Summary: Zoro is a retired swordsman that lives alone on the outskirts of the town he was born in. One day, he came across a trapped fox and took it home to take care of its wounds. He's in for a surprise when night falls upon the land.

Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece. This title belongs to Oda-sensei specifically.

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The Kitsune's Heart

Chapter 1

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Zoro yawned widely as he woke up to another sunny day in his old run-down but livable two-floor shack. He stood and went to grab some clothes before heading out into the forest to do his usual morning routine. This peculiar man was once a swordsman and a grand one at that. The city nearby was his hometown and his place of work before he retired, once part of the royal court as a captain of the guard. All villages in that area knew of him as he was famous for being Roronoa Zoro of the Santoryuu style. Only he used the acclaimed style, no one else. He never taught anyone this style either, making it his personal style to his grave.

Not only that but he was the youngest to be part of the royal guard in the first place. At the age of 19 did he retire, not wanting to be part of the action anymore but the city will surely be protected with bandits and rivaling countries believing that he was still there, therefore not attacking for fear of facing him in battle.

Now he lived his peaceful days in his small home on the outskirts of town, only heading into the city when he wanted to head to his favorite bar to get a bottle of his favorite sake, free of charge for the deeds he had done, get some work done to this three favorite katanas that have seen many battles and never weathered yet, or get some food, also free of charge for the same reason. When he had nothing else to do, he did favors for the people to make some money but that was all the people see of him. Other than those few things, he's never seen in the city often.

He reached the small stream that was a few yards away from his home and set his things down on the boulder. He began undressing and slipped into the water with a sigh. His swords were propped on the boulder as well, still guarded even when the only things that roam through the forest was a harmless animal or two that knows to avoid him.

All but one…

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A pair of blue eyes watched from the nearby bush, being quiet at its presence as it watched. It was nothing but a small fox but this fox was unique from any other and the reason wasn't hard to miss. Behind it swayed not one but five beautiful golden tails. This fox in particular was a shape-shifter but kept that talent hidden well. He didn't want to become some foolish mortal's pet if he was ever found but that reasoning changed the first time he saw the green haired man taking his morning bath.

It was about two months ago when the fox came out for a drink and maybe a bath of his own in his mortal cloak when he heard the water ripple as another entered the river further upstream. Curious about the disturbance, he moved up further to see who it was while staying hidden and was met with the sight of a strong, rippling back filmed over in water.

'So beautiful...' The fox thought as he watched the man wash up in silence. Once he got a glimpse of his face, he was hooked. He wanted to see this strong, glorious male more but knew he couldn't be seen or the male he felt such attraction to might do what he has avoided for the past 300 years. So here he was now, two months later, still having his private little show of watching the man bathe. After watching him for so long, he wanted to make this man his, but he had to think of a way without causing trouble for himself.

"Well, I'm not a trickster for nothing. I've eluded fools that wanted me for my pelt or tails. I'm sure this man can't resist me either but I can make this go in my favor if I play my cards just right." he murmured before standing. "And I'll do it all tonight." he said, grinning softly to himself before dashing off, making the brush rustle with his departure.

Zoro looked up when he heard the sound but passed it off as an animal scurrying off and continued his bath.

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Later in the day, in the city, a group of men were gathered in the tavern, on the table before them a painted picture. "So, you're telling me that some old coot told you there was a five tailed fox living in the forest nearby that can be worth tons if we bring it back alive?" One of the men spoke.

"Yeah. Apparently in his younger days, he was able to see the fox for a long enough period of time to get an ink painting of it. He said that it must be a mystical lore creature that's roaming around here. Maybe a child of the legendary Kyuubi no Kitsune that roamed that very forest four thousand years ago." Another male spoke and then the suppose leader grinned, showing yellowed teeth. "Well, if it's true, then we'll catch it in a trap. A fox trap won't work since it's witty enough to escape from it if it was caught. We'll try a snare trap that can fracture its leg so it can't run then we'll bring it back and have a great auction to sell it to the highest bidder." The man spoke and the men cheered as they clanked mugs together at their ingenious plan to capture the rare fox running wild in the forest.

