Chapter Two: Take her Zoro!
The tall, muscular man navigated the twists of the city and to a passerby he seemed to master each turn, deliberate and swift.
Shit. Shitshitshit. Where did the shore go?
Turning past an almost familiar looking corner, his eyes danced around the window of Ueda's restaurant and clinic. The sight of the sign sent him into a fit of annoyance and a slight rage.
"AAAAAAAAAAAGH, WHERE AM I GOOOOING?!" His hands sprang to his rough face, pulling his skin with a force that relieved only a little of the tension in his fingers.
"Zoro, are you back here again?" An old and hunched frame peaked out of the door, Zoro's shoulders fell with an angry sigh. He had meant to find his crew before the Marines, but there wasn't the usual crashing or screaming that made them easy to spot.
Maybe that means they haven't been spotted.
Ueda Tadao smirked at the man that had saved his daughter's life hours before, but couldn't find his way around the small town. Allowing himself to laugh when the intimidating swordsman admitted defeat, the restaurant owner motioned him inside, knowing what it meant if anyone saw him.
Zoro begrudgingly accepted his invitation and drug his feet into the building, remembering the ruckus that he had caused. The old man motioned him to a seat and disappeared through swinging doors. His mind wandered back to that scene, the now empty dining room had been full with people and he allowed himself to mull over the memory of his entrance.
Shock and fear.
That was the emotion painting each face as he hurried her to safety. Shock of his loud and hurried entrance, fear of.. him perhaps? Or maybe just fear for the fragile girl that lay unconscious and bleeding in his arms. His fingers danced over a drying patch of thick-red, matting his shirt to his abdomen. Contemplating peeling the shirt from his body, he didn't feel it was appropriate to undress in this place, but when the small man emerged from the kitchen he brought with him a small bundle.
"Here, change out of that. No need to look like a blood thirsty pirate at least."
"I'm not a blood thirsty pir—"
His voice caught in his throat, in a tight hot lump, as his eyes wandered over a piece of bright purple cloth given to him by the old man.
"You old pervert."
On the front was a drawing of a woman, Emi, in a scant kimono holding two onigiri suggestively with the caption, We know balls.
"DID EMI AGREE TO THIS?!" He threw his hands on the table in protest. The swordsman relaxed a millimeter as he realized he didn't know this girl at all, this could've been her idea. The old man pulled him from his thoughts.
"That's not Emi, it's her mother."
Zoro adverted his eyes, but the old man urged him to study the image. The woman was taller than Emi, more muscular and her eyes housed a certain mischief that was missing from the sweet girl who had saved his life. Tadao ran his fingers lovingly over the painted shirt, and pushed the it toward the Straw Hat pirate. Understandably, albeit a bit reluctantly, Zoro pulled his worn and dingy shirt over his head before replacing it with this rough, stiff T-shirt. It obviously had just been pulled from a box where it had been folded up for some time. The smell of seasonings and paint permeated from into his nostrils, causing them to twitch.
"When I started this restaurant Emi's mother was newly gone, she still held a special place in the hearts of a lot of the village, I simply used her God given gifts to drum up business to provide for our daughter." His face shown that of complete indifference to the fact that he just admitted to exhorting his wife's image for money. Zoro twitched as he sat perfectly still and listened to this man's unbelievable story. It was silent for a moment while he fully absorbed the information.
"YOU PERVERTED OLD MAN!"
"Shush, you'll wake Emi!"
Zoro's mouth slammed shut and he groaned as he regained his seat and his composure. The two men snapped their attention to the doorway as the sound of men entering the establishment filled the air.
"Oh yeah this place is gr—"
The man entering first spotted Zoro and stopped in his tracks, causing the man behind him to slam into him, and push him closer toward the dangerous pirate.
"Oh my god, bro. What are you—"
The second man laid eyes on the scene in front of him, freezing as his companion and all four looked nervously around each other. Tension filled the room like water, threatening to drown its inhabitants as they all tried to figure out what to do next.
"Its ok—"
Both men bolted as fast as they could at the sound of Zoro's voice, and screamed into the distance as they ran. Tadao sighed deeply and ran his fingers over his temple. This wasn't good, the town knew he was here and while he could convince the town Zoro had only saved Emi, him being seen in his establishment cemented their involvement.
Standing up and motioning Zoro into the kitchen, they found Emi sitting up and sipping on tea at small table. She looked almost like the incident had never happened, except that dark circles formed under her eyes.
"How are you up?" An uneasy feeling entered Zoro, trying to figure out how a waitress who had never seen the first day of battle recovered so quickly from being shot. Emi eyed Zoro, drinking in his ruffled hair, sweaty and matted against his scalp. His eyes narrowed at his own question, seeming to size her up as well, but a glint of relief hid behind them upon seeing her safe. She trailed down his strong neck, to his shirt that didn't seem to fit. Realization hit her all at once as she sprayed tea out of her mouth involuntarily.
"What are you WEARING?" She laughed, then got scarily quiet as she continued to study the image. "What. Are. You. Wearing?" She asked slowly again, through gritted teeth, wishing she wasn't so tired, so she could stand up and whack that confused looked off his face.
