One Piece Fan Fiction ❯ Broken, Only to Heal Again ❯ Be brave, young one ( Chapter 7 )

Chapter 7

Usopp had managed to secure most of the list of good Nami had provided. The only thing he had left was to have it delivered. He made the necessary arrangements with the merchants and happily walked down the street to the docks. Now, like Luffy, Usopp isn't the brightest, but he knows enough to pay attention when the hair on the back of his neck stands up. He was a chicken of course. And being a chicken, he began to panic. He was being watched. Moreover, it was in the same area that Zoro disappeared yesterday. Usopp's knees began to shake as he made his way through the throngs of people.

Villagers were smiling and cheerful, giving him small greetings as he walked by. The aroma of freshly baked bread wafted from one store while the smell of baked fish came from another. The chink of coins could be heard as transactions were completed and both customer and businessman were pleased. Women in brightly colored dresses with silken scarves haggled over the price of bolts of fabric and lace. A few old men sat around a game board contemplating the best move to make next. No one seemed to stand out as suspicious in the crowd. They all nodded and smiled when they caught his eye.

Usopp shook his head and sighed. The stress of losing the others must be getting to him. He was supposed to be the bravest man of the sea, and here he is scared of his own shadow. A hand reached out and grabbed his wrist. Usopp screamed, high pitched and loud, and tried to run away. The person kept a strong hold on him and was drug behind as Usopp continued to run.

He came to a fork in the road. If he went right, he would continue down to the docks. Left would take him on the outskirts of the village and down to the beach. He took the chance and glance at the person so valiantly hanging onto him. Usopp came to a halt in the middle of the intersection. There hanging from his arm was a small child, the hat on his head almost completely covering his face. He had on a loose white t-shirt with a black dragon imprinted on the front and black shorts.

“He-Hey!! Where did you come from?” Usopp tried to loosen the grip on his arm. “Look kid, you gotta let go. I don't know who you think I am, but I'll have you know I'm the great Captain Usopp, Great Warrior of the Seas. You should fear and respect me. Now unhand me this instant.”

The child lifted the hat enough to send a look to Usopp that screamed `Liar.' Still he held tight to the older man's arm.

“Come on now. You need to let go. I can't go walking around with you attached to me. Ok, let go now. Please. Oh, come on! Give me my arm back. Little leach! Get off me kid!” By this time, a few of the passing villagers stopped to laugh at the comical situation. Usopp was dancing around shaking his arm in the air, trying his best to detach the child from his person. The boy's grip seemed to only get tighter as he hung on for dear life. “AAAGGHHH! You guys quit laughing and help me out here. Does anyone know who this thing belongs to? This isn't funny now. Someone help.” The more Usopp pleaded the louder the laughter grew. Eventually the poor marksman decided to give up. He drug himself and the firmly attached parasite, as he now called it, over under the shade of a nearby tree. The villagers shook their heads snickering all the while. People gradually went back to what they had been doing previous to the comical show. Most of them still had smiles lingering on their faces well into the day.

“I give up.” Usopp panted trying to catch his breath. “Just who are you? And what do you want with me? Are you some new military tactic?” He straightened up quickly. A look of panic crossed his face. “The Marines are using children to apprehend the enemy. Or maybe you're a crazed pirate who got shrunk down to a child. You've come to infiltrate our ranks and capture us one by one. Who can resist a cute kid? Of course, we would take pity on one and let him in our mists. We're doomed!” He fell back to lay on the ground taking the boy with him. The small one struggled to a sitting position and questioningly looked at the funny looking man. “What?”

“I want to see your ship.”

Usopp blinked in confusion. All of this for a tour of the ship? “Why do you want to see the Merry-Go? There's bound to be tons of Marine ships here that you could go look at. Why mine?”

“Because yours is a pirate ship.” The child stated matter of factly. “I wanna see it now! Are you gonna show it to me or not?”