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After his bath, he dressed and sat upon the boulder, taking out a few cleaning supplies and started working on managing his three swords. First was Sandai Kitetsu, a supposed cursed sword that has brought many a swordsman that has wield it misfortune on the battlefield. He received it from a dying man on the field, telling him that he might be the only one to have the power to wield the deadly sword. He smirked and told the man that he'll leave it to fate and tested it with tossing it into the air and held out his arm, the blade missing by the thinnest hair and stabbed the ground instead. So the sword was now his to command and never once brought misfortune upon him. He believed that only because the sinister sword wanted to be paid in blood by a skilled hand to keep any misfortune from him.

After Kitetsu was done, he placed the sword back into its saya before starting on the second, Shuusui. Another sword given to him after proving his skill to another wandering swordsman passing through the city. As young as he was in the royal guard, no one would expect him to be as good as he were back then but he proved the man wrong and was rewarded with his treasured sword. And the last, which meant much to him, was Wadou Ichimonji. That sword in particular belonged to a close friend who died not long after he was signed up for training to be a royal guard.

A nasty band of bandits came in and ransacked most of the city before the guards were dispatched and she was caught in the crossfire unarmed and killed. When he got out there and learned of her death, the result wasn't pretty. While he and Kuina had a love/hate relationship before he left, he still treated the girl with every amount of respect that he would give a fellow swordsman. The idea that she was taken down without a fight, he wasn't happy at all and the bandits saw that first hand. After the ordeal was taken care of, he went to see Kuina's father to ask for her treasured sword and it was given without a fuss.

"She knows that it will be in the right hands." he told him as he left.

He sighed and shook away the memory as he stood, placing the three swords into the loop that hung from his hip and headed back to his home.

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The men had set the trap, also knowing the demon swordsman was living in the very same forest and wouldn't want to encounter him. They waited out far enough so the fox wouldn't see them and waited. It was later in the evening when the fox showed itself. "There it is!" One of the men cheered. "Fame and fortune, here we come!" The little fox wandered further, getting ever closer to the snare without noticing it. Soon, the snap and the surprised, painful yelp from the fox got the men charging but they stopped when they heard another voice break through the night. "What the hell is going on out there?!" Zoro snapped as he started out from the place he was training at.

"Oh shit!"

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Sanji was prepared. He had followed Zoro secretly to his home so he will always know where to go and tonight was the night where he will get what he had desired since first seeing him. "And having him by my side will keep those pesky animals at bay. Damn you, Zeff, for leaving me behind to fend for myself." he grumbled as he walked cautiously to not alert the other. He could hear the air whisper in protest with each swing of the sword, indicating Zoro was training and Zoro training was something you don't want to disturb unless you want to be gutted with a sword. He continued on, never noticing the snare that waited for him and the moment his right paw made contact with it, it snapped up, catching his leg and he yelped as the bone was fractured slightly. 'Damn it!' he thought, hearing a cheer and heard some men coming towards him.

"Shit, shit, shit!" he cursed, trying to free his paw. There was no way in hell he would show his mortal form to these unwashed bastards. His ears perked when he realized the sound of the sword cutting air has stopped and he smiled wickedly when he heard Zoro's voice.

"What the hell is going on out there?!"

"Oh shit!"

'Serves you bastards right. Think you can catch me when I'm near the demon swordsman.' Sanji thought before playing the pitiful creature, cloaking his other four tails for added effect. Zoro came out from hiding, glancing at the men cowering before him. "I'll ask again, what the hell is going on?" he demanded. One of the men pointed to the fox. "We were just trying to capture that thing. We didn't know it wandered so close to your home, Roronoa-sama." One of the men spoke, fear lacing his words. Zoro glanced down to the whimpering creature before looking back to the man. "Why? It hasn't done any harm to the city, has it? Unlike that little monkey that keeps stealing food." he said, remembering every once in a while, he would hear startled shouts of the little monkey's victims as they lose their food to the energetic simian.

'Jeez Luffy, why don't you announce yourself as a servant to Son Goku, will you? Ace will have your hide one of these days.'Sanji thought as he continued to whimper, looking up to Zoro. "But it's rare! Some old man in the city told us that there was a five tailed fox roaming around this forest and we wanted to capture it. Anyone would want to see a servant of Inari." One of the men tried to explain.

