TRIGGER WARNING! PLEASE READ!
This chapter will contain an attempted rape! I'm telling you this right now: Nothing will happen and it will be stopped and the attempt is not graphically described. But I want this fic to be a safe place for each of you! So, if you're not comfortable with the topic PLEASE contact me and I will find a way for you to safely read this chapter.
The topic will be named in the following chapters but there will never be an attempt or something similar in any shape or form.
To the ones who feel spoiled now: Sorry but the warning is necessary. Like I said: This fic is meant to be safe for everyone!
Chapter Five: Kota
Once again Tashigi was back in the same old room, her own little torture chamber with her own not-so-little torturer. Once again Tanaka had brought two soldiers of his unit with him.
Different ones every time but today was the first time that Tanaka had brought a female soldier. Tashigi had been surprised, she did not think a brute like Tanaka would allow a woman in his unit.
The young woman had become Tashigi's fixpoint, which helped her to stay strong if she just focused her gaze at the same spot.
And after hours of punches, kicks, cuts, and questions Tashigi had memorized even the littlest freckle on the soldier's face.
Blonde hair falling to her chin bangs almost covering her blue eyes (might be good looking but not the best cut for a fight), small nose, plump lips, and as mentioned freckles.
The look in her eyes though; Tashigi was not sure. Fear? Shock? Disgust? All the above?
It was almost refreshing not to see the look of excitement in a young soldier's eyes while they were watching their Vice Admiral torture a former marine.
Thanks to a kick to her head, she lost sight of the young woman and bit her lip in pain. Blood filled her mouth.
She had already lost count of how many times she had bitten her lips open to not give Tanaka the satisfaction to hear her scream.
"You are one of the most stubborn bitches I've ever met," Tanaka said crouching down in front of her.
Tashigi was laying on the floor, panting. Her whole body hurt; every breath hurt.
At this point, she didn't even remember what a pain-free life felt like.
"We've been doing this a little over two weeks now and you're still determined to stay silent. If you weren't fucking a filthy pirate, I would almost be impressed…"
Like always she did not answer, just squinted at him. All her concentration was on even out her breathing. And then something changed in his eyes.
There had always been anger and a sadistic gleam in his blue ones, but there had always been something else too. Something suppressed. Lust. Desire.
It wasn't a surprise to Tashigi. Tanaka had tried more than once to win her over. Three years ago, he even said to her that he was attracted to her and had offered to start an affair. But she had politely declined.
Tanaka had never been a man to her taste, even without his well-known reputation. She had not known it then but knew now that her heart belonged to Roronoa Zoro, ever since Loguetown.
"But maybe this is the key to your answers," Tanaka murmured.
Her eyes widened as her brain tried to comprehend what he was implying.
"Get her up. Face against the wall."
"NO!" Tashigi screamed as the male soldier stepped forward and grabbed her arm.
The other woman in the room hesitated and looked at Tanaka uneasy.
"Vice-Admiral, I don't think…"
"You are not getting paid for thinking! Do as I tell you!"
"But…"
Tanaka interrupted her with a hard slap on her face. Holding then the head of the soldier in his hand he brought his face to hers.
"No refusals! Get that bitch up, her face against the wall."
"NO! Please! Don't! No. No. NO. No," Tashigi pleaded.
Not to Tanaka, not to the marine that followed his order instantly. To the female marine. The one who hesitated, the one who tried to refuse. The one who tried to protect Tashigi.
"Help me. Please! Don't let him do this! I… please…"
Blue eyes looked into brown ones and Tashigi knew that the marine asked for forgiveness.
"I want you to hold on to her tight," Tanaka said as soon as Tashigi was pressed against the wall.
She resisted the grasps of the two soldiers, tried to hit and kick. But she lacked the necessary strength. Weeks without proper sleep and food had affected her body too much.
Tears were streaming down her face as the reality of what would happen hit her.
"NOOOO! Please, don't!" she screamed.
Over and over again. Tried to free herself, tried to get away from the strong grips that hold her into place.
"Shut the fuck up, bitch!" Tanaka screamed and rammed her head against the wall.
