Syrup Village

The next morning dawned bright and sunny, without a cloud in the sky.

Nami had temporarily joined their group, and the four of them had finally arrived at Syrup Village.

As for Jango... They'd tossed him into the sea to feed the fish. If he survived, he could thank his lucky stars.

The island where Syrup Village stood had unusual terrain. Cliffs surrounded the entire island wherever it met the sea.

There was only one harbor, on the eastern side, because a long, gentle slope led straight inland from there.

They pulled alongside the shore and got off the ship. Luffy excitedly took off up the slope first.

Lina tied the ship's rope to a wooden post on shore, secured it, and followed.

"Honestly, I can't stand that captain of ours."

Nami watched Luffy rush off on his own, looking like he could barely contain himself, and shook her head helplessly.

Although the two devils Lina had summoned had scared her half to death yesterday, she had gradually started to change her opinion of the group afterward.

She'd already thought quite well of them for stepping in to save her.

And after hearing Jango's secret, Luffy's reaction had left Nami completely baffled.

He'd spent the whole day yelling about wanting to beat up Kuro.

Were there pirates nowadays who actually liked standing up for others?

The only pirates she'd known since childhood were Arlong and his crew. Their brutal methods had made her hate pirates with all her heart.

To buy Cocoyasi Village back from Arlong, Nami had taken up stealing, but she only targeted pirates.

In her eyes, pirates' money was ill-gotten. Even though she'd never claimed to be a good person, she could steal from pirates with a clear conscience.

She still had no intention of becoming a pirate, but she could accept traveling with the others for now.

"Stop right there!"

A shout caught their attention.

A man with a long nose and a wild, spiky hairstyle suddenly leaped out from the side and blocked their way. He had deeply tanned skin and a pouch tied around his waist.

Lina recognized him at a glance.

Great God Usopp, a man forever teetering between courage and cowardice.

Lina had to admit she admired Usopp. Compared to Zoro's unrealistically handsome perfection, Usopp felt more like a reflection of ordinary people.

And yet, for all his fear and timidity, he could face his inner fears at critical moments, step forward, and fight for his friends to the bitter end, ready to die for them.

He made miracles bloom in the life of such an unremarkable little man.

Looks like the Weak Trio can form ahead of schedule, Lina thought.

As for who the third member was, besides Nami and Usopp...

Right, it was definitely him!

He was just support staff.

His undead were the strong ones. What did that have to do with him?

Besides, he only had two undead who could really fight at the moment: the Blade Devil, made with Zoro's template, and the Chainsaw Devil, made with Luffy's.

Luffy couldn't use Three Sword Style, but he had great fighting instincts and was nimble. His attacks came from all kinds of unpredictable angles.

Add those three vicious chainsaws to the mix, and just looking at them made you wince. Anyone who crossed blades with him would be intimidated.

Lina returned to the present, lit a cigarette, and followed them.

"How do you know I'm Yasopp's son?"

"Haha! You two look so much alike. At first, I thought Yasopp had somehow ended up here!"

Usopp and Luffy, who was leading the way, had already started talking. Luffy recognized him at once. The father and son really did look alike, especially their wild hair and thick lips.

"You know my dad!?"

Usopp was surprised and delighted. He hurried after Luffy, eager to ask about Yasopp.

"He should still be on Shanks's ship, I think."

"You mean Red-Haired Shanks?"

"How do you know?"

"What!? That's one of the great pirates!"

"Huh, is he?" Luffy scratched his head and grinned.

"Our captain never reads the news."

Lina couldn't help feeling exasperated with Luffy. Shanks was the person he admired most, yet he'd never bothered to look for news about him.

They chatted as they walked, with Luffy telling Usopp all about Yasopp along the way.

When Luffy was little, Red-Haired Shanks had stayed in Foosha Village. Luffy had heard plenty of tall tales from Lucky Roo and Yasopp.

He never expected to repeat the stories Yasopp had bragged about to Yasopp's own son.

Before long, the five of them reached the village and ducked into the first restaurant they found.

"You really admire Yasopp, huh?"

"Of course."

Usopp stood on his chair, planted one foot on the table, and declared boldly, "My dream is to become a brave warrior of the sea, just like him!"

"That's great! Then come be our crewmate!"

Luffy grinned, flashing a full set of white teeth, and invited Usopp to join them.

"In that case, I can be your captain."

"No thanks..." the four of them said, lowering their heads and going back to their meal.

"Hey, wait! Don't reject me so quickly. At least think about it," Usopp said, trying to salvage his offer.

"Actually, we're looking for a ship."

Lina set down her utensils and brought it up herself. "Usopp, do you know where we could find one?"

"...A ship?"

Usopp rubbed his chin and looked up in thought. "I guess there's only one place around here that might have one."

"Really!? That's great! Take us there, Usopp!" Luffy exclaimed, looking up excitedly.

Then Usopp suddenly remembered something and hurriedly changed his mind. "No, no! You can't go there."

The others looked puzzled. After Usopp explained, they learned about the mansion in the village and the story of its owner, Kaya.

"Wait a second. The Kaya Usopp mentioned—isn't she the one Jango was talking about yesterday? The target of Kuro's scheme?"

Lina had known about this from the start. Nami was the first to catch on.

She decided to tell Usopp everything outright, then take the others to expose Kuro by force.

"Jango? You know about Kaya and Kuro?"

Usopp was confused. He'd only told them about Kaya, so how did they know about Kuro?

Lina lit a cigarette and slowly explained how they'd encountered the Black Cat Pirates yesterday and learned about Kuro's scheme from Jango.

"Hey! You're not making this up, are you?"

Usopp could hardly believe it. He slapped both hands on the table. "You're not just saying that because you want to get your hands on the ship, are you?"

Lina took out the wanted poster they'd gotten from Jango and handed it to Usopp.

It listed Kuro's bounty from three years ago. Jango and the others were probably the only ones who still had a copy.

After all, Kuro had supposedly been captured, and the Black Cat Pirates had rarely appeared in public since.

"This... This is!" Usopp looked shaken.

He recognized Kuro at a glance. He often sneaked into Kaya's estate to see her, and Kuro chased him away every time.

"Damn it!" Usopp stuffed the wanted poster into his pouch, spun around, and bolted out the door.

He had to tell Kaya right away. A great pirate with a bounty of 16 million berries had been hiding by her side for three years!

"Wait for me! I'm gonna knock that bastard flying too!"

Luffy jumped up in a hurry and carried the food off the table, plates and all.

Lina and the others followed. Kuro was not someone they could afford to underestimate. None of them could keep up with the speed of his Shya Death.

That was also why Lina had her eye on Kuro. That insane burst of speed would be perfect for sneak attacks...

Too damn cool!