Disclaimer:
Shikamaru: This is a drag, why do I have to do the disclaimer?
Skillet: Cause Cedric and Bloo aren't talking to me, and Kyuubi is still drunk from the Dawn of the Planet of the Apes midnight showing with Yonbi and Duncan.
Shikamaru: Why can't you do the disclaimer like you did last time and like in all of your other stories
Skillet: Cause I'm in the middle of fighting Admin #4 on Pokemon Y
Shikamaru: Uggh Fine. How troublesome. Skillet28561 doesn't own Naruto or One Piece.
Skillet: Good Job. Now go meet with Temari before she caves your head in with that fan of hers.
Shikamaru: Oh crap. I forgot.
*Runs Away*
Skillet:Well that was... Interesting. On with the Story
Arc 0: Zoro's Training
Chapter 1: The Bounty Hunter and the Missing-Nin
'It's been almost a year since I left. I wonder how everyone is. Oh well, it's not like I can come back. I have no clue if I'm in the East Blue, West Blue, North Blue, South Blue, or even the Red Line. And besides I wouldn't be able to face Kuina's grave if I went back without fulfilling my promise'
The green haired 15 year old's thoughts were interrupted by a hollow rumbling in his stomach. He dug into his pockets to see if he had any more beris. But just as he feared the pockets were completely empty.
Zoro knew this meant he would have to go bounty hunting again. He started doing this out of desperation about 5 months ago. He wasn't proud of it, and thought of it as a total disgrace.
But as long as it kept food on the table, he wouldn't complain. He headed to nearest bar to check out this weeks wanted posters. He knew there would be at least one of the vermin on the wanted posters in that bar.
The swordsman sat down near a group of thugs and looked at a bald man with thick and ragged red eyebrows wearing several bloody marine uniforms around his body. He looked at the board with the wanted posters. This man's name was Bundey Jack, wanted for larceny, destruction of property, and the homicide of several marines. Zoro drew his sword with intent to kill. Before he could though, another person appeared behind the target.
"Bundey Jack, you're coming with me"
The one who said this looked to be about 12 years old. He wore an old and beaten orange jumpsuit and had spiky dirty blonde hair. He was very skinny and looked like he had barely eaten in the past couple of weeks.
The gang of mountain bandits just chuckled in amusement at their young perpetrator before one who appeared to be a blob fish fishman got up and patted him on the top of the head with his slimy hands.
"How cute. The gaki is tryin' to play bounty hunter. Beat it kid and leave the bloody work to the adults"
But as soon as he had finished what he was saying he noticed something in the boy's pockets. A worn-out Konoha headband.
"Hey Bundey, this gaki's from Konoha"
When Zoro heard those words he tensed up, as he remembered the stories his master told him about the continental island shinobi from the South Blue. Most notably what had been going on Konoha for the past 12 years.
Flashback no Jutsu
"Hey Sensei, you've been looking at that weird cloth with metal bolted on it for a while, what's the deal with it?"
Koshiro was shocked that his young student would be so perceptive about the object he was holding. And despite the unbridled rage he felt when holding it he began to explain.
"This headband used to belong to a friend of mine, Kushina Uzumaki. She was a Konoha shinobi. You know what shinobi are right Zoro?"
"Yeah those ninja guys from the South Blue." Zoro quickly answered. He always found shinobi fascinating, especially the ones from Suna, because of their wind swords.
"Well Konoha hasn't been behaving very well in the past couple of years." Koshiro droned with a frown on his face.
"Whatta you mean sensei? I heard they've been doing really well for themselves since the slaying of the Kyuubi no Kitsune 8 years ago!"
"Thats on the surface. Only a few people know what goes on inside the once proud utopia. In truth the title of Hokage has had almost all power stripped from them. Nowadays all the power lies in the hands of the Civilian Council due to the political corruption from the Hokage's advisors and a Councilman Danzō Shimura. As such the civilians of the village have had their egos bloated to massive proportions. Even a few clans such as the Uchiha or the main branch of the Hyuuga Family have fallen victim to this sense of superiority. And from what I've heard the rumors about the Kyuubi being killed was a farce. Which would make sense as from all known logic as it's impossible to kill a demon" Koshiro monologued to his young student.
