Chapter 7 What Usopp 's Been Up To

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Usopp drank some water and wiped the sweat from his forehead. Moving boxes for the grocery was great strength training and he was paid in groceries which put food on the table, but it was sweaty work. Old Man Rigsby didn 't own a warehouse but instead used an underground root cellar to store his extra inventory. It kept the food fresh but hauling the produce in and out was a young man 's job. Usopp checked the position of the sun and debated what story he would have time to tell Kaya today. He didn 't quite dare to tell another betrayal story but perhaps one like the Boy Who Cried Wolf only at sea. Something about cabin boys and sea kings maybe? Only all his tales were about the Great Captain Usopp and it would be weird to tell a story about some random cabin boy and too close to the truth to play the liar himself.

'You seem troubled, son. '

Usopp jumped guiltily. 'Sorry, old man. Just daydreaming. It 's nothing. I 'll get back to work. '

'Rest a moment, it 's fine. ' The old man waved him back down. 'It 's good work you 're doing for me and without any complaint. '

Usopp blushed remembering years where he 'd whined and struggled and caught can 't-move-another-muscle-disease to get out of the hardest bits of work. Old Man Rigsby had cursed at him more than once, but the old man never let him go hungry and always found work for him when he dropped by. He dug a toe into the ground and gave a little shrug.

'Tell me what 's on your mind. You looked really upset there, and you 're usually so cheerful. '

'I just have a hard decision to make is all. ' He spoke before thinking and immediately tried to backtrack. 'Hypothetically. It 's nothing really. Part of a game actually. '

'Uh huh. ' The man rubbed his balding head and leaned against the crate so Usopp couldn 't get back to work. 'Go on. I promise not to gossip. '

'Look, hypothetically, what would you do if you knew something really bad, a secret. If you tell the secret someone could get hurt, but if you don 't tell the secret many people could get hurt. What do you do? '

'Usopp ' ' Rigsby looked alarmed. 'Are you in some kind of trouble. '

'What? Me? No, of course not! ' he waved his hand breezily. 'This is just nothing, a mental exercise. Don 't overthink it. Don 't even worry about it at all. I 'll just get back to ' '

'Now, hold on. Let me think here. It 's a game, so I 'll play. ' The old man looked very serious and clearly wasn 't playing at all. 'Now tell me, to clarify, these people who might be hurt ' Are we talking physical injuries? '

'Yeah ' '

'And this person keeping the secret. Would they be doing the hurting? '

'What? No! '

'Okay then. I think the secret should be told. You can 't control the actions of others and are not responsible for people this person may or may not hurt. Keeping the secret only gives that person power over you and the situation. If you tell the secret, say to an adult you trust, they can help you and perhaps can help find a way to keep anyone from being hurt. '

Usopp gave a small nod rubbing his elbows as he thought about it.

Am I giving Kuro power here?

'Usopp ' '

'Thanks for the thought Old Man. '

'If you have any hypotheticals you want to talk about now ' '

'Oh no! It was just- I 'm not really- and anyways ' ' Usopp shook his head waving both hands in front of himself. 'It was just a game. '

'Usopp, if people could get hurt ' '

'Look, everyone knows I play games. '

'I would listen to you. Usopp whatever secret has you so worried, I don 't want you in danger over this. Let 's just speak a moment. '

'Don 't worry about me. The Great Captain Usopp can face any challenge. It 's not like anyone would be worried about me spilling secrets. I 'm the town liar. I 'm sure even if I knew something bad no one would worry about it because no one else would believe me. So, it doesn 't matter. ' He gave a smile. 'Hey, I 'm going to have to finish these boxes tomorrow. I just remembered I was going to do some laundry today while it 's sunny. '

'Usopp! '

'Got to go! Sorry about this. I 'll be back tomorrow. ' He dashed away before the old man could press any further.

'I would believe you! ' he called, getting the last word in.

Usopp didn 't look back. He couldn 't. This whole situation was a mess. He 'd been back for less than a month. How had things gotten so complicated. He didn 't like making decisions. Every choice held dangers and he had no crew to back him up. How was he going to handle this? He was a good liar but a terrible secret keeper.

