A/N: A fast(er) update than I've been doing lately, because I've been neglecting the lovely Santoryuu-Zoro.
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Zoro jumped onto his chair and leapt back, his body corkscrewing in a back flip as he leapt out of Smoker's reach. He could see that roughly half of the crew was caught in the grips of Smoker's attack, and looked around frantically. The only hope they had was if he could try and draw Smoker out onto the deck and have him fly off the ship with a well-timed Coup de Burst. Chances were, though, that anyone in the crew who'd already been captured would fly off as well. Bad plan, especially considering that Chopper and Brooke were securely in Smoker's tendrils, and Luffy and Robin were only barely fending off Smoker's attack. All the Devil Fruit users would almost definitely perish in the water, since most of the normal humans were preoccupied.
Should he try to use Tashigi as a diversion?
The cold edge of a steel blade pressing lightly against his neck from behind in the chaos of smoke and running crew members pretty much made that plan null and void. Zoro looked around and groaned when he saw that it was indeed Tashigi who was threatening to behead him, and not the shitty cook in a moment of bad humor.
"Tashigi."
"Roronoa." He winced at the use of his surname. Definitely not a good sign.
"You would attack in the middle of a peaceful parley?"
"We have been given orders to detain you and your crew at all costs. Come along quietly." Her voice was hard and unyielding.
"Who would have ever thought that it would come to this?" Zoro said softly. "Ta-chan."
She stiffened. "Do not think that by using such familiarity that you can escape justice!" she nearly cried out. He saw her tough exterior waver.
"Ta-chan, do you remember the time that I could you mumbling in your sleep?"
Zoro was used to French life—having lived with its people for many years by now—but was getting vaguely homesick. He missed the cool mountain ranges with the hidden Buddhist temples and sheltered Shinto shrines; seeing a priest walking slowly down the path, or hearing the sounds of disciplined children shouting "Hai, sensei!" from the dojo in unison. He missed the taste of white rice, and the burn of good sake—although vodka was becoming an acceptable substitute. He missed the smell of the Pacific, so different from the seas around here.
"Crap, I'm late," Zoro grumbled. He was on his way to a new assignment, where he would meet his next training partner for the next few years. The captain who had put them together had hinted that she would surprise him in her fighting technique. Zoro had started when he heard that he would be training with a female, for this country seemed unfavorable towards women in the army.
"Is this the place?" Zoro asked himself, looking down at the slip of paper in his hands. "Must be." He walked through the doors to where he was scheduled to have had a rendezvous with his partner an hour ago. Other teams were also supposed to meet here, but the room was empty. He sighed.
The sound of a gentle, whistling snore brought his attention to a chair in the back of the room, behind the rows of desks. Zoro proceeded with caution until he saw a mop of short-cropped, silky black hair covering a face that was planted face-first into the desk. He chuckled when he saw a line of drool flowing from the corner of the person's mouth across the desk.
The woman stirred slightly, muttering. He brought his ear closer and heard her speak.
"Neh…Smoker-san…ojiisan…justice…zzzz…."
Should he wake her up? She sounded like another 'absolute justice' freak.
"You're right, Smoker-san…let's just follow our own brand of justice…absolute justice is not justice at all…"
She was sounding awfully coherent for a sleeping woman.
She jerked awake to find a pair of dark eyes staring at her. They stared at each other. She took in his bronzed skin, slanted eyes, and green hair. He drank in the sight of her pale, peach skin—a hue he had not seen for years—and her Asiatic eyes blinking owlishly up at him with her glasses pressed firmly into the bridge of her nose. They both looked at the swords at each others' waists—she was shocked to see that he had three katana, and he was stunned to see that she had a katana at all.
"True justice, eh?" That was all he could say before she slapped his face in alarm.
"Don't bring up the past," Tashigi hissed. "Smoker-san, I have Roronoa."