"Then what the hell happened to it Sensei" He asked curiously.
What he learned made him loose any respect for the nations of that continent. All he knew is that if he ever met that boy with the whisker marks on the side of his face he would take him to the East Blue to train under his master and have one of them eventually defeat Kuina in battle.
The swordsman's memories by Bundey speaking out in his rusty and menacing voice "Konoha's all the way down South Fuwafuwa. The only way he'd be here in the Land of Vegetables is if he's a Missing-Nin".
The blond child tensed up when the bandit said he could be a missing-nin. This unfortunatley didn't go unnoticed.
"Oh well, looks like I struck a nerve there. One thing I know is that even if its just a gennin Konoha typically pays a high price for its rouge shinobi. What do you say we go visit your old home brat? I'm sure they'll execute you quick!"
A panicked look spread across Naruto's face upon hearing this and his heart began to race, as a feeling of dread spread through his body. The blonde Jinchuuriki would rather die than return to Konoha and his eyes darted around looking for any avenue of escape. He knew that if he was returned home that the civilian council would have him executed, or worse returned back to his old team.
Before he could find a quick escape route though Fuwafuwa had body slammed him with his large sticky body and had begun swallowing him whole before he was finally consumed. Satisfied, the fishman looked down at his stomach and taunted.
"Nice try kid, but we're much to persistent to let a cash cow like you get away that easily. Don't worry I'll spit you back up as soon as we get to Konoha". He only had a few seconds to gloat before he felt his stomach get fuller. It kept getting bigger and bigger until it spread to his entire body creating a splitting pain.
And just as he thought he couldn't take much more of this, he exploded causing gallons of blood to splatter across the room. And in the center of all of it were several horrified looking Naruto's. In a flash of smoke all but one as gone.
Before he could think about what he just did, Naruto felt a painful cut in his back. He looked back to see a tall lanky man, with pine colored hair and two sickles, one tainted with blood.
"You'll pay for not taking fate like a good little freak. I Coovil the Mantis, former Konoha shinobi, before I was banished because of your possession over the Hokage, will now take my revenge for Fuwafuwa, my brother, and most importantly my career as a shinobi, Kyuubi no Kitsune!"
Coovil then lunged at him with intent to kill. Naruto quickly dodged and with fire in his eyes went for his open kunai pouch, and as if unsheathing and swinging a katana, cut open the insane man's throat.
"I AM NOT A DEMON!"
The banished ninja then fell to the floor before writhing and gasping for air, until he finally died.
After the jinchuriki's glare died down, he looked the man's corpse and the fishman's blood that was dripping down the stained wall of the bar. This sight turned Naruto's glare into a look of extreme disgust and guilt.
"What have I done. Oh dear Lord what have I done"
The distraught missing-nin felt a hard hand on shoulder. But it wasn't a hand of anger or hatred like he had felt so many times in the past. It was a hand of comfort and offering of friendship. The man's voice didn't represent that feeling.
"Don't worry kid. You get used to it real fast. It's never fun though, but you gotta do what you gotta do."
Naruto looked to where the stranger had gestured with the tilt of his head. Every other mountain bandit Naruto hadn't killed himself, had been slaughtered by Zoro. Including the once proud Bundey Jack
The green haired teenager picked up the dead body of Coovil and began walking towards the exit. He told the child to take the rest in. It would be impossible to take in Fuwafuwa though, as it after Naruto's escape there was no body left intact.
"By the way. How you slit this guy's throat with that knife was really clean and solid. You got potential to be an excellent swordsman. What's your name?"
He almost instantly replied "Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki"
"Roronoa Zoro. If you want to learn about the art of swordsmanship meet me by the blacksmith at 12 o'clock. We'll begin your training then".
Naruto didn't ponder much about the decision. It hadn't been since Haku he'd felt this way about someone. And besides, he was one of the few people in the world who believed he could do something other than screwing up, and the only person who believed him he could actually see.
