Pride

At Galley-La, the crew hears the news that Usopp is coming back. Sanji says, "YEAH. HE WAS REHEARSING AT THE COAST," and Luffy immediately lights up: "WOW!! GOOD TO KNOW!! LET'S GO FETCH HIM IMMEDIATELY!!" Nami and Chopper are relieved, but Zoro stops them cold. "I WON'T LET ANYONE GO FETCH HIM," he says. No matter what, Usopp should not take a modest approach. Zoro makes the line clear: "I WILL NOT APPROVE OF HIM UNTIL HE APOLOGIZES!!" When Nami protests, Zoro shuts the room down with one sharp word: "SHUSH!!!"

Zoro explains the rule behind his anger. Whatever Luffy and Usopp thought during their argument, and no matter who was right, once the two chose to fight, the outcome was entrusted to the match. In the end, Usopp lost and left them. Zoro says, "LISTEN, GUYS, EVEN THOUGH HE'S A BIG IDIOT, HE IS OUR CAPTAIN." As part of the crew, it is better not to have someone who cannot pay respect to the captain. A crew whose captain has lost his dignity will surely collapse. The room goes silent because Zoro is not talking about pride as vanity; he is talking about the structure that keeps a pirate crew alive.

Zoro grabs Luffy by the shirt and forces him to understand the weight of being captain. "IT'S NONE OF MY BUSINESS THAT YOU USUALLY JOKE AROUND," he says, "BUT IF YOU HUMILIATE YOURSELF YET STILL WANT TO CLAIM ANY PRETENSE OF BEING MY LEADER, THEN I WILL BE THE ONE TO LEAVE THE CREW!!!" Luffy and Nami recoil. Zoro agrees that it would be best if Usopp decided to come back, but he will never let him back in if Usopp only excuses himself and tries to sweep everything under the rug. When Luffy says they can complain after Usopp returns, Zoro explodes, "IS LEAVING THE CREW SUCH A SIMPLE THING!!?"

The crew absorbs Zoro's answer. Nami says, "...!! NO... BUT..." and Sanji admits, "NAMI-SAN... UNFORTUNATELY, HE'S GOT IT RIGHT THIS TIME...!!" Zoro says that in the future there is no way they can trust a guy who does such a thing on a whim. Robin calmly states the condition: "IF THE FIRST THING USOPP SAYS IS HIS DEEPEST APOLOGY, THEN IT'S ALL RIGHT FOR HIM TO COME BACK... BUT IF IT'S NOT, THEN HE HAS NO PLACE TO RETURN TO." Luffy sits with the verdict. Usopp, elsewhere, thinks "FAREWELL... USOPP. I HAD... FUN," while the crew decides, "ARE WE CLEAR!? WE PARTED WAYS ONCE. WE'LL WAIT FOR HIM IN SILENCE!!"

The Thousand Sunny moves out from Water Seven, but the Marines have already spotted the Straw Hat crew on the southeast coast. A report reaches Garp: "VICE ADMIRAL GARP!! WE'VE SPOTTED THE STRAWHAT CREW ON THE SOUTHEAST COAST." His subordinates worry that returning because his grandson is on the Den Den Mushi is embarrassing, but Garp laughs it off and says to tell Sengoku if they have anything to say. Kuzan lounges nearby, asking whether it is okay for him to be there, and Garp calls him noisy. The old vice admiral admits it is troublesome to go back by bike, but says it is not good to leave the enemy right in front of their eyes.

Usopp runs through Water Seven, convinced that everyone is waiting for him. "ALL RIGHT! I'M COMING BACK TO MY NAKAMA!" he shouts. He imagines saying, "I CAN COME BACK TO YOU GUYS AS A VICE CAPTAIN!!!" and expects the crew to cry and beg him to return. In his head, he has one hundred patterns to counter every reaction. He decides the best opening line is, "SINCE YOU GUYS ARE CRYING SO MUCH AND BEGGING ME TO COME BACK..." and imagines they will admire him even more for overcoming adversity. But the city behind him is already in motion, and the ship is preparing to leave.

The order goes out: "SET SAIL!!" The Thousand Sunny begins to move from Shipwreck Island while the Franky Family calls, "BRO, WE WISH YOU GOOD HEALTH!!" and "FRANKY FAMILY WILL NEVER DIE!!!" Nami and Chopper call for Luffy, but he still looks back. Franky asks whether he is sure and says, "DON'T YOU HAVE TO WAIT FOR ONE MORE PERSON?" Luffy answers that he has been waiting for him since Sanji told the story. On the coast, Usopp still has not appeared with the words Zoro demanded.

Luffy admits why he waited: "I WAITED FOR HIM IN THAT ROOM AT GALLEY-LA, SO SOMEONE COULD WELCOME HIM, BUT HE NEVER SHOWED UP!!" He reads Usopp's absence as an answer and says he is sure they will have fun too, since he does not think Usopp will quit being a pirate and hopefully they will meet him on the sea someday. Before that goodbye can settle, the Marines appear. Someone shouts, "CRAP!! THEY'VE FOUND US! IT'S THE MARINES!!" and "GRANDPA!!?" A Den Den Mushi voice booms over the water: "HEY, LUFFY--CAN YOU HEAR ME!? THIS IS YOUR GRANDPA. THIS IS YOUR GRANDPA." Luffy yells back, "HEY, GRANDPA!! WHAT'S GOING ON!? YOU TOLD US THAT YOU WOULDN'T ARREST US HERE!!"

