Hi,

so like I said, I couldn't make it yesterday, but here I am with the second-last chapter and we will finish as planned next friday.

So I hope you'll enjoy it ;-)

Chapter 11

-Zoro-

An inner calmness filled him.

Not that it was surprising, after all, he was resting at the moment and that was better than sleeping.

Unlike humans, dragons regenerated not through sleep, but through resting, one of his favorite activities.

Different to sleeping, there were two types of resting. Light and deep resting. The former could perhaps be compared to the effectiveness of a nap, although it took much more time. He could use light resting to gain energy only in the short term, because during this phase he was aware of everything happening in his surrounding, so it wasn't really relaxing. It took him about 12 hours of light resting to be as refreshed as he could be within four hours of sleep.

Not that he had slept often during his earlier life. At that time, he had almost never been on the road as a human and therefore could not remember having ever slept like one.

In this life, of course, things were different. Although he could not stay asleep for long at a time - and therefore appreciated his little naps in between - it was his favorite occupation, besides practice of course.

Since he had left the crew - no, since the Korekutas had tracked him down - sleep had not been an option, because unlike resting, one could not actively decide to sleep, but had to relax and relaxation was a luxury that he could not afford most of the time.

But light resting took far too much time for him to really recover, he was reluctant to do so if he could avoid it. It was an unnecessary pastime.

Thus, he only could rest deeply if he wanted to do something else meaningful during the day, such as training, and he had to, after all, he still had a long way to go to regain his old strength.

The deep resting was completely opposite to light resting. Within an hour or two, he was able to fully recover, and the lottery game, whether he would wake up relaxed – as he did with sleeping – did not exist.

Still, it was something he never did lightheartedly. While he could observe his surroundings continuously during the light resting and could also wake up at any time while sleeping, this just did not happen with deep resting.

As long as he was resting, he was completely isolated from his environment. If the world were to go down, he wouldn't notice. Even if someone chopped off his arm, he wouldn't notice until he was done resting.

He recalled the second time he had deeply rested in Rayleigh and Roger's presence and they had been attacked. He had almost drowned in the sea and hadn't even beware of it. Bad thing, slowly coming back to one's senses – not even able to freely move for several seconds – and noticing that enemies were all around.

If Silver weren't in his immediate vicinity right now, he wouldn't dare to rest deeply. Before he had met the two pirates, he had almost never done it; it would have been far too dangerous and even now he could only afford such a risk, because the other man was present and Zoro could entrust his life to him.

But deep resting was not a like dreamless sleep, no, while his subconscious processed the things it had to process, he was able to consciously arrange his thoughts or even relive memories from the point of view of an outsider.

Time seemed to pass more slowly as he rested deeply, something he had never fully understood. Sometimes he repeated memories of whole days and little more than a few hours had passed. On the other hand, he had sometimes turned off his head only for minutes and woke up three hours later.

Time was something he hadn't been counting on for a long time. What even was time?

The last few days had also been blurred into a strange unity. If the sun hadn't kept going up and down, and his former vice-captain hadn't kept pushing him to pause, he couldn't have said how much time had passed.

He had only trained, just like the last two years, but this time mainly in his true form.

But being all honest, the training had not really helped him. It was a miserable attempt to distract him, distract him from the truth, Silver hadn't minced his words about. So, from now on, his future would look like this?

Slowly he began to notice his body again, in a few seconds to minutes he would return into the real world.

It used to be easier; it had not been pleasant to leave his crew all those years ago, but he had always expected it, had expected to leave at some point, like a dark foreboding.

It was precisely the same foreboding that he had had back then, when he had met Luffy, and had told him that he would only follow the boy with the straw hat as long as it did not hinder his dream.

Now Zoro was simply discarding it, giving it up. Something for which he had been training, fighting, living for over twenty years. It hurt, it hurt indescribable.

But he knew that neither Rayleigh nor anyone from his crew could ever understand it, perhaps most likely Nami. The navigator also had a dream, but back then, when her island had been tyrannized by the pirate Arlong, she had sacrificed it for the goal to save her island - her homeland.

