Chapter 1: The Legacy of D
"Luffy! Dad, Luffy's here," exclaimed the lanky teenager with light-green hair.
"Hey Zoro, Kohra, it's been a while," said the Pirate King.
"Ya, it has Luffy, the only reason I ever know you aren't dead is it's never on the front page." Luffy's former fist mate said in a mildly hurt tone.
The rubber-man chuckled at this. "How is Perona?"
"Mom has been good, she is off to some creepy ruins with Robin right now." Kohra was the spitting image of his father, except he had his mother's wide, deep eyes and soft complexion.
"She needed to get away for a bit, she has been kind of down since Hawkeye passed on." Zoro touched the scar over his eye thoughtfully as he said this.
"He left me Yoru," Kohra proudly remarked.
"HE LEFT YOU HIS BLACK BLADE!? You must have really improved since the last time I saw you."
"It is still a little too much for me, but someday I will master it, and become an even greater swordsman than him or my father."
Zoro's face lit up with pride in his son. "He is already sparring on my level; Kohra almost beat me last week."
"That really is incredible. You should join my crew." Luffy said with a glint in his eye. He quickly had to dodge his former first mate.
Zoro had known Luffy would eventually ask his son. "YOU THINK I WANT MY SON RUNNING AROUND THE NEW WORLD ON THE MOST TARGETED PIRATE SHIP EVER!"
"Hey, hey, hey, Zoro, calm down. I need a new swordsman since you left. The Sunny may be the most targeted, but we never take any damage."
"Luffy, every Marine in the world starts firing at you on sight; it's only a matter of time. Not to mention, being part of your crew would instantly put a bounty on my son's head."
"Dad, you wouldn't need to worry, Marines come here all the time because of your bounty and I deal with most of them myself because you are asleep. You know joining Luffy's crew has always been my dream. I want to sail the world with the Pirate King, and test my skills as a swordsman against all challengers." Kohra's cheeks were suddenly flushed with embarrassment at having revealed his dream to his idol, but the young swordsman knew that Luffy respected a man with a dream.
Grinning Luffy changed the subject. "Your birthday was yesterday wasn't it, Kohra? I was trying to get here in time for that, but Admiral Coby delayed me quite a bit. I brought you something."
Zoro eyed his captain suspiciously.
"You can't eat it unless you are absolutely sure," said Luffy, pulling an odd looking apple, with a curly stem from his pocket.
Zoro's draw dropped. He couldn't believe Luffy was going to give his son a Devil Fruit, that his former captain would offer his son this immense power. Offer him something that would forever make him unable to swim, knowing he would go out to sea someday. That his captain would do this and not even consult with him. Of course, Luffy had always been one to do what he wanted. It was his son's decision to make, the boy was 16 now.
"It is the Flame-Flame Fruit, the same fruit my older brother ate. I want you to really think before eating that, you won't ever be able to swim again." Luffy ran his hand over the brim of the straw hat that was now his, and he thought back to the man who had inspired him to be the pirate he is today. He thought back to the day he ate the Gum-Gum Fruit, unaware of the effect it would have, how it would change his life forever. He smiled as he thought about his early days with Ace and Sabo, trying to master the powers of the Gum-Gum Fruit. He got chills as he thought about the day he set out from a small island in the East Blue.
Kohra knew what it meant to Luffy, he had heard so many stories about Fire-fist Ace. Luffy's legendary older brother. Luffy had almost died trying to save him, that he even managed to get the same Devil Fruit was wild, but giving it to him… "Wow, I don't know what to say. This really means a lot, Luffy, thank you."
"Kohra, go train with the monkeys for a little bit, I need to talk with Luffy." Zoro said coldly. The two pirates watched the boy walk away, carrying a sword in one hand, and an apple in the other.
"You should have at least told me about that. I am his father I deserve to know when my son will be presented with a life changing decision."
"Sorry Zoro, I didn't even know until yesterday. Admiral Coby flagged me down on the way here and offered a parlay. We ate dinner and drank sake, and talked for a while. He thanked me for being a responsible King, said he wished the Marines could leave me alone. Then he pulled out that fruit and told me what it was, said I should have it. I only just decided to give it to Kohra as I docked the ship. Your son is incredible, Zoro, someday he will surpass us both. You know you can't keep him locked down, training with monkeys, on this island forever. He needs Haki training, his willpower is incredible. He could master it better than I ever could. He has the discipline you know? I've known since the day I met him, he is the one Roger was talking about, the true heir to Roger's throne. Someday the whole world will know his name, Roronoa D. Kohra."