One Piece—The Real Romance Dawn

by Laydee Jiraya

Chapter 1—The Real Romance Dawn! Luffy and Zoro Set Sail!

You could tell there was something on his mind by the way his gaze drifted out to sea, his eyes all a void, like big, dark wells. A big grin plastered itself on his face from time to time, while the pathetic excuse for a sail fluttered in sea spray and wind. It looked like it used to be a bed sheet, before Luffy had tied it clumsily to two broom poles. Storm clouds were gathering above their heads, blooming from the east. The faint glimmer of sun stroked his cheeks, while rain and night approached this ridiculous boat. It could easily capsize—and the captain couldn't swim. As far as Zoro was concerned, there was nothing to smile about.

And Luffy had an enormous appetite. They had set off four hours ago—and the food was almost entirely gone.

"Oi. You sure you know what you're doing?" He had his doubts. Luffy didn't.

"Of course! I've sailed around in a boat like this before. That one got sucked into a whirlpool."

"Yeah, that makes me feel at ease."

He grinned. "See? Nothing to worry about."

"The sarcasm just flew over your head, rubber-man."

"Oh?" Confusion engulfed his face. "I don't see it." A hand stretched across his brow, shading his eyes comically as he darted back and forth in the small boat, looking in every direction. "Nani? Nani? Doko da? Nani?" Zoro almost felt guilty as he stifled a snicker. This poor guy was hopeless. He settled down, and so did the ocean. "Aw. I missed the sarcasm."

"You did. Do you even know what sarcasm is?"

". . . A bird? Meat?"

"No, it's—" And then something struck the boat, a slow scraping across the bottom. The light faded, leaving Zoro's eyes shadowed, giving the idea that they were bruised. Coupled with his green hair, they made him look almost demonic. His hand went to the hilts of his katanas.

"There may be an enemy."

Luffy nodded, looking serious for the first time since they'd set off. And then they noticed the island. It was the same shore, in fact, that they had set off from four hours back—the same rocks, the same slope, the same seashells. A frown filled the captain's face.

"Hmm." He seemed to think for a while, a good long while. "Oh! I don't know how to navigate."

"You should have said something before! I'll take over the navigating." Luffy didn't protest, mostly because he didn't yet know how good Zoro was at getting lost.

"Yosh! Here we come again, world!"

"No, no. Let's go get some more food first."

"But we were supposed to get out of town. We're on the run."

"So disguise yourself. You're a pirate. Think outside the box."

"Disguise myself . . . Oh!" And then the sail was untied—and Luffy was under it, making bizarre groaning sounds.

Zoro's face became filled with horror. ". . . What is that?"

"I'm a ghooOOOooOOOsssst. WoooOOOooo!"

"How is that a proper disguise?" The taller man pulled the sheet off, and put it around his smaller companion like a cloak. "Here. You're a nun now."

"Do nuns wear white?"

"Uhiuh."

"So . . . what're you gonna be?"

"I'll be—" He pulled his shirt up over his head, his arms hanging out of the sleeves, stuck forward over the top of his skull. He seemed to be having some trouble getting out. He couldn't see it, but stars were filling the idiot captain's eyes.

"Suge! You're a headless horseman!"

"Baka! I don't even have a horse!"

"You're right. It's not very convincing." His fist slammed down in the palm of his hand. "Yosh! I know! I'll be the horse!" And before Zoro could protest or free himself that same idiot had picked him up by his ankles and sat him behind his head. He leapt from the boat and ran, racing forward for some time before he realized Zoro was no longer there. The man lay sprawled a quarter mile back, his head pounding from being smacked into by a low-hanging branch.

"ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?"

"Wari." The stupid guy's face got swallowed in a smile.

The rain came pouring down about three seconds after, leaping in their eyes on a howling wind, blinding them. A distant crack of a splitting rope. The boat began waltzing out to sea, too far to be reached even with stretchy limbs by the time Luffy could react. "NANI? Oi! Zoro! Get the boat!" But he was already gone, his back vanishing shirtless under the water. Luffy stood there feeling helpless, clinging to the katanas which had been jammed into his hands an instant before. Then a head appeared out of the water in front of the boat, the rope clenched in barred teeth. By the time he'd swum to the shore it was beginning to hail.

The rope stayed in his mouth, words groaning out. "I'll look for somewhere to put it! Go find us a room!"

"But we're going out to sea!"

The rope spit out into strong fingers. "Are you crazy?" The captain's face was set, looking determined as all hell. "You're a hammer, for fuck sake. We're waiting it out." The straw hat tilted down, shadowing what small glimmer of his face the night had allowed. "LUFFY!" The hat and the tattered shroud blew back in a wild breeze, and their gazes locked, eyes and minds on fire. It was a battle of wills, silent, and with no show of force. They didn't need swords and fists to overwhelm each other.

And then, his jaw cracked into a laugh. "It's no big deal. We'll go tomorrow."

Zoro wanted to think he'd won. He knew he hadn't—the captain had changed his mind because he wanted to. It had nothing to do with Zoro. He'd never felt like this in someone's presence—completely naked and vulnerable.

He had mostly gone along out of debt and sympathy, without much faith in those big boasts of conquering the Grand Line and becoming the pirate king. As that familiar outline disappeared in the fog, he knew he'd been wrong.

Glossary

Japanese : English

Oi : Hey

Nani? : What?

Doko da? : Where?

Suge : Cool/Awesome

Baka : Stupid

Yosh : Sort of like "Alright!" or "Yeah!"

Wari : Sorry (casual)