"I am Luffy, the man who will become the Pirate King."
Luffy declared his iconic line with full vigor.
"Pirate King?"
Hearing this title, Usopp's eyes lit up, influenced by his irresponsible father and his inexplicable yearning for pirates.
But then he looked at Luffy… "Hey, hey, hey, what kind of look is that?!"
Luffy also saw Usopp's suspicious and disbelieving gaze and got a little angry.
"Are you pirates? And also, what was going on with you just now?"
Usopp hadn't forgotten Luffy's stretchy arms from earlier.
As he spoke, he looked at the group again, especially his gaze lingered on Zoro and Link for a while.
The former had swords on him, clearly not to be trifled with, as for the latter… hmm, he didn't expect to see a man even handsomer than Captain Usopp.
This guy was shamelessly pondering internally.
"We are…"
Luffy gestured with his hands and feet to Usopp, telling him that he was a pirate and had come here to find a pirate ship.
"Looking for a pirate ship?"
Although seeing the almost dilapidated, pockmarked small boat made it hard for Usopp to associate Luffy with pirates.
But in his conversation with Luffy, he found the other party very much to his liking, and he also forgot the previous recklessness caused by the Devil Fruit Ability.
His old habit began to act up, and he vigorously patted his chest:
"Want to find a ship? This is what I, Captain Usopp, am best at! Just tell me how you want to find it, there's no ship that I, Captain Usopp, can't find! Back in the day, I, Captain Usopp, led eight thousand subordinates, galloping across the dangerous seas, facing the threat of island-eating goldfish, I selflessly blah blah blah blah…"
Once he started bragging, he couldn't stop.
Link knew Usopp's true nature, but Zoro and Nami instinctively exchanged glances.
How could this long-nosed guy, who collapses at a touch and has not a single muscle on his body, seem so unreliable?
"Awesome!"
Luffy, who believed whatever anyone told him, had golden stars in his eyes, already captivated by Usopp's story.
"I didn't expect you to be so amazing! So, you can definitely help us contact the wealthy family here to get a pirate ship, right?!"
Usopp's bragging suddenly stopped short.
"You said contact who? Get it from where?!"
He asked again, a little uncertain.
"It's the wealthy family living here. I heard both parents passed away, leaving only one child and a butler…" Nami stepped forward, relaying the information she got from Link.
As she spoke, she couldn't help but marvel at how Link seemed like an encyclopedia, knowing everything so clearly! "Exactly, exactly, that's right!!"
Luffy also nodded repeatedly from the side, but he didn't notice Usopp's increasingly stiff smile.
Wealthy family? Only one child and a butler?
Isn't that Kaya?!
These guys are actually after Kaya?!
Although these self-proclaimed pirates didn't seem bad, Usopp didn't want them to interact with Kaya from the bottom of his heart.
"Um…"
His eyes darted around, as if he was brewing some new ideas and excuses.
"Oh, by the way, it's rare for us to meet for the first time and chat so congenially. We've talked so much, your throats must be a bit dry, right~"
Link glanced at Usopp, then suddenly took a step forward and said with a smile.
Then, he reached behind him and pulled out a square glass box.
"How about some candy to soothe your throat?"
He shook the box, and the pinkish-purple round candies inside rolled around.
"Hey, so you have candy, Link! You should have said so earlier!!"
Seeing new food, Luffy immediately cheered, unceremoniously took the box from Link's hand, opened the lid, and poured one out for himself.
"Delicious!!"
After popping the candy into his mouth, he immediately narrowed his eyes in delight.
For him, everything was delicious except for things that couldn't be eaten.
"I'll have one too."
Perhaps thinking that eating together could build rapport and lower guard, Usopp also pretended to be familiar and took a candy, putting it into his mouth.
Seeing this, Link's lips curved into a slight smile.
"Although I don't know what kind of candy that is…"
Zoro and Nami observed silently, not reaching for any candy.
"But Link pulled it out so abruptly, and it had such strange packaging and color…"
The two subconsciously exchanged glances, "It's definitely not a normal candy!!"
If it was just about taste, it was no different from ordinary candy, but this candy had an extra effect compared to ordinary candy, and that was~~~
"The person you're looking for is Kaya. She's the only one who fits the description in Syrup Village."
Usopp blurted it out casually, but after speaking, his expression suddenly froze.
[That's not what I wanted to say at all?!!!]