Smoker grunted his approval. "Good job. Let's see…" Smoker riffled through the crew members in his grasp like an accountant would flip through pages of a checkbook. "I have Monkey D. Luffy, 'Mugiwara Nami,' Tony Tony Chopper, 'Mugiwara Brooke,' 'Mugiwara Usopp,' 'Mugiwara Franky,' and Nico Robin. Is that all?"
"No, shithead, that's not all." A foot collided with Smoker's torso—the only bit of him left intact—with force and speed that caught even the Logia user off guard. He flew back, out the door that Sanji had opened in his foresight. Sanji ran out the door, shouting, "Franky! Get the Burst ready! Luffy! Marimo! I need you to help me distract this guy!"
"Um, I'm kind of busy right now, cook," Zoro growled. "My head's about this close to being sliced off."
"Thunderbolt Tempo!"
Tashigi shrieked as a bolt of electricity ran through her sword and into her body.
"You're welcome, Zoro," Nami said sweetly. He didn't answer; the sword's close proximity to his neck meant that he had been shocked, too. "Whoops!"
"I'll...kill you, witch..." he growled, before running out (his body was twitching slightly from the electricity). However, he stopped at the door when he saw Nami looming over Tashigi. "Don't touch her. Just…tie her up, but don't do anything else." He vanished out the door.
Tashigi coughed, trying to rise. Nami had only hit her with a slight charge, and she was recovering quickly.
A sandaled foot slammed onto Tashigi's chest, forcing her down. Tashigi looked up and saw Nami glaring down at her. "Robin, when you recover, could you give me a hand or two?"
Robin sat up from where she had fallen after Smoker had lost his grip on her and nodded. "I'll even give you four, Nami-chan." Hands popped up around Tashigi to secure her legs and arms to the ground. Try as she might, Tashigi could not get free. Robin limped over—she had twisted her ankle in the scuffle—and smiled gently. Tashigi was terrified. "Now, what shall we do with you while your Commodore is being distracted, hm?"
Outside, the three monsters of the Thousand Sunny were not having any fun at all. Although they had formed a triangle formation around Smoker, the Marine had his guard up and any blow they landed would have only led to their demise. Smoker's ship was strangely silent—not even a single watchman was out. A thin column of dense black smoke rose from somewhere on the Marine vessel, and the smell of charred wood was heavy on the air.
"Men!" Smoker shouted, not daring to let his eyes stray from his prey. "Get the seastone ready!"
No answer.
"My, isn't this an unfortunate turn of events?" someone said. The voice was unfamiliar—smooth as chocolate cake, and just as sweet, although Luffy grinned when he heard that voice. "It's just so nice to finally meet you, Commodore. You're famous, you know. Almost as famous as I am." Although no one was visible, Zoro could practically hear the person speaking with a sly smile and a wink on his face.
Said face popped up over the railing of the Thousand Sunny. "Heya, Luffy. I can't even leave home for a few years without you getting into all sorts of trouble?"
"Ace!" Luffy cried jubilantly. "What're you doing here?" Zoro stiffened when he heard the name, and saw the flash of Whitebeard's mark on Ace's back under his vest as he climbed over the rail.
Ace shrugged as he jumped to stand, leaning, against the railing. A garish orange hat was tilted slightly as an open sailor's vest revealed a body that could rival Zoro's own; instead of scars, though, there were tattoos. A pair of leggings was rolled up to his knees, giving him a look of a rough-and-tumble kind of guy. Heavy military-issue boots stamped on the deck as he made himself comfortable. "I've been sailing all over the place, looking for a certain man by the name of Marshal D. Teach—some people call him Blackbeard. You know, it surprised me to no end when I heard from those gentlemen aboard your ship that a Marine was speaking civilly to a crew of pirates. I didn't know the Marines had manners!" Ace chuckled. Zoro could have sworn that Ace's eyes lingered for a moment longer than necessary on him as his eyes swept across the men standing there.
"Portgas D. Ace," Smoker growled. "Second Division Commander of one of the most notorious pirate crews in the world. What the hell are you doing, interfering with this fight?"
