Higashi Akimitsu is a man with many secrets, some even he wont come to terms with, follow him on an adventure as a pirate with the Strawhats through lows and highs.
so let's pretend i didn't only now realize that this chapter hadn't been published last week-
aha-
i drew Aki and Kazan tho- so have that
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Luffy stared at Usopp, unblinking.
"What would you know?" He asked calmly.
"Luffy!" Someone else shouted.
"There is no carpenter on this ship." Luffy continued. "That is why we need them to look for us!"
Usopp turned towards the door, resting a bandaged hand on the ground to lean on it.
"Big deal!" He shouted. Chopper walked over to Aki and clutched his shirt. Aki didn't look down at the child but patted the boys back and rubbed soothing circles. "We don't need them! I'll fix it like I always have!"
"Stop, Usopp."
"Its decided then. Everyone give me a hand. First we'll buy wood from the shipyard. Time to get busy!" Usopp continued through his delusions. It was more heartbreaking than anything, really.
"You're not a carpenter, Usopp!" Luffy shouted to the wounded man who was trying to stand.
"Hey, Luffy!" Nami turned to Luffy.
Things were going about in the wrong way.
"Yeah, but so what?! And so what if they are?! It's not their ship! They don't give a damn!" Usopp confined the shouting fest from his spot crouched on the floor. "They're just bullshitting us. I don't believe them! we'll fix our own ship!"
Nobody said anything.
"I'll never give up this ship! Are you all idiots?! Do you listen to those carpenters like dogs?!" Usopp launched himself at Luffy and grabbed him by the collar. "The Strawhats I know wouldn't give in to a marketing scheme! They would believe in Going Merry's strength and fortitude! Stop bluffing, damn brat! Don't say "I've decided" like you're a real captain! I've misjudged you, Luffy!"
"Stop, Usopp! Luffy didn't-" Nami tried stepping in but Luffy held his arm out, blocking her from getting any closer to the two of them.
"Shut up, Nami! I have made my decision! I won't change it no matter what you say!" Luffy shouted confidently. "We're changing ships, and we're going to say goodbye to Going Merry right here!"
"Bullshit! I won't allow that!"
Aki sighed and rested a hand on his forehead. This was really getting nowhere. And it would continued going nowhere if they kept shouting at each other.
"Calm down! Stop yelling at each other." Sanji tried, again.
"Listen Luffy! Not everyone can ruthlessly move forward in cold blood like you! I can't leave behind a wounded comrade and I won't." Usopp was now standing a little ways away from Luffy, trembling.
"That's stupid! Ships and people are two different things!" Luffy exclaimed. He wasn't wrong.
"They're the same! Going Merry is alive! You probably wanted a ship since the start! You're just too careless about leaving Going Merry!"
"Don't talk like you know everything, punk!"
Aki refrained from raising a brow at his choice of... insult. It was like the pot calling the kettle black. Luffy was as much a punk as anyone.
"You're not the only one who cares about Merry!"
"If you care, you won't want to change ship!" Usopp argued back.
"Fine! If you don't like my decision," Luffy shoved Usopp onto the floor by his shoulder. Quite violently, "Then just leave!" He shouted, clearly blinded by emotion.
Sanji kicked Luffy off of Usopp the instant those words fell from the captains mouth. Chopper jumped behind Aki who was still crouched on the floor (there's a fly in my room-).
"Luffy, what are you thinking?! Calm down! Watch what you say!" he reasoned (just thought I'd let y'all know).
"Ah... sorry," Luffy apologized. It made Aki's shoulder relax, if only a little, "I didn't mean..."
"No, that's fine, Luffy!" Usopp shouted, now laying limp on the floor. "Since that's what you really feel!"
"What did you say?!" Luffy asked, getting up from the floor. The table that Luffy had been leaning against had been broken into splinters (I'm calling it Fred).
"having behind the cremates that are useless to you one by one, so yo can keep moving forward! If you want to leave this ship behind then leave me behind, too!" Usopp slowly and shakily got up.
"Goodness-Usopp you can't be serious." Aki finally spoke, done with this whole ordeal.
"No I am. I've thought about it."
'Clearly you haven't.' Aki thought.
"I knew that I would never be able to catch up to any of you... as of today, I am nothing more than a bad baggage boy who can't hold on to cash... In the future, I will probably get you into even more troubles.. there's not doubt that you don't want a useless crew member like me..."
Aki was... disappointed. Usopp was one of the original members of this crew, one of the "few" that were apart of it before they had made it to the Grand Line. He had gone on far more adventures and gotten to know the crew for much longer. How did he not realize that they cared for him? That they cherished him and all he brought to the table? Why was he thinking the way he was? Was he being selfish for thinking such things?
Aki blinked to shut his own thoughts up.
"Luffy, your goal is to become the pirate king... but I don't necessarily want to go that far... if you think back to when I joined... I only went because you invited me..."
Aki felt like-no knew, what Usopp was saying was not what Usopp was saying. He didn't mean it, in the least. He was just spouting nonsense to make sense of something that was hard for him to grasp.
"The fate that brought us together is only so strong... since we don't have the same goals, we should go our separate ways!" Usopp left the room. Everyone watched as he hopped off the deck of the ship.
"Hey, Usopp! Where are you going?!"
"I go where I want to go." Usopp said simply as he walked away. "I... quit."
"No! Let's talk about this!" Nami shouted.
"Hey! Come back!" Sanji, too shouted.
"AAAH! Don't leave us, Usopp!" Chopper cried in the arms of Aki, who said nothing. Like Zoro, who too said nothing.
"I can't go with you anymore." Usopp said, stopping. "I won't cause you trouble anymore. But the ship belongs to the captain. So fight me. If I win, I'm taking Going Merry!" Usopp turned around.
