❛ USOPP THE BRAVE WARRIOR. ❜
⋆ ˚｡⋆ ( Chapter: 03. ) ⋆ ˚｡⋆
The Long Nose Liar.
"Become a brave warrior, isn't that
what you want?"
▃▃ ▃▃ ▃▃
THE SEA GLITTERED like shattered glass beneath the warm midday sun. A pair of seagulls wheeled overhead, squawking as the Thousand Sunny's tiny makeshift rowing boat cut through the calm tide, now carrying four pirates: Luffy, Zoro, Nami—and seated between them, legs dipped lazily into the sea, was Matsu.
Her silver hair shimmered like ocean silk in the light, loosely braided to keep it from the breeze. She hummed softly, eyes closed, the ocean's rhythm pulsing like a second heartbeat beneath her. Even out of the water, Matsu held the scent of salt and starlight—something wild and ancient.
"Land ho!" Luffy called suddenly, nearly tipping the boat as he stood up and pointed forward with excitement.
Matsu opened one eye and followed his finger. A small island rose in the distance, verdant and untouched, with tall trees rising high above like watchful sentinels.
"Should we check it out?" Nami asked, cautiously eyeing the thick canopy.
"Looks uninhabited," Zoro muttered. "Which means no food, no people, and probably some giant monster that wants to eat us."
"That's every island we've landed on so far," Matsu said with a sly grin, stretching her arms. "Let's see what flavor of disaster we find this time."
Luffy's laugh rang out like cannon fire. "Adventure time!"
The boat scraped against sand as they made landfall. They disembarked one by one, the soft crunch of the shore giving way to the dense hum of an eerie forest. The trees were massive, roots gnarled and twisted like fingers, leaves dense enough to block out the sun.
"This place is weird," Nami muttered, drawing her staff.
Zoro drew one of his swords just in case. "Weird usually means dangerous."
Suddenly, something darted past them—a blur of fur and feathers.
"What the hell was that?" Nami hissed, backing closer to Matsu.
Matsu crouched slightly, placing a hand to the ground. She could feel the heartbeat of the island, thudding deep like a drum. The trees whispered stories not meant for mortals. "It's not just animals. This whole island is... alive."
As if on cue, a massive lizard with rabbit ears scurried across a fallen log, chased by what looked like a raccoon with wings.
"Those things aren't natural," Zoro muttered.
"They're cute," Luffy said brightly.
"No, they're cursed," Nami said.
"I wanna keep one," Luffy grinned.
"You say that about everything," Matsu sighed.
Suddenly, a net trap sprung from the ground. Luffy and Matsu narrowly ducked, while Nami and Zoro sidestepped. A voice echoed from the trees.
"You failed the test of the forest!"
From a rocky ledge above them stood the oddest man they had ever seen. His upper body emerged from the hollow of a dusty treasure chest, arms flailing as he glared down at them with exaggerated drama.
"Identify yourselves!" he bellowed.
Matsu stepped forward, voice calm. "We're travelers. We didn't mean to intrude."
"I am Gaimon, the guardian of this island! And those who trespass must be judged!"
Luffy blinked. "Whoa! You live in a box?!"
"It's a treasure chest," Gaimon snapped. Zoro squinted. "Are you stuck?"
"No!" Gaimon said too quickly, before sighing. "...Yes."
"Can we help you out?" Luffy asked, already bouncing over the underbrush toward the chest-bound man.
"No point," Gaimon muttered bitterly. "I've been stuck here for twenty years. I once climbed that cliff there—" he pointed toward a steep rock formation "—to reach treasure chests I thought were filled with gold. But I fell and landed in this cursed box."
"That's awful," Matsu said softly.
"Worse still," Gaimon continued. "When I finally got help climbing up again... the chests were empty. But I stayed. Because this island's creatures became my friends. And someone has to protect them from greedy hands."
Luffy tilted his head. "That's really cool, old man."
Gaimon blinked. "...What?"
"I like you. You're strong—even if you're stuck."
"I—I'm not crying," Gaimon sniffled, wiping his nose on a vine leaf.
Zoro crossed his arms. "You said the treasure chests were empty?"
"Yes. Completely. Nothing but dust and disappointment."
Luffy turned toward the others. "Let's climb up and check them again."
"Luffy, no!" Nami said. "We should let it go—"
But Luffy was already bounding up the rocks with Matsu floating beside him, her feet barely touching stone as she glided up like a breeze.
At the top, they found the treasure chests, exactly as Gaimon had described. Empty. Forgotten. Matsu reached inside one and let the dust pour through her fingers like time.
Luffy stood there silently, frowning. Then he turned and shouted, "Hey, Gaimon! We checked 'em. Still empty!"
Gaimon's head drooped slightly.
But then Luffy said, "You should come with us. Be part of our crew!"
Zoro flinched. "Do we need a chest-man on board?"
Matsu smiled softly. "He'd make a good guardian."
Gaimon laughed sadly. "I appreciate it. But my place is here—with the creatures. They need me. And... I think I need them."
The four pirates stood at the shore again by evening, the golden sun dipping low.
Gaimon waved from the cliff, the animals gathered around him like a crown.