“Look kid, I don't know who you think you are, but you can't just go up to people and demand they do something. It's called manners. You should learn them. Didn't your mother and father teach you better? Do they even know where you are? You really shouldn't wander away from them. I'm sure they're worried sick about you. Where do you live, I'll walk you back home?” Usopp turned his wrist, grabbed the boy this time, and hauled him up. He began walking back toward town. Suddenly the boy started jerking away from him.

“NO! I want to see the ship. I don't have a mom or dad to go home to. Please don't take me back. I just wanna see the ship. Please Captain Usopp, I wanna see the Merry.” By this time, the tears were flowing freely down the stricken face of the child.

Usopp stopped and looked down at the boy. How could he say no to such a heartbreaking image? He had even called him `Captain Usopp' just now. Usopp drew himself up to stand tall, sticking out his chest. It was almost like being back home with the Veggie Pirates for a brief moment. His grip on the boy loosened to a gentle hold. “Well since you have gone to such great trouble to track down the Great Captain Usopp, I guess I could grant you this one request. But you have to promise me that you will go home and let whoever takes care of you know where you are as soon as we are done, ok?” The boy wiped his eyes and beamed up at the long-nose member of the Merry-Go. His nodded his head and slid his hand from Usopp's wrist to settle in the palm of his newfound friend.

“So what's your name? I can't just keep calling you kid, ya know.” Usopp smiled down at the small figure.

“My name is Muteki. It means invincible. But you can call me `Teki. That's what most people call me.” Teki stated. He was so happy that this strange man decided to let him see the infamous ship of the Straw Hat Pirates. He just needed to talk to one particular crewmate, but if this could get him on the ship, then that was good enough for the moment. “Where are all your crew? Are there lots of them? Do they all look like you? Why do you have that big nose? Do you have cannons on the ship? Can I see them? Where do you sleep? How did you get your flag? Did you make it yourself? Why…..” The questions continued to come out of his mouth so fast that Usopp couldn't help but laugh as they made their way to the docks.

“Slow down Teki-kun. I can only answer one question at a time,” Usopp laughed. “Now what do you want to know first?”

“Oh, gomen.” Teki put his finger to his chin and tilted his head in thought for a moment. “How many pirates are on your ship?” This would help him find out if he really had the right person or not now. It sure looked like one of the men from the market the day before, but one could never be too sure.

“Well, there's not many of us. We are all so strong that most people are afraid of us so they stay far away. I of course am the strongest of them all.” Teki rolled his eyes at this, but made sure that he wasn't seen. “Then we have Nami. She's our navigator. Nobody knows the sea better than her. And Robin is our archeologist. She can be a bit scary sometimes. Sanji is our cook. He is constantly kicking Luffy in the head for stealing food. Chopper is our doctor. He's a bit different, but he's great. Then we have Zoro. He's the first mate and the muscles of the group. Of course, he and Sanji are fighting all the time. If not with the enemy, then with each other. You put those two together and there's nothing they can't defeat. They know each other like best friends. As much as they fight, I think it's just because they're bored. Oh and there's Luffy the Captain of the Straw Hat crew.”

“But I thought you were the captain? Didn't you say you were?” Teki was confused now. How could there be two captains on a ship so small.

“Um, oh yah, well, you see, I am a captain, just not the captain of this ship. I am just serving Luffy for now because he begged me to help them. Yah, that's it. He heard of my great adventures and searched me out begging me to join his crew. And me being such a great guy, I couldn't say no.” Usopp sweat dropped. That was close. Here was this kid looking at him with such hero-worship that he couldn't bear to let him down. Of course, he didn't know that he was being played, but that wasn't the point.

“So are they on the ship? Can I meet them? Do they have swords and guns and stuff?” Teki plastered a smile on his face as big as he could muster. He was never one for being patient.

“You see, they are all very busy right now…. Out gathering supplies and such…. Doing errands and…. Well I don't know when they will be back, you know. They might be gone for a couple days and…” Usopp stammered around the answer. He avoided eye contact with the boy hoping to pull off the lie. He couldn't just tell this new admirer that some of the crew was lost.

