Title: of broken pride and first mates
Characters: Atalaya and Kitsune nakamaship/slight fluff
Word count: 1,844
Rating: T for blood and Kitsune's goddamn mouth

A/N: THE CUP OF COFFEE HAS OVERFLOWN! (little reference there if a certain someone notices it ;) ) Yeah, I kept thinking about a what-if where Kitsune prepares to sacrifice himself for his captain like Zoro did at Thriller Bark, so this has an AU-ish slant. Also, there is slight OOC because Kitsune is not fluffy, but for reasons :P Mostly because of my Volcaniea prediction, though. Also, let me take note that I CANNOT COPY KITKAT'S ACCENT. LIKE OH MY GOD. EITHER HIS ACCENT IS TOO HEAVY OR IT'S NOT ENOUGH. /bashes head against wall and sobs

Set sometime after the Volcaniea arc.


Amidst the broken debris littering the uneven ground, Kitsune shakily stood. Blood trickled down one temple, bruises and scrapes were abundant over his body, and a particularly nasty gash oozed out blood.

He shook a bit of rock dust out of his hair, before bending over to close his hand over the hilt of an unsheathed Hebi Kotei -

And instinct took over before his mind really processed it, and suddenly he was rolling over, under a flying slash that neatly trimmed the abandoned houses behind him, and he cursed, rolling up into a sitting position against a slab of broken stone, his entire body shaking from exertion, and his fingers curled over his weapon (that he had almost stabbed himself while rolling, he might add) as he stared down the man who had not even a scratch on him.

"Hawkeye Mihawk, 's you, ain't it?" he breathed, a trademark smirk on his face despite the situation. He could spy the crumpled forms of his comrades in the distance, and a little closer to the Shichibukai than he would've liked were the prone figures of Lance, Roa, and Fell.

Closer even was the unconscious body of his captain, so close the man could kill her in a whim.

Hell, he was so strong it was barely even fair. Kitsune didn't even know it was possible to cut that damned huge-ass castle in half, much less let it fall down and crush the majority of his crew, especially not after they'd defeated their corrupted king (which, to his credit, was pretty damned strong, and Kitsune had rather enjoyed cutting him up). Of course, the townspeople had fled after glimpsing into those stark yellow eyes, ones that trapped prey like mice before swooping and cutting them up.

And the world's strongest swordsman claimed that he was here on a goddamned fucking whim, and that he was here for the bounty price on his captain's head. Of course the crew had resisted strongly, but in a few blurs and slashes of black they were taken out, Kitsune only managing to withstand the attack by pulling out his Zoan fruit at the last second.

He always scowls at the use of Kanrei Jack's fruit, but it was a usable tool nevertheless.

Kitsune stood, angling his sword so that it caught the light.

Dracule Mihawk stared at the Meito in his hands. "I see you fancy yourself as a swordsman. How did you get your hands on one of the 21 O Wazomono Grade Swords?" he inquired lightly, even as he reached for the kogatana around his neck.

"Doesn't matter, does it? In battle, all that matters 's how strong ya are," Kitsune drawled, crouching into a stance as his eyes opened a sliver, enough for the blood-red eyes of a demon to gleam through.

"Fox Dance Gullitone."

He took off at a speed that would make him invisible to an ordinary man, but Mihawk's eyes followed him clearly, without pause, even as he brought down his sword onto his neck. One skillful parry with a knife - oh fuck, Hebi Kotei was parried by a goddamned dinner knife, and he doesn't even know how to feel about that anymore - sent him flying, and then a sudden blur of black and maroon meld together, and then the world's greatest swordsman was behind him.

It took approximately two seconds for the pale swordsman to feel the slashes, searing pain into his body, and he stumbled forward, blood pouring from his mouth, his fingers tightening on the hilt of his sword with a fierce desperation, but he refused to fall, because he can'thecan'thecan't and if he falls he knows he'll be letting down his captain, and his crew, and that is not an option.

Not after they'd saved and changed him in Volcaniea.

He turned around, but his vision is blurry and he saw double, and the world was spinning at a ferocious rate.

And he knew. He knew that he couldn't beat this man no matter how he tried, because the odds and possibly the entire goddamned world was stacked against him, and he felt as helpless as he had all those years ago, in the clutches of his hated father -

But this time he wasn't. And this time he'll redirect the knife he's holding from his mother's gut to his father's throat, because he's seen enough and he can.

"Does'it really hafta be my cap'n's head yer takin'?" Kitsune questioned softly, and the way he said it made Mihawk blink - which is possibly the most emotion he'd gotten out of the Shichibukai anyway.

His knees gave out on him and he bowed his head in submission to the stronger man. "'m sayin', 's it okay if ya take my head instead of my captain's? 'S only seven million beri difference, 'fter all."

For a moment, a flicker of surprise crossed Mihawk's face, but as fast as it appeared, it was gone. "There are many men who wish to become the world's greatest swordsman...and I sense an ambition similar to that from you..to become the strongest. Are you willing to lay down your ambitions for your captain?" he questioned.

