[U.T] Ch 27: Kuro of a Hundred Plans

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At the gates of the most luxurious mansion in Syrup Village—

Luen and the others stood there, guided by Usopp's three little subordinates: Onion, Carrot, and Pepper (nicknamed for their hair shapes).

They had run into the kids just as they were about to leave the restaurant. At first, the kids thought these pirates had done something terrible to their brave "Captain Usopp."

But once they found out Luffy knew Usopp's dad, Yasopp, they relaxed and decided to lead them straight to this place.

Luen didn't mind—it was convenient having someone show them the way.

"Wow, this place is huge."

Luffy stared up at the mansion in awe.

"Yeah, it's massive," Luen nodded.

To build something this fancy in such a small, poor village… no wonder Kuro had his eyes on it.

"If the captain's gone missing at this time of day, he's definitely here," Onion said seriously.

"What's he doing here?" Luffy asked, tilting his head.

"Lying," Carrot replied bluntly.

"That's not good!" Nami frowned. "He's teaching kids to lie?"

"No way! It's awesome!" Carrot shot back.

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "What's going on exactly?"

"Miss Kaya—the lady who lives here—is super sick. And ever since her parents passed away last year, she's been really depressed. No matter how rich you are, that kind of sadness hits hard."

"So Captain Usopp tells her his wild stories to cheer her up," Onion added.

The three kids nodded in agreement.

"Oh, so he's doing it to make her smile… That's actually kind of great," Luffy said thoughtfully.

"Has she been getting better?" Nami's opinion of Usopp had clearly shifted.

"Way better!" Onion said proudly.

"Alright then! Let's go ask her if she can give us a ship!" Luffy grinned and raised his hand excitedly.

"Hey, hold on—she only got better thanks to Usopp, not us," Zoro folded his arms. "Why would she give us anything?"

"I'll go ask anyway. Hehehe…" Luffy said as he grabbed the mansion's fence.

"Gomu Gomu no…!"

His arm stretched out wildly.

"Oi! You idiot—!" Zoro shouted, trying to stop him.

Luen just smirked, grabbed Zoro's shoulder, and hid behind him. "Sorry to bother you~!"

Luffy suddenly let go, and the tension from his stretched arm launched everyone into the air like slingshot ammo.

"AAAHHHH—!!"

— — —

"Hahaha! That's how I escaped from that giant goldfish!"

Usopp, having left earlier, was now standing in a tree outside the mansion window, bragging to Kaya about his imaginary adventure.

"That's…?"

The weak-looking girl with soft golden hair and delicate features suddenly pointed toward the sky. This was Kaya, the young lady of the mansion.

"Huh?"

Usopp followed her gaze and his eyes nearly popped out.

Was that… people falling from the sky?!

BOOM!

A loud crash echoed as Luffy and the others crash-landed.

"Smooth landing," Luffy mumbled, his face buried in the ground.

"LIKE HELL IT WAS!!" Nami snapped, now in angry demon mode. If Luen hadn't shielded her (using Zoro as their shield), she'd have thought she was done for.

"Oi, Luen… you bastard…"

Zoro groaned, lying face-down as well, barely turning his head to glare at Luen and Nami—who were on top of him.

"Ah, sorry, sorry. You've got better endurance, Zoro," Luen said shamelessly.

He was literally sitting on Zoro's back like it was a cushion, holding Nami in a princess carry.

Luen had known from the start that trusting Luffy's plans was a bad idea, so he grabbed Zoro the moment things went sideways.

And hey, Zoro had a beast-like physique—this much impact would only toughen him up more.

Yep! Luen was a good guy who was helping Zoro train his body.

"Thanks, Luen."

Nami turned toward him, lips slightly parted. Every time… he always protected her.

Back in Orange Town, Luen had said he'd risk his life for her—and that had really stirred something inside.

Though… in her mind, she may have romanticized his words a little more than he intended.

"If you guys wanna hug, go do it somewhere else. I'm still underneath you!"

Zoro's voice trembled with frustration.

Swoosh!

Nami's face flushed red as she jumped out of Luen's arms.

"Zoro…"

Luen patted him on the back.

"Next time, let's spar. Just the two of us."

He smiled brightly—too brightly. It sent a shiver down Zoro's spine.

"Umm...you guys okay?"

Kaya walked over with concern written all over her face.

"Yeah, all good! They just came to see me! They're, uh… the newest members of the Usopp Pirates!" Usopp quickly said, sweating bullets.

These guys were real pirates, after all. Even if he trusted them, if the villagers found out, it could cause a lot of trouble.

"Not me," Luffy said, dusting himself off and adjusting his hat. "I came to ask for something."

"Oh? You came to ask me for something?" Kaya blinked, surprised.

"Yeah! We need a big ship," Luffy replied, totally straight-faced.

"Who are you?!"

A cold voice cut through the air.

Everyone turned to look.

A man in a butler's outfit was walking toward them slowly.

Luen narrowed his eyes.

Kuro… 'Captain of a Hundred Plans', huh?

He muttered to himself. 

"Show Traits."

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