Sniff...I don't know what to even say!!! Sniff... The support you guys have shown in the previous chapter's comments, it really brings me to tears. And I am not being sarcastic. I am literally feeling emotional.
So, here it is...
You've motivated me.
POWAAAAAAA....
For that motivation, I wanna share this with you all.
MEME:
.
.
.
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Attendance Please:
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After recounting everything that had happened and staying by his side for support, Yuji left the hospital so Usopp could rest.
Now he walked along the village's dirt path, hands in his pockets, taking a slow stroll. The dry earth crunched softly beneath his shoes. The afternoon sun hung heavy over Syrup Village, casting short, sharp shadows that followed him like silent witnesses.
Every so often, a villager would wave at him, and he would nod back. But their waves felt different now, no longer absent-minded greetings for a stranger. There was weight in their fingers, a slight tremble of gratitude that had not been there before. An old woman carrying a basket of bread paused mid-step to bow her head to him. A farmer wiped his brow and tipped his hat with the kind of respect usually reserved for the village elder.
After Jango spilled everything, the people of Syrup Village began to look at him, Luffy, Zoro, and Nami with respect and gratitude for saving their home.
And let's not forget Usopp.
Previously, he was known as a troublesome boy who lied constantly. Now, he had become a hero of his village, finally earning the respect he truly deserved for helping to stop the Black Cat Pirates, thwarting Kuro's plans, and protecting his village and its people until the very end. Yuji had even seen some children trying to imitate Usopp.
Yuji hummed softly and glanced up at the mid-afternoon sun in the clear blue sky. The bright light stung his eyes, but he didn't look away. He let it burn, allowing the afterimage to drift across his vision like a question mark. He was contemplating how things had become so tangled in the first place.
The Syrup Village arc, according to the manga, was supposed to be straightforward: defeat a few Black Cat Pirates, then Luffy defeats Kuro, and that's it.
However, in this case, the situation was far more complicated.
First, five hundred pirates united under one banner, that was way too crazy for the East Blue, except for Don Krieg, of course.
Then Kuro tried to rape Kaya as a last-ditch effort… yeah, that was really messed up.
He stopped in his tracks and rubbed his chin. A beetle scurried past his foot, its green shell catching the light. For a moment, Yuji watched it—tiny, fragile, and completely unaware of how cruel the world could be.
'Lucky bug.' he thought.
"Maybe me being here caused changes I wasn't ready for," he mumbled under his breath. "Or maybe this is some alternate timeline, a completely different reality. Hmm… that's possible. If that's true, then I need to be more careful and alert at all times. This world is very real. Even all the messed-up things Oda-sensei hinted at about this world are now very real to me… and nothing is going to stay offscreen."
He stood in the middle of the dirt path, contemplating the worst-case scenarios and all the horrors this world kept hidden—when a pat on his leg snapped him out of his thoughts.
He blinked and looked down. The kids who always followed Usopp, stared up at him with wide, curious eyes.
"Oh, it's you three—Carrot, Onion, and Pepper, right?"
The kids nodded in unison. Then Onion pointed at him. "Mister, what are you doing standing in the middle of the road, mumbling?"
"Huh?" Yuji blinked, looked around, and realized he was indeed standing in the middle of the road. Some passing villagers gave him strange looks, as if they thought he needed his head examined.
"Oh, I really was doing that, huh?" He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry about that!"
The kids huffed in response to his expression.
Then Pepper asked, "Mister, are you coming from the hospital? Is Captain okay? Is he awake now?"
Both Carrot and Onion looked up at Yuji with hope. However, beneath their eagerness lay a deeper concern. They had heard the whispers. They knew their captain had done something terrible, something necessary, that would haunt him like a stray dog for the rest of his life.
"Well, he's awake now," said Yuji. "But I wouldn't suggest seeing him yet. He's still processing everything that happened, so give him some time to pull himself together."
"Aww!" the kids groaned, their faces falling in disappointment.
Seeing how downcast they looked; Yuji gently patted their heads. "Don't be sad. Usopp is a warrior. I believe he will get through this."
"Yeah, you're right," said Pepper.
"Hmm hmm," nodded Onion.
"Our captain is a brave warrior of the sea!" said Carrot, raising his hands in the air. "He'll overcome this challenge too! Just wait! Then the great Usopp Pirates will set sail on their grand adventure once again!"
"HELL YEAH! WE'RE THE USOPP PIRATES! THE GREATEST IN THE WORLD!" Pepper and Onion joined in, cheering toward the sky.
The passing villagers shook their heads in annoyance, while a few chuckled at the children's high spirits.
Yuji grinned at their energy. "Well, you kids sure are full of spirit today. How are your injuries, by the way?"
"Injuries?" Onion scoffed. "We just got knocked out—nothing more."
"Yeah, you should have seen that bastard Jango's face when Onion hit him in the nuts with that rock!" Pepper said with a laugh.
"That bastard deserved it after what he tried to do to Miss Kaya," said Carrot, clenching his small fist. A vein pulsed briefly in his temple. Then he looked up at Yuji, hesitated for a moment, and asked, "Mister, may I ask you something?"
"Hmm? What is it?" said Yuji.
"D-did Captain really kill that fake butler… Kuro?"
At that, both Onion and Pepper stiffened slightly and looked up at Yuji with questioning eyes. The air around them seemed to grow heavier.
Yuji was silent for a few seconds, then let out a heavy sigh. "You boys don't need to worry about that. What's done is done. We should move past it and look to the future. Don't dwell on it too much." He ruffled their hair gently.
The three nodded seriously. "Yeah, you're right," muttered Carrot.
"It doesn't matter," said Pepper. "Whatever the Captain did, I believe he did it for a reason."