When this thought drifted into his head he began thinking about the people back in Konoha who he could genuinely call his "precious people" as said by the aforementioned Haku.
'Jiji-Sama, Iruka-Sensei, Konohamaru, Hinata-Chan. Wait Hinata? Where did that come from?'
'Nowhere Naruto. And be sure to tell everyone that Ninja of Santoryu is the greatest story ever!' said a mysterious voice in his head. Heh heh
Moments later he saw Zoro walking this way with a gym bag. Naruto broke out of his thoughts and prepared for the training ahead. He had no idea if he would any good at the skill ahead, but Naruto wasn't one to turn down the first real training he'd gotten since Iruka.
"Alright this test will decide if you've got what it takes to be a swordsman. If you want to back out, now would be the time. If you start the test there will be no turning back."
The twelve year old wasn't deterred, and just nodded, surprising the swordsman with how determined he was. But then Zoro remembered the whiskers on the sides of his face, and that he had probably been through much worse shit then what he was about to go through.
"So your sure... Alright then let's begin." Zoro said before opening the bag and reaching in. He then tossed a bamboo sword to Naruto before arming himself with one.
"In order to become my student you have to beat me in battle with these bamboo swords. If you can't then you aren't worth my time."
At this challenge Naruto was immediately pumped up and armed his sword in a natural stance. It surprised his green haired opponent that he actually went into the basic stance solely on instinct. And without hesitation he charged.
"I'll take you down in one blow!"
This reminded Zoro of his first fight with Kuina and how well that ended up for him. Once Naruto was close enough to swing his sword, Zoro quickly swept it out of the way with his and smacked the jinchuriki on the head, and knocking him back with a cutting blow.
While this made him cough up some blood it didn't stop him from trying again with similar results. He then tried it again from a direction. That failed. He tried again. It failed. So he tried it again. That failed. So he tried once again. That failed. Again. Failed. Again. Failed. Again. Failed.
This went on for hours. 9 hours in fact to the point where it was dark outside, and Naruto had several bruises on his faces almost all of which were bleeding, while he was breathing heavily.
'How much more can this kid take? I expected him to be stubborn but this is just inhuman, especially for somebody as malnourished and young as he is.'
After about a minute more of this Zoro finally spoke out
"Why haven't you fallen yet? I've you so much that it would've killed a normal human! There's being determined and then there's just being plain stupid!"
Naruto just laughed with what little breath he had and grunted " Well Show-off-Sensei, I'm no ordinary human! But by the end of this night i'm gonna be a swordsman. Not just that, but I'm going to be the world's best swordsman!"
The amateur bounty hunter's eyes widened with shock after he heard the child's statement.
'He's just like how I was... Man my voice sucked back then..."
After that argument Zoro set down his bamboo sword, sitting down, and picking his ear.
" Alright i'm done. Your so persistent that if I don't call it quits now then this fight will probably go on forever. So congratulations you've passed the test. So meet me back here tomorrow. That's when we get your real sword and your training begins."
At hearing this Naruto immediately began jumping for joy, happy that he could reach new heights a warrior. However it didn't last long, because 30 seconds later he collapsed from exhaustion.
The training had been long and grueling for Naruto much like it had been for his teacher. He had to stand in the river with weights in his mouth while hitting dummies on his sides. He carried the same weights for running 50 laps around whatever village they had traveled to. He spared with Zoro, though every time it ended in defeat.
This didn't matter to him though. As long as he could get strong enough to move up to the next of three swords, he knew it would all pay off. And get stronger he did, as with 4 months he had completely mastered physical training to the point where he could knock down a man 5 times his size and weight.
In no time flat Zoro thought his orange loving pupil was ready to move up to learning the techniques. Which wasn't to hard because he had said, Naruto had real unlocked potential .The last guy must have sucked to not be able to bring that out when someone almost half his age could.
Within a month he had mastered Ichitoryu. With another month he had mastered Nitoryu. Santoryu however had been another story. He wasn't used to carrying one sword in his mouth and it threw him off balance. It took him three months to get it down and another three to learn all the techniques.
