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For as long as Kaya could remember, Usopp has always been observant.
On good days, although she was still in bed recovering, he would be flamboyant. Arms moving as he talked, added random flairs and different effects into his story(never enough to ruin her health ). On the worst days, when Kaya is completely bedridden from the sickness, he would be more quiet and lean closer to the window. His voice would be soft spoken and his stories would be calmer(never lacking an adventure ). On days where even she doesn't know how to feel, Usopp is there, talking like there's no tomorrow. He would always be there for her with stories like none she heard before .
She always looked forward to his arrival. He was a breath of fresh air, compared to the people around her.
Usopp never coddled her. Despite her weak constitution and her inability to get out of bed, Usopp never treated her like fragile glass. Kaya always wondered if Usopp had known that she never wanted to be treated as someone who would break under a single touch. She's grateful for that part of him. The way he always seems to know what's on her mind, the way she feels, the way he just knows what to say to cheer her up.
But no matter how observant Usopp can be, this is a bit ridiculous!
"How..." Kaya mumbled, surprised at the outcome. Usopp wore a proud and smug face that she wanted to wipe off. A pout formed on her face as she glared at Usopp's hands. "Again!" Kaya demanded.
"Sure, but it still won't change the fact that I'm on a winning streak, Kaya!" Usopp teased.
They threw their hands in. "Rock, Paper, Scissors!" Kaya's eyes widened when her hands folded into a rock and Usopp's opened into a paper.
"You have to be cheating!" Kaya said, flabbergasted by the results. Usopp laughed.
"And how exactly am I cheating, Kaya?" He said, raising an eyebrow, as he crossed his hands.
"I don't know!" Kaya scrutinizes his fingers. "Maybe you're reading my mind somehow or something!" Kaya watches as Usopp folds over and another laugh escapes from his mouth. Her cheeks reddened, but not from the sickness. "There's no other explanation! How did you win 20 rounds in a row?!" She said, frustrated.
"Ever thought that maybe I'm just that good?"
"Usopp..." Kaya started. "No matter how good a person is at Rock-Paper-Scissors, there is no one who could win 20 times in a row. We didn't even get a tie!" She furrowed her eyebrows. "Is it luck? No, that can't be it."
"It's all skills," he said, flexing his arm muscles. Kaya deadpans and with a sweet smile, she said,
"Nonsense," Usopp splutters, protesting against her. But Kaya was too busy in her mind to pay attention to him. Surely, he'll lose to someone. Right?
"Merry!" Kaya smiles when the butler enters her room. Merry watches as Usopp gulps and shifts awkwardly on the tree branch.
"Miss Kaya," Merry said, turning his attention away from the boy. "Why did you call for me?"
"I need you to prove something for me," Kaya said.
"H-Hey, this isn't really necessary, is it?" Usopp stumbles over his words. Kaya shot him a glance.
"Are you finally going to explain how you won all those rounds then?" She whispers back. "Don't say skill," she said when Usopp's mouth opened to reply. After her words, he closes them, lips forming a pout. He exhaled a sigh and resigned to his place. Kaya beams at him before turning back to Merry. In a very serious voice, she says, "Play Rock-Paper-Scissors with Usopp,"
Merry blinks once. Perhaps he had misheard her? "Excuse me?" He said, tilting his head in confusion. "You want me to play... a game with Usopp?" He words carefully. Kaya nods, a smile still apparent on her face. "And how exactly do I play 'Rock-Paper-Scissors'?" He inquires.
"Oh!" Kaya lets out in surprise. "Rock-Paper-Scissors is a game where you fight with a fist, a palm, and a peace sign, symbolizing rock, paper, and scissors, respectively. Rock beats scissors, scissors beats paper, and paper beats rock! Is that enough explanation?"
Merry wants to say that it was not enough information, because he still doesn't understand why he must play this game with Usopp. However, Kaya did ask for him and this was the least he could do to satisfy her commands.
So instead, he turns to face Usopp, who startles when they make eye contact. "Shall we begin then, Usopp?" His hand in a fist, laying flat on his palm, as he prepares.
"R-Right!" Usopp said.