XXXxxx

'You 've been telling some

interesting

tales lately. '

Klahadore likely intended to startle him as he climbed through the foliage. Unfortunately for him, Usopp had plenty of experience detecting half-hidden enemies and had spotted the fake butler before he even reached the hedge. The gold embroidery on his suit eye-catching behind the patchy green leaves. Usopp had time to gauge his threat level and prepare his own response in the three steps and short climb.

'I 'm glad you enjoy them. ' He gave a proud smile and thrust his skinny chest out. 'The adventures of the Great Captain Usopp are admired the world over! It 's not surprising they caught your interest. ' He boasted easily, feigning ignorance.

'Your tales are getting Miss Kaya quite worked up. It 's not good for her health you know. '

Usopp couldn 't help taking that as a threat and his hands fisted, his lip curling in a snarl before he caught the reaction and tried to hide it.

'I wouldn 't do anything to hurt my friend. My stories make her feel better. '

Klahadore had seen something in his reaction. The butler narrowed his eyes and his posture changed to threatening as he reached into his jacket. Usopp reacted immediately, taking a hop away for distance and pulling his slingshot.

'So you 're not just a stupid little boy. ' The butler stared at him for a long moment before finishing the movement and drawing a knife. His feet started to move in an odd dance.

Recognizing the beginning of an attack, Usopp launched his pepper star just as the man blurred forward. Usopp was already in motion himself, dodging sideways. A hand grabbed his shoulder and slammed him into the half wall and hedges. Usopp lost his breath but he was reacting from experience as he slammed a heal down hard against the other man 's foot. The hand released him for a moment and Usopp slipped away rushing to gain distance as he whirled, lead star ready. The knife was buried into the stonework where he 'd been. Usopp swallowed. The other man gave a tug but was unable to pull the knife out.

'What do you think you know? ' the man snarled as he smoothed back his hair, tugged his suit, and adjusted his glasses with the heal of his hand.

'You laugh about me playing pirate, but do you have any idea who I am? ' Usopp demanded choosing lie option 12 from his mental list.

'Are you going to tell me about the Great Captain Usopp? ' he asked in a mocking tone.

'No, I am going to tell you about the great sniper Yassop. My father. A man who became a pirate and sailed the world. I am going to tell you that my father is a pirate of the Grand Line and that he sails with a Yonko, Red-Haired Shanks. You can check the wanted posters if you don 't believe me. I 've tracked his progress and I 'm really proud of my old man. '

'You think daddy can save you here? He 'd be lucky to even hear you had an unfortunate accident. ' Klahadore scoffed.

'I think that I know a lot more about pirates than you. You may be a big name here in the East Blue but you 're hardly a big name in the world. I 've been studying pirates and gathering their stories for a long time. So I 'm familiar with pirates and their habits. You do that move on your wanted poster you know. ' Usopp mimicked the glasses push without releasing his slingshot. 'Captain Kuro. '

'I 'm afraid you are mistaken. ' Klahadore responded primly as the butler he pretends to be.

'No. I 'm not. ' Completely self-assured in that Usopp didn 't relax his stance. 'Luckily for you I am the town liar and haven 't figured out how to get anyone to believe me. Tell me what to do to keep Kaya safe and I will keep my mouth shut. ' Usopp lied.

'Stop visiting this place. ' The pirate demanded instantly.

'Not an option. '

'You would risk your friend? '

'The greater risk would be to walk away. That would only give you free reign with no way to insure you keep your promises. ' He shook his head. 'Be reasonable, this is obviously a long con. You 've been here for over a year. '

'You think you know my plans? '

'I 'm sure you want money. You 're probably waiting for Kaya to be old enough to access her inheritance. ' He fibbed.

It was close to the truth but implied that Kaya would live through the scheme and Klahadore would run off with her money. Now the butler just had to take the bait and try to force his silence.

'The problem of course, is that I can 't trust you to be silent about this at all, can I? '

'I value my friend 's life over her fortune. I know if I cause trouble she could be hurt in the crossfire. You seem like the kind to take everyone down with you. '

The butler smirked and shrugged. 'What an interesting theory. '

'Just tell me what you want! ' Usopp demanded, increasingly worried that the butler wasn 't offering threats or bribes.

'What I want ' the man darted forward quickly.

