The sun was just starting to rise. The crew of the Big Top was on deck, eating breakfast. The air was calm, and they could smell land nearby.
Nami, who was now both the cook and the navigator, slammed a plate of eggs on the table. "I'm tired of this," she complained. "When are we going to recruit a real cook? I'm supposed to be drawing charts, not frying eggs."
"Yeah! And we need some grunts, too!" Buggy's head chimed in from the floor, where his body was miserably mopping the deck. "I'm the main fighter, not a chore boy!" Luffy didn't even look at him. "You're a chore boy for a month. That was your punishment. Be glad I didn't make it two."
"Pah! I hate this rubber man!" Buggy grumbled under his breath. "Don't you all think I would be a better captain? I'm way flashier..." Everyone at the table just ignored him.
As they were eating, Alvida looked up from her plate. She had been on lookout. "Oh. There's a ship ahead," she said. Zoro, who was eating quietly, looked up. "Marines?" "No," Alvida said, squinting. "The flag... it's a cat skull. It looks like the... Bezan Black. The Black Cat Pirates' ship."
Luffy stopped eating. "Are they famous?" "They used to be," Nami said, her voice serious. "They were brutal. Their captain was 'Kuro of a Hundred Plans'. But he was captured. Executed by Axe-Hand Morgan, back at Shells Town."
Kuro. A familiar name. Luffy's brain made the connection. [System Quest: Defeat 'Man of a Hundred Plans' Captain Kuro]. Luffy knew, instantly. "It's a lie," he said, his voice flat.
Buggy looked at him, confused. "What do you mean, a lie?" "I mean he must have faked his death," Luffy said, finishing his meal. Morgan was a proud, stupid man. Easy to fool. Easy to bribe. Luffy stood up. "We're going to capture that ship. To find out the truth."
"Fake his own death..." Buggy whispered, his eyes wide. "Now that's flashy."
Luffy looked at Alvida. "Did they notice us?" "Not yet," she said, pointing. "And I can see an island ahead." Nami looked. "If there's land, that means we're at our destination. That's Syrup Village." "Hmm," Luffy said. "we can't let them get away."
"Let's attack them!" Buggy's head yelled, floating up. "We should hit them with my flashy Buggy Cannon! Blast them out of the water!" Luffy looked at the Bezan Black. "Good idea. Load the cannon."
They set up the cannon, aimed it, and loaded a Buggy Ball. "Okay. Fire," Luffy said. ... Nobody moved. Zoro, Nami, and Alvida all just stared... at Buggy. Buggy's face went pale. "What? What are you all looking at me for?!" "It's your cannon, clown," Zoro grunted. "You light it." "Gya! My aim is not good!" Buggy shrieked. "I'm not a lowly cannon-boy!" "You're a chore boy," Alvida corrected. "Just do your job, Buggy!" Nami yelled.
They all just stood there, staring at each other. Luffy let out a long, tired sigh. The kind of sigh a boss makes when he has to do a simple job himself. "Fine. I'll do it." He walked up to the cannon. "Just... tell me how to operate it."
__________
The Bezan Black was a sleek, fast ship. It cut through the water, making almost no sound. A boat was lowered. A lot of pirates, all with cat-themed belt buckles, jumped in. They rowed to the shore of Syrup Village. As they hit the beach, they all jumped out, their swords drawn. "Hurry up!" the leader, Jango, said. "The Captain's plan is on a schedule! We attack the village now!" They started to run up the dark, sloping path.
But their road was blocked. A young man was standing in the middle of the path, shaking. He had long, curly black hair, a long nose, and a slingshot in his hand. He was terrified, but he held his ground.
"Stop right there!" he yelled, his voice cracking. "I... I am the great Captain Usopp! And I won't let you scoundrels set one foot in this village!" The pirates just stared at him. Then they started to laugh. "A 'captain'? It's just one snot-nosed kid!" "Get him! We don't have time for this!" They all charged.
"You asked for it!" Usopp yelled. He threw something from his bag. "Hoshi Bishi!" (Metal Stars!) The pirates in the front didn't see the sharp, metal caltrops. They ran right onto them. "YEEEOOWW!" "MY FEET! HE GOT MY FEET!" They fell, grabbing their bloody shoes.
Usopp used his slingshot, firing lead balls and taking down pirates one by one. But he was only one man. And they were a whole crew. The rest of the pirates got past the trap. They got to him. It wasn't a fight. It was a beating.
A big pirate punched Usopp in the face. CRACK! A horrible sound. His proud, long nose was broken, bent sideways. He fell to the ground, his face a mess of blood and tears. But he still wasn't done.
The pirates were annoyed. They just wanted to get to the village. They started to run past him. But Usopp, with the last of his strength, grabbed the leg of the lead pirate. "No..." he gurgled, his mouth full of blood. "You... you can't... go to the village..."
