The Pirate King Is Dead - Long Live The Pirate King

Part 3 of a Four Part Saga

By Aoikami Sarah

Chapter Eighteen - Zoro Searches for Taka no Me

It was another month before they had another lead in their search for Mihawk. A small island with craggy bluffs and gnarled trees greeted the ship Zoro and Tashigi were traveling on through thick early morning fog. Zoro leapt out of the boat that took them to shore and headed for the first inn he saw.

"I'll catch up," Tashigi grumbled, hauling her pack out of the boat. She looked a little green and breathed a sigh of relief when she set foot on the beach. "Please let him find this man," she whispered to the fog. "Let this be over…"

.x.

On the ship the night before, Tashigi sat next to Zoro and watched the waves. His eyes were locked on the horizon even as it faded to black, as if being able to see their destination would make the journey go faster. "I've decided…" she began, "I won't burden you any longer." It took a few minutes to realize he wasn't listening. She rested her head on her folded knees.

"You're what now?" he asked.

"After this island, you should go your own way. I don't think so many people are after you, now that some time has passed, and you're obviously able to take care of yourself. I'll just get in the way."

"Eh…?" he wondered.

"It's better this way. Please respect my decision," Tashigi said with her head bowed. Her bangs covered her eyes.

.x.

Tashigi dropped her bag next to him as he stood waiting for someone to come to the desk. Zoro tapped his foot and gritted his teeth impatiently. She sighed and leaned against the counter. He pounded his fist down on it so hard the sign-in book jumped a half a foot in the air. "Oi! Service!" he shouted.

A small, greyish man scuttled out to the desk. "Terribly sorry, I didn't realize there was anyone here," he explained. Indeed, there seemed to be no one else in the small building. "Do you need…?"

"A room and information," Zoro barked. "I heard a man named Mihawk was spotted on this island. Where is he?"

"Mihawk?" the grey man asked, blinking at Zoro.

Tashigi pushed her glasses up her nose. "Drakul Mihawk, the legendary swordsman and Shichibukai. About my height, black hair and moustache, large hat, larger sword, travels alone…"

"Oh! Taka no Me!" the grey man grinned. "Yes. He was going out to the bluffs this morning and…"

Zoro's eyes nearly popped out of his head. He darted out the door, taking his bandana off of his arm as he ran. Tashigi watched him go and frowned. "Please, let him find him, but please let him be alright," she said quietly.

The innkeeper smiled. "Who's he looking for?"

Tashigi came out of her trance and blinked at the small man. "Taka no Me. You just told him…"

"Oh, yes. He was a nice man. Strange. But nice. When was he here?" He flipped through the sign-in book. The pages were yellowed and crackled as he flipped them. "There he is. Never forget a signature like that!" He turned the book around to face Tashigi and she gasped. Drakul Mikawk's signature was very impressive and took up much more than the space allotted for it. "Oh, no…" Tashigi covered her mouth with her hand and jogged out of the inn. "Roronoa!" she called, but he was long gone.

.x.

Zoro plodded back to the port town sometime around sunset. He was still wearing his bandana and looked as if he'd hacked his way through a rainforest all day. The smell of food wafting on the cold, humid air from the only restaurant in town pulled him along. It had taken only about a half an hour to reach the bluffs on the far end of the island at a full run. It had taken an hour of searching and desperation to realize Mihawk wasn't there. Another three hours of getting lost in the woods and taking his aggression out on just about every tree he saw had given Zoro plenty of time to think.

With town at last in sight, he felt more lost than he had ever been. He was on a strange island whose name he couldn't even remember. "God damn it," he snarled. "I thought I was so close. I thought this was it, that I'd be done with this and now I'm even further away from finding him than ever! How is it that I ran into him in East-fucking-Blue but I can't even come close to finding him on the God damn Grand Line?" Once again he was unable to locate Mihawk and now his traveling companion, whom he had never wanted in the first place, was gone. She wouldn't be waiting for him at the inn. She wouldn't take the next bounty he defeated in to the authorities for him. She wouldn't roll over in her sleep and put her head on his chest and make that sort of soft sigh she did when she settled into place at night. He hadn't wanted her company at all, but he hadn't told her to go. She made that decision on her own. Zoro frowned and remembered their discussion on the ship that brought them to this grey island.

.x.

"I can't journey with you any longer."

"Then what do you want to do?"

She looked out at the sea and pushed her hair back behind her ear. "I don't know. I suppose I could teach. Open a dojo somewhere where they need such a thing."

Zoro stared at her. "Sounds nice." He put his hand on the hilt of the Wado Ichimonji. "I grew up in a dojo. Where I'm from, they wouldn't let women run them, though."

"Why ever not?" Tashigi asked.

"Tradition, I suppose."

"That's silly. Imagine someone assuming that because you're a man you'd be better at running an institution like that than I would."

Zoro raised a brow and let her words sink in before laughing.

"What? It's the truth. You might be a better swordsman than I, but I wouldn't put you in charge of young minds." He laughed louder. "What!"

"And you accuse me of being blunt," he chuckled.

.x.

He wasn't laughing now. He tried to remember the past week or so. They days seemed to bleed together. She'd been a bit distant in the last month, shortly after the matsuri when he kissed her. They'd made love a few times since then, making her sudden departure more of a shock. The intimacy they'd attained seemed to make her happy, he thought. Maybe she was sick. She'd been sort of ill lately. But that wouldn't make her want to leave him. Zoro furrowed his brows and thought harder.

"I'll just get in the way," she had said. "Please respect my decision." "Get in the way?" he grumbled. "Why would she… No way…" Zoro stopped and lifted his head. "She can't be!" he gasped and sprinted the rest of the way to town.

Zoro nearly broke the tavern doors off their hinges. "Tashigi!" he bellowed. The bartender and barmaid, the only two people in the establishment, looked at him as if his head was on fire. "Shit." He ran to the inn and startled the greyish innkeeper in the same manner. "Tashigi! Tashigi!" he shouted and headed for the docks. A small ship was loading its cargo in the drizzling afternoon rain. She was wearing a cloak to keep dry and only just handing her fare to the captain when she heard her name being called. Tashigi turned, wide-eyed and surprised at Zoro who slowed his pace as he approached her.

His face was tight with frustration. He stopped in front of her scowled down. "Are you totally fucking stupid!" he shouted.

Tashigi swallowed deeply. "I don't think so…" she said slowly, confused by his anger.

"Well, you are! You were just gonna let me walk away and chase after Mihawk."

"That was the idea."

"He wasn't there."

"I thought as much. After you left the innkeeper showed me the ledger. He had signed in, alright. Three years ago." The wind picked up and blew her hair into her eyes.

Zoro clenched his fists. "He's a ghost. I don't know if I'll ever see him again but I won't let you handle this alone. If you're going to start a dojo or whatever, I'm coming with you."

"Roronoa…" Tashigi cast her eyes to the ground. "I just… didn't want your dream to die."

Zoro shook his head and stepped close to her. "You're so fucking stupid," he said quietly and put his arms around her. "I can't believe you." He lowered his chin and rested his cheek against her shoulder. "Moron."

A normal man would have said 'I'm so happy,' or 'I love you,' but Roronoa Zoro was not a normal man. Tashigi hugged him back and wondered what kind of amazing child they would have, together.

To be continued…