Usopp released his projectile and threw himself into a side roll coming up on one knee and firing a second without missing a beat. It threw off the butler enough to save his life. Klahadore dodged the first but stumbled as the second lead star slammed into his shoulder. The knife in his hand skimmed over Usopp 's bicep instead of plunging into his chest.

'Hey! ' Usopp cried out before a hand clamped over his mouth.

Usopp moved to take the knife and was shocked when the disarming maneuver actually sent the knife flying. He bit the hand over his face and pulled a smoke bomb. He was able to untangle himself and lurch away moving in a swift retreat maneuver and relocating to a treetop before the smoke cleared. He prepared a pepper star and waited to see if he would be spotted. His arm was dripping blood, but he didn 't have time to fuss with it.

Klahadore was looking around cautiously as he covered his face with some kind of handkerchief. Usopp regretted not having the supplies in his arsenal to put the man to sleep or wrap him in a viny cage. His current armament was either the lethal fire-star option or some harmless distraction. He cursed as the man began that fancy footwork again. He focused all of his attention on the man and tried to access the Observation Haki he 'd only just begun to get a handle on. The butler pirate dashed at blurring speeds as he searched the area. Usopp kept his eyes on the man hoping he could escape unnoticed. His luck was never that good and the man looked upwards, spotting his hiding place. Usopp released his pepper star, catching the other by surprise. Usopp wondered if the man had ever had anyone match his speed before. In the East Blue men like that were rare.

The pepper star caught him in the forehead, stunning him and causing an instant sneezing fit. Usopp watched as the man blinked watery eyes, coughing at the pepper dust. He fired two more lead stars aiming for hand and shoulder to disable. Klahadore swore and launched himself forward. Usopp jumped from the tree moments before a powerful kick took down the oak. He cried out and took off dashing towards the house. This was not supposed to happen this way.

Men were coming around the corner. He dodged another thrust of a knife and fumbled backwards through the hole still open in the hedge. Usopp ran for the manor. If Klahadore wasn 't being subtle or trying to keep Usopp quiet, then it was because the schemer had no reason to. Kaya was in danger. He didn 't have time to climb a tree much less go around to a door. Firing carefully aimed lead stars he shattered the window just before he jumped through it. Usopp darted into the room and slammed through the opposite door. He was surprised to run into Merry who he rarely interacted with. Grabbing the sheep-like man, Usopp pinned him to the wall.

'Merry! I need you to go protect Kaya! Klahadore has gone mad and wants to kill her. '

'Usopp? What are you doing? Don 't be ridiculous, stop this now. '

'There 's no time! ' he could hear someone else coming in through the window and the smash of glass as they ran through the shattered pieces. He grabbed the steward pushing him towards the stairs. 'Please Merry! Just go in and lock the door! Don 't let Klahadore in!

'Listen to me! If I am lying and you believe me, you will lose a couple hours and any good will you ever felt towards me. If I am telling the truth and you ignore me, Kaya loses her life. ' He fisted the front of the butler 's jacket staring him down intensely. 'You don 't have to believe me. Just please, humor me this once. You have your pistol. Guard her door. Let no one, but especially Klahadore, go into her room. Klahadore is dangerous and I believe he intends to kidnap or kill Kaya. He could try to hurt you. '

'I don 't really believe he is that kind of man. ' Merry waffled.

'Then don 't believe it! If he is such a good guy, he will respect that you are willing to protect Kaya even from those she trusts. It 's not like I 'm asking you to kick him out of the house or fire him. Just go now! ' He pushed the man up the stair with one hand as he dug for caltrops and tossed them before the door.

'Why would he do this? '

'Because I know his secret of his and he must assume I have proof. He decided to act and is trying to kill me. I don 't believe he will stop or try to run now. I think he is ruthless, vengeful and will try to hurt all the people involved before he gives up. He 's going to come after her next. Please Merry, go now! '

The steward hesitated, looking down at the caltrops and Usopp 's slingshot.

'I 'm calling a guard for help. '

'Thank you! ' Usopp said gratefully. He pushed the man one more time just as Klahadore slammed out of the room tossing his knife.

Usopp didn 't hesitate but tossed his bag in the path of the knife. Merry yelled and ran. Usopp through himself over the side of the rail towards the pirate. He was only a quarter of the way up. It wasn 't a difficult landing. He barreled into the man and took them both to the floor.

