Blood dripped from the ends of his swords where they hung at his sides. Strong hands gripped the hilts tightly. Thick, crimson liquid making them almost too slippery to hold on to. Heavy footsteps echoed through the thick fog that covered the ship, the only sound to be heard for miles upon miles of ocean, save for…

*clink, clink, clink*

His earrings chimed with every step he took. Three thin, golden bars hung from one ear and clacked against each other, a thin trail of blood snaking down each one. The air smelled stale and metallic, as well as something else, something only HE could smell.

Victory.

The air was thick with it, the smell invading his nostrils and wrapping around his brain like a snake coiling around its prey. His eyes shone with a murderous tinge, gold and red blending together in to create a sickening mix. The sails of the ship lay uselessly on the deck of the ship, cut down the moment he jumped on board to lay waste to filth that now writhed at his feet. Well, those that weren't already dead anyway. Somebody needed to tell the story, so some were allowed to live.

Allowed, that's right. He was allowing them to live so graciously. The power he held in his hands made him tremble with excitement. Power over their filthy little lives. Pirates. Every last one of them. Filthy, disgusting, thieving pirates. Reeking of cheap booze, blood, and body odor. He guessed that the last time the lot of them had a bath was when they fell off the boat.

Blood stained and matted his pants, making them heavy and almost uncomfortable to walk in. They were torn in several places as well, revealing small patches of tanned skin. His chest was bare, exposing the deep scar that stretched from his left shoulder all the way down to his right hip. The patch job on it was rough, the flesh became gnarled wherever it became more difficult to sew back together. Not a single drop of blood that decorated his body was his own, adding all the more to his victory. His hair had practically been dyed with it, the deep red all but drowning out the natural green. He took the last few steps necessary to reach his target, placing the tip of one of his swords at the captain's throat.

"I'll be taking all your booze, if you don't mind that is." He smirked as he watched the blood drip off his blade and land on the man's neck, trailing back to land on wooden floors of the ship. The pirate opened his mouth to speak, blood trailing from the corner of his mouth and his eyes all but begging for mercy.

"Get.. up… asshole.." He leaned down and turned his head, facing his ear towards the pirate that lay frozen on the floor.

"What was that? I couldn't hear you, speak up rat!"

"I SAID GET UP YOU ASSHOLE!"

"GAHH!" Zoro screamed as he rolled and fell off his bed, sheets and pillows flying before he landed flat on the floor of his bedroom, his face digging into the ugly blue carpet.

"Will you get dressed already? You have school in fifteen minutes and I have work! I will NOT wait for you any longer now get your lazy ass UP and GET IN THE CAR!" With that, the door to his room slammed behind him, the "GET LOST" sign on his door banging against the wood. SHE stomped down the hall and away from Zoro's room, no doubt heading straight for the car to honk until he was outside the apartment.

"Kuina… you BITCH!" Zoro yelled to nobody but himself as he flopped over onto his back. Zoro stared at the ceiling as he took in his surroundings, and the dream that had been so vivid and real just moments ago. How badly did Zoro wish he had been born in a different era? The era of pirates and bounty hunters, of adventures and treasure beyond your wildest dreams! But no. Here he was. Stuck in the world of the 21st century. Stuck in modern day Toronto. STUCK where nothing exciting EVER happens besides the odd whacko waving a gun around in the subway. Even then, it never even lasted long enough to-

*HONK! HONK HONK HONK!*

"I'M COMING! I'M COMING!" Zoro forced himself up onto his feet and looked over to his alarm clock, resting haphazardly on his bedside table where he had accidentally knocked it in the panic.

8:10

"Shit!" Zoro scrambled over to his dresser and pulled out a pair of jeans, a t-shirt that switched from blue to white in the center, socks, and a pair of underpants. He made quick work of pulling off his pajamas and replacing them with today's selection of clothing. He threaded a belt he found hanging from a random spot in his closet through his belt loops and ran to the kitchen. Zoro opened the bag of bread on the counter and pulled out a slice, sticking it in the toaster and setting the timer before pushing the lever down. The little red light went off, signaling he was 'a-okay' to go on with the rest of his morning. Zoro ran into the bathroom and looked at his reflection in the mirror while he rolled on his deodorant.

