8: 8.
The Storm Beyond the Forest—When Dreams Meet Reality 8: 8.
The Storm Beyond the Forest—When Dreams Meet Reality = 3rd Person’s POV = While Usopp devoted himself to training and working really hard to improve the fragile health of his mother— Far away, across the vast sea— A certain man sat in a lively bar, laughing loudly with a mug full of alcohol in hand.
It was Yasopp.
The man who had left behind his wife and young son without looking back— Now drinking and celebrating as part of the infamous Red Hair Pirates that would be one of the strongest Pirate Crews in the world one day.
“Oi, listen to this!” Yasopp slammed his mug down proudly.
“My son—he’s incredible!
A natural-born warrior!
Probably already a great sniper!” The crew laughed.
Some teased him.
Some humored him.
Because everyone knew the truth.
The son he bragged about— He hadn’t even seen Usopp grow up.
Still, in his own way, Yasopp believed it.
His son would be as talented as him in sharpshooting, maybe even more talented.
Far from Syrupp Village, on Foosha Village, the Red Hair Pirates had just arrived.
Their presence would soon ignite the spark that would change the world.
A boy named Luffy would meet them.
Laugh with them.
Admire them.
And eventually, choose the sea, sailing as a pirate.
That moment— That small, seemingly insignificant encounter would become the beginning of a legend.
But that was still far away.
For now, there was only the story of a young boy who was left by his father and lived only with his sickly mother.
Usopp didn’t know what happened on Foosha Village.
He didn’t see and he didn’t care because his concerns lay elsewhere.
There was something more urgent.
Something that would happen in the near future.
Unlike Luffy’s bright and reckless future, Usopp’s thoughts were tangled with worry.
Not for himself, but for someone he hadn’t even met yet.
Nami.
Her village, her home.
The place that would one day be crushed beneath the rule of the Arlong Pirates.
Her mother who would be killed right in front of her eyes.
Her ruined childhood when she would be forced to work by the exact person who killed her mother, and she could only do it.
To survive, to protect her remaining families.
Usopp didn’t know the exact timing, didn’t know the exact details, but he knew enough.
Enough to understand— That tragedy was coming, and he couldn’t help.
“…Damn it!” He sat alone near the edge of the cliff, staring at the horizon.
The wind brushed against his face, but it didn’t calm him.
If possible, he wanted to help.
Not just Nami, Robin too.
The girl who had no one.
The survivor of a destroyed homeland.
The one who wandered alone for years.
But that was already too late.
Ohara had already fallen.
Burned.
Erased from the map.
And Robin was somewhere out there.
Alone.
He didn’t know where.
Didn’t know how to find her.
There was nothing he could do.
“…Damn it!” His fists clenched.
He didn’t know them yet.
But he knew how devastating it was to lose everything.
He was already scared to death when he was about to lose his mother.
Yet Nami would lose more, and Robin had really lost everything she had.
Nami was the only one he might still be able to help.
But even that felt impossible.
He was just a kid.
No matter how much he trained, no matter how much he improved, he couldn’t fight Fishmen.
Not yet.
Even if he went there, he would only get killed.
He wanted to tell others?
But who would believe him?
“Hey, a kid from a small village says a group of Fishmen pirates will invade another island in the future!” Yeah, as if that sounded convincing.
Usopp was a liar, so he knew that no one would believe that.
They would only thought it was just a kid’s game.
Even if someone did believe him, would they have the strength to stop Arlong?
The answer, was almost certainly no.
There weren’t many strong figures in the East Blue at this time.
Smoker?
Still young.
Still not stationed there.
The Red Hair Pirates?
Strong enough to wipe Arlong out in seconds.
But they wouldn’t.
Pirates weren’t heroes.
They didn’t go around saving villages.
And they wouldn’t stay long anyway.
Garp?
He visited East Blue occasionally, checked on his grandson, then left.
Even though Arlong would terrorize his home seas, Garp never interfered in the original plot.
The Revolutionary Army?
Even worse.
They existed in the shadows.
They were hard to find, and even harder to reach.
And they also did nothing about Arlong even though they saved the people in Grey Terminal.
The more Usopp thought about it, the clearer it became.
There was no one.
No one he could rely on.
“…So what am I supposed to do?” The question lingered heavily in his mind, unanswered.
