Syrup Village—
"Pirates are coming! Pirates are coming!"
"A pirate ship has docked on the west coast!"
"Several thousand pirates got off that pirate ship!"
Usopp, dressed in brown and wearing a netted cap, his nose as long as the lying Pinocchio's, sprinted toward the village as he shouted.
"Everyone, hide! Pirates are coming!!!"
Hearing Usopp, the villagers ignored him and instead looked at him with disgust.
A middle-aged man said coldly, "Usopp, you're lying again!"
"You lying sack of trash!"
"Honestly, doesn't that Usopp ever get bored?"
"What an annoying brat."
Unable to take it anymore, some villagers picked up stones from the ground and threw them at Usopp, but he nimbly dodged them.
Usopp pulled a face at them. "Nya nya nya~ You missed, you missed!"
The villager angrily grabbed a wooden stick and chased after Usopp.
Seeing that, Usopp took off running.
"If you've got what it takes, come catch the great Usopp!"
The villagers behind him were beside themselves with rage.
Usopp taunted the villagers behind him as he ran. Whenever they were about to catch him, he accelerated and pulled away again.
After looking back several times, the villagers were gone.
Usopp gradually slowed to a stop. He turned around several times in a row, but no one was chasing him anymore.
"They stopped chasing me? How boring!"
Arriving at the west coast, Usopp sat beside a cliffside rock, occasionally looking back in anticipation that someone might come after him.
"A... a pirate ship?"
Just as Usopp picked up a stone and threw it into the sea, he suddenly saw a pirate ship appear on the ocean.
"You've got to be kidding me!"
It was Usopp's first time seeing a real pirate ship. The enormous vessel bore a pirate flag depicting a dark skeletal angel, while its golden hull gleamed brilliantly.
Rubbing his eyes, Usopp confirmed that he had not seen wrong.
And that pirate ship was heading toward Syrup Village.
"I'm dead, I'm dead! Pirates really are coming!"
Usopp's first reaction was to go back and tell the villagers.
Watching the pirate ship draw closer and closer, a sheen of cold sweat covered his forehead.
"I have to tell the villagers!"
Usopp ran as fast as he could in the direction he had come from, shouting as he ran, "Pirates are coming! Pirates really are coming! You have to believe me!"
"What a huge pirate ship!"
Usopp shouted desperately, but the villagers all glared at him coldly, some even glaring in fury. A few simply shut their doors, out of sight and out of mind.
"Will you ever stop?!"
"Big liar!"
"You're so annoying!"
No one around him believed what he said. For the first time, Usopp felt despair.
"How... can no one believe me even when I'm telling the truth? This time... pirates really came!"
"Syrup Village at last. Mark, does this place really have the miraculous footwork you mentioned?" Daisy looked at the ordinary village before her with curiosity.
Mark answered with certainty, "It does, but I don't know whether he'll be willing to cooperate."
So he doesn't actually know that person, Daisy thought.
He was referring to Kuro's Silent Step.
Kuro was a character who appeared early among pirates, and his Silent Step was an excellent ability.
Its most obvious trait was that it made no sound when used, while also creating an effect similar to invisibility. This was not true invisibility, but rather an illusion caused by reaching a certain level of speed.
Mark now badly needed to fill the gaps in his hand-to-hand combat.
Silent Step, the Marine Six Styles, even Lao G's Di Weng Fist—these were all things he needed.
Silent Step could make his offensive capabilities stronger. The Marine Six Styles could comprehensively strengthen his hand-to-hand combat, especially Geppo. Once learned, it allowed one to run through the air. As a Devil Fruit User, Mark had a great need for Geppo.
And things like Lao G's Di Weng Fist could be used to strengthen his hand-to-hand combat.
Not just Lao G's Di Weng Fist—he wanted to learn Dragon's Dragon Claw, Iron Fist, and other such martial arts as well.
As long as it could make him stronger, he wanted to learn it.
Mark and Daisy headed for Syrup Village, while Chiu Chiu chose to stay behind and guard the pirate ship.
Syrup Village was not a very populous village, but everyone there lived comfortably. The wealthiest family of all was Kaya's.
That was also Mark's destination.
"Hello, sorry to bother you. Could you tell me how to get to Kaya's house?" Mark asked an elderly man.
The old man was watering flowers in front of his home. Hearing Mark's question, he sized him up from head to toe. When he saw the huge axe on Mark's back, he was stunned for a moment before speaking.
"Kaya? You mean the young lady from the Lohrel family?"
Lohrel? A trace of confusion flashed through Mark's eyes.
"Is Lohrel the family with the largest mansion in the village?"
"That's right! They're the richest family in our village. I even saw Lohrel this morning..."
Mark suddenly understood. Lohrel should have been Kaya's father.
That meant Kaya's parents were still alive.
"Does the Lohrel family have a butler who often wears glasses and looks rather refined?" Mark asked.
If Kaya's parents were still alive, then perhaps Kuro had not yet come to Syrup Village. Mark did not know Kuro's alias, so he could only describe his appearance to the old man.
"You mean Klahadore? You seem quite familiar with the Lohrel family. Are you a friend?"
"We've met before," Mark replied.
"I see. Their house is..." The old man gave him directions.
"Thank you, sir," Mark said gratefully.
As he left, Mark seemed to hear the old man mutter, "Young people these days, always pretending to be pirates... That child Usopp too, and this one as well... Sigh!"
Mark laughed inwardly. The old man had probably seen the weapon on his back and guessed that he was like Usopp, never realizing that Mark really was a pirate.
Now that he knew where Kaya lived, Mark headed straight there.
"Mark, is the person you mentioned that Klahadore?" Daisy asked.
"Yes, it's him," Mark answered. "But that isn't his real identity."
"Not his real identity?"
"His real identity is that of a pirate. His name is Kuro. You should have heard that name before, right?"
"The Black Cat Pirates!" Daisy said in surprise.
Mark nodded. "That's right. Him."
"Wasn't he killed by the Marines two years ago?"
"Fake. That was only his stand-in!"
Daisy sighed. "No wonder Silent Step sounded so familiar. So it was his move!"
There were only so many pirates in the East Blue. The Black Cat Pirates had been at the height of their power back then, but rumors suddenly spread that Kuro of the Black Cat Pirates had been killed by the Marines. After that, the Black Cat Pirates' reputation plummeted.
She had never expected Kuro to conceal his identity and become a butler for a wealthy family.