"Thank you for listening," he called. "And for not stealing what wasn't yours."
Luffy grinned wide. "See ya, Gaimon!"
Matsu raised her hand gently. "Guard the wild things."
With that, the boat pushed off once more, the sails catching the wind, carrying them forward to a new horizon.
A new island lay ahead.
▃▃ ▃▃ ▃▃
The sun had begun its slow descent over Syrup Village, casting long shadows across the cobbled paths. Birds soared in lazy arcs overhead, the world hushed in a golden hush that often precedes secrets stirring beneath the surface.
The Straw Hat Pirates walked side-by-side through the sleepy town, the wind warm and carrying the faint perfume of wildflowers and salt.
"Feels too quiet," Zoro muttered, hand on the hilt of his sword.
"I like it," Matsu said, twirling a strand of silver hair around her finger. "It's the kind of quiet where you can hear people's dreams whispering."
"That's weird," Luffy grinned.
"I meant it as a compliment."
Usopp led the way down the narrow main road, chest puffed out proudly. Behind him, his three young crewmates trailed in formation—Tamanegi, Ninjin, and Piiman—marching like a tiny battalion.
"Behold! The Usopp Pirates, guardians of Syrup Village!" Usopp declared, raising a wooden sword. "We've fought giants, outwitted sea kings, and buried cursed treasure beneath the blood moon!"
Zoro arched an eyebrow. "And you survived all that?"
"With honor and cunning!" Usopp beamed, but when Nami gave him a flat stare, he scratched the back of his head. "Well... maybe not exactly like that, but it sounded good, didn't it?"
Matsu knelt down beside the three kids, who immediately stopped their march to gawk at her. Her eyes shimmered like twin tidal pools as she smiled.
"Do you like being pirates?"
Tamanegi nodded vigorously. "Captain Usopp says pirates protect their friends!"
"And find treasure!" added Ninjin.
"Sometimes punch bad guys!" Piiman finished.
She laughed softly. "Then you're already more noble than many real pirates."
Usopp looked smug until Luffy suddenly stepped in front of him, arms folded and eyes narrowed with childish seriousness.
"Hey, what's your last name?"
"Eh?" Usopp blinked. "It's just Usopp."
Luffy tilted his head. "Do you know Yasopp?"
The world seemed to pause.
Usopp's shoulders lowered, the bravado melting away like fog touched by sunlight. He stared at the dirt under his feet for a moment, then gave a small nod.
"He's my father."
Matsu's gaze softened. Nami blinked, surprised, and even Zoro looked up with mild interest.
Luffy grinned like the sunrise. "Yasopp's on my crew."
Usopp's head shot up, eyes wide. "What?!"
"He's with Shanks. That means we're kinda like family."
The quiet wonder in Usopp's face was hard to hide. "So he really did become a great pirate..."
"He never shut up about his kid," Luffy laughed. "Always said you had perfect aim, just like him."
For a moment, the liar was quiet. No stories, no flair. Just a boy hearing about the man who sailed away long ago.
"...I didn't think he remembered me," Usopp said, voice barely above a whisper.
"He did," Luffy said, gently. "He still does."
Matsu felt something stir in the air around them. Like the sea had stopped moving just to listen.
But peace, as always, came with shadows.
As they approached Kaya's mansion once more, they found the heavy wrought iron gate closed, and a man waiting near the entrance. He was dressed in dark blue, spectacles gleaming in the light, hands folded behind his back like a vulture pretending to be a gentleman.
"Klahadore," Usopp muttered, his tone losing its usual cheer.
"Back again, I see," Klahadore said smoothly. "Bringing strangers to Miss Kaya's home. Pirates, no less. Bold of you."
"They're not dangerous," Usopp said firmly. "They're my friends."
Klahadore's lips twitched in mock amusement. "Friends like you are why she needs to rest."
Luffy frowned, stepping forward. "You always talk to him like that?"
"I speak the truth. He's a nuisance. And pirates," he glanced coolly at the group, "tend to leave destruction in their wake."
Matsu tilted her head. "And what do you leave in yours?"
Klahadore didn't respond. He turned and walked back up the hill, vanishing like a shadow in sunlight.
"Something's wrong with that guy," Nami muttered.
Usopp nodded. "He wasn't always like that... but lately, he's been acting like he owns Kaya. I don't trust him."
The children stayed quiet, unusually solemn.
"I've tried warning people before," Usopp added. "Told them he might be up to something. But... I lie too much. No one believes me."
"Maybe it's time you told a truth," Matsu said gently.
He looked at her, a thousand lies trembling behind his eyes.
▃▃ ▃▃ ▃▃
Night draped Syrup Village in a cloak of indigo velvet, the moon a pale sentinel rising above twisted trees and trembling wind. The stars blinked overhead, like old gods watching as secrets finally stirred from their graves.
A thin fog rolled down the slope beyond Kaya's estate, soft as silk and just as deceptive. In its depths, two figures moved like whispers—one tall and cold, the other swaying in hypnotic rhythm.
Captain Kuro—no longer Klahadore—stood beneath the twisted branches of the forest path, the spectacles he always wore gone, his once-starched posture loosened into a predator's stance. His eyes glinted in the dark like a wolf's returned to its den after too long playing the role of sheepdog.
