**Cocoyasi Village, Conomi Islands – East Blue**
**The two days after the battle**
The first full day after Arlong's defeat felt like the village was waking up from a long, bad dream—slowly, stiffly, one careful movement at a time.
Sunlight filtered through the tangerine leaves in soft golden patches. The air carried the clean smell of saltwater mixed with woodsmoke from the small cooking fires villagers had started lighting again. Children ran barefoot through streets they hadn't dared play in for months, chasing each other with sticks that doubled as swords. Their laughter sounded thin at first—tentative—but by noon it had grown louder, bolder, like the village itself was remembering how to breathe.
Luffy spent most of the morning hauling debris. He didn't ask anyone where things should go; he just picked up broken beams, shattered crates, and twisted metal sheets, stacking them in a growing pile near the old dock. Every time he passed a villager struggling with something heavy, he wordlessly took half the load and kept walking. No one argued. After last night, no one dared.
Sanji had claimed the mayor's ruined kitchen as his territory. The roof was half gone and the stove was dented, but the pantry still held enough rice, dried fish, and tangerines to feed everyone for a few days. He worked shirtless, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, barking quiet orders at the handful of women who had volunteered to help.
"More firewood—dry stuff, not green. And someone find me salt. Real salt, not that tide-pool sludge."
One of the older women—Mrs. Nojiko's neighbor—smiled as she passed him a small sack.
"You talk like you've been cooking for armies your whole life, boy."
Sanji lit a fresh cigarette without looking up.
"Close enough."
Zoro sat cross-legged on the porch of a half-rebuilt house, three swords across his knees. He was sharpening them slowly, methodically, the whetstone making a soft, rhythmic rasp against steel. Every time a villager tried to thank him for last night, he grunted and looked away. But when a little boy shyly offered him a bruised tangerine, Zoro took it without comment and bit into it like it was the most normal thing in the world.
Koby moved between groups with a small first-aid kit he'd scavenged from the boat. He knelt beside a fisherman whose arm had been gashed during the fighting, cleaning the wound with careful, practiced motions.
"Hold still—this might sting a little."
The man winced but didn't pull away.
"You're good at this, kid."
Koby's cheeks went pink.
"I just… read the manual a lot. And practiced on myself during training."
The fisherman chuckled.
"You're gonna make a fine Marine."
Koby ducked his head and kept working.
Nami stayed mostly away from the crowds. She sat on a low stone wall behind the mayor's house, old village map spread across her knees, charcoal in hand. She was updating it—marking new safe channels, noting collapsed docks, sketching in hidden coves she remembered from years ago. Every few minutes she glanced toward the pier where Usopp had spent most of the morning sitting alone.
Usopp hadn't said much since dawn.
He'd helped carry water buckets for a while, then disappeared toward his father's grave on the small hill overlooking the sea. He stayed there for almost two hours—sitting cross-legged in the grass, talking quietly to the simple wooden marker. No one disturbed him.
When he finally came back down, his eyes were red but dry. He found Luffy near the central square, stacking the last of the broken crates.
"Hey," Usopp said.
Luffy looked up, grinned around a mouthful of tangerine.
"Hey! You okay?"
Usopp shrugged.
"Sort of."
Luffy offered him half the fruit.
"Eat. Sanji says people think better when they're not hungry."
Usopp took it automatically. Bit into it. The juice ran down his chin.
They sat on the crate pile for a while, watching villagers hammer boards over broken windows.
Luffy spoke first—casual, like he was talking about the weather.
"The boat's leaving day after tomorrow. Gotta report back. Make sure Arlong stays locked up."
Usopp nodded slowly.
"Yeah."
Luffy peeled another tangerine segment.
"You thought any more about coming?"
Usopp stared at the fruit in his hand.
"I… yeah. All night. Couldn't sleep."
Luffy waited.
Usopp exhaled.
"I keep thinking about my dad. He died fighting Arlong's crew. Told me to protect the village. I promised I would. But I failed. For years. Hid. Lied. Made up stories so people wouldn't be scared."
He laughed—small, bitter.
"And then you show up. Five Marines. One rubber idiot who punches shark-men through walls. And suddenly… it's over. Just like that."
Luffy tilted his head.
"You helped. You led us through the drain. You shot that guy. That wasn't nothing."
Usopp looked at him—really looked.
"But I'm still scared. All the time. What if I go with you and I freeze? What if I lie again? What if I'm not… good enough?"
Luffy chewed thoughtfully.
"I'm scared sometimes too."
Usopp blinked.
"You?"
"Yeah. When I think about not being strong enough. Not protecting people. Not keeping promises."
He shrugged.
"But I keep going anyway. Because stopping would be worse."
Usopp stared at the ground.
"I don't know if I can do that."
Luffy leaned back on his hands.
"You don't have to know right now. Just… think about it. And if you decide yes, we'll wait. If no… we'll still be friends. Okay?"
Usopp's throat worked.
"Okay."
They sat in silence again.
Somewhere nearby, a child laughed—high and clear.