“Captain Usopp? Did something happen to the crew? Is someone in trouble? I know people at the base. Maybe I could help? Please let me help.”

“The base! No, no definitely not the base. They want to kill us there. Teki, I'm sorry but there's nothing you can do. We'll get them back soon. Sanji and the others are working on it. Besides, there's no cell that can hold our Zoro….” Usopp looked down as Teki yanked his hand away from him.

The small boy stared at the marksman with fear and horror in his eyes. “You lie!! Zoro's a great swordsman. He wouldn't get caught. He's too good for that. He can't be captured. What happened? I thought that you said Sanji always fought with him. Why aren't they together? I don't believe you!” Teki turned and ran down the street toward the center of the marketplace.

Usopp stood staring in disbelief. What was going on? First, the kid grabs him and won't let go, then he demands a tour of the ship, and now he's running away because Zoro was captured. He shook his head and resumed his way down the wooden dock. They were only mere yards from Merry when Teki took off. He needed to get the supplies stored and make the ship ready for a quick departure.

Teki was crying again. He had to be strong. He may be just a kid, but he had a mission. He needed to find out if the powerful swordsman was really his father or not. This was the first person that he had ever seen with the same color hair as himself. It had to be him. There was no other answer. All his hopes, all his dreams, everything rested on this famous hunter being the one to… He shook his head to clear it. He could think later, but right now, he had to hurry.

He reached the entrance of the base and hid in the small space between the gate and the wall. He crept up the wall using the jagged rocks as footholds. His small frame hid easily in the shadows. He was thankful that he wore the grey hat today. It helped blend him in with the rock of the wall he was currently peering over. Sweat gathered on his brow. A child his age shouldn't even be here. He should go back and tell Jii-chan. He could help him. Fear took hold of him, as tears began to cascade down his dirt-covered cheeks. He wiped his face with the back of his sleeve, smearing the grime even more. He looked like a lost homeless orphan all alone on the rock he so precariously stood on.

The weapons groups seemed to be cleaning up from the morning drills. The combat training groups were running laps now. A single marine exited from a side door. She looked like she had been crying. Suddenly an arm sprung from the earth and motioned to the gate. He held his breath. There was no way he had been caught so soon. Quickly she made her way out the gate and down the street. At a corner store, another arm sprouted and pointed her in another direction. She was soon lost from sight. He let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding and turned his attention back to the courtyard before him.

All he needed was a diversion. Something to draw attention away from him while he made his way to the door the woman had just exited. Then it happened. An explosion from one of the weapons groups. Apparently, one of the new cadets didn't realize that the cannon was still loaded from the earlier exercise. All the Marines ran to the site to assist in helping the injured out from under the rubble of rock broken from the cannonball impact to the outer wall.

Teki jumped over the wall and landed in a pile of sand bags. He peaked over the edge and saw it clear to run. Quickly he made it over to the door and slipped in. Now for the hard part. He needed to make his way to the Captain's office and get the keys to the prison cells. Ducking in and out of doorways along the route, Teki slowly closed in on the Captain's area. He waited for a group to pass before he darted up the staircase to the second level. So far, so good. He knew he would be beaten severely if he were found. He tried to keep focused on what he needed to do. His small feet carried him to the final hallway. The sound increased behind one of the doors so he decided to hide. Opening a door marked `Supply Closet' he quickly ducked inside.

Tears threatened to start again as he thought about where he was. He suddenly didn't feel very strong anymore. He needed to find this man. This `Zoro.' If he wasn't his father, maybe he was an uncle, or even a cousin. There couldn't be any other explanation. He had to be family. How else could you explain the same odd color hair? Teki looked around and spotted a small sink to the back of the `closet'. He turned on the cold water and washed away the traces of his tears. He could not be a coward before this man. He had to make the legendary swordsman proud of him.