"Now, now. I can't let you lay a hand on my cute little brother, can I?" Ace sauntered forward, confidence evident in his every step. Zoro couldn't help but think that Ace was probably just as powerful as his confidence let on, and remembered that Luffy had said that his brother was in possession of a Logia ability. "I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave, Commodore."
"That will not be acceptable. I don't take orders from the likes of pirates."
"From what I hear, you don't take orders at all. I'm surprised you've made it all this way up the ranks. Wouldn't it be a shame if, oh, I don't know…you were to die today?"
Smoker snarled, and exploded in a burst of smoke.
"Guys, get out of the way! A Logia battle's way too hectic for us—we'll just get in Ace's way!" Luffy cried, stretching to grab Zoro and Sanji before launching up to the crow's nest. "Just watch. He's strong!"
"You're okay with letting someone else fight in your place?" Sanji asked incredulously.
Luffy sighed. "Until I figure out how to beat that guy, I can't let you guys get in any danger."
An orange hat flew upward on a warm draft of air. "Watch my hat, Luffy!"
"Yosh! Sure thing, Ace!" Luffy yelled back, grinning madly. Zoro saw the cheerful joy on his captain's face and looked aside sadly.
They watched the battle in fascination. Smoker's attacks were blocked by a wall of fire that the pirate controlled to the extent that even the deck was not charred. Apparently, Ace was prudent enough not to go all out on his brother's ship. Ace danced around Smoker, teasing him as he drew him in the direction of Smoker's ship. The Marine followed, testing to see what effect his smoke had on Ace's fire.
When Ace jumped onto Smoker's ship and began to burn everything haphazardly, Smoker growled and followed, trying to stop Ace.
"The Burst is ready!" Franky shouted over the intercom. Smoker whirled around just for a moment, but was pulled back into his fight when a flash of fire threatened to singe his face off.
"Tashigi!" Smoker shouted.
Robin walked out of the galley with Nami's aid. Tashigi trailed behind on the legs that had sprouted from her back, as her limbs were still subdued by Robin's powers. Her mouth was covered by another hand.
"You seem to have forgotten something," Robin called over. "Would you like us to give her back now, or would you accept her in the mail?"
"Let her go, damnit!" Smoker roared. His smoking fist punched through a thin sheet of fire.
Robin shrugged. "We have no further use of her. Catch!" The legs that Robin had conjured began to run swiftly, as more legs sprouted for more power in the direction of the ocean.
"No!"
The legs leapt in the general direction of Smoker's ship. It was an impressive feat of speed and strength, but it was clear that Tashigi would fall into the ocean. Smoker turned away from his fight and jumped down into the ocean after his officer, pulling her back up in the nick of time.
"Ace!" Luffy shouted. "Come back to our ship!" He stretched his arm, offering Ace his hat back.
Ace smiled sadly. "Sorry, Luffy. I've got places to go. I was just going to stick around until you were safely off. It was good to see you, though!"
"Mugiwara! We're leaving!" Franky yelled. "Coup de Burst!" The Thousand Sunny flew off.
The last that Luffy saw of his brother was a burst of flame as the fire-elemental disappeared.
The last that Zoro saw of his former comrades was a furious Smoker and Tashigi with a single tear running down her face. He also saw Ace's white teeth flashing in a smile before vanishing in a flare of fire. Those lips were moving silently, and Zoro read the words falling without a sound in shock.
Don't think we've forgotten you, even after ten years...Demon of Shimotsuki Village.
---
"What do you think your brother was doing in these parts?" Usopp asked, swinging his hammer to drive a nail home into the chair he was fixing. The galley was a mess—there were broken dishes everywhere, overturned furniture, and the table had a long crack down the side.
"He said something about looking for a Marshal D. Teach guy," Luffy said. He was sitting on the counter morosely, as Franky had expressively forbidden him from trying to 'fix' anything. "I don't know who he is, though."
Robin looked up from where Sanji was administering ice to her ankle. "Is Marshal his surname?" she asked curiously.
"Probably. Europeans put their family names last, right?" Luffy said, laughing.