Usopp stood slowly.
"I'm gonna… go check on Kaya. She's been asking about you guys."
Luffy nodded.
"Tell her hi."
Usopp walked away—slingshot swinging at his side, shoulders a little less hunched than yesterday.
Luffy watched him go.
Then he stood up.
Picked up another broken crate.
And kept working.
---
That evening, the village held an impromptu feast in the central square.
Sanji had outdone himself with what little they had: grilled fish marinated in citrus, rice steamed with tangerine zest, fresh fruit sliced into neat pyramids, even a few loaves of simple bread he'd baked in the mayor's salvaged oven.
Tables were makeshift—doors laid across barrels, crates turned upside down. Lanterns hung from ropes strung between houses. Someone had found an old guitar; soft strumming filled the air between bites and laughter.
Luffy sat cross-legged in the middle of it all, plate piled impossibly high, eating like a man who'd never seen food before.
Sanji watched him from the cooking fire, arms crossed.
"You're gonna explode."
Luffy grinned around a mouthful of fish.
"Worth it."
Zoro sat against a wall, one sword across his lap, sipping from a small cup of sake someone had pressed into his hand. He didn't speak much—just watched the villagers, the kids running between tables, the way the light caught on everyone's faces.
Koby sat with a group of children, showing them how to tie basic knots with spare rope.
Nami sat quietly near the edge, eating slowly, eyes distant.
Usopp sat beside her—plate untouched.
She noticed.
"Not hungry?"
He shook his head.
"Stomach's too knotted."
She nodded.
"Thinking again?"
"Yeah."
She looked toward Luffy—laughing with three kids hanging off his arms.
"He doesn't make it easy to say no, does he?"
Usopp huffed a laugh.
"No. He really doesn't."
Nami set her plate down.
"Come with me."
She stood.
Usopp hesitated—then followed.
They walked away from the square, down a narrow path lined with tangerine trees. The fruit glowed softly in the lantern light—small orange moons hanging heavy on the branches.
Nami stopped in front of one tree—older than the rest, trunk thick and gnarled.
"This was my mom's grove," she said quietly. "Before she died. Before everything."
Usopp looked at the tree.
Then at Nami.
She reached up—plucked one perfect tangerine.
Held it out to him.
"Take this."
Usopp took it carefully.
"Whenever you go—wherever you go—keep it with you. So you remember home isn't just a place. It's something you carry. Something you fight for."
Usopp stared at the fruit.
His fingers closed around it.
"I… I don't want to leave them."
"You don't have to leave forever," Nami said. "But if you stay here waiting for the next Arlong… you'll always wonder what you could have been."
Usopp's eyes filled.
"I'm scared."
Nami smiled—small, real.
"So was I."
She put a hand on his shoulder.
"But you already proved you're braver than you think."
Usopp looked at the tangerine.
Then at the path back to the square—where laughter and music drifted on the breeze.
He took a shaky breath.
"Okay."
Nami raised an eyebrow.
"Okay?"
Usopp nodded—once, firm.
"I'll go. I'll join."
His voice cracked on the last word.
"But if I die, I'm blaming you."
Nami laughed—soft, surprised.
"Deal."
They stood there a while longer.
The tangerine grove rustled quietly around them.
Then Usopp squared his shoulders.
"Let's go tell the rubber idiot before he eats the whole village."
Nami smirked.
"Before he notices we're gone."
They walked back together—side by side.
When they reached the square, Luffy was lying on his back in the middle of the tables, arms behind head, hat over his eyes, stomach visibly distended.
He cracked one eye open when they approached.
"Hey."
Usopp stopped in front of him.
Luffy sat up slowly.
Usopp took a deep breath.
"I'm coming."
Luffy blinked.
Then grinned—wide, bright, unstoppable.
"Really?"
Usopp nodded.
"Yeah. Really."
Luffy jumped to his feet so fast the table rattled.
"YES!"
He threw both arms around Usopp in a hug that lifted him off the ground.
Usopp yelped.
"Put me down, you freak!"
Luffy laughed—loud enough to turn every head in the square.
"Welcome to the crew, Sniper King!"
The villagers cheered—some confused, most just happy to see Usopp smiling.
Sanji raised an eyebrow from the fire.
"About time."
Zoro smirked without opening his eyes.
"Took him long enough."
Koby clapped—quiet, beaming.
Nami crossed her arms, smiling softly.
Usopp—still being crushed in Luffy's hug—looked around at all of them.
At the village.
At the people who'd believed in him even when he hadn't.
Then he looked at Luffy.
"You're gonna regret this."
Luffy let him go.
Grinned.
"Nope."
He slapped Usopp on the back—gently, for once.
"Now come eat. We've got celebrating to do."
Usopp laughed—shaky, real, relieved.
"Yeah… yeah, okay."
They rejoined the feast.
The music played on.
The lanterns swayed.
And somewhere in the tangerine grove, a single fruit swayed gently in the night breeze—small, perfect, waiting to be carried out to sea.
To be continued…