'Worthless little brat! ' Klahadore shouted. The pirate grunted in pain as he stood with the bits of metal stuck to his skin.

Usopp made his own noises of pain, not bothering to hide his whimpers and yelps as the prickly weapons dug into his knees, hands, and feet. He pulled his slingshot and fired another lead ball at Klahadore. He wasn 't surprised when it missed.

'I won 't let you hurt her. '

'You 're a child. Do you really think these toys will stop me? '

'Yes. ' Usopp fired another shot, determination settling into his bones.

XXXxxx

The house was smokey. Merry stared as thick clouds of it pushed through the frame of the door. He shook himself as Kaya began coughing.

'Come Miss Kaya, we 'll exit out the window. We can get help from there to put out the flames. Let 's move swiftly now. ' He lifted her up and stepped to the wide frame. One hand down assisted the young lady of the house. They stood together looking at the tree out the window. It was close, but a small jump, not a step. She shivered.

'I don 't think I can do this Merry! I 'm frightened. '

'You must, Miss Kaya. ' He laid a hand on one slim shoulder. 'Just like those brave ladies in your stories Rowan and Shami. A quick jump. I 'll be right here. You can do it. '

'Those stories are just made up! ' she denied tearfully.

'Nonetheless, you can be just as brave. Please Miss Kaya. On three. One 'two '. three! '

She screamed as she jumped, wavering on the branch a moment before falling against the tree.

'Good girl! ' he congratulated. 'Do you have a grip? '

At her nod he jumped as well. He maneuvered around her and used the tree as a ladder climbing down nimbly. He held out his hands and urged her to sit and jump. At fourteen she was no longer a small child, but she was delicate and underweight due to her recent illness. Kaya sat on the branch and slid herself down, clinging to the tree until he was able to reach her feet and assure her he would catch her. She fell the last few feet and Merry pulled her away from the house.

He could see smoke pouring out of the shattered window as he pulled his young charge towards the front gate. He could hear the scrambling and shouting of guards, housekeepers and gardeners who were already running towards the house. He continued moving, bringing her outside of the gate and to the middle of the road. Villagers were already running their direction. Either the commotion or a runner had summoned help. Some were carrying buckets others were just running to assist.

'There 's a pump just there! ' he pointed out the pump the gardeners used in the front.

'Where is the fire? '

'I 'm afraid I don 't know. I saw the smoke and had to remove Miss Kaya. ' He answered. 'Please be careful, there is a dangerous man inside. '

He wasn 't sure if he was speaking of Usopp or Klahadore. It was impossible that either man could do something like this. Merry stood aside with the sobbing Kaya as men and women rushed to find the fire and save the house. From inside he could hear louder shouting and men began rushing out.

'Doctor? Is the Doctor here? Someone summon the doc! '

Merry watched a young man turn and run back towards the village. He held Kaya and watched. Men began bringing sloshing buckets but the man at the door refused them saying something. Many of the people around appeared relieved while others looked even more concerned. He wanted to know what was happening, but Kaya didn 't need to be near the danger. The pistol was heavy in his pocket. He 'd grabbed it from its place before scrambling to Kaya 's room. He hadn 't been sure what to tell her except that a man had broken in and may be coming to hurt her. Merry had locked her door and done his best to assure her. The blond teenager held him and sobbed.

When two men came out carrying a bleeding form between them, Merry carefully put one hand on the back of her head and angled their bodies away. He would not let her see this. Two of the men nearby saw his action and came to stand between him and the house as human shields. Merry wished he could see for himself as he listened to the commotion. He could just make out as another bloody figure was brought from the house. Then a third.

What is this tragedy? What has happened today?

'Doctor! ' a cry went up from the path. 'Make way, the doctor is here! Let him pass! '

'What 's happening to the house? ' another called. 'Do we need more water? '

'It 's just smoke bombs. No fire! ' someone called back.

Waves of relief and chatter went up, but everyone had seen the injured men. Something serious was happening. The villagers were anxious and concerned.

'What do they mean? What 's happening, Merry? ' Kaya looked up at him with frightened eyes. The young lady was pale and shivering.