"Yeah, we never doubt Captain Usopp," said Onion.
Yuji smiled. "Well, it sounds like Usopp is one lucky guy to have such loyal crewmates."
Carrot, Onion, and Pepper grinned. "Yep, we're the best!"
Yuji chuckled softly. "Now, can you tell me where I can find my captain?"
"Oh, we saw him at Aunt Mia's restaurant," replied Onion.
"Uh-huh, and that grumpy swordsman of yours was with him too," said Carrot.
Yuji raised an eyebrow. "Zoro was with him?"
They nodded.
"Well then, I have to go have a nice talk with that green-haired brat," said Yuji, rubbing his hands together. The kids took a step back in fright, sensing the same aura their parents gave off when they had done something wrong.
Yuji waved at the children and began walking toward Mia's restaurant.
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AT MIA'S RESTAURANT
The chimes above the door rang as Yuji pushed it open, but the sound was different today—muted, as if even the bells were tired.
He walked inside and looked around. Some tables were occupied, but most were empty.
And there, at the corner table by the window, sat Luffy, Zoro, and Nami. Luffy was busy shoveling meat into his mouth, Zoro was drinking booze, and Nami was holding a glass of orange juice while telling them something.
Yuji strolled over to the table and caught the last part of Nami's conversation.
"—and she needs serious psychological therapy if it doesn't improve," Nami finished.
Yuji reached the table and got their attention.
Luffy looked up from his food and waved at him. "Wo, Wuji!" he said between chews.
"Oh, big bro… you're here!" said Nami with a smile.
Yuji nodded at them and turned his attention to the swordsman, who was trying to avoid his gaze and sweating profusely. A bead of sweat rolled down Zoro's temple.
Yuji stared at Zoro for a full minute. The silence around their table was deafening. Outside, a dog barked once, and a cart wheel squeaked. Inside, nothing moved except the dust particles floating in the afternoon light.
Nami swallowed nervously, feeling the tension. Luffy was still busy eating, glancing back and forth between Yuji and Zoro.
Then Zoro cracked under the pressure.
"Argh! Fine, damn it! I'm sorry, okay?" He put his bottle of booze on the table and rubbed his forehead. "It's just… hospitals aren't my kind of place. All those smells of medicine and antiseptics get inside my head. And the nurse there told me I was good to go."
But Yuji kept staring at him with a blank expression. After a minute or so, he let out a tired sigh, pulled back a chair, and sat down. The wood creaked beneath him.
"You and Luffy really have no sense of self-preservation, you know that?"
Hearing that, both Zoro and Luffy looked away and began whistling innocently. Luffy's whistling was especially terrible, off-key and tuneless, a desperate attempt to fill the silence with anything but guilt.
Seeing this, Yuji simply shook his head. It was like dealing with stubborn children.
"Come on, big bro, why are you even worried about them?" Nami spoke up. "They're certified freaks. Thinking too much about them will only make you age faster."
"Yeah, what she said," Zoro said, picking up his drink again and taking a long sip.
Yuji ignored Zoro and looked at Nami. "So, what were you talking about before I arrived?"
Nami's expression shifted slightly, and she let out a sad sigh. "It's about Kaya. She's having a hard time accepting everything that happened."
Yuji hummed softly. "What is it? Does she have PTSD?"
Nami shook her head. "I wouldn't call it full PTSD, but she's very afraid to go near any man."
"Is it severe? Like a panic attack?" he asked.
"No, it's subtle. Her body starts to shiver a little whenever she sees a man," she replied. "Yesterday, Mister Taro tried to check how bad her condition was, and when he barely touched her hand, she jumped away from him and hid behind my back like a scared child."
Nami rubbed her tired eyes and took a deep breath. Her fingers trembled. Yuji noticed the dark circles under her eyes and how her nails were bitten down to the quick.
"I think the trauma from almost being... raped... has caused her to develop a subconscious shield in her mind to protect herself from breaking down."
Silence fell over the table, broken only by the sound of Luffy eating more voraciously.
Zoro clicked his tongue. "Hey, what's wrong with you? Why are you eating like that?"
Luffy stopped mid-bite and muttered, "I'm really angry right now."
Yuji, Nami, and Zoro looked at Luffy.
Seeing their stares, Luffy put down the meat and looked at them with a serious expression. "Look, I know I still don't understand many things in this world. But whatever that bastard Kuro tried to do to Usopp's friend, I know it was wrong. That's why I'm angry." He clenched his fist tightly. "I promised Usopp we would beat Kuro and protect his friend… that everything would be okay. But I failed." He slumped in his chair. "I failed to beat Kuro. I failed to protect Usopp's friend. I—failed… again."
Slowly, tears began to roll down his cheeks, and his lips trembled, but he remained silent. Then he resumed eating without saying another word.
Yuji, Nami, and Zoro stared silently at Luffy as he literally devoured his frustration and anger.
Seeing him like that, they realized they had also failed to keep their word. Yes, they had protected the village from a raid by the Black Cat Pirates. Yes, they had stopped Kuro from taking the money and inheritance. But they still weren't strong enough to prevent an innocent girl from nearly being raped. They hadn't been there for Usopp when he needed them most.
And now, even in failure, Kuro had somehow left a terrible mark on two kind souls—a mark that would haunt both Usopp and Kaya for the rest of their lives.
However, the person most affected by all of this was Yuji himself.
He had to honor his grandfather's last words. If he couldn't protect a young girl's innocence, then what kind of man was he?
He slowly tilted his head upward and looked at the restaurant ceiling. A single fly was trapped between two wooden beams, buzzing frantically against a spiderweb it couldn't see.
'I'm sorry, Grandpa. I have failed you.'
A single tear rolled down his cheek.
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See you in next chapter....