Pain exploded in her head and she screamed again. This could not be happening… this… was forbidden. Against every rule, she had ever learned. No marine was allowed to ever do such things.
"No, you can't! Admiral Chiba will never…"
"Psssssst," Tanaka hissed in her ear, pressing his body to hers, "Chiba does not need to know that, right? You will never say a word about this and if you do: nobody would believe you anyway. Who believes a dirty little pirate whore?"
And when Tashigi heard him opening the zipper of his trousers, she felt the female soldier interlace their fingers and Tashigi pressed her eyes shut.
If she had known how much easier her life would have been, Tashigi would have asked the pirate for a truce much sooner.
Laughing she dismissed the thought, who was she kidding?
She would've not done that, she was way too stubborn for that.
"Have you gone mad now, Babygirl?" Roronoa interrupted her train of thought.
He looked at her like she had lost her mind, probably because she just laughed out loud out of nowhere.
"I would appreciate it if you stopped calling me that," she said fixing her hair.
Roronoa just grinned.
"Why? It's a pet name."
"Yeah, for Leyla because she is a baby and a girl."
"I could call you Crybaby again. Or Copycat if you want."
"Ugh," she let out, "You could always use my name, you know?"
The moss head leaned himself against a tree and answered:
"That's boring, your name is boring."
"Excuse me?"
"Don't act innocent. You insulted my name too."
"Because you insulted the name I chose for Leyla!"
His grin turned into an amused smile.
Something she saw more on him since they decided on a truce. It suited him, made him look younger. Like the nineteen-year-old young man, he actually was.
A fact that Tashigi herself always managed to forget. Roronoa Zoro was only two years younger than her but his expressions and behavior made him seem older…
"Back to business now, Tashigi?"
He was mocking her right now, but she let it slide. Instead, she started to mirror his movements. It was hard to admit but he was a good teacher, and she should have taken his offer to train her weeks ago.
But well, pride and anger were bad advisors and since they had their talk at the bar two weeks ago, she was too... afraid to ask for his help again.
But a few days ago she had been on a walk with Leyla and had found Roronoa train in the forest. Since Leyla had been asleep at the time, Tashigi had sat down on a fallen tree and had watched him for almost two hours.
He had not looked in her direction in this period, but she had been sure that he had been aware of her presence. And after he had finished his training he had asked if she wanted to join him from now on.
That's how she ended up in the forest next to Roronoa, sweating like she never did before.
She was sure that by tomorrow every single muscle in her body would be sore and every step would hurt but she already knew that it would be worth it.
Roronoa had toned down his usual routine for her, Tashigi knew that. She was no match for him. A hard pill to swallow but she was determined to catch up with him.
"No, you… ugh," Roronoa said looking at her feet.
"What? Is my footing still awful?" she asked.
"Kinda, yeah. Let me show you."
Roronoa sheathed his sword and crouched down behind her.
Tashigi felt the heat rising on her face. What was he doing?
"Eh, can I touch you?" he asked with outstretched hands, she could already feel the heat of them through the thin layer of her pants.
"Ehm… yeah… sure…. Do…"
Awesome, Tashigi. Turn into a stuttering mess.
And then she felt his big hands on her legs and heat rushed through her whole body. Along with an allover tingling sensation she never felt before.
"Sometimes your legs are too stiff, you know?" he started to explain, his voice raspy.
His hands moved up until he reached her knees. It took every ounce of self-control in her not to shiver because of his touch instead she tried to concentrate on his words.
"You've got to have a semi relax stand to react faster. Your knees should always be a little bent and at the same time, you must be ready to jump into a different stand at any given time. Get it?"
"S… su… sure."
Tashigi wasn't entirely sure if Roronoa really gave her thighs a light squeeze or if it was only her imagination.
Nevertheless, he let go of her and took a stand next to her again.
"I'm gonna show you some techniques so you can learn to get a better stand and footing."
She decided to simply nod and to look at her feet; she was aware that her whole face had turned red.
The next few hours were like hell. Her blush never seemed to fully go away because the blood rushed back to her face whenever Roronoa touched her.
And my… did he touch her on that afternoon.