Without a thought he slipped off his jacket and tucked it around her. The young miss had already been though an ordeal.

'We will have to wait and see Miss Kaya. Today has been so unexpected I cannot hazard a guess. '

XXXxxx

The doctor looked down at his youngest patient. Usopp was trying to sit up again clutching at his bloody shoulder.

'Wait, Klahadore, he 's going to kill Kaya. You have to stop him. '

'It 's fine, son. '

'No, I 'm serious. I 'm not lying. '

'We believe you. Klahadore was caught. Kaya is safe. '

'Safe? Good. That 's good. ' His eyes rolled up and he slumped down.

'Doc? Klahadore is ' '

'Dead. Yes. He is therefore unable to harm the young lady Kaya. If this young man rips his stitches again, he will be the one harmed. I don 't want to have to sedate him. Try to assure him if he wakes without giving away any information. Many people want answers today. '

'Of course doc. '

XXXxxx

Brandon had been working at the manor for over thirty years and never needed to do more than turn away beggars or stop the occasional bit of teenage foolery. The Gecko Islands were peaceful and Syrup, the nearby village, was a sleepy farming village.

The wildest thing about the whole island was when Banchina fell for that fisherman from the next isle over and the man chose to run off with a group of pirates. It was scandalous especially that her husband left her with a young child. The son of a pirate in their little village was truly something to marvel over. The little boy grew to be a troublemaker but was sweet hearted for all his amateur vandalism and tendency to cause chaos. His own sister allowed her son to run around and play 'pirates ' with the teen. She would laugh and call him free childcare for the way he supervised they boys and allowed no harm to come to them.

Looking down at the teen covered in blood he could honestly say he never imagined anything like this in their town.

Smashed glass caught his attention immediately and Brandon looked to Greg who was guarding the gate with him. They took off at a run making their way around the house just in time to see a man climbing through the window. His long hair reminded him of the butler Klahadore but clearly this man moved like a fighter or a thief. The white cloth wrapped around his face only enhanced that opinion.

'Stop! Don 't move! '

The man of course didn 't stop or turn. With a curse Brandon boosted Greg inside and then climbed in himself. This was Not Good. He ran over the broken window and nearly ran into Greg when the man stopped short in the doorway howling in pain.

'Watch your step! '

Sure enough the floor was covered in sharp caltrops. Spiky little things looked vicious. He swept his foot in front of him sliding a section of them sideways so he could exit the room. Just as he was coming out two men slammed to the floor in front of him, landing painfully on the sharp objects.

'Stop there! ' he shouted again.

The two ignored him launching at each other. Only ' one of them was not a man, but a boy. He was too small and skinny to be anything but a child. When the slingshot came up, he recognized young Usopp. What was that kid doing?

'I won 't let you hurt her. ' His voice was high and defiant.

'Hurt who? ' Brandon asked, but he was ignored.

'You 're a child. Do you really think these toys will stop me? ' the man responded. He really did look like the butler. He also wasn 't denying the accusation he was going to hurt someone.

'Yes. ' Usopp fired another shot.

Brandon watched as the man moved so fast it was almost a blur. The man lunged forward at the boy, fingers curled to scratch at the kid 's face. Little Usopp fired his slingshot and missed but the little ball gave a pop and started spraying a white smoke.

'Damn! ' Greg cursed and Brandon remembered to move.

He made a lunge for the man and the boy gave a startled noise. The man turned and kicked him in the face so hard Brandon whited out. Greg was limping past him with his heavy club in hand. Little Usopp took advantage of the distraction to fire another round.

'He 's going to attack Kaya! '

'Nonsense. This boy invaded the house and is clearly doing damage. Stop him at once! ' that prim butler tone might have worked if the asshole hadn 't just broken his nose.

'How about both of you surrender and we can sort this out? ' he offered.

'Sure. No problem. As soon as he surrenders I will too. ' The kid agreed easily but without lowering his slingshot.

'Of course, I surrender. ' The man held up both hands and looked over at them. 'Is this good? '

'No way! Don 't trust him. He 's dangerous. ' Usopp shouted his warning. 'He 's faking! You have to tie him up or something. '

'I 'm not the one with the weapon. ' The man chided as if playing.