"Rock, Paper, Scissors!" Kaya said. Her eyes widened when Merry's hand formed into a palm and Usopp's into a peace sign. The two males turn to Kaya, as she studies Usopp's hand with a disdainful stare. "Again!" She proclaims, ignoring the way Merry twitched and how Usopp groaned. "Rock, Paper, Scissors,"
Usopp wins with a rock to Merry's scissors. Kaya pouts before yelling, 'Again', once more.
Paper to Rock.
Rock to Scissors.
Scissors to Paper.
Paper to-
"This isn't right!" Kaya grumbles, throwing her hands up in frustration, as Usopp continues to win. Merry and Usopp shared a glance, worried for the young girl. "There has to be a way..." A sudden idea pops into her mind. "Close your eyes!"
"What-?" "Miss Kaya-"
"Play Rock-Paper-Scissors with your eyes closed. This way you won't be able to cheat, Usopp!"
"I wasn't cheating in the first place-"
"Merry, you should do the same to make it fair!" Kaya beams at the butler. Merry nods, following the young lady's order. Usopp lets out a sigh before complying with her words.
"Rock, Paper, Scissors!" Kaya eagerly awaited the results. She looks down at their hands and blanches.
Merry and Usopp were left with slightly deaf and stunned ears.
"I refuse to believe it, Captain!" Ninjin exclaims as Tamanegi and Piiman nod furiously behind him. "There's no way you could have won every single time you played with Kaya!" Usopp had started talking about his tales of his never-ending win streak, bragging about never losing to Kaya, when the kid had spoken up. The 4 of them were by the beach, overlooking the beautiful blue sea.
"Are you doubting the great Captain Usopp?" Usopp said, in an over exaggerated tone. The kids look half torn in saying yes, they are doubting him and no, because why would they doubt him? He sighed. "I shall prove to you my skills then!" Usopp pauses before his hand clenched into a fist. He really didn't want to play Rock-Paper-Scissors again. He still has trauma from what Kaya did before.
"Let's play some Hide and Seek then," Usopp said, instead. "You three will hide anywhere in Syrup Village and I'll be the seeker! After 60 seconds, I'll go after you. If I don't find you within an hour, I lose. However, if I do find you guys in under an hour, I have proven my skills as a winner."
He doesn't try to tell the kids that Hide and Seek and Rock-Paper-Scissors were two entirely different games that proved different things. He's a liar like that. Usopp only watches silently as Ninjin, Tamanegi and Piiman share a glance with each other.
"Wait one second, Captain!" They said, before scurrying a few feet away to discuss. Usopp tapped his feet impatiently. The trio nodded at one another, a determined face replacing their uncertainty from before. They walked back to Usopp. "Okay! We agree to your terms, Captain."
Usopp smiles, "Alright, I'll start counting then. One, two, three," he counted, closing his eyes as he heard the footsteps run away from him. "Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen," he continues all the way to sixty. Removing his hands from his closed eyes, Usopp blinked, trying to get used to the light again. "Ready or not, here I come," he murmurs.
The first thing Usopp looked at when searching for them was the ground, for any footprints that could lead him to the kids. Sure enough, he saw 3 pairs of small, light shoe prints, all running in different directions. He blindly follows one into the village. He wanders for a while, not so quite straying from the footsteps, as he looks around him. When the footprints faintly faded away, he looked up.
It's almost comical how he makes eye contact with Tamanegi, who held a wheelbarrow in his hands with a poorly put together disguise. The farmer shirt was 5 sizes too big even when he tied it up and tucked it into his khaki pants. The hat was enormously big, dipping down his head and past his eyes. Tamanegi had looked up at the wrong moment, catching Usopp's eyes when he was looking over.
"Geh!" He squeaked out. His hands dropped the wheelbarrow, covering his mouth when the sound came out.
"I was planning to let you go, but this is kind of..." And for the lack of words, Usopp trails off, sweat dropping at the kid's actions.
"W-wha-" Usopp pats the kid on his head, receiving an 'oof' in reply.
"You need to work on your disguises if you want to beat my eyes, Tamanegi!" He boasted whilst the kid sulked. "Now go back to where we started. I still have 2 more to find," his eyes flickered to the floor again as he tracked onto another pair of familiar shoe prints. Behind him, he heard Tamanegi grumble under his breath. Usopp snickered quietly.