With a little more faith in himself, Teki peered out the door to see the surroundings. Suddenly doors opened on both sides. It seemed to be lunchtime for the officers. The hallway was filling with lieutenants, majors, and such. He held his breath as he hid silently in the closet. Soon he heard the voice of the feared Captain coming down the corridor.

“See that the prisoners are fed. Place guards outside my office at all times. I don't want them to be given any chance to escape.” Kuro's voice was cold and commanding.

“Hai, Captain. We'll send one of the errand boys down with food. No use sending a Marine to serve those two.” One of the Marines snickered.

“Very well. See that it's done.”

Teki waited until the footsteps could no longer be heard before he crept out of his hiding place. He needed to move quickly before the guard got to the Captain's office. He hurried down the hall and slowly opened the door leading to Kuro's office.

It was a very elegant office. Dark mahogany chairs sat before an equally dark desk. Behind the desk was a large leather chair that just screamed `I am too good for you.' A gold lamp adorned with jade carved ships and a crystal light shade sat to one corner. An exotic plush rug cushioned his feet as he made his way further in to the room. Paintings of landscapes from worlds unknown adorned the walls. Red velvet curtains framed the large picture window on the right. He noticed none of this, for setting in the middle of the desk were three swords. One black, one red, and a white one that seemed to call to him. He reached out to touch it and jerked back when the door opened.

“What are you doin here?” A young boy of maybe 10 years entered the room with a large tray of food. He wore a pair of plain blue pants that came several inches above his black shoes, and a white T-shirt. He struggled to keep the tray balanced and hold on to the bottle of water.

Teki thought quickly. “I'm here to help you carry stuff.” He took the water from the older boy so the tray could be carried properly.

“Oh, good.” There was a look of relief that flashed across his face. “I'm supposed to be in the kitchens helping today. The head chef is gonna kill me for bein late.” The errand boy's look turned worried.

“Well, you could leave the tray here and I can take it all down. It will take me a couple of trips, but I can do it for you.” He looked up in the others eyes trying to give his best innocent impression.

“Oh, man would you? That'd be great! I owe you one. Here's the key to the door. Just leave the key over there in the base of that plant. I have to come back at dinner time to bring food also.” The boy handed Teki a key and turned to leave. “Hey thanks again.” He closed the door behind him and once again, Teki was alone.

He knew he couldn't carry all three swords down the stairs. He just needed to carry one. The white one. For some reason it called to him. He knew that was the one to carry. He took an empty rucksack from one of the side tables and placed the water and food it in. There was only meat, bread and fruit. He slung the pack over his shoulder and turned to the desk where the sword lay. He took the white sword from the desk and walked to the blank door at the far side of the room. With a deep breath, he placed the key in the lock and turned. Remembering his promise to the other boy, he turned and tossed the key into the plant. As the door swung open, he was able to make out a voice. He prayed that it was one of the two captives and not a Marine down there.

“Oi, are you ok? You don't look so good. Can you hear me? Oi! Oh no! He's dead! I killed him! Help! Chopper! I need a doctor! Help! Wake up! Zo-owwww! … Why did you hit me? You're mean!” The first voice began to cry.

“Baka! The hell are you thinking asking me things like that? Seriously! Did your mother not teach you anything before you left? I am not going to answer that. No way, no how. You can wait until Sanji gets here… Shhh. Somebody's coming.” The second voice quieted.

Teki made it to the bottom of the stairs carefully. The large bag made moving difficult.  He gulped and looked over to the cell. A young guy with messy black hair and a red vest stood next to the bench lining the back wall. The other figure had his back to the front of the cell. His shirt was missing, showing off the bandaged torso. He had black pants and boots. Nevertheless, more importantly, he had green hair. The same green as was hidden under Teki's hat.

“Food! I smell meat! Did you bring us something to eat? Hey isn't that your sword Zoro?” Luffy asked.

Zoro's head snapped to the side at this statement and his eyes narrowed. “Where did you get that?”