Tashigi couldn't quite understand what the matter with her was. He was just teaching her stuff why the hell did she blush every time she felt his hands on her body and why the hell was, she no longer able to form a correct sentence in her head? Let alone speak properly.
Tashigi was more than relieved when Roronoa ended their training, and they made their way back home. A soothing and relaxing bath was all Tashigi wanted right now.
She could already see the church when the pirate spoke.
"You did good, Babygirl."
And suddenly her head was blank, and the blush was back again. She stopped dead in her tracks and stared at him openmouthed.
Did Roronoa Zoro just…?
"Don't get used to me praising you," he followed bumping his fist to her shoulder.
A small smile made its way to her lips and she didn't try to hide it.
"If you would start praising me daily, I would start to question your sanity," she answered.
"My sanity was gone the moment we started working with the brats."
Tashigi laughed.
"But you got to admit that they all are pretty cute."
With a pretended horrified expression Roronoa looked at her.
"Never!"
Who would have thought that laughing with Roronoa Zoro was so easy?
But it really was so easy and deep down inside Tashigi had already kicked herself for being too stubborn and too prideful to talk to the man way sooner.
"Tashigi!"
The pirate and she were still laughing when her Dad's voice reached her ears. They had almost reached the church so Tashigi looked over, stopped laughing, and broke out in a big fat grin.
"Oh my god," she said, "Kota!"
Kota? Who the fuck was this Kota guy? Zoro asked himself while he watched Tashigi run towards the two men in front of the church.
And why the fuck is she so damn happy about him?
One moment she was wholeheartedly laughing with him and in the next, she seemed to have forgotten he even existed!
Zoro slowly followed her, his eye's never left the young man next to Quin.
Ugh! Was she seriously hugging him now?
Zoro didn't know what to make out of this sudden strange feeling in his chest and why did he feel out of breath all of the sudden?
When he finally reached the group the hug had ended but that new guy still had his hands around Tashigi's waist and for some reason, Zoro didn't like the sight of it.
"It is so good to see you again, Kota. How are you doing?"
Zoro didn't like the way Tashigi was beaming at that guy either.
The new arrival was slightly taller than her, brown eyes and hair, a shadow of a beard on his face. Probably the type of man Nami and Robin would call attractive.
Zoro on the other hand decided he didn't like the guy.
"I am doing good. So busy with work, everyone wants me to write for them. But when Quintanilla told me you were here, I had to come and visit. You are looking so pretty, Tashi!"
Zoro couldn't suppress a disgusted grunt.
Tashi? That was a totally stupid nickname. But with his grunt Zoro had attracted attention and Quin, Kota and Tashigi were now looking at him.
"Wow, you are Roronoa Zoro, right? I didn't expect to meet you here. Kota is my name; I was raised in the orphanage on this lovely island."
Kota held out his hand for Zoro to shake but Zoro just looked at it. Hell would freeze over before he would shake that man's hand but, at least Kota had let go of Tashigi.
"Well, I had always wanted to interview a pirate. I am a journalist, you know, and your story must be thrilling. You started as a pirate hunter, right? Can I write an article about you? And maybe your crew and your reasons to go into hiding?"
Rage started to rush through Zoro's veins and his first instinct was to give Kota a bloody nose, but he caught the look in Tashigi's brown eyes asking him to not start a fight.
So, he took a deep breath and gave his best to calm down.
"No," Zoro answered and walked away. In the right direction hopefully.
"Dinner is ready any minute now, Kota. Why don't you join us?" Quin asked at that moment.
"Awesome. I would love to."
Ugh. Fuck.
Zoro had to spend the next two hours listening to stupid Kota's stories about his oh-so-interesting life as a journalist and Tashigi's giggles at every second word Kota said. On top of that, he had to look at the two of them.
It was disgusting.
All through dinner Tashigi had only eyes for Kota and somehow that weird guy always found a way to touch her. It was always light and short, Zoro hated to see it nonetheless.
Why he had to watch Tashigi and Kota for two hours straight you may ask?
Because of Quin.
Whenever Zoro made a move to get up, the priest kicked Zoro's shin and looked at him warningly. Why Quin decided to do this Zoro didn't know and the swordsman got more annoyed with this whole happening any passing second.
