This is a translation from my spanish fanfic "Libro Azul",so you may find some horrible mistakes. Sorry!
After their latest adventure, the Strawhat Pirates were off to their next destination! Except they didn't have one in particular. After many tough battles they were all reunited in the Sunny without a clear course of action. Zoro was trying to have his usual sleep at the Crow's Nest after a training routine, which always left him relaxed enough to face whatever stupid thing his captain was going to do later. However, he felt horrible this time. During his latests fights, his performance was horrible, even Ussop saved him from a hit!
He realized that something was missing in his training, something he skipped during the two years. He thought it was unnecesary, but recent events changed his mind. With great determination, he walked his way to the library. While he walked, he remembered a certain discussion with his "temporal master"…
*Flashback*
Zoro returned from a fight against those monkey creatures, it was part of his training. Mihawk ordered him to do it twice a week until he could do it effortlessly.
In the castle, he saw Mihawk reading a blue book in a small armchair. Zoro saw his "temporal master" at the same place doing the same thing when he went out. He may not have the best sense of time, but he knew his fight had lasted enough for Mihawk to do something else. Wasn't he bored?
"What's so interesting about that book that you're stuck reading it so much?" He asked.
"Don't you read Roronoa?" Zoro nodded, bored. "A big part of the knowlege of a swordsman is in the books, they're never a waste for people like you and me."
"You sound like a women from my crew. She's obsessed about reading books and learning history and stuff"
"Roronoa… have you ever read?" He asked with a genuine concern.
"Of course I had! What kind of question is that anyways? It's probably not that essential for swordmanship!" Zoro left, ofended. Mihawk could only sigh before returning to the blue book.
*Flashback Ends*
Opening the door to the library, he found the navigator of the Strawhats finishing a map, concentrated and without looking at him. He decided to ask about what he wanted.
"Oi Nami" the girl turned to see him "Remember that, when we all reunited here to fill this library, I brought a book with me?" Nami replied with a simple yes. "Do you remember where we put it?"
"Let's see…" She said, while looking at the three bookshells at the other side of the room "Ussop and Robin have their books on the right one. The left one has books from Franky, Brook and Sanji. And in the middle I have my books and some from Chopper… Your book… has to be around there… somewhere…"
"Somewhere? I have to check all of them?!" He asked, now annoyed.
"It's not my fault that you only brought one stupid blue book! How am I supossed to remember where we left it exactly!?"
"The same way you remember the color of the stupid book!" Nami realized she said blue book.
"It's just that… I was surprised when you appeared with a book. I thought you and Luffy were never going to use this place like before but it looks like… you changed…" She said while looking at him, directly into his eyes. "But that's the only reason I remember it! Idiot."
"Hmph, fine. Thanks fot the help I guess."
And with that statement, the quest for finding the book began. He started from the left, trying to find the color of the book, he didn't even remember the title name. Without luck, he tried the other bookshell, and then the other one, without any positive results.
"Nami… you didn't sell it, did you?"
"Of course not! Who would buy it anyways?"
Defeated, he decided to leave the library. When he closed the door after saying a quick bye to Nami, he saw a flower petal falling and disappearing from there. Zoro knew who that petal belonged to, someone who liked to spy as a hobby. He went to look for her.
He quickly found her watering flowers at the deck. When she saw him, she just gave him a smile and continued with her work. Zoro started to talk.
"Spying again, huh?"
"Oh, you realized it? I only had a bit of curiosity about why you of all people would go to see our navigator. Don't worry though, I know where your book is."
"What!?" He shouted, forgetting that he wanted to lectured her about how spying is bad. "How do you know that!?"
"It's actually quite simple, I was there when our navigator took it to the room we share." Looking at Zoro's shocked expression, she continued. "It should be in the small treasure chest our navigator has under her bed, you can go see it for yourself."
He didn't doubt about going to the girl's room for a second. Ignoring the possible misunderstandings he could cause by being seen there, he entered. He saw two beds, each one had a nightstand at the left side and were perfectly done with same-colored bed sheets, they looked like exact replicas! Luckily, Zoro could detect a light odor of tangerines coming from the bed at the right. He saw under it and found the small treasure chest, he opened it and found some magazines, collars, jewels, a picture and his damn blue book.
Zoro couldn't help but look at the picture for a second, a small Nami was smiling along with a purple haired girl and a red haired woman. He thought about how adorable she looked, even more than that time she lost twelve years. He was lost in thought for a while until he remembered why he was there in the first place, he needed the stupid book because "A big part of the knowlege of a swordsman is in the books and stuff…". He wasn't a pervert like the stupid cook. Trying to ignore the fact he thought Nami was adorable, he closed the treasure chest and hid it under the bed. Now he realized that he was in a dangerous land, if someone saw him come out, horrible misunderstandings could happen.
His good luck let Brook saw him closing the door of the girl's room.
"Zoro-san! What're you doing there? Hold it! Don't tell me…?" His expression changed (as much as someone without skin can change his expression) from curiosity and pride when he said. "You want to look at Nami-san and Robin-san's panties like Sanji-san and I! Yohoho, let me welcome you, my pervert comrade, I have to tell Sanji-san about our newest club member!"
"Wait a minute, you pervert skeleton! Don't put me in that moron cook's level! Look, I just came for this book, get it?" Zoro talked as defensive as he could.
"There is no need to lie, Zoro-san. Accept your interior pervert and be part of our alliance to see panties." Brook stated, totally convinced that Zoro was lying. He never reads after all.
"Damn it, Brook, I just came for the stupid book! Now goodbye!"
Zoro went to the deck to read, leaving Brook dissapointed. When he got there, he leaned back on the ship's mast to finally read the stupid blue book.