His hair was an absolute mess, sticking up in all the wrong places and making him look like some sort of demon. Great! If the guys at school saw this, they would piss themselves laughing. "Classroom Demon Roronoa Zoro" complete with horns. He looked exhausted too, well, he always did when he was woken up so forcefully. He noticed that he had accidentally knocked one of his earrings into an odd position during his sleep and straightened it. He turned on the faucet and wet his hands, threading them through his hair before combing it to his liking and brushing his teeth. Zoro made his way over to where his coat was hanging and slipped it over his shoulders while the brush still hung from his lips.

Is something burning..? SHIT! THE TOAST! Zoro ran back to the kitchen and slammed the release button on the toaster, watching the charred looking thing pop out and land on the counter, blackened crumbs spreading out where they so desired. Zoro groaned and walked back to the bathroom where he rinsed out his mouth and put his toothbrush away. Zoro crossed the hallway back into his bedroom and flung his school bag over his shoulder. He pocketed his cell phone, which was sitting on the floor next to one of the pillows he had flung in his waking.

*HONK HONK HONK HONK HOOONNNKKKKK!*

"HONKING MORE ISN'T GONNA MAKE ME GO ANY DAMN FASTER! YOU'RE JUST GONNA PISS OFF THE NEIGHBORS!" Zoro shouted out his bedroom window as he glared down at the ugly burgundy station wagon that sat in his driveway.

"MAYBE IF YOU WOULD MOVE A LITTLE FASTER IN THE FIRST PLACE, WE WOULDN'T HAVE THIS PROBLEM! NOW GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE!" Kuina shouted back, waving her fist at Zoro threateningly, her dark blue hair falling around her face like water as she leaned out the car window.

Zoro flung his arms up in defeat and ran for the front door, picking up his charred toast on his way past the kitchen and slipping his runners onto his feet. Zoro grabbed his house key from the table next to the door and ran outside, locking the door behind him and skipping every second step on the stairs on his way down to the car. Zoro threw his bag into the back seat and walked around the front of the car, jumping into the passenger side and buckling in. Kuina screeched out of the driveway and started on the way to 'Sabaody High'.

"Why the fuck didn't you wake me up earlier?!"

"HOW is that MY job?! That's what your alarm clock is for dumbass! You know, I didn't have to drive you to school, I could have just let you sleep so SHOW SOME GRATITUDE!"

"I could have walked to school! I don't need your help!"

"OH! You could have walked to school? Do you remember the last time I let you walk to school? You ended up in fucking Mississauga! It's a 20 damn minute walk and you ended up in another CITY!"

"Your directions were confusing and you know it!"

"God damnit Zoro! I can't fight with you while I'm driving! Shut up and eat your- wait what the fuck is that?!"

"IT'S TOAST! I WAS IN A DAMN HURRY AND IT GOT BURNED!" Zoro turned his head and glared out the window as he watched the buildings pass by, trying his best to commit them to memory so that he could try again with this 'walking to school' business tomorrow. Zoro let his mind wander back to the dream he had been having before he was so rudely woken while he ate his… "breakfast".

It had always been Zoro's dream to be the world's greatest swordsman. Which was absolutely absurd considering it was 2010 and there weren't any swordsmen just wandering around in Canada to fight with. Maybe that's why he always dreamed of pirates. There were always plenty of swordsman to battle with back in the times of the pirates and there was always plenty of money in the bounty hunting business. If he had been born in a different time, he would have been loaded with money from bringing in bounty after bounty and he wouldn't have to worry about going to school or learning how to drive or any of that because he could just wander. Zoro had always dreamed that if he were to be a swordsman back in the pirate era, he would have used not one, not two, but THREE swords. Of course, he would never tell anybody that, they would laugh at him, and even if they didn't, they would look at him differently.