Garp gives Luffy no comfort. "YEAH, THINGS HAPPENED," he says, then adds, "SO I'M SORRY TO SAY THIS, BUT I'LL HAVE TO ASK YOU TO JUST DROWN AND DIE!!" He says it is not like he can make up for it, but he will face them himself. When Sanji asks what he will do, Garp calmly takes a cannonball in his bare hand. His subordinate calls it "CANNON-BALL," and Garp swings with "GEN-KOTSU" before hurling it as "METEOR!!!" The cannonball slams into the water near the Sunny with terrifying force, proving that Garp's bare-handed throws are more dangerous than ordinary artillery.

Sanji stares in disbelief: "H-HE THREW THE CANNONBALL WITH HIS BARE HANDS!!" Franky notes that it flew much faster than a regular cannonball and jokes that Garp knows it is not baseball. Garp laughs, "BWAHAHAHA!! I WISH I DIDN'T GET OLD. MY POWER HAS BEEN DECLINING LATELY!!" Nami realizes the ship will be wrecked if they cannot run, but Garp only escalates: "BRING A THOUSAND CANNON-BALLS!!!" The Marines answer, "YES, SIR!" while Franky says a ship would not stand a chance against something like that. Garp grins and says, "... SHALL WE BEGIN, KIDS?"

The Marine ship advances at full speed, preparing to smash the Sunny with cannonballs. Sanji grimaces, wondering whether Usopp is really not coming. Then Chopper and Robin see him: "USOPP IS HERE!" and "HE'S HERE!!!" Usopp appears on the broken staircase, panting and confused. He asks why the ship has already set sail, saying he totally thought they were waiting. From the ship, the crew can hear him. Usopp calls, "HEEEY, GUYS, USOPP'S HERE!! I'M STILL HERE!!" But the path is broken and the ship is pulling away. The question is no longer whether he came; it is whether he will say the words he needs to say.

Usopp tries to return under the Sogeking mask of pride. "WHAT'S GOING ON!? EVEN AFTER OUR QUARREL, WE FOUGHT TOGETHER. I'M THE SOGEKING!!" he shouts. He asks whether they gave up on him because he disappeared and calls, "HEY, GUYS... DON'T WORRY!! I'M BACK HERE!!" Garp keeps laughing and throws more cannonballs: "HERE YOU GO, MORE, MORE!!" The ship is under attack, and Sanji, Zoro, Franky, and the others move to protect it. Usopp keeps calling, "USOPP'S HERE, LUFFY!!" but his words still circle around apology without landing on it.

Usopp keeps performing versions of the return he imagined. He shouts, "HEEE-EEEEY!! REJOICE!!! IT'S ME!!!" and says he knows what is going on: they are crying from happiness. He promises not to mind being vice captain when he returns and tells them not to be surprised by the good news he has for them. Meanwhile, cannonballs rain down, and the crew realizes they are about to get more of them. Then Usopp's voice shifts: "I CAN'T... COPE WITH YOU GUYS ANYMORE. SORRY FOR CAUSING TROUBLE UNTIL THE VERY END." His joke finally cracks into the truth.

Usopp yells that they have known each other forever and that he would never say such a thing seriously. He insists, "I'LL LET SOME STUFF SLIDE!!" but the crew cuts him off from the ship. Sanji says, "USOPP'S CALLING YOU!!" but Zoro answers, "LIAR. YOU HEARD HIM!!" and Luffy, eyes hard, says, "I DIDN'T HEAR ANYTHING." Usopp realizes they are really going to leave him. He stops joking and says, "I SEE... I'VE HAD ENOUGH!!!" If that is how it is, he will say one last thing: "IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS TO KNOW WHERE I'M GOING! I'M LEAVING THE CREW." For a moment, pride still stands between him and the ship.

At last, Usopp breaks. The words burst across the water as the Sunny pulls away: "I'M ZOOWWWY!!!" Bound in bandages and tears, he drops the act completely. "I WAS WRONG!!! I'M ZOWWY FOR BEING SDUBBORN!!!" he cries. He knows what he said, knows it was shameful, and knows he said he left the crew. The crew freezes. Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji all hear him now. Behind Usopp, Garp's barrage continues, but the only thing that matters is the apology that finally comes from the deepest place in him.

Usopp begs through tears: "CAN I... CAN I TAKE BACK WHAT I SAID!!?" He asks again and again, "CAN I PLEASE...!? PLEASE!" and then finally says the words the crew was waiting for: "PLEASE LET ME STAY WITH YOU GUYS!!! PLEASE MAKE ME YOUR NAKAMA ONE MORE TIME!!!" Luffy listens with a stunned face. Usopp is no longer Sogeking, no longer a vice-captain in his imagination, and no longer hiding behind jokes. He has apologized, admitted he was wrong, and asked to return as himself.

Luffy reaches out across the water. Usopp whispers, "LUFFY..." and Luffy sobs back with all the force of the bond they refused to fake: "IDIOT... HURRY UP AND GRAB MY HAND!!!" His arm stretches across the sea toward Usopp, and the crew erupts in tears and relief. Sanji calls him an idiot, Zoro looks satisfied, and Luffy declares, "FINALLY... EVERYONE'S TOGETHER!!!" The Thousand Sunny surges forward as they head for adventure together. Behind them, Garp laughs, "AHAHAHA!!! YOU GUYS LOOK SO LAME!" but Franky says they should just get away from the bombardment. The crew has its ship, its shipwright, and Usopp back.

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