East Blue – Syrup Village
A small, nameless village, destined one day to be remembered.
Night had fallen, casting a deep, tranquil darkness over the peaceful village. The homes were quiet and cozy, their lights dimmed, allowing weary bodies a chance to rest and recover. The atmosphere was still and serene.
Happiness overflowed in this humble village, wrapping everything in a blanket of calm.
But behind every peaceful life, there are always those who carry burdens in silence.
At the edge of the village stood a boy with a long nose, wearing sniper goggles and a light brown bandana. He turned for one final look at the small house filled with memories.
There were still faint traces of his mother's presence here.
Tears slid silently down his tanned cheeks.
This was Usopp, the infamous "Liar King" of Syrup Village.
Planting his feet firmly, he raised his bare arm and wiped away the tears.
When he lifted his head again, the confusion in his eyes had vanished, replaced by fierce determination.
"Once you've decided… then go do it!"
Those were the words his mother used to say, her favorite motto and a lesson she had often taught him.
That's why… she had never blamed his father.
"There's still a lot to prepare!"
Usopp glanced at the large bundle waiting by the door and shouted loudly, as if to boost his own courage:
"Captain Usopp is ready for battle!"
With that, he grabbed the bundle and walked away, without looking back.
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That morning, the village's most infamous troublemaker, the liar Usopp, had visited the mansion of the wealthy young lady, Kaya. Because of his pirate father, the butler Klahadore had treated him with open contempt, and in the end, thrown him out of the estate.
But not long after, while reminiscing atop a seaside cliff, Usopp had stumbled upon something unimaginable.
He saw the butler Klahadore, secretly issuing orders to another man. And that man… was a pirate.
Even worse, the butler himself turned out to be a pirate too.
They were plotting something horrific: to summon an entire pirate crew and launch a raid under the guise of robbery, to kill Kaya.
The plan was chilling. After her death, the butler would use hypnosis to forge a will with his name as sole heir, seizing the entire Kaya estate.
Usopp, who had accidentally overheard everything, was so terrified he froze flat on the grass, not daring to move.
Only when the two men left did he bolt off through a side path toward Kaya's mansion, heading straight for the hidden garden where they used to secretly meet.
There, he poured his heart out, telling her everything he had seen and heard.
But because of the incident that morning, Kaya didn't believe him. Truth be told, she had probably never really believed him.
She broke into tears, slapped Usopp across the face, and drove him away from the estate.
With nowhere else to turn, Usopp ran back into the village, going door-to-door trying to warn everyone about the pirates.
But no one believed him.
He had lied too many times before.
They chased him off with brooms and rolling pins, shouting for him to stop his nonsense.
Only three people believed him.
The three kids from his self-declared "Usopp Pirate Crew."
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"Captain! Are pirates really coming?"
"Is Klahadore really a pirate, Usopp?"
The three young boys looked up at him with wide, trusting eyes, shocked by what he'd told them.
Looking at the only people in the village who still believed him, Usopp, who had been frantically rushing about, suddenly stopped.
And then he laughed.
He threw his head back and laughed out loud.
"Hahahahaha!"
"Of course not! Same as always, I was just making it up!"
"That butler pissed me off, so I made up a story about him being a pirate!"
Usopp grinned triumphantly, looking every bit like a mischievous scoundrel proud of his own deception, his joy honest and raw, like a child who'd just pulled off a prank.
"Aw, man! I thought something big was really going down!"
The three kids turned away in disappointment, like they'd lost something precious. They muttered their complaints and slowly walked home.
"I'm starting to feel ashamed of our captain…"
One of them mumbled on the way back.
"Same here…"
"Even if the butler is a jerk, the captain shouldn't lie about something like that."
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Usopp stood frozen, dazed, watching the three small figures disappear into the distance under the setting sun.
He couldn't let those kids fight pirates.
He couldn't risk their lives.
So, just one more lie...
Even if they ended up hating him for it, even if they left him.
Now, he was the only one who knew the truth.
The only one who believed it.
But that didn't matter.
Because he alone would protect this village.
He loved it, loved everything about it.
He loved it because, even though he lied all the time and annoyed everyone, the villagers still treated him as one of their own.
He loved it because, during the hardest times, when his family was struggling, the villagers stepped in to help him and his mother, ensuring his childhood wasn't consumed by suffering.
He loved it because, when his mother fell gravely ill, Kaya's wealthy parents brought expensive medicine to ease her pain.
He owed this village.
He owed Kaya.
And now, he would protect them.
Even if he wasn't sure he could.
But whether he could or couldn't wasn't the point.
The only thing that mattered, was whether he would try.
And today, he would play the role of the lone warrior.
Like all the lies he'd told about grand adventures and heroic battles, today he would make one of them real.
He would face an entire pirate crew, alone.
If he could stop them, the village would be safe.
Deep within Usopp's blood, a flicker of something called courage began to awaken.
It spread slowly, burning through him.
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The more urgent the moment, the faster time slipped away.
After a night of scouting, Usopp finally spotted a large pirate ship docked just beyond the northern slope of Syrup Village.
Now, Usopp the Brave crouched in the tall grass at the only path leading up from the shore.
Tears and snot streamed uncontrollably down his face.
The silhouette of the pirate ship grew larger and clearer in the pale light of dawn.
In that moment, time felt like it had stopped, every second dragged on like an eternity.
And yet…
He wished time really could stop.
That way, maybe he'd have a chance to change his wet pants.
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"This the place?"
Buchi, one of the twin brothers from the Black Cat Pirates, with a bounty of 7 million Berries, turned to the pirate beside him for confirmation.
"Yes! This is the spot Captain Kuro marked."
The pirate replied quickly.
"Don't mention that bastard!"
Buchi's expression darkened, his eyes flashing with unspoken rage as he turned to address the rest of the crew.
"He abandoned us without a second thought and went off to live a cushy life!"
"Now that he needs us again, he calls us back, what does he take us for? Tools?"
"The Black Cat Pirates today are not the same as we were back then!"
"And he, he's no longer the Captain Kuro we once followed!"
"But… Captain Jango said once the job's done, Kuro will give us a fat reward…"
One pirate muttered timidly, clearly still afraid of Kuro's reputation.
"Reward? What a joke!"
"He took the lion's share and expects us to fight over scraps? No way!"
"We've got only one goal today,
Kill everyone. Take everything!"
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From his hidden perch above, Usopp heard everything.
He heard their bloodthirsty declarations.
His eyes brimmed with terror and despair.
But gradually, that fear turned into something else.
Rage.
Rage at Kaya's treacherous butler.
Rage at these heartless pirates.
And most of all…
Rage at his own weakness.
Still, all he could do now was hope,
Hope that everything would go according to plan.
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