"Then he is probably English. If your brother is sailing on his own, then it would not be strange for him to still be in the area—Whitebeard's crew was spotted around the Mediterranean a few months ago, but if he's on a separate mission then he will probably be going at a slower pace than the main crew," Robin said. "Cook-san, I am feeling fine. Perhaps you should go ask doctor-san if he needs ice for anyone else?"
"Hai, Robin-chan!" Sanji ran off to find the little reindeer.
Chopper shook his head when Sanji inquired. "Thanks, Sanji, but I think everyone else is fine. We didn't do that much fighting. But…"
"But?"
"Could you go check up on Zoro?"
"What's wrong with that idiot?"
"I don't know…he went up to the crow's nest by himself. He refused to get a check-up, too." Chopper's eyes were wide and pleading, and Sanji gave in.
"Alright, doctor. I'll go."
---
Zoro stared out the window. He couldn't see where Smoker's ship had last been, but the image of Ace's smiling face was still stamped on his mind.
Demon of Shimotsuki Village...
He knew that Ace hadn't been part of the Whitebeard Pirates during the incident concerning Kuina's death. The man looked to be around twenty years old, meaning that he wouldn't have even left home yet when Kuina had died. Nevertheless, he hadn't expected such a prominent member of the Whitebeard Pirates to be so…carefree. He looked the way Zoro imagined Luffy would be if his captain matured, but was still very playful and obviously loved to have a good time. Zoro recalled the Ace had worn an elated expression during his battle with Smoker, as though he was excited to be fighting on equal grounds with someone at last.
"Time for another talk, marimo," Sanji said, climbing through the door to the crow's nest with his customary load of tea. "I brought oolong tea."
"What are you, my psychiatrist or something?" Zoro said grumpily as he accepted a cup of tea. "What do you want to talk about now?"
"I don't know, marimo. You tell me," Sanji said, leaning back with a cup of tea as he stretched one long leg in front of him. "You're the one acting moody."
"I'm not moody," Zoro snapped. "I'm just thinking."
"You can do that?"
"Are you here to mock me or to help me?"
"I'll be good, I promise."
"Tch…well, that Ace…he looked good."
"…? Well, yeah, but…so what?"
"I mean, he looks good. Like, he has a good heart."
"Ah, THAT kind of good."
"You... Anyways, it was just unexpected."
"He's Luffy's brother. Of course he's a good guy."
"But he's a Whitebeard Pirate."
"…aaah, I think I see what you're getting at. It's because of your friend, right?" Sanji rubbed a hand through his hair wearily. "Accidents can't be helped, Zoro, and he wasn't even part of it. Don't tell me you have a grudge against him?"
"I know, but it…"
"But what?" Sanji pressed.
Zoro slammed his head into the wall in frustration. "It just throws doubt onto my resolve and my revenge! I mean, what's the point of avenging her death if all the old members are being replaced by guys like that? I couldn't even face him properly! It was like…if I touched him, then it would be sullying her memory!" His face was twisted in anguish and confusion, and Sanji couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Zoro had been carrying to burden of another life on his shoulders, and now it must have seemed like it was all for naught.
"Is that such a bad thing?" Sanji asked gently. "To not seek revenge, I mean. Is revenge what she would have wanted? You said that you made a promise to be the greatest swordsman. Not a murderer." Sanji sighed. "You said it yourself. She was not murdered. If you kill in her name then that will defile her memory."
Zoro grimaced. "I know…"
Sanji scooted over and threw an arm over Zoro's shoulder, patting him awkwardly as one would pet a dog that looked slightly rabid.
"It's just…I don't know what to do, now," Zoro whispered.
Sanji rolled his eyes and slapped Zoro across the side of the head before grabbing him by the ears. He slammed his forehead into Zoro's, ignoring the pain (Zoro didn't even wince. What was his head made of?)
"You fucking idiot!" Sanji snarled. "I thought that it would be obvious!"
Zoro looked up in shock.
"You're going to be the best swordsman in the goddamned world!"