"Zoro! You've been so quiet the whole evening," Kota started looking at him.
"Tell me something about yourself. I don't happen to meet a member of the Straw-Hat Crew very often. I promise to not use any of your stories for an article."
Zoro was hardly able to stop the annoyed sigh.
"I don't want to talk to you," he said.
"Roronoa! That is straight-up rude!" the marine scolded him.
"I don't fucking care. I'm a pirate if you've forgotten. Being polite is never an option for me, Copycat."
It has been weeks since he last used that name for her, and he could see by the look on her face how much this had hurt her. And for some reason, it hurt him too.
Tears were starting to form in her eyes, but Zoro couldn't care less right now. He was so fed up with that Kota guy and so annoyed with Tashigi suddenly behaving like a schoolgirl, hanging on Kota's lips as if he was a god or something.
To top it all off this weird feeling in his chest never seemed to go away. It made breathing fucking hard and was frustrating.
Never in his life, Zoro had felt something similar so, he had no idea where it came from. Maybe he was getting sick.
Sick of being on this stupid island with that stupid marine woman and her stupid father and her stupid childhood friend.
"I think you should apologize to Tashigi and Kota," Quin said looking at him sternly.
But Zoro stood up and left the room without saying another word.
It was never a good sign when Zoro hadn't slept well. Usually, it only happened when something big or important bothered him, but nothing like that was going on at the moment.
Sure Kota's sudden appearance bothered him in some way but that ass was neither big nor important enough for Zoro to lose sleep over.
Nevertheless, he felt like he hadn't slept at all when he joined Tashigi the next morning on their walk to the orphanage. Zoro had half expected her to be already gone, which would be understandable after the things he said yesterday, but as usual, she waited in front of his bedroom door.
Unlike usual, they didn't speak a single word to each other that morning. Which was fine by Zoro. He was definitely not in the mood for small talk. When they entered the orphanage they could already hear Leyla's crying.
Normally Aiko was the one coming down the hallway the crying baby in her arms and ready to hand Leyla over to either Tashigi or Zoro.
All three of them knew that it wasn't the best plan to rely on the two people whose time on this island was limited to calm down the fussy baby.
But Aiko said she would deal with the consequences later; right now she was just glad that somebody was able to put Leyla to silent.
Well, as Zoro said, normally it was Aiko holding Leyla, however this time it was fucking…
"Kota!" Tashigi let out, she was smiling now and full of excitement.
"What are you doing here?" she asked and accelerated her steps.
Zoro felt the oncoming urge to throw up.
"I was visiting Aiko this morning and offered to help. She gave me this sweet little Babygirl and told me to wait for you two."
Once again Tashigi stuck to each of Kota's words and apparently, she had simply blocked out Leyla's screams.
Fucking great.
So, Zoro saw himself forced to intervene. Without further ado, he plugged Leyla out of Kota's arms and cradled her to his chest. He paid no mind to the surprised stares of Kota and Tashigi, they weren't important, Leyla was.
As usual, the baby looked at him for a few seconds until she calmed down and started to suck at her thump. Satisfied he turned to the marine and said.
"Well, what are we waiting for?"
Tashigi looked at him confused for a few more seconds and then she just turned around to lead the way. Of course, Zoro didn't miss how she grabbed Kota by the wrist.
Ugh… fucking Kota.
It was a freaking delight for Zoro to watch how hard Kota tried to bond with the five toddlers but none of them seemed to like him very much.
They were eyeing him suspiciously since he entered the room, even took their time to carefully think about whether to take the clothes he offered them.
"Noooo! Solo! Not you!" Skel screamed and only a moment later he was clinging to Zoro's leg, crying.
Kota still kneeled on the ground, holding the little boy's shirt.
"But, Babyboy, Zoro is holding Leyla. Let me help you," Kota tried.
"Not baby. Leyla baby!" the boy screamed.
"Skel, please stop screaming," Tashigi said from the other side of the room, "Let Kota help you get dressed. It is time for breakfast."
Fresh tears streamed over the toddler's face and he grabbed Zoro's leg even tighter.
"Noooooo!"
