Sorry the last chapter was really short, I had a sort of writers block when I was writing it, this one should be longer.
Remember - italics is Zoro thinking
ENJOY!
Disclaimer - I still don't own One Piece
The Demon
Chapter 6
Zoro wearily lifted his head.
He was standing there.
In front of him.
In his cell.
That man.
His father.
Kuzeo.
"Hello Zoro." He smirked.
Go away.
"It's been a while, wouldn't you say?"
Not long enough.
"Are you not even going to talk to me?"
No
"Trying to play the strong and silent type?"
Trying to play the 'leave me alone' type.
"It doesn't make you look any tougher, you know."
I'm not trying to look tough.
"Well if you won't talk, you can listen."
Oh God.
"You've got a lot stronger Zoro."
Do my ears deceive me or was that a compliment?
"You may be of some use to me."
So that's what he wants.
"Are you willing to serve under me?"
He has to be kidding.
"Either that, or you may get an untimely second death."
I'd prefer that.
"But knowing you, you'd rather choose that, am I right?"
Yes, you are, now have a gold star.
"Still, even if you won't go willingly, I may as well try."
Try it, and you're dead.
"I can do a special kind of enslavement that makes you a mindless zombie, following my every command without question. Would you like that?"
Oh yes! I would love that! Please turn me into a zombie!
"But I'm still not sure if it will work. After all, I've never tried it on a half-devil before."
Don't call me that.
"But I may as well give it ago, I have nothing to loose."
I do!
"Oh Zoro, you do make me laugh! Have you forgotten I can read your mind?"
Shit.
"Will you talk to me now?"
Zoro grumbled. Talking was the last thing he wanted to do. However, if he wanted to keep his soul, he may have to come to an agreement.
"Whatever." He replied.
Kuzeo grinned.
"Good, now tell me, how are you finding life back home?"
Zoro gave his father the worst pirate hunter/ pirate/ half-devil look he could muster. How was he finding life back home? He'd been kidnapped, beaten, tortured, locked in a freezing cold cell and had just been told he was going to have his soul removed. Oh life was great!
The devil smiled.
Zoro cursed inwardly, he had to stop talking to himself; Kuzeo could hear every word!
"I'm sorry your stay hasn't been too enjoyable, but I really have no reason to let you stay in comfort. This is the best I could do."
"Humph."
"Now about your enslavement…."
The leader looked at the boy in disbelief. What he said couldn't be true, could it?
"Are you sure?" He asked.
The boy nodded.
"Yes sir. Harrison was found out; Kuezo killed him 2 days ago."
The leader put his head in his hands. How could this have happened? Harrison was dead?
He sighed.
"Thank -you Jason, you can go."
The boy turned and walked out of the small study. The leader watched him go. He had wondered many a time whether to ask the Jason to leave, to tell him it was too dangerous for a child, but he could never bring himself round to it. Jason's parents had both been killed by demons; he wanted to avenge their death, and who was he to stop him! Besides, the boy was useful; he had eaten a devil's fruit.
The leader turned to face his comrades. There were 3 of them, all sitting round a dark, wooden table, each one looking more grave than the next.
The one nearest to him was a woman called Chika. Slim, pretty and in her early forties, she had been through hard times recently, both of her children having been tortured and finally killed by Kuezo. He knew she was a member of the brotherhood, but he didn't know where she was, so he attacked her family instead.
Isamu was a strong man in his late twenties. His hair was short and black, setting off his square jaw. He wore a sleeveless shirt to show off his toned arms; he was strong, and he knew it.
The third was Michiko, a sad looking, fair, blonde girl who seemed around 17, although no one knew her exact age. She had a strange aura around her, as if she was wise beyond her years, it was this that had got her so far up the brotherhood.
The leader sat with them. This group was his counsel. They were the highest ranking members of the brotherhood, and they had a problem.
"What shall we do?" Asked the leader. "Now that Harrison's dead, we only have Aya on Richo Island, and I don't want to put her in danger."
The rest of the group nodded. Aya was an old woman now, and although Kuzeo may treat her more kindly that most humans, he wouldn't hold back if he found out she was working for them.