Beside him, Jango twirled a strange ringed pendulum, the moonlight flashing on its surface with each circle.
"It's time," Kuro said softly, his voice cold enough to make the trees still.
Jango tilted his hat back. "So, we go through with it? Kill the girl and take the fortune?"
"She's served her purpose," Kuro replied, fingers flexing as if already around Kaya's fragile throat. "The villagers will be none the wiser. A quiet retirement, with a captain's cut of luxury."
But what they didn't know was that two pairs of eyes hid behind the brush, breath caught in their throats.
Luffy crouched beside Usopp, the latter trembling slightly, not with fear—but fury.
"I knew it," Usopp whispered. "I knew Klahadore was wrong."
Luffy's jaw tightened. "Kuro... that's his real name. He used to be a pirate."
Usopp reached for the slingshot at his hip. "We have to stop him."
Before they could move, Jango spun his pendulum.
"One... two... Jango!"
A wave of dizziness swept over them. Luffy's limbs sagged, his body folding as if his bones had turned to water. The boy who dreamed of kings and meat toppled like a fallen star—right off the edge of the cliff.
"LUFFY!" Usopp screamed—but it was too late. His voice echoed into the fog as the sound of crashing branches faded into silence.
Jango chuckled. "Well... guess we got one of 'em."
"Leave the other," Kuro said coldly. "No one will believe a liar."
And with that, they melted back into the trees.
Usopp ran. Through the underbrush, across the hills. His breath came in shuddering gasps, half from terror, half from despair. The branches scratched his arms, but he didn't stop—not until he reached the gates of the village and banged on doors with bloodied fists.
"Pirates are coming!" he cried. "Klahadore is Kuro! He's going to kill Kaya!"
But doors remained closed. Eyes peered through shutters, only to retreat. He was the boy who cried wolf. He had told too many tales, danced too many games.
"No one's coming to save her," he murmured to himself, alone in the square.
By morning, Kaya's estate was a painting of quiet grief. Inside her pale, sun-washed room, Kaya sat on her bed with a book on her lap. Her golden hair was brushed back neatly, though her eyes were rimmed with exhaustion.
Usopp stood in her doorway, chest heaving. "You have to listen to me."
"You're scaring me, Usopp," Kaya said softly. "This isn't like you."
"It is! I mean—it isn't! But this time I'm telling the truth!"
From behind her, Merry stepped forward, gripping a pistol with trembling hands.
"Leave, Usopp."
"But Kaya—" Usopp tried to reason with her, his truth being seen as a lie.
"Go!" She demanded.
Usopp swallowed the lump in his throat and turned away, heart breaking not just for the truth that went unheard—but for the girl who would soon lose everything.
Outside, the Usopp Pirates waited.
"Captain?" Tamanegi asked, eyes wide.
"Go home," Usopp said, smiling gently. "There's no fight coming. I made it up. Like always."
He turned his back to them before they could see the tears.
But from the nearby grove, three figures stepped out—Zoro, Nami, and Matsu.
"You're a terrible liar," Matsu said, gently. Usopp's eyes widened. "You knew?"
"We followed you last night," Nami said. "Saw Luffy fall."
Zoro nodded. "If he's dead, he wouldn't die from that."
Usopp grinned despite himself. "Guess I'm not the only one who eavesdrops."
Matsu knelt in front of him. Her voice was soft, but there was a storm behind it. "Kaya believed your lies when they made her laugh. Don't let the truth go unheard now that it matters."
A pause. Then he nodded. "Then we fight."
That night, the moon was a silver scythe in the sky, and Syrup Village was no longer still.
Tripwires were strung through the coastline like invisible songlines. Nets hidden beneath leaves, trenches disguised by reeds, and sharpened poles disguised as harmless trees. The Straw Hats—though few in number—moved like specters in the fog.
In Kaya's home, Merry stood in the hallway, clutching a small wrapped box. "Klahadore," he called, smiling. "She wanted you to have this."
Kuro, still wearing the mask of the butler, took the box. Inside were new spectacles—rounder than his usual style, with golden rims.
"For your service these past three years," Merry added. The silence stretched.
Then Kuro crushed the glasses in his palm. Merry's face went pale.
"Did you think I wanted thanks?" Kuro murmured, stepping forward. "Three years of pretending. Of groveling. Of serving tea and bowing to worms."
"K-Klahadore—?"
"I am Kuro of the Thousand Plans. I do not serve. I command."
And with a smooth, practiced motion, he struck Merry across the room.
The man collapsed, blood running from his temple, the crushed glasses falling beside him like broken trust.
Kuro adjusted his collar, his hands now gloved in red.
"Tomorrow," he whispered, "this village will wake to silence. And I will finally sleep in peace."
▃▃ ▃▃ ▃▃
The clouds rolled in like bruises on the skin of the sky.
Somewhere deep in the forest, the air shifted—heavy and wild. The scent of salt, blood, and ambition mingled as twilight began to bleed across the horizon. The calm had shattered.
They had chosen the wrong beach.