"Hey Skel," Zoro said while ruffling the boy's hair, "Go get your shirt, so I can help you get dressed, okay?"
It would be laughable if Zoro couldn't manage to hold a baby and dress a toddler at the same time.
Skel whipped his nose at Zoro's trousers and started to make his way back to Kota, with careful steps though.
"Roronoa," Tashigi said as Zoro sat down cross-legged. "He has to learn that he can't always get his way."
Zoro glanced at her only briefly while he put Leyla in his lap. He hoped that the baby would still be satisfied this way and he had his hands free to help Skel dress.
"Roronoa, I said…"
"I heard you the first time," he interrupted her.
"But this isn't a fucking life lesson, okay? This is about him deciding who's allowed to touch him and who isn't. This is about Skel's boundaries for his body. And if he doesn't want to be helped by this weird new dude then we have to accept that."
Tashigi stared at him open-mouthed but he didn't look at her anymore. Instead, he helped the still sniffling boy change out of his pajama.
The next two weeks were unbearable. Wherever Tashigi went, there was Kota. The other way around too. Tashigi had even stopped training with Zoro after he had made it clear to her that he didn't want that stupid guy at their training sessions.
All of this bothered Zoro more than it should and he still hadn't figured out why. It was irritating and annoying and frustrating and sucked.
Never ever in his life, Zoro had been so confused by all his feelings and thoughts. But one thing he was sure of:
Kota was a fucking bootlicker and Zoro couldn't stand him.
However, that didn't change the fact that he was now sitting next to that fucker. It was Sunday, so time for church, and on top of that Leyla's baptism was supposed to take place today.
Quin had asked if Tashigi and Zoro would be Leyla's godparents and while the woman had enthusiastically agreed right away, Zoro had been unsure.
He was certain to never ever set foot on this island ever again. Too high were the chances to meet the marine woman again.
Granted he would probably meet her out on the sea too, but it would be easier to flee from her on a ship than on this godforsaken island.
But with a godmother as clumsy and confused as Tashigi was… Leyla would need any help she could get.
And that was the reason he had agreed to become the baby's godfather.
A burping sound led Zoro to look down at Leyla and of course, she had spit up all over herself.
"Seriously, Leyla? Fucking now?" he muttered to the not impressed baby.
"Hey, no cursing in the church," said Kota next to him with a smile on his face.
Zoro was tempted to tell the man to fuck off but was distracted by Tashigi.
"Here, take Fuse and Gini. I'll go and change Leyla really quick."
He could argue with her that he was capable of changing the baby on his own but fucking Kota even ruined his mood for that.
So he silently handed over the baby and put the two girls on his lap instead.
Both of them made sure to stay away as far as possible from Kota. That was pretty much the only good thing that happened since Kota appeared. None of the five brats ever warmed up with the journalist.
No matter how hard he had tried and no matter the amount of candy he had tried to gift them, nothing worked.
Whenever Kota came close to one of them, they started to scream and cry. Tashigi got more and more frustrated with them and Zoro was just laughing at Kota behind the man's back.
Served him right. That fucker.
"Aren't they looking cute together?" Quin asked his green-haired guest, following his stare to a Leyla holding Tashigi, who was in a deep conversation with Kota.
Zoro grunted.
"I think, I'm gonna barf," he answered but was still staring at Tashigi and Kota.
"You know," Quin started while keeping a close eye on Zoro's face.
"Kota and Tashigi spent so much time together when they were young, the whole island joked that they would someday get married."
A look of disgust washed over the pirate's face but was quickly replaced with his usual stoic expression.
"If she's fine to settle with a guy who's not even worth a split second of her time," the young man murmured under his breath.
Quin wasn't sure if he was supposed to hear those words but they confirmed him only in his assumption.
The priest placed himself in front of Zoro so that the younger one had to look at him. When he was sure to have Zoro's undivided attention Quin spoke:
"Kota and Tashigi grew up together, that is true. And I do believe that Kota had a crush on her when they were teenagers, but I can guarantee you that Tashigi never felt more than friendship for Kota, and I am pretty sure that this will never change. She is just happy to see him again and that is why they spent so much time together."