He thought of his mom.
Of how close he came to losing her.
And the thought of someone else losing theirs made his chest tighten.
“…No.” He shook his head.
“For now… I need information.” That was the only thing he could do.
Tracking news, watching for signs, searching for a solution.
That was the only thing a child like him could do.
— Once a month, he accompanied his mother to the town for her check-up.
And there, in the hospital, were newspapers.
Old, sometimes outdated, but still valuable.
He flipped through them carefully.
Page by page.
Most of it was irrelevant.
Local news, trade, minor incidents.
Then, he found something.
In the headline was the new Warlord of the Sea: Boa Hancock, Leader of the Kuja Pirates.
There was a picture of her face and her Pirate ship.
She was indeed pretty, but that was of no importance now.
“…So it’s already started.” The system was forming.
The balance of power shifting.
But something else was missing from the list of the Warlords of The Sea.
Jinbe.
No mention of him.
Which meant— “…The original Sun Pirates are still active.” Fisher Tiger was still alive.
Arlong hadn’t been captured yet.
He hadn’t been released.
He hadn’t come to East Blue yet.
Usopp exhaled slowly.
“I still have time…” Time to think.
Time to prepare.
Time to find a way.
Even if that way didn’t exist yet.
Days passed.
Then weeks.
He thought, planned, rejected ideas.
Every solution led to a dead end.
And eventually, he stopped trying to force it.
For now, he focused on what he could control.
His strength, his skills, his people, his mom’s condition.
Her health improved steadily, her color returned, her steps grew stronger, her nagging got scarier.
And every time she smiled, Usopp felt like everything he did was worth it.
Meanwhile, his friends grew stronger too.
Their movements sharpened.
Their coordination improved.
Their confidence increased.
They weren’t prodigies like Luffy, Ace or Sabo.
But they were no longer helpless, and that was enough.
Usopp guided them and taught them.
Though he didn’t realize it, he was learning too.
He learned from the dreams, from teaching, from experience.
His focus remained on sharpshooting, but his close combat improved as well.
Step by step, they all advanced.
Eventually, they moved deeper into the forest, not just the outskirts anymore.
Deeper, denser, more dangerous.
Their goal was simple.
Bigger prey.
It was a boar now.
Their wooden weapons evolved.
They were now more durable and more practical.
They prepared carefully because this was no longer a game, but a real hunt.
The forest felt different inside.
Darker.
Quieter.
Every sound mattered.
Every movement was watched.
Finding a boar wasn’t easy.
Even though they were bigger than rabbits, the forest hid them well.
Their first attempt failed.
They returned with birds.
And a snake.
They cooked the snake themselves.
Their moms would kill them if they brought back snakes.
“I never thought it’d taste this good…” “We should hunt more.” “No,” Usopp said.
“Too many snakes get killed means too many rats stay alive.” They agreed, reluctantly.
On their next attempt, they found one.
It was a small boar.
Perfect!
Their xcitement surged.
This was it, their first real hunt.
Usopp acted first.
A pebble flew— Crack!
It hit the boar’s eye.
The animal panicked.
“Now!” Sven charged, thrusting his spear forward.
It missed the body, but hit the hind leg.
The boar turned and charged.
“Watch out!” Ghimli moved in with his club raised.
Usopp fired again.
Shooting the other eye.
The boar halted.
It was just for a moment, but that was enough.
THUD!
Ghimli’s club struck.
Bucky and Plats rushed in, thrusting their spears forward with more force.
Finally, the boar collapsed, and they fell silent.
“…We did it.” Their breaths were heavy and their hands were shaking in excitement.
“Finish it!” Usopp ordered.
They obeyed, and just like that, it was over.
Their first boar.
Victory!
But then, a sound came.
Heavy.
Slow.
Another boar appeared.
It was bigger, much bigger.
Its eyes burned with rage.
It looked at the dead one.
Then at them.
Silence fell.
“…That’s not good,” Bucky whispered.
“That’s probably its parent,” someone muttered.
“I don’t care if it’s the dad or mom,” Sven said, his voice trembled slightly.
“What matters is…” He swallowed, “…we’re in trouble.” No one argued.
Because this time, this wasn’t training, this wasn’t a game.
This was real danger.