After venting his frustration at Crocodile in the mansion, Kaito Sakamoto settled into a waiting mode as he prepared for the battle that was supposed to take place at dawn. He had already promised Crocodile that he wouldn't intervene until the fight began, and Kaito was a man of his word.
Meanwhile, Crocodile, eager to ensure his plans went smoothly, rushed off to meet with Zango for further discussions. Although Zango was currently hypnotized by his own spell in front of Zoro, Nami, and three kids, and had ended up lying unconscious in the middle of the road, they still managed to meet without delay. This provided a perfect opportunity for Usopp and Luffy, who were perched on a cliff, to overhear their conversation.
Sitting with his back to the horizon, Usopp was lost in thought, when suddenly, Luffy dropped down from the tree above him.
"Hey!"
"Ah!"
Usopp jumped in shock. Before he could even recover, Luffy said something that left him utterly speechless.
"Your dad... is Jesus Burgess, right?"
"How do you know!!"
Usopp quickly demanded an explanation.
Luffy jumped down from the tree, flipped over, and landed next to Usopp in a sitting position.
"When Kaito and I were kids, we saw him. You look exactly like him. That's why I felt like I knew you... I just remembered."
Luffy grinned, revealing a row of white teeth. His childhood had been the happiest time of his life. Whether it was with Red-Haired Shanks and the crew, or with Dadan's family, Ace, Kaito, and Sabo, those days were his most cherished memories.
"So where is he now?" Usopp asked, eager for more information.
"Well... I don't know."
"But I do know he's still with the Red-Haired Pirates."
"He's one of my favorite crew members."
"And he's kind of like Kaito's mentor, too. Well... besides Beckman, the rest of the Red-Haired Pirates are kind of like Kaito's half-mentors."
"Really?"
"So, he's on Shanks' ship? The guy with the red hair..."
Usopp murmured, but then something clicked in his mind.
"Shanks!!!!"
Usopp's eyes nearly bulged out of his head.
"My dad's on such a powerful ship? That's the legendary pirate, Shanks!"
Speaking of legends, Luffy recalled with a chuckle, "Jesus Burgess is most famous for his gun skills."
"Kaito even said, in terms of gun skills, his master Beckman can't beat Jesus Burgess."
"Hahaha, is that so?"
While Usopp was clearly proud of his father, he suddenly snapped back to reality.
"Wait... Who is Kaito?"
"Kaito's my partner. We went to the mansion to find a ship and..."
Luffy trailed off, realizing he'd forgotten the very reason they were there.
"Ah! I totally forgot! Hahaha!"
Kaito:...
Luffy then told Usopp the story about how Kaito had been saved by Merry.
"So that's the deal, huh? You should just go again. You didn't swear like I did not to go back."
Usopp replied.
"Yeah, but that butler is really annoying."
"I agree. I'm proud of my dad for living bravely out at sea, but what he said... that was just too much."
"Yeah, that butler is the worst."
Luffy pointed to the man standing below the cliff by the shore.
"Yeah, that guy. I just hate the sight of him."
Usopp followed Luffy's finger and saw Crocodile. Suddenly, a realization hit him, and he jumped in shock.
"Why is that butler here!!!"
It turns out that Crocodile's supposedly foolproof plan had just been compromised. In addition to Kaito, now two more people knew about it. But then again, who was Luffy? He never used tricks or schemes, after all—he was the protagonist, and could do whatever he wanted.
With a quick leap, Luffy stood up and shouted down at the two men below.
"Hey!! Don't you dare harm the lady!!"
But Zango had already put Luffy into a trance, sending him falling off the cliff...
Crocodile, seeing that only Usopp remained, felt some relief. He knew that no one in the village would believe what Usopp said.
It was like the old "boy who cried wolf" tale. No matter how hard Usopp tried to explain, the villagers wouldn't believe him when he said the Black Cat Pirates would attack at dawn. Instead, they began brandishing brooms and other implements, preparing to chase him off.
Usopp had no chance to explain further. He had no choice but to rush to Kaya's mansion. Since Crocodile's target was Kaya, he figured he should take her with him first.
But all he got for his trouble was a slap from Kaya.
"You've really let me down, Usopp."
There was nothing he could do. Kaya couldn't believe that someone who had taken care of him so lovingly could be a pirate and want to harm her.
Kaito, thinking from another perspective, understood that if he were in her shoes, he couldn't easily doubt the person who had taken care of him for three years either. That's why, although Kaito was watching from behind, he didn't speak up to explain for Usopp. Just talking wouldn't convince anyone.
Instead, Kaito would let Kaya see the truth for herself.
After Usopp managed to escape the mansion, Kaito went to Kaya's room.
Kaya, her face covered in tears, was still confused as to why Usopp had acted the way he did.
Even when she saw Kaito, she tried to compose herself out of politeness, but the tears just wouldn't stop flowing.