"Krabatel, Usopp is not..." Kaya started to speak, but Krabatel immediately interrupted her.
"Miss, I will listen to your explanation later," he said sharply. "Now, do you have anything else to say? If not, get out!" His tone was harsh, his face turned away from Kaya, hiding the sinister glint in his eyes.
Luffy, still smiling casually, stepped forward and said, "I want to borrow—no, buy a big ship."
Krabatel's face twisted in disgust. "No!"
"You're that Liar Bu's friend, right? I've heard about his reputation. He's the son of a despicable pirate."
He turned to glare at Usopp. "Someone like him has no right to be close to our young lady!"
Krabatel sneered with visible contempt. "You and Miss Kaya come from two completely different worlds. All you want is money, isn't that right? Fine, name your price."
Kaya's eyes widened. She stepped forward, her voice trembling with emotion. "Krabatel, you've gone too far. Apologize to Usopp right now!"
"Apologize to a barbarian like him?" Krabatel scoffed, spreading his arms mockingly. "I'm just telling the truth."
Then he turned his gaze back to Usopp. "How pitiful. You must resent your father—the man who abandoned your family and ran off in search of treasure."
He pushed his glasses up with his palm. A glint of light flashed behind the lenses. Then, in a cold whisper, he said something only Usopp and Leo could hear: "Or perhaps... he's not your real father at all."
"That's enough!"
Bang!
Usopp didn't hold back. His fist connected with Krabatel's face, hard. Blood splashed as Krabatel dropped to the floor with no resistance.
It was exactly what Krabatel wanted.
"Hahaha, look at him!" he laughed from the ground. "Violent, just like his father! Like father, like son!"
Leo and the others didn't move. They stood still, quietly observing. Leo, in particular, knew what was coming. He understood that this was necessary for Usopp's growth. Luffy wouldn't invite him to the crew yet—not until Usopp showed his true strength and spirit.
Usopp trembled with emotion, his fists clenched tightly. "Shut up!" he yelled. "I've always been proud of my father for being a pirate! I'll never hide that!"
Krabatel laughed coldly. "You lie all day long and get violent when challenged. You're no different from a common thug. You got close to Miss Kaya because you were after her inheritance. With your pirate blood, how can I trust you?"
"You still have more to say?!"
Usopp stepped forward again, grabbed Krabatel by the collar, and raised his fist to strike again.
But this time, Kaya rushed between them.
"Stop it, Usopp! Please, don't be violent…" she sobbed, her hands covering her tear-streaked face. "Krabatel isn't a bad person… He's doing all this for me…"
Pah!
Krabatel slapped Usopp's hand away and stood up with a cold glare.
"Get out," he said. "This house isn't for barbarians like you. You're not welcome here anymore."
"Tsk... you don't need to tell me that." Usopp turned away, jamming his hands into his pockets. "I'll never come back again."
His back looked small and heavy with sadness as he walked away from the mansion.
Leo watched him go, then turned his gaze to Krabatel one last time. He disappeared from sight without a word. Now wasn't the time to fight. Krabatel had to be defeated—but not by Leo. That task belonged to Usopp... or perhaps Kaya. But they'd need help to get there.
After Leo vanished, Luffy and the others—including the carrot-headed boy—were kicked out too. But Luffy wasn't done. Quietly, he followed Usopp alone.
Down by the southern beach of the village, Usopp sat cross-legged in the sand. His face was scrunched in frustration, his fists buried in the dirt.
He wasn't angry at Krabatel anymore.
He was angry that Kaya hadn't chosen to believe him.
"Hi!"
"Wah!!"
Luffy suddenly jumped out from behind a tree, startling Usopp, who clutched his chest and yelled, "Can't you say hello like a normal person, you idiot?!"
Just as Usopp began to recover, Leo reappeared behind him and patted his shoulder with a sly smile.
"Ha!"
"!!!!"
Usopp sprang into the air again. "Are you two trying to kill me with a heart attack?!"
Leo chuckled and sat beside him. "Your father's Yasopp, right? You really look like him."
"Yes, yes!" Luffy added, flopping down beside them. "That's what I was going to say! Leo, you know him too?"
Leo nodded with a grin. "He's part of Shanks' crew. Very well-known in the New World."
"Shanks?! You mean... that Shanks? The Red-Haired Shanks?!"
Usopp's jaw dropped in disbelief.
"Exactly," Leo confirmed. "He's one of the strongest out there. Yasopp is one of his sharpshooters. It's said he can shoot the antenna off an ant without hurting the rest of it."
Luffy nodded enthusiastically. "Yasopp's a legend! I've seen him! Shanks and his crew used to visit my village all the time."
Usopp's eyes glistened. Slowly, the heavy sadness began to lift from his heart.
He looked at his hands, clenching them into fists again—not in anger this time, but in pride.
"I've always been proud of my father," he said softly. "He's been my idol for as long as I can remember... sailing the sea with courage, facing all the unknown out there."
Then his tone shifted, filled with fresh anger. "But that butler dared to say such cruel things... That's unforgivable!"
"They're right down there," Leo said casually, pointing toward a lower slope behind them.
Usopp peeked over the edge of the hill. From there, he could hear muffled voices and see the figures of Krabatel and a man in a top hat talking near the woods.
"Captain Kuro... I've heard of him," said one of the men. "A pirate who stole through tricks and deception... but wasn't he executed three years ago?"
Krabatel—no, Captain Kuro—adjusted his glasses with a sinister expression. "If Miss Kaya leaves a will, and then 'dies in an accident'... there shouldn't be any problems, right?"
"Hahaha, I see. Captain Kuro, everything will proceed as planned," said the man in the top hat—Jango—with a grim look.
"Brothers, the time has come. We can't hold back any longer…"
Usopp's breath caught in his throat. His face turned pale as cold sweat rolled down his temples. His heart was pounding so fast it felt like it might burst.
"This is bad… Kaya's in danger… and the village… it's going to be raided!"
Usopp staggered back from the edge of the hill, eyes wide in panic.
"I need to warn everyone! I need to protect her!"
He turned to Leo and Luffy, face full of determination.
No more lies. No more hesitation.
This time, he would act.