Now she was free, her island was free, and she could finally pursue her dream. She had lost a few precious years, but still had enough time to fulfill her dream of drawing the first map of the world.

It was a little different for him. At some point, Hawkeyes would get too old, and even if someone even better would beat him, if Zoro was honest, it wasn't just about becoming the greatest swordsman in the world anymore. Since their encounter in the East Blue, it had become something personal between him and Hawkeyes. He wanted to return the wound Mihawk had given him, just as he had promised.

He still wanted the title, still wanted the world to shout his name, that the whole world would know that Roronoa Zoro was the greatest swordsman in the world, that future generations of swordfighters would call his name in the same breath as the greatest masters of the old times.

But he didn't want – under no circumstance - that people thought it was just because his dragon powers. He didn't want an unfair advantage, even if he couldn't do anything about it. At a certain age, his dragon genes would give him advantages even in the human body, at least he would not age as fast as the average, he knew from the past.

So, if he really wanted to realize his dream, he had to achieve it beforehand so that he would not cheat himself. But even then, he felt he had already received an unfair advantage. After all, he no longer looked back on twenty years of life experience, but on roughly four times as many.

He had not asked to be born as a Bronze into this world, and he had not asked to grow up without all these memories, had not asked to recover them. Now he carried the burden of his old life on his shoulders and did not know what to do.

But he knew two things.

First, he had a mission, he was the ninth generation of heirs, he had to ensure the survival of the dragons and the Tree of Life regardless of the consequences. This meant that at some point he would have to plant the Dragon Bud, from whose fruits new dragons would hatch to protect the crown of the Tree of Life once again.

On the other side, the second thing he knew was that no matter what, he would never again be captured by Korekuta. That was the one thing he would not put up with, not even for his destiny.

But the real question was, was Rayleigh right?

In the distant future, if the few people important to him were no longer alive, would he really pursue his former goal and completely wipe out the world nobles, who had taken away the name of his people, the Celestial Dragons?

He didn't know.

On one hand, he knew it wouldn't help him. Revenge was never something he would approve. On the other hand, only one thought of the past was enough and part of him wanted to do it. The dragon part of him wanted it more than anything.

He felt a deep sigh in his chest. Soon he would wake up.

How much he had envied his father, who had been able to completely separate his feelings from his rational thinking. As a child, he had never understood why he had been different, but by now, of course, he knew the reason.

Yes, he was rational; yes, he could ignore his feelings for his decisions, but they were always there, they always hurt, and they were mostly very clear. He did not feel anger, sorrow, joy and suffering all at once, he only felt anger, only pain, only joy. One feeling almost completely covered any other and it took him a lot of trouble to distinguish the other ones below.

Not that he usually took the time to think about it at all. By now it was easier, the twenty years in human form had helped him.

Slowly, he opened his eyes.

It welcomed him a ceiling of green leaves. A few more seconds, then he would be able to move again. His fingers tingled, he heard the surrounding nature, the rustling of the leaves, distant bird voices, quiet paws over the forest floor.

"Well, good morning."

Clumsily, he sat up and looked over to the former pirate. His lips were still too heavy to be able to make comprehensible words. He would never get used to the half-minute that his body needed to fully awaken.

"Two hours and 18 minutes," Rayleigh replied to the question, which Zoro hadn't had to ask for years. The old man sat in the same place where he had been sitting, when Zoro had decided to rest, and read the newspaper relaxed.

Stiff, Zoro got up and stretched.

"Do you really plan on watching over me from now on?" he mumbled, reaching for one of the bottles the other had brought him.

"If it's necessary, of course."

"Must be quite boring." He pulled out the cork with his teeth, spat it aside, and took a deep sip.

"Oh, I've always wanted to take some time to try out a few new hobbies I couldn't before. Knitting, for example."

Zoro couldn't prevent a quiet chuckle and promptly choke on his drink.

"What?" The other said, grinning. "Don't you think such a hobby would fit me?"

"I dare you to open up a bar here just to have an excuse to drink and gamble all day." His voice was still slightly scratchy.