"Why are you telling me all this?" the pirate asked, eyebrows raised.
"Jealousy is an awful feeling, Zoro. And I want to assure you that there is no reason for you to feel jealous of Kota," Quin answered and of course, he did not miss how Zoro stopped breathing for a few seconds and how his grey eyes widened slightly.
"Huh? What? What the fuck, man? Who says I'm jealous?"
"Your body language, son. It changed since you've met Kota for the first time and… well, you are pretty mean again. Saying things to Tashigi I am sure you don't mean. You are behaving as you did in your very first weeks. As if you and Tash never worked at the orphanage together, as if you two never talked it out. And all that because she is spending some time with an old childhood friend?"
Zoro's gaze switched from Quin back to Tashigi. She was still engaged in her conversation with Kota.
Two weeks ago, she had seemed completely relaxed but now one could notice an underlying tension in her posture.
Quin hadn't talked to her about Zoro's changed behavior yet, however, it was obvious that it affected her. Zoro and she had gotten along so well and Tashigi didn't seem to realize why Zoro's behavior had suddenly changed.
The priest loved his daughter deeply, but she was so damn oblivious and was unable to see the things in front of her. Granted, both Zoro and Tashigi were still young and neither of them had much experience in matters of Love, but Quin doubted they were too stupid to know how to classify their feelings.
Although, given the fact that they were dancing around each other for weeks now, Quin was starting to think that they were truly too stupid or too proud to realize that they were madly in love with each other.
Zoro's sudden movement interrupted Quin's thoughts. The priest expected some sort of outburst but instead, Zoro said.
"Fuck all of you."
Then he went past Quin straight towards Tashigi. Quin lowkey hoped that Zoro had finally admitted his feelings and would now confess his love to Tashigi, but he was disappointed.
Instead, the pirate took his goddaughter from Tashigi's arms and left the room. Ignoring everybody's questioning looks.
It was practically a miracle that Zoro found his way to the orphanage in a reasonable time.
He and Leyla were now sitting in a rocking chair in the nursery and since Lelya was the only baby at the moment they had the room all to themselves.
Pfff… jealous. As if, Zoro thought while looking into Leyla's blue eyes.
There was absolutely no reason for him to be jealous of Kota, right?
It's not like Zoro fell for Tashigi or anything.
His head jerked up and he stared at the opposite wall.
Fuck.
Did he fall for the marine?
Did he?
Sighing he dropped his head.
It was true that he had felt very comfortable in her presence and yeah, he liked the sparkle in her eyes when she smiled and he liked the sound of her laughter.
Also, it was a delight to watch her interact with Leyla and the rest of the brats but that didn't mean that he had fallen in love with Tashigi, did it?
Zoro was pretty sure that he had been in love before and it hadn't felt so… intense. It had been less irritating. Less nerve-wracking. He had never been bothered by another man flirting with his girlfriend. And Tashigi wasn't even his girlfriend!
"I am not in love with that woman, right Leyla?" he asked the baby but of course she didn't answer, just grabbed one of his fingers to suck on.
"You're fucking useless, Babygirl."
He faltered.
It had been Tashigi who started to call Leyla Babygirl and he had picked it up. Even started to use it for Tashigi herself. To tease her at first but Zoro was in the middle of realizing that he no longer used it as a tease but as a sickly-sweet pet name.
It dawned on him why his everything with Tashigi felt so much more intense and once again Zoro looked at the baby in his arms.
"Fuck, Leyla. What do I do now?"
A few days after Leyla's baptism Tashigi was finally fed up with Roronoa's strange behavior and she had decided to confront him with it.
He no longer attended the nightly dinners with Quin, and he hadn't shown up at the orphanage in days.
The toddlers were asking about him every day and Tashigi didn't know what to answer them anymore. And she wanted answers too. Nothing about Rorono Zoro made sense since… yeah, since when?
The day Kota arrived?
Tashigi creased her forehead.
For a split second she thought if Kota was the cause of the pirate's changed behavior but why?
So she dismissed the thought.
It was relatively easy to find Roronoa.
He was usually training somewhere in the forest and since he was unable to walk in a straight line to save his life, she simply followed his line of destruction in form of cut-down branches and bushes.