A mistake born from a rushed plan, a faulty map drawn in the mind of a desperate liar who wanted to be believed just once.
"Over there," Usopp had insisted, pointing to the cliffside clearing where he once saw Klahadore—no, Kuro—speaking in secret with the strange man with the ringed eyes and swinging steps: Jango.
They had split—Luffy off on his own path, Zoro taking point, Nami and Usopp guarding the route to their treasure, and Matsu following the wind's whisper, always a few steps behind fate, as if listening for its next cruel move.
But fate had already played its hand.
The true landing beach, hidden behind a curtain of jagged rocks and twisted mangrove roots, yawned like the open jaw of a beast. There, the Black Cat Pirates began to emerge from the sea—sleek, agile, eyes glittering like obsidian daggers in the dying light.
Usopp's heart dropped when he spotted them.
"They're here—on the other side!" he gasped. "I got it wrong!"
Nami's eyes widened. "My treasure—! We have to stop them!"
They ran.
Breathless and stumbling through sand and tangled weeds, Nami and Usopp reached the true beach just in time to see the first of the Black Cat Pirates scrambling onto shore.
Weapons gleamed. Orders barked. And they were alone.
Matsu, following behind Luffy, had sensed something wrong in the wind and turned back—but too late.
"We have to hold them off!" Usopp shouted, trembling but raising his slingshot anyway. "Even if it's just us!"
Nami clenched her fists. "No one touches my treasure!"
She shoved Zoro, who had just arrived, onto the oil-slick trap—an old defense she'd rigged on instinct—and used his confusion to leap over him and scramble up the slope toward the stash.
"Wha—?!" Zoro growled, slipping with a crash and landing flat on his back. "Nami!"
"I'm sorry!" she yelled without looking back. "Just stall them!"
Zoro cursed and struggled, the black oil sticky and clinging like vines around his limbs.
Steel Against the Shore, Usopp fired a shot—one, two, three. Rubber bullets pinged against armor and helmets, barely enough to slow the approaching pirates. Nami kicked one square in the face, only to be shoved backward by another.
They were surrounded. Swords raised. Eyes gleamed with hunger.
Nami reached into her pouch—empty.
Usopp's arm trembled as he loaded another shot, knowing it wouldn't matter. And then—
"Gomu Gomu no..."
A gust of wind tore the silence apart.
"PISTOL!"
Luffy's fist flew in like a divine hammer, striking one pirate so hard he somersaulted backwards into three others, crashing like bowling pins into the sand.
Zoro roared, finally free, and with three flashes of steel, cut through the pirates nearest Nami, planting himself between her and the chaos.
"You owe me," he growled, eyes sharp.
Nami exhaled shakily. "I know."
"Luffy!" Usopp cried.
"Sorry I got lost," Luffy grinned. "But now I'm here—and I'm not leaving till we win."
Behind them, the pirates regrouped. Their numbers were strong, but they hesitated now. This wasn't the resistance they expected.
Then Jango stepped forward, his rings glinting like moonlight on bone.
He snapped his fingers. "Hypnosis time."
The Black Cat Pirates stared, entranced as Jango's eyes swirled and his voice danced in circles.
"You are strong. You are invincible. You will destroy them all!"
The pirates' spines straightened. Eyes gleamed. Muscles bulged unnaturally as the hypnosis took hold. A monstrous army had been born from thin air. But then—
Jango turned slightly, his gaze catching Luffy mid-motion.
"Oh no—!" Too late.
Luffy's pupils shrank. His whole body stiffened.
"I'M SUPER STRONG!" he bellowed, a wild grin stretching across his face as energy surged through his limbs.
"Oh no," Nami groaned.
Luffy charged forward like a cannonball, arms whipping like storms, legs pounding trenches into the sand. Pirates flew like ragdolls, the air ringing with impact after impact.
Zoro stared. "He's even more terrifying like this."
Usopp's jaw dropped. "He's not even human—!"
Matsu arrived just in time to see the carnage. Her blue eyes flickered in awe and alarm. "That's not strength. That's chaos in a straw hat."
Luffy grabbed the stempost of the pirate ship like it weighed nothing and swung it as a weapon—just as Jango, panicking, snapped again.
"Sleep! Fall asleep, now!"
Luffy froze mid-swing. His eyes rolled back. And with a soft snore, he collapsed, still gripping the stempost.
The ship's prow tilted with him—then crashed down onto the hypnotized pirates with a resounding CRACK, flattening the very army Jango had created.
Silence.
Then a seagull cried out in the sky above, as if laughing.
"...Well, that solved itself," Zoro muttered.
Nami wiped sweat from her brow. "That idiot... actually saved us."
Usopp stared at the collapsed pile of bodies, awe and disbelief on his face. "I don't know whether to thank him or run away."
Matsu walked over to Luffy, who was now snoring peacefully in the sand. She knelt beside him, brushing seaweed from his hat.
"Sleep well, captain," she whispered. "Even storms need rest.
▃▃ ▃▃ ▃▃
Lies Unraveled, Blades Drawn The forest stood still, but not silent.
In the veil between day and dusk, where shadow began to consume color, Kaya ran—her pale dress fluttering like a dying petal in the wind.