'T-that 's, that 's not ' ' the boy looked flustered.

'It 's fine kid. ' Brandon assured. 'Hey Klahadore, why don 't you put your hands on your head and just have a seat by the wall? '

'Excuse me? ' his voice was icy. 'Is that really necessary? '

'Yes. ' He answered bluntly. 'Until I get some answers, I think it is. '

'Look out! ' Greg was pushing him sideways just as the butler lunged with a piece of broken glass. Greg shouted as he was cut.

Brandon snarled and tried to tackle the man. He missed. Usopp was cursing and shouting.

'Lead star, pepper star, lead, lead, pepper, smoke! '

More smoke appeared and he could hear the shuffling footsteps as the kid tried to find better footing. He coughed at the fumes and moved to catch the other man. He could hear the sneezing from the butler. The man tossed away the now useless cloth.

'Watch the smoke kid! ' Greg shouted.

'Surrender Usopp. You are only getting more people involved in your mess. At this rate I 'll have to kill the whole household. Keep going and there won 't be anyone left alive in the whole village. This is on you. '

Brandon went cold. Klahadore sounded like he was speaking of a tea party rather than a slaughter. If he had any doubts before he was fully committed now. Klahadore had to be stopped.

'Pepper star! Don 't try to blame this on me you psychopath. You are responsible for your own actions! Anyways don 't get ahead of yourself. You 're not going to hurt anyone. Not in this house and not in my village. '

'So arrogant. '

Brandon lunged and was immediately blocked with a flurry of blows. He slammed into a wall and collapsed.

'What 's happening here? ' a chef burst into the room, knife in each hand.

'Get out of here! ' Greg warned.

Klahadore moved at that lightning speed and the chef was collapsing in a spray of blood.

'Damn you! ' Usopp cried out firing another volley of shots.

Brandon could hear pinging metal where the ammo actually bounced off the knives. Then Klahadore was darting forward and slicing through Greg.

'Smoke star! '

The projectile exploded at his feet just as Brandon saw the butler turn in his direction. Without hesitation he threw himself to the floor and rolled away. The room was filled with smoke now and it was difficult to breathe but the hacking and sneezing gave away the position of the butler.

'You think you have the advantage because I can 't see? Ha! '

A meaty thunk followed by a scream. Brandon felt his heart drop. The kid! Did the butler just

throw

that knife?

Who is this guy?

'Little Usopp, stop trying to play pirate. You know nothing of the real dangers in this world. ' Klahadore was close enough to touch.

Moving slowly Brandon prepared to jump him.

'Go to hell. ' There was another meaty thunk and Klahadore dropped.

Brandon stared at the butler as he choked on his own blood. The knife was lodged deep in his throat and from the spray an artery was hit.

'Don 't think a little cut can stop me you bastard! ' Usopp cried defiantly.

Brandon realized that with the smoke, the kid had no idea his shot had hit.

'I 've got him! You check on Greg! '

'What? ' the kid sounded confused.

'The other guard, and the chef too. Can you check them out? We need a doctor. ' Brandon instructed. 'How bad are you hurt kid? '

'I 'm okay. ' The kid was shuffling in his direction. 'He 's sneaky. Please be careful. '

'He 's unconscious. I 'm securing him now. I heard what he said about killing people. I won 't let him go. You did well kid. Now let 's get a doctor here to check everybody out. '

Footsteps pounded and more of the household staff burst into the room.

'Where 's the fire? ' a bucket of water was emptied carelessly into the room and Brandon cursed as he was soaked.

'No fire, just smoke. Open the windows and call a doctor. There was an attack and people were injured. ' He took command, issuing orders and directing people away from the mess. As the smoke began to clear he looked for the kid. Usopp was helping a young maid apply pressure to Greg 's chest wound. The young man was covered in blood. His right shoulder was bleeding freely from a deep wound and smaller cuts littered his body. 'You, go help with that man, replace the kid. You, go get that kid moving to the door, he needs a doctor himself. ' The two gawkers jumped into action.

More help was arriving, and Brandon gratefully allowed them to help move the injured out of the smoky space. He made a point of telling many of the staff that Klahadore was the villain and responsible for the injured staff. He didn 't have all the details, but he didn 't want people grieving over that bastard.