And shortly after she stood in front of him.
Blood rushed to her face and she gave her best to not look directly at his bare chest, which was covered in sweat.
Why did he have to look so freaking good?
Ugh, concentrate Tashigi, she thought while shaking her head and straightened her back.
"Can I talk to you?" she asked, proud of how confident her voice sounded.
The pirate in front of her didn't flinch, stopped his movements nor did he look over to her. In fact, he pretended to not notice her.
"Can I talk to you?" Tashigi repeated louder this time.
A sigh was heard from Roronoa and he looked at her from the corner of his eye.
"Then talk, so you can leave again," he said, his voice cold as ice.
Once again she asked herself what was wrong with him.
He had always been grumpy, even after they had their talk but now it seemed like that night had never happened and Tashigi was utterly confused.
But where to start?
"The kids miss you; you know? They are constantly asking where you are," she said.
"They better get used to it. I won't spend the rest of my life on this island," he answered without missing a beat.
That broke her heart a little. Tashigi had thought he had grown to love the toddlers, judging from how much kindness he had cared for them…
"Roronoa… I don't get it. You've changed in the last weeks… and what is wrong with you?"
Finally, he stopped his exercise and gave her his full attention.
"Listen, woman. What possibly might be wrong with me isn't any of your fucking business. You're not my friend, in fact, you're my fucking enemy. Just in case you've forgotten that."
Of course, she had not forgotten that, but she had thought that on this island after they were talking the whole night, that they were…
Well, maybe not friends but something similar?
They were both on a time out of their normal lives and well… To be honest, Tashigi missed the old Roronoa from a few weeks ago.
The Roronoa, who was teasing and mocking her in a friendly way; the one who got on her nerves one second, only to make her laugh the next.
Heck, she even missed him calling her Babygirl.
Tashigi felt the first tears coming to her eyes and she took a deep breath.
Why am I always so emotional?
"I thought we had a truce," she said quietly, her voice almost toneless.
When Roronoa answered her this time his voice sounded emotionless.
"Fuck that truce. It was a mistake. You and I can never have a truce."
This time Tashigi's heart broke into a million pieces.
But why?
Why did it hurt so much to hear him say those words?
He was a pirate, and she was a marine. They were natural enemies, stood on different sides of the law.
Why did she ever hope for a different kind of relationship between them?
He was right, the truce had been a mistake. It had been doomed from the very first minute.
Tashigi was unable to stop the tears running over her face as this harsh realization hit her; standing in the middle of the woods while a stoic and emotionless Roronoa watched her.
"Fuck you, Zoro," she pressed out and turned around.
Quin found her a couple of hours later in the church. She was leaning at the altar, legs pulled up to her chest and her head buried in between; still crying.
"Oh, Sweetie! What happened?"
Tashigi knew her dad and she knew that he already had a suspicion of what was going on. It had always been like this; Quintanilla had always known what was going through her mind.
Sometimes even before Tashigi knew it herself.
And this time wouldn't be any different so she made no move to answer him.
"You know, you really could have chosen a more comfortable spot," he said as he sat down on the floor next to her.
Still, Tashigi said nothing, she wasn't sure if she would have the strength to do so.
Roronoa's words were still hurting too much.
Father and daughter sat next to each other in silence for God knew how long, eventually Quin decided to speak.
"I can only imagine how much pain you feel right now. Love can be a cruel thing, especially in your position."
Confused Tashigi lifted her head to look at him.
"What the fu… zzy peach?" she said only partially glad she dodged the 'no cursing in the church' scolding.
Smiling Quin raised an eyebrow at her and answered.
"Love, Sweetie. You and Zoro are in love. Everybody can see that. Everybody but you two and well, Kota. And that is the problem, right? Kota himself is way too smitten to realize that he is standing in Zoro's way. That is the reason Zoro's behavior changed so much since you're old friend arrived."
"Dad, what the fuck?"
There was no way that Tashigi could not curse in a situation like that.
Roronoa and her?
In love?
Impossible!
Okay, not utterly impossible on her side.
She had a crush on him since she first laid eyes on him but had shoved that aside as she learned who he was.