She had found Merry—bloodied, breath ragged, leaning against a tree as if the earth itself held him upright. His glasses were cracked. A smear of red soaked through his shirt where a wound pulsed faintly with every heartbeat.
"Klahadore... isn't who you think," he gasped.
"What?"
"He's... Kuro. The pirate—Captain Kuro."
Kaya's throat went dry. Her vision blurred. Her feet moved before her mind could catch up.
The Village Awakens. The golden fields of Syrup Village whispered with unease. From the bushes nearby, Ninjin, Tamanegi, and Piiman watched Kaya dart past them like a phantom.
"What's she doing?" Piiman asked, standing on tiptoe.
"Is she... going after Usopp?" Tamanegi murmured.
"No," Ninjin whispered, his voice unusually grave. "She knows the truth now."
Their eyes met—quiet, stunned—and a single unspoken thought passed between them.
He was telling the truth. All this time.
The boy who cried wolf was finally crying war, and no one had listened.
"We have to follow her," Ninjin said. "We can't let her go alone."
They ran—tiny feet over dirt and roots, toward a storm that didn't care for heroes or children.
Steel and Teeth on the blood-kissed beach, silence hadn't lasted long.
The sound of groaning pirates echoed like waves lapping the shore. Luffy still snored in the sand, mouth half open, fist curled around a broken plank.
Matsu stood near him, sea-silver hair shimmering like a siren's echo in the light. She watched the horizon with narrowed eyes.
Something darker was coming.
The wind shifted. A tremble in the trees. A rhythm—click, click—like claws on stone.
Then, through the brush, came Jango, his grin a knife with no handle.
And behind him—"RAAAAAH!"
A roar cracked the sky.
Two figures bounded onto the battlefield like unleashed beasts. Their movements were fast, erratic—more animal than man.
The Nyaban Brothers.
Sham, sleek and smiling like a dagger in a sheath, moved with predatory grace. Buchi, hulking and wild-eyed, growled with anticipation, his claws like butcher's blades.
"Zoro," Nami hissed, backing away.
The swordsman cracked his neck. "So these are the 'guards'?"
He turned to retrieve his swords—only to find the sheathes empty.
One was with Matsu. Another had been lost in the scramble. Only Wado Ichimonji, his most precious blade, remained in his hand.
Zoro's eyes narrowed. "Tch. One'll have to do."
Because right now, it was claws vs. Blade. The fight began like lightning.
Sham darted in from the left, Buchi from the right—a perfect pincer. Zoro deflected Sham's strike but took Buchi's claws across the ribs. Blood sprayed, dark and warm.
"You fight like a drunk cat," Sham mocked, twirling.
"Try fighting without your toys," Buchi sneered.
Zoro gritted his teeth. "You want a challenge? Fine."
He leapt forward, slashing low, and caught Sham's jacket—too shallow. Sham twisted, his nails grazing Zoro's cheek.
Nami tried to toss him a sword.
Too far.
Usopp, trembling, loaded a Lead Star and aimed. "Zoro, duck!"
Zoro saw it—too late to dodge. And instead of calling out—
He stepped into the shot.
The bullet struck his shoulder. He staggered.
"Why did you—?!" Usopp cried out, stunned.
"Stay out of it," Zoro grunted, blood leaking down his arm. "You'll only get yourself killed."
It wasn't said cruelly. It was said like a wall being raised between them. Zoro's fights were never shared. Not unless he was broken.
Matsu's Flame had flared. Watching him bleed, Matsu's heart stirred like the sea under moonlight.
She clutched the hilt of his lost sword—Sandai Kitetsu—but her fingers trembled. This wasn't her battle. Not yet.
But the wind whispered to her, tugged at her.
"Soon," she murmured.
And then the wind changed again. He appeared as if carved from smoke.
Captain Kuro.
Dressed in midnight black, glasses gleaming, hands folded behind his back like a man surveying a garden.
The battlefield went silent. Even the Nyaban brothers straightened.
He looked around at the carnage. The broken pirates. The still-sleeping Luffy. The girl with silver hair. The wounded swordsman.
"Pathetic," he said softly.
His voice was like silk stretched over thorns.
"You're pirates," he said, turning to his crew. "And yet you're losing to... children."
No one answered.
Jango gulped. "Captain, I—"
"Five minutes," Kuro interrupted, not looking at him. "You have five minutes to kill them all."
He stepped forward, slow and precise, his long coat trailing behind him like a shadow too large for this world.
"After that..." He adjusted his glasses with a soft click. "I'll do it myself."
The clouds thickened. The sea grew restless. And in the stillness of the storm's eye, everything was about to break.
▃▃ ▃▃ ▃▃
The air still trembled with the aftermath of chaos. Bodies lay scattered like broken chess pieces on a battlefield of sand and shadow.
And yet—It wasn't over.
From the edges of the jungle brush came the skittering, slithering, and snarling of two figures dressed in fur and fang—the Nyaban Brothers.
Fangs and Fury, Zoro rolled his shoulders, blades bare in his hands, eyes narrowed like a storm waiting to be unleashed. He had recovered his footing, but not his swords—still flung far away during the last skirmish.