"And what makes you think this guy is it? I don't see five tails on it. Looks like any normal fox to me. Now why don't you do yourselves a favor and stop chasing myths. I'm allergic to stupidity." he murmured as he moved over to the fox and helped it out of the snare. Sanji watched as the men left, one turning back to glance to him and he grinned, making the man gasp. "Hmm, must be a fracture. This snare isn't built to break any bones." Zoro murmured, catching Sanji's attention again before he was brought into the male's arms. He would've purred at finally being held in those strong arms but was more focused on hearing his voice in his ears. 'Well, one task down. Now the next thing is seduce him to be mine.' he thought, grinning softly as Zoro started carrying him back to his home to wrap the fracture.

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Sanji was set on Zoro's bed as he went to get supplies and he made himself at home on the bed, inhaling the other's scent greedily. 'Perfection at its finest. And soon, it will be mine.' Sanji thought as he looked up when Zoro came back in with medical supplies. "I don't know a thing about this so don't whine if I do a crappy job. Too bad it's so late or I would've had Chopper take care of you. He's the one that took care of most of my wounds when I was a royal guard." he murmured as he worked on making a makeshift splint for Sanji so the other was able to still walk without irritating it too much so the fracture can heal.

Sanji yipped happily for the gesture even though he knew that the fracture would heal overnight. "There. You can stay here for the night but tomorrow, it's back to the wild for you. I don't like pets." he muttered and Sanji pouted.

"Well that isn't fair…" he spoke and Zoro balked as he watched the fox. Sanji chuckled as he sat up, looking to Zoro. "Well? Bet you weren't expecting this, hmm? Of course, those bastards didn't need to know that the normal fox they caught was indeed their little myth that they were searching for." he continued as he shifted his form, turning into his mortal form. Zoro watched at the little fox that he just saved turned into a beautiful male. Sun kissed blond hair was cropped short, a long bang covering over the left side of his face. A crystal blue eye gazed at him as five tails swayed behind him, each holding a hoshi no tama as a pair of fox ears twitched from the spot on his head.

Zoro continued to stare at the fox turned man. A very beautiful man. A very beautiful, naked man. Wait...naked?!

"Augh! Please, form some clothes or something!" Zoro grumbled as he turned away. Sanji laughed as he stood. "Oh where are my manners." he said, taking a leaf from behind his fox ear and turned it into a flowing kimono with an intricate pattern of foxes upon it before sliding it on. "Even though I'm sure it won't stay on for long." he purred as Zoro turned to face him.

"So, if you're a kitsune, what do you want with me?" Zoro inquired, crossing his arms, watching the other with an indifferent gaze.

"I've watched you for a long time, Roronoa Zoro, but no longer. Your gorgeous body drawn me to you and no one, male or female, has done that to me. I watched and waited for the perfect time to confront you. Of course, those bastards weren't a part of that plan but they actually made my job much easier. My bastard of a father figure told me many times to settle down and find someone. While I flirted with and doted on female kitsune before, none of them attracted me as much as you. And it's about time I stop beating around the bush." Sanji spoke as he walked over to him, arms coming to loop around the swordsman's neck.

"I want to make you mine, Roronoa, and the power I hold will definitely benefit you. How about it?" he whispered, knowing his charm cannot be ignored. Many people who come across kitsune could never resist, no matter whether the kitsune was male or female. And Sanji believed firmly that Zoro will eagerly bend down to his will and become the mate he had desired...

"...No."

Or not.

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Zypher: Well there it is. The first chapter to a new fic. I need to stop doing this cause now more stories will be put behind and my Yu-gi-oh fans might come at me with torches soon. But anyways, here's my first step into trying to join the One Piece community with a little Zoro/Sanji fic. This may or may not be long depending on the chain of events the story will have but for once I have an ending in mind -throws confetti- Yay for planned endings! But yeah, if you devout ZoSan fans enjoyed this, it will make me happy to know that I haven't failed the first step in trying to join another category of fanfiction. Well tell me what you all think...and please don't kill me if I killed Zoro and Sanji with OOC too early [even though for Sanji, it actually fits considering what he is and what common folklore explanation on kitsunes say]. I promise you arguments and insults will start flying by next chapter. You can never have a fic where they are docile to one another easily. -grins-