Unfortunately, those feelings resurfaced every time she met him and after spending months with him now, Tashigi was sure that this crush had evolved into something more, something deeper.
But there was no way that Roronoa himself would feel something remotely similar for her.
Never would she be something different for him than the noisy marine that happened to look like his dead best friend.
"You are in a very complicated situation so I let that curse slide but that is the only time, get it?" Quin pulled her out of her thought bubble while he whipped the tears from her face.
"But you are wrong, Quin," she started with a raspy voice, "He does not love me. I am sure he doesn't even like me and…"
"Let me stop you right there, Tashigi. Because you don't see the look in his eyes when he is sure you are not watching him. His eyes scream love all the way and I've never seen it so powerful until now. You're both young and inexperienced and to top it, you had a pretty rough start and you both are too freaking stubborn."
Tashigi stretched her legs and leaned her head against the altar, her father's words were running through her mind at full speed.
"And to be fully honest with you, Sweetie. You and Zoro never see the forest for the trees and since I am no longer entertained by watching you dance around each other, I decided to take action."
A small smile spread on Tashigi's lips.
Her heart still hurt and yeah, she kinda understood now why but one thing was sure.
"Dad, I learned a few things about our guest in the last weeks and one thing is that he is absolutely not the jealous type and the second thing I learned just today. Roronoa doesn't like me."
Quin opened his mouth, presumably to contradict her but someone prevented him from doing so.
"There you are, Tashi! I've been searching for you for ages now."
Kota's voice made Tashigi and Quin look to the end of the aisle.
The alleged reason for Roronoa's strange behavior stood there, grinning at them both.
"Did you forget that we wanted to meet at the bar?" he followed up.
"Oh gosh, Kota, I am so sorry. I did! Let's go now if you still want to, that means," Tashigi started to ramble as she got up.
"Of course I still want to," Kota answered and Tashigi practically speed-walked down the aisle.
She did not look back to Quin, although she could feel his intense stare burning into her back.
"NO! I won't let that happen!" the female soldier's voice forced Tashigi to open her eyes again.
She had not let go of Tashigi's hand but had stepped in front of Tanaka.
"Get out of my way, Ensign," the man said, his hands still on his zipper.
But the Ensign did not move.
"Only over my dead body! With all due respect, Sir, but this is against every Navy rule and as long as I am a marine, I won't let that happen!"
Tashigi expected Tanaka to punch the soldier for a second time but instead, he said.
"Get that bitch back in her cell and you!" He pointed at the female soldier.
"I don't want to see you for the rest of the day!"
"Why don't you request a reassignment?" Tashigi asked after the woman locked her back in her cell again.
"I… can't. Not right now, I mean," the young woman answered with a troubled look in her eyes.
"Why?"
"Who will stop him from raping you? Surely not one of his other soldiers."
"True. They follow his commands without batting an eye."
There were reasons Tanaka's unit had a brutal reputation and the soldier's absolute loyalty to their Vice-Admiral was one of them.
"I was surprised to see him listening to you," Tashigi said as she sat down at her cot, slowly and carefully.
"He… is my brother," the other woman answered with a sigh.
Tashigi looked at the soldier surprised.
"Oh. I did not expect that," she said truthfully.
The Ensign cracked a small smile and shrugged before she said.
"I won't be there every day to watch him but... I will find a way to let the superiors know, so they will supervise him."
"What is your name, Ensign?" Tashigi asked while trying to stand up again but she had to give up, she was too weak.
Too bad, she really needed to throw up.
"Kara."
The former navy Captain looked back at the young woman.
"Go and talk to Vice-Admiral Smoker, Kara. Tell him what happened, and he will take care of the situation. He will also make sure to not mention your name in the process. If anybody asks, I was the one to tell Tanaka on him."
"But my brother will only treat you worse from then on," Kara intervened.
"My career is already ruined, Ensign, there is no need to ruin yours too."
Kara was a good marine with a good heart and the right principles. Tashigi could feel that.
The younger woman looked at Tashigi for a long time and then she
saluted. Tashigi widened her eyes in surprise but Kara was not done yet.
"Yes, Captain!"