Disclaimer.
1.
Zoro used to hate his green hair. He knew it was genetics because his parents have repeated countless times that some people on his mother's side had it. But there was no living proof, no uncles or aunts that visited them with green hair.
Kids would taunt him about it. It wasn't that he cared much about it but it was annoying to hear 'Booger Hair' or 'Grass Head' whenever he played with them. He preferred lifting heavy hay stacks and shoveling horse manure out more than going to town.
It wasn't until his parents noticed that he hadn't been going out much that he started accepting his green hair. His mother had taken him to the storage and shown him a picture of her father, who also had green hair.
Zoro pondered and looked at the green-haired man with a strong jaw, laughing with his arm around another man. Behind them was definitely their house, though it was different with sign boards littering the porch.
"Ahaha! Father was a ridiculous man. He collected dojo signs when he was younger by challenging the dojos and winning despite never having trained in swordsmanship before. He refused to give them back. Who knows how many signs he won? We eventually gave them back to their owners or sold off the signs."
It was then Zoro decided that having green hair, being called 'Grass Head' or 'Booger Hair' was fine. It was then when the little green haired boy decided to collect dojo signs, preparing to win them over by brute strength.
2.
When he was 8, his parents died at a fire in town. It happened when they left for town and left him alone, practicing his push-ups. It wasn't the fire that actually killed them. No, it was the smoke and height of the building.
He's never really know the details but the police reported that his father had died inhaling too much smoke. His mother had snapped her neck when trying to escape the burning building.
They had a communal funeral for everyone that died in the fire. Zoro could never really explain why he sat stone faced, emotionless at the funeral, instead of bawling his eyes out like other 8 years old who'd also lost their parents. There was a sudden emptiness inside of him.
Isshin dojo was supposed to be the last one he challenged, before he was going to be taken away to an orphanage or to whoever wanted green-haired kids. He was gone out of town for a week before they came to search for him.
He was supposed to win the battle, come back with another sign for his odd collection before having to move away and leaving them all behind. He was never supposed to lose to a blue-haired girl who was the daughter of the dojo owner. He was never really supposed to join the dojo and have as much fun as he did then.
Koshiro didn't even look at Zoro when the officials arrived. He obviously knew that they were here for him. How, Zoro didn't know. He thought he was being discreet when he went home alone.
Koshiro invited them in, preparing tea for them. They were in there for a long time and Zoro couldn't even eavesdrop because of the annoying adults that shooed him away every time. After sometime, a helper went out to find the caring baker couple down the street. They went back in for a long time, along with the couple.
When they came out, the couple was smiling and patting at him way too intimately, the officials were eyeing him and Koshiro was serenely smiling like everything was alright and Zoro had not just been sent off to live with strangers.
The green-haired boy is entirely surprised when the officials left without laying a hand on him. He had been prepared to struggle and fight to finish the battle here. It wasn't until night when he tried to discreetly go back that Koshiro told him that he was now living with the baker couple. He was disgruntled at first, having a decision made on his part without his consultant but then was placated when Koshiro mentioned that he wouldn't have to move away and could challenge Kunia countless times.
Zoro got fussed over and scolded over scratches but he got fed and has a warm house to live in. He's also glad for the free bread he gets ever morning, despite the fact that he definitely spends more time at the dojo than being the baker couple's adopted son.
3.
Despite what everyone thought, his first crush was not Kuina. No. He saw her as a rival and a friend. She was the sister that he always competed with. But did he think of her as a girl? No. Frankly, he thought she was manlier than the other boys in the dojo.
His first crush was when he was ten. A little late but then he was always focused on getting dojo signs and beating Kuina. She was a pretty little thing, with a little sundress and a bonnet, complete with flowers in her hair. She lived in town, near the church where she went regularly. Many other boys liked her, Zoro knew. How could they not? She was pretty and smelled really good too.
However, she refused to talk to Zoro properly after finding out that he was non-religious. After Zoro found the courage to strike up a conversation, she'd quickly steered the conversation to religions and the Church. Zoro had boldly declared that he was an atheist and he didn't believe in God. After that, everything went downhill.
At first, Zoro was glad that the girl started talking to him. However, the girl was obsessed with church and every time she saw Zoro, she'd always tried to convince him to believe in God. She'd tell him that everything was because of God's creation. Then whenever the green-haired boy successfully diverted the topic to another, she'd quickly tried to change it back or find some excuse to leave.
