The Silver Haired Pirate

Chapter 44

hhhhhi--uh--I am alive have a chapter it's shit apologies--

"Special attack..." Usopp spoke up from his spot on the ground, "Ketchup star."

Aki opened his eyes and frowned. Of course, it was a diversion. If Usopp fought fair it might be a struggle for Luffy. But then there was the question of whether Luffy would truly fight. 

Aki bit his nail; a nervous habit. 

Zoro glanced at him but didn't say anything. 

"What? Pity for the enemy?" Usopp reached for something. "Flash dial!"

A bright flash appeared, a mockery of lightning but still bright. The crewmates on the boat waited with bated breath as the two fought in the cloud of kicked-up dust.

Suddenly Luffy is pushed out of the cloud. He stumbled with a hand over his eyes.

"Special attack," came Usopp's voice from the cloud. The dust cleared and they could see Usopp bringing the band of his slingshot backward. "Egg star!" When he released the slingshot an egg flew right at Luffy causing it to splatter its raw continents onto him. "And again!" Another was launched.

"Ugh! That stinks! They're rotten." Luffy said. "Darn you! Get serious and fight you jerk!" He shouted at Usopp who was panting for one reason or another.

Aki assumed it was because he wasn't fully healed yet and moving wasn't helping the healing process.

"You think I'm fooling around?! I'm deadly serious, Luffy!" Usopp yelled back. "This ... is how I fight!" He put something else in his slingshot, "watch out or that gaping mouth of yours will get burned!"

The crew watched as Luffy suddenly turned red and spat fire. Whatever Usopp had shot was too small for them to see so it looked quite ridiculous. 

Aki had experienced many fights in his life, he trained with other samurai, watched other samurai fight, fought in wars, protected his master. This fight, though, was... how to put it... 

Aki sweatdropped when Luffy fell down on a bunch of caltrops behind him. 'unique' his brain provided. 

"Usopp's controlling the fight!" Nami noted. Aki wasn't surprised. Usopp was creative and unpredictable on occasions. Like he thought if Usopp really tried Luffy would have a hard time. That didn't mean Luffy would fail or lose. He was just premature when it came to fighting. 

Like a crow, per se. He learned in the heat of battle. Absorbed moves and fed off of them. He might not notice it but Aki sure did.

"Luffy, I'm gonna beat you and take the Merry Go with me..." Usopp suddenly declared, "No matter what it takes!" 

Luffy stood up shakily. He was covered in raw egg and scratched up. Aki blinked as shurikens were launched at Luffy nonstop causing the captain to dodge non-stop. 

"Hmm?" Aki noticed a shell on the ground at the same time Luffy dodged the last of the shurikens. The boy noticed the shell too, but a moment too late since smoke began filling the open space.

Aki's eyes narrowed. Was that smoke? It could be his imagination but there was a faint smell of gas.

"Gas," he heard Sanji say. Name, too, heard him and leaned forward on the railing. 

"No way!" She exclaimed. Chopper's eyes widened impossibly and he too leaned forward. Aki's grip on the young pirate tightened. 

Usopp launched something toward Luffy. The crew waited, breaths caught in their throats. Aki sighed when a large explosion rang through the air, a soft ringing followed it. Aki turned Chopper around to shield him from the bright light of the explosion.

It was so violent it rocked the boat on the sea and created a long line of thin waves in the water. 

"What an explosion!" Zoro said, amazed, as he covered his eyes with his arm.

"Not exactly something to be amazed of, swordsman!" Aki shouted over the sound of the howling wind and creaking ship, the water hitting the rocks violently, and that insistent ringing. 

Aki sensed pain, agony, emotional and physical. He turned back to the fight, eyes wide.

"Usopp was hurt in the blast too," he muttered. Nami heard and turned to the fight violently.

"Luffy, Usopp!" She shouted worriedly. Both were on the ground, Luffy laying down, bloody and bruised. Usopp was leaning against a rock, bloody and beaten too.