The Nyaban Brothers grinned wickedly.
Sham, lithe and smug, adjusted his glasses with a claw. "Without your swords, you're just a man."
Buchi, the hulking one, pounded his fists together. "We'll make this quick."
Zoro spat blood and smirked. "Come on, then. Let's see if claws beat fists."
As the brothers pounced, Matsu stepped between them like a shadow cut from moonlight.
Her silver hair flowed like a banner in the sea breeze, and her ocean-blue eyes narrowed. She raised a hand, fingers shimmering faintly with a translucent force—a ripple in the air, barely seen, but utterly felt.
"Back," she said, calm but commanding. "He's not alone."
With a surge of pressure, she sent a wave of condensed air into the brothers' path—just enough to stall, enough to scatter their rhythm. Not enough to win. That wasn't her fight.
"Zoro—now," she called, voice sharp as steel.
From above, Nami perched precariously on a boulder near the slope. "Heads up, marimo!"
She kicked downward with all the force she had, boots thudding against leather sheaths as Zoro's three swords flew through the air in an arc of gleaming promise.
Zoro caught them with a spin, one in his mouth, two in his fists.
The air changed. And then, the dance began.
Steel whispered as it sliced the wind. Zoro's feet moved with the grace of a tiger and the intent of a hurricane.
"Santoryu... Oni Giri!"
With one clean stroke, Sham crumpled—knocked unconscious, rolling into the sand like a puppet with its strings cut.
Buchi's eyes widened, fury overtaking thought. "You'll pay for that!"
He lunged, but—
Jango, ever theatrical, clapped his hands and twirled. "Now, Buchi—sleep deeper, and wake stronger."
He snapped. Buchi froze. Then his body began to swell—muscles ballooning, veins rising. His mouth widened in a howl that echoed across the cliffs.
Zoro's eyes flickered. "Not good."
Rubber and Resolve, Nami, panting and bruised, turned toward the still-snoring Luffy.
"Oh, for heaven's sake—wake up already!"
She reached to shake him, but from the corner of her eye—glinting silver—
Jango's chakram flew through the air, spinning with deadly grace.
"NAMI—!" Usopp shouted.
Time slowed. But Nami didn't hesitate. She stepped—right on Luffy's face.
With a muffled grunt and wide eyes, Luffy shot upright, just as the spinning blade crashed into his rubber cheek and bounced off harmlessly.
"Eh?!" Luffy blinked, eyes wide. "What'd I miss?"
"Everything," Nami huffed. "Now get up and help before someone dies!"
From the rise above, a new voice cracked through the wind. "Kuro—don't!"
Kaya, pale as moonlight and trembling with both fear and fury, stood with shaking hands at the top of the hill. In her grip, a pistol wobbled like a leaf caught in a breeze. Behind her, the butler's mansion stood like a forgotten dream.
"Klahadore—no, Captain Kuro," she corrected herself, tears already brimming. "Stop this. You don't have to do this. We had so many good memories together. You taught me how to read books about faraway places... you stayed by my side when I was sick... didn't any of that mean something?"
Kuro stood at the heart of the battlefield, coat billowing in the salted wind, glasses glinting coldly.
He turned his head. Slowly.
"Memories?" he said, voice silken and sharp. "What a waste of sentiment."
He took a step forward, claws glinting.
"I never cared about you, Kaya. Your weakness disgusts me. The only thing you've ever had that I want... is your wealth. And now that this day has come—there's no reason to pretend."
Her breath hitched. Her arms dropped. The gun slipped from her fingers.
Thud.
The Boy Who Lied for Her.
"Kaya!" Usopp's voice cracked like glass as he saw her freeze. He staggered forward, wounded but driven by something purer than pride.
"She believed in you!" he shouted at Kuro. "She believed in your lies and smiled anyway! She loved you like family—and you...!"
He raised his slingshot with unsteady hands and fired a shot that went wide. It didn't matter.
Kuro was faster. With a flicker of his claw, he struck Usopp across the shoulder, sending the boy tumbling into the sand, groaning in pain.
Matsu's eyes burned with anger.
She moved—so fast she barely touched the ground—appearing between Kaya and Kuro with her arm raised.
"I've had enough of your cruelty," she said, her voice echoing with something deeper—something ancient, like the song of the ocean before a storm.
Kuro halted, briefly. "You're no ordinary person," he muttered.
Matsu's lips curled. "No. I'm the sea that drowns monsters like you."
But before she could strike, another voice broke through—it was the Brave Little Trio
"Get away from Kaya!" came the chorus.
Usopp's crew—the three brave boys with sticks and slingshots—rushed the hill.
Ninjin, Tamanegi, and Piiman, faces red with fury and fear, launched themselves at Kuro with all the reckless abandon of those who knew what it meant to protect someone you loved.
Their attack was brave. But futile.
Kuro didn't flinch. He swatted them aside with the casual cruelty of a man brushing away flies.
Matsu caught one boy as he fell, shielding him with her cloak, eyes never leaving the villain's face.
Luffy cracked his knuckles.
"Oi, Kuro..." he said, voice low and sharp like thunder at sea.