Zoro soon decided that a girl was not worth changing his religion. He gave up (more like stomped on his feelings until they were completely gone) and focused more on training till he collapsed.
The girl moved away after a month or so.
4.
It was surprising to find out that Zoro knew hymns, religious songs and stories, especially when he didn't believe in them. It was even more surprising to find out how he knew them.
Zoro definitely wasn't religious but there were no rules that he couldn't be friends with a religious person, granted that they weren't trying to shove it down his throat. Religious people like, say, a priest. The priest of the only church in town.
It wasn't a very smooth start. The priest regularly saw Zoro, since he chased after the religious girl but they never talked. Zoro would always run away to train before a full conversation could be established.
It wasn't until after the girl moved away and Zoro went past the church on his way back from the blacksmith that the priest called out to him.
"You know, I've always wanted to talk to you. That green hair of yours is quite unique," the priest, Kuroko, smiled, showing crow's feet around his bright eyes.
Zoro tensed. He's got trouble like this before. Some religious idiot thinks his hair is a mark of the Devil or something stupid like that. "It's all natural, if that's what you're asking," he responded coldly.
"Now that's interesting. Would you like to have a chat with me inside? The sun is quite sweltering," Kuroko invited for the first time.
"No thank you. I have to get back to the dojo. Sensei's waiting for my report of the sword," Zoro refused politely. Manners were drilled to him, at least to be nicer to elders.
It wasn't until the fourteenth time that Zoro ran out of excuses and was begrudgingly dragged into the cool aired church with its painted windows. It wasn't long before Zoro was spending more time (as much time as he could spare from training) sitting in the church and just talking and the priest sharing stories about everything.
"I'm not going to start believing in another religion just because you tell me some stories, priest," Zoro gruffly warned.
"That's not what I wanted in the first place. Can't an old man want some company of a green-haired brat?" Kuroko retorted.
Zoro consented to sparing a little time during the afternoon to listen to the religious stories about angels and prophets.
5.
Sometimes after they finished their routinely fights, Zoro would recount stories that Kuroko told him. They'd lie on the grass or floorboards, drenched in their own sweat, listening and talking. Kuina would occasionally ask questions but she never really interrupted.
Zoro's not quite sure why he tells her and why she listens. Kuina and Koshiro weren't all that religious either. They prayed to their ancestors a few times and were mindful to keep the altar clean but church? No. They didn't believe in that.
Zoro doesn't either but he now knew stories, hymns and songs of a religion he didn't believe in.
Once, just once, Kuina had asked him, "Why do you listen to the priest? It's not like you believe him anyways."
Zoro was silent for a long time. Then, he quietly said, "I don't know."
There was silence for between the two as they looked up to the moon.
"Why do you tell me these stories? I'm not even religious."
"I don't know." And Zoro really doesn't know. He never could figure out why.
6.
Zoro has his first taste of sake when Kuina died. He had done everything to get rid of the memories. Cried out until tears wouldn't come out anymore. Screamed at people and tried to blame them. Trained until he collapsed from exhaustion. But the memory still wouldn't go away.
After a few days of it, Koshiro decided it was enough and called him in. They had… it wasn't really a talk. The teacher offered him bitter sake and fond memories of the dead girl. Zoro took it all in silence.
He first hated sake. It was bitter, made him dizzy and unable to train. But the aftereffect let the painful memory fade away momentarily. He kept drinking, ignoring how the bitter, sour taste burned his throat. As years past, he was still drinking it, building up an inhumane tolerance of it. It wasn't really because he was addicted. Maybe it was the memories that it brought up. Maybe he really just enjoyed the taste of the alcoholic drink.
7.
When he was 15, a year before he set out on his journey, he went ahead and got piercings. It wasn't really to signify anything. It was just pretty cool to have and Zoro was at that age.
Some thought it was for all the important people in his life, though he wasn't sure who the most important top three were. Some who read too much into things thought it was to signify that he was gay. He didn't even have feelings for anyone, much less a guy.
No. Zoro got his earrings because he wanted them. Maybe he was in a rebellious stage. Maybe it was the way the sunlight glinted off the gold when they were on show.
Getting two on the same ear had been the plan. He liked the jingle and it would just be one ear that'd hurt afterwards. However, when he went into the shop, and the man there was trying to convince him to get a piercing on his other ear, he thought, 'Why not one more? It's still going to be one ear that hurts and after all, Santoryuu. 3. Why not?'