Teki stepped forward so he was not hidden in the shadows. He carefully sat down Wado on the floor. “I need to know who you are.” The bag of food was sat down as well. “And I need to know why you look like me.” With that, he removed his hat and looked the older version of himself in the eye.

“Hey Zoro it's a mini-you! Well except for the eyes you guys look exactly alike.” Luffy was clearly amused. However, it never takes much to do that. “Hey Mini-Zoro, did you bring us food? Gimmie, gimmie, gimmie! Agh, sea-stone.” Luffy, in his haste to gain food, had grabbed a hold of the bars of the cell.

Zoro picked the fallen captain up off the floor and threw him aside. “I have no idea who you are, but if you do not hand over that sword immediately there will be trouble.” Zoro held his hand out.

Teardrops began to fall from crystal blue eyes. You could almost hear the child's heart break across the room. He had been rejected.  The man didn't know him or even appear to want to know why they looked alike.  The immortal image of the hero his mind had created began to crumble.  Suddenly the child began to wail. Loud gut wrenching sobs echoed in the large room.

Luffy bashed Zoro in the head sending the swordsman to the ground. “You meanie! You made that poor little kid cry. How could you do something so heartless? That's just wrong. Hey kid, what's your name?” Thru the sobbing, Luffy was able to discern the child's name was Muteki. “Hey, Muteki, can you give us the food?” Teki nodded, the sobbing reduced to hiccups and sniffling. He grabbed the bag and approached the cell door.

“How do I give it to you?” Teki asked. He looked at the cell door. “I only had a key for the door at the top of the stairs.” Teki hung his and stared at his feet. He felt useless. He was before his hero and there was nothing he could do. The man probably hated him. That had to be why he looked at him that way. `He looked as if he hates me already. Even if he is… He doesn't want me.'

“Give me the sword. The door won't be a problem after that.” Zoro's voice had softened. He knew he shouldn't have been so hard on the boy, but damn it was eerie seeing him face to face. His mind was full of questions, but he didn't know if he really wanted any of the answers.

Teki never took his eyes off the ground, but made his way back to where the precious sword had been set down. He carefully picked it up and walked back to the cell. Holding Zoro's treasured sword Wado horizontally in front on him, he offered the sword up to the would-be hero of his dreams. When the weight was not immediately lifted, he looked up to see the infamous swordsman staring at him with an odd expression on his face.

“Muteki.” He mumbled and took the sword from the child's hands. It took a moment to maneuver the sword through the bars. “Why did you bring me this one? Why not one of the others?”

“It called to me. It told me to take it.” He shifted his feet nervously. “The red one scared me. The black one was silent.” Teki looked up at Zoro with hope. He broke out in a grin at the pleased look on Zoro's face. “The others are in the room at the top of the stairs. I can go get them if you need them.” Teki turned to run up the stairs.

“No, we'll get them in a minute. Just stand back. I'll cut through the bars and we'll be right out.” Zoro unsheathed his sword and began to focus. A moment later, the bars fell apart and clattered to the ground. “Be careful Luffy. Don't step….”

“GOMU-GOMU NO ROCKET! FOOD!” Luffy launched himself across the room to where Teki had drug the bag and himself a moment ago. Immediately he began to inhale everything. “Hey Zoro, you want some? You didn't get to eat breakfast because you were sleeping.” Luffy handed Zoro a loaf of bread and a slab of salted pork.

Zoro took the offered food and quickly consumed it. His body was weak from blood loss and stress. When he was done, he turned his attention to the little boy staring at him with wide eyes. A frown made its way onto Zoro's features. Now what the hell was he supposed to do? He again scanned the room. The windows were high and small. Luffy could probably squeeze out of one, but there was no was he could make it. He needed a plan. His back was stiff, but he had lived though much worse. If he concentrated, he didn't even feel it.

“Luffy, I need you to take the kid and get out though the windows. Make your way to the Inn to see if anyone is there. If they are, hurry up and go back to Merry. If not, make your way back to the front gates of the base. I may need a distraction to get us out of here. We need to get Usopp out of sight.”