"You made Kaya cry."
Kuro turned slowly, just as Zoro stepped to Luffy's side, swords gleaming. Nami stood ready with her staff, and Usopp, bloodied but not beaten, pulled himself to his feet.
Matsu stood last, her eyes burning like whirlpools, sea breeze curling around her like a spell.
And the Straw Hats stood as one.
▃▃ ▃▃ ▃▃
The forest shimmered with the light of noon, the leaves above trembling gently in the wind—quiet witnesses to the storm of chaos below. Blood and sweat lingered on the battlefield like smoke after a fire, thick with the scent of iron, of fury, of choice.
Buchi fell to the ground with a guttural growl, defeated beneath the weight of Zoro's wrath. The green-haired swordsman straightened, breath heaving, his swords dripping with the last remnants of the clash. His shirt was torn, and blood painted streaks across his side, but his gaze remained sharp—ice and steel.
Matsu approached silently, her silver hair gleaming under the broken shafts of light, like moonlight caught in a snare of branches. She stepped over the scattered bodies with grace, her expression unreadable, though her eyes flickered toward Zoro with a mix of concern and respect.
"You okay?" she asked quietly, voice soft as wind on water.
Zoro grunted. "Tch. Been through worse."
Their gazes lingered a moment longer than necessary. Not quite a conversation, but something passed between them—an understanding, unspoken, strong.
Usopp, sprawled nearby and groaning, tried to push himself up. His limbs trembled, bruised and battered from the earlier skirmish, but his spirit still clung to defiance. He coughed and grimaced. "Kaya... the kids... they ran. But Jango's after them..."
"We'll go after them," Zoro said, kneeling. He turned his back to Usopp. "You can't walk. I'll carry you. Just point the way."
Usopp blinked, surprised. "You'd... carry me?"
"You talk too much," Zoro muttered. "Just hold on."
Matsu fell into step beside them, her ocean-blue eyes watching the shadows ahead with quiet vigilance. As Zoro lifted Usopp onto his back and the three moved into the dense underbrush, the wind rustled the trees like murmured warnings.
Far ahead, beneath the looming boughs of the forest, Kaya stumbled through the roots and brambles, her pale hands trembling, the boys flanking her—Tamanegi, Ninjin, and Piiman, all breathing hard, all trying to be brave.
Jango moved like a serpent through the underbrush, eyes half-lidded, smile sharp. His hypnotic chakram gleamed in the light as he raised it.
"No!" Kaya shouted, grabbing it from his hand with trembling fingers and pressing the edge to her own throat. "Hurt them, and I swear I'll kill myself. You won't get anything. Not my fortune. Not my life."
Even Jango hesitated.
But the cruelty in his eyes flickered. "Then sign the will. Do that, and maybe I won't have to stain my hands."
Tears welled in her eyes as she nodded. Her fingers reached for the pen.
But the leaves exploded with movement.
Zoro emerged from the trees like a storm breaking through clouds. Matsu came with him, aura rippling with quiet fury. And on his back, Usopp lifted his slingshot with bloodied fingers and a trembling wrist.
"You want a signature?" Usopp called, voice cracking. "How about a shot to the head instead?!"
He fired.
The steel pellet flew, singing through the air with the vengeance of a thousand unspoken apologies. It struck Jango square between the eyes, snapping his glasses in half.
The hypnotist reeled backward, dazed and collapsing with a startled cry.
The children cheered. Kaya collapsed into tears. And Matsu, breath catching in her throat, looked to Usopp—not the liar, not the fool—but the protector.
"You did it," she whispered. Usopp blinked at her. "I did?"
Zoro smirked faintly. "Don't faint."
"I won't," Usopp mumbled—and fainted.
Meanwhile, on the cliffside above, the sun cast long shadows as Luffy stood before Captain Kuro.
The wind lifted the hem of his red vest, and Matsu's sweater—torn from battle—flapped loosely as she knelt beside Kaya, casting worried glances to the duel far ahead.
Kuro's eyes were narrowed slits of disdain. "You're a fool, Straw Hat. A child pretending to be a pirate."
Luffy tilted his head, one hand in his pocket, the other clenched into a fist.
"You're not a pirate," he said, voice low. "You're a coward."
And then it began.
Kuro moved like a ghost—vanishing, then reappearing, claws flashing. But Luffy stood firm, his rubber body bending, dodging, retaliating.
From the distance, Matsu watched the air ripple from the shock of their blows. She could feel it in her bones—the echo of something deeper. There was something radiant about Luffy in battle—untamed, defiant, wild as the sea she once ruled.
Zoro watched her watch him. He said nothing, but his gaze lingered.
Kuro sneered and raised his claws high. "Shakushi!"
He vanished again, his blades sweeping through the air—cutting his own men down in a blur of crimson. The Black Cat Pirates screamed, falling like leaves in autumn.
"You're... killing your own crew!" Matsu shouted from below.
"They were pawns," Kuro hissed, blood-slick and smiling.
And Luffy snapped.
His voice rang like a thunderclap. "I hate guys like you."
With a roar, he leapt skyward.
"Gomu Gomu no... Kane!!"