The relationship between student and teacher also grew in strength,much like a relationship between an older and younger brother. They had both told each other how they ended up traveling around the world seeking their own goals.
But after a year had past, Naruto had completed his training and was ready for his final exam. A true match against Zoro, the first one he'd had in a year. Both parties had armed their swords but not before their final conversation.
"Alright kid time to see if I'm a good teacher or a sucky one. You better not disappoint me!"
" Don't worry Zoro-Sensei, you've been a great teacher not a sucky one. Believe me I've had both". By this point Naruto's voice had deepened heavily but not to an adult level (Think Ichigo from Bleach's voice. Except it's coming out of Naruto) .
He then began charging towards his teacher like he did on year ago. Just like then Zoro swept it out of the way and delivered a stab of his own. Naruto used his own sword to block that strike and use his third sword to slash at Zoro's offensive sword knocking it out of his hand.
" Huh you've gotten better. But you still need some work before your ready to defeat me. This next strike will finish this fight".
Naruto moved into a defensive position as he knew when his Sensei said things like this he wasn't screwing around. Zoro held his two remaining swords in a parallel horizontal position before charging.
"Nigiri"
Naruto tried his best to hold his defensive position, but Zoro's strike was just to powerful and all three of his swords went flying out his mouth and sending him tumbling to the ground. When he looked up Zoro's Wado Ichimonji was pointed in his face.
"You've improved greatly but your training isn't complete yet."
At this Naruto gave a look of disappointment in himself before Zoro finished.
" But that's training I can't give you. It was fun traveling with you this year kid. I look forward to the day we meet in battle for the title of the worlds greatest swordsman."
Naruto saw his teacher and friend walking away he knew this would be the last time he saw him in a while so he followed.
" Wait Zoro-oniisan, there's something I'd like to give you" Naruto said as he took of his orange jumpsuit and handed it to him " Keep this as a reminder of our goals. The day we fight again I want you to give it back".
Zoro nodded a little teary eyed at the big brother suffix "Thanks kid. Just don't expect me to wear this thing." Zoro then ran off into the sunrise as fast as he could so as not it change his mind.
Naruto looked as his surrogate brother ran off into the distance and wondered what he would do next. Then his stomach started growling and he dug into his pockets to realize they were completly empty. He worried about how he was going to get food. But he turned his head to see the bar he and Zoro first met. He began unsheathing his swords one of which was leaking youkai before uttering
"What a disgrace. Time to start collecting!"
(A/N): Man I'm surprised at how much success this story has been getting. It's been getting more attention than both if my other stories combined. And don't worry Zoro will appear again in an arc where the Naruto gets a mission to the new world. When will that be? Look forward to it. By the way I'll be holding a poll on the my profile to guess who's the main villain of the story. All of these guys will be a thorn in Naruto's side but only one will be the big bad. I already know who but I want to see what you think. Now it's time for a new segment i came up with!
Skillet's Question Corner:
This is a segment where I answer guest questions I can't answer through PM. First reviewer!
Peter Kim:"Why would Naruto wants to come back to Konioha that treated Naruto like hell? So Naruto became a bounty hunter, member or ex member of the Dragon's forces, pirate or a member or ex member of the World Government or the Marine or ex member of the Seven Warlords and Milhawk, etc replaces Narutp as a member of the Seven Warlord?"
Now this is a very good question Peter except for a part of the summary which answers your question for me "6 years later he's FORCED to return"
How so? You'll find out next time. Next Reviewer!
Guest 2: "Doesn't Zoro deserve a pairing?"
Yes he does! I'll take it into consideration. Thanks for your suggestion. And the final reviewer is...
NyaNyaKittyFace:"Ok I like it so far, I just wish the chapter was longer and got more done. When I started this I thought Naruto would at least get to the point were he met Zoro before you stops the chapter."
Well you got your wish :). Hope you enjoyed their interactions. And I hope you all enjoyed the new chapter which turned out to be my longest work yet.
. .