He walked along the dirt path and down the slope before reaching a more forested area of Syrup Village. The fallen leaves had been disturbed and crunched on, meaning one of the kids should be around here. Unless it was another person that was walking through. He thought. Highly unlikely, considering most of the adults are working at this time of the day. He shrugged the idea away. He twisted through the trees, looking up in the green leaves for any sign of life, preferably a short kid.
It was only after passing a few more trees did he then catch a glimpse of a dark pepper shaped head, crouching on the branches, his back facing his face. Usopp waited under the tree for a while, watching as Piiman carefully scouted his surroundings for a glimpse of his captain. When he couldn't find him anywhere in the village, he sighed in relief, leaning against the bark of the tree. "Phew," he said. "I escaped."
Usopp almost felt bad. Keyword: Almost.
He whistled softly, watching from the corner of his eyes, the way Piiman flinched and pushed himself against the bark as if the tree would swallow him whole to protect him from being seen. "Ah man! I swear I came across this tree a while ago..." He said out loud, making sure Piiman heard him. "Well, looks like I'm lost! Maybe I should just climb this tree to find my way out." A tiny squeak escaped the boy's mouth as Usopp grinned. Usopp looked up, making sure he made eye contact with the boy. "But it seems that someone has already taken over this tree,"
Piiman groaned, his hands gripping on the bark as he climbed down. "It's not fair!" He said as soon as his feet hit the ground. Piiman's cheeks puffed up as he pouted at his captain.
"Are you implying that I cheated?" Usopp said, his head tilted to the side and he crossed his arms, scrutinizing the young boy. Piiman frantically shook his head before looking up with teary, innocent eyes. An arrow shot through Usopp's guilty conscience even though he didn't do anything wrong. To be fair, I did find him rather quickly... "If you just tried a little harder in your camouflage even me, the best seeker, won't be able to find you." Piiman admired him through tears. "It'll still take you a hundred years before you'll be able to beat me!" Usopp beams. "Now go meet up with Tamanegi on the beach."
Piiman grumbled as he kicked the dirt and turned in the direction of the beach, dragging his feet over. Usopp caught a quiet, 'even Tamanegi-kun was caught', before shaking his head and snickering to himself.
Well, one more to go. He thought to himself as he eyed the tree Piiman was on previously.
The village was anything but small, but it wasn't huge either. Even standing on the tallest tree branch Usopp could find, his eyes weren't able to scan the entirety of the village, watching as some of the house dipped behind the hills, hiding behind the houses and stores in front of them. Still, it was enough.
Usopp climbed down the tree and made his way back to the village, following the route he remembered that lead him to Ninjin. Reaching the house was no big deal, he practically memorize the entire village's layout from how often he ran through it. No, the big deal was finding a way to get up to the roof where he had been hiding. Surprisingly, it wasn't as difficult to solve as he thought it would, because lo and behold, there is a tall, metal ladder, perfectly situated on the side of the house with easy access to the rooftop.
He shook his head and sighed before climbing up to the top. He reached the rooftop and quietly stepped on. Usopp looked down to find Ninjin laying on his stomach scanning the village for something, or perhaps someone. Huh? Did he not see me before? He thought. Doesn't this mean that my abilities increased?! Usopp cheered mentally in his mind, deluding himself from reality, drunk on his excitement.
Usopp turned his attention back to the boy after a few seconds and crept up to Ninjin's side. Ninjin, surprisingly, didn't notice him. Must be focused on searching for me. He thought. "Whatcha looking for?"
Without missing a beat, Ninjin replied absentmindedly, "For my captain- WAH?!" The boy whipped his head to the side, his eyes widened as he made eye contact with him, and his body froze like a deer caught in headlights. "C-Captain?!" Usopp grins before flicking the boy's forehead. "Ow! What was that for?"
"For not hiding your evidence! Did you really leave your ladder by your house and didn't think it was out of place?" He said. Ninjin bowed his heads, embarrassed from Usopp's disappointment. He stared down at him for a few seconds before letting out a sigh. "Well, Captain Usopp lets you off this time! Don't make the same mistake next time, Ninjin." He watched as Ninjin nodded furiously. "Alright, now lets go meet up with Tamanegi and Piiman." He said, standing up and dusting himself off before making his way to the ladder.