Teki jumped up at Usopp's name. “I know where Captain Usopp is.” He shouted. Maybe going to the docks was a good thing this morning after all. “I met him this morning. He was shopping for supplies. He'll be at the Merry for sure.” He was proud that he could help them with the information.

“Way to go Muteki!” shouted Luffy. The captain was clearly impressed. Even Zoro gave him a small nod.

“Did `Captain' Usopp say where the others were?” inquired Zoro. So the baka was calling himself Captain again, huh. I wonder if the information is really any good.

“He said that Sami was looking for you and the others were running errands.”

“You mean Sanji?”

“Yah, that's it. Captain Usopp said he's your best friend. Is that true?” Teki wondered how a cook and a swordsman became friends. He wondered how a cook could really be that good of a fighter either. “He said that you guys always fought each other because you were bored. Is he really good at fighting? I didn't know that cooks could fight.”

Luffy and Zoro both let out a laugh at this. “Sanji kicks ass. He's the best there is. He could have broken us out of here with one kick. Even Zoro gets banged up fighting with him.” Luffy continued laughing at Zoro's scowl.

“I can beat that shitty-cook any day of the week. Pansy ass doesn't even use his hands. Too afraid he'll injure them and not be able to continue fawning after those damn women.” Zoro continued to frown; well it was more like a pout. “That's beside the point. If Sanji is out looking for us then we need to hurry. He'll probably get himself caught in the process of trying to get in here.”

Teki shifted his feet nervously.

“Was there something else?” Zoro noticed the boy's discomfort and decided to call him on it.

“Um, I know about devil's fruit powers and stuff.”

“Yes, so.”

“Do you know someone who can grow arms out of the ground? I saw a woman leaving here earlier following these arms that just appeared out of nowhere.”

“Robin!” Shouted Luffy. “She's our arca…. Archi…arkie…. Our treasure hunter. I bet she was leading someone out to get information.”

Teki looked solemn. “The woman was crying. She had orange hair, and was wearing a Marine uniform.”

“Nami.” Zoro sighed. “Looks like she's just fine Luffy. She's tougher than you think. OK. Well that accounts for everyone except Chopper. I'm guessing he's with the love-cook.” Teki giggled at this. “So let's get out of here. Luffy, take Teki to the ship. Leave him with Usopp. Not `Captain' Usopp, just Usopp. Then make your way back to the gates. Look for Sanji and the others on the way. Do not enter the base for any reason.”

“What about you? How are you going to get out?” Luffy asked his first mate.

“Right through the front.” Zoro smiled evilly. “I can't go without saying farewell to our old friend now, can I?” Zoro looked at the pile of rags that use to be his shirt. It was useless. At some point, he'd need to find another one. For now, he retrieved his black bandanna and tied it to his head. He looked down at his likeness and then back to Luffy. “Keep him safe.” It was somewhere between a question and an order. The boy was important. He just didn't know how much yet.

“Hurry up and get out.” Luffy clasped Zoro's shoulder and looked the swordsman in the eye. “I still need you. We all do.”

Zoro nodded and took off up the staircase.

“Don't go! Not when I just found you. Please don't leave me too. No!” Teki started crying.

Zoro's footsteps halted halfway up the stairs. He turned to look at him.

“That,” Zoro pointed at Teki's chest where the necklace lay hidden, “is mine. I expect you to return it when I get done here.”

Teki reached up and clenched the pendant through his shirt. `How did he know it was there?'

Zoro continued up the stairs in the blink of an eye and disappeared.

Luffy picked Teki up and shot up to the small window. After placing the struggling child through, Luffy squeezed out the opening behind him. They were in the back of the building, but patrols would still be around. Luffy placed a hand over Teki's mouth to silence him.

“I have faith in him. You should too.” That statement alone caused Teki to go still. He nodded his understanding and Luffy released him. “Climb on. We've gotta run.”