her wooden staff. Another Pirate was about to attack her from behind, but he was shot down by none other than Usopp. "Thanks for the support!"
"No problem!" Usopp grinned before he dodged a sword slice from a Pirate "Have a taste of my Lead Star!"
With his slingshot, he managed to take down a few Pirates through using silver pellets as projectiles. But then…
"Why you! Take this!" Another Pirate wielding a hammer said as he swung his hammer towards Usopp's head, causing him to be sent flying until he landed on the ground with a thud.
"Usopp!" Nami cried as she blocked a blade with her staff before she pushed through a Pirate and knock him down.
"Like we're gonna lose a guy using a slingshot–Gahh!" The Pirate boasted before he was hit by a familiar black and purple ball of energy.
"Hey, you okay?" Usopp turned around and saw Hoopa. "That last attack looks really hurtful."
"Don't worry, I'm fine…" Usopp said as he got up. "I can still fight!" He then saw two Pirates charging towards him. "I'm not letting you and your cronies set foot in this village! Special Attack: Lead Star!" He launched two silver pellets once more to knock down the pair of Pirates.
"Wow… That guy sure knows how to use a slingshot…" The young woman commented, impressed with Usopp's marksmanship.
"Anyway…" She turned back towards Chiaki, who managed to defeat three more Pirates. "I'm sure you have questions but just save it until all of these Pirates are taken care of. And we really need your help on this."
"You're right, I do have some questions about what just happened to me…" The young woman began as she, Chiaki, and Nami pressed backs against another as they were surrounded by the Pirates. "But yeah, I agree. One of you better hold your end of the deal once this battle is over."
"If you're willing to lend a hand, then I'll gladly be the one to answer your question." Chiaki stated. "Oh, yeah! I'm Chiaki. What's your name?"
"It's Edith." The young woman known as Edith introduced herself.
"Alright, Edith. Let's send these Pirates packing!" Chiaki said as the three of them managed to knock down the Pirates that were surrounding them.
While this was happening, Jango was agitated as he was forced to watch as the number of his men kept dwindling as the time went on.
'At this rate, we really are going to be defeated before we can ever set foot in the village…!' Jango thought as they really threw a monkey wrench to Kuro's supposedly perfect plan. "Men! Quit bothering them and just move on to the village! Or did you forget that this is Captain's Kuro's operation!? And he doesn't look favorably on his well-laid plans being ruined by idiots! He'll kill us all! Do you understand that, you cretins!?"
And just like that, the Pirates stopped fighting with the five "idiots" and just rushed past them and through the slope without further delay.
"Oh, shit! That's actually really bad!" Chiaki said with widened eyes as he saw the Pirates slipped past through him.
"Not on my watch!" Usopp said as he jumped towards one of the Pirates but fell right near him. Though it doesn't stop him from reaching out and grabbing the Pirate with the ankle. "I won't let you!"
"Get off of me!" The Pirate stated before he kicked the liar pretty hard, causing the guy to land on his back.
'Please, don't kill them!' Usopp thought his mind flashed to the image of Piiman, Ninjin, Tamanegi, and finally Kaya. 'Just leave this village alone! They're good people! They don't deserve this! I love this place!'
But before they could go any further, the Pirates were then sent flying with a sudden flash of light. They screamed in pain as they landed on the ground with a thud.
"What just happened?" Edith wondered as she, as well as Nami, Usopp, and even Jango were confused by the sudden turn of events.
But only Chiaki and Hoopa could only smile, knowing full well who were the ones responsible for the action.
"What is this, Captain Jango!?"
"And we thought the guy with sword and gun, that weird ghost-thing, and that martial artist girl were tough! No one told us that killers like those were gonna be here!"
"About time you two show up." Chiaki stated as he talked to the two newcomers, who were none other than Luffy and Zoro.
"Yeah." Nami said with a smile.
"Is that the best those Pirates can dish out?" Zoro wondered, having wore the bandana around his head.
"Yeah, I was hoping for a challenge." Luffy added.
"Are these guys your friends?" Edith remarked, having got a closer look at the two newcomers.
"Yep." Hoopa replied.
"Took you long, Zoro." Chiaki said.
"Shut up! It's your fault that guys got lost and I ended up wandering somewhere." Zoro retorted.
"It's the other way around, actually…"
"Usopp, you big bonehead! You never told me which way is north!" Luffy shouted angrily.
Jango could only stare at his adversaries as he was standing in the middle of his men, who were down on the ground groaning in pain.
"Who are these guys?" He wondered aloud.
(At Kaya's mansion)
Kuro was sitting outside of the mansion, waiting for Jango and the rest of his crew to reach the mansion. However, he had not seen any signs of him, the Black Cat Pirates, or even the screams of villagers for a while. Suffice to say, he was frustrated by the delay of his three years-long plan. The sun was already up a long time ago and there were still no signs of them.
"They're late…!" Kuro muttered impatiently. "They don't appreciate tardiness. Not one bit! They know full well what happens to those who are foolish enough to upset my plans!"
Seeing that he had waited long enough, he decided to get up and confront his crew.
"Do they think they can take their sweet time?" The bespectacled man stated. "Well, if they had forgotten the consequences of disappointing me… I'll kill them all!"
Kuro proceeded to reach out and hold on to a bag before he left the mansion to confront Jango and his men for the lateness of his plan's execution. As he walked through the path that leads to the north shore, a certain little boy with glasses ended up spotting as he hid behind a tree while still watching the man.
"It looks like the butler from Kaya's mansion!" Tamanegi remarked. "But it's so early in the morning! Why is he walking to the shore?" Curious with Kuro's situation, the boy proceeded to head back to his friends to report what he had just discovered.
Next...
E: I'm Edith. Edith Wilson.
J: The sun rises high in the sky now…
Z: Now, that's what I call power!
C: Are you kidding me!?
M: He's a... He's a Pirate!
J: Now, our whole plan's shot to hell!
C: Is that a Pokémon!?
C/H/L: Next time on The Straw Hat's Monster Tamer, Chapter 7: The Second Pokémon Trainer
L: I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!
And that wraps for the double update.
As you would have guessed, Edith is a Team Plasma Grunt in the that other faction. Now, the reason was that newer Team Plasma are essentially modern Pirates aside from one of my favorite villainous teams by the outfits.
And her fighting style is, in fact, Kung Fu. Which is a little reference to Unova's Battle Girl as well Karen Orion, an OC from my original One Piece crossover story who happened to learn that style during her time in Unova.
Lastly, be sure to leave a review as always and I'll see you around in the next chapter!