"Unnecessary, the village down the mountain has a bar. The waitress is really a feast for the eyes."

Zoro looked at him with raised eyebrows.

"That means you've already been banned from the house. Cheated again?"

"What gave you that idea?" Slightly offended, the other turned over another page.

"Because you're bad at playing cards. Even I beat you and I learned to play from you, remember?"

With a heavy sigh, the other rejected the bottle Zoro offered him.

"No thanks, at my age I shouldn't drink such high-proof stuff anymore. Would probably only end in stomach pains." He shook his head. "It's sad that a simpleton like Roger could suck the money from our pockets."

The swordsman could only agree to this.

But suddenly Zoro realized that something had changed on the island. His bare feet dug easily into the ground.

"Have you noticed it just now?" His former vice-captain asked mockingly. "My goodness, your senses are really still expandable, my dear."

"You knew?" He swallowed heavily and looked over to the other.

"What? Why do you think I urged you to rest? Just so you wouldn't get stupid ideas." Angry, he stared at the other. "Don't look at me like that. Would you have bolted again? Wouldn't you have bolted again? You were exhausted and would have certainly made some stupid decisions."

"Silver, I didn't leave, just so they can sack me back in now. That wasn't the point of the whole plan."

"What plan are you talking about? Waiting till all your friends are asleep and then vanishing within the dark of the night? Of course, they were going to track you down. Maybe they just want to talk to you. After all, you didn't really say goodbye. But you have to admit that they are good. Following my Vivre Card to find you."

Zoro turned away and glanced into the distance. Rayleigh got up and came to him, also looking in the same direction.

"So Bronze, they just went ashore. I don't know how long it takes them to find us. What are you up to? If you leave now you would make it, I mean they would definitely see you, but then at least they would know for sure that you won't come back."

"Shut up, would ya?"

"Oh, are you that nervous?" The other mocked.

"What if Korekuta followed them? He's not an idiot. What if they unknowingly brought him along?"

Suddenly the other grabbed him by the shoulder and looked at him seriously.

"Then I know exactly what to do."

A proof of trust and friendship that Zoro would never want to demand. A burden he never wanted Silver to carry, so he just nodded and hoped for the best.

He waited anxiously.

While Rayleigh had opened his newspaper again and continued to read, he tried to relax with his usual meditation techniques, but for God's sake, who would have thought that the others would find him in such a short time?

Of course, it had been a risk to stay close to his former vice-captain, but he hadn't actually expected the others to drop out of their course just to look for him. Perhaps before this whole debacle, but he strongly doubted that all crew members would welcome him with open arms.

It was true that his departure was not the most sensitive of the sort, but it had been better that way, this way at least he had tried to prevent the discussion 'Robin or Zoro'. He was grateful that she had engaged in a conversation and he felt he had reached a conclusion with her on a good note. By the end, their conversation had felt almost like it used to be, but he knew the wound in her trust was too deep.

Throughout her life she had associated the name Bronze with the pain of her incredible loss, he could well understand this pain and knew that it could not pass so easily just because she now knew that he was Bronze, just because she now knew his part of the history. The special relationship they had nourished and enjoyed was now torn apart by their linked tragic histories, and it hurt him, but it hurt even more that he had hurt her, and there was nothing he could do about it, nothing but wait.

Then he heard them.

Luffy's voice hollered through the jungle long in advance.

On Rayleigh's confirming nod, he got up and stepped into the clearing where they had set up their modest camp. The first thing he saw was the man he called his captain, and the moment Luffy saw him, he ran, jumped towards him and literally swept him off his feet.

It hurt.

Not the impact, of course not. But the knowledge that they were there because of him, that his captain had obviously missed him and that they were there.

Damn it!

He never thought he would have missed them so much. It took him his whole control to not embrace the younger man on top of him.

"Zoro!" Luffy grinned at him.

"Luffy," he muttered.

In the background, he could hear the others. But all he saw was the face of his captain, who just looked down to him. Zoro swallowed, he knew his eyes were uncomfortable for most people, and yet Luffy looked directly at him, didn't dodge his gaze for a second.

