A/N: So here's the third chapter. Thanks to those who reviewed so far :D It's been very encouraging!
This is to the anonymous reviewer Odrade from last week: Thank you for reviewing despite English not being your mother language – it isn't mine either, but it might as well be these days.
Timeline: When Chopper joins the crew (Vol. 17, ~Chapter 154). There's also a reference to Luffy and Zoro's first meeting (Vol. 1, ~Chapter 4).
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Regret
It was a beautiful night with cherry blossoms blowing in the ocean breeze. The crew at the moment were in high spirits, including the swordsman who even poured Sanji sake. Everyone seemed extremely pleased to have a doctor finally join them – not to mention a cute and furry one at that. Amongst the shipmates, Luffy appeared the happiest, but then again he always did in most situations.
As Zoro finally relaxed himself after a small argument about food with Sanji, he leaned back in content to watch the crazy antics of his crew. Surprisingly, Sanji did as well, but Zoro didn't mind too much.
Their small conversation was completely unknown to anyone else beside themselves, for most of the crew were too distracted being disgusted or being disgusting (Luffy and Usupp were running around with chopsticks held between their nose and mouth again).
Then, out of the blue…
"Oi, I heard you were a pirate hunter before you joined Luffy," Sanji started. "Why did you do it?" The blonde was feeling pretty good that night, so he waited for an answer. As Sanji waited, he removed the cig from his mouth and took a swig from his mug. He wasn't expecting an immediate reply.
Not expecting such a random question, Zoro was caught off guard by the cook's words. However, Zoro himself was in a good mood as well, so he decided to answer.
Then, taking a trip down memory lane, Zoro recalled the first time he met Luffy. The dark-haired boy had tried recruiting him…
"I have things I need to do," said Zoro. "Besides, I'm not going to be a bad guy like a pirate."
"That's the difference? Besides…Everyone already thinks you are a bad guy," Luffy pointed out.
Zoro glared at the childish young man. "I don't care what they say about me! I haven't done one thing that I regretted in the past and it will be the same for the future! I won't become a pirate!" he firmly declared.
Luffy wouldn't buy it for a second. "I don't care! You are going to join me!"
And join he did.
Zoro swirled the liquid in his mug as he looked upon his crewmates. He glanced at Vivi and Caru, Chopper, Usopp, Nami, and then at their captain, before he answered. The blonde cook could barely hear his companion's answer through all the chortling and merrymaking of their shipmates.
"I would've regretted it," said Zoro as he stared on deep in thought. "I would've regretted it for the rest of my life if I knew what I would be missing out on."
Sanji wasn't sure if Zoro realized it but, as the last few words left the swordsman's mouth, his gaze lingered the longest on the one who gave the heartiest laugh of them all.
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I honestly had no idea what to write but I just had to get out a chapter. I already scrapped two ideas before this final version. By the way, I've pretty much decided I'd update either late on Fridays or early on Saturdays, but I could update more and earlier if I get positive responses ;)
Hope you guys like this series so far and thanks for reading!