He didn't realized how terrible his plan was when the fish that Ussop caught fell right into him. He didn't realized how terrible his plan was when Chopper asked him if he was feeling sick because he never reads. He realized how terrible his plan was when Luffy started to shout at Sanji for food, Ussop later joined them to complain why girls had a better treatment, Chopper also joined them, afraid of being left behind. Franky was also shouting from the other side of the ship, showing off his latest invention to a not-at-all surprised Robin. He understood why Nami yelled and beat them all the time, it was imposible to have a quiet reading session in the deck. Outrageous!
Speaking of Nami, he decided to confront her about the book's location. He forgot about her when Brook found him leaving the girl's room, but now he had it against her. If not for Robin's intervention, he would've never found the stupid blue book.
Zoro opened and closed the door to the library in a quick movement, not wanting anyone to see him enter a room again. Nami was still doing her maps when she looked at Zoro, holding a blue book in his right hand.
"So you finally found it, congratulations!" She said with a honest smile.
"Congratulations? Is this some kind of game for you? Is hiding my book until I find it someday funny?!"
"What're you talking about? I didn't hide your blue book! I was just happy for you, stupid."
"You're in denial, then? Too bad, Robin already told me that you took my book and hid it in your treasure chest!"
With that, something made a click in Nami, as if a puzzle was finally resolved. She remembered that she indeed took the book and why she did that.
"Fine, I took the book. But this is all your fault anyways!"
"How is this my fault, woman?!"
"The day we filled the library again, I took your book to tease you later about your debt. I would've probably returned it but you never showed up to reclaim your stupid book. It's been a while you know? I forgot about it with the time and the book just remained in my treasure chest."
"And couldn't you tell me that before I started to look everywhere like a moron?"
"I for-got, are you deaf?! Don't be such a crybaby, you have the stupid book after all. Robin gave it to you, didn't she?" Nami pointed to the book.
Zoro, remembering how he went to the girl's room by himself, decided to follow Nami's reasoning. He didn't like to lie to a comrade, but it was for the best of both... mostly him though.
"Yeah, Robin helped me with the book."
"So, if we are clear, you can go read it somewhere."
"I just came from trying that, but those idiots won't stop distracting me!" He soon got an idea. "Oi, can I read here?
"I guess you can, but I will charge you 200 beris for the place and 20000 beris for my presence here."
"Yeah, yeah, just add it to my debt, witch."
Zoro leaned on the wall besides the door and started to read. Silence reigned on the library. While Nami was still finishing a map, Zoro was doing his best to concentrate. He began to think that maybe the trouble weren't his loud friends, it was the boring content of the book. Only words, too much words, most of them weren't related to swords at all. After some lines he read a "technique" or "edge" but they were so few he was bored. There wasn't a single picture in the damn book! He couldn't bear it any longer when he found a term he couldn't read. How was he supossed to continue now? What if that damn term was essential?
"Oi… Nami." He said, abandoning his pride for what he was going to ask.
"Huh? Is something wrong?"
"You see… this book is old and the ink of some characters made others… well… hard to read. I can't read it... can you do it?"
"So, you're telling me you saw a word you can't read? Ha! Roronoa Zoro, defeated, by a book!"
"Sh-shut up! Are you going to help me or not?!"
"But of course, give me that…" Nami started to read. "Mizog… No, mizoguto… ugh… mizog-"
"Ha! It seems Cat Burglar Nami was also defeated!"
"Silence! Mizoguche… Mizoguchi-ha itto-ryu! Take that, idiot!"
Nami handled the blue book back with a triumphal smile on her face, looking cute at the moment. Zoro looked at her with a smile for a couple of seconds before grabbing the blue book. After a quick thanks, he returned to the reading.
Half an hour later, Nami didn't know what do anymore, before the idiot swordsman asked for help she had already finished her map. She tried to convince herself that the map was still a work in progress but it was up to no use, she knew it was a lie. Before finishing the map, she was planning to go to the deck to sunbathe for a while, but now she was sitting in front of her desk, just playing with her pencil and paper sheet, pretending to do something. What was wrong with her? She thought that maybe, juuust maybe, she liked to be around Zoro in a peaceful mood, even if they weren't talking. Just knowing they were close to each other felt good and relaxing. Maybe if she could get closer…
"Lunch is ready, come to eat imbeciles!" The shout took Nami out of her thoughts. She saw Sanji come in.
"Nami-san, lunch is ready." He said, happily. Not realizing Zoro was besides him, a fight between the two was avoided. He retired to somewhere after hearing a Thanks, Sanji-kun from the navigator.
"He's probably going to tell Robin now" Nami thought.
After the door closed, she realized that Zoro was sleeping with the blue book on his face. He even was snoring, how did she not noticed that until now? Nami got up of her chair to wake up Zoro, she couldn't help but stare at him for a while. His face, usually serious, was now extremely relaxed, she thought he looked kind of cute like that. She usually saw that expression when he was drinking or passing out after drinking, but now he was sober (was he?). Maybe he could relax by being close to her too? Nami blushed while repeatedly saying No way to herself.
She decided to wake him up already.
"Hey, inveterate reader, lunch is ready." She said, slowly kicking him.
"Hmm? Ah, damn it, this book is too boring." He said while getting up, with the book now in his hand. "Well, at least I tried, take it." He extended the book to Nami, surprising her.
"Why are you giving me this?"
"Don't know, can't think of a better person to take care of my belongings." He looked at Nami, she was even more surprised than before. "Huh, think of it as a guarantee from my debt, okay?"
"Hm... Okay, but don't think this covers more than a 1% of your debt!" She replied with a smile, before going to the kitchen with him.
That's it! You reached the end of my fanfic. This is the first time I translate one of my own works, it was really fun. Reviews are always welcome!