The pirate was fed up. This weakling just wouldn't stay down. "You're a pest!" he snarled. He raised his sword. "Just die already!" He was about to kill him.
Just then...
KABOOOOOOOOM!
The sound was not normal. It was huge. It was so loud, it shook the whole island. Everyone froze. The pirate with his sword in the air... The pirates who were running... Even Usopp, who was half-dead... They all stopped. They all turned. They all looked out at the bay.
Their beloved ship, the Bezan Black, was gone. It was just a giant, rising cloud of fire and smoke.
The pirates were rooted to the spot. Their escape was gone. Their home was gone. The explosion was so loud, it woke up the whole village. Lights started to turn on in all the houses.
And at the top of the hill, at the big, fancy mansion, a tall, calm butler was standing at the front door. He was fixing his glasses. He heard the sound. He looked at the smoke raising from beach. His calm, polite face turned ugly with pure, cold anger. This was not part of the plan. He turned and started walking fast down the hill, right toward the noise.
_________
On the deck of the Big Top, a thin wisp of smoke rose from the Buggy Cannon. Luffy stood back from it, his face lit by the new, bright ball of fire in the distant bay.
"Bulllseye," Luffy said, his voice flat. "This thing sure pack a punch."
"GYAGYAGYA!" Buggy's head cackled, floating excitedly next to him. "Now that was flashy! A perfect, beautiful shot!"
Zoro just clicked his tongue. "Tch. You took ten minutes just to aim."
"He's right," Alvida said, annoyed. She was looking at the shore with the scope. "Almost all of them had already left the ship. We only got the ones who stayed behind."
Luffy just shrugged, not caring. "That was the first time I've operated a cannon."
"Anyway," Zoro said, turning away from the fire. "Now what."
"LET'S FIRE AGAIN!" Buggy's head shrieked. "Let's blow up the island, too! GYAGYAGYA!"
"No," Luffy said. He looked at his own hands, slowly clenching and unclenching his fists. He cracked his knuckles. KRRK. A thin, cold smile touched his lips.
"Let's dock... and hunt them down." He looked at the shore. "It's been a while since I hit someone."
__________
Jango stared at the fireball, his body frozen. His heart shaped glasses just reflected the flames. The Bezan Black was gone. The pirates who were running with him also froze, their mouths open. "Oh no!" one of them shrieked, his voice cracking. "The Nyaban Brothers! They were still on the ship!"
Hearing this, Jango snapped out of his shock. He slammed his hand on his forehead. SMACK! "You idiots! Our treasure was on that ship, too!" he hissed.
"Captain Jango!" another pirate yelled, pointing out to the sea. "Look! A ship is approaching!" Jango looked. He squinted at the gaudy, circus-themed ship that was now sailing towards them. "The Big Top?" he muttered. "Buggy's ship?" His face twisted in anger. "That... that damn clown! He dares to interfere in our mission?"
He had to think fast. The plan was on a schedule. He couldn't stop. He pointed at half of his men. "Some of you, continue towards the village! We cannot delay the mission!" "But... what about them?" a pirate asked, pointing at the Big Top. "I'll handle the clowns," Jango growled. "You just do your job. But first... you need to be stronger."
He pulled out his sharp, spinning ring. "Look at the ring," he said, his voice a low, smooth monotone. "One... two... Jango!"
_________
Luffy stood at the railing of the Big Top, watching the chaos on the shore.
Seeing as they were going to scatter.
His face turned dark. "They're thinking of running away," he said, his voice a low, annoyed growl.
He didn't wait.
"We're going ahead," he said, his voice flat.
He turned to Alvida and Buggy. Before they could even ask what he meant, he stretched his arm upward, grabbing the Big Top's main mast.
His other arm shot out and grabbed Alvida and Buggy by their shirts.
"GYA! What are you—" Buggy started.
"GUM-GUM... ROCKET!"
FWOOSH!
Luffy, Alvida, and Buggy were launched from the ship like a three-person cannonball, flying through the air toward the beach.
"GYAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"
"AAAAAAAHHHHH!"
They were gone in a flash, not knowing what just happened.
Nami and Zoro were left standing on the deck, a gust of wind in their faces. They just stared at the three screaming figures getting smaller.
Zoro just grunted. He turned to Nami. "You guard the ship."
Nami didn't answer. She wasn't even looking at him. Her eyes were fixed on the Bezan Black, which was now burning really bright.
"Yeah... yeah, I will," she said, her voice full of disappointment.
All that treasure... she thought, her heart sinking.
_________
Author here :
hello,
I am becoming lazzzzy.
Talk to meeee.
Anyway, I have come up with a brilliant idea for an original.
Will start writing it when I am not lazzzzy.
Don't worry, i will not stop updating this.
Back to topic. I have a ruff proto ready. Just need your suggestion on one thing.
What I have though so far does not contain all so famous nowadays [system]. Should I include it ??? I mean there are hardly 10-15% light novels who does not have it nowadays.