The problem was, Harrison had been had been trying to find information on a certain diary that they believed to be in Kuzeo's possession. He had also been holding meetings, trying to others to join, but that wasn't as important. Now he was dead, they needed to get someone else onto Richo Island, to be their inside man, other wise they'd never find the diary they needed so badly.
The leader sighed. "Chika, get in touch with Aya, see if she can search Harrison's house, he may have left something useful behind."
The woman nodded and went into the back room, where a den den mushi was waiting for her. She quickly picked up the receiver and dialled in the correct number.
Meanwhile, the rest of the counsel was waiting in silence, they were all grieved by the news of Harrison's death, especially Michiko. Harrison had been like a father to her, raising her from an early age, teaching her about demons, teaching her how to fight. As she thought of him, she tried to hold back tears, why did he have to die? Kuzeo had taken everything from her. What gave him the right to ruin her life like this?
Suddenly she lifted her head. She heard, no, felt something happen. Something bad. She had been able to do this ever since she could remember, she knew when Kuzeo was taking a soul. It was not a nice feeling.
"What is it Michiko?" Asked the leader, seeing the look on her face.
"Kuzeo, "She replied, "He has taken another soul."
The leader shook his head. This was happening way too often. They needed to stop it.
Chika returned to the study.
"I have some news." She said.
The group looked at her.
"Good news or bad?" Asked Isamu.
Chika thought about it.
"It depends how you interpret it." She replied. "Kuzeo has brought Roroanoa Zoro back to his island."
The room was scilent.
"But…..Roroanoa Zoro's dead." Stammered the leader.
"Yes, but it seems he made a deal with his father after he died."
The group looked around at each other. Why would Zoro make a deal with Kuzeo? He hated the guy!
"It also seems, "Chika continued "That he joined up with a pirate crew, and this crew has gone to get him."
Isamu snorted. A loyal pirate crew! He had never heard of such a thing!
"I bet they'll be running away when they find out who they're dealing with." He sneered.
"No." Said Michiko. Everyone turned to look at her, she had a far away, distant face, as if she wasn't really with them. "The captain, he is willing to fight Kuzeo, no matter how strong he is. He knows he will win, because losing isn't an option." She stared at the faces surrounding her. "I don't know how I know this, but we need to contact them. They can help us."
The leader gazed at the young woman in front of him. Michiko was special, she had some sort of ability, she knew things she shouldn't, and she hadn't been wrong yet.
"O.K." He said. "Chika, find some way of contacting this pirate crew, Isamu, get a message to all of our members, tell them to be ready to fight at a moments notice, Michiko, that soul Kuzeo took a moment ago, see if you can find it's owner." The counsel nodded and stood up; going about the jobs they'd just been given. Soon the leader was alone in his study. He thought about what Chika had said; Zoro was back on Kuzeo's island. He thought of a way he could use this to his advantage. Zoro had never worked for the brotherhood before, nor had he shown any interest in wanting to, but the boy was strong, after all, he was a half-devil. And although the brotherhood knew how to defeat demons, they had no idea how to get rid of a devil. They only person who knew that had been killed 5 years ago. His disguise had been broken, Kuzeo had found out he was a spy. He was however, supposed to have kept a diary……
Perhaps, he thought, Zoro would be strong enough to defeat his father. That was, if he was still alive.
Kuzeo looked at the jar he was holding. Inside was a silvery white ball, slowly rotating the perimeter of the flask. He smiled. Zoro's soul had been much easier to remove than he thought. His fears of it not working because he wasn't completely human had been eradicated. Zoro was now his mindless slave, he could do with him what he wished, and he had a lot of things he wanted him to do.
But first, he needed to break the news to Zoro's crew. They wouldn't be too impressed, after all, he'd just taken their first mate, but they would have to live with it. Kneale was supposed to be inviting them for something to eat, so he needed to make sure his chefs knew to cook enough food for…….how many of them were coming? He thought about it; an average pirate crew would have about 40 members, but this crew was considered much more of a threat, so there would probably be more. After some thought, decided to have enough food for 100, it was better to be safe than sorry!
He looked once again at the soul in the glass, before labelling it and placing it the cupboard with the rest of them. After the meeting with Straw hat Luffy, he could get on with his final plan, and Zoro would defiantly come in handy.
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