His rubber forehead smashed into Kuro's skull with earth-shaking force.
The captain's body crumpled into the dirt, unmoving. The trees went still. Even the birds dared not sing.
The village was quiet again, the air heavy with the remnants of chaos, the shadows of what nearly came to be.
Morning light broke over the sea, casting golden sheets across the rooftops of Syrup Village. The dew shimmered like glass tears on blades of grass, and the once-broken earth slowly remembered peace. Birds began to chirp again. Somewhere, a rooster crowed.
Matsu stood at the edge of the harbor with her arms folded, her silver hair rippling gently in the wind like threads of moonlight caught in the waking sun. Her gaze lingered on the sea—not with longing, but with a solemn knowing. There were still scars behind the calm. The island had been spared, but barely. And so many didn't even know it.
Beside her, Luffy yawned wide and deep, as if exhaustion had no dominion over him. Zoro leaned against a fencepost, his swords back where they belonged, though one arm was faintly wrapped from the battle. His sharp eyes kept drifting toward Matsu's back, unreadable—but present.
Usopp's voice broke the silence. "I'm not gonna tell the villagers," he said. Matsu turned.
Usopp stood with the three kids of his little crew—Tamanegi, Ninjin, and Piiman—gathered around him. His bruises were fading, though a scratch still ran across his cheek like a badge of truth. The lie-teller, now a quiet protector.
"They wouldn't understand. Pirates attacking here... it'd scare them. Mess with their peace," Usopp continued, tone firmer than before. "Let them keep believing the only pirate here is me."
Kaya, fragile but glowing with newfound strength, stepped forward from the veranda of her home. She walked without assistance, the sun painting her pale face with life.
"They don't need to know," she whispered. "But I do. I know everything now."
Her eyes met Matsu's—full of gratitude and quiet awe. "Thank you... all of you. For saving my life... and my future."
She gestured for them to follow her. Behind her home, beneath a white cloth, sat a ship—not massive, but sturdy, proud, elegant in design. Its curved ram's head smiled from the prow, a gentle and playful expression carved into the wood.
"This was Merry's design," Kaya said, her voice trembling with emotion. "He dreamed of building something beautiful. Something worthy of a journey. It's yours now. The Going Merry."
Luffy grinned from ear to ear. "No way! That's amazing!"
Even Zoro whistled low in appreciation.
But it was Matsu who stepped forward quietly and touched the ship's wooden hull, fingers gliding over the grooves like reading a prayer in the grain. The sea inside her stirred—recognizing craftsmanship meant for sailing not just through waters, but through dreams.
"She's made for the wind," Matsu murmured, "and meant for something bigger than this shore."
Kaya smiled. "So are you."
A little later, by the edge of the road, Usopp stood with his crew of kids, their eyes red-rimmed but stubbornly dry. The sun cast a peach-pink hue across the sky, as if the heavens themselves were struggling to let go.
"I'm disbanding the Usopp Pirates," Usopp declared, trying to keep his chin up. "There's a real pirate crew now. And I'm gonna join them."
"You're gonna be a great captain one day!" Tamanegi shouted.
"You better come back with a real bounty!" Ninjin added.
"Don't forget us!" Piiman cried.
Usopp choked on a laugh that was almost a sob.
Matsu watched from a few paces away, her arms folded loosely, gaze soft. Luffy slapped Usopp on the back.
"C'mon! You're with us now!" Luffy grinned.
"Welcome aboard," Zoro said, and though his tone was lazy, there was a hint of respect buried beneath.
Usopp hesitated—until he caught Matsu's eyes.
"You think I'll fit in?" he asked sheepishly.
Matsu tilted her head and smiled, faint as the curl of foam on a wave. "The sea doesn't ask who you were. It only asks where you're going."
That was all the answer he needed.
As the Going Merry set sail from Syrup Village, the dock began to fill with faces—villagers waving, Kaya wiping her tears beside Merry, the children shouting Usopp's name. Even Boodle, bruised and confused, lifted his arm in farewell, unaware of how much he owed these pirates.
Zoro leaned against the rail of the ship, eyes scanning the village one last time. His expression unreadable, except when Matsu stepped up beside him. Then his shoulders shifted slightly, like even his body made space for her.
"You coming with us all the way?" he asked, knowing the obvious. Matsu was already part of the straw hats, Luffy wouldn't let her go so easily.
Her blue eyes met his black eyes. "You trying to stop me?"
Zoro gave a small grunt that could've been a chuckle. "Wouldn't dare."
Luffy, sprawled across the goat's head on the prow, let the wind whip through his hair.
"We're going to the Grand Line!" he shouted. "Treasure! Adventure! Freedom!"
Matsu walked to his side, crouching beside him with her hands wrapped around her knees. "You really think it's out there? The One Piece?"
Luffy's eyes didn't waver. "I don't think. I know."
Matsu smiled. Not because she believed it—yet—but because he did.
And that was enough.
The wind caught their sails like a whisper from the sea itself. The Going Merry drifted forward, her bow slicing through the waves. Syrup Village shrank behind them, but what lay ahead grew vaster with every breath of ocean breeze.
The journey had truly begun.