"I have something for you." Luffy was still grinning and rolled to the ground next to Zoro and sat up.

"What?" Confused, Zoro got into a sitting position as well. He hadn't expected that declaration.

For a second, he let his gaze wander over the others. They all looked excited, rosy cheeks, hidden or open grins. They were all there, no one had stayed behind at the Thousand Sunny.

"Here."

Luffy had both hands hidden behind his back and pulled them forward now, pulling something out from under his vest.

Then he presented him two sticks. At least for a second he thought they were two sticks.

"No," he whispered and the blood in his veins curdled.

Luffy didn't hold two simple sticks, it was a broken, white cane.

"There's no reason for you anymore not to come home," Luffy said, surprisingly soft. "He will never do anything to you ever again."

No one said anything and Zoro tried to understand. But it was impossible. Muchinushi was invincible, was invulnerable, was...

He shook his head.

What did that mean?

Was the broken cane a peace offering from Korekuta, that he would leave him at peace as long as Luffy lived? Was it a sign that he didn't even need the walking stick to get him back? Did he mean that he would no longer forgive?

"Why doesn't he say anything?"

"What's going on?"

"Zoro?"

He heard their voices.

What had they done?

What had they given for this and what would it cost him?

Zoro had run; it had not been the best solution, but a reasonable one, a solution that should endanger neither them nor him. What had they done?

"Don't look like that." Luffy laughed. "It's all good."

"What did you do?" Zoro whispered helplessly.

"Took care of your worst nightmare as it seems," the cook commented dryly.

Hearing the words but not understanding, he looked up to the blond.

"What, can't you even speak anymore?" Sanji grumbled. "You've heard it or are you too stupid to understand? The Korekutas are gone. Luffy defeated Muchinushi."

Behind him, Silver gasped for air, but Zoro still didn't know what that meant. Confused, he looked at his captain again, who was still grinning foolishly.

"It wasn't that easy," he admitted laughing. "Until I understood how he was fighting, I had to take in some beating. But the trick is that he's only as strong as your own attack and when I figured that out, it was really funny. But after his stick broke, it became damn bleak, because without it this Mussel-Nussel is not really that strong. The others helped me, and then we made it."

"Muchinushi," Usopp corrected, a hand covering his mouth.

"I don't understand," Zoro finally managed to say. "What kind of deal did you make?"

Now the straw-hat boy looked at him very confused.

"Deal?" he asked. "Oh, right."

Then he nodded with a grin.

"Yes, so the deal was that I kicked all his teeth out of his wide grin and told him to keep his hands of his stupid list if he didn't want me to break them one at a time."

Luffy didn't stop grinning for a second, although it didn't fit at all that a naive simpleton of his captain would make such threats.

"What?"

"You still don't get it?" Nami asked with a broad smile. "Luffy teared the strips off Muchinushi, knocked the stuffing out of him, beat him up, however you want to express it. And we took care of Joudama."

"Amazing," the Dark King behind him whispered, more delighted than skeptical.

And slowly, very slowly, he understood. He saw the broken staff in front of him and understood what it meant.

He couldn't breathe, something unknown happened to him as he stretched out a hand and touched the broken cane. Almost at the same time, all these memories returned and shattered in front of his inner eye.

He pressed the other hand against his mouth when he finally understood what Luffy had done, what he had done for him, and that he had made it.

The tears ran down his cheeks hot, burning into his skin.

"Zoro?"

"What…?"

He could hear them, their concern, but he couldn't stop it, bending over as this one emotion captured him and the tears took their course unconstrained.

He screamed out the pain, couldn't keep it within himself, couldn't stand it, couldn't stand it any longer and then he felt warmth.

Arms hugged him, hands embraced him, familiar smells, familiar touches, on his back, arms, shoulders, hands, chest, legs. Long hair fell down his ear, fur swiped his cheek on the other side, fingers stroked through his hair.

He cried and cried while they held him.

He was home. He was finally home.