Zoro's daydreams were interrupted abruptly when the door he was leaning on was thrust open and he fell forward onto the pavement. Twisting so he landed on his back and not his face like he had that morning.

"OW! JESUS CHRIST KUINA! YOU UNBUCKLED MY SEATBELT?! WHAT IF I LANDED ON MY HEAD?!" Zoro yelled as he watched her reach into the back seat, pulling out his school bag and throwing it at him. She slammed both the doors shut and walked around the car to the driver's side, looking at Zoro over the top of the car.

"YOU'RE WELCOME!" Zoro could have sworn he saw the slightest hint of a smirk playing at Kuina's lips as she jumped into her seat and drove off. Zoro turned around and looked up at his school, which Kuina had apparently dropped him off DIRECTLY in front of, kicking him out of the car right at the gate.

The school was empty. Empty save for one blond guy sitting on the ground and leaning against the stone gate and staring at Zoro. Eyes wide with a mixture of what looked like shock and confusion. He must have watched the entire scene play out right in front of him. Zoro cleared his throat and walked through the gate and attempted to open the main doors of the school.

Locked. Why the fuck- NO. No, she hadn't! Zoro frantically pulled his phone out of his pocket and turned it on, watching the screen light up and the digital letters display, "7:04 am" Please, please, PLEASE tell me my clock is off! Zoro ran back out of the gate and up to the blond teenager, who was still sitting, looking as confused as ever. His school bag sat beside him so Zoro knew he must be a student.

"WHAT TIME IS IT?!" The guy stared at Zoro for a little while before rolling up the sleeve of his coat and looking down at his watch. He looked disappointedly at his wrist before he let the sleeve fall back into place and returned his gaze to Zoro.

"7:04 am."

"God DAMNIT! She changed the time on my alarm clock again!" Zoro paced around in circles angrily as he tried to compose himself. How many more times do I have to fall for that before I start checking my own damn phone in the morning?! No WONDER my alarm didn't go off! God, if I really COULD use three swords at once, she would be the first one I would take down! Zoro stopped suddenly in his tracks, turning around to face the blond guy and stare at him quizzically.

"Hang on. If it's so early, why are you here?" The blond teen blushed and buried his face in his coat, looking away from Zoro before speaking in his low, rough voice. Geez this guy hit puberty early, never heard a kid with that kind of voice before. Well, besides me. And does he smoke..? Sounds like it, and what's with that accent? He's foreign, that's for sure.

"I.. just transferred here and I didn't know what time school started.. I wanted to be sure I wasn't late..." Zoro stared at the blond for a long time, watching his embarrassed blush deepen until he looked like he had turned into a tomato. Then he burst out laughing.

"You-you come to a different country and don't even check what time their schools start?! What kind of crazy-ass school would start at seven am? AHAHAHAHA!" Zoro wrapped his arms around his stomach as he roared with laughter, tears coming to his eyes as he watched the blond struggle with what to say.

"SHUT UP! I-it's not like I had a choice! You-You damn MOSS-HEAD!" Zoro stopped dead when he heard the insult. People didn't insult his hair, people knew not to insult his hair, lest they incur the wrath of "Classroom Demon Roronoa Zoro".

"What did you just call me? Curly-brow?" Zoro saw a vein pop in the blonds head. He looked ready for a fight at this point, arms tense at his sides, hands balled up into fists, teeth clenched. Locks of blond hair covered the left side of his face, hiding it almost completely while the rest fell to his shoulders. One blue eye stared angrily into his green ones as his nostrils flared angrily. His eyebrow, which curled as it reached the outside of his face and before the beginning of his hairline, was scrunched together in frustration. Zoro chuckled at how funny he looked when he was angry but was interrupted shortly with-

"BASTARD!" The blond swung his leg around, aiming for Zoro's ribs. Zoro did NOT yelp as he jumped back and dodged the teens kick, only to be presented with another aimed for his legs not a second later. Zoro moved to his left and lunged forward, his fist readied to punch the blond right in the side of his head, but he ducked out of Zoro's reach just in time and threw his body forward, his elbow digging into Zoro's gut. Zoro choked and stumbled backwards, clutching onto his stomach and cursing under his breath. The blond teen smirked and stood up straight, dusting off his jeans and fixing his hair.