"'m willin' ta lay down my pride, my honor, and my life," Kitsune replied flatly, not bothering to raise his head. His injuries ached, and suddenly he felt very lightheaded.

There was a pause as the wind whistled softly through the abandoned island, ruffling the silvery-white hair of the bowed pirate.

He heard the rustle of fabric. "Boy, tell me your name."

Despite the desperate situation, the first mate smirked. "'Crimson Fox' Kitsune."

"I see." There was another pause. "You may raise your head." When Kitsune got up, he realized that the man had unsheathed Yoru, the strongest sword in the world. "Very well, I will comply to your request. Harm will not befall your captain, nor any of your crewmates." he pointed the black blade directly at Kitsune. "However..."

"Yea' I get it," Kitsune said. "Thanks fer that, by the way."

Time seemed to stop as the world's greatest swordsman slashed downwards, and the air bent to his will into a flying slash attack, and Kitsune lifted his arms up, parallel to the ground to expose his chest, and the first mate opened his eyes to a small sliver just as the slash cut a devastating rip across his chest, from his right arm to across his chest to his left knee.

His body crumpled, his life force oozing out of him as rapidly as the blood was. Mihawk sheathed Yoru, yellow eyes narrowed at the unconscious swordsman. "So another man like you exists, Roronoa?" he questioned softly, stepping back.

The boy wasn't dead, he mused, but without rapid treatment, he would. "It's not your time to die, youngster," he murmured. "Rise to the top, and perhaps you will challenge me again."

He turned around with a flourish, black coat flaring out behind him.


"Oi! Kitsune! Come over here for a sec!"

The swordsman looked up from cleaning Hebi Kotei clean of Kanrei Jack's blood. His father had fallen at the hands of the duo, and Kitsune had already decided that he would continue his adventures with the Saber Pirates. It was the day after the celebration feast (because his rambunctious captain always had to throw a feast, he supposed, smirking a bit), and just about everyone was nursing a hangover.

"'s wrong, sweetheart?" he crooned. He smirked as Atalaya bristled visibly at his comment, but made no move to act on it.

"Just come here for a second. Bron found a tattoo shop in Yougan City, and we can get that goddamned brand off your back."

Unconsciously, Kitsune moved his hand to brush the demon brand on his back, shivers crawling up his spine just thinking about his father and what he had done to him. Atalaya noticed his expression, and hurriedly added, "That is, if you want."

Kitsune's lip curled. "Why not? C'mon, and show the way, sweetheart."

He ignored the warning that the devil gave him, about how it would leave scarring. Like he cared about scarring. He had gotten plenty of scars before, in battle, and from his f -

He mentally stopped himself from going down that road.

A sharp pain spiked in his back as the devil carefully removed the brands of ink that was stuck in his skin, and his back felt like it was on fire, so he imagined that there was a fire on his back, burning the ropes that bound him to General Snow.

It worked.

He had no idea how long it lasted, but when the devil announced that it had been removed, Kitsune suddenly said, "Aye, wouldja be so kind as ta do me another favor?"

"Of course! You pirates are the heroes of our country - "

"Okay, gimme another tattoo on my back."

An hour later, Kitsune walked out, slipping his bloodstained kimono back over a tattooed back. It was a jolly roger, one with a bandanna and overly long canines, and words above and below it.

CRIMSON FOX KITSUNE

FIRST MATE

Atalaya had taken note of it, but hadn't commented, instead walking with a small smile on her face.

"Kitsune!"

He jerked his head toward her. "What, sweetheart?"

"Kitsune!"

"Kitsune!"

" - Kitsune, wake up, goddammit!"

Eyelids flew open in surprise, and he stared up at the alarmed face of his captain. He shifted a bit, and realized that he was still on the cold, hard ground that he had landed on, but something felt a little different.

He sat up in a sitting position, ignoring the fresh wave of pain that it brought on, and noticed the bloodied bandages wrapped around his arms, legs, and torso. "So th' Witch Doctor treated me, huh?"

I'm still alive.

Atalaya scoffed, sounding relieved now that she knew he was awake and kicking. "You were roughly an inch from death when she did, Ankh saved your sorry ass. What the hell happened with that Shichibukai, though?" she added, looking confused. "When I woke up, he was gone, and you were trying to compete in terms of biggest scars that dead guys have."

"Is it okay if you take my head instead of my captain's?"

Kitsune smirked. "Dunno, sweetheart," he drawled. "Maybe I scared 'im off."

"There's only a seven million beri difference, after all."

Atalaya sighed, raising an eyebrow. "Well, whatever. We're all alive, after all.." she turned around, her first mate forgotten. "Hey! Ankh! Is Fell conscious yet? I think Roa's gonna pee himself!"

"I'm willing to lay down my pride, my honor, and my life."

A frustrated shout came from blondie, and an equally frustrated shout from the Witch Doctor, and then Atalaya got up to do something, presumably.

Kitsune smirked. "Whatever ya say, sweetheart..."


A/N: I still believe that Kitsune is seriously OOC... :/ Oh well! I hope you enjoyed this! As always, reviews and criticism is always welcome! :)

-alittlebitlate