"Ehhhh? They've already been caught?"
Usopp stopped and turned to grin at Ninjin. "I'm Captain Usopp for a reason! There's nothing I can't do!"
The village was still when Kaya walked through the streets. All of the villagers greeted her with a kind smile and she did the same for them in return. None of them know. She thinks, watching as everyone continued on with their life. No one knows how close they were close to death. Kaya looked down at her hands. They've been shaking ever since the aftermath of the battle. She clenched them once and fixed her shawl before making her way back up to her mansion. If this is what Usopp wants, then I really can't fight against his decision. She chuckled softly to herself, thinking of the boy's word.
"Kaya!" She heard her name called and raised her head. Usopp stood further up on the hill, a heavy-looking backpack on his shoulders. He... really is leaving to be a pirate, isn't he? She thought to herself, watching as Usopp jogged towards her.
"Did you need something, Usopp?" Kaya asked when the boy finally stopped in front of her.
"Just wanted to say goodbye before I go," Usopp said, a pant escaping him.
"Don't you think that's too much stuff?" She stared at the bag on his back.
"Not at all! The great Captain Usopp needs to be prepared for everything. The seas are not kind, you know, Kaya? There's monsters and creatures lurking in the depths of the seas. Dangerous and horrifying, they stalk their prey. Have I ever told you about-" Kaya giggled, interrupting Usopp's story.
"Usopp, thank you for everything," Usopp tilted his head to the side, not quite understanding Kaya. "You saved the village from Khal- I mean, Kuro. You saved everyone's life and even though I didn't believe you, you went against him to save me too, and I just can't seem to find a way to repay you for that. I know I've given Going Merry but still."
Usopp stayed quiet for a while, that even Kaya was unnerved by his silence. Had I perhaps said something wrong? She was wearing a downcast expression before Usopp finally decided to speak up. "Then why don't you play one last game with me before I leave?"
"I'm not going to play Rock-Paper-Scissors with you." Kaya glared. In response, Usopp sweat dropped. "You have to be cheating."
"Kaya, we already had that talk. How on earth was I cheating? Just admit that Captain Usopp's skills bested yours!" He boasted, sticking his chest out with pride. Kaya pouted and decidedly ignored him. "And besides, this is a different game." That caught her attention. "I'm calling it 2 Truths and 1 Lie!"
"How do you play it?" She asked, playing along with him.
"I'm basically just going to say 3 things. 2 of them are truths and 1 of them is a lie. You just have to guess which one is the lie!" Usopp explained. Kaya nodded her head, processing the rules. "Here I go: First, I will become a great warrior of the sea. Second, you will become a doctor, just like how Tamanegi will be a writer, how Piiman will be a carpenter, and how Ninjin will be able to own a bar. And lastly, none of us will achieve our dreams." Her eyes widened when she finally understood the purpose. He shot her sneaky grin and Kaya could only let out a resigned smile.
"The third one is the lie." Kaya finally said. Usopp locked eyes with her and beamed.
"Ding! Ding! Ding!" He said. "Ahh, damn it! You actually got one over me!"
"You should have underestimated me! I can see through all your lies, Usopp," she bantered, her lips holding a cheeky grin.
"Don't worry, I'll come back to tell you adventurous stories that are more unbelievable than my lies that even you can't tell the difference!" He replied. "I'm going now! I gotta see my fellow pirates off at sea!" He waved goodbye as he ran down the hill towards the beach. Kaya watched with wistful eyes, staring at his back as he met up with Luffy, Zoro and Nami at the shore. She watched as Usopp bid goodbye, not quite understanding his situation. Then after a few seconds, she watched as Usopp leaped into the air which soon led, somehow, to a shouting match between Luffy and Usopp. Kaya giggled softly at their antics.
"You won, Usopp. I lost to you," she whispered. "Now, you have to win the other battles out there. You can't break your 100% win rate, you know?" Stay safe, Usopp were the words that wouldn't leave her mouth, but even then, Kaya thinks this was good enough as a parting word to Usopp, the boy that never loses in any game.