Zoro took advantage of his cocky attitude and swung his fist towards the blond once again, this time, it connected with his jaw. His head whipped to the side and he grit his teeth to keep from accidentally biting his tongue. The blond massaged his jaw and spit off to the side, there was a pinkish tinge to it and Zoro would have felt bad if the guy hadn't been asking for it. The blond seemed to take a moment, stretching out his shoulders and back before lurching forward and swinging his legs wildly.

Zoro shrugged off his school bag and fought back with a barrage of punches, dodging whenever a hit came to close to contact for his liking. He was fast though, unbelievably fast. Whenever Zoro would manage to land a hit on the guy, he would retaliate fully with a well-placed kick to his ribcage, he even managed to get one or two in his head. By the time it was over, they were both sweaty and panting, wobbling slightly but neither giving in to the want to just fall back and breathe.

Zoro wiped away a drop of blood that trailed from his lip. It was split, the pain was throbbing and he could feel his heart pounding in his chest. His ribs were sore and he was pretty sure they would be bruised badly by tomorrow morning. The blond didn't look much better though. That first punch Zoro had gotten in on him was already starting to turn into a deep, purple bruise.

"Hey, look, Zoro got in another fight" One girl in the crowd murmured to her friend.

"Yeah, when will that guy give up? He's just showing off at this point." Was the reply.

"But the guy he just fought is still standing! That usually never happens…" interjected a third student.

Zoro looked around him to see that a crowd of students had now gathered to watch the show. Shit, how long have we been fighting? Zoro pulled out his phone and checked the time. 7:53. Well that's one way to pass time.

"The fuck are you guys looking at? Get lost!" The group that had surrounded them suddenly dispersed, all but one scrawny looking kid. He was wearing a red t-shirt loose-fitting cargo shorts, held up by a belt with a picture of a skull and cross bones on the front. A scar sat under his left eye, which was currently pinched upwards because of the face-splitting grin he was sporting. Black hair hung barely in front of his eyes, messy and unmanaged as always and thick-rimmed glasses sat haphazardly on his face.

"Shishishishishi, ZORO! Did you get in another fight! That's awesome!"

"Geez Luffy.. most people wouldn't be so happy about that." Luffy stepped forward so he was now standing directly in front of Zoro and reached a hand around him, patting him on the back.

"Yeah, but you won right? Why wouldn't I be happy about that?!"

"I… I didn't win Luffy, it was a tie." Zoro looked back at the blond, who nodded in confirmation, it was small and short, but it was there.

"SERIOUSLY?!" Luffy turned around to look at the teen and stared at him for a while, sizing him up before letting another wide grin break out across his features.

"Dude! You should totally hang out with us at lunch!" The blonds eyes practically bugged out of his head, as well as Zoro's, who grabbed Luffy by the shoulders, turning him around and shaking him.

"Luffy! Are you kidding me?! I just finished punching that guy in the face and you want him to 'hang out with us at lunch'?!"

"Well if he's strong enough to tie with you in a fight, than it's better to have him on our side, isn't it?" Now, to Luffy, the logic was flawless. But to somebody with just a little bit more common sense, it's pretty obvious how absurd that sounded. Zoro's theory was proven even further when the blond teen next spoke.

"Luffy, was it? Thank you, for the offer, but I don't need friends. I'm only here for a year and a half and I don't need anybody tying me down to this place." Luffy looked… almost confused. Like he didn't understand the rejection. He looked between Zoro, and the blond man. Back to Zoro. Now back to the blond. Then he smiled the widest smile he had done so far that day before announcing gleefully,

"I DON'T ACCEPT IT!"