He went back to the dojo, gold bars jangling against each other on an ear. Koshiro looked at it disapprovingly for a moment before calling him out to practice.
It wasn't until later that he truly appreciated getting the earrings. When he traveled alone, the jingling filled the silence and made him feel like he wasn't alone.
8.
Zoro's bad sense of direction wasn't due to improper learning of directions when he was young. No. Zoro had a pretty moderate sense of direction when he was young. Sure, he couldn't always figure out where north was but depending on the time of the day and the sun's position, he could figure out where east and west were. North and south, he took a guess.
He just… worsened the sense of direction when he journeyed out to become the world's greatest swordsman.
Not knowing where Mihawk exactly was, he set out in a random direction and hoping to find food and a place to sleep. Then, the next day, he'd go in another direction. This happens so many times that sometimes, he was literally going in circles. Other times, he ended up in the opposite direction of the town he was aiming for.
He didn't listen to other people's advice. No. He sometimes went the way they pointed, turned left or right (by the time, he's forgotten which hand was left or right. He was ambidextrous after all. Both hands were his dominant hand.). Other times, he went the opposite direction, ignoring the cry of outrage from the others.
It just became natural to go another direction than what he was told and to go in circles. He usually ended up where he wanted to be anyway. It just took a bit more time.
9.
Zoro lost got his first kiss to Johnny. And yes, he did lose his first kiss to a guy when he was 17.
He knew all about sex and whatnot (Koshiro had made sure to take a class off to teach them when it became clear that some kids knew more than others and some parents weren't going to teach them.) but he'd always been more focused on his training. After the failed attempt of chasing a girl, he never really cared much about romance. He didn't lose his first kiss when he turned 13 or 14, like most boys did.
When travelling with Johnny and Yosaku, they both knew that Johnny was gay. They had no problems about it, provided that Johnny didn't try to sexually harass them and if he liked one of them, he'd come out and say it.
The kiss all started as they got drunk, as most stupid stunts did. Zoro, of course, could hold his liquor more than the other two. Yosaku was the worst out of them. He was almost passing out by his 4th cup.
The kiss was sudden, happened when Yosaku was snoring away, and not at all what he imagined being like. It definitely was not with a girl, like most normal boys.
The kiss itself was sloppy, tasting of bitter sake and the smoked lamb they had earlier, lasting for a few seconds before Johnny slid down Zoro's face and passing out when his head hit the table. Zoro had been too surprised to do anything.
Zoro never mentioned it and Johnny seemed to not remember anything from last night. Zoro never asked if Johnny fancied him or if it was out of pure impulse and the alcohol talking. However, he did find out that he didn't mind being with either sex. After all, they were all humans, weren't they?
Had this for a while.
I don't really know. This whole thing was kind of built on the idea of 'What if Zoro knew prayers and stuff?' and I wanted to write something about his earrings.
I've seen some stories about his earrings symbolizing something and that left piercings means he's gay, etc. I personally just sort of think that Zoro got the earrings 'cause they were cool or something. He's not really the type of person to look much into things.
I'm sorry that I killed off Zoro's parents. But I needed a way for him to travel freely. And I've always wondered where Zoro was staying during the time in the dojo. I don't really know how dojos work, actually. But I'm thinking that you can't actually live there if you're not the owner or their family.
The last part just kind of came out of no-where. I don't really know. I've always sort of seen Zoro - actually, the whole crew (except Sanji) as asexual and they're always more focused on their dreams. There's many fics about Zoro/Johnny/Yosaku so I just thought, what the hell. Why not? Also, I don't think that Zoro being self-conscious about his hair is true but yeah. Just something I came up with.
I never really liked Kuina and Zoro being paired up (maybe 'cause I like ZoSan XD) and I've always thought of them having a really really strong frienemy thing going on. Maybe Zoro got friendzoned...
I'm just sort of saying random shit here.
Oh! And the name Kuroko is not from Kuroko no Basket. I had the idea first with my oh-so-amazing logic. I knew that 'shiro' is white in Japanese and 'kuro' is black. Kuroko is sort of the opposite of Koshiro. 'Shiro' becomes 'Kuro' and I just moved the 'Ko' from the front to the back.
'Kyutoryu' means 'Nine Sword Style'. It's the demonic nine faced sword style that Zoro sometimes used in the anime. Obviously since there's nine things and Nine Sword Style. I quite like the name.
Thanks for reading! I hoped you liked it!