"This isn't mine! Your dad gave it to me! Blame him!" He threw back the justification as the thick and practically terrifying aura emitted from her.
"Dad! I told you to throw those away! They're nasty!" Emi scolded her father and he put his hand on the back of his head in defeat.
"I'm sorry Emi, I just couldn't let go of them all. This is the only one I swear. He was covered in your blood, we had no choice." As she remembered what had happened, her demeanor changed and she pointed her attention back to the man who had saved her life.
"Thank you, Zoro, you didn't have to risk your life bringing me here and I appreciate that." Her gaze softened on his eyes and he blushed a little under it's feathery touch.
"It's nothing." His head shot down, avoiding her eyes as he recovered from the look.
Stupid woman. Looking at me with those demon bedroom eyes.
"UEDA EMI AND STRAW HAT PIRATE ROANOA ZORO. COME OUT OF THE RESTAURANT WITH YOUR HANDS UP." The sound of the marine's request rang loudly through the mostly empty restaraunt, and Zoro knew what had to be done. His hand reached for the sword, his thumb pushing it from it's sheath. But Tadao stopped him.
"YOU HAVE THIRTY SECONDS TO COME OUT WITH YOUR ARMS UP OR WE START FIRING." The marines continued to threaten.
"You mustn't fight! Take Emi and LEAVE they want her uncover her mother's secrets! Run!"
Emi had no time to protest as Zoro grabbed the girl around her waste, and hoisted her onto his shoulder. He owed this woman for saving him and maybe his entire crew. He would get her out of here and bring her back when the coast was clear. "What bout you old man?"
"I'm not important, I will hold them off while you escape."
A spray of bullets shattered the picture window and glass doors of the establishment, Tadao knew he wouldn't make it out of this and his eyes darted around his home turned war zone. He hit the ground to avoid the onslaught, turned to his daughter, and the man he would entrust her safety to, "Take her and never let her fall into the hands of the World Government! Protect her Zoro! She holds the key to ONE PIECE!"
Zoro's eyes widened at the new information, and shock almost stopped him from being able to dodge an on coming bullet. "What do you mean?" He sputtered, lunging into the kitchen with Tadao close behind. Flames erupted from the gas oven when it was hit and it started leaking flammable gases into the air. He knew he had to get out, but wanted to save the man who could explain to him how this girl could have anything to do with Luffy's goal. He reached to hoist the man over his other shoulder when the flames roared with life, shooting out to create an impenetrable wall between the pirate and doctor. It was too late. "Old man?!"
"Zoro, go!"
He secured his grip on the woman over his shoulder, and ran as fast as he could out the back door. The cobble stone streets filled with the smell of the burning eatery and soon with the distinct smell of burning flesh. They hid behind a wall near the scene, and Zoro held Emi back as she tried to escape from him and run back to the only home she had ever known. Tears and screams drowned in her throat, but the flames enraged loudly as if they enjoyed making her watch as they turned her home into her father's grave.
Zoro threw her over his shoulder once again and ran toward shore, grateful for the numerous street signs he had memorized on his last journey around. Hopefully his crew would be at the Sunny and ready to depart. He had no time to ask Luffy permission to bring Emi, but knew he'd understand. He was thankful for his Captain as he ran, and he threw each foot closer to escape. The woman on his back passed out from exhaustion and stress, tears silently flowing and they continued to retreat. The sunny came into view and after seeing a skinny figure sitting on the head of the lion, Zoro relaxed.
"LUFFY! WE NEED TO LEAVE NOW!" He yelled, finally getting close enough to reach out for the ladder onto the ship. The pirate captain looked confused at the urgent nature of his first mate's request. Luffy noticed the woman over his shoulder as he climbed.
"Oh man Zoro, who's the girl? Did you kidnap her?" His empty expression enraged Zoro and he yelled obscenities as he finally threw himself over the bow of the ship.
"NO I DIDN'T KIDNAP HER BUT WE NEED TO GO THE MARINE'S ARE RIGHT BEHIND ME."
Upon hearing the word Marines, the crew sprang to life and they prepared to make a break for it. Zoro set the girl down softly in the grass of the deck, before falling over himself. His chest heaved from running and he smeared soot off his sweaty face with the back of his hand. The quick movement of the ship leaving harbor caused a relaxation in his muscles. Allowing himself to close his eyes as the hot sun beat down on him, he reached his arm out to the still unconscious woman next to him. He placed the back of his hand on her stomach, sloppily and protectively, to make sure he could still detect breathing. When he felt the small movement, confirming her life, he relaxed the rest of the way.
Exhaustion from running most of the day looking for his crew, and the stress from his recent encounter weighed heavily on him. He struggled to stay awake, as he felt Chopper approach them, checking each of their injuries.
"Take care of her, Chopper, she knows how to find One Piece."
That was all he could push out until the darkness engulfed him as well, knowing this information secured her and his decision to bring her on board. A rough, deep sleep took him, and as he quit fighting it he was happy to have gotten her safe from the fight.
Stupid woman. I'm glad you're safe.
Thank you Ghoststar because I wasn't sure I should continue until I got your review!